Fic: The Geneticist and the Frog - Ch. 4
Title: The Geneticist and the Frog
Author: starrdust411
Fandom: Heroes
Pairing: Mohinder/Sylar
Rating: PG-13
Summary: When the Prince kissed the Frog the real story began.
Disclaimer: I do not own Heroes or The Princess and the Frog.
Warnings: Humor, Language, Slash, AU
Author's Note: Sorry about the lack of an update last week. I was actually on vacation. In Disney World! That’s right. I was in Disney (cause it was my birthday and that’s how I wanted to spend it :P) and I even got a picture with Princess and the Frog characters, Tiana and Naveen (who were super sweet and so in character). Yes, but now back to work on this story.
Prologue| Chapter 1| Chapter 2| Chapter 3
The Bennet estate was truly lovely in the warm afternoon light. True it wasn't nearly as large and sprawling as the Gray palace back in Maldonia, but it had its own unique brand of charm. They sat under the gazebo in the back area of the manor, sipping tea and gazing at the scenery. There were thick, leafy trees of all shapes and hues decorating the mansion's backyard, the foliage seeming to be in bloom far too early since it was still late winter. The pond next to them was crisp and clear and he found himself smiling as a swan swam by. This was definitely a life style he could get used to.
"Prince Gabriel," Claire began, pouring him another cup of tea. He smiled winningly at her, something that the real Gabriel rarely ever did, but Luke knew he should. "I just wanted to apologize again for last night's dreadful frog incident."
Luke chuckled, waving a dismissive hand in the air. As the Prince's personal valet, Luke knew the exact behavior and appearance a young royal should have. He knew how to be likable, polite, and charming. He knew which utensils to use at every meal, what wine went best with any entree, how to bow low and still seem empowered. He knew exactly how Prince Gabriel behaved around women and, more importantly, he knew to do the exact opposite of that.
"Well, my dear, when you're next in line for the throne you're not easily caught by surprise," he assured her. "You must always be on guard, poised like a panther."
Claire smiled, her eyes twinkling in delight as she giggled bashfully at his words. She really was a sweet girl, not at all what he had been expecting from an heiress to a vast fortune. Claire seemed to sincerely care about him and what he had to say, not just his title. Well, Luke could tell by the slight twinkle in her eye that came whenever anyone addressed him as "Prince Gabriel" or "Your Majesty" or some variation that she did care a little about titles, but not like other women.
He smiled, taking a sip of his tea and ignoring the strange tingle in his left ear. Yet when he looked at the girl sitting across from him, he noticed that she was staring in alarm at the side of his face.
"Oh," she said quietly, setting her own cup of tea back down on its saucer. "Your... your ear..."
Luke frowned, reaching up and touching his ear gingerly. He stiffened, noticing that its shape had changed. His ear lobe had gotten longer, droopier, and it stuck out more than it should have. It wasn't an extreme change, but it was noticeable enough to cause him some alarm. It was a clear sign that he was changing back into his real self.
He swallowed the scream building up in the back of his throat as he twisted around in his chair, facing away from the heiress's startled gaze. Luke reached into the front of his dress shirt and pulled out the amulet that Samuel had given him. The red lines that decorated the sides of the charm's face were draining away. The blood was running out and his assumed appearance wouldn't last much long. He groaned. It looked like he was going to have to act on the plan sooner than expected.
Luke turned back towards Claire and smiled, cupping his ear in what he hoped was an innocent manner. "Those pesky mosquitoes," he laughed casually.
Claire chuckled nervously, not fully convinced, but not rude enough to question him further.
"Miss Bennet," he began, reaching across the table and cupping her hand in his, "I can no longer contain the passion burning in my heart." He stood up, dragging Claire along with him. She squeaked slightly and suddenly Luke felt the same tingle in his nose. In his desperation, the young man twisted her around, so that her back was pressed against his chest, not wanting her to see that his nose had shrunk to half its "normal" size. "I know our time together has been brief, but it's been heavenly," he continued desperately. "I have to know, will you do me the honor of becoming 'Princess of Maldonia'?"
A small gasp escaped Claire's pink lips as she pushed away from him, just in time for Luke's hands to deflate back to their regular size. "Are you serious?" she whispered.
"As the plague," he returned, his other ear tingling and shifting back.
For several long, agonizing seconds, Claire merely stood there, wringing her hands nervously and saying nothing. Needless to say, Luke was more than a little confused. Most women wouldn't wait a single heart beat before giving a boisterous "Yes" in response to a proposal from a prince (even a prince like Gabriel). Yet Claire... he honestly couldn't tell if she was panicking or stalling.
"This is so sudden," she said. "I mean... We've... we've only known each other a day and... what's my Dad going to say?" She stilled, taking in a long deep breath before whirling around and engulfing Luke in a tight embrace. Her decision had been made. "Yes!" she screamed. "Yes I absolutely will marry you!"
"Wonderful!" he barely managed to squeak out. It was fortunate that Claire was too focused on hugging him and screaming herself hoarse to get a good look at him, since the only part of him that still looked even remotely like Gabriel was his hair. "We should get married at once! At Mardi Gras."
"Yes! Yes, that's a great idea!" Within the blink of an eye the girl was skipping away, muttering to herself about flower arrangements and guest lists.
Luke sighed, collapsing to the hard wooden floor of the gazebo. He knew from the way his clothes were hanging off of him that he was now completely back to normal. A long, boney hand came seemingly out of nowhere and reached down the front of his shirt, pulling out the amulet that was now completely out of blood. Craning his neck around, the young valet saw Samuel's lanky figure towering over him.
