An interrogation. Without a doubt, this is definitely an interrogation.

The thought went through Glacier's head faster than she could try to repress it, and she was acutely aware of just how glad she was that Iceberg wasn't a mind-reader. Yes, she loved her friend dearly, but when it came to meddling in her personal life, no other dragon was as bad as Iceberg.

Ever since the two had come back from Blaze's fortress last week, Glacier had been trying to avoid her current predicament. It had seemed like wherever she went, Iceberg was right behind her, waiting to ply her with a multitude of questions on what had happened after she left Glacier's side that day at the fortress. Glacier's luck finally ran out, to her dismay, when Iceberg managed to catch her off guard before she had a chance to make up an excuse to leave.

Said dragon continued her monotonous pacing across the throne room, with each step she took causing her claws to click harshly on the frozen floor. The sound echoed throughout the mostly empty chamber, as many of the other Icewings were out and about performing their duties for the tribe. Thus, there were no other dragons around to save Glacier from the onslaught of questions she was due to receive from her overly-inquisitive friend.

"So…" Iceberg began.

"...so?" Glacier replied.

In a flash, Iceberg was suddenly snout-to-snout with a very startled Glacier. The silvery dragon was grinning from ear to ear in a way that made Glacier unsure if her friend was mentally sane or not.

"Well, how did it go?" Iceberg asked. "Oh, I just wish I could have been there! It must have been sooo romantic!"

Glacier scoffed. "It was nothing of the sort. I seem to remember very clearly that this was a purely diplomatic visit."

"Ah, I see…" Iceberg sidled up to Glacier's side, leaning over to whisper conspiratorially into the slightly larger dragon's ear. "You two kissed, didn't you?"

Glacier's eyes shot open as she struggled to fight down the heat that was beginning to rise up to her face. "W-we did nothing of the sort!" Seeing the mischievous look in Iceberg's eyes, Glacier huffed and crossed her arms, turning away from Iceberg to prevent her from seeing her rapidly darkening scales.

Iceberg placed a claw on one of Glacier's shoulders. "Glacier, it's okay. I still remember how back when I was your age— "

"You're only two weeks older than me, though."

Iceberg waved a claw about the air dismissively. "Details, details. All I'm trying to say is that you should be proud that you managed to get a kiss from an absolutely beautiful dragon such as Blaze."

"For the last time, we didn't kiss!" Glacier's voice rose a bit, drawing a bit of attention from the guards that were posted around the room. "All I did was watch her dress up in some new outfits that she bought, honestly!"

"And that's what I wanted to hear." Iceberg strolled up casually to Glacier, who was finally realizing the depth of her error. "So… you had Blaze try on some pretty clothes for you, huh?"

Great claws… Glacier thought to herself. She played me like a blasted fiddle! She paused for a moment, thinking.

Well, if she could play the fiddle, that is.

Glacier was brought out of her short-lived trance by the sound of Iceberg snapping her claws. The other Icewing looked bemused, as if she had been trying to get Glacier's attention for few moments.

"What's with the blank stare?" Iceberg asked. "Were you having a nice daydream about your princess girlfriend or something?"

"She not my girlfriend," Glacier replied. As soon as she said this, however, Glacier felt a note of disquiet enter her heart. Although… I think I would like her to be. One of these days, I hope.

Iceberg appeared thoroughly unconvinced. "Riiiiight. She's totally not your girlfriend." Suddenly, a look of realization flitted across her features. "Wait, if you're a queen, wouldn't that make Blaze your consort?"

"Are we really discussing this right now?" Glacier asked as she fought the rising urge to drag a claw down her face.

"Ah, sorry," Iceberg sighed, "you're totally right. What we should be talking about is how you apparently left the palace at night without telling me anything!"

Oh dear. I was hoping that she would have forgotten about that by now. "Uh, I was just— There was an important… thing, that I needed to attend to." Glacier lied.

"Outside of the palace," Iceberg replied, her voice completely devoid of tone. "In the dead of the night."

Glacier nodded twice. "Yes."

Iceberg didn't seem convinced. "Lovely. Well, you keep that up, and while you're here with me instead of actively avoiding me for a week, we can think of a plan to show Blaze that you're definitely interested in her."

"W-what!?" Glacier felt like her voice nearly jumped an entire octave. "W-when did we suddenly decide that I was interested in Blaze!?"

"Ever since Blaze outright told me that you've been sneaking out of the palace at night to come visit her."

Realizing that she had been caught red-clawed, Glacier let her head droop, her gaze resting at the foot of the throne. She let out a sigh that she hadn't realized that she had been holding.

"Alright, you win Iceberg. So what's the plan?"

~X~

"I don't think I like this plan, Iceberg."

"Nonsense," Iceberg said with a wave of her claw. She stood just a few paces away from the throne where Glacier now sat, watching as two Icewings darted around their queen, brushes in claw. "Every dragon knows that the way to a girl's heart is through her appreciation of fine art."

Glacier hurriedly snapped shut an eye as one of her attendants appeared at her side, wielding a brush covered in some type of… creamy substance. "Forgive me if I do not see the artistry in covering my face in paint."

