Chapter 21:

Goodbye My Lover

"I thought you left," Anna said quietly as she blinked restless sleep from her heavy eyelids. She turned her head towards the slumped and shadowed silhouette over in a chair beside her sickbed. Even in the darkness, Kristoff was unmistakable. He looked defeated, exhausted. He had the face of a man who'd been riddled with worry and sorrow for too long, and she hated that she knew that she was the cause of his angst.

The room was dark, and she wasn't sure if it was late evening or early morning anymore. The hours and days seemed to be bleeding together lately, and her broken heart made her even more apathetic about getting better at all.

Fleetingly, his earth-bound eyes found hers, a weak, almost unnoticeable smile on his lips. The way he looked at her…the love was still present. She reckoned it would always be.

But it was different.

It was reminiscent to how his face looked when he had to give her up the first time, hand her off to Kai and the others to usher her in to her real true love. He was always in a perpetual state of letting her go.

"I was going to," he responded, his tone mild. Softer than she'd last heard it. "I probably should have." He fidgeted with a fringe on his sleeve, anything to distract him looking at her in her deplorable state. The color from her typically vibrant face had vanished, her eyes dull and listless. The smile she wore most of the time was traded in for a look of complacent apathy.

No, this wasn't Anna, the woman he'd fallen in love with.

This was a woman who'd lost it all…a woman who'd given up.

And for what? For him? He shook the thought away. He knew that if everything had happened in Arendelle the way it was supposed to, Anna would be married to Hans by now, more than likely a child on the way. Hans was her true love, and he'd really hoped that he could change that, but the way her fight had disappeared in her, he knew this was a woman barely hanging on, as though she had nothing left to grip onto.

"Why didn't you?" she finally spoke again, her sentence staggered and breathy. He felt the corner of his mouth pull, trying to come up with a decent response.

"Because…I might not be your true love, but I am still your friend," he said simply, as though it were the easiest decision in the world. She reached for him, her delicate but lazy hand barely grazing his kneecap. She closed her eyes, swallowing hard, and feeling a smile actually creep across her lips.

The first one in a while.

"You are," she confirmed, more as a question, but definitely knowing the answer. She opened her eyes and sighed. "Kristoff, I never wanted to hurt you, I swear," she attempted weakly. He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees.

"I know, Anna. You don't have a vindictive bone in your body," he chuckled slightly. "You're sure though? Him?" he feigned disgust, with a pained smile across his face, a smile for her benefit, even though it stung still. "Hans Westergaard, with his perfect hair, ridiculous sideburns and impeccable posture? That's who you want?" She laughed, comforted by his now-lightened presence. She'd missed this man, for quite some time, now. His ability to make her laugh and keep things on the surface. He was such a shift from the complicated and dark prince. Part of her wished she could love him like she loved Hans, but it didn't matter. She knew she didn't, he knew she didn't, and she also knew that Kristoff deserved to have someone love him like she loved Hans; fully and unadulterated, like the limitless, bountiful sky.

"Sideburns and all," she said between light chuckles. "I've missed you." He nodded in agreement, without even having to say the words.

"You…don't have to explain yourself to me. I know that the heart wants what it wants," he confessed, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "But please, answer me this one question: did you ever love me?" She opened her mouth to speak, just to be cut off by Kristoff standing abruptly. "Never mind," he conceded, pacing awkwardly for a bit. "I-I don't need you to answer that." He neared her, leaning down and taking her limp hand in his. "I already know the answer. I know you loved me."

"Love," she corrected, bringing the tense to current. "I love you Kristoff, very, very much," she admitted. "It's just a different kind of love." He nodded once more, although he seemed comforted by her words rather than deterred.

"Ha," he choked. "That's almost worse," he added, staring into her blue eyes. He regretted the fact that he'd never get another opportunity to look into them the way he wanted, filled with love and promise. But it pained him even more to see her fading, to know that pretty soon, no one would look into her eyes.

