After the initial disaster that was dinner that first day, things went smoothly. Victoria willingly and eagerly drew up trade agreements with both the Isles and Arendelle, building an alliance that all three hoped would last- something Elsa's parents never managed to accomplished, for it was during that voyage to meet the young British queen that their ship was lost to sea. Over the course of the visit, the Scandinavian royals- as Victoria referred to them- got to enjoy the wonders of Britain; afternoons spent horseback riding when not in meeting, balls in the evenings; Victoria and Albert both even insisted on having lunch with the royal family in their private quarters. The children as well seemed to get along now that the stresses of the visit were put aside.

It was surprising, how the British royals seemed to get along with the Scandinavian royals, something that set tongues wagging- rumors of a possible betrothal of the Arendellian queen's daughter to the British royals' younger son, Prince Alfred, for they were the same age... perhaps a visit to Scandinavia for the British royals sometime in the near future... how Princess Anna had captured the attention of more than one male member of court...

Over tea and scones, they fell into easy conversations as though they had been friends for years, casting aside decorum and royal etiquette in favor of long, captivating conversations. "You are very deeply in love."

The conversation died down, and all three turned to Prince Albert, who had taken a seat on Hans' other side; the pair had discussed the great advancements made over the years in regards to the the telegraph and the railway, finding a mutual appreciation in architecture and a desire to do better for their countries with their children in mind. Anna was the only one who had not turned at Albert's declaration; she merely sipped her tea and waited for the stammering, blushing denial she knew would come from both her sister and brother-in-law.

"Ah... I'm sorry, Your Highness? What? I... I don't know what you mean-" Elsa glanced between Hans and Victoria, before turning to Anna, who looked away.

"The way the king looks at you, is the same way I look at Victoria. Deep, true love."

A blush painted the young Arendellian's face, and she glanced at her husband. "Is it that obvious?"

"Oh, Lise, please." The queen turned to her sister as she set her cup down. "It has been obvious from the moment you met at the Tercentenary."

The statement sparked raised eyebrows from both Victoria and Albert, and so they explained everything- how they had met, why they could not be together; how ancient laws of her country kept them apart, how they had secretly married, and how they had made the best of a bad situation, creating a family that was even more special because they had to remain separated. Both Albert and Victoria listened; it suddenly made sense, in the way they had been acting over the course of the visit- the secret glances, stolen kisses and quiet conversations.

"But... but you have a new council now, yes, Elsa? Would they not accept your marriage and abolish the law?" Elsa shook her head at Victoria's question.

"It's not that simple, I'm afraid."

"Ancient laws such as that were put into place long before the dynasty began, back when our lands were ruled over by Viking clans-" Hans raised an eyebrow as both Anna and Elsa shivered and crossed themselves, muttering quick prayers in their mother tongue. The girls knew the stories of the fierce, bloodthirsty Vikings they were descended from; the stories had given them both nightmares as children. "... and were only put into written law when the first king took the throne. It had been forgotten over the centuries until, well... Anna found it right before our marriage was to take place. Old laws such as that take years to remove."

"But first, they must be acknowledged by the council and just because I have a new council that will help me to expand Arendelle for the good of her future, does not mean they will be so willing to acknowledge and expunge old laws." Elsa added, as Hans took her hand. "For now we... well, we make do with what time we are given, and we've carved out a... a fairly normal routine for our family. And our children understand, for the most part, why it must be this way."

Hans brought her hand up to kiss, just as the sound of footsteps were heard as the children rushed into the room. "Mama! Mama!" Milla's fiery copper curls bounced, held back from her face by bows. The British queen had developed a fondness for the little girl, that had only grown since that dinner. Victoria and Albert's children- as well as Milla's brothers- followed; quickly, they all dropped into curtsies or bows. "Your Majesties." Victoria giggled softly, as Milla hurried to her mother, climbing into her lap. She reached up, cupping her hand around her mother's ear so only she could hear.

"No magic, not now, my Milli-met. It would be very rude; that is something to be saved for home, at Jannicke or Halsten."

"But Mama-"

"Listen to your Mama, Camilla," Hans spoke up. "She's the queen, you're to do as she decrees."

"But you're king, Papa." Annes spoke up, having gone to his father's side, as Hans turned to him. The monarch smiled softly, reaching up to ruffle his oldest son's white curls.

"But not of Arendelle, my son. Arendelle is Mama's domain; the Isles are mine. I have no say in this."

