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acefaun · 2 years

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Voodoo

Synopsis: Being a practitioner voodoo, it’s natural for the gods to suspect dark magic out of such unfamiliar powers. Unfortunately, they placed a little too much trust in your motives as King of the Mardi Gras parade, resulting in an unnecessarily risky battle for your soul.

✨Masterlist✨ Female goldfish! A/n: Happy Mardi Gras from your lovely cajun-creator! Not everyone outside of Louisiana celebrates Mardi Gras, so I figured the gods wouldn't know much about Louisiana stuff either… But Louisiana-native or not, most people know what voodoo is: scary bayou magic. ✨ So this is a story about a Voodoo practitioner. Also, it's that time of year to watch Disney’s The Princess and the Frog. 🐸 Yes, I reference my favorite Disney villain: Dr. Facilier, THE SHADOW MAN. Honestly… I think I was losing brain cells halfway through this. I might rewrite it next year. XP Could’ve been because I was trying to finish it this morning and then had to go to the emergency room… so… now I’m finishing it at the last minute of Mardi Gras night! Ah, hope it's worth reading!

–Word Count: 10,478–

The room was dimly lit by candles. Looking closely enough, one could swear there was an eerie smoke that was meant to conceal the secrets within. The masks that hung along the walls were enough to make one feel unsettled without the need for smoke.

There were many shelves along the walls, some holding books and others showcasing weird talismans. The foreboding thing about this was that Ichthys was being led deeper into the room where there was a lone table surrounded by three chairs. It was the only place in the room that was easy to see.

“Take a seat.” My voice made Ichthys flinch despite the distance he was keeping between us in the room. Meeting my oddly glowing gaze, he quickly took a seat in one of the cushioned chairs. I circled around the table like a predator observing its prey before I finally leaned over the table with a smile. “So, I have just the thing for you. Only, it wouldn’t be a fair exchange if I just let you off with my potions, now would it?”

He visibly shrunk at what my words could imply. “What do you need from me?”

“Not much, if I’m being honest,” I shrugged slightly, my eyes trailing over to my shelves. “What I need from you is hair from each of the zodiac gods. You can manage that much, can’t you? And I’ll give you a fool-proof way to prank your unprank-able lion.”

“A hair,” he paused. “From each of the gods?”

My eyes glowed excitedly as he repeated my request. “A fair trade in exchange for targeting the next King of the Heavens, no?”

He stared at the table, a look of discomfort etched on his face as he contemplated his choices. I was the only way he could get to Leon. No one else was willing to help him with his pranks and he had seen me do funny pranks on humans before. Recruiting me was a sure way to get to Leon, especially since the other gods liked me. Immediately, he plucked a hair from his own head, placing it on the table. Giving a firm nod, he said, “I’ll do it.”

I slunk over to his side of the table with a mischievous grin, holding my hand out to him. “We have a deal.” Immediately, he took hold of my hand to shake on our verbal contract. “As soon as you give me everything I need, I’ll have your potion ready.”

Ichthys was relieved when he finally left my room—I could see it in the way his shoulders relaxed. As much as the gods liked me, they still considered me ‘odd’. My teacher would have been proud if he could see the way I wrapped gods around my finger. It wasn’t that I had any ill-intent toward the Zodiac gods, I actually liked them very much. I was an outcast from normal human society but these gods didn’t seem to have a problem with my quirky abilities so I naturally wriggled my way into their lives after they recruited me to help them get home.

Currently, however, we had a unique situation on our hands. I moved into the mansion thanks to these ‘dark gods’ who were after me. Though, their presence seemed awfully familiar to me—not unlike my friends on the other side. Though, I didn’t view this as a threat. It even gave me time to bond with my close zodiacs.

As a good friend would do, I was in the kitchen, preparing what I would need for Ichthys’ prank. I sighed after failing to find what I was looking for in the cabinets. “They’re out of tomato sauce… He’s been eating too many meatballs.”

“There you are.” Huedhaut’s voice called me from the cabinet and I found him standing near the counter, flipping through a book. Noticing my attention was on him, he closed the cover, displaying it to me. “I found the book you were looking for. Was there a specific reason you wanted to read about the under realm?”

I shrugged casually as if it weren’t a big deal for a human to be interested in that kind of stuff. “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. I figured I’d be better prepared if I knew what was threatening me. Not to mention…” There was a chance these dark beings were already familiar with me. Were they the ones responsible for the disappearance of my teacher? It was something I was secretly investigating.

“(Name)?”

“Nothing,” I abruptly responded, snapping out of my thoughts. “Thanks.” I quickly took the book from his offered hand, flipping through the pages to get an overview of what I’d be looking at. “I was also wondering if we could go out for a bit. There are a few things I need.

Before I could make my way to the door, Huedhaut was already redirecting me away from the exit. “Hold on, it's still too dangerous for you to be going out. If you really refuse to let us use our powers for food, then let one of us go to the store for you.”

I crossed my arms in annoyance. “Fine. I'll write down what I want. But if something's missing from my list, then I'm going to the store myself!”

I huffed as he ruffled my hair and agreed. “Deal.”

***

The little dolls I had made were nothing impressive. They had little button eyes, and they were obviously stitched together by hand. Regardless of their quality, they were actually something quite special. Thanks to Ichthys’ hard work in getting hair from each of the gods, I could finally awaken them. My hands hovered over the table where the twelve dolls lay still. My eyes glowed a deep purple color, the talisman floating around my neck for a moment as I inserted my power into the dolls.

This kind of voodoo should have been simple, but it was more complex than I’d imagined without the guidance of my teacher. To mock the life force of another living being was complicated and took my utmost focus. But I flinched back as one doll moved. “Ah! They- They’re alive?” I frantically searched for my book, snatching it off of my carpeted floor and holding it up to the candlelight. “No, that’s not right.” I rubbed my forehead. “Is it because they’re gods?” I grabbed one of the wiggling dolls on the desk, holding it up to the masks that were hanging on the walls and the other little voodoo dolls I had collected on my shelves. “Hey, friends, what do you think of these?”

The eyes on the masks flew open in glowing colors, all peeled on what I had created. Even the little voodoo dolls stood up to witness my creations. Their grins were enough to tell me they were pleased with my use of magic.

