A/N: So this chapter is very predictable. It's hard to challenge or surprise your protagonists when one of them is virtually all-powerful. Expect an overdose of fluff…though to be fair, Elsa and Anna have probably earned it.

Elsa sat calmly on her throne, doing her best to portray a balanced level of sympathy and skepticism. Her latest petitioner stood before her; a single tear was running down the woman's cheek.

"According to reports, the local authorities have classified your daughter's death as a suicide," the Queen intoned. "How can you be certain that her fall off of the cliff was not done of her own violation?"

The woman's nostrils flared. Her dull gray hair and well-lined face did nothing to mute her outrage. "Sarah would never have done such a thing!" she demanded. "Tobias is responsible! I know he is! He's hated her since the moment she was born!"

Elsa frowned. "Motive does not always equal guilt, Ms. Baker. I cannot imagine how it feels to lose a child. Truly, I can't. I will do everything in my power to help you. But-"

"Then arrest the swine I was forced into marrying!" the petitioner demanded.

Repressing a sigh, the Queen glanced over to her right. Anna was sitting there anxiously, perched on a throne identical to Elsa's own. Of course, Anna (and her throne) were invisible to all those who did not know the truth about the conflict that had occurred five years previously.

'Should I do it?' Elsa mentally asked her wife.

She never read the minds of petitioners without asking for Anna's permission first. Nothing but a promise between the two of them bounded the earthly goddess to that arrangement, but so far she had kept it. There had to be limits placed on her power, however small.

With a sudden movement, Anna stood up and began to pace around her throne. Her loud steps echoed throughout the room, yet to Ms. Baker and the other petitioners a shroud of silence remained.

"I think you have to," the Knight said. "There's too much at stake, and she's come before you willingly. She is asking for your help."

'So is every petitioner.'

Anna nodded. "But not for matters as serious as this. Look…either she is telling the truth, in which case any grieving mother in her position would assent to the intrusion in exchange for justice. Or she's lying about the death of her daughter, which means she probably doesn't deserve the total privacy of her thoughts."

'I suppose you're right.'

Silently, effortlessly, Elsa peered into the petitioner's mind. Instantly, the concerned frown on her lips morphed into a contemptuous scowl.

"Ms. Baker, I have had thousands of citizens come before me, and I've investigated hundreds of their claims. I know how to read the expressions of my people. You are lying." Her voice was as cold as her ice.

The woman recoiled. "Your Majesty! How…how dare you! I come before you to beg assistance, and instead-"

"I can see it in your eyes," Elsa continued. "You do not think your husband is guilty. You seek to pin the blame upon him merely because you want him out of your life. In fact…" the Queen paused, pretending to frown in contemplation. "I would hazard a guess that you murdered your daughter. I can guess your situation. Forced to marry a man you didn't love for a financial reasons, and unable to avoid his expectations of having a child. You've been trapped for decades. And so you sought to free yourself by murdering your daughter and pinning it on your husband. Disgraceful."

"Your Majesty, I-"

Elsa ignored the inelegant sputtering of the woman before her. "Enough. You will be detained until an investigation confirms my suspicions. At which time a sentence in accordance with the severity of your crimes shall be levied upon you." Grimacing, she turned her face to the guards. "Take her away."

As Ms. Baker was hauled towards the dungeons, Elsa glanced back at her wife. They'd have a lengthy conversation about the criminal's sentence, but Anna's inclination towards compassion did not guarantee leniency. The disgust on the Queen Consort's face made plain that Elsa would have no problem convincing her that multiple decades in a cell were warranted.

"Send the next one in."

Three days a week, the two Queens spent nine hours hearing petitions from citizens all across the kingdom. It was rather time consuming, but nothing too difficult to manage given Elsa's ability to be in multiple places at once.

The following few petitioners brought forward simple matters, problems that the Queen could easily deal with using her authority as monarch or her magical abilities. While the full extent of her abilities remained a well-kept secret, Elsa had showcased some of her advanced powers to the populace (presenting it as the natural growth of her abilities.)

Midway into fulfilling a request by a city worker into sending an investigator to look into perceived workplace violations, a grumbling from the vicinity of the other throne slipped into her awareness. Smiling slightly at the bashful look on Anna's face, Elsa transported a sandwich from the kitchens and into the Knight's hands with nothing but a thought.

