A/N: This fic will contain smut in the future. Just a heads up!

Chapter 1: The Hand That Feeds

They must think it's so easy being me.

While Anna von Arendight was free from many of the problems that plagued the peasantry, her position also came with it's share of responsibility. Much of it coming from said peasantry. A lot of this issues would probably be best resolved in a court for sure. However, some direct interaction every so often kept the people comfortable. Not to mention it showed their tax coin was being put to good use. There were certain instances they might find her spending more objectionable. If only they could see it her way.

Ever since she had control of the lands bestowed upon her, Anna had done her best to run things with a fair and even hand. After all, that was what she had learned all her life. That power given was shared was better than power sought and hoarded. Don't let your prerogatives become pejoratives, as her father had always said. Sadly, he was no longer with her. Something that brought her no end of woe for many reasons, but one in particular.

When you start helping people, they get very insufferable. Once they get the idea that you'll hear out the very least of their concerns, they will bring the very least of their concerns. No matter how much you try to gently remind them that your personal court is for matters of real consequence, they'll bring every gripe they have time to mention. It was difficult for her to just flat out refuse, and it was always worth it to see people's smiles and hear their appreciation. In the end, she just didn't have enough hours in the day to deal with at all. Worst of all, those that had started to take notice were starting to get rather greedy.

As the letter on the table in front of her attested. With each line she read, Anna's frown grew just a little wider, and her blood a little hotter. This was the third time the ice cutters had demanded a price increase beyond their agreement in as many years. Her coffers were not limitless, and neither was her patience.

"Anything you would like to add to this?" Anna asked Kristoff, the man the cutters had sent to deliver the message. He was not their leader by any stretch, but was almost always the one who ended up participating in this exchanges. Which was just as well really. Lady Anna would have been much more sorely tempted to throttle anyone else.

"I'm sorry, my lady, " Kristoff rather sheepishly said, scratching his hair. "You know the others. They just said about suffering from supply and demand problems."

"Demand problems? They're demanding I give them special treatment." Anna was close to spitting her words and kicking the man out of her dining room, unladylike as that was. "I assume they're threatening to hold back the next ice shipment if I don't agree?"

"Well, not directly, but-" Kristoff was trying to look her in the eye, but clearly he couldn't quite manage.

"But what?" Anna clenched the polished arm of her chair. "My father gave your people his patronage for years, and he always tried to be fair. Does that count for nothing?"

"My lady," Kristoff started. Anna knew she wasn't going to like this. Call it intuition. "Your father was a good man. I've not met anyone who didn't have anything good to say about him. You're not him, I'm afraid. No matter how hard you try to be. You just don't have the experience, the connections, the diplomacy. Even if you're more capable than him, you have a lot to learn. And people will try to take advantage of that."

Anna caught herself clenching her fist. It wasn't an easy truth to face. That people would take their generosity and spit on it. "What would you have me do?"

"Honestly? Find someone else to advise you on matters of state," Kristoff responded. The glare he got for that comment forced him to think of something more concrete. "Okay, okay. You need to find a better balance. You can say no and not be callous. As long as people are in a good place and feel like their lives are getting better, they'll come to appreciate what you do give them."

"Right." Anna took a breath. "You came up with all that by yourself?"

"These aren't the mysteries of the aether, my lady. It's simple behaviour. Or at least what I've learned about it." He took back the letter with the demands. "Enough of that. Why don't we arrange for you to meet some of the others. You can make your case to them in person."

"Yes, yes. Dismissed." She watch as he left the dining hall, unable to get up herself just yet. The afternoon sun poured in through the tall windows. She had a while yet before her next order of business. Plenty of time to stare at the portraits of her ancestors in self-reflection.

Something didn't quite sit right with her. Dealing with the affairs of the people was leaving her more and more on edge. Clearly, it wasn't just a case of how many hours she had sank into it. The people were more difficult to deal with than they first appeared. If she didn't change things soon, her title would become meaningless. However, the suggestion she received didn't quite sit right with her. Not the reason she expected, though.

