Everyone Knows Juanita

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jun 29, 2019 20:47:19 GMT

Post by Hector Rivera on Jun 29, 2019 20:47:19 GMT

(January 16th, open to all who'd be by the water.)

"Well, everyone knows Juanita
Her eyes each a different color~"

Such a Halloween sight it would be to see a skeleton strumming along to a guitar. He had the ability to change to his human form but skin felt so bizarre after 90+ years of being just bones. Besides, he'd thought hiding beneath a bridge it would be okay, hidden away from the others. He really just wanted to get away, sit back with some Agua Fresca and play his guitar. Not a Frutería in sight, the man had to settle for just water. He had slipped down beneath the bridge, the golden twinkling lights which once spelled his demise now spelling a transformation. In this case, man to skeleton.

"Her teeth stick out and her chin goes in~"

He chuckled. Chicharron's favorite song. It still pained him to know that he could have suffered the same fate as the old man. Now...who knows. Chicharron could have survived. And that hurt him even more. So he honored him with this song every once and a while.

"And her knuckles, they drag on the floor..."

With modified lyrics of course.

He picked up the water beside him, drinking it before continuing his song.

"Her hair is like a briar
She stands in a bow-legged stance
And if I weren't so ugly, she'd possibly give me a chance." He ended the song with a nice twinkle of the guitar. He sighed. He loved his family but he had to admit he did miss these moments of just him, a drink and his guitar.

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jun 29, 2019 21:10:13 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jun 29, 2019 21:10:13 GMT

"You have a beautiful voice."

Tiana couldn't lie. The sound of music was what had drawn her away from her self imposed task of getting more ingredients for the kitchen. At first, she'd thought that maybe Naveen had left New Orleans behind and come to join her. When she got down beneath the bridge to see what was going on, she'd seen a skeleton strumming a guitar. Initially she'd been a little surprised. Well... perhaps more than a little. Hector didn't look like a scary sort of individual, though, and his music and song were what had beckoned her a little closer to keep listening. When he was done, Tiana waved a little to get his attention even after she'd already spoken up.

"Guess it goes without saying, but I don't believe we get many folks like you around Arendelle," Tiana observed. "Let alone musicians. But I'm glad you're here to change that." The faintest hint of fondness glimmered in her eyes. She really did get a sort of feeling that this man... skeleton was like Naveen in some rights. Probably not just in his love of music, either.

She knelt down on the ground beside Hector and made herself comfortable. It looked like maybe he could use a little company, and who was she to deny him of that? It would be fine. No one was going to mind if she didn't get done with self imposed chores.

"I knew this war would bring folks from all walks of life," she admitted, "but I also don't believe I can quite place where you might've blown in from. Care to share, stranger?"

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jun 29, 2019 21:57:41 GMT

Post by Hector Rivera on Jun 29, 2019 21:57:41 GMT

"AH!"

He gasped loudly, jumping up into a kneeling, his spinal chord briefly separating from his hip bones before clashing back on top of them. He didn't really have time to shift back into human form as he held his guitar by the neck up in front of him. He was waiting to see if she would scream and run away so he could get back to playing his guitar. But she wasn't screaming, she kneeled down next to him on the grass. He was quite surprised. When the worlds merged everyone in his little town had flipped out so much when their skeletal loved ones came back (everyone except Miguel of course) the dead had to learn quick to slip on their human skin.

"Thank you," he said, placing his guitar on his lap, "I wasn't aware I was giving a performance!" He ran his bony fingers over the strings again. He laughed at her words. He had blown in from somewhere weird.

"Have you heard of a little town called Santa Cecilia?" Another strum was given to the guitar before he put the instrument down next to him. "It's a little town in Mexico."

He raised an eyebrow and tilted his skeletal head to the side. "How are you not screaming?" He asked, confused, "I don't exactly look presentable, eh? Or maybe you like men who are all skin and bones?" Charming to the bone, no pun intended.

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jun 29, 2019 22:17:20 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jun 29, 2019 22:17:20 GMT

Now his initial scream of surprise did startle Tiana, but she still didn't run away. Instead, she stayed put and allowed Hector to situate himself once more. She did laugh a little, but otherwise kept quiet as he answered her question. Then she shook her head a little bit.

"I'm afraid I've not heard of Santa Cecilia," she answered. "I haven't traveled much outside the United States before. Maybe I'll make a point to visit when this old war is over." Hs own question? It wasn't unexpected. Her eyes went half lidded for a moment and a little cheeky smile formed on Tiana's face. It made sense that Hector would ask about it. Tiana had a very good reason for not getting scared, though.