\

"You're going out?"

Anna nodded, pulling a dark purple cloak over her shoulders. Even a happily married woman needed a few hours to herself, something that Elsa easily understood. She sighed in contentment, looking out at the harbor outside their bedroom window. Much had changed in the last five years. One of the powers Elsa had revealed to the public was her ability to bend the laws of space. As a consequence, a shimmering arch roughly a mile wide stood in the ocean outside the harbor. Underneath was a portal, through which ships could travel to the waters of Corona's capital in an instant. There were other portals in various locations throughout the city as well, allowing the populace of the sister nations to visit one another whenever they pleased. It had, of course, done wonders for trade.

Other, smaller portals existed in the harbor waters as well. Ships of various kingdoms could travel through as they wished, on the condition that they were only traveling for peaceful purposes. Anna's gaze, however, was currently fixed on the largest portal. As loyal as she was to Arendelle, the Knight had to admit that there were few sights capable of matching the view of the sunset glinting off of Corona's castle. The light snowfall that drifted over the harbor waters only complimented the image.

She was pulled from her thoughts as two soft arms wrapped around her shoulders. "Hurry back," Elsa whispered, leaning her forehead into the crook of Anna's neck.

"I will."

\

Much had changed in the capital city of Arendelle. The newfound ease of travel and trade had led to an increase in prosperity well beyond what could have been expected. This had not only led to an increase in the number of businesses and a higher quality of items on display, but had also manifested in the expansion of the city itself. Taller buildings and new neighborhoods on the city's outskirts had been appearing steadily over the last few years, and there was little sign that this trend would stagnate in the near future.

She paused in front of one of the city's squares. A large fountain stood in the center, constantly pouring out a current of clean fresh water that citizens were free to take for themselves. Even now, in the dead of winter, the liquid refused to freeze. The exact particulars of how it worked weren't wildly known, but the people of Arendelle had been more than willing to accept it as an application of their Queen's growing abilities if it meant a constant supply of good water.

It wasn't until a few minutes later that the negative consequences of such uses of magic made themselves known. Attracted by a sweet, spicy scent lingering in the air, Anna had walked through the snow-covered square to one of the few stalls that was still open in the last vestiges of sunlight. Keeping her head beneath the hood of her cloak, the Knight happily purchased several snacks native to the deserts of the far south.

"Thank you," she said, depositing a generous amount of coins on the counter.

The man minding the stall smiled broadly. "For the glory of the Empress," he said, placing a fist over his heart.

Anna repressed a sigh. It had been inevitable, in a way. With her increasingly impressive displays of magic, willingness to provide for her people, and the noticeable deference she now received even from other rulers, a fraction of Arendelle's populace had taken to worshipping Elsa as a living Goddess. To them, she was the rightful Empress of the Earth. A Goddess of mercy, justice, and prosperity as long as she was properly respected.

Elsa had done her best to suppress this form of religion. While she refused to ban any peaceful expression of belief, the Queen had made it clear to her subjects that she was no Goddess, regardless of how much powerful magic she had at her disposal. This was, technically, a lie. However, the reasons she gave for refusing worship were entirely accurate.

"I have no greater ability to discern right from wrong than any other person," she had said on numerous occasions. "My goals and desires have no more innate importance than the wishes of anyone else. As your Queen, I may expect respect, but no one is worthy of worship."

So far, her discouragement had been mostly effective. Soon enough, when people realized that Elsa and some of her loved ones were no longer aging, things might become more complicated. That, however, was a problem for another time.

Even now, some still turned to the worship of Elsa out of a desire for greater favor. But this the Queen had shot down harshly. "I am not so self-important to value adulation for myself as a man's most important quality. Any ruler who does so is, by nature, selfish and arrogant," she often said.

Elsa knew, just like Anna, how close such a ruler had come to dominating the world. They were both determined to stay as far away from that reality as possible. It was a difficult to balance that desire with an effort to overtly use Elsa's magic to better the lives of humanity, but so far it had been working relatively well.

