They didn't talk about it for a week. The silence hung frostily between them, especially during meals. They ate in the dining room as they always had, tiny at one end of the long dark table.
Old habits were hard to break.
Elsa tried to bring it up on the third night. They were sitting across from each other, as usual, and Anna was scowling into her soup.
"Anna," she began. The redhead didn't react at all; she might not have heard. A little louder: "Anna." Still no response, save for the minute twitch of an eyebrow. Elsa closed her eyes, collecting her thoughts. "You're not-"
Anna scooted her chair backwards roughly, and angrily left the room.
Okay, that wasn't going to work.
On the fifth day, Elsa left her room. She spent the day familiarizing herself with the palace, running her hand along the wooden railing as she went down the stairs, tracing wallpaper patterns with her fingers. She hadn't realized how wonderful it was to feel things.
The portrait room was the only room she intentionally avoided. Elsa didn't think she could bear to see all of the eyes watching her. It reminded her too much of her isolated childhood, constantly watched by worried eyes.
That night, Elsa dreamed of frozen hearts, sharp swords, and sisters made of ice. She woke with a start, heart racing, legs tangled in frost-covered sheets, the panic threatening to overwhelm every rational thought.
Day six. The study was warm, at least it was to Elsa. She had never been particularly sensitive to the cold. The fire in the grate was cheerful, though. A stack of papers had collected on the desk, reminding her of her duties. She pictured her father, watching her disapprovingly, and sighed. Anna was right; she hadn't been acting like much of a queen. Queens didn't run off into the mountains, queens didn't ignore their duties, and they certainly didn't fight with their sisters. Sitting down at the desk, Elsa began the tedious task of sorting through paperwork.
Hours later, there was a hesitant knock on the door. "Yes," Elsa called absently, reading a letter from one of the neighboring kingdoms. The door opened slowly. Kai stuck his head in.
"Your Majesty. I do not wish to disturb, however I must insist you eat something. It's- well, it's late." He cleared his throat, evidently waiting for permission to enter.
Elsa stared at Kai. "Late? How long have I been in here?" She could not have been there for more than-
"Eight hours, your majesty." The old servant looked down, almost shyly.
"Eight!" Elsa started to get up, but Kai entered the room completely, revealing a covered plate. "Oh. You…brought me dinner?"
"Of course. I will leave you to your work." Placing the plate on Elsa's desk, Kai left the room.
Their fight ended in the middle of the night. Anna couldn't sleep, she'd never been good at blocking out the colors dancing brightly in the night sky. After tossing and turning for what felt like hours, she gave up on sleep altogether. Padding down the hall in her light green nightgown, Anna shivered as she got closer to Elsa's room. She hesitated outside the door before opening it and stepping in, intending to creep into bed with her older sister so she could sleep, just like they'd done as kids.
But Elsa wasn't sleeping. She was sitting straight up in her bed, blankets strewn haphazardly on the floor, eyes wide, chest heaving wildly, the entire room covered in a thin layer of ice.
"Elsa? What's wrong?" Anna hurried to her sister, slipping a little on the ice, and was almost surprised to be met with a fierce hug. She stroked Elsa's back comfortingly. "It's okay, Elsa. I got you."
Elsa buried her face in Anna's neck, clutching her sister closer. "Anna...it was- you were- I'm sorry."
Anna didn't respond, but kept rubbing her back. They stayed like that for a while. When Elsa calmed down, Anna helped her gather the blankets, and laid down next to her sister. Propping her head up on one elbow, she asked quietly, "Elsa...what was that?"
The blonde was quiet. Fixing her eyes on the ceiling above her bed, she finally replied, "Sometimes I dream about...what happened, what I did to you. And sometimes I dream about what might have happened. Usually you're dead, and it's always my fault." Her voice cracked towards the end, and Anna felt a mixture of guilt and love. She curled up closer to Elsa, resting her head in the hollow of the older girl's neck. Elsa continued, "Anna, I'm sorry about all of this. You're right, I need to work on a lot of things. But from now on, my door is open."
Anna grinned into her sister's hair. "Good. And I'm sorry too. Can we be friends now?"
Elsa laughed. It felt good to laugh. "Only if we're best friends."