What a waste.

He sighed once again, tugging at his pocket apprehensively. "That's…not the only reason I stayed," he confessed, nervously. He slipped his hand into his pocket to retrieve a folded piece of paper. He twisted it in his hands for a moment, as if deciding whether or not to hand it over to her, before he jutted his hand towards her. She stared at it quizzically, running her fingertips across it.

"Wh-what is this?" she mused, taking it in her hands. She was unsure whether she wanted to open it based on his clear torment he was enduring even just handing it to her. He was silent for a moment, before he let out a pained breath, like coming up for air after being submerged for too long.

"It's…from Hans," he blurted. Oh, how he wished that the mere mention of his name didn't make her eyes light up the way that they did, but it also delighted him to see a spark of…something. Anything other than the broken rag doll in front of him.

"What?"

"Before…before the trail. After I talked to you…I went down to see him," he admitted, sheepishly. She didn't respond, simply stared onward, holding the paper in her fingers like a sacred artifact. Her eyes welled, whether she wanted them to or not, in quiet contemplation of what exactly she was holding. "I went down there to give him a piece of my mind…tell him to let you go, so that you didn't end up going down with the ship. But…"

"But?"

"But it was clear the guy didn't have a choice in the matter. He does love you, Anna. And I-I didn't want to believe it," he paused, staring into the air a scoffing a bit. "I guess I still don't. Because I can't imagine him hurting you the way he did if he loved you like he claims that he does. Then I thought about it for a while, and I realized that…maybe he didn't love you then, when he did those horrible things. But he does now. And I saw a bit of myself in his eyes, to be honest; loving something he knows he can't have," he divulged, his tone pained but still light, optimistic. He knelt beside her, taking one of her hands again and staring seriously into her face. "I knew then that you were going to defend him. Even though I hoped for a different outcome, I knew…by the look in his eyes, the way he begged me to take care of you after he was gone…I knew that he loved you."

"I-I don't-" she stammered, choking down a sob. She furrowed her brow, staring down at the paper in her hands, tears beginning to roll down her face. "What is this?" she asked, too terrified to open the letter. He shrugged a bit.

"I didn't read it," he confessed. Anna ran her fingertips along the top of the paper, opening it slowly. She wanted to relish in what was to be his final words to her, but that thought alone made it even more bittersweet.

This was the last of him.

My Dearest Anna,

If you're reading this, I am no longer with you, be it through distance or through death. I pray that whatever the case, you know that leaving your side was the hardest and worst thing I've endured in this God-forsaken life of mine.

I don't know whether you will get this letter, but I am writing it in the event that I never have the chance to hold you in my arms again, a place that seems empty without you, a place where I know you truly belong.

I want to tell you that I am so sorry that I ever hurt you, and although the past has been forgiven, that I will inevitably hurt you again by having to leave you alone in this world. I leave you this simple letter to remember me by.

I hope you get better, Anna. I hope you live to be an old grandmother with dozens of grandchildren to tell your stories to and share your endless love with. I hope that you love again, and that you don't waste too many tears on the likes of me. I want you to go on, Anna. I want you to live, and I mean really live. I want you to travel, to live life with the zest and ferocity that only you can. I hope you find a man that loves you as much as I have loved you, maybe even more, and I pray you love him without limits.

I hope you remember me, remember my love for you, and know that if I had any kind of power, I'd be the one giving you the life that I can only wish for you now.

You saved my life, Anna. You are and will always be the best thing to ever happen to me. You taught me to love, you taught me to live. You made me realize what is truly important in this world; not a crown nor a throne would ever bring to me the same amount of happiness or honor that simply knowing and loving you has.

I will always love you, and I promise you I will see you again one day. Perhaps not in this life, perhaps not even the next, but one day, I will see you again.

I love you, Anna.

