The Windflower Chronicles is being written as part of Elenaomi Week! This story, and all the other stories featured in this work, are part of an anthology. While some can be considered in the same continuity, they're not strictly connected or even sequential.
O-O-O
Day 6 – Future - "Long May She Reign"
O-O-O
The queen's red dress still shimmered in the light of the sun pouring into the hallway. The servants and attendants still bowed, the palace floor was still as clean and luxurious as ever, and the morning air still smelled as sweet as it had every day for the past twenty years. As the queen walked down the long corridor toward the front door of the palace, she felt as happy and satisfied as ever, her life still a grand adventure even after all this time. Her hair was now somewhat shorter, much like her mother Lucia's had been while she was on the throne, though it was still brown and wavy, and bounced a bit as she walked.
"Good morning, your majesty," said Armando, his graying hair still well-kempt, his cheeks still as round as ever.
"Good morning, Armando," Elena replied happily, her voice still light and cheerful, but with the maturity and wisdom of a queen who had ruled for many years. "How are Marlena and the kids doing?"
"Wonderful! Our oldest is about to enter the Avalor Science Academy, he's kind of nervous though..."
"Hmmm... maybe Isabel can give him some pointers... I'll ask if she can visit with him today."
"Are you sure? I know she's so busy with her inventions..."
"Oh, she's always got time to meet people, you know that!"
Elena stepped up to the door, and two members of the Royal Guard flanked her on either side, ready to open it for her. She reached up and gently pushed a strand of hair away from her face, wanting to look her best as she greeted her people... one very special person in particular.
The doors to the palace opened, and Elena stepped out... and there she was, waiting.
Naomi had gotten an early start to the day, but was now ready to meet with Elena, who greeted her with a smile and a gentle kiss on the hand, which always made Naomi smile.
"We've got a busy morning ahead, Elena... ready to go meet with everyone?"
"Of course, Naomi... I'm ready if you are."
"I'm always ready," she said with a smile. While Elena's hair had gotten shorter over the years, Naomi's hair, still bright blonde, had gotten slightly longer, though it framed her face the same way it had when she was younger, as she tied most of it off into a ponytail behind her head. In contrast with Elena's fancy dress, Naomi dressed less gaudily, wearing a blue jacket over a frilled white shirt, and blue pants that complimented the jacket, while her big boots had been replaced with black flats with short heels. She was dressed like a royal chancellor, and she still held that title, though for the last eighteen years, she'd also held another.
"Your majesty," said a young man in a sailor's uniform, walking up to Naomi. "I'm here to report-"
"Ugh! How many times do I have to tell people not to address me by 'your majesty'! It's just Naomi!"
"Well, you are the princess of Avalor," said Elena, who couldn't help but giggle at Naomi's insistence on not being addressed by her official royal title. "Princess Naomi Turner-Flores."
Naomi smiled at hearing Elena mention her full name... but only Elena got to call her that, no one else! It embarrassed her to be addressed so formally... she'd never forgotten that she was just a girl from the port, and though she knew she was so much more than that, she also liked to stay true to her roots, even if she was technically royal by virtue of her marriage to the queen.
"I'm sorry, Naomi... I'm just here to report that all the ships in the harbor are accounted for, we did the daily inspection and they're all ship shape!"
"Excellent work, Leon!" said Naomi, giving the young sailor a friendly handshake.
"You... remember my name?"
"I remember every sailor's name, why shouldn't I?"
"There are so many of us..."
"And you're all important, to Avalor and to me," said Naomi. "Keep up the good work, okay?"
"Yes, ma'am!" said Leon, saluting Naomi before rushing back to the port with a skip in her step.
"Twenty years as chancellor, and you haven't lost your way with people," said Elena, smiling proudly at her chancellor and wife. "Even after everything we've been through and everything we've seen, you're still the same humble girl from the port... and you're still the most beautiful woman in the Everrealm."
"I know," said Naomi, before giving Elena a friendly elbow in the side. "And you still know how to lay it on real thick! Now c'mon, we've got stuff to do!"
Twenty years of rule, and eighteen years of wedded bliss... Elena and Naomi had been on more adventures than either of them could count, and the adventures hadn't stopped with Elena's coronation. From being captured by pirates to being forced to put down a revolution led by a misguided young woman... to trips around the world, and even to other worlds entirely, Elena, Naomi, and their close friends had been through so much together, and everything they went through just brought them all closer. The two climbed into their carriage and rode through the streets of Avalor City, waving to the people, who all waved back at them. Their friends had gotten older, and there were many new faces, young people walking around, having adventures of their own. New buildings, and even new technology... thanks to Avalor's other princess Isabel, new innovations could be seen all around... Isabel even proposed the idea of something called a 'horseless carriage', though the early prototypes hadn't been successful.
"It never gets old," said Elena, leaning back in her seat across from Naomi. "Heading out into the city, seeing the people, making sure Avalor is running smoothly..."
