A month later...

"How dare you sign those papers?"

Hans wasn't fazed - neither by the way she demanded her answer, nor by the way she dropped the temperature so low that the wood began to creak. "We've been over this. I simply wanted to relieve you of the rising paperwork -"

"Without consulting me."

Hans rubbed his eyes. This again?! "What am I to you, a porcelain doll by your side?" bit Hans out. He didn't normally loose his cool (no pun intended) and neither did Elsa, but the tension had been building up lately. The two had barely time to recover from the second White-out, or other problems immediately came and absorbed all their attention. The destruction that Hans had caused, made the already vulnerable harvest break at last. Re-negociations had to be made regarding the food provisions with Corona, Germany, the Southern and Northern Isles. Combined with the pressure to provide for their people in the very upcoming winter, it didn't take much for them to snap at one another.

"Off course you aren't a porcelain doll!" huffed Elsa as she waved her hand arround to dismiss his dramatic comparison.

"Well, then learn to trust me and give papers you seem fit for me to handle!" Hans waited for her answer, but as the seconds flew by, he gained none. "I see." noticed Hans as Elsa's eyes flickered away from him. "What was the point then of us?" went Hans on as he walked to Elsa. "Me dying, you saving me, over and over... Am I just a trophy to you?"

"Hans, its not..." began Elsa, before her lips began to tremble. Tears were threatening to leave her eyes, but they didn't fall. Not yet. "I wouldn't let you die. Not then, not now, not ever." whispered the queen as she turned herself to him. "But... you've changed."

Hans laughed at her remark and Elsa flinched. It was the same laugh that she had heard when he had held Anna by the throat. It was the same smile she saw when she exposed her former head councillor. His eyes had once again snuffed the light.

"Changed?! That's the reason?" Hans couldn't believe what he heard. "I changed because of you." His anger began to shift his voice into a low growl. "Not content with my transformation then? What does it take, I wonder, for you to be satisfied with your ideal version of me?" Hans had laid his hand upon one of her arms now and felt something cold tickle him. "You think you can - AGH!" Hans' head flew to the side when Elsa's hand slapped him hard on the cheek, the sound echoeing through the room like a whip.

"How dare you to presume something like this of your future wife?" retorted Elsa all while Hans was massaging his cheek from the impact. "I love you, gods, why do I love you so much?" Elsa hiccuped and stared for a moment above her to get her tears at bay. "Hans... I... can't make sense of you. I never wished or wanted to notice it but... something is missing, ever since you died. You barely eat or sleep...You've become detached and explosive to many of my servants for the slightest things..."

Hans' anger vanished like snow in the sun at her words and something else came into his eyes. It was but a split second, yet Elsa saw it.

It were the eyes of a man who had gone to hell and back.

"You've never talked about that experience." went Elsa on softly. "Ease your heart to me. Perhaps I can help-"

"It is nothing for you to concern with." Hans swallowed deeply, but the lump in his throat didn't go away. He felt the ground shaking under his feet and the prince sought his balance at the table. "I've been to the trolls and Gran Pabbie-" Hans bit his lip at speaking too much and grimaced when he saw frost appear on the floor surrounding the queen.

"Gran Pabbie? Hans, you know fae can't be trusted for such heavy matters! They took away my sister's memory and installed paranoia for my magic, all because of a mere accident to the head." Elsa gritted her teeth at the thought of the rock trolls. It had become a sensitive topic between her sister and her as well. Anna's first meeting with the trolls was fun and somewhat strange, but well-meaning to save her frozen heart. But Elsa's was an entirely different matter. She was an 8 year old and everything, including the consequences of her actions, were bigger and scarier for one so tiny. The lynching men that Gran Pabbie showed, returned each night in her dreams, fueling her guilt for her sister's accident and her fear to hurt people.

