WHAT: The girls do some light DTR-ing + first kiss(es)! WHERE: Elsa's cottage in New Asgard WHEN: Today WARNINGS: Nope, this is all basically just schmoop STATUS: Complete
This whole ‘displaced in another world’ deal was something Kate couldn’t do anything about and she really fucking hated it.
She did what she could to find something else to focus on. It was bad enough that Elsa was gone when they were just starting something, but Mobius being gone had left Loki in a tizzy that she had no patience for whatsoever. She crashed at the Sanctum, assisting Dr. Strange and Wanda where she could. She channeled most of her energy into keeping up with both Elsa and Mobius, writing faithfully to demand check-ins, and she kept a watch over all the New Asgard animals. Even after Hazel took over, she made a point to pop over to the stables to give Sleipnir and Firehooves some much deserved love, then down to Croki’s pool to make sure he was content.
She paid special attention to Nokk for Elsa, too. She watched to make sure he stayed relatively calm in Elsa’s absence; she ended up strapping him into his bridle with an assist from Dr. Strange on the fourth night, when he started getting a little worked up. Kate was right there with him, in all honesty; without a real way to contribute to dragging everyone out of that hell they were in, she felt frustrated and useless, like she was holding her breath until they were back.
When they did come back, she finally felt like she could breathe again. She’d kept her promises to Elsa, filled her cottage with fluffy things - pillows, stuffed animals, and another fleece blanket (this one reindeer-themed). She stocked up on food (reasonably healthy and sweets alike) and set up a whole queue of movies (actual classics) for the cuddle puddle movie-a-thon she’d promised as well.
She made sure Elsa was well taken care of first. Healed up and showered, then she fed her, made sure she slept as much as she wanted (with Licorice by her side). When she decided she was up for hanging out, Kate was there. She got them both cozied up on the couch, surrounded by some of those extra pillows she’d bought. Licorice curled up on Elsa’s stomach, purring from her attentive behind-the-ear scratches, and Kate snuggled up next to her, arm wrapped around her shoulders while Barbra Streisand belted out “Don’t Rain on My Parade” on-screen.
“God, I wish I could sing like that,” Kate commented. She had a good voice and could nail some pop-rock karaoke, but she was nowhere near Broadway legend. A girl could dream, though, right?
All of that nonsense with being in another time and place while life continued on in Vallo, and when they only had journals to communicate with across wide-open and confusing space, was not exactly Elsa’s cup of hot honeyed tea. She dealt with it, of course, the sort to hold her chin high and stomp onward even in the face of adversity (and she’d made a couple new friends in Katie and Fen, after what equated to ten days together) - but it wasn’t her preference.
No, what she preferred was to wrap herself up in fleece blankets or bury herself in the comfort of her bed. She preferred the busyness of Cerberus Books and making patrons smile with her chosen costume, even if it was a little macabre - she preferred milkshakes, and gliding over the ocean waves with Nokk and tasting air kissed by salt, she preferred Kate.
Luckily she had all of that now, so she couldn’t complain too much. Or at all, really. She was munching on candy and snuggled up with her human companion and her cat companion, feeling relaxed and clean (one of the first things she’d done when she returned was take a proper shower because the bathroom facilities in the safe room had been depressing at best). “I’ve always liked to sing,” she sighed, fingers smoothing the softness of the brand new reindeer blanket, as it draped over her and Kate’s lap, shared between them both. “I don’t know if I’m any good, but - I try.”
Then again, that was probably obvious given her penchant for breaking into song in those Frozen films. But anyway.
“Thank you again for taking care of things and getting my room all nice and situated, by the way,” she added. “It was amazing to come back to.”
“It was no big deal,” Kate murmured with a smile. And it really wasn’t. She liked being able to focus on something, and that something including Elsa made it all the easier. She had missed her like crazy, which wasn’t all that surprising. Elsa was special, and Kate was very firmly attached at this point. And not just in that you’re-my-favorite-movie way anymore.
“I’m just glad you’re-” Home, she almost said, but bit her tongue. It felt like home to her, a little bit, but that was to be expected after she’d had her world turned upside down beneath her feet back in New York. “Back. Here, with me. I’m glad you got back in one piece. I was worried you wouldn’t for a while there. And I missed you.”
