~The Beginning of a Journey~
Evangeline packed for the journey she was about to endure. She had no idea what she was doing, but from all the stories she heard from her childhood, she remembered one peculiar name:
Mama Odie, the Voodoo Queen of the Bayou. Supposedly, she could do many wonders as the master of voodoo magic, and she lived in a boat in a tree in the depths of the Bayou. She was the only reliable source, and the only person she knew who could probably help them. Now, all she had to worry about were the feral creatures, the murky swamp, and other very dangerous obstacles that could get in their way. But if a person could magically turn into a frog, and if she was able to talk to gators, anything was possible.
It was almost midnight. Evangeline was ready to set course for the journey. Virgil was waiting impatiently in her knapsack, nagging her to hurry up. She pushed him out of her pack as punishment. "You're a frog," she reminded him. "You'll be able to survive in Bayou on your own two webbed feet."
He grunted before hopping out of her room before her. On her way out of the apartment, Evangeline heard scratching on the pavement behind her. She didn't turn her head, but she was able see the silhouette of a certain alligator. Running to the next building, she hid behind the wall in an attempt to expose her stalker. Virgil followed, but he was a little puzzled about what she was doing.
"What the he-"
"Shhhhh! Someone's following us." she whispered. They waited a while for the mystery stalker to come out. Once she saw the familiar shadow, she jump out of her hiding spot and simply said, "Boo."
"AH!" Louis fell back and covered his eyes. He opened up one hand and breathed out a sigh. "Don't scare me like that, Eva. Cut this poor alligator some slack."
"Why are you following me?" she inquired, poking the gator's nose.
"Sorry, Eva, but I didn't think it was safe for you to be out here all by yourself. You know what time it is, don't cha?"
She sighed. "Yes I do." She had forgotten Louis lived in a shed by the pier. She should've had known he could see her. "I'm fine, but ah..." She looked at the frog who was still hiding behind the building. From what she could see, he was quavering, feasibly because of her large, reptilian friend.
Then she thought of something. This voodoo nonsense was probably the reason why she was able to communicate with him. Maybe he knew something. "Louis, do you happen to know anything about... voodoo?"
"VOODOO!"
"Shhhhhhh!" She shut the gator's mouth. "Faldi faldonza, Lou! Calm down."
When she removed her hands, he gulped. "Sorry, but you don't want to mess with voodoo, girl. I only know one person who deals with that kind of hoodoo."
"Who?" she inquired.
"Mama Odie, the Voodoo Queen of the Bayou. She has magic, and spells, and she lives in the deepest, darkest part of the Bayou."
So she is real.
"Why do you ask?"
"Oh! Well, I'm in a bit of a tight fix. You see..." Evangeline couldn't come up with the words she needed to say. How would Louis react if she told him that a self-claimed frog prince just waltzed into her home and wouldn't leave until he helped her change back into a human, and in return, he could possibly help them get Tiana's Palace five star reputation back with his endless supply of imaginary moneybanks? "I have this friend who's in a... predicament."
"Who's this friend?"
"That would be me." The veridian toad jumped out of his hiding spot. "Heya, gator." A voice croaked behind them.
Louis stared at the frog, dubiously. "Who's he?"
"He's my tight fix. You see, his name's Virgil and he happens to be the Prince of Nigeria." She quickly whispered, "Which I find utterly bogus. You see, we're going to look for Mama Odie so we can get this curse off of him. That way, he'll help us get our restaurant back and be rid of our lives forever."
The prince scowled at her. "Hey, I'm not that bad of company, am I?"
"Yes, you are."
Louis facepalmed. "Not another one," he mumbled. "I swear, it's like Naveen and Tiana are voodoo magnets. First the Shadow Man, now-"
"Louis, what are you talking about?"
He froze. He had forgotton that he was still standing with Evangeline and the talking frog. He promised Naveen and Tiana that he wouldn't utter a word about their little magical odyssey-and it was definitely odd-in front of Evangeline. When she was little, she was very gullible, believing the fairytales her parents told to her. Now that she was older, she knew better, but the magic had never left her. The frog prince was proof enough.
