Sorry to say, but chapters are going to come extremely slow for the next few months. Terms just started, and I need to focus on my classes. I hope you understand my situation.

Chapter 10: Gumbo

After what seemed like an eternity, Anna finally allowed their lips to separate. Time had resumed once more: snow had begun falling and cars began picking up speed. Anna quickly licked her lips, coating them with saliva as she realized how warm they feel right now in sharp contrast towards Elsa's cherry red ice ones. "Wow...Elsa...that was..." she gasped, staring at Elsa flushed cheeks.

"Your first kiss?" Elsa answered, a little embarrassed at their very first public display of affection. She began rubbing her hands together, as if trying to light a spark of heat between them. Anna nodded very shyly. "I'm glad I get to be your first."

"Well, there's certainly a first time everything." She rose up, padding away snow from her lap and extended her cool, white hand. "Let's take you home."

Anna took her up on that offer.

...

Anna is munching on some stale Ramen noodles. The bland, textureless taste of manufactured noodles crunched loudly in the Arendelle cafeteria. Before her, her inmates were eating their standard prison issued breakfasts. Several of them were shooting mean looks towards Anna, jealous that the shiny new inmate gets to purchase food from the commissary.

"Stale ramen noodles for breakfast?" inquired Rapunzel.

"That, and with - " Anna pointed towards a square-shaped silver wrapped bread "pop-tarts, - " Anna pointed to a bag of chips with triangular pieces on the cover " - Doritos - " Anna pointed to a blue plastic bottle " - and a bottle of Gatorade, it all makes for a scrumptious, nutritious meal." After all, she was going to need the energy. Today is the day that she'll finally begin on working her prison shifts. Despite the circumstances, she felt pretty pumped and exited for the upcoming task.

"Don't forget them can of peaches." added Jasmine, pointing to them with a fork.

"Yes!" Anna grabbed her unopened can of peaches and lifted them high in the air so that everyone near her table can see them. "These can of peaches."

"How'd it go with Kristoff?" Snow asked, curiosity in her eyes. "He seems like such a nice guy."

"Consider yourself lucky yours is alive." Jasmine added glumly, munching on stale bread.

"But seriously...reindeer herding?" asked a concerned Pocahontas, spearing a slice of apple with her fork. "Ice shipment? Those jobs seem kind of unusual."

"He's an unusual guy. A bit of a dork. You know he actually talks to his dog, and he says out loud what he thinks his dog is thinking."

"Yikes."

"Part of the appeal, I guess. Kind of cute, but in an adorkable way."

"Uh-oh. Here's Officer Westerbitch again." muttered Snow through a mouthful of stale cereal (expired, no doubt, thought Anna). Sure enough, the smug auburn-haired came in strutting in the cafeteria. Leaning on the wall, Hans puffed his chest as he gazed across the room. Anna wondered how on earth that man hasn't been shanked in this institution.

Pocahontas turned to Anna, lowering her voice to a hush. "Don't get on his bad side for the past coming of days. He always gets this cranky on the days leading up to Valentine's Day." When Anna was about to ask why, Pocahontas shrugged. "He's going through his man period, I guess."

Anna let out a snort of laughter. "Wait, what's a Shot?" She had never heard that term before.

Rapunzel leaned in forward this time. "Think of it as a series of warnings. Get three in a row, and you go to...you know." she pointed to the floor. Anna stared at here, confused at what she was doing.

"Solitary confinement." Jasmine completed.

Anna nodded her head slowly. "I see." Don't get on sideburn's badside. Avoid him if possible. Pretty much what she planned on doing ever since she set foot in this place.

After finishing her breakfast (some of the other inmates were still glaring at her), she headed over to Flynn's office. It's here that Anna be reporting every day in order to find out what job she'll have to complete. Knocking on the door, Anna entered in Flynn's office. It was a tiny place, but practically bursting with personality and color. Pictures of movie posters about swashbuckling heroes and adventure hung on each wall.

"Oh, hey, Anna! It's been 1 week here in prison. How do you feel?" asked Flynn, who was already hard at work with numerous files and reports lying in front of him.

"Adapting surprisingly well. What is it that I need to do for today?"

Grabbing a manila folder from the cabinet, Flynn opened it and examined one of the sheets. "Hm...let's see. Report to the library and assist the librarian till lunch. Then after that, help Tiana clean up the kitchen." He looked up at Anna, smirking. "Seems like there starting you light."

