DISCLAIMER: If you recognize it, I don't own it.
When the servants heard no noise coming from Elsa's bedroom a minute after the clock struck six, they thought little of it. After two minutes, they began to worry. After three minutes, Kai rapped on the door worriedly. "Queen Elsa? Are you alright?"
The door was unlocked. When he opened it, he was greeted with the sight of an empty room and an untouched bed. "Your Majesty…?"
"Good morning, Kai."
He turned around. The queen was standing behind him, still wearing her dress from last night. Her braid had come undone, leaving her hair wavy and disheveled. Several books were tucked under her arm. Despite the dark circles under her eyes, she had a smile more radiant than Kai had seen on her in quite a while. "You look worried," she told him.
"You don't appear to have slept at all, Your Majesty."
She shook her head. "Send word out that I'll receive no visitors today. There's something important I need to do." Turning, she began to walk back down the hall.
"What sort of thing is that?" Kai called out after her.
"Oh, just a personal project."
Upon reaching the east wing, Elsa broke into a run. "How's it going?" she asked as she slipped into her sister's room and closed the door behind her.
Anna was sitting cross-legged on the bed, holding a carrot leaves-first in front of the sloth. "He doesn't like carrots. Who doesn't like carrots, Elsa?"
"Well, what kind of things would he eat in the wild?"
"Leaves, fruit, all that stuff."
Elsa thought for a moment. "I bet he'd like some berries."
Anna perked up. The mischievous fire from days gone by was sparking in her eyes. "Aren't there a few new jars of cloudberry jam down in the pantry?"
"You know that's only for special occasions."
"Exactly!"
One might have imagined they were pretending to be five and eight again as they hurried down the stairs. Anna was laughing and urging her sister to go faster, while Elsa was trying to hush her. Kneeling in front of the kitchen door, they peered through the key hole. Empty, just as they wanted. "I'm goin' in," Anna said, standing up. "Cover me." Leaving Elsa guarding the door, she snuck inside.
It took longer than she had said it would. Elsa could hear her wandering around, humming some sort of theme song she was making up and occasionally sending a pot or pan clattering to the floor. A few servants passed by and gave her an odd look as they went. Why would she be standing here, after all? She gave them a nod, and that seemed sufficient in sending them off.
"They've gotten really good at hiding stuff," Anna said when she finally emerged into the hall. She was clutching not only a jar of the dark orange jam, but also a slab of chocolate.
Elsa raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"It was sitting right there, what was I supposed to do?"
Elsa had been right about the berries. When they spooned out some of the jam and held it out to the sloth, he took one sniff and slurped it down with no hesitation. Anna petted him with one hand and picked bits of chocolate off the slab with the other. "We should make him a place to live."
Elsa sat on the floor, an open book lying before her. "Says here they live in trees most of the time," she said through a mouthful of chocolate.
"We could bring one in."
"Too messy."
"What's your idea, then?"
She stood up. "Come with me."
Elsa's door was just as Anna had seen it every day for the past thirteen years, painted snowflakes and all. She'd almost forgotten that it was capable of opening, and it was hard to conceal her surprise when it did. "I just need to get some stationery," Elsa said.
Stepping over the threshold, Anna glanced around in wonder. It wasn't that different from her own room, really: the walls and furniture were shades of violet, and it didn't look like a herd of reindeer had plowed through the place. But none of that was important. "Thank you," she said.
Elsa looked up. "For what?"
"For letting me in."
Her sister smiled. "My pleasure." She held up the piece of paper she had been scribbling on. "Does this have enough branches?" She had drawn a picture of a tree-like structure: one tall cylinder with other long shapes protruding from it, some straight and some jagged or twisted. Numbers and calculations filled the rest of the page. "I was thinking we could put it next to the window."
"You drew all that in a minute?"
"Geometry classes."
Anna whistled. "The window sounds perfect. So how much wood are we going to need?"
"If we're lucky, we won't need any."
Anna furrowed her brows and cocked her head, then a grin of realization spread across her face. "Oh, this is gonna be good."
Back in her room, they marked out a spot for the tree. "You sure you want me to try this?" Elsa asked.
"You're fine. You can do this," Anna answered, placing a hand on her arm. "I'm right here."
Focusing on the circle, Elsa took a breath and raised her arms. The ice came slowly at first, then in a steady flow. It swirled up towards the ceiling, molding itself into a thick stalk and sprouting branches as it went. Sparkling patterns resembling bark carved themselves in every inch of the ice. The branches ended in clusters of glistening, paper-thin leaves.
"Oh, Elsa," Anna breathed. "It's amazing…"
The ice was slightly cool to the touch, not enough to be uncomfortable, and it wasn't melting in the sun. The sloth latched on to one of the branches immediately and went to sleep. "He still needs a name," Elsa remarked.
Anna sat down on the bed and observed her new friend. "Something short. Short and cute." She was silent for a few seconds, then she smiled. "Finn. That's what I'll call him. Finn Three-Toes."
Elsa sat next to her. "I like that too."
Kai looked positively haggard when Elsa ran into him that evening. "Sir Norberg has been requesting an audience with you all day, madam. I've tried to hold him off."
"Tell him that he has my permission to embark on a second expedition as long as the funds are present."
"Indeed they are."
"Then he may take as much time as he needs to prepare for his journey."
"With all due respect, Your Majesty, I had assumed you would need more convincing."
"I've already had all the convincing I need," Elsa said. "I think it'll be very good for all of us. Sir Norberg may visit tomorrow for further discussion if he wishes."
That night, there was a pile of paperwork waiting for her on the desk. As she sifted through it, she found herself staring down at her hands. She smiled at the memory of Anna's delighted face as the tree rose out of nothingness. She was right, it was amazing. They were amazing.
Maybe I should get a sloth.
The End