Chapter Eighteen

UNKNOWN: Rise and shine, Ms. Andersen! You ready for your next task?

Elsa: Don't I get to ask a question since I did what you told me to do?

UNKNOWN: Right, I was hoping you'd forget about that. Jk, fire away and we'll see if you've chosen wisely this time.

Elsa: What do you want from me?

UNKNOWN: Haven't you already asked me this?

Elsa: You never answered, I wouldn't be asking this if you already had.

UNKNOWN: True, and I guess that's an innocent enough question that I can answer. Simply put Ms. Andersen, I want your obedience. And so far, you've been doing a good job of that, so kudos to you!

Elsa: And why the hell do you want my obedience?

UNKNOWN: Maybe you'll find out once you do this next task for me. ;)

Elsa: You're a dick.

UNKNOWN: Gonna go ahead and ignore that, anyway this next task is important so listen up: An old friend's going to be visiting you today to request a favor from you, I'm going to need you to deny their request.

Elsa: What the hell's that supposed to mean?

UNKNOWN: Oh don't worry, you'll find out pretty soon! Don't disappoint me Ms. Andersen, you have 24 hours to comply.

Anna didn't get much sleep last night, no surprise there. The hours she got, however, must have kept her out like a light because she didn't even hear when Hannah left. When she slowly pushed open her bedroom door, all that was inside were folded blankets and a note with Hannah's number that said "Thanks for last night, if you ever want to hang out again hmu."

It felt very reassuring to read because it meant that she achieved her one and only goal from last night of finding a new friend, or at least someone to talk to that wasn't Rapunzel or her mom. And yeah, it may have been built on a rocky foundation of an even rockier relationship with rockiest of people (Elsa, if that wasn't made clear), but the note made it clear that there was a future in this.

The lack of sleep was still taking some toll on her however, it slowed down and dulled her surroundings starting with the car ride to work. Anna yawned and mumbled to Rapunzel in the driver seat, "Wake me up when we get there."

Rapunzel, who apparently got home about twenty minutes after Anna did and looked surprisingly more well-rested, looked at her amused, "Must have been a good night, the couch isn't exactly the most comfortable bed. Couldn't make it all the way back to your room?"

Had Anna been asleep for another hour or so, she would have pondered that question a little better, wondering whether she should tell Rapunzel about Hannah or not. Instead, she just nuzzled into her seatbelt like it was the most comfortable pillow in the world and replied with a half-mutter, half-less-coherent-mutter, "Yeah…room…too far…"

"Well don't get too comfortable, we're gonna be at the bakery soon; and you've gotta be on you're A-game today cause those newbies need to learn from the master."

"Bah…they don't…need me for baking…stuff. They're fiiiiine."

"Oh really? So I guess I should start giving them your paycheck then?" Rapunzel joked.

Anna flailed a finger towards Rapunzel's general direction and grumbled, "Shh…less talking, more sleeping."

The conversation went on like this for a bit, with Rapunzel poking fun at Anna's tired expense, and Anna making sheepish, weak comebacks, until finally they made it to the bakery. Honestly, if Rapunzel hadn't nudged her awake, Anna probably would have spent the entire workday snuggled into the leather interior of the sedan. She blinked a few times and shook her head to try and get some energy rushing into and on her face, and walked into the bakery a minute behind Rapunzel.

The bakery wouldn't open for half an hour, and yet it was already filled with the exuberance Anna wished she could express. The strung-up lights and their fluorescent assistants brightened up the building, making it an inviting haven to anyone needing to seek shelter from the gloomy, gray morning sky; and the upbeat, pop music booming through the Bluetooth speaker helped to produce the soundtrack for the day. The three scheduled workers for the morning shift danced to the music, stacked the display cases, and made sure the equipment in the back was clean and working all at the same time.

Anna shamelessly watched her best friend take the reins and direct traffic. Like a captain commanding her crew, Rapunzel told each worker exactly where they needed to go, what they needed to do, and what they were going to do next. She made it look so effortless, and the workers gravitated towards her so easily. It made Anna a little jealous watching her, wondering what it would be like to lead the bakery like Rapunzel did.

And then Anna realized that she was one of the leaders of the bakery, heck she was the co-captain of this purple, Christmas-light filled ship. If Rapunzel could do this whole pointing and directing thing then so could she. Especially since she had to. With that newfound realization and determination, Anna stormed to the back as fast as her sluggish legs would carry her and gazed at her own workstation, rubbing her hands together, ready to do what she knew best.

"Gooooood morning, everyone!", she exclaimed.

Riley smiled, and Owen, a portly fellow with a warm, beaming face destined to one day grace the front of microwavable ravioli cans, replied with a boom to his voice, "Good morning, boss!"