"Lucky me. See you around." And with that Anna, departed for the library. Entering in the familiar room once more, she was greeted with the smell of vintage books and dusty shelves. Oddly enough, Anna felt quite comfortable here, as the library's warm glow and wooden furniture stood in stark contrast with the peeling beige paint and plastic furniture that made up the other rooms here.

Immediately, a sense of nostalgia hit Anna. This room eerily reminded her of Kristoff's apartment. Closing her eyes, she could easily vision herself lying on the creaky wooden floors of her fiancé apartment, as he played about with Sven while trying to file his taxes...

"Hello."

Opening teal eyes to reality, Ana turned to face the person before her."Oh, hello."

"I am Bella." the woman said, extending a hand for Anna to take. Belle stood and with a certain air of grace and poise. Her brunette hair was the exact same shade as Rapunzel, but slightly wavier, and held back in a ponytail. "I'm somewhat of the de-facto librarian, for all intense and purpose."

"Anna."

Belle lifted one elegantly sculpted eyebrow. "Let me guess: Norway?"

"Nope. From Arendelle. Why do you ask?"

Belle smiled. "You pronounce it the Norwegian way."

"And how do you that?"

"Merely observant. Um...so why are you here?"

"I was sent here from Flynn to assist you for my work hours. Looks like this place could use it."

"It's a crappy minimum security women's prison. This place only needs the meet the bare threshold to count as functioning. Just look around you." Bella indicated around her, dusty library shelves packed with peeling books. Light was streaming from the windows, highlighting the dust in the air as well. "First we gotta clean the shelves. As you can see, they've accumulated quite a bit of muck on them."

"That I can see. Do this place get dusty rather quickly?"

Bella nodded. "After you've clean them, help me sort them out." She pointed to the numerous books laying around. Some carts were stacked to the brim of them, while others were scattered across the library. "I have everything arranged in a particular order, so I want you to follow my instructions carefully. Got it?"

Nodding, Anna set of to work. Following Belle's orders, she carefully removed the books from the shelves and wiped the counters. It was dull, monotonous work with little to know effort or thought placed behind the actions. Occasionally she would find unique and random items hiding underneath the books or in between the pages, such as a lighter, match, pen, or even a condom.

So this is what working is like, thought Anna. She had never had a job before in her entire life. During university, she had only done volunteer work or internship programs. Her entire post-college life has been nothing but traveling and blogging with Elsa. With Elsa, there was no taxes to file or projects due. There were no daily routine for her to commit to in order to pay of her bills.

With Elsa, there was no responsibility.

Here in prison, everything changes. Here is an institution where everyone must follow the rules and protocols, lest she face the ramifications of her transgression. Anna chuckled silently at the sheer irony of it all: one of life's greatest lessons is being learned and practiced in a women's prison.

After some time has passed (Anna lost count), Belle spoke up. "College educated? Traveled about?"

Anna blinked. How on earth does this woman know so much about her? It was borderline clairvoyance, and it was starting to unnerve Anna. She turned to face her. "What are you: psychic?"

"No. Just observant. You've a way of moving. Very good organizational skills."

"Degree in journalism."

"Bookish type?" Belle asked, hazel eyes glowing brilliantly with excitement.

Anna shook her head, twin pigtails flailing around. "Use to be, but not really anymore." Anna squinted slightly, trying to get a better look at the curious brunette before her. Now is the time to flip the tables around. "But I assume you are."

Belle placed her hands on her hips. "How do you know?"

"Well, for starters, you're the librarian. Every time I see you in the bathrooms in the morning, you wash your reading glasses. Oh, and you've several paper cuts on your fingers." Belle raised an eyebrow again, silently impressed. "I'm very observant as well."

Belle looked up at the clock. 12:00 PM. "Look at that. Just in time for lunch. Let's go."

"Wonder what Tiana's cooking for lunch? I'm starving."

"No clue. Probably either chicken casserole or her signature gumbo. She's a true southerner, all right."

As the two girls made her way to the kitchen, Anna stopped for a moment to consider something.

Tiana. Hm...why does that name does ring a bell...

...

Tiana stopped and took pause at the gleaming restaurant before here.

A sleek, modern, polished Art Deco themed architecture stood before her, clashing horribly with its surrounding modern buildings. Its warm, vibrant yellow glow gave of a distinct aura sophistication and class. Handing on the top of the building is a billboard with light bulbs that formed the word "Tiana's".

