Of Love and Weakness

(A/N: Second up today. As per request of at least one reviewer. Would really appreciate feedback on this chapter. Not sure how well it flows. Kind of a breather chapter before we get into more stuff such as deep discussion and action. I actually quote a passage of H.C. Andersen's The Little Mermaid, here. Well, a passage and a quote that probably happens later in the story, but that I mashed with the passage because 'in early development' and all that.)

When news came of the slaughter, Justic wanted to put a gun in his mouth and blow his brains out.

Some men should not be given a second chance…

He let out a shaky breath, willing back his tears, and bowed his head low, shutting his eyes tightly. Moren was frozen. "How many?" he whispered.

"One-hundred. Men, women, children," the messenger murmured quietly. "Their bodies were dragged through the water behind the ships, then tied to the rocks by the shore. Some of the women had been… It was horrible."

"And there… there's no doubt that it was Meilic?" Justic whispered.

"None. His were the ships seen off the coast. The brand on the bodies was the brand you bear on your neck and chest, prince Justic. Justic absently scratched the scars. He shook his head. This couldn't be happening to him.

"He… he will pay… Dearly…" Moren finally stated. "Get Hans. Now."

"Yes, your majesty," the messenger said, bowing and leaving.

Moren turned to Justic. "Are you alright?" he murmured.

"I have to lay down. I don't feel well," Justic said to Moren, voice weak.

Moren nodded sympathetically. "Go," he dismissed. Justic rose and all but ran from the throne room. Moren watched after him concernedly then sighed, leaning back and massaging his temples. This was a nightmare.

Frozen

"He escaped?!" Hans demanded, eyes wide in outrage and shock. "How?!"

"Someone released him," Duach darkly replied. "And that someone will pay with their life, when it is discovered who it was. Because of him or her…" Duach trailed off.

"Because of him or her, what?" Hans asked. Duach was quiet. Soon, though, he took a breath and described the slaughter.

Hans listened in numb silence, eyes wide. When Duach finished, there was stunned pause. "Son of a bit…" Hans finally began.

"Silence," Moren cut off, glaring at him. Hans frowned but dropped off. All those people, the children… He felt his hands shaking in a barely concealed rage, fists clenched tightly. The pirate king would pay with his life and the lives of all his men… As would whoever had set him free… "Take your ship and make all haste to Arendelle's waterways. I believe that is where he'll go next. Whether to take revenge on them like he has with us, I don't want to know."

"Arendelle? Why? The Admirals did nothing to him, it can't be a revenge thing," Hans mused out loud.

"Perhaps he goes there because he is in the process of establishing his dominance over them," Moren stated. "He can't be allowed to succeed. Head him off. Ensure he gets nowhere. And Hans, the next time you catch him, kill him. He will not get away with this slaughter."

"Oh, it'll be my pleasure. I may have to throw in torture too. I'll leave immediately," Hans said, turning and marching swiftly towards the doors. Report had to be made to Elsa about the commandeered ships anyway, and the whole sea battle that had taken place.

"Hans, a letter came from Elsa for you!" Moren called after him. Hans froze and cringed. Or not. It seemed she already knew.

"Oh boy," he said, shifting uneasily and walking back. He tentatively took the letter Moren was handing out, blushing slightly, cleared his throat, and left for real this time, going straight to his room to read it.

Frozen

Prince Hans:

Report has been made to me, by my Admirals, of all that transpired in the North Sea. Of the battle, the commandeering, and the capture of the pirate. I congratulate you on your successful campaign, though I am less than impressed by the damage to the ships. I don't suppose you intend to compensate the losses, do you? Oh well. I am content in knowing no lives were lost and the pirate king is no longer a threat to the North Sea and our lands.

Queen Elsa

Hans reread the note then groaned, head-desking. Oh this was a nightmare. He took a breath and sat up straight, massaging his forehead. Okay, all right, just get this over with. Like pulling off a bandage. He picked up a quill and pulled out a piece of paper.

Queen Elsa:

Though appreciated, your praise is premature. The pirate king escaped not two nights passed. Someone within the palace has chosen loyalty to him over loyalty to us and set him loose. He makes for Arendelle as I write this, and as soon as this letter is sent, so do I, to try and stop him in his tracks before he can enact revenge. By the time you read it, I will be at sea.

