A/N: So I know that most of you are saying you miss Hans and Elsa, but remember, I did say that this one would focus equally (maybe even more so) on his brothers as the majority of Hans' character was explored in my first novel. Luckily for you all, we are going back to Arendelle for a short period in this chapter. Enjoy~

Chapter Eight

The Storm Inside Of Me

"Elsa?" Anna rapped on her sister's door as she'd done so many times in her life, pressing her ear against the wood and straining to hear. "Elsa, are you in there?"

"Come in, Anna!"

It still sounded foreign, the recognition from her sister, but oh how Anna loved hearing it. A grin broke out on her face and she turned the knob, feeling it give way smoothly and swing open wide. She'd hardly managed to step inside when Elsa took her hand and flung her towards the center of the room, closing the door behind her. Anna blinked, searching Elsa's expression for an explanation. Her sister was rosy-cheeked, smiling from ear to ear. "Okay… so… what's up?" An idea dawned on her and she tried not to look guilty. "Wait, this isn't about me pushing Hans to give a loan to Oaken, is it?"

"Anna…" Elsa began, stifling a laugh.

"Because Oaken's Cloakens is a really catchy name! And I think if you ever catch cold or anything, it would be really good for you, or anybody, to have something warm to cuddle with!"

"Anna, listen-" Elsa tried again, ever patient.

"Olaf likes the idea!" Anna blurted.

"Anna, stop!" Elsa let a giggle loose, shaking her head. "It's not about the loan."

"It's not?" Anna paused, tapping her chin with a finger and rolling her eyes to the ceiling in thought.

"No," Elsa cut off her chuckling with a flippant wave of her pale hand. "Besides, you didn't pressure Hans. He wanted to give the loan to Oaken. His family has supported small business in the past and he's willing to do the same here. It's really helping our people warm up to him."

"Oh." Anna shrugged. "I guess I should stop stealing his socks to hold as ransom. Then what did you call me here for?"

"Anna, stop stealing his clothing! You're impossible…" Elsa sat on the edge of her bed, patting the cushiony surface beside her gently. "I have something to tell you. It's a secret, and… I wanted to share it with my sister before I told anyone else tonight."

Anna's heart flooded with warmth of love for her sibling. It overflowed to form a grin on her face and she sank down as requested to Elsa's side, her fists clenched in anticipation. Sharing a secret was something she'd always wanted to experience with Elsa, and had never been able to before now. "Tell me."

Elsa took a deep breath through her nose, making Anna realize how important the secret must be. She leaned forward and Elsa exhaled a little gasp before murmuring in a tiny voice, "I'm pregnant."

Anna's clenched fists flew up to her mouth and she squealed like a pig picked to serve for a summer picnic, her legs flailing out wildly. She threw her arms around Elsa and squeezed, clapping her hands. "You're pregna-" She flinched under Elsa's finger to her lips, breaking into a wavering whisper of excitement, "you're pregnant? Are you sure? When did you know? Does Hans know?"

Elsa glanced to the door to make sure Anna's outburst had not been heard, and spoke in a low voice, smiling. "I'm sure. The doctor confirmed it some weeks ago, but I didn't want to say until I found the perfect moment. Tonight Hans and I are going to have a quiet dinner, just the two of us. No meetings, no prior obligations… I'll tell him then."

"Are you in pain? Can I feel it? Have you gotten any weird, gross cravings?" Anna placed her hand on Elsa's flat stomach, making her sister laugh.

"It's too early for that. And no, I'm not in pain. Not really, anyway. All the nausea and morning sickness passed a while ago, and my back has just been a little sore. I've been… bleeding a little, but I don't think it's anything important. I'm going to the doctor today just to be sure."

Anna took her sister's hand, concerned. "Do you want me to come?"

"Don't be silly, Anna. I'll be fine. But please, I'm begging you, don't tell anybody else until after dinner."

"Got it." Anna mock saluted her sister and straightened her posture, clicking her boots together stiffly. "Not a word out of me! Nobody else will ever know you're pregnant, not if they torture me, not if- whoops." She mock pulled an invisible zipper over her lips and whispered. "I promise."

