A/N: Written for the Elsanna Shenanigans October 2023 Monthly Contest, Prompt: Water.
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Ridgefield, Connecticut, April 6th 2009
The two high school swimmers couldn't have been more different.
Elsa, with elegant movements gliding through the pool like an eel, and Anna - broad shoulders powering through the water like a shark after its prey. Despite Elsa's perpetual triumphs in training, courtesy of long limbs and all the unwavering support from nurturing parents, she never finished without glancing behind her, ensuring she kept at least a foot ahead of Anna's relentless pursuits. But when it came to competition, Anna's grim determination consistently overcame Elsa's genetic gifts, and they came down to the wire more than once.
"You're teammates, not competitors," the coach reminded them, as Anna stared Elsa down following a particularly heated race where she got the better of her.
The sneer on Anna's face faded as she sat on the concrete steps outside the venue. She watched Elsa give one last scowl at her, before her blonde ponytail disappeared into an awaiting Bentley. Medal-less. Anna looked at her medal, the gleaming gold suddenly feeling like a scrap of metal, before getting on her bicycle and cycling home. She ate canned spaghetti for dinner, knowing her mother wouldn't be home until after midnight from her second job. Eventually, Anna fell asleep on the tattered couch watching NCAA replays, minutes before the heating died from unpaid bills.
The two girls couldn't have taken more different paths.
"I told you, I don't need a scholarship," Elsa argued over the dining table, "I'm not that good anyway, Anna Sullivan smoked my ass at that last meet, and doesn't our family have enough money anyway?"
It was useless arguing with her parents. They left her in the expanse of their dining hall; PRINCETON SWIM/DIVE TEAM brochure unopened on the marble table. Elsa looked out the balcony at the immense pool they built for her. She screwed her eyes shut, trying to force out the words "you don't deserve this" from her head, and the residual memory of Anna overtaking her. Maybe a swim will clear my head.
Instead of a sprawling mansion, or athletic scholarships, Anna found herself in the only place a girl of her socioeconomic status could count on: the Navy Recruiter's office.
"I'm good at swimming, sir - and I've always loved the water, so the Navy's my best bet, I guess-"
He looked up from her Physical Screening scores, at the freckled girl seated primly before him, and raised an eyebrow.
"Good? Your scores are better than most of the dudes coming here! Why aren't you looking for an athletic scholarship?"
Anna's voice broke into a stutter, "M-my family isn't doing too well, and we need-"
"Well, the Navy's a great way to earn some money and see the world, though these scores are wasted on the run-of-the-mill jobs we have. Would you be interested in combat diving? It's a long training pipeline and there aren't any females, you'll be among the first."
A poster on the wall called out to her. NAVY SEALS, FULFIL YOUR PURPOSE. She would be the first. Just like how she was first ahead of Elsa.
Only one thought remained in her head.
"Sir," Anna said, twiddling her thumbs, "D-does that job pay well?"
The two women couldn't have endured more different hardships.
The Princeton pool was barely illuminated by the orange glow from a giant GO TIGERS titantron. Stroke after stroke, lap after lap, Elsa propelled herself through the water, spurred on by the D1 Championships banners floating above her like an ominous prophecy. In a week she had a meet, and then another two next month, before conference championships, and Olympic trials. The never-ending cycle of training and competition wore down on her lithe, athletic body, but in that moment, gliding through the darkness like she was in space, all Elsa saw was that red-headed girl catching up to her.
"Stop swimming and go home!" her coach yelled from the bleachers, barely audible underwater, "You have all day tomorrow-"
No, Elsa thought, kicking off the edge for one more lap, imaginary Anna Sullivan in hot pursuit, No I don't.
Instead of an imaginary figure to motivate her, Anna faced a very real mouthful of sand the instructors kicked onto her face as she lay inches deep in the freezing Californian surf. Rows of shivering men lay beside her, arms linked, teeth clattering as the waves pounded them relentlessly.
