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Winters were harsh in the town of Arendelle. Anna was almost certain that was Elsa’s doing. Her sister loved to experiment with her ice spells. Elsa had even gotten so powerful that she didn’t even need a wand to cast them. But sometimes her elder sister’s exploration of her abilities went arie and sent Arendelle into another harsh cold snap without any warning. The citizens made jokes about it, often joshing about how you never really knew what the weather forecast would be in their town. But Anna knew the truth…
Anna was quite the opposite of her sister. While Elsa liked to cast spells and conjure snow, Anna took the potions approach. She wasn’t sure what it was about finding the right ingredients to mix the perfect spell that excited her so much, but it did. That’s why Anna decided to take a job at the local coffee shop since she loved to mix together concoctions so much.
Besides, she loved coffee.
It was during the end of October that the chill set over the town. Often there’d be more and more patrons coming in for warm pumpkin spiced lattes or even skipping ahead a holiday to the peppermint mochas. Anna could understand--she was a sucker for any type of warm cinnamon flavors herself.
And most of her coworkers--Ryder and Honeymaren--were in agreement with that. But Kristoff… that man’s taste in coffee was atrocious. He liked it black. Hardly any sugar. Despised when anyone put vanilla in his drink.
Anna thought he couldn’t be human… and she wasn’t even one.
While working at the coffee shop, she’d met a lot of valuable customers. She often had regulars who’d ask how her day was going but there was always one that stood out amongst the rest: Hans.
The gingered haired man always flashed her a winning smile, complimented her appearance, and just made her weak at the knees. Anna had never had a boyfriend before. She’d always been more shy around boys. Besides, their parents had kept them pretty sheltered from people because of their abilities they’d inherited from their mother. When their parents died, Anna and Elsa had to make it on their own. So, she’d never really had a real chance at romance.
Hans at a table, sipping at the coffee she’d made him. Anna hummed dreamily, leaning on her palms as she rested her elbows onto the counter. She couldn’t help but be entranced by him.
The sound of someone clearing their throat made her jump.
Anna looked up at Kristoff with a yelp. “What?” she hissed.
The blond smirked. “You got a little drool…” he motioned to the corner of this mouth.
Humiliation flashed through her, only when she reached up to her own mouth, she found it dry. Ugh! Why was Kristoff like this!? Always joking and teasing her…
He barked a laugh at her reaction as she pouted up at him. “C’mon, Anna, if you’re going to thirst after customers I’m going to give you a hard time about it.”
She scoffed. “But why?”
Kristoff rolled his eyes at that. “Because you don’t even know him?”
“Of course, I do!”
Giving her a flat look, the blond leaned onto the counter. “What’s his last name?”
“Uh.. it starts with a W.”
“Eye color?”
“Dreamy, obviously.”
“Best friend’s name?”
“Probably John.”
Kristoff snorted. “Anna, seriously? How do you even know he likes you? How can you be so hung up on a guy who doesn’t even know your name?”
“Sure, he does! I have a nametag!”
“Bet he’ll pronounce it wrong.”
Kristoff shook his head with a sigh. “Honestly, Anna, you’re a witch … don’t you think you could do better than that guy?”
Hushing him, she glanced around. “Keep your voice down! Jeez!”
Ever since Kristoff caught her doing magic and she had to explain to him that yes , she was a witch and they did exist, he’d agreed to keep her secret. But somehow… she thought it made him more protective of her ever since he’d found out. While she appreciated the sentiment, she didn’t get why he made such a big deal out of things.
He patted her head. “I’m just trying to look after the most magical girl I know,” he said with a grin.
Anna groaned, pushing off the counter, ignoring the flush rising on her cheeks at his complement. “What are you? A love expert?”
“Well, no. But I bet I know more about love than you do.”
With a harumph, she crossed her arms and shot the blond a sour glance. “Fine. We’ll see about that.”
Anna intended to prove Kristoff wrong. She’d show him! When she arrived home from work, she pulled on her cloak and stomped down to the basement. Elsa appeared surprised to see her sister stomping over towards the caldron.
“Anna?”