I grinned at my accomplishment—I rarely made work as impressive as Dr. Facilier. “They’re alive too, like real voodoo dolls! It was a bit of an accident, but that’s what happens when you combine voodoo with divine powers. No bother to me though. Now, I can make more.”

I froze in place as my door was flung into the wall, making a loud crash. “Where the hell are they?! What happened?!”

I turned away from my wall, finding Scorpio standing at my door with an angry expression. I tilted my head in confusion. “Is something wrong?”

His eyes landed on me, and they narrowed. “I sensed dark energy. What happened?”

I hummed and shrugged my shoulders. “Anyway, now that you're here, you can see what I made.” My thumb and middle finger held under its arms while my index finger held its head upright. “It's a voodoo doll of you.”

“What the hell…” He grumbled, his face scrunching up as he looked at the little plush version of him. He didn't care how talented I was at making little dolls, he thought it was weird. Scorpio crossed his arms, acting indifferent. “You could be less creepy. It's weird enough ya gotta have those masks all over your room. Are you trying to invite dark energy into the mansion?”

I hummed, not receiving the insults from his harsh words. “That's not what I wanted to do.” I pulled my hand back, looking at the little Scorpio in my hands. “I'll try better next time.” The gods didn’t like my friends on the other side, I knew that much. Maybe it would have been best to leave all of my magical items back in Dr. Facilier’s business—then the gods wouldn’t worry so much.

Scorpio sighed at seeing how disheartened his words got me. “Whatever. It’s fine. Just stop doing whatever you were doing. It felt… dark.”

He closed the door as he left, but I understood what he was talking about. My powers weren’t divine like theirs so they could probably feel that difference. Even Dr. Facilier told me my power was different—stronger. That was the reason I wore a talisman around my neck. It snuffed my powers to a bare minimum, but it also helped me wield them better.

Placing my voodoo doll of Scorpio on the table, I grabbed a bowl that was sitting on a shelf. It was time to repay Ichthys for his hard work.

***

“(Name)!” I glanced at Ichthys as I walked into the living room. We locked eyes, and he instantly paused. “Is that…”

“Not for you,” I replied quickly, placing the bowl on the table. “I almost don’t want to give these to Leo. He’s been eating all my meatballs, so I had to send Hue out to get some more ingredients.”

Leon scoffed as he walked into the room. “You’re complaining about me?” Before he could sit in his chair he was left staring at the bowl of meatballs on the table. Only, he didn’t pounce on them like usual. He stared at them with wide eyes for a moment before questioning, “Why does this have… an aura?”

Even Ichthys looked put off by the bowl of food. “Yeah… that looks a little gross.”

“I… What?” I looked between the two gods and the bowl of meatballs. “What are you talking about? Are you saying you won’t eat it? I made it just for you.” Were gods able to visibly see my magic? Maybe helping Ichthys out was going to be harder than I thought. “Look, they taste just fine,” I took one meatball and innocently ate it in front of him before he could reach out and stop my reckless action. “See? Delicious meatballs. I don’t taste an aura. All I taste is yummy tomato sauce.” Of course, I tasted nothing abnormal. That was the thing about voodoo, I couldn’t do a thing for myself.

Leon regarded me suspiciously waiting for any kind of change to take place, but if nothing happened to a goldfish, then the meatballs must have been safe for consumption. He shrugged off his worries, taking the bowl from me. I grinned behind his back, turning to look at Ichthys who was looking anxious where he stood. As if sensing the dangerous energy in the room, he called out, “Wait! This feels sketchy.”

My eyes widened at his sudden disapproval of what was happening. Leon paused and glared between us. The room was silent, but the stare-down was understood. “Bold of you to disrespect me, Ichthys. You forget, you shook my hand. You’re in my world now, not your world…” I snapped my fingers causing the room to darken, suddenly it seemed similar to my room, and the masks were hanging about the walls. “And I’ve got friends on the other side!”

“They’ve got friends on the other side.”

Ichthys flinched at the extra voices in the room, but he knew those masks were just talking. His concerned eyes flew to me, but Leon beat him to the punch by asking, “Are you using dark magic?”

“Dark magic? Hardly.” I questioned with a tilted head. Voodoo wasn’t the same magic the gods used, that was for sure. Still, it amused me they were wary of my powers. That’s what happens when someone tries to break a deal with me. “That was just an echo, gentlemen. Just a little something we have here in Louisiana. A little parlor trick, don’t worry.” I waved my hand for them to sit, but seeing as they weren’t budging, my shadow saw fit to trip them. “Have a seat, get comfortable; put your mind at ease. If you relax, it will enable me to do anything I please.”

“(Name)-”

My shadow stopped Leon from snapping his fingers. “I’d prefer if you didn’t, thanks. I have a misunderstanding to clear up. Ichthys,” I addressed him, making Ichthys freeze up on the sofa.

“Hang on a second, what exactly are you planning on doing here?” His gaze was hard, but my confused expression couldn’t leave him angry for long. He was a punishments god, but what exactly was he supposed to be doing when I had even Leon at my mercy? Or was it just the fact that neither of them wanted to do anything to hurt me? That was it. He knew I couldn’t hurt them just as I knew they wouldn't hurt me. “I know what I said, but you’re taking this prank too far.”

“We made a deal. You held up your end, and I’m just paying you back. It would’ve gone so much smoother if you hadn’t made him all suspicious.” I huffed, turning away from Ichthys. “Now I had to get my friends involved because you ruined my side of the deal. This will be better if you cooperate!”

Dark tendrils from the masks on the walls swooped down, surrounding the two gods and thoroughly startling them. Leon pulled away from my shadow, snapping his fingers. The darkness in the room seemed to shudder before growing denser around us. Leon snarled. “Now I see where that aura came from. Still, there isn’t any ill-intent in your soul. How…”

“Because I’m not here with ill intentions,” I pouted, crossing my arms. “I- Okay, let me explain. I do voodoo, a type of magic common where I’m from—I say common, but… everyone thinks it’s creepy. It’s not ‘dark’ necessarily. It depends on how it’s used. My teacher taught me how to use voodoo to make deals with people, it's how we work, and I made a deal with Ichthys! We shook on it. Do you want me to get punished for going back on my word?”

The energy in the room seemed to deflate after my bland explanation. Still, Leon seemed very aggravated to be tied up in all of this. “What the hell does this have to do with me?”

