Give It Back

"Unanswered curiosities can never be satisfied."

Once upon a time, not too far back from the past was a small little girl who could not stop fantasizing about fairies, fictional princesses, and prince charmings. She often, when spoken to, spoke about the strangest tales, and, though the stories were peculiar, the townsfolk could not help but listen, captivated by the enchanting words her lips spilled.

One story was of a broken-hearted prince who had lost his love, only to find another love within a stray frog. Many of the listeners would object and point out that the story was "Princess and The Frog," only, the characters were switched. The little girl, with a wide, cheerful smile on her face, continued to tell the story, her eyes sharpening with the excitement.

The Prince had found the she-frog in a lonely boat one starless night as he walked the shores of the sea. The frog stared at the moon's silver light, and The Prince could not help but want to look at it as well, the moon, that is. He did not know, but, slowly, he had made his way right beside the frog, looking quite so intensely at the moon's shine.

Hours of comfortable silence stretched out until the moon began to fade away, and the sun soon came to replace the lost silver light. The Prince must have misheard, but he could swear to his grave, he heard the silent frog, which had not croaked once during the hours of the night, say "Give it back."

Shocked, and slightly mortified, he jumped back. The small boat tilted as he moved, but the frog only held still. With a small gulp, The Prince mustered the courage to ask, "Give what back?"

Suddenly turning to The Prince's direction, it was obvious from the small slip of a shriek she had not noticed him, though, because she was a frog, he could not decipher her expression well. The Prince waited in silence for her reply, and when it was obvious to the prince she had no intention of saying another word, she began to hop off, leaving him.

The listeners waited anxiously as the little girl paused to take a small breath, completely drawn into the story. It was not quite the story as "Princess and The Frog." The small girl looked at the crowd gathered before her and then continued the tale she loved most out of the other thousands of tales she knew.

Days quickly passed by, but the words The Prince heard from the frog stayed with him, not allowing him to sleep a decent night's sleep. He had no idea why he could not stop thinking of such words. "Give it back." Three words which should sound childish seemed to have taken a mature turn. Finally unable to take his curiosity, he set out to find the frog. It was a foolish mission, but he had to try. That was what he thought. His servants, maids, the queen, and the king could do nothing to prevent his stubborn decision. And so, he began to look, certain he could distinguish the difference between the she-frog and the other frogs.

He looked for days which turned to weeks, and before he knew it, those weeks began to fade into months. Throughout those months, he could not find her. Those who loved him worried for they had not seen him for quite a while. The king issued troops to find him, but when they came back they reported that The Prince did not wish to come back just yet. Everyone at the palace waited for him in anguish, in anxiousness. However, soon, those months passed by to a year.

The Prince had lost hope, and though he could eat plenty because of the food his family sent despite his complaints, he could put no food in his mouth for he had no appetite. He wondered, most nights, of those three words until he fell asleep. Other nights, his uncalled desires began to surface, even going to as thinking about what the she-frog could have looked like as a human being. Could she be beautiful- no, more beautiful- than all the princesses he knew? The Prince was bewildered with his own thoughts. How silly they were.