Disclaimer: the characters from Princess and the Frog belong to Disney.

Don't You Dare

At her bedroom window, Tiana crossed her arms. She sighed at the setting sun outside, and bit her lip, reflecting over the most troubling events that took place that day.

She reasoned with herself: maybe, she realized, it wasn't so bad. But she still felt herself frown.

Naveen knocked on her bedroom door, three, short, accented raps on the wood. She exhaled.

"I'm not angry with you anymore," she said to him, but facing the windowpane. "You can come in now."

"You have finally cooled off, I'm guessing," he said, letting himself in.

"What do you mean 'finally'?"

"Finally, as in, 'at last', or 'after a considerable period of waiting'-"

"I know what the word means, Naveen." She made space for him to stand by her at the windowsill. "But you say it as though my feelings weren't justified."

Her fiancé chuckled, a bright little rumbling rising in his throat, and smirked at her, raising an eyebrow.

But Tiana huffed, annoyed. "What?" she asked him, "is a sin to be a little jealous?"

"Yes," he began slowly, drumming his fingers against his chin, "I believe it actually is."

"I'm just protecting what's mine," she said firmly. "And it seems like these little girls that come to your shows don't seem to know what an engaged man looks like. So-"

"So you threatened the girl with the meat cleaver?"

"There you go, exaggerating again. It wasn't a meat cleaver," she responded defensively. A little quieter, almost under her breath, she added, for distinction, "It was a bread knife."

Naveen scoffed, clearing his throat, and exhaled through his nostrils.

"I was only joking with her!"

"You were not!"

Tiana let out a little sigh, tightening her arms about her waist. "Well," she began, defensively, "you better remember who you're marrying."

"How could I forget?"

"I'm serious, Naveen! I don't want any of your fan girls trailin' behind us, at your feet like li'l lap dogs!"

"No trailing," he repeated after her, inching his way closer. "Check."

"And no entertaining their feelings, neither."

"No entertaining. Check." He wrapped an arm around her waist.

"And under no circumstances ever, even if I've been long dead and buried for two hundred years-" she grabbed hold of his hand, now lowered down at her hip, and gave it a tight squeeze.

Naveen winced, very slightly, at his fiancée's strength.

"-can any girl besides me-"

"Yes, Tiana?" he asked her, and he let out a little cough, a reminder to her that he still definitely intended on his hand remaining attached to his wrist.

"-touch you." There was a short silence between them; she assumed he was taking in her requests.

"Under no circumstances?" he reiterated, gently.

Her grip around his hand tightened. "None."

He considered this, nodding at her conditions.

"Not even for a congratulatory pat on the back, after a set on stage?"

Her brow furrowed while formulating an appropriate answer. "Well," she said, freeing his hand. "I guess that would be all right."

"What if I took both her hands together like so," he said, demonstrating, "and kissed them, just as a thank you."

"That constitutes as entertaining her feelings, Naveen." She was not amused at his suggestion.

"Or just being graceful!" He chuckled nervously when she didn't return his smile. "I would get punished for being graceful?"

"Well, for sure, you wouldn't be sleeping even in a metaphorical doghouse..."

"You would have me sleep outside for holding her hands? Faldi faldonza, you are cruel."

She pouted her lips, slowly reconsidering. "Alright, alright. Maybe I'd give you the couch to sleep on in the living room. Maybe."

"I would hate to see what would happen if I ever kissed her."

Tiana took a step back, and, with her hands on her hips and her left eyebrow raised, she stared at him accusingly. "Excuse me?"

"Hypothetically speaking!" he assured her. "We're speaking hypothetically, no?"

She laughed, but curtly and sarcastically. "Of course we are! Because if you ever-"

He pecked her cheek, softly illustrating to her what he meant. She didn't even smile, but kept on speaking.

"-think it'd be okay to-"

He abruptly stopped her, mid sentence, catching the side of her mouth in a short peck. She side-eyed him suspiciously.

"-kiss anyone but me-"

His lips worked, finding hers quickly, pressing gently at first, then deeply. His fingers traveled also, tracing the curves in her hips, the warmth of her skin-

She stopped him, hands framing his wrists. But her eyes lowered, and her mouth twisted a little into a slight smirk. She hesitated a bit before speaking.

"N-no," she managed, finally.

"No, what?" Smug, he pressed his lips to her again, quickly. "You should try using your words," he whispered, "Especially since I know that you are eloquent enough to annunciate correctly."

"No," she repeated, smiling as she grabbed hold of her words. "Don't you dare."

Author's Note: So sorry for the exceptionally long wait, you guys! I had this idea floating around for a while, so I figured I better finish writing it before I completely abandon this story altogether. It's a short, fluffy, meaningless little thing, but I still hope you enjoyed it! Thanks to all those that have reviewed, and added this story to their favorites and alerts. It really means a lot!

-vee.