“Ella! Wake up!” Annie said, shaking her sister awake.

Ella groggily replied, “Annie, go back to sleep. Its the middle of the night,”

She pushed her sister off the bed.

“But I’m wide awake! Let’s play!” Annie whined.

“Play by yourself,”

Annie thought about a way to persuade her older sister to play with her. Then it came to her.

“Ella, do you wanna build a snowman?”

They rushed through the hallways of their mansion until they reached the playroom.

Annie squealed as Ella circled her hands, to reveal a small snowball. She sent up into the air, and it exploded into many small ice crystals. Ella stomped her foot on the ground, and turned the playroom into an indoor ice rink.

The two sisters had fun all night. They had a snowball fight and built a snowman that resembled Annie squishing her face together.

“Let’s name him Omar!” Annie suggested and ran over to hug him.

Ella made a snow hill and let Annie jump from mount to mount. She picked up speed.

“Annie! I can’t keep up! Wait!”

But Annie wasn’t paying attention. Ella slipped and fell over, but managed to shoot some snow out before Annie broke her arm. The snow hit her in the face and Annie fell to the ground, unconscious.

Ella screamed for her mother and father, they burst in with panic struck eyes.

They picked up Annie and scolded Ella, she tried explaining it was an accident, that they were just playing, but her parents didn’t have any interest for her excuses.

They rushed Annie to the hospital. Her brain was damaged, she needed an operation. She would be okay, but some of her memories had slipped away, including the fact that Ella had ice powers. Her parents wanted to keep this hidden from her, in fear that Annie would get hurt again.

Ella was traumatized by the fact that she almost killed her sister. She became a different person, quiet, shy, and scared of everything. She tried her best to ignore her sister, she did not want to risk her life ever again.

The years went by. Annie never found out about Ella’s magic. She tried her best to control it. But it was very hard sometimes.

Ella became popular in tenth grade and Annie became popular in her freshman year.

It was the end of the school year. It was time for graduation.

“Annie, wake up.” Annie kept on snoring.

“Annie, wake up!” She jolted awake. “It’s time to get ready. Its graduation day.”

This caused Annie to hop out of bed. She grabbed her sundress and did her hair before bolting out the door, singing her favorite song, Summer, down the corridors of their mansion.

Meanwhile, Ella was preparing in her own room. She was nervous, she knew she was winning an award and she had to give a speech.

They got to the graduation and Ella accepted her award and gave her speech. All was good, and it was time for the picnic.

Annie was being her usual social self, running around and wishing everyone a good summer.

She got to where her crush, Henry, was sitting and gave him a smile.

“Have a great summer Henry!” She said and turned to leave.

“Wait! Annie!” She stopped in her tracks. Henry raced over to her.

“Annie, I’ve been wanting to ask you something all year. I think you’re the most beautiful, kind, and smart girl in the whole world. Will you go out with me?” He asked.

This was the moment Annie had dreamed about. She was so desperate for a boyfriend, she immediately said yes and kissed him.

“I’m so happy! Oh, and my family is going to Hawaii this summer, would my girlfriend like to come?” He asked.

Anna agreed and they kissed some more.

“Oh! I’m gonna go tell my sister!” Annie grabbed Henry’s hand and they rushed over to Ella.

“ELLA!” Annie stood in front of her sister, Henry holding her.

“Ella, I’m going to Hawaii this summer with Henry!” Annie explained.

“Hawaii? No, you can’t g to Hawaii,” Ella argued.

“Yes I can!”

“You can’t go on vacation with a boy you just met,”

You can if it’s true love!”

“Annie, your 15. What do you know about love?”

“More than you! All you know is how to ignore your little sister, leaving her wondering what she did wrong!”

This upset Ella, she had tried to forget it. Tried to replace the memory of that one night.

She groaned and turned away, but Annie kept on.

“I can’t believe you, Ella! You only want the worst for people, you don’t care about anyone but yourself! You never do anything for anyone. I’m GOING to Hawaii and I’m gonna have the time of my life. And there’s nothing you can do about it. You don’t know a thing about fun and you definitely don’t know a thing about how to be a good sister!”

“How to be a good sister? Are you kidding me? Who kept you company all these years when mom and dad were too busy for us? Who taught you about makeup and fashion when we were teens. Who made sure you were safe and who looked after you, ensuring that you would never going to get hurt? Me! And that’s what I’m doing now! Making sure you don’t get hurt! Boys will break your heart. They never last! This is enough Annie, YOUR NOT GOING.” Ella raged.

Annie fumed. “I hate you Ella!” She screamed.

“I said ENOUGH!” Ella yelled, snapping back around and throwing her clenched fist to the ground. A burst of blue hit the ground, and evolved into a bunch of ice spikes, shooting up from the ground.

