Happy New Queer! (it's like happy new year, but gayer).

Chapter warning for very brief discussion of infertility.

-IEA-

While Iduna thought Anna's table manners could do with some work, they were flawless when compared with... Kristoff, who shared carrots with his reindeer, ate with his hands sometimes and only tended to wipe his mouth at the end of a meal.

But he wasn't a prince, or a nobleman of any sort. He was just a somewhat peculiar man who had inadvertently saved both Anna and Elsa's lives, and, as it turned out, had seen Iduna once before her return.

"What do you mean, you've seen me before?"

"I uh... I was there that night you brought Anna to the trolls. I was just a little kid, and hid out with Sven and some of the other trolls so I guess you wouldn't have noticed me. we were just curious cus there was this magic looking ice trail behind you, I wanted to know if you had a magic horse. But it was Elsa."

It was a rare morning where her eldest daughter had joined them to sit for breakfast, though as Anna had commented, Elsa had a liquid breakfast that smelled of sweet, tart berries.

"Which is how you knew to take Anna there the next time."

"Yeah. But Grand Pabbie couldn't do anything other than tell us how to heal her ourselves. And, well, the rest I imagine you know."

The way Kristoff paid absolutely zero mind to Anna and Elsa exchanging looks Iduna didn't approve of suggested the blond man knew, leaving her wondering how he could accept such a thing. Iduna wasn't about to ask though, especially not since they breakfasted in the same room as multiple servants and staff now.

"So, how's prep going for the big shindig?"

"Very well, thank you Kristoff. Do remember you promised to take a bath. You too Sven."

Elsa answered, and Anna picked up the conversation in between great bites of her sandwich while Kristoff exchanged a grimace with his reindeer.

"What about the trade things?"

"Oh, I only answered them today, so I haven't heard back from Weselton yet, but I'm fairly certain we shall resume trade quite soon. It's just finalising the finer details at this point, they have little to lose and much to gain."

Despite everything else being so terribly strange, Iduna couldn't help but feel incredibly proud of how Elsa took to her Queen's duties. She was thoughtful and sensible about the politics of it all. Except where Anna was concerned, as was clear by the way she gnashed her teeth or dropped snowflakes onto furniture whenever the Southern Isles came up. Hans Westergaard was flat out banned from ever setting foot in Arendelle again, which was definitely a choice Iduna could agree with given how he'd put both her daughters at such risk.

After breakfast, Alice pulled Iduna away from any chance to talk to Anna, insisting she go through the three dresses that had been finished while Iduna was recovering from her miscarriage. No longer bedridden by weakness, pain or bleeding, it was still quite novel to simply walk the halls of the castle.

"They'll be a little big, but that's so you can grow into them a bit. You're definitely looking healthier though dearie."

Iduna wasn't sure about that, still noticing all the protrusions of her bones when she bathed, though she seemed to have stopped bruising at the slightest knock to her skin in the last few days, so that was something. With any luck, she'd stop shivering at the slightest chill and feel less exhausted climbing stairs soon.

It was definitely nice to be back in clothes made for a woman her age, rather than in Anna's, which were brighter and a little shorter than Iduna had been used to. The dress didn't quite hug her chest, but then she wasn't back in corsets yet. There was little point in having her measured and fitted for one when the intention was for her to regain some lost weight.

"Sit, I'll fix your hair and we can see how you'll look for the party."

Iduna sat mechanically, starting to feel more and more nervous about the whole event. How was Arendelle going to react? Her heart seized up in her chest every time she thought about people asking if Agnarr had returned too, certain somebody would blame her for not being able to save him that night, that there'd be outrage it was the queen-by-marriage who returned, not the King with a birthright.

"Iduna? Are you alright?"

Alice's voice cut into her spiralling thoughts, and she nodded tightly.

"Fine."

"You're shaking. Are you cold?"

Though it was a lie, Iduna nodded. Alice would only have told her she was being ridiculous, that her concerns were unfounded and that all the responses to her return would be positive. But Iduna didn't believe her, and so it seemed pointless to hear it all again.

Her hair was shorter now, the dead and unsaveable parts cut away to leave the healthy part behind. She knew it would be a while before her old style could be done again. Alice made sure Iduna could always see her in the vanity mirror, ensuring she knew who the hands on her were. It... helped.

"There we go. You'll look lovely."