Yours...always yours,

Hans

Anna put the letter down, catching her breath and clutching it over her aching heart. She took a moment to let the words sink in, then pulled it away to reread it over again, her eyes darting over the words with a thirst for more, wishing so badly there was something she'd missed, but each time she read it, it remained the same. She felt her chest heave, her breathing increase, but the tears would not come.

There were no more left to cry, anymore. She'd spent days in and out of consciousness, wishing that she could just fall back into her blissful sleep every time she awoke and rediscovered that the trial had been real, that he was gone.

"A-are you okay?" Kristoff asked. She glanced up at him, a bit startled; she'd forgotten he'd even still been standing there. She nodded solemnly, folding the letter back in half and holding it to her heart once more, where she presumed it would stay for some time. "Good," Kristoff smiled.

"Where's Elsa?" Anna asked, looking around the room and suddenly noticing her sister's absence. During the last few days, Elsa had hardly left her side.

"I'm not sure; would you like me to go get here?" he offered.

"No, that's alright. Wherever she is, I'm sure it's important."

"I'm afraid my hands are tied, your majesty," King Elias sighed, although given his cold behavior at the trial, Elsa couldn't help but notice an obvious lack of sincerity in his voice. He sat at his desk, thumbing over papers and maps, looking busy. Elsa stood close to the door, trying to figure out what she was doing there in the first place. She narrowed her eyes, folding her arms across her chest.

"What do you mean your hands are tied? You're the King-"

"I am sure word hasn't gotten back to you folks at Arendelle about the change in our government, has it?" King Elias said, his tone snappier than before. "I don't have the power to veto the judge's decision, not as you would in Arendelle," he paused, staring up at her determined stare. He scoffed under his breath, looking back down at his business. "Besides, what do you care? I would think of all people you'd be ecstatic to see him locked in a loony bin and away from your darling, precious sister. Hmm?"

"My feelings on the situation mean nothing. The fact is, this sentencing is hurting my sister-"

"Your sister," he scoffed again, adding an offensive eye roll. "Please. I mean no disrespect, but we can't all go around breaking laws and letting criminals loose because your sister has a weak spot for one. What kind of world would this be if we could? Madness, I tell you."

"You know he doesn't belong in an asylum, King Elias," Elsa sneered, nearing him, "your brother is a lot of things, but crazy he is not. Manipulatable? Yes. Egotistical? Oh, God yes. But insane? No, you know as well as I do that doctor was wrong to send him there," Elsa said, passionately. "I don't like him, and clearly you don't either, but my sister loves him. And every moment she is awake she cries for him, and every moment she is asleep she calls for him. I don't think she has a lot of time left, and I want her to get to say goodbye, so what are we going to do about this?"

King Elias turned to look at the Queen, her posture tall and definite. He stared her down, waiting to see her shrink down at his intimidating presence. Her eye contact wavered for a moment before the room went cold, so much so that his startled breath manifested before him in a puffy, white cloud. Her eyes narrowed, and the king could swear he heard the faint sound of ice cracking.

He swallowed, realizing that he hadn't truly seen what this woman was capable of, but he'd heard well enough, and clearly she was ready and willing to show him. He glanced out the window, noticing that the faint snowflakes had tripled in volume, coming down in waves outside; the fire in the fireplace began to suffocate, snuffing out in front of him.

"May I remind you, King Elias," Elsa glowered, her voice calm and cool, "that I have yet to sign any renegotiation treaties with you as of yet." She paused, glancing out the window. "And it does look like it's getting quite cold outside…I hope your kingdom is prepared for such a harsh snowstorm without assistance from a neighboring kingdom," she threatened. He sighed heavily, knowing that she'd called his number. He ran an exasperated hand through this thick, dark hair and threw his compass down on the desk with a light clack.

"What do you want me to do? I've told you that there is nothing I can do about this."

"Tell me what I need to do to get him out in time to say goodbye to my sister," she demanded. He quietly thought, making no indication on his face whether he was willing to take her offer just yet. A wry smile crossed his face, his eyes narrowing into tiny slits.

