Thank you to the elsanna fervor mods for putting on this lovely event. This is my submission for the fluff category. I hope everyone enjoys it. Thank you

~

“You know what, Olaf? I think we’re lost.”

Anna’s voice echoed through the seemingly-empty corridor, and it just furthered her suspicion that she had absolutely no idea where she was. At the sound of his name, Olaf pressed a wet nose into his owner’s hand, and Anna gave him a scratch behind his ears. It wasn’t his fault they were lost. She must have just taken a wrong turn somewhere.

The worst part was, she couldn’t even tell if anyone was near in order to ask them for help. She kept moving, one foot in front of the other, hoping someone would notice and be able to help. If she just managed to find someone, she was sure they would be able to direct her back.

But until then, she’d just keep walking. It was odd, she mused, there not being anyone. But, with everyone being anywhere but here, it stood to reason that, if she were anywhere but here, she’d find them. With that reasoning, it was easy to keep walking. A little anxiety-inducing, but hey. She wasn’t late, and she wasn’t on a schedule, and she hadn’t left the building. She’d be fine.

Anna was lost in thought, concentrating so hard on finding someone that she didn’t expect to actually come across an obstacle. Olaf stopped, coming to a sit just as her cane thunked against something. It sounded like glass – a door? – and she reached out a wary hand as she pushed it open.

Slipping inside, Anna became aware of exactly where she was. Sort of. She didn’t know where she was in relation to where she had to be, or how she’d gotten here, but it seemed to be a pool. Long-forgotten memories of swimming lessons surfaced as she breathed in the scent of chlorine, the little splashes echoing through the room. It sounded quite large – but then again, that was the effect indoor pools had. Though… regardless of size, shouldn’t there be people?

“Oh!”

Anna’s head jerked at the sound. There was someone here?

“Hello…?” she ventured softly. Her voice echoed once again in the chamber, and she grew concerned that perhaps she had imagined it. But then Olaf tugged a little, and the same voice – a gravelly accent, but soft, spoke again.

“Can- can I help you?”

Anna felt incredibly awkward, standing at the entrance. Bidding Olaf, she moved forward a few steps, an amiable grin on her face. “I’m a little turned around,” she began, tugging at the hem of her shirt. “You wouldn’t happen to know where the weight room is, would you?”

“Oh, sure!” came the reply. It sounded like a girl, but Anna didn’t want to assume. “You are actually very far away. I’m just about finished here, so would you like me to show you?”

Grin turning into a fully-fledged smile, she actually had to bite her lip to subdue it a little. Anna certainly wasn’t expecting that offer. “Only if you’re sure…” she hedged. The other person didn’t confirm with words, but Anna heard the distinctive sound of someone climbing out of a pool, grunts of exertion following. The water splashed and sloshed against the edge, and there was a rhythmic thumping before another sound joined in.

thunk-pat thunk-pat

The noise was odd, and definitely something Anna had no experience with. She wanted to ask, but perhaps that would be rude? “There’s a seat to your left,” the swimmer said, before Anna had an opportunity to make an ass of herself. “I’ll just be a moment.”

Giving a little nod, Anna made her way to the chairs. Tapping the seat of them, she found one that was mostly dry and made herself comfortable. Olaf lay down at her feet, and she didn’t have to wait too long. Only a few minutes had passed before the other person had returned, the same odd sound following them.

“I never got your name,” Anna said, almost absentmindedly. “I’m Anna.” Her hand found Olaf’s head, rubbing it as the other person got closer. It was more of a reflex thing now; she didn’t often meet new people, and Olaf helped everywhere else in her life – why not as a rock? Despite everything, making new friends was one of the more stressful aspects of Anna’s life. She knew that she didn’t need to be worried, and she wasn’t. That didn’t mean Olaf didn’t make it easier, though.

“I’m, uh, Elsa. Elsa Arnadalr. Swimmer on the Norwegian team.” Anna grinned at the introduction and stuck out her hand. She could feel the hesitance as Elsa took the proffered limb, but she still took it.

“Anna Johnson. Judoist. I’m with the Americans, though. Apologies.” Getting to her feet, she could hear the smile in Elsa’s voice when she next spoke.

“Well, it is a pleasure to meet you, Anna, despite the fact you're American. Yuck.”

At that, Anna let out a hearty laugh. “Pity we’re going to crush you, yes. How can you swim? Isn’t the water frozen most of the year that far north?”

The joke was terrible, but totally worth it when Elsa let out a laugh anyway. It was lighter than Anna’s; it didn’t cut so thick through the air. But it was still a wonderful sound, and Anna found herself offering an honest, genuine smile.