Elsa had little gratitude for them. They had aided her sister later on, true. But their advice was, just when she visited them, vague enough that people make their own conclusions and act on those. And now that Hans had gone and disobeyed her too, the queen practically lost her mind. She would not see any of her loved ones go to them again, kristoff excluded.

"I know full well of their strange minds - what I do with their counsel is my own decision." shot Hans back.

"And what was said advice?" Elsa waited but no answer came. "Well?" pressed the queen on.

"You hardly trust me with your papers, so why should I trust you with their words?"

Elsa's mouth fell open at his answer, before clapping her lips shut in anger. "Really?! Using the emotional sabotage now?"

"I'm not making the one making a fuss about some signed letters." waved Hans her comment away.

"That's entirely different." retorted Elsa as she began to point her finger at him. "I am the queen, and you will answer-"

"Ah." Hans nodded at her words. "There it is." He smiled again, but it wasn't out of malice. "You always wish to be in control in every aspect of your life. I'm sorry I don't qualify to your desires."

"Hans-" Elsa reached for him, but Hans yanked his arm away from her and stormed out of the room.

"Hans, wait up!" Anna, who had witnessed the prince coming out of his study room, darted after him instead of Elsa - she didn't want to strike a conversation just yet with her, considering it always went on about the trolls and how dangerous they were.

The prince ignored Anna's shouting and raced down the stairs. "Anna, I'm really not in the mood for talking to you - or anyone for that matter." growled Hans as he kept taking big strides, causing the princess to skip in order to keep up with him. "So I advise you to keep out of my way for this time being." added Hans when he realized Anna wouldn't take the hint.

"I'll keep it short then. Hans, I know that Elsa is giving you a headache at the moment, but talk to her pl-"

"You think I haven't tried that?!" bit Hans at the red-haired princess.

"Running away is not going to help you either. The longer you keep things unsaid, the longer it will eat at you." Hans' pace slowed due to his hesitation, giving Anna the opening she hoped for. "You both are exhausted from the last few weeks of work. Let me take over while you two go on a vacation and talk things out."

"I would love to, but I'm afraid Elsa is not so willingly to leave her duties behind."

"I'll try and convince her to join you to the ice palace..." When Hans didn't move from his spot, Anna decided to give him a nudge. " didn't you say you wanted to blow some steam of?"

"You're always welcome to join me for a sparring session" offered the prince. "Never had the chance to have a one-on-one fight with you. If I have to believe the rumors, I'd very like to test myself how good you can keep up with me." Hans' green eyes shone with eager competitive fire as he waited her answer.

"Eh, You better keep on training." teased Anna with a chuckle. "Wouldn't want you to loose your face for all to see."

"Oh how pride comes before the fall" shook Hans his head, before ruffling her hair. He knew how much it irked Anna - all the more reason to do it.

"Hans, come on-" grunted Anna as she tried keep the damage contained. When she saw Hans reach for her again, the princess put her hands in front and pushed him away from her to avoid him ruining her hairdo even more. "I just combed it! You know how much time it takes to- AGH!" Anna squeaked in shock when she felt Hans' arms wrap arround her and press her against his chest. "Hans let me go!"

"Are you allergic to hugs?" joked Hans to hide his wounded pride. In his family, there were barely any hugs given to one another, as his father saw it as a weakness to show one's emotion so much. The prince knew he hadn't quite done it right, or at least, not well enough for Anna to interpret it as a hug. So, the prince began to loosen his grip upon her, so it was less dominating to her part.

A hug? oh. "No... no, not at all."retorted the princess, feeling a bit stupid for overreacting. Upon feeling Hans' hands arround her, the princess allowed him to rest his head on her shoulder.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." As they stood there, Anna felt her body relieve itself from the tension and put her hands arround him too. Now that she began to calm down, the princess sensed that he desperately needed affection. So the princess let him hug her a little bit longer than usual before pulling apart.

"Oh, I just love when people give warm hugs! Can I join in?" Both Anna and Hans turned to an approaching Olaf, who was watching the two with a big grin.

