Soo, it's the start of a new year. January 01, 2015. Happy New Year, peeps! Thank you for supporting this story. I love you guys! -tackles- I give you this chapter as a sign of my gratitude.

The chapter's so long that it didn't fit so I just typed 'Pretending' but it's real chapter title is down there.

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Frozen nor the plot of The Proposal. They belong to their respective owners.


The Proposal

Chapter Four - A Little Thing Called Pretending

Various impatient sounds were heard as the Queen and the Prince descended down the grand staircase. Oh, how impatient the Duke of Weselton is. They heard him ranting to his two loyal guards, quite making out a few words like 'the Snow Queen' and 'serving Weselton'. They reached the bottom of the stairs, greeted by the sight of the Duke's back and the two guards dressed in clad red. The Duke, oblivious by the presence of the two royalties, continued to rant.

"And Arandelle will be our trading partner once again!"

Elsa raised an eyebrow and turned to Hans, who shrugged. She shook her head and cleared her throat, stopping the Duke on his rants. He turned, and put on a fake jovial smile.

"Ah, Queen Elsa of Arandelle!" he said in a high-pitched voice Elsa knew all too well, bowing. "And Prince Hans of the Southern Isles."

They noticed the disgust tone in his voice but decided to ignore it. "Duke of Weselton," Elsa said sternly, giving him only a nod. "To what do we you in this visit?"

"Oh," he blinked, then placed a hand on his chest, puffing, "I apologize for coming unannounced, as I have been on the sea for quite a few months now..."

That is a dirty lie, Hans thought to himself smugly. He was not sailing, he was putting his nose where it shouldn't belong. Nosy, old git.

"But..." the Duke continued, looking proud. "It has come to my attention, and I've heard, that Arandelle's economy state is... as we should say, decreasing."

At this point, Elsa's grip on Hans' arm tightened. The way he put it, he was clearly enjoying, the fact that Arandelle's crumbling to bits. That old man, Hans scowled in his mind.

Elsa frowned. "Sire, let's continue this in my study, shall we?"

"Of course, of course, Your Majesty," he squealed in glee but stared at Hans in equal hatred. "I may ask, why is Prince Hans here with us?"

"He..." Elsa paused, a bit taken aback. "He's a part of this meeting."

"I see. Then, lead the way, Your Majesty," the Duke said, gesturing for them to start walking. They strode past them, having quite a distance between them and the Duke.

"He's a headache," Elsa sighed, closing her eyes.

"Agree," Hans replied, nodding. "He seems happy, though, in seeing Arandelle crumbling to bits."

Her eyes fluttered open. "I just want this to get over with."

And I couldn't agree more, he thought as they silently walked on the wide corridor. After a few minutes of dreadful silence, they stood in front of a white mahogany door with Rosemaling designs, with the color of blue and violet. A very Elsa-like color, Hans mused, almost grinning. Almost.

Elsa opened the door, and walked in, turning around to see one pf the Duke's guards closing the door. She sat behind the desk - with Hans standing beside her - and invited the men to sit from across her, which only the Duke obliged, the guards dutifully standing from either of his sides.

"So," Elsa began. "You were saying that our economy state is crumbling, correct?" she asked tersely. The Duke nodded. "Well, it is not."

The Duke's eyes widened behind his round spectacles. "'No'? How could it be? Queen Elsa-"

"Arandelle is doing fine, sire,"

"You don't get it!" the Duke cried. "I've seen it, Your Majesty. I've seen it with my own eyes!"

"Well, I won't believe anything if you have nothing to show me," she said, her voice clipped, one eyebrow raised as if asking for a challenge. Indeed, she was.

"Then it was good thing I am prepared," he replied, grinning malevolently. He pulled a neatly folded paper out of his pocket, opened it, smoothing out the creases and handed it over to the Queen.

With shaking hands, the Queen took it from his hand, and started reading it, her eyes darting back and forth. Hans didn't have to read. He knew that they're doomed.

"Where did you get this?" she asked sharply, her eyes flickered to the paper and back to the Duke.

"It was sent to me, and out of sheer curiousity, I decided to investigate," he replied, leaning back to the chair.

Elsa was speechless. No more defences. But one thing's certainly left, their charade, their brilliant plan. She's just waiting for the right time to say it, to see the surprise etched upon the old man's face. Priceless.

"Sire, if I may ease your-" Hans began, speaking for the first around the Duke, but was suddenly interrupted by him.

"No, Prince Hans. Don't use those exact words on me," he said smoothly. Hans silenced up, his gaze on the floor.

"Your Majesty, what do you have to say?" the Duke asked, leaning on the desk.

Elsa's eyes met his. "Nothing."

He chuckled. "Good, good. Under this circumstances, you are hereby going to serve Weselton for a month or two, for failing to serve your own kingdom," he paused, a mischievous glint on his eyes. "If you don't, we could come to another agreement."

"And what is that agreement?" the Queen asked through gritted teeth.

"Be our trading partner again," he said lowly.

