Chapter 55: Absence Makes the Heart grow Fonder

Anna shifted in bed while she nuzzled her head deeper into her pillows. The day had been a very busy, yet pleasant one. Frederick's royal ball was a pleasant experience…even though she couldn't find Hans anywhere. Still, she spent most of the night moving from dance partner to dance partner until finally she made it back to her room and essentially collapsed onto her bed in sheer exhaustion. There were things she originally planned on doing before bed but decided against it. After all, there would still be time in the morning before she ended up leaving for Arendelle.

She smiled to herself as she slumbered on. She rolled from her side onto her back and let her arms rest behind her head atop the back row of pillows. In her dreaming state, she didn't hear the door to her bedroom open and someone quietly slip inside. It wasn't until she felt the weight of someone shifting on the mattress beside her and a finger tracing down her cheek that she jolted herself awake and tried to blink away some exhaustion.

"Hey now… I was having a…. good…" she had turned to the intruder with a frown on her face but the sour pout instantly dissipated. "H-Hans?"

"Anna." He smiled adoringly and extended his arm down onto the bed so he could casually lean over her.

Anna quickly sat up and pulled the blankets up over her. "Wha-.. what are you doing in here?" She asked. A blush was forming on her cheeks.

"What's it look like?" He replied with a shrug. "Looking to spend some quality time with you."

Anna's jaw dropped. "Wait, wha…? Now?"

"There's no better time. After all, you're going home tomorrow. This is our last night." He leaned in closer to her and whispered, "And now I can have you all to myself." His hand cradled her face while his thumb idly stroked her cheek. He couldn't help but smile wider as her blush deepened.

"But… you shouldn't—I mean, we shouldn't…" she stammered and placed one of her hands over his. "This isn't allowed! What if you get caught?"

He merely chuckled in response and straightened back up, though he remained seated. "I locked the door on my way in."

Anna rolled her eyes and then looked down to readjust the blankets over her chest. But when she looked back at him, her breath hitched. He had an all-too pleasant look on his face. It was almost unnerving. "Um…why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm merely waiting for you to let me join you."

Anna's mouth dropped. "And what makes you think you're welcome in my bed?"

"Simple." He stated and began counting on his fingers. "You haven't thrown something at me, shoved me onto the floor, cursed me to hell-and-back, or insulted me—" he was interrupted by her scoff, which made him smirk. "Not to mention, I can see it in your eyes, you don't really want me to leave."

She frowned and sighed at the fact that he's gotten to knowing her so well. "Don't you hate being right all the time?"

"No?" He responded and cleared his throat. "So. May I? It's rather cold in here."

"So go back to your room." She countered, deciding to play 'hard to get'. He was right, she really didn't want him to leave. She knew this night would be their last, it didn't make the pain of the reality any easier to bear. Who knows when she'd see him again. On the other hand… his barging into her room was definitely not on the list of proper-princely behavior. The last time he snuck in was back when she first arrived and was recovering from her cold. That was three months ago.

"My room is cold too." He said, and his face formed a pathetic pout. "Any room is, without a princess' warm embrace. You know what they say about joined body heat…"

She blushed and studied his face, hoping to crack through his front. Unfortunately, she only got lost in his sad-yet-charming pout and his dreamy eyes. As much as she wanted to tell him to take a hike back to his own cold chamber, her heart and her brain were feuding, and she was having far too difficult a time saying 'no' to him. "Well when you put it like that…." Eventually she scooted over and pulled the blanket back. It didn't take long for him to kick the slippers off and dive in beside her. She let out a surprised gasp as his arms immediately circled around her and drew her into him. "H-hey!-, er, wow. You waste no time."

"Why squander it? We only have so much left…" His face leaned down and captured her lips with his own; gentle at first, but the longer the kiss lingered, the deeper it became. His hands moved up and down her back while hers seemed to travel up and bury in his already tousled hair.

