Anaea stared at her reflection in the mirror, checking again and again to make sure that her uniform was perfect for tonight. Anxiety welled in the pit of her stomach, not once in her twenty-nine years of living had she attended a ball, let alone one held by royalty.

A knock sounded from her door, she checked herself one last time before she answered it and was greeted by Major Byrnes and Lieutenant O'Neil. The two men wore their best dress as she did, both had obviously gone to great trouble, as she had, to make sure their dress was impeccable.

The three officers began their walk to the castle together, casual conversation flowed as they joked about with each other. Anaea thanked the heavens for giving her the two men as her junior officers, they worked well together and had become fast friends throughout their careers together.

The ballroom was filled with officers from both countries and members of the Arendellian gentry and nobility when they arrived. A band in the corner played out a quickstep and the centre of the room was filled with dancers from all different walks of life. Anaea was pleased to see that several of her junior officers had found the courage to dance with women from the upper classes of Arendellian society.

She searched the crowd of people hoping to find the Queen in the throng, she knew that they wouldn't be able to be physically intimate as they had been the past few nights after their kiss, stolen glances at dinner, and passionate moments when they were left alone.

She caught sight of Anna standing by a table that looked as though it was almost completely dedicated to chocolate, Kristoff standing beside her, an amused smile on his face as he watched the Princess gorge on the sweet treats. The two were perfect for each other, and Anaea felt a sense of happiness for the young Princess that she had found a man who fit so well with her.

Her thoughts were interrupted by one of Arendelle's Lords. He introduced himself as Lord Falsen. Anaea took stock of the man, he was typically handsome, tall, muscular, and his manners were impeccable. She introduced herself to the Lord and engaged him in conversation. Falsen seemed quite pleased with her and Anaea couldn't help but wonder why.

"Captain Forest, I wonder if you might give me the pleasure of this dance?" Anaea was taken aback by his offer, men never asked her to dance, her career usually put them off, not that she minded.

Anaea wondered how rude it would be to turn the Lord down, maybe she could make an excuse that the two of them would look too strange on the dancefloor together, especially considering she was dressed as though she were male, the Army having not even thought about designing a female uniform, another fact she was glad of.

The Lord looked hopeful however that her response would be positive, and she would be lying if she said that she found his company repulsive. He seemed like a nice sort, someone she may have befriended in another life, and so she found herself agreeing to the dance.

The whole way through the waltz she felt eyes following her. Anaea knew that the two of them would attract attention and chalked it up to people trying to figure out if it was at all proper for the two to dance. As the waltz finished Falsen excused himself to go and fetch drinks for the two and Anaea was left standing on the outskirts of the room wondering what to do in the peculiar situation she found herself in.

Falsen returned after a few minutes and the two conversed for a while until the topic Anaea dreaded came up.

"I beg of you Captain, please tell me you have no beau, a beautiful woman such as yourself is likely to have one, but I fear it would break my heart to hear it."

Falsen had shown what she feared, he was interested in her romantically and she had no idea what to do about it.

"I am afraid Lord Falsen that I do indeed have a beau, one that I myself am very taken with," Falsen seemed to deflate at this knowledge and looked rather disappointed.

"It is a real shame Captain, a woman such as yourself would have made a very handsome wife," Anaea, albeit shocked at this statement, felt rather sorry for the Lord, he was a nice fellow, and he would make some woman very happy in the future.

"I thank you for the compliment my Lord, and I hope you do not take this as rude or as me attempting to escape your company, which I must admit I have enjoyed, when I excuse myself."

Falsen nodded and seemed to take her excuse well, as she left the ballroom she chanced a last glance at the man to see him conversing with another Lord, at least he took her rejection well.

Anaea made her way outside and into the castle gardens. The ball was fun and she was enjoying it, however, the heat and the pressure of having so many aristocrats was getting to her and she felt she needed a moment alone. She made her way to a spot that Elsa had shown her, the slightly raised position allowed for a beautiful view of the water and she felt herself relax immediately.

"I do hope you're not trying to run away," Anaea turned in shock to face Elsa who had somehow managed to creep up on her.

"Of course not, I just needed some air."

Elsa nodded slightly, standing next to her and looked out at the water.

"You seemed rather close with Lord Falsen tonight," Anaea thought she detected a hint of jealousy from the other woman.

"Indeed, he is rather a nice chap, it was a shame for him that I don't feel attraction to men," she paused for a second, turning to look at the other woman, "and that my eyes are only drawn to one woman as it stands."

