Loki had explained hardly a fraction of the items on display when they heard the heavy doors open. A woman who looked somewhere between Elsa and Frigga in age came into the library and approached them. Elsa took her for a servant, a notion confirmed when the woman bowed.

"Pardon for the intrusion, your grace, but rooms have been prepared for the royal guest. Queen Frigga has asked me to show her the way so she may take her ease before supper."

"It seems my mother decided we have had enough privacy," Loki said, turning to Elsa. "Well then. We certainly must do as she says. Shall I fetch you later, when it is time to sup?"

"All right," Elsa said. She was looking forward to seeing the guest rooms Asgard offered. "Until then."

Judging from the route the serving-woman took her, Elsa was staying not too far from the library. She hoped she could remember how to get there, in case she wanted a book. If Frigga said they were at her disposal, surely that meant the library, too. She wondered where the princes slept. In Arendelle, at least, male and female guests had separate corridors.

Her room did not disappoint. The woman led her into a large, airy salon decorated in blues and golds. Several cushioned settees and tables were arranged around an empty fireplace, the largest Elsa had ever seen. A huge tapestry on one wall depicted a pastoral scene, and another was woven with images of creatures she could not identify. Grand windows opened out over part of the city, with mountains just visible on the horizon. The breeze was cool and sweet. The ceiling was lower here than in the library, but it was ornately carved and painted.

The servant led her through a much smaller dressing-room and into a bigger bedroom. The canopied bed, with its gilded posts and dark-blue draperies, looked like it could sleep at least four Elsas. The carpet was soft and thick, and the fireplace even larger than the one in the outer room. There was a vanity table, a writing desk, and more dressers and wardrobes than she thought anyone needed to use. The curtains were closed, but stirred in a breeze from the open windows behind them.

"There is fresh water in the pitcher on the table, your grace," the woman said.

"Yes, thank you," Elsa said. "This will suit nicely." She wondered if the servant expected her to be more demanding. She had never been any sort of guest anywhere, much less as queen.

It might have been frowned upon for a guest to kick off her shoes as soon as she was alone and shuffle her bare feet across the luxurious rugs, but that is what Elsa did. She unclasped her cloak and let it crumple to the floor. Then she took off her belt and dagger before leaping onto the bed, burying her face in a pillow that smelled faintly of lavender.

Anna would love this, she thought. She would be leaning out the windows to take in the sights and probably trying to see if they both could fit in the empty fireplace. They could snuggle close in the bed, as they had when they were much younger, and whisper secrets and scary stories when they should have been asleep. I wonder if Loki would go and bring her back for me?

Elsa did not know how long she was asleep, but when she awoke, the room felt slightly cooler and the light had shifted. She had not realized how exhausted she was, and dragged herself off the bed, grateful for Frigga's suggestion that she rest. Her cloak had been folded and placed on a dresser, and there were new towels sitting beside it. Everything else was as she had left it, but Elsa felt a flutter of uneasiness at the thought of someone being in the room when she was unawares.

After washing her face and hands, she sat at the vanity table to make use of the hairbrushes and combs in the drawer. She refastened the dagger and its belt around her waist, beneath her skirts. Loki still had not come by then, so she waited.

Elsa spent most of that time looking out the window. The room was higher above ground than she expected. She saw copper-colored rooftops and golden roadways and bridges, surrounded by tributaries that lazily meandered through the city, toward a wider river that flowed into the waterfall she had seen earlier. In the distance, the structures grew further apart, until her eyes could just make out a stretch of green space, then the hazy sight of the mountains. As beautiful as it was, something about it made her unsettled; Elsa preferred her mountains closer, like at home.

She started at the sound of a rapping. Elsa slipped back into her shoes and hurried to the door. Loki was wearing a fresh change of clothes and his green cloak. His hair was slightly damp and his face was almost pink, with the scent of soap or some kind of oil hanging about him. He looked so much like a little boy who had just been given a good scrubbing that Elsa had to try hard not to laugh. She was not entirely successful.

