Chapter 11

The reception before dinner was held in the drawing room. Elsa was once again presiding, but this time her sister was late, very late. Elsa was not surprised, but she was a little miffed. She wanted Anna's help keeping an eye on Carolina. It would be hard to be appropriately social and throw herself between any dueling challenges. Fortunately Carolina hadn't shown up either, which was an odd occurrence. The former naval officer was a delightfully prompt person. It was a trait they shared.

But Elsa was not idle while she waiting for her sister and her lover to arrive. As an added attraction to tonight's dinner, Edmund and Reinhardt were now surrounding her, one on each side. Competing for her attention, they tended to speak to her at the same time, each getting slightly louder than the other to make their particular point. Elsa thought if she was still sane after this evening was over it would be a minor miracle.

Edmund spoke first this time, as if he had read her mind about Carolina. "I'm sure my sister will be down momentarily. You know how ladies are, they take forever to get ready."

Elsa laughed, thinking Edmund must have meant it as a joke. After all Carolina treated dressing like a sport in which a prize was given for the best time. She'd seen her go from filthy to perfectly dressed for dinner in less than thirty minutes. And to compare her to generic "ladies" and their dressing habits … Elsa was sure that where ever she was, she was shivering in distaste.

"Not a problem, not a problem," Reinhardt answered affably, once again assuming the role of host. "I can't wait to meet her."

Elsa would have put that meeting on the far side of forever, if she could. As much as she missed Carolina, as much as she wanted to see her, she was more than a little concerned about what would happen when Reinhardt and she were in the same room. Elsa was sure that Carolina had sworn to herself, and quite possibly to her brother, that she would be on her best behavior. But the fact was, given the way Reinhardt had been acting since Edmund arrived, like a starving dog guarding an Elsa sized bone, a vow, no matter how solemnly sworn, might become moot. She could and would intervene, by freezing them in place if necessary, but that would make an awkward situation even worse. If this was some sort of plan, Elsa prayed all the possibilities had been well thought through.

"I do wonder what's keeping, Anna," Elsa said with an eye to the door. And Kristoff, she thought. She hoped her sister remembered that Kristoff needed to come to these things now.

The drawing room was almost half full with two barons, Baron Lambertsen and Baron Rike and their wives, Lord Gunnarson and his wife Lady Magnusdottir, Elsa remembered that the lady's family held the land, Count Wabinske, Sandvik and of course his wife. This would be a good starting soiree for Kristoff, or it would be if she weren't afraid that Carolina would pound the visiting Prince into a pulp.

Then the double doors opened. "Her Royal Highness, Princess Anna," Kai announced, "accompanied by Master Kristoff and Lady Fitzwilliam."

Anna walked into the room, and Elsa immediately smiled. Her sister was truly beautiful when she chose to be. She was wearing an off the shoulder gown reminiscent of what she had worn to Elsa's coronation, with the same necklace, and now with an added tiara. Since Elsa had become Queen and recognized Anna as her heir she had the right to wear one, and Elsa was glad to see she did tonight. Kristoff too looked impeccable. He was dressed in a black tailcoat with white pants and a dark green sash that set off his tan waistcoat and matched Anna's dress. He even had a sword on. Elsa cocked her head and squinted: a familiar sword. Oh thank heavens, she breathed to herself, if Fitz didn't have her sword that was one murderous temptation removed from the picture.

Behind Kristoff came another lady, Elsa couldn't remember who she was, probably the wife of one of her Barons, not someone she recognized at all. She was wearing the colors of Arendelle, which could be considered presumptuous, but really Elsa didn't mind. It wasn't as if she were wearing them. The woman seemed hesitant, almost shy, perhaps because she was so tall, easily the tallest woman in the room. But even with her hesitant steps and panicked eyes, she was attractive. Elsa smirked a little. She was turning into a connoisseur of women … Fitz must be rubbing off on her. Speaking of which, Kai had announced her as well, but where was she?