If she could stay awake, this was probably going to be a good day.

This was not going to be a good day for Elsa, she could feel it. She was out an assistant and still slightly sore from her brief yet intense workout last night; and now she had the added benefit of some newly assigned mystery task.

Someone was supposed to be visiting her today, an old friend, and since Elsa didn't exactly have many friends she was obviously unnerved. And what was that whole thing about needing her obedience? What for, exactly? By doing what they asked, she felt as if her obedience was already there without a doubt, so there had to be more; and no matter what lay ahead of her in this next task, she would see to it so that she got some more damn answers.

Speaking of answers, Flynn was so far proving his worth and expertise. Through the short interactions she had with her blackmailer, Flynn was somehow able to pinpoint their location to somewhere inside Arendelle. How he did so was anyone's guess, but it gave Elsa a bit of assurance that this person was at least local and not in some far-off land. This would make tracking them easier, but in order to know exactly where and who they were, she'd have to unfortunately keep working with them.

Now, it was only a matter of waiting for who would be coming through those elevator doors, and when. Without an assistant to tell her when someone was coming up to her floor, she had the calls from the lobby redirected to her work phone- they were able to find a replacement for Sheila by the end of yesterday- and left the door to her office partially open.

The first three hours of her work day, she spent doing her regular duties like checking up with her counsel, word had spread of Sheila's firing and workplace morale had taken a slight hit as some lower level workers began to fear for their own job security. Their task was to let the ArenCorp employees know their jobs were safe, a promise she hoped to uphold. Business outside the ArenCorp building was going steadily per usual, nothing much to report there.

After this meeting, and doing some of her other duties like emailing back clients, she wasn't left with much else to do. Not because she was hopeless without an assistant laying out her daily tasks (which she wasn't), but because that day in particular wasn't fairly eventful. All she had left to do was wait for this "old friend."

And finally, four hours into her day, the old friend arrived.

The golden double doors of the elevator slid open, and the muffled steps got closer and closer until they reached her door. It was opened suddenly and dramatically, revealing a particularly cruel dame wearing a not-so-revealing, extravagant fur coat and a large, spotted scarf. Cruella de Vil had stepped foot in her territory once again, and when Elsa saw that menacing grin, her fists unconsciously clenched.

"Elsa darling, you look more and more exquisite every time I see you!", Cruella remarked as she sauntered over.

"What do you want, Cruella?", Elsa replied coldly, not in any mood to fake pleasantries. Cruella was someone she had a history with, and not a good one; behind their painted smiles and professional banter, the two had a knife at each other's throat constantly waiting for the other to blink. But if the message Elsa got was true, Cruella was going to ask her for a favor, and she wanted to know what that was sooner rather than later.

Cruella frowned as she stepped closer, bringing with her the strong scent of expensive, pretentious perfume and the remnants of an even more expensive and pretentious cigar. There was something about her demeanor that was different than before, but Elsa didn't know yet what it was. "Getting straight to business I see, and here I was looking forward to catching up. It has been too long since I've seen you last, has it not?"

"I'm a little busy at the moment.", Elsa lied. "And I'm not really in a mood right now for games, so if you need something from me, or you want to threaten me again, then just come right out and say it."

Her frown turned into a pout, "Now now, what's the matter, darling? Has someone gone and broken your poor little heart again?"

Elsa's expression grew darker than before to try and hide the fact that her face had grown paler. Was Cruella the person blackmailing her? It made sense in a way, there was no one else who could legitimately be gunning for her and trying to ruin her reputation, and there was no one as ruthless; plus, Cruella already proved at the festival that she wasn't against using underhanded tactics at the expense of her rivals. The older woman's damning question all but proved this. "What are you talking about?", she asked, almost growling out the words.

"Ah there she is, the woman I really wanted to talk to today.", Cruella's face changed again, this time into a victorious grin. "Did your little secretary go and find greener pastures? Or maybe a warmer bed to sleep in? You two did seem particularly close at the festival, it'd be a shame if she left and that's why you're feeling so, shall we say, defensive?"

Elsa felt a paradoxical sense of relief and even greater anxiousness. Cruella was just talking about her and Hannah. It didn't take her off the list of suspects entirely, but it did lower the suspicion on her a little.

With gritted teeth, she forced herself to respond, "What goes on in my company is none if your business. Now if you're not going to speak, then this meeting has no business even happening, and I'm going to ask you just this once to leave before I call security and make you leave."