"Dammit," the witchdoctor seethed, releasing the amulet and turning away from him in disgust.
"Well, what do we do now?" Luke asked meekly, because this couldn't be the end. They had come so close to getting everything Samuel had promised him. A beautiful wife, an extravagant home, and a whole new life were all within his grasp. Now that possibility was being snatched away.
Samuel sighed, growled really, as he forcefully rubbed at his eyes. "Well since somebody let our froggy prince get away, it looks like I'm gonna have ta ask for some help from my friends on the other side."
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The afternoon came and went quickly and yet they were still trapped in the swamp. The sky was a darker blue, the water was growing blacker and seemed nearly bottomless, and Mohinder was certain that he and Gabriel were going to spend at least one more day as frogs. He sighed, watching the water ripple and swirl. Matt was a good swimmer -- he took breaks only when necessary and barely complained -- and the water was fair and in their favor, but the Indian couldn't help feeling more than a bit impatient at their lack of progress.
"So what does a 'geneticist' do exactly?" Matt asked, because he wasn't at all familiar with the human world other than what could be seen of it from the swamp. This, of course, meant he knew of only two human professions: hunters and trappers.
"A geneticist is a scientist who studies heredity," Mohinder explained, and then quickly realized that Matt wouldn't know what "heredity" meant. He frowned, thinking for minute of a way to simplify his explanation so that an alligator would be able to understand -- and if he weren't currently trapped in the body of a frog, Mohinder might have laughed himself senseless at that thought. "We study the backgrounds of organis... erh, plants and animals to see what makes them unique, how they became the way they are."
Matt hummed, disinterested and slightly confused. At least Matt was trying to be pleasant company. It was more than the Indian could say about Gabriel. The prince only wanted to speak when the topic somehow involved himself. If it strayed towards any other area, he instantly deemed it "boring" and became pointedly quiet until the conversation turned back to him.
"So you just sit around looking at things?" Matt asked and from his dismissive tone, Mohinder instantly knew that he had declared his future profession a waste of time. Not that Matt even believed that he was going to be a geneticist, or that he and Gabriel were from outside of the swamp. As far as the gator was concerned anything Mohinder and Gabriel talked about were just elaborate stories that they'd made up on the spot. Matt was easily the most skeptical creature Mohinder had ever met. The Indian knew the only way to get Matt to believe them would be to have the alligator see them transform back into humans with his own two eyes.
"No, we don't just look at things," Mohinder stressed wearily. It was pointless to argue or try to make the gator see thing his way -- the right way -- but there was nothing else to do. It was either argue with an alligator or sit quietly until they arrived at the Tattoo Lady's home. "We study them."
"Well, if you ask me, there's really not much difference between 'studying' and 'looking,'" Matt teased. "Sorry Mohinder, but this whole thing just sounds kinda dull."
"That's because it is dull," Gabriel interjected from his position near the base of Matt's tail, feet just barely staying out of the water. The prince was still convinced that the gator was going to eat them and had decided to stay as far away from Matt's snout as possible. Mohinder had agreed with his cautious behavior at first, but after spending an entire day swimming down the bayou doing nothing more than making idle small talk, the Indian felt more than confident that Matt's intentions were honorable. "He's a giant stick in the mud with no idea about what's really fun or interesting."
Mohinder frowned at the royal's light, mocking tone. "Well, I'm sorry, but not everyone can be a prince," he huffed. "And what does it matter to you? It's my profession!"
"No, it's your father's profession," Gabriel shot back. "It's what he did for a living and now you're following in his footsteps. I bet if you have a son, he'll be a geneticist too. Dull!"
The Indian felt his frown deepen and -- to his surprise -- his cheeks grow hot. He didn't think it was fair for Gabriel to judge him so harshly. He had never felt forced into this profession, it was merely a coincidence that both he and his father had shared this passion. "That's a bit of a hypocritical view coming from someone like you," Mohinder snapped. "After all, you come from a royal bloodline; everyone in your family has either been a king or had spent their lives preparing for the chance to become one, just as you're doing now."
"Well, I'm not exactly going to become king anytime soon," the other frog muttered. "Besides, I didn't have a choice in my future, you did! And you chose to be just like your father! That's dull."
He huffed indignantly, preparing himself for another round of arguing, but he was cut short when he felt Matt come to a sudden stop.
"Okay, frogs," the alligator sighed, climbing out of the water and onto the muddy surface. "As much as I'd love to listen to you two bicker, we've got a problem."
"What's wrong?" Mohinder asked, leaping off of Matt's back and on dry land.
"I'm lost," he announced casually. "I've never been to this part of the swamp and I definitely don't know how to get to the Tattoo Lady's place from here."
Mohinder groaned, rubbing at his face wearily, just as Gabriel hopped over to sit beside him, his whole body exuding bitterness. "Wonderful," the prince grumbled. "I told you we shouldn't have-"
"'I told you so's aren't exactly going to make this situation any better!" Mohinder snapped, hopping away and effectively putting some space between himself and Gabriel. He hated being near him. Just looking at the other's slimy green skin made him sick and far too aware of the fact that his own body must look nearly identical. "We need to think of a plan."
"I say we eat and then regroup," Matt said slipping back into the water. "I haven't eaten all day. There should be some catfish near here. You two interested?"
