As the last rough, liquid words dropped from Elsa's mouth, the candles around the pentagram flared a bright maroon before fading down to the cool blue of a gas flame. The area inside the circle was filled with dark smoke, blocking Elsa's view of what-if anything-lay inside. After a minute, the smoke faded, letting Elsa see what her hard work had brought her.

Elsa blinked.

Standing in the circle was a...girl. She was about five feet tall. Red-orange hair in two braided pigtails. Teal eyes. Cute face. Freckles. White t-shirt with black lettering that said 'got ice?'. Shorts the same color as her eyes. And white sneakers.

Elsa looked down at the worn book before her. She quickly reread the tight script, flipping back and forth through the pages to check details to make sure she hadn't missed something important.

"Um...hi?"

Elsa looked back up, startled. She glanced sideways a moment, then back at the...girl. "Hi, me?"

The girl nodded with a blooming smile. "Hi! I'm Anna. What's yo-OW!" She had been extending her hand for a handshake, but pulled it back sharply when it sparked as it crossed the edge of the pentagram. She stuck her fingers in her mouth and looked down, seemingly only now realising she was inside a summoning circle. "Ow. Well, that's not very nice."

Elsa just stared at...Anna. Some part of her brain registered that the text on Anna's shirt now read 'i like warm hugs', but the rest was trying to figure out how her summoning ritual...had...failed. Or had it? Elsa's eyes narrowed and she turned back to the book, quickly flipping through pages till she found the incantation she wanted. She looked back up and started speaking the sharp, liquid words again. Anna was looking at her curiously (shirt: 'you forgot the carrots'), but when Elsa started speaking, her teal eyes got wide, and she started waving her hands.

"Nono wait! You don't have to do that! I can-" There was a soundless explosion inside the circle. "...Show you."

Elsa blinked. And again. She looked down at the book in her hands, then back up to Anna. Blinked. Finally she just slammed the book shut and tossed it over her shoulder. She gestured toward Anna with both hands. "This is your true form?!"

Anna was staring right back at her, with a put-upon expression. Absolutely nothing had changed about her appearance...except her hair. (And shirt: 'shoe size doesn't matter') Gone were the twin braids. Now her hair bloomed around her head like a lion's mane that had been left unattended for too many decades. Anna sighed. "Yes, it is. I'm sorry I don't have horns, or red skin, or a dragon's head, or whatever the current fashion for demons is this century. I just have...this." And she made a doomed-to-fail attempt to run her fingers through the mane of hair. She gave up with an exasperated sigh, "Now can I please change back?" Elsa stared at her a minute more, before giving one sharp nod and speaking a short phrase. Anna let out a relieved sigh and ran her fingers through her hair again. This time, they moved easily through it, and in one smooth motion she had transformed her mane back into the twin braids she had started with. "Ahh, much better."

Elsa pulled a chair over and sat down rather heavily. "So you really are a demon."

Anna grinned at her. "Yep! Card-carrying and everything! Well, not literally card-carrying, cause that would be rather silly. I mean, who's going to ask a demon for their demon card, really? Well, I suppose you might have wanted to, so you wouldn't have to do the whole 'show me your true form!' thing and all, but-"

"Okay, okay! I get it!" Elsa said, waving her hands. She closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Okay. So. The ritual worked. I summoned a demon. Bound them in the circle..." At that she cracked one, then both eyes open and checked the pentagram over carefully.

"Yeah. You did. Sucker hurts too." Anna shook the hand that had touched the edge of the circle earlier. (shirt: 'didn't your parents ever warn you about strangers?')

Elsa raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, forgive me for taking precautions to prevent a demon running loose."

Anna waved her hands. "Nono, it's all right. I totally understand. I'd do the same thing in your position. I just wish the circle felt less like a lightning bolt and more like, I dunno, warm puppies or something."

Elsa just stared at her. "You...are so...odd."

Anna sighed. "So everyone tells me."

"Are you sure you're a demon?"

"Pretty sure. Not really an important one. Kinda like a...spare, really."

Elsa raised an eyebrow at that. "A spare demon."

Anna quirked a small smile and became interested in the pentagram at her feet. "It's a...demon...thing. Sorta. Long story, anyway."

Elsa watched her. Looking over this strange being she had brought forth. Anna had stuck her hands in the pockets of her shorts, and still had her head down. Her entire demeanor was one of dejection. A smile slowly grew on Elsa face, though it wasn't as sad as the one on Anna's. "Then you'll have to tell it to me later, when we're done."

Anna's head snapped up and she stared at Elsa. "You're not sending me back?! Even though I'm not, you know," she made claw gestures with her hands, "rawr!, demon-y enough?"

Elsa covered her mouth and giggled. "No, I'm not. And I don't care if you're not rawr! demon-y. That's not really what I wanted anyway."

Anna just looked at her like a kid at Christmas. "Okay, so, I mean, I gotta ask you anyway, so what do you want? What do you want me to do? Why do you want to bind me?"

