Please beware, the end of this chapter contains some sexual content. If that's not for you, then you should skip the end of this chapter. More chapters available on AO3. I might not post more here due to the rating limitations on this website. Please let me know what you think so far. Thanks for reading!

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"How is this?"

"Mmm, a bit further down… Elsa, lower… Yes! Right there. Oh, that's perfect, just like that."

"Like this? This is good?"

"Yes… yes, you're doing great. Now-"

"Are you sure we have time to be doing this? The Professor..."

"Shhh. It's fine, he won't mind if we're a couple minutes late. Keep going. Head down, Elsa. That's it."

There was a long, unhappy grumble from the older girl but she complied as instructed, returning her head to where it had been before.

"Perfect, now… hunch your shoulders a bit."

Anna could see the other girl's jaw clench, but she kept her head obediently looking down at the floor and minutely lowered her shoulders. Her back remained as straight and proud as the mast of a warship, however.

"Elsa, for goodness sake, you need to slouch a bit. Try to think about making yourself as small and unnoticeable as possible. We just talked about this!"

"Well forgive me for having been raised to have perfect posture!" Elsa exploded, her proud head coming back up and her eyes glaring at Anna's through the mirror's reflection. Anna giggled, smiling back at her, but stifled her laughter apologetically when she saw how truly frustrated the older girl was already getting.

"I'm sorry, I know you are doing your best," Anna said, consolingly. As she did so, she set her hands on Elsa's shoulders and let them rest there for a moment in what she hoped was a soothing manner. She could feel how tight and tense the other girl's muscles were under her palms, and she absent-mindedly rubbed and massaged them for a few moments before she realized what she was doing and pulled her hands back.

"Honestly, I know it's uncomfortable, but if we are really going to convince everyone in the castle that you are just a normal, obedient slave, then you're going to have to change how you stand and how you walk along with everything else. You're body language is just… entirely wrong for a slave."

Elsa held her gaze, but her frustrated expression eased as she finally relented and gave the princess a rueful smile.

"I know, you're right. Okay, let's try this again. Head and eyes down, make myself small… Hmm. How is this?"

Anna watched as Elsa did her best to adopt a posture more appropriate for a meek, foreign slave in Arendelle. It was her best attempt yet, but it still looked like there was an invisible, straight rod that ran up the length of her spine.

"Better. You almost have it, just… Here, let me."

Without waiting for permission, Anna put her hands on her shoulders again – it was easier the second time, she found, and she barely even blushed – and pressed down and forward, forcing the other girl into a slightly more hunched posture.

"Good. Now, relax your spine a little. You're still a bit too stiff."

As she spoke these last instructions, Anna ran her right hand slowly down along Elsa's spine, pausing at the lowest curve of her back. She was surprised and pleased by the muscle tone she felt under her fingers, as well as by the way Elsa seemed to shiver slightly as her hand traveled the length of her back. This touch was completely unnecessary for the lesson, she knew, but it felt like her hands had a mind of their own when she stood this close to the other girl, and she just… needed an excuse to touch her.

Elsa had lifted her head again and was looking at her through the mirror, her gaze smoldering with something dark and unspoken when their eyes connected. There was a warning in that look, and Anna gulped and removed her hands, taking a step back.

"Oh… okay. I think that's good enough. Now just practice walking a bit, see how it feels."

She had stammered a bit, her face was hot, and she could no longer look Elsa in the eyes, but otherwise she had sounded almost normal.

Her slave said nothing for a moment, then turned and did as Anna suggested, walking back and forth across the room a few times. It was a marked difference. Elsa in her unaltered state walked with a purpose and grace that was, Anna thought, an excellent reflection of her naturally confident, dominant nature.

This Elsa walked like she was afraid a bookcase might fall on her at any moment.

"Are we done? I feel ridiculous, and we are going to be late," Elsa whined, coming to a halt in front of Anna and looking thoroughly peeved.

While Anna had bathed and gotten dressed earlier, she'd finally had a quiet moment by herself to think. When she had emerged dressed and ready from her bedroom, the princess had surprise Elsa by refusing to leave for her lessons in the library until they had addressed this potential issue.

"There is something wrong with the way I walk?" Elsa had asked, frowning.

"No, you walk perfectly," Anna had explained, already feeling badly about even having to bring this up. She didn't like the idea of Elsa needing to change who she was to fit in at the castle better, but she knew it was a factor that they couldn't ignore.

"You are poised, graceful, confident… You might have the most perfect posture I have ever seen, Elsa, and that's the problem. No other slave would walk around the castle the way you do. I know it sounds silly, but…"

"No… No, don't apologize. I should have given this more thought before as well. There's more to a role than just doing the tasks expected of you. It's hard breaking the habits of a lifetime, but you're right, it's the little details like this that will really sell it."

With her agreement, Anna had spent the last few minutes trying to help Elsa learn how to hold herself the way a slave would. One that didn't make her look like, well… her. Which was to say, not like she was a warrior empress striding towards her throne with all her loyal subjects kneeling before her.

Now, brief rehearsal complete, Anna grinned at the other girl before she clapped her hands and arched an eyebrow theatrically.

"Yes, your mistress is pleased with your efforts this morning. Come along, girl. You mustn't make your mistress late!"

Elsa rolled her eyes at this and Anna laughed. As they headed towards the doorway, her reluctant slave growled to her in a low voice.

"If you actually talk to me like that while we're outside of these rooms, Anna, I can't promise I won't throttle you with my apron."

