A/N: It's been so long it's hard to believe I'm actually posting this, but here it is: the last chapter. To anyone who has stuck with this from the beginning (if such rare humans even exist), thank you so much for your support. A huge thanks to anyone who reviewed, favorited or followed. I hope you enjoy this final chapter.

Anna didn't even wait for the door to open completely. The moment Elsa cracked it open a little, Anna slipped through the opening and tackled her sister to the floor.

"Gah, Anna!" Elsa squirmed uncomfortably under her sister's weight. Anna held on tight, resisting Elsa's attempts to shake her off.

"Get off!" Elsa said, trying to sound displeased.

"Nope." Anna shook her head. "If I leave you might get some stupid idea into your head and lock me out again."

"Come on, Anna. You know I won't. Besides, you can't hold on to me all the time even if you want to".

Anna sighed. "I don't even know what I know anymore," she muttered, rolling sideways and unpinning Elsa. The sisters lay side by side for a moment, quiet.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Elsa asked after a while.

"What do I even know about you, at this point?" Anna replied softly. Elsa twisted her head to look at her sister for a moment, before suddenly sticking out her hand and poking Anna in the side.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"No depressing thoughts for today. We finally got this. We're together. I have you back. That's enough."

Anna chuckled. "I suppose the handsome Jedi practically living in your room helps, too." Elsa caught a hint of something in her tone, something she realized with a start was bitterness.

"I'm sorry," she said suddenly. Anna looked up, surprised.

"What are you apologizing for? None of this is your fault. I understand."

"I'm still sorry about Anakin. It was improper of me."

"Oh pooh." Anna chuckled. "I'm the last person to lecture you about propriety and tradition, you know that, right?"

"I should have told you there was nothing between us. I should have talked to you through the door. I don't know. It all ended well, but I'm still scared for what could have been. I woke up tonight in cold sweat, thinking you were dead."

"Now who's the one with the depressing talk?"

"Sorry."

Anna frowned and poked Elsa in the side with the hand she wasn't lying on. "And quit apologizing. That was revenge for your poke from earlier, by the way."

"Your vengeance is accepted." The sisters laughed, the mood easing somewhat.

"Would you like there to be something between you and Anakin?" Anna asked without preamble. Elsa hesitated, not sure how to reply. Anna noticed her hesitation, because she added: "Just be honest, please. No more lies for my protection or whatever."

"I like him," Elsa finally admitted. "He's pretty much perfect in most the ways I can imagine. But, Anna, it could never work."

"Oh, just ignore all that against the rules crap. Anakin doesn't seem like the by the book type. If you want him, go get him. I promise I'm okay with it. I'm not the princess of this story, I see that now- I'll just go and write my own, and it'll have my prince in it."

"It's not the issue. Anakin's married."

Anna paused. "Oh."

"Yes. Completely in love with her, too. Well, I suppose it only makes sense that a guy like that would already be snatched up and off limits."

"I see. Well, guess both of us can wave him goodbye." Anna laughed suddenly, and Elsa joined her, both of them feeling happy for no reason at all. Once they were done, the last chuckles quieting down, Elsa said:

"Well, not quite goodbye. He still hasn't finished teaching me everything he wanted to, and he's got to stay for two more weeks, until the first month of spring starts."

"Alright. Jedi business, I suppose. I wish he could stay for longer."

"Me too. I've felt so much better since he's come. Lighter, somehow."

Anna and Elsa lay on the floor, looking at the ceiling, for a few more minutes, talking about nothing and somehow filling the silence with easy chatter nonetheless. It felt natural and easy, like this was right somehow. It took Elsa some effort to finally force herself to get up and brush herself off.

"My lesson with Anakin will start soon, so I really have to get ready now."

"Oh." Anna sounded disappointed, and Elsa felt her own mood sour at the idea. "How about you stay for this one?" she proposed, as surprised as Anna to hear her own words.

"What, seriously?"

"Of course." Elsa was quiet for a moment, trying to explain why she had offered the idea- or rather, trying to understand herself.