She glared down the older businesswoman, being this close she finally noticed the crow's feet stretched across her eyes along with the darkness under them, and the distinct lack of makeup not noticeable at first glance. Interesting, Cruella was a woman who put appearance over everything, what in the world happened that she didn't make sure to look her best before coming over?

Whatever it was, it also kept her from keeping up her façade. Her grin left as soon as Elsa bit back and glared her down, and her face sunk into an expression of what looked like disappointment.

Cruella sighed, "I must admit, I was expecting a much more pleasant introduction from a…dear friend, but you seem to be so keen to getting down to business. So, let's do so."

She walked away from Elsa, away from her desk, and towards her bookshelf, running a gloved finger over the thin coating of dust on the wood. "For as long as I can remember, I have always been obsessed with fashion, knowing what looks good on who, and when. Fashion is a fickle beast, but over time I have tamed it, trained it, and now it does my bidding whenever I tell it to do so. Any new trend, any new clothing line, any changes in the wardrobe world…rest assured they must go through me."

Elsa waited impatiently, eyeing every one of the movements by Cruella, who had picked up a small, golden trophy she won back in college for a speech competition.

"I enjoy what I do, truly, and I'm especially fond of the pull I have in such a demanding, everchanging industry, and I wouldn't trade this for the world. I'm sure you know more than almost anyone what that feels like?"

Elsa didn't answer.

"Well…recently I've been put in a, shall we say, precarious position by a business venture I was certain would be beneficial to both parties. Unfortunately, it only benefited one party, and it wasn't mine." Cruella put down the trophy and walked back towards desk, eyes looking off to some other place or some other time. She looked undeniably remorseful. "The failed venture has put my company in a daunting situation, and admittedly it has made our future highly uncertain. Which is why I've come to you today."

Elsa's eyes narrowed, her patience had officially run thin to the point that it was nonexistent. "Get to the point, Cruella."

Cruella frowned, offended at the interruption. "My point is…that I need your help. I took a big hit financially, so big that I am about to lose the major controlling share I have in my company, leaving it up for grabs to anyone. The list of people I would be marginally fine with holding that share is miniscule at best, and on the top of that list, as much as it pains me to admit it, is you."

There are rare moments in life where fate, always fickle and unpredictable, will intervene in favor of even the most undeserving of people. This was undoubtedly one of those moments. Elsa couldn't help but repeat, in her own words, the favor that Cruella had just asked of her, "You want me to buy out your company."

Cruella nodded slowly, and Elsa held back the smile trying to form on her lips; because even though this was the task she was forced to complete, she was actually going to enjoy it.

Anna smiled, reminding herself for the millionth time that she truly loved what she did. A few hours into her workday baking and barking out orders in an authoritative yet considerate tone made her forget how little sleep she got, in fact she was beaming and vibrant like she had gotten a full twenty-four hours. Physically she probably looked like a ghost, or a zombie, or a zombie ghost, but mentally she was all there…mostly there.

Plus, the chocolate making process was going great, or at least it was smelling great. The tempering process ate up a bit of time, but it was all worth it to finally getting to the molding part, she even let Riley and Owen help her out with putting the chocolate in plastic molds she bought earlier. They were a team, a trio, a time-tested tandem despite the fact that they had only been working together for a short amount of time. Anna greatly appreciated them, she didn't know how she survived this long without help.

In the kitchen, help in the kitchen.

Once they placed the molds inside the freezer, Anna wiped her hands on her apron and sighed, "Great job, gang! We showed those cocoa beans who's boss. Hopefully they taste as good as the work we put in."

"What does that even mean?", Riley asked.

"It means whatever you want it to mean.", Anna replied. "Hey, you guys should take a lunch break, you deserve it. In fact, you know what? I'm gonna go ahead and make that an order, go get some lunch. If you want."

"I'm confused, is our lunch break mandatory or not?", said Owen, looking at Anna like she had just asked them to clap with one hand.

"It's mandatory if you want it to be.", Anna explained, not clearing up anything. "Seriously though, go get some food or drink some food, whatever it is you young people do with food these days. You guys earned a break, I can finish up with whatever we were doing."

Riley and Owen looked at each other, unsure of where Anna's mind was, and shrugged before walking back to the storefront. "I guess we'll see you in a bit then, boss."

Anna continued their work once the two had left, enjoying the silence despite the fact that the lack of noise was draining her of her excess energy. As she fought the sleep deprivation, her mind was paradoxically thinking of nothing and everything at the same time, it was hard to focus on one thought in particular as she spread frosting on cupcakes and swept up breadcrumbs.

And then suddenly it wasn't, suddenly she could focus on just one thought: Elsa.