"Tough talk from a slave girl. You wouldn't dare!" Anna teased, turning to smile at her as they reached the door.

Then, in a move so daring she wouldn't have thought herself capable of it, she reached up and playfully pinched the other girl's cheek. Elsa's eyes went wide and her head jerked back in obvious affront at her audacity, her mouth falling open with shock.

Uh oh… You idiot, Anna!

Anna really feared that she might have gone too far this time, pushed her new friend just a bit too much, and she froze as she waited to see how angry Elsa would become. To her surprise, she instead watched as the other girl merely closed her mouth without a single word of outrage leaving her lips, the tips of her ears and nose turning a fresh, hot pink.

Anna grinned, completely enchanted by this totally new expression she had apparently shocked out of her.

"Now, best behavior, remember? It's show time," she said.

With that, she opened the door and swept them both out of the room.

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"Professor, I would like you to meet my new friend, Elsa," Anna said, drawing the other girl in closer with a firm tug of a hand. "Elsa, this is Professor Bell, my oldest friend and teacher."

The two girls had just entered the castle library moments before and it was much as Elsa remembered it, all warm carpets, crackling fireplace, and the nostalgic scents of leather and parchment. The Professor was not a large or imposing man, and he stooped slightly beneath his thick drapes of scholastic robes, but he had a keen and spritely face with wide brown eyes and wisps of white hair. His bow to Princess Anna had been perfectly correct in every way, but the warmth and affection in his voice when he greeted the younger girl and gently chided her for her tardiness had seemed genuine.

"Honored to meet you, Professor Bell," Elsa said, only just remembering to give the elderly gentleman a courteous bow. She made sure to take her time and make the curtsey deep and respectful, as well as to drop her head and eyes. The princess had been right earlier, as much as it chafed her to acknowledge it, and she really did need to keep a constant vigilance on her own unconscious behaviors. She was too accustom to being the person in the room whom everyone else was bowing and scraping to… not the other way around.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Elsa," he said once she had straightened again, eyeing her with obvious interest. "New friend you say, Anna? You wouldn't be that Northuldran slave girl the whole castle has gotten itself into a tizzy about, would you? You seem far too young to be causing all this fuss."

The two girls exchanged worried glances.

"I'm afraid so," Elsa admitted, forcing herself to hold her pleasant smile.

"What do you mean, in a tizzy? What have you heard, exactly?" Anna hurried to ask.

"Oh, just this and that," he said, waving a hand dismissively. "Typical servant drivel, if you ask me. Petty rumors and the like. Why, I must have had it from three different people on my way up to the library from the gatehouse, all of them eager to fill my ear with talk about your new slave, Anna."

"Only good things, I'm sure," Elsa said in a dry tone of voice that was probably not appropriate for a slave, she realized only belatedly.

Fortunately, the old professor merely cackled a little snort of laughter at the statement, his brown eyes glittering with mirth and good humor.

"The very best things, as far as I'm concerned. I'll confess, the more these addlepated morons approached me to gossip about you, the more eager I became to meet you for myself." The old man waggled his white eyebrows at her mischievously. "I very much hoped that Princess Anna would bring you along this morning, Elsa. If you ask me, Her Highness needs someone her own age around who has a bit of a rebel spirit in her! Besides, it's been an age since I was able to have a proper conversation with someone from north of the border."

Elsa couldn't help but feel charmed by this genteel old man. There didn't seem to be a shred of artifice in him. She supposed that at his age, having already reached the pinnacles of achievement, he probably didn't feel the need to censor what he truly thought and said. He also didn't appear to care that she was a slave. Besides Princess Anna, Professor Bell was already proving to be the only other person she had met in Arendelle so far whom she thought she might actually like.

"Gosh, Professor, you really shouldn't call the castle servants names like that," Anna said with a note of gentle reproach. Then she appeared to remember her own anger over their treatment of Elsa, and added with a scowl, "Even if they are all acting like a bunch of village fishwives with nothing better to do than spread mean gossip."

"Did you used to talk with a great many people from Northuldra then, before the war?" Elsa asked, curious despite herself. She hadn't meant to engage with the Professor beyond a polite greeting and introduction, but his treatment towards her so far had her more than intrigued. To her even greater surprise, he answered her in very passable Norstla.

"Oh yes! I very much enjoyed meeting new people and traveling as much as I could, especially as a young man. Then, once my work and responsibilities at the College began to take up more of my time, I always made an effort to invite academics from Northuldra to come to Arendelle City and give talks, or even teach a series of lectures, if they were willing. This was quite a few decades ago, of course. Long before King Agnarr's father took the throne and the troubles began. It was a very different time."

The Professor spoke with obvious enthusiasm, his words flowing more easily the longer he talked. He had a very curious accent, she found. He flattened his vowels a bit too much, which was typical of an Arendellian speaking Norstla, but there was also something else unusual in the way he pronounced certain words.

"You say you traveled extensively?" she asked him, switching back to Arendellian so that the princess could understand. She had noticed Anna frowning in concentration as she listened to the Professor talk, and she doubted the girl had understood much of what he said. "Did you spend time out on The Berg? If I didn't know better, I could swear you learned your Norstla from one of the ice tribes."

The Professor's eyes lit up with glee at her question.

"I did indeed! Oh, very good. You are quite observant, my dear," he said, obviously pleased by her astuteness. Anna was looking back and forth between the two of them with a growing smile on her face.

