Page 35 of The Frog Prince

Alwin tapped him on the nose in reprimand. “I’ll hear no arguments to the contrary.”

Farwin’s eyes crossed as they followed his finger before rotating back to their spots. Alwin bit down on his smile, lowered Farwin back to the wood, then turned his attention back to the lamp. He placed his elbow on the table and laid his head in his hand.

Such a simple thing to miss.

“If only illumination were so powerful,” he murmured, holding his hand up to create a shadow, manipulating it into a poor facsimile of a human shape, “that it could reveal truth in even the darkest of places.”

Farwin hopped onto the shadow playfully, not understanding the depth of his musings. Like a rock thrown into a water reflection, he scattered it.

Alwin sighed and dropped his hand. “Come. He’ll be back soon.”

Farwin croaked and flicked his tongue at the door.Mean.

“Just scared, my friend,” Alwin said. “It’s no wonder.”

Handsome.

“That he is,” he murmured.

Farwin croaked in disagreement.Majesty.

“I’m handsome?” Alwin asked in shock.

Frogs say.

“Tell the frogs thank you from me,” Alwin said with a wry smile, self-disgust lingering under the surface. He adjusted his high collar and tried to not let it overwhelm him. “But I’m a monster by human standards. As far away from handsome as one can possibly get.”

Another croak of confusion.Wrong. Ugly. Dry.

“Have I taught you to counter insults with ones of your own? He helped you, you know.”

Truth. Dry,Farwin grumbled.

“Be that as it may, their opinion is the one that counts.” His voice gave out at the end, because it was the biggest truth in his life.

Yes, he used to be a prince.

Yes, he used to be worthy of loving.

Yes, he was now a monster.

Yes, his very presence instilled fear in those who saw him.

All truths.

The biggest one of all was the fact that Alwin needed a human to be more than just human. He needed someone to see past human standards, walk past human prejudice, let go of human expectations.

He needed someone to let go of being human, to help him turn back into some semblance of one.

The door to the house opened again and Otto stepped back inside, slowly. Carefully. He turned to Alwin even as he closedthe door, leaning against it and not taking a step farther into the room.

A stalemate began. Tense. Like the calm before a battle, each side wondering who would make the first move. Farwin crawled back into his pocket.

Alwin had never shied away from a tough situation, however. He gestured toward the other chair at the table. “Please.”

Otto appeared as if he would rather throw himself into a pit of thorns, but a stubborn tilt to his chin formed, a flash of something regal in it that made Alwin blink, wondering if he was back in court for a single moment before it faded completely.

“It is my chair,” Otto grumbled.