Elsa and Mobius had created this foundation for her that she’d needed after everything she’d been dealing with back in New York. Without them, when she was already without Clint, it would be harder. She knew she had others. Natasha, Steve, Wanda, Dr. Strange - all the Avengers had reached out and welcomed her, but Mobius and Elsa were hers.
“I missed you too,” Elsa smiled, reaching for Kate’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze - she was warm, despite what her penchant for winter magic may suggest, especially when she blushed dusty pink and felt safe where she was. As much as she secretly loved adventure and the thrill of adrenaline that felt like sparks in her veins, she had enough of it the past ten days and was happy to be settled elsewhere.
Home? Yes, home seemed valid. She was beginning to come around to that idea - maybe it wasn’t the home she had known, but it could be one she carved out for herself and that seemed like a fair thing to do. It didn’t mean Anna, Kristoff, Arendelle, and the Enchanted Forest meant any less to her, after all.
“But! I’m back and we can do all sorts of fun things together now,” she said encouragingly, because no sense in dwelling on the past. Not when they could move forward to something better. “I wasn’t too bad with that crossbow either, so you may have even been proud. I’ll have to show off my new skills and you’ll teach me even more.” The thing had been heavy but she’d managed.
“I know I would have been proud,” Kate corrected her, a playful smile curling her lips. “I bet you were a total badass. We’ll definitely get back to training and whatever adventures you want soon.” She was all for it, but she wasn’t trying to push so soon after the very intense, unexpected adventure Elsa had just been on. She deserved some time to relax and recuperate after that ordeal, and if she was stubborn, Kate would get more insistent.
Ironic, honestly, since she absolutely sucked at setting similar limits for herself. Clint had told her so many times to back off, take it easy, and she’d refused. But he’d given in by the end, so it all worked out, anyway.
Her fingers slipped from Elsa’s arm to sift through the length of loose blonde locks. “Maybe one of those adventures can be an actual date? I’d still like to take you out, if you’re up for it. Somewhere nice if you want to really dress up.”
These days, Elsa was more likely to be found wearing her hair down - the long, loose cornsilk blonde braid she tended to favor was less and less a feature of her ensembles, and she especially chose to forgot the tight updos, fishtail braids that her mother favored and that were arranged beneath something like a sparkling tiara because those were vastly uncomfortable. No, she was all about letting her hair go where it wanted to - especially when she was riding Nokk. The freedom, and the wind, felt breathtaking (even if she missed Gale, the particular wind spirit).
It also felt nice to have fingers comb through her hair when it was loose too. Made her hum contentedly a little, relaxing further into the couch. “Somewhere nice,” she agreed. “I wouldn’t mind dressing up and getting to splurge on a new outfit.”
Earning enough to be able to afford art supplies and new clothes was also a new experience for her - she never had a ‘nine-to-five’ job before, and she thought she might try to pick up something else on the side if she could. She’d met one of the local covens, a coven focused on magic channeled through art, and had been spending time with them before getting pulled into that puzzle mess - so there might be opportunity on that end. “Is that - well, is an actual date different from what we’ve been doing?” she asked, unsure how it worked and feeling a little silly.
“Not really that different,” Kate assured her. They had spent a lot of time together since they met, together more often than not, but ever since Valentine’s Day, their hangouts had definitely taken on a more romantic tone. Nothing overt yet - aside from the gift exchange and a little more physical contact, some cheek kissing and hair stroking. But she knew dating had never been much a part of Elsa’s life, at least not the way it was in the modern world.
“I guess it’s more of a semantics thing,” she explained. “We’ve been dating, and it’s been going pretty damn well, I think.” She squeezed Elsa gently, smile softening as she looked at her. “But what I mean by actual date is - going out somewhere. Like, having dinner at a fancy restaurant, doing something fun together, letting me treat you.”
She almost offered to buy whatever new outfit Elsa wanted, actually. Now that her trust fund had somehow been pulled from her world, she was spending quite a bit more. It was how she’d stocked up the cottage with all these fluffy things and bought enough food to last them both a week. But she didn’t want to hamper Elsa’s independence when earning money was all so new and exciting for her.