"Olaf! Off course you may." grinned Anna as the snowman waggled towards the two. After kneeling to be on the same eye-level with Olaf, the snowman reached out with his two sticky arms and jumped into Hans' and Anna's arms. The hugging session with both Anna and Olaf had helped to take his mind elsewhere for a short while. But now that he was alone on his way again to the training courtyard, the prince once more focused on his argument with his soon to be wife. Was it always going to be like this from now on, this bickering and fighting, this need of hers to control everything? I'd imagined a better 'happily ever after' than this.

The prince took out a wooden sword, testing if it was the right weight to it before turning to one of the sparring dummies. The courtyard was empty, as many guards already had their first 2 hours of training and were now given a little respite. Good. He preferred some silence at the moment. Hans' eyes narrowed on the dummy in front of him, and his sword began to cut into the hay, each swing quicker than the last time.

For once, couldn't she just trust me? We promised to be equals, did we not? The swings caused the prince to put into a trance - though his mind stayed focused on his irritation that had been building up in the last few weeks.

I'm done with grovelling, the sliming and nodding. I will not be a puppet anymore, not to my brothers and especially not to her!

CLING!

Hans was taking out of his rage when the dummy suddenly was split in half; the upper part falling down in a simple pile of hay. still panting heavily from swinging his sword over and over, Hans looked downwards to his swordhand - which was pulsing blue-white and holding a sword with a frosted blade.

"Poor dummy. What did he do to be cut in half?"

Hans glanced over his shoulder, to see Agnarr step towards him. "Eh, he helped me to take my frustration out." wheezed Hans as he turned the blade in his hand. He didn't feel tired, on the contrary. He felt as if he could slash through a mountain, and it felt good, to express all his anger. What puzzled him though, was the ice. Why was it reacting now so suddenly? Another thing that added to his frustration, was the fact that he couldn't find the right trigger to use the magic in his veins. Citizens began to doubt if he actually had magic over the weeks, as they didn't see any snow or ice coming from his hands. As a consequence the people began to gossip that it was actually their queen, and not the southern prince who had caused the second blizzard. The claim as for why the prince had magic like the queen? It was because he wanted to save her face.

While Elsa never voiced it, he noticed this situation began to get under her skin. The longer the gossip continued and Hans didn't show them wrong, the longer they began to believe she was not so competent to keep her magic in check - perhaps not even competent enough to rule.

"It is not my fault I can't use this magic properly!"

"Have you even tried? I'm sincerely doubting-"

"Off course I've tried!"

The prince dropped the blade and reached for a set of daggers, which he threw at the shooting round. "Well, nearly all the frustration." growled Hans as he flexed his fingers, feeling the magic react even stronger in his skin. It was on the verge of boiling over, but the prince willed the ice to retreat. He didn't wish to risk Agnarr's life when the ice was feeling to be so eruptive and powerful. "You are done with your training already? Its not even one past noon." commented the prince to take his mind elsewhere.

"Well, actually..." began Agnarr sheepishly. "I got promoted to cadet."

For a few seconds it was quiet, till the whole courtyard were startled by Hans' booming laugh - it was very rare that they heard the prince laugh so freely. "Really?!" Hans laughed again and flew the boy in the arms. "Agnarr that's wonderful!" the prince was grinning so much, his cheeks hurt from the strain. To him, Agnarr had become like a little brother - he had stayed loyal through and through, despite Hans' past and his crimes.

"Thank you. I couldn't have done it without you." retorted the lad.

"Nonsense, its all you." shook Hans his head as he clapped Agnarr's shoulder. The ice had stopped throbbing in his veins now, so Hans took the chance and sought physical contact once more. "Truly, gongratulations."

"I still would like another sparring session with you -r highness." corrected Agnarr immediately. Being cadet, meant having stricter rules to follow.