She hadn’t been trying to ignore her sister. But she was just so hung up in her own thoughts. Anna couldn’t believe how negative Kristoff was being about her love life. She’d never heard of him talk about a girlfriend! Only his interest in fixing cars and his dog, Sven. Which Anna did find interesting, of course, because Kristoff was her friend despite it all.
Anna quickly flipped through her spellbook, probably too aggressively, as she muttered to herself. All she wanted was for someone to love her… in a romantic way, that is.
“Anna, what’re you doing?”
She didn’t even look up when Elsa spoke, continuing to glance through the pages. “Looking for a love potion recipe… ah-ha! ‘Lover’s Brew’ that’s it!”
Elsa sighed, pinching her brow. “Why are you looking for a love spell?”
“So that I can prove to Kristoff that Hans likes me!”
“By casting a spell? Isn’t that cheating?”
Scoffing, Anna shook her head. “Of course not,” she replied with a wave of her hand.
Elsa shook her head with a knowing smile. “Just… please be careful. Taking a love potion into work seems a bit risky.”
Anna had already begun the process of scouring through their shelves to find the ingredients she needed. She stacked the bottles into her arms before laughing at her sister’s doubts. “Oh, please, Elsa… I’ll be completely careful--ooh!” she nearly dropped her essence of frog, but was able to regain her balance to catch it. That would’ve been a nasty mess to clean up. Essence of frog smelled awful.
The grimace on her elder sister’s face spoke volumes, but Elsa was completely used to her sibling’s antics at this point. So, she just left Anna to it and crossed the room back to her own spells. But Anna noticed the occasional glance of Elsa checking on her.
Anna followed the directions of the spell word for word. Pouring in each ingredient with precision, sprinkling the powders, and stirring with her wooden spoon. She winced when she had to yank out a strand of her hair so the potion would have a specific love interest. Usually with potions she was able to do a test run… but there wasn’t any way to test this love spell. So… she’d just have to hope for the best. Luckily, she’d check and there weren’t any that were detrimental. The spell would only last twelve hours unless made permanent with true love’s kiss.
Perfect.
Anna smuggled the potion into work in her pocket. The day was normal… except for the anxiety egging at her chest knowing what her ill conceived plan was. This was a bad idea. She knew it was a bad idea to force someone to fall in love. Besides, she only had the next twelve hours to kiss Hans so he’d be permanently in love with her. And then they could get married and live happily ever after, right?
When Has approached the counter at his usual time, Anna felt her heart flutter. Today was the day. This man she’d been pining after for so long… she could finally have him. But Hans didn’t seem to be his usual self. He wore a frown and as he scrolled through his phone.
“Hello, good morning,” Anna began in her practiced chipper tone. “Would you like your usual?”
With a sigh of annoyance, Hans glanced up from his phone. “Not today. Just large, black with two sugars.”
Huh. Interesting. That was Kristoff’s usual. She’d always called him plain and shamed him for it, but if Hans liked that too… maybe she’d been too hard on her coworker.
“Yes sir, coming right up,” she chimed.
Hans was looking down at his phone again only giving a hum in response before moving to the side to wait for his order. Anna went to work preparing the order. It wouldn’t take long to do such a simple drink. Or it shouldn’t have, at least. Anna sprinkled in the two sugars before glancing around to make sure no one was around. She took the vile out of her pocket and quickly poured it into Hans’ drink.
“What’re you doing?”
She yelped. “Jesus Christ, Kristoff! Will you stop doing that?”
His scowl only remained as he crossed his arms. “What’d you just pour in there?”
“J-Just some sweetener that I made.”
Kristoff glared at her. “And you just happened to want to test it on that guy? To what? See if he likes it?”
“W-Well, yeah! If he thinks this is the best coffee he’s ever tasted then maybe he’ll like me, right?”
“Anna…” he pursed his lips looking between the drink and her face. “That’s a love potion, isn’t it?”
Anna sputtered, rearing back. She hated how easily Kristoff could figure her out! How did he do that!? “Psht! What?? No! Of course not. That’d be entirely unethical and--”
“Yoo hoo! Anna!” Oaken called from his office. “Can I speak to you for a moment?”
Dread washed over her as she looked between her boss and the coffee. Kristoff seemed to reluctantly take the cup. “Go. I’ll give it to him.”