Maybe their family is cursed with this voodoo jazz-
"Louis!" the impatient woman shouted at him for the umpteenth time. "Will you help us or not?
Hesitantly, he answered, "I-I ain't know nothing about this voodoo stuff, but I don't think you should go out in the Bayou. It's too dangerous."
"I'm not going anywhere until he's walking on all twenties," She pointed to Virgil. "and once my parents wake up to find that I'm missing, you're going to feel so guilty. Besides," she turned away from him with her arms crossed and a sly smirk growing on her face. "You usually crack under pressure, anyway."
"I do not!" the offended gator protested. "And I'll just tell them, anyhow!"
"Are you sure you could do that? Leaving me so easily defenseless in the Bayou, where I'm vulnerable to anything with just some meager frog?"
"But Mardi Gras is in two days! I have to practice with the band for the parade and-"
"I understand. Well, see you in two days, Lou... maybe." She began walking away, and Virgil soon followed.
"What are you planning?" he asked.
"You'll see."
Louis was perplexed about the situation. He couldn't just leave Evangeline to fend for herself in the Bayou. But if he also left with her and her new froggy friend, Tiana and Naveen would still be suspicious. Of course, leaving her alone was worse than staying behind. He finally cracked under the pressure.
"Alright! I'll come! I'd never forgive myself if anything were to happen to you!"
"Well, if you insist Louis." She shrugged as if she was nonchalant about his situation. "Now, let's go."
Evangeline trotted off before the two green creatures who were still baffled about what just happened. Louis turned to Virgil and said, "I feel doped."
He shrugged. "She's got me, gator. If I were you, I'd do what she says."
Virgil soon followed after her, leaving Louis to his baffled thoughts.
Thus, the threesome began their perilous journey into the Bayou. And as the three began their journey, a lurking shadow watched them from afar. As soon as they were gone, he left to report his discovery to his master.
"Selene! Selene!" Aurorette ran out of her room with a crystal ball in her heads, heading towards her sister. "Selene!"
"Damn it, girl! I'm right here!" Selene scolded her. "Now, what is so important that you need to barge in here like you have no sense?"
"The girl and that toad went into the Bayou!"
Selene scoffed. "That's all? What are they going to do? Look for a magical talking cricket or a fairy that will turn him back into a real boy?"
"But they have a gator with them! And-"
Selene grabbed her lips. "Quit your babbling, Aurorette. There's absolutely nothing to worry about." She released her lips and patted her cheeks. "Even with an alligator, it'll still be quite easy to get to them. Besides, we still have others things to concentrate on. Mardi Gras is coming soon."
"But Sis-"
"And we still need to prepare the sacrifice's ceremony."
"But Selene-"
"Damn it, Aurorette! What is it? Spit out!"
Aurorette shivered in fear before answering her sister. "They're going to see Mama Odie."
Selene froze. "Mama Odie...?"
The younger sister nodded.
The older sister exploded. "THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!" She grabbed the crystal ball in her sister's hands. "Where are they now?" The image that appeared in the glass sphere showed the young woman, along with the notorious frog and her gator friend. "Why didn't you tell me sooner!"
"I was trying to, but-"
"Never mind, Aurorette," the elder one interrupted her sister once again, and sighed afterwards, exasperated. "They won't be able to get far." Selene whistled, summoning a few of their Friends from the Otherside. "Go after that girl and that dumb frog! Make sure they don't reach that boat house." They nodded before going on their search. "Now there's nothing to worry about."
"You make it seem so easy."
"It is easy when you have friends like these. Now, back to the preparations!"
Selene left the room, leaving her sister to her worried thoughts. She had a feeling that their "friends" wouldn't be able to help them for long.
"Louis, do you even know where we're going?"
It was only a few minutes after the group had started their expedition that Louis began to lead them into the wrong direction. They realized that when they passed the same broken stump three times.
"I'm pretty sure this is the way to go," Louis said. "I think."
"Ah, great!" Virgil griped. "Why was it a good idea to trust this guy again?"
