Elsa blinked once in confusion. Then twice to make sure she wasn't just imagining him.
She slowly brought her arms up to hug herself. She couldn't live with herself if she hurt him. Just not him.
"Ha..Hans. Just stay away from me." Tears threatened to spill from her eyes. But she couldn't let them fall. She had to be strong. For him.
She slowly took two steps backward. She'd start slowly and then run. But Hans took two steps forward, leaving them with how they started.
Here they were, in the middle of nowhere. Snow was everywhere. Snowflakes were left to dangle in mid-air. Elsa. She set off another winter. She didn't mean to. She didn't want it to happen all over again. But it was. It was happening again because of the two people who were also the reason for the first time it happened. Anna and Hans.
Her sister and the now King of Arendelle.
"Elsa, just please. Come back to Arendelle. The people need you…I need you."
A glorious tear slowly rolled down his once glorious face.
"Need me?" Elsa repeated incredulously, "'Need me?' Hans, I set off another winter! The people are starving…the fjord. The..the fjord." Elsa broke down. She remembered. She always remembers. How his sword was about to slash her head off. And how the bearer of that sword was here. Now. Telling her to come back and stay. Telling her that he loves her because she is his wife.
Hans' eyes widened. He remembered too. He always remembers. How he was about to kill the only person in the world who understood him. And every single day after that, he reminded himself of how he was both so stupid and so lucky. Stupid in the sense that he almost killed the future love of his life. And lucky that he didn't kill her. Lucky that she could find it in herself to grant him pardon, and love him too.
But he was a burden to her. Every single day since the day they announced their engagement, Elsa was insulted not only as Queen but as a person, called "ridiculous" and "blind to see the fact that he's using her". Well, at first he was. He knew he could worm his way into her heart by acting like some forgotten son (which he actually is). But slowly he started how to see delicate Elsa is. How beautiful and compassionate she is.
"Elsa, don't you remember? Love…" Hans swallowed, "Love can thaw. Remember Elsa? It..love..it fixed it before." More tears streamed down his face. The face that Elsa used to cradle in her cold hands was now shattered. As if his tears wear tearing out the life out of him.
"Hans." She forced herself to sound strong. But seeing him like this was crushing her soul, "If you really love me, then you'd….you'd let me go."
That was enough to silence Hans.
When you think of it, just an hour ago, they were arguing about Anna, and how Elsa should carry on, not just for Arendelle but for herself, and that Anna wouldn't want Elsa to grieve for this long. They usually have this kind of argument but this one spiraled out of control.
"Hans," a tear slowly made it's way down Elsa's little face, she couldn't hold it back anymore, "Please."
Hans swallowed thickly.
And then he closed his eyes solemnly.
"Elsa, I-I just want you to know, that I will wait for you. No matter how long."
He opened his eyes to see Elsa staring at him sadly, her eyes red and swollen.
She nodded. Not a word.
He nodded in response. Not a word as well.
And with that Elsa turned around and ran. She ran as fast as her feet could take her. She didn't look back. She couldn't. Because if she did, she would change her mind.
Hans watched her run. And every step she took broke his heart even more. But he loved her. And he had to prioritize her heart before his own.
Suddenly, the snow under his boots seemed to soften. He looked down to see that the snow was…melting. He looked around to see that all the snow was evaporating. A pained smile crept on to Hans' face.
An act of true love will thaw a frozen heart.