"Something amuses you, your grace?" Loki asked.

"Nothing at all," she said. "You look…very clean."

They walked arm-in-arm down the stairs, then past rows of giant columns. Elsa had been so absorbed in the surroundings that she forgot to be nervous—until they actually reached the dining hall.

An older, bearded man sat at the head of one table, his expression grave. His careworn face was made more alarming by the golden patch covering his right eye, matching the armor glinting on his chest and wrists. At least Frigga, seated opposite him at the table, gave her son and his visitor a warm smile as they came in. The man stood as Loki brought Elsa before him; he was as tall and broad as Thor.

I think that I will not pass muster with him, Elsa said to herself.

"King Odin Allfather," Loki said, "may I present to you Queen Elsa, of the land of Arendelle, in the realm of Midgard." Although his words and tones carried the utmost respect, Loki's smile was tense.

He favors his mother. That is obvious.

The room's atmosphere hung heavy with apprehension. Elsa felt as though she would wither beneath Odin's gaze as flowers had once withered in her grasp. She remembered to curtsey, which had the advantage of breaking eye contact so she could collect herself a bit more.

"Welcome, your grace, and be seated," Odin said, gesturing to the chair at his right. It was the seat of honor, but Elsa felt anything but honored—or welcome. The king was as cool and gruff as his wife was warm and attentive, and Elsa saw that he did not take too kindly to an unexpected visitor. Loki, at her right, was calm enough. Perhaps this was simply Odin's usual demeanor.

Thor came bursting through the doors. He was dusty and streaked with dirt, laughing as he waved the heavy war-hammer in one hand. His hair was damp as well, but Elsa guessed it was not from washing.

"Not a moment too soon!" the crown prince exclaimed as he sat opposite Elsa and Loki. A servant was bringing in the first course through a different door. "I trounced both Sif and Hogun in the field today, and am utterly famished!"

"We are proud of you, Thor," Frigga said, trying to hide a smile. "But you will make Elsa think we are quite uncivilized, coming to the supper table in such a state."

Thor's mouth was already full of soup, so Elsa said, "He was a perfect prince at the coronation, your highness. He represented his realm very nobly, and brought you no shame." She glanced at Loki and grinned to see him roll his eyes.

"I do not think Thor's appearance warrants any concern," Odin said. "It is hardly the most surprising thing at the table this evening."

"My dear," Frigga said with warning in her voice.

"I am sure we are all at a loss as to what you might mean, Father," Loki said. The irony dripping from his words earned him a glare from the king that was no less fierce for missing one eye. That was bad enough, but then he turned that eye toward Elsa.

"I am sure your grace is a worthy queen in your own land," Odin said to her. "And with you as a guest within our walls, our laws and duties of hospitality place us at your disposal. But I am in no way bound to pretend that this was my idea, or that I gave any approval in advance."

"Come now, Father," Loki said. "One might think you did not want her here."

Thor finally stopped eating long enough to snap, "Enough, Loki!"

"You know that the Bifrost is guarded for a reason," Odin said to his younger son. "Every realm has its dangers—beasts and magic and ancient sleeping evils that wait to be awoken. As long as you did not break my most explicit commands or threaten the safety of those realms I am sworn to protect, I looked the other way while you amused yourself with whatever mischief strikes your fancy."

Elsa stared down at her soup bowl, wishing for the next course to come—or perhaps a fire, or a flood, anything to distract them. Now she knew she was not welcome, and it set her stomach to tumbling. Desperate to do something, she reached for her spoon with a trembling hand.

"I see that I have been too lenient," Odin was saying. "A king's commands are too shamelessly flouted these days. You not only sneak off to other realms, but you sneak the other realms into Asgard!"

