Months flew by and Arendelle prepared for the second winter to pass following the "Summer of Eternal Snow" as the locals jokingly called it.

Having learned Elsa's birthday was on the Winter Solstice, it didn't take Kaya long to think of the perfect gift for her beloved queen.

For Elsa's part, she had never been happier with her life. Kaya was kind and patient, laughing (to Elsa's surprise) through the awkward moments that marked the beginning of the - ahem - physical aspect to their relationship. Obviously Elsa wouldn't have gotten any experience being locked up in her room for the majority of her life. For some reason, Kaya thought Elsa's inexperience was absolutely endearing, and playfully promised to teach her everything she needed to know.

Elsa blushed at the thought of the uncharacteristic roguish wink that had accompanied that statement.

Neither had said the fateful three words yet, but Elsa wasn't worried. She knew that Kaya loved her, that was without question. And Elsa also loved her deeply in turn. They didn't need to say it to make it true.

"Where are we going?"

Kaya chuckled as she led the way to, Elsa suspected, the front courtyard. What was waiting in the courtyard, she had no idea.

Her captain had been very secretive about her plans for Elsa's birthday thus far.

Finally reaching their destination, Elsa was surprised to see lines upon lines of funny-looking tubes with bits of string sticking out.

This was the surprise?

Kaya briefly squeezed her hand from where it had lain in the crook of her arm before she released it, motioning for everyone to step back.

"Wait 'til you see this." Elsa could see a rare glimmer of excitement sparkle in the former princess' eyes.

Turning around, the former Palladonian strolled through the lines of the weird contraptions, raising her arms as she went. Elsa noticed that most all of her subjects were present as well, although to see what, she couldn't be sure.

Instantly, the edges of the strings on the devices sprang to life, brightening the twilight and making her subjects' faces light up in the near-darkness.

Kaya's movements were tantamount to a dancer's in their elegance and fluidity. She moved along the lines of the tubes, lighting the strings as she went, and as she finished lighting the last of them, she ended up right back at Elsa's side. Elsa noticed that the burning of the strings wasn't making any progress at the moment, probably by Kaya's design.

"Ready?"

Elsa nodded, feeling a growing excitement in her chest for she knew not what yet.

Kaya gifted Elsa with one of her rare smiles as she let the first set of her gift fly.

The queen heard a shrill whistling noise as the devices shot into the air. The tubes seemed to disappear into the night, and not seconds later, exploded in midair with a boom! that almost had her subjects panicking until they saw how calm their queen and her captain were at the sight.

Seeing the majestic imploding of color in the night sky brought tears to Elsa's eyes as she raised her hands to her mouth in awe. To be honest, she had been wary of the spontaneous explosions herself, but she knew Kaya would never put her in danger on purpose.

Kaya watched the Arendellian queen's reaction with satisfaction. After a night of lovemaking, Elsa had told her one night about an invention she'd read about that was utilized mostly in the east, consisting of basically gunpowder and metals inside a wooden tube that gave off beautiful colors in the night sky when ignited.

Of course Kaya had known it was fireworks that Elsa was talking about, and had heard of "firemasters", as the firework makers were called, in Vesuvia creating vibrant colors that had differed from the usual color scheme used in previous fireworks.

It was clear to see that she'd made the right choice making a visit to the city that had changed her life so drastically all those years ago. A city she had always maintained she would only return to if her father decided he wanted that particular country.

As she watched Elsa's eyes light up with joy at the beautiful display, Kaya thought this was as good a time as any as she leaned down to whisper in her queen's ear.

The words she uttered had Elsa snapping her gaze away from Kaya's birthday present for her to the captain's gaze which had turned soft and adoring in the gentle glow of the fireworks.

It didn't take long for Elsa to throw her arms around the other woman's neck, resulting in a rare display of public affection that neither normally condoned.

The queen's emphatic reply made Kaya's heart soar.

She had found love for the first time, a new home, a new family...All more than she ever thought that she could realistically hope for.

This was one of the few times she was glad to have been proven wrong.

As she looked up at the sky, booming and glimmering with the flares of the fireworks, she pondered briefly the irony of who would end up thawing a fire-wielder's frozen heart.

None other than the Snow Queen herself.