Elsa was frozen in place, her hands extended in front of her and eyes squeezed shut. Not a single sound in the Big Top, until Anna finally breathed.

"...Elsa?"

Only then did Elsa opened her eyes and understand what she'd done, and revealed her secret. The tent was so deafeningly quiet that the performer's single step backwards echoed.

"God Anna, I'm so—" Elsa opened her fists and stared directly into her palms. She clenched them again, then gritted her teeth. Her eyes were shiny with tears ready to fall and her mouth quivered, even Anna could see that from where she was. "I can't—"

"Fuck, holy shit! I'm so fucking STUPID," Anna yelled abruptly, which made Elsa take another hurried step away. Anna waved her hands around, "no, no, don't go! I just realized that this all makes sense—OH MY GOD THE CARDS. The card trick!" She brushed back her bangs. "Elsa, you wouldn't believe how— I was going nuts trying to figure out how you did the card trick but I think finally get it."

Elsa's eyes were wide and bewildered at the outburst. She blinked rapidly. Her mouth was open yet not able to voice any words, bottom lip floundering instead. When she did speak, it was a whisper.

"You're not... afraid?"

"Afraid? The only thing I'm afraid of is that my brainpower should've clicked onto this way sooner." Anna laughed exasperatedly. She palmed her forehead.

"Anna..."

"I'm serious. Like, of course you're actual magic. You're literally so perfect that magic is the only thing that could make sense." She tried a step towards the other girl, who matched the step backwards. Elsa was still ready to run.

"Elsa, please. You're not going to hurt me."

Elsa ducked her head and crossed her arms. "You don't know that." she said, voice low. Anna would've missed it, had there been any other sound in the tent. Little by little, Anna inched her way over to her. Even from a distance, she could see that Elsa was shivering but, given the new information bestowed upon her this fine evening, it probably and definitely wasn't from any cold. Elsa faced the floor, missing Anna's entirely unsubtle shuffle, and only looked up when the other girl's dirty shoes came into view. Anna opened her arms, just a little.

"Can I hug you?"

Elsa let out a wet laugh. "You're all about testing me, aren't you?" And though she was saying it mirthfully, she was still hesitant.

"It's okay if we don't. Hug, I mean," Elsa nodded and gave a half smile to which Anna dropped her arms, obliging the other girl's silent request. Anna wrung her hands together to ease her nerves.

Elsa didn't reply, not immediately at least. She inhaled calmly, slowly, then sighed a controlled sigh.

"We should call it a night, don't you think?"

A response was on the tip of Anna's tongue when Elsa's stomach intruded with a loud growl. Both girls paused. Elsa's face reddened as the following silence dragged on and, while Anna reveled in finally not being the embarrassing one, she also didn't want to frazzle the girl further. Anna was feeling charitable.

"Are you sure? I was, ah, going to stop by McDonalds on the way home anyway," Anna hadn't felt proud about her addiction to the McBigBoy until this very moment, when all her late night drive-thru runs had finally culminated into something noteworthy. "It's no bother, honest. I can drive, if you want?"

The performer, still glossy-eyed, didn't look so sure until a second growl answered for her. "If you're absolutely sure, I could go for a chicken sandwich."

They made their way to the younger girl's car. Mostly in silence, other than when Anna tripped YET AGAIN, as if her body hadn't already betrayed her a hundred times tonight, and the other girl let out a single breathy laugh. Anna made sure to open the passenger door, not only for chivalry's sake but also because she knew exactly how shitty the door was (and no, she wasn't going to bother with trying to get it fixed anytime soon, she could deal). They went the route she could embarrassingly drive in her sleep. Elsa's hand was perched on the center console and it took every ounce of Anna's willpower to not reach over and hold her hand. Her fingers instead white-knuckled the steering wheel the entire drive.

Anna convinced Elsa to get the BOGO deal, Elsa convinced Anna to pay. It didn't take much convincing. She wanted to anyway.

The parking lot was entirely empty and as good a place as any to eat the trash (oh so delicious trash), so they parked and shut off the car. They kept the windows cracked a bit.

"Hey, I'm really sorry about like, exposing you. I didn't mean to push you like that, I... ah, yeah." Welcome to TopMojo and today we're going to be counting down the top ten worst apologies that have ever existed. Anna really didn't know what else to say, or how else to say it. Elsa paused with her sandwich about halfway to her mouth. Anna's own burger was in flavortown limbo so she finally took a big messy bite to ease the silence.

"Did you mean what you said back there?"

"Wuh diddi shay?" Anna had big ol' chipmunk cheeks. Regardless, Elsa understood.

"That you're, you know, not afraid," she took great interest in staring at her own lap, "o-of me."