~

Anna ran into Elsa several more times over the succeeding days. As it turned out, they were dorming in the same building; though, Elsa was one level up. Anna was the only female judoist who had been given the chance to compete for her country, and though she was more than used to eating with her countrymen, she couldn’t really call them teammates. Couldn’t even really call them friends. That stopped mattering (not that it ever truly did anyway) because it honestly felt like no time at all before Anna could call Elsa her friend.

They began eating breakfast together, and lunch and dinner. It prompted a small tradition of eating together before going for a walk – just around the complex, but it was enough to help work off some of the food. It also gave them an easy segue into conversation. And conversation was easy.

Mostly because Anna enjoyed Elsa’s company, but also because Elsa seemed to like her, too. Anna was so used to people being nice and polite because of her blindness, but Elsa didn’t seem to be like that. The girl was polite, and aware, and courteous – and not because she felt she had to be, but because she wanted to be. Even better, contrary to many other people she had met, Elsa also wasn’t a bother. She didn’t distract Olaf, or attempt to do his job by warning Anna of steps, or obstacles. They just walked steadily next to each other, making conversation, both light and not-so-light.

Anna told Elsa of how she came to be in the paralympics. Her whole life she was “abled”, but freak genetics had her legally blind before her sixteenth birthday. “It was hard, at first,” she explained. “You don’t expect to lose your vision at that age – and even worse, it was when things like appearances became important. I didn’t have Olaf back then, and I just felt really isolated. Probably why I started working out. My brother, Kristoff, wanted me to be safe so he suggested self-defence. I couldn’t see myself to see if I looked good, but there, I could feel good.”

Elsa hadn’t said a word throughout the whole story. She’d hummed, made little noises of acknowledgement, but she hadn’t interrupted. She also hadn’t offered up much of herself, either, but Anna didn’t mind that so much. She wasn’t overly sensitive to being unable to see, but she knew that some people didn’t like thinking or talking about how they came to be… different. And that was fair enough. After all, it wasn’t her business – she was just happy to learn anything she could about Elsa. It didn’t matter what.

When Elsa finally spoke after hearing Anna’s story, it certainly wasn’t what the blind girl was expecting.

“So… no boyfriend or anything?”

Her eyes widened, just a fraction. Hopefully not enough that Elsa noticed, at any rate. Of course Anna was curious – why was Elsa asking? She brushed off her curiosity, though. It didn’t matter, and she was happy to answer.

“No boyfriend,” she said. “No one in that part of my life. Olaf isn’t a very good wingman.” She gave a tight smile. “But what about you? What made you take up swimming?”

Elsa gave a little hum. For a moment, Anna thought she wasn’t going to answer – which was fine. But, this was a curiosity that was harder to tame. She wanted to know about Elsa.

“Oh, well. I wasn’t always a swimmer. I used to ski, actually. My family owned a – what is the word? A house for holiday? – and every year we’d stay there for a few weeks. I always loved skiing. But uh, one day I had a fight with my girl- partner. I went up there to clear my head. It was stupid of me. I didn’t tell anyone, just wanted to get away. I don’t really remember much but, pretty much, I had an accident. Skied into something and cut myself. They didn’t find the infection until it had spread up to my knee.”

She didn’t say anymore, but she didn’t really need to, either. Anna’s eyes widened in recognition – now she knew what, exactly, the odd sound Elsa made was – and she gave a little hum.

“So you took up swimming, too?” she wondered.

“Heh. Yeah. It took a very long time to be comfortable on land again – and I haven’t been skiing since. Swimming was part of my rehabilitation and it was just so much easier. Even after I was fitted for a prosthetic. I guess I’m lucky. A leg is a small price to pay when the alternative is death…”

“But you’re not dead,” Anna said. “You overcame it. And that’s amazing. You’re pretty amazing, Elsa.” She smiled even wider when Elsa spluttered, stammering in an attempt to respond. Anna took pity on her, and was about to speak to let her off the hook when she was interrupted by a yawn.

“I think it’s time to hit the hay,” she said, once the yawn had passed. They began to make their way back towards the lifts. Not that Anna really wanted to part so soon, but sleep was pretty important for both of them. They were almost to her floor when she thought of one more question.

“Your partner, what happened after that?”

“Oh, erm. We… split. No one wants to have a cripple for a girlfriend. And I was pretty hard to deal with, those early days.”

Anna’s heart plummeted into her stomach, mixing with the bile and dinner, making her feel sick. “You’re not a cripple,” she said, though she was barely able to raise her voice above a whisper. She tried again. “You're not a cripple. Look where you are! There are billions of people who never make it to the Olympics, but you’re here. You're amazing and it’s their loss for not seeing it.”