As soon as the spoon touched her soup, Elsa gave an involuntary shudder, sending a ripple of cold out of her hand. The spoon, soup, and bowl froze together with a crackling sound. She sucked in her breath, horrified. Although her first instinct was to flee, Elsa overcame it just in time; all she really did was leap out of her chair, almost knocking it over. She covered her mouth with her hands, staring at the frozen soup as if she expected the entire table to follow suit.

"Elsa," Loki said, standing. He reached out to pry her hands away from her face, but as they already knew, his touch did not calm her magic now. It did, however, appease her heart, which slowed its frantic beating enough that she kept control. "Are you satisfied?" he snarled at the king. "Yes, truly a mistake to bring her here—why, she might freeze all the soup in the realm! What a grievous threat—I shall send her back straightaway."

"You are not helping matters, Loki," Thor said. He and Frigga had both stood up in reaction to Elsa's panic, but the younger queen had not noticed until he spoke.

"My king, surely that was unnecessary," Frigga said to her husband. "You terrify her needlessly. Queen Elsa is of Midgard—she does not know of Asgard's duty to protect the realms, nor of the laws you have made for that end."

Odin had not stood up, but alternated between frowning at his wife and at the spoon standing on one end in its frozen bowl.

"She came to us honestly," Frigga continued. "Perhaps such an occasion calls for leniency."

"Be seated, all of you," Odin said. No one argued with him. "My words are true, your grace, but they came in haste."

That was probably the closest thing to an apology Elsa was likely to get. It seemed she had no choice but to sit and stare at her frozen bowl while the others finished the soup. Loki leaned over to whisper, "Do not worry—it's not that good anyway."

Based on the first few tastes, she did not agree with him. The wild boar that followed, however, dressed with herbs and fruits, was better than anything. Elsa could not decide which of the three sauces she liked best with it.

"We caught this one only the other day," Thor boasted. "Volstagg dealt the killing blow, as I recall."

Elsa's appetite diminished after that.

"Do you hunt, Queen Elsa?" Frigga asked her.

"I don't," she said. "But I ride."

"We'll ride to the mountains tomorrow," Loki said. "You can see how they compare to Arendelle." He grinned. "Provided you can ride one of our horses—they are larger and more spirited than the poor little beasts in Midgard."

"I think I can manage," Elsa said, her tone challenging.

"Perhaps you could build yourself another palace in the mountains here, for your next visit. Though I imagine it would melt before you came back again."

Elsa had not yet decided how to respond when she heard a piercing squawk! She almost knocked over her wine glass as two huge ravens flew into the dining hall and perched on the back of Odin's chair. Everyone else at the table seemed unsurprised by the birds' appearance. Odin turned to look up at them, frowning. Without a word, he got to his feet and strode out of the room.

One raven flew after him, but the other hopped onto the table, toward the platter. Thor reached over to swat it away as though it were a fly. The raven hopped away, pecked at the boar, and flew out of the room with a piece of meat in its beak.

"What just happened?" Elsa asked.

"Huginn and Muninn, my husband's ravens," Frigga said. "They bring him news."

"He looked none too pleased about it," Thor said.

"How very unusual," Loki grumbled.

Trying to change the subject from the king and his temper, Thor launched into a detailed account of the hunt for the half-eaten boar sitting in front of them. Frigga feigned interest and Loki made no effort to disguise his boredom, but Elsa started to feel a little ill.

When Odin stormed back into the dining hall, his face red and his one eye glittering with fury, it did not make her feel better.

"Did you think to take advantage of our hospitality by theft?" Odin thundered. "I know not how you cheated the Destroyer, but you were a fool to think you could leave this realm undiscovered!"

Elsa did not immediately realize that he was shouting at her. "I…your majesty?" she stammered. "I-I don't understand."

"My king," Frigga said, standing again, "do calm yourself!"

Odin ignored her. "What have you done with the dagger?"

Elsa's freckles would have had to fall off for her face to grow any paler. "The…dagger?"

"The forgery was discovered in the weapons vault. There are whispers that you hold the true blade."

"But I didn't steal it!" Elsa said.

"Do not lie to me!"

