~The Scam~
Evangeline was confused. For a moment, she thought she heard a frog talk. Frogs, or any kind of animal for that matter, weren't suppose to talk, were they? Sure, her friend Louis could talk, but didn't everybody know that? Couldn't everybody understand him? Everybody in her family could understand Louis, except for her grandmother. She was just like everybody else. And the only talking frog she knew was the prince in the stories her parents told when she was little, and they were just simple fairy tales. They couldn't possibly be true... could they?
None of this was making any sense.
She was still staring at the talking frog, trivial about her next move. The frog was staring at her, insidiously, waiting for her to say or do something.
What should I do?
"Anytime, Princess." he said, teasingly.
"You talk."
"That was already established, wasn't it?"
She knew that and his sarcasm was not necessary, but what else was she going to say? She couldn't think straight. Everything was inside out and upside down. If an alligator can talk, why couldn't a frog? She couldn't understand why she was so confused about this. "It's okay, Eva. It's okay," she told herself. "Just because there's a talking frog in your room and one of your best friends is a talking alligator who can play the trumpet and now you feel like you're going to faint doesn't mean you're crazy. It's just means..."
"Hold on a sec, you talk to alligators?"
"Oh God, I've gone mad!" She collapsed in the chair again and covered her eyes with her hands, panicking.
"Hold up, Princess," the frog hopped onto her dresser. "I didn't mean to freak you out."
"Freak me out?" she barked. "No, no, no, you did more than just freak me out. You-you... Faldi faldonza!" She shot out of her seat, startling the frog on her dresser. She was upset, alright. She had never talked in her father's native tongue unless she was in fermentation or if she was completely astonished; her voice was lacking the excitement, so she was obviously upset. "What am I suppose to think of this? There is a talking frog in my room, but why am I so frazzled? I mean, Louis is a talking alligator for Pete's sake!" She paced around the room as she continued to rant on about the things that kept the frog in the dark. "I can talk to Louis later, but you...! I-I am just... shocked, to say the least. The very least. Who do you think-who are you anyway, huh? What kind of frog are you? Some magically, crazy, talking frog?"
Virgil blinked. "Crazy? The only person here who is crazy is that crazy witch who turned me into this!" He jestered to himself.
Evangeline guffawed. "Okay, let me guess: you're a prince who was turned into a frog by some... psycho witchdoctor because you're a selfish, ignorant brute, and now you're looking for some princess who is gullible enough to actually fall for a sympathetically bogus story like that?"
"Well..." Virgil paused for a moment. A prince, huh? He had heard of this story before: The Frog Prince. It was the fairytale classic story his mom always read to him when he was a child. Back then, he was like any innocent, naïve younster who believed in such delusive tales, including Evangeline; now, he could probaby use that to his advantage. This girl did not look stupid, but she did love frogs; she probably wouldn't mind kissing one. "Yes, I am a prince."
She froze. At first, he thought she actually fell for that ridiculous nonsense, but then she began to laugh again. But he didn't give up hope. He was going to have to use his quick wits in order to get to her. "You, a prince? Please! What do you take me for? An imbecile?"
"No, Princess. But hear me out," Virgil pleaded. Using decorum to get to the girl was already starting to make him sick. He wasn't adjusted to talking so promptly. "I just so happen to be the prince of... Nigeria."
The lavender-clad woman raised an eyebrow. Then she shook her head. "You sleazy, bug-eyed, son-of-a-"
"It's the truth!" he barked at her. He didn't know where this argument was getting them, but he knew it was heading somewhere, hopefully in the direction he wanted it to go.
"Why should I believe you?" she rebutted.
"How else would I be able to talk?" he shot back.
She froze again. This time, he got her. "... Fine. Maybe you are a prince; why should I kiss you, though? I don't even know you, and I'm not justing going to give away a free kiss to some suspicious 'frog prince'. I'm not even a princess."
He groaned, but he quickly stifled it. Lying was a cinch to him, or at least it was supposed to. This girl was more persistent than he thought she would be. The Evangeline he heard about on the streets was always benevolent and willing to help others if she could, but he did not expect her to suddenly turn him down and snap at him. She was acting like a completely different person. "Listen, I just need your help. You can find some other way to change me back, fine. I'll even give you whatever you want if you can find some kind of cure for my... condition, but I desperately need your help."
Virgil seethed after stressing his plea. He had never confessed to anyone in his whole entire life-and hadn't planned on doing it in the future, either-that he was desperate for anything. Evangeline could see that he was having a hard time admitting his desperation, and that was probably something you'd expect from a spoiled, pampered prince like him. She still had her doubts, but she chose to suffice, for now.
"Okay, I'll help ya, but if you're a nuisance-"
"I promise I ain't-I won't cause any you any trouble. If I do, think your folks will believe you?"
"Why on Earth would they believe a talking frog could cause me so much trouble?"
"Evangeline!" A different voice echoed through the apartment, startling the two occupants.
Uncle Lucas!
"Evangeline, are you up there!" She heard footsteps, followed by a couple more and few more calls. Her parents and her uncle had been looking for her, and now they were going to come upstairs to see a frog in her room. As long as he didn't talk, she thought it would be okay. "Stay here, Prince-"
"-Virgil."
"-I'll be right back."
"As you say wish, Princess."
She scowled at him before she quickly retreated out of her room to go to her family's aid. She had almost forgot about the mess the "prince" caused at her party. It wasn't as disastrous as it was humorous to her. The only part about it she didn't appreciate was cleaning up the mess. Her family still needed the place for tomorrow when morning customers came in, and she knew none of the guests would help them clean up. She knew her family wasn't going to make her help clean up the catastrophe since it was her special day, but she loved her family's restaurant so much, she wanted to help them take care of it.
The "prince" watched her as she left to reply to the calls heard ealier. She had a family who was concerned about her; he was almost jealous about it, especially since the whole situation seemed ironic. Now that he had a surbordinate, he wouldn't have any problems, as far as he knew. He had a place to stay, all the food he could eat, and a girl. Now all he needed was a way to change back to his old self.
It can't be that hard, can it?
Meanwhile, outside the restaurant, as the guest began to leave, the two sisters hid in between the Tiana's Palace and the building next door. Before the frog fiasco happened, they went outside and watched the action. Selene grinned at the mere thought of this food establishment falling to the ground because of a simple little toad. Her younger sister, however, was enjoying the scene of many disturbed guests trying to step on the fearful creature.
"That was great, Sis!" Aurorette exclaimed as they went back to their brother's ruined imporium. "It's about time that place had some comedy routines!"
Selene sighed at her sister immature remark. "Focus, Aurorette. Our mission is to get the girl, not to flimsy about."
"I know, I know-Oh, oh! There she is!" The younger sister pointed out the fanciful-dressed princess coming out of the building next door. "What are we waiting for? Let's grab her!"
"No! Not now."
"Why not?"
Selene pointed back to where the princess went. She was no longer alone. Her family and the trumpet-playing alligator soon joined her. "We can't get her with others around. We could get easily caught. We have to wait for the right time."
"What are we going to do now?"
"Go back home, of course! We still have much to prepare for..."
And with that, the two occult sisters went back to their brother's ruined voodoo emporium, planning the family's demise...
Whoop! I updated earlier this time! I think that was my fastest update ever!
R&R!