You will be compensated for the losses. Moren will be sure of it.

Prince Hans

Prince Hans:

You are to come directly to Arendelle. No argument, no protest. We need to talk.

Queen Elsa

Hans grimaced at the words on the paper he held. 'We need to talk'. Ooh, that was never, ever, ever good. Ignoring her own order that he was not to come within a day of Arendelle, bad. He groaned, burying his face in his hands. This wasn't happening. He breathed a sigh and frowned upwards. None of this was okay. He shook his head. It just got better and better. He tucked the letter away in his desk, in the leather folder he kept them in, and went up on deck to give the order to make for Elsa's kingdom.

Frozen

"Of all the things that could have happened, this?" Elsa demanded as she and Hans walked through the palace gardens side by side, discussing matters.

"This wasn't my fault!" Hans immediately defended. "I was all for executing the man, but no. Justic would have none of that."

"Unbelievable. Now not only do we have to contend with the threat Meilic poses, but the threat of another pirate as well," Elsa said.

"Wait, another?" Hans asked.

"Exclusive to Arendelle's trade routes, and Corona's. A fairly recent phenomenon. His name is Xe. He's a noble gone privateer gone pirate. Months before you were taking on the task, he came to me and offered to hunt pirates on the sea in order to ensure the safety of the shipping routes. I told him he was permitted if he stuck only to Arendelle's waters and brought those he caught back alive. He agreed. But I suppose greed and the pirate's life got to him. He turned full circle and began pirating rather than hunting. He's recently begun to claim he intends to take Meilic's place as king of the seas," she explained.

"Xe? Is he Asian, perchance?" Hans asked.

"That seems a bit prejudice," she said, frowning.

"Cut me a break," Hans replied.

Elsa sighed but let it go. "It's hard to tell," she replied. "Maybe in part."

"A Hun," Hans remarked half-teasingly, to see if he could get under her skin.

"A what?" Elsa asked.

So much for getting under her skin this round, he noted. "The Huns were a medieval tribe of warriors, the most famous of which was Attila the Hun. I think they were Mongolian, but as I've said before, I'm not the historian. That's all Mael," Hans replied. Elsa nodded in understanding. "So now we have two pirates. What next?" Hans asked, getting back on topic.

"Well, the wicked sprite may escape," Elsa said.

"Don't remind me," Hans replied with a groan. "Anyway, you said we needed to talk? Somehow I doubt this is the kind of talk you meant."

"Admittedly I thought about lashing out at you, but that would get us nowhere. So let's talk about how to handle this instead," Elsa replied.

"How about you let me do my job while you focus on your kingdom," Hans answered.

"That's one way to deal with it, but then it hasn't done us any favors thus far, has it?" she bit.

"It wasn't my fault!" Hans insisted.

"I know," Elsa replied with a sigh. "It's just… This has me worried and on edge. I have Meilic closing in one side, Xe on the other, Weselton demanding audience, and the ever present threat of the Troll King up in the mountains not even a week's ride away from Arendelle."

"So what do you suggest, Elsa?" Hans asked.

"I don't know," she frustratedly replied, drawing her fingers through her bangs.

Frozen

There was silence as they both continued to walk through the fragrant flowers, lost in thought. "It'll be handled," Hans soon said by way of assurance. "Just don't send out anymore privateers, please."

She blushed faintly and inwardly groaned as she realized that, in a sense, she had been responsible for the rising threat that was Xe. Elsa had to admit, she was a little grateful to Hans for not pointing that out directly. She got the sense his brothers had done things like that to him before, so he probably knew what it felt like and therefore refrained from doing it himself. "I can deal with Xe. It's Meilic that has me worried," Elsa finally said. "I'm sailing with you, when you go out again."

Hans froze in place. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, I don't think so! No way!" the prince shot sharply, ticked at the idea.

"Why not?!" she demanded.

"You know, there's a superstition that a woman on board a ship is bad luck," he bit, not directly answering.

"Oh please. You know as well as I do that that belief went out with the eighteenth century! Maybe even seventeenth," she retorted.

"We can hardly stand each other separated on land! What makes you think we'll survive a sea voyage stuck together?!" Hans demanded.

"I can restrain myself, Prince Hans. Can you?" she bit.

"You have a kingdom to run," Hans argued.