As she finished her tirade, she heard Elsa suck in a breath. Oh dear, she probably way overstepped her bounds. But instead of having a go at her, or telling her not to intrude on business that wasn’t her own, Elsa just said in a soft voice, “I um. I’m gonna hug you. If that’s okay.”

It was more than okay.

~

Their meetings weren’t just limited to post-dinner strolls, however. Instead of having breakfast in the Olympic building one day, they went to a nearby market and tried all the local produce. Bananas, custard apples, and papaya were amongst the ones they recognised, but there were a lot they didn’t. A passionfruit that looked more like a pawpaw, something called an atemoia, and a cashew apple, which looked almost like a bell pepper. They were all thick-skinned, too, so they didn’t eat them and become sick (unless one counted the fact that Anna definitely ate too much).

The day before her event, Anna was just getting ready to go to lunch when a knock on her door took her by surprise. It could only be one person (her roommate had her own key, and she’d already left for food), but at first Anna didn’t recognise Elsa. Mostly because she didn’t smell like Elsa. Not in a bad way; it was just that Elsa almost constantly had the smell of chlorine following her, not completely masked by soap and deodorant. The scent was almost a comfort, because it made her unmistakeable. That being said, this was a… nice change.

“You smell nice,” Anna said, completely forgoing pleasantries. She could have facepalmed. “I mean, not that you don’t always smell nice, but this is a different nice. Um. Your perfume. What’s it called?”

“Oh!” Elsa let out a little giggle as Anna stepped back, letting her enter the room. “I didn’t, er, want to smell like the pool. It’s Eau Radieuse, by Humiecki & Graef.”

The name was one Anna hadn’t encountered before, and it sounded really expensive. Perhaps it was a Norwegian designer? The smell only grew more powerful as Elsa came closer – they weren’t touching, but Anna could feel the other girl; hear her light breathing. She could even put a name to all the scents, layered on top of her friend. Citrus and mint cutting through the top, with something a little thicker providing the base scent. It was odd; reminded Anna of something, though she couldn’t place it.

“Is there a special occasion today, or did you just want to try it?” Anna asked wryly, moving to the tiny bathroom so she could grab some hair ties. The bed creaked as Elsa sat down.

“I was- well. Nothing special planned yet, but I was wondering… well, there’s a free samba class after lunch, and I thought maybe you’d… like to join me?”

~

Anna knew absolutely nothing about dancing. She had never enjoyed it as a child, and had liked it even less when she grew up. It didn’t matter the type – ballroom or waltz were just as bad as breakdance and- what was it? Twerking?

But, there was no way she could have said no, not with the sheer amount of excitement that laced Elsa’s question.

She regretted the experience far less than she thought she would.

While she was a terrible dancer, Elsa fared no better. The air between them was full of curses and apologies, but they always ended a section in giggles.

“I’ve never done this before,” Elsa admitted. “I was terrified of standing on people’s toes.”

Anna shot her a smirk. “Well, I can tell you’re not scared anymore. Ow.” She let out a laugh as Elsa’s fist made light contact with her shoulder. Poking her tongue out, she continued. “I can say with absolute honesty that you’re the best dance partner I’ve ever had.”

“I thought you’d never done this before?”

Anna winked. “Exactly.”

They hadn’t had a chance to continue their banter because the music had started up again and music meant moving. And, while both were in great shape – they had to be – it worked muscles neither had remembered they had. No one complained when they left early. In fact, a few people were probably happy. Anna had a sneaking suspicion that they were, by far, the worst dancers there.

But it gave them a chance to let their poor, tortured toes rest. Elsa had a little bit of cash on her, so she bought some sorbet at a hotel restaurant for them to share. It wasn’t chocolate – instead, it was some kind of tropical fruit mix – but, it was perfect. A perfect end to a perfect day.

And, for the first time since she’d arrived, Anna slept easily. No nightmares about the following day plagued her – no restlessness. Even the weather seemed milder. Elsa had promised to be there the next day, and Anna couldn’t wait.

~

It wasn’t until dinner time the next day that they saw each other again. Figuratively speaking. Anna hadn’t been avoiding Elsa as such, but after her event she’d just gone back to her room and hadn’t come out since.

Such a loser.

Even the prospect of being able to eat chocolate again didn’t sway her. She hadn’t cried – hadn’t let herself – but she’d taken Olaf’s harness off so he knew he was allowed on the bed, and she’d just sat there, hugging him.