"I spent almost three years on the ice when I was a young man," Professor Bell continued, "living at a small outpost funded by the College especially for my research. The Northuldran ice tribers there must have thought me absolutely mad, as I hadn't the faintest clue what it took to survive on the ice, but they were happy enough to take my coin and assist me with my projects and excavations. If it weren't for them taking pity on me, I would probably have gotten myself killed within a few months!"

"I can only imagine," Elsa said, impressed despite herself. "Though I'm sure you must have impressed them. You lived with them for three years, you said? Not many outsiders could survive the conditions there for as long as you did."

The tribes who lived up on the glacier-covered region in the far north of her homeland, a region that was often just called "The Berg", were considered extremely tough and independent, even by Northuldra standards. They lived in some of the harshest conditions possible, on freezing ice flows that never melted and were kilometers deep in some places. Some of their most northern villages went months without sunlight in the winter, it was said. It would have been a total shock to a man who had grown up in the much milder and warmer south.

"You never told me about any of this before, Professor!" Anna exclaimed, with no little hint of annoyance. It seemed her teacher had failed to tell her where and how he had learned to speak Norstla so fluently. "What were you studying up there on the ice? I thought there was nothing living that far north but the ice tribesmen and walruses!"

"The far north is not nearly as desolate as everyone imagines, Anna. You wouldn't believe the secrets hidden in those ice flows, girls, if only one has the will and know how to dig them out… Ancient creatures and fantastic beasts unlike anything that still exists in the world today! I published a few very excellent papers from my findings and collected many unique specimens for the College. It was foundational work for me, very groundbreaking in the study of natural history at the time, and though it was very harsh and difficult living and working in such a cold and desolate place, when I look back and think on it now, I truly believe they might have been some of the happiest and most fulfilling years of my life. Why, I even wrote a personal memoir about it!"

"A memoir?!" Anna asked with unfeigned enthusiasm, her eyes wide. Her teacher nodded, stroking his shaved chin and getting a far off expression on his face, as though his mind and memories were drifting back to that time many decades ago.

"I wrote it as soon as I returned to Arendelle, based upon my journals and written observations. A real adventure tale, I intended it to be, the story of one man exploring and conquering the frozen elements! I was a young man and a bit full of myself, I'm afraid. More than a few pages were dedicated to my passionate love affair with a certain young, beautiful ice maiden from the local tribe…"

The Professor trailed off, and Anna and Elsa met each other's wide-eyed gazes, both of them grinning now as the old man seemed to forget entirely that he was talking to two young, impressionable females.

"Lyorna was her name," he continued, giving a soft, dreamy sigh, as though her name still held some powerful magic for him, even after all these years. "She was such a fierce young woman, so different from anyone I had ever met here in Arendelle. She quite overwhelmed me at the time. I even offered to marry her if she would come back with me, but she refused of course… Said the ice was in her blood and she couldn't leave it. I think I was still feeling rather sad and romantic about it all when I returned home and starting writing my memoir. It was meant to be an anthropological work, a reflection on the culture and living conditions of the ice tribes, but I'm afraid many of the pages became about her, and about the savage beauty and simplicity of the ice. I never did manage to convince the College to publish it, not that I blame them. It was entirely self-indulgent drivel."

Anna's eyes were shining, though with tears or eagerness, Elsa couldn't tell. The younger girl was nearly quivering with excitement at the Professor's story.

"Oh, Professor! I would so very much love to read that, if it would be okay. Do you still have a copy?" the princess asked, grabbing one of his hands in both of hers so that he was pulled from his wandering thoughts and turned to look at her.

"Well, my dear, I do still have the original lying around somewhere, but I'm not sure it would be appropriate," he said, a hint of a ruddy blush staining his wrinkled cheeks. "I'm not sure your father would approve of the subject matter, either."

"But I want to hear all about your adventures on the ice, and about your long lost love!" she pleaded, giving him those wide, innocent eyes. Elsa found herself smiling at this, as the old man clearly began to waver the moment she turned that earnest look on him, despite his obvious embarrassment. He probably was regretting telling them as much as he had, but it seemed meeting her and speaking in Norstla again had opened a door in his memories that was usually kept shut.

"Oh very well," he agreed, sighing in surrender. Anna gave a little gleeful shout and hugged him quickly.

"Thank you, Professor!"

"Don't thank me… You might regret reading it. It was just a first draft, after all, and it dreadfully needed a good editor. There are only so many ways to describe ice and snow, you know, before you either get repetitive or unfortunately poetic. And you will have to promise me to keep the book to yourself, Your Highness," he finished rather sternly, already looking like he regretted telling her yes. "The King will not thank me for letting you read it."

The princess promised him very sweetly that she would. Introductions now complete, the Professor reminded his royal student that they were far behind their usual start time, and soon enough all three of them were comfortably seated at a table together so that the day's lesson could begin.

Elsa had intended to mostly just watch and listen, curious to see what kind of education Princess Anna was receiving, but before long she found herself being drawn into the lesson. The Professor's method of teaching seemed to focus on studying and reading primary texts or manuscripts with his student, then leading her into a thoughtful discussion of them by asking her pointed questions. Then, once they had thoroughly exhausted their study of the document, he might give a further lecture on the subject, the time period, or the historical relevance of what they had just read. Asking some questions about his methods as the lesson progressed, Elsa learned that the old man often assigned Anna readings to supplement his lectures, but that he preferred to use original sources as much as possible.