Now it was Elsa's turn to become interested in the pentagram for a minute. She slowly replied. Each sentence deliberate, as though checking off a list. "I want someone I can talk to. Someone I can confide in. Someone who won't judge me. Someone who'll help me, but also wont hesitate to give me a swift kick if I need it." She paused. "...Someone who'll stay with me."

"...You want a friend, not a demon."

Elsa snorted. "All the 'friends' I've had so far have been demons." She looked up, gesturing toward Anna, "Not demon demons, just, you know, assholes."

Anna gave another small smile and nodded. "Quite familiar with the type."

Elsa matched the smile. "Yeah, I guess you would be." Elsa then noticed that the text on Anna's shirt had changed yet again ('reindeer are better than people'), and curiosity finally got the best of her. "Okay. I have to ask," she pointed, "Your shirt..."

Anna looked down and pulled the shirt out a bit, looking it over, then looked back up with a big grin. "Isn't it cool?! It was on sale!"

Elsa just stared at her. She opened her mouth, glanced between the shirt and Anna's happy face, closed her mouth, then just shook her head and simply stated, "You look very nice." Anna beamed.

Elsa got to her feet. "Okay. You can't stay in there forever..."

"Technically, I can."

"Anna."

"Sorry."

Elsa sighed. "As I was saying. Let's get this done. Before I start thinking things over too much."

"You don't have to do this, if you don't want to."

Elsa stared at Anna. Again. "Are you sur-" She stopped herself and just looked at the being in the pentagram. Concern was written plain as day across Anna's face. Her brows were knit together in worry, and she was chewing at her bottom lip.

Anna shook her head. "You really don't."

Elsa smiled at her. "I really want to."

Anna matched her smile and nodded. "Well, if you want to bind me, you'll have to pay my sacrifice."

"I know, and I have it right here." Elsa gestured to a smaller circle a few feet away from the one holding Anna. Inside it were several large boxes stacked one on top of another. "My weight in chocolate." She quirked a grin. "To be honest, I chose to summon you because your sacrifice was the easiest and cheapest to get."

Anna's eyes lit up, and she grinned and bounced in place a little. "Other demons might laugh at me for it, but you can't eat platinum! Connect the circles and I'll make sure the amount is correct."

Elsa bent down and, using the same hand-made chalk she'd used to construct the pentagrams, carefully connected the two circles. Once it was done, Anna's eyes glowed a moment. "Perfect! Even a few pounds extra." She waved a finger at Elsa. "You don't weigh as much as you think."

Elsa set the chalk to the side and stood before the pentagram. Before Anna. Her hands were clutched together in front of her, and she was wringing them nervously. Her eyes kept flashing from Anna (shirt: 'mmm, chocolate'), to other places, and back. "So...um. The one thing the book didn't cover, was what you actually needed from me to bind you..."

Anna smiled gently at her. "Relax. I don't need your blood, or anything gross like that. All I need is a strand of your hair. A single stand." Elsa touched the white-blonde braid that lay over her shoulder, then shakily nodded. She reached up and paused a moment, making a fist to stop her fingers from shaking, then she plucked a strand free. She held it up. Anna smiled. "Just...blow it into the circle." Elsa frowned at that, so Anna pursed her lips and blew her breath out.

"Oh." Elsa held the hair up and blew towards Anna as she let it go. It floated a little wildly at first, but it crossed over the edge of the circle. Anna held her hand up and the strand floated right to it. She looked at the hair and smiled. Her eyes glowed again, and so did the hair, then it vanished. A moment later, part of Anna's hair started streaking white-blonde—matching Elsa's—starting from the top of her head and curling down her right braid.

"And it's done. I'm now bound to you." Elsa looked at Anna and blinked. Then she glanced around the room before looking back. Nothing else had changed. Except Anna's shirt. Again. ('do you wanna build a snowman?')

"That's it? I was expecting something more...dramatic."

Anna grinned. "Well, if you want I can do the whole 'explosions-and-loud-noises' thing..."

Elsa waved her hands, "Nono! That's fine! Quiet is fine." She took a deep breath and let it out, unconsciously wringing her hands before her. She looked down at the pentagram.

She took another deep breath.

And another.

Finally she tossed her hands up, "Oh, the hell with it," and stepped forward onto the pentagram, smudging it and breaking the circle. The candle flames faded from blue to normal yellow/orange. She stepped back, drawing her foot back as well, to make sure the circle was totally broken. She stepped back again and looked up.

Anna was smiling at her (shirt: 'it's true love!'). Anna looked at the broken pentagram and slowly extended her hand. When there was no lightning, she let out a relieved sigh and stepped over the circle. Another step put her right in front of Elsa. She extended her hand. "Hi! I'm Anna. What's your name?"

Elsa laughed and took the hand in hers. "My name's Elsa. And it's a pleasure to meet you, Anna."

-Fin-