Full Summary: As the aftermath of Elsa's coronation and blizzard dies down, Hans is faced with a harsh punishment while Elsa is faced with the troubles of running a kingdom. Seeking answers to her questions about her powers and a way to rule her kingdom without stress, Elsa strikes out for discovery on her own. Along the way she encounters Hans, and they're begrudgingly forced to work together to get what they want as they travel through familiar and foreign lands alike.

A/N: Hello to both old and new readers! I figured on my down time between work and writing my own book series (check it out on my profile page!) that I should try my hand at fan fiction once again. While usually Disney isn't something I'd dabble in, I found the story Frozen to be something that needed more. I wanted more from Elsa and Hans. They were the most interesting characters to me. And I also wanted more folklore since Scandinavia is so rich in story of that kind. So this fic is just something to extend the story and really dig deep into the characters.

For now I'll be updating with a new chapter every weekend. So I hope you guys enjoy the first chapter!

Pains of our Pasts

By: Pixiegirl13

Chapter 1 Competition and Fear

-Hans-

"My whole life has been about competition."

Sitting in the cold, damp dungeon of the Southern Isles castle, Hans had been reduced to talking to his one and only inmate: a rat. Only a fortnight ago he'd been a free man on the cusp of owning his own kingdom and with it hailing the honor and attention he'd always wanted and needed. Now it was a silly dream that would never come true. It was tragically funny how close he'd been to his dream, only to have it crash down all around him. It was as if fate had temptingly opened up that wonderful door only to slam it on his face and laugh at his pain.

"You don't really care all that much, do you?" Hans said with a sigh to the rat sniffing around the empty metal plate that used to hold food for the prince. "I bet any competition you've seen was pretty straight forward. It's different when it's all about pleasing your parents. You know, they probably wouldn't have even come to my wedding. For all I know, one of the others would find some stuffy, boring girl to marry the same week and I'd end up having just the cooks and the maids show up in Arendelle."

"Who are you talking to?"

Hans jumped a little in his startle, green eyes rising to connect with the same, exact color of eyes as his own. His frown was hard and cold when, through the dimness of the torches, he saw his twin sister standing there. She was the female spitting image of him, tall, red hair, sprinkle of freckles, and beautiful in every way on the outside.

"The rat," Hans answered as he leaned back against the cold brick wall of his cell and glared at the young woman through the iron bars.

"You are so pathetic," Cathrine said with a superior smirk. She had half her red locks pulled up so that her long neck and sharp facial features could be clearly seen. Her dress matched the color of her eyes. It was slimming at the waist, with lacy frills sticking up all around her bust line. The soft looking material told Hans that the garment had probably cost a fortune to make. Their parents spared no expenses for their one and only daughter.

"So what's the news, dear sister?" Hans said with a just as sharp smile. "What fate has Alexander, Frode, and Rune decided for me?"

"I don't know yet," Cathrine said with a little shrug of her slender shoulders.

"Ah. So you've come here to gloat," Hans said. "How petty of you."

"No, dear brother. How petty of you to try and kill off a royal line simply to get mother's and father's attention," Cathrine said with a scoffing laugh. "You were so terribly desperate, weren't you? It's laughable, really. And still they don't care whether our brothers kill you, banish you, or leave you here to rot. They won't even take the time to see you. I don't know why you even bothered. You talk about competition as if you had a stake in the running, but we all know that you will and always will be dead last."

"If I had succeeded, you wouldn't be saying those words," Hans said while fisting his uncovered hands. He wished he had gloves. He always felt better with gloves.

"If you had succeeded, mother and father wouldn't have cared," Cathrine snapped back scathingly with a flinty smile. "Nobody would care. Admit it, Hans. You were born too late to account for anything. You were better off accepting that fate instead of trying so hard to prove yourself to everyone. You will be nothing but an unneeded son."

Hans glared back at his twin, too angry and upset to voice his thoughts. Cathrine was the only girl out of fourteen kids. She was also the baby of the family along with him. Having a girl was all Hans' mother wanted, so when she had twins, Hans had only been an addition to the family the king and queen didn't need or want. And then when they found out about Hans' unnatural ability, he'd become the unneeded son that was cursed. Hans had never stood a chance of competing against his older brothers and beloved sister. Cathrine was right about everything.

