As the steam dissipated, everyone could see the outsider's tanned, golden-clawed hands were up and open, smoke coming from them as she bowed her head.

"Elsa!" Anna would yell from behind Sigur, who, along the other guards, was trying to make sure the poor man who had been jumped on was okay. Fortunately, he seemed to be so, despites his now bleeding nose.

And yet the Queen's blue eyes were fixated on this mysterious woman, as the smoke from her hands was beginning to clear, and she was very slowly lowering them to pull back her hood.

There was something that made her look almost distant from being a human. It wasn't her tanned skin, nor the several scars crossing her face, her sharp jawline, her plump and well-defined lips, her pointy nose... It was her almost elven ears, although half of the left one seemed to have been ripped off long ago, and it was her emotionless, almond-shaped eyes, their heterochromia as the right one was violet and the left one was red, and their broken-heart-shaped pupils that seemed to almost be piercing the monarch in search for her very soul. She was eerie and menacing, battered from what probably had been a life full of ordeals, yet there was also beauty in there, as her shoulder-length jet-black hair was slightly messy but silky-looking, having been brushed away from her face, but some lose strands would still dangle in front of it.

The queen inhaled sharply at this scarred woman's next movement, only to find her very slowly kneeling in respect, her hands once again up, and her head slightly bowed, but her eyes would never leave Elsa's.

"I have come from very far away." Said the woman in her calm voice and foreign accent. "I have been searching for you, your majesty."

Seconds felt like hours as the queen calculated her next answer, but upon being greeted by a silence, the stranger once again spoke.

"Like you, I was born with magic I never asked for. Like you I thought I was alone in the world with these powers... Until I heard rumors about you following the day of your coronation. I mean no harm to you or your kingdom, I merely came here in search for an equal."

Anna's azure eyes widdened a bit, and then, they softened. She was quick to believe in other people's goodness, which was both her main strength and weakness. "You're like my sister..." There was something akin to compassion in her voice. Could that be the cause of this stranger's many scars and tough demeanor? A life of judgement and hardships? If this woman hadn't grown within the protection of a castle like she and Elsa had, then what would her life have been like?

"Rise, stranger." Elsa finally said, trying to sound kind without any display of weakness. "If you mean no harm to my family and the kingdom, then Arendelle welcomes you, as we have much to talk about." Seeing the foreigner standing back up, she added a question. "What's your name?"

Once again, this eerie female would look into the Queen, now standing tall and proud. She was indeed large for a woman, 1'80m of height, a strong yet curvy and agile figure. "My name is Astro, your majesty."

"Come, Astro." The queen turned to the castle and began to walk, her heels echoing on the cobblestone, always regal and elegant. Her guard was still up though, but deep inside she wished for Astro to stay true to her word and mean no harm, and even deeper inside, she did yearn for a friend who would know how it felt to have magic, to be different from everyone else.

Astro followed, aware of the guards trailing behind her. They refused to leave the queen alone, even if Elsa was more powerful than all of them. They were loyal. The ravenette understood and respected that, although she didn't seem entirely comfortable.

The pale monarch led the group towards the ballroom, wide enough for every sound to echo within it, leaving enough room for action if Astro tried anything harmful.

"Tell me, Astro. Where do you come from?" Asked Elsa, turning to her guest, hands clasped together in front of her waist.

"I was born in Spain, in a very small village." Replied the foreigner. "I have been wandering the continent all my life, and I learned your language a few years ago."

"You are quite fluent regardless of that." The compliment that came out of her majesty was genuine, but she still kept her distance. Then, in her next words, there was something akin to hope. "Say, are there any more like us? Any more people with powers?"

But her hopes vanished upon seeing Astro shaking her head slightly, with a somber look. "Not that I know of. You are the first one I've heard of, hence why I was so determined to reach you."