There was only one light on in the parking lot, but Anna could see the worried outline of the other girl's face clearly. She took the time to swallow. Last thing she'd want is to try and comfort Elsa with a mouth full of burger.

"I'm not, and I really mean it. I honestly think it's just, so awesome."

A long beat passed.

"Not everybody does," Elsa whispered.

She seemed so fragile in that moment. Anna's willpower be damned, she gave in and placed her hand on top of Elsa's, hoping that the gesture would read as reassuring. Elsa looked up with a brief smile that didn't reach her eyes, then directed her gaze out the window.

"Things weren't always easy, where I could be magic out in the open like this, even under the ruse of being simply a really good magician. I was given this sort of ultimatum by my parents to either suppress the powers and live out my days with them in their version of comfortability, or..." She took a deep breath in that lifted her shoulders. Anna could see that she was shaking beneath the weight. "... So I chose 'or'. They kicked me out promptly and— well, I don't, ah, I don't like to remember the times before I found the circus. I was a lot less in control of the powers, and..." Her voice cracked slightly and she turned to face Anna, her other hand delicately joined in on the center console.

"Even though I'm better, I still need to be cautious about it. I can't afford to be distracted, lest I make a big mistake."

It didn't seem like Elsa was really saying that last part for Anna to even hear, just saying it to get it off her chest. Their eyes stayed connected. Their hands were touching, and it was almost how ridiculous how soft Elsa's were. An extremely gay Anna was trying really hard to focus on the words she was saying and not the way her perfect mouth formed them. A sweat bead from her jawline rolled down the length of her throat. Anna's burger was forgotten as her eyes and fingers and brain could only focus on Elsa, Elsa, Elsa. The older girl must've been able to feel how clammy her hand was, right? Right?

"The last time I was careless, Kristoff found out about me. I didn't have the know-how to control surges of my powers at that time and I blasted him in the back of the head, I'm still not sure how it happened. He was pretty mad until he saw all the snow everywhere. I was in the middle of the snow and it was like, July, so I couldn't really say "wasn't me". But he was so surprisingly supportive and, well that's why he'd been my assistant; he knew and was able to work alongside the magic without much issue. He didn't judge me, he didn't ostracize me. He understood me. He also helped me figure out a way to tone down my magic, mellow it out a little so I'd have less surges."

"The workouts?"

"The workouts."

"Well, now that I'm in on the secret, could I work out with you sometime?"

Elsa laughed, finally giving Anna the toothy grin she'd been missing the whole night. "You're insatiable," she said through a wide smile, no malice or sarcasm in her tone. Anna didn't bother to hide how smitten she was, as her face burned bright pink even in the dark.

"No one really knows about my powers other than him and Hans... and, well, now you. " And... Anna felt honored. Yeah, Elsa was different from the others. They're con artists, but she actually has magic. It makes sense that she separates herself from the others, she saw herself as a freak. A monster. It just... didn't seem fair. All she wanted to do was belong, all she wanted was to be—

"—Accepted." Anna breathed. Elsa's eyebrows came together and Anna cleared her throat. "I accept you, Elsa." That seemed to hit the mark as Elsa squeezed their fingers, whether voluntary or not.

She took the last bite of food while Elsa took her first, and it was probably the best bite of a McBurger she'd ever had.

Elsa had lingering sandwich grease on her lips that shined in the passing streetlights. Anna wasn't trying to leer, it's just that, well, pretty shiny things. She just can't help herself.

"Shouldn't you be watching the road" Elsa said, a taunting smirk tugging at one corner of that shimmering mouth. A comfortable silence took over the rest of the drive until they arrived back at the fairground parking lot.

Anna rushed out the car to open the door for Elsa, and could hear the inner door handle thumping around before she had the chance to make it.

"Ah, door's got a trick to it. The trick is—" Anna placed her foot against the side of the car and pulled the handle as hard as she could "— that I should never ever use this door ever again"

The door finally gave and swung wide open with a loud creak that pierced the night.

"So, tomorrow? You can throw some more ice magic at me ?"

"Tomorrow." Elsa affirmed. She didn't say anything else, yet oddly enough seemed to hesitate about ending the night right then and there. Her fingers fidgeted. And then, it happened. Anna's brain flatlined, she could hardly process the moment as Elsa lifted her hands up from her side, asking to be hugged. Anna giddily and greedily encompassed the other girl into her arms. While Elsa hadn't quite wrapped her arms around her, she was still reciprocating more than she'd ever done before. Her hands settled on the small of Anna's back. She sighed and Anna tensed at the cool breath on her warm neck.

And quick as a whip, the other girls presence fled as Elsa jogged away and waved goodnight to a dumbstruck Anna.

And, finally alone, Anna chuckled to herself and leaned back against her car. "Magic, it had to be magic."