Chapter Seven: Above All I Will Make You Happy
Whether you win or lose my piece is yours. I can never deny you your heart's desire.
- Hans' note to Elsa, Chapter 30: The Battle for Chocolates, "The Queen's Admiral"
He remained silent long after she had stopped speaking. She had just revealed the last remaining secrets of her desire for him and it felt wonderful to finally share it with the object of her affection. She knew from his expression he was in deep thought and so she held back just a bit longer, unwilling to break the moment even if she was eager to get back to drowning in his kisses.
"You took advantage of me," he said in that cool suave tone that dripped with mock indignation. Of all the things he could have said after baring her most vulnerable moments that was the last thing she expected. Feeling slightly insulted, she pushed away from the desk and raised an eyebrow at him.
"Excuse me?"
He chuckled heartily but didn't drop the dramatic faux victim expression. "Oh I'm going to remember this forever: who would have thought the virtuous Queen of Arendelle was both a voyeur and a kiss thief. And I thought I was the lecherous seducer. Wait 'til Anna hears about this!"
She was aghast that he would dare share this with her sister. "Don't you even think about saying a word about this to Anna!" she warned.
"Oh I don't know, I think that would help improve my image to her. Even though she has forgiven me, there's still a part of her that thinks I'm a cad that corrupted you. I think she would like me better if she knew you're already corrupt to begin with."
She always responded to these banters by playing the offended lady until he felt guilty enough to cave in to what she wanted. However, an idea struck her that this game could be much more exciting if she went on an entirely different path, one she had never played with him before.
She sat back at the edge of her desk and crossed her legs. "I'm corrupt, am I?" she said coyly.
Hans opened his mouth, but whatever he was about to say got cut off when Elsa suddenly willed the neckline of her ice dress to split in the middle to form a straight line of exposed skin that stopped only when it reached her navel. His eyes trailed down her torso and bit his lower lip. She used her index finger to motion him to come closer. He did without looking up from her chest. When he was close enough she whispered breathlessly in his ear: "You're right about that Admiral. I don't think I'm as virtuous as people think and I can show you exactly how corrupt I can be. Don't tell Anna and I will make it worth your while."
He gasped audibly and looked about to protest but she widened the gap between her gown even further.
"Say you won't tell Anna," she insisted.
"I won't tell Anna," he replied almost automatically as his breath heaved while his gaze still lingered at her chest.
"Good," she smirked, satisfied over this newly discovered power she possessed over him. She then turned his head up to hers and captured his mouth.
Elsa found herself pinned once more on top of her desk and for several minutes she enjoyed his kisses and thrill of his hand moving dangerously over her breast. She was on the brink of just letting everything go when he abruptly pulled away.
"You're making this difficult for me Elsa," he gasped. He moved back an arm's length from her and arranged his clothing. She didn't have to look down to know what was happening to him and her better judgment gradually returned. She decided to tease him further was courting disaster so she stood up and magically restored her gown to its decent state.
"I'm sorry, you started it," she accused even as she giggled at him.
"Alright, alright, fine. Heavens, you're a handful Elsa," he said though he still kept away and refrained from looking at her. "I love you but you going on like that when we're supposed to wait is just torture. My control has limits. So unless you intend for me to prematurely end up in your bed, don't do… that."
She touched his shoulder but kept it light, offering no possible potential to tease him again. "Ok I won't or at least try not to. Forgive me?"
He gave a sigh, sat on one of the nearby couches and motioned for her to sit next to him. She did and he enveloped her in a chaste hug. "How could I not? You're the only woman I've ever wanted."
"So the woman you told me that night in the cave that you loved was me?"
"There was never anyone else," he declared. "And before you even ask, no, I was never involved with Constanza, not even for one night of loveless coupling. She doesn't think of me that way."
"I just figured she's a very attractive woman, Hans. And she has such high regard for you."
"She's a good friend Elsa, nothing more. There's no possibility of me falling for her, and there's even a lesser possibility of her falling for me."
"Why not?" Elsa asked. As far as she knew, Hans was the most charming man alive. Why wouldn't someone like Constanza fall for him, even just a little bit.