"Eh, gets old to me sometimes," said Naomi, shrugging her shoulders. "I love Avalor, and I love ruling alongside you, but sometimes I've got to get away from it all, you know?"
"Mmm, thinking of planning another voyage? We'd have to let Isabel know ahead of time, but I'm sure she'd be okay with taking over again."
"The last time we took a nice long trip was more than a decade ago... man, we had the time of our lives, didn't we?"
Naomi sighed wistfully as she remembered taking Elena sailing around the entire world, just the queen and her princess, traveling everywhere, seeing all the realms, going on adventures and spending time with each other. Isabel, who at the time had been 22, had been named temporary queen of Avalor, and she ruled much as Elena had, keeping everything going well and keeping everyone safe. It had been a big ask from Elena, but Isabel had been happy to do it, and proved herself a more than capable ruler... which was why Elena and Naomi had been so comfortable with their decision not to have a child of their own, ensuring that when Elena died, Isabel would be the one to take over Avalor, and then her descendents after that, continuing the royal line with her progeny.
"We should pay a visit to the Central Orphanage, I'm sure everyone there will be happy to see us... plus, I'm kind of starving, I haven't had breakfast yet today," said Elena.
"Oooh, me neither, way too much work to do after I got up, didn't have time even for a snack!" replied Naomi, before Elena directed the driver to take them to Avalor City's biggest orphanage, located right near the center of town.
Elena and Naomi had considered having their own children, of course, with Gabe and Mateo both offering to make a donation if the queen and her princess had asked. Mateo also offered to look into a possible spell that would've allowed Elena and Naomi to have a child together, but both declined that as well... they also considered adoption, but after discussing the matter extensively, and after Elena spent long nights relating to Naomi what it was like to lose her parents, the two decided that instead of adopting one child, or two children, that they would adopt every orphaned child in Avalor... by starting a system of orphanages all across the kingdom that would rival anything else in the Everrealm. There were already orphanages in Avalor, including many good ones, but Elena was devoted to ensuring that no orphan in all of Avalor was allowed to go wanting, and launched one of the largest public works projects in the kingdom's history. Dozens of brand new orphanages were built all across the kingdom, and staffed with people handpicked by the queen and Naomi, people who loved children and would take care of them as good as any parent would... and the two also made sure to personally get to know every orphan in the entire kingdom, taking an interest in their upbringing, learning all of their names and what they liked to do, and scouring the kingdom in search of good homes for them. It was a project that consumed an enormous amount of the kingdom's resources and the queen and chancellor's time, but they both felt passionate enough about it that it was immensely rewarding for them, and they got to experience much of the joy of raising children despite not having children of their own.
"I still think the new orphanages are the most rewarding thing I've done as queen," said Elena, looking out the window to see the bright colors of the orphanage building as the carriage made its approach. "And I couldn't have done it without your planning and hard work, Naomi..."
"It took a lot of people working hard to make it happen," Naomi replied, though she beamed with pride as she too saw the orphanage come into view, its outside walls painted by some of the finest artists in Avalor, with one of the walls painted by the orphaned children themselves. "I'm glad everyone was willing to come together and build them..."
The carriage parked in front of the building, and Elena and Naomi stepped out. Almost immediately, they were greeted by several children who'd been playing in the playground nearby. They called out to the queen and princess, surrounding them, jumping up and down excitedly, and going in for hugs, which the royal couple eagerly returned.
"All right, all right, that's too much excitement this early in the day, it's time to get ready for school..." said a woman standing at the entrance to the orphanage, coming down the steps to greet the two visitors. "Ah, I should've expected this would be the reason for all the fuss."
"It's good to see you too, Anabel," said Naomi, leaning in to hug her longtime friend, who had been working as the headmistress of the Central Orphanage for the past sixteen years, ever since it was built. "Hope we're not causing too much trouble."
"It's no bother, it's just when the queen and the princess show up, the kids stop paying attention to me! I guess I can't compete with royalty, but now they're too excited to learn!"
"Now you kids need to pay attention to Miss Anabel, she and the staff are working very hard to make sure you're all well taken care of and well fed," said Naomi sweetly, patting a young girl on the forehead as she did so. "Speaking of well fed, we were wondering if we could join all of you for breakfast today..."
"If it's not too much trouble," said Elena with a friendly smile.
"For the queen? No trouble at all! For Naomi Turner, ehh..." Anabel began. Naomi stuck out her tongue in response, prompting all of the kids to laugh, and Naomi and Anabel were soon laughing along with them while Elena rolled her eyes.
Elena and Naomi had no problem eating breakfast at the Central Orphanage... like every other orphanage in Avalor, the meal was well-balanced, filling, and fit for royalty, even when the queen wasn't paying a visit. Elena and Naomi ate with the kids and staff, even telling the kids an exciting story about how Elena once rescued Naomi from a band of scheming lizardmen while retrieving a magical book for Mateo.