Everyone screamed in horror, some people got injured and fell, crying.

She heard someone yell monster. She looked over at her arch nemesis, Clara, and saw her mouth mouthing the same exact words.

Her parents glared at her. They were angry and disappointed.

But her sister’s face was the worst. She was scared. She’d never been so scared in her life.

Ella took off into the nearby woods.

Annie pushed through the crowd, looking for her parents. Someone tapped her shoulder. She turned.

Many faces were staring at her, all asking the same questions, what, why, and how.

“I-I don’t know. She was just scared. I-ticked her off I guess. I didn’t know about any of this, I promise. But, I’m going to go look for her. And with that, Annie set off.

The wind was whirling around, vigorously blowing Ella’s light blonde hair around. She tried tugging her dress down, the strange winter like wind was tugging it upward. She looked back, and noticed she’d left an ice trail where she had walked. Little did she know that it was quickly growing and covering every inch of the town.

She started to talk to herself, assuring it would be all okay. Just be the good girl you have to be, she thought to herself. No point in hiding it. They all know now. Just, let. It. Go. And with that, snow emerged out of the palm of her hand. She tested her skills, making shapes and words in the sky with her magic. She rebuilt the snowman she and Annie had made together, and she played around with her skills. This is great, she thought. The storm can rage on, she thought, unbuttoning her sweater and letting in fly off into the wind.

She ran to the other side of the hill. I’m not afraid, not any more. She stopped quickly at the sight of a cliff in her way, past the cliff was a higher elevation of land. She outstretched her arms and ice shot out. A staircase formed, leading the way to the mountainous hill. She climbed the staircase and reached the other side. This is where I belong. She stamped her foot down to form a huge icicle snowflake beneath it. She looked around, and decided to test her skills to the maximum. She brought up her arms in a powerful gesture, and built her self a 3 story ice mansion. “I’m never going back. The past is in the past!” She shouted, although no one could here her. “Let It GO!” She bellowed, undoing her hair to let it flow freely. She gazed down at her sundress, and imagined a beautiful ice crystal one instead. She closed her eyes tightly, and when she opened them, a tiffany blue winter dress was there, ice sequins covered the bottom. It was gorgeous. She walked out onto the balcony and shouted at the top of her lungs, “The Cold Never Bothered Me Anyway.” The vanished into her new life.

The whole town was drowning in snow and ice. Annie stomped through the treacherous weather, mumbling to herself. It was about an hour since she had set off, and she was freezing cold. She spotted smoke in the distance, and ran all the way. She found herself at an old general shop. She came inside, where a large man with a teddy bear face gave her a nice welcome. She scanned the store for supplies, and found winter clothes. Suddenly, the wind chilled her spine. She turned around and a shaggy man stood there. His clothes were ripped. He had dirty blonde hair. He marched into the store and pushed past Annie.

“I need beef jerky,” He demanded. No one moved. “Beef jerky!” He said sternly, pointed behind her. She turned around and stepped out of the way. He picked up the bag of meat and climbing supplies. He pushed past her once more and set his items o the table.

“That will be $40,” the clerk said.

“What, no! $10!” The man replied.

“No, that will not do. You see, the jerky costs $5, the rope costs $10 and the pick axe costs $15. You can get the rope or the beef jerky, but that is it.”

“But–But ten’s all I got!”

“Oh dear,”

“Um, excuse me,” Annie tried to wedge herself in between the stranger.

“Ugh, hold on while I deal with this crook.” The guy said to Annie.

“What did you call me?” The clerk asked, and kicked him out of the store.

Annie bought what she needed and then went outside, and found two different sets of footprints leading to an old abandoned barn. She came in and saw the stranger and a rather large dog sitting. The guy was cursing, and the dog was whimpering.

“Um, Mr.?” She asked, trying to get his attention.

He turned around. “What do you want?”

“Hi, um, you see, um, I’m um, looking for my sister. Would you um, help me find her?” She asked politely.

“I don’t take people places,” He said scowling at her.

She tossed a sack at him which landed heavily on his stomach. He wailed out, and after catching his breath, he took a peek into the sack. Inside was the supplies he had hoped for, and a few other things.

“Take me, please, if you want, um just, um–”

“Fine fine, I’ll take you.” He grumped and gathered his things. “Come Steven,” He said whistling for his dog.

The made their way through the snow and ice. Annie now wore a thick dress, trimmed with fur. She wore thick black leggings, leg warmers, fuzzy snow boots, a large shawl, a earflap hat, and mittens. She felt ridiculous, but at least she felt warm.

“So um, mountain man,” Annie started.