Elsa could see the loneliness in the taller woman. And all those scars... Were they caused by all who feared her powers? She wanted to know more, but she didn't want to be rude or overwhelm the newcomer with all those personal questions that kept coming to her mind. Instead, she decided to show her hospitality.

"Tonight my sister, friends and I will be having dinner together. You must be tired after traveling for so long. Please, join us and tell us about yourself."

The guards were confused. Elsa was inviting a complete and total stranger, just like that?

But if Astro truly was a good person, then her magic would be of benefit to the kingdom, and her friendship, to Elsa.

And the tanned woman was the most surprised of all. "Just like that?" Astro said in shock, finally showing any emotion at all. "For all you know, I could attack with my magic at any moment, steal your riches, even kill..."

"But you said you didn't mean any harm, and I've decided to trust you." The queen said calmly. "Besides, my guards are here, and so am I. If I am wrong to trust you, at least I can trust my strength and that of my people."

Astro seemed... Conflicted. Was she not used to kindness, hospitality or trust? The only answer that came from her was a hesitant nod.

.

Astro found herself alone in a very wide room, with a bed, a chest, a window, even a vanity. It was a guest room, yet it was so huge to her that she didn't want to know how big the sisters' rooms would be.

"Mother's house was as big as this room..."

Her voice was but a whisper, as she didn't want the guards outside the closed door to hear her. She didn't quite know if she was a prisoner or a guest, or something inbetween. They had told her to settle in, but how, when she felt so out of place?

She clung to the duffel bag she carried like it was her life itself. Where in the room was she supposed to be? It was too big. Maybe under the vanity? No, that would be ridiculous if they saw her. Maybe inside the chest? She perfectly fit inside, but that would be even more bizarre.

Rigid like a stick, she just stood awkwardly in that room like it was an alien planet. Time became unbearably slow, yet also fast as she paid attention to everything she could hear outside, the place loaded with foreign scents. Her eyes scanned every pattern on the decorations, every wrinkle on the bedsheets, every knot in the wooden furniture, to the point that she had completely memorized the entire room.

Her guard went all the way up as she heard steps approaching, and voices. An older female was talking to the guards, delivering orders from the queen.

Then, the door opened. The servant was, indeed, a mature woman, too old to have kids, but not old enough to call her an elder. Her hair was tied in a bun under her hat, a dark shade of mossy green, just like the rest of her attire. Her nose was long, the tip of it fading to a rosey hue, just like her cheeks. She had kind, patient eyes, but looked nervous upon meeting Elsa's enigmatic, threatening guest.

"My name is Gerda." She said with a small curtsey. "The queen instructed me to assist you in preparing for tonight's diner. I will show you around the castle as well."

The guards peeked from behind the door. Astro could tell they would trail behind them as the woman named Gerda showed her around.

She was not used to this. That servant's curtsey had completely blown her mind, although in the outside, she remained stoic, albeit maybe a bit tense, but it was easy to confuse that with toughness. Astro hoped they wouldn't find her hostile, but at least their insecurity around her would keep them from getting too close.

"You can leave your bag here." Added Gerda. "Your possessions will be safe in this room."

Whether they suspected she hid a weapon there or not, Astro wasn't going to separate from her bag. All she owned was in it. No matter how trustworthy the palace staff seemed, her instincts were screaming at her to not leave her precious bundle away from her watch.

"I will not leave my belongings where I can't see them." The Spanish guest said, her tone drier than she probably intended. She was clinging to the straps of her back, her knuckles whitening from the sheer strength of the gesture.

Gerda's eyes widdened a little. She gulped and turned to make sure the guards were still there and, upon being reassured by their presence, she turned to Astro once more.

"In that case, please follow me."

The ravenette relaxed ever so slightly, letting her arms hung at her sides. The situation had not escalated, and she had made her point. Despites feeling like a fish out of the water, she did her best to keep her chin up and her insecurities from showing, as she followed the patient woman in front of her, and the guards that still wouldn't leave her away from their tenacious sights.