"Your sister looks quite beautiful," Edmund said to Elsa, "As does mine." Elsa looked over again to see where Fitz was and still couldn't find her. Her eyes continued searching the crowd, it wouldn't do to lose her, not this close to Reinhardt. But then Edmund was speaking to her again,

"Your Majesty, may I present Lady Millicent Fitzwilliam, my sister."

Elsa eagerly followed his eye line, her rote greeting already in progress. "How nice that you could …." Her words stopped suddenly as she took in who the tall woman who had just entered was. In a dress? With a hair ribbon! Her wine glass crashed to the floor. Immediately a footman swooped in to clean it up.

"So good of you to make it Mil, always a memorable entrance." Edmund's eyes twinkled in delight, but Carolina looked grim as she made a small bobbing motion that she hoped was enough like a curtsy to be acceptable.

"How …. lovely … to …. meet … you," Elsa stammered out.

"It is my pleasure, Your Majesty," Carolina replied, blushing as Elsa looked her over from top to bottom and back again.

"And of course His Highness of Luneberg," Edmund then introduced Reinhardt. Reinhardt was a little disturbed, he was unused to women looking him squarely in the eye, as if they were just waiting for a chance to thrash him.

"Princess Millicent is it?" He said bringing his boot heels together in a salute.

Fitz snapped back, "Lady is fine, Your Highness," and made the briefest of nods. She wasn't a Princess, and she also certainly wasn't going to discuss the details of her parentage with this woman poaching son of a queen.

"Lady Millicent," he continued to try to make small talk. "So how did you and your brother come here, to Arendelle?"

"We sailed. We were in Sweden. It's about a day with a fast ship. Our ship is fast." Fitz looked at Reinhardt as if he were an idiot. How did he think they had come? Tethered to a flock of birds?

"My sister is very shy." Edmund was lit from inside with amusement. His eyes shined, and his smile was blindingly wide. "She isn't much for conversation."

Anna swooped into the small group and gave her sister a quick bow and then a kiss on the cheek. "Sorry, I'm late. I was helping Milly." She shared Edmund's glowing countenance. They looked thick as thieves, and Elsa found herself suddenly confronted with the terrifying thought that they might be in on this plan together.

Anna continued on,"Well the maids did it mostly, I just supervised. Don't you like her dress? I think she looks smashing. The hair bow is what really pulls it together."

Smashing was exactly what Fitz wanted to do, her boot on top of someone's foot, Edmund or Anna – either would be fine, wipe those lunatic smiles off their faces, but it wasn't the same in these damn slippers. A footman came by carrying a bottle of wine and offered her some. She had been hoping for real spirits given the occasion. She was going to need something more substantial if she was going to make it through the night without incident.

"Um yes, she looks …. lovely," Elsa was still recovering her poise.

"It's nothing compared to -" Fitz suddenly realized that she probably shouldn't exclaim about Elsa's taste in clothing and how incredibly alluring she always looked - "you." She then tried to extract herself from the conversation by glancing away at the footman who was waiting patiently. "You don't happen to have anything else, do you? Something stronger?"

"You know what," Edmund waved Moeltke over. "I do. Your Highness, do you drink whiskey?"

"Of course, I do," Reinhardt said.

"Wonderful. It is always a pleasure to share with those who appreciate it." Edmund looked to Elsa, "Your Majesty? Your Highness?"

"No, thank you," Elsa answered firmly. Anna opened her mouth, and Elsa answered again, "And Anna won't either." Anna's face fell into a pout, but Elsa stood firm. Edmund waved three fingers in Moeltke's direction.

Moeltke understood the request and in a moment reappeared with three glasses and a very nice bottle of Scotch. He poured in order of precedence, first for Edmund, and then Reinhardt. But Edmund shook his head and said, "Ladies first, I think." He handed his drink to Fitz who immediately upended it in one long swallow, and then held her glass out for more.

She looked around as everyone stared. "He did say ladies first," she muttered.

"As I said, it is always a pleasure to drink with those who appreciate it." Edmund held his own glass up and waited for Fitz's to be refilled. "In Avalon we have a tradition that I feel this occasion warrants," he explained. Then in a loud voice he called, "A toast!"