The same could not be said for Anna's own reputation. Normally, even an event as horrific as the murder of two classrooms of children would have not remained a focal point of gossip for five years. But the Knight's continued presence near the Queen had ensured that she was not forgotten, and the known fact that she continued to share Elsa's bed had only further enflamed the rumor mills.

Even in prosperous times, humanity had a need to remain somewhat cynical. With Elsa herself seemingly above approach and her administrators working as intended, the ingrained skepticism of peace had fallen upon the most obvious target. Anna's presence at Elsa's side during feasts and diplomatic discussions continued to be a point of contention, even if no one was bold enough to raise the issue to the Queen's face.

The one time Anna had tried to explore the city undisguised- against Elsa's fierce protestations -had proven that she was not forgotten. Gasps of fear and whispered murmurs had soon given way to surreptitiously thrown rocks and heaps of dung. A group of particularly determined individuals had stalked her through the streets; only quickly diving into a deserted alley and calling on her wife to teleport her away had averted a physical confrontation.

If one had looked closely, they would have found it curious that none of the rocks that glanced her face had left the smallest cut. The horse dung had, in its own way, been far more effective.

Perhaps it was the miserable memory of the events that had transpired some twenty months ago that spurred Anna to walk to one of the city's hospitals. Sometimes, she wanted- needed -a quick reminder that all she had endured was well worth it. It was childish, the Queen-Consort knew, to wish for more when she was already blessed with so much in her life. Yet the hatred and scorn of the people of Arendelle lingered in her mind like a festering wound.

Much had changed in the city's hospitals over the last several years. According to the official reports, the kingdom's explorers had chanced upon a remote cult of individuals in the far west of the world capable of healing the injuries of others. Although having been driven into hiding by centuries of persecution by religious fanatics, they had agreed to come work in the hospitals of Arendelle in exchange for protection and substantial payment.

The reality, of course, was that several small fragments of Elsa's essence had taken up permanent residence at Arendelle's hospitals and disguised themselves as other individuals. Anyone with a serious injury was welcome to go to one of the city's facilities, where a constant rotation of 'cultists' was on hand to use their healing magic.

That was the best they could do for now. Even Elsa couldn't long divide her essence across multiple countries for an extended period of time. But she was doing her best to place her powerful healing ability at the disposal of as many individuals as possible.

It was a lengthy walk through the city. As night set on in full, the city streets were quickly emptied as citizens sought shelter from the now-biting cold. Anna, clad in little more than a relatively thin cloak, would have long since been shivering had her wife not been the Goddess of Winter.

Fortunately, she was able to see relatively well. The Queen had installed lampposts all along the city streets. Rather than torches, slowly rotating snowflakes provided the light. Each gave off a calming blue glow.

Anna was almost at the hospital, thinking to step inside and take a quick look around, when another figure brushed past her. Cursing bitterly, the figure hobbled down the street and paid the Knight no mind.

She brushed the snow off of her cloak. "Hello?" Anna called out, hurrying after the figure. "Sir…are you alright?"

The figure looked briefly back over its shoulder. It was, in fact, a woman with graying hair. Anna unconsciously flinched as she took in the angry, pained expression on the newcomer's face.

"What happened?" Anna hurried to keep pace with the woman. Although she had lost her superhuman speed, the fact that she was uninjured and unhindered by the cold allowed her to easily keep pace.

Anna was grateful for the dark of night as the woman stared right at her. "Squatters. In my basement. I found em out and tried to drive them off and the demon cursed me." She gestured furiously at the side of her stomach. Despite the limited visibility amidst the snowfall, Anna could clearly see a blistering burn imprinted on her skin. The clothing above had been exasperated completely, and much of the remains of the woman's shirt were heavily scorched. It was ugly, but nothing Elsa wouldn't be able to sort out easily.

"Cursed? Demon?" Anna demanded. "It looks like you were just burned-"

Continuing forward down the street, the woman looked at her harshly. "Aye. By a spell, no less! I'll have the guards deal with it soon enough."

The Knight frowned. "My…my dad's in the City Guard," she said, thinking quickly. "Tell me the address and I'll have him investigate."

\

After following the injured woman and making sure she reached the hospital safely, Anna hurried towards the address she had been given.

