Magic

From the moment she woke up, Elsa has been showered in affection from her younger sister. It's her twenty third birthday, on the Winter Solstice. The queen has already warned Anna that any mention of a grand party involving more than their immediate family would earn a snowball to the face.

Elsa has no trade agreements or missives to look over. Anna has already made certain that she doesn't even sit at her desk until the next day. The festivities are low-key, just as the queen requested. It's just her, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven for the day, engaging in all manner of winter activities.

Kristoff has most likely sustained a bruised behind after falling while ice skating. Sven manages to get his antlers stuck in the walls of the ice fortress Elsa builds for an intense snowball fight. Olaf goes missing for about an hour, only to return covered with pine needles and tree sap. Anna trips on a flat sheet of ice, giving herself a black eye. As Elsa was rushing to attend to her sister, she fell, her head colliding with Anna's with an audible 'thwack'.

Family game night is slightly awkward that evening when Kristoff finds he can't sit down without being in tremendous pain. Every ten minutes or so, Elsa stops whatever she's doing and applies her ice to Anna's eye. She finds that loud cheering from the ice harvester's numerous victories in charades send waves of agony through her skull. Sven whimpers every so often, rubbing his antlers against any hard surface that might ease his discomfort.

When the festivities are mercifully over, Elsa is understandably reluctant to engage further when Anna says she has a surprise.

"I think we've all had enough excitement for the day," the queen presses her hand to her forehead, sending a blast of cold air to ease the pain.

"Elsaaa, come on!" Anna chimes a falsetto whine, drawing a cringe from her sister. "S–sorry! But seriously, you're going to love this, I promise! And there's zero chance of boldly harm!"

The queen really wants to say no, that she needs some quiet time to calm the screaming in her mind, but the redhead's persistence wins out.

"Okay," she concedes. "But I'm holding you to that 'no bodily harm' promise."

Without explanation, Anna suddenly whips out a piece of fabric and ties it around Elsa's eyes.

"What the-"

"Take my hand, and no peeking!"

The crunch of fresh snow beneath their feet fills the queen with nostalgia. It's like she can feel the snow's shape, relying on sound and memory to remind her what the white powder is without her eyes. Anna is giggling all the while, an unusual nervous energy trickling through the laughter.

"Okay, bend down," Anna instructs, then scurries in front of Elsa. "Here, take my hands."

There's a strange quiet in the air, and Elsa can only guess they're in an enclosed space. After turning her head a few times, she clears her throat.

"Uh, Anna?"

"On it!"

When the blindfold is removed, Elsa sees they are nestled in a circular dome made up of what has to be ice, perfectly cut blocks staggered on top of one another. A strange globe sits in the center of the ice hut, settled above a divot in the ground. It appears to have been made with multiple colors of glass, blown into a perfect sphere. In the corner is a stash of fluffy blankets.

"Okay Elsa, I do need a little magic for this to work. Can you cast some light under that globe, please? Do you think you can make it move, too?"

Confused, but intrigued, Elsa complies, sending a ball of blue light and snowflakes beneath the glass sphere. In moments, all the brilliant colors of the globe cast on the walls of the ice hut, dancing in patterns not dissimilar from the northern lights. Elsa's eyes go wide with wonder, as though she hasn't seen something like this on a much grander scale before.

"Now cuddle close," Anna pats the blanket she's currently seated on.

Elsa has to work to tear herself from the light show before she follows Anna's instruction towards the blanket pile. She can already feel a lump forming in her throat. After Elsa cuddles close, Anna begins to sing their lullaby.

The queen stares in awe. She thinks of all the work that must have gone into this endeavor, for the blocks to be so perfectly polished that they reflect the light of the globe. She imagines her clumsy, well-meaning sister struggling to pile the heavy blocks one on top of the other, while Kristoff no doubt lent a hand.

Try as she might, she can't suppress her sniffles. She feels her sister shift, but the song continues. Anna presses her hand to Elsa's hair, resting her chin atop her older sister's head. The queen can not only hear the words now, but feel them.

Elsa doesn't even realize she's shedding tears until Anna's warm, gloved hand brushes against her cheek, absorbing the overjoyed droplets.

"Happy Birthday, Elsa."

"Oh, Anna...this is beautiful," Elsa places a kiss to Anna's cheek, resting her head on her shoulder. "Thank you so much."

The princess' gloved hand reaches up to smooth through Elsa's hair.

"Kristoff cut the ice, and I helped place the blocks, but the idea's all mine. So, good surprise?"

"The best," Elsa sniffles, making a strange sound between sobbing and laughing.

Anna's brows furrow in concern. She hadn't counted on her older sister bursting into tears from this surprise.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I promise," the queen runs her fist beneath both eyes. "Better than fine. Only you can make me happy cry, Anna."

The redhead murmurs a kind 'aww'.

"That's got to be the cutest thing you've ever said, Elsa."

The queen's flushed cheeks grow darker. She can't even blame the cold for it.

"Aww, you're blushing!"

As the tips of her ears turn pink, Elsa ducks into Anna's shoulder.

"Stinker," Elsa mutters, trying to keep her widening smile from Anna's notice.

"Love you too, sis."


Closing notes: I had this idea where Anna would try to replicate the northern lights, and I had to write it out. Also, I feel like Elsa may be a little too sentimental in this, but after a lifetime of shedding sad and scared tears, I think happy tears would be a nice change of pace.