Chapter Twenty Three

Eleanor's Offer

ANNA

"Let me guess." Eleanor said, gingerly settling down opposite her. "You're facing some trouble with the Southern Isles, and you would like me to help?"

Anna fought back her astonishment. "How could you know about that?"

"Let's just say I make it my business to keep abreast of the affairs of the kingdoms around me." Eleanor said. "Also, it pays to have a good intelligence sector."

"You're right about the first part." Anna admitted. "We are experiencing some…tension from the Southern Isles. But no, I didn't come to ask for help."

"No?"

"I actually came to ensure the friendship between our two peoples." Anna said. "To…enforce bilateral relations, if I may be blunt."

"I see." Eleanor steepled her fingers in a peculiar manner. "And what exactly are you hoping to accomplish here?"

Anna racked her brain for a way to respond, but Eleanor perceived her intentions and was way too quick for her.

"You want to know if the Empire is going to march on Arendelle, don't you?"

Damn it. "Yes." Anna said cautiously. "I'm sorry if I'm being a bit too direct."

"Don't be," Eleanor dismissed her apology. "If it were my kingdom at stake I would be equally anxious to ensure its safety."

"So you would spare Arendelle?" Anna probed. From the onset, and even before she had stepped foot out of Arendelle, she had already known the answer but she still needed to keep up the facade in order to learn more about her enemy.

"I guess I owe you an honest answer." Eleanor leaned backward as if dreading the next part of the conversation. This was false, of course. She must be revelling in my discomfort. "As much as I respect you and your kingdom, I'm afraid it can't be helped. This is war we're talking about. It's just business, cold and impersonal."

"Colonisation." Anna corrected.

"Call it what you like." Eleanor said, a little less pleasantly. "But it has to be done. I owe it to my people, at the very least."

"And what about all the people from these kingdoms and cities you've conquered?" Anna asked.

"They're not my people." Eleanor said without hesitation or remorse. "Exon has spent decades -no, centuries - being oppressed and disadvantaged, most recently subjected to the 'peace treaty' instituted by the Confederation of the North. I think it's time that my people get on the right side of history."

"The right side of history." Anna repeated slowly. "And war is the best answer?"

"A necessary evil to achieve our goals." Eleanor looked a little pained. "But if it helps, I'm prepared to make a deal. Out of friendship and professional courtesy between the two of us, I will make you an offer."

Anna decided to stay quiet and hear what the Empress had to say.

"I'm assuming that your kingdom's military is preparing a deterrence strategy of some sort." Eleanor said. "An advice from one ruler to another? Don't. You can't stop the Imperial Horde, no matter how good or capable your army is. I don't wish to see good soldiers die. It'll be such a waste. If we can avoid unnecessary bloodshed, then I think we owe it to our armies to prevent it."

"And what about the people of Denmark?" Anna felt her anger rising within her but fought to maintain a polite demeanour.

"They…resisted." Eleanor shook her head as if she regretted something. Anna was pretty sure she was just putting up a facade too. "I don't wish for there to be any conflict between us, Anna."

"With all due respect, Eleanor, that's a little hard to believe, since you intend to colonize Arendelle under your banner."

"Alright then, here's my promise to you." Eleanor glanced up at her. "If we can avoid a war between our two armies, I guarantee you that you won't have a hard time under my reign. You will be given safe refuge and a comfortable life. And of course, we can work together to make Arendelle the best colony in the Empire."

That was a mouthful. The Empress was trying to tempt her, but Anna had enough resolve to know that it was an empty promise from a power hungry tyrant who was just trying to gain her trust.

"I'm guessing you made a similar offer to the rulers of Denmark," Anna said. "And they declined."

Eleanor shrugged. "I can't help it if they didn't accept my offer. I think I'm being generous enough here."

Anna almost snorted in repugnance. The gall of this girl! "And where are the King and Queen of Denmark now?" This part was for Melody's sake. After all, she must be dying to know what happened to her parents and Anna felt like she owed it to her to help her find out that bit of information.

"Let's just say, they're still alive." Eleanor leaned back in her chair. "They may not have agreed to my terms, but they might still be of use at some point. I hope you, on the other hand, will make the right choice here. I want to think of us as allies, you know."

Anna felt disgusted, but she made a great effort of pretending to be deep in consideration. There was absolutely no way she was going to agree to Eleanor's terms.