"The council can handle it. At least for a time," Elsa answered.

"Forget it! You're not coming. Especially not if you're wearing that," he replied, gesturing to her dress.

"What, you think a woman can't be as tough wearing a gown as she could be wearing those idiotic trousers?" Elsa demanded.

"Oh for the love of… Quit twisting my words! You want to go on a ship in that dress, fine. Fine. It may be ridiculous, but it'll certainly be more comfortable. Plus it'll give the crew something to look at when you get up on the riggings, though I can't say I'll be as thrilled as they will," Hans shot.

"You make it perfectly clear to them that if they look they get frozen, and we'll all be happy," Elsa replied, resisting the urge to slap him. "And just so you know, I didn't mean on your ship. I meant something else. Something more subtle. Something that could act more like a trap."

Frozen

Hans immediately perked up, suddenly much more intrigued. "Okay, I'll bite. I like where this is going. Explain," he said.

"Xe is a coward. He never goes after ships that are generally well-armed. He tends to prefer minimally armed ones, but his favorite target is passenger ships," Elsa said. "There's suspicion he heavily involves himself in slave trade, and he ransoms worthwhile captives for a high price. Or their bodies. A passenger ship that will be carrying a good number of wealthy citizens happens to be leaving port tomorrow morning, bound for Norway." Like the Southern Isles was a mashup of both Denmark and Scotland, Arendelle was a mashup of both Norway and Sweden. Primarily Sweden. Her ties to both lands were tight. "It's a prime target. You and I will be on that boat, and Anna and Kristoff. Xe won't be able to resist. Behind us, my Admirals will follow at a distance, ready to swoop in if we need help. Once Xe is dealt with, all our efforts can be focused on Meilic."

"Both you and Anna aboard is too risky," Hans argued.

"I tried to tell her that. She wouldn't hear me," Elsa replied with a sigh.

"Then order her to stay," Hans said.

"She'll just stowaway," Elsa replied, shaking her head hopelessly.

"Wild child?" Hans remarked with a smirk.

"Like Franz," Elsa confirmed, smirking.

Hans grimaced. "Yeah," he said. "Look, you have to convince her not to come. Somehow."

"I told her to marry Kristoff and bear an heir to the throne, and then we could talk about her coming," Elsa answered, smirking ruefully.

"Ooh, cold. And she said?" Hans asked.

"You're queen, so how about I go and you stay here finding a consort to give you an heir," Elsa answered.

"Wow. She got lippy," Hans said, laughing.

"I didn't talk to her for a day," Elsa answered, smirking. "I suppose I had it coming, though."

Frozen

Hans and Elsa reached the end of the garden and stopped. Elsa perched on the garden wall while Hans leaned on it. "How is their engagement progressing?" the prince wondered, deciding it was best to try and keep this cordial. After losing Meilic, they were on pretty precarious ground as it was.

Elsa's smirk fell to a frown. "I don't know if she can marry Kristoff," she soon remarked. Why she was opening up to Hans about this, she didn't know, but she really didn't care to think it through.

"Why not?" Hans asked at the same time another voice did. They looked over quickly. Olaf was there, looking shocked and devastated.

"Oh, Olaf! I-I'm sorry. You weren't supposed to hear that," Elsa said.

"But why can't she marry Kristoff? She loves him!" Olaf said.

"I know she does, and she'll marry him, I promise. It's just… going to be a bit complicated," Elsa said.

"Why?" Hans asked. "What's wrong?"

"He's a working class man, Hans. And Arendelle's laws on marriage are strict and outdated. The second child can't marry until the first does, unions between peasants and royalty are strictly prohibited, etcetera," Elsa answered.

"Oh. So get married, Elsa," Olaf cheerily said. "I can play matchmaker and check out all sorts of princes and kings for you! And the law on peasants? Just knight Kristoff or something."

"He'd have to be royalty, not a knight. A knight isn't considered worthy enough to court a princess," Hans said to Olaf. He turned to Elsa. "Hold on, isn't Grand Pabbie king of the trolls in the Valley of the Living Rock? At least, he seemed that way from what I could tell when I met him. If he's Kritoff's adoptive grandfather, then technically Kristoff is royalty, a future potential crown prince of the trolls."