"Sir, I spent a handful of days before I married livin' as a frog. Meetin' a skeleton and livin' in a world where we can talk to animals doesn't really faze me," Tiana explained. Oh, she knew that would sound weird. It wasn't a story she'd told many of the Enchanted Suns up until that point. Nevertheless, she'd continue if he wanted.

"You do remind me a bit of my husband, though. He's a musician, too. So maybe that's why I couldn't help comin' by and listenin' when I heard you playing. I'm Tiana, by the way. Sorry I spooked you before, mister...?" She let her sentence trail off there so Hector could fill in his own name. This wasn't the most awkward way to make a friend, she thought. Meeting Ray the way she and Naveen had still had to be the most awkward of meetings, but she filed the thought away for later.

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jun 30, 2019 1:55:06 GMT

Post by Hector Rivera on Jun 30, 2019 1:55:06 GMT

"Hm, I'm hoping war won't come to my home," he mumbled softly, plucking at the grass, "That's why I'm here. To protect my family."

He stared, wide eyed as she explained her situation. His jaw parted a bit, hanging open in shock. "What...exactly...a rana?!" He whistled. "What kind of magical world do you live in where people turn into frogs? That's almost as weird as...as a...um...as a skeleton talking." He took off his hat and placed it against his chest, chuckling softly. "Point taken."

Her husband was a musician too? She and Imelda could talk for days then, he thought to himself, hopefully her husband isn't a deadbeat. "Tiana," he repeated, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Hector." He sounded out the 'H' instead of just the rest of his name, trying to avoid any confusion that his name was just 'Ector.' It was a funny though. He was trying to keep himself as upbeat as one could during war times. He placed his hat back on his head and turned to face her, curiosity glowing in his eyes.

"So," he said, "You must tell me this frog story. I'm sure it's muy romántico, eh?" He gently elbowed her arm. "Was your husband the frog too? Did you fall in love AS frogs?" He shook his head. "I'm sorry, please, go on."

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jun 30, 2019 17:19:18 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2019 17:19:18 GMT

"Pleased to meet you, too, Hector," Tiana said. Unsurprisingly, he wanted to know her story. From the gentle elbowing of her arm to the playful manner of speech, it was hard not to compare him to Naveen in her mind. It was even harder still, she found, to keep from laughing a little as she digested the questions.

"No, it's fine. I'd be askin' the same things," she said. "He was born human, but got himself deep in trouble with a voodoo man and got himself turned into a frog. And the rest? Well." Tiana made herself a little more comfortable and leaned back a bit. This would be a fairly interesting tale to tell. No one had really asked since she'd joined the war, as she'd thought before, but now she had her chance to tell the tale. If anyone else was listening, she wouldn't have minded if they heard to begin with.

"It started at my best friend's masquerade ball. I'd just learned that I wasn't going to get my dream restaurant after all, and I was feeling lower than low. All that hard work down the drain, all because someone outbid me on the building I wanted. So when I was alone, making what I thought was a hopeless wish on the evenin' star, I met him. He was just this lil' old frog sitting there on the railing and I thought 'Great, the wishin' star gave me a frog,' so teasingly I asked if he wanted a kiss. Turns out he still could talk, and it gave me a real fright when he told me 'yes.' Paraphrasing, of course," she explained. Just thinking back to that moment had her a little embarrassed. She'd gotten so scared because of a talking frog! Things sure had changed, she thought. Giving her head a little shake, she continued.

"One thing led to another, and he convinced me that if I kissed him I'd turn him back into a human. Keep in mind, I was dressed as a princess at the time. Poor Naveen thought I actually was one," she said. "So because he'd promised he'd help me with achieving my dream, I did it. And got myself turned into a frog in the process. So we were stuck that way, and stuck working together, for a while." Again, a fondness entered her expression. She did shake her head a bit, though, as she remembered how far Naveen had come.

"We couldn't stand each other at first. He was so goofy, and carefree, and... everything I wasn't. But the more time we spent together as we worked toward finding the woman we thought could change us back, we got to know each other better. And well... to make a long story short, you'd be right. We did fall in love as frogs. But as you can see," she gestured to herself. "We didn't stay stuck that way." She'd leave the tale there. If nothing else, Tiana kind of wanted to make it a little more tantalizing. Leave him wanting more, as it were.

"What about you, Hector? You got a girl back home?"

