"Perfect. Now, what did you need me for?" I said smiling.
"General Ryder asked for your presence, but said that if you were busy he would meet whenever it pleased you" he said holding a smile. I couldn't help but hold back a sincere half smile "I suppose you agree with me when I say he's a perfect gentleman"
"He is" I said smiling at myself, thinking of how much of a gentleman he had been for the whole time yesterday.
"And a handsome fellow" Kai added with a smirk.
"I suppose he is…"
"And a charming young man"
"Kai, are you by any chance suggesting something?" I said raising an eyebrow.
"Just stating facts, your Majesty" he said with a fatherly smile "Plus… who knows?" I blushed there.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about" he smiled again.
"So what shall I tell him?" Kai asked
"Tell him I'll meet him this evening in the east wing living room before dinner" I said.
"As you wish, your Majesty" he said and left with a bow. As he got out of the door, I checked a few more documents, signed them and finally got out of the study. I walked through the castle hallways going directly to Hans' room. As I walked through the hallway before taking a turn towards the hallway where Hans' room was located, I saw Anna, wearing her favorite green dress with flats and her hair in her signature braids, leaning on the corner waiting. I walked towards her and when she saw me she came towards me.
"Elsa, what's going on? I passed by this hallway this morning and noticed two guards and Skylynn outside Hans's old guest room, and when I returned, like three hours later, Skylynn was still there. Did something happen?" Anna asked me worriedly.
"Skylynn went to see Hans without my permission yesterday" I said.
"And…?" she asked knowing there was more.
"It's a good thing she did, because Hans is sick and the doctor said he might not make it through. His wounds got badly infected"
"Oh… -Wait!-Didn't you have Kai put someone in charge of it?" Anna asked.
"Apparently, Hans has succeeded in scaring them off. It seems like he doesn't want help… like if he wants to die" Anna nodded understanding
"Skylynn is probably worried out of her mind. She is still out of the door, let her see him, let them talk" she said.
"I will, sooner or later"
"Elsa" Anna said soothingly "I understand that you don't trust her and I know it seems like I haven't learned anything from what happened a month ago, but believe me when I say that sometimes I wish I didn't trust her as much as I do, it's just that-"
"-When it comes to older siblings you feel like you two have a connection" I finished and took her hands in mine "I know…"
"Yeah… you know that if something happened to you I would want to be by your side, so why won't you let her? She may seem like she's made of steel, but she's human too. She's been fighting with claws and teeth to somehow save him, doesn't that make you think?"
"Yes, too much. I don't trust her, Anna, like… at all. She's smart, she's a warrior, she's a stranger, she's… she's dangerous, Anna. Hans is dangerous. I really hope you have realized by now, why I don't want them to communicate as much"
"I do and you're absolutely right. But have you also considered that maybe theirs are masks? Why don't you try to dig a little deeper before labeling her as 'enemy'? I'm trying to do that myself. I'm being cautious too" Anna said. I raised an eyebrow.
"Really? Because going all fan-girl mode and trying to persuade me in giving her more trust doesn't really go with the definition of 'cautious'" I said. Anna smiled got on her tiptoes, since I was wearing heels and she wasn't for once, and kissed my cheek taking a few steps away.
"Closing doors isn't always the answer" she said and walked away. I stood there for a moment thinking about it. Then I turned the corner and in fact, Skylynn was there sitting on one of the small couches in the corridor, waiting outside of Hans' door a few feet away from it, she had something that looked like a notebook in her hands, and she was writing something on it. I walked towards her but didn't say anything, she must have heard me though, because her head snapped towards me, her bright grey eyes meeting mine for a split of a second, then she gave me a nod and got back to writing.
"How long have you been here?" I asked standing next to her with my hands clasped in front of me.
"5 a.m." she answered in a low voice "I couldn't sleep" there was a moment of silence
"What are you doing?" I asked pointing at the notebook.
"Writing a letter to my sister-in-law" she said "Don't worry, I'm not asking her to send an army and declare war to Arendelle, I'm informing her of what's going on and that her regency could last longer than expected" she paused with a glare "Or do you want to play nosy and read it to make sure it's actually what I told you?" she said coldly.