She let out a soft moan when she forced herself to break away for some air. The pause was brief, because before either one of them could get a second breath in, they were locked again. Her senses were tingling, and she didn't want the feelings to end. But, at the same time, there was a nagging at the back of her mind wondering just what he had planned when he snuck in; more specifically, how far he intended to go. She was laying on her back after all, and with his muscular build over hers, he clearly had the advantage.

His hold on her seemed to loosen slightly as he shifted his weight to loom over her without bearing down all his weight, and once their lips parted, she took her chance. She moved her hands to his sides, and with enough strength, she pushed up on him and flipped them over. Hans let out a surprised-grunt as he landed on his back and his own head sank into the soft pillow, and he looked up with an interested gaze as she leaned over his form. "Ah-ah-ah…" she said breathlessly and managed to clasp her hands in his and positioned them over his head on the pillows behind him. "How do you like that, hmm?"

Hans' eyes met hers and gave a playful smirk. "Well, I'm certainly enjoying the view."

She tried to put on her most 'serious' face, but after being lip-locked with him for the last few minutes, maintaining it was difficult. "Don't get too ahead of yourself, lover-boy. My bed, my rules."

"Oh, is that how this works?" He asked, amused. "You're in my castle, you know. I still have some authority over you."

"I'd say you're hardly in a position to make demands."

Hans raised his brows. "I can easily flip us back around…." He trailed off.

"But…" she added, expecting him to add more to the statement.

"why ruin this rare moment of feminine dominance?" He said simply and gazed up at her lazily.

"Mmm…" she leaned her face close enough to his so that their noses just touched. "Someone's learned to pick their battles. What a good little prince."

"Little?" He asked. She only smirked in response. "Go ahead and revel in this victory. It won't last." He said confidently and matched her smirk with one of his own. Deciding to toy with her, he wiggled his wrist just enough to test how strong she was holding him. She had a sound grip, and the move made her snicker and force more of her upper strength to her arms to keep him still. But Hans knew he was stronger. Before he could give her another chance to respond, he easily yanked his hands free from her hold. The sudden move ended up dropping her right onto him and his arms wrapped protectively around her yet again.

Anna couldn't help but let out a gasp when she collapsed against his chest and found herself in his hold. "That was barely any time to revel. I think you're just a sore loser." Her hands pushed on his chest enough to lift her up a little.

"Who doesn't like to win?"

"Touché." She muttered and looked down towards his chest. Her fingers traced over the smooth material of his dressing gown and she tilted her head. "Are you planning on sleeping with your robe on?"

Hans blinked in surprise at her question and the corners of his mouth twitched upwards. She left herself wide-open with that query. "Are you really propositioning me to take my clothes off?" His smirk widened. "I think it's clear what's going through your mind tonight…"

"huh—wait, what? NO!" She gasped, and her hand gave his chest a thwack. He only let out a hearty laugh in response. "I thought that was on your mind after you practically pounced on me…"

One of his hands moved to trace his fingers through her hair. "I won't lie, the idea is tempting, but…. is that what you want?"

Anna's face flushed completely as her eyes searched his. "N-n-no…" she stammered.

His other hand caressed her face. "Good. I've no intention of taking your virtue. I would never, will never ruin you in such a way. I love you too much for that." When he saw her calm down significantly, he drew her closer again. "Of course, it doesn't mean I won't hold back from showering you in the affections you deserve…"

"Hans…"

"I promise you, Anna… this will be a night to remember…"

They were soon at it again, lost in each other's embrace. His body shifted, and she slid off him somewhat so now they were both laying on their sides, facing each other. Her hands cradled the sides of his face, keeping his mouth locked to hers while his hands found their way into her hair and around her waist, holding each other as close as possible. When he let out an involuntary groan, she ended melting into the kiss and let him take the lead, closing her eyes and savoring every second.

"Oh Anna…" he murmured as his lips found their way down her neck.