"Well that's because…" he hesitated as if he was deciding what to say. "Don't tell anyone, but you see, men's charms don't exactly… err… shall we say… have an effect on Constanza."
"Why not?" she repeated before the meaning of what he said sank in. "Oh. She's…?"
"Yes," he confirmed.
Elsa felt the gravity of that revelation. It wasn't something that was talked about openly in society and something even she was uncomfortable to speak of so she decided to offer no further questions on the subject. Constanza was also her friend and Elsa would never betray that about her.
"I won't tell anyone, certainly. What she does is her business and I think she has the right to choose the one she could be most happy with now that she's no longer married. I just hope she finds her own happiness as we did."
"As do I," Hans replied. "She deserves that at least after all she's been through. But tell me something instead," he paused and Elsa could tell he was reverting back to the subject of their relationship. "When did you realize I loved you? You said when I declared my feelings for you when Anna caught us, you knew."
"A few days after that night with the trolls, on the ship after the chess game when you…"
"Gave you the chocolate?" he finished for her.
She nodded.
"I wasn't certain if you would get the message," he admitted. "I wanted to tell you so badly, but I didn't want us to ruin our friendship or to make you feel uncomfortable. When you didn't say anything about it, I assumed you just wanted to stay friends."
She laid her head comfortably on his shoulder and gently caressed his chin with her fingers. "Oh there wasn't a day after that that I didn't want to be more. But there was my promise to Anna and our positions to consider."
"I understand," he replied as he began kissing her fingers. "When you finally declared what you felt for me in front of Anna, Fredrik and Olaf, I knew my path was clear: I was going to be with you, no matter what and not even a promise from Anna can stop me."
Elsa was baffled and she suddenly jerked away from his shoulder. "Wait—what? But you conceded to keep away from me when I said I was keeping my promise to Anna."
"Of course, I did," he replied coolly. "I knew the battle was lost between me and your sister right there, but it didn't mean the war for you heart was over. I merely retreated for the moment so I can plan a new strategy to get you."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Did Hans just admit he had been plotting all along to win her? It felt like she was being played at once more. Granted, he did love her, but she didn't like the idea of being a prize to be won in his endless strategic maneuverings.
She stood up from the couch and huffed as she moved across the room away from him. She paced for a moment before turning at him angrily. "So what were you planning to do exactly after that little dramatic walkout? Were you planning to charm me after that? Convince me to sleep with you? Become my paramour? Get me pregnant then blackmail me to marry you so not even Anna can do anything about it?"
"Elsa, no I wouldn't do that to you," he said. He approached her, gingerly and held out his hands to hold her but she crossed her arms and refused to come forward. "Elsa to pit your heart against me and your sister would mean one of us has to lose. That's no victory for me even if you decide to choose me. As I said before, I can never deny your heart's desire and your heart desires Anna's love as much as you love me. My plan was not to charm you, but to charm Anna."
Now Hans was even more confusing. "Charm Anna?"
"Yes, I was planning to charm Anna and convince her I was good enough for you and that I have no intention but to make you happy. I wanted her to let go of that promise from you so you can be free to be with me without guilt. Of course it's not exactly an easy task. I estimated it would take me years before I can chip away at her armor. When she made a grab at that lamp and then later revoked my citizenship I thought she was throwing my plans out the loop. I snapped both times out of frustration. I'm just glad she wasn't as stubborn as I thought she would be and came through earlier than I expected."
Elsa's heart melted at his words and she allowed herself to fall back into his arms. "You would have waited years for me?"
He gently ran his thumb across her cheek. "I would have waited another lifetime, my Snowflake."
The endearing name called back a memory of that night they spent together and she had to satisfy her curiosity about one little detail. "Were you… I wasn't dreaming when you called me that was I?"
"No, you weren't. You rolled over and started hugging me. I was afraid you would suddenly wake up and think I was taking advantage of you. You were so adorable when you asked me to keep you warm I didn't have the heart to keep you away. I'm glad I didn't because it turned out I wasn't dreaming either when you kissed me."
"You knew I kissed you?"
