Chapter Five

It had been almost a week at sea, and Hans had been reminded exactly why he detested the sea and had traveled as little as possible while living as a prince. Plagued by non stop nausea and spending his near week of being a swabbie mostly hanging over the rails and ridding himself of his stomach contents made Hans almost eager to land at the lumber mine and let the harder work begin. They should have docked in four days time at most, but storms kept the ship held up, adding almost a full week to the trip.

At last they docked, and Hans almost bounced to see the land as the ship jerked to a halt. Throwing down his mop, he nearly scrambled over the others to touch land, barely holding down the tears when he hit land. He had barely found his legs again when Cadmael grabbed his shoulder and pointed him towards the large expanse of trees to the north of the East Island. His older brother gave him a crooked smile.

"Well, Johannes, I hope you like the woods. For the next six months, you'll spend your time there, with this-" Cadmael thrusted a large ax into his youngest brother's arms, and nodded towards the tree line. "As you know, I am the leader of this expedition, with the Southern Isles at peace right now… barring Arendelle deciding to seek revenge on the damages you wrought." The man frowned suddenly, but then focused again at directing his brother.

"As I was saying, you will be in this expanse for the next several months. You will be taught by one of the senior Jacks on tree cutting procedure, and then you will deliver the lumber to the sawmill using this." Cad pointed to what looked like a small wooden sled with a belt and a harness, and Hans looked from it to his brother, incredulous.

"I… I am supposed to trekk kilometers using THAT?!" He couldn't keep the shock value from his voice, and Cad chuckled darkly with an uncaring shrug.

"We've plenty of men to actually be productive. This is just part of your punishment. Nobody is keeping track of how much timber you actually bring to the mill- although rest assured that if you slack and barely try to cut anything down, you will be punished in whatever way I determine best. Have fun. Your Journeyman should be here shortly. Try out your transportation device while you wait."

When the large burly man with ebony hair showed up at the timber cutting site, Hans watched him closely. The man nodded to him, introduced himself as Gunhild, and then cracked his knuckles, nodding to the tree they stood in front of. "Aight. Put these on, and let's get on with it." The man threw a pair of shoes towards Hans, and Hans glanced at them, realizing that they had large spikes pointing outward. Putting them on, Hans was then thrown a rope, and Gunhild demonstrated how to wrap the rope around the trunk of the tree and use leverage to move himself slowly up the tree.

As the evening progressed, Hans was amazed at how quickly he took to the climbing part of the job, and attributed it to the days in his youth when he would scurry up the tall columns and onto the second floor of the castle, to escape unwanted attention during formal events.

As the sun went down, Hans had graduated to learning how to work hand saws while in the air. As a prince, he was unaccustomed to any hard labor, and that was when his progress began to markably slow. Finally, Hans slid down a small tree and his supervisor shook his head.

"Ye best be back here at dawn, boy. Ye've a lot a work ta do."

The next day proved harder, as not only were his muscles screaming for rest, but his supervisor stopped him and shook his hand towards the small pile of branches and limbs that Hans had removed, and then gestured again to the sled. The ex-prince shuddered and began lifting the timber from the ground onto the sled, and once full, he strapped himself in the harness and began pulling it towards the lumar mill. The load was heavier than even he had imagined, and the runners became stuck on every single rock, dirt clod, and dip in the land that Hans came across. Still he soldiered on, ever mindful of the fact that if he didn't try as hard as possible, it would only worsen for him.

As the days turned to weeks, Hans became acutely aware of the exhaustion that came with shimmying up and down trees all day and carrying loads several miles to the mill. After his third month, he approached Cadmael, who looked down at his brother with resigned impatience.

"Brother Cadmael… I wonder if I might have a moment of your time?"

Cad wrinkled his nose at Hans, but nodded, arching a brow when Hans didn't immediately speak. "Did the Jötunn steal your tongue, too?"

Hans flinched at the jab, but spoke. "I wondered if I might have some stationary. I would like to write to Hania and have no clear way to reach her. I was made aware that my punishment would be a paid position, and-"

"Your status as a criminal notwithstanding, that money is to go directly to Arendelle as reprieve from your horrid crimes against their kingdom. Do you dare suggest I steal from them so I can aid you in any way?!"

His sharp rebuke and hot anger caused Hans to wince, but the ex-prince pressed forward, speaking quickly, "I- I just was going to ask, brother, if I could be assigned an additional task while here. It wouldn't interfere with the money earned which goes towards Arendelle, I could purchase my own stationary… or you could just hand me the stationary in lieu of money!"

As his voice pitched up, Cad raised a brow and replied drolly, "Dearest brother, you seem very much in need of this. I don't suppose you are planning a mad escape from here with their assistance, hmm? I would need to place you in chains while you fulfilled your duties here, and I do ensure you that would not be pleasant."