"Historians are all a bunch of self-important blowhards," he explained, smiling. "I should know. I've published enough historical texts in my lifetime to know that many of my own works were deeply flawed, and shaped by my own expectations and preferences. There is no truth in history, girls, besides what people choose to make of it."

No wonder Anna has such an openly curious disposition, and is so eager to question everything and everyone, Elsa reflected, feeling as though she was slowly beginning to understand the Princess of Arendelle a bit better. Clearly her teacher had been a very formative influence over the years.

Something new occurred to her, after his mention of himself being a published historian, and she found herself asking, "Professor, you wouldn't happen to be related to Philonious Bell, would you?"

"Well, I should say so!" he said, smiling kindly. "But most of my good friends just call me Philo. Those who are still alive, that is."

Elsa was shocked, and she knew it showed in her expression. He was the Professor Philonious Bell?!

"You've heard of him?" Anna asked, also seeming surprised.

"Yes, of course I have," Elsa admitted, shaking her head and smiling. "I've read a great many of your histories. Your series on the fall of the Astrellian Empire was astonishing. I just… I'm sorry, but I had always assumed that you were long dead!"

"Not dead yet!" he cackled, grinning.

After more than an hour had passed, however, the Professor seemed to lose some of his energy and focus. His thoughts and words got confused every so often, and he would need to stop and recall himself for long moments. Finally, Anna very kindly asked him if they could finish for the day, as it would soon be lunch and she herself was tired. It was obvious to Elsa that the princess had come to understand the limits of the old man's endurance, and took pains to make sure he didn't overly extend himself. As he bowed and said his farewells before tottering off, the two young women looked at each other over the small pile of opened books and manuscripts still on the table.

"I can't believe your old teacher is the Professor Philonious Bell, Anna," she said, shaking her head with a smile.

"He's an incredible man," the princess agreed, smiling fondly. "I can't believe he lived in Northuldra for years and never told me about it! I can't wait to get my hands on that memoir."

"That's just because you want to read about his passionate love affair with the pretty ice maiden," Elsa teased her, closing the books and beginning to stack them so they could put them back in their proper places on the shelves.

"Don't you?!" Anna asked, smiling dreamily into the distance. "It just sounds so romantic, and kind of sad. Why didn't he stay there so they could be together? Why didn't she come south so they could get married and be together here? You can tell he loved her! It just seems like such a sad waste, leaving a love like that. If he loved her, he should have found a way for them to be together."

They began returning the books, Elsa carrying them for Anna while she placed them back on the shelves.

"Life isn't as simple as that, Anna," the Ice Queen said, feeling as she often did the heavy weight of all her responsibilities on her shoulders. Certainly her own life had never been that simple. "Sometimes even being in love isn't enough, not in the world we live in. Just being in love with someone doesn't mean that all the other complications just disappear."

"That can't be right," Anna disagreed, frowning as she slid the last book home. She turned to Elsa, who now stood next to her with her hands empty. "Being in love should mean that you have the strength to overcome anything the world throws at you. If you aren't willing to do that for the person you love, then it's not because life is too difficult or too complicated… It's because you're a coward."

Elsa wasn't sure what to say about that, so she just said nothing.

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"I can't believe that actually worked!" Anna exclaimed triumphantly as Elsa carefully set down the unwieldy stack of heavy boxes they had just obtained from the royal records room. Groaning, she shook out her stinging, aching fingers. The boxes had been difficult to carry across the castle by herself, but it wouldn't have been seemly for the princess to help her slave with the burden.

"Of course it worked," she said, giving the princess an appreciative smile. "You were incredible in there Anna. It went exactly as I had hoped."

Predictably, the younger girl blushed at the praise, then used the distraction of thumbing through one of the wooden cartons of filed documents as an excuse to look away. She really was adorable when she was embarrassed, Elsa once again couldn't help but notice.

"Well, I'm glad you were confident at least. I swear, my legs were shaking so bad I thought I was going to fall over. I never talk to my father's men like that… I can't believe that secretary just let us have these."

"Why wouldn't he? They are legally your records and you are an adult, not to mention a Royal Princess. They have no good reason to keep them from you, if the king hasn't explicitly ordered them to," Elsa told her, though she was pretty much only repeating things they had already discussed many times over.

"Besides, you certainly had no problem talking to those fool guards like that last night, and I think that turned out rather well! You might be surprised to see what you are capable of here, when you choose to use your authority, Anna."

Anna just muttered something that sounded like agreement, still not looking at her.

When the two young women had sat down to lunch in the privacy of the princess's rooms after leaving the library, they had spent the time strategizing on how to go about gaining control of her personal finances and accounts. Elsa had asked a bunch of questions first, just to get a good understanding of how these things worked in the castle, and after she felt she had a firm grasp on the situation she had begun instructing the princess on what their plan of action should be.

"You mean we are just going to march in there and demand they give them over?" Anna had said, sounding nonplussed at the idea.

"Yes, I think a direct assault is the best method. You just need to be as forceful and… commanding as you were last night, and they will be falling over themselves to do what you ask."

Anna had seemed to very much doubt this. She had pointed out that last night she had been very angry, and she wasn't angry now, so how could she hope to act the same way? To help give her some confidence, Elsa had agreed to do a little roleplay. She pretended to be the most punctilious and arrogant caricature of a royal secretary she could imagine. It had actually been quite fun, she could admit. As the princess had done her best to do and say the things Elsa had coached her to, she had enjoyed finding newer and even more unusual ways to throw her off and make her falter. After nearly an hour of this, finally they had both devolved to helpless fits of laughter while slinging insults at each other that were increasingly ridiculous, if not physically impossible.

