Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was just an idea. An incredibly risky, win-or-lose idea that might get her killed if she failed but she had to do something. Being inside this cell left her numb in front of the pass of time.

Days, hours, weeks, and months, all seemed to be the same while she waited for a chance, a miracle to get out of the hellhole she was in. 

But, if Sasha was honest with herself, the whole waiting technique would surely send her to her death faster than the shit they gave her as food. 

And she was done with the bugs crawling on her prison. Fortunately, one of those goddamn critters may be her key to freedom if she played her cards correctly, and it was going to happen right now as a new soldier took charge.

"Creature, your food!" The toad threw at her a dirty bowl filled with that disgusting green mush. She bet it was fungus, crushed worms, and rotten vegetables. How hadn't the toads died yet with this kind of diet was beyond her.

"Hey, can you tell me which insect tastes better? I wanna put a new flavor on my...soup..." She then held two of them that were near her. The little things' screeched, squirmed, and protested but couldn't free themselves from her grasp. 

The toad's stomach growled which was a good sign, it meant he would fall for her trick. He glanced behind him in case Grime or someone else was going to appear out of nowhere and scold him, then his tongue shot out to the bug held by her right hand. 

The tip of it was sticky, rough on the edges, wet, and ew ew ew! 

Gosh, this was disgusting! Whatever!

She braved on and grabbed the tongue before it retracted. Then, with sheer will, she pulled the toad towards the bars of the cell. His head hit them violently, and a clank of the helmet against the bars echoed the prison. Before the soldier could get up, Sasha took his sword away from him and placed the sharp edge on his neck.

"Don't. Move." She threatened, snarling. "Now, if you don't want to be another skeleton like the one inside this cell, help me get out of here. Say no, and it's over."

The soldier swallowed. He could scream for help but that would lead to the sword being nailed to his neck or front head. 

He nodded fearfully, got up, and with both hands twisted the bars of the cell to create an exit for Sasha. 

She was going to get out until she remembered the shackle on her foot and the chain that connected it to the wall. She pointed at the shackle with the sword and the soldier, with both clawed hands, broke it in half, making sure it didn't hurt Sasha or else his head would fall off from his neck. The pieces of metal clattered to the ground, the girl staring at them in a daze.

She trembled internally when her feet touched the floor outside her jail as if she couldn't believe this was working. However, the logical side of her mind and the rush of adrenaline told her to don't let go of the stolen sword in case the toad tried to knock her out.

In a matter of seconds, her right hand balled into a fist and punched the soldier who fell unconscious. 

Good, that was better. 

Step one, done. Step two, getting out of the tower without being skewered.

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One moment, the place was filled with the cheers of battle and competition. Toads eating the filthy mush they called food or throwing axes and daggers at an old dummy, yelling and insulting each other in a show of dominance.

The next one, a soldier rolled down the stairs, grunting and with a nasty gash on his left shoulder. Then a gangly figure made its appearance and everyone, including Percy and Braddock, gasped shocked, disbelieving.

"It's the creature!" Screamed one of the many soldiers. The audience couldn't move, the surprise of Sasha's sudden escape and the sword in her hands got them all trapped in a deep trance. 

Until someone else screamed, "Get it!!". That's when pandemonium began.

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Days in the Tower were always a blur of noise and ruckus, no matter if you were a prisoner, a soldier, or captain Grime who, at this moment, was writing a new report or trying to due to the immense chaos beneath his room. 

He was used to it, and only his presence silenced the soldiers as a glare pierced through their souls. After all, concentration and disorder never got along and his patience was as thin as a sheet of paper. 

Today, much to his headache, proved to be a glorious day for his men to do whatever they wanted and the worst one on his schedule. For real, couldn't they stop for five minutes?!

10 minutes. He'd give them 10 minutes to get their shit together if not, the hard way would it be. 

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Evade, punch, slash, defend.

Evade, punch, slash, defend.

Evade, punch, slash, defend.

Evade, punch, slash, defend!

It was never going to end, wasn't it?

At every defeated toad, 2 or 3 more ran towards her with swords, spears, and other weapons. 

Sasha was a fighter; it was part of her nature. Being fearless and strong was as easy as breathing but the rush of adrenaline wouldn't last, not with all the scratches, cuts, bruises, sweat, and blood taking bits of her energy until nothing was left.

"Aaaaaaaaaaggggggggghhhhhhh!!!!!" A toad roared, jumping from a table, ready to crush her with a mace. However, a barrel filled with beer clashed with him much to her confusion. Her eyes landed on Braddock who whistled nervously. 

Well, at least not everyone wanted to kill her. 

