When JEGlass, author of the awesome, wonderful fanfic titled For the First Time in Never which this one-shot is based on, mentioned that a very talented fanartist agreed to draw her OC Revel, I saw him in my mind's eye clearly drawn. Alas, even my stick figures are horrible, so to blow off steam while waiting for Chapter 17 to be posted, I wrote this. I have obtained JEGlass's blessing to post this, and I hope you guys like it. Please tell me if I did Revel justice or not.

(Psst…see what you've done to me? You had me writing fanfic for your fanfic because I'm getting antsy waiting for Chapter 17. Also, this version is more cleaned up and tweaked compared to the one I sent you.)

Captain Revel Handler prided himself on being punctual. As far as he can recall, he had never been late to a meeting with the queen. However, on this particular day, it seemed that his luck had finally run out.

He was thirty minutes late.

Shit and damnation, Sigmund. Why did you have to drag me all the way to the wharf? You could've taken care of it easily, he cursed his lieutenant silently.

Oh, he could just imagine the sort of grief Queen Elsa would give him. She was a stickler for punctuality herself, even moreso than him. In all the years he had served the Arendellian royal family, she had never been late to a meeting, as far as he knew.

Ever.

Hell, even being a minute shy of arriving on time had her left eyebrow twitching ever so slightly in annoyance. That had been a week ago, the latest he had been for a meeting with her before this happened.

A week since they had reached an understanding about their feelings toward one another.

They were lovers and equals in the privacy of his bedchambers, but outside of that she was still his queen and superior, and thus it wouldn't do to displease her by flouting her rules. As such, Revel took a deep breath as he reached for the ornate brass handle of the door to Elsa's study. All sorts of excuses flew around in his brain as the door slowly opened. I was out patrolling and lost track of time. I had to go over the inventory of weapons. I—

His heart stopped at the sight of his beloved slumped over her desk, unmoving.

"Elsa!"

Everything was rather a blur after that. And quite cold.

Because apparently, nothing untoward had happened to the queen—she was just enjoying a catnap before her meeting with her Captain of the Guard regarding matters about the Spring Trade Summit started. But his shout of alarm had brought about quite a rude awakening, which caused ice to bloom at her feet when she stood up, blindly waving her arms at an unseen attacker.

"Wh-who goes there?! Show yourself!"

"Elsa! It's me. Revel." He grabbed her flailing arms and pushed them down as she fixed him with a blue stare that still bore traces of sleep.

"Huh? Wait, what?"

"Revel, Majesty. Captain Revel Handler of the Queen's Guard. We have a meeting," he confirmed, feeling a smile creeping on his face at Elsa's befuddled state. He had not let her go yet, as he was captivated by the sight of her eyes softening with affection as she recognized him.

"Of course. My apologies, Captain. However," she glanced at the grandfather clock behind him, and the softness of her eyes changed into chips of blue ice when she saw that their meeting should have started half an hour ago. "You're late."

Revel let her go then, stepping back to bow his head contritely. "My apologies, Majesty. I have no excuse for being late. I simply lost track of time."

"Doing what?"

"Patrolling."

His queen gave a delicate sniff. "Likely story," she scoffed, waving the ice away. Revel decided it was time to do some damage control.

"Ah, but while I was out risking life and limb patrolling the streets of Arendelle to ensure the safety of its citizens, my thoughts are filled with you, Elsa, queen of my heart," he said, placing a hand over his chest, delivering the line like a bad actor. He hoped to make her crack a smile at his antics, but Elsa was unmoved, her regal mask firmly in place.

"Right," she deadpanned. "Well, you're late enough as it is. Sit down, Captain. We have much to discuss." She stepped away from him and sat down at her great oaken desk, which had stacks of paperwork on it. Revel tried to keep himself from wincing in sympathy.

Well, I tried, he shrugged inwardly. He made a mental note to make it up to her later tonight. Being a huge stickler for time was simply one of Elsa's quirks. However, he couldn't just shrug off the sight of her slumped over her desk. He glanced behind him to make they were alone and that the door was not left ajar.

"Before we do, are you alright? You gave me a fright when I saw you slumped over your desk," he said, taking a seat as well.

Elsa sighed, rubbing her right temple. "I was sleepy and since you weren't here yet, I thought to close my eyes for a bit. Next thing I knew, you were in front of me looking scared. Sorry about that."

Revel raised an eyebrow. "You should be getting enough sleep," he chided lightly.

"And who kept me awake last night?" she retorted archly, raising an eyebrow as well. Revel couldn't help but smirk as he recalled the pleasures they had shared.

"I did, and you'd best not forget it," he replied, knowing that desire for her burned in his eyes. Elsa's calm façade didn't crack, but he could see her pale throat working as she swallowed nervously.

"You'd best remember your place, Captain," she snapped, all regal hauteur on the surface. But there was a spark of invitation and playfulness in her eyes that belied her disdain. A small part of him raged at the injustice of sneaking around to be with his lover, but he shunted that aside to play her game.

"Really, now? And where would it be, Your Majesty? Under you? Or perhaps on top of you?" he drawled slyly, leaning toward her. Elsa's mask slipped; need and uncertainty warred within her eyes. To convince her, he reached for her hand and began circling her knuckles lazily with his thumb. Satisfaction surged through Revel when need won, which made her blue gaze darken.