To Tiana's delight, it was paced with full of laughing and smiling customers who seem to be enjoying their food.

"Here we are daddy. Our dream at last." she said, breathing it all in. All her years of sweat, blood, and tears were standing before her very eyes. If dreams could take a form of their own, it'd be standing right before her. Here she was, in the city, trying to make a splash in the culinary scene of downtown Arendelle! Taking in the sight one last time, she began waking towards the front entrance.

"Oof."

"Ouch."

"Urgh."

Tiana fell to the ground as she collided with two other people. "Oh, gosh. I'm so sorry for bumping into you two." Getting up, she dusted sand and gravel from her green trench coat to get a better look at the people she bumped into.

Both of these women were very young. Early 20's surely, thought Tiana.

"No, we should be apologizing. Are you alright? We were just leaving from Tiana's." said the red-headed young lady, who was wearing a playful white summer dress, which seem to compliment her twin pigtail braids and warm, freckled face very well.

"The recently new Southern Fusion bar/restaurant? Is it good?" Tiana asked excitedly. She always received feedback from her customers, but she had the sneaking suspicion that they were holding back their honesty for fear of hurting her feelings.

"Loved it." This time, it was the platinum-haired woman that spoke. She looked like the very definition of a modern young woman: band shirt, blazer, and blue jeans that juxtaposed beautifully with her pale skin, Victorian facial features, and braided ponytail. She then turned to her red-headed companion. "Not a lot of southern food here in Arendelle. Looks like the owner found his or her niche market."

The red-headed nodded eagerly. "Yeah, that gumbo really interesting, though. Never had anything like it." Waving goodbye, she and her blonde companion walked away.

Tiana couldn't help but smile. They liked her restaurant. No, they said that they loved it! She led out a squeal of delight as she entered in her own restaurant.

The inside of the restaurant matched its external appearance: golden Art Deco decor filled every inch of the dining hall. Loud Roaring 20's music blared from the speakers, competing for loudness against the clanging of alcoholic beverages and dining chatter. Walking over to the counter of the bar, she gave the bartender a hug.

"Hey, baby. How're the customers?"

A man with a dark complexion and strong jaw embraced her. "Absolutely in love with this restaurant. Soon the reviews will be and this restaurant will be known throughout the entire world. And then," he lowered his voice to an intimate whisper. "you'll be queen of the world."

"What does that make you? A king, Naveen?" Tiana whispered back, smile curled ever so slightly.

Naveen nodded, wavy brown locks bobbing. "Exited about getting to marry one?"

Tiana kissed him squarely on the lips. "I already have the pleasure of kissing him." Tiana kissed him on the forehead. "And again." She kissed him in the lips again. "And again."

Naveen returned the favor by lifting her bridal style and carrying her to the very top of the restaurant. Kicking through the door, Naveen twirled Tiana around on the rooftop as her world blurred around her. She couldn't simply be more happier right now. She was living her dream as a restaurateur.

Back in New Orleans, she was born in an impoverish life. Both parents were struggling to make ends meet, and often weren't around at home. Nevertheless, they did impart few loving words that Tiana will always hold form the heart: "Don't let anybody tell you what you can't be."

Truer words have never been spoken.

Disaster struck in the form of her father's death, but that didn't slow her down one bit. Tiana work hard to save every scrap of tip she earned as a lowly waitress in New Orleans. Building her future was wasn't easy, but who said it was to begin with. Hard work does pay of at the end, after all. And it was here at last: spinning around with her fiancé on top of her father's legacy.

"I say, is it true that this place's gumbo is simply to die for?"

Regaining her balance (she was spinning rather rapidly), Tiana faced the one man who could put a damper on her day (and would least expect to find here of all places).

"Facilier." Tiana spat with the most venom she could muster.

"Tiana." said Faciliar. Sporting a violet tail coat, red sash, black slacks, and walking cane, he gave off the distinct impression of unreliability and shadiness. His tall, thin frame only heightened these traits. "And Naveen. What's a Maldonian like yourself doing all the way here in Arendelle?"

"That's really none of your concern." Naveen coldly replied.

"Of course it is, playboy Say hello to your little brother for me," Facilier said, walking towards the two of them. "And as for you, Tiana, I never expect you to end up here of all places."