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 1, 2019 21:29:04 GMT

Post by Hector Rivera on Jul 1, 2019 21:29:04 GMT

Hector had to close his skeletal jaw manually as he finished listening to Tiana’s tale. It really was muy romantico as he’d said before. She met her husband as a frog? It was a delightful little tale, a cute story which he was sure he was just hearing the surface of. He was sure there were side stories, funny characters, and the moral being all about love. He couldn’t help but laugh a bit though.

“Two lovers finding themselves as frogs,” he said, “It’s like that story, eh? The fairy tale?” He lay back on the grass, placing his bony arms behind his head, moving the guitar so he could lean against the wooden body of the instrument.

“A girl? Yes,” he said, “Actually, she's my wife. Imalda. You’d like her. She definitely gives me a hard time. But...dios I love her. With all of my...non-beating heart.” He placed his hand on his heart and he gave a small laugh before frowning.

“Our story isn’t as upbeat,” he said, “In fact it took me 91 years to be able to say I’m sorry. To get her to forgive me and sing again.”

He chuckled. “I didn’t mean to get so low,” he said, “You just miss your family, you know.” He smirked. “Tell me, you own a restaurant now? My granddaughter is a great cook. Imalda...ehhhh. And Coco takes after her mother. Which means you’d hire either of them.”

“What type of food do you cook? Perhaps taquitos? I love those.”

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 2, 2019 2:52:45 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2019 2:52:45 GMT

"The Frog Prince? Yeah. Naveen noticed that similarity, too, when we first met," Tiana answered. Even she couldn't deny that there were similarities. Except... well, if she had anything to say about it, she would have called it The Princess and the Frog. Come to think of it, if she didn't know any better she would have thought that the story was specifically made for her and Naveen. The thought was brushed off, though, in favor of her leaning forward a little while Hector told her about his own wife. Imelda was her name.

"Sounds like the kinda woman I could get along with," she admitted. Of course, that wasn't to say that she was specifically drawn to people who were just like her. Lottie and she were like night and day. Still, she couldn't help but think she and Imelda would have gotten along. Only...

"Ninety-one years?" Surprise was evident in Tiana's tone. "I can't even imagine what must have happened between you two. But I'm glad you were able to work things out in the end." They had their whole lives... afterlives? Whatever the case, they had their time together now. Even if Hector had chosen to go help out with the war, and even if Tiana had done the same thing and left Naveen behind in the process, that is.

"Don't apologize. It's okay." Since he wanted to move on to a different topic, though, Tiana respected that wish and soon was nodding her head. "I did finally get my restaurant in the end. After Naveen and I were married, our friend Louis... just for a little background, he's an alligator. Anyway, he helped 'convince' the two men who initially weren't goin' to let me have it." Maybe it was wrong that Louis had needed to act as an intimidation factor, but honestly? The idea had been Naveen's to start with. Tiana just went along with it. It all had worked out in the end, though.

"Our focus at Tiana's Palace is mostly the best food New Orleans has to offer. But..." She smiled. "I'd be willin' to add new things to the menu. I've been meaning to try out new recipes while I'm here, anyway. So I could squeeze some taquitos in there. Just for you, my friend." That did beg the question, though. Tiana hadn't given it much thought, and confusion did slowly start to filter in to her expression.

"Forgive me if this sounds dumb. I just... are you still able to eat when you're...?"

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 2, 2019 21:54:59 GMT eddiesand likes this

Post by Hector Rivera on Jul 2, 2019 21:54:59 GMT

Hector winced and let out a laugh as he considered how bizarre that would sound. So many years apart. “It’s my turn for a story,” he said.

Picking up the guitar he ran his fingers slowly over the strings. “I was a musician,” he said, “And I had my wife Imelda and my precious daughter Coco. We were happy but...I let my stupid friend Ernesto drag me along on the road.” His head dipped slightly. “I never went home again.” He shut his eyes tightly, laying the guitar next to him. It still pained him, all of those years of Coco’s lives missed, growing old with Imelda, teaching his grandchildren how to play the guitar. He’d been robbed of that but he was not going to lose out on that now. He would protect his family. He would protect them all.

“I was murdered,” he said, “Killed by my best friend’s hand. For a couple of songs.” He huffed. “Imalda thought I left her for the music. So when she joined me in death she…” He shut his eyes tightly before opening them.

“But we’re together again that’s all that matters,” he said. He sat up and nodded.