"Auntie Anna, please! We were playing and I said that Mama has more snow powers than what happened at dinner, and Prince Alfred said it's not true, that no one can have real powers over ice and snow, and I said that my Mama does!" The princess started, surprised to be brought in on her niece's scheme.

"I'm not the ruling monarch of Arendelle, Camilla, your mother is. And what your mother says, goes."

"But we're not in Arendelle or the Isles." The girl pouted. "Therefore Mama isn't queen!"

Elsa quickly lowered the cup she'd raised to her lips, exasperated. "But they are my powers, Camilla Helene, and it is my choice what I do with them."

The child crossed her arms over her chest, displeased, as Alfred spoke up. "I told you your Mama doesn't have powers over snow! No one does! What happened at dinner was an accident; someone knocked over a glass of water-"

"That's not true!" Victoria chuckled at the girl's persistence as she turned back to Elsa. "Oh, please, Mama, just once! Please, Mama, please! " The boy in question had the decency to look embarrassed at his parents' stern looks, and after a moment, her mother sighed, glancing at her husband. Hans merely shrugged as Anja climbed into his lap, and after a moment, she turned back to their oldest.

"Very well, Camilla, just this once- and only if Her Majesty and His Highness permit it." A moment passed before the British royals nodded eagerly, and with a sigh, Elsa set her cup and saucer upon the table, getting up and going into the center of the room. The children followed, gathering around her; after several minutes, Anna, Albert and Victoria stood and followed, Hans was the last to join, as he knew of his wife's power and had seen it before.

They all watched in awe as Elsa rolled her hands briefly, before glancing at everyone in turn and revealing a shimmering, glittering snowflake floating in her palm. "Ready?" The children, and even the adults, nodded, anxiously awaiting what would happen. Lifting her hand, Elsa turned, from the others, blowing in a halfcircle; the snowflake scattered about the room, snow quickly taking its place. It settled on every surface, fractals of frost decorated every window, delicate designs crafted of ice that mirrored fragile lace. Cries of awe and giggles of enjoyment soon reached Elsa's ears, and she turned to everyone. Snow fell softly from above, and while the queen's private sitting room appeared a winter wonderland from a postcard, the temperature remained normal.

"This is the most... marvellous thing!" Victoria exclaimed, going to the young queen and reaching for her hand. She hesitated. "May I?" After a moment, Elsa gave her hand, and the young royal examined her fingers, as the other adults joined them. "Frost... are your fingers not cold?"

Elsa shook her head. "Not at all."

"The cold has never bothered my wife." Hans spoke up from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder at him, as he slid his arms around her from behind. "In fact, she likes to use it to her advantage when something displeases her, usually something I've said or done."

"Really?" Albert chuckled, taking Elsa's other hand and gently brushing the frost from her skin; it was as real as the snow beneath their feet, the young queen's fingers were as pale as the rest of her, but not sickly; though cold to the touch, they were not freezing, nor had they turned blue to indicate a sign of frostbite. In fact, other than a slight coldness, her hand was as warm as his.

"Yes. Her usual way is with-" Before he could finish, Elsa had pulled her other hand from Victoria's and with a quick squeeze of her fingers, formed a perfectly round snowball, which she flicked into her husband's face. He managed to shut his eyes before the impact, and shook his head, sending snow flying at his wife's giggles. "- a snowball." He huffed, glaring at her. "What was the reason behind that?"

She pulled away from him, backing up and taking Victoria's hand, as though holding onto her hand would give her asylum from whatever attack her husband was planning in retaliation; the British queen started at how warm the Arendellian's hand was, and squeezed gently. "No reason, I simply wished to." And with that, she formed another snowball; Hans managed to duck the second one, before he stalked towards her. Victoria felt almost lost as Elsa released her hand and gathered her skirts before turning and hurrying as fast as she could through the snow as her husband hurried after her. The British royals watched as the king quickly closed the gap, grabbing his wife around the waist from behind and lifting her up.

Victoria glanced at Albert as he joined her, watching the pair as Hans finally set her down and then gathered a handful of snow, dumping it over his wife's head to her laughter. The sound of sleigh bells- that's what her laughter reminded them of- and everyone seemed to stop and watch as the King of the Isles tugged his wife close and gently brushed the snow from her cheeks, before lifting her up and kissing her. "They are quite lovely, aren't they?"

"Very. They each have... the best interests of their countries at heart... while still... able to maintain a great love of each other and their children," Albert stopped, considering his words carefully. "I believe if we keep this alliance, we shall have... strong allies in Scandinavia, dearest."