"Thank you." Elsa replied softly, waving to her sister. "I'll see you later. We can have a party once Hans knows, and you can help me plan how to announce the news to the kingdom." She watched Anna explode into excited chatter with herself once more, a habit the princess had probably formed after so long without contact with her older sister. She even talked to the pictures on the walls, poor thing. If only Elsa had the courage to overcome her fear when they were children… the queen shivered.

The room had suddenly become chilly, the fire in the fireplace shrinking from a snapping crackle to a fizzling flicker. Elsa bent down and took a log from the dwindling supply beside the fireplace, placing it among the fire as it futilely licked the wood and tried to grow. She never had enough firewood in this room, because her powers were still prevalent, though for the most part, under control. She ended up using it all before night even came, but Hans never complained. How excited he would be when he heard the news… and his parents, too! To have a third grandchild… and one who would visit! She could remember how Hans had mentioned his parents loved their grandchildren Peter and Anika but almost never saw them. Harvard just wasn't the visiting type.

But I will! Elsa promised herself. We'll go at least once a year, if business permits. And the climate is so beautiful there. The baby will grow to love both the summers of the Southern Isles and the winter airs of Arendelle. She hummed as she waltzed her way to the doctor's. Yes. It would be wonderful.

#

"Any pain when I press here?"

Elsa disguised her wince and shook her head. "No. Not really. Maybe just a little."

The doctor removed his tiny spectacles, looking over her once and murmuring an affirmative noise in his throat. He walked over to a cabinet and removed a tiny bottle of some liquid, setting it on the counter, followed by a few more, searching for something in particular.

"Well?" His silence somehow stirred an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. "How is everything?" She sat up from the hard table where she'd been lying back and shifted to the edge, folding her legs one over the other.

"You said your morning sickness passed some time ago, is that right?"

"That's right," Elsa confirmed.

"And you had some back pain?"

She nodded, considering. "Yes, but it wasn't too horrible; I just thought it was part of what women experienced."

"And there was some bleeding as well?"

"Yes," she confirmed again, folding her arms. He was asking so many questions. Why would he ask so many questions?

"How much bleeding, would you say? When did it stop? Around the same time as the morning sickness and back pain passed? This is important to know, your majesty," the doctor stated, facing her, a studious solemn look on his face. He felt overwhelming empathy for the girl, alone without a mother to turn to, without someone who could advise her.

"Yes… it all stopped about two weeks ago… the bleeding was heavy for one day… but then it just turned into light spotting, and when the pain stopped, I thought it was just… natural. I didn't think… is everything alright?" Elsa started to shift off the bench, but the doctor met her before she could, resting his hand on hers. She looked up into his wizened grey green eyes, her breath stalling when she recognized the sympathy swelling within them.

"Elsa… I've been the doctor with your family ever since you were young… I've made many mistakes. I made the mistake too many times of trying to heal you when you didn't need healing, of believing your abilities a blight rather than a blessing. When I suggested to your father you try wearing gloves… but I will not make those mistakes again." He squeezed her hands, meeting her gaze. "Sometimes there are moments in our life full of pain… but beyond the pain… there may be promise… promise that we just can't see."

Elsa quieted her thoughts, her blue eyes focusing on him as she spoke softly. "Tell me the truth."

"… I believe you experienced an early miscarriage."

Elsa brought a hand to her mouth to stifle her gasp of breath, her other hand going to her stomach. Several moments passed between her and the doctor in the cramped little room, until he spoke again, squeezing her shoulder. His voice was gentle and soothing, but fell upon deaf ears.

"You should know it's not your fault. Miscarriages happen often for no explicable reason. You are young. You've plenty of time to continue to try. And when the time is right, I am sure you will have a healthy delivery." He scribbled a few more notes. "Had you told anyone?"

Elsa shook her head repeatedly, feeling light-headed. She let her hands fall to her lap, staring at them. "No… only my sister. She promised not to tell."

"That's good. No one else need know. My records are entirely confidential." He went back to the cabinet and took another transparent vial of clear liquid no bigger than his thumb down from within.

"I'll know."

He looked back at Elsa, frowning sympathetically as he brought it to her. "A period of grief, perhaps depression is natural. Anger or guilt may also be expected. You're welcome to come to me if you need someone to speak to, majesty."

Brief thoughts about her dreams and plans shot into her thoughts, building taller and stronger much as her palace had been built not so long ago. Then, fragile as ice, they shattered before her. She could feel the miniscule shards collect in her palms, and it was not until she felt the doctor saying her name that she realized a light snow fall had begun in the confined room, the flakes melting on her outstretched palms.