Gabriel frowned, looking at Mohinder curiously. "Do frogs eat catfish?"
"I think catfish eats us," he said wearily.
Matt laughed as he slowly began to swim away. "Oh yeah, right. I forgot I was talking to a couple of frogs. Oh wait! A couple of humans! Well, I'm gonna go fish. I'm sure there are plenty of flies for you two to eat." With that said, Matt submerged into the water, disappearing from sight.
Mohinder huffed bitterly, trying his best to focus on Matt's words and not his absence (because without the alligator around, they were defenseless against predators that had with no qualms against eating "crazy" frogs). "As if I'm going to kiss a frog and eat a bug in the same day."
Just as the words passed through his lips, he watched as a long pink tongue flew through the air, snapping at a swarm of flies hovering just above him. He turned to stare at Gabriel, who was now desperately trying and failing to catch a fly with his newly acquired amphibian instincts.
"You've sunken to a new low," Mohinder said, lamenting the loss of Matt's company. Surely the gator would have gotten a good laugh at this.
"It's called 'survival', Mohinder," Gabriel chided, standing up and waddling through the water, following the swarm of bugs as they inched away from him. "You can go ahead and starve to death here in the swamp if you want, but there is a whole country full of people who need me alive."
Mohinder wanted to point out that there was no way they would starve to death within a day or that they hadn't even attempted to look around the swamp to look for edible vegetation, but he held his tongue. Watching a bratty crowned prince flounder around a swamp trying to catch flies with his tongue was easily the best source of entertainment he was going to get. The Indian had to swallow a chuckle as Gabriel's long pink tongue whipped through the air, snapping at nothing, before recoiling and smacking the prince right between the eyes. Yes, Matt definitely would have had a good laugh at this.
"This is harder than it looks," he barely heard Gabriel grumble over the sound of him hopping and splashing around.
He giggled, burying his mouth behind his hands, because he knew if Gabriel so much as heard a single chuckle then the royal would be throwing a very princely fit for the remainder of their quest. His own stomach decided to give a rumble and it was only then that Mohinder realized that he hadn't eaten anything since the Bennet's masquerade ball and even then he had only snacked on a few pastries and sipped on punch. He sighed, scrubbing his face. Maybe Gabriel wasn't acting so crazy after all.
His mind drifted yet again when a small yellow light passed before his eyes. It took him a few seconds to register the fact that it was a small firefly passing in front of him, but that information was quickly overshadowed by the way his tongue flicked out from between his lips on its own.
"Oh no," he gasped, firmly cupping his hands over his mouth. "Oh God, no!"
Yet despite his reluctance, despite the hand cupped over his mouth, despite the fact that he would be more than happy to wait until he was back to his human self before getting something to eat, Mohinder found his tongue whipping out yet again. The Indian could do no more than watch in quiet horror as each flick of his tongue pulled him closer and closer towards the firefly that had landed on a nearby dandelion. His tongue gave out one last flick, stretching much farther than it had any right to. It would have connected with the lightening bug, but his seemingly endless supply of bad luck had other ideas, as Gabriel's tongue came whizzing through the air at the exact same instant.
The dandelion exploded in a cloud of puffy white seedlings as their tongues collided, tangling together in a painful knot. Mohinder cringed, because dear Lord he could actually taste Gabriel, even though there was at least a foot of swamp between them.
The prince jerked and Mohinder grimaced. He had never had his tongue pulled before, and he sincerely hoped for it to never happen again, because it was an unusual type of pain that made him all too aware of the muscle.
"Stop pulling!" he cried to the best of his ability.
Gabriel huffed and walked over to him, giving their tongues a bit of slack and allowing them to slowly recoil. "This is all your fault," he said -- at least that's what it sounded like he said.
"My fault?" he seethed, but it was hard to sound intimidating when you couldn't use your tongue. "My fault! Why do you always think everything is my fault? We wouldn't even be in this mess if it wasn't for you!"
The two continued to bicker and fuss with each other, occasionally pulling on their tongues to see if they'd come apart, but not seeing any results.
"I can help! I can fix!" a voice cried as a light circled just above them.
Mohinder frowned, watching as the lightening bug he and Gabriel had nearly eaten boldly flew over to their tangled tongues and very calmly untied the slick muscles. He quickly forced his tongue to recoil, hoping to never have to relive this sort of embarrassment again.
"I did it!" the voice cheered, mere seconds before a tongue came whizzing through the air and nearly pinned the firefly.
"Gabriel!" Mohinder found himself shouting in horror, rushing over to the prince and knocking him into the swamp water below. "What the bloody hell is wrong with you? That fly just helped us!" He didn't give the royal a chance to reply as he turned his attention back to the firefly, who was currently hiding behind a few stalks of grass. "I'm sorry about him," Mohinder said, slowly approaching the lightening bug, careful not to make any sudden movements. "He's just an ass. You don't have to worry about me, though. I don't eat bugs."
The firefly timidly peeked out from his hiding spot, eyeing the two suspiciously. "Frog that doesn't eat fly?" the bug said slowly, a hesitant laugh coloring his words. "Strange, but good for me." Mohinder gave him a disarming smile which helped the firefly to build up enough courage to reveal himself completely. "I am Hiro," he said calmly, his eyes periodically darting over to Gabriel as he spoke.
"Well, I'm Mohinder," the Indian began, "and I'd like to thank you for helping us."
"And I'm Gabriel and if you're not going to be my dinner, then I suggest you get the hell out of here."
