Elsa wrung her hands together nervously as she waited for the sound of the giant double door swinging open. Meanwhile, the Queen stared out the window at the mountains of Arendelle. Oh, how she wished to be among them alone again at this very moment.
Oh, the Duke had never been gladder that he wore gloves. His palms were probably sweating underneath the thin cloth when he finally reached the infamous meeting room. Just what was it that Anna had gotten the Queen to agree to? Surely this was not to talk about diplomatic relations again. Especially given how...far they both had gotten the last time, the Duke thought, blushing despite himself from the searing memory. Shaking his head clear, the Duke breathed deeply to control himself. What was wrong with him? This wasn't the time to relive something like that (something most likely that had not been reciprocated). But...he couldn't deny the taste of the Queen still singed his tongue; be it from her mouth or name, both were equally forbidden.
Yet that forbidden quality only intensified whatever the Duke's feelings were towards this mysterious monarch. What's more, Anna's conversation with the Duke the previous night only inflamed those feelings further as much as they were doused, to even imagine the sliver of a possibility that he might reach some sort of understanding with the Queen. So then...was this love after all? It had been so long since the Duke indulged in such fantasies. He'd come to believe them to turn more sensible with age. Obviously, that hadn't been the case. When the Duke assumed that he was composed enough, he slowly pushed open the meeting room doors, wincing at how loud their creak resounded.
But the Duke wasn't going to take any chances now, not even upon his discovery of the Queen staring out the window in a near-mirror vision of a simple yesterday ago. He knew better than to judge her position, not when she was just as conflicted as he. Besides, the Duke then considered, for the Queen to do this a second time seemed more pathological if anything. Perhaps this was just her method of coping with that past isolation from the outside world. Afterwards, the Duke's brow creased a tad from realizing the scant extent he knew of the Queen in the first place in stark contrast to the raw emotion he bore towards her.
Well then...no better time than the present to adjust that inconsistency. "Your Majesty...?" stated the Duke from across the room to get the Queen's attention, his tone being quite lighter and more subdued this time around.
When the doors opened to creaks and bellows, Queen Elsa flinched. She knew she was committed to this meeting now, for ill or good. She took a short and shallow breath from her chest and allowed herself one last forlorn look at the beauty of Arendelle. When she turned to face the Duke, her face became a mask of impassivity, giving absolutely nothing away despite the tempestuous feeling in the pit of her stomach. She looked at the Duke once over and politely smiled, though the action felt a little robotic to Elsa. "Good afternoon, Duke," she started with, just as she'd rehearsed. "I've asked you here to apologize for my behavior yesterday. It was an undignified response on my part. That's not to say you behaved completely admirably, but I don't want an apology from you."
Elsa took another breath while she felt her hands grow cold. "I just want to discuss…" Elsa took a small pause. Now she truly had no idea what to say, but thankfully or not, her mouth seemed to speak of its own accord. "…our relationship." Elsa had just about bit her tongue off for uttering the words and in an attempt to salvage things, Elsa added the qualifier "Whatever it may be." Elsa only now, when she was studying the Duke's reaction to her words, noticed how subdued he seemed to be today. It made Elsa want to keep talking so that she could keep it that way as long as possible. "I don't know exactly everything you and Anna discussed, but…I'd like it if we could discuss…our…feeling- concerns…with each other…to- to clear the air. We can't discuss politics in our current state."
When it came to the Queen, the Duke had anticipated many typical reactions: formalities, niceties, etc. If anything they shared in common, it was that both Duke and Queen withheld their opinions to the bitter end. Until that one humble word unexpectedly left the Queen's lips: apologize? Immediately the Duke raised an eyebrow at the Queen's choice in phrasing. W-What was that supposed to mean? Scrutinizing the possible reasons behind what she had said only resulted in the Duke blinking in greater confusion. Wasn't this ironic, that she of all people didn't want an apology from him. And that she wanted to apologize instead! No, there must have been more to this (as usual); the Queen's later statement of their "relationship" as the discussion topic only served to heighten the Duke's suspicions, regardless of her tacked-on specification of the term. That the Queen chose to include the Duke with her in any way was proof enough that something most assuredly changed within her perception of him. After the Queen finished speaking, the Duke carefully nodded his head in agreement. "In that case, may I start with..." Peering up at the Queen and holding her gaze, the Duke measured out his own next words solemnly,"...who are you?"
