Remember Me?

Night time in New Orleans and nowhere in this whole city was busier than its famous landmark, Tiana's restaurant. For the best part of a century it had stood strongly on the waterfront and survived the destruction of World War Two and the great depression. Over time it had grown to become one of America's greatest icons and it all started with a dream.

When one young lady decided to carry on her father's dream she would stop at nothing to make it come true. Even when misfortune came her way and it seemed that she would lose her restaurant forever hope would arrive in the form of a frog prince. The two became the most unlikely of friends and as their friendship bloomed into love Naveen soon shared Tiana's dream and vowed to do whatever it took to make it come true. Their dream finally began once Tiana and Naveen married and became human again, and thus Tiana became a princess. Together they bought and built the restaurant and little did they know just how big their dream would soon become.

That was decades ago. Over time this princess became a queen when Naveen rose to be king, and when the time came for Naveen to pass down his crown Tiana became known as the Queen Mother. Naveen was forced to surrender his throne to his eldest when old age began to consume his body. A fate we are all destined to meet would soon befall him. Tiana watched over her beloved as he began to slip away as the years went by. The love that bound them together would never break, even when death took Naveen by the hand.

Fifteen years after Naveen's passing Tiana was now fated to follow the same path as she laid in the hospital, frail and bed bound at the age of one-hundred-and-two.

Her body was relaxed as she tried to fall asleep that night, but her mind was too busy thinking about her past and all the friends that she'd made in her life, especially during her time as a frog. Ray. Louis. Naveen. Lottie. Tiana was now the only one left of a group of heros who once saved New Orleans from a shadowy fate. But Tiana knew that life was made up of meetings and partings and her time to part would soon come.

Her only consolation now, as she too was nearing death, was a long awaited reunion. She yearned to be reunited with her friends and family in the next life. Her old age and frail body was not as grim as it seemed, each day Tiana spent laying in a hospital bed brought her one step closer to Naveen. Living the past fifteen years without him had been agonising, sometimes she thought that her heart ache might never leave her. But thanks to her children and grandchildren she found comfort. Especially in Cameron, her youngest granddaughter, who had inherited her grandmother's gift and was now ensuring the future of the restaurant along with Tiana's dream.

But sadly her granddaughter had already left earlier that day along with her new friend Jennifer Crawler and Tiana was now alone in her dark hospital room, still trying to fight the sorrowful thoughts of all those she had lost and calm herself to sleep.

However, something would disturb her peace as she opened her eyes to the sound of something rattling on her bedside table. Tiana laid her eyes upon a jar of wax crayons that her great grandchildren had left earlier that week when they came to visit her. The jar was motionless, as she expected it to be. So Tiana quickly dismissed the strange sound and she slowly allowed her heavy eyelids to fall and resumed her attempt to sleep.

But the noise would once again disrupt the silence as the jar sounded like it was rattling. Tiana stared curiously at the jar, and then, she saw it begin to move on its own.

Tiana breathed in deeply through her mouth and nose, gasping in the oxygen that was being fed into her delicate body by the medical equipment that surrounded her. The jar then slowly levitated, seemingly hovering in the air as a red crayon lifted itself out and began writing on one of the blank sheets of paper. Tiana could not see what was being written, the paper was faced down on the counter and it was too high for her to get an accurate look. But the paper soon raised off the surface all by itself and made its way over to the wall among the other drawings that had been hung there by her young relatives. There, in the midst of all the pleasant and joyful drawings from her grandchildren was a new and frightening illustration. A skull and crossbones drawn in red wax crayon and a message below it that read: 'Remember me?'

Tiana recognised the symbol immediately and suddenly realised that the objects had not levitated on their own. The crayon was in the hands of a familiar a shadow... Tiana suddenly felt a fearful chill run over her body as she now knew she was not alone in her hospital room.

"Tiana."

A low, haunting voice whispered from the corner of the room, a voice she knew all very well indeed.

As the bearer of the chilling voice stood out from the shadows, Tiana laid her eyes upon the same dark figure who once haunted her past. The Shadowman.