"It's a new time," she finally decided. "A fresh start. You don't have to stay, but if you want to, I'll make sure you're included in whatever it is I do. I want to prove that I'm never, ever locking you out again."

Anna sniffed. "You probably don't even know how much this means to me."

"I think I do."

Anna launched herself at Elsa, enveloping her in a hug, as if to express what she didn't have the words to say. Staying during the lesson was just a symbol, of course, but symbols can mean a lot sometimes.

Anakin, of course, chose that very moment to walk in. He chuckled at the sight in front of him, waves of tenderness emanating from both of the sisters.

"I take it you didn't start your meditation yet?" he half-asked, half-stated. Elsa blushed, letting go of Anna.

"No, I'm sorry."

"That's alright. We can do it together." Anakin sat down, cross legged, and began the breathing exercises that consisted their usual warmup, but Elsa remained standing, Anna beside her. She seemed nervous for some reason.

Anakin continued breathing in and out slowly. If she had something to say, she could say it.

It took a few more moments, but when Elsa became certain that Anakin wasn't going to comment on anything, she said: "Master Skywalker, I need to ask something of you."

Anakin opened his eyes, amused by the formality. "What is it?"

Elsa took a breath. "Can Anna stay with me? Just this lesson?"

"Of course. Anna, you're welcome to join. Please sit down and try to relax, focusing on your breathing. At first try to match my speed, later you can find your own pace that will stay even."

Wordlessly, the sisters sat down. Anakin smiled. This was more like it.

0o0o0

Anakin woke up because of the shrieks. They were loud, high-pitched and seemingly unending. He came into awareness already standing, his lightsaber out and ready to be ignited. The Force didn't speak of danger, but he was still on edge as he raced towards the direction of the sounds, slipping on the parquet as he turned around the corners. The sight that greeted his eyes as he ran into the main hall was enough to make him freeze at the entrance. Anna was the source of the shouts, screams of happiness rather than pain, as it turned out, and Anakin froze more out of shock than anything else. Anna was sliding down a huge slide made of ice, a pile of snow thoughtfully cushioning the landing, and Elsa was standing to the side, making the slide twist and turn in ways that made Anna squeal even louder.

Finally, just as Anna reached the end of the slide, Elsa made the end curve upwards so that Anna was shot a meter or so into the air. She hung there for a short moment, elation on every feature of her face, before landing right into the giant pile of snow. She was quickly buried, just the tip of her scalp showing under the snow, but her laughter still rang out throughout the entire hall. Elsa appeared no less pleased, making more snow appear to land on Anna's head every time she tried to dig herself out, a bucketful of snow appearing with every motion of her hand.

Anakin was stunned. This was the biggest use of power he had ever seen Elsa perform, and she seemed completely comfortable with it. Eyes shining, Elsa seemed to have heard something, because she turned towards Anakin, noticing his presence for the first time. "Come over here!" she waved enthusiastically. Anna used Elsa's momentary distraction to dig her way out of the snow, picking up an armful of it and dumping it right over Elsa's head as soon as Elsa started to turn back, causing her to sputter loudly.

"What was that?" she huffed. Anna smiled. "I thought the cold didn't bother you anyway, but sorry."

"It doesn't. I was just surprised. Hey, wanna build a snowman next?"

Anna practically jumped up and down from excitement. "You bet! Anakin can help us, too. I'm making the head!"

The snowman turned out slightly crooked, given that the sisters refused any suggestions to smooth the balls with the Force or with Elsa's powers.

"We're doing this one by hand. We don't want him to turn out sentient again," Elsa explained, leaving Anakin no less confused but still delighted.

"I'd never seen snow until I was sixteen, you know?" he confided in the sisters after they were finished. Anna gasped. Anakin was ready to hear something along the lines of 'how come?' and was already preparing an explanation when Anna said: "That explains why you're so bad at this!"