"I wasn't sure until now. My dreams have often revolved around you kissing me… among other things." He blushed slightly and she guessed his dreams were a bit more risqué than he was willing to admit. "I wasn't completely awake then but I didn't want to risk scaring you or making you stop so I lay very still and just let you do it. When I finally became aware enough to decide that dream or not I was going to kiss you back, you were gone."
"Now I wished I stayed in that bed," she said coyly.
"So did I, but it would have made our relationship more complicated if you did. I'm just grateful for the way things turned out and I will be glad to do all these things I've dreamed about with you in the near future." He paused as if he remembered something before he reached around the collar of his uniform and produced a thin chain there that was hidden underneath his cravat. "It's a little silly, but I think I want to show you something."
He pulled the chain above his head and Elsa noticed something small hung from it: two familiar little twigs shaped into rings.
"I… I thought you threw these in the fire that night…" Elsa gasped when she realized what they were.
"I didn't, they meant too much to me. I kept them in a box in my cabin and I found them this morning. I wasn't exactly sure if you'd want to see them again. I was just being sentimental I guess, but they're nice little souvenirs if you want."
"They're not silly at all," she replied as tears threatened to fall from her eyes. "I know exactly where we should put them." She took the bigger ring and slipped it on his finger. He followed her example and slipped the other ring on her finger in return. "There. They belong there until we have the real rings on our wedding."
"It won't come soon enough," he said while he drew her head back on his shoulder.
For several minutes they stayed that way, quietly enjoying their closeness while she pondered on the tediousness of the wedding spectacle they would face in a month while battling the urge against keeping celibate.
"I don't suppose, eloping now would be an option for us?" he asked.
It was an attractive solution but she dismissed it quickly. "And who would marry us? The reporters are practically camped out between the church and the court house. If we so much as step in there, expect us headlined tomorrow."
"There's always Carpet. We can go for a flight, go to some far away country where no one knows us and get married there."
Elsa considered it. It could work. Why do they have to wait when they had the means to make it a more meaningful wedding for both of them?
"Let's do it," she said brightly. "We can go to the Mediterranean or the Pacific Islands or even Asia. You think that will be far enough?"
"Anywhere you want my love," he replied as he claimed her lips again and she let herself be lost in his embrace.
BANG!
The door opened like a gunshot and they both jumped up and moved away from each other. Elsa was glad she had kept her gown to a modest length when she faced Anna. Her sister strode in, her face flushed with anger and stopped in front of them with her hands on her hips.
"YOU LIED TO ME!" Anna thundered as she faced her sister before turning her furious gaze on Hans. For a moment Elsa was afraid she would hit him and she immediately rushed between her livid sister and her fiance.
The door opened once more, with lesser force and Kristoff came in muttering "Here we go again," in his typical exasperated manner. Elsa was immediately glad for his more level-headed presence.
"Feisty pants, calm down! It might not be what you think," Kristoff began as he tugged at his wife's arm
Anna shook off his hold and kept glaring at the engaged pair. "You two have been lying to me. Never been together, just friends, my foot!"
"Anna, what's wrong? I don't understand," Elsa pleaded.
"You're married!" Anna declared.
Elsa and Hans stared at each other in confusion and their reaction only seemed to incense Anna more.
"Oh don't act like you don't know anything," she taunted. "You've been married for over three months! That was even before you left for the Coronan Conference! And here you are acting all innocent the whole time. Were you even planning on telling any of us about your secret marriage?"
"Secret marriage?" Elsa gasped. "I'm sorry Anna, I'm confused. Hans and I have never been married. I told you the truth. Until the day we came back to Arendelle we were nothing but friends. You were there when I told him how I felt. I certainly didn't marry him before."
Anna stared at her sister as if she was trying to discern if she was lying. Eventually, her face softened and looked apologetic. Then she turned to Hans and her furious expression came back at full force. "Well maybe Elsa didn't know but you did! You planned this! You married her without her knowing!"
"Anna, I swear I don't know anything either. I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't married Elsa, but I will soon in the most honorable fashion as she rightly deserves."
Anna merely huffed back to indicate she didn't believe one word of it.
"Anna, he doesn't know," Kristoff said calmly. "We wouldn't have known either if Grand Pabbie didn't explain it to me before we went through with it."