Personally, Iduna still thought she looked a little like someone approaching their own deathbed, pale now the sun exposure had faded from her skin and half-expecting to see the jutting of her bones through the heavy material of her dress. But Alice would have scolded her, so she kept quiet.

Now she was starting to keep solid food down, Alice kept feeding her. Three meals were not enough, and Iduna had some form of snack at all times nearby.

"Could I have some time to myself for now Alice? I'd like to read and perhaps nap before lunch."

"Of course. Just let me get you out of this."

Only one of the dresses was intended for the party, the other two somewhat more casual, designed to keep her covered (and more importantly, warm) from collar to wrist to ankle. Iduna ran her hands down the skirt of the black and purple dress she got in to, and dutifully put on the bottoms underneath to help keep her legs from chilling too. And then, once she'd put a plate with cheese and grapes down alongside watered-down wine, Alice left Iduna by herself.

Getting used to the grandeur and opulence of it all was still something Iduna was working on. She forced herself to eat some of the cheese and a handful of grapes, keen to be back on her feet so she didn't need a full time watcher, much as she was grateful to Alice for being so dedicated - and for recognising her in the first place. Iduna wasn't sure what she'd have done if nobody had believed it to be her. Flipping open her book to the page with a marker in it, Iduna began to read, keen for a distraction from her racing thoughts.

A rather distinctive knock at the door surprised her, placing her book down and pushing herself into a more upright position.

"Come in."

Anna's head poked through the door, and she offered Iduna a bright smile when she saw her before sneaking in rather furtively, closing the door behind her.

"Hey. I saw Alice leaving and thought I'd come see how you were doing, but it looks like I interrupted you."

She nodded toward the book, and Iduna shook her head.

"It's fine, the book can wait."

"Ok then. Well, how are you feeling? Breakfast staying down? Is it good to have your own clothes again? Not that you aren't welcome to use mine, and I'm sure if you asked Elsa would give you a magic dress, but..."

Anna trailed off and finally stopped for breath, still smiling. Her enthusiasm was pure and rather contagious, and Iduna found herself smiling at her.

"I feel fine. I'm not back to full strength yet, but I'll get there. And yes, I do enjoy having clothes not made for a young woman."

"Hey, you don't look old enough to be our mom, nobody could tell."

Iduna tsked, shaking her head.

"That's sweet, but I look very much like an old, withered crone every time I check."

Anna rolled her eyes, letting out a short giggle.

"Nah, you're imagining things! Sure, you're a little thin right now, but your cheeks are starting to fill out again and you still have big, beautiful eyes and your smile is just like I remembered. GIve it a little time and you'll be beating off re-marriage proposals with a stick. Or hiding behind Kristoff and Sven. They're pretty big. Good shields."

The word marriage brought two thoughts to the forefront of Iduna's mind - her lost husband, and the relationship of her daughters.

"Speaking of, has Elsa given thought to such things?"

Anna's face scrunched up in confusion.

"Shields? I guess..."

"No, Anna. Marriage."

Wide teal eyes widened further, and Anna shook her head.

"Uh. Not really. I mean, aside from... me, there's a lot of stuff Elsa would have to really think about before she ever went down that route. Like, she has powers. Real, super powerful magic powers. Anyone she considered marrying might be trying to get hold of a huge weapon, and we don't want her being used like that. Plus, isn't a huge reason for weddings having kids?"

Honestly surprised by the fact it was obvious that Elsa and Anna had actually talked about it somewhat before, Iduna nodded.

"Yes, Royal heirs are part of her responsibility."

"Well, that's gonna be tough. And not just cus Elsa doesn't like boys."

"Why?"

"Why doesn't she like boys?"

Restraining the urge to place her hand over her face, Iduna shook her head.

"No. Why would it be 'tough'?"

"Oh. Uh. We're pretty sure Elsa can't... yanno. Have kids. She doesn't do the whole monthly blood thing, and that's how you know when someones ready to make a baby, right? I'm jealous, that thing suuuucks."

Oh. Though they'd briefly discussed it when Elsa was fifteen, Elsa had been pretty sure it wouldn't ever matter, since she couldn't even touch another person for fear of freezing them. But now Elsa was more in control, and she'd seen her be physically affectionate - and glove free! - already, it was definitely of a greater possibility.

Or so she'd thought.

"You're... sure?"

Anna raised an eyebrow.

"I'm gonna let you think about whether or not thats a question you really want to ask."

It took a minute for her to understand what Anna was insinuating, and her face burned when it clicked in to place.

"Never mind."