"You're dreaming if you think a girl's gonna get off easy!" an instructor yelled, dumping a bucket of seawater on her face, "in fact, we're going to make it even harder!"
"Aye-aye petty off-" Anna hollered back, before another wave washed the words from her mouth.
A loudhailer's squawk screeched in her ears, "Attention, none of you are giving up. This makes us very angry. Flutter kicks until somebody quits."
At once, the cadence rang out against the pounding surf. 1-2-3-ONE! 1-2-3-TWO!
Delirious from the frigid exhaustion, Anna looked up and saw Elsa in every one of the instructors' positions, mocking and jeering her for choosing this path. Her legs burned from the exercise, and a fire was brewing in her belly - but all it took was another incoming wave to quench the torment boiling within her.
The two women couldn't have achieved more different honours.
Perched on the starting block at the Rio 100m Butterfly finals, Elsa made out a row of stoic-faced competitors staring back at each other. Instead of swimmers from Australia, Russia, Italy, or China - all she saw were copies of Anna Sullivan glaring back at her, daring her to mistime her start. The thought nearly made her miss the buzzer as she leapt into the pool, propelling herself through the water like she did her entire life. This time, there was no Anna Sullivan , only Elsa Williams paddling furiously as she fended off a last ditch attack by China. The crowd's cheering blew past the thumping in her ears as she looked up and saw "ELSA WILLIAMS - OR" in golden letters. Covering her mouth, Elsa choked back tears. Hoping to hell that woman's still somewhere in Connecticut watching her on TV.
I fucking did it, you bitch.
Anna, however, was not watching TV. She was wading knee-deep in a Florida swamp on the final leg of qualifications. Drenched from head to toe in muddy rainwater and carrying a 150lb man on her shoulders. Gritting her teeth, she made out the dirt track, but her knees were near breaking point.
Sensing her strength ebbing away, the man on her back growled, "C'mon Anna! You ain't come this far."
Damn straight I ain't.
Emerging from the water, Anna's lungs heaved fire as she picked up her pace. Running on fumes. She spotted cameras near the finish line, their presence reminding her that she would be the first female Navy SEAL.
There was nothing left within Anna but shreds of gaspy breaths and her pride as she crossed the finish line and dropped him like a sack of bricks. She collapsed face-first into the mud, cameras flashing at her. An Admiral pressed the SEAL badge in her palm, whispering, "I wouldn't give this to any woman but you-"
His words were lost in her consciousness as she stared at the rain pelting her face. Somehow, wishing Elsa would be watching and realising what a weak-ass bitch she was.
The two women couldn't have pursued more different lives.
It was only natural that Elsa found herself in Academia, studying the Physics behind the movement of fluids over solid surfaces. The disciplined training and long hours in the pool translated well into tedious laboratory work and endless seminars as she sought to make a name for herself in a different field. Fascinated by the hydrodynamics of marine wildlife and inspired by a life spent gliding through water, she completed two doctorates by the age of thirty. The latter having been bought by the Maersk Shipping Corporation, to better design ship hulls for fuel efficiency. By day, Elsa stared at rainbow-coloured water streams in the testing tank she built. Her dreams each night were filled with visions of the sea, every wave and tide struggling to free themselves from the physics she'd caged them into.
None of this would have mattered, save for one last unsolved problem in fluid dynamics legend: the Navier-Stokes equations. The fundamental formula which all fluids abide by, used in countless simulations and validations and governing everything from a stream's trickle to a Tsunami's fury. This last enigma eluded the community for decades, and Elsa threw herself at it, like it was the last thing left in her life to conquer.
Anna, by this time, was already used to a life of conquest. Deploying with increasing frequency to Marine combat zones around the world, she tackled every mission with as much bravery as her diminutive frame could muster. Pirates, drug traffickers, terrorists - all fell prey to her stealthy approach from the waters, usually in the dead of the night. In the back of her mind, she had a feeling the higher-ups deliberately kept her away from riskier land missions. Sticking her onto boats easier for a smaller frame to infiltrate. But Anna still enjoyed the Maritime Operations, even if they were conducted on the inky black tides, as she knew there'd always be a breathtaking sunrise over the sea after each mission.