"Alternatively, if you're a little hesitant, I could spice up the deal a little." Eleanor grinned, almost wolfishly and breaking the sympathetic character she had meant to portray.

"Oh?" Anna didn't like the feeling she was getting, anymore than she already did anyway. What else could Eleanor possibly have up her cunning sleeve?

"I think I would consider this alternative a win-win situation. And I think you would to." Eleanor said, almost too eagerly. "A way to ummn…sweeten the deal, if you would."

"What are you talking about?" Now Anna was genuinely worried. It did seem like Eleanor was about to throw a wrench into the gears and upset things dramatically. Anna could almost anticipate it.

Eleanor cleared her throat. "Perhaps it'll be better if I call him in."

"Him?"

There was a flash of devilish delight in Eleanor's eyes for a brief moment, and then she turned away, calling out into a separate chamber of the royal court. "Hans! I have someone here I would like you to meet!"

Anna gaped in disbelief. She could have sworn her heart literally stopped beating for a few seconds there, and she felt the blood rush to her head and then in an instant plummet all the way down to the soles of her feet. Her eyes went wide as she saw the tall and streamlined figure of her most hated enemy emerging from the shadows and striding over to where she and Eleanor were sitting.

Surely her eyes were playing tricks on her? Unfortunately they weren't. Hans Westergaard was standing just a couple of feet away from her. Anna's eyes narrowed as he had an amiable smile plastered across his face. It was almost like the one he had first shown her when they had met on that pier. But this time she knew better. She was not going to fall for any of his tricks, no, not this time.

"Anna, I would like you to meet the Consul of our esteemed Empire, Hans Westergaard." Eleanor waved a hand at Hans. "And Hans, I would like you to meet Queen Anna of Arendelle."

"It's an honour, Your Majesty." Hans' smooth voice cut through the air as if he had been wielding a knife, and Anna felt her throat itch and tighten. His eyes betrayed no emotion, and she was sure that he'd been expecting something like this to happen.

"Likewise." Anna managed, unable to take her eyes off the prince. So here he was, of all places. How could she have known?

"Hans here takes care of most of my personal details and ensures the welfare of our people." Eleanor explained, glancing at Anna who was still stupefied. "Are you alright? You look pale."

"Is something the matter, Your Majesty?" Hans simpered, cocking his head at Anna. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I-I'm fine." Anna said, doing her best not to stare daggers at him. He had some nerve!

She was still trying to take the edge off her shock. Consul of Exon? In the ancient days and certain republics, consuls were the highest ranking officials of the government, sometimes overruling even the senate. However, in an Empire like Exon's, apparently the tile of consul was more of an ambassador type of role, which Eleanor had happily given to Hans. Having him as the Exonian ambassador was a whole new threat that Anna knew she was going to have to deal with.

"Anyway, as I was saying," Eleanor continued, seemingly oblivious to the unspoken tension. "I have a proposition that allows you to continue ruling in Arendelle as queen, and my Empire will completely pass over your great land and leave you be without any bloodshed."

"How?" Anna forced herself not to grit her teeth. This was not how she had expected the day to go at all.

"Take Hans' hand in marriage." Eleanor said simply. "Bring him back to Arendelle with you and rule together as King and Queen of Arendelle. I'm sure the people of Arendelle would love to have a fine man like Hans."

Anna was utterly speechless. She could hardly manage another word before Eleanor continued.

"To add on to that, I will generously provide military assistance against your enemy, the Southern Isles. We will ensure that Arendelle triumphs in the battle and eliminate the threat to your reign." Eleanor glanced at Anna. "What do you say?"

At this point, Anna was almost in tears and she stood up and turned away, coughing deliberately to cover up the choking.

"Please excuse me," Anna croaked, walking away from the table. "I feel unwell all of a sudden. We will have to continue this conversation later."

"Certainly," Eleanor said pleasantly. "But hopefully soon. I do urge you to consider my offer. As we speak, General Kane is having his forces prepare to march off towards Norway, and it'll be a lot more convenient if you could give your answer soon before he leaves. Then at least I'll be able to inform Kane and prevent all that unnecessary bloodshed. My servants will show yourself and her entourage to their respective rooms. You may remain as our guests in the castle till our negotiations are settled."

Anna nodded briefly in reply and walked briskly toward the exit. She had nothing she could say, or more accurately, she could find no words to respond accurately without it ending with her flying into a frenzy and physically assaulting Hans right in front of the Empress. Retreating was the best option…for now.