Then a spiked club hit her back, and a crack inside of her made her curse mentally. Fuck, that hurt!

Maybe one or two ribs had been broken, shit!

A foot stepped on her back, in the same spot where the hit landed. 

"You're not so strong, aren't you, uh, filthy creature?" Bog mocked cruelly while pressing his foot more and more, reveling in Sasha's groans of pain.

"Ya know? You remind me so much of another thing like you. What was her name again? Oh yeah, Anne." Wait what? That brute met her?!

"She was feisty, had attitude, I liked that, but of course, she got soft on the frogs and ruined our fun. We had to teach her a lesson." A lesson? What did he mean with that?! Did he--?!

"It was just an arm of course, but I wished I had cut off her head. She got in our way, and when that happens, well it gets ugly, am I right?"

Suddenly, a wave of murderous anger consumed her rationality, her eyes shining neon pink.

That guy, that brute, he attacked one of her best friends! How dared he?!

In a sudden movement, Bog's whole right arm was sliced like meat, falling to the ground. His screams reverberated throughout the Tower while he stepped back, trying desperately to stop the bleeding.

A sick satisfaction washed over the girl. 

It hurt, didn't it, you fucko? Good, pretty good. 

Her mind was blank due to the fury, both hands trembling not out of fear but of a thirst for revenge. 

"No one. Touches. My friends!!" She exclaimed. The sword raised for a killing blow until a cough broke her train of thought. The pink in her eyes faded and the fog on her head vanished. 

"S-Sasha, I think that's, eh, enough..." Percy mumbled.

She turned around and watched the only two toads who had been nice to her. Percy and Braddock were trembling and holding one another, terrified of what she had done but not running away from her...yet.

A sudden headache put her on her knees, the adrenaline wearing off quickly.

"What the hell is going on?!" Grime's voice suddenly got her on her feet again. If he found out what she did, it was over.

Gathering the last remnants of strength on her, Sasha sprinted to the principal door. 

"Stop it! It's running away!" Fens yelled. She, Mire, and a group of toads chased her leaving the dining hall in uneasy silence.

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The soldiers guarding the walls surrounding the tower turned around as the first screams of 'Trap it! Stop the creature!' entered their ears. They saw Sasha running towards the gates, a sword in her hand, battered and sweating. 

Some archers fired their crossbows and other toads threw at her spears of all sizes. 

She evaded and deflected the weapons as best as she could but the point of an arrow ruined her left sock, making a gash on her leg. 

Sasha hissed and kept running. More arrows were fired and one of them struck her right shoulder. 

"FUCK!!" The curse sent a shiver of fear throughout the soldiers as they watched the somber landscapes. Some kilometers away from the tower, two herons rummaged the forest for food. If those beasts heard another yell from the gangly creature, it would be over for everyone.

Herons were the nightmare of every amphibian and only someone with a death wish would want to face them.

It seemed that someone was Sasha in their opinion.

Recognition appeared on her face when everyone readied their weapons, becoming a stampede of metal and muscles. 

This was too much. Not only she was exhausted, hungry, and filthy but there was a goddamn arrow stuck in her right shoulder too.

More swords were raised to cut her head off and she used her own to deflect and slash.

Evade, punch and slice. Evade, punch and slice. Over and over and over again.

Sasha had lost the count of how many of them had been hurt or ran away in fear; she couldn't care less. 

Gosh, what she would give for that crazy rush of adrenaline and power that made her amputate Bog's arm. Her energies were at her limit, at any moment she would be stabbed or something. 

Then the tongue of a soldier lifted her and pinned her to the ground and repeated the process 2 more times. She spat some saliva, her lungs burned, the pressure grinding on her ribs as if an elephant was stepping on her. 

A curved movement of her sword was enough to slice the tongue, and the toad cried in agony, letting her go. Another one was going to crush her head with a hammer until she trapped his hand in a vice grip and the sword collided with the soldier's helmet. 

The clang reverberated in all the area. The toads paled, praying for the herons to have ignored the noise; however, the screeching and huge steps from kilometers away were proof enough to know that they were screwed. Bloodily screwed.

Chapter Text

When Grime had threatened to feed her to the herons if she didn't give him the information he wanted, she thought he was kidding. Herons were birds. Birds. Not lions, crocodiles, or a frenetic stampede of frightened buffalo from the Lion King movie but just birds who could scratch her or bite her hand. Ergo, not a menace.

In hindsight, she should've asked how dangerous were herons here compared to Earth because the building-size beasts in front of her could easily devour an entire battalion.  