It was possible the woman had been telling the truth; the Faithful weren't the only ones who had been born with the ability to use magic. If there was some sort of fire mage causing trouble, a patrol of guards might be faced with more than they could handle. Elsa was obviously the ideal option, but her essence was stretched thinly at the moment and Anna didn't want to trouble her over a false alarm.

So Anna went herself. Mage or not, no criminal could hope to harm her. If she discovered the woman to have been telling the truth, then she would mentally call for Elsa to join her.

A strange excitement flared beneath her breast. It felt nice to be useful outside of giving Elsa moral advice. Even if it was satisfying to know that she had helped make it possible, it was hard to feel relevant when her wife was the most powerful being in existence.

"1423 Orsus Road." It was an unassuming two-story house at the western end of the city. The door was wide open, no doubt the result of the injured woman's hurried retreat toward the hospital. There was not yet any sign of intruders.

Fists clenched, Anna walked up the stairs. "If there's anyone hiding in here, I recommend you come on out!" she declared as she moved into the foyer. "You can't escape the Queen's justice!"

She waited. Nothing. The only sound that reached her ears came from the continuing snowfall outside. Anna's heart began to beat faster even as she knew herself to be immune to physical injury. She knew what it was like to be ambushed.

Seconds more passed with no movement. Remembering what the woman had said about her basement, Anna reluctantly sought out the open cellar door. The Knight couldn't imagine why an assailant would have remained this long, but she had to check.

Step by step, she walked down the stairs. "There's no use hiding; I have the house surrounded by a team of guards!" she spoke over the creaking wood. "Come out peacefully and we won't hurt you." Darkness flooded her vision.

But that did nothing to diminish her hearing.

The whispers filtered into her ears. It was a light voice, coming from the other end of the cellar. Anna's eyes searched the darkness, but she couldn't perceive anything distinctive amongst the murky shapes.

"Alright, I hear you!" Anna called out. "I'm going to walk back upstairs now. You have thirty seconds to follow me before I call in the guards to storm the building."

It was a bluff, of course, Even if there were a team of guards outside waiting to follow her orders, the Knight would have had no intention of sending them to root out the interlopers. There were two distinct possibilities. One, there was a dangerous magic user in the basement who could easily kill men armed with swords. Two, those hiding in the basement were innocent people looking for shelter who didn't deserve to be hurt.

A few seconds after Anna climbed out of the cellar, it appeared that she had her answer. What emerged after her was a small figure. A girl. Her freckled face and light brown hair were matted with dust. The well-worn shirt and trousers she wore did little to conceal the fact that she hadn't had a good meal in a long while. Her blue eyes were shining with fear, but there was also an intelligence and determination lurking somewhere beneath the surface. Judging by her appearance, she couldn't have been more than ten years old. The Knight's heart filled with pity.

Instantly, Anna removed any hard edge from her face. "Hello," she said gently. "My name is Anna. No one is going to hurt you."

"What about your guards?" the girl asked. Her voice was soft, but the words were issued without hesitation.

The Knight waved a hand negligently through the air. "There are no guards. I only said that in case someone dangerous was hiding in the basement."

For a few seconds, neither of them spoke. The girl's eyes flashed between the cellar and the front door, but she made no effort to move.

"What's your name?" Anna questioned.

Another pause. "Lucia," the girl answered.

"Well, Lucia, it's nice to meet you," Anna replied. "I promise; you're not in any trouble. I'm, well…a servant of the Queen. You know how kind she is," she said, trying to play on Elsa's good reputation. "Sometimes I look around the city and make sure everyone is alright. Can you tell me why you were hiding in the cellar?"

This time, Lucia hesitated.

"It's cold out," she eventually said. "I wanted to go somewhere warm, where I hoped no one would find me. I didn't have anywhere else to go."

Anna bit her lip. "You're an orphan?"

Her eyes drooping slightly, Lucia nodded.

"Well, so am I," the Knight replied. "And I've told the Queen how hard it can be. That's why she made sure there are safe places for people like us to grow up everywhere in the kingdom. Why don't I take you to one?"

Lucia shook her head fiercely. "I can't! I…I used to live in one. And it was fine, really! But I…I'm too dangerous. I have magic. Fire magic. And I can't always control it right. The matron threw me out a few years ago."

"What?!" Anna demanded.