"Elsa? Elsa, can you stop this snow?" He offered her his handkerchief, vapor escaping his mouth.

"Yes, yes, of course, I'm sorry." She dabbed at her eyes, flakes of snow hardening her tears escaping them. She did her best to push her powers into submission, silencing the snowfall, though it did not disappear from where it had settled around her.

The doctor pushed the tiny flask into her hands and closed her fingers around it. "This will help you sleep if you have any trouble. Add one drop to a drink before bed and it will ease the process. No more than two drops at a time should be necessary."

Elsa nodded silently, her fingers clenching around the smooth glass. "Thank you. I'll take it if I need it." She shifted off the examination table, her feet settling into the ground with light crunching noises. She ventured to return the doctor's handkerchief, but he shook his head.

"No, you keep it, dear child. Keep it and know your parents would be so proud."

Elsa felt a lump well in her throat, forcing it down and nodding, wiping her eyes once more and stammering a precursory polite reply. "Th-thank you." She moved to the door and closed it with a click behind her. Questions swarmed her mind, questions she could not answer. What did I do wrong? What if it happens again? Do I tell Hans? How will I tell him? How?

She opened her clenched fingers to reveal the flask she'd been given, the liquid inside it a solid piece of ice.

#

"You're quiet this evening." Hans noted, swirling his newly-poured glass of wine and staring at his wife from across the table. He tried not to comment on how pale she looked in the moonlight. Usually, it made her skin glow, but tonight, she looked almost sickly. He could feel something amiss in the air around them, and he had a hunch it had to do with his wife. He also knew how she disliked confrontation and getting emotional, so he let it go.

Elsa went through the motion of chewing her mashed potatoes for the thirtieth time, forcing herself to swallow though her stomach ached with a pain that could not be satisfied with food. She stared at her husband from the space between him, feeling separate from the process of having dinner entirely, as if the person here now was an outsider. "Just tired," she heard the stranger say, realizing it was herself a moment later.

"Is there something I missed during the court session?" he asked, thinking back on it. This morning it seemed Elsa had been her usual happy self, but now it seemed a perpetual shadow was stalking her, sucking away her life before his eyes.

"No." The words were as hard to say as it was to swallow. She busied herself with sipping her glass of red wine, the trickle tickling as it made its way down her throat.

"Oaken has showed me his plans for his new business," Hans continued, trying to make light of the dismal dinner. "It's a clever name, Oaken's Cloakens. His home spa and store in the mountains seem to have paved the way for it. He was telling me that he was also dabbling in some home cold remedy. I admire how hard he works to provide for his family. Do you know he has four children?" He stopped talking for a moment, noting how upset Elsa looked.

"I didn't know," Elsa rasped, sipping another trickle of wine.

Hans couldn't figure out why she didn't want to talk about Oaken and their approval of his loan, but he decided he would ask later, when it was more appropriate. He decided to switch the subject, eating a forkful of steak and swallowing before motioning towards the door where Kai, one of the loyal staff, stood ever vigilant. "Oh! Did I tell you, I received a letter from home today?"

For a moment, the news seemed to breathe a little life into her body. "No, who wrote it?" She stood up a little straighter in her chair and leaned forward.

"Who do you think?" Hans chuckled lightly as he read the penname, accepting the envelope from Kai and opening it with a small knife, unfolding the parchment within it. "Thank you, Kai. Let's see now…

Dear Hans,

Things are certainly exciting here in the Isles. Of course, they always are! I suppose first off I should tell you the most shocking news: Harald has found a belle, that is, he's found a lady to court! Her name is Lily, and she's from Arendelle originally. I'm told you've already met her! She seems to have quite the calming effect on Harald. You'd be amazed to see how much he changes around her. She's blind, as I'm sure you know, but she's quite talented in the art of fencing and defense. She trains with him daily and I saw them together after the soldiers were dismissed, in mother's gardens. Of course I dared not follow but I definitely heard her giggling! I can only hope she stays for a long time (if you catch my drift!).