It didn't go far enough. Wrong as it was, she wanted to hit one of these people. Maybe go even further. It wasn't exactly having people thrown in prison or their heads mounted on spikes, but at the same time it was hardly fitting of someone of her stature. She just couldn't help but get worked up every time she thought about it. Perhaps she had been too sheltered growing up. Anna needed to join the real world, and soon. Or at the very least, work out a way to deal with this tension. No, it wasn't easy being her at all.

Three dark-grey walls, and one set of rusted looking bars. For the woman within these dank, dingy confides, this was about all she could remember from recent memory. If pressed, she would probably say she had been there for the last two weeks, though it was difficult to be certain when almost nobody talks to you, and you're never allowed outside. Through the grate, she could see a circular area similar to some kind of arena, with barred entrances along the walls. She suspected that there might be others within those rooms as well.

The good news was that she knew that this place would not hold her much longer. The bad news was that she was not here for any kind of crime, real or invented.

She was a slave. It had been that way since her birth. Or it might have well been, considering it was all she could ever remember. There was nothing that had ever been hers. Not even a name. There were the burlap rags she had to wear. Always filthy. Always feeling as though it was about to fall apart. Serving more as a reminder of her place than a protection of what little modesty she had.

Her last service had been to an aging man of short stature, and ever receding gray hair. For as long as she could remember, she had worked quietly with a few others, tending the large estate their master held. As she started to grow older, things were starting to look up. The man was rather miserly and anti-social, meaning entertaining guests was a rarity. While the slave was never quite good enough for the man's overly draconian rules, he was around less and less to dole out punishments.

Of course, it was too good to last. Their owner finally passed on. Not only did he appear to lack any kind of next of kin, there was no will at all. Everything was seized by the state, including the small host of slaves he owned. It wasn't long before the blonde woman and the others were sold off, the officials not being in a position to hold them, or not caring enough to. That was the last time the woman ever saw the others. Likely forever.

The slave very rarely thought of her appearance. Her pale, blonde hair and equally pale skin were a rarity among the few people she had seen in her lifetime. Who were her parents? Had they ever known freedom? Thinking about such things just brought hopeless longing. She had heard enough good things about her face, her hair, her figure from beyond the bars. It was clearly every else's good fortune, not her's.

There was no shortage of visitors to her cage since she had been placed here. There were plenty of men and even a few women, both rich and poor who came every day to get a better look at her. There was also the occasional incognito, people who used magical cloaks to completely conceal their appearance and voice. None of them were at all interested in what skills she had learned. They only wanted a good look. That was the closest thing the young slave had to real duties: presenting herself to anyone who ordered it. It was fairly obvious why. This wasn't normal place to buy slaves.

She cringed every time one of the slaveholders described her as unspoiled. Though she did her best to hide it. She knew all too well that short of a miracle, that would come to an end as soon as a buyer presented themself. No brave knight was coming to break her out. Nor would they be willing to buy her freedom. Not at the kind of price they were asking for.

The only good thing about all this was that they didn't allow her to starve or become too dirty in there. That wasn't to say the wait wasn't harrowing in other ways. There was almost always someone watching. Even after dark, guards and slaveholders patrolled the halls, making a few comments of their own, especially if they had been drinking. In spite of this, it was incredibly lonely in her pen. There were others perhaps metres away who shared her plight, but they rarely even saw each other. They certainly weren't allowed to interact. That wasn't the only thing banned, either.

Even as a simple property soon to be for the pleasure of others, the enslaved woman had desires of her own. Both of her owners seemed to know this all too well, and decided they were having none of it. In this case, it was made clear that the shackles hanging against the wall were in case she was unable to follow their simple rules. As a result, the itch became more and more unbearable. If the cries the slave heard at night were anything to go by, it was too much for some of the others. Sometimes, it was hard to decide whether she wanted to leave this place or not.

In spite of everything, the slave decided she had to keep going. Keep enduring this. As bad as things were, there were always going to be others who had it worse. What's more, if it wasn't her, then someone else would have to suffer this way in her place. If her plight was saving just one person from the same fate, she had to keep going. Even if her future was likely to get much, much worse.

It wasn't as though Anna especially wanted to be here. If it wasn't for the teleportation circle set up in the estate, she probably wouldn't have bothered. There was little she could do now. As the head of her household, and the owner of a large stretch of land, certain things were expected of her. She could no longer hide away from the things she didn't like.