The girl shrugged helplessly. "It was the right thing to do. I try and stay away from people. I don't want to hurt anyone."

At that, Anna raised an eyebrow. It seemed a very selfless thing to do. And yet…

"I see. You've tried to isolate yourself. I assume you lost control when the woman living here discovered you?"

Lucia's hands went to her mouth. "Oh gods, I didn't think…was she hurt very badly?" There was genuine concern in her voice, but something was missing.

Anna shook her head. "I got her to the hospital. The healers will sort her out quickly enough. She understands it was an accident." It was a lie if the Knight had ever told one, but she had no intention of Lucia meeting her unintentional victim again.

Yet the girl's fingers clenched. "No she doesn't. She called me demon-spawn."

Wincing, Anna let out a guilty sigh. "It doesn't matter. I'm friends with the Queen, and I can promise you won't be in any trouble. I don't have magic, but I know how difficult it can be to control."

Lucia's chest sagged in relief.

"That said," Anna continued. "I do wonder why a girl trying to keep away from others was hiding with a friend in the basement. Perhaps we should ask them to come out?"

Her face going white, Lucia shook her head quickly. "I'm alone!"

"I heard whispering when I was down there. You're obviously too smart to have been making noise while trying to stay hidden. Either someone else was whispering, or you were trying to tell them to stay quiet." Pausing, Anna tried to keep her voice as reassuring as she could. "I promised you no one would be in trouble, didn't I? Please call your friend up. Then I'll see what I can do to help you, okay?"

Lucia swallowed, looking into Anna's eyes intently. "Emma!"

The Knight was expecting someone Lucia's age, or even older. So she was taken by surprise when an even younger girl emerged. She was so startled that she failed to leap forward and help the clearly struggling girl up the last steps of the ladder. Lucia, thankfully, had no such hesitation.

Now that Anna got a good look at the younger girl, it was clear that she was in the same pitiful condition as Lucia. The dirt on her clothes was just as pronounced, and the edges of her ribs could be seen protruding from beneath her shirt. Red hair, much darker than Anna's own, adorned her young face. Green eyes looked at her fearfully.

Anna's heart gave a pang. Gods, she must be six years old.

She turned again to Lucia, trying to keep the suspicion out of her voice. "Why was Emma with you?"

Lucia looked at her helplessly. "She's my best friend; we lived at the orphanage together. When I was kicked out three years ago, she left with me. I'm protecting her."

The Knight's eyes narrowed. Something wasn't right. "Is that so?" Anna crossed her arms. "Then you've done a poor job of it. She would be far safer remaining at the orphanage than hiding in cellars with you."

The older girl's gaze fell to the floor. Emma, however, took a hesitant step forward. "Lucia takes care of me. Miss, you don't…she's not-"

At that, Lucia took a hurried leap forward and wrapped a hand over Emma's mouth. "Don't!" she hissed, keeping her voice low in a doomed attempt to evade Anna's hearing.

Emma wiggled her face free. "But it's not fair, Luce! You need better. Leave me!"

Anna sighed inwardly. Enough was enough. There was something going on here she didn't understand. It was time to bring this situation under control.

\

The largest fraction of Elsa's essence was in her default form, sitting in her study and going through some paperwork. Suddenly, a familiar voice spoke in her mind.

'Elsa, are you alone?'

The Queen frowned. 'Yes,' she replied. 'Are you alright?'

'I'm fine,' came Anna's voice. 'But I've discovered a bit of a…situation. Read my mind and look at what I've done for the last half hour, then teleport the three of us to where you are.'

The brief moment of confusion disappeared as soon as she read her wife's mind. So, two orphan girls. One with magic. This promised to be interesting.

In a flash, Anna and the girls were both standing in front of her desk. The Knight was used to teleportation, but Emma and Lucia started in surprise. Then their eyes fell upon Elsa. Both of their mouths immediately gaped open in shock.

Anna looked like she wasn't entirely sure what to say. For that matter, neither was Elsa. But as her surprise slowly began to ebb, Lucia stepped forward protectively in front of Emma.

"Don't punish her!" she said quickly. "It was my fault; I convinced Emma to come out of the orphanage with me. She was only three at the time! She didn't really know what she was doing. I burned that woman. Emma tried to stop me."

