{A/N: Le gasp! The website actually let me upload something? Anywhozits, "Princess and the Frog" has been permanently registered into my mind and heart as one of my all-time favorite movies, and Tiana X Naveen (Prince Naveen, you sly dog you 3) one of the greatest couples ever to have crossed my path. I simply adored every little thing about the movie, and knew I'd hate myself if I let the opportunity to write a PATF fiction pass me by. So here it is! It's adorable, fluffy, and actually has a bit of a plot to be solved within however many chapters the people want. So, please enjoy, and join the "Naveen is a Sexy Beast" club. c:}
{Disclaimer: Faldi Faldonza, don't make me say it. Fine. I don't own Princess And The Frog, nor Disney. Yet.}
It was but a single year ago that Marti Gras came and went, and all too eventfully at that. It was only one year ago that a notable philandering young prince had discovered one of the most horrifying and delightfully whimsical facts in his entire carefree life, and had even gotten married because of it. It was just a year ago that life for two very different people, brought together by some incredible twist in fate, an unpredictable regime change or what have you, molded together in some strange, inexplicable and amazing way that neither was truly certain they would ever understand. Then again, perhaps a year's passing wasn't just as incredible as it was made to seem by all the undeniably happy and awe-inspiring anniversaries, for there would always be honor for the saddening and ever so slightly sinister memories the previous year had held dear.
A gentle romantic was murdered, and though his killer was indeed killed in return, there was never an honest ounce of atonement for the astounding, bright eyed firefly's untimely departure. Despite the pain that past year possessed for the close group of friends to remember, there was still an ever twinkling reminder as to why it was safe, and encouraged, to smile at the loss of young Ray. The evening star, Evangeline, and her dearest lover, Raymond, revisited their friends each and every night and reminded them of the great adventure through the bayou, the love and friendship and romance that was eventually found, and that he was where he was supposed to be, and they where they were indeed meant to be in turn.
Within a small bit over two weeks' time, the anniversary of one of the happier memories would arise and Naveen was certain he was going to make a grand impression, thus upholding his own tradition of causing most every person he'd ever come in contact with to melt at his feet with his unbeatable charm and wit. Unbeatable until she waltzed her way into his life, at least.
As strange or even awkward as it sounded, the fact that Tiana was the only woman he'd ever had the delight and fancy of meeting that didn't immediately weaken at the knees was intriguing, perplexing, and altogether attractive, the more he thought it over. There'd been rejections before - oh had there been rejections - but never so immediately, never so knowingly. Being the remarkable young seducer he had worked most of his life to become, there were quite a few memorable blows to the face and…nether regions because of his scandalous affairs, and even those victims had come back 'round at one point or another.
The more he thought about his strong willed, beautiful Tiana, the more the thought of their first anniversary intimidated him. No, not intimidated, challenged him. Naveen would beat out his expectations for the obviously romantic evening ten fold, he was sure. Her reaction would be one he'd never even dreamed of witnessing, though it would certainly be that of complete adoration and wonderment. Faldi Faldonza, he was good.
Though, as all good things tend to have, the downside about the joyous celebration was what to do about a gift. In New Orleans, and in many ways the rest of America, it was customary to sport a gift for the spouse on such special occasions, especially if the role one played in said household was "the loving husband". Of course, when that information was fed to the foreign prince, Naveen replaced "loving" with "sexy", further drowning out most of his wife's mother's words after that much useful advice.
Now, though, the prince was sauntering less than purposefully down the crystal city's main street, strumming thoughtlessly at his ukulele as his final destination came into view. The La Bouff Estate was arguably one of the largest homes in all of New Orleans, and its owner one of the largest (in every sense of the word) men in the entire musical city as well. Naveen remembered begging his wife to purchase one of the mansions like the La Bouff's in the acres nearby, having been recently given back the rights to his family's riches shortly after his wedding, but only received a humble, "You're kidding," from his very own personal ray of beauty and hope, Tiana, and was soon brushed off like nothing more than a nosy horsefly on a hot summer's day.
