(Author's note: This fic is inspired by tumblr user gel-du-cerveau's 1920s/Mafia Frozen AUs. :) )
Hans of the South Side had promised himself that today would be the day he introduced his girlfriend to his family. The only difference between this and any other introduction is that there was a slight possibility that Anna could end up with a bullet in the brain, he told himself.
'Yeah. Slim chance of that, really. I think.'
Hans was a true son of the 20s, spending long nights in speakeasies with a flask in his suit pocket and twisting the Prohibition into an arrangement that benefited himself and his family. The ban on liquor ensured that the family kept a steady income from illegal sales, and the power of his family was enough to dwarf all possible competition. That wasn't to say the business was comfortable; Bullets still flew on occasion.
The German-Italian mob family's business was no secret to anybody who had lived in the area for more than a couple weeks, and the roots of the business ran deep below the surface of the "legitimate businesses" of the city. Hans had much to prove, and rose to the meet the challenge, even if his brothers commonly denied him the credit. What Hans lacked in age and experience, he made up with ambition. He had hits under his belt, and every day yielded a new lesson about how to better operate within the family.
He had found the balance between work and play, or so he thought. Anna Arendelle was his favorite plaything, but at the same time, she was much, much more. The two had met at a mutual business partner's social, and the encounter turned into a date that spanned the entire night. Anna's older sister, a powerful loan shark and dealer, eyed him with both suspicion and begrudging understanding. She knew his family, but not the extent of his involvement.
"Elsaaaa!" Anna had chimed upon returning home at dawn, drunkenly hanging on the arm of her new beau.
As soon as the girl was finished being helped into bed by a maid, Elsa had confronted Hans on the porch, standing close enough to speak without being heard by the neighbors.
"Be careful with her. She may be naive, but I'm not." She had hissed, and Hans could only nod and silently give his word before driving off.
Today marked the fourth month since that first night together, and Hans was ready to spend a peaceful day with his girl before the fateful dinner. Anna very much looked the part of a typical flapper, with a slinky blue dress clinging to her hips and a bright magenta hat that hid her curly strawberry-blonde hair and matched her thin coat. She was there waiting for him as soon as Hans opened the door, smiling and leaning against the door of his car. Hans was as slick as always in a navy suit, looking the part of a shining thread on his family's crest.
"Hey, doll." He greeted her cheerfully with a small peck.
"Hey." She cooed.
"Okay, I have to go to the market to get some things for tonight, then we can-"
"Let's go dancing." She crooned hopefully, draping her arms around his neck.
"Again? We went last night." He gave her a short twirl before opening the door and setting her down in the passenger side of the car.
"And we can go again. It was fun." She countered.
"Come on, settle down, I've got errands first." Hans waved her off, settling into his seat.
"God, you can be such a bluenose sometimes." She pouted, producing a compact mirror from her purse and checking her makeup.
Grinning, Hans slammed on the gas and then the brakes, sending Anna's compact careening onto the floor.
"Ow! Jerk!" Anna cackled, punching her boyfriend in the shoulder before fishing around for her lost accessory.
"Find it later. You look beautiful."
Anna beamed at him, and Hans eased onto the gas this time, propelling the car toward the downtown area. Anna removed her magenta hat, running her fingers through her hair. Hans kept one hand on the wheel and the other arm around Anna's shoulders, and she settled nicely against him.
Friday nights were often reserved for what Hans' mother dubbed "family time"- Namely, the men of the family would sit around the table while a third of them drank, a third of them gambled, and the remaining third tried to outdo each other with outlandish brags. Tonight was no different, and Hans had been exiled to the stool behind his eldest brother, Dirk. The table could only hold twelve, and Hans could never arrive early enough to grab a real seat. Sometimes, the patriarch would join them at the table, but tonight he was tired and weak and would rather stay in bed. The man was more of a figurehead than a true authority- Dirk oversaw most of the family's operations.
The youngest mob wife, Hailey, was in the adjacent kitchen balancing a toddler on one arm and a pan in her hand, frying a slab of bacon for the thirteen men gathered around the table. Most of the wives were buxom, tough women who were born into the lifestyle and knew when to shut up and when to put out a cigarette in a man's eye, as their interactions often required one of the two. Hans admired them for their courage.
Currently, Hans was in the hot seat, surrounded by five older brothers who wouldn't take their eyes off of him.
"So you've been seeing this girl for how long?" Dirk asked gruffly, sending a card flying to the other side of the table.
"Four months." Hans admitted, wringing his hands.
"Four months. God. And what happens when her pop finds out? We gotta deal with that shit?" One of the other brothers spat.
"She was raised in this. Father and mother are both out. Her sister runs the department store on 52nd."
"Wait, wait." A brother on the other side of the table shouted. "You said her name was Anna? Anna Arendelle? You're dating Anna Arendelle?"
"Yes."
"Shit. Hans. You can't mess that up." Dirk breathed a sigh of relief, "Good… good. So she knows. Elsa's in the same shit. She's got trucks of coke coming out the back of that place every Thursday. The driver's one of our guys."
"Mm-hm. I'm young, not an idiot. I wouldn't go after some girl who's just hanging out on the street." He huffed.
"Not too smart, right?" The brother to Hans' left inquired.
A defense rose up in his throat, but he swallowed it. He knew what his brother was asking. "Smart enough to keep her mouth shut, if that's what you mean."
"Good. Good. Light me, will you?" Dirk asked, holding out his cigar.
"Get Anton to do it, I'm going out, don't want the smell of that shit on my clothes." Hans retorted, standing.
"What, you got a date?" Dirk smirked.
"Yeah, actually."
A series of whoops sounded from the table.
"Oh, shut up." Hans couldn't help but smile. Attention was something he still had to get used to.
Anna was practically standing, her arms raised above her head as the car sped along down the street. She was somewhat of a puppy when it came to car rides, always eager to feel the wind and pretend she was flying. Suddenly, a suspicious dark car had pulled up alongside them, matching their speed. A feeling of uneasiness suddenly crept into Hans' heart, and he felt compelled to look across at them.
"I was thinking we could go to that place that just opened up under the deli. It's across from Oaken's place. You can get me in, right?"
Silence.
"Hans?"
"Huh?"
"You can get me in the joint, right?"
"Oh. Well, I guess. It's in our territory."
"Yeah, but they can be real assholes about who gets in-"
Anna kept her list of complaints going, but they turned to static in Hans' ears. A group of familiar faces was staring back at him, a brimmed hat pulled down to overshadow the driver's eyes. Terror ripped through Hans' body; His father had warned him about these men for months, and he could see a gun glinting in the hands of the passenger. He knew a rival family when he saw one.
"Anna, get down." He hissed.
"No, I wanna feel the wind." She argued.
"Anna, get down!"
Before she could even react, Hans had shoved Anna down and slammed on the gas, just before a series of thundering pops echoed through the street. Anna screamed instinctually, covering her ears with her hands. A well-placed punch to the car door opened up a hidden compartment where a gun lay waiting for a wielder, and Hans fired back as best he could while keeping his eye on the road. Something whizzed past Hans' ear, and the enemy car slammed into the bumper of another unsuspecting motorist, stopping the would-be assassins.
By the time to assailants scrambled out of the vehicle, Hans was gone, speeding back toward his family's neighborhood as something warm ran down the side of his head.