The room fell silent and everyone looked to him. "A toast to Queen Elsa, long may she reign."

The gathering replied, "Long may she reign," as one.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

The arrival of another prince, a prince of an older and more powerful kingdom, played havoc with Kai's carefully laid out seating arrangement. In the end he settled on placing Edmund to the Queen's left, that was the traditional placement for dining companions, and with the Queen being left handed presumably her 'strong side,' but Reinhardt could also take solace in that the place of honor near a sovereign was to his or her right. Kai was fairly certainly that the Prince of Luneberg would choose to see it that way, anyway.

Next to Edmund on his left were Anna and Kristoff. One the other side of Reinhard were the deaf Count and Lady Fitzwilliam. Protocol would have placed her next to Reinhardt, good sense kept her at least one seat away. He wished he dared place her in another room. Not because Kai had ill feelings for Fitz; it would just be unseemly for Reinhardt to die at her hands, especially during dinner. Further away were the Baron Lambertsen and his wife, Baron Rike and his wife, Lord and Lady Magnusdottir, and Master Sandvik and his wife.

Sitting next to the Count meant that Fitzwilliam didn't have to engage in dinner party chit-chat unless she chose to try to speak with those at the head table. So far she had no desire in that direction, even if she could have gotten a word in edgewise. Elsa was gamely trying to converse with both men, but her manners were no match for Edmund who had learned the art of monopolizing the attention of a monarch at his mother's knee. Soon, whether it was from his amusing stories, or witty replies to Elsa's questions, Edmund had the Queen laughing and turned in his direction, while Reinhardt sulked. Fitzwilliam was struck with the usefulness of this particular courtly skill and found herself smiling at the Prince's discomfort.

Anna and Kristoff were too far from Fitz for her to easily join their conversation, but she did notice that the Princess carefully redirected the Ice Master's attention from his food to the nearby guests, especially one Master Sandvik. Fitz would have felt sorry for him, forced to converse with that lump of spoiled lutefisk except for the fact that Kristoff was sitting next to the person he loved, and Anna had even once kissed him chastely on the cheek. He was also wearing pants. No, there would be no sympathy for Kristoff.

All in all, as much as she hated that the plan involved her being dressed as she was, she had to admit it seemed to be working. Reinhardt appeared to be losing the battle of the suitors, all that was left was for him to realize it. The whiskey had relaxed her, and Moeltke, god bless him, had brought her a substantial refill that she kept next to her wine glass. Everything seemed to be proceeding as planned. She watched as Anna bantered with Edmund. The two of them were peas in a pod. Although Edmund wasn't as outwardly courageous or physical as Anna, she would easily trounce him with a sword now, they were both high spirited optimists who seemed to enjoy whatever life gave them … well, as long as it wasn't too uncomfortable in Edmund's case.

It was that happy spirit that had made Edmund a wonderful boy, a breath of fresh air in that snake pit of politics that was King William's court. Fitz had grown close to him after her arrival, at the time when she was enjoying her spot as the new favorite child, wreaking havoc on her older brothers who very quickly decided she was a threat to their status. She had stood up for him against those brothers more than once, giving as good as she got when the conflict got physical. After that Edmund had trailed after her like her shadow, never more than a pace or two away. They had had adventures: raiding the pantry, exploring the nearby forest, riding. In fact they had learned to ride together, the very young Edmund just getting his first pony at the time Fitz was just getting acquainted with the idea of riding a horse. Their adventures had ended when she left for the Navy, but their bond hadn't broken. Through the years when she came home on leave she both dispensed justice for the wrongs he suffered at the hands of his brothers, and entertained him with stories of her new life. That they were still friends was quite amazing, thought Fitz. And a testament to the young man's character, as the incentives to forget or forswear her had to have been been great, especially coming from the Queen of Avalon, who saw Fitz only as a detestable by product of her husband's infidelity.

"Oh my, what is that!" The Count exclaimed loudly, pulling Fitz from her remembrances. She followed his eyes to the head of the hall. The main door had opened with no one evident behind it. Then a small snowing cloud came floating in. Fitz watched as alarm colored Elsa's face.

