He was gone.
If there was a way to describe the state of affairs in Arrendelle from the start of the Civil War, it was summoned up nicely in one phrase; he was gone.
To summarize, this is the sad state of affairs in the Southern Isles; about fifteen years ago, the king, Olaf, died at sea, but his pregnant wife disappeared to Meridian. Unbeknownst to the next crowned Westerguard, Archer, his younger brother and co-conspirator Prince Hans had smuggled the woman and child to a small town right outside of Arrendelle.
Following a disastrous coup in Arrendelle, and subsequent disastrous attempts at escaping justice, Hans found himself a married to Queen Elsa and king, negotiating a precarious deal with none other than King Archer himself. The deal would allow Olaf's daughter Sophia to grow up in peace. As long as King Archer lived, the treaty would hold.
This is where a problem occurred.
King Archer died. It was terrible news to Hans, one that would lead to terrible war. The remaining Southern Isles princes were in a bit of a quandary; did they simply crown the next king? The next two were twins, Josepp and Joran. So who was king? No one figured they would get as far as numbers four and five. Unfortunately, James, Archer's son, was not old enough to rule at the time of his father's death. Furthermore, he was an adopted son, not a sired descendant. Waiting a couple of years for a boy of common-blood to lead was unheard of.
This left little Sophia. The prodigal daughter of Olaf, who was in Arrendelle with Hans, the former Hand of the King. With a pair of twins in one hand, and a pair of children in the other, the Southern Isles court decided to hold a meeting to determine the best direction of the country.
No doubt they were hoping the best direction would not be a civil war.
So the various princes and rulers of the Southern Isles gathered to discuss their loyalties. There was only one thing they agreed on; the way-ward Hans Westerguard must return, so both sides wrote him letter after letter pestering him to return until he relented.
The king set down his crown, took up the title of King's Hand, and returned to his childhood home, knowing full well he would be leaving behind his beloved White Queen, his adopted daughter Sophia, and his sister-in-law Anna.
At first, he was falsely optimistic, writing back home to Arrendelle on fancy parchment, sharing good news of the peace process. The twins were working together, and perhaps they could be reasoned with. Then, as war became more and more likely, he started writing home his hopes, since there wasn't very much good news left and he did not wish to distress his wife. Slowly, the letters became more vague, even going so far as to be encrypted.
Then the letters stopped.
For months, Elsa, Sophia and Anna only had silence. Was he dead? Was it over? Was he coming back soon? If so, when? A week, a month, a year?
Then, a single letter arrived with but one phrase attached, "I am at war; keep Sophia safe whilst I am away." And then they knew Hans wasn't coming back. Not in a week, not in a month not for years, if they ever saw him again at all.
Elsa finally realized that she could no longer ignore the course of life waiting for her husband to return. It was time for Anna to marry, regardless of whether or not her wayward husband could make it.
Anna and Kristoff were deeply in love, and could no longer prolong their engagement. But this is not the story of Hans. Nor is it the story of Elsa. Nor of the happy couple Anna or Kristoff.
This is the story of little Sophia. Perhaps it will be a happy one. But do not forget what we know from the very beginning; he was gone. Hans was gone. Her father was gone. But soon...
He will come back.