In her dream Elsa was alone within her castle of ice. However, rather than sitting in seclusion on top of the North Mountain the palace sat in place of the true Arendelle castle. She had been standing in the main entrance hall and could see the fragmented outlines of figures approaching the front doors. By the number of figures it seemed like the entire town was lingering just on the other side of the towering entryway. A booming knock echoed through the vast hall. Elsa's chest tightened with fear, looking about, unsure of what lay on the other side. Her mind ordered her not to let them in, warring with her hopes of extending an olive branch to her kingdom. Were they there to attack and imprison her, or were they at last extending the hand of friendship and acceptance? The knocking resonated against the flawless walls, growing louder and louder with every strike against the only barrier left. Boom. She clutched her arms around her. Boom. Her breath quickened. Boom. The temperature began to fall. Boom! Elsa woke with a start to the sound of someone banging on her bedroom door. A cold breeze was blowing through the room, and must have blown the door closed during her dream- or was it more accurate to call it a nightmare? Elsa wasn't sure. She had felt fear, but more akin to nervousness and anxiety than true panic. Her apprehension about the subjects of the kingdom was evident either way.

"Elsa are you in there?" There was only one person that addressed her by her first name, and she recognized the familiar voice of her sister calling to her from the other side of the door. An initial pang of regret caused another gust of wind, but it soon died down as Elsa remembered that those days- of shutting out the ones she loved most- were over.

"Come in, Anna."

Anna grinned and her heart warmed at hearing those words. A promising start to the day. She placed her hand on the doorknob and the metal felt cold, like ice. Bracing herself for the chill she opened the door to the wintry room.

"Sorry to wake you up- I thought I heard a slam from across the hall." Anna saw that Elsa was still in her bedclothes- still in her bed in fact. "I can leave you alone if you want to-"

"No, it's fine, come in." Elsa said, sitting up straighter and motioning toward the bed. The room had already warmed considerably. "Maybe shut the door behind you though."

She felt alright about a closed door policy if Anna was on her side. Literally and figuratively, she thought. Somehow the idea of having Anna on her side released the last bit of tightness lingering in her chest after her dream. Anna closed the door and sat on the edge of the bed.

"How'd you sleep?" Start small, Anna thought. After the conversation the night before she had more confidence that starting small was not synonymous with avoiding larger topics. They were merely building up to them.

Elsa frowned, debating whether the dream was relevant to the conversation or not, and decided to mull it over before jumping into a combined analysis. Instead she glanced at Anna and smiled, "I slept fine, all things considered. How about you?"

"I could hardly sleep after what we talked about last night. In a good way." She added, not wanting it to sound like she was upset by their discussion. "I'm glad we got a chance to really talk."

"I agree, and I think from now on we should make it a priority to do it more often."

"Don't you have, ya know, queenly duties to attend to all day?" She didn't want to get her hopes up. Opening the door was progress, but spending actual time together seemed like a tall order.

"As the Queen I'm pretty sure I get some wiggle room when it comes to how I schedule things. The agenda doesn't get any shorter, but I know I can squeeze some time in for us." Anna's relief and excitement were visible on her face, so Elsa continued, "I have to tour the village today, perhaps you could join me? I could really use a guide."

"Oh I'd love to go into the village with you! That would be so much fun!" Anna exclaimed.

'Fun' was not the word Elsa would use to describe her feelings about the venture.

"I'm actually kind of nervous about it." She admitted, "It's been so long since I was in public, in the village proper."

"But they love you!" Anna burst, "Remember the other day in the courtyard? Everyone had a great time."

"My ice rink parlour trick-" Elsa began.

"It was not a parlour trick!" Anna cut in, "and they know that!" She could see Elsa's apprehension as she picked at a loose thread on the bedspread.

"Are you sure? Because I'm not. They have no reason to think I'll be a good Queen."

"So we'll show them. Together." Anna stilled Elsa's fretful hand with her own, "I know you're afraid, but you don't have to be, and I'll be here no matter what."

"Thank you, Anna." And she meant it. Whether it was a dream or a nightmare she'd had, the reality was that she had no choice. She had to integrate herself into the kingdom, as Queen. The only person that could come close to understanding the terror in that task was Anna.

"You're welcome," Anna said, cheerful once again, "When are we leaving?"

Not as enthusiastic as her sister, Elsa replied "Later in the afternoon. Once the rest of the world wakes up." The sky was only beginning to glow, pressing steadfast against the deep blue and black of the night. "I've got some work to do before then, but I'll send someone for you once I'm ready to leave."

"Sounds good," Anna rose. Elsa was putting back on her mask of royal demeanor, the time for quiet whispers in the hazy morning hours was over. She got up to leave, "Hila delivered the to-do list you wrote for me yesterday, so I'll get to work on those things after I see Kristoff."

"Okay, tell him I say hello."

"Will do, see you later." Anna gave a small wave and headed down the hall to her room and the day ahead.

The sun had risen over the fjord and Elsa was determined to see it as a source of strength rather than unrelenting oppression. Snow and ice were at opposite ends of the spectrum, but it was the same spectrum nonetheless, a spectrum of the most powerful forces of nature. Elsa was surprised by her thinking. At what point had she accepted ice as a part of her identity? She supposed it was a part of her, as much a part of her as her identity as Anna's sister. And more a part of her than her role as Queen. She would be connected to the ice within until the day she died. A comforting thought? She shook her head and smirked at the futility of the thought. Once dressed she headed to meet one of her Chancellors to go over her schedule and paperwork for the morning. Just a few hours until her escape from the tedium of duties within the castle, into the daunting town beyond.