Hans shook his head fervently, and his green eyes shone with unshed tears. "I grew up with nineteen other members of the household, Cad. I…" Hans paused, a blush of shame coloring his cheeks. "I'm lonely. We stop work at night and I lie alone on my pallet on the earth and I miss home. I miss the sounds of the cooks ending the evening meal, and the sounds of each of us and Maman and Father heading to bed. I miss the memories of all of us together in the nursery long after you older ones had outgrown it, stuck there while lavish parties were held and your seperate rooms were made available for traveling guests. I think of how the mornings would dry up quickly and how utterly stifling the heat was, but if you rose before dawn the morning dew was fresh and sparkled on the trees. I've never… There's never been a time before when I was away from home because I was unwelcome, and it's hard for me to adjust to it. I think writing to Hania would help."

Cad stared at him, and the older prince's mouth fell into a grim frown. He turned from Hans sharply, staring at the wall of the lodge he resided in, his hands clasped behind his back. "It isn't supposed to be easy, Johannes. You were convicted of several crimes of which you are supposed to be attoning for. Had you not done these dark acts, you wouldn't be homesick…"

.Hans lowered his voice, realizing he had sounded unmanly and desperate. "Cad, please. I need to know that she is alright, and how Maman is… I beg it of you."

Cad paced in front of Hans for a few moments, brows furrowed as he mulled it over. Finally, he faced Hans, and gave a curt nod.

"Very well, Johannes. For every two weeks that you work at the loading dock, loading the finished timber onto a steamboat, you may receive four sheets of stationery. Use it wisely. I'll even do you one better and give you unmarked stationery and let you use my seal, so Maman can receive letters without Father's interference."

Hans grinned ear to ear at hearing Cad's decision, and he reached forward and hugged his brother without thinking. The thirty-five-year-old stiffened and shoved Hans back, shaking his head. "Don't make me regret this kindness, Johannes." The younger man nodded and turned, fleeing out of the room in the direction of the docks, eager to get started come the next day and begin to learn the ropes. Watching the youngest prince leave, Cad ruefully shook his head. "There are days I wonder if he really did what they say."

The days passed and were full of the usual exhaustion and toil, however, when a week was up, Hans nearly shook with anticipation as he received his four sheets of stationary. His brother had given it to him privately along with a small fountain pen, and Hans seized a moment of silence as the other workers around him headed to the dinner lodge.

Hania, Dearest Sister,

My time within the labor camps has been enlightening to say the least. I wish to know, however, how you are faring? My thoughts are with you knowing you have likely reached your home by now, and pray the journey over the waters was not too hazardous given your condition. I think of you and our childhood near constantly, and fondly does it come to me. Sister, how is your husband? I pray he is well, and that you are both well and the forthcoming season of cold and of harvest are kind to your home. Brother Cadmael has agreed I might receive post here, so respond with haste if it pleases you.

Your Brother,

Johannes W.

Hans quickly stuck the letter in an envelope and put it on his brother's desk to be affixed with the royal seal.

More time passed, and Hans found that as difficult and back-breaking as the work was, he was finding a few positives. Having been royalty with no experience in anything requiring physical effort, he had been a skinny teenager and had bulked only a little as an older teenager and young adult. Now, although his muscles screamed and burned with every move, he found that he was seriously bulking up. His chest was becoming barrel-like, and his arms became taunt with muscle gain and strong. As Hans' third month at the lumber camp ended and the fourth began, Hans would grin when looking at his reflection, even with the beard he had begun growing ing almost as soon as he had docked in the east island.

Hans had found a renewed energy in the labor after being allowed to write home. He knew that all responses sent and received were to be monitored, but he paid it no mind, too eager to keep his minimal contact with the world outside the camp to care about privacy. His mother had sent only a small letter, ever cautious of being found out by her husband. Hans respected and understood that- he had presumed all stationary would be postmarked from Cad himself, and while Queen Alvilda loved all her children, the older ones were more distanced since they had received more training from the king and had thus spent less time by her side. With this being the case, too many letters to or from Cadmael would be suspect, and might encourage the king to investigate.

As Hans finished unloading the food and supplies sent on the most recent steam boat, he grabbed the outheld letter from one of the supervisors of the docks and grinned madly. His sister had written to him at last! He had worried that she had changed her mind and had shunned him finally, as he knew it had been nearly a fortnight since his letter had been written, and it should have only taken half that time for his letter to have been received and sent on to the land handled by Hania and her husband. Uncurling the paper, Hans eyes eagerly darted across the paper, eyebrows furrowing before he stood and dashed towards Cad's private lodge, the letter clenched tightly in his hands.

Paying no mind that the General was receiving an audience, he flung the doors open, ignoring the dirty looks sent his way as he quickly crossed the floor to his brother.

"I must speak with you! Now!"

Cadmael's already existing glower at being interrupted intensified at being ordered, and he thumped his hand hard on the desk he sat behind.

"You will not dare speak to me this way! Whatever you 'must' say to me will wait until this meeting is-"

"I must leave forthwith! If you wait you will get no explanation-!" Hans choked on the rest of his words as Cadmael moved, grabbing the younger man by the throat and lifting him off his feet against a wall.