Hans tsked at Agnarr for the way he adressed him. "If you use my title again, I'll have you flogged." The prince snorted to let Agnarr know he meant it as as a joke, causing Agnarr to laugh as well. "Now!" the prince took out two wooden swords, one of which he pointed at Agnarr. "Let us see what you're made of, cadet."

Elsa opened her mouth to stop him from walking out, but wisely kept those words in. Feeling uncomfortable in a silent room (reminding her too much of her self-isolation in her teenage years), the queen sought for some distraction, which she found in the papers that Hans still had left on his desk. One by one, the queen went over them and to her ever increasing guilt, she saw that they were very well written and without any loopholes. He'd done well for her, that much she had to be honest with herself. But the fact that he went to the trolls without her permission... The queen bit her lip and glanced out of the window, where she witnessed with some jealousy that Hans and Anna were pulling each other in a hug.

"Your majesty?"

Elsa was taking out of her thoughts when she heard Kristoff's voice call to her from the doorway. With a nod, the queen waved to one of the empty chairs to allow him to sit. "Kristoff."

Kristoff cringed for the way she adressed his name. There was no trace of warmth that he heard when she was with Anna or Hans. Her tone was cold as if she were adressing a business partner instead of a close friend. "Thank you. Your majesty, the reason why I'm here is because I wish to know what grudge you hold against my adoptive family." Kristoff decided to be bland, in the hope that the queen would give him a straight answer on his very clear question.

"Didn't Anna tell you why?" asked Elsa with thin lips. She honestly was not in the mood for refreshing those painful memories for a second time this day.

"She did." affirmed kristoff, before adding, "And I was witness to your visit to them, so many years ago."

There was no emotion on the queen's face, safe for her eyes, that widened by this revelation. Immediately after, they narrowed in suspicion. "And it was then that they took you in as their child?" wanted Elsa to know.

Kristoff simply nodded.

"Its very strange, that they took you in the very day that I arrived with my powers out of control." spoke the queen her suspicion out loud as she kept a close eye on Kristoff's reaction to the subtle accusation. "Did they ever spoke of me and my magic while you were staying there?"

"I get what you're implying." stopped Kristoff her as he stood up from his chair. "But no. The trolls never said anything. It was as much a surprise to me to hear of your magic and later on to actually witness it."

"But they did pressure you to marry Anna when she was seeking aid for her frozen heart." Elsa didn't want to buy his story just yet. It was too coincidental, too good to be true for all these things to fit in so neatly. "It sure is a marriage of advantage for you, as an adoptive child to the trolls, to marry into mine."

"Why do you act so paranoid all of the sudden to me and my family?" retorted Kristoff. He honestly couldn't take the accusations anymore. "Stop accusing me and tell me what can be done to ease this fear you have of us!"

"Your family has been meddling in mine for far too long. Now that we've finally found each other, I don't wish their cursed advice to upset this again. So let me be clear from the start: if your family as much tries to take their memories away or warp their minds, I'll banish them to the ends of the earth. Is that understood?"

"And what if one of your loved ones asks for this? What then?" dared Kristoff to ask.

"I'd forbid them to see them."

Kristoff hummed. "Like you demanded this of Hans?"

Elsa glared at the ice harvester. "I hope you make your statement quickly."

Kristoff raised his hands in surrender. "Fine. You haven't been exactly supportive of him lately. Nor to your sister. Is it so strange that they search for comfort with one another, when you are berating them, instead of listening?" said Kristoff while pointing to Anna, Hans and Olaf hugging together. "You could have trained Hans all those weeks earlier, and together you could have sought out what triggers his magic. Then you wouldn't have the people doubting your competence as leader and magician. Now, he's searching and wandering on his own while you pressure him to control his magic. And as for Anna, you could have asked her opinion as for why she likes my family so much. I know their counsel had huge reprecussions for you - but wasn't it also you who said to let the past be in the past? To forgive one's mistakes?"