Mohinder sighed, rolling his eyes wearily at his traveling companion's words. "Honestly, with all that money, your parents couldn't afford to teach you any manners?"
Gabriel huffed, glaring at Mohinder, but not bothering to say anything. That certainly was new.
"Eyebrow Froggy very cranky," Hiro commented, making sure to stay close to Mohinder. "You two both very strange. Don't seem like normal frogs."
"That's because we're not frogs," Gabriel answered and Mohinder could tell he was getting ready to give another speech about his pedigree and how honored the fly should feel to be in his presence. "We are humans. I am Prince Gabriel from Maldonia, and that is Mohinder from somewhere in New Orleans."
"Prince Charming here was bamboozled by a witchdoctor and got himself turned into a frog," Mohinder explained, astonished to find that Hiro still hadn't burst into hysterical laughter like Matt had. Instead, the firefly looked excited, eager to hear the rest of their story as his little eyes flicked between Mohinder and Gabriel. "Now the two of us are on our way to see the Tattoo Lady about undoing the spell. Only, our guide through the swamp has gotten lost and... well we're pretty much stuck until we can figure out the rest of the way."
"Oh! I can help!" Hiro said eagerly, flying in dizzying circles over Mohinder's head. "I know how to get to Tattoo Lady. I can take you."
"That's wonderful!" Mohinder breathed, relieved to find someone who could help them. Of course, they would still have to wait until Matt got back before they could continue on their way.
The soft splash of water alerted the Indian to Gabriel's approach. The prince grabbed his arm, dragging him a few inches away from Hiro's confused face. "Are you seriously about to take directions from a fly," Gabriel whispered, pinning Mohinder with a look that made it quite clear that the prince thought he was insane. "You do realize that the memory of a bug can't be very trust worthy. I thought you were studying to be a scientist."
"Well, need I remind you that we are two men who are currently frogs and have been following an alligator through the swamp?" Mohinder sighed, yanking his arm out of Gabriel's grasp. "I know this doesn't seem logical, but nothing has been very logical since you hopped onto Claire's balcony and asked me to kiss you."
"Hey, you asked for a kiss first, remember?"
"I wasn't expecting an answer!"
Now it was Gabriel's turn to sigh. He rubbed at his face wearily as if he were feeling a headache coming on -- and he probably was since Mohinder's own mind had been racing a mile a minute since this whole affair started -- before looking the Indian in the eye. "Fine, whatever gets us back to being human the fastest. When Matt gets back, we'll move out."
"Fine," Mohinder grumbled, allowing the stubborn prince to think that he had been the one to come up with that plan.
"Frogs! Frogs run!" Hiro shouted, waving his arms frantically as he flew towards them. Mohinder watched as the swamp water bubbled and two large brown eyes followed by a long flat head emerged from beneath the foam. "Alligator! Run frogs, run!"
Mohinder gave a nervous chuckle as Matt came over towards them, a slightly confused look on his face. They certainly had a formed a strange group.
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Samuel sighed, taking in a long slow breath as he fingered the head of his staff, caressing its smooth surface nervously as the eyes of the wooden masks mounted to his walls began to glow bright red. Their mouths slipped open, revealing sharp teeth and an endless black cavern. His friends were angry with him, not that Samuel could blame them. He had amounted a considerable debt, had asked for one too many favors all for the sake of keeping his business up and running. Yet for the first time, he didn't feel the weight of his debt pressing down on him. This was the first time he had ever summoned his friends confident that he would soon be able to pay them back.
He swallowed, running a thin hand over the front of his shirt before taking another step closer to the wall of masks. "Friends," he began calmly, giving them his most disarming smile, "I know I'm in fair deep with ya already, but it seems as if our froggy prince has lost his way an'... well I'll be needin' yer help ta get him back."
The Irish witchdoctor watched as each mask scrunched its face at this announcement, glaring and groaning that he would have the nerve to ask something like this from them yet again.
He laughed; an attempt to show that he wasn't afraid, that he was confident (and he needed to believe that just as badly as they did). "Now I know what yer thinkin'," he began. "What's in it for ya?"
He paused, opening his coat and pulling out the small doll that he kept near his breast at all times. He had sewn it together years ago, taken care to make it into a near perfect replica, and added the necessary ingredients so that, given the right moment, the voodoo doll would do as it was intended. A small laugh escaped from his thin lips, an unconscious reflex, as a pin emerged from under his sleeve and came to rest between his fingers. He waved it over the big red heart stitched into the front of the little doll, yearning to plunge it in and stop Bennet's heart once and for all. "Once I dispose of HRG an' take control of New Orleans, then I'll sink this city into the depths of the earth, an' ya'll have all the way ward souls ya can handle."
The eyes flashed quickly from red to yellow, a clear sign that his friends were more than pleased with this announcement.
"All this can happen, so long as ya help me ta fine the prince. Do we have a deal?"
The masks shifted, glancing at each other thoughtfully, deciding whether he could be trusted after so many failures. Yet Samuel wasn't at all surprised when the main portal, the largest mask in the dead center of the wall opened wide, unleashing an army of shadowy demons to come to his aid.
"Perfect," he whispered, studying the twisted, curved figures that were spread across the tiny room. "Alright boys, we've got a frog to catch," he barked, using his most commanding voice. "Search everywhere! The bayou, the quarter... Jus' make sure ya bring him back alive. I need his heart pumpin'... for now."
Without another word, the shadows slipped out from his store and out into the night.