“The name’s Kristopher.”

“Oh, um, nice to meet you Kristopher. I’m Annie. So, where ya from?”

“Here.”

“Where’s here?”

“Here, the woods. I’m an orphan. What about you.”

“Oh, um I’m sorry to hear that. I’m from Avila.”

“So a beach gal huh?”

“Yeah I guess. How old are you Kristopher? I’m 15.”

“I’m 16.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t make much small talk do you?”

“No.”

They sat in silence, it was awkward.

“How’d you get that blonde strip in your hair?” He asked.

“Oh,” She replied, separating it from the rest of her red hair. “I was born with it.”

Annie decided to tell him about how her sister ran away and all.

“So, what made your sister go all ice crazy?” He asked, opening up to her a little bit.

“Well, she freaked out because I was going on vacation with someone I had just met and we got in this huge fight and–”

“Wait wait wait, you were gonna go on vacation with someone you just met that day! Didn’t your parents warn you about strangers?” He asked, his face only a few inches from hers.

“Yes, they did.” Annie replied, edging away. “But Henry is not a stranger.”

“Oh yeah? How long have you known him?”

“Well, I don’t like know hi personally, but I’ve had a crush on him all year.”

“You have poor judgement,”

“No I don’t, and for your informa–” Kristopher clasped a hand over her mouth. She pushed it away and began to talk once more but he shushed her.

“Be quiet,” he whispered. He listened closely. Steven’s ears twitched. Annie’s heart stopped. They heard a branch break and they snapped their heads back, looking closely into the dark shadows of the woods. Annie set her gaze closely, trying to make out every line, every detail, of the thing that was following them.

Kristopher was doing the same, and it didn’t take him long to realize what it was.

“Wolves! Run!” He sprinted off, leaving Annie behind.

“Kristen wait!” Annie shouted. She looked behind her, to see a large gray dog was bounding toward her. She shrieked and picked up her skirt. She’d never had much athletic experience, but she ran as fast as she could, which wasn’t fast at all. The wolf was catching up to her. She tripped and fell, expecting sharp teeth to dig into her neck at any moment. But she was lifted off the ground with a grunt. She opened her eyes, and saw Kristopher carrying her.

“Kristen!” She said, relieved.

“It’s Kristopher.” He said shouting, running as fast as he could wile carrying Annie in his arms. Steven was far ahead of them.

Kristopher was weary. His legs were burning, his arms were sore, and he was sweating up a waterfall. But the adrenaline kicked in, and he sped way up. There was a trail, he would have to turn a corner. They were heading straight for a large tree. He had a plan. He whistled for Steven and nodded toward the trees. They ran straight for them.

“Kirsten! What are you doing!” Annie yelled as he slowed down, letting the beast catch up to them. He began to run again, the animal at his tail. He was a foot away from the tree before he dodged, and let the wolf run straight into it. He was passed out, and Kristopher took this chance to run back to the trail. When he figured they were well past the wolf, he let Annie down and collapsed.

“Kirsten! You saved us!” Annie exclaimed.

“Please…learn…my name.” Kristopher said in between pants.

Annie took note of that.

Once Kristopher had caught his breath, Annie helped him up and they went into the trees. She gathered some wood and built a fire. The slept for the rest of the night.

They awoke, ate some granola bars Annie had bought, and then set off.

It was hours of walking. They came across a beautiful arrangement of icicles hanging from trees. They admired them, but they heard a voice from behind them.

“Oh I just love Winter! But its so white! Maybe we could get some red, green, ooh!

Maybe some yellow! Wait, yellow and snow? Bad idea. Yeesh!” The mysterious voice said.

They turned around and there was a little snowman standing there.

“Amiright?” It asked.

The two shrieked. Annie kicked the head off and it landed in Kristopher’s hands. They tossed it back and forth while it was still talking. They eventually calmed down and placed it back on the body.

“Yay! Now I’m perfect!” It giggled.

“Well almost,” Annie said, taking a carrot out of her bag. She shoved into his snow, but a little too hard.

“Woop! Head rush!” It adjusted and took a look at the carrot sticking out of his face. It was only a tenth of it. The other nine were sticking out the back. It gasped. “I love it! It’s like a little baby unicorn.”

Annie pulled the carrot out a little more. It gasped again. “I love it even more! Now, let me introduce myself. I’m Omar! And I love warm hugs!”

A faint memory came back to Annie. She struggled to grab onto it, but she couldn’t reach. It quickly vanished away.

“Oh, hi Omar. I’m Annie, and this is Kristopher. We’re looking for my sister, Ella?”

“Oh!!!!!! I LOVE Ella! I know where she is! I’ll show you her!”

