Title: What I Need
Author: elektralyte
Rating: K+
Characters/Pairings: Eudora, OC
Disclaimer: I do not own Princess and the Frog. It is the property of Disney and Buena Vista Studios. I write for fun and have no intentions of profiting off this piece.
Summary: What if Tiana and Naveen had stayed frogs after they married? How would it affect those left behind? This is the story of how Eudora learns to cope with the help of a little friend.
A/N: Once again it's self beta'd. Apologies for any grammatical errors.
Prologue
Two hundred, one hundred ninety-nine, one hundred ninety-eight, one hundred, ninety-seven...
One hundred, ninety-seven is Mama Odie's age when Tiana and Naveen first meet her; not that Eudora knows this.
...one hundred seventy-two, one hundred seventy-one, one hundred seventy...
One hundred seventy is the number of stitches Eudora had knitted for the baby blanket that lays carefully folded in the chest beside her bureau. It's been there for many years now.
...one hundred forty-seven, one hundred forty-six, one hundred forty-five...
$145.00 is the price of a brown mahogany Queen Ann Table in 1924 that Eudora finds in a catalog some years back. She doesn't buy it, secretly feeding her money instead to the growing collection of coffee cans in her daughter's armoire.
...ninety-two, ninety-one, ninety...
Ninety is the number of days it takes James to propose to Eudora after the first time they meet.
...sixty-two, sixty-one, sixty...
Sixty is the number of dresses Eudora has made for one Charlotte La Bouff, her best customer.
...fifty, forty-nine, forty-eight...
Forty-eight years old. That is Eudora's age as of today.
...twenty-seven, twenty-six, twenty-five...
Twenty-five years old would be Tiana's age if she were still around.
...twenty-one, twenty, nineteen...
Nineteen is her age when she leaves for good.
...sixteen, fifteen, fourteen...
Fourteen years ago James died, somewhere in Germany.
...seven, six...
Six is the number of years since she's last seen Tiana.
...two...
Two is the number of left feet her daughter has.
...zero.
That is the number of nights Eudora has slept without interruption since...
Her breathing becomes choked hitches as the weight of her loneliness sets in again.
...since...
Eudora allows the stinging pricks behind her closed eyes to well into tears. She doesn't wipe them away as they track down her temple and into her gray hair.
...since...
She turns her head to the side and rubs her face into her pillow to dry her eyes. Her room is dark as she stares at nothing in particular. She chuffs out another breath, and starts again.
Two hundred, one hundred ninety-nine, one hundred ninety-eight...
It's going to be another long night.
TBC