It had been six years since the unexplained and sudden closing of the palace gates. The most the townspeople got from the royal family was that Princess Elsa was terribly sick and had to be quarantined, which made sense for the next few weeks. As time passed, however, people began to question the truth of this tale, especially when most of the palace staff had been fired quite unexpectedly a couple of weeks later. Not one member of the former staff knew the reason for the sudden termination, but most of them were able to find work again with the council members. After this, many rumors began to spread about the royal family. Everything from a war plan to a new baby went around, but the rumors eventually died down as the closed gates became a part of everyday life for Arendelle. No one questioned it. They just looked at the gates with slight disinterest, and then went on with their day.

Dawn was just breaking over the majestic mountains, casting its soft glow over the small town, which was already bustling around and practically humming with excitement. Tomorrow was Princess Anna's eleventh birthday, and there was a rumor going around that the King and Queen were finally going to open the gates to celebrate. The anticipation in the air was as thick as the clouds that hid the top of the North Mountain. Everyone was busy, making sure that the town looked its very best for the King and Queen, who had gone away on a short journey and would be back later that evening.

"Oh Perci, isn't wonderful?" said Debbie as she pulled her husband across the town square, "To finally have the gates open for an evening! An entire evening!" "Yes, dear. Now, let's get the cloth for your new gown."

Back inside the castle, one of the maids who were lucky enough to stay on staff went to check up on the two princesses. Anna was playing in the ballroom, pretending she was at a big beautiful ball and that she was dancing with her Prince Charming. "Yes, Mr. Charming, I would be delighted to have this dance." she said to one of the suits in armor, twirling around it with a lot of gusto. The maid waited by the door for the inevitable…

CRASH!

"Sorry!" Anna yelled, surrounded by pieces of armor. The maid laughed quietly as she walked in and helped the princess straighten up. Anna ran off to play in some other part of the castle as soon as they finished and the maid went to check up on Princess Elsa.

She knocked, but heard no answer from the other side of the door. "Princess Elsa?" The maid knocked again, and then hesitantly opened the door. Elsa appeared to be fast asleep, facing away from the door. The maid left the room without a sound, satisfied that both princesses were safe inside the palace.

As soon as the door shut, the wardrobe opened with a slight creak, revealing Elsa's blonde hair. She peeked around the room before stepping out of the wardrobe, wearing a dark blue hooded cloak over a simple peasant dress. The material felt scratchy, but Elsa refused to let that bother her. Excitement coursed through her body. Today was finally the day that she and Jack were going out to town to get Anna a birthday present.

The plan was simple: get Elsa out of the castle, meet with Jack at their 'special place', work on disguising Elsa, enter Arendelle, get the present, then sneak Elsa back into her room before her parents' ship came.

"Easy peasy. We'll have the present in no time." Jack said a week ago, when they first came up with the plan. Now, Elsa wondered about the downfalls in their plan. '

What if someone sees me?' she thought as she opened the door out to the hallway.

'What if they find the dummy under the covers?' she worried as she ran through the castle to the secret entrance in the library.

'What if my parents come home early?' she fretted as she made her way out of the passageway and into the forest, running as fast as she could through the foliage. As she ran, all of her 'what ifs' slowly vanished, leaving her with the feeling of being ultimately, totally free, with no restrictions, no powers, and no fear to hold her down. She ran faster and faster, laughing as she went, throwing her arms behind her, imagining that this is what flying was like.

Five minutes later, Elsa arrived at the 'special place': a small lake in the middle of the forest about half a mile from Arendelle. Jack found it when they needed a new spot to meet after his family had been fired from the palace. His mother had been one of the lucky ones and quickly found work, although Jack sometimes took odd jobs here and there to help. His sister, who was seven going on eight, went almost everywhere with Jack, except for today. Their mother had Jack's sister working on chores today, so she would not be a bother. Elsa sat down by the edge of the lake, removing the cloak to sit upon it. The rain from last night made the ground very muddy. "Jack?" Elsa called out, looking around her.