There was an odd tapping sound suddenly, as if coming from the door, but she ignored it, and gasped at his ministrations. She was in too much of a high to think or worry about anything other than the man in bed with her. She bit her lip slightly when his lips reached her collarbone, and the neckline of her nightgown. He did say he wouldn't go overboard and she trusted him…but in the heat of the moment, what would he try to get away with? And would she even be able to stop him, because what he was doing felt too good…

"Hans…" She said softly and pushed on him gently.

He responded to her shy protest and brought his head up to touch foreheads with her. "It's going to be rough when you leave me…"

"I know…"

"But…" he said thoughtfully and pulled back to look into her eyes. "I believe I have a solution."

She was intrigued. "Oh?"

He nodded and pushed himself up on the bed to try and reach into his robe pockets. When his hands came back up empty, he swore under his breath.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I left it in my room."

"What?" she asked.

"Eh. Nothing- I guess I don't really need it…" With a shrug, he laid back down and took hold of her hands. "Anna?"

Anna mentally flinched. His voice suddenly sounded strange…. Like it was echoing from somewhere, but the tone was too light and—not Hans. Weird.

"Y-yes?"

"Hey, Anna!"There it was again. But that wasn't Hans…. It sounded more like….she couldn't place it at the moment. Hans didn't even seem phased by it. Could he not hear the weird voice?

"Darling Anna…" Hans purred. "Will you marry me?"

"W-w-what?" she asked in surprise.

"marry me…" he repeated, and leaned his forehead in to touch hers, "stay with me here, in the Isles…"

Anna's eyes lit up in surprise as joyful tears began to form. "Oh, Hans…"

"Anna, you in there?"No, that wasn't right…. It sounded like… like Olaf. She was hallucinating, she had to be. Olaf wasn't in the Isles. He was back in Arendelle.

Hans searched her eyes, hopeful, and completely oblivious to the strange voice echoing throughout the room. "Is that a 'yes'?"

"Oh my, Hans, I—" a simple 'yes' would never do, and she pushed her lips up to capture his-

Suddenly, something hard and narrow prodded her back. "Anna, wake up!"

Anna let out a gasp as she bolted upright in bed, her face flushed red and breaths heavy. "Wha'?"

"Hey, Anna!" said a cheerful voice to her left. She immediately turned around and swallowed hard.

"O-Olaf?"

"Good morning!" he smiled, and one of his twiggy fingers touched his chin. "I suppose its afternoon now, though…"

No…. no no no! That means… Her eyes scanned the room. This wasn't her bedroom in the Isles. It was her childhood room in her own castle, full of shades of pink and ivory. And then she turned back to her right. There was no Hans in bed with her. He was never there. In his place beside her had been just a mushed-up pillow that she was clinging to that entire time. A few tears started to form and fall down her cheeks as her trembling fingers ghosted over her lips.

It…it felt so real. But it was only a dream… just a dream…. Just…a…

And the realization made her collapse and bury her face into that pillow as she sobbed away her sorrows.


"—and then she just started crying!" Olaf sighed sadly as he slumped to the ground and leaned against Sven in the palace courtyard.

Kristoff and Sven exchanged looks. "Uh… then what?"

"She yelled at me to leave!" Olaf's voice hitched. "I don't understand…. What did I do wrong?"

"Women…." Kristoff said dryly. "But, first rule of etiquette. Never push into a lady's bedroom. You're one brave snowman, buddy."

"But… Elsa was the one who told me to get her up!" Olaf said. "And I did. I did knock first, but she wouldn't answer." Olaf sighed. "I don't like this feeling Kristoff…. I'm a happy snowman who loves warm hugs. I don't know how to handle crying!"

"Believe me, no one really does."

"Pardon the interruption," said a quiet feminine voice behind the group.

Kristoff turned and nodded, "Gerda."

The maid stepped forward. She had a basket of linen in her hand. "I didn't mean to overhear as I was walking by, but I heard mention of Princess Anna?"

