Anna dragged Elsa over to Ingrid, said "Excuse me" to Kristoff, took Ingrid's left hand, and dragged them both away. Kristoff, who knew better than to interfere with Anna's schemes, helped himself to a slice of kringle.
Elsa and Ingrid stood facing each other, Anna holding each of them by the hand. "Now, Ingrid, I apologize for stealing Elsa away before she could finish telling you how good you look tonight. Elsa? Go ahead."
"I, um, it's true. You look very lovely tonight, Ingrid. Very beautiful. In fact, I suspect you've always been lovely and I apologize for not having noticed before. I guess I've been distracted. Sorry."
"W-what?" stammered Ingrid. "No. No need to apologize. To me? No. It's okay if you don't notice me. I'm not the sort of person who wants to be noticed." Anna gripped Ingrid's hand firmly.
Elsa looked Ingrid up and down. "If you keep dressing like this, I'm afraid you'll have to learn how to accept compliments."
"Oh, no. I'm sorry. Yes, of course. Thank you."
"It wasn't a criticism, Ingrid. I meant it as more of another compliment."
"Oh. Thank you. Of course. You're very kind. And you look beautiful tonight, too. Oh, and when I say 'too', I don't mean the same as me. There's no comparison. You're very, very, um, you know. Beautiful. You always are." Ingrid's eyes were bright with excitement and panic.
"Excellent," said Anna. "You think Elsa's beautiful, you think Ingrid's beautiful, and I agree with both of you. Now I have to go see to Kristoff. You two are old friends, you can keep each other company." Before they could react, Anna put Ingrid's hand in Elsa's and walked over to Kristoff, leaving the two of them holding hands.
Elsa and Ingrid were too startled to react, then too shocked to know what to do. Elsa looked at Ingrid's hand in hers, then at her face, then their hands again. Ingrid stood still and breathed shallowly, waiting to see how Elsa would react, afraid to do anything that might spoil the moment.
Elsa's hand was cool and smooth in Ingrid's. Ingrid's hand was soft and warm in hers.
Elsa smiled graciously and awkwardly. "Well."
"Yes." Ingrid felt like her dress was suddenly too tight to let her breathe.
By this point it was too late to simply react, and neither one wanted to reject the other by being first to pull her hand away. Elsa finally said, "We don't have to go along with this just because it was Anna's plan, if it makes you uncomfortable."
"That's true." Ingrid bowed her head, then looked up at Elsa shyly. "But we don't have to not go along with it, either. If it's all right with you."
Meanwhile Anna had hidden behind Kristoff, and was peeking around him at the couple. "You've got to see this. But don't look! They're so cute." She looked up at him, then back at them. "They're like two newborn foals just learning to stand up, all wobbly and awkward. It's adorable."
Kristoff quietly asked, "What the hell were you doing?"
"Ingrid has a huge crush on Elsa, and Elsa likes Ingrid a lot more than she knows, but they're both too shy to make the first move. So I put their hands together, and now they're holding hands, and they're too shy to let go. Wait'll your love experts hear about that. Hey, what're you doing?"
Kristoff had taken out his order pad and a pencil, and was jotting rapidly in troll runes. "So an external force - that is, you - has put them together in a shared social context which has inverted the local social gradient. And the bashfulness that pushed them apart is now pushing them together. That's really clever. I can't wait to show this to Grand Pabbie."
"Don't you dare," she hissed angrily.
"But you said you wanted the love experts to hear about it."
"I didn't think you'd actually do it. What is all that scribbling, anyway?"
"It's troll notation for…well, I guess you'd call it 'love algebra'. You can't be raised by love experts without picking up some fundamental theory. Let me know when the dominant partner temporarily increases intimacy to clear the rejection threshold."
"Who the what now?"
"Tell me when Elsa pats Ingrid's hand, then lets go of it."
"What makes you think that - oh." Anna saw Elsa pat Ingrid's hand. "She just did. No, wait, she didn't!" Still holding hands, Elsa led Ingrid to the loveseat, where they sat down. "Patting, yes. Letting go, no."
"Huh." Kristoff crossed out and corrected some symbols. "Now I really have to show this to Pabbie."