Iceberg huffed. "It's not paint. It's makeup — eyeliner and eyeshadow, specifically."

"Yes, that's just lovely," Glacier said, "but that still doesn't explain why I'm wearing it. What does any of this have to do with art? Or Blaze, for that matter?"

"You're lucky I love you as much as I do, because otherwise, you'd be absolutely hopeless on the field of romance," Iceberg sighed. "In reality, makeup is nothing more than art designed to be applied on the body, and once Blaze sees just how gorgeous you look with a bit of liner and shadow, she won't be able to resist you!"

"Are you certain?" Glacier asked, uncertainty lacing her voice. "I don't know. I just feel like they're putting paint on my face."

"That's because they are, except it's called eyeshadow," Iceberg replied.

Glacier hummed quietly. "Now that I think about it, I've definitely seen some of the members of the Upper Circle with this… eyeshadow on their face before, though it doesn't seem to be as prevalent in the Lower Circle."

"The materials that we use to create eyeshadow come from special ores and minerals that are quite difficult to find out here in the arctic," Iceberg explained. "Most of what we have has to be imported from other locations, so only the higher ranked Icewings really have access to it."

"I see," Glacier said. "And you're absolutely certain that Blaze will appreciate something like this?"

"I'm absolutely certain," Iceberg said, a wry smile growing on her face, "beyond an eyeshadow of a doubt."

Glacier groaned and slapped a claw over her face, miraculously avoiding smearing any of the makeup that had already been applied around her eyes. "That was terrible, Iceberg."

Iceberg gave her a sly grin. "You know you love me for it."

After about ten more minutes of work, the two attendants quietly departed just as quickly as they arrived, leaving Glacier and Iceberg alone in the throne room, save for the guards that were stationed there. Iceberg retrieved a mirror that she had placed near the throne earlier and held it up to Glacier's face. What Glacier saw in the mirror was a dragon that looked exactly like her, but the other dragon's face had been accentuated with a light blue eyeshadow and a slightly darker blue eyeliner.

Glacier studied her reflection for a few moments longer before finally giving an approving nod. "Not bad… I actually quite like the colors that you've chosen," she said to Iceberg.

"Oh, you can thank me later," Iceberg replied. "Right now, it's time for us to pay Blaze a quick little visit, don't you think?"

Glacier nodded in affirmation. "Before we go, however, there is something I need to retrieve from my chambers." She rose from the throne, stretching out all the cricks and kinks she acquired from staying still for so long. "Would you mind meeting me at the front of palace with the entourage?"

"Uh, certainly," Iceberg said, "but what is it that you need to get from your quarters all of a sudden?"

As she started down the corridor that led to her private quarters, Glacier glanced back at a slightly confused Iceberg, giving her sly smile before turning and continuing down the hall.

"A queen has to have some secrets, you know."

~X~

Within her private chambers, Glacier walked over to the bookshelf that stood near the window. Her talons traced over the spines of the many pieces of literature that the shelf held, admiring the feeling of worn leather that well-used books had. Her claw stopped its movement once she felt what she was looking for: a relatively new book with gilded edges. Its title read, Firmament: A Dance by Moonlight. Glacier took the book from its place on the shelf, revealing behind it what she was really looking for: a plain, white box that was wide and long, but not very tall.

After she retrieved the box, Glacier replaced the book back on the shelf. She pulled the box in front of her and removed the lid, revealing its contents to be a sand yellow shawl adorned with a variety of intricate patterns and designs. Glacier pulled the simple piece of clothing from its container and held it in front of her, making sure it was in the same pristine condition as it was when she last saw it.

"Blaze is always mentioning how cold it is this far north," Glacier whispered to herself. She ran her claws through the smooth fabric, admiring how it seemed to flow like water through her talons. "I truly do hopes she likes it — it took quite the effort to complete this in just a week," she said as she carefully placed the shawl back in its box.

Glacier smiled softly as she thought of Blaze and how the Sandwing would react once she saw what Glacier had made for her.

"It's worth the effort, though. To see that smile of hers again… it is most certainly worth it."

~X~

Glacier and Iceberg stood in the antechamber that led into Blaze's throne room, waiting as one of Blaze's guards announced their arrival to the princess. A few moments later, the same guard poked her head into the antechamber and informed them that they could enter.

Before they walked inside, however, Glacier checked to make sure that the box with Blaze's gift inside was still tucked safely underneath her wing. After doing so, she turned to Iceberg and asked, "Are you sure that I look fine?"

"You look marvelous, darling," Iceberg replied. "Now, it's best not to keep your princess waiting, right?"

Glacier nodded and gave her friend a broad smile. "Right."

Upon entering the throne room, the first thing that Glacier noticed was that Blaze was already present and waiting for her guests, unlike the last time that she had visitors. The Sandwing smiled as Glacier and Iceberg approached the foot of the throne, and she stepped down to meet them. Before she could a good look at either one of her guests, however, Iceberg stepped forward toward Blaze, drawing the Sandwing's attention to her.