"Yeah." Kristoff said. "Is something wrong?"

Gerda frowned. "Well, I'm not entirely sure. Only, I've noticed she's been very…. how do I put this? Troubled. Upset even. I noticed it when she returned home…"

Kristoff gave a slight dismissive shrug. "She did make a lot of friends in the Southern Isles. And Els—er, Queen Elsa did 'drop the ball' abruptly when we were all coming home."

"I'm sure she misses them. But… I'm more concerned for her well being. There have been several occasions over the last few weeks where I've entered her room in the mornings to lay out some clean clothes and such, and she's having fits; thrashing about in her bed. One morning it took three maids to wake her up and calm her down. I've never seen her have such nightmares before."

Kristoff exchanged a worried look with Sven and Olaf. "I know there was an incident towards the end of her stay involving herself and some of the princes…" Kristoff said. "But she seemed relatively fine. I don't know why she would hide something from us."

"Well she hasn't said anything to me, and she never used to keep secrets from me in all of the years I've been in the castle. I suppose it could be nothing at all and I'm merely over reacting. But if something truly is bothering our dear princess, I wish she would tell someone. It's not like her at all to put on a silent front. It's bad enough that our queen keeps to herself most of the time." With another sad frown, the maid walked off back towards the castle entrance.

Olaf looked from the entrance then back to Kristoff. "What are nightmares?"

"Nightmares are like dreams… or visions. People get them when they're asleep." Kristoff tried to explain. "Only, they tend to be unpleasant, or frightening."

"Ooooooh….I see," Olaf started to nod slowly, then deadpanned. "No, I don't. I can't dream. Or sleep…"

"Consider yourself lucky." Kristoff sighed. Neither he nor Olaf heard the doors to the castle open behind them and someone walk out into the courtyard. "We get them more often than we would want sometimes. They're not always easy to shake off and forget either. I remember once, I had this terrible one about my troll family when I was a kid. It kept me up for weeks—"

"Ahem."

Kristoff turned around and his expression softened when he saw Anna standing behind them. Her hands were fidgeting nervously, grabbing and ungrabbing the fabric of her pale green skirt. "Anna… hi."

"Hi." She said softly and her gaze shifted back and forth between Kristoff and Olaf, knowing that she was the subject of their conversation.

"Anna!" Olaf jumped back to his feet and waddled over to her. "You're up! And you're not sad anymore!"

Anna's face turned a shade of pink and out of the corner of her eye she could see Kristoff let out a groan and facepalm. "I… um." She began, then sighed. I wouldn't quite make that assumption, Olaf.

"Are you aright?" Kristoff asked with concern in his voice.

Anna gave a slight shrug and a somewhat-nod as she knelt to Olaf beside her. "I suppose so." She said, then took hold of one of the snowman's twiggy hands. "I'm sorry about earlier, Olaf. I didn't mean to snap at you the way I did…."

"Is it 'cuz of your bad dreams?" Olaf asked.

Anna visibly stiffened. "What do you mean by that?"

Kristoff took a few steps closer to them to try and respond before Olaf said something that might set her off accidently. "Well… he just assumed since you were so upset when you woke up. You know…"

"Oh." She said, then shrugged again. "It's okay. I'm fine. It was just a dream and waking up just caught me off guard."

"Okay!" Olaf cheered, seemingly oblivious to Anna's moodiness. "Say, we were all going to go out and visit the trolls. You should come!"

Anna shook her head. "Eh, maybe another time… I don't know if I'm in the mood for them to try and marry me off again." She let out an awkward chuckle to try and draw away some of her apprehension.

"Hey, look on the bright side. They're not your family." Kristoff nudged her arm gently.

"True."