Tiana raised an eyebrow. Racism was a thing she learned to endure through thick skin, but even she wouldn't expect one to come from Facilier. "What's that suppose to mean?"

"This a nice fancy place you got going on here, Tiana. Your daddy must sure be proud of you."

"He is, Facilier."

"Oh, please. I prefer the title Dr. Facilier." he said, spinning his cane for dramatic effect.

Naveen let out a snicker. "And where does your doctorate in expertise lie on, if I may ask?" Tiana doubted any form of academic qualification coming from a man like Facilier, no matter how accredited there sources may be. Something just doesn't feel right about the man before him. He felt almost...out of this world. Like his shadowy form belonged in two different places.

"Acquisition." Facilier said loudly, snapping Tiana from her trail of thought. "Were I a betting man - and I'm not, by the way - I'd wager I'm in the company of some very business savvy people."

"Under normal circumstances, I'd take that as a compliment. I know where this is going, Facilier."

Facilier chuckled, his tone becoming much more serious and baritone. "Have you heard read upon my latest offer?"

"Yes, and my answer is the same answer you're gonna get: no. This restaurant is not for sale." The thought of selling her restaurant was completely repugnant in her eyes.

"Are you absolutely sure? We can discuss it over dinner? How 'bout tomorrow? Say - "

Tiana had enough of this. Walking directly up to meet face to face with the man before her, she looked directly in his violet eyes and said, "Dr. Facilier, my stance on your inquiry has been made clear to you. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Facilier stared right back at her for a complete 30 seconds. Both of them stood their ground, and didn't break eye contact. After a while, Facilier let out a sigh, resigning defeat. "No. I will take my leave." Spinning on his heel, Naveen began walking towards the exit doorway.

"Dr. Facilier, wait!"

Facilier spun around. "Yes, dear Naveen?"

Naveen puffed up his chest. For someone a good half-a-head shorter, he certainly came off rather non threatening. "As this is private restaurant, I can notify the authorities if you pose any threat to my wife, her business, or her customers. You understand, Doc?"

"I certainly do." Facilier said in his most deadpanned voice.

"But that's just the tip of the iceberg. As a Maldonian, I got friends in on the other side of the sea. People in places that could make your life a living nightmare." Naveen leaned in closer, his voice dangerously close to a lethal whisper. "Please don't give me a reason to use said connections."

Facilier couldn't take it anymore. Here he was, on the top of a restaurant, trying to conduct a reasonable business transaction. Not only was he refused, but he was even threatened because of it! By a man who appeared as threatening as a butterfly. By a man who couldn't even get a job in this city, no less. The irony of it all! He let out a bellow of a laughter. "You shouldn't be goin' around saying such disrespectful things to me, little man." Facilier dropped his voice to an even deeper baritone, so that only Naveen could hear. "I've got friends on the other side as well."

...

"Anna? Where were you? On the other side of your mind?"

Anna blinked rapidly. She had just realized that she has been standing in the kitchen with Tiana, dazing out in the window. "Oh, sorry." Tiana groaned, walking over to the window to close the blinders.

"OK, Anna. It's after lunch, and you're working with me now. First question: have you ever been in a kitchen?" Tiana scrunched her face for a few seconds, realizing what she had just said. "Ignore the sexist, patriarchal undertone of that question and answer the question."

Anna nodded. "Yes." After lunch, Anna was assigned to work with Tiana and assist her in cleaning with the kitchen. Anna suspect that this entailed to a lot of scrubbing, cleaning, and lathering.

Exhilarating. I'm jumping for joy.

Tiana raised an eyebrow. "Ever worked in one?"

"No, but I know how to cook and clean."

"Thank goodness. You'd be surprise how most of these bitches here can't actually do either. We'll start of with the pantries..."

Anna quickly learned how she runs the kitchen and her preferred way of cleaning and kitchen utensil placement. Compared to working in the library, the kitchen was a loud noisy place full of clanging pots, emptying trash cans, and wheeling carts. The sound of running water was always present, as was the soft clacking of sneakers on the kitchen ceramic floor.

"You two at the kitchen. How fitting."

Weeling around, Anna faced the one man who she despised the most in this prison institution. "Officer Westerguard." she spat with the most venom she can muster. Hans smiled his sick sneer.

"Ah, excellent. You remembered." He turned to face Tiana with filthy green eyes and snapped his fingers. "Sandwich. Now."