Chapter 5 - Dig a Little Deeper
Author: starrdust411
Fandom: Heroes
Pairing: Mohinder/Sylar
Rating: PG-13
Summary: When the Prince kissed the Frog the real story began.
Disclaimer: I do not own Heroes or The Princess and the Frog.
Warnings: Humor, Language, Slash, AU
Author's Note: Sorry about the lack of an update last week. I was actually on vacation. In Disney World! That’s right. I was in Disney (cause it was my birthday and that’s how I wanted to spend it :P) and I even got a picture with Princess and the Frog characters, Tiana and Naveen (who were super sweet and so in character). Yes, but now back to work on this story.
Prologue| Chapter 1| Chapter 2| Chapter 3
The Bennet estate was truly lovely in the warm afternoon light. True it wasn't nearly as large and sprawling as the Gray palace back in Maldonia, but it had its own unique brand of charm. They sat under the gazebo in the back area of the manor, sipping tea and gazing at the scenery. There were thick, leafy trees of all shapes and hues decorating the mansion's backyard, the foliage seeming to be in bloom far too early since it was still late winter. The pond next to them was crisp and clear and he found himself smiling as a swan swam by. This was definitely a life style he could get used to.
"Prince Gabriel," Claire began, pouring him another cup of tea. He smiled winningly at her, something that the real Gabriel rarely ever did, but Luke knew he should. "I just wanted to apologize again for last night's dreadful frog incident."
Luke chuckled, waving a dismissive hand in the air. As the Prince's personal valet, Luke knew the exact behavior and appearance a young royal should have. He knew how to be likable, polite, and charming. He knew which utensils to use at every meal, what wine went best with any entree, how to bow low and still seem empowered. He knew exactly how Prince Gabriel behaved around women and, more importantly, he knew to do the exact opposite of that.
"Well, my dear, when you're next in line for the throne you're not easily caught by surprise," he assured her. "You must always be on guard, poised like a panther."
Claire smiled, her eyes twinkling in delight as she giggled bashfully at his words. She really was a sweet girl, not at all what he had been expecting from an heiress to a vast fortune. Claire seemed to sincerely care about him and what he had to say, not just his title. Well, Luke could tell by the slight twinkle in her eye that came whenever anyone addressed him as "Prince Gabriel" or "Your Majesty" or some variation that she did care a little about titles, but not like other women.
He smiled, taking a sip of his tea and ignoring the strange tingle in his left ear. Yet when he looked at the girl sitting across from him, he noticed that she was staring in alarm at the side of his face.
"Oh," she said quietly, setting her own cup of tea back down on its saucer. "Your... your ear..."
Luke frowned, reaching up and touching his ear gingerly. He stiffened, noticing that its shape had changed. His ear lobe had gotten longer, droopier, and it stuck out more than it should have. It wasn't an extreme change, but it was noticeable enough to cause him some alarm. It was a clear sign that he was changing back into his real self.
He swallowed the scream building up in the back of his throat as he twisted around in his chair, facing away from the heiress's startled gaze. Luke reached into the front of his dress shirt and pulled out the amulet that Samuel had given him. The red lines that decorated the sides of the charm's face were draining away. The blood was running out and his assumed appearance wouldn't last much long. He groaned. It looked like he was going to have to act on the plan sooner than expected.
Luke turned back towards Claire and smiled, cupping his ear in what he hoped was an innocent manner. "Those pesky mosquitoes," he laughed casually.
Claire chuckled nervously, not fully convinced, but not rude enough to question him further.
"Miss Bennet," he began, reaching across the table and cupping her hand in his, "I can no longer contain the passion burning in my heart." He stood up, dragging Claire along with him. She squeaked slightly and suddenly Luke felt the same tingle in his nose. In his desperation, the young man twisted her around, so that her back was pressed against his chest, not wanting her to see that his nose had shrunk to half its "normal" size. "I know our time together has been brief, but it's been heavenly," he continued desperately. "I have to know, will you do me the honor of becoming 'Princess of Maldonia'?"
A small gasp escaped Claire's pink lips as she pushed away from him, just in time for Luke's hands to deflate back to their regular size. "Are you serious?" she whispered.
"As the plague," he returned, his other ear tingling and shifting back.
For several long, agonizing seconds, Claire merely stood there, wringing her hands nervously and saying nothing. Needless to say, Luke was more than a little confused. Most women wouldn't wait a single heart beat before giving a boisterous "Yes" in response to a proposal from a prince (even a prince like Gabriel). Yet Claire... he honestly couldn't tell if she was panicking or stalling.
"This is so sudden," she said. "I mean... We've... we've only known each other a day and... what's my Dad going to say?" She stilled, taking in a long deep breath before whirling around and engulfing Luke in a tight embrace. Her decision had been made. "Yes!" she screamed. "Yes I absolutely will marry you!"
"Wonderful!" he barely managed to squeak out. It was fortunate that Claire was too focused on hugging him and screaming herself hoarse to get a good look at him, since the only part of him that still looked even remotely like Gabriel was his hair. "We should get married at once! At Mardi Gras."
"Yes! Yes, that's a great idea!" Within the blink of an eye the girl was skipping away, muttering to herself about flower arrangements and guest lists.
Luke sighed, collapsing to the hard wooden floor of the gazebo. He knew from the way his clothes were hanging off of him that he was now completely back to normal. A long, boney hand came seemingly out of nowhere and reached down the front of his shirt, pulling out the amulet that was now completely out of blood. Craning his neck around, the young valet saw Samuel's lanky figure towering over him.