Elsa shook her head, and lean back on her seat. To serve Weselton or bring them back as Arandelle's trading partner? Neither will do any good for her kingdom. Time to spill, she thought.

"Sire, what if I tell you that Arandelle will have it's new King?" she whispered, staring at him.

The Duke's jaw dropped, gaping at her. "K-King?" he stuttered, flabbergasted, his glasses askew. "Who?"

"I'm asking you, sire, what if Arandelle will have it's new King? Will you change your agreement?"

The Duke fixed his glasses. "It is... It is entirely up to the 'King'. As you can see, a King has so many rights compared to a Queen."

Elsa nodded. Just the answer I'm looking for, she thought, glancing at Hans. "Then, sire, I am engaged."

The old man's eyes widened at the news, gaping at the Queen in front of him. Hans let a small smile curled around his thin lips. "H-h-how's that even possible?!" the old man cried.

"I am engaged. A suitor catched my eye," she said gently, beaming. And so it began, Hans thought. "We are about to be married in a month or so."

She could tell, seeing the Duke's shaking shoulders, that he was trying his best not to pass out. "Then tell me, m'lady, who is this 'suitor' of yours?"

Elsa smirked inwardly, her eyes flickering to Hans. He caught her gaze, and smiled at her, which she returned warmly. The Duke, watching this exchange, jumped in annoyance. "Him? Prince Hans? The... traitor?" he asked in disgust. "Why, Queen Elsa? Why that monster who tried to kill-"

"Enough," she said, her icy blue eyes were burning with rage. She didn't want Hans to be called a 'monster', not when she can see that he's changing. "Now, I am going to marry Prince Hans, whether you like it or not."

The Duke sighed, giving in. "Of course, Your Majesty. But let me explain how the process goes."

Elsa and Hans nodded. "Go on," they both said in unison.

He huffed in annoyance, staring at the both of them behind his spectacles. "I'll be... snooping around, investigating and other whatnots. If I find something out, that this is only a game, you..." he trailed off, pointing a thin finger at Elsa. "Are going to serve Weselton, no excuses. And you," he turned to Hans. "You will be staying in your old cell in the dungeons for five years, under the case of felony."

Hans did not flinch under his stare. He knew this is going to work, he trust Elsa. "Of course, sire."

"So, Prince Hans of the Southern Isles, is there anything you want to say?" the old man said, quirking a gray eyebrow at him. "Come now, you can tell me."

Hans stared at Elsa, who just stared at her hands, and nodded. "The truth is, sire... Elsa and I are just two people," he paused. "Two people who aren't suppose to fall in love but did."

At this, the Queen stared at him, a smile on her lips. Then, they both faced the old man, who was looking at the two of them quizzically. "She is the most beautiful woman I've met, witty, and no one can compare to her," he continued, his words coming out from his heart. It was true. No one can compare to the Snow Queen sitting beside him. "And we were planning that after the wedding, I'll be crowned King."

He glanced at Elsa, who was staring at him, shell-shock at what he said. "King, hmm?" she whispered. "I see..." Her tone was laced with either disappointment or hurt, Hans did not know.

"So," the Duke coughed, interrupting them. "Have you told your family or parents about this secret love of yours?"

"Sire, my parents are... gone, as you know," the Queen muttered. "But Anna doesn't know yet. She's spending her marriage with Kristoff and I don't want to interfere." She gave off a tinkling laugh.

"I see. And how about you, Prince Hans?"

"Ah, we'll be visiting them tomorrow," Elsa pipped in, oblivious to the look Hans kept throwing at her. "It's for his mother's birthday, Queen Sabel's fiftieth birthday. We will be arriving there on the weeked, exactly on that day. It will be quite a surprise."

"And where will it be? Where in Southern Isles?"

"In Hoy*," he said quietly. "It is where the Westerguard castle stood."

"Hoy?" Elsa repeated, staring at him again. He knew many things were running around in her head.

"Yes, in Hoy," he replied, his eyes pleading with hers, apologizing and with a lot of promise to explain after this. She shook her head and looked away.

The Duke seemed to be convined enough. He nodded and stood up. "I can see where this is going. I suppose this a secret wedding, only few people knows. Well, it was nice talking to you, Your Majesty. I'll see you at your wedding. And good luck." He bowed, turned to his heels, and left the study with the two guards trudging behind him.

Leaving the Snow Queen and the Prince staring at him in confusion. Well, it's a little thing in a game that we called pretending, Elsa thought, staring at the closed door.

End of Chapter Four.


*The Kingdom of the Isles compromised of the Hebrides, the islands of the Firth of Clyde, and the Isle of Man from the 9th to the 13th century AD. The islands were known to the Norse as the "Southern Isles". Let's just say that the place are very much alive during the time of Frozen.

This chapter is all about the talking. Sorry.

Heyy guys. This is the longest chapter so far. I have no comment since it will make the chapter longer. So leave a review and tell me what you think. Stay tuned. Thank you!