“Do you know what a taquito is?” He asked, “It’s a small tortilla, rolled up and fried. It’s got cheese, shredded chicken or beef inside. It’s delicious.” He shrugged. “My granddaughter will not let anyone help in her kitchen so I know chefs can be very picky eh? But if you’ll let me I can cook you the finest Mexican dinner. Free of charge!”

He couldn’t help but pause when she asked. “Uhhh,” he said, “I...listen, senorita, how’s about you don’t ask me how I can eat and I won’t ask how you changed shape into a little green frog, okay?”

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 3, 2019 3:37:02 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2019 3:37:02 GMT

His story touched her heart, to be quite frank. To be betrayed by someone he thought of as a close friend must have been particularly hard to take, but... at least it all had worked out in the end. Nevertheless, Tiana did reach a hand out to rest against his shoulder. A sympathetic smile tugged upon her lips before she was inclined to speak again. She did let him finish speaking and answer her question from before, though.

"You know what? That's fair enough for me," she said. "We'll let those questions lie where they're at. And goin' back around a topic... I'm glad everything did end up workin' out in the end for you and your Imelda. I'd hate to think that you two never worked things out." No one deserved to be alone. It did make her heart ache to think that the two of them were in a similar boat, though. Both of them had left their respective lovers behind to do some good in the war. Perhaps they were a little more like minded than some might have first believed, she thought.

"Taquitos do sound pretty easy," she had to admit after a moment. "Tell you what. When I get back to the kitchen, I can make up a batch to serve for everyone. Then you can tell me what'cha think. And maybe you can play some more of that music in the meantime?" Her smile returned and her sentence was punctuated with a light laugh. Hector really did know how to get her thinking about Naveen.

"You know, I think you really would get along well with Naveen. You two could talk music for ages, I'd bet."

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 4, 2019 2:49:56 GMT

Post by Hector Rivera on Jul 4, 2019 2:49:56 GMT

Hector chuckled under his breath again, running his bony fingers over his guitar strings again. "Me too," he said, "I thought for sure I'd disappear before I ever saw her or my daughter again. You never want to see someone you love slip away..."

He shook his head, allowing the skull to spin on the spinal chord one time before righting itself. "That's enough of that," he said firmly. He was done dwelling on the past and the stupid things he'd done. On leaving Imelda and Coco and his family behind. On turning the whole Rivera family into a bunch of music hating shoemakers. But that was all in the past now. Ernesto was humiliated. He was whole again with his family. And that was all that mattered.

"Oh-ho I don't know, princesa rana," he said with a laugh, "It sounds easy but it's complex. How else could we have about ten different dishes made with meat, cheese and tortilla and they all taste different?" He strummed the guitar.

"What color is the sky, ah mi amor, ah mi amor?
You tell me that it's red, ah mi amor, ah mi amor."

"I like this husband of yours, he sounds like a cool guy, especially if I remind you of him," he snickered, "Does he cook or is he in charge of the entertainment?"

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 5, 2019 20:01:33 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2019 20:01:33 GMT

Although Tiana didn't know Spanish, she could at least guess what Hector had called her based on what he had said before. The dish did sound more complex now that he'd described it. Tiana didn't look that daunted, though. She'd made plenty of complex things at her own restaurant.

"Well, the more complex the more fun it is," she told him. "I haven't yet a dish yet that I can't eventually figure out. So it'll be interestin' to get down to it." The song he played, or at least started to play, was definitely upbeat. It sounded like the sort of thing that Naveen would have played for her to lift her spirits. That thought alone brought a fond smile to her face. She did laugh again, though, when she took in his questions. Mostly it was the question about whether or not Naveen could cook that got her.

"Hector," she told him, "Naveen couldn't cook his way out of a wet paper bag. Imagine a spoiled prince. Now imagine a prince so spoiled he had basically everything done for him, and you've got Naveen when I first met him." Again, she laughed. Her husband had been a bit of a hopeless mess when it came to cooking. He was a little better now, at least because Tiana had been teaching him, but he still didn't know everything.

"No, he's more in charge of entertainment than anything else. The man plays a mean ukulele and can dance up a storm like no one I've ever seen. Sometimes he helps with the serving and things the waiters usually handle, but most of the time I can find him on stage or just on the restaurant floor," she explained. It usually was easy enough to spot him. He did kind of stand out like a sore thumb. That was the best thing as far as Tiana was concerned, though. She always liked being able to watch Naveen from afar when she wasn't busy elsewhere at the front of the restaurant.