Anakin gasped too in mock offense. "How dare you insult my snowmanmaking skills!" He bent down casually, collecting snow where Anna couldn't see his hands, and formed it into a (admittedly crooked) snowball. Anna, however, beat him to the punch, throwing a snowball at his face the moment he straightened up. This meant full-out war, no more reservations against Force use. Elsa joined in quickly enough, supporting first Anna, then Anakin. The battle was fast and intense, forts rising and falling and snowballs whisking by too fast to see.

An hour later, the trio lay on the snow, out of breath. Anakin was smiling, this unexpected reprieve from reality still too surreal to comprehend. He had a feeling that whatever was waiting for him when he returned to the civilized galaxy was not nearly as enjoyable as this.

Elsa twisted her head to look at Anakin, as if sensing his mood change. "You still have time here," she muttered. Anakin nodded slightly, knowing that however long this vacation was, it was still only temporary.

There was only a week left before his next visit to the trolls. Elsa had advanced with amazing speed, and he was sure she could handle her power by this point, but that didn't mean he shouldn't try to get the most out of the lessons they had left, just in case. Anakin rolled to his feet abruptly, pulling Elsa out of her tired bliss. "Get up, princess. It's lesson time."

Elsa groaned as she got to her feet, accepting Anakin's outstretched hand. "Do I have to?"

"This wasn't the reaction you had when I first offered to train you."

She sighed. "Alright then. Lead the way."

0O0O0O

The sun rose slowly over the shining, melting snow. This was an especially warm day, and while the cold might still return later in the week, right now every citizen of Arendelle was enjoying the unexpected sunlight. The dark ground was already showing in the places where the snow had been thinner, mainly by effort of the palace's servants.

Anakin woke up later than usual, treasuring his last day of leisure. The sisters were already up when he wandered through the halls towards the dining room, the smell of bacon wafting through the air. Anna was standing at the table, placing three plates piled high with bacon and toast at their seats.

"I made breakfast!" she boasted proudly when she saw Anakin walk in. He whistled appreciatively. "I didn't know you cooked."

Anna smiled. "I do a lot of things. I have a lot of free time on my hands, so I wheedled the servants into letting me practice cooking a little."

Elsa was already seated, elegantly cutting her bacon and eating it one piece at a time. Anakin also sat down, moving his plate towards him. He shoveled a whole piece of bacon into his mouth, ignoring the look Elsa gave him- he was too hungry to bother with etiquette. Anna took his example, but the piece she grabbed was too big to fit in her mouth, so a piece of it was left dangling from her mouth. Elsa coughed lightly. Anna and Anakin exchanged glances and began to laugh, ignoring Elsa's disapproving stare.

When they were finished, Anakin said: "This is great, Anna. If only my wife could cook half as good as you." Padme's cooking was the only sore spot between them, and most evenings together usually ended with takeout.

Anna blushed at the praise. "Well, it's only bacon," she replied. "Kind of hard to mess it up."

"You'd be surprised."

After breakfast was finished, it was time to leave. Anakin took the broken converter he needed for the receiver, hoping the trolls knew what they were doing. A knot of nervous energy formed in his stomach, leaving him to wonder why he was so eager to return to the battlefield.

They rode the horses again, this time Anna seated on a beautiful white mare instead of lying limp in Anakin's arms. No one spoke on the ride, as if afraid to break some sort of spell. The clearing grew closer and closer but Anakin still had no idea what he'd say to the princesses once (once, not if- he had to believe) his signal to Obi-Wan was being transmitted hundreds of light years away through the dark, empty galaxy. His Master would probably be equally elated and irritated with him. He realized with a start that he even missed Obi-Wan's lectures on recklessness and attachment. It was time for him to go back.

The boulders scattered around the clearing once again came to life, rolling to their feet so quickly one could almost miss the moment the clearing transformed from empty into crowded. They didn't sing this time, although they all smiled at seeing Anna unfrozen and unharmed. Grandpabbie came forwards, like last time, and motioned for Anna to get down. He placed a hand on her forehead and stood quietly for a moment, eyes closed. When he finally opened his eyes he was grinning even wider than the other trolls.