Iceberg cleared her throat before saying with a bow, "May I present to you, Princess Blaze, Queen Glacier of the Icewings."

Blaze started to question the sudden use of formality, but anything she was about to say got stuck in her throat as she finally noticed what was different about Glacier. As she stood there, Blaze admired how Glacier's arctic blue eyes were accentuated by the cosmetics that she wore, something that only served to enhance her natural beauty. Realizing that she had been staring for quite a while, Blaze quickly looked away, blushing.

"Y-you, uh… You look really pretty, Glacier…" Blaze said, barely even being heard in the dead silence of the throne room.

Seeing Iceberg wink and motion for her to move forward, Glacier stepped up to Blaze, who was still trying to hide the obvious redness of her scales. After taking a deep breath to steady herself, Glacier reached down to clasp one of Blaze's claws in her own, eliciting a gasp from the princess. When Blaze whipped around to look at her, Glacier gave her a coy smile.

"Blaze," she began, speaking just loudly enough so that Blaze could hear her, "would you mind accompanying me to your private quarters? I'd love to speak with you… alone."

"O-oh!" Blaze yelped. At this point, her face was as red as a tomato. "O-of course! Just, uh, f-follow me, if you would…"

"Certainly," Glacier replied with a smile. As Blaze started down the corridor that led to her chambers, Glacier glanced back at Iceberg's shocked expression at the current turn of events, relishing in disbelieving look that covered her friend's face before hurrying down the hall after Blaze.

~X~

When they had made it Blaze's private quarters, Glacier noticed immediately that while Blaze made no effort to start a conversation, she had instead opted for sitting much closer to Glacier than she had during their last visit. The princess still refused to look at her, so Glacier decided to take matters into her own claws.

"So, Blaze," Glacier began, "how have you been since we last met?"

Blaze nearly jumped at the sudden sound of someone speaking. "O-oh, I've been fine. I've just been staying around the fortress doing… princess things."

"Ah, I see," Glacier remarked. The racked her brain to find something to talk about before their conversation ended much sooner than she wanted it to. After a minute of quick thinking, her eyes lit up as she thought of the perfect solution to get Blaze talking again.

"Forgive me if I seem a bit nosy, but I was wondering… Have you managed to procure any new outfits since my last visit?" Glacier asked.

At hearing Glacier's question, Blaze's face lit up all at once. "I did, actually! Ooh, you've just got to see this one," she said before hurrying behind a screen at one of the walls of her room. While Blaze was back there, Glacier heard the sounds of rummaging and multiple boxes being thrown to the side.

"Oh, and one more thing," Blaze called out from behind the screen. "I hope you don't mind, but before you left last week, I kinda managed to get Iceberg to tell me what your clothing measurements are, so I kinda picked out a few things for you, too," she said.

Oh dear, Glacier thought to herself. Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that.

After Blaze reappeared from behind the screen with numerous articles of clothing balancing on her wings, she and Glacier continued their conversation between trying on the various outfits that Blaze had picked out. Glacier particularly liked the ivory colored scarf that the Sandwing picked out for her; its light colors blended in nicely with her bright scales, though she really didn't understand why she would need it. Blaze also showed off a pair of matching earrings that she had bought for the two of them; one was in the shape of a crescent moon, while the other depicted a shining sun. Glacier's scales darkened slightly when Blaze moved closer to her in order to affix the moon earring to her left ear.

As more and more time passed, however, their lively conversation eventually began to dwindle. Noticing that it was almost time for her to leave once more, Glacier decided to take the opportunity to give Blaze the gift that she had made for her.

"Blaze, I—" Glacier took a moment to steady her rising nerves, and unfurled her left wing, allowing the box contained within to drop into her waiting talons. "I... got you something as well," she whispered as she held the present out for Blaze to take into her claws.

Blaze carefully took the plainly marked box from Glacier's talons, holding it with a level of reverence that one might equate with a dragon that had just found a priceless artifact right beneath their claws. With slightly trembling claws, she removed the lid of the box, gasping once she saw the beautifully made shawl within. "This… this is for me?" she asked, disbelievingly.

Glacier nodded, not even bothering trying to fight the warmth rising up to her scales. She embraced it instead, allowing the feelings she felt for the dragon in front of her to rise to surface. "I remembered how, when you first came here, you would always remark on how cold it is this far north, so I made this… for you."

Blaze's eyes widened as she took in Glacier's words. Breathing deeply, she slowly and carefully set the box down to the side. Before Glacier even had time to react, Blaze crashed into her, wrapping her arms around the Icewing in a hug. Glacier was just about to reciprocate the action when she suddenly felt Blaze bury her head in the crook of her neck, nuzzling her all the while. Glacier sat there in stunned silence for a moment, but quickly recovered, moving to wrap her arms around Blaze and to place her head atop of hers, humming in contentment.

As the two sat there, wrapped in each other's embrace, Glacier looked down with a loving smile at the slightly smaller dragon that she held in her arms.

I suppose… I suppose it's not so bad to fall in love with a princess after all.