"I will help you on one condition," he purred. She paused, taken aback by his suspicious change. Her face softened into a look of slight nervousness.

"Wh-what is it?" she asked, trying her best to keep her voice from shaking, giving away her weakness.

"If you succeed at getting Hans out of the sanitarium, I will personally see that his punishment be lowered from labor camp or even death to exile. He will be stripped of his title as prince, and boarded on the next ship to Arendelle. I will be holding you personally responsible for him since it is you asking for his freedom," he said. Elsa nearly choked on the breath she was taking, but again tried her best to not let the panic appear on her face.

"You can do all of that but you can't just have him released?" Queen Elsa replied flatly, growing increasingly irritated by the king's mind games. She was in a room with him for only a few moments and she already felt like she was going mad; she couldn't imagine how Hans had done it all those years.

"I can do a lot of things still, if I am so moved to. I may not be able to personally release him, but I can give my recommendation to the judge. Judge Bjerrum and I are old friends; let's just say that Hans was lucky that he took pity on him, given what I'd instructed him to do with the nuisance."

"You really are despicable, you know that?" Elsa glared. "No wonder your brother ended up so rotten. At least it appears that he has something in him that is redeemable, unlike you," she spat. "I will take your offer," she said decidedly, extending her hand, even if it shook ever so slightly. Did she want to have to babysit Hans for the rest of his life? Of course not. Hans was still the last person on earth she'd want to associate with, but for her sister, she'd do anything. Elias took her hand and shook it, clearly surprised at the coldness emitting from it. He pulled his hand back, wiping it on his cloak as though what she had was catching.

"You'd better hurry though," he said, suppressing a chuckle. "I hear he'd scheduled for a lobotomy tomorrow morning."

Hans watched on bleakly as the clock ticked in the corner of the common room.

The most interesting part about the Southern Hills Sanitarium was that it was grey. The inside. The outside. The furniture. The walls. The fixtures. The bedding. The floors. The ceilings. Everything from top to bottom were different shades of grey.

Fifty-six. He'd counted. There were fifty-six different shades of grey that he'd found thus far, without the shade repeating.

Tick tock, tick tock.

Time moved slow and fast all at the same time. It didn't have numbers like it used to, though. There was no more 8 o'clock, 1 o'clock, noon or midnight. Time was now a different language.

Morning time. Breakfast time. Shower time. Leisure time. Study time. Quiet time. Medicine time. Lunch time. Courtyard time. Doctor time. Talking time. Dinner time. Game time. Bed time. Repeat.

And sometimes not even in that order.

But he was just trying to keep his thoughts as coherent as possible. When he'd first gotten there, he'd taken the tonics and pills allotted to him each morning, but soon realized they made him dazed, confused. He didn't need them. He wasn't like the other fools in this place, screaming and drooling on themselves in corners.

NO.

He could be crazy sometimes, driven to a brink, but he was not insane.

I don't belong here, I don't belong here.

The hardest part, he'd found, was trying not to let the hate creep back into his heart. He wanted to hate his brother, that schmuck of a judge…the lawyer…but he knew he had no reason to. Mostly, he wanted to hate Dr. Svedsen, the man who put him here.

This place truly was torture. It was dirty, cold…most of the 'patients' (which he viewed more as prisoners than anything else) weren't cared for. They were filthy and underfed, a world forgotten. He'd realized quickly that these poor people were carted off behind these grey stone walls to be out of the public eye, ushered away from polite society so that the people of the kingdom could ignore them, pretend they didn't exist.

Hans was blessed to be fully capable of caring for himself, as he'd seen grown men covered in their own bodily fluids, rocking themselves for comfort in a dark corner, hardly looked at twice by the overworked and exhausted medical staff. He was fairly certain that if he'd ever tasted freedom once more, he'd still never get the smell of the God-forsaken place from his nose.

Almost lunch time.

