Author's Note: Based on the prompt "Unreachable" from Naiely on FFNet. Takes place right after the confrontation in the ice palace between Elsa, Hans, and the Duke's men.

Decisions

An eerie silence fell over the men as the last echoes of shattering ice passed out of earshot, their gazes returning to the center of the room.

She had not moved since the chandelier fell, and one by one they edged closer to her fallen figure, a mixture of fear and contempt swirling in their pallid features.

"She's still alive!" cried one of the younger guards, backing away in terror; an older one from behind him grunted, stepping forth with the weight of cold steel in his palms, staring at her with deadly purpose.

"Stand down!"

The older man froze and looked up, his mouth twisting as he lowered his sword.

"No harm is to come to the Queen. Or didn't you hear me earlier?"

The man looked down, sniffing. "Yes, Your Highness."

Hans's eyes narrowed at him. "Good. Now go and prepare my horse. We must get her back to Arendelle before she awakens."

"But Your Highness—"

The prince turned on his heel to face the younger guard, who swallowed under scrutiny.

"What?"

The man could not meet Hans's gaze. "It's just that… well, Your Highness, don't you think it'd be easier if we ended things here?" he stammered. "That way it would look like an accident, no one would be any the wiser back in the kingdom, and this wretched winter will finally be over."

Hans nodded, as if considering the idea. "Hm. And you're quite certain that it would all be 'over' if the Queen were dead, is that right?" He glanced at the other men. "Is that what the rest of you think as well?"

They shifted uncomfortably and looked down, shivering from the cold. The prince's hard stare returned to the young man before him. "At least you're honest with your nonsense. I can't say the same for your countrymen."

Hans bent down until he was so close to the queen that he could see the faint outlines of her exhales against the ice below. Her lips, usually pink, were strained and pale.

"It's hardly nonsense, Your Highness," interrupted the older guard, finally sheathing his sword. "With respect, you're a newcomer to our lands, and don't know the old stories like we do." He risked a step closer to the prince, who frowned. "This curse dooms us all, if it is not broken." He gestured towards the Duke's men for effect, their battered frames still sat in curled, defensive positions by the far wall. "Look at what she has already done!"

Hans rolled his eyes. "Need I remind you that those same men tried to kill her?" he retorted, making the old man's cheeks redden. "Your old stories are just that: stories. The truth is that none of us know what would happen, and to think otherwise amounts to treason." He gently collected the queen's limp body into his arms, regarding her with a softer expression before shooting a dark glare at the others. "Since it appears you're all still in the throes of a magic-induced mania, I'll forget this conversation ever happened. Now go."

He jerked his head at the younger guard, who bowed and quickly sprinted out of the palace, the others following his lead. Only the oldest lagged behind, his eyes darting between the prince and the queen, the sight of the latter causing his nose to wrinkle and lips to purse sourly. With a final frown from Hans, he ushered the Duke's limping men out, and then left.

The prince exhaled, looking up; his jaw dropped slightly, the smallest quirk of a smile tugging on his mouth. "I didn't really have time earlier to properly appreciate your handiwork, Elsa, in between fighting off your snowbeast and dodging ice crystals." He glanced at her, sighing. "Oh, right. You can't hear me. That's just as well—I doubt that you'd allow such closeness, if you could." He craned his neck down, his lips brushing against her ear. "I mean it, you know," he murmured. "It's all rather magnificent."

He was answered by little more than her soft breathing against his chest, though he noted that some color had returned to her cheeks. "I'd give you my coat, but I'm pretty sure I need it more than you do," he quipped, then paused. "It's strange, isn't it? To have found your match, only to discover that they have the power to destroy the world." He shrugged. "Ah, well. There's nothing for it, is there, Elsa? Even if I had tried to court you from the start, as I'd intended to, no one was getting anywhere with you."

The smallest of tremors ran through her, and Hans shuddered as it rippled against him. He looked down at the queen in surprise, but she remained silent as the grave, her numb expression unchanging from before.

"It's a shame, you know," he said, his gaze lingering on a stray tendril of her white-blonde hair that had fallen across her eyes. "You really were the preferable one. I just… chose the path of least resistance, as they say." His nose twitched, and he held her closer without realizing it. "In another life, perhaps..."

"Your Highness?"

Hans sighed again, forcing himself to look up and walk back towards the entrance. The younger guard greeted him at the bottom of the stairs, helping the prince secure the queen to his steed. Hans ignored the wary looks from the other men as he pressed her against his front, taking the reins. "Thank you. Now, back to Arendelle."

They followed his lead with gloomy deference, but the prince paid them no heed, looking ahead with a strange smile alighting on his features.

"Let's go home, Elsa."