Chapter Two: Charity Sufferreth Long, and is Kind

Anna awoke the next morning to the sound of brass instruments. The tinkling of weapons met her ears as she arose. The princess rose, washed, and dressed as quickly as possible. Anders was waiting for her outside. He looked like he'd eaten some bad cheese.

"Took you long enough."

"Had to shave," She teased. He gave her a soft smile. The young prince seemed quieter today. It wasn't so bad. The weather was a bit warm, making Anna sweat a bit as she walked. She decided that, as soon as possible, she would have some nice cold tea in the shade. What she wouldn't give for some old-fashioned Arrendelle ice about now!

…Kristoff. He crossed her mind again. She looked to the mountains, idly wondering if he was nearby. Did he think about her? Or was she simply a girl on the list of numerous damsels in distress he'd carried home? She hoped that someday she'd get to see him again. She could use a companion as straightforward as him.

Anders was not exactly the cheerful companion he'd been the day before. He looked deep in thought. Anna idly wondered what exactly Hans' plan was.

"He's a smart one, I'll give him that."

"Hmmm,,,?"

"Nothing; it's just that Hans is really cunning."

"…cunning? I guess that's the word for it."

Anna was brought back to the camp outside of Bearskaulg. She looked down the hill, out across the planes. There were bulwarks between the city and the camp. As they grew closer, the princess noticed the foul smell has intensified. Anders sniffed.

As they grew closer, she noticed the entrenchments were… moving?

"My word would be 'psychotic'."

Anna gasped. She ran to the entrenchments.

"No!" It couldn't be. Not even Hans was cold-blooded enough to…

"They're people!" She screamed, accusingly. She whirled on Anders, "They are people!"

He said nothing.

"You knew?"

He looked away. She huffed in a breath. Soft moans could be heard even as far away as she was. The people were Meridians, strapped to wood and metal constructions. They writhed and moaned in pain.

"How long have they been up?"

"Some have been tied up for a few days, but most of these were constructed before you left yesterday."

Anna swallowed dryly in the heat. To be tied up for at least a day, plus whatever they had to endure previous to today…

"Take me to the command tent."

Anna marched in, full-on fury mode, "I cannot believe you 'gentlemen' would do this!"

The already quite tent descended into complete silence. The only sound heard was Anna breathing heavily.

"I can't believe I have to marry you," Snorted Saul, "Someone get this… foolish little woman out of here."

Hans stepped forward, volunteering. The dark look in his eyes communicated exactly how much he would enjoy doing this.

"No one should suffer like this," She said, then she , for the first time in forever, locked eyes with Hans, and really, truly looked into him, "To slowly roast, to suffer, for someone else's cause? How can this be justified?"

In that second, though she had little clue, Anna had won the first major battle in her personal war. Hans, whose primary goal at the moment was to remove this pesky annoyance from the tent as painfully and humiliatingly as possible, paused.

"We have to win, and that's why we're doing this."

"Was that a statement or a question?"

Hans stayed silent. Saul sighed, grabbing her and marching her forcefully to the door, "I would love to discuss propriety during war, but at the moment I can't spare the troops to water your poor, starving friends. You're free to do whatever you wish."

She was tossed on her rear-end outside the tent, shortly followed by a bucket to the face. Anders helped her up. Suddenly, the flap opened and Hans looked out. Anna avoided his eyes, flushing at the situation. Her gaze crept down his neck to the ruffle up his shoulder, where the shirt met his high collar. Everyone else had loosened up or undressed in this weather (princesses aside) why was he wearing full-garb?

Then Anna spotted the discolored skin. Looking up his right sleeve, and his neck, she saw the burn marks across his body. He glared at her, as if daring her to make a comment.

"I'm free to do whatever I wish," She said to Anders. He nodded, "Am I also free to keep this bucket and get some water."

Another nod. She smiled. Anna went to the stream the army was using. She filled the bucket with water and trudged through the mud, down the field, to the nearest hostage.

He was a weary old man, probably fifty. Sweat stained every piece of clothing. Dried mud was across his face, and he had more than a few open wounds. When the cursed, burning sun was mercifully blocked by a small shadow, he looked up.

"Drink," She said. The princess tipped his head back and dumped the water on him.

"Ah!" He gulped as much life-sustaining water down as he could. The rest ran into his clothes, cooling the skin and helping his sunburn.

"Thank you, oh, thank you, princess."

She nodded. Anna passed a shocked Anders, went back up the hill, through the mud, into the clearer part of the water, back through the muddy banks, down the muddy hill, back to the bulwarks. She helped another man rise.

"Drink."

It was hard work. Some were too weary to move. Some begged for death. Most told her to stop or she would be put there with them, but accepted her charity all the same.

It took her half an hour to supply one row. She quickly learned to smear mud on the prisoners skin to protect them from burns and to cool them off. The bigger men needed a whole bucket, whereas some of the boys could barely drink half. But all of them needed her.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you."

"Bless you, princess."

"Thank you, so much. Thank you."

Anna moved onto the next row, each prisoner as grateful as the last. By the time she got to her third row, a fair number of soldiers, including Anders, was watching her. Her dress was torn up the side, her sleeves ripped off; her hair was so badly out of place she didn't want to think about it. Mud was caked three layers deep across the girl's body. No part of her looked even vaguely like a princess.

But her actions did.

She brought hope back. Even the soldiers parted to allow her through to fetch the prisoners' water. Saul watched with obvious disdain. This was not the plan. Hans had thought of drawing out the soldiers using hostages, but Saul had counted on them suffering. That would compel the leaders of Bearskulg to come out.

"Stop her!" He ordered. His troops were slow to obey him. Prince Saul cursed them, then the princess, then Hans, before cursing the princess again. Finally, he decided on a plan.

He marched to the prisoner she was working on and slid his sword through his chest. Watching her eyes, once filled with relief, now drained into horror, was as pleasurable as he imagined.

"Now what? If you keep helping them, I'll keep killing them."

Anna still slogged back to the stream, picked up another couple of buckets before bringing them to the next man. She looked into his weary eyes and then Saul's. As she poured the water down his throat, a sword slid through, splashing blood and water in equal amounts on her.

"NO!" She screamed. Anna tried her best to keep her emotions under control. How could anyone be so cruel?!

She marched to the next prisoner. Looking into his eyes, she saw something she had not before; courage.

"Thank you." He nodded, giving her permission to have him killed. Saul killed him, and the next and the next, and the next…

But they kept thanking her. They were nothing but appreciative, and ignored him. Finally, the prince lost his temper, pushing Anna to the ground. His sword above his head, Saul looked around to realize he was being out-matched by a young woman.

"Somebody get this… woman! Out of my sight!"

Anders made a whirling motion with his hand, "If you've got time to watch all of this," he announced to the crowd, "you may as well extend Southern Isle's courtesy. Give 'em some water, boys." His eyes locked with Anna's, "Heaven knows they need it."