Heya people! So here is the last chapter of the great adventures of Bertie the Frog, hope you'll enjoy it xD
Sorry if I didn't reply to every review, I'm kinda short on time these days but just so you know they are as greatly appreciated and make me smile every time :3
Thanks to TheWritingDampire; lysjelonken; theskydreamer; mia66; MissDonnie; Viviskilener-jisbonist4ever; x-Pick'n'Mix-x; 1832TeaQL; The HongKonger; Frogster ;Anna; Jisbon4ever; BFangz for their reviews :3 thanks for the alerts and favourite too !
And thanks to my half-beta for correcting this :D
Disclaimer: only Bertie is mine ^^ Sort of. Hope you'll enjoy this (won't blame you if you don't ;3
The Frog
3
"What was a frog doing in your office in the first place?"
Lisbon sighed while checking around for any sign of the creature. Hightower had joined the search under the pretence she did not want a free frog jumping around and scaring off visitors or other agents. The senior agent though figured the black woman wanted to take a short break, and the whole story –though she would never admit it- amused her. Van Pelt was mercifully sent back to her desk, but kept on checking her surroundings every two seconds.
What damages a single frog could do to an entire bullpen amazed the small brunette. A few agents had spilled their coffee, drink or food over their shirt, one witness had unsuccessfully tried to smash it under his shoe and it had drawn the attention of director Bertram while he unexpectedly showed up for a visit. And who knew the big boss of the CBI was afraid of such a tiny green little thing, and that the man squeaked like a little girl?
"It's a present from Jane ma'am" Lisbon grumbled under her teeth, kneeling on the floor to glance under a closet. She ignored the puzzled gaze of two men passing by, as well as the ogling her behind received while she was still on her hands.
"Does Jane often give you these kinds of presents?" Hightower asked, checking under a desk.
"It's just a punctual thing ma'am."
A high-pitched scream made them both raise their head and trot towards a nearby corridor. Bertie was jumping after a brown-haired secretary –Rachel Browns- with great speed for such a small creature. Lisbon hurried after the creature, resisting temptation to call after it like she would with a dog. As if an amphibian would response to its name!
Rachel ran in the closest room and shut the door fast enough. The frog stood there for a moment before starting to move again. But Lisbon was quicker this time. She caught the creature before it could jump away and held it firmly in her hands.
"Gotcha" she couldn't help but smirk in victory. The frog didn't try to escape, but his large black eyes were back on her.
"Ribbit"
"Oh don't you find excuses" Lisbon growled, narrowing her eyes at him. "You are going back to your jar and at then end of the day I'll put you in a pond so you won't bother anyone anymore."
"Ribbit, ribbit" the frog cawed, and the agent had that familiar feeling when Jane was trying to justify his actions.
"No excuses" she repeated more firmly. "And you should be grateful. I could do far worst. Remember that French restaurant?"
The frog didn't caw this time, and Lisbon smiled amusingly.
"Nothing else to say?"
Bertie blinked and kept staring at her.
"Good. Now be a nice frog and don't try to escape again, or I will take drastic measures."
"Ribbit, ribbit"
Lisbon smirked again and suddenly realised she wasn't alone. Hightower was staring at her in disbelief, as well as three other agents obviously wondering why she was talking to her clasped hands. The senior agent wasn't someone to blush in embarrassment easily. But here, she did. The black woman eventually said with an extremely solemn tone and a hint of amusement in her eyes:
"Good catch, agent."
-TF-
The rest of the morning went smoothly and slowly, as no case arrived on the senior agent's desk, nor Jane showed up to make Lisbon's life a misery. As she put down her pen, having finished all the pending paperwork, the senior agent figured she had found Jane's perfect replacement. Bertie had shown himself an extraordinary pain by cawing every few moments and trying to escape by jumping inside his jar. He almost managed to do so when Rigsby had brought a few dead flies to feed him, but thanks to Van Pelt's developed sixth sense with the creature, he didn't wander too far. A small yelp and Lisbon was out of her office, running after the fugitive creature with an amused smirk when people jumped away at the frog's sight.
At lunchtime, the senior agent decided now would be a good moment to release the creature. She didn't want it in first place, so instead of letting it rot in her office all day, she figured setting Bertie free now would be best. During the walk to the pond, she didn't say a word. The frog cawed once or twice on the road, uncomfortable with all the ups and down moving his cage of glass. The place Van Pelt had indicated wasn't too bad-looking, the senior agent decided. The pond was surrounded by wild herbs and reeds, in the shadow of a large tree and situated in a very quiet place, far from the road and eventual passer-bys.
Lisbon crouched and glanced at the creature with a hint of regret.
"As annoying as you are, you are quite entertaining, you know?"
The frog sounded out the walls of glass of his prison, as if scanning the new environment and not paying attention to his mistress anymore.
"You scare off everyone, I need to run behind you to reaper your damages and yet you still make me smile sometimes." she went on, sighing deeply. "Bertie isn't a suitable name for you. They should have called you Jane junior."
"Ribbit, ribbit"
The agent smirked and opened the jar. Immediately, Bertie jumped out of the pot and landed on the humid earth. He didn't move for awhile, standing there immobile as a stone. Then, Lisbon's mobile rang. At the unfamiliar sound, Bertie –or now Jane Junior- jumped into the muddy waters of the pound and swam away. Ignoring the twinge in her chest, the brunette sighed and picked up without glancing at the ID.
"Lisbon."
"So, did Bertie enjoy his morning at the CBI?"
The senior agent sighed in annoyance. Of course, he would call to get an update on the consequences of his actions.
"Even without being actually here, you still manage to create a huge mess. And that's not a compliment" she added, slightly annoyed when he chuckled in response.
"Mah, a bit of animation can't hurt. And it served my purpose in the end."
Lisbon raised an eyebrow at his words. What purpose?
"You're not angry anymore."
Tea end :3
Thank you for reading this till the end and see you in another fic :D