"They aren't going to kill me," Hans said with a seemingly uncaring wave of his hand. "None of them were there. Nobody knows the whole story. Everything is hearsay, which isn't enough for someone to be killed."

"Then you'll be banished," Cathrine said with a delighted smile. "And I'll never have to see you again. Better yet, you'll be sold into slavery."

"Slavery?" Hans said in confused surprise. He gave a nervous, little laugh as if to scoff at the idea as he asked, "Where did you hear that preposterous idea?"

"Oh, dear. You don't know?" Cathrine said, putting her hand up to her face as if she was fearful for her brother's lack of knowledge. "Poor little Hans. He has no idea how much his curse is really worth. Aw! Don't look so frightened. I'm sure they'll get a lot of gold for you."

"Stop playing with me, Cathrine," Hans said in aggravation as he sat up. "They wouldn't sell me. I'm not a slave. I'm a prince. The whole notion is barbaric."

"And so is the notion of you trying to murder a queen and a princess just so you could rule a silly, little kingdom," Cathrine said with a satisfied smile. "The thought of you just trying to hurt anyone makes me want to giggle. You've always been spineless, Hans. Were you really going to do it?"

"Of course!" Hans argued loudly in indignation. "And I would have succeeded, too, if it wasn't for Queen Elsa's curse."

"I heard she was born with it. Just like you," Cathrine said.

"Then why is mine a curse?" Hans asked in a sneer.

"Because you yourself has always been one, brother," Cathrine said as if her twin was being stupid and the answer was obvious. "You've caused this kingdom grief since the day you were born. The only blessing you're ever going to be is when we finally get rid of you. It's one less mouth to feed each day. That money adds up, you know? With you gone, maybe mother could buy me more pretty dresses."

"I feel sorry for the foolish man who finally marries you, dear sister," Hans said with a mean, dauntless smirk. "He will have no idea how much of a snake you truly are."

"It's better to be a snake that isn't seen until it strikes than a rabid, mangy dog chasing his own tail such as you," Cathrine said, her words laced with venom. "Snakes live long from their cunning skill. You will be killed off soon enough for your stupidity."

"My plan wasn't stupid," Hans argued vehemently. "I had everything perfectly set out. Everything went well and according to plan until the very end. Anna was supposed to have died. She was on her deathbed the last time I saw her! If it wasn't for her, I'd be ruling Arendelle all by myself with nobody's help right now."

"You would be a horrible ruler, Hans," Cathrine said, her look downright condescending. "You don't have what it takes. You have no experience, studies on the matter, or the fortitude. Honestly, I have no idea why you were even born. You were a mistake, really."

"I have the studies and the experience," Hans said, completely ignoring the young woman's insults. After hearing them from all his siblings and his parents for so long he'd just been able to let the words roll right off his shoulders. "I've trained just as hard as the others. I've gone to every meeting with every kingdom I could. I've even been the captain of my own ship in the navy, for God's sake. I'd be a perfectly fine king."

Cathrine smiled sadly and sighed, her expression full of pity for her brother. She placed both her hands on one of the iron bars to the prison cell's door while giving her twin an imploring look. Hans did nothing but glare back at her, untrusting and unrelenting in his views.

"Come here, my dear brother," Cathrine said as she held her hands out through the bars into his cell. When Hans didn't move at first, she gave him a dazzling, encouraging smile as she said, "My hands are cold. Come here and warm them up for me."

Cold heart melting just slightly, Hans reluctantly stood up and walked over to Cathrine. He took her cold hands into his bigger warm ones with a small sigh. As he rested his forehead against one of the bars of the door and peered into his sister's clear, green eyes, Hans briefly remembered playing with the girl when they were younger. He remembered her genuine laugh and how sweet it could be. At a weakened time like this, Hans wished they could have the relationship they used to have.

"You are never, ever going to be king, Hans," Cathrine told her brother with a small, piercing, mean smile. "After what you did, you're not even going to be a prince anymore. You should have stopped dreaming about ruling a stupid, little kingdom of your own a long time ago."