And with that they were off. Annie set off with an orphan following the talking snowman to find her sister and her magical powers.

Meanwhile, the town was freezing. They all bundled up in their thickest coats, but it was getting colder by the minute.

“If we don’t do something quick we’ll all freeze to death!” The mayor exclaimed.

“Don’t worry. I’m gonna go look for Annie and Ella. Annie should’ve been back by now. It’s been more than a day.” Henry said. He gathered some of his friends and supplies. The set off.

The four found Ella’s ice mansion. It was magnificent. Annie told the others to wait outside. She opened the door and called for her sister. Her sister came out. Annie was mesmerized by her gorgeous dress and how beautiful and happy she looked. It was like she was a whole new person. And she was.

“Ella! You look great! Wait until the town sees you!”

“I’m not going back, Annie.”

“This place is amazing. Wait till mom and dad see it!”

“I’m not going back Annie.”

“C’mon Ella. It’s time to go!”

“I’M NOT GOING BACK, ANNIE”

Annie froze.

“Why?”

“I belong here.”

“No. You belong back home.”

“No I belong here. Alone. Where i can be who I am without hurting anybody. No please, just go.”

“But I just got here.”

“I’m just trying to protect you Annie.” And with that, Ella disappeared up the stairs. Annie followed her.

“I’m not afraid Ella! I’m right here for you!”

“Annie, please go back home. Your life awaits.”

“But–”

“I know, you mean well. Just leave though. Yes, I’m alone but I’m alone and free. Just stay away and i can assure you’ll be safe.”

“Actually I’m not.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you not know?”

“What do I not know?”

“Avila is in deep snow and ice.”

“What?” Ella asked, stunned. She was certain that she had only left a trail, not a city buried in snow.

“But can’t you just unfreeze it all?”

“No, I don’t know how! Ugh, I’m such a fool!” Ella cried out.

Annie was reassuring her, but it all faded out in the background. Ella could only hear herself and the snow whirling around the room.

“No escape from the storm inside of me.” she continued. “I cannot control my curse. Annie your not helping! I’m so afraid! Your’e not safe here!”

“You can do it Ella!” Annie shouted. This Ella heard. She was fuming, a soup filled with different emotions. Fear, stress, sadness, anger, anxiety. It all burst out in two simple words.

“I CAN’T!” Ice burst out of Ella’s core and slashed into her sister’s chest. Annie fell to the ground.

Kristopher ran in and collected Annie into his arms. Steven gave her a big lick on her face. Omar just said hi to Ella

Ella snapped back around, ready to yell at her sister once more, unaware of what had just happened.

“Who’s this?” She asked, gesturing toward Kristopher. “Nevermind, it doesn’t matter. But you have to go.”

“I’m not leaving without you!” Annie said in between breathes.

“Yes you are!” Ella shouted and threw her hands out in front of her. She created a massive ice monster which chased the four away from the castle.

“Great, now what?” Kristopher said, scratching his head. He turned around to face Annie, but found her on the ground, breathing heavily. Her hair had turned more blonde, like the strip he had noticed the day before. Only half of her hair was still red.

“Annie!” He gasped running over to her.

She groggily stood up. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Just a little light headed.”

“Okay, so, now what?”

“Oh my gosh! She kicked us out! She won’t come back! Agh, what do I do?” Annie shrieked, pacing frantically.

“It’s ok it’s ok, we’ll just go back. But we need rest first. It’s more than a day’s journey back, so lets settle for the rest of the day.

They found a small opening, a patch of snow encircled by trees. They set their supplies down. They ate, drank and rested. Kristopher told Annie about his life in the woods, and how it wasn’t all that bad.

“And when the bear saw me coming at him he–Wait, what’s wrong?” He said. He noticed Annie sniffling and tears coming down her cheeks.

“I, I…I’m s-so ccccold.” She stammered. Her hair was all blonde now, except for one long red strip. Her face was pale and her fingers were purple.

He guided her closer to the fire, but even next to its heat, she was still shivering madly.

He built several more, and gave her his coat. Nothing helped.

Omar stood off

They heard footsteps approaching. Wait, more than one set. About seven sets it seemed like. They were well hidden by the trees, but Kristopher built one more fire, bundled Annie up even tighter, and left to take a quick look. He rustled through the trees, trying to be as quiet as possible. He peered through the leaves, and saw three men and three horses from the local stables. He strained his ears to listen.

“Alright guys, we go in, get Annie, and get out. No one tries to bring Ella back, alright? She’s a monster. But, no harm is to come to her. She is also dangerous, and Annie would dump me right away if she found out we beat her up,” came from a tall, handsome boy with fiery red hair, even redder than Annie’s. He was well built and dashing, Kristopher figured this was the boy Annie was planning to go on vacation with. He tied the horses to a tree and set off with some other teenage boys. But two others stayed back.