"I'm cleaning."

"Well, then. Stop what you're cleaning, and fix me my sandwich." retorted Hans, tapping his foot on the ceramic tiling floor.

"Hey, we're working really hard - "

"Give me lip like that one more time and I'm writing you for a Shot." Hans shot back at Anna with a sickening smile.

Anna shot him a filthy look, gritting her teeth. She knew the dangers of Shots, and if accumulated enough, she could very well be placed in SHU. Eventually, it could have an effect on her prison record, and she might not get to leave early. Resisting the urge to knock Hans out with a dirty frying pan, she vigorously scrubbed the grease from the pantries. As much as she loved her new found spirit in working and a daily routine to follow, it was hard to enjoy said work without being harassed at a daily basis from Hans.

"Here you go, Officer." Tiana laid an elegantly made sandwich in front of Hans. "Dried turkey with tomatoes, lettuce, onions, and Cesar salad."

Hans looked at it with a critical eye, and after careful examination, took a bite out of it. "Hm. Not bad. And here I though your cooking sucked. At least you know how to do something right." Finishing the sandwich in a few quick bites (Anna wondered how could a man eat like that so fast), Hans dusted his hands of as he walked away, whistling about.

Anna turned to Tiana. "I know. I wanna kill him as well."

Tiana let out a half smile. "I take it that you're not friends with sideburns."

"Is anybody here is?"

"Nobody I can't think of right off the top of my head. How any of his co-workers tolerate a man like Westerguard is a mystery I will never understand. Pfeh. I'd almost feel sorry for them."

"To be fair, some of them are nice. They're just doing their job." explained Anna, thinking of Flynn and how kind and professional he was.

Tiana ripped out a loud snort. "Yeah, and I'm simply doing mine. By feeding you lot and making sure that I don't succumb to the sudden urge to stab somebody in the eye."

Anna let of a giggle. "You're funny."

"Thanks." Silence fell between the two girls as both began peeling garlic for tomorrow's meal.

"Say, Tiana..." Anna trailed, breaking the silence. Tiana grunted. "Judging by your accent, you were raised in the South, right?"

"New Orleans to be precise. Why the sudden interest? You thinking of breaking out and going to hiding over there?"

"No thanks. Got enough freckles on me already. Every inmate I talked to said that you were the only one with professional kitchen experience. Did you ever work in a restaurant before?"

"Yeah..." Tiana said slowly, eyes closed. "Owned one as well..."

Anna's eyes widened up. "Wow. That's sound amazing. What happened to it, if you don't mind me asking. I can only assume that you've been in prison for quite a while, so somebody has to be taking care of it."

Tiana placed her knife down, sighing to that request.

...

It was raining.

No, scratch that. It was pouring.

Entering in her apartment, Tiana took of her wet trench coat and hanged in the coat hanger, the daily newspaper safely in her hand. It was a dingy apartment that smelled eerily of sweat and perspiration. Pizza boxes were scattered everywhere, and the place was littered with crossed out music sheets containing multiple revisions.

"So he's really serious about this music thing, huh?" Tiana muttered under her breath. Her husband was always one for the performing arts. As much as Tiana loved seeing her fiancé sing and dance in front of her, her practical side squashed any real enjoyment of it when Naveen said he wanted to do this for a career. Everybody knows the how hard it was to make it in the music industry, especially in this economy.

Just then Naveen came sliding to her view from the kitchen in his underwear, tapping his foot as he strummed his signature ukulele. Turning around to see his wife soaking wet in the doorway looking at him, he jumped back in surprise. "Ooh, Tiana. Honey, I didn't expect you to be here so early. How was your day?"

Tiana cast a curious eye on her husband's near naked form, smiling ever so slightly. Impeccable form aside, it was quite odd seeing him in his underwear. "Naveen, why are you in your underwear? And have you found a job yet?"

"Uh...it helps with me composing music? And yes I have! I've sent out a bunch of resumes." Naveen said, strumming a few cords on his ukulele. He decided it was best to change topics. "Anyway, back to the matter in hand. How is the Anton's review?"

Anton Ego was the biggest food critic in all of the world. Hailing from France, his infamous reviews were known both for their superb European wit and their power to either make or break a cook's career (or in Tiana's case, save).