Anna continued to scowl and looked like she was trying to convince herself her sister's fiance was guilty. "Don't tell me Grand Pabbie never explained it to you?"
"Explain what?" Elsa and Hans exclaimed together.
"You were trollfully married. I heard it from my mother-in-law!"
Elsa and Hans stared at each other. They giggled together and held out their twig-rings. "Oh you mean this? This was all just a joke," she said as she tried to laugh it off but stopped when she realized Anna was dead serious and was now staring at the rings with horror. "Wait… it is just a little jest by the trolls… wasn't it?"
"I mean it's ridiculous, it couldn't be," Hans said as he twisted his ring uncomfortably.
"So you think my in-laws' customs are ridiculous?" Anna countered mightily.
"N-no of course not," Hans quickly replied. "I mean it's just a mock wedding, "It's not legal or binding isn't it?"
"Of course it's binding!" Anna thundered. "It's a magical bind between two people! Weren't you even listening to the one that married you? And since you Elsa signed the law of religious tolerance that has a provision, which I quote 'the law shall honor any contract of marriage conducted in the rites exercised under an indigenous religion and officiated by said religion's duly appointed priest or minister'. The trolls have an indigenous religion and the one that officiated your marriage is an appointed priest. So yes, under the laws of Arendelle, it is legal!"
Hans and Elsa looked at each other as they absorbed this new information.
"We're…" Hans began.
"Married," Elsa finished for him.
"We don't have to…" he said.
"No we don't," she confirmed.
"I suppose we have to file some kind of document officially with the register," Hans said.
Elsa nodded as she understood. "Yes, we can do it tomorrow. I can send Kai to call the notary in. We can sign it in front of him. But I don't want to be here when the notary files it back to his office and the rest of kingdom gets word of it."
"We don't have to be," Hans reassured her. "We don't have to deal with this for say… two weeks?"
She understood perfectly what he meant and was glad he thought of it. "Baghdad, Greece or China?" she asked.
"All of them, we'll take a tour wherever you want."
"I look forward to it."
"Hello?" Anna interrupted. "Are you two even listening? You're married! What are you going to do about that?"
Elsa quickly hugged her sister and kissed the top of her head. "I'm leaving you in charge for two weeks as my regent."
Anna stared at her, confused. "What?"
Elsa just smiled serenely at her. "Get Fredrik to help if you need to. He's familiar with things now and I'll speak to him and have all the treaty papers with the Southern Isles approved by tonight. He knows how to convey a counsel by tomorrow afternoon and you can work out all the details while I'm gone."
"While you're gone? Where are you going?" Anna asked.
"Hans and I are off to our honeymoon. Just two weeks. We'll take Carpet before noon tomorrow."
Anna stood with her mouth open for several moments until Kristoff finally used his thumb to gently push her mouth to close it. "Just let them go, dear. They deserve it. It's not like we haven't done the same before."
Anna finally seemed to wake up from her shock and faced her husband with an indignant expression. "We only toured the Scandinavian region. They're talking about going to China and heaven knows where else in the world and…" her face suddenly softened and she suddenly threw her arms around Elsa and started jumping at the balls of her feet while crying out in her usual cheerful self. "Oh, you're going to have such a grand adventure! I'm so jealous! You have to tell me everything about it when you get back! A honeymoon around the world? This is so exciting!"
"I will," Elsa said as she hugged her sister back. "Thank you Anna."
Anna gave her one final squeeze then let go.
"And you!" Anna strode towards Hans. Without warning she grabbed his cravat and yanked it forward viciously so that his face rested inches from hers. The image of the diminutive Anna attempting to threaten the much taller Hans wasn't exactly making a frightening impression but Hans didn't pull away. He seemed determined to take this like a gentleman and let her have her way. "Make sure you return here in two weeks with Elsa just the same as she is now or there will be consequences."
"I'm not sure I can come back here with Elsa being completely the same," he uttered before he realized what he said. He quickly colored and Elsa suddenly had the urge to hide.
"What did you just say?" Anna thundered on even as Elsa squirmed at her sister's audacity to have that question out in the open.