“Who cares what Henry said. We’ll get Annie, yes, but make sure Ella pays for what she’s done to our town. And for breaking up with me for no reason.” One of them said. The the other smirked as they made their way up the ice walkway and into the mansion.

Kristopher raced back to Annie. her hair was all blonde, and the fire was dying down due to the wind.

He had to think fast. She would die otherwise. He had given her all the warmth e could provide, if only there was a way to get her back to the town quickly…and then he got it.

He scooped up Annie fragile body,which was as cold as the Arctic, and climbed onto one of the horses. He tied her lap on, and directed her to place her hands on his shoulders.

“Squeeze tight, and don’t let go. I’m gonna get you somewhere safe.” He said, pushing her hair out of her face. Omar hopped on behind Annie, holding her upright.

He knew every trail, every part of these woods. He would surely get her back in time. He whistled for Steven, and rode off, taking Annie to shelter.

Henry slowly made his way up the staircase, looking for Annie. He called out her name, but it just echoed through the long hallways.

The other two boys, Isaac and Thomas, scouted the house for Ella. No signs.

They found the kitchen, with a complete set of stoves, fridges, and whatnot. They opened the cabinet, seeing what kind of food she had. None.

“But she has all the snow she can eat,” Thomas rolled his eyes.

They heard a noise, coming from a few hallways down. It sounded like a sneeze.

They knew it wasn’t Henry and the others, for they were on the opposite side of the house. It was either Annie or Ella.

They followed the echo, running down halls, turning corners, climbing stairs, until they saw it. The tip of a blonde ponytail vanish quickly around the door. They slowly followed it, not daring to make a sound. They followed into a grand room, with beds and dressers. There they saw Ella, ironically, frozen in her tracks at the sight of the two. They were heavy built, all muscle, and older than her.

“It’s okay Ella, we don’t have any weapons or anything,” Isaac made his way closer to the girl.

She relaxed, just a bit, letting her shoulders drop back down.

And just then, Thomas leaped at her. She shot her arm out, projecting ice and knocking him away from her. Isaac took his fist and jammed it into her jaw. She stumbled to the ground, the pain spreading through her mouth and climbing up to her cheek. She shot shards of ice at him, trying to deflect the boys’ punches. But they had four fists for whacking, and four feet for kicking. Pain shot through her nose, her ribs, her leg, and her shoulder. She finally conceded, gasping for breath, trying to regain her senses.

She looked up at the two, who she once called friends. One of them was once more than that. Why would they do this to her, she meant no harm to them. They were the ones who attacked her.

Isaac looked down on his ex girlfriend, thinking of all the times she had ignored him and kept secrecy from him.

“Aw, it’s such a shame to see your beautiful face all bruised.” He said, and spit on her. She didn’t even wipe it away, she didn’t have the strength to.

She gazed up at Thomas with pleading eyes, eyes that were filled with disgust, yet the illusion they were crying out “Help Me,” in a soft distant voice. But Thomas refused the urge to give in. Instead, she saw him mouth the words monster, and that is when something snapped. She was not a monster. No, she was the queen of ice and snow. And as many people know, if you mess with the queen, then it’s off with your head. She felt this fire, this rage inside of her that couldn’t calm down. She lifted one, non broken finger and gathered all that rage, all that anger, all the years of sadness, loneliness, and regret, into one last shot. Everything happened in slow motion. The ice pushed through her skin, and sliced through the air. It collided with Isaac’s leg, ripping the skin apart and emerging into his flesh. Blood burst out, dripping and sliding across the smooth ice floors. An icicle, at least half a foot sticking out, was now inside of his leg. He wailed out in agony, falling to his knees and the ice quickly turned red.

She came into reality.

Everything was fast moving now, and the next thing she knew, Thomas was on top of her, wrapping his hands around her neck and squeezing. She lost breath, and was starting to enter a white lighted daze. He was going to kill her, she knew it. He was going to compress her neck until everything inside of it shattered. But he was doing it slowly and painfully. She couldn’t hear what he was saying, but it didn’t matter, for he was soon thrown off of her. She regained her breath and looked to the side, where Henry was knocking him senseless. Four men lifted her up, and carried her out the door. She left the blood bath, and was even more scared than she was before.

Kristopher and Annie were almost to the edge of the woods, Steven running at their side. The wind was whipping at their face, and their hat’s blew off into the wind. Kristopher looked back at Annie, seeing the tips of her fingers were gray and her nose was bleeding. He leaned back and wiped it off, giving her cold forehead a kiss.