Kristoff watched her for a few moments as she nuzzled and gave Sven some attention. He had his own previous suspicions as to why Anna was not quite herself after their return home weeks ago. But, like he had told the maid, he had believed it was because she missed her friends, and by extension, Hans. To hear that these frequent nightmares are involved somehow…. This was not a matter that he wanted to ignore. But, what were they spawning from? And why would Anna keep it all so secretive?

"Hey, Anna…" he began, "do you have a few minutes?"

She stood up and looked at him. "Yeah, why?"

"No reason… just walk with me?"

She glanced back towards Sven and Olaf. "I thought you were heading off to see the trolls…"

"It can wait a little longer." He shot Sven a look that read 'Distract Olaf!', which Sven grunted happily and shot to his feet to trail after his frosty friend.

"If you're sure." Anna said, and stepped aside to let him lead the way. Behind them, they could hear Olaf yelp 'Ah! My nose!'. Anna glanced behind and couldn't help but smile as Sven galloped around the courtyard with the snowman's carrot nose sticking out of his mouth. When she turned back, she had to catch up to Kristoff who was holding open the door to the castle. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"Uh, in here is good." He said, leading her to the first empty room he could find: a small study off the great hall. He closed the door after her and took a seat in a chair opposite of her.

Anna glanced to the closed door. "Kristoff, what's this about?"

Kristoff took a deep breath. This is not going to be an easy conversation at all…but I think if she had to be confronted by someone, better me than her sister. "Promise you won't get upset with me…. or Gerda. We're just trying to look out for you."

Anna opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again. Wait, what? "Um…sure. But, why would I be angry with you? Or Gerda of all people?"

"Okay. So… all of us have been worried about you. Ever since we've gotten home, you haven't quite been yourself. You're way more secluded than you ever used to be. And when you're around others, even us… you're all quiet and shy. Or moody."

Anna didn't say anything. Her left hand moved up and she mindlessly ran her fingers through her braid.

"I just want to make sure you're okay." When she didn't respond, he pushed on. "Are you alright?"

Her mouth frowned ever so slightly but she nodded. "I told you before, I'm fine—"

"Yeah, but here's the thing. You keep saying it, but I don't believe it."

She sighed. This is not the conversation I want to have right now. Especially with you, Kristoff. If I tell you the truth… it'll only break your heart. "I… I miss the Southern Isles." She finally elaborated. "I wasn't ready to leave yet." Her hand left her hair and started to fidget over her other hand. The bottoms of her fingertips traced slowly over the narrow band and round pearl on the ring she wore. Hans' ring. Just feeling it around her finger would normally bring a sense of calm for her nerves. Today though, it only made her sad, a miserable reminder of the dream she was abruptly woken up from.

"Well… the first day of spring was earlier this week. That's when you were supposed to leave, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah, and even though I knew it would be coming up, I was counting on those extra weeks to prepare myself to say goodbye." She let out a sigh. "I had grown so accustomed to being there… it almost felt like a second home in a way. Going home so suddenly…I just…" she trailed off. "I miss them."

"And Hans…" he added as if finishing her thought.

She visibly stiffened but didn't say anything regarding that hot topic. This conversation with Kristoff was strange enough. She really didn't feel like having an argument over Hans' character. Instead, she tried to redirect the line of questioning. "Why were you implicating Gerda before?"

"She claims you've been having some really bad nightmares lately." He replied and leaned forward in his seat.

Anna sighed. She really didn't want to talk about that either. "They're just random dreams, Kristoff. Everyone gets a weird one occasionally."

"Yeah, except average nightmares for you would include being forced into a world where chocolate didn't exist. Those you wake up from, say to yourself 'woah, that was weird', and then go back to sleep as if nothing was wrong. According to Gerda, yours involved kicking and thrashing, along with an intervention to wake you up—" he paused when she averted her gaze. "Look… I just want to make sure you're ok."

She continued to stay silent. Kristoff frowned again. There must be some way to make her talk to me…. Then an idea struck him. "You know… Hans wouldn't want you to keep this bottled up."