Elsa blinked in shock and sharply turned to Hans, eyes wide. He started at the look in her eyes. She wasn't going to kiss him, was she? Because that would just be weird. And awkward. And just no. Truth be told, she actually almost did, dangerously close to being caught up in the excitement. Then she'd recalled just who it was she'd be kissing, and reality ensued.

"You're right. Hans, you're right!" she giddily exclaimed, as she processed what this meant. "If I can get official acknowledgement of Kristoff's position in the hierarchy of the trolls, it might be enough! He would be considered royalty and once everything else was settled, Anna would be free to marry him without reproach! Thank you!" she exclaimed, hugging the prince, from the garden wall, in the heat of the moment, before pulling back and starting to think. "It's falling into place now. I mean, there are still a lot of loopholes to deal with, the whole older sibling marrying first thing comes to mind, but it'll get done. I'll be sure of it! I want my sister to be happy always. He makes her happier than I've ever seen her."

"Except for when she got you back," Olaf pointed out.

Elsa smiled. "Yes, Olaf, except for then," she confirmed. Hans made a gagging motion that earned him a scathing glare and an attempted slap from Elsa, which he caught last second, grinning tauntingly. "Just because you can't appreciate sibling bonds doesn't mean I can't," Elsa sharply said to Hans, pulling her wrist out of his grasp.

"Don't make me sick," Hans said, rolling his eyes and lifting her down off of the wall. Though she could have easily hopped down herself, It was an act of courtesy and all that. That done, he walked away.

"How rude," Olaf said, frowning.

Elsa sighed. "He has a lot of sibling issues," she said to the snowman. "He leaves because I guess… I don't know. I suppose he doesn't like seeing what could be and knowing he'll never have it?" Thought to be honest, she believed he could have it. All of them could, if the princes actually let it happen. They seemed afraid too, though... It would take a lot of work for them, and she wasn't sure they even wanted to or dared to face that daunting task. It was as if they'd trapped themselves. All of them.

"Oh," Olaf said, feeling a bit bad for what he'd said. Elsa smiled and patted Olaf's head before starting back to the castle to prepare for the voyage tomorrow.

The Next Morning

"Who are we leaving in charge?" Anna asked.

"You," Elsa replied in a last ditch attempt to keep her sister here.

"I'm not staying!" Anna shot.

"I can and will order you if I have to!" Elsa replied.

"I'll just stowaway," Anna defiantly said.

"Why do you want to come so badly, Anna?" Elsa asked.

"I'm not leaving you alone with Hans Westergaard," Anna said.

"I won't be alone," Elsa replied.

"I'm coming," Anna said firmly.

Elsa sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose and shaking her head. "Alright," she relented. "The council can handle things for a while." Now all she had to do was hope and pray that if something went wrong, one of them survived. Rather, Anna survived, because she would die before she let herself be the one to live while her sister was killed.

Anna nodded and looked back. "Hurry up, Kristoff!" she called, smiling affectionately at him. He was in the process of arguing with Hans as to whether to bring Sven and Olaf or not. Hans was winning. Kristoff looked over at Elsa then said something to Hans that made the prince go for his sword before Sitron stepped between them. Kristoff childishly stuck out his tongue at Hans. The prince's 'Real mature!' could be heard from here as Kristoff sulkily walked towards the boat. Hans threw up his hands hopelessly and followed the ice harvester.

"Sorry about that," Kristoff muttered.

"I totally get it," Anna replied, glaring scathingly back at Hans. She turned back to her fiancé, smiling. "Shall we?"

"We shall," Kristoff replied, smiling gently at her as they linked arms and approached, walking on board grinning at each other and talking.

Elsa turned as Hans came alongside her looking highly annoyed. "This is a stupid idea. Can't you stop her?" Hans asked.

"I'm not locking up my own sister," Elsa answered. And honestly nothing short of doing so would keep Anna away.

"It's easy to lock up your own siblings. Just ask the princes of the Southern Isles," Hans said, shrugging and heading for the ship. Elsa grimaced. She didn't want to know, she decided. She followed him on board.