"I…" Elsa trailed off as Revel stood up and went to her, a predatory glint in his green eyes. Without preamble, he took her into his arms and kissed her, tracing his tongue over the seam of her mouth for her to let him in. She did, and he plunged in greedily, his tongue mating with hers, grinding his hardness against her inviting heat. He hauled her up to her desk, and she responded by wrapping her legs around his waist.

"Well?" he growled into her ear, nibbling on her earlobe gently. "Where is my place, Majesty? Tell me," Revel commanded, his hand creeping up her skirt to caress her leg, which made her tremble. He glanced at his left to surreptitiously check if there are any breakable items nearby—he wanted to sweep his hand over her desk to lay her over it and sate their mutual craving for each other.

But something caught his eye. It was a drawing, which he would have ignored under the circumstances, had it not been of a man's torso.

Revel broke away from Elsa, frowning with curiosity. "What's this?" he asked, picking the drawing up. Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth to answer him. By then, he had already stepped away to inspect the drawing more closely.

Revel felt his breath knocked out of him as he got a good, long look.

It was a drawing of him. Or drawings rather, when he rifled through the other papers on her desk. They were drawings of him in various poses and states of dress (or undress, in some cases—he couldn't help but notice a number of them were of him without a stitch of clothing, though it was either artfully shadowed or his back was turned). Revel heard Elsa squeak as she covered her face in embarrassment.

He turned to see her peeking at him from behind her hands. She sighed and lowered her hands to her lap, biting her lip.

"I miss you during the day," she muttered, unable to look at him in the eye. "Besides, meetings and going over budgets are dead boring."

"I can sympathize," Revel found himself answering, still stunned at what he discovered. Elsa had drawn him with an artist's expertise and a lover's eye. Some of the drawings were from her perspective—he saw one that he guessed was when they had danced at the Yule Ball. She had captured the spark of excitement in his eyes and bright grin perfectly. Another was of him with his naked back turned as he looked outside the window—he could see the play of muscles in every pencil stroke.

The most arresting was that of his smiling face, radiating all the love he felt for her.

Revel was surprised to feel humbled by his discovery. He expected to feel pride. This was perhaps the closest Elsa could express her feelings for him openly, through art.

"Keep them," Elsa said, sliding off her desk to gather up the other drawings. "I suppose I shouldn't since someone might discover them." She opened a drawer to retrieve a leather envelope.

"Thank you," Revel whispered, coming up behind her to wrap his arms around her waist. "These are beautiful. Well, not to say that I'm beautiful, but you know…you made me look better than usual."

"Because that's how I see you, Revel," Elsa said simply, turning around to embrace him with one arm. "You are the most beautiful soul I know, and I just expressed it on paper." She reached out and ran her fingertips along his jaw tenderly.

He didn't think his heart could take any more shocks. A beautiful soul…? He leaned into her touch when her hand opened to cup the side of his face, her thumb stroking his cheekbone.

The lovers gazed at one another, drinking in each other's features right at this moment in time. Revel couldn't claim to be as good an artist as Elsa, but he memorized her face, certain that it will remain stamped clearly in his mind even when he grew old. If he grew old. He was living on borrowed time, and at the back of his mind he knew his past would catch up with him sooner or later. He loved her deeply, and no matter what the future held, she will remain the greatest and last love of his life.

The grandfather clock chimed the hour, making Elsa and Revel step apart to make themselves more presentable. Elsa had another meeting in ten minutes, and it wouldn't do at all for them to be discovered.

"We never did get to have our meeting." She ruefully observed her once immaculate and now cluttered desk. Revel shot her a look that was both sheepish and smoldering, which had her clearing her throat. "I wanted to talk to you about the guard placement in the city square, but I suppose it can wait a day or two."

He found her nervousness adorable, making him want to continue their earlier activities. However, he managed to find the strength to control himself and help her straighten her desk.

"I'll see you tonight, then?" Revel asked after they cleaned the mess they made, bringing Elsa's hand to his lips to brush a light kiss on her knuckles.

"Yes, tonight. And don't be late," she admonished him, poking a finger on his chest. "You know I hate tardiness."

"Of course, Your Majesty." Elsa handed him her drawings, which she had tucked carefully into the leather envelope she got out earlier. She bit her lip, appearing to want to say something but decided to keep quiet, which piqued his curiosity.

"Something wrong?"

Elsa took a deep breath, marshaling her courage. "When you asked me where your place was," she began, blushing, "I...well..." she faltered before meeting his gaze head on. "I was thinking I'd like you by my side. As much as possible, anyway."

Revel smiled, tucking a lock of wayward blonde hair back. "Always, Elsa," he murmured. She closed her eyes, savoring his gentle, loving touch when it lingered on her cheek.

Slipping back into their roles as queen and captain with some difficulty, he bowed just as her next appointment knocked on her door. It was Kai, and he was there to discuss the expenditures for the Spring Trade Summit so far.

"Please sit down, Kai," Elsa invited the manservant just as Revel shut the door behind him. He leaned against it, tucking the envelope to his chest as if to keep it from prying eyes.

His relationship with Elsa will have to be another secret among the many he kept. But oh, how he wished he could shout his love for her from the castle rooftops.

Treasure it while it lasts, and always remember it when it ends. With that last, sobering thought, Revel straightened and started off to his quarters to hide the precious keepsake Elsa had given him.

I love you, Elsa.