"Well, we're about to find out." Opening the newspaper the page 4, Tiana read out loud the review. "'An amusing restaurant: Tiana's, a Southern fushion bar/restaurant. What is even more amusing is that she actually thinks that she has a business here in Arendelle as a legitimate cook. I, on the other hand, take cooking quite seriously, and I think her cooking weights in as much as $10.00 gumbo soup I purchased from New Orleans.'" Tiana folded the newspaper and tossed it on the couch, looking defeated. "They hated it."

"But gumbo is your signature meal!" Naveen exclaimed.

Tiana crossed her arm, looking to the side. "That's the point. That was my father's family signature dish."

If there was one thing about predictable about life, it was the unpredictability of it. In the beginning, Tiana's was a hit, and was the only thing anybody could've talked about in Arendelle. No one would have expected a Southern fusion restaurant to have been so successful in the first place, yet Tiana defied all expectations. Dr. Facilier eventually stopped all attempts to purchase her restaurant, and stopped coming to the restaurant all together.

That's when things turned a little darker.

Strange phenomenons were suddenly reported near the restaurant. Next thing she knew, an actual mugging actually occurred just two blocks from the restaurant itself. It was a complete shock at first, as Tiana's is located in the commerce section of downtown Arendelle, a place of relative low crime.

Then strange things began happening inside the restaurant itself. Equipment started malfunctioning, and waiters kept messing up the customer's orders. It was if the restaurant itself was placed with a voodoo curse, affecting everyone in it and its surroundings. Nasty rumors started to spring around the area regarding illegal drug shipping. Pretty soon, the whole area soon got much more violent. Property value lowered. Eventually,people stopped going to Tiana's restaurant out of fear of being in the wrong side of town.

Tiana could not believe what she was seeing. Her very dream was crumbling before her very eyes. Soon she'll be working in the neighborhoods she grew up in New Orleans. Tiana couldn't stand such a disgrace. She worked hard to get where she was at.

Desperate to change things around, Tiana invited Anton Ego, one of the most prolific and controversial food critics to her restaurant. She had hope to capitalize on shock value and a good review on her restaurant to increase my attention and customers.

Only that it had backfired on her. His review decimated her self-esteem, obliterating any sense of salvaging a culinary career. Soon she'd have to close the restaurant and find another job.

Sensing Tiana's disappointment, Naveen's dropped his ukulele. Pulling her in for a hug, he said, "Oh. Tiana, I'm so sorry."

"What are we going to do? This recession isn't letting going to let up for quite some time, and Anton Ego's review was the last chance to save my restaurant." she sniffed, fresh tears forming in her eyes. "Now my restaurant's reputation is ruined."

Naveen patted her in the back. "Don't worry, beloved. We'll find a way through this."

Tiana nodded in his chest when she leaned her head shoulder. Something black caught her eye. "Naveen, what's this?" Reaching down the couch, Tiana pulled out a little black dress with bits of strands of shoulder length blonde hair and brown curly hair.

Naveen's hair.

Naveen looked as at the dress for a full 3 seconds. Eyes slowly widening to what has transpired in front of him, he wheeled to face his future wife with nostrils flared and brows furrowed in a sharp V. "Honey, I can explain."

"Explain what? The fact that you've been sleeping with some hoe?" Tiana snapped, throwing back the black dress at Naveen.

"It's more complicated than that. You see - "

Tiana jabbed a finger at Naveen's chest. "Oh, so you admit it! You admit that you're a filthy lying, unfaithful, cheating son of a - "

Tiana was interrupted by a strong backhand slaps on her face. Naveen looked practically vivid, with bloodshot eyes and fuming ears. "Now look here, I wouldn't be like that if we were in this situation. It's been hard on me as well - unable to find a second job."

Tiana rubbed her face gently. It stung rather harshly, though it fell dull compared to the one in her heart. Her first love broke had broken her heart. This was the first time Naveen had actually struck her. This was, however, not the first time he displaced blame on his victims. Gathering herself up, she looked Naveen dead in his eye. "Maybe because you never learned anything of substantial. Aside from learning how to play that stupid guitar of yours."

"It's a Maldonian guitar. You know how much those are worth?" Naveen said, exhaust at the accusation.

Tiana let out a chuckle. "Tell me, rich boy. When you married me, did you think that you were going to be financially secured?. That it was going to be easy for the both of us? Or - or did you have some master plan of screwing some white hoe along the way?"