"Naomi was so upset by the time I finally showed up to free her!" said Elena, imitating the pouting face Naomi had been making.
"I'm not used to being saved by the queen, okay? It's usually the other way around!" shouted Naomi, rolling her eyes but being only playfully angry, actually quite fond of how Elena told the story even if it had been a somewhat embarrassing incident for her.
"Hehehe, did she say, 'it's about time you showed up!'," asked one of the girls, leaning in eagerly.
"Actually, it was more like, 'mffl mmph mffl mmph'!" Elena recalled, placing her hand over her mouth to simulate the gag that had been over Naomi's during the rescue. The kids laughed again, and Naomi rolled her eyes even harder, while Anabel laughed and slapped her friend playfully on the back.
"Oh, I bet you were furious!"
"At myself for getting caught, mostly! Dumb lizard guys, I almost beat them myself but one of their tails tripped me up..."
After the breakfast was finished, Elena and Naomi spent a bit more time with the kids, but their busy schedule meant that they needed to leave quite soon. As they left, Naomi gave her friend Anabel one last hug, and Anabel saw them off as they walked back to their carriage parked outside.
I'm so glad I recommended her for this job... thought Naomi, looking back at Anabel. No one knows how hard it is to be an orphan more than her... and because of her, I don't think any more little orphan girls will ever have to go through what she did.
The carriage then rode off, and Elena and Naomi smiled at each other as the orphanage faded out of sight.
"I hope you weren't too embarrassed back there," said Elena, blushing slightly and speaking in an apologetic tone. "I just really love telling that story."
"Hey, no worries, the kids loved hearing it," replied Naomi with a reassuring smile. "Besides, I actually really liked that adventure. You were so brave, and the way you talked down those lizardmen was inspiring... you saved me and you found them a new home, and you retrieved the magic book for Mateo."
"You know, that was fifteen years ago and I still remember it like it was yesterday," said Elena with a sigh.
"I remember all of our adventures together," said Naomi, reaching over and placing her hand on Elena's knee. "Every moment."
Elena blushed fiercely, touched that Naomi still treasured all of their past adventures so much. Before she could say anything else, the carriage stopped, and a quick look out the window indicated that the two had reached the harbor, where a simulated naval operation was about to take place.
"Guess it's time to go check on the war games," said Naomi with a slight groan. She loved boats, and sailing, and swashbuckling adventure, but simulated naval combat was something she rather disliked. It wasn't that she had a distaste for war, she just found it boring... all those rules, and procedures, those salutes, those orders... those were more Gabe's thing, and she always teased him whenever he got overly formal with the military lingo.
"Don't worry, we won't be too long," said Elena, stepping out of the carriage with Naomi. As she and Naomi walked toward the harbor, the two were saluted by a multitude of officers, and Elena and Naomi saluted them back, though Naomi had to fight the urge to groan as she did so, putting on her best professional face for the occasion. The two continued walking until they came face to face with Avalor's top military official, surrounded by a group of senior officers.
"Your majesty," said Gabe, saluting Elena and Naomi with his top brass.
"At ease, soldiers," said Naomi, returning their salute with a mocking flourish at the end.
"So, how's everyone looking this morning?" asked Elena. "I hear we've got a lot of new soldiers and sailors in the ranks."
"We do indeed, so I'm hoping they're ready to go," said Gabe. "I'm confident with the training they've received, they'll be in ship shape for today's maneuvers."
Elena and Naomi surveyed the gathered recruits. Many of them were women, a legacy established by Antonia, who herself was now a living legend and one of Gabe's chiefs of staff, at the head of Avalor's expeditionary naval forces. She would have been present that morning, but she and Ixlan were on a special mission to investigate a mysterious presence at the edge of one of the seventeen seas, said to be an ancient skeleton crew returned to life. It was a dangerous mission, but Antonia and Ixlan were an unstoppable team, and with their skills and their love for each other, Elena had no doubt that the two would come back safe as they always had.
"So, what's today's mission?" asked Elena.
"Today, the recruits are to do battle with an enemy navy led by a dangerous pirate warlord," said Gabe, his arms crossed over his chest.
"I'm assuming your wife will be playing the role of the warlord," Naomi replied with a smirk. "I hope she doesn't go too hard on them..."
"I've told Alma to hold back a little bit this time, but only just a little," said Gabe. "...we can't have a repeat of what happened last year."
"When the entire class of new recruits came back tied up on the deck of Alma's flagship," said Elena, trying to hold back a snicker.
"That was hilarious!" shouted Naomi, not even bothering to hold back, her chest convulsing with laughter. "Every day, I'm more and more glad I didn't stab that woman."
"We've ramped up the training, so an incident like that won't happen again!" said Gabe, though he was blushing slightly as he remembered the failure of the previous year... while silently admiring just how tough his wife was, and how tough their three kids were becoming as well. "This time, a few of the recruits can even best my oldest son in a swordfight!"