Frozen

The ship pulled away from Arendelle, Anna and Elsa graciously waving. There was unease among the people. It was plainly seen. The last time two of their rulers had gone to sea, they had never returned. At least the king and queen had had heirs, though. Elsa and Anna didn't, neither one of them. If they were to die out there… The people weren't sure what would happen. Rumor had it that one of the princes of the Southern Isles—currently Arendelle's closest ally—would cross the sea to take on position of ruler. Kristoff, if he survived. Or maybe a royal from Sweden or Norway. It was uncertain, at the base of it. Anarchy was a very real possibility in the power vacuum that would ensue, and they dreaded to think their Queen and Princess wouldn't come back.

Elsa and Anna waved until they were far from land, then grinned at each other and turned to survey the workings of the ship. "This is so exciting," Anna said, bursting with excitement.

"It is," Elsa agreed, smiling at her sister. They heard yelling start up and looked quickly over. Kristoff and Hans were apparently having at it. The sisters cringed and exchanged looks before giggling.

"I should probably get Kristoff away from there before he beats Hans to a pulp. Not that I'd be objecting if he did," Anna said.

"Anna," Elsa chastised.

"Tell me you wouldn't want to see it," Anna challenged.

"I wouldn't! Well, maybe a little, but I wouldn't be watching it with pleasure. More like, uh…" Elsa began.

"Satisfaction?" Anna asked, smirking.

Elsa blushed, looking guilty. "Maybe a bit," she admitted.

"You don't have to feel bad about that, Elsa. After everything he did…" Anna began.

"What about everything he didn't do?" Elsa pointed out.

Anna blinked and cringed. Now she felt a little uneasy and guilty. "Way to kill the satisfaction, sis," she bluntly said. She smiled again. "I'd better hurry." Elsa nodded. Anna quickly crossed to Kristoff and took his arm, grinning winningly up at him and cutting Kristoff off in the middle of whatever it was he'd been about to say. It was forgotten now, and so was Hans. Grinning softly at his fiancé, Kristoff let her lead him off. Hans blinked, processing what had just happened, then scowled in annoyance, crossing his arm.

"Don't look so put out. You two were acting like children," Elsa called over to him.

He turned to her, frowning. "We were not! We were… discussing matters animatedly," he defended.

"Right," Elsa said, looking dubious. She walked off, heading to the front of the ship to watch out over the ocean.

"We were!" Hans called after her, she simply gave a little wave and continued on, not looking back. "I don't have to explain myself to you!" he called. She ignored. He scoffed waving his hands after her dismissively and heading to the back of the ship. Fine. Let her be that way. Ugh, this trip was going to be a nightmare. Oh well. As long as he stayed as far away from Elsa and Anna as possible, things might not get horrible.

Frozen

So far the trip seemed to be going smoothly. It was coming on evening now, and Anna was leaning on the front of the ship, dreamily looking towards the setting sun. She heard someone come up next to her and looked over. Kristoff. Good. She smiled at him and turned back to looking out over the view. "It's so beautiful out here," she said.

"I know," Kristoff agreed.

"You're supposed to say, 'Not as beautiful as you are'," Anna teased, smiling.

"That goes without saying," Kristoff flirted, turning her around to face him and touching his nose to hers. She beamed up at him and nuzzled softly. If others hadn't been around, she would have kissed him, but as it was they were being more improper than they should be. Compromising, she leaned against his chest and sighed contentedly, looking out over the ocean again. "I wish our wedding day would hurry up and get here," Anna ruefully said.

"I know…" Kristoff murmured quietly. "There's just so much Elsa has to cut through… Peasants don't marry princesses."

"You're not a peasant. You're a person," Anna said, frowning at that reminder.

"Unfortunately, not everyone sees it that way," Kristoff replied, annoyed at that knowledge.

"It's not fair," Anna said, nibbling her lower lip.

"I'm sorry this is taking so long. That it's so hard," Kristoff said.

"No, don't be sorry. It isn't your fault. It's those stupid laws," Anna said with a scoff. "But Elsa will find a way. She always does. I can wait. A few months, a few years? What will it matter? I'll still love you then like I do now."

Kristoff pressed a gentle kiss to her head. "I love you too," he murmured.

Frozen

Hans watched them from shadow, arms folded as he shook his head. "What's the point of love anyway?" he muttered out loud, turning away and sipping at a glass of water.

