chapter six
THE PRETENDER


[Arendelle – October 1522]

The nights were dark in Arendelle at that time of year, Hans considered as he slowly walked the corridors of the castle, gazing out the tall glass windows that lined the walls. Night fell swiftly in that season, the shadows stretching long throughout the whole day, never really halting as they crept under bridges, in streets, down walls.

He had been in Arendelle for three years already, but that all-encompassing darkness, along with the blinding light of the summer season, never stopped striking him. It was different from the Danish landscapes he had grown up in… it was sharper, wilder: the Moon and the Sun seemed wrapped in a war all of their own for the dominion of the skies. It made him fall in love with that country over and over again.

He sighed as he strolled down the hallways, savoring the peace and the quiet, but his expression darkened immediately when he saw a blade of light stretching lazily across the wall. He stifled an exasperated groan.

"God, not this again…" he grimaced as he pushed open the door of the Duke's study.

Elsa, the renown Swan of Arendelle, was sitting on a comfortable couch next to the fireplace, pondering the chessboard laid before her. «Castle to F8.»

The black, chiseled tower slid across the board, stopping a square away from the black king, protecting him. Elsa always like to play with the black, he had noticed.

One of her attendants was sitting on the floor, her knees tucked under herself and her arms crossed on the table for her to lean on as she, too, stared at the chessboard. Her hand hovered on her white queen, brow furrowed as she tried to figure out her next move.

The Duchesse chuckled. «There's no need to be so distraught, my dear.»

«Lady Elsa?» Hans interrupted, startling the dark-haired maid so that she almost knocked down one of her pieces as she scrambled to her feet to bow to him; Elsa also stood and performed a shallow curtsy. «What are you doing here at this late hour?»

«Good evening, Your Highness.» the blonde young woman greeted him as she returned to her cushioned chair and her maid dropped back on the floor. «I am playing chess, as you can see.»

Oh, he could definitely see that. He bared his teeth at her, feigning a smile. «Wouldn't it be more appropriate if you played in your chambers? You and your maid would be a lot more comfortable.»

«I happen to like the study.» Elsa answered simply, pondering as she watched the chessboard. «This is my home, after all. Am I not allowed to go where I please?»

«That is not what I meant to say, Elsa.» he clarified, stepping closer to her chair and setting a hand against the wooden frame. Her attendant tucked a stray lock of ebony hair behind her ear while she moved the most powerful piece on the chessboard to capture a little white pawn sitting and taking the D3 square for itself. «I simply-»

«If you need to get something from the desk, go right ahead.» she cut him off, her attention for the chessboard alone. She moved her other castle to C3, in front of the white queen; clearly she didn't like the way it pointed at one of her bishops. «It doesn't bother me.»

Oh, but it bothered him, Hans thought as he fought back a grimace. More than a dozen of months ago, Elsa had started to be… difficult. She had started to attend every gathering and assembly organized, be it with aristocrats, ministers or ambassadors; she had been reading carefully every document he presented to her before approving it, which had forced him to go through the trouble of forging her signature a couple of times, and had very much hindered the advance of his plans; she had insisted on holding regular audiences with her people, which he was forced to attend as well because skipping them could have been terribly counterproductive for him. The audiences were particularly a headache to him, especially when she insisted on playing the part of the compassionate head of state and decided to take in all kinds of strays, like that annoying little happy-go-lucky page boy and the attendant she was playing chess against.

And that was another thing: she had taken this bothersome habit to play chess all the time, in the study. This had forced him to find another hiding place for all his dubious correspondence with some of the noblemen of the Duchy.

He so wished he could make her revert to that gullible, grief-crippled, helpless woman she had been after her sister's disappearance… to the point he had considered orchestrating some kind of incident to achieve that.

The white queen captured the black castle that had tried in vain to shield the bishop.

A shame he hadn't been able to find an appropriate target to make his move. Anna had been annoyingly elusive. He still hadn't located her hideout in the forest.

One of the Duchess' knights hopped onto H3, checking the enemy king.

But it was only a matter of time. He was going to find Anna and silence her before she could open her pretty little mouth and destroy everything he had worked for during those three years. He was going to subdue Elsa's little rebellion and take the control of the Duchy from her. She could play chess and have teas with the wives of the aristocrats all she wanted; he was going to have the last word.

«My Lady, you should go to bed. You are going to have your friends over tomorrow, you need your beauty sleep.» he patronized, snickering when the white queen captured the black knight, protecting the king. «After all, this is going very well for you, is it? I don't think you have many chances to win this without a queen of your own.»