Elsa frowned thoughtfully. "Oh, I doubt that," she said easily. "Since you don't have a drop of magic in you. Emma, I can sense, has quite a bit of power in her."

She'd looked briefly into their minds. Almost everything Lucia had told Anna was true. Both girls had been left at the orphanage by unknown parents, and they'd left when Lucia was six and Emma was three. The only lie had been…

Now it was Anna's turn to gape open in surprise. "But…you said…oh. Now I get it!" the Knight smiled somewhat bashfully. She turned to Lucia. "Emma was kicked out of the orphanage and you decided to go with her. Wow, that's…"

Lucia's fingers began to shake uncontrollably. "She didn't mean it! Don't hurt her! She doesn't have control. She never has. You can't do anything to her!"

"I have no intention of punishing Emma in the slightest." Elsa put on her best graceful smile, rising calmly from her chair. "Magic can be incredibly hard to control for children, especially those in difficult environments. Emma has nothing to be ashamed of."

The younger girl shook her head vigorously. "I hurt people. I burned a man once. That's why Miss Till made me go away. I'm bad. I can't be around people. Luce helps me control it, but sometimes…"

The Queen walked around her desk, knelt in front of the girls, and materialized a small glowing snowflake above her hand. "Magic is a beautiful thing," she said. "It can be controlled. And I would only be too glad to help you Emma."

"Help?" Emma repeated with a bewildered frown.

Elsa nodded. "I can show you how to control it. But first-" she cast an appraising eye on the state of the children. "You must be cared for. I'll have some servants prepare you a bath, and food and clothes will be prepared for you."

Lucia's eyes widened in longing, but Emma shook her head still more fiercely. "No. I'll hurt them. I can't stop the fire. I'm a bad girl."

If the matron of the orphanage these girls had lived at was still employed, she would soon find life becoming very difficult for her. Nodding in acquiescence, Elsa placed a hand on Emma's head. A soft glow emanated from her fingertips.

"There," she said simply as the girls gazed at her in confusion. "I've suppressed your magic. It's locked away. Until you ask me to give it back, it's gone."

Emma stared at the Queen, her pupils filled with as much admiration as Elsa had ever seen. She flexed her fingers experimentally, and a wide smile broke out on her face. "Not warm. I can't feel the fire! Thank you! Thank you!" She lunged forward, her tiny arms trying to take Elsa in a hug.

Lucia paled. "You can't touch the Queen, Em!"

"Of course she can," Elsa said. She wrapped an arm around Emma's small frame. "And so can you," she continued, placing a warm hand on Lucia's shoulder. "You're a very brave little girl; risking everything to protect a friend."

Lucia gulped, awe and fear still plainly set upon her face. Fortunately, the moment was broken as Emma turned away from Elsa and tried to hug Lucia instead. Thanks to her smaller frame, this time she had some more success. "It's gone, Luce! I'm not bad anymore!"

"You never were." Lucia looked up at Elsa, clearly trying to find her words. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Anna dropped down to the floor next to them. "I told you, the Queen is kind," she said with a grin.

The older girl nodded. "You did. I…I'm sorry I lied. It's my fault; I told Emma to always pretend that I was the one with magic."

"Don't apologize," Anna said firmly. "It was very brave. I wouldn't mind having a friend as loyal as you are."

Finally, some of the fear finally began to flee from Lucia's face.

\

"What are you thinking?" Elsa asked.

Anna looked her wife in the eyes. The two girls had just been taken to be cleaned and fed. "You know what I'm thinking. We're their best option. We've waited long enough, Elsa!"

"You said you wanted to try and see if your reputation would improve first," the Queen reminded her.

The Knight huffed angrily, remembering their many conversations on the subject. "And it hasn't. We both know it won't for a long time. I don't want to wait anymore. I don't want to spend the rest of my life thinking of those girls and wondering what might have been."

And, Anna noted to herself with no small amount of guilt. Because they haven't been so isolated, they probably don't know about my reputation.

"They'd be safe in a different orphanage. I'd see to that," Elsa pointed out.

Anna shook her head firmly. "They could be adopted separately. Lucia and Emma don't deserve to have their bond broken up. And I…I already like them," she said. "You can't tell me you don't, too!"