Evangeline frowned at him, which quickly shut him up, and went to comfort a moping Louis. "It's okay, Lou. You haven't been in the Bayou in a long time; it's not your fault you don't remember where Mama Odie's is." she consoled him while patting his back. "I think it's better if we stop, anyway. It's getting too late."
"Gee, you think?"
The courageous frog received another glare from her. Even though Virgil's griping was a nuisance, Evangeline had to admit she was extremely tired. It was very late, her hair was a mess, and there was murky water in her boots. She was relieved when they finally stopped.
The group settled by a nearby tree. Louis laid by the water, already snoozing away. Evangeline made herself comfortable using her knapsack as a pillow and wrapped a packed blanket around her body. She had never been camping before, so sleeping outside in a swampy forest was a whole new experience for her. From what she could see, it was also new to Virgil. He was curled up in a tight ball, shivering because of the cold. In pity, Evangeline tore a corner of her blanket and laid it on top of Virgil. He stopped shivering as soon as he realized he was no longer cold. He gripped the torn piece of blanket and wrapped it around his tiny body. Then he saw the princess walk back to her spot. "Thanks," he mumbled.
"You're welcome." she replied.
The fraud prince observed her as she drifted off to sleep. She looked so worn out. He couldn't help but feel... he didn't know. He hadn't felt this way in a long time, and it felt horrible. It was like a heavy weight was inside his chest was accumulating in size. He blamed her for this burden, too. She didn't have to help him. In fact, she was about to reject him, anyway. But he didn't play the trump card on her. Yet, this girl in front of him was still such an enigma to him.
As Virgil continued to look at Evangeline as tried to make herself comfortable, he said, "I don't get you."
She suddenly stopped her what she was doing and looked at the frog. "Get what, exactly?"
"Why are you still here?"
"Why do you think?" Her rhetorical question had a very obvious rhetorical answer, which made the heavy feeling in his chest grow larger.
"But look at you: you're filthy, you're sleeping on the muddy ground for Pete's sake, and you're traveling across the Bayou with a talking frog and a trumpet playing alligator. Why are you so bound on getting me back to normal?"
She sighed in world-weariness. "First off, you bribed me and gave me the guilt trip." She got him there. "And thanks to you, my family's restaurant's reputation is swirling down the drain as we speak, thanks to you." He could feel the venom in her voice when she said you.
"This restaurant seems very important."
"What was your first clue?" He was about to answer when a snore from Louis suddenly interrupted their conversation. Then she continued, "My family worked so hard to get Tiana's Palace. My mom has always told me ever since I was a little girl that she and Daddy had gained that restaurant by working together and not giving up, which was what her father also told her. That was also how they first met." She smiled at that. "There hasn't been that much history put into Tiana's Palace, but ever since she told me that, I couldn't stop thinking about how much I could contribute to it. I want to help continue the family business and have my most treasured memory there. And I want to share these memories with the people I love, just like my parents are doing. If we were to ever lose that place," She covered her face with her blanket. "I don't know what I'll do."
Suddenly, the heavy weight in his chest grew to its limit. What was this feeling, again? Oh yeah: guilt. This innocent young woman was in this situation because of him. Because he couldn't solve his own problems. He knew he couldn't do this alone, but why did he choose this girl? She had a seemingly fabulous life and a family who she cared about deeply, and it sounded like they cared about her deeply, too. It was his fault he was making her miserable.
"So, what about you?" She suddenly questioned him. "What are you going to do once you're human again?"
"Well, I'll tell you what I'm not going to do," he started. "I'm not going to be dealing with no more witches. I'm gonna start fresh. I'll start my business in a different part of town, and-wait, uh..." Virgil had suddenly realized he had blown his cover (even though Evangeline was already suspicious of him from the beginning). He could already see the smirk on Evangeline's face.
"Good night, Prince Virgil," she said before finally going to sleep.
Yep, Evangeline was something, Virgil thought before going to sleep himself.
Sleeping in a wet, mossy jungle suddenly didn't seem so bad after an exhausting jam session. Tomorrow, the group would have a lot more to endure. And there was only one force that could stop them...
TBC...
Don't you love movie references?
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