Later, I would realize we had both been searching. Standing sentry. Watching idly as life kept going. Waiting, hoping and dreaming for that special thing that had been missing for far too long. Searching for meaning in the torn up tatters of our lives. Salvaging memories and moments together into something worth holding on to. Something we could desperately cling to, in times of need. Alone, and silently suffering, the harsh weight of the world borne without question.

We had each been given a life meant to be accepted for what it was. A life meant to be endured.

And then, as if by some miracle, I found you again, after all those years. Awoken from a deep slumber to open my eyes and see you in the light of day.

As I finally allowed myself to feel the warmth of the sun, I realized that I was not alone, and that I had never been alone in the first place.

"It's snowing!"

Anna's voice erupts and laughter follows as she bolts out of bed, flinging the covers to the floor as she swings her legs down onto the rug. She dresses in a matter of moments, and then she's off.

It was the first snowy day since the great thaw. Winter's first snowfall. Anna would be lying if she said she hadn't been waiting with bated breath for this day to finally arrive, and now that it was here she could hardly contain her excitement as she burst from her room and tore down the hallway.

As her legs carry her around a corner, Anna vaguely wonders if Elsa is already awake. She had been busy lately, and mornings were something Elsa seemed to cherish.

There's something beautiful, about the way the sun climbs up over the horizon.

Elsa's words play in Anna's mind, glimmering in her thoughts like precious jewels; sparkling like the ice sculptures in the castle courtyard. Anna can't help but hope that Elsa will have some spare time to spend with her.

As she turns another corner, she very nearly slams straight into her sister. She manages to catch herself, coming to a sudden halt before her. Elsa's blue eyes widen, and the cloak she had been carrying falls from her hands as she lets out a small, startled gasp.

"Anna-!"

"Whoa-hey!" Anna gasps as she pulls back. Before she has another moment to spare, she says the words she had been wanting to say to her sister since the moment she had woken up, and since so much longer than that.

"It's snowing-!"

"It's snowing-"

Anna grins broadly as she hears Elsa's voice, echoing her own by less than a second.

Elsa gives a short laugh, realizing they had said the same thing. She drops her gaze as she bends to pick up the cloak at her feet, and then extends it in Anna's direction. It's such a mundane moment, and yet it still makes Anna realize just how much she had missed the little things; those briefest of instants where she was just… Elsa.

"I thought it might be nice to go outside," Elsa says, smiling brightly as she sees Anna's head nodding up and down with uncontrolled enthusiasm.

They go for a long walk, out past the gates and onto the docks. The fishing boats have all left for the day, so the view of the fjord is clear and expansive.

Elsa stands on the wooden dock, head tilted back and slightly upwards. Her eyes are closed, and she feels the warmth of the sun against her skin. A beautiful, sunny winter day. Snowflakes floating gently past. She lets out a deep breathe. Nothing could be more perfect.

She opens her eyes and looks out across the fjord. The sun shines brightly against the sparkling blue water. A pair of gulls fly overhead. Elsa looks up to watch as the wind carries them off into the distance. She smiles as she feels the tears coming.

"Elsa…" Anna takes a step closer, resting a tender hand on Elsa's shoulder. "You okay?"

"Yes," Elsa replies simply, letting the emotions take her, riding them out across the wind and the waves; feeling and accepting them.

"It's just, I never thought this could happen," Elsa responds quietly, after a moment. Anna squeezes her shoulder gently.

"Neither did I," her younger sister replies. "But I'm glad it did."

Anna pauses, and then continues. "Everything is so clear now. So bright . It's like… I don't know, I can't put it into words." She smiles lopsidedly, brows raising in a sheepish apology as she feels herself ruining the moment.

"No, I know what you mean," Elsa says reassuringly, turning her head to smile back. "I feel it, too."

It's another quiet moment, after that. Slowly, Anna's hand leaves Elsa's shoulder, and they both watch the gentle waves of the ocean sparkling in the distance.

"Christmas is just around the corner," Anna starts as she raises her head to look up at a bunch of funny-shaped clouds. Then, as she feels snowflakes falling on her cheeks, she opens her mouth, sticking out her tongue to try to taste one.

Elsa can't help but giggle at the sight. "But your birthday is coming before that!"

"Oh, yeah! My birthday! What do you want to do? We could, uh, hike up into the mountains- actually, no. That's not great, is it." Anna rambles, raising a hand up to scratch behind her head as her freckled cheeks and neck flush slightly red. "I mean, do you have any ideas?"

"Oh, we'll probably just spend a quiet day alone in the castle," Elsa says coolly, watching Anna's face for a reaction. Her eyebrows raise when she sees Anna start to grin.

"I'd like that actually," Anna replies. "Are we still allowed to turn the whole castle into a winter wonderland?"

Elsa tilts her head to one side, "Well, we weren't technically allowed to, when we were kids. But, being a Queen has its... benefits." A small smirk forms on her lips, growing wider as Anna's eyes light up with delight.