"BOO!"

"Ahh!" Elsa screamed and almost fell into the mud. Jack laughed as Elsa stood up and brushed herself off.

"You nearly scared me to death, Jack!" she yelled, turning around to face him. At fourteen years old, Jack was almost a head taller than Elsa was, but the childish spirit remained in his eyes no matter what his age. "Sorry, Elsa. I couldn't help it," he said, smiling like an idiot. Elsa held on to her anger for as long as she could, and then busted out laughing at the exact same time Jack did. When they finally calmed down, Elsa gave Jack a big hug. He had been away longer than their usual wait time because of his mother, who had been getting sick the last few weeks.

Jack hugged her back for a second, and then as they pulled away, he swore that Elsa had been blushing. "

So, are we ready to go?" she said with a smile.

"Wait, wait, wait. Slow down, Elsa," he said, grabbing her cloak and fastening it around her neck, "You forgot the most important part of the mission." Elsa thought for a minute, and then her eyes lit up.

"Oh, that part," she said, the look of apprehension clear on her face, "I already have the cloak, Jack. Why do I need a disguise?"

"It would be weird if you kept the cloak on all day, especially during the summer." Jack stepped back and looked at Elsa. "Put you hair down," he said, bending down. Elsa hesitantly pulled out her braid, running her fingers through to separate the blonde locks.

"What are you planning to-JACK!" she shrieked as he plopped a pile of mud on her head, "What are you doing?"

"Disguising you. Hold still."Elsa cringed as Jack spread the gooey mud all over her hair.

"All done." he announced a minute later, stepping backwards to admire his work, "Now it just needs to dry and we'll be on our way."

Elsa stared at him with horror. "What did you do?"

He pointed at the lake and said, "See for yourself."

Tentatively, she looked at her reflection in the water and stared. Her formally white-blond hair was now a dull muddy brown. If it weren't for her icy blue eyes, she would've never recognized herself.

"Wow." she said, reaching up to touch it. Jack's hand shot out and grabbed her hand before she could touch it.

"It needs to dry first." Elsa looked up at Jack and nodded, stepping away from the water. "What about the rest of me?"

"I think you'll be okay. No one's seen the princess in almost six years. Just don't say your name and we'll be good."

"Don't say my name? How do I do that?"

"Easy. Just pick a new name."

A new name… Elsa thought about it. "How about Mary?" she said.

Jack shook his head. "No. How about Franny?"

"What kind of name "I have an aunt named Franny. Well, her real name is Francis, but everyone calls her Franny.

They thought for a few more minutes. "Ginger?"

"No."

"Dolly?"

"No."

"Helga?"

"Seriously, Jack?"

"What?"

An hour later, the two teens walked into town. "You ready, Sonya?" Jack whispered to Elsa, who was squeezing his hand tightly.

Sonya/Elsa nodded, looking around the busy market. "Okay, then. Let's get Anna the best present ever!"

They wandered around the town for hours searching for the perfect present. Sonya/Elsa kept her head down for the first couple of hours, not willing to look anyone in the eye for fear that they would recognize her as the princess. "What about this doodad, Sonya?" Elsa looked up at the wooden troll carving Jack held up and shook her head. Jack wandered off to look at the other carts.

"Are you looking for something, miss?" Elsa snapped her head back down before the market lady could get a glimpse of her face. "N-no, ma'am. I'm fine." Elsa tried to walk away from the cart, but the market lady called out after her, "If you're looking for a present for Princess Anna, I might have something for you."

Elsa hesitated before going back to the cart. "What's your name, sweetie?"

"Els-Sonya," Elsa mumbled, remembering her new name. "Elsonya?"

"Just Sonya, ma'am. What do you have?"

The market lady pulled back her dark blonde hair into a ponytail before going under the cart. "Well Sonya, everyone's looking for something extravagant to give the princess," she said, "but I've got the feeling that's not what you're looking for." The market lady popped her head up to look at Elsa. "Am I right?"