Thus, her she was, in one of her favourite green dresses, sipping some kind of red wine, putting on her best smile and laugh at this little soiree. She just couldn't muster the energy to join the other dancers on the ballroom floor, or even engage in some light conversation.

"Lady Anna. Welcome, welcome!" Anna's attention was drawn to the event's host: the belle of the ball. Literally.

Anna nodded. "Lady Belle. So good to see you. You're as dashing as ever." it was true. A lot of love had clearly gone into crafting that fine golden dress. Anna couldn't help but suspect that a bit of enchantment had gone into the shine it gave off, but in any case it flattered her very nicely.

"Thank you, thank you." Belle looked around to the dancers, in the middle of a rather moderate waltz. "Aren't you going to dance tonight? You're usually the life of the floor, I must say. Can't find a good partner?"

Anna sighed. "Oh, you know. Things are different now. I have a position to consider."

"That's an excuse, and you know it." Belle rolled her eyes. "The only time you don't dance is when something is bothering you. You remember that time your painting fell face-forward when it was almost done?"

Anna managed to force a smile, despite herself. "Father spent so long getting all the paints I asked for. I wanted to make something nice for him."

"Didn't you feel a lot better when you talked about it? Come, tell me your troubles." Belle offered a hand. Anna hesitantly took it, and they headed towards the floor for the start of the next song.

Left. Right. Left. Right. Nice and slow. Belle always did know how to make Anna more comfortable. After a few more repetitions, Anna finally decided to open up. "I just don't know if I can manage an entire province on my own. I always thought if I ruled fairly and justly as I had always learned, things would just work out."

"Is that all?" Anna was suddenly put into a spin. "Anna, dear. You didn't really expect everything to be all smiles and sunshine right from the beginning, right? You weren't expecting to have to do this so soon." Anna nodded, appreciating the expert avoidance of re-opening old wounds.

"I can't even deal with worker demands without getting all worked up. What am I going to do?" Her breathing went funny for just a second.

"Get some help, Anna." The song concluded to a polite round of applause. There was a short pause as the musicians prepared.

"But my father-"

"Anna." Belle stared her straight in the eye. "You're not your father. You know that, right?"

Anna looked way, without losing track of her steps. "You know, you're not the first person to say that today."

"Yes. It's okay, though. You don't have to do this all on your own. There are plenty of things you can get help with. Including your stress problem."

"Well, I suppose I could use some assistance." Anna blushed. "But what was that last part about? You want me to get some entertainers or something?"

"Of a sort." Belle rolled her eyes. "Oh, come now. You can't be that naive. You're still a woman, title or no title. You have needs. Or have you forgotten?"

"Okay, okay!" Anna stammered, not wanting to get into that. "Are we really talking about this here?"

Without a word, Belle turned to the band, and gestured with her hand, moving it up a couple of times. A moment later, the next song began, noticeably louder. "There, no one will hear us." It was true, they had to be even closer to talk now. "There's no need to be coy, Anna. You've been working yourself raw since you took power. There's nothing wrong with wanting a little release."

Anna clutched Belle's waist just a little bit harder. "It's just- well, you know what I'm like."

"Yes, yes. I was there. It's fun for a while, and you're very considerate. It gets exhausting rather quickly, though." Anna closed her eyes in reflection. As much as it hurt, and she tried not to make that the case, it did always seem to end that way. She was, well- demanding, to say the least. Holding power was in her blood.

"Well, I just can't-" Anna had to stop as the music got a bit too loud. "It's hard enough finding someone to agree to something like that. I don't really want too many people knowing about it, either." Her face reddened a little more. She really did hope no one else could hear them.

Left step. Right step. The music sped up a little. "I understand. There are other solutions, you know. If you don't want to deal with courtship, there are ways to deal with your problem, if you can pay."

Pay? Anna quickly shook her head. "No no no. Those kinds of women- they just don't do it for me." Sure, she could find a versed courtesan who would do anything if the price was right. That was precisely the problem. Their interest was only really in the money. There were things Anna wanted that couldn't be faked. Not to mention how easily that kind of thing could be found out if they said anything. All in all, a pretty big turn-off.