Blinking, Anna stared up at him. “Really?”
“Yeah. I’ll do it.”
After her meeting with Oaken (about maybe becoming assistant manager with Kristoff which was mind boggling!), Anna practically skipped out of the office. She looked over at Hans and noticed him sitting in his usual place. He would have to drink most of the cup for the potion to take effect, so she’d just have to wait until he threw the cup away.
She looked around for Kristoff to check with him if he gave the drink to Hans, but she couldn’t find the blond anywhere. It worried her a bit… Had he not given him the cup? Surely, Kristoff wouldn’t lie to her.
But she didn’t have time to think about it. When she saw Hans throw away his--hopefully empty--coffee cup, it was time for Anna to strike. It would take five minutes for the potion to take effect. So, she kept her eyes on the clock as Hans scrolled through his phone at the table. Anna stalked over there as soon as she could. Smiling sweetly at him as she walked up.
“Uh, hi,” she said.
Hans gave her a once over. “You made that first cup of coffee, right?”
First cup…?
“U-Um, yes.”
He glared up at her. “It was absolutely awful. I made your broody manager drink it to prove a point.”
Blinking, Anna gaped. “You--You what? ”
Hans scoffed. With each annoyed look that graced his features, Anna felt her heart chipping in her chest.
“The coffee you made was bad. It had an awful after taste. I didn’t know it was possible to mess up black coffee, but you did.”
Anna’s fists balled at her sides. “Are you this rude to everyone? ”
Hans balked. “ Rude? Please, you’re the one who can’t make coffee correctly. It’s a shame really… and here I thought you were cute. But it’s true, pretty girls are always dim.”
The slap rang out through the coffee shop. She hadn’t meant to… Hans seemed surprised, jaw ajar as he gaped. There was already a red mark on his cheek. Anna knew as soon as she got home… she was putting a curse on his ass. She couldn’t believe this was the guy she’d been fawning over for two months.
Honeymaren and Ryder were there in an instant. Honeymaren grabbed Anna by the arm and started to tug her backwards away from the man. “Come with me, Anna,” she said quietly.
Ryder assisted Hans out the door, where the ginger haired man shouted profanities and flailed wildly outside the door as her coworker did his best to defuse him.
Anger fueled through her. Anna’s chest was tight as Honeymaren led her into the break room. Well, that’s where Kristoff had been hiding apparently. The blond seemed stunned to see her being dragged in by their coworker.
Honeymaren sighed as she led Anna to the couch. “What happened?”
“He called me dumb,” she blurted out.
Pursing her lips, Honeymaren nodded. “Okay… I’ll start on damage control. We’ll talk in a bit. You two just--relax a bit.”
Anna heard her grumble something about how weird this day was as she headed out the door. When Anna looked up, Kristoff’s cheeks were pink when he stared at her.
“You drank it, huh?” she asked.
“He made me.”
She tilted her head. “What do you mean?”
Letting out a sigh, he looked away from her. “He threatened to go to Oaken. Apparently, his father knows him. Told me he’d have you fired for making such a disgusting drink. I reminded him that you’ve made all of his drinks before and never had a problem, but he didn’t care. He told me if I drank the whole thing--because he had to taste it and someone else should to--that he’d let it go. Ugh, what an ass.”
“I’m so sorry, Kristoff. I’m so dumb… This is entirely my fault. I-I’ll have to fix it.”
“Fix it?”
“Well, Oaken just offered me a promotion and then I went and slapped a customer. I guess a memory wiping spell would be best.”
“Ah… I think Oaken would understand. If he knows Hans’ father, I’m sure he knows what kind of man he is.”
Anna just smiled in response, unsure if she actually believed that. But the way Kristoff was staring at her made her heart leap into her throat. Fiddling with her thumbs, she glanced up at him shyly. “A-Are you okay?”
“I drank a whole love potion that tasted like fish coffee… Not really. All I can think about is how much I want to kiss you--” he blurted before smacking a hand over his mouth.
A blush spread across her cheeks. “Really?”
Kristoff groaned, flopping his head onto the small table. “Yes. And how close I want to be with you. How much I want to hug you and touch you. How happy you make me--and how stupid you make me too. God, I love you.”
