The Thirteenth Prince: Chapter 13. Untitled.
When he turned around, Andrew was there, leaning against the balcony doorframe as if he’d been watching him for a long time.
Hans looked at him with a mix of resignation and slight disbelief.
“Andrew. Wh-what are you doing here?”
“More like… what are you doing here?”
He let out a short, dry laugh.
“What am I doing in my own castle you say?” he replied with a hint of irony. “Enjoying my peace, until now I guess.”
Andrew didn’t answer. He approached slowly, observing Hans with a strange intensity, as if he were checking for something invisible.
Hans flickered a frown.
“Stop acting like a freak, would you?” he muttered. “Why are you here?”
Andrew took a few seconds to respond.
“I came to take you home.”
Hans sighed in annoyance and turned back toward the sea.
“Tell the King not to bother.” He leaned against the railing. “I’m perfectly fine here.”
Andrew watched him in silence.
“You can’t stay, Hans.”
His younger brother let out another laugh.
“I didn’t realize I needed your permission, brother.” He added with a nonchalant shrug, “But since you’ve traveled all this way, you can stay the night. Just... try not to disturb the staff, please.”
Andrew shook his head gently and took a step forward.
“Hans, you have to wake up.”
Hans turned his head slowly, looking at him with genuine confusion.
“Andrew…” he said patiently, “I am awake. Can you drop your stupid games for once?”
He didn’t answer. He simply stepped up to him and placed a hand over Hans’s chest.
The gesture was so unexpected that his brow furrowed. “What are you—?”
“Just hold on,” Andrew whispered. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Hans opened his mouth to retort… but a massive surge of pain cut him off mid-word. A burning sensation so brutal it tore through his chest and sucked the air right out of his lungs.
The sea before him shattered like a broken reflection, and the golden light of the sunset vanished in an instant.
However, a light at the end of the path didn’t disappear immediately. In fact, he heard a sound.
A distant, indistinct murmur like voices heard through water.
Then came a sharp scent of herbs, alcohol, and resin smoke.
Finally, he forced his eyes open. For a few seconds, he couldn't comprehend what he was seeing. The ornate wooden ceiling seemed to shift slightly above him, as if the entire world were swaying.
He blinked, and the voices persisted.
“The wound is deep…”
“Yes… it nearly punctured a lung. Thank the Gods it didn't.”
“Hemorrhage is contained.”
“Very well.”
Hans breathed with difficulty. He didn’t feel pain yet, only a strange heaviness, as if his body didn't entirely belong to him. He tilted his head ever so slightly.
Two figures were moving beside him. A nurse and a doctor spoke in low voices while working rapidly on something he couldn't quite see. The nurse held a tray of instruments. The doctor’s hands were stained with blood.
Hans frowned. He tried to remember how he had gotten there.
Just then, the nurse looked up.
For a moment, her eyes locked with Hans’s. The tray rattled in her hands.
“Doctor…” she whispered, terrified. “He’s awake.”
The doctor’s head snapped up immediately. “What?!”
That was when Hans inhaled sharply, and the wave of agony finally crashed over him.
“Ah—!”
He tried to bolt upright. The doctor reacted instantly, shoving him back against the mattress.
“No! Don't move!”
Hans was gasping, completely disoriented. His eyes darted around the room in desperation. He didn't understand where he was or what was happening, but across from him, he saw Henrik, unconscious, with another doctor. Hans’s blood boiled instantly, and he struggled to get to him.
“Hey!” he growled. “What are you doing?”
The doctor tried to hold him down. “Prince, you must stay calm.”
Hans shoved him away with a violent jerk, sending the man stumbling into his instruments. “Get away from him! Henrik!”
The nurses recoiled in alarm.
“Fetch the Midnight Essence!” the doctor barked. “Quickly!”
Hans was panting, ignoring the white-hot pain searing through his chest as he tried to get up again.
“Henrik!”
But his companion didn't react. Hans looked around the room, terrified and lost.
“Rosalinde!”
No one answered. The doctor tried to push him back onto the bed. Hans shoved him off again, with even more violence this time.
“Don't touch me, damn it!”
“Guards!”
The door burst open, and two guards rushed in. Hans barely saw them at first; everything was a blur of movement, voices, and hands trying to pin him down. The pain in his chest intensified until it was unbearable.
The guards managed to pin him to the mattress.
“Prince Hans!” one said firmly.
Hans struggled, panicked, his breath coming in ragged gasps. “Let me go!”
The second guard leaned in closer. “Prince Hans… listen to me. It’s Gleb.”
Hans blinked, the voice seem vaguely familiar.
“Calm down” the man continued. “You’re in Arendelle. You’re safe.”
Hans tried to focus his gaze. The world was still spinning slowly. As he recognized the face, he trembled slightly, his breathing turning erratic.
“…Arendelle…?” he murmured.
The doctor seized the moment. The nurse returned with a small, dark bottle.
“Here.”
“Good” the doctor said. “Hold him steady.”
The guards held Hans immobile while the doctor poured a few drops between his lips. He tried to resist, but the exhaustion and the pain were already winning.
The voices began to drift away, and the room grew blurry.
“That’s it…” the doctor whispered. “There we go.”
Hans’s eyes drifted shut. The last thing he saw were the painted flowers on the room ceiling before everything went dark once more.
Hey people, I have some really bad news. First of all, I’m so sorry for taking this long to post the final chapter. My priorities have shifted a lot lately, and on top of that, Henrik’s subplot is giving me a hard time in this last chapter. But here’s the worst part: a few months ago, my laptop died. I was using an email and password for my AO3 account that were saved only on that computer, so I’ve lost access to my profile. It breaks my heart because I’ve seen your comments but I can't reply to them. I’m so sorry, I honestly don’t know what to do right now.