"Of course I do!" Elsa replied fiercely. "But if I adopt them, then you can't. Not openly. You could act as their mother in practice, but in the eyes of the people it wouldn't be official."

"I don't care!" That was a lie; it would sting quite a bit. But she wouldn't let that stop her from welcoming those children into her life. Anna looked at Elsa curiously. "Is that why you're so hesitant?"

She couldn't think of another reason to differ. The immortality-thing wasn't really an issue; Elsa could virtually halt their aging when they grew to adulthood. As long as they were willing to accept it-

The Queen bit her lip. "It's why I thought you might want to wait until we can marry openly."

"At this rate, that won't happen for a century. Not without causing an uproar," Anna replied. They both knew it was true. "But otherwise…you're okay with it?" Her heart began to race with adulation as the realization dawned that this could actually be happening.

Elsa's gaze dropped to the carpet. "The greatest regret in my life is failing to take in a kind, poor, starving girl when she first barged into my room. You almost died because of it." Then, with a sudden smile, her eyes rose to meet Anna's. "I won't make that mistake again. Let's do this…together. I-"

That was as far as she got as Anna leapt forward, swept her wife into her arms, and brought her into an ecstatic kiss.

\

Lucia didn't understand why the Queen and her friend were being so nice to them. Yes, she knew that Queen Elsa was well liked, but she had long since learned not to trust what other people said. For years, everyone had been a potential threat to Emma. Lucia had desperately tried to shelter her from that as much as possible.

Yet she couldn't find a reason to distrust either of the women. They made her feel safe and comfortable, two sensations she had never expected to feel again. But being around them had also created an unpleasant sensation in the pit of her stomach…a sort of desperate longing she couldn't begin to understand.

"That was so yummy, Luce. And you're really pretty now! Wow, this is soft." She rubbed her hand across the sheets.

After having a bath and being given some silk nightclothes, the two of them had been treated to the largest assortment of food either of them had ever seen. The servants attending them hadn't let them eat too much…apparently, that would make them sick, but they still came away fuller than they had been in years. Coupled with the feeling of being clean and fully clothed, Lucia couldn't deny that she felt amazing.

They'd been directed to a bedroom in the upper floors of the Castle. Now, sitting on a very comfortable bed with her best (and only) friend, Lucia felt the first hope she had in years.

But she knew there was no way this could last. Right? Lucia knew they weren't important enough to stay in a Castle. Her gaze fell on a fine mirror sitting on their bedside table, and she realized that she was going to have to steal something. It wouldn't be the first time. Lucia hated to rob from someone who had been so nice to her, but she would do anything to make sure Emma had food to eat.

But what if I'm caught? There were guards all throughout the Palace. If Lucia was found out, she would be arrested. And probably executed. Emma wouldn't survive long on the streets without her. Was it worth the risk?

As if in answer, a light knock sounded on the door. "Hello? It's Anna and Elsa," the voice of the Queen's friend echoed through the wood. "Can we come in and talk to you for a minute?"

The Queen. The Queen was there. Lucia knew she had magic. Had Queen Elsa read her mind and come here to stop her from stealing something? It was the only explanation. Frozen in fear, she failed to react as Emma leapt to her feet on the bedsheets.

There was a pause. Then the door opened slowly to admit the two familiar women. Immediately, Lucia scrambled off the bed and fell to her knees. "I'm sorry!" she said quickly. "I shouldn't have thought about stealing from you. It wasn't Emma's idea. I just wanted to have food for her!"

Queen Elsa raised an eyebrow in something like amusement, but Anna waved her hands quickly. "You were thinking of stealing something? Well, it doesn't matter! In fact, you're more than free to steal anything in this room you want."

Huh?

"As my wife says," the Queen agreed. "But we've come here to talk to you about a better solution."

Lucia's eyes flickered rapidly between the two women. "You're married? But that means…" she stared at Anna.

The woman winked at her. "Yes, I'm a Queen too. But that's a secret. A lot of people don't like me, so we only told our friends that we got married."

A lot of people didn't like her? How anyone could dislike a Queen willing to go into a filthy cellar and feed the two orphans she'd found there? Queen Elsa seemed to notice her confusion.