"Yeah... so, yeah. Elsa has thought about it, but right now, Arendelle is still working on maintaining and growing its standing as a powerful kingdom, especially after Elsa's accidentally freezing the whole place. No way is it the right time for even thinking about getting married. Unless it was to me. But that's not allowed, even though we have same sex marriage here."

"Never in the Royal line though."

Anna shrugged.

"Like I said, there's a lot of reasons. Or are you saying you want Elsa to put herself and all of Arendelle potentially in danger... just to look normal?"


Knock knock knock.

"Your Majesty!"

"I'll be out in a minute!"

Elsa called out, before Anna claimed her lips again and prevented further conversation. It was so very hard to say no to her sister, especially when Anna looked incredible just then, with a dress that hugged her slender waist and flared over her slim hips, boosting her chest and exposing the adorable freckles across her shoulders. Her hair was mostly pinned up, but just enough hung down to tempt Elsa into playing with it, twirling a few bits around her finger as Anna smiled up at her, cheeks flushed, eyes bright.

"We need to go out there you know."

Anna nodded, sliding her arms around Elsa's waist as she leant closer.

"I know. Just making the most of the last time we'll be alone today."

Her voice was soft, ensuring they wouldn't be overheard. Not that anybody would dare say something if they did, but it was good to practice secrecy for when it was necessary. Elsa checked herself in her vanity mirror, ensuring there was no smudged makeup, that her lips weren't swollen. Satisfied she looked presentable, Elsa reluctantly pried Anna's arms off of her.

"Ready?"

"Yeah. Let's go get mother and get ready to part-ay! I can't wait for chocolate fondue... mmm."

Mind clearly already on chocolate, Anna began bouncing on the spot and twirled, heading for the door. Elsa straightened her posture, ready to go out and look regal for the masses. They headed toward their mothers bedroom, Kai knocking gently on the door to get her attention.

"I'm coming!"

Iduna stepped out a moment later, Alice smiling proudly from behind her as she presented her 'work' to them. It had only been a couple of weeks, really, but regular meals and rest meant that her cheeks weren't so sunken, and the sweep of artificial blush across her face brightened her up. The dress was still a bit loose, but it simply looked comfortable rather than a clumsy choice. And though her hair was shorter than it used to be, the front was combed perfectly and looked shiny and healthy. Her hands were clasped together, but she was also wearing some of Elsa's old gloves.

"You look beautiful mother."

Shuffling a little nervously, Iduna nodded.

"Thank you Elsa."

"She's right! Come on mother, the sooner we start the sooner there's chocolate!"

Anna skipped over, linked her arm with their mothers and looked to Elsa to lead them out.

"Right. We'll go and check everything is ready, I'll make the announcement, you bring mother out."

"You got it Elsa. Ready mom?"

Elsa doubted she'd ever truly enjoy public speaking, but at least she was trained well for it. They headed down to the entrance room of the castle, where refreshments awaited before guests would be led in to the ground floor ballroom.

"Everything looks good. And I see... chocolate fondue!"

Anna beamed at Elsa, and the sight never failed to make her feel warm inside. Kristoff and Sven were keeping Olaf from making an early start on the cake, though Elsa noticed Sven eyeing the plate of reindeer-friendly foods that had been made up especially for him.

"Wow, you three look great!"

Sven made a noise of agreement with Kristoff, and the three Arendelle royals thanked him. Kristoff was a very good friend - his acceptance of Elsa and Anna's relationship included. In his own words, he "didn't argue with magic" after being raised by the trolls, and Elsa's ice magic had thawed through an act of 'true love' between she and Anna. So to him, magic said it was true love, and he chose not to doubt that. Elsa felt blessed to have somebody like Kristoff in their life.

Looking through the window, Elsa saw the courtyard beginning to fill, people happy to walk through the always-open gates.

"Looks like almost everyone is here. Everything ready?"

"Yes Your Highness."

Finn bowed as he confirmed, pushing hair out of his face as he came back up and offering a small smile over to Iduna, who he seemed quite fond of.

"Good. Ok then. Here we go."

Drawing in a few deep breaths, Elsa let her training take over, standing tall as the doors were opened for her to step through. The people of Arendelle clapped and smiled and a few even cheered at the sight of her, excitable for the invitation of a party - the castle was still something of a novelty, even though the open gates were fairly normal to them now.

"Queen Elsa!"