"That's not what I meant. I'm not talking about hired. I mean bought." Anna tilted her head, not quite grasping it. "And owned." Still nothing. "By you. Permanently." For all of her education, it seemed that putting two and two together was something Anna needed to work on. Or perhaps she didn't want to reach the conclusion that was being implied.

Slavery. Just the thought of it made her blood boil. Enough that she pushed Belle away and stormed out of the ballroom, dance steps be damned. She needed to get away. She was starting to feel dizzy, even if it was just imaginary. It wasn't until Anna was in a quiet, darkish hall that she stopped to sit down. What had just happened? That Belle of all people could suggest something so barbaric.

The house of Arendight had prided itself on a code of strong principles for many generations, including it's fair treatment of even its lowest subjects. While that didn't mention slavery directly, whenever it had been mentioned around Anna, it had been treated as anathema. Despite their best efforts, the sovereign courts of Nilfel had blocked any attempts to have the trade outlawed, even in their own province. All they could really do was heavily scorn those who attempted it.

The very idea of it made Anna's skin crawl. Reducing a person to property. Their life reduced to numbers. Everything in their life dictated by a master. That person's body being subject to whims of their owner. Them having to do anything their master wanted-

No. She shook her head quickly and took a couple of deep breaths, staring into the wall on the other side of the hall. Slavery was wrong. End of story. Best not to think about it now.

Now. Right now.

It was no use. Anna couldn't force it out of her mind, no matter how much time passed. There was something about the whole idea she just couldn't get out of her head? What was it, though? She had always been so certain of how she felt until now.

"I thought you had returned home." Belle. The last person she wanted to see right now. Especially with her nerves starting to fray.

"Should I have?" Anna almost snapped back. Snippy, even for her.

"You know I wouldn't force you to go anywhere, right?" She sat down besides Anna. "About what I said earlier-"

"Look, can we just pretend that never happened?" Anna asked. "I- I'm sorry I ruined the dance, alright? I'm feeling better now."

"Really? You don't sound much better." Belle put a hand on Anna's shoulder. "I should have realised you would take after you father. Your family has been quite outspoken on the subject, or so I've read."

What about Anna herself, though? There was just a touch of doubt in her mind. It was annoying her to no end. "How can you be okay with something like that, Belle? Making someone a thing. Something to be used. That sounds so awful."

"That depends on the owner, really," Belle explained, before noticing the glare from Anna. "I've never owned a slave myself, but I've met people who you would never believe held them if they didn't tell you."

Anna frowned. "That doesn't make any sense. If they're so nice, why would they own slaves at all? Wouldn't it make more sense just to free them all?"

"Oh, bless your bleeding heart. There are still certain advantages to it, some that aren't immediately obvious." Belle got up, motioning Anna to follow. "Follow me."

"Alright, but I don't-" Anna was having a some trouble keeping up with her shoes. She was still trying to make sense of what she had just heard.

About a minute later, they made it to the main bedroom of the estate. A room Anna was familiar with. Belle slowly turned. "Good, no one will bother us. Anna, I want you to go see where slaves are sold for yourself. It's not something you can understand just by reading or hearing about it."

"What?" She couldn't actually remember one time she'd seen a real slave, when she thought about it. Slave owners weren't the kind of people they ever wanted to associate with. Maybe she should see it at least once. There were still several problems. "I can't just got waltzing into some slave house. What will people say if they see a von Arendight browsing in that kind of place."

Belle went towards one of the dressers besides the bed, and picked up a small card. "Here, take this. Some stuffy noble gave this to me a while ago." Anna took a closer look. It was an embroided card with a fancy looking title: The Silver Shackle. "This place has an event at the start of every second month."

Second month. That meant the next one was- three days. "Wait, that still doesn't answer my-"

"Just show that to the doorman. You'll be able to go straight through, even if you're completely incognito." Anna looked down at the card again, then back to Belle. She was far from convinced. "Do this for me, Anna. If you go there and you're completely appalled by what you see there, at least you'll have closure on this."

Would she, though? This event, whatever it was, could have the answers Anna needed. The only question left was if she wanted those answers at all.