"Hi! I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs," cut through the low rumble of the dinner conversation as clearly as if he had been standing next to Fitz. Everyone fell silent and turned to the head of the table.

"What is that?" Reinhardt exclaimed leaning away from Olaf as if he might suddenly attack.

"That's Olaf …." Anna cheerfully supplied the answer.

"Yeah, I'm Olaf!" Olaf repeated.

"He's a snowman!"

"And I like warm hugs!" Olaf decided that this Prince must not be terribly bright so he trundled over to demonstrate a warm hug Olaf style, his arms out wide.

Reinhardt was about to scramble out of his chair when Elsa put her hand on his arm and said, "He's nothing to be concerned about. Really. I made him."

"Yeah. I'm Olaf. Elsa made me." Olaf waited to see if this rang any bells with the slow Prince.

Reinhardt recoiled, still in shock at the whole idea of whatever it was that was coming at him. He turned to Elsa. "But it's walking … talking … how can it be a snowman?"

"He's magic," Anna answered as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. "Elsa made him with her magic, and he's alive."

"Living snow?" Reinhardt peeped.

"Yes," Elsa replied. "It is something that I can do with my magic, although I don't make a habit of it."

Olaf hopped and down demonstrating his liveliness with a series of hops, jumps and an attempt at a sideways kick that sent his feet flying just over Anna's head. "I have a brother. His name is Marshmallow, but he stays up at the Ice Palace. He doesn't have his own personal flurry." Olaf waved over his head sending snowflakes flying around the room. "Elsa is very talented with her hands. Most people need a book to make babies."

One of the ladies at the end of the table started to cough, and another let out a startled, "Oh my." Carolina had to grab her water and take a long drink to keep from laughing.

"Olaf?" Elsa closed her eyes and whimpered, "Please ..."

"So where's this Prince?"

"This isn't the best time …."

But Anna was not going to let her sister interrupt the snowman. This was just too priceless to end too quickly. "Actually tonight we have two of them. This is Prince Edmund from Avalon, and over there is Prince Reinhardt from Luneberg"

"Two Princes!" Olaf squealed. Then his mouth behind his hand he asked Anna in a loud whisper, "which one is the fool trying to marry Elsa?"

Reinhardt dropped his fork, Elsa blushed furiously and Edmund just grinned like the Cheshire cat. "I think both of us are," the Avalonian said brightly. "You'll have to tell us who is the better fool ... errr suitor."

"Well, it doesn't matter." Olaf shrugged his twigs. "She can't marry either of you. She's in lo…."

"Olaf!" Elsa had regained her senses just at the last possible moment. "That is not a conversation for the dinner table."

"Ooooh, is it private? Spending all night up on the top of the Ice Palace private? Having your bedroom door locked private? Private like making babies private? "

Everything stopped; everyone was stock still. The room turned completely silent, except for a very faint crackling that Fitz recognized as Elsa's chair icing up. "Olaf," Elsa hissed sharply beckoning him closer. Her voice was lower now, trying in vain not to involve the entire room in what was happening. "What are you doing here? You can't just interrupt a dinner like this."

"Anna said the Prince wanted to meet me."

Elsa gave Anna glare that would freeze a whistling kettle still on the flame. "Did she?" Anna just smiled and waved back, not at all penitent.

Elsa bent down and whispered in his ear. "I think you should go now."

"Aw?" Olaf pouted, but Elsa just crossed her arms and looked very sternly down at him. "OK, I'll go," he said in a tiny voice.

"Must he?" Edmund and Anna chorused together.

Elsa's frosty glare redirected to encompass both of them. "He must."

"Well then," Edmund smiled at the little snowman. "But I do get a hug, right Olaf?"

"Of course you do." Olaf beamed and ran over to envelope the Prince in an enthusiastic hug. When they broke apart, Edmund brushing snow from his shirt front but still smiling, Olaf said, "That's better. Some people know how to hug! If it was OK for someone to marry Elsa, I would pick you. Definitely. I bet the babies would be great huggers ..."

