Hellfire On The Other Side

Chapter 20

   A couple hours after the incident with Iven in Paris, Shane lays on Tina's bed while Charlene helps him make a speedy recovery. She rests a wet towel on his forehead and holds his hand. "Oh, Shane. What did you do back there?" she asks softly. "Took care of that joker, that's what," answers Shane. His voice is weak. Charlene lays next to Shane and places her hand on his chest. She gasps in fear as a single tear rolls down her face. "Shane... Your heartbeat," she says. "What about it?" "It's slow. Did you overwhelm yourself?" Just then, Tina walks in carrying a plate of beignets, followed by Tiana and Naveen. "Hopefully this can help you feel better," says Tina, setting the plate on the table next to her bed. Charlene rushes over to Tina and grabs her hands. "Ti, Shane's heartbeat is slow! He must have pushed himself too hard!" she says, her voice breaking. Shane slowly sits up. "I'm fine, I swear. I just need some rest, is all," he says. He immediately starts to fall over, but Naveen, quick on his feet, catches him. "Shane, you're not alright," he says. "Yeah, we need to get you to a hospital or something," says Tiana. Shane goes wide-eyed. "No. No hospitals. It won't do any good," he says, breathlessly.

   Charlene slaps Shane across the face. "Shane, I know that you want to be strong, but we're all worried about you!" she yells. Her voice starts to break. "You did something that you shouldn't have done back in Paris, and it's taken its toll on you! Whatever spell you cast, you clearly weren't strong enough! Shane, I'm scared." She limps over to Shane and grabs his face with her shaky hands. "I don't wanna lose you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love you to the ends of the Earth. If I lose you, I doubt I'd be able to keep going." She starts to cry. "I love you." She kisses him and rubs his face. "And I'm sorry for slapping you. I guess Clara's rubbing off on me," she says. Shane and Charlene both chuckle.

   Tiana walks over to Shane. "Please tell us what happened. We need to know if there's something we can do about this," she says. Shane takes a deep breath. "Long story short, Clara was supposed to marry someone else, Iven Bisset, and he has a very sweet daughter, Adrianna. Clara takes very good care of her, out of sympathy," he says. "Why?" asks Tiana. "Because he's an abusive father, just like Frollo. He even killed his wife while she watched," Shane answers. "Oh, my days," Tina exclaims. "Clara wanted to adopt her, but she couldn't while he still had custody over her. He ended up making a deal with Frollo, so Clara and I decided to kill two birds with one stone. We took care of him to help Adrianna and keep the cabin a secret from Frollo," Shane continues. "And how did you take care of him?" asks Naveen. "I banished him to the Soul Realm. Like the Friends did with Facilier," Shane answers. Naveen exclaims in his native language. "Wait, so when I broke the talisman, the Friends thought that Facilier broke the deal. But I thought they killed him," says Tiana. "Nah, they killed every other Facilier that broke a deal before, but they decided to ease up before him. No killing. Only banishing," Shane explains. "I bet that's quite the weight off your shoulders." He smiles while Tiana nods.   "But you weren't strong enough, and now your body's weak," says Charlene. "Yeah. Heat of the moment. Acted on impulse. Didn't think," says Shane. He grabs a beignet and takes a bite out of it. "So, what can we do?" asks Charlene. Shane opens a portal. "You need us to go to Paris," Tina asks. Shane nods. "Tell Clara what's up so she doesn't worry about me too much. And if you see Frollo, hide. He doesn't know you, but I want the two of you to stay out of trouble, okay?" Tina grabs her and Charlene's swords. "Just in case," she says. Charlene kisses Shane again. "I love you, Shane," she reiterates. Shane wipes a tear from Charlene's face. "Good luck, you two," he says. Tina hands Charlene her sword as they walk through the portal. As the portal disappears, Shane rises from the bed. "And now for you two," he says to Naveen and Tiana.

   Tiana, Naveen, and Shane enter the Voodoo Emporium. Tiana and Naveen are carrying Shane on their shoulders. Once they arrive at the back room, they rest by the table. "I never thought I'd have to return to this wretched place," Naveen says with a disgruntled tone. "I'm guessing this is where you turned into a frog," says Tiana. "Yeah. That sneaky Shadow Man tricked me and Lawrence. But only one of us benefited from the encounter," says Naveen. "Yeah, I'm sorry to do this to you, Naveen. But I had to send Tina and Charlene back to Paris so they wouldn't have to see this," says Shane. "Why? What do you need to do?" asks Tiana. Shane sits on the table and lays down. "I'm gonna be going into a deep sleep," he says. "Like Aurora?" Tiana asks. "Not quite. This isn't a deep sleep that I can only be awoken from with true love's kiss. It'll help me make a full recovery," Shane answers. "That's great!" says Naveen. "Yeah. But there's two problems. I can't use my magic, and I will not be able to move or be moved, so you can't leave me alone. You might need to take shifts," says Shane. "Okay, but why did you have to send Tina and Charlene away to Paris?" Tiana asks. Shane sighs. "Because I can only recover from a magical wound by losing my physical being. My body will temporarily die until I'm recovered," Shane answers. "My goodness. If they see you 'die' without explanation, they'll be heartbroken," says Naveen. Shane exhales. "Alright. Here goes," he says. He closes his eyes, and his body goes limp. All of the life that his body once had is now gone. "Get well soon, Shane," says Tiana.