"I'm so happy for you, Elsa," Anna says then, as she glances down to Elsa's ungloved hands for a moment. "You're finally free. Free to share your magic with the world."

And though she couldn't deny the feeling of elation at hearing, all over again, the sound of the adoration in her sister's voice, this time Elsa could feel something deeper. It was something that had always been there. An ember, sitting beneath her heart. She wanted Anna to know that it was because of her that Elsa felt special at all.

She took a step closer, reaching for one of Anna's hands and resting it between the two of her own.

"The magic one is you ," she replies with a quiet determination that almost surprises her. She searches Anna's expression for a reaction; a realization. Anna doesn't shake her head, nor does she look away. She doesn't deny it at all. All Anna does is steadily return Elsa's gaze as she squeezes her sister's hand.

Elsa pulls away then, closing her fingers as her eyes narrow gently in concentration. She runs her other free hand across her closed fist, and then, as her fingers open, Anna leans forward to get a better look at what Elsa had just created.

It's a single flower made from layers of thin, malleable blue and white ice stitched together with delicate patterns of frost. Anna recognizes immediately that it's the same type of flower she had picked with Elsa, for their mother, that one day in summer all those years ago.

"Wow," Anna breathes, and Elsa smiles as she lifts the flower up to tuck behind Anna's ear.

They spend the remainder of the day outside the castle's gates. As the sun draws itself down towards the western edge of the world, the sisters watch the fishing boats coming back from their travels before they return to the castle.

"I'm surprised you had the whole day to spend," Anna remarks, taking a sip of her hot chocolate as she sits on an armchair she has pulled up to the fireplace in the study, which Elsa had converted into a sitting room that they could both share. "I mean, I'm glad you did! It's just, you've been really busy! It's like, who thought being a Queen would be so much work, right?"

Elsa says nothing for a moment as she takes a small sip of her own hot chocolate. She's sitting in her own armchair, pulled next to Anna's so that they're practically sitting side by side. She looks into the fire.

"Well," Elsa starts hesitantly, "I knew it would be snowing today," she finishes. Anna tilts her head, turning to look at her sister as confusion paints Anna's features.

"Really? Is that… a thing" Anna looks up for a moment as she thinks, "Like, because you can make magical snow, you know when it's going to snow?"

"It's more like," Elsa pauses again, trying to find the words, "Because I can make snow, I can make it snow ." Her cheeks are tinged pink now, and she lifts the cocoa mug up to her lips as if to hide behind it. "I know it was selfish-"

Anna cuts her off with a loud burst of laughter.

"Elsa!" She cries out, nearly dropping her hot chocolate as she jumps out of her chair. "That's… AMAZING!" She laughs again, "I had no idea. Like, wow. You coulda fooled me. I mean, not that your snow isn't real snow or anything, it's just-"

"No, Anna. It… it was wrong. I shouldn't have-"

"But why not? Everyone in town loved it! Remember the kids having that snowball fight? Their day woulda been super boring, if it wasn't for you."

Elsa looks at her, her beautiful, deep blue eyes nearly tearful, but wide with hope as she listens to Anna's words.

"Mine, too," Anna adds, "My day wouldn't have been as bright, either." Her voice goes more serious now, softening as it deepens. "This is what your magic is for ."

Elsa remembers then, that ever-present question. A question she had been trying to answer for years. A question she had almost found the answer to, and then lost, dropping from her closed fists like water falling out of the cracks of her fingers. A question she had all but given up on.

A question that Anna had just answered, in finality, and an answer that Elsa couldn't refute or deny.

This was what we magic was for.

"How do you keep doing this?" Elsa asks tearfully, smilingly, as she closes her eyes for a moment and the feelings overwhelm her.

Anna tilts her head. She's still standing in front of the fire, but now she goes back to sit at her chair, leaning forward on the arm of it so that she's looking closely at Elsa's face.

"Doing what?"

"Being… you," Elsa replies, feeling silly about her choice of words as soon as they leave her lips. But, how else could she describe it?

"You saved me, Anna," she says then, surprising herself with her earnesty, and the gravity of her voice. "I keep asking.. Why? Why did you go through all the trouble. Even though I know the answer, I-"

"I'd do it again," Anna's voice is resolute, a resoundingly simple response that startles Elsa to the point of her throat nearly closing up.

Elsa looks at her, and Anna stares back. It's a far more serious Anna than Elsa is used to seeing. The fireplace flames flicker in the bright teal of her eyes. The strength of her gaze touches Elsa more deeply that the warmth of the fire. She takes a deep breath in, and then sighs, relaxing, as the feeling of Anna's words drapes upon her like a blanket.

"I know ," Elsa whispers peacefully as she sets her hot chocolate on the table beside her.

Elsa feels a tingling warmth, and it's not long before she drifts off into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

For what monstrous nightmare would rear its ugly head, now that she wasn't afraid anymore?

And what dream could come, now that her one and only dream had come to light?