Her hands shaking again, she reached beneath her skirts and unhooked the scabbard from her belt. She threw it on the table. "That's the dagger I have—the one Loki gave me."

Odin's sudden calm was more terrifying than his shouts. He turned his eye to his younger son. "Explain this."

"I thought the queen ought to have a unique gift for her coronation," Loki said calmly. "I thought it would not be missed. It is not as though anyone here uses it."

"Then why did you bother to make a copy?" Thor asked, almost as angry as his father.

Loki shrugged. "Ketill is said to be the greatest weapons-maker in all the realms. I wanted to test that claim." He grinned. "Evidently it is true, if it is just now noticed."

Odin slammed his fist onto the table, causing a rattle of cups and cutlery. "This is why I forbid all but the most necessary travel between the realms! I would not have permitted you to attend that coronation if I knew you intended to steal Asgard's treasures for your…pet."

Elsa sprang to her feet. "Excuse me, sir, I am a queen!"

"There was no harm intended, I am sure," Frigga said.

"Father," Thor said, "I swear by Mjolnir, I knew nothing of this. Loki said our gift was the copy—"

"Leave us!" Odin snapped. "Frigga and Thor, you are not needed here. You may go."

Neither of them looked cowed as they left the room, but resigned—and both cast sympathetic glances toward Elsa. Once they were gone, Odin reached over and grabbed the knife's sheath. He pulled out the weapon, looking closely at the shimmering blade and the gems set in its handle.

"The stones glow brightly—more brightly than before," he said, tracing a fiery ruby with his thumb. "Blood has been shed by this blade, and recently." His eye looked back at Elsa, whose mouth fell open.

"I didn't," she said. "I wouldn't."

"The burning daggers of Muspelheim take heat and power from the lifeblood they shed—and so shine brighter. A blade not used in centuries should not glow as this one does."

Elsa felt as though she were choking. "You have to believe me," she said. "I don't want to hurt anyone. It was a beautiful gift. Maybe if I were in danger, I'd use it, but…I wouldn't want to."

"Elsa," she heard Loki murmur. When she looked at him, his face looked different from any other kind she had seen him wear. "You are not at fault here."

She felt a cold terror well up within her. "Loki, what did you do?"

He did not answer before Odin shouted for the guards. "Have the girl escorted back to her quarters—be sure that she stays there," the king said. "I would have words with my son."

When Elsa saw the two guards coming toward her, her fingers twitched. But if she cast her magic now to defend herself, she had nowhere to go. This was not Arendelle, where she knew the palace and the city and could shake off pursuers. This was a realm unknown to her, where she had no place to hide. Besides, even if she could fend off the guards, Odin and Loki were sure to overpower her.

"Father, wait," Loki said. "Leave her be."

"You are too late to speak in her defense," Odin said. "She will not come to harm, but I will have the truth from you. That may be easier with her out of sight."

The guards were standing at either side of Elsa's chair. She glanced at them, then at Loki. He gave her a faint nod, and she stood and followed them back to her rooms.

She paced the sitting room, trying to pass the time by looking closely at the furniture and tapestries, but otherwise there was nothing to do. Elsa leaned out of the windows and considered an escape like the one she had made from the cell in Arendelle. Even if she got out, there was still the question of where to go. She might find her way to the Bifrost, but there was small chance of getting past the Gatekeeper. Besides, her flight might be taken as a sign of guilt—and Elsa was certain she had done nothing wrong. Loki, on the other hand…

Loki, what did you do?

She barely understood what had happened. The visit began with such promise, and deteriorated so quickly. Odin obviously disliked her right away, but she had thought it nothing more than a mistrust of strangers and unexpected visitors. Then there was the matter of the dagger. Had Loki killed someone with it, and tried to hide the evidence in the form of a gift to Arendelle? Was he playing an elaborate, terrible hoax on her? He had told her not to let anyone know she had it. Why would he do that if he wanted her to be discovered? If the dagger was really just a gift, why not give her the copy? She would not have known the difference.