His stomach churned, begging for sustenance, but he was terrified of what gruel would be slopped before him today. Usually it was some disembodied mush, with a faint taste of salt, a biscuit. He missed Marguerite's cooking more than he could fathom, or just a warm bed and a meal served hot for once would be nice.

Had it really only been a couple of days?

"Hans Westergaard, you need to come with me," an orderly instructed, nearing him slowly, as if approaching a rabid dog.

"What? Why? It's almost lunch time," Hans responded. Everything that happened here terrified him, in a way. The slight change in routine could mean anything. He'd heard rumors about electrical treatments, something new in the psychiatric world. He'd heard, but never really seen anything.

"You have to speak with the doctor," he responded, coming another step forward and reaching for Hans' arm. Hans jerked it away, taking a step back from the orderly.

"It's not time to speak with my doctor now," he corrected, suspiciously.

"Do you want to do this the easy or hard way?" the orderly growled, pulling out the shackles Hans had grown to hate. He gulped, submitting quickly. Last time they had to use the shackles he'd also received a lashing and no dinner.

Like a disobedient animal.

He relented, standing up straight and walking towards the orderly to show his change in attitude, who then turned and led Hans out of the common room and down a long, grey (#45), hallway. He passed the grey (#34) doors on each side of him, trying to ignore the muffled cries of the mad as he passed by their rooms.

The orderly led him to the last room on the right, which wasn't his normal doctor's office he'd became accustomed to. He wasn't sure what the room was used for, but instead of the cold, clinical, metal furniture he'd gotten used to around the hospital, he was welcomed by a plush white sofa, a roaring fireplace and a warm, wooden desk. He glanced around the room curiously, eyeing a painting of a couple by a lake over the fireplace. It was the first sense of real life he'd experienced since he'd gotten there, and simply knowing there was a room like this (a room with carpet, no less) in the sanitarium brought him a sense of humbled joy that he couldn't express.

"Have a seat, your doctor will be here shortly," the orderly said, shutting the door behind him on his way out. Hans turned to face the sofa, so happy to see cushions and pillows he could cry if he wasn't so emotionally stunted at this point. More enticing, however, was that roaring fire. He hurried towards it, pulling his achingly cold hands out and rubbing them in front of the flame.

As Hans sat there, watching the flames engulf the logs in the fireplace, he felt like he'd had the first moment alone with his thoughts in forever. He instantly missed Anna; the fire itself reminded him of her, not just in vibrancy and color but the warmth and the energy. His heart ached painfully in his chest as he thought about her, about her health. Not a moment went by where he didn't worry about her and how sick she was when he left her, the look on her weak and pained face as she fell to the ground at his sentencing.

Hans glanced up as he heard the door creak open, Dr. Svedsen coming into view.

"You," he glowered, standing slowly. "What are you doing here?" he said, attempting to keep his voice cold and curt.

"Hello, Hans," he greeted timidly. "I am sure you're not exactly excited to see me," he began. Hans didn't correct him, even though in all honesty he wanted nothing more that to run and embrace the doctor, since it'd seemed like forever since he'd seen a familiar face. "I am here to discuss what happened at your trial," he said slowly. Hans expected him to take his usual place behind a desk, but instead neared the couch, lowering himself onto it.

"About how you betrayed me?" Hans asked, his eyes narrowed.

"Hans, my medical opinion of you was not a betrayal," Svedsen corrected along with a sigh. He took off his glasses, cleaning them with a handkerchief from his top left pocket. "Full disclosure, I knew going in there that you were destined to meet with the executioner that night. Elias had it set in Judge Bjerrum's mind that you were a dangerous, manipulative, blood-thirsty criminal, and his prosecution was doing a well enough job trying to paint you in that light," he explained. Hans took the seat beside Svedsen, listening more intently than before.

"So, you told them I was crazy to get me sent here instead," Hans said, understanding.