Elsa didn't grace him with an answer, much less a look. Instead, she reached for her bishop, no longer endangered by the white queen thanks to the knight's sacrifice, and she moved it to C5.

Her attendant sighed and propped her chin on her hand. «I could move my queen into E3, but that would only delay the inevitable, wouldn't it?» her mistress' lips slipped into a smirk. The girl shook her head in defeat. «I really am no match for a player such as yourself, Your Grace.»

«Checkmate.» Elsa chirped happily.

Hans couldn't believe his eyes. Elsa may have been queenless, but her opponent lacked both castles, both bishops, and a knight. She had taken full advantage of that limited mobility and reach to maneuver her pieces to corner the enemy: she had trapped the white king between one of her bishops and one of her castles, cutting off every escape; the pieces the queen had captured – the other castle and that valiant knight that had threatened to check him – were nothing but baits, distractions to save the other bishop and give him the chance to win that war on her behalf.

«Think again, Prince Hans. As you can see, I have it all under control.» the Duchess chided sweetly. «You are kind to worry about my sleeping schedule, but I assure you, there is no need for your apprehension. Actually, shouldn't you be heading to bed? You are going to have to entertain my guests' husbands while we have tea together. You'll want to look your best.»

With no clever remark of his own to counter her suggestion to, basically, go and get his beauty sleep himself, Hans simply smiled and bid her good night. A hiss escaped his lips once was out of the study.

Elsa watched as the Prince shut the door behind him, and a satisfied smirk crept on her lips.

«Watch it, Elsa, your true colors are showing.» the girl in front of her warned playfully as she rearranged the pieces on the chessboard with quick fingers. «Though I have to admit, that was a very nice last word.»

«Thank you, Duana.» Elsa answered with a small nod of her head. «I know I shouldn't have gotten cocky… but he was begging for it.»

«No argument there!» Duana smiled, observing the order restored to the board, as if the war the chessmen had just fought never happened. «Still, we shouldn't make him feel like we're playing him. No matter how close we are.» She fell silent for a few seconds, and tucked a stray lock of dark hair behind her ear. «You okay?»

The Duchess nodded. «I'm fine. And I know we're almost there. What you found out the other day… that's the last piece of this puzzle. And knowing it is making me… impatient.»

«I know you miss Anna. You two will be together soon enough.» the young woman offered as comfort, and her friend visibly reveled in the thought. «But this would be the worst possible time to let our guard down.»

Elsa sighed. She was right, of course, she knew so. Hans had been growing more and more suspicious with every successful ambush and ball raid Anna had pulled off, which didn't bode well for her. Any misplaced word could make him feel like she knew he was up to something, and that could have pushed him to take… more drastic measures to protect himself and his secrets. It was clear that he wasn't completely certain of her cluelessness, as his not telling her about the ball had proven.

«Are you sure no one saw you?» she asked her, suddenly uneasy.

«Sneaking in and out of his room, you mean?» she replied as she toyed with her white king. «I'm sure. I was the cat of our merry gathering of outlaws after all. It wasn't hard to lose my creepy ugly tail, and I even went to the trouble of letting him 'find me' exactly where I had lost him.»

«How nice of you.» Elsa joked, earning a snort of laughter from the girl.

«Mhm. And fun too. You should have seen Gerda scolding him.» she told her. «But seriously, when this is over, make sure to tell your guards to look up every now and then while they patrol. No one ever looks up.» she looked lost in though, and her smile disappeared from her face completely when she added: «And you might want to keep Olaf closer to you though instead of letting him hang out with me. I've seen Morten tailing him as well.»

It took Elsa all of her self control not to screech and jump to her feet to storm to Hans' room and demand to keep his bloodhound away from that child. She didn't want that man anywhere close to Olaf. She could barely stand allowing him in the castle at all, and the only reasons she hadn't take official measures to keep him away from Duana were that it would have compromised both their covers and that she knew her friend could take care of herself – she was far quicker then him, and clearly smarter too. But Olaf was defenseless.

«Just keep him close to you and he'll be fine.» Duana told her as if she had read her mind, setting the white king down and picking up a black knight instead. «Hans isn't sure of what you know. He won't set Morten on your tail, he knows it could upset you to no end if you were to realize he had you followed. It'd be too risky and he knows it. He won't get that bold unless we give him a reason to.»