“Pfft,” I snickered at his question. It should have been obvious what he had to do with any of this. “It wouldn’t be much of a prank if I told you. Now, where were we? Friends?” I called out for my magical helpers and Leon was begrudgingly pulled back onto the sofa, his fingers stuck together so he couldn’t snap his way out again.

Armed only with one meatball in my hand, I was ready to finish my end of the deal with Ichthys. Only, Ichthys ended up stopping me yet again. His arms flung around me, yanking me back away from Leon. He shouted, “I can’t let you do this, (Name)! I thought you were just going to do a little prank. But these dark powers… I don’t trust them. I’m sorry!” He tried to apologize to keep me from fighting him, but I wriggled in his arms, anyway.

“Ichthys, let go! This isn’t fair.” After a few silent minutes of struggling, I finally suggested, “Okay, what about a new deal? I won’t do a thing to Leon and you’re going to let me go. Try to stop me again and I’ll- I’ll turn you into a frog!”

“A frog?” Ichthys’ eyebrows furrowed. “What kind of threat is that?”

“What?” I glanced at him with a daring smirk. “Don’t think you can hold up your end of the deal? Just shake my hand.” I held my hand up with a coy smile. “Come on, Ichthys. Won’t you shake a poor sinner's hand?”

Ichthys grumbled quietly for a moment before releasing me. He let out a sigh before admitting, “Fine. But we’re talking to Zyglavis after this. I bet you haven’t told him a thing about this voodoo stuff and he’s going to be pretty mad about it.”

Taking my hand in his, he didn’t quite realize the trap he walked into until I laughed. “Yes!” Turning my gaze back to where Leon was sitting, he was struggling with my newly made voodoo dolls of the gods. “Are you ready?!” I bounced excitedly on my feet as he was finally forced to eat one of the meatballs I made.

“Hey, you said you wouldn’t do anything to him,” Ichthys shouted, upset that I went through with my plans. I shrugged my shoulders lightly, growing eager at the green light that was suddenly illuminating the living room. “(Name)!” The minute Ichthys laid a hand on me the green illuminated liquid surrounded him as well.

I tapped my chin with interest as I watched both of them struggling with my magic. “What did I tell you? You’d be transformed into a frog if you tried to stop me. Can you feel it? You’re changing alright!”

A bang rang out from the living room door. I knew it was only a matter of time before another god showed up to the living room, only to find the door locked. Based on what Leon and Ichthys said, my magic also had an aura that unsettled them. The god outside the living room door must be panicking.

The masks on the walls were already vanishing back to my room along with my voodoo dolls. It was just in time for the door to unlock and Karno to rush in followed by Zyglavis—the original two gods who were supposed to guard me from the dark king. Karno’s eyes flitted across the room. “(Name)! What- Where’s Leo?”

“You accursed goldfish!” Leon shouted at me, though it didn’t phase me since he was a frog. I definitely made the right choice.

“He’s fine,” I replied smugly, turning my attention to where Ichthys was frozen on the floor, “Are you satisfied Ichthys? You know you can’t blame me right? You’re the one who made two deals with me—you can blame both yourself and my friends on the other side.”

“I can't… snap. Argh! My fingers are too gross and slimy!” I flinched back as Leon leaped at me and face planted into my lap. “Change me back right now! Karno! Change me back!”

I covered my mouth, hiding a chuckle. “It's not slime, it's mucus.”

Karno’s eyes were wide as he took in the scene. Obviously, the frog on my lap was Leon and the frog on the floor that I was talking to must have been Ichthys. “What… happened?”

Zyglavis sighed, more exhausted than pleased that Leon was turned into a frog. “Let me guess, this is Ichthys’ doing?”

“Bingo,” I replied, leaning back on the sofa. “He was playing with magic he shouldn’t have been messing with.”

“Dark magic?” Karno questioned, having felt the same thing everyone else felt.

I huffed, glancing away from them. “It wasn’t dark magic.” I wish they’d stop calling it that. It had a proper term. “It’s called voodoo. Don’t any of you gods know anything about human magic?” Without waiting for a response, I cupped Leon into my hands and lifted him up with a shit-eating grin. “Alright! My deal’s done. I can tell you how to change back.”

“Spill,” Leon said seriously.

“Hold on,” Karno interrupted, pulling Leon into his own hands. Leon’s frog legs were left dangling awkwardly with how Karno was holding him. “Is anyone going to explain what happened?”

“No,” Leon grumbled, not wanting to talk about his reluctant fight against a goldfish.

“I can explain,” I said jovially.

“No.” Leon wasn’t having any arguments. It seemed I would need to tell Karno when Leon wasn’t there. “You’re supposed to be telling me how to change back. Talk.”

“Okay, okay,” I relented with my hands up. Now, even Ichthys was listening to me for an answer. “It’s not that big of a secret and usually it entails you hopping around the bayou trying to find the King of the Mardi Gras parade so you can kiss his daughter who would be a princess for the night.”

“WHAT-”

“But luckily,” I interrupted him with a proud grin. “You have your very own local prince! Though… I could have you go kiss the King of the Heavens… That would be hilarious! Do you think he would do it?!”

Zyglavis’ gaze darkened. “What on Earth are you suggesting about the King?” Evidently he wasn’t familiar with the story.

Still, his harsh stare was sending shivers down my spine. “Okay, okay. The only way to break the spell is to kiss a royal—in your case, a prince. Aren’t you just looking forward to kissing Partheno to turn back?”

Ichthys hopped up onto my lap. “Partheno?”

I hummed affirmatively with a nod. “Partheno is the son of a king, making him a prince. I can give you the book later if you want, but that’s the only way for you two to turn back, so you better hop to it.” I covered my mouth, holding back laughter from my own joke. “See what I did there? ‘Hop’ to it? Man, I’m a riot.”

While Karno took care of bringing Ichthys and Leon to get the help they needed, I was stuck in the living room with Zyglavis who was keeping a stern eye on me. Immediately, he wanted answers I wasn’t sure I could really give him and he seemed displeased with my lack of cooperation. “I don’t think you understand the position you’re in. I only want a brief explanation about your powers—the truth.”