"Dammit," the witchdoctor seethed, releasing the amulet and turning away from him in disgust.
"Well, what do we do now?" Luke asked meekly, because this couldn't be the end. They had come so close to getting everything Samuel had promised him. A beautiful wife, an extravagant home, and a whole new life were all within his grasp. Now that possibility was being snatched away.
Samuel sighed, growled really, as he forcefully rubbed at his eyes. "Well since somebody let our froggy prince get away, it looks like I'm gonna have ta ask for some help from my friends on the other side."
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The afternoon came and went quickly and yet they were still trapped in the swamp. The sky was a darker blue, the water was growing blacker and seemed nearly bottomless, and Mohinder was certain that he and Gabriel were going to spend at least one more day as frogs. He sighed, watching the water ripple and swirl. Matt was a good swimmer -- he took breaks only when necessary and barely complained -- and the water was fair and in their favor, but the Indian couldn't help feeling more than a bit impatient at their lack of progress.
"So what does a 'geneticist' do exactly?" Matt asked, because he wasn't at all familiar with the human world other than what could be seen of it from the swamp. This, of course, meant he knew of only two human professions: hunters and trappers.
"A geneticist is a scientist who studies heredity," Mohinder explained, and then quickly realized that Matt wouldn't know what "heredity" meant. He frowned, thinking for minute of a way to simplify his explanation so that an alligator would be able to understand -- and if he weren't currently trapped in the body of a frog, Mohinder might have laughed himself senseless at that thought. "We study the backgrounds of organis... erh, plants and animals to see what makes them unique, how they became the way they are."
Matt hummed, disinterested and slightly confused. At least Matt was trying to be pleasant company. It was more than the Indian could say about Gabriel. The prince only wanted to speak when the topic somehow involved himself. If it strayed towards any other area, he instantly deemed it "boring" and became pointedly quiet until the conversation turned back to him.
"So you just sit around looking at things?" Matt asked and from his dismissive tone, Mohinder instantly knew that he had declared his future profession a waste of time. Not that Matt even believed that he was going to be a geneticist, or that he and Gabriel were from outside of the swamp. As far as the gator was concerned anything Mohinder and Gabriel talked about were just elaborate stories that they'd made up on the spot. Matt was easily the most skeptical creature Mohinder had ever met. The Indian knew the only way to get Matt to believe them would be to have the alligator see them transform back into humans with his own two eyes.
"No, we don't just look at things," Mohinder stressed wearily. It was pointless to argue or try to make the gator see thing his way -- the right way -- but there was nothing else to do. It was either argue with an alligator or sit quietly until they arrived at the Tattoo Lady's home. "We study them."
"Well, if you ask me, there's really not much difference between 'studying' and 'looking,'" Matt teased. "Sorry Mohinder, but this whole thing just sounds kinda dull."
"That's because it is dull," Gabriel interjected from his position near the base of Matt's tail, feet just barely staying out of the water. The prince was still convinced that the gator was going to eat them and had decided to stay as far away from Matt's snout as possible. Mohinder had agreed with his cautious behavior at first, but after spending an entire day swimming down the bayou doing nothing more than making idle small talk, the Indian felt more than confident that Matt's intentions were honorable. "He's a giant stick in the mud with no idea about what's really fun or interesting."
Mohinder frowned at the royal's light, mocking tone. "Well, I'm sorry, but not everyone can be a prince," he huffed. "And what does it matter to you? It's my profession!"
"No, it's your father's profession," Gabriel shot back. "It's what he did for a living and now you're following in his footsteps. I bet if you have a son, he'll be a geneticist too. Dull!"
The Indian felt his frown deepen and -- to his surprise -- his cheeks grow hot. He didn't think it was fair for Gabriel to judge him so harshly. He had never felt forced into this profession, it was merely a coincidence that both he and his father had shared this passion. "That's a bit of a hypocritical view coming from someone like you," Mohinder snapped. "After all, you come from a royal bloodline; everyone in your family has either been a king or had spent their lives preparing for the chance to become one, just as you're doing now."
"Well, I'm not exactly going to become king anytime soon," the other frog muttered. "Besides, I didn't have a choice in my future, you did! And you chose to be just like your father! That's dull."
He huffed indignantly, preparing himself for another round of arguing, but he was cut short when he felt Matt come to a sudden stop.
"Okay, frogs," the alligator sighed, climbing out of the water and onto the muddy surface. "As much as I'd love to listen to you two bicker, we've got a problem."
"What's wrong?" Mohinder asked, leaping off of Matt's back and on dry land.
"I'm lost," he announced casually. "I've never been to this part of the swamp and I definitely don't know how to get to the Tattoo Lady's place from here."
Mohinder groaned, rubbing at his face wearily, just as Gabriel hopped over to sit beside him, his whole body exuding bitterness. "Wonderful," the prince grumbled. "I told you we shouldn't have-"
"'I told you so's aren't exactly going to make this situation any better!" Mohinder snapped, hopping away and effectively putting some space between himself and Gabriel. He hated being near him. Just looking at the other's slimy green skin made him sick and far too aware of the fact that his own body must look nearly identical. "We need to think of a plan."
"I say we eat and then regroup," Matt said slipping back into the water. "I haven't eaten all day. There should be some catfish near here. You two interested?"
Gabriel frowned, looking at Mohinder curiously. "Do frogs eat catfish?"