Mentioning the prince made her gaze shoot back up to him. "w-what?" Since when does Kristoff care about what Hans thinks?

"He cares about you, and I'm sure if he knew what you were going through right now he would encourage you to talk about it."

She sighed. "Well, you aren't wrong there." She finally admitted, and then cocked an eyebrow up. "It must be serious to you if you have to evoke the name of someone you can't stand."

Kristoff's fingers drummed on the arm of the chair. "I don't hate him." He said. "Not anymore. I suppose you could say, we've made peace."

"Okay, woah. Stop right there." Anna waved her hands in front of her. "You what?"

"We've made peace." He replied. "That last night. When I left the ball, I sat with Sven in the stables for a while and thought a good long while about what's been going on. Between us, and you and Hans. I finally came to terms with the fact that you and I will probably never go beyond 'best friends'… and I'm okay with that. Really. It's been this awkward love-triangle going on ever since I got to his kingdom. You haven't really been too privy to it since most of the word-slinging happened when you weren't around. Anyways…" he found himself approaching babbling, so he tried to rear himself back on track. "Later that night I went to see him and tried to tell him that I wasn't going to get in the way of his happiness. I mean, it's not much of a secret that the man loves you, Anna." He smiled slightly when he saw a small blush form on her cheeks. "I promised to look after you in his stead."

Anna was shocked, and it showed on her face. "You… you did?" she asked. When he nodded, she blinked in surprise. "I… um, wow. I'm... speechless."

"I wouldn't consider us best friends or anything. Or, even friends, to be honest. But yeah. It's a thing."

"What changed your mind?"

"Well, nothing. But it's obvious that you've changed between the first day you met the guy and now. You're not blindly following 'true love' because the man is a handsome prince from a far-off kingdom. You've had real experiences with him, after all. I trust you, Anna. And I trust your judgement now more than I ever did the first day we met." His mouth formed an amused smirk. "I bet you probably know the real answers to all of those pesky questions I asked you so long ago."

She smirked back. "Is that a challenge?"

He gave an eager nod. "What's his last name?" He asked.

Anna straightened up and spoke with confidence. "Westergaard."

"What's his favorite food?"

"Sandwiches. Really. I got that right the first time!"

"Best friend's name?" He asked with a raised brow.

Anna opened her mouth to answer but froze. Hans really didn't have a best friend. Sure, she could name herself, but she was also his quasi-lover-ex-ex-fiancé. She didn't really count. But then an idea struck. "Sitron."

"….uh, that's a horse."

"So?" She countered. "Your best friend is a reindeer!"

"Ok, you win that one." He cleared his throat and continued the mock interrogation. "Eye color?"

"Green. A dreamy green." She giggled, working in her previous vague answer.

Kristoff then smirked darkly. "Foot size?"

Her face flushed, and she couldn't help but roll her eyes. "foot size doesn't matter."

"Have you had a meal with him yet? What if you hate the way he eats. Or the way he picks his nose and eats it?!"

"Oh brother…." She muttered. "We've eaten several meals together, obviously." She stated, and he nodded in understanding. "He eats with the poise of a true prince. And get real, Kristoff. He doesn't pick his nose and eat the boogies. No one does."

He burst out laughing. "Okay, you win!" When he calmed himself down he straightened back up and leaned forward again to take one of her hands. "But seriously…. These nightmares. Where are they coming from?"

She slumped her shoulders and looked down at her hand in his. "You aren't going to let this go."

"No. I'm not." He said. "If it's a big enough deal to tell Hans—and don't start. I know you've probably mentioned it to him. You tell him everything. –if it's something you can share with Hans, then I want you to share it with me. What can you be so afraid of?"

She looked back up at him. Her expression was completely changed. Her nerves were showing, and she glanced quickly to the door as if someone was listening in. "This…this can't leave this room."

Kristoff blinked. "Okay. I promise. Now what's this about?"