Elsa nodded. She was beginning to like this woman a lot. "I want to give her something special." Elsa said, looking around the cart. It was filled with herbs, charms, and all sorts of funny looking things. She picked up a stuffed mouse that had big black circles for ears, red pants and white gloves.

"Ah, here it is," the market lady said, straightening up with a snow globe in her hand, "Oh, Mickey isn't for sale, dear. He is quite a character though." She held out her hand until Elsa put Mickey in it, and the market lady put the stuffed mouse up on a high shelf.

"Where was I? Oh, yes! The present." She put the snow globe on the counter for Elsa to see. It was the most beautiful thing Elsa had ever seen. The stand was blue and gold and had crocus flowers all around it. The snow globe itself looked like it had a light dusting of frost on it. Elsa looked inside the snow globe and felt tears well up. Two little girls were ice skating together, spinning around in circles, having the time of their lives.

"Watch this." the market lady said, turning a little knob on the side. A melody started up and the snow globe began to glow, casting a golden light on Elsa's face. It had started to snow inside the globe, but Elsa couldn't see it.

"How much?" she managed to say, pulling out a little purse filled with gold coins. "Ten coins, please." Elsa paid the market lady and went away to find Jack.

"Sonya!" Elsa turned. The market lady waved at her and said, "Don't be afraid to let it go!"

Elsa stared at her for a moment, confused. Let it go?

"Sonya!" Jack called out, running towards her. Elsa turned to face him. "Jack, I got the perfect gift! What is that?"

Jack held up the long crooked stick in his hand. It was almost twice as tall as he was and the crook at the end had a distinct G-shape. "It's a shepherd's crook. That man over there sold it to me for only two coins. Wait, where did he go?"

Jack looked around the market, but he couldn't find the man who sold the staff to him. He shrugged and turned back to Elsa. "What did you get?" Elsa showed him the snow globe. "That lady by the cart sold it to me. She has really…" Elsa trailed off as she looked around. "You're missing the salesperson, too?"

Elsa nodded, thoroughly confused. Where was she? Jack rubbed his forehead. "Wow. A lot of weird stuff is going on today. Anyway, it's almost noon. Should we head back or get something to eat here?" Elsa was about to say that she should be at the castle, but her stomach beat her to the punch. "Sorry." she said, embarrassed.

Jack laughed and grabbed her hand. "I know where we can get something to go. Follow me."

Just then, Jack's little sister came running up to them. "Jack! Princess Elsa!" she shouted very loudly, loud enough for the villagers around her to look at what she was shouting and whisper, "Princess Elsa?" "She's out of the palace?"

Elsa immediately hid behind Jack, pulling her hood up to hide her face. "What are you doing here?" Jack hissed at his sister, who had stopped right in front of them, "I thought you were helping Mom."

"I was, but she told me to get you and Princess Elsa for lunch. We're having soup and sandwiches."

"Is that you, Princess Elsa?" Elsa kept her head down, praying that the people would leave her alone. "No. This is Sonya, my cousin," Jack declared loudly, grasping Elsa's hand. The warm pressure made Elsa feel much safer than before.

"She looks like the princess." one villager remarked. Elsa felt herself being pushed back. "She's not the princess," Jack insisted, "Leave her alone."

A cold wind started to blow, bringing dark clouds from the mountains. "Keep it together, Elsa." Jack whispered to her, "We're almost there." Suddenly, Elsa realized that Jack was pushing her towards the cover of the forest.

"He just called her Elsa!" the townspeople started to shout. "It is her!"

"No, it's not!" Jack shouted. He grabbed a bunch of Elsa's mud covered hair and pulled it out of her hood. Elsa stifled a cry of pain as she was pulled forward. "Everyone knows that Princess Elsa has blond hair."

Maybe his hand rubbed off some of the mud, or maybe some of it wasn't as dry as it looked. Either way, the mud came off, the villagers were shouting, and Elsa and Jack were running through the woods, trying to get far away enough that she could sneak back to the palace.