The roomy apartment the couple shared on the upper floor of Tiana's Palace was more than accommodating, it was home after all, but every time the prince found himself down that same big, busy road to Charlotte's homestead, the possibilities came flooding past the rather weak barrier in his mind. Ever since the very day of his marriage, the young future ruler of Maldonia had a specific image in his mind of a house at least half as large as his wing of the castle back home with a simply divine young woman – his wife, of course – waiting for him on the suggestively large porch each and every day he left home. Oh, how the man could dream. Tiana would never be one to wait around for him, let alone anything else, and there would never be a chance in the vast expanses of the universe that she'd rather live in a luxuriously lavish manor while a perfectly good home was waiting for her inside her workplace. Sweet lord, did she think she was "living the dream"? No matter what his darling wife believed, the dream she was living was her own, and that alone fulfilled all Naveen could have ever dreamed of dreaming.
"Miss La," the handsome, collected prince began before being speedily cut off by an exceptionally booming, yet feminine, voice shouting really rather angry things at yet another poor young suitor rejected after what he assumed to be a laughably short amount of time. Only Miss Lottie could achieve such a feat, he was sure.
"And there's Mister Busy Britches himself, takin' the walk o' shame off my daddy's front porch again!" The furious little blonde hollered as she stood with crossed arms outside the large doorway into her and her father's home. Her thin brows were arched dramatically, and the pout she held almost skillfully upon her peachy round face was just a bit intimidating as Naveen made way for the stranger as he scurried away from the woman. "This time when I say to get out, you stay wherever in the sweet lord's name you went! No, don't look back! I ain't gonna be the one to take your sorry tail in no more!"
Making his way for the most part unnoticed up the wooden steps to the furious debutante's side, a slightly nervous grin spread widely upon the caramel canvas of his face, Naveen took the liberty of trying to get a coherent and remotely equable answer out of dear little Lottie. "Another disappointment? That would make him the third this month, no?"
"Another dirty li'l meddlin' clod is what he is!" Charlotte sighed, leaning up against the shuddered paneling of her manor's outer wall, allowing her own hands to cradle herself in a way no man had shown her he could do himself. "It ain't fair, Princey, it just ain't fair. I deserve a good man at least, if I can't bag myself a prince o' my own…"
The slightly narcissistic gentleman took pride in knowing Charlotte had, at one point, been fully attracted to him, and had even planned to marry him. True, Miss La Bouff was a beauty with a personality so colorful it rivaled the incandescence of a rainbow, but there was nary a force the world could offer that would tear Naveen from his dearest Princess Tiana. She was actually the reason why he'd embarked on the simplistic journey down to Lottie's manor, whether she knew so or not. If anyone was to know what kind of gift Tiana would adore, it'd be Charlotte La Bouff, and with such easy access to this reluctant vat of knowledge, the prince rightfully thought himself lucky.
"Ah, but the problem is not the princeless, dearest Miss Charlotte," Naveen began with a toothy, charismatic grin, "It is the princess."
The blonde wrinkled her nose and lowered her brows in confusion, turning slightly and frowning at the suggestively striking young royal before her. "What're you gettin' at?"
Taking a few fluid steps toward the woman and placing a thoughtful few tanned fingers to his chin, Naveen spoke with a confidence that one could only expect from someone as self-worthy and ever so slightly arrogant as he, "I will pleased to 'get at' my purpose shortly! Il mio amore il più caro, Tiana, and I have been married for almost an entire year, as I am sure you understand, yes?"
"Yeah, yeah, you n' Tia are in a tizzy over your anniversary, I know, I know. Now tell me want it is you want, Naveen, or else I'm gon' get myself back inside where I can properly mope." Charlotte frowned at her choice of words, but cast a rueful, dirty gaze towards the prince who towered over her by a little over a foot. "Ugh. Want. Why is it that that's all men do? Want, want, want, whine, whine, whine…It ain't fair us ladies gotta come n'…n' cater to your every whim while y'all li'l boys are sittin' pretty in your upholstered leather sofas and them fancy silken bed sheets. You better hurry up and get to what it is you wanna say to me before I up n' go mad on someone who don't deserve it!"
