"Elsa?"

"Hmmm."

"Are you already asleep?"

No response.

Anna wiggled closer on her side so she could see the other girl's face better in the near perfect darkness of her room. She'd forgotten to close the drapes earlier, and the faintest amount of pale moonlight now shone in. Elsa's eyes were indeed closed, her lips slightly parted. She was breathing slow and deep, and the covers above her chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Her hair, released from the prison of her single braid, was a curly waterfall of silvery locks that flowed across her pillow and tumbled around her shoulders. Although this was by far the most calm and at peace Anna had ever seen her slave, there remained a very faint line between her eyebrows, as though even now she carried some inner tension that couldn't be fully released.

They had climbed into the large, four-poster bed some minutes earlier after they had both taken turns getting changed. Anna hadn't dared to look at the other girl when she had moaned in obvious pleasure at the softness of the plush mattress and the silken smoothness of the sheets. Elsa had mumbled something that sounded a bit like a prayer of thanks in Norstla as she sank down fully into the pillows on her side of the bed and pulled the blankets up to her chin, and from that moment on she had gone completely still, not speaking another word.

Honestly, who falls asleep that quickly?

Anna was a bit jealous. She always struggled to fall asleep, even on normal days. One would think that staying up later and being more tired would help, but somehow it always did the opposite. As the night ticked on and sunrise loomed closer and closer, her anxiety over not being able to fall asleep would only build. It was one of her least favorite personal quirks, and it meant that she was often rising late in the morning and still feeling tired, despite sleeping in.

So it wasn't much of a surprise now that despite how late it was and despite her earlier fatigue, Anna was finding it impossible to even close her eyes. Her mind just kept racing, and having someone else sharing her bed was too new and strange. After a few minutes of restlessly staring up at the purple canopy and chewing her lip raw, she had finally turned over onto her right side to look at Elsa.

"Elsa, you can't fall asleep yet. I have to tell you something," Anna persisted, whispering so loudly that she might as well have just spoken normally.

"Anna," the other girl groaned, a frown marring her beautiful face. "Remind me… what is the punishment for regicide in Arendelle?"

Anna frowned as well, confused. That was an odd question to be asking at a time like this.

"What?... Why?"

She heard a long, suffering sigh from her new friend.

"Because, Your Royal Highness, if you keep talking and don't let me sleep, I'm going to smother you with a pillow," she murmured, eyes still stubbornly closed.

The princess giggled.

"No you won't," she said, confidently. "Also, I'm not the king, so I don't think it actually counts as regicide."

"Unfortunately," Elsa mumbled. Anna waited for her to say more, but she didn't bother to elaborate further. She was still refusing to open her eyes and sounded like she might only be half awake, but Anna wouldn't give up now.

"Elsa, please? It's important. I never got a chance to tell you about what happened at dinner!"

It was possible she was exaggerating the importance a bit, but her interaction with Lord Raspaitin had been unsettling and weird, and she desperately wanted to hear Elsa's opinion about her conversation with the strange lord.

The other girl gave a long groan of frustration, her eyes finally opening as she turned just her head to look at the princess with obvious annoyance.

"Unless someone was poisoned at this dinner of yours, than you can tell me about whatever it is in the morning," she told her firmly. "Go to sleep, Princess."

With that, Elsa pulled the covers up over her head and turned so that her back was facing Anna, effectively dismissing her.

How rude!

Anna scowled at the unresponsive lump under the blankets next to her, then flipped onto her back and noisily tossed and turned for a few seconds until she was comfortable again. She tried to force herself to relax, to just think about nothing, but that never helped. Instead, she found herself listening intently to the gentle breaths of the woman who was sleeping beside her. This was far more soothing than counting to one hundred, or trying to remember a happy memory in perfect detail, or any of the other techniques she had tried over the years.

When Princess Anna of Arendelle finally did close her eyes, she was carried swiftly off to sleep by the comforting lullaby of Elsa's steady breathing.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

You've got to be kidding me.

The Ice Queen's girlhood was a distant memory to her. Her adolescence had been cut tragically short when she ascended the throne ten years ago at a very young age, and her premature rise to power had severed any friendships she might have had at the time. The faces of her few childhood playmates were blurry when she tried to think back on them, and certainly she couldn't recall ever having the sort of intimate friendships with other girls that involved things like hand-holding and whispering secrets in each other's ears. She had always been different from other kids her age and had tended to hold herself apart from them. Different not just because of her developing magical abilities, but also because of her precocious intelligence and maturity. It was no wonder little Elsa had always felt alone in the world, even before she lost her parents.