Until one day, her luck ran out, and a Cartel trafficker with more bullets than sense blasted his rifle at her boarding team. A fragment struck her helmet, pinging off the metal plate and flashing before her eyes. She fired at him, but the grenade had already slipped from his hands. Shoving her teammate out the door, the blast hurled her through the window, and the world went silent. She saw blood streaming from her leg before she felt any sort of pain. In that moment - being hauled off the boat, Anna felt weaker than she did after rucking 22 miles. Shutting her eyes as her leg went numb, Anna pondered if there was anything else in this life worth living for.
The question stuck in her head as medics fought to stem the bleeding in the helicopter. Gazing at the dolphins frolicking in the azure waves below, Anna settled on an answer, before her eyes fluttered shut.
"For her work in analytical fluid dynamics and the discovery of the Williams-Smithson effect over hydrofoil surfaces, Princeton University is proud to confer upon ELSA WILLIAMS, the degree of Doctor of Philosophy."
"For extraordinary bravery serving as point woman on a VBSS mission off the coast of Barranquilla, Colombia. The Secretary of the Navy is proud to award PO2 ANNA SULLIVAN, the Navy Cross for her actions in subduing a Cartel trafficker and saving a teammate's life despite sustaining life-threatening wounds."
"You work too hard," Kristoff muttered, pointing at the clock. It was past midnight, and Elsa had fallen asleep on a stack of papers. The other professor waved a feeble goodbye, mumbling, "Maybe a swim will clear your mind."
Elsa stared at her computer until the letters faded into one another, and none of them brought her any closer to a solution.
He's right, maybe a swim will clear my mind.
The next day, Elsa did an uncharacteristically impulsive thing and packed her bags for a trip to the Bahamas. But alas, fate would have other plans for her.
"Bahamian law doesn't allow you to dive on your own," the hotel concierge reminded, "too many tourists damaging the corals. You have to follow a dive guide."
Never one to back down from a challenge, Elsa gently inquired for the nearest one and was directed to a spot on the beach. The broken driftwood sign stuck into the sand marked Sullivan Dive Tours barely registered in Elsa's mind. But the figure crouched by the boat did. Matted, pigtailed red hair gleaming in the sunrise, sunglasses, cigarette dangling from her lips, undone wetsuit hanging from her hips, exposing bare muscular shoulders with a tapestry of Navy tattoos telling a story of the life she'd spent away.
The realisation that solitary figure scrubbing the fibreglass hull was Anna slammed into Elsa's chest. At once, she turned and walked away, only for a voice to call out.
"Elsa?"
For the first time in forever, Elsa couldn't think of an answer. Frozen into the wet sand, she waited until the voice came again.
"Elsa - that's you isn't it?"
She turned, coming face to face with Anna's eyes. Turquoise and glimmering despite having seen too much.
"Look at you!" Anna exclaimed, her voice gentle like how Elsa remembered, "The hometown hero!"
The thought of being called a hero by a woman who was the living embodiment of one, stole the words from her lips.
"A-aren't you in the Navy?" Elsa asked.
"I got wounded on a mission. It was either working in an office or a Medical discharge," Anna answered, pointing at her thigh, "but I love the water so much, I couldn't bear being behind a desk, so - here I am."
Elsa nodded, before edging away from the girl, unsure of how to deal with the vague feeling churning within her. Eyes swept across the toned muscles on Anna's torso. Elsa bit down on her lip, before muttering, "Nice seeing you again, Anna-"
"Let's go for a swim!" Anna suggested, pointing at the dive gear by Elsa's feet, "I mean, assuming that's what you're in the Bahamas for-"
Caught like a fish before a shark, Elsa stiffened up as Anna stood on tiptoes and whispered into her ear.
