"Really? There's a party? A big one? Who's invited? We're going, right?"

Elsa knew she wasn't doing a great job of hiding her smile with her hand over her mouth, but she tried anyway. "Yes, of course there is. I don't think there is anyone who's not invited. And it is our party so… yes, I think we're going to attend. If that's all right with you, love?"

Her fiance shook with glee, "All right?! Of course it's all right! The last time we had a party was months ago, and I only got to dance twice! And both of those times were with people who would later try to kill us. I think it will be a nice change of pace to give all my dances tonight to someone who I know won't try to kill me."

Elsa made a point of keeping her expression curious.

Anna rolled her eyes. "You! Gosh, did that speech really just fry your brain? Obviously, I was talking about you. I am going to dance that dress right off of ya. And my goodness, when I do…"

"Tsk tsk tsk… You most certainly will not. Do not forget about your punishment, oh darling sister of mine."

Face coloring to match her hair, the younger girl glared, "I was hoping that you had forgotten about that already." She was quiet for a moment before her voice regained its usual pep, "You were amazing back there, Els'. I told you there was no reason to be nervous. Not when you're capable of a speech like that. You really are a Queen."

The blondes cheeks reddened slightly, and she stopped walking. "Actually… I owe you some thanks for that."

"Me?"

"Yes, you and that dress."

She giggled, "My dress? What's that got to do with it? This thing is what got me in trouble in the first place!"

"Exactly. I was having to focus so hard on not focusing on your dress, that I didn't even have time to be nervous. I didn't have a choice but to put everything into the speech. Well, it was either that or our whole kingdom sees us consummate our marriage before it even happens. And I am not okay with that."

"Okay first of all… I thought the same thing, and that's hilarious. Second, you're saying that wearing this dress was actually a good thing… so that should mean I don't need to be punished anymore, right? And that means…" her hand slid up Elsa's side, lingering only a second on the swell of her breast, before moving to pull her face close.

The Queen let out a soft moan. She absolutely loved the way Anna's fingers felt when running through her hair. Even if she could have stopped the kiss, she wouldn't have. Just because she knew she couldn't get enough didn't mean that she shouldn't give it a worthy effort. "Mmm… you're almost right."

"I- wait, what? Almost?"

"Almost. You did help me… but it was completely by accident. I think you still need to be punished. Even though that kiss was… mmm… shall we say, exceptionally enticing?" She brushed her lips against a freckled cheek.

"Now you're just being mean on purpose. I swear, if I didn't love you so much… okay, fine, I don't have a clue where that sentence was going. I will always wait for you, Elsa, you know that. This is just… this is torture!"

You have no idea… have you seen that dress you're wearing?! "Anna. Sweetheart. I can't do this to you. No, it's not a punishment. I just… oh, how do I say it? I just love the tension. I'm not telling you no because you did something wrong, I'm telling you no because once I say yes it will feel so right." She leaned down and nibbled the redhead's earlobe before whispering, "I hope you enjoy my eyes on you, because they're going to be undressing you all night long.

"Now, come on. We've got a ceremony to get to."

A speechless Anna ran to catch up, "Um… yes, okay. I understand. Gosh, this is hard. Is that why you look so beautiful tonight? Not that you're not always beautiful, because you are. Tonight you're just so… but that's not to say… Ah! Elsa. You look stunning, and I hope you don't mind that my imagination has melted that dress off of you over a dozen times this evening already."

"I would expect nothing less," she said with a wink.

It was astonishing what their people could do with so little time. The entire lower floor of the castle had been opened to the public. The steady stream of food coming from the kitchens had left an indescribable combination of scents in the halls that would probably last for quite some time. It was one thing to see an enormous crowd from a balcony, but it was another thing altogether to invite them into your home for a party.

This was too much. She had learned to do incredible things over the past few months. She had fought a war, she had saved her kingdom, she had even learned to fly. But this… there were people everywhere. People talking and laughing, jostling one another, some were even singing. The emotions were palpable. The hallway was spinning. Why was it spinning? Her room never spun like this. She needed to get to her room now.

An overly-warm hand slipped into hers and squeezed. Panicking, she turned to see Anna's beautiful, smiling face. The tension, the fear, the panic… it all subsided. It was still there, but suddenly it wasn't so important. She didn't need words to know what the younger girl was telling her. Those old, familiar words she had said herself so long ago. It's okay. I've got you. We're going to face this thing together. The blonde smiled back and kissed her on her cute little nose, making her blush furiously.

"Your Majesty!" a deep voice called over the crowd's chatter.

"Tendy!"

Wow, she's adorable. "Captain Tendro. It is so good to see you."

The big man did not have a hard time making his way to them through the throng. "I apologize for my recent behavior, Majesties. It was not befitting of an officer of my rank."