Elsa nodded, sighing as she leaned against her chair. «I'm worried, Duana.» she confessed, her teeth slightly sinking in her bottom lip. «We're getting close, and I'm afraid of what he would do, should he catch us.»

«He won't catch us.» Duana stated with no hesitation, moving from knight to bishop. «He makes the same mistake I make when I play: I rely too much on one, overpowered piece.» she left the chess pieces alone and set her eyes on Elsa, a reassuring look in her warm, steel grey irises. «As you've just proven, it's possible to win against that kind of set up. It just takes time, patience and cautiousness. We are a step in front of him. We've been ever since we joined forces.»

Elsa couldn't help but smile at the memory.


The way through the forest is worn and bumpy, and Elsa feels like a ball bouncing all over the carriage. The roots of the trees that line the path creep all the way under the road, and every time the big wheels of the coach pass over one of them, they cause her to shake in a way that makes her back hurt, no matter how still she tries to sit. The dampness of the forest is also seeping in the cabin from every pore of the wood, and she can feel it cling to her hair. A good thing Elsa has never been one to mind the cold, or that already uncomfortable journey would be entirely unbearable.

Her gaze wanders to the young woman curled up on the seat in front of her, fast asleep, and her face falls.

Poor thing. Who knows when it was the last time she slept on something remotely soft as the cushioned seats of her coach. She looked so exhausted when she saw her in the streets, it's not hard for Elsa to believe that the bumps in the road don't even bother her.

«A tragedy, truly.» A townswoman told her when she stopped in front of the form of the girl, huddled in a corner of the market place. «Her house was burned down by the Prince's tax collector. There is nothing we can do for her.»

But there is much Elsa can do for her, so she decided to take her in, and now she is sleeping soundly in the carriage, heading back to Arendelle. She could make her her attendant, or something along those lines, Elsa ponders as she slumps in her seat, realizing that keeping her back straight as a broom can only worsen the pain caused by the bumps. It will be refreshing to have someone around who won't mince words about the Prince, at least behind closed doors. She may become the way out she so craved, her eyes and ears outside of the castle.

Recently Elsa has been trying to get out. Ever since she found out about the tax increases drafted by Hans, she has been insisting on taking trips to the village, to scout the country side and make sure her people aren't starving to death.

What she has seen so far isn't reassuring, nor aren't the hateful stares the villagers shoot their way when they think she isn't looking. Of course, it is only natural: the increased taxes may bear the Prince's signature, but where is she? Why has she turned on them? Why isn't she stopping him, protecting them? What has become of her family's policies? Those questions must be raging through their minds.

And she wishes to answer them, wishes to tell them that she hasn't abandoned them, that she's trying her best to stand up for them, that the Prince has bound her hands and stripped her of power for no apparent reason, and that she's trying to do what she can to break free and kick him out… but how to let them know without the Prince finding out what she thinks, what she knows? Would they even listen, believe her?

For the hundredth time only that day, she wishes for Anna. She misses her.

Anna would know what to do. Anna has a way with people. She could tell them everything and she knows they'd believe her, for who could ever doubt the goodness of her heart? It shines right through her. Anna could do what she can't.

"Oh, Anna."

She's so worried about her. The man Hans gave control of the guards… she doesn't like him. The head of her guards, Captain Rafe, doesn't like him either, but there was nothing he could do when the Prince ordered this man to replace him. He looks like a hunter, he had muttered to her one time he met her in the hallways, pleading her to do something about it. But Elsa's objections were as useless as his own.

«It's for your safety, Your Grace.» the Prince told her.

But Elsa doesn't feel safe with him around. If anything, she feels threatened. She doesn't like the look in his eyes, the way he answers to Hans and Hans alone. And how could she? He's the man who has been collecting taxes and setting houses on fire when the people can't pay or try to resist. Why did he take in someone like that, she wonders? What business does that kind of man has with keeping people safe?

Of course, she has suspicions about the reason why, but she's too scared to utter it, even among her thoughts.

The carriage stops so suddenly, Elsa is thrown off her seat and crumples on the ground – how she manages to avoid hitting her head against the other seat is a mystery to her. She tries to scramble to her feet to poke her head out and see what happened, but the cold edge of a blade against her throat freezes her on the spot.

«Not a sound, Your Grace.» hisses the girl Elsa took in from the streets.