Her roommate, Elena, had offered a few words of sympathy, trying to be encouraging. The the short sentence was maybe the fifth or sixth that they’d actually shared, so while the thought meant something, it was never going to help anyway. Anna had failed. She was actually grateful when Elena left for dinner, because it gave her time to be alone and wallow.

A knock on the door didn’t break her from her place, though it certainly broke her from her peace; she wouldn’t have bothered answering had Olaf not jumped off the bed, scratching at the wood. Grabbing her cane, she made her slow way to the door.

“Olaf, sit,” she commanded softly before opening it up. Sucking in a breath, she answered with as much enthusiasm as she could. It wasn’t much. She didn’t feel like entertaining, but maybe her roommate had just forgotten her key or something. No such luck.

“Hey, Anna.”

Elsa stood at the door. Even she sounded subdued. But Anna didn’t want her feeling sad, or sorry, so she put on her best smile. It was a little more effective this time, but Anna had a feeling that neither of them believed it anyway.

“Hey! What’s up? Do you wanna come in?” she tried anyway, forcing as much cheer into her voice as possible. “I have a kettle, so I can make some shitty tea or coffee if you want?”

“Sure, Anna…”

Elsa still sounded a bit… wary. A bit. Not reluctant, per se, but like she was walking on eggshells. That wouldn’t do.

“How’s your day been?” Anna asked as she made her way to the tiny kitchenette. She heard Elsa get herself comfortable before the other girl answered. Anna was just filling up the jug, but at Elsa’s next words, she wanted to kick the other girl out and just start wallowing again.

“I went to your event today…” she hedged. Anna nodded, feeling around for the small container of teabags.

“Oh yeah? Have you seen that guy from Greece. He totally destroyed the world record. The media is already calling him ‘a gift of the gods’. He’s like… the Usain Bolt of judo.”

She was trying to keep it light – focus on things other than her own shit attempt. It worked, kind of, until Elsa just said, “I thought you did great.”

It sounded weak. Like she was just saying it to be nice. Anna didn’t answer at first. Couldn’t She wasn’t angry – at least, not at Elsa. But the false encouragement, and the ‘congratulations’ and the 'you tried your best’… they didn’t help. When it came down to it, she failed. “You don’t have to do that,” Anna said lowly after a few moments. “I fucked up. I knew I fucked up when I lost my balance and my opponent took advantage… A split second and I woulda been on that podium. All it took was that one mistake…”

“Hey.” Elsa’s voice was sharp. And close. When had she gotten up? But Anna didn’t fight when she heard Elsa take a few more daring steps forward. Didn’t fight as svelte, muscled arms came to wrap around her waist. “It wasn’t your day, and that sucks. But you still tried. You got this far. You’ll use this experience and learn from it, and you’ll be back in four years to try it all again. You looked brilliant out there.”

It took all her willpower not to start crying. She didn’t want to be that weak in front of Elsa. Even so, Anna couldn’t help the way her voice cracked when she asked, “How do you know?”

At first, it didn’t seem like Elsa had an answer. It was only after the kettle finished boiling that Elsa voiced a response.

“Because you’re just that amazing.”

~

Elsa’s words actually had the desired effect. Anna still felt shitty, but she was right: there was always next time. She’d just have to train harder – train better. She was good at what she did, it had just been a bad day for mistakes.

It was several hours before Elsa left, too, which was nice. Even though she had her own event the next day, she seemed reluctant to leave. They’d had their tea, sitting next to each other on Anna’s bed, shoulder touching shoulder. Anna had the strangest desire to- she wasn’t sure. Put her arm around Elsa’s waist. The hug, earlier, was really a very good one.

But maybe that was a little odd, too. Anna hadn’t been around Elsa while the Norwegian was near her teammate all that much, but she seemed a little… standoffish. Sometimes. Not even necessarily to her teammates, just people in general. Elena came back after dinner, and though she tried engaging her in conversation, Elsa didn’t really give her a lot to work with.

To Anna’s dismay, she didn’t hang around for very long after that. She didn’t fight it, though – it was getting really late (well, really late for someone who had to represent their country in an arduous sport competition the next day). Even though it was only a few feet away, Anna still stood up and led Elsa to the door.

The hug wasn’t entirely unexpected at this point; the time it lasted for was.

Instead of her waist, Elsa’s arms came to wrap around her shoulders, pulling her in tight. Anna may have imagined Elsa’s lips, brushing along her cheek, but she doubted it. Such a European thing to do. It was only after Elsa had left and Anna was in bed that she began wondering.