"Don't be silly, Tendy. You don't have to be sorry. We're just glad you're okay." Elsa smiled to show her agreement.

"Thank you, Princess. I cannot express my gratitude for your unwavering support. It is much more than I deserve. But please, we should not be talking about me. Tonight is your night. Congratulations to you both! I don't know a soul in the kingdom who has not been impatiently waiting for this news."

Anna looked as red as Elsa felt. The whole kingdom? No matter how often the evidence was shown to her, it was still so hard to accept that so many people cared about her happiness. "Thank you so much, Captain. You have no idea how much that means to me," she squeezed that warm hand. "To us. We really are very happy that you're here, and that you're doing so much better."

"Is that a smile? Tendy smiling? Why, I never thought I'd see the day. I don't even know what to think. Do your smiles mean the same thing as other people's? Or are you not even sure how they work?"

"Oh Anna, stop," Elsa chided.

The grizzled Guard chuckled, "You're right, Princess Anna. I haven't had much to smile about lately. I suppose that's all changing now though, isn't it? No more war to prepare for. Most of the rebuilding is being handled. Even the ships back to Corona left this morning."

"They did? That was fast."

Captain Tendro looked to Anna as if for permission. She grinned and nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty. You see, I had received special orders that the repairs needed to be done as quickly as possible. Apparently, there was an invitation that needed to be delivered to your royal cousin with the utmost urgency." He bowed to Anna, "I gave it to their Captain personally."

Anna jumped up and down in excitement. "Thank you, Tendro, thank you!"

"That's incredible, Captain, really. Thank you so much."

"It was the least I could do, Majesty. If you'll excuse me, I do not know how much longer I can stand here without sampling some of this delicious food that keeps passing by."

"Yes, yes! Go eat! Thanks again, Tendy!"

Elsa leaned over to Anna's ear, "You are such a rascal." She gave her a quick kiss, "And I love you so much."

The redhead turquoise eyes shone with happiness, "I love you! Let's go get some air. It'll do you good!"

Everything looked so incredible! There were so many people. Anna wanted to talk to each and every one of them. It felt like every couple of seconds she had to remind herself that if she did talk to everyone, there would be no time for anything else… probably for the next couple of weeks. So she settled for smiling, and waving, and making herself dizzy from trying to see everything at once.

As the two of them stepped out the gate, they bumped right into a plump, slightly graying woman that Anna recognized immediately. "Silvi! I was hoping we would see you but… wow, what are the odds? I mean, literally everyone is here. It's so unlikely-"

"Anna," Elsa said quietly in her ear, "Just… Shh." Then louder to the shop owner, "Fru. Vinter, so good to see you!"

The unshakable woman didn't look flustered in the slightest. She just smiled and curtsied, "Your Majesties. Congratulations."

"Thank you," they said together. Elsa gave her the cutest smile, covering a giggle with her those perfect fingers. Anna wanted so badly to kiss her, but she restrained herself.

"Silvi hopes she is not too forward for saying so, Majesties, but it is about time. When Princess Anna comes into my shop last week to ask for a wedding dress, Silvi is overjoyed." She gave the redhead a direct look, "It is ready, by the way."

"You… you are so sneaky! Errands, indeed." Elsa laughed.

Anna stared down at her ring, "Says the girl who was off melting down her old doorknob…" She felt herself being overwhelmed again by just how much she needed to be worthy of Elsa. There had to be something more she could do. She knew that she could never be good enough, but that would never stop her from trying.

Not caring about propriety, she wrapper her arms around her sister and squeezed her tight. Elsa grunted and hugged her back. "My dress is amazing. You'd better be prepared to drool. Just so you know," Anna whispered. The Queen laughed. "When can I pick it up?" she asked Silvi.

"It will be delivered tomorrow morning." She looked sternly at Elsa, "They will be under strict instructions that you are not to see it, Majesty. You understand, yes?"

The gorgeous blonde blinked those enchanting eyes and smiled, "Yes, of course." Anna could not stop staring at her.

"Is Silvi to be making you a dress as well? Is no problem…"

"Thank you, Fru. Vinter, but no. I have already made designs of my own that should be quite… well-received." Anna felt a cool finger graze the inside of her forearm. It left a tingling trail that made her mind spin, desperate for more.

"It was to be expected. No harm done." She waved a hand at Elsa's current gown, "It is clear that Silvi is not the only talented dress-maker in Arendelle. But thankfully," she smiled, "Your Majesty cannot sell hers."

The three of them shared a good laugh at that. A few minutes and several chuckles later, they said their goodbyes and continued outside. The transition from bustling, loud, hot hallway to cool, crisp autumn evening was abrupt and delightful.

