Chapter Fourteen
It had been raining nonstop since early that morning. The clouds consumed the sky, the mountains, and even the castle. It made the normally cheerful walk to the stables into more of a chore… Anna was in no mood to be with anyone else beside her Kristoff. She was beyond overwhelmed with the planning of the wedding, especially with most of it falling on her shoulders now. And not having her big sister's support again made her feel an old kind of loneliness she didn't miss after all this time. But… She remained firm… Elsa crossed a line she shouldn't have, and it was Anna's turn to ignore the knocks on her door, and to build up walls to protect herself. She sighed heavily as it started to drip heavy rain drops on the leaves of the trees above her, and slowly made their way onto her head. She hurried her pacing as the rain matched her footsteps, turning into a downpour the second her hand reached a stall door. Panting and slamming the door shut, Anna almost began to cry as she untied her shall from her shoulders and wrung it dry.
"Aw, here let me help you with that." Chucked Kristoff, immediately taking the soaked garment from her, and tossed it over his back. The bouncy reindeer behind him leapt and caught it on his antlers, and smirked with pride. The lack of Anna's smile made them worry. "What's wrong?" he reached over and rubbed her cold wet shoulders, and she tried her best to not let her lips tremble. She failed horribly and tears began to well up in her eyes.
"How about, oh I don't know, everything?" Anna held back a sob. He wrapped his strong arms around his future bride, and couldn't help but smile just a little bit at how adorable her anger was. Hugging her close, he kissed her cheek.
"It can't be all that bad… You're with me now, right?" Anna growled with frustration and buried her face into his chest, so happy to feel his warmth.
"Easy for you to say… Hiding away with your pals all day, having fun…" she slowly hugged him back.
"It's not always reindeer games with me, you know."
"…You did not just say that." Anna smirked and held back her laughter. She wanted to stay angry, there was no room for a smile.
"Yeah, I did. And I think…" He pulled her away gently, and softly kissed her, making that cute smile sneak its way back in whether she liked it or not. "I think you need to have more fun as well." They giggled.
"I guess you're right about that…" she whispered, smiling widely. He raised his eyebrows and growled deeply, smirking like a hungry wolf and swept her up his arms with ease.
"Kristoff!" Anna laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck as he kissed her again, this time with hunger. This was exactly what she needed. As he carried her to a mound of warm, dry, cozy hay, she couldn't help but notice that there a lot were horses missing, and they were more alone than usual.
"Hey, um, just curious but, where's my horse?" Anna tried to focus as he kissed up and down her slender neck, gently laying her on her back.
"Oh, no worries, they needed help loading some ships at the dock today, so I brought them some help. Why…?"
"Well, if they've been out all day… They're bound to have to come back at some point right? Especially with the rain…?" the blonde mountain man blinked and went into deep thought.
"Hmm… I can see where you're coming from." With a tremendous bang, the largest doors of the royal stables burst open. Turning bright red, the two leapt to their feet and tried their best to clean themselves off. "You just HAD to say something." Anna glared up at him and stomped forward, about ready to burst from the frustration. Her day was getting worse by the second, and as Kristoff looked on he turned pale. Her day was about to get even worse. "Anna, wait!" He reached out and tried his best to stop her.
"No, I'm done Kristoff, sorry but I'm going back to my room." She grunted, not looking forward and walking straight into the back of a naval officer. Falling backward and onto the floor, she gasped loudly. "Why don't you watch where you are going!" she yelled, reaching her limit. Kristoff flew to her side, and helped her back into her feet.
"My apologies… Princess Anna!" gasped the officer, but only, it wasn't an officer, it was the admiral, trying to ease a very unhappy Sitron into his stall. He quickly bowed and turned paler than Kristoff was. The princess's mouth hung open in shock and anger, unable to speak. She began to tremble and pointed her finger up to the ginger's nose.
"You're not sorry enough!" she yelled.
"Anna, it was an accident-" her current fiance held her back by her shoulder.
"Him being here is no accident!" she cried, trying to pull away from his grasp. "I'm sick of you hurting my family! Let me go Kristoff, I want to punch him again!" Anna struggled to pull his massive bear paw away from her upper arm.