"What does it say of a maiden that she believes such a mercenary plot over a declaration of love?"

Elsa gasped and rushed into the bedroom. Her travel cloak was still there, folded and placed on a dresser—by a servant who must have seen the dagger on the table nearby. Groaning, Elsa covered her face with her hands. This is all my fault. I at least could have put it in a drawer, or under my pillow.

She did not know how much time passed before she jumped at a pounding on the door. She opened it and found Thor, and could not immediately hide her disappointment. That turned into apprehension when she saw his sorrowful expression. Have they done something to Loki?

"Queen Elsa," he said. "I have been instructed to escort you to the king."

"Where's Loki?" she asked. "Is he all right?"

"He is, and he will be there, as well," Thor said. "Please, your grace, you must come with me."

The two guards followed them through the corridor and down several flights of stairs. Again Elsa considered escape, but she eyed the war-hammer in Thor's hands and thought better of it. Not until they were walking through rows of familiar-looking columns did Thor spoke.

"I am sorry for this turn of events." His words were soft, but still seemed booming in the echoing chamber. "My father is a proud king, and hard, but he is wise and acts for the best. He does not like secrets, which makes my brother all the more difficult for him."

"I can imagine," Elsa said. She was looking ahead as she walked beside the crown prince, but out of the corner of her eye she saw him glance at her.

"Loki is a rogue, and full of mischief, and a great source of distress to our father. We do not often see eye-to-eye, but he is my brother, and I wish him well. I hope what has happened here does not make you think ill of him, or of the king."

"I don't know what to think right now," Elsa said.

Thor was quiet as they reached the end of the columns and came to the palace's grand entryway. Elsa realized they were leaving the palace, and she wished she had brought her cloak with her. She almost asked to go back for it. It doesn't matter now.

Outside, a male servant was waiting for them, holding the reins to two horses. Loki had not been exaggerating—next to those two massive steeds, her horses in Arendelle seemed puny and pitiful. With the help of both the servant and Thor, Elsa was settled into a saddle upon a smoky black mare. Thor mounted the dark brown stallion and jerked his chin in the direction they were to go. Elsa was pleased to find that her horse, although large, seemed mild enough, but the young queen was too nervous about their destination to enjoy the ride.

"After my brother and I left your realm," Thor said, "he was even more withdrawn than usual. Mother said he snapped at her once, which even Loki never does. But then he wanted to return to Midgard. I know not what changed his mind, but he had a difficult time convincing Father to allow it. Heimdall would not immediately open the Bifrost to him."

Why is he telling me this? Elsa wondered.

After crossing a street, they came to the rainbow bridge. Thor nudged his horse toward it, and Elsa's heart sank. What awaited her on the other side could not be pleasant.

"Loki does not often trouble himself to make friends," Thor said. "But he wanted to travel to a realm he usually dislikes, to offer a valuable gift to its new queen. That seems a great deal of effort for him."

"It was a gift?" Elsa asked. "It wasn't some cruel joke, or…" She did not finish the sentence, not sure what else it might have been.

"I do not believe so," Thor said.

But how much do you really know your own brother? Elsa wondered.

Thor urged his horse into a trot, and Elsa was compelled to follow suit, putting an end to conversation. Elsa's second journey across the Bifrost was shorter than the first, but it had been a more enjoyable experience on foot. They dismounted outside the shining, domed residence of Heimdall the Gatekeeper.

Inside, Elsa's stomach twisted to see Loki standing beside his father, hands clasped behind his back. Odin looked at her as fiercely as ever, and this time he carried a long, golden staff that maximized the effect. Heimdall was standing where he had been before, on a raised platform in the middle of the room, sword in hand. Elsa could not easily read Loki's expression when he looked at her. Every muscle in his body was taut, and his face seemed full of rage—at what or whom, she was unsure.

"Queen Elsa of Arendelle," Odin said, his voice echoing across the golden carvings of the curved walls, "You are not accused of any crimes here, and Asgard bears you no ill will."