Suddenly, Anna had a plan to get some fun attention from her sexy date. "Ah, that is so much better. You know, Els', if you hadn't said yes, all my plans would have been very awkward. I would have found myself stuck with an ice ring, a wedding dress, and a very upset kingdom."

"Well, technically, the kingdom would still be mine."

"Oh no, did I not tell you? You see, the whole reason that I proposed away from the city was so that if you said no, I could just tickle you to death and nobody could hear." Anna's cheeks were trying so hard to smile, it was nearly impossible to stop them. Elsa's eyebrow raised. "Oh yes, death by tickling, it's a real thing. I learned it from my kidnappers. They tried it on me, but of course, I'm not ticklish. Lucky me, because it can get nasty. Hey!" She burst out laughing.

"That didn't sound like someone who wasn't ticklish… I wonder if I…"

"Hey! No! That's not fair. I told you I'm not-" The delicate fingers Anna had just been admiring minutes before were now viciously assaulting her sides. There was nothing she could do to stop it. Her face and ribs hurt from laughing. For a brief second, she wondered if you actually could die from tickling. Wouldn't that be embarrassing?

"Look at them, Marshmallow. They've been engaged for almost a whole day and already they're fighting. I guess it's true what people say. I don't actually remember what they say, but I know I've heard people talk about this. And I'm pretty sure they're right. What do you think?"

Olaf was tromping across the bridge to them with Marshmallow following behind, shaking his head at the little one. "Think you're crazy," the golem rumbled.

"My… my saviors!" Anna gasped. "She might have finished me off if it weren't for you. Did you know you can die from tickling? I didn't, but Elsa said she would prove to me that you can…" she grinned up at her sister.

The blonde offered her a hand up, "Don't worry, my love. I know where you sleep."

The younger girl's entire body shivered with expectant pleasure. How does she do that? She didn't even touch me that time! I wonder if someone could just marry us tonight…

"If you're thinking about getting married early… no." Anna frowned. She could swear Elsa could read her mind sometimes. "Can you imagine how upset Rapunzel would be? Showing up here only to find that she is late… plus, I'm sure that there are a few thousand other people who might also want to attend."

"Rapunzel? Guys! Who's Rapunzel?"

"She's our cousin, Olaf. She and her husband Eugene live in Corona."

"Cousin?! I've never met a cousin before! How exciting! What does it look like?"

"It? What? No. Olaf… oh boy. A cousin is like a sister, but… not… quite. Oh, how do I explain this?"

Thankfully, Elsa came to her rescue, "She's family, Olaf."

"We have more family? You hear that, big guy? More family! We love family!"

Marshmallow gave a shy smile, well… shy for Marshmallow anyway, "We do like family…"

"Oh, hey, speaking of family… Elsa and I haven't really talked this over, but I don't see how she could say no… and I'm just going to keep talking so that she can't. We need someone at the wedding who can carry the rings, and someone who can make sure that everyone is where they're supposed to be and nothing gets out of hand. I think you two are the ones for those jobs." She wasn't surprised to see Elsa smile at her. There really wasn't a reason to deny the snowmen their opportunity to help out.

Olaf threw up a stick-salute. "Of course, Princess Anna! I would be honored to protect your royal wedding from any intruders, and to ensure that your extra-special day goes exactly as planned! Marshy, do you think you can handle the rings? They're kind of important too, you know."

Elsa rolled her eyes, "Um… I think switching jobs might be a better idea, little guy." Olaf looked crestfallen, but the Queen was ready, "You see, you've got smaller hands that are perfect for carrying small things, like our rings. But Marshmallow's hands are just so big, he might lose them without even realizing it. And we don't want that, do we?"

The snowman and the golem shook their heads seriously. "I will guard wedding. Nobody causes trouble for family."

"Huh, he's kinda cute when he's on my side. Who would've thought? Oh, don't look at me like that, I'm kidding." As soon as he looked away, Anna silently mouthed to Olaf, "I'm not kidding."

The snowman giggled so hard that he fell down.

"We should probably get back inside. As nice as it is out here, I've got to start facing the people sometime."

"You make it sound like they're enemies, and you're going to do battle with them."

"Hey, I've done that. I can do that. It's all the social stuff that vexes me. I just… I don't know how."

"Don't worry, Elsa! Me and Anna can show you!"

"Olaf, actually, you should stay outside. You two can help people find their way home if they've had a bit too much fun tonight. How does that sound?"

"That's a good idea, Anna! I've heard that fun can cloud your judgement. That's why I never stop having it. If I lose my cloud," he gestured at his flurry, "I lose me!"

Marshmallow was shaking his head again as the two of them walked over to the end of the bridge. Anna felt Elsa tense a little as they neared the door leading back to the crowd. She entwined their fingers, and held tight.

"It's okay, Elsa. I've got you." Then, as they stepped across the threshold, she said with a grin, "Tally ho."