I tapped my fingers together awkwardly, a little voodoo doll of Ichthys sitting on my lap. “I can do magic called voodoo, a lot of humans call it shadow magic. My powers as a reborn goddess started it all. When Dr. Facilier first started teaching me he gave me this talisman; I wear it to help me focus my magic. You can imagine the trouble of a human having an abundance of magical energy with nothing to channel it through—this helps me use magic like you guys do.”

Zyglavis blinked and slowly repeated, “Dr. Facilier?”

“You sound familiar,” I beamed, leaning forward in excitement. “Is that how you got your shadow powers? We voodoo kings and queens have our own detachable shadows. You have potential, Ziggy.”

“No,” he bluntly answered, his eyes trailing across my shadow on the floor that waved to him as if it were its own being. “We’re familiar with the name… as he appeared on our punishments lists multiple times in the past before he was… disposed of by his own ‘friends.’”

“I… They couldn’t have…” I trailed off, my eyes glued to the floor before me as I aimlessly rubbed the head of my mini-Ichthys. “So… my mentor really isn’t coming back then. He wasn’t useful enough to them.”

“Useful?” Zyglavis repeated.

“Yeah,” I muttered, still too shocked to wrap my head around what could have happened. “Usually… Those who dabble in voodoo receive help from our friends, those on the other side. They communicate with us through magical talismans and the dolls we can create. They help us achieve our goals, essentially making deals with us for whatever they desire.”

Zyglavis hummed, not entirely following my train of thought. “And what is your goal?”

I sighed, my gaze falling to the floor. “I wanted to become as good in the voodoo arts as my teacher. But… I’ll never find him now. My friends could always teach me but… they’re not that great at communicating unless they have something for me to do. And you guys don’t know anything about voodoo.” My eyes slowly wandered up to meet Zyglavis’s. “I… don’t have a goal anymore.”

Things were silent for a moment as Zyglavis allowed me to ponder in silence. Though, no later was he asking, “What do you intend to do?”

I sighed, shrugging my shoulders. “I think… I need a little more time to think. I'll be in my room… If Leo or Ichthys have any trouble, just let me know.”

He didn't stop me, telling me he understood my predicament. Well, he understood how lost I was, at least.

***

Questioning my friends on the other side about the fate of my mentor, I received no response on the subject. Though, I knew they acknowledged me with the way they were staring at me. Sighing, I sat cross-legged before them. “I don't have a goal anymore. Whatever happened to Dr. Facilier, he's not here. I… need a new goal. You took my goal,” I accused, though their glares made me rethink my wording. “I need something… You have to help me.”

The larger mask before me dipped lower, a strange mist coming from it. Before me, the city of New Orleans came into sight. It looked like Mari Gras night. Furrowing my eyebrows, I questioned, “You… want me to join the Mardi Gras parade?” Zooming in I watched an image of the most important float appear. “King of the Mardi Gras parade? That's a tall order… I probably could, given we manipulate the right people. But what do you need me to do that for?”

Their goals were always the same… They wanted the souls of the people of New Orleans. Similarly to how the Dark Gods wanted my soul to revive their Dark King. Pursing my lips, I struck a deal, “I'll do it under one condition… If I succeed, you'll return my mentor. You'll have more than enough power to do that much with all the souls gathered in the city.”

Now they were grinning, signifying that this was a deal they would not pass up. Now I needed to get to work. If I researched who was in charge of the parade and who was supposed to be the King of the parade, then I'd be able to give them a friendly suggestion on who the real Mardi Gras King should be. For now, I had a plan good enough for them. My only future problems would come with the gods in my way. But… I'd deal with that when the time came.

I only had a week to prepare, but I wouldn't rush myself and make any mistakes. I patiently waited for my friends to get the hairs that I needed in accordance with the voodoo dolls that I was making. After my successful attempt with the zodiac dolls I made, then I should have no trouble succeeding with these humans. Still, there were a few things I needed to test out…

“I haven’t had a single trace on those dark gods since we took (Name) to the mansion. I think they’re waiting for us to give them an opening,” Karno deliberated on my situation with Zyglavis and Tauxolouve. They were only three out of the six that were given the job to protect me, but it was understandable given that they were expected to continue their Punishment and Wishes jobs at the same time. “Huedhaut, how are things coming along with Leo’s search?”

“Not any more productive than yours,” Huedhaut replied, on the team of six gods who were actively searching for the dark gods. “They aren’t showing themselves just yet.”

Dui huffed with a nod. “It’s like they’re not taking any chances—I didn’t know they were crafty enough to wait for an opening. And it’s not like we can just take a chance and use (Name) as bait to draw them out.”

Huedhaut’s lips turned upward in amusement. “Yes, I’m sure she wouldn’t appreciate us using her like that.” His head bobbed forward, his eyes widening. Turning to face Tauxolouve, his eyes narrowed. Tauxolouve didn’t seem like he moved a muscle. Still… he pursed his lips. “Lou… did you…”

Tauxolouve lifted an eyebrow at Huedhaut’s baffled expression. “What’s wrong?”

My fingers rubbed against the head of the little doll in my hand. Huedhaut clearly thought that Tauxolouve just bonked him in the back of the head for laughing at me. So, these live voodoo dolls still worked the same as any other doll I could make. This was good.

With my eyes glued onto Huedhaut, my finger jabbed into the doll’s chest, sending Huedhaut stumbling as he clutched his chest. Maybe that was a little too much force… The gods panicked more than I wanted them to. Karno was on his feet in an instant. “Huedhaut?”

They were confused, and Huedhaut was desperately trying to understand what was going on with him. Though, his eyes too quickly flickered across the room where I was sitting on the sofa. My knees were drawn up, a book blocking whatever I was playing with.

“(Name)!” My alert eyes darted up, being glared at by Huedhaut. “What are you doing?”

Uh-oh! He was way too perceptive! I should’ve picked another god! At his quick approach, I sat up straight, tucking the little voodoo doll behind me. “I- Ah- I’m studying! Just reading! I’m working- doing… I’m doing to a new–” I faltered, my words tangling up in my mouth as I tried to deceive a highly intelligent god.

“What’s that?” His eyes locked on the spot behind me and I warily glanced beside me. For a moment I forgot it was alive, and I winced at finding the little Huedhaut waddling around. “Honestly, what on Earth are you up to?”

Groaning, I quietly explained, “I was just testing my new project… It's not like I meant to hurt anyone.”

Huedhaut sighed at my forlorn expression. “I know you're probably bored and keeping yourself occupied, but please consider that we're working. Not to mention this is your safety we're talking about.”