The moment Anna left the royal court - and the Empress and the wretched Hans behind - she was greeted by a pair of royal Exonian servants dressed in the signature muddy red that bore the same colours as the Exonian flag.

They politely guided her to a large suite in a separate wing of the castle. All the while she just lightly nodded and kept interactions to a minimum. She was afraid that in her dazed and shocked state, she would let slip something secret. Out of fear, she decided to remain quiet and reserved till she was alone to process her thoughts.

Her suite, she had to admit, was really quite impressive. It was spacious, had beautifully decorated walls, and the entire floor was covered in a furry carpet that when trodden upon made her feel like just flopping down on the ground on the spot. The furniture in the room was matching in feel as well. Everything in there looked like it had been hand-crafted by professionals of the highest caliber, and she wagered that everything must have cost a grand fortune to construct.

The Exonian servants bowed and left Anna alone as soon as they had brought her to the room, and she guessed they had sensed that she wanted some peace and quiet. And they were right. She flopped onto the bed stomach first, immediately creasing the blankets but she could not care less. Sinking her face down into the soft bed, she let out a completely un-regal noise that bordered between a moan and a growl, and allowed herself a moment to close her eyes.

A series of knocks came at her door, and Anna realised that she didn't know how much time had elapsed. Maybe it had been ten minutes, or even perhaps a few hours. She couldn't tell. Had she been awake brooding this whole time or had she dozed off in light of her exhaustion from the day's revelation and had been completely unaware?

Another set of knocks came slightly impatiently, and it was a while before she remembered that she had a guest outside her door. Still disoriented, Anna rolled over onto her back before getting up off the bed. Rubbing her tired eyes, she walked across the lavish carpet over to the door before opening it, half expecting to see the villainous Hans at her doorstep.

Thankfully it wasn't him, though she could have just as easily chalked it up to paranoia. Instead, it was Tracy, who had finally learnt to knock to keep up appearances as her assistant.

"Oh good, it's you." Anna said aloud, still half dazed.

"Who else?" Tracy let herself into the room and Anna closed the door behind her.

"Where…where are the rest?" Anna pressed the heels of her palms against her eyes and massaged them.

"Will suggested that it would be tactically smarter if I came alone." Tracy flopped onto the queen's bed without permission, not that it really bothered Anna at all. She wasn't particular, and she had bigger things to worry about anyway.

"Smarter?" Anna echoed. She was still trying to catch up after her afternoon's debate with the Empress and Hans, and she could feel a headache setting in.

"Yeah, it's a little weird if the two soldiers come to the queen's room." Tracy half-snorted. "No one would think much about a servant coming to attend to some snobbish queen, but don't get any ideas."

In response, Anna made a noise which she herself couldn't distinguish.

"Are you okay?" Tracy had noticed that something was off, finally. "You look kinda rattled."

"What time is it?" Anna removed her hands from her face.

"It's almost half past six."

So I have been idle for a couple of hours. Anna groaned and slumped into a chair by the bed.

"We got a little worried when you didn't check in, but we guessed that maybe the meet with the Empress was more complicated than we thought."

"You have no idea." Anna mumbled half to herself.

"So what's up? How did the meet with the Empress go?" Tracy asked.

"Well, on the bright side, I found out that Melody's parents are still alive."

"That's good news." Tracy looked relieved. "I met them once. They're nice folks."

"Oh, and guess what? I also found Hans." Anna said cheerily, though she didn't feel it at all.

"Hans? You mean the son of the Southern Isles King?"

"Yup."

"The one you said went missing and that his dad was going to wage war on Arendelle if he wasn't returned in a week, right?"

"The one and only."

"That's good news ain't it?" Tracy sat up. "Now that we know he's here, Maui can bundle him up, fly back to the Southern Isles and drop him off at his dad's throne."

Anna gave a half-hearted laugh. In a way, it did seem like a convenient solution.

"Why not?" Tracy said. "Oh wait, there's something else too ain't there?"

"You guessed right," Anna slouched in her chair. "Hans is working for the Empire as Consul General."

"What's that?"

"Basically he's the Empress' welfare minister or something like that. And here's the big shocker." Anna sluggishly spread her hands dramatically. "The Empress wants me to marry him in exchange for helping my kingdom fend off the attack from the Southern Isles."