"No, I believe you" I said calmly.
"That's a first" she said somehow satisfied with my answer "The doctor just got inside" she said not taking her eyes off the notebook.
"Did his actions have anything to do with your brothers?" I asked, maybe this wasn't the best moment, but we were supposed to talk about it sooner or later.
"Half-brothers" she corrected with a glare "And I thought you didn't care about our family business"
"You said it was about what happened here in Arendelle and that concerns me" I insisted.
"Well, to think about it, Arendelle doesn't really have anything to do with this, so… no, it doesn't concern you" she said not looking at me, but clearly irritated.
"Skylynn-"
"-Listen up, Snow Queen" I tried not to flinch at the epithet as she stood up staring down at me, her grey eyes cold. The guards at the door were already about to leave their position and come to me, but I raised a hand signing them to stay in position "This is none of your business and I'm not in the mood to argue, so if you don't want me to do anything stupid don't push it" Skylynn said menacingly.
"Is this a threat, Heroine of Drakora?" I said not backing down, although she was indeed intimidating.
"A war declaration if necessary" she said taking a step closer, as she stood at her full height. I swallowed the lump in my throat, but didn't avert my gaze.
"I suggest you to think before speaking to me like that. Don't make me remind you that I am the queen here and that I could freeze you in this very moment if I wanted to" I said. Skylynn took a deep breath and stepped back sitting back down.
"Let's make it clear: you can threaten me all you want but I'm not afraid you. I'm not in the mood to fight with you, right now" she said. As she said that, I admit that that answer caught me off guard. I knew Anna and Kristoff weren't afraid of me either, they didn't need to say it, but hearing Skylynn say it directly in my face, it felt… good. Even when Storm indirectly said so himself it was a nice feeling, but hearing a stranger saying it directly was better.
"I'll go hear what the doctor has to say and let you know" I said. She nodded and got back to the letter. I took a step forward a placed a hand on her shoulder "If he's awake, would you like me to tell him something?" I asked.
"I'm not going anywhere. Please tell Hans that" she said looking up at me. I nodded and walked towards the guards.
"Is everything okay, your Majesty?" one of them asked eyeing Skylynn.
"Everything is fine" I answered "Let me through, please" they nodded and stepped aside letting me inside the room. As Skylynn said, the doctor was inside checking on Hans. As I closed the door, he turned his head towards me and bowed. I nodded back.
"How is he?" I asked.
"Not good" the doctor answered "The infection is bad and probably deadly, the fever isn't helping either"
"Is there something you can do?" I asked
"I already changed the bandages and gave him some antibiotics, but there isn't much else I can do for him. We just have to wait and see"
"Thank you, doctor" I said. He bowed and left the room leaving me with a sleeping Hans. Even if he was asleep, he didn't lo
ok peaceful at all, he was in pain. I walked closer to him and put a hand on his forehead. He was burning up. What I did next came out natural, as I felt his burning forehead, I used my powers to try to cool him down, moving my hand from his forehead to his cheek. As I did, he started to steer in his sleep leaning into my touch. Surprised, I was about to pull my hand away, when he grabbed my wrist with his warm one, keeping it in place. My heart immediately started beating out from my chest. I couldn't let him touch my hand, not when it was so close to his face, especially since I saw frost immediately crawl over my fingers. Calm down, Elsa! Calm down! Don't freak out! Don't freeze him.
"Sky… stay…" he weakly muttered stirring, with his eyes barely opened. Now that caught me off guard.
"No, Hans. It's Queen Elsa" I said.
"I was… stupid… Sky" he muttered
"Hans, it's Elsa" I said gently "Skylynn is outside"
"Arendelle… I didn't… Elsa… Anna…" he muttered, that got my attention and I sat down on the edge of the bed, next to him, my concern for the unexpected contact with my hands gone. "My brothers… don't… it's my fault" he kept muttering. He was delirious, probably because of the high fever. "Gordon… August… Brad… William… Herbert… they…" he coughed "…I didn't… Elsa… she hates me..." he coughed again tightening his grip on my hand "they are right… I… thirteenth wheel… spare of spare… worthless…" his hoarse voice was rising and I immediately hushed him, running my cool hand through his hair, that seemed to calm him down a bit "They… preparing me… I failed… I'm… nothing…" those words didn't make sense but something in my mind clicked. What happened here in Arendelle had something to do with his brothers and Skylynn had figured it out. I kept thinking about all those words until a thought came into my mind. I think I figured it out… I had to talk to Skylynn about this.