"Come on." She led him over to the loveseat where the queen and the chambermaid were leaning towards each other and talking. "Hey, Elsa and Ingrid? I'm really sorry, but Kristoff just reminded me of this thing we have to do."
"Yes! Um, it's Sven. I forgot to brush him after we got in today. And you know how reindeer are if you don't brush them out after a long ride." Elsa's face was neutral. Ingrid gave him a blank look. "Okay, maybe you don't. And, to be honest, just as well. Anyway, we - Anna and I - just have to go take care of that now." He looked to Anna.
"Yes. That." Thanks for the mental image of a stinky reindeer, Kristoff. Very romantic. "You two will be okay by yourselves, right? Ingrid, if you get bored maybe Elsa can take you up to the balcony and show you some iceflowers."
Ingrid smiled up at her. "That sounds lovely, but I'm not dressed for the weather."
"That's true. Oh, I know!" Anna acted surprised. "There's a big bearskin blanket in the closet there. Just the one, so you'll have to share. I hope that's all right."
"Anna, dear," said Elsa, "don't we have some heavy cloaks as well?"
"Nope. All in the laundry. Coats, too. Just the big two-person blanket. Meanwhile, here's some snacks. Don't get up." Anna put a tray of sweets on a low table near the loveseat. "Gotta go. Can't keep Sven waiting. Have a good time. Bye." Kristoff waved over his shoulder as Anna dragged him out of the room.
After the door closed, Ingrid said, "Your sister is very sweet."
"That she is," said Elsa.
"And very…full of energy."
"That, too."
"I can see that she wants you to be happy."
Elsa considered the evenings events. "Yes, I suppose that's a good way to look at it."
"However, she's… Begging your pardon, but she's not gifted at being insincere, is she."
Elsa chuckled, sighed. "If you mean she's as obvious as a hammer to the toe, yes, that's true. She clearly thinks we should be together." Ingrid nodded carefully. Elsa met her eyes. "What do you think?"
Ingrid blushed and looked at the carpet. "It's not my place to say."
Elsa put her other hand on Ingrid's. "Yes, Ingrid, it is."
Sit like a cat. The cat sits up because she's not afraid. Act brave, look brave, feel brave. For her. She straightened up, looked into Elsa's eyes. Her chest rose and fell with each slow, deep breath. "I can't say if we should be together, because I can't speak for you. For myself, I would like it very much. I would like it… I would like it more than anything in the world." She blinked, swallowed. "If such a thing were possible."
Elsa's lips smiled, but her eyes didn't. "You don't believe it's possible, then."
"Only because I can see that you don't."
"You're a kind, sweet girl, Ingrid. I'm very fond of you. I'm very grateful that you're my friend." Ingrid gasped quietly. "What is it?"
"You've never actually said that I'm your friend before." Ingrid's eyes shone with pride.
Elsa was moved, and honoured, more than she'd expected. "You are. And I hope I can say that I'm your friend as well." Ingrid nodded once, vigorously. "As I've seen tonight, a little late, you're also a very pretty, very attractive woman. And your loyalty and devotion touch me deeply."
Elsa leaned back against the loveseat and stared out at nothing. "But that devotion is the problem. I couldn't stand to be with someone who was with me because she had to be, because she had no choice. It happened before. It almost destroyed me. I couldn't stand it."
It was Ingrid's turn to put her other hand on Elsa's. "You know that I would do whatever you command. And that worries you."
Elsa's voice was hollow as she said, "Yes."
"And it's true. I would. Gladly. But the problem is its own solution."
Elsa lifted her head and looked at Ingrid. "How so?"
"Command me to be honest in word and deed. Command me to never be with you unless I'm sincere, and acting freely, and want to be there. Command me to never betray you by acting out of obligation when I should be acting from the heart. The more you trust my devotion, the more you can be sure I would never let my devotion hurt you."
"You are an amazing young woman, Ingrid. I don't know what I did to deserve such loyalty."