"You little bit - "

"Come any closer, and I'll charge you with assault and battery." Tiana said strongly, keeping him at arm's bay. Tiana could take up a lot of things. A poor upbringing. A dead father. A failing career. But one thing she could not tolerate was unfaithfulness. Tiana turned, gathering her belongings and walking to the doorway.

"Tiana, baby, please." Naveen said, lips quivering slightly.

"Don't you baby me, because the next time you see me, it will be with a divorce attorney." Tiana paused at the doorway, then turned around. "You know what, do whatever you want. I'm done with you."

Naveen snapped quickly, grabbing Tiana's arm. "Wait, baby! Where are you - "

"Don't you 'baby' me, you dirty little cheater. Now get out of my way." Tiana yelled, flailing her arm to let go of Naveen's grip. She was going to need some fresh air after this. Time alone to calm her mind and clarify her thoughts. Maybe she'll go back to the restaurant. Change it to another business. That could work. She was always the adaptable type. Blinking away tears, she stormed out of the apartment and descended downstairs of her apartment complex.

"Tiana, can't we please just talk for a minute?"

Entering in the parking lot underneath the apartment complex, Tiana ignored Naveen and looked for her truck. Locating it near the far end near the the exit ramp, Tiana entered in her vehicle. Locking herself in and rolling in the door, Tiana turned on the engine and began to burst into tears. Letting it all out with each hiccuping sob and cough, she couldn't believe what had just happened to her within the last 10 minutes. Her entire world was crumbling before her.

Wiping away fresh tears, Tiana's resolve solidified. She was going to get herself out of this muck. She knew it. She's daddy's little girl, after all. What did he always say?

Don't let anybody tell you what you can't be.

Not even food critics. And especially not even her cheating fiancé.

Pulling up on the stickshift. Tiana began pulling back with full force. Suddenly, her truck hit something hard, forcing her to stop at once.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hit you miss." Tiana pleaded, stepping out of her truck to see if the person she ran over was alright. To her ever increasing shock and despair, Tiana came into view of the her victim: thin, fair, blonde, possessing an air of "Marilyn Monroe-ness", and wearing the same little black dress she found in her apartment with Naveen.

Her best friend, Charlotte.

...

"Turns out that she was hiding in my apartment entire time, and planned to sneak out when I left. Too bad for her it didn't work out."

"I see."

"I never got to know whether she awoken from her coma. Frankly speaking, my mind was already wrapped up in divorce proceedings and court hearings." Tiana concluded. Eyes closed with furrowed brows, Anna noticed how her arms were shaking as they held onto the steel kitchen cabinet.

"Must be quite the shock." Anna said softly.

Tiana snorted out loud. "You have no idea. Police have concluded that my accidental hit-and-run must've been on purpose. I was sentenced to 4 years in prison. No doubt is because that I'm - "

" - black?" Anna answered softly.

Tiana loudly inhaled. She nodded her head resignedly. "Yeah. Because I'm black."

And then it dawned onto Anna. Everything fell into place as Anna realized that Tiana was the one Weselton was talking about. Now she understood why Tiana made that joke about the white girls a few days ago.

Anna straighten up to get a better look at the dark-skinned woman before her. Her entire background couldn't be more different, yet similar to hers. Where Anna came from a financially secure yet unstable nucleus family, Tiana came from a poor but loving background. Here was a woman who once held the world in her hand. She had a life. A career. A then stable loving relationship. Even her family life was the invert of Anna's.

She had responsibility.

Most striking difference is that her life wasn't ruined by drugs, but rather by circumstances that were out of her control: negative reviews tearing down her dream, an unstable economy, and to cap it all of, the infidelity of her fiancé. Anna shuttered to think if that could ever happened to her. Instead, she took the easy route. She chose to travel and party with Elsa. Not a care in the world, blogging away while turning a blind eye on the dark deeds Elsa had sunk her hands in.

In a sad ironic twist of fate, it was in Tiana's restaurant where she first met Elsa.

"Where are they now?" she asks, determined to learn more about Tiana background.

"Don't know. Don't care. I ain't got nobody on the outside as well. All I care about is my restaurant."

Well, can't really blame you for saying that.

An idea soon struck the red-head. "You know. I could call my fiancé outside. He'll be able to check up on your restaurant's current condition." Anna offered, determine to cheer her fellow inmate up.

Tiana jolted right back up. "Really? You would do that?"