"I meant she's coming back happier than she is now," Hans declared as he shot a nervous look at his wife.
"Good save," Anna clenched. "Make sure she does." She let go of his cravat and her face softened. She slapped him lightly on the cheek. "Enjoy the honeymoon then."
"We will Anna, we appreciate the concern," Hans said humbly and that seemed to satisfy the princess enough.
"Anna, we should go," Kristoff declared. "I'm sure the two of them have much to talk about." It was not the first time that Elsa was glad for her brother-in-law's tack and she was about to give Kristoff a grateful look but Anna piped in again.
"Oh no, you are taking Hans for a nice long walk dear."
"I am?" Kristoff asked, clearly puzzled.
"He's not walking me to my execution is he?" Hans questioned.
Anna ignored the comment and proceeded to talk as if Hans wasn't even there. "Yes, Kristoff, you are taking Hans walking so people can see that's he's left the castle through the gates and has gone into the village. Pretend that you're going to get a few drinks at the Rose Pub… Or better yet, do go into the Rose Pub and get him a drink, just don't get him drunk. Then before midnight, you sneak him back through the western postern. I'll make sure to leave it open. Go past the chapel, and walk the length to the duck pond garden. There's a temporary scaffolding in there that the workmen use to repair the library. It will be empty by then. Get him to climb it until the third level and then tell him jump into the window of my old bedroom. From there, he can just go right across."
"Across to where?" Hans asked fearfully.
"Elsa's bedroom," Anna answered as if it was obvious.
Elsa flushed as she understood what Anna was hinting and Hans looked just as embarrassed.
"Anna… this means a lot… how could I…?" Hans began.
"Just make sure I don't hear you. Whatever it is you do, I don't want to know," Anna replied sternly before she broke into an uneasy smile. "Besides… you're already married for three months. I think it wouldn't be fair for you to hold back now that you do know."
Elsa drew her sister in her arms once more. She couldn't find the words to say but she knew she didn't need to anymore.
"Wait, how is Hans going to get out of my bedroom unseen tomorrow?" Elsa asked once she parted from Anna's embrace.
Anna pouted in Hans' direction. "Figure that out on your own. I already worked out how to get him in."
Elsa decided it in her best interest to leave it at that. She was sure she and Hans can think up some way to get him out without detection by tomorrow… if they don't get too distracted with each other.
Elsa wakened to fresh sea air, bright sunshine and the sounds of the rolling surf interspersed with the morning songs of gulls. As inviting as the possibility of watching the sunrise across the Bay of Naples, the warmth surrounding her was a far greater force that persuaded her to stay where she was. Hans' chest heaved evenly just below her cheek and she looked up to glance at his handsome face in serene slumber.
Yesterday was an adventure unlike anything she had ever experienced. Their first stop on this two-week tour was the fulfillment of one of their common childhood dreams. The ancient town of Herculaneum that was destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius almost two thousand years ago was discovered a few decades prior to have housed one of the largest collections of books. The books couldn't be read due to being carbonized from the eruption, but the charred scrolls were still an object of fascination for both Elsa and Hans. They speculated that someday someone would be able to unroll some of those scrolls and reveal its secrets while they marveled at the unearthed statues, buildings and roads preserved in time. It was like being in a whole different world and they delighted in exploring it.
At one point, they paused at one of the ruined villas. Only a few columns and structures remained but Elsa and Hans could make out the outline of large fountains surrounded by statues of beautiful women they could only guess represented the muses. At the center of it was a broken statue of Hercules, clad in a lionskin with his face raised to the heavens. Upon further exploration of the area, they uncovered frescoes on the remaining walls with images that showed the famous Grecian hero and his exploits against various monsters like the Hydra and Erymanthian boar. But there was one image that fascinated Elsa most: a woman in traditional Greek clothing that stood in the distance seeming to welcome Hercules with open arms. She figured this was Megara, Hercules' wife whom she felt a strange affinity for. Feeling romantic, Elsa used her imagination and her powers to reconstruct the villa with her ice. Hans watched her with deep admiration as she reformed the columns, replaced the roof, restored the statues and even created vases, furniture and flowering plants that suited the time period. When she was done, she stood before Hans at the center of it all, and took his hand. She made love to him right there as she imagined another couple might have more than two thousand years earlier.