Is it all a ruse, she wonders, perfectly still and silent. Has Hans found out she knows he's up to something? Is this his way to take care of the problem she has become? Having her killed in the forest by an unsuspectable sell-sword, and blaming the deed on one angry villager, making it look like the revenge of someone who lost everything because of the taxes?

She doesn't want to die. Not like that. Not before knowing what has become of Anna. Not before doing something. But what does she do? What canshe do?

She swallows, then whispers: «Please, you-»

«Shush.» the assassin cuts her short. Elsa can't help but wonder why she hasn't cut her throat yet.

The carriage door swings open and lush blonde hair fill the entrance. Elsa recognizes her immediately: it's the townswoman who told her of the 'tragedy'. She climbs in.

They make Elsa stand, then force her to take a seat, while the settle down in front of her. The door is still open, and for a second Elsa entertains the idea of running. However, she realizes how foolish that would be – they'd just strike her down, a knife buried between her shoulder blades, or perhaps an arrow fired by a hidden archer, maybe the same one who took down the soldiers accompanying her as well as her coachman. So she just shuffles in her seat, squares her shoulders and raises her chin.

"At least I won't die cowering", she thinks as she asks: «What do you want?»

The blonde woman just toys with a knife. It's her dark-haired companion, the assassin in disguise, who speaks to her. «Answers.»

«Ask your questions, then.» better cut through the chase.

Her reply seems to please her assailants. «Why did you take that boy in, after the hearing you held the other day?»

That is, most definitely, a question Elsa didn't expect. Is that what it is about? What does Olaf has to do with them?

«He is an orphan. The man who used to take care of him in can't afford to provide for him along with his own kids anymore, with the increased taxes, so he kicked him out.» she tells them, no hesitation in her voice. «I took him in.»

«He is none of your business.» the blonde one says, her eyes on the dancing silver glint of the blade.

«He's a chid.» Elsa seethes. «Orphaned, and now homeless. Because of the Prince's taxes.» there's so much venom in her voice, both women are now looking at her. Elsa drops her gaze to her clenched hands in her lap. «He is my business. This is the least I can do for him. If I could do more, if I could prevent these things from happening or stopping them, I would. But…»

She falls silent. What's the point of venting to them? They're there to kill her, aren't they?

«I told you there was no way she was with him.»

Elsa almost breaks her own neck when her head whirls around. She knows that voice. God knows how she has missed that voice.

«Anna!» she blurts as she tumbles out of the coach, any potential knife to her back completely forgotten, all but tripping in the open arms of the young redhead who has just materialized at the carriage door.


«I really thought you were there to kill me.» Elsa giggled, a smile settling on her lips as she recalled her reunion with her recently-outlawed sister.

«Please.» Duana broke in a short laughter. «Anna wouldn't have let us. Even if it turned out Raelyn was right about you being on board with the Prince's plot, she would have kidnapped you on the spot to 'get you back to your normal self, because he had clearly brainwashed you'.»

Oh, Anna. Her sweet, brave, bold little sister. She had never stopped believing in her.

«I am glad that you came with me to the castle, you know.» she told the dark-haired girl. «It's good to have someone I can talk with.»

«And plot with.» she added, making the Duchess' lips curl up into a smirk. She smiled back warmly, satisfied: she had managed to make her feel batter. «Come on, how about another game before bed?»

Elsa broke in a small laughter. «Haven't you had enough already?» she asked her. That was something like the fifth game in a row Duana had lost in one day alone.

«I'll learn, sooner or later.» she said with a shrug. «But I have a question about our last game first. Why did you sacrifice your knight instead of the bishop? It would have made for a faster checkmate.»

The Duchess seemed to ponder her question for a few moments. «I don't really know how to explain it. I guess I just… started drawing parallels.»

There was a beat of silence, then Duana nodded. «I understand.» she decided, and Elsa knew she did. She moved her white queen's pawn to D4. «Your turn, Your Grace.»


Hans let himself fall in the warm, cozy armchair in front of the fireplace. He gulped down the akvavit had poured himself – he had found out the Norwegian process to make that drink was very, very much different from the Danish method, and he liked the result quite a lot – then set the glass on the table. He heard the sound of liquor refilling the glass, but didn't look aside; instead, he brought his fingers together in front of him and stared at the fire crackling merrily.

Elsa knew.

He wasn't sure of what or how much he knew, but he was fairly certain that she had begun to understand something wasn't quite right. And that was probably the worst possible thing that could have happened, perhaps even worse than the whole Robin Hood incident.