Hans swallowed, but that was his only outward display of fear. He was a proud young man, and even in the face of adversity Hans knew how to save face. Years of being degraded and forgotten had only made Hans' heart just as frozen and unbreakable as Elsa's ice powers.

The sound of doors wrenching open made the twins jump. Cathrine looked down the dungeon hallway and saw her brothers marching steadily their way. She let Hans' hands go as the men approached, allowing them to take up most of the space in front of Hans' cell door. The three main men there were Hans' oldest brothers who were well into their 30s and early 40s at this point. They regarded their youngest brother as if he was like any other prisoner there, absolutely no pity, sympathy, or understanding in their harsh, dark gazes. This came as no surprise to Hans.

"We've made our decision," Alexander said while rolling out a sheet of parchment that had their written statement about Hans' fate.

"You've made quite a mess of things, brother," Frode said as if he was a chiding mother. "Is there anything you would like to say for yourself?"

"No," Hans said clearly and firmly. He stood there like a soldier embracing his death bravely and unflinchingly. He was determined not to show fear and weakness to these men.

"Very well, then," Alexander said. He cleared his throat before reading off the written document before him, "The rulers of the Southern Isles have hereby banished you, Hans Magnus the fifth, from this land. You will be stripped of all titles of prince, navel officer, and son of the Magnus family. From this moment forward your name will take on your mother's previous last name. Henceforth you will be addressed as Hans Landa. You are now declared a common criminal and in the royal custody. We have the right to do with you as we believe will most benefit the kingdom. We hereby declare you the property of these fine gentlemen of the trading nomadic tribe of Kuchi. They will pick you up at dawn do with you as they please. The papers are already signed. You belong to them now."

"Property?" Hans said loudly in alarm. "This is ridiculous! I'm not a slave. I'm not property, Alex! You cannot sell me! This is a bias overreaction simply because I'm one of your brothers that you never liked!"

"These are our charges for your crimes! You almost killed royalty, Hans! You should be put to death for what you've done!" Alexander suddenly snapped back with cold, dangerous fury. "We are showing you mercy."

"This family has never shown me any mercy," Hans growled his retort, glaring back at Alexander and his brothers like they were his sworn enemies.

"Then consider this our first and only gift to you," Alexander sneered darkly.

That said, the men all turned and began to walk back out of the dungeon without any sort of goodbye to their former brother. Hans felt numb and shocked as he watched them leave. He stood there in the middle of his tiny cell, wide eyed and breathing hard from his growing panic. Hans didn't think his punishment would be this harsh. This wasn't part of his plan. His entire life was collapsing all around him.

He was done. He was finished. He was never going to be king. He was never going to be anything.

"Aw. You poor, pathetic thing," Cathrine cooed mockingly with a vicious smile. "I wish you could see the priceless look on your face right now, Hans. It would make anyone want to giggle in delight."

"This isn't fair!" Hans said desperately, taking a step forward and grabbing the bars of his cell door. "I haven't done anything bad to any of you! I've been the perfect brother!"

"Don't make me laugh!" Cathrine said while putting her hands on her hips. "You've failed at everything since you were born, Hans. Sure, you've tried to be perfect, but trying hard and good intentions isn't good enough. You were born too late to take any kind of throne, and no woman has ever wanted to marry you when you have a long line of better, older brothers just off to your side."

"But a slave, Cathrine? I don't deserve this!" Hans said, fear sneaking through his angry indignation.

"Look at it this way, dear former brother," Cathrine said as she stepped in close and touched her pointer finger underneath Hans' chin. "You get a new life now. You get to start all over. Just this time…you'll get the life you deserve."

-Elsa-

"My whole life has been about fear."

Elsa hugged herself as she slowly stepped forward and into the room. It was the chamber-like room that Hans and his men had put her in after they'd defeated and captured her up on the mountain in her ice castle. One entire wall had been destroyed by her ice powers. It hadn't been fixed yet, allowing Elsa to see out over the crisp waters of the busy seaport. Outside it was warm and breezy. Elsa could hear the chirping of birds and smell the salty tang of the sea.