The sun was beginning to set when they finally fell sated in each other's arms. They rose and went back with Carpet to their isolated rented cottage near the sea. They spent the rest of the night cuddling together as they watched the stars above the crashing waves.
As she now lay awake next to him she looked forward to the next adventure the day will bring but decided to spend a few more minutes watching him sleep. She wiggled out of his embrace to hover slightly above his face.
"We've been here before," she whispered. "But I'm no longer afraid to do this." She started running her fingers through his sideburns in a swirling motion before she moved up to thread though his hair. When that didn't wake him up, she moved towards his lips and kissed him softly. She intended only just a short peck but to her surprise, he kissed her back and captured her upper lip with his so she couldn't move. Before she could react, he flipped her over so she fell on her back while he lay on top of her, kissing her even more deeply while his tongue invaded her mouth. She welcomed it with her own and her willingness encouraged him to allow his hands to roam over her naked skin.
"You were awake," she accused when he pulled away to breathe.
"Of course I was, I was just waiting for you to kiss me," he teased. "I figured you wanted to try it again knowing your fetish for stealing kisses."
She giggled to hide her blush. He knew her so well.
"Well I hope you do that a lot in the future," continued Hans. "I consider that my new favorite way to wake up."
"Even if you're already awake?" she pouted.
"Especially if I'm already awake. How else can I kiss you back if I wasn't?"
"Then kiss me again."
"Happy to do so my Snowflake." He dove for her lips once more.
They spent the next half hour or so loss in the bliss of tangled sheets.
"Where shall we go next?" she asked when they finally managed to speak again.
"China?" he suggested. "There's this ancient warrior woman from the Ming Dynasty that I've read about that you might be interested in discovering. They said she buried in ice an entire army of Huns using just one shot."
"One shot?" she wondered, suddenly fascinated. "Does she have ice powers too?"
"I don't know," he replied. "Maybe she just aimed at the right place. We can find out then have dinner at this really great old place Genie recommends called 'Chien Po's'. It's supposed to be located just outside the Forbidden City."
"Hmmm… the Forbidden City?" Elsa repeated as she recalled her old readings of the centuries-old structure and the little information it provided. "What exactly is forbidden in it?"
"People like us who would like to know its secrets?" Hans offered.
"Which means we have to find out."
It was Hans' turn to raise an eyebrow at her.
"What?" she asked.
"I didn't know you had a streak of reckless daring in you."
She playfully touched his chin with her fingertips in the way he loved. "Well maybe I'm finally letting go of my over caution. Do you object?"
"No. I think I like this side of you. Entering the Forbidden City might be fun. I'll even dare invade the Emperor's private library and get one of his books for you."
"I wouldn't go that far," she chuckled. "I wouldn't object to sampling his chocolate if he has any in the royal kitchens though."
"Ah yes… it all boils down to chocolate. If he has some, you will have it. Anything your heart desires my love," he promised before affirming it with another kiss.
The End
Author's Note:
Herculaneum is an actual Roman town dedicated to Hercules that was buried in the devastating eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD—the same catastrophe that buried the more popular city of Pompeii. It was first discovered in the mid-18th century and one of the more interesting finds are the hundreds of carbonized scrolls in one of the villas. It's basically the biggest ancient library collection in the world that still exists—albeit unreadable. In more recent years some scrolls have been successfully unrolled and scholars are still attempting to decipher the texts. It would be fitting that Elsa and Hans who both loved books would pick this spot for their honeymoon.
Chien Po is the name of one of Mulan's soldier friends. I have a backstory for him. After he marries Princess Su in Mulan 2, they open a restaurant outside the Forbidden City which thrived for centuries. There's no certain timeframe on when the story of Mulan occurred, but I chose the Ming Dynasty as the Forbidden City would have existed at that time and the legend of Mulan had a resurgence during that period.
My most grateful thanks to all of you who have stuck it out reading this tale as well as the "The Queen's Admiral." It's been a great fun making these characters come alive and I hope you liked how I gave Hans and Elsa their own fluffy ending together.