"Princess, that's why I'm leaving tomorrow." Hans sighed, not able to look either one of them in the eyes. "It's obvious by now that my presence is just doing more harm than good. Your kingdom would benefit from me more if I went back-"
"Save it." Anna interrupted. "I'm glad you're leaving because you never should have come back in the first place!" Hans stepped back and his eyes watered, forcing himself to stop being a coward and face her anger by looking her in her eyes. The eyes he almost destroyed with his disgusting choices… The actions of a man living in the shadows of a dark legacy. He wanted to break away for once and for all.
"You're absolutely right." He barely managed. "I had no right coming back in, especially now, that you're finally getting the happiness you both deserve." His words just made her even more angry.
"You took that happiness away when you took away my sister!" she cried. "You just… You just didn't have enough fun torturing me; you had to go after her too! You're stupid enough to try a round two just because your Dad was here to back you up!"
"It's not like that at all!" Hans shouted back, growing frustrated himself. "I didn't plan on any of this happening! I… I…" he hesitated to say the truth… He feared it would hurt her even more if he actually said, out loud, that he fell in love with her older sister. He didn't want to devastate her more than he already had.
"Yeah well, it DEFINITELY happened. I saw it myself, thank you very much." Anna crossed her arms and blushed brightly, unable to look at him anymore. Both Kristoff and the shamed admiral turned red and coughed with unease.
"I… I couldn't be more sorry. About everything possible." Hans held his hand behind his head and sighed, wanting to throw himself into the fjord.
"It'll never be enough. After what you did… And what you continue to do, constantly hurting me and my sister… I'm just so, so thankful you won't be around anymore. So thank you, for that at least." Kristoff finally released his grip, feeling her anger subside slowly.
"Just… Just do me one thing. Just tell Elsa…"
"I don't have to do anything for you!" Anna scoffed. Determined to get his message across, he clenched his fists tightly, and frowned.
"But you do have an obligation to your older sister! You love her and want her to be happy, right?!" Anna took in a deep breath and glared with intensity.
"Love her more than you love yourself!" Hans ignored her hatred; it was worth it for the queen.
"Whether you choose to accept it or not, me leaving her is going to cause her pain, and you have to promise me that you'll take care of her… And protect her." Anna rolled her eyes.
"You must think really high of yourself if you think we're going to miss-" Hans fell to his knees before her and grabbed her hands, making her gasp.
"Say what you want of me, I don't care; just promise me you'll be there for her. Please don't be mad at her anymore. It's my entire fault; you're absolutely right about me, causing nothing but pain. I am doing the best thing I could possibly do for the queen… Please promise me you'll do the same." Anna yanked her hands away and stepped closer to Kristoff, who tried his best to stay out of the conversation the best he could… All she could do was stare into his sad eyes and give no answer. She had no more words to say. Hans returned to his feet. "Please tell her I said goodbye…" he sighed loudly, turning away. "I looked everywhere I could to tell her myself, but…. Never mind. I'm sorry for coming into your lives. Rest well knowing you'll never have to see me again." He walked over to his horse to say his last goodbyes to his dear old, and only friend, leaving the two in silence. Once the sorry prince left, Anna finally allowed herself to breathe normally again and looked up at her future husband with confusion.
"I… I don't know what to do." her true love exhaled loudly and hugged his arms around her once more, wanting so much to help, but he knew this was something Elsa and Hans had to figure out on their own. This was beyond him, and even her...
"I think you should go talk to Elsa…" She winced and hugged him tight. She really didn't want to… But… Maybe she should at least, try…
It had been a grueling and difficult day, loading the last of the ships headed back home, in the pouring rain… And trying to escape to search the castle any chance he could, all while avoiding his father, the guards surrounding his father, and all the king's henchmen. He was beyond exhausted… He was almost looking forward to sleeping in his hammock again. Breathing in deeply through his nose, Hans rested his head back on the porcelain bathtub, the steaming hot water finally relaxing his mind. For just a moment, he tried his best to not worry. He knew he was doing the right thing. Not just for her, but for Anna and for himself. And the nagging feeling that he was missing something… Despite all his work, Elsa's home still felt open to attack, but he couldn't explain exactly why... The answers must be back at sea… Where everything made more sense.
His concentration was interrupted but the sound of shouting coming from outside the door… The voices growing louder. And louder. Almost recognizable, he opened his eyes and hesitated to sit up in the bath. There was a bang, and then another… And after a pause, an even louder bang forced him upright, his hands grasping the sides of the tub tightly.