Oh, right - dinner at a fancy restaurant. That seemed to line up with whatever Elsa pictured as ‘a date’ and though her and Kate had done more casual things for their prior ‘dates’ (she supposed they would have gone someplace relatively fancy if it hadn’t snowed on Valentine’s Day, and the time was much better spent being indoors and cozy) that still counted. But dressing up, sort of getting into the whole spectacle of it all? That sounded nice too. Very modern.
“That makes sense. Sorry for the questions - it’s just that it’s all so different than what it would be back in my world,” she laughed sheepishly. “Courting is different too. Suitors and royal advisors and being supervised during walks in the palace gardens and - it’s a whole thing.” Not one she particularly cared for, mind you - for Anna, being with Kristoff (who wasn’t of ‘blue blood’) hadn’t been too big of a deal, since Elsa was queen at the time. Arendelle had its ruler and the princess was free to be courted by a commoner.
Not to mention being with a woman also would have caused some stirrings, likely not positive ones - the whole idea was to continue the royal line and, honestly, that stuffiness and lack of freedom was why Elsa knew she never wanted to even be queen in the first place. “I can treat you too, next time?” she asked hopefully. “Maybe the royal treasury will show up, somehow.” It was said jokingly but she supposed having access to those funds might be helpful. But if not, she’d just have to earn the money to take Kate on ‘dates’ and that was fine too.
“Hey, you have nothing to be sorry for,” Kate told her firmly. Elsa was adorable when she got all sheepish and pink because she was still learning things, but the questions didn’t faze Kate one bit. She expected them. “This world is totally different from yours. And you’re literally hundreds of years into the future. I get it, I don’t mind explaining things. I think you know that by now.”
She reached out to snag a handful of M&Ms from the bowl between them and popped them into her mouth. Maybe not the most attractive move, but Elsa had seen her eat like this quite a few times before now. “Let’s make the rule that the asker pays unless we agree to split or something?” she offered. She would happily pay for everything without batting an eye, but she wasn’t going to deny Elsa treating her if she wanted, with or without access to the royal treasury.
“Did you ever actually court anyone back home?” she asked, eyebrows lifting curiously. She’d never suspected Elsa had much in the way of romance on her mind, but maybe she had. She had learned quickly to take the Disney films with a grain of salt - they didn’t know everything about the very real woman she was literally cuddling here and now.
If Kate was a chubby bunny with the candy stored in her cheeks like a squirrel, Elsa was too. She had her own handful of M&Ms (peanut butter, those were her favorite - and she liked mixing them in with her movie-watching popcorn too) that she shoved into her face. Certainly not very queenly but that was alright.
“No,” she had to breathe out a laugh at the idea of her actually courting someone. “My royal advisors tried to find a prince from a neighboring land to court me - but I was very resistant to the idea.” Hans hadn’t tried with her specifically, but he apparently did his research and heard plenty of whispering about the queen who was cold as an ice tomb and as immovable as a glacier - that was why he turned his schemes in Anna’s direction, and manipulated her instead.
It still made her angry, to this day - she didn’t think she’d ever forgive him but then again, she probably didn’t have to. Forgiveness had to be earned, and that wasn’t something she owed the likes of him.
“But that sounds good. I’m happy to go with asker does the treating,” she grinned - now it was her turn to play with Kate’s hair a little, twisting the dark silk around her fingers.
Kate grinned back, tipping her head to fully face Elsa and meet that blue gaze. It was such an icy blue, but there was no coldness to be found - nothing but warmth. She looked happy, and Kate liked that. Liked knowing that she was a part of it. She wasn’t sure she’d ever had anyone look at her quite like that, and she enjoyed basking in it, her fingers slipping to skim down Elsa’s jaw.
“Are you happy?” she asked softly. There may have been an undercurrent of do I make you happy beneath that question, but really, she just wanted to be sure Elsa was okay. She had been through some hellish shit the last week (longer for her, with time passing much quicker in the sphere). Kate wanted to be the best comfort - a safe place - she could be.