“We’re almost there!” He yelled over the wind. He had picked the fastest, strongest horse out of luck, and only about ten minutes until they would reach the town’s emergency care unit.

They arrived, and Kristopher ran Annie inside.

No one was there. He looked in all of the hospital rooms and none of the machines were plugged in. It was also very dark.

“The ice must’ve killed the electricity,” Kristopher mumbled.

Just then, Henry came racing in.

“Annie!” He gasped. “What did you do to her? Who are you?”

“I’m Kristopher, and she has frostbite. Ella struck her heart.”

Henry took her from Kristopher.

“I’ll take it from here. I’m Henry, her boyfriend,” And with that, he took off.

Kristopher hung his head and left the hospital. Steven raced over, looking for Annie.

“She’s gone.”

He whined.

“She’s gone, Steven.”

He nudged Kristopher toward the direction Henry had gone.

“Stop Steven. She’s with her boyfriend. The only one she loves.” He looked down at his St. Bernard and his expression resembled a human rolling their eyes.

“Is he her love?” Kristopher asked himself. The answer was clear. He wasn’t gentle with her, never gave her reassuring words, there was no connection between the two. There was something going on, and based on what Henry’s friends were planning to do to Ella, it didn’t seem like a good thing.

He whistled for Steven and chased after his one love, Annie.

Ella awoke in a chamber. She lay on a stone slab, bolted to the wall. Her wrists were shackled, and her hands in metal gloves. She looked around the room. It was moist, and smelled of rusty metal. There was a large booming sound coming from somewhere,  like a cannon, it was shaking her. The only light source was a small window on the side of the cell. She got up and ran to it, being careful not to trip over her chains. She peered outside, where the ground was covered in thick ice. Snow whirled around, doing so many different things. Some was falling vigorously. Some was pelting buildings and the ice. And some was swirling an a tornado like form, which eventually exploded, making the booming sound. Did she cause this? Of course she caused it, she felt ashamed. Ella  gently pressed her nose against the window, shaming herself for not having control over powers she’s had all her life. Frost leaked from the tip of her nose and climbed up the window, spreading across the glass to where nothing could be seen. She groaned, and sat back down. Then she felt the pain. The pain was in her chest, her face, and her arms. She remembered getting beaten by those boys,being choked. She held up her hands and peered into the metal surrounding them. Yep, she saw bruises from the fingers. They tried to kill her. But then Henry came in, tackling him to the ground. Why did he do that? Ella was certain the reason he came was to hurt her.

“Why else would he have come–Annie!” Ella whispered to herself. Annie had come to find her, bring her back. Annie had assured her it would be okay, that she would help her control her magic, that she loved her. And all Ella had done was push her away, kick her out. Shot ice at her.

“I’m a horrible sister. I’ve shut her out all my life and when she tries to help me and forgive me once more, I do it again,” She said, shaming herself.

She jerked her head to see the door opening, and in came Henry. Her heart sped up, what did he have to say to her. But all he did was stare, thinking. Ella decided to speak up first.

“Why did you save me? Why did you bring me here? Where, where is here?”

“I walked in, saw them trying to kill you. I didn’t want them to hurt you, I specifically told them not to…You’re in the jail, um, they insisted on bringing you here after your medical treatment.” Henry refused to meet Ella’s gaze.

“You should’ve just left me be, I’m a danger here.”

Henry sighed. “You can leave, sure, but only if you can get rid of this weather, please, just bring back summer.” Henry pleaded.

Ella looked back at him, with innocent eyes, and let two words slip out of her lips.

“I can’t”

Henry finally met with Ella’s eyes, worry filled them.

“Please, tell them to let me go!” Ella was about to cry now. She wanted no more. She was filled with emotions she couldn’t keep in, bubbling in her stomach. She had already let them out once, and she wanted to be as far away from people as possible when they emerged again.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Henry said and left the room. Ella started to panic, she never trusted Henry. She heard a crackling, and looked down to see ice covering the metal concealing her hands.

Annie lay by the fire. The heat was cranked up higher than usual. Warm rags were placed everywhere. Hot coffee was sloshing in the mug she was holding. She shakily took another sip, trying desperately to warm herself up more, but it was going slowly. She would be here for hours.

The door gently swung open, and in came Henry. He was looking as handsome as always, and Annie was relieved to see him.

“Henry!”

He ran and gave her a hug and sat at her feet.

“Annie, I’ve been so worried about you! What happened?”

“I was trying to help Ella, but she struck me with her powers, gave me frostbite,” She said, gazing at her fingers which were once a dull gray color.

“Oh, you seem to be getting better.”

“Henry, where’s Kristopher?”