But… Elsa thought.

"However," the king went on, "your relationship with my son, and your presence in this realm, have led to misbehavior, and encouraged him to flout my orders and disobey my laws—laws meant to protect not only Asgard, but the realms under our protection, including yours."

"I didn't do anything!" Elsa exclaimed.

"We know your influence upon his behavior has not been deliberate, but nonetheless, it has had an effect. He has brought outside magic into Asgard without my foreknowledge or permission. He has stolen a valuable, dangerous artifact from our weapons vault to make a gift to one outside our realm. And he has taken the life of a Midgardian, not only committing murder, but violating orders not to interfere in the commonplace matters of that realm.

"My son has deceived and played tricks before, but as his father and king, I must limit his opportunities where I can. I see no other option but to banish you from Asgard, and close the Bifrost to the both of you. Heimdall is under orders never to let my son depart from this realm, nor to allow you to return."

"But…" Elsa did not know how to argue with him. Murder. "I am a queen. Have I no voice in this?"

"Your authority is in your own kingdom," Odin said. "But this is not your kingdom."

Elsa glanced at Thor, who was wearing the resigned but sympathetic look he had had when he left dinner. Beginning to feel nauseated, and barely able to catch her breath, Elsa looked at Loki again. If possible, his face was even more unreadable than before.

"I didn't do anything," she whispered again, her voice trembling.

"I am sorry," Odin said, in a voice that was anything but.

"Fine, then," Elsa said. "Do what you must."

Odin stepped forward, but so did Loki.

"Father, wait," he said. "A moment, please?"

"For what?" Odin snapped.

"To speak to Queen Elsa—one moment of privacy."

Odin waved a hand at Elsa, but as Loki moved toward her, the king held out the staff, blocking his way.

"Any more tricks, Loki—any attempt to escape—"

"And Thor will hunt me down," Loki finished for him. "Not to worry, Father. I have no intention of joining that boar on the dinner table anytime soon."

Elsa staggered backward as he tried to approach her."Who was it?" she asked. "Who did you kill?"

Loki stopped and gritted his teeth before he answered. "One who would have killed you."

She stopped breathing for a moment, but her heart kept pounding. Anna had told her all about her erstwhile fiancé—how he had revealed his true intentions, how he had tried to kill both of them.

"Hans?" she whispered.

Loki gave a slow nod.

"You're insane!"

"I believe you made that observation long ago."

"What if you started a war?"

"I doubt the death of a thirteenth son warrants such retaliation," Loki said. "They may not even miss him. Besides, the ship was well out to sea, after he'd been put aboard in perfect safety in Arendelle."

Elsa's stomach tumbled and writhed. "Were you ever going to tell me?" she asked.

"No," Loki said. She glared at him, and he added, "There is no evidence that Arendelle had a hand in the boy's death. Even so, I wanted you to be able to say, in all honesty, that you knew nothing about it."

"Honesty," Elsa repeated scornfully, looking away from him.

"You seem to have a higher opinion of it than I do. I confess, I also hoped to convey a message of severe consequences for any threats to the Queen of Arendelle."

"Is that why you gave me the dagger? To use as a murder weapon?" She did not want to know how he stole it from her room in the first place.

"It was an instrument of justice," Loki said. When Elsa looked skeptical, he sighed. "My darling little queen, what do you think daggers are for? I did not give it to you to slice your bread."

Elsa's looked back at the dark-haired prince. Her expression was fearful, until she noted the tightness in his mouth and the sad shadows behind his eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Behind Loki, the king cleared his throat. "The hour grows late."

"A moment more," Loki said over his shoulder before turning back to Elsa. In a heartbeat, she saw fear pass through his face. He stepped closer and captured her hands in his before she could move away. "Elsa," he whispered, "the king will not be swayed."