Elsa still didn’t understand how time worked while she was in the sphere - it had been ten days for them (she’d kept track) but only five days in Vallo proper. Very odd, to be certain, but she supposed there were just some time paradoxes, twisting and spiraling puzzles with many pieces of their own, that she wasn’t meant to understand (maybe that sort of thing was more for Kate’s older adult figure). However, she’d had plenty of opportunity to think about how things were going for her in Vallo - in the safe room, after their ‘exercises’ were complete and they were meant to rest and heal and consume their meager rations, there wasn’t much else to do besides think.
“I’m happy,” she murmured, filled with a spun sugar kind of cotton candy happiness when she nuzzled into Kate’s hand. “I like...dating. Seeing where it goes. But I’m sure it’ll go someplace great.” Kate already knew that Elsa was slow at this sort of thing, however, she’d been very patient. Which Elsa appreciated.
“Me too,” Kate agreed, leaning in to let her forehead rest against Elsa’s. She liked the simplicity of being here. There was no pressure, no pushing from either side. Kate had done the initial pursuing, sure, but she wasn’t in any rush, not looking to dive headfirst into a relationship and all that came with it. Dating was good. They got to figure this out together, at the pace they wanted. No royal expectations, no imprisoned mother with opinions - no outside complications.
Vallo itself was very obviously filled to the brim with complications, but being with Elsa was maybe the easiest thing Kate had ever done. She could put all the darkness that lingered inside her - from aliens, wars, the Blip, everything that she’d witnessed most recently in New York’s seedy underbelly - and feel light. Hard not to when that smile was directed at her.
After a few moments, she leaned back again, creating just a little bit of space between them so they could really look at each other again. She had something she felt like she needed to say, to clarify things for both of their sakes, and she wanted to say it now before she backed out.
“I want you to know I’m only seeing you. Which is, uh, probably pretty obvious?” She hadn’t expanded her social circle much at all; Elsa, Mobius, Loki, Defense teammates, the occasional Avenger, Sabrina when she was at Cerberus, now Dr. Strange and Wanda - that was about the extent of it, she needed to work on it - but really mostly Elsa. “But I want to make it clear because I - well, I really like you, and some people like to date around, but not me. I’m with you, just you. I want to see where this goes, too.”
The idea of dating around nearly gave Elsa the mental blue screen of death. The thought of it seemed mildly terrifying, actually? Because goodness - she agonized constantly over whether or not she was doing it right when it came to one person, just Kate. To have to worry about multiple people?
She’d definitely be taking a hard pass on that. Maybe it worked for others, and they were free to do what they wanted with their lives - but it wasn’t going to work for Elsa. So she was glad that she and Kate were on the same page there. Making other friends was, of course, on her agenda - she had no qualms about expanding her social circle in that regard.
“I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to, um, date around,” she said, her heart doing this other nervous flutter thing in her chest. This was good, this was great, they were actually communicating and talking about where they stood with each other - people were supposed to do that, right? “But...if you don’t want to, I’m glad for that too? We can just focus on us. Because I don’t plan to date around either.”
Kate felt a wave of relief wash over her and a grin splitting her face clearly expressed that feeling. “Oh, good. Okay, yeah. Dating around isn’t really my thing, but I appreciate the offer. I’d rather just be with you as much as you want me.”
She hadn’t really expected Elsa to be interested in something like that, but she also wanted to present her with the option. Sometimes, she felt this niggle that maybe she’d kind of jumped on her? She had been so attracted to her and so interested and just wanting to be near her so quickly that she hadn’t really had the chance to explore other options. And while she didn’t want to give up any of what they had started here, she wasn’t an asshole. She wanted Elsa to know it didn’t have to be her if that was something she wanted.
“I’d also… I’d really like to kiss you,” she admitted, a bit sheepish herself now. She was hesitant to bring it up - again, she didn’t want to be pushy - but she was aching for that connection. “If that’s okay.”
Kate had scarcely finished the if that’s okay part of the sentence before Elsa leaned in, closing the distance between them - she touched her lips to Kate’s, a sweet sort of kiss but one that held a good deal of intensity regardless; she’d describe it that way because of the stars she saw behind her eyelids, entire constellations that one could navigate by.
This close, and Elsa likely carried the scent of winter with her - the taste as well. Berries frosted over, snow-covered fir trees, and powdery flakes. It was something unable to be helped, even if she wasn’t strictly so cold these days - and was learning more and more about her nature magic as the days ticked on.