When he had first set foot in Arendelle, for the fateful ball held in his honor three years back, everything had seemed quick and simple in his mind: he just had to charm Elsa and marry her. However, he had immediately ruled out the idea when he had seen how distant and cold Elsa acted towards, well, everybody; he had understood at once that he wouldn't have gotten anywhere with her.

Then Anna had waltzed in – quite literally. She had been very, oh so very easy to mesmerize, desperate as she was for friendship and comfort. He had let her rant about the loss of her parents, about the thorn of resentment she had been feeling towards her sister since she had pushed her away for good after assuming control of the Duchy, about her need and her hunger for new, positive emotions. He had offered her a smile, understanding, a glass of empty promises – and she had drunk it, every last drop.

It had been easy to extend his stay in Arendelle: a Duchesse couldn't refuse a Prince, his father probably hadn't even noticed he was away, and his brother had bigger fish to fry. For six months, everything had gone smoothly. Then, out of the blue, Anna had begun coming up with excuses to keep herself away from him. She had probably overheard him talking about something with Weselton during one of their meetings, he had realized after a bit, but by the time had decided to move to do something about it, she had fled.

That had been both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it allowed him to seize control of Arendelle, since Elsa wasn't able to do so, broken as she was from her sister's disappearance; also, it meant that he didn't have to find a way to get rid of Elsa anymore, he could have just waited and then moved on her once she had warmed up to him. On the other hand, he did feel a bit sorry about Anna: he wasn't in love with her and despised her gullibility, but she was fun to be around and had even managed to make him genuinely smile more than a few times.

Things had worsened when the days passed and Anna's body just wouldn't turn up. Given her upbringing, Hans had been sure that she would have died from the cold or from starvation in the forest, or that she would have been killed by some lowly form of life, but clearly that wasn't going to be the case. He didn't like the idea of being forced to dispose of her because she could ruin his plans for good, but he was ready to do so. Rolf Morten had been the perfect man to put in charge of his personal escort; putting him in charge of things and wrestling control of the city from Arendelle's guards had been almost too easy, with Elsa out of the picture.

He quite liked Morten. He was skilled, and he knew how to keep quiet, and as long as he could have his fun hunting someone, he had no qualms about accepting morally dubious or non-strictly-legal tasks … so he had given him a target. However, no matter how skilled or experienced the newly appointed Captain of his Garde was, Anna had slipped from his grasp time and time again. That bothered him, a lot: Morten had never failed any other of the assignments he had given him throughout his two years of partnership with Weselton.

That meant that he had sorely underestimated the redheaded young lady.

Every day Anna roamed free was a day of risks he would rather not take. Every ball she successfully infiltrated meant a horde of angry aristocrats whining with him because all their precious little trinkets had been somehow stolen – he could still feel the headache flare at the mere thought of the last complaint round after the last reception. Every robbery she pulled off thinned out the ranks of his supporters.

And he needed those supporters. He needed them to make Arendelle strong, and he needed to be in control of a strong Arendelle before his scheming uncle put his coup d'état into action and crowned his stupid little brother Val king of Denmark and of the Kalmar Union. Because with a strong Arendelle, and with all the problems with Sweden after the Stockholm Bloodbath, he was sure Val would have left him alone and pretty much independent. He would have never acted to bring him under his control – Val had always been a softie, after all.

To make everything worse, as if Anna's dangerous meddling with his allies wasn't bad enough already, Elsa hadn't warmed up to him. At all. As bothersome as that was, he hadn't really seen it as a threat: his allies were such because they didn't want a scared little girl running the Duchy, after all. However, if the reason of her keeping her distance wasn't due to some sort of inbred coldness, but to some kind of lurking suspicion, it was bad. If that was the case, she was never going to warm up to him. She was never going to accept the marriage proposal he had been waiting to make her. She was never going to hand him the reins of her Duchy – actually, she was probably going to do everything in her power to kick him out of it.

That wouldn't do.

He had to find out if, and what, Elsa knew, and if she had any means to communicate with her masquerading little sister.

«How is your surveillance going?» he asked out loud as he reached for the akvavit-refilled glass.

Morten clicked his tongue. «I haven't come across anything that might indicate some sort of… awareness, Your Highness.»

That could mean that either that stupid page-boy and the quiet servant girl knew nothing, or that they knew everything and were being exceptionally careful to not get caught. He let the akvavit rotate within its crystal vessel, admiring its rich amber color. «And you're sure you never lost them?»

