He bit his lip, trying to ignore the coldness of the dark prison cell he had been roughly thrown into. They didn't bother to escort him properly but instead, they literally threw him in the cell, slamming his wounds on the cold, hard floor.
We shall see what his twelve big brothers think of his behavior.
The scenario and the french dignitary's words came flooding back, drowning him in a whole ocean of regret. The wound that it left is still there, it will always be there to pound him with pain he never knew existed. Out of desperation, he looked around the eerie room, the old bed, the thin blanket, and the small window at the side, hoping to entertain his mind off of the dark abyss he knew he fell into.
It's too much, too painful to remember even for him who was considered as a frozen-hearted man. Only did he began to appreciate the sun's light when the darkness of the cells he had been in, wrapped him up in a thick blanket of grief, suffocating him to near death.
He is human despite how evil and wicked everyone - including himself - thinks he is.
Other than the echoes of some ruckus made by the other prisoners, everything was calm and quiet enough for him to hear the clacking of someone's heels, getting louder at each step. It felt like an old, broken record, going on and on up until it suddenly stopped right in front of his cell.
It took a moment but eventually, the huge metal door clicked unlock and opened which revealed the princess' freckled face, ire bursting out of her eyes but he didn't bother to move an inch to greet her. Behind her were a few guards who stared at him pitifully, the kind of look he was used to but never loved.
"Good day." Anna saw rage forming in his eyes because of her words thus making her grin wickedly in delight. "What's so good about the day?" he asked sarcastically. Instead of glaring at her like he wanted to do, he kept still and focused his gaze on his filthy hands, silently cursing her under his breath. It took a moment for her to answer as if she's reconsidering every possible response until she finally decided.
"You locked up." Anna stated quite frankly, obviously not intending to play any childish games with him - especially the break the princess' heart game. With a sigh, Hans finally turned to look at her; his venomous green eyes connecting to hers as if to intimidate. They never broke their glares up until Hans spoke, "Glad it made your day, princess." he said vilely, increasing Anna's ire to the extent that she clenched her fist, more than willing to smack his face until he is no longer recognizable.
She kept her glare as she stomped her foot loudly against the floor to get to him. Thud, thud, thud. The guards kept a close eye on both of them, waiting for the show that was going to be held by Anna with Hans being the trash she's going to take out - metaphorically speaking, that is.
"Look, you little rascal!" Anna growled as she grabbed his lapels tightly and pulled him closer to her, slamming his rigid body against the rusty iron bars that served as a small divider between both of them. In spite of that, she ignored his pain and grabbed his top tighter, moving her face an inch closer to his.
"If I were Elsa, you'd be six feet below the ground by now." The words escaped her lips naturally like sighs but then a guard tried to step in, reminding Anna that Elsa would not like it if she's that close to Hans. Albeit still bubbling with rage, Anna turned to the man and spoke, "Please go tell Elsa not to worry about me. I got this."
With that, the man left as Anna turned her full attention back to Hans - specifically, his face which is slightly squished because of the bars. With his powerful hands, he broke free from her grip and took a few steps back, just enough to avoid being painfully slammed against the bars again. "If you were Elsa. Too bad you are not and will never be her."
His words had sparked Anna's rage once more, cutting the last strand of patience she has left. She hated him, all of him. His looks, his attitude, his sideburns, his facade. Sure, she once loved him but with the way he broke her heart, no. Now, he's mocking her, rubbing in her face how idiotic she was for loving someone like him.
If only there was someone out there who loved you.
She frowned at that. "Honestly, Anna, I thought, of all people, that you could understand me and why I did what I did. It turns out that you can't; just like everyone else in this blasted world. Hang me if you want, I'd rather die in the kingdom where I commited my crimes than to be hanged in that accursed Southern Isles." he spat carelessly as he turned his back, not wanting to lay another gaze at her.
Anna, on the other hand, felt lost and confused at his words. She gripped the bars tightly, slowly releasing the anger and desire to punch him. "Understand?" she exclaimed furiously and with a hint of sarcasm.
Out of irritation, Hans looked back at her, gritting his teeth so hard that he thought they might break. "For heaven's sake, Anna, don't act like an imbecile! I know you felt that way too at one point in you life, being the unecessary spare and all."
Spare.
That's what she considers herself as; and what she thinks Hans considers himself as. She hated that term knowing that she's just someone in between two worlds, being nothing but a measly spare compare to her sister who was born - destined to be a powerful queen. That she'll be nothing more than a princess, the second in command, the screw up. Nonetheless, she loved Elsa unconditionally - more than power itself.
"I'm more than just a spare and so are you." she said. Anna started to calm down from the sudden outburst earlier but Hans did not. He's still raging, annoyed at how he's opening up old wounds that traced back to his lonesome childhood. With all of his strength, he held his tears tightly; refusing to lose the little dignity he has left.
"Go away. We're done here." And with that, he averted his gaze from her completely, went to the plank-like thing which is to be considered as his bed, and buried himself in the thin sheet of blanket that goes along with it.
Anna couldn't do anything else but to leave with the guards just like he demanded. He's technically at rock bottom now. No light, no hope, nothing. Nothing but the smell of metal that enveloped him in that cell. The sound of her heels clacking further and further away became his lullaby, entertaining his mind as he slept with no intention of ever waking up.
~~~
"Anna, I didn't know he was-" Elsa practiced while pacing back and forth in her study. She didn't know how to apologize or even greet Anna for the matter. Who knows how Anna took the news? She knew her sister loved Hans deeply - more than herself even - and to see him once again is probably tormenting her right now. "Anna, I humbly apologize-" she stopped again realizing that it sounded too formal just like how Hans spoke a few hours ago. She couldn't make up her mind.
Just as she was about to try again, the door opened and it caused a small creaking sound which made her abruptly turn her gaze to it, knowing that she locked it before practicing. Other than that is that everyone knows how she hated it when someone enters her study without permission or a knock at least.
Her questions were answered when Olaf entered the room quite giddily with a bowl of hot soup held in his branchy hands. "Hi! I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs." he energetically greeted.
"Oh, Olaf. I didn't know you're here." she smiled at him as she sighed in relief. "Well, you do now." he giggled innocently, causing Elsa get contaminated by his energy and let out a giggle as well.
Olaf looked at her smiling but then he remembered the bowl in his hands. "Oh, oh! Here you go!" he skipped to her desk and placed the bowl of soup on a vacant space, miraculously making it without a spilling a single drop.
"What is this?" she rhetorically asked, raising an eyebrow as she smiled. It's usual for servants to give her snacks everytime she's buried in her work but with Olaf, it became quite a surprise for her. She does not see him that often since that he's always on expeditions with Kristoff and whenever he's in the castle, he spends most of his time with Anna. It seems like he loves fun people unlike herself - though playful and mischievous at times - who lacks on knowledge about fun.
"It's soup, Elsa. Have you forgotten what a soup is?" he asked obliviously and without a single hint of sarcasm. "You kept yourself in this room for far too long that your mind is probably all messed up. Maybe talking to Anna will do more wonders than this soup can, don't you think so?"
Realization struck Elsa like lightning for she would love nothing more than to talk to Anna but - frankly speaking - she has no idea how. She didn't know if Anna was mad, irritated, sad, or anything! She turned back to Olaf and saw him smiling, moving his branchy arms around like play things. He may be naive and innocent but he always know what to say to her, and to Anna.
Some people are worth melting for.