"All of you are dismissed, our meeting will resume in the morn'!" The room was empty in mere moments, and Cadmael kept his hand firmly against Hans' throat, the other one on Hans' shoulder, preventing him from moving. "Now," Cadmael sneered, "Suppose you try that again. You're going to do what, Little Brother?"

Hans grabbed at the large hand cutting off his air, and as Cad stepped back and dropped him, Hans choked and wheezed, eyes crossing as his body tried to take in air. "I… must… leave! Here! Read and understand, Cad."

Cadmael grabbed the letter, eyes glancing over the information within. His face greyed a bit as he reached the middle of the letter, and his palpable anger dropped a few degrees. The older prince stepped away and shook his head, dropping the letter on his desk. Hans got to his feet and stood at attention, his voice hoarse as he whispered, "She needs me."

Cadmael shook his head. "Johannes, I can't. You know for sure Maman will go to her as soon as this news is received, if she is not there already. It is not our concern-"

"SHE IS OUR SISTER!" Hans exploded, stepping forward as his face reddened. "Her husband is dead. She carries his child! You cannot just expect me to sit here and do nothing! You cannot be so cruel! I must go to her. If there is nobody else I love in this world, it is Hania and she needs me! She's older, she's always been there for me even before this entire situation. It is time I step up and be there for her now… Cadmael… please! If she loses the child, I don't think she could take it. Even taking after our parents, she is only so strong."

Cadmael sighed, fingering the letter. "Do not mistake my refusal in your leave for not caring. She's my older sister too, after all. Her pain is my own." Cad hung his head, rubbing his face as he let out a deep sigh. "Even if I wished to release you, I lack that power. Zian himself is merely the crowned Heir, and he too would lack that power. I do not need tell you that Father would not grant you this no matter if it was Hania herself on a deathbed."

Hans' eyes flashed and narrowed, stiffening in his stance. "I'm going whether you-" He stopped as Cadmael held up his hand for silence.

"I cannot release you officially. But I can be so tired that I forget about a certain steamboat setting course for the Northern Isles on this night, full of crates and supplies to combat the sickness the Isles are seemingly taken with." Cad shrugged and continued, "Of course, you are to assist with the loading of this vessel, but at this late hour, it is possible that I might unthinkingly dismiss he who is in charge of you, and you might hide yourself away between the many crates and supplies."

Cadmael tapped his fingers on the desk, sliding his dark blue eyes towards his brother and then to the door. "We won't discover you are unaccounted for until tomorrow morning, at which point you will be long gone. Seeing as we have only the one steamboat allowed to us here, we've no way of alerting any authorities until it arrives back in port."

Hans took the heavy hints, heading briskly towards the door, only to be stopped as Cad put a hand on his shoulder, forcing him to step back and meet Cad's eyes.

"You realize, of course, that should this transpire, you will be branded a deserter and punished most severely? It will make the welts upon your back and the branding upon your chest seem like mere parlour tricks. I will have no choice but to punish you to the highest extent, including death. I, too, will be punished for failing in my duties to keep you within the borders of the East Isles."

Hans nodded and adjusted his suspenders and light coat, face solemn and resolved as he kept Cadmael's eyes. "Whatever comes my way, I must go to her. She's my sister, and she needs me." At his words, Cadmael released him and nodded. As Hans stood at the threshold of the lodge, Cadmael spoke one last time. Though his tone was quiet, it seemed to Hans that his brother's words echoed both within the cabin and within Hans' heart. "Johannes… this entire conversation never happened."

Hans gave no reply other than a quick and concise nod, instead taking his time to pick his way through the brush and grass as silently as possible. As he let the darkness aid him, Cad stared out at the harbor, a small smile flitting across his face. "Godspeed, Johannes. You're doing the right thing."

A/N: Poor Hans, he's going through so much! But I'm glad he (sort of) stood up to Cadmael.

So. I had to do some research to feel at ease with where each island is. And then got to do math (which may or may not be correct) trying to figure out how much time would be spent traveling. If anybody is interested, see here, otherwise, I'll see you all next chapter!

Info:: Sailing Ships traveled anywhere between 8-25 knots (9-28mph) 24hr/day gave a wide range of 216- 672 miles/day. However, as these vessels relied on the wind to carry them, they will not feature in this fanfic, and possible traveled distance is harder for me to calculate. Historically in 1830s, Steamboats traveled from 5 to 9mph. 24 hours a day gave them a range of 120-216 miles/day. Using modern placements: ARENDELLE- Bodo, Norway. The Main Southern Isles is the UK; The North Isles are Faroe Islands; East Isles is Denmark; West Isles is Ireland

North Isles- 650 miles from Main Isles, 800mi from East Isles, 700 mi from West Isles

Main Southern Isles- 650 miles from North Isles, 500 from East Isles,800 from West Isles

East Isles- 500 mi from Main Isles, 800mi from the North Isles, 1200mi from West Isles

West Isles- 700 miles from North Isles, 300mi from Main Isles, 1200 from East Isles

Arendelle- 1400 miles from Main Isles