Even if it was something Elsa did to distract her, a last ditch effort to turn her mind to less upsetting matters, it didn’t matter. It worked. A single thought echoed around Anna’s mind from that moment until she fell asleep

Was it a European thing, or was it an Elsa thing? Or was it an Elsa-to-Anna thing?

Elsa had mentioned a girl, before she switched to 'partner’.

Did she… did she like Anna?

~

Anna didn’t see Elsa all day, but she was expecting that. Her event wasn’t until late afternoon, so she spent the day trying to convince Elena to come and narrate for her.

She was expecting the crowds, but she wasn’t expecting the noise. She could barely hear her roommate over the encouraging cheers and cries of the people assembled. It didn’t really matter for too long, though, not when Anna joined in standing, screaming along with the rest of them as her roomie’s words sunk in.

“She’s placed, Anna. Your friend won a fucking olympic medal.”

~

She’d used Olaf needing the bathroom as an excuse, but really, Anna just wanted to get away from the noise. She was so happy for Elsa, but everyone else seemed pretty happy for her, too. She couldn’t get close enough to congratulate her friend, so she’d stopped trying.

Instead, she’d retreated to the waterfront, sitting along a retaining wall and just imagining the ocean. It was busy, but a different kind of busy. It was a busy where she wasn’t in the way, and where no one expected anything of her. It was a peaceful busy.

It was also a little chilly, the sun having set already. A cool sea-breeze wafted from the Atlantic Ocean, and she let out a small shiver. Moving closer to Olaf, she inhaled deeply, taking in the smells carried on the breeze. No beach ever smelled the same, but this one had something familiar about it. Grinning to herself, Anna recognised it immediately. Citrus, and mint.

“Hey, Elsa,” she said softly.

There was a little shuffle in front of her. “How’d you know it was me?” Elsa asked, stepping closer. Anna shrugged.

“Magic.” Swallowing, she patted a bit of the wall next to her. “Pull up some dirt.”

Her smile widened as Elsa joined her, their sides touching. Elsa was warm – enough to stave off some of the chill, at least. Neither of them spoke, and when they did, they began at the same time. Elsa laughed.

“You first,” she said, and Anna gave a short half-shrug.

“Just wanted to congratulate you,” she said. “That was awesome. The crowd loved you.”

“You were there?”

Anna nodded. “I’m a huge swimming fan. Love the sound of splashing.”

She felt Elsa nudge her, before an arm looped through hers; this time, the shiver wasn’t caused by the breeze.

“Nah,” she said softly. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. You’re amazing, Elsa.”

“That… means more to you than you know,” Elsa said softly. “Thank you.” Her head came to rest on Anna’s shoulder, and even though the air around them was filled with things to take notice of – the smell of different street food, the noise of people living their lives – all Anna could think about was the space between them. Her heart thundered in her chest. Couldn’t Elsa hear it?

She was still sad about not getting her own medal, but she wasn’t upset, or jealous of Elsa’s. If there was a medal for friendship, Anna had little doubt that Elsa would have won that, too.

“I’m gonna miss you,” she said suddenly. Perhaps she’d only just realised it, but she would. Their friendship was only a few days old, but it had so much potential. Could grow to be a beautiful thing, if given the chance.

But it wouldn’t have that chance, and that thought made Anna more upset than she wanted to admit.

Why was it always like this? It wasn’t fair. The first time in years she’d made a connection, and they were destined to go their separate ways. Maybe they’d see each other again, in four years.

“I’ll miss you, too…” As soon as she finished saying it, Elsa’s head lifted. Her arm squeezed Anna’s, just a tad, as she continued. “You have no idea.”

But Anna did. She had, at the very least, some idea. So she nudged Elsa with her elbow and challenged her.

“Try me.” Her face, turned towards her friend, offered a cocky sort of grin. Because she would miss Elsa, and it had been so long she wasn’t really sure how to tell exactly what she was feeling, but Elsa felt important. Important to her, in ways Anna couldn’t really explain. The prospect of parting ways hurt, but it wasn’t the same as when she had to move schools and leave her friends behind. This time, it was deeper.

But Elsa didn’t say or do anything. As all this was running through Anna’s head, Elsa must have been having her own internal debate. Anna couldn’t blame her – in her position, she’d second guess herself, too. Second-guess any sign or feeling. But Anna wasn’t in her position, so she leaned forward, just a little. “I know how much,” she mumbled. “Because it’s the same for me.”

When Elsa moved, Anna was completely expecting it.

Even though she hadn’t won a medal, as Elsa’s lips pressed against hers, Anna still felt on top of the world.

Event: Fluff and Humor

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