Anna tried to will the sun back down. It didn't work. Slowly, the tired girl got up, cursing the harsh light. It was a shame, really, such a beautiful day in Arrendelle was going to be one of the worst.

Still, she got out of her bed and dressed. The princess had gotten no sleep last night, and doubted that neither Hans nor Elsa had either.

The two were very much in love- well, 'love' in their definition. They were prudent, judgmental types who appreciated more subtle aspects to a relationship than the fun stuff. They didn't say words like 'honey' or 'sweetie'. Instead they remarked on how well-adjusted the other was. That was their way of flirting.

Yuck.

Still, Anna would not begrudge them their relationship. Okay, she would, but there wasn't much to do about it. When Elsa announced their engagement (a total fabrication to protect Sophia) Anna had been aghast. Strangely, so had Hans.

Everything worked out and now everyone was happily living in Arrendelle.

Unfortunately, the same was not true of the Southern Isles. Surprise, surprise- some moron had assassinated the king.

"Buncha back-stabbin', two-timing, stupid-faces..." Anna grumbled under her breath. Archer's son claimed the throne was his, and his bloodthirsty, power-hungry uncles had disagreed. Within a matter of weeks, a civil war had been brewing. The determining factor, as it turned out, would be the black sheep of the family.

Both of them.

Hans didn't have the raw political power, but people feared him, and Sophia had the birth-place to rule, but no respect. Therefore, both sides (if the problem could simply be split into two sides) were interested in seeing the pair return 'home'.

Anna stuck out her tongue in disgust. Sophia belonged in Arrendelle. And Hans...

"Anna," Kristoff greeted her warmly, taking her by the hand. She smiled and gripped back. The man in front of her was a bit gruff, and a little hard when someone threatened his loved ones. But it just wasn't in him to murder anyone in cold blood.

But Hans would.

The prince-turned-king had gotten away from that life, swore he'd never chose the frozen heart again. But if he returned to the slosh-pit that was the Southern Isles...

He would be running a "King's errand" before the week was out. He'd freeze his heart and murder, and plunder leaving a trail of bodies and tears in his wake. It would be a bloodbath. And Sophia would be put directly into the sight's of both sides. Which is why it was a really, really, really bad idea for him to ever return to that place ever again.

So, of course, he was going back.

...

Kristoff was silent today, and for a good reason. The entire castle was in a mood thanks to King Grumpy Pants.

Anna sighed loudly. Hans was leaving for the Southern Isles. Whatever was happening down there had escalated and escalated until he could no longer ignore it. Anna just wanted to roll over and realize this was all just a bad dream. Sadly, life rarely works that way.

Hans and Elsa were not down for breakfast, understandably, but Sophia was. She was in a weird kind of gloomy mood.

It had not been very long since she'd learned that the man who had rescued her from the abuses of her step-father had been the one responsible for putting her there in the first place.

Her feelings on the matter were, therefore, complicated. Anna gave her a powerful smile, "Hey, kiddo."

"Hey Aunt Anna," The growing girl said glumly. The trio sat in awkward silence. Nobody said anything for there was nothing left to say.

Hopefully, Hans would be able to sail down, negotiate a peace, and sail right back. At an absolute minimum, he would be gone for about a week.

More likely is that he would go down, try to negotiate a peace, fail, try again, fail again, then stall into another peace that would ensure Arrendelle's safety. That would take, at a minimum, about a month.

The way that Elsa and Hans were talking, it sounded like this whole thing could take years, perhaps longer.

Breakfast was quickly eaten and Princess Anna got right to work. Since her sister was... preoccupied with kissing/fighting her husband, the young woman thought it best to try and ease the work load.

Sophia tagged along, since someday she may have to rule a country. The girl sat quietly, watching her aunt work.

"Who's he?" Sophia pointed to a painting.

Okay, not so quietly. Anna looked up, puzzled, "Hmm...? Oh! That's my father."

She gave her a small, sad smile.

"...oh. What's he like?"

All progress ceased as Anna contemplated the question, "You know... it's hard to remember. It's been... almost a decade now. But, he was a good man. He never complained. Did the job expected of him, and loved his family, and people, and blah, blah, blah... you know; typical good-king stuff."

"Where is he now?"

Anna blinked, dryly intoning, "The bottom of the ocean. He and my mom... they went on a trip and never came back."

Sophia sat quietly again, letting her aunt work. This time, it was the older princess who broke the silence.

"You know... My dad kind of screwed us up. He stuck Elsa in a room, and he never told me what had happened. He shut both of us out from the world. But I wish more than anything I could have him back just one more day," The strawberry blond stared Sophia in the eye, "No matter what he did, he was still my dad. And it still hurt to lose him. I just want to be held in his arms, one more time."

Around noon, Elsa and Hans left their bedroom and quietly made their way to the docks. A ship was waiting for him since early morning.

The whole family was there to say goodbye, even the pet dog, Gunther, who decided to climb aboard ship. Hans allowed himself a smile, "I guess we're going home," He said.

Elsa didn't meet his eyes, "No. This is your home. That's the place you left because it wasn't home. And if you hadn't, you would have drowned in blood by now."

Everyone ignored her.

"Kristoff."

"Hans."

They shook hands. Good enough for men. Sophia was next. The two were unsure what to do, so it surprised the king to hear her say 'daddy' and give him a big hug before running back to the castle. Anna surprised him even more by pulling the Westerguard into a hug.

"Come back," She said, "You have to come back home to us. I mean it."

He smiled.

"Hans... I'm serious. Don't do anything stupid. Stay safe. Be a coward. If anything happens, get out of there. Run. Just come back."

He quietly returned the hug. Finally came Elsa. She said nothing. He said nothing. The two stared at each other, both unwilling to submit to the other.

Hans nodded to the crowd and climbed aboard. Elsa started muttering angrily. The ship pulled out.

"Hans..." The queen said meekly, "You can't leave, not like this!"

He couldn't hear her. Anna came up and put her hand on her sister's shoulder.

"Elsa..."

"Hans!" The queen screamed, "Get back here! NOW!"

The ship kept pulling away as the queen slowly lost it. Her wits fled and she begged, and screamed and threatened until the ship sailed out of sight. The townspeople were kind enough to give her some privacy.

Anna held her sister, willing the sun to come back up, and start the day all over. But still, it left, just like the ship.