"...really? Some of them actually managed to take Roberto down, huh?" said Naomi, looking genuinely impressed. "Was he holding back too?"
"No! ...maybe a little," said Gabe. "I mean, he is 14, so these recruits aren't that much older than he is!"
"Hey, you should be proud of your kids, it's pretty good that they can beat up grown soldiers," said Elena. "I wish we could stay and watch the war games, but Mateo's been researching something and he needs my advice... make sure to let me know how they did, okay?"
"Yes, ma'am," said Gabe, saluting Elena before turning to Naomi. "Naomi, I thought you didn't like war games, but you seem almost disappointed to leave..."
"That's before I remembered how bad your recruits got humiliated last year," she said with a snicker. Gabe glared at her, and Naomi reached over and gave him a hug. "C'mon, I'm just teasing... I wouldn't tease you if you weren't so fun to tease. You know I love you."
"Yeah yeah, love you too, princess," said Gabe, returning the hug and the tease, and enjoying the brief pout on Naomi's face as she blanched at the formal title. "Tell Mateo I said hi, and that he still needs to give back that magic sword I lent him!"
Elena and Naomi gave Gabe and the recruits one last wave before boarding the carriage to head to the Royal Magical Academy. Constructed in the past decade, the building was near enough to the palace to allow Mateo to perform his royal wizard duties and consult with the queen regularly, but also had enough space to freely practice magic and train up a new generation of court wizards, while also providing ample living quarters for Mateo and his family.
"I still remember how we first met Alma, too," said Elena, recalling the day when Alma and her band of pirates had captured the queen and Naomi, who at that time was just Elena's girlfriend, not yet her wife. "Still hard to believe she and Gabe became a thing, huh?"
"Sometimes it's hard to believe we even became friends, but I'm glad we did," replied Naomi. "I used to have nightmares about that day, since it's one of the closest times I've come to losing you... but after I came to forgive Alma and the others, the nightmares stopped completely. I'm glad I forgave them... I don't think I'd have had the strength to do it if you hadn't done it first."
"If I could forgive Esteban, I could forgive Alma," said Elena, reaching over and taking Naomi's hands. "And now Avalor and Pezandri are close allies... Pezandri's a thriving port country, and there hasn't been a pirate attack from there in nearly 15 years..."
"Well, save for Alma's pirate attacks on Avalor's new naval recruits every year," said Naomi. "I'm glad she and Gabe found each other... I think they're a perfect match, you know?"
"Gabe definitely has a type," said Elena, her hand tightening around Naomi's. Naomi laughed, remembering when she and Gabe had had a crush on one another... she still found him quite handsome and charming, though she'd moved on from that the moment she realized how much Elena loved her, and never looked back.
"Mmm, he has good taste," said Naomi. "Then again, so do you."
Elena and Naomi never got tired of flirting with each other... in much the same way that Elena's grandparents still flirted after they'd been together for so long. Though both of them were now pushing 90, they were still as lively and energetic as ever, and could often be seen relaxing around the palace, Elena's grandpa Francisco still playing his guitar, Elena's grandma Luisa still cooking large meals for anyone who was hungry. They'd gotten a bit slower in their old age, but their love for each other and for life kept them strong, and though Elena never once took them for granted, having learned never to take anyone for granted after losing her parents so early on, she fully expected both of them to be around even after she and Naomi had started getting gray hairs... which, considering how healthy and fit the two of them managed to keep themselves, was also likely still a good long time away.
They continued flirting the entire carriage ride to the academy, and were beaming when they stepped out together, making their way inside and walking down to the lecture hall where Mateo often gave lessons to young magic students. On this particular day, however, the lecture hall was empty of students... but Mateo was still inside, practicing a spell as the queen and princess entered the room.
"Mateo, is it a bad time?" asked Elena, watching as he carefully concentrated while pointing his tambourita at a distant target.
"Actually, no," replied Mateo. He'd grown into a mature wizard, slightly taller than he'd been at Elena's coronation, dressed in ornate red robes and sporting a goatee and thin mustache, with somewhat unkempt brown hair. "I still need your help with that research... just... let me finish this spell... delagia!"
A long wisp of water blasted out of Mateo's tambourita, and flew off toward the other end of the lecture hall, where a woman clad in purple robes was standing, waiting for the spell to come her way. She smiled, and waved her own tambourita in the air, crystallizing the water into ice and forming a massive bird-like sculpture from the now frozen liquid.
"Not quite strong enough, that was way too easy to counter!" shouted the woman, brushing the purple highlights from her face, as her violet eyes glanced over to their guests. "Elena, Naomi, it's good to see you! Wanna go for a quick doubles duel?"
"Not today, Carla, not after last time," said Naomi, wincing slightly as she remembered the last magic duel she'd had with Mateo and Carla. "You know I'm not nearly as good at magic as any of you!"