"Allies." Victoria whispered, shaking her head. "I asked to meet in order to form alliances, but now I find... I find that I hope we will have formed more than alliances, Albert."

"Friends?" She nodded, and he considered it. "Yes, I believe we have. The strongest of alliances are built upon friendships, after all."

"And love." She cocked her head towards the pair; Hans had gently set her back on her feet by then. Albert nodded in agreement, taking her hand and tugging her gently into the frolic.


"You must keep in touch, Elsa. And soon, we will plan a visit to see both your beautiful countries." Victoria reluctantly pulled away from the young queen as they stood on the steps of the palace. It was just after breakfast, and the royal family insisted on seeing the young Scandinavian royal family off. Victoria and Elsa had formed quite a bond over the visit, as had Albert and Hans, and the two couples had come out of this meeting with more than just an alliance formed, but friendships that would last long after their children were grown.

"Of course, Victoria. I look forward to the day you all set foot in Arendelle- and the Isles." She added, glancing up at her husband as Hans joined them. He rested a hand upon her back gently.

"Camilla! Christian! Enough dawdling, unless you would rather Mama and I leave you both here with Her Majesty and His Highness!" The six-year-old glanced over her shoulder, before turning back to the other children. She gave young Princess Louise a quick hug, before turning to Prince Alfred. Their parents and Anna watched as the two stared at each other, silent, before the girl curtsied and held out a hand.

"Goodbye, Prince Alfred."

Alfred glanced at her hand. "You're supposed to kiss her, like Papa does." Annes spoke up; Alfred made a face as his sisters giggled. The adults shared glances, and Elsa untied the ribbons of her bonnet before tying them again as Hans sighed. Anja held tight to Elsa's skirts and Anna cradled Sofia against her shoulder.

"Christian! Camilla! Nu! Før mor og jeg beslutter at efterlade dig!" Annes hurried to join his parents, and after a moment, Milla turned to follow, when Alfred grabbed her hand. She turned back.

It was a split second decision. When the Crown Princess's brother had said 'kiss her like Papa does', he'd meant kiss her hand like he'd seen at court functions when they had to pretend they weren't a family, not like Papa always kissed Mama. It was quick, a peck on the cheek with eyes closed and face scrunched as children often did. Milla backed up, eyes wide as Alfred opened his eyes, his siblings and hers as well as their parents and her aunt all watching in stunned silence.

"Ew!" And just like that, it was over. "Mama! Alfred kissed me!" The young Crown Princess hurried away from him as fast as possible, throwing herself into her mother's skirts, her arms going around Elsa's waist. She buried her face in her mother's belly, felling Elsa's hand come into her hair and the soft laughter her mother was trying to stifle.

The two mothers shared soft glances, and after a moment, Elsa spoke. "... tell Their Majesties goodbye, Milla. Come on, hurry. We have to go."

The girl quickly peeled herself from her mother's skirts and went to Victoria and Albert, ducking into a curtsy. Albert knelt before her, letting the child throw her arms around his neck in a hug before she went to Victoria, who embraced her lovingly. "Thank you, Uncle Albert, Auntie Victoria." Warmth tugged at Victoria's heart at the soft words; she had developed quite a soft spot for the little Crown Princess, and was sad to see her return to Scandinavia with her family, but was touched at the title; it was a title she would carry proudly for the rest of her life.

"You're very welcome, Camilla. When we come to visit, you can show us around, okay?" The girl nodded eagerly.

"Camilla! Kom, mit lille hjerte, vi må gå!" The girl turned back, watching as her father helped her mother into the carriage. She turned back, rising onto tiptoe to brush a kiss to Victoria's cheek before she dashed to join her father. He helped her into the carriage before going back to them. "Thank you again, for having us, Victoria, Albert. Please, whenever you get a chance, both Arendelle and the Isles will be honored to have you."

"Hans!" They turned back as Elsa leaned out the window slightly with an exasperated sigh. "Nå, min kjære! You are as bad as your daughter! We will be lucky if Captain Frej does not leave us in England!"

"I'll be there in a moment, darling!" He turned back, removing something from his pocket and handing it to Victoria. "My wife wanted you both to have this. As a thank you, for everything." He then returned to the carriage, and they were off, the children waving goodbye as they pulled away from the palace and disappeared down the streets of London, towards the docks. Once gone, Victoria unwrapped the gift and turned to Albert with tears in her eyes.

Sitting in her hand, was a small glass container, which held a pair of beautifully crafted snowflakes.