"I can see that," she said. She was trying, and failing, to keep her voice cool and calm. Inside, she was in a panic. She wanted to cover the king, the prince, and the guard in ten layers of ice, grab Loki's hand, and run, it did not matter where. It was madness. There was nowhere to go.

"This was not the outcome I intended," he said. His bright, green eyes begged her to believe him. She did not want to. She couldn't. She had to.

"You should have given me the forgery."

"It would not have been worthy," he said. "Besides, switching the two was an excellent opportunity to practice my own magic," he added, grinning. Even now, he was trying to make light of the situation.

"Is it true?" Elsa asked. "Can you never leave Asgard again?"

His smile fell, and he looked determined. "There are other ways—I will find them."

"Then…it's my turn to wait?" Elsa asked.

He looked at her silently before placing one palm against her cheek. When he leaned down toward her, she turned her face.

"Loki, no," she said, too conscious of Odin, Thor, and Heimdall in the room. "They'll see."

"Let them," he murmured.

Elsa had no further argument, and when she felt his lips against hers, she forgot that the others even existed. Elsa kissed him back, seeing stars behind her eyelids and feeling the burn of unshed tears in her throat. Loki held her more tightly than he'd ever done before, evoking a sense of desperation that frightened her. There was a finality to their embrace that diminished the joy, if not the passion. The gentle pressure of his mouth grew fiercer, and although she needed to breathe, she dared not turn her head away. To do so was to lose him. But then her heels inevitably sank back to the ground, and Elsa's arms moved from around his neck to his chest. She squeezed him tightly, pressing her face against his soft green tunic, as though he could hide her from what was to come.

"It is time," Odin said, stepping forward. "Heimdall—now."

The giant in the golden armor gasped the sword and plunged it into the platform, sending bursts of white lightning up toward the ceiling. Beams and gears overhead turned and groaned, and Elsa felt a breeze, though she did not know where it came from.

"Loki," she said, still clinging to him, "I l—"

"No," he said, grasping her arms tightly. "Not now."

"I have to tell you."

"Please, Elsa," he said. "Do not make this any more difficult."

"If I don't see you again—"

"You will. I swear it."

Elsa had no time to say anything more before she felt herself pulled from him by some unknown force. It sent her tumbling back into the same bright light that had brought her there. She plummeted down toward earth, the wind rushing in her ears, her legs flailing, her hands grasping at nothing.

Somehow she hit the ground safely, the air knocked out of her so that she could only lay gasping for a few moments. Finally, she sat up and looked around. She was at the exact spot from which she and Loki had departed. She did not know what else she had expected.

It was a long walk to her castle. As in the not-too-distant past, Elsa took back roads and alleyways, but in the daytime there were inevitable passersby. Some scurried out of her way, a few gasped and pointed in delight at seeing their queen, but many more looked at her with pure bewilderment. At one point, Elsa might have cared more what they did and said, but her mind was still winded. She finally reached the kitchen entrance, but there was more activity there.

"Queen Elsa!" the cook gasped. The stout, middle-aged woman almost dropped her ladle, and her exclamation startled two kitchenmaids and sent them scurrying to the storeroom.

"Where is Anna?" Elsa asked.

"Why…Beg pardon, your highness, I'm sure I don't know."

Elsa moved as though only half-alive, climbing the servants' staircase to the upper floor. She heard a pair of lively voices in the gallery, and a man laughing. Looking through the doorway, she saw Anna and Kristoff examining one of the paintings.

Kristoff saw her first, and stopped laughing. "Your highness?"

Anna looked in the same direction. "Elsa! What are you doing back?"

She rushed toward her sister, but stopped several feet away. Her brow creased and her lips parted in surprise as she took in the queen's windblown hair and red eyes, and the grass stains on her skirt and the dirt on her palms and cheeks.

Elsa meant to offer a calm, dignified explanation. But when she opened her mouth, one shuddering gasp was all that emerged. Before she could take another step forward, Anna was holding her, and together they knelt to the floor, the queen weeping into her little sister's shoulder.