Dui glanced between us in confusion. “Did (Name) do something?”

I averted my gaze awkwardly. “I jabbed him a little too hard…”

“Huh?” This time it was Dui’s turn to look baffled, though the other gods looked confused as well. They didn't seem to understand the purpose of a voodoo doll.

Grabbing the little Huedhaut doll beside me, I displayed it to them. “I've been experimenting with my magic. I wanted to see if I could make voodoo dolls… but they ended up coming to life. I've been wondering if it's because you're gods or not. So, I had to make sure they work the same as a normal voodoo doll.”

Tauxolouve winced at the sight of the little being wriggling around in my hand. “What is it supposed to do, exactly?”

Glancing back at Huedhaut, we stared at each other for a minute, silently challenging each other—really, he was challenging me to do it again and see the results of his ire. The minute he tried to snatch the doll from my hands, my fight-or-flight instincts kicked in. I jabbed my finger into the doll’s forehead, making Huedhaut reel back and fall on the floor.

Panicked at having struck a god, I immediately apologized, “I’m sorry! You were coming at me and you freaked me out! Here, just take it!” I dropped the little doll onto his chest, too panicked to stick around for very long. Though, my apologies and surrendering of the doll didn’t save me from him in the long run.

I was pretty sure he was more-so irritated at the fact that the little doll somehow escaped him and found its way back into my room where he was not about to barge in. Still, Huedhaut wasn’t the only god I experimented on. I wanted to know if non-physical external forces could affect them if I focused my magic. Though I expected my experiments to fail, they ended up working.

Placing the voodoo Krioff doll in the freezer, all I heard was Krioff complaining about how cold it suddenly was on Earth. On the other hand, Partheno was complaining about how hot it was, going as far as removing his clothes, much to the dismay of the other gods. I tried the same thing with water, but Ichthys only complained about the sensation of being cold—it made sense that water couldn’t physically drench the person. All they could feel were the sensations—but at least Ichthys was feeling more hydrated than usual.

Considering how well the water worked, I had a new plan up my sleeve. Knocking at Huedhaut’s door, I waited patiently for him to answer before requesting, “Do you think I can have some of your wine?” His eyebrows furrowed and immediately I knew what was going through his head. “It’s not for me to drink! It’s for my studies. I need alcohol to see if I can make a new reaction. You understand, don’t you?”

Huedhaut sighed, rubbing his temple. “Should I even ask what you’re doing this time that you need my spirits for this?”

I shrugged my shoulders with a grin. “I mean… probably not. But if it makes you feel better, I don’t need it for consumption purposes, and I’m not going to be smacking anyone around. So you don’t have to give me your best creation or anything. It just has to be enough to be considered alcohol.”

He was extremely reluctant to give me a bottle of wine, but if I wouldn’t drink it then what was actually the harm in giving it to me? Unless, of course, it was actually going to another crafty god that used me to get a bottle out of him. Tilting his head, he suggested, “If you won’t drink it, then can I expect it to be returned when you’re finished?”

“Not… really,” I hesitantly answered. It wouldn’t have been a problem for me to return it… only, I was sure he wouldn’t want contaminated wine. “I’m going to be putting something in the wine, so… I’m not so sure it’ll be drinkable after. But if you want it back that badly, I’ll return it.”

His eyebrows furrowed once again, reluctantly allowing me to keep the bottle. He wasn’t sure what I was doing with it, but after his experience of being knocked around like a doll, it was probably best not to pry.

Next, I had to address my target. There was no point in experimenting on him if he was going to be consuming alcohol. The whole point of my experiment was to have my subject in a controlled environment.

Walking into the living room, Karno was sitting on the sofa addressing a few members of the Department of Wishes. So, they could do work outside of protecting me. I always wondered when they had time to address their normal work but it seemed they were doing a good job of balancing everything.

“(Name)?” Aigonorus tilted his head, his gaze focusing on the bottle in my hands. “Are you here to drink with us? How’d you get that from Hue?”

“Oh…” I faltered, glancing down at the bottle in my hands. I suppose I should have visited my room before coming straight to find Karno. Well, this wouldn’t tamper with my goals. “No, no. This isn’t to drink. This is for that project I’m working on. I needed to borrow some wine. Karno, I actually had a request for you too.”

Karno hummed, surprised that I needed his help with anything. “Can I get you something to go with your wine?”

I covered up a snicker. “Well, I suppose you could. I was wondering… do you have any alcohol in your system?”

He blinked, his face scrunching up in confusion. “You’re asking me if I’m drunk? No… Do I give that impression?”

“Not at all,” I shook my head with a sheepish smile. This conversation was probably getting on the weird side of things. “I was only asking because I need you to avoid alcohol at all costs tomorrow. I’d rather you not even do so much as sniff anything alcohol related. I’d rather have you avoid being inebriated at all.”

It was a fairly blunt order, but as confusing as it was to hear, the gods looked surprised that I had such a request. Still, out of all the reasons Karno could think of, he couldn’t imagine why I’d be asking him to do something like that. Sighing, he asked, “Not that I had the intention of getting inebriated while protecting you… but why are you so concerned that I’ll be near alcohol when you’re here holding a bottle of Hue’s wine?”

Nodding my head, I sated his curiosity with an answer. After all, knowing what was going on wouldn’t exactly harm the experiment. “Well, I guess since I’m using you like this I can let you in on what I’m doing. Truthfully, you’re my experimental subject. I can’t have a good experiment if my subject is going off and interacting with substances that affect normal bodily function.” A quiet ‘tinking’ noise trickled through the air as my nails tapped along the bottle. “It’s sort of like what I previously did with Huedhaut. Only, I’ll come find you around this time tomorrow, okay? That way I can make sure you’re not doing anything you’re not supposed to do.”

Karno already looked tired of my antics. Sighing heavily, he asked, “This won’t have anything to do with me being knocked around with one of your little dolls, is it?”

“No way,” I immediately defended myself. “I’m not even going to touch my little Karno. You trust me to keep my word, don’t you? Making deals is my livelihood. So… how about this? I don’t touch mini-Karno and you don’t touch alcohol.” Holding my hand out for him, I smiled convincingly. “Care to shake on it?”