"You remember what happened in the Isles… my kidnapping."

"Of course I do." He said. "Hans and I—well, I saved you. You're fi—" he stopped himself. She was alluding to something, and while he knew she was about to tell him what the big secret was… the anticipation was putting a terrible feeling in his gut. "Anna…"

"What do you know about what happened?"

Kristoff frowned and thought back. "Well… one of Hans' brothers had some grudge and went revenge-crazy? And somehow you got caught in the middle of it."

She shook her head. "You don't know the half of it…" after swallowing nervously, her voice grew softer as she finally broke down and revealed to Kristoff everything that transpired from the moment the Stabbington brothers snatched her from her bedroom to when Kristoff swooped in with Sven and rescued her from being killed. Soon she redirected her gaze back to her lap. She couldn't bear look at him now that he knew the truth.

Kristoff squeezed her hand as he processed what she just told him. "Why that… that…." He decided to censor himself for Anna's sake. "I bet that's why he had you kidnapped in the first place. It was just an excuse to get you all to himself so he could put his grubby mitts all over –"

"it was never about me, Kristoff. Not completely. I was just a tool; a means to an end." She sighed and shrunk further back in her seat.

"what do you mean?"

"it was all about Hans." She said as she rubbed her arms. "Dirk was trying to damage Hans in the worst way possible, but to do that he needed him out in the open and all alone. I was just bait…-"

"It doesn't explain why he would do commit such an attack on you."

She shook her head. "It's who Dirk is—er, was. He and his twin brother were such lecherous monsters who haven't stopped trying to paw and grab at me every day I was there. It was disgusting. And it's what he wanted all along." Discussing the subject of her nightmares made her shiver involuntarily. "it was probably all part of his plan. He bragged about his lustful conquest to Hans on purpose to break him, and it almost worked…."

"How uh, do you know he did that?" Kristoff asked and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Because when I went to visit Hans that first night afterwards, he already knew—"

"—this is insane!" kristoff interrupted. "How was it that nothing was done when we got back? Apart from Hans and his injuries, everyone was so… calm! The princes, the king. Elsa. You! Did no one care what happened to you?" When she only looked down at her lap and fidgeted with part of her dress, he got his answer. "You didn't tell anyone? Why not? He deserved to be punished!"

"Punished?" Anna shot back. "He's dead, Kristoff! And don't judge me! You weren't there, you weren't the one being humiliated by that man's sick embrace. Revealing what happened wouldn't have changed a thing!"

"You should have told me…. even Elsa! She—"

"ELSA? Her least of all! If I told my sister what happened in the mountain shack she would have frozen the Southern Isles twice over in rage!" She cried out. "The king has been trying so hard to mend relations with her. Telling Elsa what happened would have destroyed everything!"

"To hell with relationships, Anna!" Kristoff said, jumping to his feet. Anger was churning inside of him at her revelation. "One of his sons nearly raped you!"

She couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into tears. She buried her head in her arms on the arm of her seat.

Her outburst immediately made Kristoff freeze in place. His expression softened as he moved to kneel in front of her. "Hey…" he said softly. "I'm sorry…" opening his arms up, he wrapped them around her and drew her into a tight hug. He could feel her fingers move on his chest and dig into his clothes. "I didn't mean to upset you more." Anna was too busy crying to respond, so he continued, "it's just… of all the things that I imagined to be bothering you, I didn't expect this at all…"

They were both silent for a few minutes with the only sound of some of Anna's muffled sniffles.

"I wish I knew earlier what was going on." He said in a softer, soothing voice. "For being such a terrible liar about everything else… you hid this from us really well." She remained silent again. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"….hold me…"

"Of course." His hands rubbed her back gently as he waited for her to calm herself down. "You know I'll always be looking out for you. I want to. I do love you, Anna... and I want to know when you're upset. We've all been so worried... at least now I know why..."