"There was some trouble five or six years ago," she said. "Some bad people were trying to take over the kingdom, and they spread nasty rumors about Anna…because they knew she could stop them. And she did anyway." Elsa looked at her wife with undeniable affection. "But a lot of people still believe those rumors."

Lucia frowned. "I don't," she promised. "And I- we- won't tell anyone you're married once we leave. We promise."

"Promise!" Emma agreed.

Anna shook her head. "That's very nice of you. But we would like it if you didn't leave. If you don't want to, I mean. I don't want to make it sound, like, you know, that we want to keep you prisoner, because we don't. We just-"

Lucia had never imagined a Queen could seem so nervous.

"What my wife is trying to say," Elsa cut in with both exasperation and amusement, "Is that you are both welcome to stay in the Castle as long as you like. You'll have as much good food and clean clothes as you want. And I can help you," she looked at Emma, "Control your magic completely."

Emma went silent in shock. Lucia began to sputter. "How? Queen Elsa, Your Majesty, the Castle is only for royal people. And your soldiers and servants. Not people like us."

Queen Anna knelt down to the floor, and Lucia realized that she was still on her knees. "You might be surprised. Elsa gave me a home here seven years ago. I was nobody important. I'd even stolen a lot of stuff." She grinned guiltily. "I was cold and hungry and alone. Elsa gave me a place here. This very room, actually."

Emma was staring as if she didn't quite believe it. "You're a Queen," she said simply.

"Yes," Anna agreed. "But I wasn't back then. Elsa made me her Queen because she loved me. She didn't care about where I came from. And we don't care where you're from."

Lucia stared at the Queens. It was everything she had dreamed of. A safe life for Emma, where everything was warm and clean and they didn't have to worry about her magic. And there would be chocolate, if the light dessert after dinner had been any indication. Chocolate!

"Your Majesty, I mean…" she glanced at Anna. "Your Majesties. Thank you. So much." She tried her best to curtsy from her knees. Unsuccessfully.

"Um, girls, I don't know how much you remember about the orphanage," Queen Elsa spoke, also sitting on the floor. To her shock, Lucia realized that the elder monarch was actually nervous. "But did you ever see any of the other children there move away, after meeting with some adults?"

Emma wore a blank look on her face, but Lucia remembered. "Mm-mh," she agreed, though she couldn't imagine why the Queen was asking. "They told us that sometimes people who want children can't have them. So they're able to come to the place with extra children and become their parents."

Queen Anna nodded, now looking even more nervous. "Yes, that's right. It's called adoption. And…Elsa and I want to do that for you. If you want."

Lucia couldn't have heard correctly. "You…want to be our parents?" she asked. Her mind was spinning so much that she barely realized that words were coming out of her mouth. These kind, forgiving women- Queens- couldn't possibly…

Both monarchs nodded. "We would be honored to be your mothers," Elsa said warmly. "If you'll have us.

There was a blur to Lucia's left as Emma leapt off the bed and landed between the two Queens. "You really mean it?" she asked, her voice full of wonder. At another nod from the monarchs, Emma buried her head into Elsa's chest and tried to wrap her arms around Anna.

Lucia realized that she could see tears in both women's' eyes. It wasn't long before she realized there was moisture dripping down her own cheeks. The Queens wanted to adopt them. She and Emma could have a family. They could be safe and…loved.

Anna and Elsa were both looking at her, their faces inviting yet anxious. Did they really think there was a chance they would be refused? Without another thought, Lucia shuffled forward and fell into Anna's waiting arms. She reached out her own hands and intertwined them with Elsa's.

"Mama…" she whispered. The word was involuntary, and it wasn't referring to either Queen specifically. But it felt right, especially as Elsa let out a tearful chuckle and rubbed her back soothingly.

Lucia didn't know how long she stayed there, sitting on the floor with the Queens of Arendelle. Her new mothers. Eventually she found herself hugging Emma tightly, Elsa and Anna's arms wrapped around both of them.

Emma smiled brightly at her. "Sister?" she said questionably.

Lucia thought about it for a second. That sounded right. In fact, it sounded perfect. Hadn't they always been family, in a way? This just made it official.

"Sister," she agreed.

A/N: More epilogues to come!