"Tiana, your Royal Highness." The Shadowman presented himself as he bowed mockingly before the Queen Mother. "Eighty years, and look at what it's done to that young body of yours. You used to be so pretty. Now you're so… helpless. Hmhmhmm." He hummed a quiet sinister laughter as he approached the suffering Tiana. "You look surprised to see me. Don't be. Do you remember the last time we crossed paths, huh? Did you really think I'd let you get away with what cha did to me?"

The Shadoman was trying to intimidate his old nemesis, but Tiana would not falter. She may have been completely at his mercy but that did not mean she held any fear for this sly villain. Through her laboured breathing she proved her boldness by finding the energy and determination to speak despite the pain it caused her. "I...am not...afraid of you…"

The Shadoman simply leered at her pain. "Still got some fight left in ya I see." He reached into his inside pocket as he continued his attempt to incite fear into his victim. "Whatcha gonna do, huh? Stop me?" He presented to Tiana the same talisman she once used to foil the Shadowman's plans, there it was back in once piece. Tiana knew that she would never be able to take it from him, her frail body would not allow her to move even a limb. But to her relief she saw that the talisman was a mere illusion when it vanished into a puff of pink smoke.

"Won't do no good anyways." The Shadowman taunted. "Haven't cha heard? I'm a free man now, I ain't got a debt to pay this time."

Tiana managed to fight the pain that her breathing was causing her and spoke again. "Are you...going...to kill me...like you did...Ray?"

"Kill you, darlin'?" The concept had crossed his mind, but the Shadowman knew there were implications with this incentive. "Why should I bother when time's gonna do the job for me any day now. Let's face it, Tiana, you ain't a little frog any more. Now I may be a vindictive man but I really should be thankin' ya. If you hadn't have broken my trinket and sent me to the other side I wouldn't be standing here before ya a new man. I'd be as old and dead as that froggy prince of yours."

Like a fresh wound the Shadowman's words stung as they pierced the heart of dear Tiana, reminded of her beloved whom she lost long ago. She took her eyes off her foe and began fighting the tears that were screaming to be wept.

"Oh, what's the matter, darlin'? Did I hit a nerve?" Noticing her obvious distress the Shadowman took the opportunity to torment her aching heart. "How've you coped without him, huh? Pretty badly by the looks of things. I don't know what you saw in that narcissistic womaniser and I don't know why you wouldn't be happy to see him go. I certainly am."

The faint beeps of the heart monitor suddenly quickened in pace as Tiana withheld hidden anger and hostility towards the sadist who tortured her with mere words. The increased heart rhythm was observed by this cruel Shadowman, giving him confirmation that his victim was feeling the pain he intended.

"Your body may be a little busted up, but I see your heart's workin' just fine." Which was more than could be said for the Shadowman in Tiana's eyes. "You shouldn't take things so personally. I'm only havin' some fun with ya. Gonna be my last chance too. I'm sorry that I won't be paying you another visit, darlin'. But I got big plans for this city and I'm afraid I'm gonna be busy as a bee."

Tiana knew what she must ask. It was the only thing she might have been afraid to do at that moment in time, but ask she must. "Just what...are you...planning...to do?"

The Shadowman chuckled to himself as he smirked with self satisfaction. "I'm gonna let you live just long enough to find out." He wandered to the other side of Tiana's hospital bed where her lifesaving equipment was stationed. "It's been a real pleasure talkin' to you again, sweetheart. I'm glad I got to see ya, one last time~" Reaching for the most obvious unit the Shadowman cruelly disconnected the oxygen tank from the mains, rendering Tiana helpless without medical intervention. "Bonne nuit, your highness." He then bid his final farewells before disappearing into the shadows. "Sweet dreams~"

Tiana was left without the medical treatment she so desperately needed. Soon she started gasping for air, unable to get enough oxygen into her lungs. She panicked and started hyperventilating. She began suffocating and struggling to breathe. And then the alarm sounded, alerting medical staff to her urgent condition. Nurses soon flooded into the room and began crowding her bed.

"Queen Tiana!" - "Your highness!" - "What's wrong?" - "Queen Tiana!"

The Shadowman had intended no permanent harm, his malicious actions were only meant to scare Tiana and remind her that she would be powerless to stop him this time round. The Queen Mother of Maldonia would be alright. For now.