"You have done well, Elsa," he nodded. "We are proud of you."

Anakin coughed lightly. "You know, this would have been a bit easier if you had told us that it didn't have to be romantic love."

The trolls stared at him like he had just announced the sky was green. "Love is love," they said in unison, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Anakin frowned. "Yes, but when we brought Anna here you told us only an act of true love would thaw her heart, and, if I recall correctly, mentioned a kiss as an example of that act?"

"It could be a platonic kiss," Grandpabbie shrugged. "Not necessarily on the lips, as long as it's filled with the right emotion. Either way, we trolls don't really make the separation between kinds of love. It's all artificial and, if you don't mind me saying, rather pointless."

Anakin, Elsa and Anna gawked. Anna was the first to regain her speech.

"Well," she said brightly, "all's well that ends well."

Anakin found himself agreeing.

"I've brought the converter," he said to Pabbie, holding out the battered object. "Are you sure you can fix it? It's pretty complicated."

The old troll waved a hand dismissively. "We promised, didn't we? Now it's spring and love is in the air. We don't need to understand how it works to make something whole again." He accepted the converter from Anakin and laid it on the ground, motioning for the other trolls to join him. They formed a circle around the converter while Anakin and the girls stood to the side, watching.

The trolls began to chant something slowly. It sounded like an ancient song and it was strangely melancholic, as if whoever had written it had poured of his pain into the melody. Slowly the music began to become livelier, the strands of tragedy twisting and merging with notes of joy. The trolls continued their chant, quicker now, and suddenly the converter floated upwards, as if pulled by a string, and began to shine. The light started out soft but it grew stronger and stronger until it was blinding. Anakin had to shield his eyes. He was dimly aware of the sisters next to him doing the same.

The trolls' voices became higher and higher until they finally merged together in a crescendo that ended as quickly as it had begun. Through closed eyelids Anakin felt the light fading away. He opened his eyes and saw the converter, shiny like brand new, in he middle of the dissolving circle of trolls.

Grandpabbie hobbled over to Anakin and patted him on the back. He suddenly yawned,

"Here's your converter, Anakin. Remember what I told you about the galaxy." He yawned again.

"What did you mean by that?" Anakin asked, but Pabbie didn't answer.

"This was hard work," the old troll said quietly. "We will rest now." He smiled and then suddenly rolled backwards, already indistinguishable from a regular boulder. When Anakin looked around he saw that the rest of the trolls had done the same. He sighed.

"Thank you," he said to the empty clearing.

Of course Pabbie wouldn't clarify the meaning of the prophecy-like statement he had given Anakin last time. It was only natural. Galaxy pay for his mistakes, his ass. It just might if people continued bombing him with vague prophecies and advice and then leaving before he had a chance to ask what the kriffing hell they'd meant.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Alone in his room at the castle Anakin sat on his bed, fiddling with the last pieces of the transmitter he was building with parts scavenged from his ship and the converter. Oddly enough, the converter's casing was covered with painted flowers, probably courtesy of the trolls. He'd given up on understanding them.

The last part slid into place and Anakin sighed. Well, it was now or never. He typed the digits of Obi-Wan's comlink into the improvised keypad (the keys didn't have numbers on them, since he hadn't found numbered keys in the ship, and the wiring inside was so haphazard he half expected the ghost of his Electronics course teacher from the temple to appear and start lecturing him) and set the frequency to the correct number. His finger hovered for a moment over the 'call' button before pressing down decisively. There. He'd wired the transmitter to beep loudly when his call was received so he wouldn't have to worry about missing Obi-Wan's response.

Funnily enough, he needn't have worried. Only a minute after the transmitter had been activated it started beeping frantically and the voice of Obi-Wan came through, recognizable if a bit scrambled. Anakin congratulated himself on a job well done.

"Who is this?" his Master asked suspiciously. Anakin couldn't help but grin.

"It's me, your long-lost Padawan. Did you miss me?"

"Anakin! Thank the force. Where were you?"

