Chapter Text
Pluck.
Pluck.
Pluck.
The sound echoed throughout the small apartment, bouncing off of every wall and finally coming to land in the prince's ears. Naveen screwed up his face, rolled over, and covered his head with a pillow in an attempt to muffle the noise. To his irritation, it seeped through the down feathers and began to slowly dissolve the pleasant dream he was having about a mountain of his wife's beignets. He lay still for a moment, relieved, when the sound seemed to stop.
… PLUCK.
Was it getting louder?
Defeated, Naveen removed the pillow and flipped over onto his back, positioning his forearm over his tightly shut eyes. He reached out his tan left arm and patted the bed beside him. The sheets were soft, slightly rumpled, and decidedly empty. Naveen sighed.
"Tiana?" he called out, interrupting another pluck.
"Yesssss?" came an answer from a few rooms away.
Naveen lifted his arm off of his face and opened an eye. "Espazzianza, what are you doing?"
"Oh, uh, nothing…" Tiana's voice, muffled through the walls and the closed door of their bedroom, sounded guilty.
Effectively pulled out of his dreaming state, Naveen opened the other eye and stared at the ceiling for a moment. Relishing the warmth of the cozy bed, he sat himself up as slowly as possible. He lifted the blanket off and swung one leg off. More than a few seconds passed before the other joined it. Naveen bent over and rested his elbows on his thighs, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.
PLU-
"Tiana!"
Naveen was fully awake now. Finally rising, not bothering to change out of his pajama pants or put on a shirt, he walked through the rooms of their flat. He ultimately found his wife artlessly seated on the white sofa in the living room. Tiana blinked her doe eyes at him innocently and smoothed her blue dress.
Naveen raised a dark eyebrow at her and began to survey the room. "Tiana, what-" His eyes stopped their inspection. "Ahhhhhh-ha-ha," he said, and a smile began to start. His eyes rested on his ukulele, placed behind a picture frame sitting on an end table adjacent to the sofa. He supposed he was looking at a rushed hiding attempt.
"Ohhhhh, Tiana…" he said, walking to the sofa, plopping himself down next to her, and extending an arm around her shoulders. Her name rolled off his tongue in that special, accented rhythm. "You are not so good at hiding things, no? I always find them."
Stretching out his other arm, Naveen grasped the instrument on the table and pulled it into his lap. He settled it across his legs and began running his fingers down the grain of the polished cedar. Tiana watched his strokes, innocent look still etched into her pretty features. Naveen's hand fell across the strings, and felt that they were still warm. His smile grew, and a blush started on his wife's face.
"So… This is the cause of the dream-deferring racket."
Tiana's facial expression changed to that of feigned offense. " 'Racket'? How come when you play it, it's "beautiful music"?"
Naveen squeezed his arm tighter around her shoulders. "That is because, my lovely princess, I play it. I do not pluck at it." He laughed lightly and gave her a lopsided smile. His arm lifted off of her and his hand joined the other on top of the ukulele. "Anyway, what are you doing with this so early in the morning? You know I need my - how do you say?- beauty sleep," he said playfully.
"Oh, I know," Tiana retorted. "And I'm sorry, because by the look of you, you really needed it this morning." She flashed a wry smile at him.
As Naveen opened his mouth to protest, Tiana cut him off, adding, "Besides, it's not early morning. It's nearly noon, sleeping beauty." She stuck her hand under his chin and snapped his lowered jaw shut.
Naveen jerked up off the sofa suddenly, ukulele sliding off his legs and onto the floor. "Noon? Why did you not wake me? The restaurant-"
"Is closed." Tiana smiled again and pulled him back down next to her. "It's Sunday, though I appreciate the concern." She tapped his nose with her index finger.
"Ah," Naveen said. His eyes fell upon the discarded instrument at his feet. He leaned over and retrieved it. "I am sorry, old friend," he said, patting its surface.
His head shook slightly. Turning back to Tiana, Naveen spoke again. "You are very clever, princess," he said, waving a finger at her, "But I am not that easily distracted." He heard her mumble something to herself and giggle, but chose to ignore it. Naveen tapped a finger on the stringed instrument in his lap and it made a hollow noise. "Just what is your relationship with my ukulele?
Tiana looked down at the floor, sighed, and cuddled into his open chest. Her hand hooked over his broad shoulder.
"Last night, during the dinner rush," Naveen heard her say from under his chin, "After greeting the Williamsons at table seven, I stopped for a moment to watch you play, and…"
"And?" Naveen awkwardly twisted his head to look down at her face. His fingers were drumming on the ukulele now.
"And," Tiana continued, looking up into his light brown eyes, "I just thought… Well, you know how to mince and use ladles and plate dishes… You've openly embraced my passion for food, and I know next to nothing about your first love, music." She frowned and looked away as she finished.
Naveen tucked a finger under her chin and made her look at him once more. "All right. One…" he said, removing his finger and raising it in the air, "My first love will always be you." Tiana's cheeks dimpled a bit and he kissed her forehead. "And two;" a second finger raised, "Do not forget that you, mi amori, are a wonderful dancer! The best in all New Orleans, yes?"
He wrapped his arms around Tiana and bounced her up and down while rocking her. She let out a peal of laughter, but said, through giggles, "Naveen! Stop it! I'm not a child!" He did, and she replied, "You're just saying that 'cause you're married to me."
Naveen gave her a look that seemed to say that she was wrong, and that it was glaringly obvious. "Yes," he said, "And you are my dance partner for life. Why would such a marvelous dancer as I choose one who does not match my expertise? I would not want my feet stepped on for the rest of eternity."
"Ahhh, I see," Tiana laughed, playfully swatting at his bare chest, "So Prince Charming only married me for my dancing skills. I feel like Cinderella."
Naveen's laughter joined hers as he rebuked, "No, I married you because you make the best gumbo in all Louisiana. Dancing makes me hungry."
Tiana slapped his chest again, and said, "Besides, dancing isn't making music, just like waiting tables isn't cooking." She brought her hand back to his shoulder.
"I believe I resent that!" Naveen said, his voice taking on mock displeasure.
"Back to what I was saying," Tiana continued, turning the conversation around, "So this morning, I started to play-"
"Pluck," Naveen corrected.
"Fine, pluck at your ukulele. It can't be that hard to teach myself how to play it, right?"
"Actually, princess," Naveen informed her, "It took me years to master it. And you know that I am a fast learner."
He toyed with a wild curl of Tiana's dark hair as she appeared to consider this. She removed her hand from his shoulder and wrapped it around his waist. Then she turned her face up to look at her husband, resting her chin on his chest and saying, "Well then, I suppose I'll need to get a really good teacher if I wanna learn how to play."
Naveen nodded, confident smile starting as he seemed to grasp where she was going.
"D'you know where I can find one?" Tiana questioned, face taking on a wondering air.
Naveen let out a chuckle. "I believe I resent that as well!"
When Tiana's look didn't change, continuing the charade, Naveen was forced to sheepishly say, "Me, Tiana!" He squeezed her in his arms and she giggled. "I think I would make a suitable teacher."
"All right then, let me ask the student." Tiana looked away for a moment and gave the empty room a questioning look. She turned back to him and smiled. "Student says yes."
Laughing softly, Naveen set his ukulele to the side and pulled Tiana fully into his lap. He shifted her in his arms, facing her away from him. Naveen picked up his beloved ukulele and positioned it in Tiana's hands, guiding them with his own.
"We'll start with how to hold it…"
Maldonian Glossary
espazzianza - expression of exasperation, surprise, or annoyance (geez, golly, blimey, etc.)
mi amori - my love