Update! Enjoy! (I know the gates don't open until the coronation, but for the sake of the story, let's all just go with it XD)
Arendelle didn't get any visitors. One sunny, yet cold morning held an exception. The royal family of Enchancia arrived at the castle in a golden carriage. Out hopped the king, queen, prince and two princesses. Elsa and Anna stood by to welcome the family to Arendelle. Elsa remained stoic and calm while Anna was more than eager. Meeting new people was a rarity that she wanted to take advantage of.
She was surprised to find that the prince and princesses- who she was most excited to meet- were a good head shorter than her. Anna shrugged it off, though, still open to be friendly with them. The prince looked extremely bored, the blonde princess eyed Anna once with disinterest, but looked to Elsa with admiration; the auburn-haired princess gazed around the area with wide eyes.
Anna was occupied for the majority of the day, less so than Elsa, but still offered entertainment. The family took to Elsa mostly, entranced by the regality of the future queen, but Anna got a couple of good moments in as well. Still, after dinner, Anna was eager to slip away. She'd promised to Jack an evening in the library and didn't want to keep him waiting.
Jack appeared at the window and she allowed him inside; he hopped down, removing his cloak and setting down his staff. "There's lots to choose from so which do you pick?" Anna gestured to the bookshelves. Jack, who wasn't much of a book person, especially since he was a little rusty on his reading skills, scanned the coves. He eventually pulled out an adventure story with lots of pictures and few words. He and Anna sat before the fireplace, Jack reading aloud while Anna occasionally pitched in, helping him pronounce words. Toward the end of the tale, the library door creaked open.
Anna and Jack twisted around to face the littlest princess of the royal family, Sofia. The two then shared looks. "That's one of the princesses from the royal family." Anna muttered to Jack, having mentioned them before. He nodded.
"Who are you talking to?" Sofia lifted an eyebrow. Anna's eyes widened and she glanced to her friend again, faltering. Jack frowned. Anna looked to the little girl,
"Jack Frost?"
"Who?" Sofia uttered. The little girl watched in confusion as Anna appeared to be conversing to thin air.
Anna thought a moment, and then smiled, "I've got an idea." Jack raised an eyebrow and watched Anna stand up, approaching Sofia. "Why, Sofia! You don't know who Jack Frost is?" The little girl shook her head. The older princess placed her hands on her hips, "Well, haven't you ever wondered where snow or ice comes from?"
"I never thought about it before." Sofia spoke contemplatively.
"That's him!" Anna replied.
"Wow. Really?" The younger princess said, eyes widening.
"Yes! Now to see him, there's something you've got to do."
"What?" Sofia asked, interested.
"Close your eyes." Anna instructed. The girl did so. "Spin around three times." Anna continued. Jack eyed her with a raised eyebrow. "And… Believe." Anna concluded.
Sofia scrunched her eyes closed tight, a bit dizzy and whispered, "Believe," to herself. Finally, she opened her eyes. Standing near Anna was a boy with pale skin, snowy white hair and watery blue eyes. Sofia gasped. "Anna, you were right!" Sofia exclaimed, running forward. Jack's eyes widened, disbelieving. But the child was staring right at him. She giggled, touching his cold hand, curiously, then looking up. Jack looked to Anna who was smiling happily. His lips cracked into a grin as he gazed back to Sofia. The little girl faced Anna, "Elsa said she hears you talk to yourself a lot, but I knew you weren't crazy."
"Oh. Really?" Anna laughed awkwardly, grabbing at her arm.
"Yeah." Sofia nodded.
"So what brought you here, anyway?" Anna spoke up.
"Oh, right. I wanted to read." Sofia spoke.
"Obviously." Jack muttered. Anna nudged him. Sofia looked between the two with an amused smile.
"But… will you two read a story to me?"
"Us?" They echoed each other.
"Yeah. Do you mind?"
"Uh…" Anna said.
"Well, no." Jack scratched at his hair.
Sofia grinned as Anna spoke, "What sort of stories do you like?"
"Fairy tales! With princesses in them." Sofia responded enthusiastically. Jack wasn't very interested in delving into that genre, but complied along with Anna. She pulled a thick book of tales off the shelf. Jack and Anna sat down by the fireplace once more, this time with Sofia wedged between them. They flipped open to the first story and began to read.
Anna and Jack took turns reading each page, the book open wide before them so Sofia could see the illustrations. The little girl noted how surprisingly deep the boy's voice was, reminding her of her father, the king and putting her at ease. The girl's contrasted nicely, light like a bell, yet animated as she read; reminding Sofia of her mother, the queen. Gradually, she began to nod off. "… The prince swept the princess into his arms, and the couple galloped on their white horse all the way to the castle." Anna read.
"And they lived happily ever after. The End." Jack finished. A light snore sounded from Sofia. He turned to her, then his friend, "Hey, Anna, looks like she fell asleep."
Anna glanced over, and then remarked, "We should probably take her to bed."
"Yeah." Jack agreed, before standing to his feet. "Here, I'll carry her." He pulled the little girl up and she unconsciously latched onto him. Anna shelved the book before joining him, heading out of the library.
Anna led them toward the guest hall, the palace quiet. She marveled over the girl resting on Jack's shoulder. "She's so cute… I wouldn't mind being little again."
The boy smiled slightly, "Yeah…"
Anna looked to him, then, "Oh, down this way." The two headed into a long hall. Arriving at Sofia's bedroom, they entered. Jack pulled at Sofia, trying to detach her from him, but her fingers stubbornly clutched to his shirt. Anna watched him struggle for a moment, trying not to giggle. Finally, Sofia fell onto the bed. Jack ran a hand through his hair in relief, but then Sofia rolled over. Anna caught the child before she face-planted on the carpet. Jack and Anna winced, before Sofia was pushed back onto the blanket. Giving her one last look, the two quietly departed.
Back in the halls, Anna casually spoke up. "You and me make a pretty good team, huh?" Jack raised an eyebrow. "Well. We read Sofia to sleep, tucked her into bed AND you got another believer, Jack."
He smiled at that last remark, "True."
"It felt good." Anna continued. "Like I was a sister…"
"You are a sister." Jack responded.
"A real sister. The type who reads to you and plays with you and talks to you and… those types of things." Anna responded. Jack's eyes lowered; he knew she was thinking about Elsa. "Don't you think it'd be fun to have a big happy family like Sofia's?"
"Yeah." Jack responded. Of course he would. He'd spent 100 years with himself as company. And that was never a comfort. At least he had Anna now, the closest thing to family for Jack. The corner of his lips turned up, a bittersweet smile appearing on his face. Then there was Sofia, another child who now believed. The smile on his face became more genuine. "Yeah, that'd be nice."
Thank you so much for the reviews, follows and favorites! It really means a lot, seriously. I wasn't sure how this series would fare, considering majority appears to be leaning toward Jelsa, but you're making continuing this story worthwhile, so thanks for reading :)