"Wait!" Elsa said as she stopped to look around her, "I dropped Anna's present!" Jack stopped and ran back to her. "There's no time, Elsa! Come on!" "But-"

Jack grabbed her hand and pulled her behind a tree just as a few villagers ran past them. Elsa tried to keep her emotions under control, because if she didn't, ice would start to fly out of her hands and she could hurt someone and everyone would know and she would be called a monster and-

"Elsa, you're crying." They somehow made it back to their lake unseen, and Elsa had just washed most of the mud out of her hair. Jack and Elsa were sitting on her cloak, waiting for her hair to dry before heading their separate ways. Elsa shut her eyes tightly, willing herself to stop crying. Conceal, don't feel. Conceal, don't feel. Conceal, don't feel.

"It's alright. It's okay, Elsa." Jack said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She flinched away from his touch. "I could hurt you." she mumbled, curling up into a ball. The temperature dropped significantly, but she didn't even noticed. The cold never bothered her.

"You can't hurt me." Jack said, "You said you wouldn't."

"Things change, Jack," she snapped at him. She immediately regretted saying that. "I'm sorry."

Jack's eyes held no hurt feelings or angry words. Instead, they held friendship and kindness, friendship Elsa wasn't even sure she deserved. Jack came closer and wrapped her in a tight embrace, pulling her into his lap. Elsa did not attempt to move away.

"You can cry, you know," he said softly, rocking back and forth, "You don't have to keep it in forever." Elsa didn't say anything for a while, but found herself sobbing on Jack's shoulder for something as silly as a lost birthday present for her sister.

"I can't take her pleas anymore, Jack. She's always going to be there, and I'm always going to have to shut her out because I'm so scared of hurting her again. I thought that this present would be the renewal of our relationship, as if we could start over. I thought I was handling my powers pretty well. Even Mama and Papa thought so. Once they hear about this, they'll be furious with me." Jack let her cry and pour out her feelings until there was nothing left but soft whimpers and sniffles. "The sun's going down."

Elsa looked up at this random remark and realized that it was true. The setting sun cast brilliant colors across the sky even prettier than the northern lights that shone at least once every season. "It's beautiful." Elsa said, resting her head on Jack's tear-stained shoulder.

Jack looked at her with wonder. You're even more beautiful. He couldn't stop the thought, and he didn't try to. That didn't mean the thought didn't scare him. It terrified him to think that he could possibly be falling for his best friend. He was only fourteen, for crying out loud. He shouldn't be thinking about this stuff. "Jack?" He looked at her tear-streaked face and felt his chest start to hurt. He never wanted to see her cry ever again. "I'm tired." He nodded and helped her up, catching her when she fell.

Her blue eyes met his brown ones and she couldn't stop her pounding heart. Stop that. You'll only hurt him if you fall for him.

Occupied with their own, identical thoughts, they made their way back to the secret entrance to the palace. "Same time next week?" Jack said, stopping in front of the hidden door. Elsa nodded, too emotionally and physically drained to speak.

"Elsa?" She turned to look at him.

"Yes, Jack?" He fell silent for a minute until he looked up at the sky. "The sky's awake." She looked up as well, but no lights danced in the sky. She opened her mouth to tell him, but when she went to look at him, he was gone.

She looked around, but he was nowhere to be seen. A rustle of paper caught her attention down to her feet. She picked up the paper and quickly ran to the safety of her room before opening the letter.

Dear Elsa, I wanted to tell you earlier, but I couldn't find the right moment. I need to tell you about my mom. She's not getting any better, and there's a chance that my sister and I might move to live with our aunt in Corona. If I do, I just want you to know that you're the best friend I've ever had. Of course I'll visit you. I just need you to know that. And I need you to promise me something. Promise me that you'll always be you. Never let your powers or your parents or anything else change who you are. You're perfect just the way you are. Forever yours, Jack

Okay, I am so sorry that this is late. I had minor writer's block, but this is up, so I should be good. If you like this chapter, review and tell me. If you hate this chapter, review and tell me. I don't care, just tell me how you feel. Peace out!