Disclaimer: I do not own Meet The Robinsons.
A/N: Italics are thoughts. Frankie is the frog and Franny is the girl. There is a small chance that I may have mixed up their names at one point, so bare with me.
The classroom was silent and still except for the occasional sound of the wind outside pushing branches against the window. All of the desks were set in perfect lines and the chalkboard had been wiped clean, erasers tucked away. No less was expected for the students of Alexander Wilbur Academy, a private high school that was known for catering to the needs of exceptionally intelligent teenagers.
In the back of the room, a small cage sat on a table containing a single frog that was fast asleep. Green skin glistened in the moonlight while its tiny lungs inhaled and exhaled slowly. The animal seemed content in its own way to just lie there. The brick clock tower located in the very center of the school creaked to life as its hands struck twelve o' clock, the bewitching hour.
A tiny click sounded from the keyhole to the classroom. The frog opened one eye blurrily. The door swung open and a girl stepped into the room. Short black hair fell about her face framing a pair of sharp eyes that demanded respect. In her hands she held a small basket that she swung as she walked to the back of the room. Pulling a chair away from the perfect line she sat down not bothering to turn the chair around, resting her chin on its back.
The frog hopped over to her without hesitation. "Hello, Frankie," the girl cooed, undoing the latch to the wire cage. Reaching her hand in, she stroked the frog affectionately before flipping on a switch on the tiny speaker that was attached to the right side of the cage, next to a water bottle that constantly dripped every few seconds. Jazz poured out of the amplifier. A man's deep voice filled the classroom masking the sounds of the wind.
The girl smiled and hummed along to the words she knew by heart as she studied the frog in front of her. Frankie looked back at her curiously, but did not respond otherwise. Sighing, the girl reluctantly shut off the music.
"Hey, I was listening to that," said an amused voice. The girl's eyes widened and she spun around to face a boy her own age carrying a cardboard box in his hands labeled Science Project in large red letters. Large glasses slid partly down his nose, as he smiled at the girl who just looked at him annoyed. His smile faltered at her unwavering glare.
"What are you doing here Lewis?" she asked.
He shifted nervously, almost dropping his box. "I wanted to set up my project beforehand to check for mistakes. I'm hoping to avoid last months fiasco," he said wincing at the memory.
A grin formed on the girl's face reluctantly, as she remembered the improved fire extinguisher he had created. It had proven to be highly reactive to the carbon base contained in another student's work. No one was hurt, but they had been forced to evacuate the school. A faint burnt smell still lingered in the air weeks later.
Taking her grin as a good sign, Lewis placed down his project on a nearby desk before asking hesitantly. "So how is your project going Franny? Is your frog singing yet?"
A slightly darker look settled onto her face. "Oh, like you care," she snapped. "You think I'm crazy just like the rest of them," she said, referring to the majority of her classmates. Even her own friends rolled their eyes when the subject of frogs came up.
Lewis ran a hand through his blond hair that stood straight up on his head. "That's not true. When have I ever said that? I- I think your work is great, revolutionary even."
"I'm teaching a frog to sing Lewis," Franny said exasperatedly. "I'm not solving world hunger or anything."
He moved closer to her and leaned back against a desk. "Well, no," he said slowly, "but you're doing more than that. It's genetically altered. A new species practically."
She nodded reluctantly. "That's true…" Lewis waited silently for her to continue.
"You know," she said looking up. "I've designed Frankie to have a longer lifespan then normal frogs, enhanced his vocal cords and to make him intelligent enough to understand music. I've introduced him to jazz, classical and rock. I've even got permission to come to school after hours to turn on his speakers at night, so he's constantly surrounded by music, but he just won't sing," Franny shook her head. "Whenever I try talking to my parents about it they just try to get me to start something new. They've never understood why I'm obsessed with singing frogs. Sometimes…" she trailed off.
Sometimes I wonder why I even bother.