He was extremely wary of shaking my hand, but if his only rule was to stay away from alcohol then how difficult could this be? Besides, from the sound of it, I was doing more observation than actual experimentation. “Fine,” he relented, taking my hand in his own to seal the deal. The gods were truthfully getting pretty used to my use of magic to make deals and create odd items. In all, it wasn’t anything they could label as harmful.

With my deal with Karno made, the only preparation I had to do was all in my room. Pouring a glass of wine, I set the glass beside a stack of books. Glancing at my voodoo gods, I smirked. I wouldn’t have to touch mini-Karno at all since he could move just fine on his own.

Bending down beside the table where they were sitting, I asked, “I need a favor, mini-Karno. I’m not allowed to touch you for the next twenty-four hours. All I need… is for you to walk up these books for me and hop on into this glass of wine and stay there until I pull you out. I’ll repeat these instructions again at lunch tomorrow, okay?” Receiving tiny nods from the voodoo gods I couldn’t help but smile. They were so much more compliant than the real gods.

***

I set the table for the few gods who wanted to join me for lunch. Of course, I made sure there would be no alcohol since Karno still had to keep his promise. It was fine since I spent all morning making a gumbo for everyone. They were so used to the normal food I would make for them. I’d never spent an entire morning preparing a special meal that they’d never eaten before. I was sure Karno would like it, at least, since it had a bit of a spicy cajun kick to it. At least I was kind enough to set the table and serve their bowls for them to join me when they got there.

Steadily, I was joined for the new and unfamiliar meal, though I patiently waited for Karno to show up. He was the one I wanted to see most of all. I wondered if Huedhaut’s alcohol had taken any effect yet. When the god I was waiting for finally showed up, I was a little disappointed that he didn’t look even slightly tipsy. Maybe as a god it would just take longer for the magic to kick in. I was lucky that no one suspected a thing, however.

“(Name)...” Hearing Karno slur my name from across the table, my eyes flickered up to him. His cheeks looked redder than they were five minutes ago. “What’d you put in this…?”

Innocently, I tilted my head, leaning my cheek on the palm of my hand. “What’s wrong? You don’t like the gumbo? I thought it’d be more to your taste. Should I add more spice to yours, then?”

He paused, the room falling silent for a moment as everyone awaited Karno’s next words. Clearly there was something on his mind—though, no one was expecting him to outright complain about my cooking. Slowly, he shook his head. “That’s…” He paused. “What did you do with that wine from Hue?”

I hummed, trying to play off his suspicions that I might’ve added some to the gumbo. “Well, I haven’t touched it since last night. I’ve been cooking all morning. Honestly, I didn’t really take you for the type to drink during a casual lunch. I’d go get it for you, but… I already promised Huedhaut that the bottle he gave me wasn’t for consumption. You should try asking another god for alcohol.”

Still, Karno was looking uncertainly at his bowl of gumbo. Determining that I had to be telling the truth, he continued eating. It didn’t stop Tauxolouve from continuously side-eyeing him before he spoke up to ask, “Karno, how are you feeling today?”

Karno sighed, rubbing his forehead before glancing at the god beside him. Eagerly I watched him as he replied, “Mm… head is dizzy…”

“Karno,” I huffed, acting like I was peeved with him. “I thought I told you not to touch any alcohol today.”

His face immediately fell as if getting fussed at by me was the end of the world. “I didn’t,” he tried to argue, unconvincingly. I knew he was a lightweight. If he was reacting like this to having his voodoo-self floating in a glass of wine, then those humans would be putty in my hands. He whined, “(Name), d’n’t look a’me like that… M’sorry.”

“Wow,” I snorted, unable to help myself. “You’re seriously drunk right now.”

Tauxolouve wasn’t the only surprised god. Even Dui, Krioff, and Partheno were surprised at Karno’s state. Dui carefully asked, “Karno, is protecting (Name) stressing you out so much that you… turned to drinking?”

“Noooo,” Karno cried, taking my arm and tugging me onto his lap. He was the drunk one yet my cheeks felt like they were on fire as his head nuzzled into my neck, holding me protectively against him. “N’thin’s gonna happen to my (N’me)...” But… I felt cool drops falling onto my neck and I turned my head slightly to see what the heck he was doing. Was he… crying? “My- My poor (N’me)! Bein’ hunted by …dark gods. I’d never forgiven myself, puttin’ my (Naaaame) in danger.”

“Karno,” I called his name, but he didn’t respond.

Krioff’s eyebrows furrowed in frustration as he huffed, “Hey, what the heck are you doing? You’re making (Name) uncomfortable!”

Partheno chuckled, never having seen Karno act so affectionately with me before. “Did you slip something in his food so we’d have a meal and a show today?”

“No,” I gave my shoulders a shrug to hint my uncertainty. “I mean… I might’ve been wishing a little too hard for Karno to relax. He seemed tense these past few days.”

“Well,” Dui winced, his eyes trailing over the way Karno was desperately holding onto me as if I might be taken away at any moment. “He seems more relaxed, at least. I guess he granted your wish.”

I hummed, my lips pursing together as I pat Karno’s hand comfortingly. “Yeah… I guess he did. Maybe we should just let him sober up.”

I was fortunate enough to escape with the help of the other gods who were trying to keep Karno from latching onto me. This only made it necessary for me to leave the dining room. I really wanted to see Leon’s reaction to a drunk Karno at this time of day when he’s supposed to be on guard duty. It was a peak contradiction. How unfortunate that I had to return to my room and remove the voodoo-Karno from the glass of wine. Everything went smoothly in my testing. If I could get Karno to be putty in my hands, then two humans would be nothing!

I hummed quietly to myself as I began setting up for the next stage of my work. Experimenting on the gods was over. Now that I knew what worked and what didn’t work, I’d be King of the Mardi Gras parade in no time.

***

“King…?” Zyglavis tilted his head, genuinely believing that I was just messing with them. He shook his head. “First, Ichthys and Leon are stuck as frogs—a situation you need to fix before we can allow you to do anything extra. Second, Karno was very intoxicated after a lunch that you made—I refuse to place my suspicions anywhere else, contrary to Huedhaut’s firm belief that you did not share his wine. Now you approach me asking to go to a parade because you, a woman, are the King of this parade?”