"I crash-landed on some backwater planet- I'm transmitting the coordinates now- and was stuck with a broken ship and no way home."

"Another crash-landing?" Anakin could imagine the look his Master was wearing.

"Yes, I know, it's not the first time-"

"Not the first time? This is the fifth by my count. And didn't I tell you not to rush into the separatist's formation? We are going to have a long talk after you get back."

Anakin sighed. "Alright, Master."

However, it seemed Obi-Wan wasn't done. "And why in the name of the force did it take you so long to contact me?"

"I'm sorry, Master. I'll explain when I see you. It's kind of a long story." He heard his Master sigh.

"When isn't it? Never mind. I'll come pick you up as soon as I can. Can you hold on another day or are you, as per usual, in some sort of grave danger?"

Anakin looked around at the carved wooden walls, the golden chandelier and the soft, downy comforter he was sitting on. "I think I'll manage."

"Alright Padawan. See you soon."

"See you soon, Master." The call disconnected, leaving Anakin sitting on the bed with the transmitter in his hands. It had been a long vacation.

0o0o0o0o0o0

The ship that landed in the palace courtyard was standard Jedi issue, nothing fancy, but it still brought what looked like the entire village to the castle gates, trying to get a better look of the incredible thing that landed from the sky. Anakin could have slapped himself. How had he forgotten to tell Obi-Wan to land somewhere in the forest?

Well, it was too late for that now. It looked like Arendelle's first interstellar contact was set to happen much faster than anyone could have anticipated.

The servants also gawked at the ship, but they mainly did so from the safety of the castle's windows. Anakin ran down the stairs as quickly as he could, anxious to be the first to meet Obi-Wan and explain that no one here had heard of space travel. However, when he reached the courtyard, he saw that Elsa was already there. She was looking curiously at the ship and didn't seem startled when the lid popped open with a hiss and Obi-Wan climbed out. She curtseyed instead, bowing her head a little. "You must be Obi-Wan. I've heard a lot about you. You are most welcome in Arendelle."

Obi-Wan hadn't had time to respond before Anna appeared from around the corner. The girl lacked her sister's composure, so her surprise was rather more evident in her face and the way she said "Wooah!" as she saw the craft. Anakin smiled. He'd miss her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, my lady," Obi-Wan said, elegantly getting around the issue of not knowing Elsa's name. He was surprised, Anakin could see, although most people probably wouldn't have noticed, but his face brightened as he saw Anakin.

"Padawan!" he exclaimed as Anakin rushed towards him, grinning widely. "I'm glad to see you're in one piece."

"Same to you," Anakin chuckled. Obi-Wan never said too much during reunions, but Anakin knew his Master cared.

"Well, Anakin, I think it's time to go." Anakin nodded. He hadn't expected anything different, but Elsa and Anna seemed shocked by the abruptness of it.

"Won't you stay for a little while?" Elsa asked. Obi-Wan shook his head.

"I'm afraid we've lost enough time as it is. Every hour we're gone could mean more lives taken." Elsa nodded.

"I understand."

Anna didn't seem to agree, but she stayed silent, tears in the corners of her eyes. She suddenly ran to Anakin and hugged him tightly, squeezing the air out of his lungs. Elsa joined them after a moment's hesitation and they stayed there like that, in a group hug, until Obi-Wan's cough broke the moment.

"We should go," he said, a force nudge at Anakin's mind conveying the message 'you'll tell me about this later'. Anakin let go of the sisters and climbed into the ship, waving goodbye.

"Take care!" Anna shouted as the ship began to rise into the air.

"You too!" he shouted back. "I'm sorry about the mess my Master caused by landing here, he didn't mean to upset anyone!"

"We'll find a way to explain!" Anna said, almost too far away now to be heard. Elsa said nothing, but her smile told him everything he needed to know.

They flew upwards, through the clouds and into the starry darkness of space.

No one knew what the future would hold, but Anakin promised himself that Pabbie's warning would remain just a warning, a discarded future that would never come to pass.

After all, when he and Obi-Wan were together, what could possibly go wrong?