"What… the… hell…?" With a blast of icy wind, the doors flew open, furious snow swirling into the room and darkened the windows. Unable to move from the shock, and the cold consuming his bath water, all he could do was tremble, vulnerable and exposed. His eyes widened as the powerful queen stepped forward through the cloud of frost, her cold stare pierced right through him and caused a sharp pain in his chest. As always, she was a sight to behold… Her radiance shone like a bright diamond, lighting up his soul with a fire that burned through his core. Her violet cape cascading around her with the breeze, her hair whipping in the wind wildly. He slunk back into the water, holding his arms around himself as his teeth began to chatter. "Your… Majesty, this is… A pleasant… Surprise!" he tried to laugh, but it was painful to breathe.
"You were going to leave me without saying goodbye…?" She stood over him, keeping one hand in the air, making sure the storm brewing inside her heart matched the ferocity of the winds surrounding them. His smile faded as the color left his lips; he lost his senses completely and felt numb as her glare fell into the saddest frown he's ever seen on her beautiful face. It killed him to know he was the source of her pain, even if he was in agony.
"I… I… Elsa, just, under-understand-"
"I understand completely." She sneered, clenching her fists tightly, tears forming in her eyes and flowing into snowflakes. "You got what you wanted. Now's your chance to make your exit. I hope you enjoyed your stay."
"It's not like that… at all!" He shouted, grabbing the sides of the tub again to try and climb out, but she was too fast. With a flick of her wrist the water froze into a giant ice cube, freezing him completely in the bath. He coughed and yelled out in pain, the ice feeling more like an inferno as it burned his pale and freckled skin without mercy.
"I should've never trusted you!" Elsa began to cry, the storm raging around them now settling, leaving mounds of snow all over the floor. She held her embarrassing tears behind her eyes, hating herself now more than ever.
"Elsa…" Hans gasped, his skin turning blue. "Elsa I… I didn't lie when I said… I said I loved you…"
"I don't believe you! If you meant it, you would stay!" she sobbed, turning away, not being able to watch him suffer and desperately needing shelter.
"I'm leaving… Because I love you, don't… Don't you see?" he gasped, reaching out his hand to her, hoping for any kind of relief, even a smile he would take.
"No, I don't... You promised to help, but right now, all you're doing is proving to me that I was wrong from the start." she sighed. She was a fool for thinking anything positive of any kind would come from this… union. She never wanted to trust a man, or her instincts again. Of course he would leave the moment things fell apart. It didn't make sense for them to continue with this game anyway, despite… how incredibly perfect he made her feel when she was close to him. How sweet he smelled, how wonderful he tasted… The way he smiled and the way he talked to his horse, waking up next to him with the sheets tangled all around them, all these things she needed to instantly let go forever. Like a feather to the wind. She felt used, played with, angry, and devastated to be wrong… She couldn't stand to be near him any longer. All the prince could do was sit and watch her leave him, crying into her hands as she ran through the broken doors.
"Don't go!" he cried out, but, she was already gone. He groaned in pain as he tried to wiggle out of his prison, but the more he moved the more pain he felt. "…A little help here, please!" he shouted. "Anyone!?" As he waited to hear a response from the cold quiet, he sighed loudly and let his head fall back, desperate to escape and to sooth this ache. There was nothing he could possibly do to change anyone's mind about him. Not his family's, not Anna's, and not Elsa's… His queen, the woman who showed him the tiniest bit of compassion when it seemed like the entire world had turned its back on him. No hope of redemption. But even if it was only for a moment, even if it was cursed to failure… He couldn't help but try to embrace the fact that he felt her touch in the first place. The memories of her kiss would forever haunt him in the best of ways… And it was a miracle to even be able to dream again at all. To be able to feel love, despite the sorrow. It motivated him in a way he never knew, and even at the risk of never seeing his queen again, protecting her and her sister, was worth the price for her gentle touch on his scared cheek. He would fight an endless war and face eternal loneliness once more to prove how much this country changed him. To prove how much he truly loved her, he had to face the fact that he wouldn't be graced by her smile again.
As time passed, and the room drew darker from the nightfall, Hans eventually came to terms with having to wait for the ice to thaw before he was able to make his retreat… He was left alone in the darkness once again, with only his aching memories to keep him company.