“Are you… pushing gender norms on me now?” I winked, inclining my head so he would stop looking down on me. “It’s the biggest New Orleans celebration of the year! I’ve never been King before; it’s an honor. Besides, if I’m crowned King then I’ll personally be able to kiss Leon and Ichthys—that way Partheno doesn't have to get his precious lips covered in frog. I’ll solve all your problems in one night and one night only.”

His eyebrows furrowed—I wasn’t aware his face could look that upset. That had to be a record for ‘how disapproving can my face look?’ He then had a continuation of his lecture, “Do you have any idea how many humans are going to be present? Not only will they all be in danger, but they will all be witness to any happenings that night. It would be extremely tedious to clean up any mishaps—especially if those dark gods show themselves.”

“That’s another thing I’d be helping you with,” I pointed out excitedly. I sort of doubted those two dark gods would show up—as far as I was concerned… I suspected my friends on the other side to have some kind of connection to them. As far as they were concerned, they didn’t need those two dark gods interfering with my big plans for Mardi Gras night. Still, I couldn’t explain this to Zyglavis. So, I had to convince him in another fashion. “I’m literally live bait. Those two will fall into your open palms. Nothing can go wrong between my voodoo and your powers.” Peering hopefully at him, I nodded my head expectantly for him to agree. “Everything sounds perfect, doesn’t it?”

His eyes narrowed. “Most things that are too good to be true are usually too good to be true. Something is bound to go wrong. You should decline this invitation.”

“And if I don’t?”

He sighed. “You’re intent on making more trouble for us than necessary?” I firmly nodded. There was no way I could back out of this now. “I’ll inform the others of your reckless plans. You’ll need more than one guard, your highness.”

***

Originally it was just supposed to be my six assigned body-guards… but somehow it turned into the whole pantheon. I assume it had something to do with the fact that Leon refused to allow my safety to be solely in the hands of those guys, followed by Scorpio who refused to let Leon guard me if he wouldn’t be there. If there was one thing that didn’t change about Leon, it was his confidence in his own powers.

Not that their presence bothered me—they wouldn’t be able to stop anything that I was planning., regardless The way I rigged the float with my powers made it so that no outside magic wcould nterfere. Not to mention the crown at the top of the float was to serve as an amplifier to attract the souls of all present in New Orleans; but that waouldn’thappen right away. I needed to make sure the gods weren’t touching the float before I could really start up the excitement.

I think most of the suspicion arose when I sat cross-legged on the float rather than stand and wave as I was previously doing. Little portals allowed me to summon my friends and little voodoo doll creations. The scene was exciting to most spectators, but it alarmed my gods enough for Teorus to settle with freezing time around us—which was probably a smart move to avoid future problems with the present humans. It would be bad if we exposed them to magic—what a ruckus that would cause in the normal human world.

They assumed they could control the situation, but they assumed far too much when they realized they couldn’t actually get to me. The fact that Teorus froze time was probably more helpful to me.

I bowed my head. The talisman around my neck floated beside my head, thrumming with my power. “Our deal is sealed… These little souls are yours if you bring him back.”

“Him…?” Karno mimicked, his eyes locked onto me. “Who are you bargaining for? What are you doing? Stop this now and we won't need to take drastic measures.” They wouldn't understand, they were just gods. They'd never understand the pain of losing someone!

“The fact that we had to step in at all was a drastic measure,” Zyglavis corrected, his eyes on me. He, of all gods, knew exactly who I was trying to get back, though he didn't expect it to come to this. “He won't be returned to you. He's gone, consumed by magic. One cannot-”

“What?” I interrupted Zyglavis—though I wasn't interrupting him. I was interrupting the masks that dwindled in the surrounding air. I scoffed in disbelief. “That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard all day. Even if I wanted to, their Divine power surpasses mine. Your request for me to get rid of these Zodiac gods is in vain. I'm not here to be your puppet!” If I was being honest with myself, I would have taken on the challenge of defeating the 12 zodiac gods. The only barrier I ran into… was that I cared for them. I wouldn’t fight them for my friends on the other side.

Of course, I knew the only condition of getting my mentor back was by allowing my friends to feast on the souls that resided in New Orleans. Then they'd have more than enough power to get what I wanted.

Only… I faltered as Scorpio shouted at me, “Those bastards can't get you what you want, god dammit! You let those things loose and they'll take all the souls in this city and then yours. Think, stupid woman! These human souls won't sustain them like yours.”

Same as my faithful teacher, I was serving my friends for a purpose, but Scorpio’s words rang true. At this point, who didn't want my soul for some ulterior purpose? My friends wanted my soul to become all powerful; the dark gods wanted my soul to resurrect the Dark King. Was evil all my soul was good for?

I forced out a terse laugh, rising back to my feet. “My existence is only here to fuel evil then?”

“You're not!” Huedhaut wasn't hesitant to argue for me. He would know since he was most familiar with this soul. “You decide what you do with your soul; in the end, it's our responsibility to protect you.”

These friends of mine weren't any better than the dark king. Neither side respected my decisions. When it came down to it, the only ones who hadn't tried to actively use me were the gods. My powers flared up around me at the thought of such a bitter betrayal. “My mentor cowered before you and did everything to please you… But not me. I don't know if you've realized what you were training.”

Before I could rip the talisman from my neck, a harsh tug on my shadow sent me falling to the lower section of the float. My hands balled into fists as various voodoo dolls that were infused with darker power pinned me down. My eyes narrowed as I observed this magic—it wasn’t the kind I was used to seeing. It made me wonder if they linked their powers to the Under Realm. Whether or not that was the case, that they were using such dark magic meant that they were trying to ensure for things to end up in their favor.

Angling my head up, my eyes widened at how serious the gods had become. If I didn’t take control of this situation soon, there would be an enormous mess on our hands. If they broke the shields—or if I released the shields—that I’d put up around the float then these normal humans would be exposed to unnecessary danger. More importantly… the gods would be exposed to the unnecessary danger that I had caused.

“Wait!” I shouted, making the gods pause. I knew they didn’t really have a valid reason to trust me after the way I betrayed their trust, but I needed them to give me a chance. The situation could be salvaged if I could handle these evil voodoo entities. “Wait…” I repeated. “I can do this.” At the very least, I was confident in myself. I just needed a few minutes.

It disappointed me when Leon immediately denied me. “We don’t have time to waste. Do you want to die and give them your soul?”