"Well, I'm always available for lessons," said Mateo, walking over to Elena and Naomi.
"No thanks, magic was never my thing," replied Naomi, who had only started taking lessons so that she'd be better at protecting Elena... but without a natural talent for magic, she knew she'd have to devote herself to it for years before she got even close to Elena's magical ability. "I don't even think I could keep up with Viviana."
"True, though it's funny watching you try," said Carla with a smirk, joining Mateo and the royal couple.
"She always teases me when she wins!" said Naomi.
"Mmm, she takes after her mom, I think," replied Mateo, looking over at Carla. "So, Elena, about that spell..."
As the four began walking the halls of the Academy together, Mateo and Elena discussed the royal wizard's latest research... a spell that had the potential to identify hidden sources of magical power throughout Avalor, such as Elena's royal scepter, or the Well of Crystals that had given Esteban his magical powers and had enhanced Elena's.
"If we can find these other magical sources, which I call 'fonts', we'd be able to pre-emptively cut off any attempt by any would-be villains from stealing that magic and taking over Avalor," said Mateo.
"It's important that we find them and seal off the magic... we don't want anyone doing what my mom tried to do," said Carla. "She almost got the magic from the Well of Crystals, and when she came back, she was able to find the Hellblade, and... we all know what happened then..."
"Your mom returned from the Spirit World, raised an army of the dead, found that sword, and nearly destroyed Avalor," said Naomi. "We know... it was probably the closest we've ever come to losing it all, even closer than we came with Shuriki or when we fought the Four Shades..."
Carla bowed her head... despite the events taking place more than eighteen years before, it was still fresh within her mind... her mother, taking revenge on everyone, including Carla herself... and Carla ultimately having to be the one to put her own mother down for good. She looked down at the scar on her hand, from the spell she used to slay Ash, a daily reminder of what she'd done, and what she'd lost... but had only to look at Mateo and her two children to remember what she'd gained, with the help of her father, and Gabe, and Naomi, and of course, Elena.
"Fortunately, no one's been able to find a font since then, and once we cast this spell, no one ever will," said Mateo.
"Well, except for us," replied Elena. "Someone's going to have to go around finding and sealing up the fonts... and I volunteer myself and Naomi."
"Hey, there's no way I'm letting you guys take on a mission like that by yourselves," said Mateo. "No doubt Gabe would want to come along too."
"A grand adventure, just like back in the old days," said Naomi with a smile. She looked at Carla, who smiled back at her... despite everything the two had been through, once bitter enemies, the two were now close friends, and tried to spend as much time together as they could. "Think you'd be able to come along too? We could use your magic in case any bad guys try to mess with us."
"I'm not sure... I mean, I need to look after the kids..."
"Bring 'em along!" said Naomi. "Viviana's the same age as Isabel when she started going on adventures with us, and Teodore's not too much younger. ...or you could leave 'em with Victor, he loves spending time with his grandkids. Just don't leave them with Rafa, she'd spoil them and they'd never want to leave!"
"I don't like leaving the kids at all," said Carla, who had devoted the last thirteen years of her life to being a far, far better mother to her two children than Ash had ever been to her. "It might be better to take them along... I mean, I'm sure Gabe and Alma's kids would want to come along."
"Oh yeah, they've been dying to go on adventures just like their dad... but I think they're all probably a bit too young," said Elena.
"Gabe's kids beat up Royal Guard recruits on the regular, they're totally ready for adventure, and Viviana's a way better wizard than Mateo was when he was her age," said Naomi, prompting a harsh glare from Mateo. "What? It's totally true."
"You didn't even know me when I was Viviana's age!" said Mateo, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You're right, I met you when you were fifteen and Viviana at thirteen is still way better," teased Naomi.
The four friends walked the halls of the academy, discussing spells and adventures and everything else that had been going on in their lives... and just like with Alma, Elena and Naomi were glad to have given Carla another chance, and glad that she'd found love with one of their closest friends. Mateo had once been deeply in love with Elena, and still loved her, though as a dear friend and confidant rather than a potential girlfriend. He was a great friend, a great wizard, and a great man, and as Naomi watched Elena and Mateo discuss what was likely to be their next adventure, she couldn't help but imagine a world where the two of them had gotten together. It made her a bit sad, as she never would have had Elena, but at the same time, she knew that the two of them would have made each other incredibly happy... in the end, of course, Naomi was quite happy with how everything played out... she and Elena, together forever, ruling the kingdom of Avalor and looking out for each other, while all their old friends were still close, still in their lives, still going on adventures from time to time... and she couldn't wait for the next one.
"So... sometime next week, I think the spell will be ready to cast," said Mateo. "I'll meet you at the palace, and we can use your scepter to cast it."
"Sounds like a plan," said Elena. "Let me know if there's anything you need, and you'll have the full resources of the kingdom at your disposal."