Tracy blinked. "Wow."

"And that's not all." Anna continued. "On top of fending off the attack, the Empress will spare Arendelle and not colonize us under Exon's banner."

"That…sounds a little too good to be true." Tracy said, after a brief silence. "It's everything you could hope for as queen. You're avoiding war with the Empire, and you'll have help repelling the Southern Isles. But-"

"But Kristoff." Anna cut her off.

"Yeah." Tracy said quietly. "Kristoff."

"We're supposed to get married after this is all over." Anna was mortified to hear her voice crack. "What am I supposed to tell him?"

"Wait, you're seriously still considering taking the Empress' offer?" Tracy sounded alarmed.

"As Queen of Arendelle, don't I have to at least think about it?" Anna said, her voice strained. "I have a duty to my people. I swore to do what's best in the interest of Arendelle when I ascended to the throne."

"But if you marry Hans, there's no turning back."

"Don't you think I know that?!" Anna raised her voice and immediately felt guilty. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. It's not you, it's-"

"I know," Tracy put her hand on Anna's. "Don't worry 'bout it."

"It's just that," Anna sighed and got up from her chair, walking to the window. "I know I shouldn't even be thinking about taking the offer. It's probably a trick."

"Most likely."

"Yeah, but what choice do I have? If I don't, it's a sure guarantee that the Empress is going to have General Kane storm Arendelle and what happened here will happen back home." Anna's eyes began to water. "I can't allow that. We don't have time. The Empress said that General Kane is already preparing the Imperial Horde to leave for Arendelle."

Tracy got up from the bed and walked over to Anna. "But Anna, Kristoff-"

"Kristoff will understand." Anna said confidently, way more than she actually felt.

"Will he?"

"I don't know." Anna admitted. She put her hands on her head as tears began to roll down her cheeks. "I just don't know. I feel so helpless. As queen, I know I should take the offer for the sake of my people. But as a person, can I do this to Kristoff? Can I return to Arendelle with a new fiancé and still look Kristoff in the eye after I marry Hans?"

She broke down, not caring if Tracy saw her. Thankfully, her "assistant" said nothing. Tracy waited patiently for Anna to gather herself before speaking again.

"Look," Tracy said. "I don't have an answer for you. I sure as hell can't tell you what to do, because it's your choice to make. And there's no right way of going about this. Either way, you're gonna have to compromise something."

"Thanks for the pep talk." Anna didn't know if she had meant it to be cold and sarcastic or as a joke to lighten the mood.

"But hey, remember the mission. We're here to liberate this city and take down the Empire before it even gets to Arendelle." Tracy said. "You meeting with the Empress and holding a discussion is just to stall her and learn more about our enemy, remember?"

Tracy was right. She had been so caught up in the latest developments that she had pretty much forgotten about the original purpose of her meeting with the Empress.

"You're right." Anna rubbed her tear-stained cheeks and cleared her throat. "I forgot. It's just been a crazy day."

"I know." Tracy got up. "Look, we know that Kane is gonna march soon. We can use that to our advantage."

"How?"

"Don't worry about that." Tracy grinned. "Leave it to us. Will and I are gonna regroup with Elsa's team. By now they've got a plan in place, and we can share what we know about the Empress' plans with Elsa and the gang."

"Obviously, I can't go with you guys." Anna sighed. "What with the Empress urging me to make up my mind and all, I'm guessing I'll be closely watched. I can't leave the castle for an exploration trip or something. It'll raise too many red flags and Eleanor will know something's up."

"But Will and I can." Tracy said. "Maui will stay here, just in case. We'll see how it goes after we regroup with Elsa and her team."

"Okay." Anna stood up and gave Tracy an unexpected hug. "Thanks for being here and listening to my rants."

"What are friends for?" Tracy patted her on the back. She headed for the door and just as she was about to leave, she turned back to look at Anna. "Don't worry, after we regroup with Elsa, I'll find a way to get the information to you. For now, just hang in there and keep up the facade."

Anna nodded and Tracy gave her one of her trademark grins before closing the door, leaving her alone with her thoughts once again.

Author's Commentary:

And here's the big bombshell. Anna discovers that Hans has allied himself with Eleanor, and that they have a cunning plan in place. Here she's going to have to make a painful choice, which is one of the great steps in developing her character arc in this story. We're nearing the midpoint of the story soon, where things are going to come to a heart stopping confrontation.