"Maybe one day, when the war's over," she told him, "you could come see us in action. Actually... maybe Naveen, you, and Louis could perform together. Louis plays trumpet with the rest of the band we've got. ...I know that's weird." Her hand was brought up to her mouth so she could cover a small laugh. It would make sense in context.

"Louis learned to play trumpet while he still lived in the swamps. So... we got a trumpet playin' gator in the restaurant."

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 14, 2019 1:50:28 GMT

Post by Hector Rivera on Jul 14, 2019 1:50:28 GMT

"A talking alligator?"

Hector blinked, confusion on his face. He laughed. "What is the world you live in, miha?"He whistled, "I mean I'm a talking skeleton and that sounds weird to me." Sure, the land of the dead was very bizarre and weird. Sure there were flying tigers and skeleton people and everything glowed and sometimes people disappeared if you stopped remembering them. But to have that happen in your regular life? Hector couldn't imagine.

"But it sounds wonderful," he said, "And I'm glad you got your dream. Even if you had to be a frog to do it. Though it sounds like your husband could use a bit more training, ah? He should at least be waiting tables!"

He strummed the guitar again. "Okay, I have two questions," he said, "One, tell me about where you are from. The city, the town, the street, whatever it is." He did like learning about all of the people in this war. "And what is your signature dish?"

He ran his fingers over the guitar again. "Every musician has their song. Mine was...is...Remember Me. I wrote it for my daughter." He paused, briefly thinking of playing the song but he decided against it. It would make him cry. "So? Do chefs have that?"

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Everyone Knows Juanita Jul 15, 2019 15:23:04 GMT

Post by Deleted on Jul 15, 2019 15:23:04 GMT

"I can't say I'm surprised it does," Tiana admitted. "Gave Naveen and I a real surprise when we realized we could still understand him after we were back to bein' human. But he's one of our very best friends. Couldn't imagine it without him now." She did have to agree with Hector, though, in regards to Naveen. She loved him dearly, but sooner or later she would need to train him on how to wait tables. There was only so much entertaining he could do until things inevitably got busy at Tiana's Palace. Thankfully, though, she was fairly certain he had things under control while she was gone. He had her mama helping him, after all, and good old Eudora knew how to handle things just fine too.

Now that was an interesting question, she thought when he presented it. Hector wanted her to tell him about New Orleans and the specialties of Tiana's Palace. Where did she even begin? A contemplative hum slipped free from her as she tapped her chin. The best place to start, she thought, was with the city itself. While she thought, though, she also considered what he'd said about his own signature song. A song he'd written for his daughter.

"Aw..." Tiana couldn't help getting a little misty eyed just from how sweet that was. She took a moment to wipe her eyes before continuing. "You really love her, don't you? My daddy was the same way." She didn't give herself long of a pause there, though. Thinking about long deceased James would have just dragged the mood.

"Anyway... New Orleans. It's a vibrant, beautiful city right along the water," she explained. "Always busy, always seems like there's some sweetness goin' around... never a dull moment there. 'Course, I spent a good chunk of my life there never really appreciating it while I had the chance. Up 'til I met Naveen, I had to spend a lot of my time with my nose to the grindstone tryin' to make the money for my dream restaurant. But you know how that story ends now." She laughed a light little twitter of a noise before shifting her posture a little and looking up for a moment. What she said rang truer than she would've liked. Before she'd met Naveen, she never had stopped to have a lot of fun or enjoy the little things. Now she was almost in her twenties and could only say that she'd worked hard for the majority of her teens until she'd gotten married. Time surely did fly, she thought.

"I think you'd like it in New Orleans. We have a lot of musicians who spend time around there. The music might be a little different from what you're used to, though. We got jazz musicians here, there, and just about everywhere in New Orlenas. I can't even say I'm surprised. It's where the genre originated, at least according to Naveen," she explained. He would know. The man had an ear for music and a surprisingly vast knowledge of it in general. And the food? That was the best part of New Orleans. A fine segway into the topic of Tiana's Palace.

"And back to my restaurant... we have a fair number of specialties, like our specialty gumbo, muffulettas, and the jambalaya, but I'd say one of the dishes people always love to have is the beignets. It's sort of... have you ever had a doughnut? 'Cause it's a little like that, but it's also got powdered sugar and a little honey on top. Sometimes we make 'em with chocolate on the inside, too, and a chocolate dipping sauce." Tiana realized the food might have been different where Hector was from and in New Orleans. Hence the question, she supposed. She must have been talking about a mile a minute, too. Realizing that, she stopped there and allowed the chance for Hector to take everything in.