"Uh-huh. You want me to - "

Tiana beamed at her, letting out a smile. The first true genuine smile she seen in a long time. "Girl, get outta here. Don't worry about your work. I'll cover for you. Go!"

With a salute, Anna made a quick dash towards the nearest phone booth. Located on the adjacent hallway near the dining hall, it was a short run. Reaching the nearest phone booth, Anna inserted in a few coins, dialed Kristoff's cell, and waited for him to pick up.

"Hello? Is this Anna?"

"Hey, Kristoff." replied Anna.

"Hey, Anna. How's prison? How're the inmates you told me about? Are they treating you well?"

"I'm fine here, Kristoff. I'm making tons of new friends. Prison is marvelous. Thank you again for that check you sent me. You practically saved my starving ass."

Kirstoff chuckled at the end of the line. "Don't worry about it. Can't have my fiancé die in prison, now can I?"

"No. That wouldn't bode well for our future wedding. Not unless you want me to get violently gang-raped here by a bunch of dangerous lesbians here." Anna answered nonchalantly, twisting the chord of the phone.

"Ooh. Hot. Can I watch?"

"Not in a million years, mister. Anyway, I called you to see if could do me a favor?"

"Shoot."

"I need you to check out what ever happened to Southern fusion restaurant/bar in downtown Arendelle. I think it's was called Tiana's."

Anna heard a bit of rustling in the background. Looking at the clock in the corner, she could tell by the time that Kristoff was still at work. Most likely filling out forms for ice shipment or reindeer food. "Alrighty...let me check. Got my laptop already whipped out here in the cabin...okay...oh."

"Oh, as in it's still operating?" Anna finished weakly.

"No. Oh, as in it's been closed down." completed Kristoff.

"Any reason?" asked Anna, crestfallen at the news.

"Huh. Get this: rat infestation of all things. Never though downtown Arendelle had one to begin with. Now it's under the ownership of...let me see here...ah, here he is: Dr. Facilier."

That name sounded familiar. Where on earth had she heard it before? "Alright, Kristoff. Thanks again. Say hi to Sven for me."

"Will do."

And Kristoff?"

"Yeah, Anna?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

The red-head let out a smile as she hung up on the phone. It was nice hearing her future husband on the phone. Too bad it wasn't what Tiana wanted to hear.

"Well? Did you find out what happened?" asked Tiana hurridly as soon as Anna came back to the kitchens. Anna hesitated for a second. She could see the desperation in her eyes. The legacy of her sweat, blood, and tears all depended upon Anna's answer. Anna bit the bottom of her lip, contemplating whether she should even tell her the truth. She could just lie to Tiana right now in her face, sparing her from the pain.

But that would make her a complete hypocrite. After all, she was on the receiving end of a lie. She felt the cold slap of dishonesty from someone she once loved: Elsa, who had lied to her face about who she was, and what she was getting her hands in.

Anna decided to tell Tiana the truth.

"I don't know how to tell you this, but the restaurant was closed down due to a rat infestation. It's now under the ownership of Dr. Facilier."

The reaction was predictable, but much more worse to witness in real life. Letting out a wale of despair, Tiana immediately burst into tears. Anna quickly caught her, catching her before she collapses in the floor.

"Tiana, I'm so sorry for your loss." Anna said softly, patting Tiana's head and placing it on her shoulders. Noticing a metal pot near her the stove next to her, Anna opened the lid, revealing a familiar smelling broth. Grabbing a nearby wooden spoon, Anna dipped it into the soup and inserted it into her mouth. Immediately, a wave of flavor enveloped her senses as her mind flashback to her first memory with Elsa. The first time sparks flew between them. The first time she met her without her knowing her dark side.

"Tiana?"

"Yeah, Anna?"

"For what it's worth, I think your gumbo tastes really good."

Tiana looked up from Anna's shoulder, tears brimming with sadness. "You really mean that, Anna?"

Anna patted her back, smiling right back. "Yeah. Yeah I do."

So there ya go! Roughly 7000 words. Have to admit: Tiana was rather difficult to write, but I think I pulled her back story successfully. Reviews and constructive criticisms are always encouraged and welcomed.

So a lot of you guys are starting to wonder what finally happened to Anna & Elsa. Well, next chapter will be THE chapter that will finally explain everything regarding those two's history. Plus an extra surprise awaits at the end of said chapter!

- V