Thawing A Frozen Breakfast

Having plans for the day, I left the girls to enjoy the bath. Standing for a moment before getting dressed and I was suddenly dry and perfectly groomed. Why had I never taken Time-Savers before? This perk was just too useful. After getting dressed, in clothes that were quickly immaculate thanks again to Time-Savers, I was on my way to Princess Elsa's room.

I could probably have found my way back there eventually, I'm usually pretty good at being able to retrace my steps, but why bother when I could just ask a passing guard to take me there? So soon I was standing before her door, and after giving the guard my thanks, knocked.

"Just a minute!" I heard her call from inside. "That was, oh!" She stood looking at me wide-eyed from behind the partially open door. "I thought you were the butler."

I tried to give her a charming smile. "No, just me. I thought I'd see if you wanted company for breakfast today, and maybe even the rest of the day as well." Less than two days to go now on her timer, but I'd really like to do what I could to charm it down as much as possible.

She gave me a shy smile in response. "I usually spend my days alone, as you know."

"I know, and I understand why. But the fear and repression are not serving you well. I'd really like to get to know you better, and you know I'm safe with you."

Her blush was very clear on her pale skin. Days with the bracelet on must be giving her vivid dreams of us by now. "All you say is true. A day together just us?"

"If you will, though I think Anna would enjoy a group dinner again. Some more of my retinue showed up, and I could introduce you to them."

That certainly piqued her interest. "I didn't notice any new ships in the harbor?"

I laughed. "They've no need of ships, they're mermaids. Though they can shift to legs on land." Let her think they swam here, too soon to bring up the apartment.

"You have a lot of demi-humans that work for you. Did they need curse breakers as well?"

She was probably thinking about Anna becoming a cheshire. "They all wear one, but that's mostly to protect them from new curses. Only some have needed rescue, but I will admit to seeking out those who need my help."

She ate that story up, obviously wanting to see me as the noble Prince now that I'd made it past her skeptical armor. And now she was no longer hiding behind her door from me at all. Excellent.

We both looked back up the hall as a butler with a covered tray approached. "That would be my normal breakfast." She explained. "I get it every morning about this time. I can send him back to get a tray of stuff from the buffet set up for you and your companions, it shouldn't take very long." She seemed eager now that I had joined her.

"That sounds like an excellent idea." I took the tray from the elderly man while Elsa explained what she wanted, and he gave us both a nod before heading out. Elsa backed into her room, which turned out to be a suite. The first of the set of rooms was a comfortable sitting room with a roaring fire and a cluttered work desk. She gestured towards a small table with a nice padded chair, obviously where she ate, and I set the tray down there.

She pointed towards a larger chair in front of the fireplace. "The only thing I have to offer is my desk chair or the reading one. I think the latter would be much more comfortable for you."

I pulled the large stuffed reading chair around opposite the table from hers. "This will be more than fine." I then pulled her chair out for her, causing her to give me a sly smile.

"No one has ever pulled my chair out for me before."

I let my surprise show on my face. "Really? No one at all? That's shocking."

She shrugged. "I play up at being independent to keep people at a distance. My father may have pulled my chair out for me when I was young, but I don't remember." Her face clouded, obviously thinking about her lost parents.

Melancholy probably wasn't the best mood for her to be in to trust me more, but it probably wouldn't hurt if I played it right. "I don't know how much playing it takes. You've done very well to run things since you lost your parents. The coronation is hardly needed when you've been the ruling Queen in all but name for a while now."

Elsa gave me a sad smile, but took my hand from her side of the table. "The kingdom largely runs itself, really. Most of what I have to do is handle diplomatic affairs. Correspondence from other nations mostly. I'm not really looking forward to meeting these people in person, you are a very different case of course."

That was good to hear, even though I knew this was just a manufactured world I'd spent enough time here, I'd like to think I wasn't destabilizing things too much when I took my prizes with me. Of course, with Calming Up active a return here later would likely show disasters anyways. Something to raise the danger rating anyways.

At another knock, I got up to check the door, and the same old guy was there with my food this time. "Many thanks." He just bowed and shuffled off again. I'm sure she didn't socialize much with the staff either. Setting my tray down opposite hers, and glad the table had just enough room for both, I took both the lids off and set them to the side. While my tray had a plate heaped with bacon, eggs, and hashed browns. Elsa's had only a bowl of porridge. There was also a tea set, but with just one cup. Mine had another cup by itself, thankfully. The old guy was obviously pretty good at his job. I poured tea for us both. "So aside from foreign letter writing how do you normally fill your days?"

"Normally they are very quiet. Reading in front of the fire mostly. Listening to Anna sing to me from the door most days." We laughed together, and she sipped her tea.

A bookish shut-in, scared of her own power. Well, she'd have plenty of adventure by my side ahead of her.

Looks like I'd have to come up with something to draw her out of her shell today though.

Maybe I'd just seduce her. Hell, the way she kept looking at me over our breakfast, she might try to seduce me.