Elsa opened her mouth to say…something (anything), but fell short. Instead she could only stare at the Duke in surprise and confusion. Elsa resisted the urge to look back outside and just ignore the Duke or to think too deeply on what he'd asked. Instead she held the Duke's gaze, her steely blue eyes almost boring into his. "…I don't know how to answer that," Elsa said honestly. She was already exhausted of this cat-and-mouse game between the two of them. She just wanted to talk plainly and honestly. "What exactly do you want to know about me?" Elsa watched the Duke closely through all of this, wondering what he must think about her, while also feeling just a little more comfortable during this conversation than last time. She wondered why.
If it were anyone else, the Queen's expression would've been almost comical in its extreme uncertainty. The Duke could hardly blame the Queen, though; how indeed was one supposed to answer a question so strange in its simplicity? But simplicity was exactly what the Duke was struggling to get at, even if it meant reverting to the most childlike questions. For what else could he do? "When I first saw you at your coronation, I assumed I saw a lady of beauty, grace and dignity. I assumed," he emphasized though his demeanor remained calm and matter-of-fact, further opposing the bluntness of what he later said.
"Because at the coronation ball, it turned out you weren't an ordinary lady, almost like it was a trick. So I assumed you were a sorceress. Then, when it appeared you killed your sister, I assumed you were a murderer." Inhaling sharply from the memories his words must've provoked (not exactly subjects to be neutral about), the Duke proceeded hastily to make his point.
"And as it's been proven, none of my assumptions were correct." His own blue eyes narrowing, the Duke leaned in towards the Queen but was mindful to maintain a respectful distance between them. "So tell me, who are you? How am I to view you since I've always been wrong?" The Duke took a step back from the Queen to gauge her full reaction at his explanation, hoping that he made himself understandable for once. "That's what I wanted to ask when we last met."
Elsa listened carefully to the Duke's clarification on what he'd said before. Throughout it all various emotions appeared and disappeared so fast that Elsa hadn't even realized they were ever there. Elsa felt a familiar pain in her chest when she remembered first hearing that she had 'killed' Anna by freezing her heart. Thankfully she was able to push the feeling down and keep her composure, not getting defensive with the Duke like she wanted to. She cleared her voice before responding, hoping to keep her voice even and not let her emotions seep into it. "I still don't know how to answer you…but I'm surprised to hear you admit you were wrong about me. Up until recently I was under the impression that you still thought of me as a monster…" The ends of Elsa's lips curled up into an almost-smile that Elsa was only subconsciously aware of. "I've just been trying to be the best queen and sister that I can be. Everything I've done so far has been with that in mind. I don't know how you should view me." I don't even know how I view me, Elsa thought to herself. She looked deep into the Duke's eyes, hoping to get some kind of answer out of them. "Anna said that you…Anna thinks that you love me …is that how you've viewed me?"
Noticing how earnestly the Queen looked into his eyes prompted the Duke to step forward to where he previously was, perhaps even closer. This was an openness she had never expressed to him before, so strikingly similar to how Anna was, last night; it made it easier for him to get behind his feelings and answer without hesitation. "Yes. That's how I've viewed you: against any reason. But then," the Duke shrugged his shoulders a bit, the action making him seem far younger than his appearance otherwise suggested, "that's how love is, isn't it? Your sister helped me realize even at my age...love at first sight is possible."
Upon his admission, the Duke's cheeks reddened from somehow both embarrassment and pride before continuing. "And I called you 'monster' because I was scared. Because your ice blast came within an inch of my life. What would you have expected me to do?" A uneasy grin cracked across the Duke's face. "Pretend it never happened?" He then cast his eyes downwards in furrowed contemplation over what the Queen had admitted to assume of him."I don't think of you as a monster anymore though, Your Majesty. I haven't for quite a while. Especially now knowing how much your sister trusts your good intent." Lifting his gaze back to the Queen, the Duke's gaze softened sadly. "Was that why you sent me away?"
Elsa finally did turn away, to look back at that comforting spot on the horizon for just a moment longer. She wasn't sure what answer she expected or even wanted from the Duke, but she didn't think it was this. The mention of Anna helping the Duke discover his love of Elsa made her smile a bittersweet smile. Elsa loved what an absolutely loving and caring person her sister was. There was no doubt in her mind that Anna had inspired something similar in the Duke today. Unfortunately, Elsa was also reminded of how unlucky Anna was in love and how sad that made Elsa. She'd loved Hans and that love was not returned, instead it was cruelly betrayed. She'd loved Kristoff, too, but it wasn't enough to keep them together in the end.