"I think catfish eats us," he said wearily.
Matt laughed as he slowly began to swim away. "Oh yeah, right. I forgot I was talking to a couple of frogs. Oh wait! A couple of humans! Well, I'm gonna go fish. I'm sure there are plenty of flies for you two to eat." With that said, Matt submerged into the water, disappearing from sight.
Mohinder huffed bitterly, trying his best to focus on Matt's words and not his absence (because without the alligator around, they were defenseless against predators that had with no qualms against eating "crazy" frogs). "As if I'm going to kiss a frog and eat a bug in the same day."
Just as the words passed through his lips, he watched as a long pink tongue flew through the air, snapping at a swarm of flies hovering just above him. He turned to stare at Gabriel, who was now desperately trying and failing to catch a fly with his newly acquired amphibian instincts.
"You've sunken to a new low," Mohinder said, lamenting the loss of Matt's company. Surely the gator would have gotten a good laugh at this.
"It's called 'survival', Mohinder," Gabriel chided, standing up and waddling through the water, following the swarm of bugs as they inched away from him. "You can go ahead and starve to death here in the swamp if you want, but there is a whole country full of people who need me alive."
Mohinder wanted to point out that there was no way they would starve to death within a day or that they hadn't even attempted to look around the swamp to look for edible vegetation, but he held his tongue. Watching a bratty crowned prince flounder around a swamp trying to catch flies with his tongue was easily the best source of entertainment he was going to get. The Indian had to swallow a chuckle as Gabriel's long pink tongue whipped through the air, snapping at nothing, before recoiling and smacking the prince right between the eyes. Yes, Matt definitely would have had a good laugh at this.
"This is harder than it looks," he barely heard Gabriel grumble over the sound of him hopping and splashing around.
He giggled, burying his mouth behind his hands, because he knew if Gabriel so much as heard a single chuckle then the royal would be throwing a very princely fit for the remainder of their quest. His own stomach decided to give a rumble and it was only then that Mohinder realized that he hadn't eaten anything since the Bennet's masquerade ball and even then he had only snacked on a few pastries and sipped on punch. He sighed, scrubbing his face. Maybe Gabriel wasn't acting so crazy after all.
His mind drifted yet again when a small yellow light passed before his eyes. It took him a few seconds to register the fact that it was a small firefly passing in front of him, but that information was quickly overshadowed by the way his tongue flicked out from between his lips on its own.
"Oh no," he gasped, firmly cupping his hands over his mouth. "Oh God, no!"
Yet despite his reluctance, despite the hand cupped over his mouth, despite the fact that he would be more than happy to wait until he was back to his human self before getting something to eat, Mohinder found his tongue whipping out yet again. The Indian could do no more than watch in quiet horror as each flick of his tongue pulled him closer and closer towards the firefly that had landed on a nearby dandelion. His tongue gave out one last flick, stretching much farther than it had any right to. It would have connected with the lightening bug, but his seemingly endless supply of bad luck had other ideas, as Gabriel's tongue came whizzing through the air at the exact same instant.
The dandelion exploded in a cloud of puffy white seedlings as their tongues collided, tangling together in a painful knot. Mohinder cringed, because dear Lord he could actually taste Gabriel, even though there was at least a foot of swamp between them.
The prince jerked and Mohinder grimaced. He had never had his tongue pulled before, and he sincerely hoped for it to never happen again, because it was an unusual type of pain that made him all too aware of the muscle.
"Stop pulling!" he cried to the best of his ability.
Gabriel huffed and walked over to him, giving their tongues a bit of slack and allowing them to slowly recoil. "This is all your fault," he said -- at least that's what it sounded like he said.
"My fault?" he seethed, but it was hard to sound intimidating when you couldn't use your tongue. "My fault! Why do you always think everything is my fault? We wouldn't even be in this mess if it wasn't for you!"
The two continued to bicker and fuss with each other, occasionally pulling on their tongues to see if they'd come apart, but not seeing any results.
"I can help! I can fix!" a voice cried as a light circled just above them.
Mohinder frowned, watching as the lightening bug he and Gabriel had nearly eaten boldly flew over to their tangled tongues and very calmly untied the slick muscles. He quickly forced his tongue to recoil, hoping to never have to relive this sort of embarrassment again.
"I did it!" the voice cheered, mere seconds before a tongue came whizzing through the air and nearly pinned the firefly.
"Gabriel!" Mohinder found himself shouting in horror, rushing over to the prince and knocking him into the swamp water below. "What the bloody hell is wrong with you? That fly just helped us!" He didn't give the royal a chance to reply as he turned his attention back to the firefly, who was currently hiding behind a few stalks of grass. "I'm sorry about him," Mohinder said, slowly approaching the lightening bug, careful not to make any sudden movements. "He's just an ass. You don't have to worry about me, though. I don't eat bugs."
The firefly timidly peeked out from his hiding spot, eyeing the two suspiciously. "Frog that doesn't eat fly?" the bug said slowly, a hesitant laugh coloring his words. "Strange, but good for me." Mohinder gave him a disarming smile which helped the firefly to build up enough courage to reveal himself completely. "I am Hiro," he said calmly, his eyes periodically darting over to Gabriel as he spoke.
"Well, I'm Mohinder," the Indian began, "and I'd like to thank you for helping us."
"And I'm Gabriel and if you're not going to be my dinner, then I suggest you get the hell out of here."