"Thanks, Elena," said Mateo. Though his voice had deepened and his face had matured, he still had the same youthful enthusiasm that he'd had when he and Elena had first met and when he'd helped her to liberate the kingdom from Shuriki, twenty-four years ago. "Carla and I are teaching classes in about an hour, but maybe you can come back and meet us for lunch later today?"
"Sure thing," replied Elena. "Naomi, I think we should head back to the palace, I've got some paperwork to do..."
"So do I," said Naomi. "Think we have enough time to drop in on Isabel?"
"I think we have a little," Elena replied. "Hopefully you know who hasn't left for school yet..."
Elena and Naomi waved goodbye to Mateo and Carla, before making their way back out to their carriage to head back to the palace. Normally, they would've been content to walk the short distance between the academy and the palace, but in order to make time for Isabel, they'd need to get back as soon as they could, and the carriage would shave several minutes off their trip. They entered the palace through a special side door, a door that led directly to the wing where Isabel and her family lived, and where most of her experiments were conducted... hopefully none too explosive today. Isabel was usually careful, but science had a way of producing unexpected results, and the royal maintenance team was always on standby during Isabel's more volatile research.
They entered the main research facility, a large, open hangar-like room that had been constructed on the eastern wing of the palace. From the outside, the room blended in quite well with the architecture, but inside, the room was more like an enormous garage than a palatial chamber. Its ceiling was lined with steel beams rather than brick and ceramic, while its floor was solid concrete, built to withstand the tremendous forces that Isabel and her research assistants occasionally subjected it to. The room was filled with various tools and machines, with numerous cranes suspended from the ceiling and attached to the walls, random contraptions and gears built into the pillars and walls, and even what appeared to be a giant robot standing at the center of the room, though from the somewhat incomplete state of its construction, it appeared to be an ongoing experimental project rather than a fully complete prototype. Though the faint sound of hissing and grinding could be heard as Naomi and the queen entered the room, Isabel was nowhere to be seen.
"Isa?" Elena called out, looking around the room for any sign of her sister. Suddenly, from above, a person appeared, dangling from a crane above Elena and Naomi's head. The person was dressed in what appeared to be a brown trenchcoat, with brown boots on their feet and numerous metallic implements dangling from their body. Their eyes were concealed with solid black goggles, while on their head, they wore a brown leather cap. Elena would've been startled, but this was a fairly normal entrance for her sister, even after it had become clear that she would be the heir apparent to the throne, and she simply smiled and allowed Isabel to introduce herself at her own pace. "Good morning."
"Morning, Elena!" Isabel said cheerfully, pressing a small lever on her goggles to transform them into normal clear ones, and deploying a set of metallic wings from her trenchcoat, which opened to reveal a an apron and a pair of black bloomers as Isabel descended to the ground and flipped back over into a normal standing position. "What brings you to the lab?"
"Just paying a visit to my favorite sister," said Elena.
"You mean your only sister," Isabel replied, before turning to face Naomi. "Hey, Naomi! Busy day?"
"Yeah, but we'll always make time for you, Isabel."
Despite the eccentricity of Isabel's outfit, Isabel herself was very much a normal woman in her mid 30s. Both the crown princess of Avalor and the leader of its science and technology department, she had been at the forefront of Avalor's push into its industrial revolution, though rather than focusing on coal and oil, which Isabel knew existed deep beneath the Avaloran soil and could be used for fuel but was also extremely heavily polluting, Isabel instead focused all her research on steam power, and had invented hundreds of devices to run on steam or to utilize it more efficiently. She didn't have the kingdom's electrical grid up and running, a project that she estimated might take at least a few more decades, but she was working tirelessly to get the kingdom moving faster and faster, and hoped that Avalor's industrial revolution would spread to the rest of the Everrealm, ushering in a new age of science and technology.
"So what's the project today?" asked Elena. She took a look around Isabel's lab, which was staffed by some of Avalor's most brilliant scientists, including Tomiko, Isabel's old friend from the academy. Tomiko waved at the two before returning to her work, excitedly conversing with one of her fellow scientists about an object that looked almost like a miniature engine. "Still working on that horseless carriage you've been telling me about?"
"We're on the verge of getting it to run on steam power, but it's still tricky," said Isabel. "It's hard to make it run without needing to use a lot more water, but that would increase the weight, which in turn increases the power requirements... but I think Tomiko and I have figured out a breakthrough. There's a new kind of engine that'll drastically increase the amount of power we can get from just a small amount of water, but the engine breaks down quickly, so we've got to figure out a way to get it to stay intact for long trips. It'll take a bit more work... in the meantime, I've got another team working on a pipe that can circulate water much faster, which should theoretically allow for every home in Avalor City to have electrical power... but the pipe material is prohibitively expensive, so I've been researching materials for that..."
As Isabel continued to converse with Elena, Naomi began to look around the lab, searching for one person in particular. She looked behind desks, around crates, and even near some of the cranes, but the person in question hadn't yet turned up.