As she matured, both as a powerful Queen and a young woman, she had found that her interest in other girls had blossomed into sexual desire. Curious to explore these new feelings, she'd engaged in a few brief dalliances over the past few years, but even in these intimate relationships, tenderness and cuddling had not been something she had often allowed. They had merely fulfilled a physical need, and given her the sexual release she craved. Nothing more.

All this being the case, she now found herself at a true loss to explain why she had awoken moments ago to discover that she and Anna were apparently holding hands.

To be more precise, it was really Anna who was doing the holding. The other girl lay on her right side, facing her, her hair a wild nest of auburn that was nearly glowing in the morning sun that was just beginning to peak into the room. She currently had Elsa's left hand wrapped in both of hers, their fingers tangled together, and was pressing the back of that hand against her chest just beneath her tucked chin. As best Elsa could tell, they had been like that for some time, though she wasn't certain when or how Anna had manage to seize hold of her like this without waking her.

Elsa sighed, her lips twitching into a bemused smile. She had never met someone so doggedly affectionate before in her life. The day before, it had seemed like every time she turned around the princess was grabbing her hand, or hugging her, or finding any other number of excuses to touch her in a familiar way. The casual intimacy the other girl offered so easily had been unexpected, of course, but not necessarily in a bad way. No, if anything Elsa had found herself beginning to enjoy her touch just a little too much, given the precarious nature of her situation.

But why fight it, really? What could be the harm in her just enjoying this little pleasure? It wasn't as though she was initiating their touching, and it seemed to make Anna happy. Surely it was all innocent? Surely the princess didn't fully realize the implications of the signals she was sending?

She cautiously waggled her fingers, testing to see just how tight the grip of the other girl was, and Anna made a little sound in the back of her throat, like a whimper. Her fingers twitched against Elsa's, tensing for a moment before relaxing again, but she remained asleep, her mouth slightly open against her pillow, warm breaths tickling the fine hairs along Elsa's forearm.

Elsa held herself still, not yet ready to try to extract herself and possibly wake the princess. Instead, she contemplated the delicate, stubborn features of Anna face; traced the arch of her eyebrows up to the pink curves of her ear; noted the dusting of pale freckles across her button nose; watched the breaths ease in and out between her parted lips.

It was a temptation.

The seduction would be all too easy, she knew. Anna was clearly attracted, though it remained to be seen if she was even truly aware of the fact. It was unlikely the younger woman had any real previous experience in such things, given her isolation. Elsa also couldn't ignore how much her own awareness of the princess was growing every hour she spent in her presence. She was a woman grown, and yet she was clearly young, lonely, and thirsty for new excitement in her dull life. It would be as easy as plucking a ripe peach; Elsa only needed to reach out and take her with a firm, gentle hand. All she need do was romance the girl a bit… Overwhelm her with solicitous attention, confound her body with increasingly sensual touches, tease her and enflame her until she was overcome by her own desires…

If she really put her mind to it, she suspected she could have the innocent young princess giving all of herself to her with eager passion in just a few days' time. She might even make the girl think she was in love.

Oh, what a coup that would be, to deflower her enemy's daughter right under his nose, in his very house! She'd take her right here in this very bed… and in every other room of the private apartments her father had so graciously gifted her. To seduce the heir of Arendelle's throne into giving herself sexually to her slave would be its own victory, of course, as it would certainly enrage King Agnarr if he were ever to find out, but add to that the very real fact that she was also the Ice Queen in disguise?

Delicious. What a sinfully delicious and pleasant victory that would be. Elsa felt the dark, inner part of her that she worked so hard to control curl up and begin to purr in delighted anticipation at the idea. She let the thoughts linger for a moment, let herself think about it and tease herself with the possibility… then pushed it back down firmly.

It would be a terrible sin to abuse her new friend's trust in such a way, because yes, Anna was her friend now. Unexpected to be sure, but true. Perhaps if she had hated the princess as much as she hated her father, or even just disliked her, it might have been an evil that she could live with. Revenge was an ugly thing, after all, and she owed King Agnarr a great deal of vengeance.

But no, she would be a good little slave and control herself. Allowing herself to succumb to her baser nature and become intimate with the princess was not only morally wrong, given the circumstances, but also a risk she couldn't afford to take. Elsa needed to stay focused on finding a way to get back to Northuldra without making things worse, and if she could also manage to gather some sort of advantage while she was here, well…

All is fair in love and war.

Love might not be something the Ice Queen knew much about, but war? War had been her bride for nearly half her life.