It really hadn't been conduct befitting the Ice Queen, or a Princess of Arendelle, for that matter, but the simple pleasure of Anna's company and conversation had overwhelmed her usual reserve. Finally, once they had gotten control of themselves once more, Elsa had decided that Anna was as ready as she could be, and they had headed off to the West Wing to fight their little skirmish with the King's small army of royal secretaries.

The West Wing, Elsa now understood, was the government and administrative wing of the castle. Each of the king's Ministers had their offices there, as did his other personal advisors and military chiefs. It was no wonder why those guards had been so outraged at her intrusion into that wing the night before. The Ice Queen lamented that she hadn't had the chance to get a peek into any of the rooms. Who knew what secrets she could have discovered, or what advantages those secrets might give her own nation someday? It was a tantalizing thought, but sneaking into the West Wing to steal secrets was not likely something she could pull off without extreme difficulty, she knew.

Despite her own lack of confidence in herself, the princess had done an admirable job bullying the staff on duty into giving her what she wanted. The surprise on their faces when the two of them marched in there had been exquisite. Elsa had felt a certain inexplicable joy, watching the men scurry to do as Princess Anna asked. The only one who had put up even a token resistance had been the most senior secretary present. His eyes had shifted uneasily, and he had seemed extremely reluctant when he finally did hand over the last box of documents. It had made Elsa curious, the way he had clung to that box, as had the flop sweat she had seen starting to form on his pasty forehead. She wondered what she would discover in these records that the man was not eager for the princess and her slave to know.

Perhaps he has been trimming a bit for himself off the side?

It wouldn't be the first time a trusted accountant had found a way to line their own pockets. She would have to be on a close lookout for unusual discrepancies in the numbers. Having a bit of leverage on a senior secretary might be extremely useful to her someday.

At her request, Anna helped her move all of the boxes into the study. Just before they had left on their little mission, the princess had rang for a servant and ordered them to bring up a cot and bedding for her slave, and had instructed them to set it up in her study. The cot was there now, alright, but with the current layout of the space, it was awkwardly set in the middle of the room. For the next half hour, the two of them worked to rearrange the space, moving the heavy oak desk to directly in front of the window, and pushing one of the matching bookshelves into the newly freed space. This now allowed for Elsa's new bed to be shoved in the corner along the wall, out of the way. Looking around, she was happy with the changes.

"What are you going to do with all this stuff?" Anna asked.

She was perched on one end of Elsa's new cot, the rest of it being taken up with the boxes of documents they had just won.

"Now the real fun begins," Elsa said, not hiding her eagerness. "I'll need to go through everything here with a fine-toothed comb. I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting there to be nearly this much documentation in your name. It has me very curious."

"It does seem like a lot for little old me, doesn't it?" Anna agreed, her nose and eyebrows scrunching up in a cute, bemused scowl as she took it all in. "I don't know why you seem so excited, Elsa. Just thinking about having to read through all this boring junk makes my head hurt!"

"Well," she explained, unsurprised by the younger woman's obvious distaste for this kind of work. So few people really understood her. "I like to think of it as a big puzzle, a mystery to be solved. They say numbers never lie, but that doesn't mean they can't do tricks and hide their secrets. I know it sounds boring to you, it's probably boring to most people, but I've always loved finding the secrets in the numbers, in teasing out all their hidden meanings, and with that knowledge comes a certain power. You will be surprised, I think, with everything these records will tell us."

Anna looked up at her with a concerned expression as she finished speaking, and she reached over to grab her hand and gave it an apologetic squeeze.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called it boring junk. I didn't mean for it to come out that way. If it's something you like and find interesting, then I'm sure it isn't boring at all! I'd like to help you, if you don't mind, and I want you to teach me everything you learn."

The princess sounded so worried that she might have hurt Elsa's feelings, that it made her pause and think back over what she had said and how she had said it. Perhaps she had sounded just the slightest bit upset, she realized, and of course, Anna being Anna, she had picked up on it immediately.

I need to stop letting her get under my skin, she told herself. Though if there was an easy way to do that, she certainly hadn't discovered it yet.

I am starting to care about what she thinks of me far too much. Agreeing to be her friend might have been a mistake.

"If you want to help, I won't turn you away, Princess," was all she said, keeping her voice and expression neutral. "This is all yours after all. Now, scooch over and make room for me. We should start by laying all this out in order. This filing system they are using is completely incomprehensible. I think they just pulled everything and dumped them into these boxes without any care for organization at all. We may as well just start over."

The two women bent their heads together over the piles of document, one pale blond and one russet red, and went to work.

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"If I look at one more piece of paper tonight, my head is going to explode!" Anna groaned despairingly.

The princess was sprawled on her back across Elsa's small cot, one arm thrown over her head to shield her eyes. Not that it was bright in the study, which was currently only lit by one small lamp and a few candles, the sun having long since set outside. Neat piles of papers – some single parchments, and others bundled with twine or enclosed in protective leather sheaths – now sat in an organized fashion on the desk and floor. Elsa was curled up in the heavy, comfortably plush office chair, her attention bent over the document open before her on the desk. Blinking, she lifted her head and looked back at the princess, smiling softly at the sight.