The hunting season by now is long over, but that doesn't stop Harken from pursuing the most frightful weaponry he can conjure. Horatio is keeping him busy by reading books and poetry, can you imagine? There's a fellow by name of Edgar Allen Poe that he rather enjoys, so I say let him read. Haven't heard from Harvard or Hubert since last I told you, but that's not surprising. Maybe they'll attend Harald's party. You know how much Hugo loves his parties, so we're throwing a welcome back party for Harald. It's the talk of the town and is under planning. Have you by chance heard anything of Heinrik? I suppose he won't be coming, but you never can tell about him. Harry could know, maybe I'll ask him. He's been doing very well taking care of the merchant port."

Hans took a breath, unrolling more of the scroll. "Long winded, isn't he?" Elsa looked so invested he couldn't help but continue.

"As for myself, I'm fabulous. Helena is coming along very well and mother and father are always fawning over her, particularly mother. She just can't wait to have a baby in the house again. We pick herbs to help settle her stomach, and you won't believe I felt it move the other day! I'm so proud I feel I might burst! We'll be sure to invite you to the christening as soon as the baby comes. If you or Elsa think of any good names (we are looking into something besides H), please let us know! Love as always, your brother, Prince Heins Westerguard of the Southern Isles."

Hans rolled the parchment up and shook his head. "He is so easily excited, even in his letters. But it will be a relief to finally have broken the family naming tradition of the H. What do you think? Any suggestions?" He looked to Elsa, but she had shut him out again, taken to cutting her meat into tinier slices than ever, her eyes focused intently. He waited, hoping she would come out with it and tell him the truth, but she said nothing. If there was one thing Hans had never liked, it was secrets. Too long had he been shoved away from a circle of secrets among his brothers, and for too long he had suffered under the weight of his own shameful secret. "Elsa?"

She looked up at him, and he could faintly see vapor on her breath when she replied, "Yes?"

"I wish you would tell me what's bothering you." Hans waved Kai away, folding his hands and resting them on the table. "I know something's the matter."

"Nothing." Elsa ignored the frost she saw forming on the tip of her fork. I don't have to tell him. I don't have to tell him anything. Not after he read that letter from his brother. Anger churned her stomach, turning into resentment.

Hans quietly pushed aside his plate, leaning forward. "What is it, Elsa? Just tell me. Did I do something wrong?"

"No," she ground out, her eyes blurring.

Hans could see the betrayal of tears sparkling in the light as they froze on her cheeks. "Then what? I'm your husband, Elsa; I only want to help. Why are you being like this?"

"Because it's not fair!" Elsa cried out as she shot from her chair, a flurry of powdery snow flying out around her and spikes of ice exploding out from the stone floor. "It's not fair that they can be talking about names and christenings and how proud they are! It's not fair they can have a baby!" She stopped, looking at the damage she'd done, and sank down into her chair, her energy drained.

"Elsa…" Hans left his place and quickly moved to his wife's side, wrapping his arm around her, kneeling beside her, his hair speckled with white from the snow. "Elsa, is that what this is about?" he asked, taking her hands.

"I was pregnant….Hans, I was pregnant… and I lost the baby. I lost our baby!" she sobbed, leaning into his embrace.

Hans held her close, stroking her back and soothing her, understanding both crushing and comforting him. Now he knew. "Elsa… Elsa, shhhh… I'm here. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know how to tell you…" she murmured, wiping her tears on his coat. "I wanted to tell you about the baby tonight… but earlier, the doctor said…"

"I see… I see." Hans continued to rub, kissing her cheek. "I'm still here. And I know it hurts, but we can try again, my love. We can try again…"

"What if it happens next time?" Elsa whispered, wiping at her eyes again.

"Have you see my family size?" Hans tried to joke. "With any luck in my line, we'll be more successful than you could ever want."

Elsa managed a weak smile at his attempts to be comforting. She leaned into his embrace, clutching at his neck when he started to rise. "No… not yet."

"Wh-"

"It's the best comfort I've felt today… and I don't want it to end, not yet." She stroked the back of his neck, murmuring. "I want someone to love, Hans… someone who will love me back. I've not been able to love someone for so much of my life."

Hans nodded, understanding. "I know… and someday, you will. But for now, you have Anna, you have the kingdom… and you have me."

Elsa sighed, leaning into his chest, the ice around them melting into puddles of water. "And for now… that's more than enough."

So wow. That was more emotional than probably expected. Leave a review and the next chapter should be out quicker! Thanks to all my readers, as always.