Disclaimer: I do not own nor do I claim to own any characters or concepts related to The Princess and the Frog. This is a nonprofit work of fanfiction.
This is set during the film, after the "When We're Human" number, but before they meet Ray.
Turnaround
Louis drifted, content to sing some bright, meandering song on his trumpet. The waters parted before him and came back together behind him, and where he went the music followed.
Naveen picked idly at some spiderweb he'd strung up on two sticks. Tiana made a face at his reflection, which shimmered like a ghost on the surface of the water. She dug in hard with her stick, turning Louis just a little to the left. Her hand slipped, too slick, and she grunted.
"You know," Naveen called, "if you're getting tired, you could always lay down." He rolled the vowels in the back of his throat; they spilled out like a soft breeze, moaning.
She turned to him. "How do you do that? Make everything that comes out of your mouth sound like something dirty."
"Prrrac-tice," he said. He strummed that gossamer web. The notes rose between them, high and thin. "How is it everything you say is so boring?"
Tiana stabbed at a log, steering Louis back on course. The water rippled, lapping up his scales.
"Oh," she said, "just practice."
Naveen laughed, not meanly. Not purposefully, anyway. Still, it rankled.
"See?" he said. "You see what I mean? Right there." He blew his lips. "So boring."
She shifted her grip on the stick and drove it back down into the silt.
"I thought it was pretty clever," she said, arch.
Naveen pulled at the web, drawing out a long, wavering note. "Maybe when I said it."
Louis piped a long, sad chord: rising high, then swinging low.
"All right," said Naveen. "It was a little clever."
This story was originally posted at livejournal on 12/17/2009. Sorry it's taken so long to archive this here! I got caught up in the magic and wonder of finals week.
Thank you, as ever, to everyone who has read and reviewed this collection. Thank you so very much. :)