"Now that would be something to see… I've never seen a princess's head explode," she said, her lame joke only causing her to receive an evil glare from under a lifted arm. "We are finished for tonight, Anna. You've done more than enough. You should go get ready for bed. It's almost ten o'clock, I think."

"No wonder I have such a bad headache," the princess whined, but she was smiling as she levered herself upright.

The pair had worked straight through dinner. Anna had summoned a servant to tell her parents that she wasn't feeling well and wouldn't be at their usual formal meal. They had instead eaten a simple repast together of bread, cheese, and cuts of cold ham, while continuing to work, with both girls balancing the food on their knees and getting crumbs all over the papers. It had been strangely fun for Elsa, who had never done this kind of project with a friend before.

As she watched the princess leave the study and cross through the sitting room to her bedroom door, she found herself thinking over all the other things that had been unexpected about working in such close proximity to Anna all evening.

For one, Anna touched her constantly. She wasn't even sure if the younger girl was conscious of it.

Sometimes it was just a light hand on her shoulder, as she leaned over her to see what Elsa was reading. Other times, it was their legs or knees pressing together as they struggled to find available free space to sit in, with the documents sprawling out in every direction around them. Her fingers lingered on Elsa's hand a bit too long when she handed her something, or brushed against her arm in a playful way as she stepped past. Several times, the cheeky girl had even rested her hand low on the center of her back, and each time Elsa had nearly screamed with frustration at the gentle caress.

It was all just so… maddening. Maddening and incredibly distracting.

Worse than distracting, the constant touching and teasing from the other girl had caused a steadily growing pulse of arousal to build between Elsa's legs that she couldn't seem to shake off. Every time it began to recede as she lost herself in the work, the princess found a new excuse to touch her again and it thundered back to life even harder, making her feel the rush of blood throughout her body and the pounding of her own pulse as her senses came alive.

She had found herself daydreaming about how nice the other girl smelled, as she sat beside her, a scent that was uniquely Anna. About how nicely pink and full her mouth was, as the girl chewed her lower lip while puzzling over some document or other. There had even been a genuine moment of utter weakness earlier, when she had found herself openly fantasizing about pinning the younger woman to her bed and just taking her there in the study, with the neatly stacked papers around them flying in every direction as they lost themselves to imaginary passion.

It had been a nice little fantasy. It made her lick her lips even now, just remembering it. Fortunately for her, Anna had been busy reading something and hadn't looked up to catch the hungry look Elsa was giving her before she got control of her wayward thoughts.

It was no wonder, really. Princess Anna was a very vibrant, very beautiful, very affectionate girl… One who kept touching her and hanging on her every word and gesture, and it had been a long time since Elsa had felt as physically and mentally good as she had today. With her return to better health and the constant, close, agonizing proximity of such a sensual temptation, it was no wonder her libido was waking up and roaring like a hungry lion.

Is the princess trying to seduce me? She wondered, then immediately dismissed the thought.

As bold as the girl could be, she couldn't be that forward yet with sexual matters. No, she might suspect Anna to be attracted to her, but she couldn't have any real idea what her constant affection and touching was doing to Elsa. If she did, she would probably be too embarrassed to ever touch her again.

As though summoned by her lustful thoughts, the princess appeared back in the doorway of her bedroom, now dressed for bed in the same pale nightgown she had worn the previous night, her copper hair already down and tumbled around her shoulders.

"Elsa?" Anna called for her, a bit tentatively.

Elsa stood up from her chair and took the few short steps required to be framed in the doorway of the study. The two regarded each other across the dim expanse of the sitting room, both backlit by the soft warm light of lamps and candles.

"Yes Anna? What is it?"

The other girl looked uncertain, pausing before answering. What had gotten into her now?

"Do you need to use the bathroom, before I go to bed?" she finally asked.

"No, thank you, I'm fine for the night. Just go to bed, Anna. It's been a long day," Elsa said, beginning to sense the rising danger here.

Keep control of yourself, Elsa…

She couldn't help it. Her eyes were drinking the princess in. Anna's nightgown was laughably sheer, and with the light all mostly behind her, it revealed every inch of the outline of her body like a seductive shadow. The hem barely kissed the tops of the girl's knees, leaving the pale, soft flesh of her calves and little pink toes on full display. Her hair was deliciously tousled from its long day in braids, in a way that seemed to invite someone to run their fingers through it. Her cheeks were flushed with something that looked very much like the confused beginnings of desire, at once both innocent and very much not, and it made Elsa want to do so many things that she probably, definitely shouldn't be thinking about doing with the princess.

"I know, it has been a long day, hasn't it? I had so much fun with you today, but gosh, I'm so tired!" the girl said, shifting a bit awkwardly on her bare feet. She still had that oddly hesitant tone in her voice, and was looking across at Elsa with eyes that were conflicted and unsure.

She watched as the younger girl seemed to take a steadying breath, as though gathering her courage, before saying, "Are you sure you're going to be okay, sleeping on that little cot? You're still recovering from your illness, and it's just so small and uncomfortable, and well… You know, if you wanted to, for tonight you could still-"

"I'll be fine," Elsa interrupted, maybe bit more forcefully than was necessary. She had to put a stop to this now, however. A woman was only so strong; could only resist temptation so much before breaking, even if she was the terrifying and powerful Ice Queen in disguise.

Anna appeared to flinch at her abrupt refusal, but she swallowed gamely and nodded, forcing a tremulous smile.