Guess she's gone off to school already... thought Naomi.
A large wisp of steam could be seen behind the unfinished robot, drawing Elena and Naomi's attention to that corner of the room. Isabel smiled and walked over to the steam cloud, leading her sister and sister-in-law over.
"Looks like today's homework is done," said Isabel, wiping some fog from her goggles. "Did the reaction come out all right?"
"Boom goes the cannon!" shouted the triumphant voice of a young girl from within the steam cloud. When the cloud cleared, Elena and Naomi could see the girl standing proudly with a pair of test tubes in hand. The girl had light brown hair with dark brown streaks, and was wearing a pair of clear goggles like Isabel's, along with a white lab coat.
"That's great work, Lucia! Looks like the titration of your mixture was correct... mostly, there's a bit more steam here than the calculations indicated..."
"Once I started pouring, I couldn't stop myself!" said the girl, before looking up at the queen and her chancellor. "Aunt Elena! Aunt Naomi!"
"C'mere, ya little steampunk!" said Naomi happily, walking over and tenderly rubbing her knuckles against the top of the girl's head before wrapping her up in a gentle hug. "Hope you're not planning on blowing yourself up today!"
"Yeah, isn't it dangerous to keep pouring after you're supposed to stop?" asked Elena.
"It's okay, I made sure the mixture was right before I started pouring!" Lucia replied. At just eight years old, the daughter of Crown Princess Isabel and Prince James of Enchancia was one of the smartest young girls in the kingdom... which was a good sign for the future queen of Avalor. "Mom says that someday, the whole kingdom's gonna run on steam!"
"Or wind, or maybe even solar power," said Isabel, smiling proudly at her daughter. She'd been named for the grandmother who she'd never met, and had both her namesake's courageous spirit and her mother's prodigious intelligence... along with her father's proclivity for cannons. "It's important for scientists to keep all their options open!"
"Isn't it about time for school?" asked Elena, looking out the window at the position of the sun in the sky.
"School starts a couple hours late today, the teacher asked the class to spend the morning doing an experiment, and then they're going to come to school and report the results to the class!" said Isabel. "Lucia asked me if I'd help her generate steam from a mixture of two chemical compounds, and we spent the last hour trying to figure out which compounds could make the most steam safely! It looks like we found the right ones, didn't we?"
"Mmmhmm!" said Lucia, before naming the compounds she used and launching into a scientific explanation of just why those compounds were the optimal ones for the experiment. Both Elena and Naomi looked slightly confused at the girl's explanation, while Isabel just smiled and listened, her face beaming with pride. "Did you guys get all that?"
"Uh huh..." said Elena, slowly nodding her head.
"Yeah, Lucia!" cheered Naomi, giving her precocious niece a thumbs up. "Yeah, science!"
Lucia giggled... even though she was only eight, she could tell that science wasn't her aunts' area of expertise, but she was always glad to show off her experiments to them, and she loved hearing stories about their adventures saving the kingdom. They would've shared another of their stories with her, but Elena knew that she and Naomi needed to return to the royal chambers to complete their paperwork, even if neither of them really wanted to go.
"We've gotta get back," said Elena, sighing but smiling as she leaned over to hug her sister. "I'm glad I got the chance to visit today..."
"Hey, maybe you could come have lunch with me and Elena later?" said Naomi. "It'll be us two, Mateo, and Carla, down at the wizard academy... think you can make it?"
"I should have some time after dropping off Lucia," said Isabel.
"Aww... I want to eat lunch with Aunt Elena and Aunt Naomi too!" pouted Lucia.
"It's okay, we'll all have dinner together tonight, and I'll have the chef make your favorite food, okay?" said Elena, smiling as she leaned down and kissed her niece on the forehead.
"Okay!" chirped Lucia happily.
"But only if you're good at school, okay Lucia?" Naomi said, raising a finger.
"I'm always good at school, I love school!" Lucia told her. Naomi smiled and booped Lucia on the nose, making her niece giggle. "See you later!"
Elena and Naomi left the lab, their spirits lifted by their meeting with Isabel and her daughter. They still had a busy morning of paperwork ahead of them, but they had their friends and they had each other... and they held each other's hands as they walked down the hallway leading back to the main section of the palace. They could hear Francisco's voice off in the distance, delivering a mid-morning serenade to Luisa, and as they continued to walk, they could hear Esteban having a friendly argument with Dona Paloma.
"Now I definitely can't believe they became a thing," said Naomi, referring to the former chancellor and Avalor's most successful merchant.
"Oh, I saw that one coming a mile away," replied Elena with a smirk.
"Did not!" said Naomi playfully.
"Did so!" replied Elena, continuing her own friendly argument with her wife all the way back to the Grand Council room, where a stack of papers was waiting for them both. "...I wonder how many people saw us coming."