«The child is impossible to lose.» the dark-haired man snorted. «He makes so much noise anywhere he goes, they can probably hear him all the way to Fylkesskog Forest. About the girl…» he fell silent, searching for the words. Hans stopped twirling the glass in his hand, alert. «I thought I had, when she snuck in the baths. I thought she was trying to lose me. However she came out of there after a while, accompanied by that crone of a servant.»

Behind Hans' back, Rolf cringed at the memory of the angry lecture the old bat had given him about 'stalking pretty girls'.

«If Gerda is one of Elsa's, she might have been covering for her. Keep watching her the girl.» the Prince ordered him, and he nodded with a small grin. «You don't have to keep tabs on the page-boy anymore, unless he leaves the castle grounds. He might meet with Anna.»

Yes, that little boy would have been a great information vessel between the two sisters. If only he could prove it, he could use it…

«By your orders, Your Highness.»

He drank from his glass, the liquor scalding his throat. Morten refilled it. When he heard the noise of the crystal bottle being set down, Hans dismissed the man with a wave of his hand. He sighed as the door closed.

Elsa knew.

The more he thought about it, the more everything she had been doing made sense. Insisting to participate to the gatherings. Being present for every ball and social event, even when it was so clear she didn't enjoy them. Holding those hearings and picking up all those strays – a great way to get in touch with Anna. She was trying to get her Duchy back.

Maybe he was letting his paranoia get the better of him, but for a moment he entertained the idea that the tea party she had scheduled for the following day was some kind of war meeting. Then he laughed at his own thought. Elsa didn't have that kind of support. And they were only a flock of hens. They weren't going to scheme behind his back, they were going to prattle about bonnets and flowers and gossip about what their servant girls had overheard in the market.

In the mean time, he would have kept company to their husbands to strengthen his ties with them and gain their support. Oh, yes, he would have turned her little social occasion against her.

So Elsa knew. So what?

It didn't matter. She had no proof – there was none, of that he was absolutely positive; even his partners din't know what his ultimate goal was. She was powerless. If anything, it made things a lot easier, for he could simply blackmail her into marrying him. He only needed the right leverage…


Elsa smiled warmly as she saw Lady Baerd out of the cozy drawing room. The woman held her hands in hers for a while as she fussed over her, recommending to keep warm, to sleep and eat enough, and above all, to keep running circles around that poser of a prince. She then pinched her cheek and trotted away, her dear Alexander waiting for her in the hallway with fondness etched in eyes.

The Duchess smiled and waved gracefully at them, knowing that an invitation for tea of their own was coming in that very night. After all, Alexander had spent the whole day with Hans, and he had surely picked up one or two things she probably would like to know about. A shame Hans wasn't going to let her visit them… and Margrethe knew that. That was why, in her letter, Elsa would find every information she desired, properly concealed by the coding system they had come up with when the Prince had started hindering her movements, practically keeping her locked in the castle with her safety as an excuse.

She went back to the drawing room with a small smile on her face. Tea had been great, as it usually was. Her friends had proven to be insightful, sharp, and as willing to help as ever. She couldn't wait to pass all of the tips they had given her to Anna.

"Soon…" she sighed, her smile faltering.

«Are you okay, Milady?» a sixteen-year-old girl asked her when she saw her on the doorstep.

Elsa caught herself. «Lady Lena.» she acknowledged, noticing that she was the only one who still had to leave. «I am quite fine, thank you. But has your Lord Husband not come to look for you yet?»

«No, Your Grace, not yet.» she answered with a shrug. «I assume he is still conversing with His Highness. As you had anticipated when you first extended your invitation to me, he was ecstatic to have a chance to spend time with him.»

Elsa's eyes sharpened, and she closed the door. «Of course. Tell me, Lena, how are you?»

«Things have… improved since I last saw you, Milady.» she told her with a polite but cold smile, her fingers absentmindedly brushing the side of her face she had been forced to carefully hide during the ball. «But…» she trailed off, then shook her head. Elsa could see it was taking everything for her not to curl up in the armchair she sat in. «I am very grateful for your invitations, Your Majesty. They are my saving grace. For this, I am in your debt.»

It was the Duchess' turn to shake her head. «Nonsense, my dear. It is my pleasure to have you with us for our little gatherings. Oh, before it slips my mind: I had something made for you.» she waved her hand, and Duana handed her a small square of cloth.