"Shh… get some sleep, you need to rest" I said running my fingers through his auburn locks
"Sky… I didn't mean…" he continued weakly as his barely open eyes closed again and the grip on my hand loosen, but the moment I tried to pull my hand away, he clumsily caught it again in his.
"She knows… she's not going anywhere" I said, but he was already asleep. For a moment, I stood there thinking about what he had just said in his delirious state. I needed to talk to Skylynn, immediately. But before leaving, I pulled away my hand from his and using my magic I created a thin layer of snow on his forehead to cool him down a bit. Hans seemed to relax as he felt the cool frost. I stood there for a moment, noticing how he seemed to be less in pain… and didn't realize that the moment I was done with the frost, I had placed my hand on his cheek again and was rubbing it with my thumb. I gently pulled my hand away and stood up walking out of the room. To my surprise, Skylynn wasn't there, she must have gone to get herself something to eat or drink. I took a few steps away from the door, until I passed next to the window closest to Hans's room and saw something. This part of the castle faced the royal gardens, which were a quiet isolated place. There stood Prince Herbert and Prince Gordon speaking to each other. They were down there, and Skylynn wasn't here anymore…
"Oh no" I muttered and rushed away calling the guards, making my way towards the royal gardens hoping to catch up with the furious Queen of Drakora.
CHAPTER TEN
I wasn't planning on it...-well, maybe part of me was- but it had been completely un intentional. I was re-reading the letter I was going to send my sister-in-law and decided to stand up to stretch my legs. The only thing I did was walk to the closest window while re-reading the letter, I folded it put in an envelope and then I glanced out of the window and saw my half-brothers. When I saw Herbert and Gordon in the royal gardens calmly chit-chatting, the only feeling I had at the moment was fury for what they did to my brother. The only reason why Hans is sick and injured is because of them. They did that to him. So I did the first thing my guts told me, put the letter in my pocket and quickly stalked to the royal gardens. Luckily the two things were still there joking around when I finally got there. Oh, how lucky were all the others not to have come… So here's the plan, first I beat the crap out of these two, then I'll send another letter to Angel telling her to prepare the warriors for a war with the Southern Isles and I finally skin alive those other vile excuses of princes. I didn't bother with stealth, I just paced directly towards them fuming when they finally saw me… luckily for them, the walk got me to cool off enough not to take my sword out and kill them right away.
"Oh, Gordon look! If it isn't our little half-sister descending from 'high and mighty' to pay us a visit" Herbert said with a smug look.
"YOU! IT'S YOUR FAULT HANS IS IN THESE CONDITIONS! HE'S DYING BECAUSE OF YOU!" I yelled stepping closer to them.
"Oh boo-hoo! Then I shall inform you that we don't actually give half-a-crap!" Gordon said glaring. I angrily pushed him.
"IT WAS YOU! IT WAS ALL YOU! HANS WENT ON THIS SUICIDE MISSION BECAUSE OF YOU!" I yelled, trying hard not to put a hand on my sword and lower myself to their level. If I had to kill them, it will be out of self- defense.
"And remind me why we should be worried right now?" Herbert said
"Because you may fool Theodore and the others but you can't fool me. I know why Hans tried to kill Queen Elsa and Princess Anna"
"Oh? And why is that our fault?"
"Stop playing stupid, you oafs! I know you are, but that's not the topic" they glared at me "You made him feel like such a worthless piece of nothing, that he wanted to prove himself to you! He tried to take over Arendelle to show the twelve of you he was worth something! You knew very well that it was a suicide mission, that's why you let him go! You were hoping Queen Elsa would execute him, if not getting himself killed in the process of taking over this kingdom!"
"Ooh… busted!" Gordon said chuckling, sharing a look with Herbert.