“How was that? Okay?” she asked nervously, flushing (of course).
Kate hadn’t expected Elsa to respond so immediately. She thought for sure there would be at least a few seconds before she gave a ‘yes’ (hopefully; it could always be a ‘no’ instead) and Kate did the initiating. She was more than okay with that, preparing for it.
Instead, Elsa kissed her. Her brain stopped for a split second, leaving her shocked still, before she began kissing her back. She smelled amazing, like she always did, but it flooded Kate’s senses like it never had before. The taste was the same - with a hint of chocolate and peanut butter and buttery popcorn lingering on her lips, too. The hand that had stroked down Elsa’s jaw splayed across her cheek, keeping her close until the kiss finally broke.
She was a little dazed by that point, smiling dopily and letting out a breathless little laugh as she gazed into blue eyes. “It was perfect,” she assured her gently. “Buuuuut we could always go for a second one. For the sake of clarity.”
Elsa laughed a little, and she definitely had no problems with that plan. She didn’t have a lot of experience with kissing - much at all, really, not enough to write home about since before she just wasn’t really interested in expressing herself in such a manner. But she had a feeling she could make up for lost time.
“Let’s go for a second one, then,” she decided in a dusky murmur, closing the space between them to seal the deal with another kiss. She was glad that she did because it invoked a kind of glow in her - something that couldn’t be stopped. An actual emotional response from the actual ice queen, a warm tingle that tickled in her toes and spiraled in each strand of hair, star light sprinkles and the way magnolia flowers bloomed anew in a sunny spring.
She grinned, kissing the corners of Kate’s mouth before pulling back a little. Just to breathe and sort of learn to see straight again. “I thought that went well too.”
Kate was very into Elsa taking initiative. She melted right into that second kiss, her heart skipping a beat before it picked up pace. She attempted to deepen it just a little more this time, her arm tightening around Elsa’s shoulders while she grinned into her mouth. She had never felt quite like this with anyone else before - warm from the tips of her fingers outward, completely at ease knowing no matter what, they were going to figure this out.
“A-plus,” she agreed softly, closing what little distance had been created across them to kiss up Elsa’s jaw. “Excellent kissing, would kiss again. A lot. You’re very talented.”
“Thank you,” Elsa huffed, grinning in a dopey sort of way, and - oh, alright, now she really felt dizzy. In an ‘everything and anything spinning around you’ sort of way - though she was by no means complaining about it. Maybe her research had sort of helped with real-world experience, who knew. She was just glad that she didn’t seem to be so terrible at this sort of thing.
Kate was affectionate, and encouraging, and Elsa liked that - everything about her was soft too, skin and hair mainly; otherwise, she was built lean and very strong, probably thanks to all that archery and training with swords. Elsa herself was a lot softer in comparison. “I’m okay with continuing to practice,” she added, sounding breathy and feeling very cozy; such a warm sensation, like coming in from a snowy day and into where there was a fire at the hearth - everything just melted. “I guess that’s how you get really, really good at it?”
“They do say ‘practice makes perfect’,” Kate confirmed with a very similar grin. She’d been dazed and smiling since the first kiss. With more affection, and the soft sound of that breathy voice, she was only feeling higher. Her skin was tingling, and Elsa was all softness that she couldn’t get enough of.
Licorice, who had been hanging onto Elsa for dear life, finally gave up his stubborn task, meowed at them both as if he was greatly offended, and padded off to the other side of the couch to curl up on his own.
“Well,” Kate laughed, “I guess that means you’re really all mine now. I say we celebrate.” Her hand moved to Elsa’s hip and she shifted forward to initiate a third kiss herself, capturing those warm, sweet lips with her own.
Was Elsa nervous? Yes, definitely - but she wasn’t about to let it wrap itself around her and squeeze too hard, so hard that she lost focus and got anxious. A little healthy nervousness meant healthy butterfly flappings in her abdomen - and given how new and exciting that feeling was, well, she wanted to bask in it all.
“A good way to celebrate,” she agreed and then, well - she supposed there wasn’t much left to speak about. There were better ways to communicate now anyway.