Elsa quietly slipped her hand free of Anna's sleeping grasp and slid out from under the sheets, rising to stand beside the bed. Her time here was short, after all, and there was much, much to be done.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"For goodness sake, Anna, drink some tea before you fall asleep in your porridge."

Anna rubbed her eyes and did as she was told, looking blearily across the breakfast laden table at her slave. Elsa was freshly washed and once again dressed in her gray skirt and white apron, however this morning she had coiled her braid tightly into a bun, rather than leaving it down. She looked bright-eyed and full of energy, which honestly just seemed a bit unfair.

Slurping a big gulp of hot, black tea before setting her cup back down, Anna tried to drag herself to full alertness. She was still in her nightgown, though she had pulled on and belted her favorite robe of deep green silk and gold thread, and her hair was probably an absolute fright. She had awoken to the smell of food, and also to the sight of Elsa standing at the foot of her bed and slowly but firmly dragging the covers off of her. It had made Anna squeal in a way that she wasn't proud of. Of course, Elsa had claimed that she had tried waking her up more gently for several minutes before resorting to such mean, juvenile tactics, but Anna wasn't sure she believed her.

"I'm sorry, I'm-" her apology was interrupted with a long yawn, "-not really a morning person. Just how long have you been awake already? What time is it?"

She picked up a piece of buttered toast and chomped down, chewing and swallowing noisily.

"It's already almost seven thirty. I've been up since six o'clock," Elsa informed her, looking at the princess with a note of exasperation.

"It's only seven thirty? Elsa! I never get up this early."

"Really?" Elsa looked back at her doubtfully. "Anna, you are a Royal Princess. Don't you have a schedule? A daily itinerary? What about your lessons?"

"I don't have to meet the Professor in the library until nine thirty," Anna explained while filling her plate with a collection of sliced fruit and berries. "We have lessons until noon each weekday, and sometimes my father has other special tutors instruct me for a couple hours after lunch, but I don't have anyone besides the Professor right now."

"Special tutors? What kinds of things do they instruct you on?"

"Oh, you know," Anna said, yawning again. "Just things like drawing and painting, or playing the flute. Trying to teach me to play the flute, I should say. He gave up after a month. I was god awful at it. I also had this formal dance instructor when I was sixteen for a while, which was really fun. I got so excited about it because I thought it was a sign that my father was going to let me start attending balls, or maybe even throw one here in the castle, but..."

Anna trailed off sadly, and Elsa gave her an understanding look.

"I see. Anything else of interest?"

"Well, I don't know about interesting, but when I was ten he had this horrible old lady come for a whole year to teach me about proper etiquette and comportment. How to sit, how to walk, how not to walk, which spoons to use and how not to chew my food, and how to properly address people depending on their rank. It was the worst."

"Hmm, and I can see that the lessons on proper eating etiquette really rubbed off on you, Princess," the other girl teased, smiling. Anna blushed and wiped the crumbs from her face.

"Hey! These are my private rooms, not a formal dinner, and if you are going to insist on waking me up at some ungodly early hour, then you're just going to have to watch me be a slob."

Elsa laughed, shaking her head. Despite her belligerent words, Anna found herself subconsciously correcting her slouched posture in her chair and taking more delicate, ladylike bites, embarrassed that the other girl might think her some kind of savage.

"You should eat too," she told her. "It's not like there's anyone else to see, and there's plenty of food."

"Thank you, but I already had a bite in the kitchens earlier."

Anna gaped at her in surprise.

"You went back down into the lion's den?! Did anyone say anything to you? Oh! Did Cook make you do more dishes?" she asked, intrigued by the other girl's boldness. After her display of anger last night, Anna had thought Elsa might never set foot in the kitchens again!

"No, I went into battle prepared this morning. The moment I saw that old goblin coming for me, waving that stick of hers, I yelled loud enough for the entire kitchen to hear that Her Royal Highness has sent me to retrieve her breakfast and bring it to her forthwith! Then I sat down and ate a bowl of porridge, calm as you please, while they scrambled to prepare your food."

"You lied!" Anna said, impressed at her boldness.

"I lied," Elsa agreed, nodding. She didn't sound at all sorry about it. "That miserable hag might have gotten the best of me last night, but I'll be damned if I let her get another crack at me."

"Gosh, Elsa, I wish you wouldn't quarrel with Cook like this. I know she can be a little cranky and intense, but she has really been very sweet to me ever since I was a little girl, and she makes the best chocolate cake."

Elsa sniffed at that, a disdainful, haughty look on her face.

"As if I would engage in something that pedestrian with someone like her," she said, seeming offended by the very notion. "I am not quarrelling with your dreadful Cook… I merely detest her and refuse to give her the satisfaction of catching me off-guard ever again."