Well first she thought first about how fun last night was, and then about Hannah, and then those thoughts finally led her to thinking about Elsa. It was surprising to be thinking of her, but what was most surprising for Anna was that when she heard, well, thought of that name, she didn't immediately feel a chill go through her or feel some sort of looming presence over her shoulder. It was akin to the feeling you'd get of thinking of a friend you hadn't thought about in a while, except she and Elsa weren't friends.

Honestly, Anna didn't know what they were anymore, and she'd be lying if she said she wasn't upset by this. They used to be so close, and now they were…what? Acquaintances? Strangers? Coworkers? Coworkers seemed like an apt description, even though she actually worked for Elsa, not with her. But this couldn't be the end for them, could it? Their last meaningful interaction couldn't be at the festival, screaming at each other and airing out their dirty laundry in public.

If she really thought about it, Anna just wanted closure to all this. She wanted to know where she and Elsa stood, and if there was any chance of getting them back to at least speaking terms.

"Anna? You alive? It's been real quiet back here for the past thirty minutes.", Rapunzel asked.

Anna emerged from her unintentional hiding spot halfway inside an oven scrubbing it down, she wiped her hands on her apron and smiled at Rapunzel, "Still alive and kicking…kinda. Why, what's up?"

Rapunzel smiled from her place just in front of the door, "Nothing much, it's just that you've got a visitor here for you." She looked back out the door to see if anyone else was listening, and then continued, "And she's pretty cute, good for you."

Anna looked at her confused, "Wait what? Who is it?" Rapunzel didn't answer, she just walked back out and told this mystery person that Anna would be out in a second. Not wanting to make her best friend out to be a liar, and also being extremely curious, Anna waited a literal second and followed Rapunzel out the door.

And there she was, standing behind the counter with an obnoxiously large cup of coffee in one hand and a laptop in the other; and despite the equally as obnoxious and large sunglasses, Anna could tell it was Hannah behind the frames.

"Heeeeey!", Hannah exclaimed a bit too loud and excitable in an emptyish bakery at 1 in the afternoon. "I was getting bored doing homework in my room, and since I can't exactly go to my work, I figured I'd go to yours. That's okay right?"

Anna was surprised to see Hannah here at the bakery; she did tell her where she worked but didn't expect to see her this soon. Still, it was a nice surprise, and Anna was happy with the visit. "Of course, why wouldn't it be? How are you feeling by the way, you left before I woke up."

Hannah shrugged and smiled apologetically, "Yeah I woke up a few hours, I think, after you helped me get to bed; couldn't get a lot of sleep for some reason. Even though my head was killing me, I knew you had to work once you woke up and I didn't want to overstay my welcome, so I snuck out and took a bus back to North Mountain. Slept some more when I got back to my dorm. You got my note, right?"

Rapunzel had moved over to the other side of the counter to help out the customers, but every time Anna glanced over to her- which was a lot considering she was trying to gauge her best friend's reaction over this new development- she would always have this intrigued grin on her face. She had been silent so far throughout this conversation, up until Hannah mentioned the note. "What was that about a note?"

"Nothing, go back to being a good bakery seller person!", Anna interjected before turning back to Hannah. "And yeah I did."

Hannah took off her sunglasses, revealing a pair of tired, slightly bloodshot eyes, and raised an eyebrow, "What…was that about?"

"That was just Rapunzel, my best friend and co-owner of the bakery. Don't worry about her, she's just…being silly.", Anna changed the subject before they could dwell on a topic she herself hadn't dwelled on yet. "So, uh…can I get you something? I can bake something fresh for you if you want."

"Can you do that? You sure you're not too busy or anything?"

"Not for a couple hours at least. Seriously though I can bake…almost anything you want. As long as it's not something super big and fancy like a wedding cake or a giant chocolate bar."

Hannah scanned the bakery, admiring the already impressive collection of food and eyeing it carefully like she was looking for hidden treasure. "Hmm, I don't see it here but- and I know you said no cakes- do you know how to make coffee cake?"

"I said no wedding cakes, a coffee cake is no problem.", Anna replied confidently. "It'll take some time to do though, you sure you wanna wait?"

"Coffee cake is like my fourth favorite food, I think I can handle a little waiting. Besides…", she held up the laptop in her arm. "I've got to finish up some homework and, you know, start looking for a new internship."

"Well, alright then, I'll get to work. Just make yourself at home, there are some tables outside if you want to sit."

"Gotcha, and thanks. Seriously.", Hannah smiled brightly, in contrast to the rest of her tired, hungover hungover face, before walking out the front door.

As soon as she left, Anna went back to her workstation to prepare the ingredients and supplies she needed, being joined by Rapunzel only a few short minutes later. "Sooooo, who was thaaaaat?"