Elsa had started standing as quickly as she could without completely destroying the impression of serenity under pressure, and was, by now, dragging Olaf to the door like any mother with a misbehaving child. Anna, Kristoff, Edmund and even Fitz waved a sad goodbye, the latter afraid she would die of asphyxiation between the corset and her suppressed laughter.

When Elsa returned she spoke to the footman who began serving the next course. Then she spoke to her sister who turned several shades of pink. Lastly she sat in her seat and tried to pretend the last ten minutes hadn't happened.

But Edmund leaned over to her and said in a clear stage whisper, "Dinner here is certainly a lively affair."

And Reinhardt was just staring at his plate and repeating, "Living snow? Living snow."

"Oh, living snow is hardly the best of it," Edmund chortled, not the least bit interested in changing the subject. "Why she ripped apart one of our warships, a 74-gun ship of the line. Did it with an ice storm. Pulled the mizzen mast clean out, I saw the damage myself." Edmund gestured with his hands, outlining the mast and the storm. "Apparently when she floated up the gangplank, all the guns froze, even the ones in the hands of the crew. She shoved one cannon overboard with a flick of her finger. And then she lodged the whole boat … 2500 tonnes … up fifty feet in the air on an iceberg."

"A ship of the line?" Reinhardt asked incredulous, "2500 tones? Up in the … air?"

"Well, on an iceberg, of course," Edmund spoke as if having ones ship suspended in ice was not impossible but rather exciting.

"One of Avalon's ships, a ship from the most formidable navy in the world, destroyed?" Reinhardt asked again.

"Yes, I said that," Edmund said emphatically, "Pay attention. Not our biggest ship, but one of our best. And the crew of the ship were terrified when they returned. Those that would even talk about it kept going on about the snowy angel of death wrapped in an ice storm of vengeance … it was quite an image I have to say." He leaned back in his chair and sipped from his goblet of wine, loving the spotlight as every eye at the table was fixed on him. "Made all the more marvelous now that I have met the snow angel and she is as lovely and charming as she is formidable. Made my father think twice about crossing her … not an easy thing to do, you know."

Fitz nodded sagely. She was tempted to add more to the story, but Edmund was telling it so splendidly she didn't want to interrupt him.

And then as icing ... on the cake," Edmund chuckled at his own pun, "She nearly impaled the rat of an Ambassador my father sent, scared the hell out of him too. Came home nearly out of his mind ranting about the ice witch threatening to freeze all of Avalon."

Reinhardt was still shaking his head, "Avalon. A girl … Arendelle bested Avalon? Took out a ship of the line? Arendelle?" He looked over at Elsa. "You did that? By yourself?"

Elsa found herself blushing. Edmund certainly made it sound ... exciting ... and heroic. "I had some guards with me … and I didn't really destroy it. But I did pull the mast up and lift it on some ice. It managed to limp back to Avalon, albeit with a few intermediate stops to repair the leaks," Elsa said hesitantly. Then, in explanation she added, "I was provoked."

Reinhardt tugged at his cravat, somehow it seemed to have tightened during dinner, and his hands felt damp … maybe from the ice earlier. Then he asked, the question still nagging at him ... stinging him as if it were a splinter, "And you can create living things out of snow?"

Elsa nodded shyly.

"Isn't that great!" Edmund enthused throwing his hands in the air. "She's like Napolean, Nelson and God all rolled into one!"

A/N: It's been a while since I have subjected you to one of these. First as always my thanks to grrlgeek, beta, friend, and person who isn't afraid to virtually yell, "Olaf doesn't act that way!" Next the observant will note that I changed Nelson's name in Naval Engagements. I did that as Avalon is the "notEngland," but I decided the idea read better here using Nelson. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, everything was lovely, and I swooned. I did really! But I give you a challenge. If you see something that bugs you, PM me ... you can put it in a review, that's fine ... but I am trying to improve. Lastly, I am tentatively trying "Nanowritmo" or National Novel Writing Month. The "novel" is a bit of fanfiction, I'm not ready yet for the big leagues. But it does mean you should get something lengthy in a month or so ... or you can tease me mercilessly.

All the best, SSN