This made Anna smile with real fondness as she looked across the table at her new friend. It might sound strange, but the more Elsa got her hackles up about something, the more endearing Anna found her to be. She was like a cat with its fur all fluffed up, hissing and spitting, but not really a danger to anyone. Oh, she could be pretty scary and intimidating when she wanted to be, but this indignant, haughty version of Elsa was just, well… cute.

"If you say so Elsa," she said in a sweet voice, smiling harder when the other girl raised an eyebrow.

"Right, so, we have some time this morning to make plans. We need to discuss how I am going to serve you from now on," Elsa said, switching into a more businesslike tone.

Anna told her what her father had said at dinner, about how he expected Elsa to assist her with her Norstla, and maybe also help her with her grasp of mathematics and account keeping. Elsa nodded along as she spoke, looking thoughtful, and poured herself a cup of tea from the pot on the table.

"I think I can manage on both those scores," she agreed, pausing to sip from her tea. "Tell me Anna, do you have your own accounts? Or an allowance of some kind? What do you do when you need to buy something?"

"I don't have an allowance, necessarily. If I want to buy something, I usually just ask my mother or father first. If it's something really small, then I might ask Kai or one of the royal secretaries to purchase it for me without bothering my parents. I haven't done that very often, though. Everything I could ever need is pretty much already here in the castle."

"But you are of age now, isn't that correct? Are you certain your parents haven't set aside funds for you? I understand it's common in great families, even if it is just a trifling amount," Elsa probed, an intensely thoughtful look in her deep blue eyes.

"I'm not sure," Anna confessed, feeling a bit foolish that she didn't know the answer. "I mean, now that you mention it, didn't my father say something about you taking over my accounts and ledgers for me? I can't remember exactly now. I wasn't sure what he was talking about, and I didn't want to ask and sound ignorant."

Why hadn't she ever thought to ask her parents this? She was eighteen, after all, and a princess, and she had private rooms and a servant of her own now. It made a certain sense that she might have some money of her own as well.

"He could have just meant your own personal records… Letters, official correspondence and the like. Do you have any of those?" Elsa asked, as though it were a bit of an afterthought. The intensity in her eyes was still there, however, belying her casual tone.

"Oh, well I have a few boxes of various odds and ends, yes. It's all a bit disorganized, though. Do you want to see them?" Anna asked, grimacing a little at the reminder. This might prove to be a bit embarrassing.

When her slave confirmed that yes, she very much would like to see them, the princess was forced to open the walk in closet in her bedroom and reveal the untidy jumble of boxes stuffed with papers and folded parchment, and the heaps of opened parcels, and all the other random detritus that had accumulated on the floor of her stuffed closet. Dresses, hats, shoes, trousers, boots, coats, and everything in between filled the hangers and shelves along the closet walls, making the cluttered space feel three times smaller than it actually was.

Pulling out one of the boxes of papers, Elsa began to paw through it with evident curiosity, her brows furrowing, then lifting in surprise at what she found.

"Anna! One of these letters is from Duke Weselton."

"Oh?" Anna said, faintly.

"Yes, and… Anna, there are dozens of letters here from nobles from every corner of the kingdom. Do you actually read and answer these, or do you just shove them here in this box?" Elsa asked, shooting her a look of utter consternation.

"Well, I… I mean I always intended to answer all of them, but there's just been so many these past few months since my birthday, and I've never even met most of these people," she explained, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I'm sure they just wrote me to be polite."

There had been loads of happy birthday wishes, and many of the letters had even come with gifts as well. Overwhelmed and not sure what to do about it, most of it had ended up at the bottom of this closet.

Elsa set the box back down with the others, sighing. As she stood back up, she brushed the dust from her skirts with a determined expression.

"Well… Hmmm. Yes, I think this will do," she said, stepping past Anna and out of the relatively tight space of the closet.

Still muttering to herself, she led Anna back through the sitting room and opened the door to the princess's private study. Though less dirty and cluttered than her closet, this room was also in no little amount of disarray, with no clear order to the way papers, books and other things were stacked on the single large oak desk, and overflowing from the bookshelf. Here Elsa spent another minute opening drawers and digging around, saying something to herself every once in a while in Norstla. Anna caught maybe one word in five, and couldn't make heads or tails of it.

"So, what are you thinking?" she finally asked, causing Elsa to close the drawer she was looking through and look back at her.

"This is what I propose," Elsa told her, drawing herself up into a regal, authoritative posture that really wasn't appropriate for a slave, though Anna would never tell her so.

