She woke without setting an alarm, far later than usual. For once, Elsa was still gently stirring beside her. An ache crept through her head. Whether from the copious amounts of wine she'd drunk last night or the sobering realisation she'd forgotten to send her daily reports; Anna had no idea. A glance at her phone showed no chaser messages from Hans, only a Google Calendar notification that their weekly check-in was due today.
It's going to be a long day.
Anna looked over at the splay of blonde hair on her shoulder. Pang of dread stabbed through her insides. There was no way in hell they'd allow them to continue working together. Not after last night. She'd violated every ethical and professional conduct code in the NSA HR email she'd blindly ticked all the "agree" boxes to. It'd be a miracle if she kept her job. And yet, the only thing Anna cared about was getting separated from Elsa. The woman she'd unknowingly searched her entire life for. For a minute, she held her breath and stopped moving. As if this morning memory could be frozen in time and they could live forever in this moment. Dustmotes dancing in a sunbeam that landed squarely across Elsa's steep cheekbones.
A vestigial hallucination from ages past filtered through her lens of reality and she saw an empty bed before her. Only snow and ice and a chill that wouldn't leave. Anna bolted out of bed and went straight to the shower. Turning the water to ice-cold and hoping it washed her memories clean. It did nothing but make her shiver. A touch of warmth spread through her cheeks when the blurry image of Elsa entered her peripheral vision.
"I hope you don't mind," Elsa's voice echoed through the bathroom, "there's only one bathroom and perhaps we could give modesty some grace after, well - last night -"
"It's fine," Anna edged the shower door open, "you can join me if you like."
Elsa reacted like she'd just been shot. Eyes roving the gleaming wetness of Anna's body.
"We're doing this then," she slipped off her nightgown and stepped in. A tremble evident in her posture.
"Never had a bath with a girl?" Anna sneered, splashing water on Elsa's face.
"No, well, I mean - perhaps they track the water usage. And it'd be evident there's less of it we're using"
Anna rolled her eyes, "Oh please - I'm fairly certain they'd know a lot more than that after last night."
"A-are you afraid?" Elsa's eyes met hers, through the deluge of cold water.
"Y-yes, I am," Anna admitted, "I'm afraid they'll stop letting me work with you."
"I'm afraid too."
Their foreheads bumped. Fingers laced through one another as they allowed this mutual apprehension to sink in. That each drop of water down the drain represented the precious time they had slipping away.
"Don't take this the wrong way, Elsa - but, I'm just happy we found each other. And I want to make each moment last with you."
Eyelids fluttered shut. A grin curled against her cheeks.
"You read my mind again."
The shower squeaked shut. Elsa opened her eyes, "You're done already?"
"No, I'm not done," she smiled back, hands falling to the curve of Elsa's hips, "at least, not with you."
Words deserted Elsa the moment Anna's lips closed upon hers.
They'd taken pains to arrive on time. Anna even refrained from mouthing off to the security guard when she had to pass through the scanner again. Her expression remained unchanged as the guards took Elsa away. Unflinching. She returned to her cold, granite exterior. As though the slightest misstep would set off a bomb that'd tear them apart. Still, Elsa's departure into another empty corridor carved a deeper wound in her chest. She'd likely never see her again. It put an ache behind her eyes she contended with for all three minutes until she entered the meeting room and came face to face with Hans already seated behind his desk.
He was waiting for her.
He'd never been on time. Always insisting the committee put up with his tardiness before commencing their check-ins.
The hair on her spine instantly bristled as he stared her down. Uncomfortable, cold steel chair. Gaudy, insulating carpets that pinched all sound into silence. She could hear her own heartbeat. Ragged breathing and that egg sandwich still digesting in her belly. Hans resembled a statue. Barely moving a millimeter as his stare burned into Anna. Eyes unable to meet his. It took an eternity before he spoke.
"We know what happened."
Her heart lurched. Falling further into cavernous darkness when he didn't expound. What happened? What? What is he referring to?
She met his ambiguity with stone cold silence.
Hans folded first.
"The higher-ups have nearly lost hope with Elsa after all this while," Hans interlaced his fingers and leaned forward like a villain, "we were starting to believe she'd lost her powers getting sent through time."
Despite her best attempt, Anna's sigh of relief still sounded like a hurricane.
"I'm, I'm just glad I didn't eat the fucking concrete wall on the overpass."
Hans glared, "Please drive carefully. We spent a lot of money to bring her here."
"Right. Money," Anna folded her arms.
"Though I don't think money is really your motivation for keeping Elsa alive at this point."
She briefly looked up into Hans's narrowed eyes. Ominous accusation plain as daylight to see. It forced her eyes back down.
"Whatever."
"The NSA is moving onto phase 2 of this project," Hans announced, leaning back into his chair, "Elsa is successfully integrated - thanks to your very close contact with her. The higher-ups will need further demonstration of her powers."
Heat burst through Anna's face, "Is that it? You've brought her here for her ice powers?"
Hans raised an eyebrow, "You didn't think we brought her here to be Queen of America did you?"
"What then? Ice powers? Is the army gonna use her as a freaking weapon? Is that why you keep bringing up the war over and over again?"
"The reasons for our decision are not your concern-"
"Well, yes it is!" Anna's voice rose, deafening in the silent room, "I can't just ask her to show off her powers. She hates it. She killed her own sister with them!"
Hans paused for a second, eyeing the virulent tirade Anna just threw.
"That much we know. We understand you have won Elsa's trust. Your position will prove instrumental in moving forward-"
"I'm not going to do it!" Anna leapt to her feet, finger pointed, "I'm not going to let the NSA use this poor girl-"
"She's a woman," Hans shot back, "A woman with powers that've only just begun to show. She'd be capable of a lot more if you helped her let it go-"
"If I don't hear a reason why - I refuse -"
"Maybe we'll just find someone else then!" Hans went red in the face, "I'll give you your check and marching orders and we'll lock Elsa in the NSA basement and see how she reacts to that!"
The words speared through Anna. She staggered momentarily. Unable to bear the crushing weight upon her soul.
Hans continued spewing, "Do you even know what they wanted us to do? Do you know the orders I've had to push back? They want to pump Elsa full of drugs and turn her into a friggin' zombie!"
Cold flashed through Anna. Hardening her limbs as he counted off on his fingers.
"Electroshock therapy, exposure to extreme heat, prolonged isolation, experimental medication, radiation," Hans gritted his teeth, "the people in charge want results. At any cost. They've even constructed a furnace downstairs-"
"A furnace?"
"-to shove Elsa in and crank up the heat until her powers appear. To see if her survival instinct can force out the ice-"
"You are not serious-"
"Who do you think is holding them back?" Hans argued, pointing at himself, "Who do you think pushed for the carrot instead of the stick? The soft option."
"The soft option," Anna's voice dripped with condescension, "you mean me."
"They wanted to shut the whole programme down by February. To cut their losses and abandon Elsa on some street in Baltimore."
"What?" Anna screeched.
"Thankfully, you're shit at driving," Hans sneered, "and thankfully, Elsa's survival instinct ended up working well enough."
Anna glared at him. Fists clenched and shaking.
"Or was it a protective instinct that finally caused her to let it go?" Hans snickered, face halfway between a smile, "I knew you two would be a good - fit."
"Fuck you," Anna spat.
"If you care enough for her, I think you know what to do," Hans wandered back behind his desk, "now get the hell outta here and make the NSA proud."