Henry was getting ready to kiss Annie, and this question threw him by surprise.

“Kristopher? You mean, the homeless boy who let you get struck by Ella? He left.” Henry leaned in once more, his lips  about to connect with hers, when she replied “oh” He stopped right then. It may not have been a big deal, but it was to him. This oh was filled with disappointment, loneliness, and depression. She wanted Kristopher here, a random boy who almost let her die, rather than him.

“You know what? Let Kristopher keep you warm. Let Kristopher kiss you. Let Kristopher love you because obviously I’m not enough for you.” Henry said, releasing her chin.

“Henry I–” Annie started, but he interrupted her.

“Won’t matter anyway, I was only dating you to be popular. But now, I guess you’ll die and you know, Ella is doomed anyway.” He chuckled, and threw water into the fire. He turned the thermostat down nice and low.

“Henry, please, don’t do this,” Annie coughed.

He took the warm rags and blankets, tossing them out the window.

“Why?” He asked, taking the coffee, dropping the cup. The mug shattered and the carpet absorbed all of the brown liquid.

She was freezing cold, shaking. She was never warm, but it was better than this.

“You won’t get away with this,” Annie said, falling to the ground.

“Hmm, we’ll see about that,” And with that, he left Annie to freeze.

She sat alone, slowly dying. She had no strength to reset the fire, grab a blanket, or do anything to raise her body heat. She was freezing to death. Seconds turned into minutes. The clock was slowly ticking, and as half an hour passed by when she heard the door knob jiggling. She raised her head to see who was entering the room, and laid her eyes on a small white figure.

“Omar,” Annie coughed out.

“Annie! What happened?”

She explained everything while Olaf gave her a blanket, and started up the fire. Nothing helped.

“Where’s…El…Ella?” Annie stammered.

No one knew, but they did know that she was close, due to the massive snow storm outside.

“I need…Kristopher.” Annie said, beginning to go unconscious.

Omar took her hand and guided her towards the door. They were going to look for Kristopher. Annie knew good and well that she would die, and she wanted to be in Kristopher’s arms when she did.

“Wait!” Omar shouted, pausing. “Haven’t you ever heard the saying true love can save you? Do you think that would work?”

“Ju-just..one more-reason to get to…Kr..Kristopher,” Annie chattered.

They ran as fast as Annie could go to get to Kristopher.

Meanwhile, Ella tugged and tugged, trying to break the chains off. She heard footsteps outside of the cell, and she paused to listen what the voices that came with them were saying. They were muffled, but clear enough to understand.

“Henry said that Ella is in here,”

“Careful she’s dangerous,”

She struggled, trying her best to get ice to break the chains. Ice started to grow over the walls and onto the floor, getting near the door.

Her handcuffs would soon come off, but not in time. But she had an idea.

She directed the growing ice to the door, letting it settle on the handles and locks.

“No, its stuck!”

“Hurry up,”

“But still be careful, she did after all ki–”

Ella didn’t here that last part, for she broke the chains and shot an explosion at the wall, escaping through the gap. She ran off into the storm that she had created. Officers chased after her, but it was useless. She had disappeared into the wind.

Henry went for her. Now, he had Annie taken care of, he just needed to get rid of Ella. He had it planned out, he would shoot her, give her the gun and make it seemed like she committed suicide.

He searched for her in the strong gusts of sleet and snow, but almost nothing was visible.

Ella ran as far as her feet could take her. She didn’t have to fight against the storm, but she was weak. Her legs were sore and she could barely breathe. Her injuries were still present, making it hard to escape.

Escape. That’s all she wanted. She wanted to run away, never face this town again. Never to face anyone. She wanted to be alone, where no one could hurt her. And where she couldn’t hurt anyone. She couldn’t control her powers, not even after all those years she locked herself in her bedroom. She felt broken inside. She disappointed her parents, hurt people, and was a horrible sister to Annie.

She became light headed, and a tornado swirled towards her. She ran into it, hoping it would carry her away from everything. When she reached the center, and all the snow and ice was swirling around her, it was calm. She couldn’t hear anything except for a faint voice yelling, “Ella! Ella!”

She turned around and saw Henry standing there, the boy who tried to save her.

“Ella! You can’t run from this!” She strained her ears to hear him, and when she finally could, something ripped her heart apart. She knew she couldn’t.

“Just, just take care of my sister,” She said, trying to hold back her tears, but she couldn’t hide the pain behind her voice.

“Your sister? She returned from the woods, weak and cold. She said you struck her with your ice,” Ella tried to understand what Henry was telling her, it all mixed in with the emotions she was feeling. He continued, “I tried to save her but it was too late.”