Naomi smiled, and sometimes she wondered that herself... who could have imagined, the crown princess and the girl from the port... for a while, even they didn't know it was going to become anything more than friendship. It wasn't that the two were both girls... same-sex relationships were seen as normal as any other type of relationship, all across the Everrealm and especially in Avalor. It had been a couple of centuries since Avalor had seen a royal wedding between two people of the same sex, but the wedding had been beautiful, heartfelt, and spectacular, the most extravagant wedding that Avalor had ever seen... and like any of their adventures, Elena and Naomi both remembered it as if it had just happened... and they always would.
"I like to think it was a nice surprise for everyone... and that once everyone saw us together, they all slapped their foreheads and wondered why they hadn't figured it out before," said Naomi, looking into Elena's eyes.
"You mean just like you did after the first time I kissed you?"
"I didn't slap my forehead," said Naomi, blushing and giggling. "Well... not physically."
"We sure made up for lost time though," said Elena.
"We sure did," replied Naomi, smiling as she leaned in to give her wife a tender kiss on the lips. "Guess we'd better get to that paperwork, huh?"
"Yeah..." said Elena, parting from Naomi as the two entered the Grand Council room together.
"Make up for lost time later?" asked Naomi, as she and Elena took their seats next to one another at the table.
"You know it," Elena replied. She was almost tempted to say to hell with the paperwork and 'make up for lost time' right there with Naomi on the Grand Council table... it definitely wouldn't be the first time, though it was always embarrassing when she had to lie to Armando afterward about why he needed to clean the table twice in one morning... but on this particular day, she'd be satisfied looking into Naomi's eyes and occasionally playing a little footsie.
Naomi would be satisfied as well... she and Elena had all the time in the world now.
O-O-O
That night, after lunch with Isabel, Mateo, and Carla, after more paperwork, more meetings, learning the results of the day's war games (the new recruits had beaten Alma this time! Barely!), dinner at the palace, and relaxing with a good book, Elena and Naomi had retreated to the royal bedchambers, and had, as they had many, many thousands of times before in the eighteen years since becoming married (or, truthfully, in the nineteen and a half years since they'd started dating), made passionate, intense, ferocious love to one another, the spark still burning as brightly as it ever had all those years ago... in fact, it burned more brightly than ever.
Elena and Naomi held each other close, the sheets pulled over both of them, nothing between them. Naomi's hair had been freed from its ponytail, and Elena was stroking it softly, occasionally leaning over to kiss Naomi's sweat-dampened forehead. Their love for one another was still so strong, and it made both of them stronger as well. Through all their years of ruling, protecting, caring for Avalor, they had also cared for each other, and their love had pushed them both to do incredible, heroic, impossible things, all in the name of the other.
"Tired..." Naomi moaned softly, nuzzling her face into the nape of Elena's neck, planting kisses on it when she could, groaning with the exhaustion of the day and the night. "Love you though."
"Mmmm..." Elena tenderly groaned, kissing the top of Naomi's head before stroking her hand softly down her lover's back, stopping just below her waist. Naomi smiled and cooed, stroking her foot against Elena's and nuzzling even more tenderly into her neck, content with basking in the tenderness of her queen's touch and the warmth of her presence. "Love you too... but yeah... tired..."
Elena knew she wouldn't be able to rule the kingdom without Naomi by her side... not because she wasn't smart enough, or devoted enough, but because Naomi's love strengthened her, and she trusted Naomi's judgment in everything... she held so many lives in her hands, and that burden was too big for any one person, even for someone as strong as Elena.
And as for Naomi... she didn't have any special powers, and even though she was a princess by title, she was just an ordinary woman, with a few skills and a good instinct, but otherwise fairly average... but thanks to Elena, she knew she was someone special... if Elena could love her so fiercely, she had to be. Because of Elena, Naomi had discovered who she truly was... a hero, with the courage to save the world. When she was with Elena, Naomi felt like she could do anything... and she would do anything for Elena.
"Same thing tomorrow then?" asked Naomi. "More paperwork, royal business, stuff like that?"
"Mmhmm," replied Elena, yawning softly. "Unless adventure happens... it tends to happen around here, you know."
It did, though not quite as often as it used to, and Naomi often thought back to the days when it seemed like there was a new adventure just about every day... but when she looked into Elena's eyes and felt the tenderness of her touch, she knew she didn't need to go on adventures quite so often anymore.
"Sounds good to me," said Naomi, smiling warmly and leaning up to give Elena one more kiss on the lips before the two fell asleep together. Elena moaned as Naomi kissed her, and held her close as the two fell asleep, closing their eyes and drifting off together peacefully. "Good night, Elena..."
"Good night, Naomi..."
Sometimes, they dreamed of adventure... but even the most exhilarating dream couldn't compare to their perfect reality. Queen Elena Castillo Flores and Princess Naomi Turner-Flores had found the sweetest dream in each other's arms, a dream that would keep going even after they woke up together in their bed... a dream destined to last forever.