"Unless you're scared of me beating your ass again-"
A buzzing feeling Elsa forgot existed surged through her veins. Blue eyes widened in the sunlight, before narrowing on that smirk plastered over Anna's face. It took five seconds for Elsa to load her gear onto the boat, and another ten seconds for Anna to launch into the rippling currents. The boat lurched as it tore through the surf, foamy spray lending a glittering sheen to Elsa's blonde braid. For once, Anna couldn't tear her gaze from Elsa's slender figure reclining on the bench, but she still cut a relaxed posture as they approached the dive site.
Swallowing the lump in her throat, Elsa avoided Anna's eyes as she helped her with the wetsuit. She detected a tremble in her fingers as they pulled up her zipper, but told herself it was just the rocking of the boat.
"They put your picture up on the Ridgefield Walmart wall of heroes," Elsa said, trying to cut the tension between them.
No shit, Anna thought, locking eyes with Elsa, wasn't your face on every cereal box in America for a month?
Anna rolled her eyes, muttering, "Fuck, I told them not to do that-"
Perching on the boat's edge, Anna smirked at Elsa, mouthing off, "See you on the bottom, Williams!" before dumping herself into the clear blue waters. At once, Elsa leapt in, eyes widening at how far her guide was ahead.
Goddamn she's fast.
The old-seated competitive nature between them was lost as Anna took her on a voyage to another world. They found sea turtles swimming with manta rays, baby octopi in underwater caves, and endless schools of fish weaving through the corals. There were shipwrecks and plane wrecks on the sea bed, vestiges of history reminding them of all the time they've lost over the years. Throughout the dive, every time Anna turned to look back, Elsa would glide past, amazing the girl with her elegant strokes. Despite her Olympic pedigree, Elsa found herself struggling to keep up with Anna's boundless energy.
At the final surface, they clutched each other's shoulders, bobbing beneath the setting sun. Breathless from exhilaration and realising they both found something they'd thought lost to time.
"Dammit woman," Anna gasped, seawater sputtering from her lips, "you haven't slowed down one bit-"
"I hope your leg's holding up fine," Elsa commented, brushing the wet hair from Anna's eyes, just so she'd be able to look into them again.
Elsa tried not to let the compliment show on her face as she allowed Anna to help her on deck. Fingertips brushed against her wet skin as Anna helped her out of the suit, and she resisted blushing at the thought of them trailing along her spine again. Cracking open a beer from the cooler, Anna freed her hair in a fan of copper against the sunlight. Somehow, the salty breeze, squawk of seagulls and the gentle rocking of the sea, had an effect of stripping all pretence and rivalry from Elsa.
She hesitated, heart pounding like the waves, before realising she'd never get another chance in twenty years.
"Maybe I was wrong about you," Elsa admitted, staring straight at Anna, "I saw you as a rival, but only because I wanted something else. With you."
Anna shifted closer, offering Elsa her beer. Their fingertips grazed, and their eyes met; in that moment, acknowledging the role each other had in pushing them down the paths they'd chosen. The alcohol seeped into Anna's mind, and she wasted no time in letting her thoughts known.
"I resented you so much because you had everything I didn't," Anna replied, ruffling a hand through her hair, "I was so angry because I couldn't follow the footsteps of someone I admired so much. I couldn't know what it's like to fulfil my purpose because I didn't have what you had-"
"I didn't have everything," Elsa interrupted, blue eyes locked on Anna's, "I didn't have you."
Without another word, Anna leaned forward and captured the woman's lips with her own. Elsa shut her eyes and savoured the sea's salty taste on Anna's lips, the one thing that separated and drew them together at the same time. As Anna pulled away, the endless depths of Elsa's eyes mesmerised her to no end; cerulean like the oceans she'd fallen in love with, and the thought sent her leaning for another kiss. But not before she laid bare her soul again.
"Now you do."