And she'd loved Elsa herself despite being shut out and not knowing why. Throughout it all, Anna never gave up looking for love and she never stopped loving. Elsa wondered if she could perhaps learn from Anna's example and possibly give love a chance even if it was frightening. Elsa turned around and faced the Duke again, once again looking him in the eyes. "Yes, I'm sorry. That was why I sent you away," Elsa admitted with a sad nod. "I hope we understand each other a little better now…and I hope you can forgive me for accidentally sending that ice blast at you. I'm sorry about that, too." Elsa smiled softly down at the Duke.
It was like a weight had been lifted from the Duke with the Queen's gentle apology, all those months of uncertainty dissipating like shadows before a newly lit candle. He let out a breath that he didn't know he had been holding in, during the silence that followed. There was a time when the Duke would've felt satisfied, self-righteously smug even, from hearing the Queen admit she had done him wrong. Now, though...now, the apology wasn't as important as it used to be. It was the Queen's acceptance of the Duke that took utmost precedence. His face scrunched up, the Duke then gazed back into the Queen's eyes, her smile making his heart ache in hopeful longing.
He lay a hand loosely over the Queen's wrist before tilting his head and leaning in towards her, never once breaking eye contact There was nothing left to say yet he had to know. He must know whether they together were possible, put an end to this perpetual misunderstanding. Heart pounding when his mustache brushed the Queen's lips, the Duke at last closed the gap and pressed a feather-light kiss to the corner of her mouth, prepared for the worst if she chose to push him off.
To say that Elsa did not expect the Duke's light touch and kiss again, was putting it lightly. The young Queen's eyes widened in surprise and she gasped into the kiss. Again she was filled by doubts and fears, but curiously not of the same nature as before. The loud thump of Elsa's heart in her chest clued her brain into what it obviously had known for some time: she had feelings for the Duke and they were becoming clearer in meaning by the moment. Elsa closed her eyes and returned the Duke's soft kiss with one of her own and then another, more forceful one. The Queen leaned into the Duke and pressed down gently on his shoulder to help him off of his tip-toes – which he'd needed to use to even come close to Elsa's height – and bring them both to a closer, more comfortable height.
Elsa continued to shower the Duke in kisses meanwhile and reached to take the Duke's hand in her own soft, delicate hand. Elsa pulled back and opened her piercing blue eyes after that to look into the Duke's questioning ones. She opened her ruby lips to say something, but stopped short because she didn't really know where to go from here. She'd never been in a relationship before and had never even dared to dream of having one. "I want this," she eventually whispered, hoping to make everything as clear for the Duke as it now was for her.
The Duke's head jerked back a little in surprise from the Queen's forceful kiss and it was now his eyes that widened. His heart thundered within his rib-cage, almost bursting from excitement as the Queen leaned down into him to kiss him more easily. Ah...he still couldn't believe it; no matter how many times she may have kissed him, it was never enough. How was it possible to feel this happy? To have her freely kissing him like this? At first, the Duke was downright giddy in his elation but when the Queen took his hand in hers, it gave him the presence of mind to respond to her attentions and he squeezed her hand back. Despite belonging much more at home in a dream, this was no dream. Her love for him was no dream. She wanted him.
"Oh Elsa," murmured the Duke, staring at Elsa in utter rapture and adoration. His eyes were glistening and he quivered from the radiant intensity that was her own eyes shone. How amazingly surreal, it was, to no longer have to view her as something unattainable, to have them simply be a man and a woman in love. "Elsa," he repeated ardently, delighting in the mere sound of her name. He looped one arm around her waist, gripped her shoulder with the other, and kissed her again with as much force as she had done. "My darling..."
"Edgar," Elsa repeated softly, the name sounding much more natural to her than the title of 'Duke' ever had. His chuckle, too, was music to Elsa's ears. And Edgar's soft, tender kisses, gracing her perfectly pale neck and cheek warmed her, body and soul, in a way she had never felt before. Everything about this man, Edgar, was something that Elsa loved. Elsa was finally starting to understand why her sister had always been so enamored with the idea of love. The young queen leaned in to return his kiss; her soft, tender lips were brushed by the Duke's bristly mustache before their lips touched. "I forgive you," Elsa said. "I love you," she finally admitted. Elsa looked into the Duke's eyes and smiled radiantly. Her cool hand reached up and caressed Edgar's wrinkled, yet not unpleasant face.
"I love you," Elsa said again, even more confidently this time. Elsa stared into the Duke's eyes for and just enjoyed the silence between them for a few moments before her gaze fell to the floor guiltily. "I have another meeting soon…I'm sorry to have to cut this short- I really do want to be with you," Elsa assured him earnestly. She kissed his lips one last time before reluctantly pulling back. "I promise we'll be together again soon."