"To feel cared about, to know someone is willing to do anything and everything for you if it means you live another day. To be protected, to be defended, to not be alone. To have someone close to you at night, someone to make you feel like everything will be okay as long as they're there," a voice said. He looked over. Elsa. "At least, that's what I think." But then she wasn't sure what love was herself, honestly. At least, not beyond familial love.

Hans shook his head. "It doesn't even make sense," he said. "It's a weakness, it's a hindrance. It's a lie concocted by writers and poets and musicians to excuse how pathetic and stupid and useless…"

"Never had she danced so beautifully. Sharp knives seemed to cut her delicate feet, yet she hardly felt them, so deep was the pain in her heart. She could not forget that this was the last night she would ever see the one for whom she had left her home and family, had given up her beautiful voice, and had day by day endured unending torment, of which he knew nothing at all. An eternal night awaited her. She laughed and danced with the thought of death in her heart," Elsa cut off, looking at a paper she'd just read from. She turned her eyes to him. "It's beautiful."

Hans hardly breathed, blinking and trying to process he'd heard that. He turned quickly to her, eyes narrowed. "Where did you get that?" he sharply, testily, asked.

"It fell from your pocket," Elsa answered, handing the page over. "I caught it before the wind took it into the sea."

Hans looked at the paper then snatched it back. "It's a rough draft of a story about a mermaid," he muttered, slightly embarrassed. "Need to change a couple things... Regardless, I stand by my previous statement," he added. Elsa shook her head. There was no point in arguing. At least not on this matter.

"So you write what you don't know or understand," she said. "Why don't I believe that?"

"Who says I wrote it?" Hans asked.

"I know your handwriting, Hans. The letters, remember?" Elsa replied.

Hans was quiet. "Love is pain," he finally said. "Pain is something anyone can do without."

"It's more than that," Elsa replied.

"Really? What is love, your majesty?" Hans asked.

Elsa blushed and looked down. "I… I don't know…" she admitted. "But it's more. It must be."

"Don't kid yourself. It's a delusion," Hans said, looking back towards the front of the ship. Anna and Kristoff were gone now. He turned away from it, looking off the side. "A storm is picking up," he remarked.

"How can you tell?" Elsa asked. The wind had picked up, yes, and the waves were bigger, the sea choppier, but was that really enough to claim a storm was coming?

"I smell it in the air," Hans answered. "I know the signs of a coming storm. It could be a big one. If you have anything you don't want to lose, wrap it in oilskin and keep it on your person. That way, if the ship goes down, you'll at least have that. Wrap anything you might need for survival too, just not too much. In case we end up shipwrecked."

She nodded. "I'll tell Anna and Kristoff to do the same," she said. She turned to leave then paused, hesitating. She looked back at him. "Try not to kill each other, please," she pled. The two men were sharing a cabin. Needless to say, she wasn't overly enthusiastic about that idea.

"You know, the fights me and Kristoff have aren't the sort that'll escalate into violence beyond maybe a brawl," Hans said. "You don't have to worry. We're big boys."

"Don't get condescending," she warned, frowning at him. "I'm concerned for good reason."

"In whose opinion?" Hans asked, rolling his eyes. She frowned, eyes narrowing, but didn't grace him with an answer. Instead she walked away. He watched after her and smirked, chuckling and finishing the water. He would normally have wine, but given the game they were trying to play, any amount of alcohol in the blood stream would probably be a bad idea. He needed to be in peak shape to take on a storm or pirates. Whichever struck first.

Frozen

It was the storm that took the first shot. Thunder cracked outside of the windows, lightning ripping apart the sky. Anna and Elsa huddled close together on their shared bed, uneasily looking out at the storm. "This isn't going to get worse, right? We're not going to sink, right?" Anna tensely asked, terrified. Memories of how their parents had died were flooding back.

Elsa was silent, looking solemnly out at the storm. Soon she turned to her baby sister. "It'll be okay, Anna, I promise," she said. Anna whimpered. Thunder echoed again and she screamed, huddling close to Elsa. Elsa held her protectively. She hoped Hans and Kristoff were handling this okay.

Frozen

"Wow that thing's wild!" Kristoff said, obviously uneasy. He was pressed right up again the porthole, watching the storm fearfully. He hadn't moved.

"It isn't as bad as I thought it would be. Odds are the ship will tank it. Go to sleep," Hans groaned.