The girl was serious, as unfortunate and slightly intimidating it was, and Naveen pursed his lips thoughtfully as he decided to start thinking about his next words as means not to earn a few unforgiving blows to the face. "Someone who does not deserve such things stands before you, and I am most certain you will be merciful, Miss Charlotte. You have the 'heart of gold', so to speak," the prince allowed but one falter in his firm wall of charm and cunning as Lottie scowled frankly at his meager attempt at calming her. "What I want! Yes, yes, what it is I am asking of you is what I should give to my wife for our anniversary! You are my Tiana's greatest companion, and I am certain that you – if not Miss Eudora or I – would know precisely what she would want on such a special occasion!"
Charlotte glared flatly at the comely young gentleman, displaying the closest thing to desperation he could possibly muster without his pride taking to the proverbial backseat. He went through all the trouble of making his way across town to visit the La Bouff Estate and getting threatened by a far beyond furious debutante only to receive advice on what to fetch his wife for his anniversary. For a formerly self-absorbed prince, the act seemed darn near romantic. Or at least it would have seemed darn near romantic, had the debutante in question not been so angry.
After assuming there was no answer to be given, Naveen furrowed his brows in partial confusion and disappointment, "I am wrong?"
"Ye ain't wrong, lover boy," The curvaceous heiress blurted out in both exasperation and amusement, taking a brief whiff of the refreshing New Orleans mid-winter air. It would've been rather uncomfortable for anyone not native to the crystal city, what with the constant humidity of it all, but Charlotte took comfort in the clingy condensation lacing her hometown's friendly breezes. Silently, she wondered how Naveen, still practically a newcomer himself, had adjusted to the strange, rainy and warm weather. "Ye just ain't usin' your head. She's your woman, isn't she?"
"This is true…" the dark haired royal murmured, blatantly confused.
"Then shouldn't ye know what she wants? If I know Tia – and believe me, I do – the only thing that could make her happier than havin' you, and her restaurant, would be her dear ol' daddy. She'd wanna hear what he had to say about her work, reachin' both o' their greatest dreams with a li'l help from a tall, dark, and handsome hunk." The golden haired aristocrat giggled lightheartedly at the pride Naveen appeared to take in the vague compliment that was indeed aimed towards him. She twirled giddily towards the white railing lining her front porch and held on loosely with both hands as she continued, "And she's a princess too! Mr. James would get a kick out o' that, wouldn't he? It's too bad it ain't gonna happen, though. Oh, but don't be down, Princey. I got myself this problem each and every year for Tia's birthday. The girl won't take a thing unless it's something she got herself!"
Slumping his broad shoulders in defeat, the prince smiled at the young woman's notably better attitude despite his setback in celebration plans. "I know. Thank you for your assistance, Miss La Bouff. I do hope you find someone well worth your time in the future, and may I remind you of my brother? He is a surprisingly mature seven-year-old!"
"I'll keep that in mind, Sugar, now it's gettin' to be late. Ain't you supposed to be at work with your lady anyhow?" Lottie giggled as her best friend's husbands bounded languidly down the wooden steps of her manor's porch.
Naveen situated his cap comfortably atop his head before beginning the trek back to his homestead and workplace, Tiana's Palace. He glanced back with a whole hearted chuckle, strumming again at the ukulele resting in his strong, tanned arms. "A prince needs his breaks! Mincing is oh so hard these days. Abinaza!"
"Good luck, Princey." The woman replied to what became no one, as the prince slowly faded from view down the still busy dusk streets of New Orleans. She glared at her hands as she slipped back into anger, not liking the distinctly bitter taste her sour attitude seemed to leave in her mouth. She'd find a good man just like Tiana had, no matter what the circumstance. Of this, dearest Charlotte La Bouff was sure.