"Oh…oh, okay. I mean… if you're sure, that is," the princess mumbled, still looking at her with those wide, earnest eyes.

Elsa wanted to groan audibly, but she controlled it. Anna wasn't going to make this easier on her. She just had to hold strong.

"Thank you for thinking of me, Anna. Now, go to bed," Elsa told her, smiling as kindly as she could manage.

She had a death grip on the door handle next to her, and it felt like that might be the only thing stopping her from marching across the room and grabbing hold of Anna, and pressing her up against the doorframe so she could kiss her hard on those damnably sweet lips of hers.

"Alright. Goodnight, Elsa," Anna said.

"Goodnight, Anna," she replied.

She watched as the younger girl slowly, reluctantly closed her door, then did the same.

With two doors and an entire empty room finally between them, Elsa switched closed the lock to ensure even more privacy and flung herself down on her small bed. If felt silly, locking the door, but it would be just like the princess to surprise her by innocently stumbling in when she would prefer not to be interrupted.

I just need to relieve some of the pressure, she thought, her hands already moving to undress herself as she lay there. It had to be nothing more meaningful than pent up sexual frustration. Nothing to be concerned about. After all, she couldn't even remember the last time she had gone this long without being able to give herself some relief.

The cotton skirt and tunic came off quickly, leaving her in her simple white linen shift and underclothes. She felt her pulse begin to pound again in heated expectation, the pressure that was already building between her legs so intense that she feared she might go off at the slightest touch. Wanting to draw the pleasure out for longer, she left her clothes as they were, letting her hands begin to wander across her body, enjoying the feel of the cloth and the warmth of her own touch against her skin. She could almost imagine it was someone else touching her, when she did it like this. Elsa stroked delicately at first, sliding her hands teasingly across her stomach, then up to her full breasts. She enjoyed feeling the full weight of them in her hands as she gently stroked her own breasts as a lover might, lightly pinching her nipples between her thumbs to draw out even more intense sensation. Just this light, preparatory teasing was already shooting sparks of arousal down between her legs, making her squirm with impatience and causing a new flush of heat and wetness there.

Fuck it. It's been weeks. I'm not waiting any longer!

Elsa reached down hurriedly to pull off her simple undergarments, leaving her in nothing but the shift. Already, she saw with some astonishment, the thin cloth at the gusset was soaked clear through with her arousal. It shouldn't have been a surprise though, she reflected. After all, the entire evening with the princess had been like a long, protracted session of sexual foreplay.

Anna.

The thought of the other girl actually made her hips lurch up in an almost animal gesture, unconsciously seeking some sort of contact, and her clit and center pulsed sharply. Elsa gasped, unable to stop herself from giving in to the fantasies now. Her fingers stroked up her thighs, back across her lower abdomen, then plunged down against her heated cleft, stroking herself at last.

She had to clamp her jaw shut to hold back a moan… Her folds were soaking wet against her fingers, and her clit and entrance were hot and plump with unchecked desire.

Princess Anna, standing in the doorway with her big bed behind her, the soft edges of her breasts just visible beneath her thin nightgown…

Anna, looking at her with that confused, needy expression, wanting her, asking her to come and join her in her bed, not understanding why she had to say no...

Anna, laying across this very cot earlier that evening, her soft throat so exposed and enticing, as though begging Elsa to cover it with bruising, possessive kisses…

Elsa did gasp now, the sound pulled from her mouth despite her clenched teeth. Her hand and fingers were stroking herself at a furious pace, all artistry gone, her entire body on fire with need, her thoughts filled with Anna. Writhing now on the small cot, her fingers began making firm, fast, well-practiced circles over and around her swollen clit. With her other hand, she reached down so she could pierce herself with her index and middle fingers, both of them sliding in easily with how ready she was. Despite the slight awkwardness of the position, she curled them up as best she could to stroke that special little spot within her, feeling her muscles tense, her butt clench and the breath in her lungs rise to higher, faster panting, as she pushed herself swiftly towards release.

"Oh! Uhh" she moaned again, nearly biting her tongue to stop herself.

Then, driven by the press and rub of her own wet fingers and her thoughts of Anna, the wild lust centered between her legs finally built to a crescendo of pulsing, tingling heat that spread and broke over her whole body in a wave of pleasure, wringing her muscles to almost painful tightness before releasing all of her in a boneless slump upon the bed. As the tingles swept through her body, chasing themselves in slowly receding waves, a cold sweat broke out and cooled across her skin under the thin shift she still wore.

"Hmmm…" she hummed quietly to herself, a sated purr of pleasure.

Elsa continued stroking very gently against her throbbing clit once the almost painful sensitivity had lapsed a little, still holding her other fingers inside to prolong the sweet sensations for a few moments longer.

Wow, that had felt very nice. Very nice indeed. She had needed that even more than she had realized. It was like all the tension and worry in her body had just been swept away in a pleasurable storm of sensation.

Elsa stretched a long, slow, sultry stretch, finally pulling her fingers away, feeling the spread of wetness. Her drowsy flush of pleasant contentment was cut short, however, as she suddenly recalled what specific thoughts and visions had driven her to such a powerful, lightning-fast orgasm.

Princess Anna.

Elsa stilled, opening her eyes to stare up at the tall ceiling of the office study that was now serving as her little bedroom and workspace both.

"Oh… Oh no," she said, quietly and very much to herself.

The candles and their flickering shadows, her only companions in the room, gave no reply.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Anna wasn't really sure what had come over her.