Elsa couldn't help the large grin that broke out across her features at Anaea's words, "yes well it is lucky for some that that is the case, it would be very unfortunate for me if my affections weren't returned."

"You don't have to worry about that my darling, you are the only woman in my thoughts," Elsa turned to return Anaea's gaze, a soft smile lighting up her face. She looked around quickly, and after seeing that they were completely alone, leant in and pressed a tender kiss to the taller woman's lips.

Anaea struggled to think of a moment in her life happier than this one, Elsa had soon become an important part of her life, and every moment she spent with the young Queen would forever be cherished in her heart.

"I suppose I should return, it is considered rude for the host to leave her own ball so soon and for so long."

Anaea nodded her agreement, disappointed that their moment had to end so soon, "however, after you have demonstrated your dancing skills already, I think it only prudent that you grace me with the same honour."

"Elsa? Are you sure, we are in public after all, people will talk if they see us together like that, and there is already enough talk with my nightly visits to the castle."

"Let them talk, and if it is true why should it matter, it is my life, not theirs," a mischievous smile broke out on the Queen's face as she eyed Anaea up and down, "and maybe these rumours will stop my council from trying to push countless princes on me."

Anaea would never get used to the cheeky side of the Queen so well hidden in public by her natural graces and façade.

"In that case Your Majesty, it would be my honour to have this dance with such a beautiful woman as yourself."

By the end of the night, Elsa and Anaea had more than one dance together, and as predicted they were the talk of the ball. Many guests presumed that the two were close friends and wished to dance together as friends do. Due to the Queen's introverted ways they guessed that she felt more comfortable dancing with a friend than men she did not know as well. Despite this, many of the guests also presumed that the two women were indeed involved in an elicit love affair.

The two women were aware of the attention they drew but could not find it in themselves to be concerned about the stares and the whispers, they were too engrossed in each other.

The night was coming to an end and the guests excused themselves to go home. Soon all of the guests had left. Anna left for bed the moment the last guest left, she had had more alcohol than she probably should have had and felt extremely sleepy by the end of the night.

Anaea offered to walk the Queen back to her chambers before she herself walked back to her room in the barracks. The two women walked in a comfortable silence, their hands intertwined. Anaea had never felt so lucky in her life than in this moment, just to be so close with Elsa was intoxicatingly perfect. In such a short period of time Elsa had managed to worm her way into her heart and she would be lying if she said she wasn't falling for the other woman. That thought scared her though, she knew that eventually she would have to leave Arendelle and as a result, would not see Elsa again for the foreseeable future, and she knew that when that happened it would break her heart.

Realistically she knew their relationship would be short lived, Elsa was a Queen, Anaea had nothing to offer her. She knew that one day Elsa would be forced to marry some royal from the continent, even knowing the likely possibility of this happening hurt her more than she would like to admit. However, she knew that she would rather spend the short time she had with the other woman as best as she could than to run from how she felt to save herself further down the line, a broken heart was worth the memories she would forever cherish.

They soon reached Elsa's room and Anaea was left standing with the Queen unsure as to where to go from there. Elsa made the decision for her and pulled her head down to meet her lips in a passionate kiss. Their tongues danced together and Anaea felt herself being pulled into the room.

Elsa tugged at the buttons of her dress jacket and pulled it off her shoulders, her hands running along her back. Anaea pushed Elsa against the closed door, bringing the other woman's leg around her hips as she held her against the wood. They broke the kiss for air and Anaea took the advantage to pepper kisses along Elsa's neck, lightly biting as she went.

Elsa's hands tangled in Anaea's short hair and pulled the other woman impossibly closer to her body. She let out a soft moan which spurred Anaea on further. Elsa pulled Anaea's head back up only to crush their lips back together again.

Elsa pulled away slightly from the other woman, "stay with me tonight."

Anaea pulled back further to look into the Queen's eyes, the raw emotion in the monarch's eyes shocking her, "my darling, trust me when I say that I want nothing more than to have you right now, but I want to make sure that you are ready first, and I don't want to rush this."

Elsa let out a frustrated breath, pulling Anaea back into her, "why do you have to be so courteous, it's awfully frustrating," she lent in and placed a soft kiss upon the other woman's lips, "thank you though, for being so considerate. I don't want you to go just yet though, so whilst I have you here I might as well have fun."

Anaea thanked whatever gods were listening for giving her this amazing woman.