"So, what?" Herbert said "It's not like it changes anything he did"
"It does change things, you moron!" I snapped as he tensed in anger "He is not the evil man everyone thinks he is! You are the ones who froze his heart! You made him believe that he needed to prove himself to you by accomplishing something impossible" I yelled "What have we ever done to you?! Why do you hate us so much?!"
"You are nothing but a waste of space and air of a bastard who is not worthy of royalty. He is the thirteenth wheel. He is the spare of the spare of the spare. Useless. But still, he is the reason why our father decided we were hopeless cases!" Gordon said angrily.
"Yeah, right! Like Albert payed any attention to any of us, especially Hans and I" I snapped sarcastically, sadly admitting there was indeed one thing I had in common with them: a careless father.
"You weren't at the palace, you arrogant brat! You don't know how things were there!" Gordon snapped.
"To us he was always 'Hans here! Hans there!- You bunch of ignorants should be like your little brother!'. Literature and philosophy won't get him anywhere! It's because of him that it will always be 'this is Prince Hans and they are Prince Herbert, Prince Gordon etc.' No youngest prince of the Southern Isles has ever been more important than the others because he could do some useless re-tell of Kant's philosphy and write some music! I'm the third in line and Father made Hans Admiral and me his vice-admiral!" Herbert said with as much anger
"So this is why you treat him like trash? Why you beat him up and filled his head with the idea of how worthless and what a failure he is and how he will never be a man if he can't defend himself when you are 6 on 1? Because of tradition?!" I shouted astonished by their explanation. They were despicable.
"In summary? Yes" Herbert said a smug look. "Now, we're the ones with a question. Why do you even fight so much for such a lost cause? Him trying to kill the Queen of Arendelle while she had her back on him and left a helpless princess to freeze to death will not change the fact that he is a coward monster"
"Hans is no coward monster, you are!" I yelled. Gordon growled in anger and would have attacked me if Herbert hadn't grabbed his jacket to hold him back.
"I suppose this is the part where you tell us we should be worried?" Herbert said with a smug look.
"And remind us why we should be?" Gordon added crossing his arms.
"You really want me to say it? Are you actually that lazy that you can't think by yourselves? " I said and chuckled with no humor "Oh, my goodness… how is it like in those tiny little brains of yours? It must be so boring!" I said provoking them. Gordon glared at me and so did Herbert. "Theodore may talk like an idiot, look like an idiot, and maybe he really is an idiot, but he is not actually that stupid. I'm 100% sure that when I tell him the reason behind Hans' actions, he won't be too happy about it. Let's not mention that Queen Elsa and Princess Anna won't be too happy about it either. I know there must be something else behind all this and you can be sure that I will figure it out. So, yes. I would be worried if I were you"
"This is where you are wrong, Skylynn" Herbert said "You are not going to tell anyone and won't uncover anything because this garden will be your grave" and he and Gordon took out their swords.
"Oh, there's the big surprise! Now you are threatening to kill me. Just like every other general and conceited soldier I killed during the Revolution" I said taking out my sword as well, my eyes never leaving them as they thought to be circling me, when actually I was the one doing so. "Before you two attack me, do me a favor, come to me one at a time. I don't like being outnumbered it makes too much stupid in a room" that made them angry. Someone might think that making an armed 5'9" burly man and a 6'2" vice-admiral with a sword angry, isn't probably the smartest thing to do, but... Make your opponent angry, use his anger to your advantage. Anger doesn't make you think. Focus. This is what Hans taught me, what made me survive a year-long bloody war.
Gordon was the one who stroke first, but I easily blocked the hit, got behind his back and kick his butt, making him fall straight on his face. Herbert took the opportunity to strike me as well, but I saw it coming. I moved and parried the hit and kneeled him in the stomach. As he was about to hit me again, Gordon was back on his feet and they tried to hit me at the same time, but I hopped back and they smashed onto each other drawing away the sword at the last moment. Herbert was the first to hit me again, I blocked his hit and dodged Gordon's hitting him behind the head with the hilt of my sword, sending him on the ground. I twirled on myself and deflected two hits from Herbert, crossing swords on his third hit.
Many Beauty and the Many Beast Page 17