Ella looked up at Henry’s eyes, not knowing what he had said in his long distanced voice.

“Ella, your sister is dead. Because of you.” This she heard loud in clear. The words hit her like a truck, her heart stopped. His dialogue jumbled through her mind, rattling her skull. He whole body was pulsing, her legs collapsed and she fell to the ground. The storm stopped, every snowflake freezing in place. She felt like sobbing, but she couldn’t. Her eyes were as dry as a desert. She wanted to believe it wasn’t true, that this was just her imagination. But as each minute passed on, it felt more and more real, like someone had taken her heart and put it through the shredder.

Henry readied himself. No one was watching, so he held the gun toward Ella’s head, and put his finger on he trigger.

Annie struggled against the wind. It was pushing her back, forcing her from side to side. Omar was right by her side, but couldn’t do much to help her.

Suddenly, the storm stopped. A slight ringing sounded, but everything was still. Every ice shard was frozen in place. Something wasn’t right. Ella was in trouble.

She heard her name in the distance.

“Annie! Annie where are you!” It was Kristopher.

“K-Kiri-Kristopher?” She stuttered, the cold biting at her. She looked down and saw her fingers turn blue, they were frozen. It was Ella’s magic, it would freeze her over, inside and out.

Kristopher heard Annie’s quiet mumbling, and ran fast towards her, being careful not to slip on the ice.

“Annie I’m coming!”

“Kiri-Kristopher,” Annie should’ve felt relieved, but she didn’t. She knew her sister was in trouble, and she couldn’t bear the thought of it. She looked in the direction her instincts were telling her to, and he was appalled by what she saw.

Ella was laying on the ground, hunched over in a fetal position, breathing heavily.

And Henry was behind her. He held a pistol inches away from her head.

She looked back at Kristopher, he was about 30 feet from her. So was Ella. She looked back and forth, trying to make a decision. The ice was covering her arms now.

She took in a big breath and ran toward Ella.

“Annie!” Shouted Kristopher.

She ran with all her might as ice grew up her legs.

She jumped in front of her sister, yelling and crying at the same time.

Henry pulled the trigger, just as the ice crawled up Annie’s chest and onto her neck. The bullet froze on contact with her chest and ice formed around it, carrying it to the ground.

A strong gust of wind erupted off of Annie and pushed Henry back, and he fell to the ground unconscious. Ice formed on the tip of her braids.

Ella sat, unaware of what had just happened. She heard the gun shot, heard her sister’s scream, and she braced herself for what she might find. She slowly opened her eyes, and saw a light blue finger in front of her, and she turned her head to see Annie, frozen in a stance as if shielding her sister. Her mouth was in mid scream, and a single tear was frozen on her cheek. Even her freckles were detectable through the ice. She slowly stood up, trying to keep herself together, but it was no use. She felt the hot tears roll down her face, and she let them.

“Annie!” She sobbed and wrapped her arms around her little sister.

Her cries were violent, her mumbles sounded as if she was saying “Its all my fault”

All she wanted was her sister back. She didn’t want a home, acceptance, anything else. Just her sister. She didn’t want to live knowing she’d killed her sister. She loved her sister. She’d never told Annie that. And it was a mistake. She loved her with all her heart.

“I love you Annie, please come back.”

What could unfreeze such magic? Ella thought, but her head hurt from all her cries.

She felt a slight movement underneath her. Then she heard breaths. She figured it was just her imagination, still hoping for Annie. But when she heard her sister’s voice say her name softly, she new it was real.

She looked up and saw her sister’s smiling face above her. She cried out her sister’s name and embraced her in a tight hug, she would never let go. She cried again, but this time it was happiness filled tears. She had her sister back. She learned how to unthaw the town. She might actually have control now.

She thought about how much she loved their town. How she loved Mr. Jefferson who worked at the deli. The bakery’s doughnuts, which were always warm and ready to be sent off with kids to school. She loved the people in it, and how much they all had cared about her. And she felt the grass underneath her, tickling her toes. She opened her eyes and saw the great blue sky, the vibrant green trees, and the bird’s chirping. She smiled at her sister, and Annie replied, “I knew you could do it,”

Ella laughed, and hugged her sister once more. Kristopher joined in, and Steven and Omar pranced over. Ella’s life was finally together. She had everything she wanted.

Henry was sent off to juvenile detention, and Annie began to date Kristopher. Ella learned to control her powers, and used them for entertainment purposes. Kristopher and Steven found a foster family willing to take him in, and attended school with Annie. Ella eventually graduated and went to college to study architecture, and built statues for the ICE program all around the country. She took Omar with her, and they both visited Annie and Kristopher often. Everything was right, and everyone grew to love the girl with the ice.