She took it and handed the handkerchief to Lena, who unfolded it with flushed cheeks and admiration in her eyes. «Oh, Your Grace, this is lovely!» she peeped, one of her fingers trailing the intricate, one-of-a-kind snowflakes embroidered on the edges. «But you shouldn't have gone through this kind of trouble!»

«No trouble.» Elsa smiled, a faint conspiratorial look flashing across her sky blue irises. «It's a small token I like to present to all of my closest friends among my court. Do treasure it, will you? One never knows when it could come in handy.» the girl nodded slowly, and she winked. «Come now, let's see if we can locate this Lord Husband of yours.»

The Duchess silently applauded Lena for her acting skills: not a grimace escaped her when they strode towards Hans and his new friend once they spotted them near the entrance to the castle.

Lord Haugen was everything Elsa expected him to be: impeccable in his clothes and manners, haughty and condescending, clearly full of himself, and engaged in a hushed conversation with Prince Hans of Denmark.

He greeted her formally, paid little to no attention to his much younger wife, fawned over His Highness a little longer, and then smiled charmingly. «Shall we expect another invitation for these wonderful teas, Your Grace?»

Elsa gave him a charming smile of her own. «Oh, most certainly, Lord Haugen. However, I'm afraid I won't be holding any until after Allehelgensdag.»

He immediately bowed his head to her, looking contrite. «Of course, Milady. Forgive me, that was… indelicate of me.»

«No harm done. And thank you for your understanding.» she said, and then reached out to take her friend's hands in her own with the sweetest of smiles. «But you will write to me in the mean time, won't you, Lena? I would love that.»

The girl smiled back, but it was Lord Haugen who answered for her. «Most certainly, Your Grace. It will be our pleasure. And perhaps…» he added hungrily. «…as we do, we could also send our regards to His Highness?»

Hans smiled to him with practiced ease. «Any friend of Elsa is a friend of mine.»

Elsa smiled during the rest of the smalltalk, and Lena never said a word. When the couple curtsied their goodbye to Duchess and Prince, Elsa found Lena's eyes looking for her through her chestnut bangs. There was fear creeping in those eyes, she realized, a fear that grew stronger when her husband took her hand and led her towards their carriage.

«Come, my darling.»

Elsa gave her a nod of encouragement, knowing it wasn't going to protect her once they were away from the castle grounds… but still, she hoped it would at least comfort her. The girl held the snowflake-hemmed handkerchief tightly in her hand.

«How was tea, Your Grace?» Hans asked her as they walked back in the palace, his hands neatly clasped behind his back. His smile looked perfectly amiable, but his eyes were cold as steel, and alert.

Elsa feigned unawareness. «Oh, it was lovely, Your Highness. Lady Maribelle brought us a wonderful tea she just received from her relatives in England.»

«How precious of her.» he offered, condescendingly. «I didn't know that Lor Völlr had married an English.»

«She's a childhood friend of her sister.» she explained. «They met during a trip across the sea with their parents. The girls became inseparable, to the point that Lord Völlr simply had to ask for the girl's hand.»

Elsa could practically see him scratching Lord Völlr's name off of his mental list – of course, a man so subservient of a woman close to Elsa wasn't going to be a reliable partner in crime for him.

«But of course, I am sure that is just how dear Alissa likes to tell that story.» she added; as much as she enjoyed how Hans looked like he had just bitten a lemon, there was already Alexander he was wary of. It wouldn't do to make him feel surrounded by potential supporters of her own.

«Ah, but of course. That did not sound like Bláinn at all.» Hans said, looking relieved. «What did you ladies talk about? How to style your hair for Allehelgensdag?»

He was deliberately belittling her, clearly trying to provoke her; Elsa saw right through it and walked effortlessly around the trap: instead of giving him any sign of her being more intelligent than what he had so bluntly assumed, she humored him: «Why, yes. And actually, if you excuse me, I would like for my attendant to practice the braided bun we discussed. Your Highness.»

She bowed respectfully, and with that, she took her leave. She didn't have time for his mocking and his baiting. Allehelgensdag was right around the corner, after all, and she had much to do to make sure everything was safe for Anna.

"Soon…" she thought, and smiled as she close her room's door behind her.


Author's Note:

Look at that, I actually updated in a decent time!
And the next chapter is also already all laid out and partially written. Apparently work (and boredom at work in particular) is good for my writing!
Also, first time trying my hand with Hans. Tell me how I did?