Elinor had seen very little of her daughter that day, usually only from a distance. Immediately, once their ship docked, Merida (and her brothers) raced off of the boat, her bow in her hand.

"Bye, Mum!" she called.

A jolt of fear had run through Elinor's body; Merida had become a bit more responsible since the bear incident, but that didn't mean that she always thought things through completely. Even if she didn't cause trouble, there were still the boys.

Still, Elinor and Fergus had come on business, and they had to get that business done. Her husband had been a bit tired (and a little green) after the sea journey, and had trouble paying attention to business. As usual, Elinor got most things cleared up herself.

What she did see of her daughter were quick glimpses, and one time she even called out hello. Elinor had waved back, trying to figure out who the person alongside her was. She had only caught a few details - red hair, a long dress, and pink cheeks.

Now, Elinor could see the girl up close. She held herself high, a large smile spread across her face. Her arm was looped through Merida's own, and her braids were looking slightly loose.

"Merida has told me a lot about you, Miss-"

"Please, dear, call me Elinor." She looked over to Merida, who had the same smile on her lips. Her hair, the queen noticed, looked even messier than usual, and red curls hung in front of her eyes.

"Elinor, Merida truly has said a lot about you!" The girl gave a clumsy curtsy. "Is it true that you became a bear?"

Elinor turned to her daughter. "You told her that?"

"I didn't think that it would be a big deal, Mum."

Elinor sighed. "Yes, it's true. So you are Merida's friend, or so I presume, Anna?"

The two girls looked over to each other and began to giggle.

"Mum, that is kind of why we are here." She rocked slightly, her eyes darting back and forth from her mother to the girl beside her. They looked to be only a year or two apart in age. "We have news."

"Is something the matter?" Elinor bit her lip; would she have to explain some mistake her daughter had caused?

"No, it's really, really good news, Mum."

She raised an eyebrow. "Then what is it?"

"Anna and I are getting married!"

"You are what?" Maybe she was a little tired after the journey to Arrandelle and after a hard day of work. Could she actually have heard that correctly?

"Mum, Anna is my true love!"

"And I'm hers!" Anna leaned forward and quickly pressed a kiss to Merida's cheek, causing the girl to turn bright red. "We want to open a door into a new life."

"You want to get married, Merida?"

She nodded. "Yes, Mum!" She squeezed Anna's side. "Anna is nothing like those nasty suitors from a year or so ago. Ick." She stuck out her tongue, causing Anna to giggle.

There definitely had to be something about Arrandelle if it made Merida want to get married.

"You will let us, won't you, Mum?" Merida frowned. "You aren't mad, are you?" She looked down to her shoes, red curls blocking her face.

Elinor reached out and gently touched her shoulder. "I could never be angry about this, dear. Besides, Anna seems like a sweet girl."

"So we can get married?"

"Not right now," Elinor responded. "The queen's coronation should be starting soon."

"The queen!" Anna's smile widened. "We can go ask Elsa for her blessing as well." She began to run, Merida joining along with her.

"Wait for me, girls!"

In the distance, a bell rang throughout the kingdom.