A shadow fell across Ingrid's face. "I don't much believe that people get what they deserve, anymore. I mean I hope for it, but I don't expect it. I believe in gratitude, and in being as fair as you can." She shook it off. "But if you want to know why you have my loyalty, it's because I can see that you're kind and just and wise. I can't think of a person more worthy of my loyalty, or of anyone's."
"Ingrid, please. I'm not perfect."
"If you were, why would you need me?"
"No, I'm really not perfect. Here I am, talking about being with you when I love Anna. I still love Anna, more than anything. I always will."
"I know."
"If - if - something should ever happen between us it could never be serious, or permanent, or public."
"I know."
"I would never want to use you, or toy with you, or lead you on."
"I know."
Elsa slumped back against the loveseat again, sighing heavily. "Damn it, Ingrid, how can you be so understanding? Doesn't the idea bother you? Doesn't it feel unfair?"
"No. To me, 'unfair' would be lying, or coercion. Manipulation. Force. Everything you hate. One of the reasons that I lo- that I admire you so much is how dedicated you are to being fair. You're more than fair. You're good."
"That's very kind, but- " Elsa looked at her with an amused smirk. "Hang on, did you just make a pun?"
"A little one," said Ingrid, smiling guiltily. "I hope you don't mind."
Ingrid felt a thrill as Elsa smiled at her indulgently, the same way Elsa had smiled at Anna. "It's all right. But let's be serious. While I treasure our friendship, we could never have a relationship as equals. Is that fair to you?"
"Equals? Fair?" Shocked, Ingrid fought to find the right words. "I - I - I couldn't conceive of anyone being your equal, let alone me. And fair? You're holding hands with a chambermaid and farm girl. I'm holding hands with a queen and demigoddess. If that's unfair, it's only unfair to you."
"Don't be so hard on yourself, Ingrid."
"I'm not. I know who I am, and I'm satisfied with who I am. But I'm also realistic." She paused for thought, and her hand went limp in Elsa's. "At least I thought I was, up until tonight. You've already done so much more for me than I had any reason to expect. I don't think I've even thanked you properly. And now I want more? It's a grandiose dream, a fantasy. It's madness."
Elsa thought of her own passion for Anna, and saw it echoed in Ingrid. She squeezed Ingrid's hand encouragingly. "It's all right. Sometimes a little madness can be good, if it lets us see and feel more vividly."
"I've been so stupid. I apologize. I've been so very, very stupid."
"Shush. No you haven't." She saw tears run down Ingrid's face, and took a napkin off the tray to dry them. Ingrid turned her face away from the linen, but Elsa said, "Now Ingrid," and she sat obediently.
As Elsa dabbed Ingrid's face dry, Ingrid said, "I don't mean to argue, but it's true. I've been stupid. Oblivious. We talk about what's right, and fair, and possible, but it's all talking and thinking. They're just obstacles. They don't matter. None of it matters. The only thing that matters is, would you ever want to be with me? Could you like me that way? Even a little? You never said. And I can't speak for you, but I suspect I know what that means. I'm sorry."
Elsa set down the napkin and put her free hand on Ingrid's. "Honestly, I don't know what I feel. As you said, I was so caught up in thinking that I forgot about what I was feeling. I know that I'm very fond of you, and I'm always happy to be with you. I know that you're very pretty. But it never occurred to me to think about you that way. I don't know. I could. I think I could. I think I'd like to. I don't know."
Under the tears and mascara on the napkin, Ingrid saw that someone - Anna? - had written on the fabric.
Look up
She did, and saw a sprig of greenery with white berries tacked to the ceiling beam overhead.
Elsa followed her gaze, lifting her face upward, and recognized the twig. "Ah. Mistletoe."
As she looked down again, Ingrid kissed her on the lips. Really kissed her, briefly but firmly, her lips as soft and warm on Elsa's lips as her hand was in Elsa's hand.
They both sat back in surprise, Ingrid just as shocked by her own behaviour as Elsa was. "I - I'm sorry, ma'am. I have no idea - "
Ingrid felt Elsa pull her hands away. She sat paralysed.
"Ingrid?"
She nodded.
"Don't call me 'ma'am'." With both hands free, she pulled Ingrid close and kissed her properly.
The End