She looked over at Lewis to find him studying Frankie intently. She blinked in surprise at the intense look of concentration on his face. She'd never looked at him, not really. His eyes were clear and sincere and his messy hair was kind of endearing actually.
"How old is he?" Lewis asked curiously, breaking into her thoughts.
"Hmm…" she said distractedly. "Oh, he's about a year old. Why?"
"Well, I was just thinking that perhaps Frankie hasn't reached adulthood yet," he said. "So that might be why he hadn't shown any musical ability yet."
"That's an excellent theory Lewis, but unless my genetic tampering expanded with the length of his childhood…" she trailed off, pondering this. "Well, anyway we'll have to wait and see," she continued more upbeat.
Lewis nodded. "Franny, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but why are your experiments always about frogs? I've always wondered."
"I want to create the perfect ensemble."
"With frogs," asked Lewis seriously.
Franny looked at him, checking that he wasn't making fun of her. When she concluded that he was not, she nodded. "Yes, with frogs. They have a lot more potential then people realize."
At this moment Frankie decided to let out a large croak. Franny started. "Oh, right. Sorry little fellow, I almost forgot." She retrieved a jar from her basket and emptied its contents into a tiny dish, which she set down in front of the frog who ate greedily. Turning the music on again, Franny tickled the frog under his chin. Lewis watched her fascinated, and when she looked up at him curiously he blushed.
"Sorry," he said when Franny arched an eyebrow curiously. They sat in silence for a moment until Lewis had gathered his courage to speak again.
"At the science fair tomorrow I was thinking that we should set up our booths next to each other. For moral support, I mean," he amended hastily.
She considered it. "Alright," she said slowly. "I suppose that would be alright. Thanks."
"No problem, but I meant support for me. You'll do fine. You're tough."
Franny laughed at that, causing the frog to cower behind a rock. "I always mean to talk to you more often," she said. "But I never do. I'm always too busy."
"Same. We used to talk more when we where younger," he hesitated. "I really liked that."
Franny went red and fell silent. Nothing but the sound of soft music pouring out of the speakers was heard for a moment. Then chairs scraped against the floor as they both tried to rise at the same time.
"I should really go…"
"My mother's waiting for me outside…"
Franny extended her hand toward him. "Well, it was nice talking to you, Lewis. I'll see you around."
"Yeah," he shook her hand trying to ignore the pleasant warmth caused by her touch. Glancing quickly at the expression on her face, he turned to go. Lewis felt his foot catch as though someone had tripped him. Cursing himself for choosing this moment to be clumsy, he crashed into Franny, who gave a small gasp as the two tumbled to the ground. He closed his eyes, cringing in embarrassment.
Soft puffs of air brushed against his face and he didn't have to guess where they where coming from. His body was pressed closely against hers and he frantically tried to think of a way to loosen the tension. He opened his eyes to find her staring at him. Gulping, he couldn't help but wonder if she had always been so pretty or if he had just never noticed.
Back in his cage Frankie hopped up onto a large rock and surveyed the landscape. The tiny speaker connected to the walls of his home slowly pattered out as the song finished. Blinking, the frog almost seemed to contemplate this. Turning his tiny head to the side he opened his mouth and croaked out a perfect C-sharp.
Underneath him, Lewis felt Franny jump in surprise. Her breath increased slightly as she craned her neck trying to see Frankie. Lewis stared determinedly at the tile next to her right shoulder.
Frankie let out another note, and then another slowly but perfectly producing the song that had been playing on the speaker for the past five minutes.
"Oh," whispered Franny in delight. Lewis made the mistake of looking at her directly. Her eyes were shining and he couldn't resist brushing his mouth gently against hers. She flinched, but then her arms snaked around him and she sighed, pulling him closer.
The door opened and closed, seemingly by itself. Out in the hallway, a boy reappeared in a bright burst of light. He peeked back into the room, to see Franny and Lewis still entangled.
He gave a quiet chuckle. "All right, Dad," Wilbur Robinson muttered before he turned and walked back to his time machine whistling.
A/N: Please let me know what you think. Review!