Things used to be happy in the kingdom of Arendelle.

The royal family were often in the spotlight, helping the Kingdom during times of need and taking part in national holidays.

And then Elsa locked herself int her room practically all the time, his parents locked the gates to the palace and everything changed.

Hans couldn't remember why.

Elsa could.

….

Almost two years younger than his sister, Hans would often wake up in the early hours of the morning, running out of his own room and into his sisters, jumping onto her bed and proceeding to jump up and down again and again and again.

"Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!"

"Hans…" Elsa grumbled, "… Go back to sleep."

"But I'm awake now! I can't go back to sleep."

Silence.

"Do you want to build a snowman?"

Elsa sighed wearily, a smile appearing on her face.

She should never had said yes… she should have persisted in telling him to go to bed and not moved.

But she'd never been able to say no to her baby brother.

The next thing she knew, a blast of ice had hit Hans in the head as he jumped from one snow pile to another, falling to the ground as a loud crack echoed throughout the chamber.

His memory was removed, and he would never walk right again.

And that's when everything changed.

….

Hans limped past the large windows, ornate walking stick in one hand as he pressed his other hand up against the glass, white lock in his hair reflected in the glass.

Snow.

As quickly as he could (which wasn't very quick at all), he rushed to his sister's room, knocking on the locked door. "Elsa? It's snowing, do you wanna build a snowman?"

Silence.

"Come on!" he whined, "I wanna play! I barely see you anymore, you're always locked in there! We used to be best friends and now we're not, and no-one will tell me why!"

More silence.

"Come on Elsa, don't you want to build a snowman… or something else?"

"Go away Hans!"

Slightly hurt by the tone, Hans nodded slightly, "Okay… bye."

Maybe he could play knights by himself.

Roping some of the servants into playing with him, Hans was left unaware that his sister was watching from above, white gloves on her hands.

…

Six years passed, and ten-year-old Hans could be found knocking on the door once again.

"Elsa, do you wanna build a snowman? Or ride that new bike around the halls?"

Silence

"Come on Elsa! I've started talking to the pictures on the walls! And the rooms are too empty, and the clocks are too loud!"

As he chattered eagerly about what he wanted to do, he was unaware that his parents were on the other side of the door, staring at the ice-covered wall in shock and horror.

"It's getting worse!" Elsa hissed, backing away when her mother moved closer, "No! Please… stay away. Get Hans away!"

Hans was already limping away at this point, and therefore didn't hear his name.

…..

Another 5 years passed, and fifteen-year-old Hans was slowly making his way down the stairs, his new ornate cane supporting him as he leaned on the bannister.

At the bottom, his Father and Mother were waiting, his Mother wrapping her arms around him as soon as he made it to the bottom.

"See you in two weeks." He whispered, aware of the figure waiting at the top of the stairs. As his Father drew him into a hug, the older man whispered in his ear.

"Take care of your sister.

He never thought those would be the last words his Father would ever say to him.

….

The funeral was quiet and subdued.

Hans couldn't help but feel a twinge of betrayal as his sister didn't even show up for it, leaving him to lead the funeral on his own, limping in front of the empty coffins until they reached the gravesite.

He was the one who had to explain why the heir to the throne hadn't bothered to show up, forcing a sad smile on his face as he explained that his sister was merely 'ill' and bitterly regretted having to miss the service.

Once it was all over, he made his way back to the castle slowly, shuffling up the stairs until he was right in front of his sister's door.

"Elsa…" he weakly called out, "… please I know you're in there. People are asking where you've been… they were all telling me to have courage, and I'm trying to- but please know that I'm right out here for you, just let me in. We only have each other now, it's just you and me… what are we going to do?"

Silence, as he rested his back against the door and slid down to the ground.

"Do you want to build a snowman?"

On the other side of the door, Elsa was in much the same position, ice lining every wall and all over the floor.

…

One year passed, and it was the middle of summer. The early morning sun was starting to rise over the horizon, and Hans was determined to get a few more hours sleep.

He'd been up half the night with his leg, trying to massage the sore muscles to a bearable level of pain.

Suddenly, there was a knocking on the door, and a nervous voice spoke through the wood. "Prince Hans? Prince Hans?"

"Ummmm…. Yeah?" Sleepily, Hans pushed himself into a seated position, wiping the drool away from his face, "Yeah?!"

"Sorry to wake you your Highness but- "

"- No, no, no… I've been up for hours!" His head slumped forwards towards his chest, eyes falling shut again, before the knocking started up again.

"Who is it?!"

"Still me Your Highness. The gates will be opening soon, so it's time to be getting dressed and ready."

"Ready… ready for what?"

"It's coronation day Your Highness, remember? Your sister's coronation?"

"My coronations… sister." Blearily, Hans opened up his eyes frowning at the sight of the white suit near his wardrobe, an ornate cane resting beside it.

It hit him like a flash.

"My sister's coronation!"

Within minutes, he was dressed, cleaned up and rushing out of his room as quickly as he could, cane clicking along the ground, beaming and greeting all the servants along the way.

"Coronation day! Coronation day!"

He beamed when he saw all the windows and door being opened, the natural light (not dull candlelight) of daytime making everything seem brighter. He moved to one side as servants entered the large dining area, carrying over a thousand salad plates.

He didn't even own that many!

He slipped slightly as he walked through the newly-polished ballroom, sheepishly accepting some help from one of the servants until they reached the staircase. Once the other man was out of sight, Hans sat on the bannister and slid all the way down to the bottom.

Stairs took too long with his leg.

It would be so strange to bow to actual people, rather than just these dusty suits of armour, but he was ready, especially as he headed over to the window and watched the ships coming in.

Music.

Gorgeous lights.

A party that would last the whole night long.

He sighed happily, and slowly made his way down to the garden, slowly taking a sat on the stone bench as his hunting dogs' latest litter of puppies raced over, all yipping in glee to see him. After giving them all some treats and making sure that the mother was okay, a sudden thought then occurred to him.

What if he met… the one. The one for him, his other half?

He could just see it now. Him standing against the wall, near the buffet table and the chocolate fountain, trying not to get caught up in the dancing crowd… and then he locks eyes with a gorgeous girl standing near the opposite wall, the picture of sophisticated grace.

They laugh and talk all evening and, well who knows where it goes from there.

It was a strange idea to be noticed by someone, but at least now, he actually had a chance.

Suddenly, he heard the order for the gates to be opened prompting him to make in way over there as fast as he could. He hadn't been outside of these gates since the funeral (which didn't count really).

Nimbly making his way through the crowd, Hans started to make his way down to the docks, managing to speed up slightly as he got caught up in all the excitement.

And then he was hit by the horse.