"Elsa darling, I know that you and I have never seen eye to eye, and we've both said some things that we regret, but I wouldn't be coming to you for…help if this wasn't a desperate time for desperate measures. You remind me of myself when I was your age, and you are an especially apt businesswoman; I have no doubt that my company will be safe in your hands."

Elsa knew that half of these words were lies meant to butter her up so she would consider executing the buyout, unfortunately for the fur-laden fiend Elsa's mind was already made up.

"To say that you and I have never seen eye to eye is a grave understatement.", Elsa started. "Are you seriously going to stand here and say you don't remember implying that you were the one to sicc the Southern Isles bakery on me to compete with one of my own businesses, at a festival in my city, run by my company?"

"Now what's wrong with a little healthy competition? Besides, your little bakery did fairly well from what I remember.", Cruella reasoned.

"And let's not forget that from day one you have made it perfectly clear that you were going to be on me, waiting for me to screw up so you could swoop in and bring me down. Now you're coming to me after one of your screw-ups trying to get me to help you?"

"Oh come now darling, I wasn't being serious! Those were just words to rile you up, to motivate you! And while you might exhibit some facets of myself, you exhibit some differences as well- your outfit makes that very apparent- you're much more benevolent and much ruthless. You know this buyout is the right call."

Elsa slammed her fist down at the table, eyes burning a hole right through Cruella and her pompous, pretentious attitude. Enough was enough. "No, the right call would be for me to pick up my phone and get security to come up and haul your ass out of here before I do it myself. You can't have both, Cruella, you can't try and undermine me at every turn and then come crawling me for help when you destroy everything that you've worked for. I won't allow that."

She pulled up the hand which had slammed onto the table and pointed a finger harshly towards the fashion icon, "You're right about one thing though, I'm not completely like you. I don't make choices that jeopardize my company. In a few days I'll still be here sitting at my desk running ArenCorp the best way I know how, and where will you be? Well that's not much of my concern, because I'm not going to help you. You're on your own, Cruella."

Cruella had let the façade fade and allowed the desperation to reach her voice, her future and her company's future hinged on this meeting, and she couldn't leave emptyhanded. "Elsa, you have to think rationally about this. When I'm gone, that will leave a vacuum of power that will need to be filled, and who's going to fill it? If you do this, it guarantees that you'll be at the top of the business world for years to come. You have everything to gain, and nothing to lose."

"Maybe…maybe…", Elsa said as if she was still considering it, "But I've got a long time to build up my reputation without your help, the same can't be said for you. My decision is final, Cruella, I am not going to buyout your company. Now please leave."

Cruella shook her head, "Elsa, please reconsider-"

"I said leave, before I call security to make you leave.", Elsa added coldly. She said nothing else, merely keeping one finger on a button on her phone while staring down Cruella with an intensity that would shatter mirrors.

Realizing that this battle was lost and there was no way to convince her, Cruella sighed, hitched her scarf over her shoulder, and frowned disappointingly. "Mark my words, Elsa, this decision will be your undoing. You'll realize in the long run that it would have been better to deal with the de VIl that you know, than the devil you don't."

She walked out of the office without glancing back.

Elsa didn't care for the threat, because she knew that Cruella was wrong. And once the woman had left, she sat back down at her desk feeling more accomplished than she had in weeks. For a second, she forgot the other, more real threat looming over her until it messaged her back.

UNKNOWN: Just saw Ms. de Vil walk out the front door, I take it the meeting went well?

Elsa: Just shut up and answer my question.

UNKNOWN: All work and no play I see, no wonder you're still single.

Elsa: What does that have to do with anything?

UNKNOWN: I was just joking around hahaha, don't take me so seriously! Now if you don't need anything else, I'll text you when I've got something new for you alright?

Elsa: Wait what? What about my question?

UNKNOWN: You already asked it, remember? [Screenshot from two messages ago]

Elsa: That shouldn't count.

UNKNOWN: Hey it's not my fault that you're not careful with your words. Maybe next time you'll choose them wisely. I'll talk to you soon, Ms. Andersen.

Elsa grumbled something incoherent and unprofessional, and then something they said made her spine shiver. They said they saw Cruella walk out the front door…they were literally right outside the building.

She scrambled to her window, looking down at the city to see if she could see any suspicious people, giving up after a good ten minutes. She knew it was futile to try and spot them all the way from her fiftieth-floor office. Hopefully Flynn would give her some news about finding out who this person was soon, before she lost her patience with them, or before they had her do something that she couldn't come back from.

A/N: I'm aware that the "de Vil you know" line is pretty stupid. I'm keeping it anyway, Idc.