"I was not aware that Princess Anna had given such an enduring plea on your behalf. I have no doubts that her testimony may not have gotten you off the hook, though. But paired with my professional opinion, we were able to get you placed here, until I could take the proper channels of getting you out."

"You saved my life," Hans whispered, his brows furrowed. He'd wanted, so badly, to hate Svedsen for what he'd said on that stand, but it was all for him. He had no doubts now that his brother would have found a way to put a noose around his neck. It was hard knowing the way politics work when you're on the wrong side of the law, knowing that the people who want you dead carry the judges in their pockets for their own disposal. "I don't know how I will ever be able to repay you," Hans said, soberly. Dr. Svedsen smiled, a tight but warm smile.

"Your beautiful princess helped," he said, slighting the glory over to Anna. Hans' eyes widened at the mention of her name; it felt like forever since it'd been uttered aloud.

"Anna!" he exclaimed. "How is she? Is she-" he paused, refusing to finish the end of that horrific sentence. "A-and when can I get out of here?" he added. Dr. Svedsen's eyes grew somber, and he realized another sigh, this one heavier than the last.

"She's taken a turn for the worst," a voice called from the open doorway. Hans froze, noticing instantly that room had gotten colder, if that were even possible in his horrible hospital. He knew that voice, although it was the last he'd ever thought he'd hear again. He turned, reluctantly, to face the disembodied voice.

Elsa stood, her arms hugged around herself, but she didn't look as nervous as he'd been used to seeing her. No, she looked sad but determined. Down to business. He stood, bowing towards her slightly.

"Your majesty," he greeted, years of princely conditioning still hard-wired into him. She didn't acknowledge him, simply took a few steps into the room, nearing the fireplace.

"She's hardly conscious anymore. The doctors have given up…it appears she has, too," she said, her eyes meeting his for seemingly the first time. "I underestimated your love for her, although I doubt you can blame me. But worse is that I underestimated her love for you, and that is what is ultimately killing her," she went on to explain. Hans stared at her, still in disbelief that she was even here. "She calls out for you in her sleep, you know." Hans swallowed hard, trying his best to keep from getting too emotional, imagining her in such a state of despair.

"Well, I'm sure Kristoff-" he began, quietly.

"Kristoff is leaving," Elsa said, sternly. "He'd told her before the trial that if she defended you, he would know her answer. And we were all there, we all heard her testimony," she said, her words trailing off as she glanced back down at the dancing flames, reflecting in her blue eyes like flickering ice.

"What?" he breathed, realizing that Anna had made her choice, even if it meant losing both of them.

"She told him that her heart belonged to someone else," she said quietly, "although, I suspect he already knew that."

"How much longer does she have?" Hans asked, nearing the queen as the realization of what she was telling him finally came into focus.

She was not just sick anymore. She was dying.

"They don't know," she choked. "Days? Hours? She doesn't have long."

"You should be there with her," Hans said, his eyes wide. "She can't die alone, Elsa," he realized, instantly, the irony behind his words. Had he not left her to die alone once?

"So should you," she said, turning towards him, her eyes intense and tearful.

"What? How?"

"Bringing my sister joy in her final hours is the single most important thing to me…and if that means seeing you, then…so be it," she said meekly. Hans stood before her, his mouth agape.

"There is a catch, however, and I don't think you're going to like it," Elsa warned. "Your brother has denounced you and you are my sole responsibility. I have therefore commissioned you to becoming Admiral of the Fleet of Arendelle. You've been stripped of your title as Prince and exiled from The Southern Isles…" she said, watching Hans' shocked face twist into sadness, then acceptance. She lowered herself to his gaze. "I suspect there is worse punishment than this, however?" He closed his mouth, mulling over the wide array of information she'd spouted off at him.

Yes. There is worse punishment that that.

He nodded, his face serious.

"A life without Anna is the worse punishment I could ever receive," he said, knowing that it would happening whether he was there or not. At least now he got to say goodbye, and he would trade a million crowns to see her face one last time.

