'No. this can't be him. It's impossible. Right?' Kristoff was frozen in shock. How could someone who was supposed to be miles away across the sea with his 12 other brothers, be locked away in Arendell's dungeon? It should be impossible. It should. So why was it happening? His thoughtful eyes refocused on the situation in front of him as the man went to speak, wincing and grabbing at his throat in pain as words refused to leave his lips.
Sighing quietly, Kristoff thought about what to do next. It didn't matter if this was Hans or not, the man needed water. Who knows when he last had anything to eat or drink. It had to have been days. 'He'll die if I just leave him here,' He thought to himself, knowing full well what he had to do. Now, just how was he supposed to get him out of here?
"Here," Kristoff offered his hand to the cowering brunet who still had a look of fear in his eyes. "Take my hand. I'll get you out of this place and take you to where we can get you some water."
Hans stared at the hand with uncertainty for a long while. So long actually, that Kristoff nearly withdrew it to figure something else out. But he knew the man needed time, so he gave it to him. It turned out to be a good thing too, as the man finally, weakly nodded his head and reached for the outstretched hand with his ice-cold one. The movement caused barely used joints to pop so loud it was disturbing.
Pulling the man to his feet Kristoff wrapped his hand around his waist to support him, feeling just how lightweight and thin he was. Kristoff spoke gently as they slowly got to their feet "There ya go. Now, let's get you somewhere warm." More and more joints popped as they stood and walked out of the cell and up the dungeon stairs, the man wincing with every step.
Entering the normal lighting of the castle Kristoff was able to get a better look at the pale face of the man. There was no way this wasn't Hans. You know, unless he had a twin brother or something. The face was identical, besides him being deathly pale and having dark circles under his green eyes.
As they carefully walked the halls they came to the dining room. Peering in, Kristoff was relieved to find that no one else was there. "It's all clear in here. You should be able to sit down and get some water."
Walking inside Kristoff scanned the room for a water pitcher. Once finding it he guided Hans over to the chair nearest to it and sat him down as gently as possible. Although, it wasn't good enough to keep him from hurting as he winced and gasped in pain, sending himself into a coughing fit.
Kristoff quickly filled a nearby glass with water. "Hey, hey. it's ok. Here, have some water," He said calmly as he offered the cup to Hans who wheezed as he tried to stave off the coughing. Two shaky hands reached out to grab it only to have it slip and fall, Kristoff catching it just in time. "Let me," He offered and tilted the glass to Hans' lips.
As Hans drank, Kristoff was able to fully examine his sickly features. Besides the terrible paleness and the dark shadows under his eyes, there were also a few fading bruises and a cut on the left side of his chin that seemed to be infected. His hair was a mess of knots and dirt that stuck to his face and his eyes refused to focus on anything. As he pulled the glass away he noticed another rather large bruise protruding from his tattered shirt over his collar bone.
"Now," Kristoff started as he looked into Hans' eyes. "Do you think you can tell me what happened? How you got down there?"
"I do—" Hans' cracking voice was interrupted by another fit of coughs. Taking another sip of water, he cleared his throat and tried again. "Who… Who are you? Where are… We?"
'He can't be serious,' Thought Kristoff. Unless the man was just that dehydrated and starved, there was no way he wouldn't remember what happened. He decided to ignore the part of his brain that said 'unless it wasn't him,'.
"My name's Kristoff. We're in Arendelle. Do you remember anything?"
"Arendelle," Hans whispered, almost like a question. "That's right… I was… Visiting." Kristoff sat quietly, patiently waiting for the other man to get his bearings.
"There… Was it a party?… No, a… a coronation. I met a princess… Anna." Hans paused as he reached for the glass of water, Kristoff helping him take a few sips.
"I… don't remember… Kristoff?" The blond watched as confusion passed over Hans' face before he continued. "No… But, there was Ice… Why was there ice? Anna had to leave… Why was that? Alex was there… I was… I was supposed to be alone but… he followed me here… Then, there was stone… I - I was in a room… He locked me in… but, he didn't - he didn't leave me… He just- He kept… It hurt, so much… it was never - never enough for him. I didn't want to be there. I don't wanna go back. Please I-"
Kristoff watched as tears welled in Hans' eyes and panic overtook him, his breathing became erratic. He needed to calm down. "Hey, it's ok. You're fine. Alex isn't here. You need to breathe. Come on just breath. He's not here. You're safe." No matter how hard he tried to calm Hans down, the brunet just kept panicking. It was like he was stuck somewhere else unable to get back to reality. "you're not going back down there. You're gonna be fine."
"Kristoff?" Just as he thought it couldn't get any worse, Anna's voice rang from down the hall. "Is that you?" Her voice was getting louder, closer. "Who are you talking… to." Anna stopped in her tracks as she walked through the doors, eyes full of shock as they took in the picture of Kristoff kneeling in front of a wheezing and panicked Hans.
"Kristoff," She started, caution and warning filling her voice. "What's going on?"
The blond sighed as looked at Anna. "Anna, I know this is really sudden and all, but we really need to calm him down first and get him to a bed. Once we get him a doctor then I'll explain everything. OK?"
"Ok," Anna gave in instantly and walked over kneeling down beside Kristoff.
"Hans? Look at me Hans," The man showed no sign of hearing Anna's voice as she called out to him. "You need to listen to my voice. You're in Arendelle. No one's going to hurt you." They tried to calm him down but neither of them knew what to do.
"He's gonna pass out at this rate," Kristoff said. "Come on Hans, just breath."
"Please. I-I don't—" Was all Hans could get out between wheezes before passing out. As consciousness left him, his body fell out of the chair, Kristoff catching him so he wouldn't hurt himself.
"Hans? Come on man don't just pass out like that," Kristoff said as he started to lift the two of them up. "Anna we need to get him to a bed and call a doctor."
"Take him all the way down the hall and take a left at the ballroom," Anna commanded as she helped Kristoff to the hall. "There's a bedroom three doors down on the right. I'll find a doctor." With that, the two split up to help the man they believed to be their enemy.
'You owe me a big explanation when I get back Christopher,' Anna thought as she raced out of the castle.
Hey, I made another chapter! I actually had this written several months ago, sorry for not getting it out sooner. There's been a lot going on with my family recently and it's still going on so I really don't know when the next chapter will be out. I was really hoping to get this posted last night as a Christmas present for you guys and a 'sorry for not posting this sooner' but Chrome wasn't working for some reason. Oh well, it is what it is. I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas and will enjoy the new year coming up.
I hope you liked this chapter! Likes and reviews are amazing.
Constructive criticism is welcome.
Sorry for any grammar mistakes. See ya! ;)