"Ah!" she gasped very quietly, almost a squeak, then turned her face down to bite her pillow so she wouldn't call out again.

Her hips kept thrusting, jogging and grinding against the hard seam that ran the length of the silken pillow, the thickly woven seam which put just the right pressure on her sensitive little clit. She moaned against the pillows under her head again, her breath coming out in small, fast pants.

She wasn't sure how she had gotten like this, exactly. She had put out the lights after closing the door and climbed into bed, just like always, but her body had felt restless and hot. Anna kept picturing Elsa as she had seen her throughout the evening, her clever, gorgeous face serious in thought as she read over something, or smiling at Anna with patience as she explained what another document meant. The fire and excitement and pleasure in the other girls' eyes when she gleaned something of interest, or put some new little fact together. How good she had smelled, and how she had almost seemed to lean into Anna's touch from time to time.

Touching Elsa… That was how this had started. She had only been lying in bed for a few restless minutes, but thoughts of touching Elsa had finally driven her to roll onto her stomach with her hand pressed down between her legs, so she could grind against her eager, thrusting fingers. With her head turned, she had been in a perfect position to see the pillow as she rubbed herself… Elsa's pillow, from the night before, of course. Elsa's pillow, which still faintly carried the scent of the other girl, like a benediction.

Unthinking, she had turned on her side so she could clutch that oversized pillow to herself, the heat and urgency building between her thighs. All of her attention was now on that secret, needy place centered low in her body, making demands of her that she couldn't ignore even if she had wanted to. That place on her body that the anatomy books in the castle library had only given boring names to, names which seemed far too clinical for the types of overwhelming and pleasant sensations it gave her when she touched it like this.

Which she did… Somewhat often, in fact.

Still thinking of Elsa, still breathing in her scent on the pillow she had used, Anna had started pressing that heated, hungry part of herself against it, blindly searching for relief. This wasn't the first time she had done this by any means, but it was the first time she had been driven to doing this because of what she was feeling for another person… Another girl.

She thought maybe she was supposed to feel badly about that; about the fact that she was feeling this intense feeling of desire for another woman, instead of a man. Anna didn't, though, not really. These thoughts and emotions she had for Elsa were just too exciting, too wonderful. How could this be a bad thing? How could something that made her feel this good, be wrong?

Stifling another moan, the princess's thrusting hips began to pick up speed, her building wetness soaking the fabric and making it both easier and far more pleasurable. Was this going to be a problem, a part of her thought to wonder? What if Elsa found this pillow tomorrow, and saw how she had covered it with her desire, or smelled how strongly she had stained it with the juices of her arousal?

The thought of discovery made a jolt spike through her already stimulated nethers, like a small bolt of lightning.

Oh!

She should be ashamed, yes she should. This was so dirty, so… hedonistic of her.

That was the word Elsa had used earlier, when describing the bathtub, right? Positively hedonistic. She liked it. It made her think of all sorts of forbidden things, of pleasurable sexual activities that were all a bit hazy in her mind, but no less exciting for it.

Anna turned so she was completely on her stomach with the pillow firmly clenched in her arms and between her legs beneath her, drawing her knees up under her, her face now buried in the sheets of the bed. Her nightgown had climbed up due to her strenuous movements, and the cooler air of the room was a pleasant shock to the backs of her thighs and the exposed cheeks of her buttocks. This position gave her even more leverage, and the heat began to pulse and the tingles to race even faster and harder as she ground down on the pillow and its wonderful, hard seam of fabric.

As she dragged her folds faster and faster, drawing her clit back and forth in that delicious grind, a new, even more tantalizing thought occurred to her.

She hadn't locked the door!

"Ahh! Mmm!"

Elsa could walk in at any moment! What if she needed to use the bathroom after all? Her slave would walk in and see all of her, exposed so lewdly like this, doing such an unseemly and filthy thing to her pillow. Anna felt like she might hyperventilate with a delightful combination of terror, embarrassment and arousal. It was coming now, she knew. There was no stopping it, and it was going to be a big one, maybe the best she had ever experienced in her young life. Despite its heavy oaken frame, her big bed was now rocking rhythmically in time with the hard, mindless, frenzied thrusting of her hips.

Have to finish before Elsa finds me like this. Have to come… Elsa!

Eyes firmly closed, she remembered the other girl sleeping next to her, her beautiful face and hair pressed to the pillow… The pillow that was now drenched and hot between her legs. A final thought, a new and intensely erotic image, filled her mind, and it was enough to send her right over the edge.

… Instead of the pillow, it was Elsa's face pressed against her between her thighs, her mouth licking and sucking at her wet, hot center, devouring her like she was a feast, her dark blue eyes staring up at her with unrestrained lust and desire…!

Anna came, hard, gasping and choking against her sheets, her leg and groin muscles fluttering as the release tore through her young frame.

By some miracle, her scream was wordless and silent as her body shook.

After what felt like an eternity of guilty pleasure, she finally went limp, sprawling face down on the tangled bedsheets and pillows, her body wet and exhausted from the exertion of the unexpected and intense masturbatory session she had just indulged in.

I should probably get under the covers, she thought to herself, already nearly asleep.

She must look an absolute fright, she knew, with the entire bed akimbo and her nightgown so lewdly bunched up around her thighs.

I should probably… lock… the…..

Her worry filled thoughts fled her entirely as Princess Anna promptly fell into a deep, restful sleep.