Elsa nodded, the direness of the situation settling back in again. She leaned in towards him, her voice quiet but determined.

"I've had Judge Bjerrum order your release, Dr. Svedsen came to file the paperwork. However, they said it could take a few days," Elsa said worriedly.

"We don't have that kind of time," Hans said, the panic setting in.

"I know," Elsa hissed. "Which is why we are going to have to bust you out of here," she said, a glowing ball of frost manifesting above her palm.

"Are you going to shoot someone with that thing?" he asked, his eyes nervously watching the ball of icy energy bob in her hand. She rolled her eyes.

"Not someone, but something," she said. She pointed to Dr. Svedsen. "Have you signed the release papers yet?" she asked. He nodded. She turned to Hans. "You better get ready to run," she warned. "Now, stand back."

Elsa took in a sharp breath, the ball growing to a stone, the stone to a rock, the rock to a boulder. Hans watched in awe as the bright energy emitted by the queen turned the whole room blue, glowing. He shook away the hypnotizing affect of watching her, bracing himself. With one swift movement, Elsa hurled the ball forward, instantly taking out a huge hole in the backside of the wall.

The hospital shook a bit, the blast nearly deafening. They had no time to recover, however, before Elsa had a hold of Hans' hand, rushing him out of the back of the building and out into the snow-covered field.

"Run!" Elsa yelled, desperately sprinting through the snow, Hans right behind her, as they hurried towards the horses she'd had waiting at a neighboring barn to get back to Anna before time ran out.

Hans and Elsa navigated the hallways of the castle feverishly, Hans' mind in such a state of panic that he'd almost forgot his way around more than once. He was forever grateful to Elsa for putting her own feelings aside to get him out of the asylum, even knowing that he was now her burden.

He pulled his jacket on as he ran, managing to change out of his patient's uniform and run at he same time, which was a new talent he wasn't even aware he'd had.

Finally, they made it to her chamber door, panting wildly. Elsa turned towards him, trying to gain control of herself, unsure what they'd be walking into. Would it have all been for nothing? The thought crossed both of their minds, perhaps more than once.

Elsa watched intently as Hans' hand found the doorknob, opening the door quietly. He took a few steps in, his eyes searching for her in the bed, as she should be.

As she was.

She was white. Not pale, not sickly, but white. As though there was no more life left in her at all. She was thin, gaunt, even more so than the last time he'd seen her, when he thought she'd looked her frailest. He caught his breath, feeling as though he'd gotten the wind knocked out of him. He glanced back at Elsa, nervously, looking for some kind of clearance to go to her. She nodded, her eyes filled with tears as she gazed over at her sister, seeing her condition as clearly as Hans.

He stepped towards her, he'd run to her if he could remember how. He was terrified of nearing her and realizing that she was already gone. He studied her chest, gently still heaving, albeit shallow, pained breaths. He stood tall, remembering what he was there to do, no matter how much he wanted to lay in the bed and die right along beside her.

He kept his composure as he knelt beside her, taking her hand in his and giving it a gentle squeeze, his vision on her blurry amidst the tears. He'd not cried too many times in his life, feeling with tears came a sense of shame or disgrace. No, not these tears. He was proud of these tears. It meant he had finally found a way to love someone more than himself.

"Anna," his said quietly. He was relieved to see her eyes flutter open softly, her head turning towards him slowly.

"Hans?" she whispered, the faintest outline of a smile appearing.

"I'm here," he sputtered, masking the pain in his voice.

"You…you came back for me," she breathed, reaching her hand shakily to his face.

"Your sister helped," he admitted. "A lot. She helped a lot, you'd be so proud," Hans smiled, shooting an extra smile in Elsa's direction. Elsa chuckled through her tears, nearing them. "I had to come back. You're the only thing that matters to me."