Mohinder sighed, rolling his eyes wearily at his traveling companion's words. "Honestly, with all that money, your parents couldn't afford to teach you any manners?"
Gabriel huffed, glaring at Mohinder, but not bothering to say anything. That certainly was new.
"Eyebrow Froggy very cranky," Hiro commented, making sure to stay close to Mohinder. "You two both very strange. Don't seem like normal frogs."
"That's because we're not frogs," Gabriel answered and Mohinder could tell he was getting ready to give another speech about his pedigree and how honored the fly should feel to be in his presence. "We are humans. I am Prince Gabriel from Maldonia, and that is Mohinder from somewhere in New Orleans."
"Prince Charming here was bamboozled by a witchdoctor and got himself turned into a frog," Mohinder explained, astonished to find that Hiro still hadn't burst into hysterical laughter like Matt had. Instead, the firefly looked excited, eager to hear the rest of their story as his little eyes flicked between Mohinder and Gabriel. "Now the two of us are on our way to see the Tattoo Lady about undoing the spell. Only, our guide through the swamp has gotten lost and... well we're pretty much stuck until we can figure out the rest of the way."
"Oh! I can help!" Hiro said eagerly, flying in dizzying circles over Mohinder's head. "I know how to get to Tattoo Lady. I can take you."
"That's wonderful!" Mohinder breathed, relieved to find someone who could help them. Of course, they would still have to wait until Matt got back before they could continue on their way.
The soft splash of water alerted the Indian to Gabriel's approach. The prince grabbed his arm, dragging him a few inches away from Hiro's confused face. "Are you seriously about to take directions from a fly," Gabriel whispered, pinning Mohinder with a look that made it quite clear that the prince thought he was insane. "You do realize that the memory of a bug can't be very trust worthy. I thought you were studying to be a scientist."
"Well, need I remind you that we are two men who are currently frogs and have been following an alligator through the swamp?" Mohinder sighed, yanking his arm out of Gabriel's grasp. "I know this doesn't seem logical, but nothing has been very logical since you hopped onto Claire's balcony and asked me to kiss you."
"Hey, you asked for a kiss first, remember?"
"I wasn't expecting an answer!"
Now it was Gabriel's turn to sigh. He rubbed at his face wearily as if he were feeling a headache coming on -- and he probably was since Mohinder's own mind had been racing a mile a minute since this whole affair started -- before looking the Indian in the eye. "Fine, whatever gets us back to being human the fastest. When Matt gets back, we'll move out."
"Fine," Mohinder grumbled, allowing the stubborn prince to think that he had been the one to come up with that plan.
"Frogs! Frogs run!" Hiro shouted, waving his arms frantically as he flew towards them. Mohinder watched as the swamp water bubbled and two large brown eyes followed by a long flat head emerged from beneath the foam. "Alligator! Run frogs, run!"
Mohinder gave a nervous chuckle as Matt came over towards them, a slightly confused look on his face. They certainly had a formed a strange group.
-+-+-+-
Samuel sighed, taking in a long slow breath as he fingered the head of his staff, caressing its smooth surface nervously as the eyes of the wooden masks mounted to his walls began to glow bright red. Their mouths slipped open, revealing sharp teeth and an endless black cavern. His friends were angry with him, not that Samuel could blame them. He had amounted a considerable debt, had asked for one too many favors all for the sake of keeping his business up and running. Yet for the first time, he didn't feel the weight of his debt pressing down on him. This was the first time he had ever summoned his friends confident that he would soon be able to pay them back.
He swallowed, running a thin hand over the front of his shirt before taking another step closer to the wall of masks. "Friends," he began calmly, giving them his most disarming smile, "I know I'm in fair deep with ya already, but it seems as if our froggy prince has lost his way an'... well I'll be needin' yer help ta get him back."
The Irish witchdoctor watched as each mask scrunched its face at this announcement, glaring and groaning that he would have the nerve to ask something like this from them yet again.
He laughed; an attempt to show that he wasn't afraid, that he was confident (and he needed to believe that just as badly as they did). "Now I know what yer thinkin'," he began. "What's in it for ya?"
He paused, opening his coat and pulling out the small doll that he kept near his breast at all times. He had sewn it together years ago, taken care to make it into a near perfect replica, and added the necessary ingredients so that, given the right moment, the voodoo doll would do as it was intended. A small laugh escaped from his thin lips, an unconscious reflex, as a pin emerged from under his sleeve and came to rest between his fingers. He waved it over the big red heart stitched into the front of the little doll, yearning to plunge it in and stop Bennet's heart once and for all. "Once I dispose of HRG an' take control of New Orleans, then I'll sink this city into the depths of the earth, an' ya'll have all the way ward souls ya can handle."
The eyes flashed quickly from red to yellow, a clear sign that his friends were more than pleased with this announcement.
"All this can happen, so long as ya help me ta fine the prince. Do we have a deal?"
The masks shifted, glancing at each other thoughtfully, deciding whether he could be trusted after so many failures. Yet Samuel wasn't at all surprised when the main portal, the largest mask in the dead center of the wall opened wide, unleashing an army of shadowy demons to come to his aid.
"Perfect," he whispered, studying the twisted, curved figures that were spread across the tiny room. "Alright boys, we've got a frog to catch," he barked, using his most commanding voice. "Search everywhere! The bayou, the quarter... Jus' make sure ya bring him back alive. I need his heart pumpin'... for now."
Without another word, the shadows slipped out from his store and out into the night.
Chapter 5 - Dig a Little Deeper