"Y-yeah, I-I guess. I mean what are the odds of it going down?" Kristoff asked.

"Forty-fifty," Hans answered. He immediately regretted it.

"What?!" Kristoff freaked.

"Oh come on, it's less than half!" Hans said, sitting up in annoyance. "And it was exaggerated."

"I have to make sure Anna's okay," Kristoff said.

"Would you go to sleep already?! They're probably fast asleep. You really want to appear afraid of a storm in front of Anna?" Hans demanded. Kristoff cringed. Hans inwardly cheered himself. Playing on macho stereotypes was so pathetically easy to do. Made men easy to manipulate. Embarrassingly easy. Really they should be ashamed of themselves; admittedly him included, on occasion. Point was it worked, and Kristoff sighed and climbed into bed, closing his eyes and trying to pretend the storm wasn't happening. "We'll be fine," Hans assured.

"Yeah. Whatever," Kristoff mumbled. Hans shook his head and lay back down.

Frozen

It was early the next morning. The sun had yet to rise, and mist rose from the deck and the sea. As Hans walked the ship, he looked on in disgust and annoyance at all the people throwing up overboard or hysterically crying about how they'd 'miraculously' survived that storm. Really? It wasn't even all that bad! Rough for this time of year, admittedly—things were going to be very difficult in the hurricane months, he realized, horribly so—but not that bad overall. He shook his head hopelessly and went back down below deck to join Anna, Kristoff, and Elsa.

"This is just pathetic," he remarked, entering the cabin they were eating in. "Forgot how sorry passenger vessels were." Anna hadn't slept all night, apparently, and Elsa looked as though her sleep had been fitful. Kristoff, once out, had slept like a log, but it had taken him a while to pass out.

"It was a bad storm," Anna defended.

"You've never sailed in hurricane season," Hans replied, smirking. "That's a storm."

"Oh bite me," Anna grumbled, in a bad mood.

Hans chuckled and took an apple, biting into it. "I'm going up on deck to help out the crew and captain. Aid them in recovering and getting things together, and keeping an eye out for pirates. After a storm is when a ship is most likely to be in distress. Meilic almost always attacks then. If Xe's following his pattern, we may be in for a visit in short order."

"I'll come with you," Elsa said, rising and following Hans. To be honest, she was finding this sea voyage fascinating and very freeing. She hated to admit it, but she liked to watch when Hans took over. When he did he seemed… Different. At home. More him. Whoever he was. It seemed so natural for the prince, out there giving commands while working the boat alongside the men… And the crew! She liked watching the crew too, not just Hans. She was actually picking up a few things during this voyage. Kristoff and Anna exchanged looks and shrugged, going back to their food as Elsa accompanied Hans.

Frozen

"You almost have it," Hans encouraged.

The Queen pulled at the rope the last time and held the knot to him. "How did I do?" she asked.

Hans inspected it. "Wow, you're catching on. You need to pull it a bit tighter at the start, though. It's too loose," he answered. "Come on. We'll take a break from this and I'll show you how to work the sails." She nodded and followed him around as he taught her various things on the ship. Tasks, purposes for those tasks, etc. In fact she was doing so well that soon he'd left her alone to help work some riggings while he went to deal with a situation up near the helm. She was actually quite proud of herself that he'd decided she was good enough to have at this without his supervision.

The captain of the ship watched Elsa in wonder as the prince was examining various charts. "Where do you think you lost the fleet?" Hans asked.

"Around this area, Your Grace. About two in the morning," the Captian answered, pointing out a place on the maps.

"Great," Hans said with a sigh. So now they were short backup and had virtually nothing to defend themselves with. The crew weren't fighters, nor was the Captain, just honest sea-faring folk not wishing harm on anyone and not wishing to be harmed. What they knew of battle was minimal. The noblemen would know swordplay, true enough, but most of it was for show. Unlike on the Southern Isles, nobility in Arendelle weren't trained with the objective of becoming warriors. Elsa's was a neutral kingdom, as neutral as they could be, and so its royalty and nobility were trained with the objective of being able to hold their own in a spar or contest, and defend themselves well should a bandit group attack them on the roads or in their carriage. As to shooting, they didn't learn to shoot with the objective of killing men, but with the objective of killing game. It might hold up, true enough, but he somehow doubted it would last. Really the only warrior they had on this ship was him.