"Hans," she said, her voice serious, her eyes widening as best as they could. "Hans you have to kiss me," she whimpered. He froze at the familiarity of those words.

"Why?" he asked, although he didn't need a reason, but curious why she would say such a thing, especially something so poignant to both of them.

"Tr-true love's kiss," she reasoned. "You're my true love. It…it's should work this time." Hans felt the tears streaming down his cheeks as he listened to her. How he wished it were that simple, how he wished this was a case of ice in her heart and he could really make things right, once and for all. He bowed his head in despair so she wouldn't see his heartache, placing a few kisses across her knuckles while he tried to gain his composure.

"I'm…I'm afraid a kiss isn't going to heal you this time Anna."

"You…you have to try," she insisted, lifting her head. She didn't have to ask him twice. Hans leaned down, pressing his lips to hers, gently as to not hurt her. Her hand ran up the length of his face and into his hair, gripping on tightly and pulling him closer. She had much more strength than he had realized, so he pressed himself to her closer, the sinking realization that this was most likely going to be their last kiss.

He held onto her, his hand reaching to her chest, her heartbeat, where it rested so he could feel it beat for just a little longer. The kiss ended with tiny, multiple kisses upon her lips, cheeks, nose, forehead. He couldn't suppress the sobs anymore as he leaned his head down atop hers, burying his face in her hair as he gripped her hand tightly. He felt a comforting hand on his back, glancing up to see Elsa, equally gutted, trying her best to offer comfort to Hans

How selfish, she was losing her sister, and yet she was here to comfort him. He pulled himself together wiping away his tear stained cheeks. He glanced down at Anna, who was smiling weakly at them.

"Damn," she lightly teased. "I was sure it would work this time."

"Anna…I can't lose you…I haven't even begun to express to you how much you mean to me," Hans confessed, his voice riddled with sorrow. "How much you've changed me. Your love has made me human. You made this insignificant life worth living. You found a way to love me," he cried, his breath staggered. She reached up once more her cold, clammy hand softly resting upon his cheek. She stared at him with love in her eyes as she gently wiped away a tear.

"You were easy to love, Hans," she whispered. "I'm just so happy that I got to see your face one last time." Hans's head fell upon her chest as heavy sobs jerked through his body. He felt her heartbeat slowing, her breathing lessen.

Until ultimately, it all just stopped and her body turned cold.

Elsa's pained cry ripped through the room, not unlike the moment Anna had frozen in front of their very eyes. Only this time, an act of true love wasn't going to bring her back.

"Am I too late?" a frantic but vaguely familiar voice called form the doorway. Elsa and Hans glanced up through their sorrow, a look of recognition appearing over both of their faces as their jaws dropped open.

Perhaps they had one last chance to keep from losing Anna forever.

TO BE CONTINUED…

A/N

HOLY MOLY.

One last chapter to go! . What a wild ride this has been.

I am starting a new fic, but really toying with the idea of continuing this fic into a kind of sequel, but wasn't really sure how much interest there'd be. We shall see!

What a painful but fulfilling chapter to write. It was hard, because I didn't want to just rush through it all happening, but I didn't really want to leave you guys in limbo very much longer, either. I always used to look at those necessary filler chapters as deterrents from what I REALLY want to be reading about, which is typically the same for a lot of people I've come to realize.

Don't worry! There is still a happy ending in the next chapter.

I've started working on some illustrations to go with the story (by that I mean I've done a grand total of ONE.)

It's on my Tumblr. Same name: Mogitz. I am still learning how to use it cut me a little slack.

As always, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! This story is officially the longest and most successful I've ever written, and I couldn't have done it without your support and eagerness to read my work. You guys really are the best, and I hope I can pull things to a happy conclusion for all of you.

One reviewer asked if I can pair Kristoff and Elsa…I was kinda prepping this story for that kind of pairing to occur! And it isn't too far-fetched based on what I have planned.;-)

See Ya'll soon! Review if you feel so inclined. (aka you totally should.)