An ‘eep’ left her lips. “Kristoff, I-I’m so sorry. It’ll wear off in twelve hours and you won’t feel this way anymore.”
He scoffed in response. “Oh, please. I feel like this every day. It’s just amplified. Maybe, your love potion is more of a truth serum when the person already loves you.”
“Wait, what?”
Kristoff shook his head. “This is bad. I have to get back to work,” he murmured. The blond sat up, eyes making contact with her own. Suddenly, those honey-brown eyes glazed over. A pink hue spread along his cheeks. Locking eyes had apparently distracted him from his mission. She hadn’t meant for this to happen…
He was entranced it seemed as he slowly meandered over towards her. Kristoff sat on the couch beside her. He was staring right at her. “I love you.”
Anna plugged her ears. “Stop. No, you don’t. It’s just the spell.”
Kristoff’s gentle fingers were pulling her hand away from her ear. “No… Anna, I’ve felt like this since I’ve met you. The stupid potion is just making me say it.”
“You--You love me? Even though I’m a witch?”
He snorted. “What difference does that make? You’re Anna. Being a witch doesn’t matter. If anything, it makes you even more special. I had feelings for you before I found out. It didn’t change anything.”
“W-Why didn’t you say it before…?” she asked timidly.
“Because…” he ruffled a hand through his shaggy, blond locks. “I could see how much you really liked that guy. I just knew you’d reject me.” His hand was suddenly on her thigh. Anna jumped at the contact. Kristoff grimaced as he yanked his hand away. “Crap, I’m sorry. This spell sucks.”
She wanted to agree. But… she couldn’t. Had she been so focused on her stupid infactuation with Hans that she couldn’t see what was right there in front of her? Kristoff claimed that he had feelings for her before he drank the potion. What if that were true? Had she been friendzoning him? Quietly rejecting him without realizing it?
There were so many wonderful things about Kristoff. She loved hearing about his life… about his big family and Sven. How much he loved fixing cars as a hobby--even offering to help her out for free any time she needed it, despite knowing she could easily afford it. He kept her secret when he found out she was a witch. Granted, he was really freaked out at first, but who wouldn’t be?
Instead of avoiding her, Kristoff was curious and supportive. He asked questions regarding her magic. Wanted to know more about her…
When she was down, Kristoff cheered her up with his jokes, his teasing, his smile…
Oh… She was an idiot.
How had she not realized how much Kristoff meant to her? How his stupid grins made her chest ache. How he sent butterflies fluttering inside her?
Anna chased after his hand, catching his much larger palm in her own. “No, it doesn’t. I’m the one who sucks. I’m so sorry, Kristoff. You’ve been here all this time, and I was too blind to see it. I had no idea of your feelings. And now, I’ve basically forced you to spill them out.”
He gave her a dopey grin. “I’m pretty sure even if I wanted to agree that this is your fault, the spell won’t let me.”
Snorting a laugh, she smiled at him. “Promise me… In twelve hours when this spell wears off, you’ll still say you love me.”
“Only if you say it back.”
She giggled at that before scooting closer. “I can arrange that.”
Kristoff was leaning in, almost unconsciously it seemed. But he paused, leaning back and shaking his head. “Sorry. This is really hard to resist.”
“Good thing I didn’t make the stronger one, huh?”
“There’s a stronger one? ”
Anna nodded. “Mhmm.” her lids drooped as she glanced at his lips and to his eyes.
“I want to kiss you…” he muttered. “May we…?”
“We may…”
Cupping her cheek with his large palm, Kristoff tugged her in. Anna’s eyes fluttered closed as he kissed her. Her heart danced in her chest, pounding wildly against her ribcage. How could she have been a fool to deny this man? His lips were so gentle and soft against her own. His thumb brushed along her cheek. Anna couldn’t help but wind her arms around his shoulders, pulling him closer.
Yeah… she could get used to this.
When she pulled away, her lips barely left his. “We’re probably at about eleven hours, right?”
The breath from his short chuckle teased her skin. “I’d guess so.”
“So, in eleven hours… you’ll tell me you love me and kiss me like this?”
“I promise.”