Loosely lacing her hands together in front of her, Elsa waited for the hubbub to calm a little, so they could hear her address them.

"As you all know, you were invited here to celebrate. What you don't know is why. Well, I am very happy to give you a reason now."

The citizens leant in as one, waiting for the news. Even though she'd practiced and prepared her words, they still felt a little strange to her.

"As you all know, a little over three years ago, a certain ship went down and took two people very special from me, and from Anna. We mourned, and I was coronated as Queen in their place. However, only a handful of days ago, somebody found their way back to us. People of Arendelle, I present to you our mother!"

Anna was practically dragging Iduna out, and an audible gasp rippled its way through the crowd. Elsa placed a hand on her mothers other arm, (hopefully) reassuring her as the gasp became silence, became waiting...

And then came the cheers. There were young children, too young to remember Iduna before the disappearance, asking their parents who she was, but there was a genuine joy in the air for the surprise survival. Said survivor looked half-torn between smiling and bolting, the noise undoubtedly a little overwhelming when she'd not really been around many people, and even fewer that weren't servants and staff.

"And now, I invite you all in to the castle to celebrate. Please remember to be respectful. Iduna is still very much a member of the Royal family."

"Queen Elsa, Queen Elsa!"

Looking down, Elsa found little Jakob, who was smiling up at her.

"Yes?"

"Are you gonna do the magic later?"

"I might-"

"Jakob! What have I told you, don't bother the Queen!"

His mother grabbed hold of her son, but Elsa waved off the concerns.

"It's fine. I don't mind the children enjoying the ice and snow. Come on in!"

Everybody milled in to the entrance room, and thankfully, gave Iduna a little space with the distraction of food. There was a table set a little ways away from the rest - Jakob's family were Jewish, and there were a few other Arendelle citizens who suffered sickness from certain foodstuffs, so it made sense to reduce the chance of anything getting mixed up, and the accomodations for it had been something put in place by her father when he was a young king, though it ceased to mean much when there were no more parties.

"How is your mothers health faring, Your Highness? Anything I can do?"

"No, but thank you for the offer Doctor Bergen. My mothers health improves every day."

Even more so since the aftermath of awful things she'd put herself through to get home to them. Elsa ached for her mothers pain, but pushed it aside lest she bring a chill down on the people of Arendelle. She could save that for later.

"Of course. If there is anything, do let me know."

"I will."

Standing a couple of feet taller than the others made Anna very distinctive amongst the crowd of children that circled the warm, gooey chocolate puddle and various treats to be dipped in to it. Anna managed to restrain herself to only a few different things - for now - while Elsa struggled to restrain herself from watching too intently, from going over there to taste how undoubtedly sweet and rich Anna's mouth would have been...

A giggling Olaf ran from excited children, which prompted several more people to begin heading in to the ballroom, which forced Elsa to reluctantly tear her eyes away from Anna, guiding her mother along to the ballroom where the band were waiting, music filling the air at Elsa's nod to them. Arendellians needed no excuse to get down to the dancing, even the children grabbing each other and spinning around in their joyful, unskilled but enthusiastic manner.

"Elsa! Dance with me!"

Given how much time and energy Anna had put in to teaching her, and how very used to seeing the two be affectionate Arendelle was as a whole, Elsa saw no reason to say no. Though, as Anna stepped close and they moved their hands, Elsa did lean forward to whisper.

"Behave."

Anna only pouted a little, which looked absolutely adorable on her, before they were dancing to the tune, mingling with the others and Elsa delighted in the perfect excuse to just look at Anna. So incredibly beautiful...

"Mother is watching."

"I don't doubt it."

That particular topic still hung awkwardly between them, coming up in small bits here and there but Elsa felt there was something more to come, even if she didn't know what it was.

"Should I ask her to dance?"

"You could, but it might make her feel uncomfortable. Not just because she has seen you dancing with me, but also... does she even remember how?"

Elsa hadn't asked, simply because she doubted Iduna had the energy for an intensive dance class, and her mother hadn't brought it up herself.

"Guess not. Maybe I can teach her and you can teach her to ice skate."

"Maybe, but perhaps wait until she's a little more recovered. Dance class is exhausting."

Anna nodded in understanding, using the song winding down as an excuse to hug Elsa tight, and murmur something terribly inappropriate about chocolate fondue in her ear before pulling away, mischief on her face and a spring in her step.

Oh, she was definitely paying for that later.

-IEA-

Iduna had some cake and, overall, enjoyed her party!