"They don't know what-" Elsa cut her sentence off, turning to the desk once more and arranging the papers. "They don't know what danger they are getting themselves into, throwing themselves so recklessly in the unknown. I have to protect them from themselves." Elsa took a shuddering breath as she watched her sister and her soon to be husband and placed her hands on the table. As her skin touched the wood, frost began to crawl across it. "I am the queen and such is my duty." continued Elsa on while rapidly blinking to keep her tears at bay. "To protect and serve my subjects."

"Your majesty, if I may be so bold-" Kristoff went quiet when he heard Elsa softly laugh.

The queen turned to him with a somewhat warm smile. "You've been bold to me since you came through that door. You might as well continue on."

"Your majesty, what I wanted to say was... this protectiveness you speak off, its exactly what's driving you apart with your sister and your fiancé. You so desperately wish to see them safe, you won't allow any other response."

Elsa mused over Kristoff's words, though didn't answer to comfirm or deny his statement. It was true, she always wanted to be in control - if not of her powers, it was of her kingdom and her people. She wanted to do well for them all. Perhaps, if she were to loosen up.. then again, a queen never had alone-time.

"Anna wanted to speak to you about an offer she's about to give you, but I asked her to wait and let me talk to you first regarding my family. What you do with my story and counsel is your choice, though I hope you can forgive what my family wronged you. Goodday, your majesty." After an akward and clumsy bow, the ice harvester stumped out of the castle room, leaving the queen once more to her thoughts.

It was only after a few moments though, that Elsa too left the room. After descending the stairs and going through the various halls, the queen came out on the training courtyard, where she saw Hans and Agnarr spar with one another. The sun already stood high and the two were covered in sweat, making their shirts stick to their skin.

When an incoming attack of Agnarr was blocked by Hans, the queen witnessed his biceps swelling up and harden from the strain. Elsa swallowed thickly at this view and sought some support to the wall next to her. It had been a very, very long time since she had felt so flustered arround him - her cheeks and stomach were on fire.

"Elsa!"

Startled, the queen tore her eyes from the two men and faced her sister. "Anna? How are you?"

"Never better." answered the redhaired sister before noticing Elsa's flustered look. "are you okay?" asked Anna concerned as she put her hand upon her sister's forehead. "You are completely burning up!"

"Yea-" Her voice came in a high squeak and Elsa coughed. "Yes, I do feel warm today." answered the queen as normal as possible.

Anna followed Elsa's gaze and smirked when she saw to whom Elsa was looking for. "Well, the best way to recover, is by taking enough rest.. and a well-needed vacation."

"Vacation? Anna, I can-"

"Perfect!" interrupted the princess before her sister could begin with a lengthy protest. "Hans, she wants to go on vacation with you!" shouted Anna immediately after.

"Really?" came the surprised answer.

"Anna, no, that's not what I wanted- what I-" tried Elsa to say while Hans stepped towards the two sisters. The queen stopped talking when she saw Hans' sparkling green eyes and was rendered completely breathless when she felt his hands on her back and his lips upon hers. He smelled of earth and sweat, but at that moment the queen didn't care as she returned the kiss as passionate as him.

"I look so forward to this." breathed Hans out before kissing her again, this time on the cheek.

"Okay, romeo, you can back off now!" frowned Anna when the two went for another kissing round. "Leave the rest for on the way to the ice palace."

So... yeah. My apologies for not updating. I got a new job since december and each friday I'm dead tired, so bear with me to adjust and find my routine. The reason why I kept writing is thanks to all you wonderful reviewers. Seriously, it puts a smile every time on my face to see a new review, whether its positive or critisism, I love it all. So thank you!

I finally found some time to write now, but the upcoming months will also be very loaded so I can't and won't make any promises when the new chapter comes out. It will probably be the very last one, if not the second last of this story. I want to stop when I still enjoy writing it.

I haven't shown yet what Hans can do, and this is intentional. Likewise for his trigger to use his ice powers. Make your theories as for what the trigger could be, I am curious. :)