In the middle of the room were the broken metal clamps that had kept Elsa's powers at bay. Eventually she had been able to blast through them and get free, but Elsa knew that normally she'd never be able to escape these kinds of fetters. These shackles had been specifically designed just for her and her ice powers to be repressed.

Elsa kneeled down to study the intricate blacksmith work that went into making the manacles. Her fingers brushed up against the cold metal, remembering her overwhelming fear from that time. Back then with her panic and desperation Elsa had thought that the room was a simple prison and that her cuffs had been made for any old criminal. But she was wrong. She'd been so wrong.

These fetters and this room had been made just for her by her parents. Her father had feared her and her powers. He'd made plans for a day where Elsa's powers might slip. He'd planned on locking her up in here forever if she'd ever lost too much control.

"You had no idea how scared you made me," Elsa whispered softly.

Ever since her parents had died, Elsa had begun to talk to them while in private. Besides her teachers and maids, Elsa's parents had been the only people she'd been able to see while locked up inside her room. Talking to them even after their deaths just came naturally from being shut away from the world.

"Would you have kept me here all my life?" Elsa said, emotion making her voice waver. "Or would you have tried to kill me like Hans did?"

Elsa covered her mouth with her hand as tears rushed to her eyes. She suddenly gasped when she noticed the ground all around her was covered in thick ice. Standing up straight, Elsa jumped out of the ring of ice with fear making her eyes go wide.

For two weeks she'd had complete control over her powers. Elsa thought the days of losing control had been long gone. So how could this be? Was she retrogressing? Had she not been fixed at all? What if she lost control again and brought another storm upon the land? Nobody would survive another shock to the earth. The farmers would lose all their already stunted crops. They would have a famine. People would starve to death.

"No. I'll be fine. I have true love now," Elsa whispered as she forced herself to concentrate on her sister and the feelings she got when they were together and having fun. She closed her eyes and breathed in and out as evenly as possible, slowly allowing her frosty powers to subside and eventually fade the ice away.

Sighing in relief, Elsa looked down at the metal binds with a hard frown. Even after almost losing Anna, her kingdom, and everything she held dear, she'd somehow found a way to open back up to Anna and find that love and happiness she hadn't felt since she was a child. While Elsa was thankful for that love and her newfound control over her ice powers, the past few days had been stressful. Being queen meant she had lots of responsibilities. Despite the fact that Elsa had studied her entire life for this job, it still wasn't something she particularly enjoyed. If anything, it reminded Elsa of her time underneath her parents' rule. There was so much pressure to rule properly and be the noble figure they'd trained her to be.

Elsa's heart was probably free from its icy prison of self-loathing and fear, but her body was now bound to be this rigid queen that needed to rule this kingdom. Elsa thought she'd been ready for the responsibilities, but it was different putting her studies she'd learned from books and scrolls into real life practice. Nobody had trained her to act accordingly in public with all these important officials that sometimes severely intimidated her with their superior attitudes and self-assured actions. Nobody had told her about the sneaky advisors, the incompetent advisors, the sickly pompous ones, or the ones that were so sweet and kind to her that they made her want to weep with gratitude.

There was so much that went into being a queen that now Elsa felt woefully unprepared for the burden. How was she going to rule properly when she was so terrified of her powers acting up again? That thought alone scared the young woman half to death.

Elsa's pale brows furrowed when she spotted something she hadn't caught during her initial capture. She quickly gathered up her dress in her hands as she kneeled down beside the iron clamps. Pushing the heavy chains away, Elsa brushed her thumb over a part of the metal shackle that had become grimy and dusty from years of disuse.

Her eyes narrowed in curiosity at the crest or some kind of symbol she uncovered on the side of the shackle. She'd never seen it before. Maybe it was something the local blacksmith put on all his products. If not, her parents might have the symbol in their records.

"Elsa?"

Elsa jumped and gasped in surprise, looking back over her shoulder at the doorway where Anna stood with concern on her face.

"Anna! You scared me!" Elsa said with a breathless smile, placing her hand on her chest by her now rapidly beating heart.

"What are you doing here?" Anna asked as she breezily strolled into the room. "I was looking all over for you! This room is so secluded. I almost forgot it was here."