"From now on, I will act as your personal secretary. In addition, I will tutor you in Norstla for an hour each day after lunch, since you have no other special afternoon instructions at this time. As your secretary, I will assist you with organizing and maintaining your personal and official correspondence, as well as manage all of the bookkeeping for your accounts. This assumes, of course, that you have a financial account in your name, which we shall soon set about to discover and take charge of."

"Oh! Okay. That… that all sounds very… official?" Anna said, not sure what else to say.

Elsa gave a fierce smile, tapping one of her fingers on the surface of the desk and gazing thoughtfully out the study's single window. After a moment, she looked back at the princess, her smile softening.

"I've never been a lady's maid, but I have some idea of what kinds of duties they perform for their mistress. It will be a lot of work organizing all this stuff at first, but I don't expect being your secretary to require much of me after that. How do you feel about your slave acting as not only your personal secretary, but your lady's maid as well?"

Anna wasn't sure what to make of that, not at all. Her mother had a lady's maid. Stella always helped her mother dress, and helped her with her hair and makeup. She looked after the queen's wardrobe, and helped her with any other delicate private matter she might need help with. This meant that they were about as close as a queen and a servant could be. Her mother always said she would be a total wreck without Stella.

She imagined Elsa doing those things for her, helping her dress, leaning close to gently press cosmetics against her skin. It made her feel tingly and a bit anxious all at once.

"I'm not sure," she said, honestly. "I've always taken care of myself. I've never needed someone to help me dress or anything like that before! Unless… Elsa, you don't think I look shabby, or something, do you?" she asked with a note of horror, pulling her robe tighter around herself.

"What? No! Of course not," Elsa exclaimed with such obvious confusion that she instantly felt reassured. "You certainly didn't need any help last night, and you looked stunning."

Oh gosh.

Elsa had just called her stunning! She knew she had looked amazing last night. She grinned from ear to ear at the compliment, though Elsa didn't seem to notice. She'd gone back to peering out the window with that distant look in her eyes again. Anna kind of wanted to sneak up behind the other girl and hug her so tight she squealed, but she resisted.

"It's not that you need a lady's maid, Anna, it's just… It will give us an excuse, a reason to be alone together here as often as we like, without anyone thinking that we are becoming too… familiar."

"Oh," was all she managed.

Now she really wanted to hug her.

"Also, it might not be obvious because of this ravenous gray ensemble I am currently being forced to wear, but I actual do have a very good sense of style. Shocking, I know."

Her slave gave a wry smile and shook the shabby cotton of her skirt for emphasis.

Somehow Anna didn't doubt her at all. Elsa was the most confident, beautiful, and most unconsciously elegant person she had ever met. It seemed natural that she would dress accordingly, given the option. Maybe she wouldn't make such a bad lady's maid after all? It might be quite fun to get her opinion and advice on what to wear.

Anna imagined what it might be like to sit at her vanity each day, clad only in a robe or her dressing gown, while Elsa brushed and braided her hair, their eye's watching each other in the mirror's reflection. The thought made her feel warm. Warm in a way that was not entirely unfamiliar to her. She tried hard to ignore it, but it was getting more and more difficult.

"I think," she said, carefully. "I think I would be okay with this plan… as long as you truly don't mind that is. And you wouldn't really have to do all the things my mother's maid does for her each day. I wouldn't expect that. It would just be a reason for us to be alone together, like you said."

Elsa's cool eyes were on her, her face perfectly hiding whatever she might think about the situation, or about what Anna had just said. Anna desperately wished she could tell what the other girl was thinking in that moment, but it was impossible.

"Good," Elsa finally said, nodding once. "It's settled then. Do you think all this will satisfy your father?"

"Yes, I rather think it will. It's mostly everything he wanted."

"Perfect. Now, we should probably get you ready for your lessons with the Professor, Anna. I would like to come along too, at least for today. Do you think he will mind?"

"He might not even notice," Anna joked.

"Even better, then. Your castle steward told me that slaves are not meant to be noticed," the other girl replied slyly, her voice full of mischief once again.

If a haughty, imperious Elsa was someone Anna found unreasonably adorable, then the mischievous, troublesome version of her was one that made her pulse thump loudly in her veins and her knees go a bit weak. It was just something about the naughty little smirk her lips gave, and the way her eyes narrowed slightly. It made her face sharpen into something that was at once both dangerous and beautiful, and made her eyes glimmer like cut sapphire.

"I'll always notice you, Elsa," Anna reassured her with a beaming smile of her own, looping their arms together as they walked from the study.

It wasn't the embrace she craved, but for now it was more than enough.