My pleading eyes were failing to convince him otherwise. Thankfully, I had at least one person on my side. Karno agreed, “You only have a few minutes to fix this or we’re going to take matters into our own hands. We can’t afford to put you in unnecessary danger.” Leon glared at his vice minister, but it didn’t sway him from his choice.

That was fine; if they were arguing amongst themselves, then that would keep them occupied for a few minutes.

My eyes flickered back to the floating masks that were summoning their magic through my created portals. After all, they were too weak to steal my soul as they were. Directing my restricted powers at them, I threatened, “Listen, friends, you underestimated my power before… You couldn’t control me so you had my mentor fit me with a talisman to ‘control’ my powers. Do you realize now? I’m a reborn goddess and my creations were bound with divine power!”

My eyes flickered back to the floating masks that were summoning their magic through my created portals. After all, they were too weak to steal my soul as they were. Directing my powers at them, I threatened, “Listen, friends, you underestimated my power before… You couldn’t control me so you had my mentor fit me with a talisman to ‘control’ my powers. Do you realize now? I’m a reborn goddess and my creations were bound with divine power!”

The voodoo dolls I created with the added powers of the gods were still under my control and my shadow was still beside me. With the aid of my voodoo gods, they ripped the talisman from my neck, discarding it onto the ground. With my ‘friends’ being panicked at my newfound magical freedom, it was nothing for me to break loose, using my shadow to shatter the talisman. Without their dark magic constricting my powers, my voodoo powers were exuding out of me, my shadow growing frighteningly large behind me as I grinned.

“Woah,” Aigonorus muttered, making me glance back at the gods who thankfully no longer looked like they were ready to level the entire city just to finish these evil voodoo entities. Tilting his head, Aigonorus commented, “Maybe we didn’t need to come guard her…”

Humming, I commented lightly, “You know, Carnival Season is fun and all with music and costumes… but the best thing to do with a mask that’s served its purpose… is break it.” Without a cap on my powers, they were relentless against the frantically put together powers of the voodoo masks that couldn’t fight against me. What made it easier was the help my voodoo-gods provided. Taking down the shields I erected, the gods provided minimal assistance—I say minimal because I did most of the hard work.

Though, the action of the night was enough to drain me. I was sitting on the edge of the float, leaning against the upper layer as I waited for them to wrap things up.

“That was pretty cool,” Ichthys beamed, joining me at ground-level. “I wish you’d have told us you had this awesome prank planned out though. I’d have wanted to be in on it.”

“It wasn’t a prank,” Dui corrected with a frown on his face. He didn’t like the emotional mess I made of him and Shadow Dui. “I really thought you were ready to betray us. But… we’re not finished yet, are we?”

I averted my gaze, shaking my head. Time was still frozen for the moment, but I knew this float would be empty and abandoned when time started up again… So much for being King of the Mardi Gras parade. “There’s actually one more place that needs cleaning of dark magic. Otherwise we’ll have Dark Gods coming after us soon. I’ll be honest, I’m not disappointed by the way things turned out here tonight. I… found their ‘jobs’ were getting sketchy since I moved into the mansion. It was only a matter of time before this happened.”

“You knew?!” Dui shouted, making me flinch. I hadn’t expected a big reaction out of him. Usually he was so calm as to keep Shadow Dui in check. “Why didn’t you tell anyone? We could’ve helped you! They- They pinned you down and almost took your soul and you didn’t say anything about suspecting their ulterior motives!”

Ah, so that’s what he was so excited about. Tilting my head, I explained, “Zyglavis never would have let me go through with something as risky as that. In fact… that would have caused a big fight in the mansion since… I technically willingly invited evil beings. Besides, things ended very well, didn’t they? I’m free now. Teacherless… but free.”

Things fell silent for a moment as they noticed my solemn expression. Just because we won didn’t mean there wasn’t a loss. Ichthys quietly asked, “You… were actually holding out to try to get your mentor back, weren’t you? Why’d you risk so much for him? Wasn’t he the one who got you into this voodoo mess?”

I hummed, nodding my head. Though I wasn’t exactly ready to talk about it, I commented, “My powers were out of control and he was the only one who could help me. He was a mentor and a father-figure and he was being used too. So… I didn’t exactly get what I wanted tonight. Though… being King is pretty cool, I guess. It’s not everyday you get crowned as the ‘Monarch of Merriment’.”

Ichthys glanced at Dui before eagerly saying, “Wait here.”

Dui didn’t seem to have any answers for me as Ichthys suddenly rushed off. To our surprise, he somehow convinced Zyglavis to allow us to finish the parade route before retracing our steps to the Voodoo Emporium where we would seal off that dark magic once and for all. I had to admit; it was pretty cute watching the gods with their mini-voodoo selves sitting on their shoulders.

I knew they’d joined the parade for my sake, and I tried to enjoy what I could of the remaining few hours of Mardi Gras. After all… there was still work to be done afterwards and I was going to be in for a looooong lecture once we returned to the mansion.

***

Fortunately, the ‘cleanup’ business that had to be taken care of afterwards was nothing for a group of gods. Though they immediately wanted to return to the mansion after our outstanding adventure, I was still intent on prolonging our journey. I wasn’t in the mood to return to the mansion for hours of lectures just yet. Eagerly I tried to redirect us. “I’m pretty hungry after all this magic-use… and I know the perfect place we can go to celebrate! There’s a restaurant on the bank of the Mississippi River called Tiana’s Place and the banana foster dessert they serve is amazing! Krioff, I think you’d love it, it has ice cream in it and yummy warm fruit.”

Scorpio scowled at me. “This your attempt at avoiding punishment?”

I grinned. “It sure is. But you can’t punish me on an empty stomach, can you? There’s king cake with apple filling…?” Lifting my eyebrows, Scorpio grumbled as he reluctantly agreed to my suggestion. Our Mardi Gras party was a little last minute, but there was food suiting everyone’s taste at a popular restaurant like this in New Orleans. Maybe I’d have to bribe them with food more often to get out of trouble…

#star crossed myth #star crossed myth fanfic #the princess and the frog #scm leon #scm karno #scm huedhaut #scm teorus #scm tauxolouve #scm aigonorus #scm zyglavis #scm scorpio #scm ichthys #scm dui #scm partheno #scm krioff #doctor facilier #voltage inc fanfic #crossover fanfic

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