"I just wanted to see what kind of materials this room would need for construction to fix the wall," Elsa said while standing back up.

"And what are those?" Anna asked, pointing to the fetters. She gasped dramatically like she always did, placing her hands over her mouth as she asked in horror, "Did Hans make those?"

"I don't think so," Elsa said quietly as she stared down at the broken clamps. Her expression was unreadable. There were certain times she let her emotions shine through for Anna to see, but erasing more than a decade of behavior was hard for Elsa.

"Then who made them?" Anna said. She ventured into the room to get a closer look at the manacles that had kept Elsa locked up in the bare, depressing room.

"I think father did," Elsa answered in a whisper.

"Oh, no, Elsa, don't say that!" Anna said with another one of her dramatic gasps. She was the complete opposite of Elsa. She showed all her emotions on her sleeve. Sometimes it was frustrating for Elsa. Her sister so easily displayed emotion when she could hardly manage a smile some days. "Our parents would never do something like this to you!"

"Then who could have made it?" Elsa asked critically. "Here, I found this symbol. See? Is this the blacksmith's signature?"

Anna leaned down, doe-like eyes wide with curiosity. She studied the symbol for a second before shaking her head. "No, I don't think that's it," she said. "When I went to the blacksmith to make skis for Krisoff's sleigh, he didn't have this symbol on them. Maybe these are from another kingdom. Maybe the Southern Isles from where Hans is from."

The girl shrugged, feeling uncomfortable about this controversial subject. Anna didn't get the same kind of pressure and abuse from her parents like Elsa had gotten. Anna suffered more from neglect. She'd grown up with her parents focused on Elsa and shaping her into their perfect queen. Anna had practically raised herself with no studies or control. At the moment Anna found no fault in that kind of parenting. She adored her dead parents and didn't want to view them in any kind of bad lighting.

"I can look into it," Elsa sighed with a small, relenting smile in her sister's direction.

Elsa understood why Anna had an aversion to sullying their parents' image. Anna had all the loving contact from their parents that Elsa never allowed herself to receive. To darken their image would only make the poor girl feel bad and guilty. Elsa didn't want that to happen to Anna. She deserved to remember their loving words, touches, and presence now that they were gone.

"Okay," Anna said with a small, warm smile of her own. Elsa loved having her sister in her life again. It made everything easier. "Are you okay?"

"I think so," Elsa answered with a nod. "Remembering everything just kind of makes me sad."

"Aw! Don't be sad, Elsa!" Anna said while coming in for a bone-crushing hug that Elsa had easily gotten used to and now was beginning to adore. The hugs always made Elsa's pale cheeks redden from embarrassment, though, since it made them both look like little girls. "You're an awesome sister and the best queen Arendelle has ever seen! You'll be okay."

"Thanks, Anna," Elsa chuckled. She placed her hands on Anna's shoulders while asking, "So why did you come and find me?"

"It's lunch time, silly," Anna giggled. The peppy young woman bounced excitedly as she took her sister's hand into her own and began to guide her out of the room. "I'm starving! Let's get back to the dining room so we can finally eat!"

"Okay! Okay, Anna, just slow down!" Elsa laughed. She had to pick up her pace to avoid tripping. She gave the room one, last look before Anna escorted her into the hallway.

As she followed her sister past the many oil paintings and regal suits of armor, Elsa decided she was going to find the creator of those shackles. Unlike Anna, Elsa wanted to get to the bottom of the mystery. She needed to know if her parents were the true designers behind the cuffs. She needed to know what their intentions were for her before they died. Elsa wasn't sure if she was going to like the answers she found, but she wanted to try to know what her parents knew about her powers. She wanted to know where her powers came from and if there was anything she could do to gain more control. Elsa was done being the scared, little girl that did everything her parents told her to do. She wanted to be wise and in complete control over her ice abilities, and she figured the best way to do that was to go out on her own and find those answers.

"I'll race you to the dinning room!" Anna said as she began to run down the hallway.

"No fair! Your shoes don't have heels, you cheater!" Elsa called back with a laugh.

A/N: Please review! Questions, comments, and/or praise always help me as a writer. Thanks! And I'll see you guys next week with another chapter!