Soon after, she moved one of her hands to wipe tears from her cheeks. "Remember…you promised not to tell Elsa…"

"I know, and I won't. It's not my secret to tell. But you can, you know. We're not in the Isles anymore."

She shook her head against his chest. "I can't… if she finds out now, I'm afraid she will never let me back to visit… you know how protective she gets."

"I do… just as I know how protective I can get…"

She couldn't help but smile slightly. "Thank you, Kristoff…" she pushed on him gently and looked up at his face. "But… you should probably head back. I'm sure Olaf and Sven are wondering where you went. Soon, it'll be too late to go see your family."

"Eh, it's alright. We'll probably spend the night anyways. But I won't leave you alone until I know you're okay."


Later that afternoon, Anna was laying on her bed reading a book to get her mind off of her meltdown hours before when there was a knock on the door.

"Yes?"

The door opened and Kai stepped inside. "Princess Anna?"

"Kai? What is it?"

He stepped to the bed and held out an envelope. "The royal messenger just delivered this about an hour ago."

Hearing the news, Anna bolted upright and looked excitedly at the letter. Hans' first letter is here! Eagerly, she took it and dismissed the steward. Suddenly giddy, she examined the envelope closely. Her name was scripted neatly on the front. It almost looked too feminine for Hans' hand. Especially since the last time he wrote something it looked like chicken-scratch.

Using her thumb, she tore open the envelope and pulled out the single sheet of parchment inside and began to read.

Dear Anna,

It was such a pleasure to meet you at Frederick's ball. I only wish I had more chances to speak to you that evening—

Anna paused in reading. "Oh." She said out loud. "This isn't from Hans… this is…" her eyes quickly scanned to the signature. "Giselle? Oh! Lisee's mother!" The date on the letter was only a few days after her departure, which meant none of her own letters had arrived yet. Curious to what the woman had to say, she continued to read.

My darling Ludwig had told me many stories about what had been going on at home while I was away in Corona. I want to thank you for being such a wonderful friend and influence on Annalise. She was very taken by you. I had no idea you both had formed such a strong bond so quickly. As you can imagine, she was miserable that first week without you. She misses you dearly, as I'm sure you share the same feelings for her, as well as the rest of us here in the Southern Isles. It seems you've left quite an impression on everyone in the castle. It couldn't have been easy being the only maiden in a male-dominated fortress, but you managed extremely well—better-in-fact than I ever could.

I'm sure you're wondering why I'm writing. Other than my greetings, I am sharing a brief update on behalf of my younger brother, Hans. His handwriting is far too atrocious to be used for correspondence right now, and so I will relay his messages with my own today. Fear not, Anna. He is alright, though far more worse-for-wear than I anticipated. He remains on strict bed-rest from the doctor. Apparently, his stint at the ball put too much strain on his foot, and he earned another three weeks off his feet. His shoulder progress remains on schedule. He misses you terribly and counts down to the days until your letters arrive. I think he had more he wished to relay but felt uncomfortable telling it to me. I can understand his hesitation. Such wishes and sentiments are private between the two of you. He does love you very much.

I do hope we can continue to write to each other. I am upset we didn't have much time to chat, and I would like for us to be friends. After all, you're practically one of the family. If I can manage it without too much family advertisement, I would like to come to Arendelle to visit you. There is only so much a mere letter can convey, after all, and some topics I would rather discuss in person. I have also extended friendly greetings to your sister, the Queen, asking her thoughts on the matter.

I wish you well in the days ahead and look forward to hearing from you. Everyone here in the castle sends their greetings as well.

-Giselle Westergaard

Anna blinked as she reread the letter. It was certainly an unexpected message, yet a pleasant one. Oh Hans… she sighed. I knew you trying to stand on that foot was a bad idea. Now you've done it… she couldn't help but sigh at her lover's misfortune. And… Giselle even wants to come here. This is…a surprise! Hopefully Elsa won't be a spoil-sport. I gotta make this happen!