Elsa would be an invaluable asset, given her powers, he decided, but powers were all she had. Granted those powers alone could probably overpower Xe a hundred times over, but she also had weaknesses on this ship. Too many weaknesses. Her love of family, her compassion for her people and love for fellow man? It would serve to be her downfall. All Xe would have to do is threaten one of her citizens or, heaven forbid, Anna, and Elsa would draw the line. If she didn't think she could kill or stop the threat to those she loved before said threat could kill a hostage, she would surrender. She was a formidable queen but had too much heart. He pursed his lips. He had to rethink things. All they had for weapons were those that had been brought along for the voyage, and that wasn't a lot. Long story short? They were in big trouble. Bigger trouble than he cared to admit, so he'd keep it quiet. Best not to panic everyone before it would be appropriate to panic. Dammit, he was a one-man army here. Well, it was more like they were a two-person army, him and Elsa, but again, that was only if Elsa's weaknesses were out of sight out of mind out of danger. He cursed the fact none of his brothers were here.

"The Queen carries herself as well as any man on a ship. In a dress at that," the Captain remarked to Hans, breaking him out of his thoughts.

Hans, annoyed at the interruption, looked over and observed her for a moment. "On this ship, maybe," he replied. He'd like to see her on his. If he were to be completely honest with himself, though, watching the way she was catching on, he wouldn't be surprised if within a week she'd be able to at least mostly keep up to his own crew. As much as he hated to admit it.

"She spoke of a plan. To catch the pirate Xe. She said it could be dangerous. What does she intend?" the captain questioned Hans.

"To use this ship as live bait," the prince bluntly replied. The captain caught his breath. Hans looked at him and started on seeing the hurt and betrayal in the man's eyes. He cringed. "It… was my idea," he lied. Though why he lied he wasn't even sure himself. "Xe mainly goes for passenger ships without arms defending them. This one also had more wealthy targets. More intriguing for Xe. I told her to tell one of her Admirals to follow behind us with a small fleet, in case it was something we couldn't handle—that's why they were behind us to start—but we will handle it and I told her as much. She believed me so here we are."

"You may have condemned us all," the captain growled darkly.

"No, I haven't. Xe is nothing. Not in comparison to Meilic," Hans answered. "Trust in your queen to save you and protect you. This is all under control." Which was a lie, but he wouldn't let the Captain know that just yet.

The captain looked ready to protest but soon sighed. "Very well. But our blood is on your hands, should it fail."

"Nothing new," Hans answered, going back to scanning the charts and maps. The Captain wandered off to tend to his duties.

Frozen

"You didn't have to do that for me," Elsa suddenly said from close at hand.

He frowned. When has she gotten near enough to hear? He sighed. Oh well, it was what it was. He turned to her. "Right now, the last thing you need is an offended captain rebelling against you. With me taking on the bloodguilt…" he began.

"My bloodguilt. You won't take it on," she cut off.

He frowned. "Fine. With my taking on the responsibility of being the cause for this, it spares you drama you can't afford right now, Elsa," he said. At least, that was what he was telling himself. He honestly had no other reason as to why he would have done it. He couldn't think of one. He just had.

You wanted to protect her…

He damned that thought and immediately rejected it. She looked curiously at him, frowning. What was this man, she wondered? He confused her. The things he did and said, his reasons, the masks he wore… Half the time she hardly even knew who or what she was talking to. Perhaps, when he had said to her 'I wish I could understand you', this was similar to how he'd felt. She shook her head at him. "Why won't you show anyone who and what you are? The real you?"

"Because I don't know who and what the real me is," Hans answered flatly. "Go away, Your Majesty. I have no time for this, for you, for anyone."

He had shut down. Again. She cursed him a thousand times. "Why do you make this so difficult?" she exasperatedly said, throwing up her hands and walking away. He turned, glaring after her, then cringed. He didn't know… He went quickly back to the charts to examine them once more and figure out strategy.

(A/N: For those of you wondering what the Persian Bath is, believe me. When I tell you that you don't want to know, you don't want to know. However, I may use or reference it in later stories. Or have someone actually almost be put through it. So if you're really, really curious, there's that. Kind of committed to explaining it now, it seems, so in time it will be, just probably not in this story. Pretty dark. Really dark.)