"He-He-Herons!" A toad screamed and ran away just to be grabbed by one of the feathery monsters with its beak and then swallowed like candy. In a matter of seconds, all the soldiers scrambled like headless chickens, too scared to fight and perhaps too dumb to think of a quick plan to defend the tower. 

Sasha couldn't care less. This was her chance, although in crazier circumstances, to get out of that hellhole. If only those herons would let her. The second one shot a look at her that said "Free snack!" and its beak went straight to the middle of her body to rip her apart. She evaded with difficulty; the injuries and the pandemonium around her suffocated her energies but she needed to keep her mind alert and sharp or else. 

The other heron lifted its claws and swung at her. She barely escaped death but some of the debris hit her stomach and head. She could feel the blood dripping from the scratches on her forehead; if it blurred her vision, it would be over. Being blind in the middle of a massacre was the worst that would happen to her. 

"Aaaaaggghhhh!!!!" Sudden, unbearable pain in the center of her back put her on her knees. One of her hands combed her back until it found the source of the wound. An arrow, a goddamn arrow! As if the one on her shoulder wasn't enough!

"Stop right there, creature!"

Oh, marvelous, so it was Grime who almost killed her. 

The roar of the herons broke her train of thought as more toads shoved her or each other to find a refuge from the beasts.

Suddenly, a risky plan formed in her mind as she ran towards the neck of one of the giant birds. Reach for the head and try to climb down the creature outside the fortress. 

"Over here, you crappy birdbrain!" The red heron salivated and shot its beak towards her just to have part of it stabbed by a sword. It shrieked in pain and shook its head to get rid of her. Sasha desperately held onto the handle of the sword, letting go would mean instant death but the blood loss was depleting her strength, her eyes were dropping and she really, really wanted to have a nap. 

She bit her lower lip not hard enough to make it bleed but at least to keep her awake. She had to let go, the possibility of having spears or arrows stuck in her body was still strong and she wasn't going to let Grime or any other toad test it. With all her might, she pulled the sword out of the beak and slide through the heron's neck as if it were a chute, landing on the beast's back.

The monster shook its body to make her fall but Sasha quickly climbed down one of the legs using the sword. Another deafening shriek of pain echoed throughout the land as the giant bird glared at the snack who had the galls to injure its leg. Sasha ran fast, faster, much faster.

The earthquake-like steps of the bird got closer as the seconds passed. She couldn't let it win.

No, she couldn't. She had to survive. Survive and find her friends. Find them and go back home together. Who knew what horrors they were going through right now.

'Keep running, Waybright! Just keep running!!' Her mind yelled at her. All her body was sore but she didn't care. Survive. Run and survive, no matter what.

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Meanwhile on Wartwood...

Anne couldn't rest. Or to be exact, her mind couldn't rest. Something nasty was tugging at her brain. A sensation of dread and trouble. 

It was hard to explain it. Maybe she missed her friends too much or she was homesick. There was no plan on her hands to start looking for Marcy and Sasha. Wherever they were, their conditions or the things they were doing were a mystery and she just wondered if both were as worried about her as she was of them. But where to begin? Amphibia might be the size of North America. It would take months if not years to find them. 

"Where are you guys?" She mumbled while glancing at the polaroid in her hands. Three girls smiling happily without a care in the world as if nothing could be able to separate them.

Chapter Text

Days had passed after the excruciating escape from the tower. Maybe 3 or 4, perhaps more than a week. Sasha had lost the count in her hurry to find shelter and a healer for her wounds.

The one on the center of her back was killing her. It burnt like crazy, there was a high probability that it has gotten infected and the same could be said for the injury in her shoulder. The gash on her leg had a worse appearance than before. She had to use her other socket to bandage the bleeding cut but the elements and the constant movement worsened its condition. She had been coughing nonstop too. Her throat felt like the soil during a harsh drought. Her body shivered like jelly, sweat bathed her face. Sometimes she was too hot and other times she craved a coat to protect herself from the cold. 

"What a miracle that you've survived." The masculine voice caught her off guard. Was it one of the toads? Was it Grime? No, Grime didn't sound like that.

She turned her head to the right and saw a newt wearing a formal suit and a bowler hat. A creepy cane held in one hand and a pocket watch in the other. 

"Wh-Who are you? Were you sent by Grime? Are you looking for me?" Sasha coughed hardly and grimaced at the little crimson droplets on the palm of her hand.

"Don't get too cocky. I'm just watching the show. Besides, at the rate you're going, it won't be necessary to trap you and punish you for the mess on the tower. But let me say, your plan though improvised was pretty impressive. Luck must be really attached to you to have survived this long. Now the millionaire question is for how long you'll be this lucky? You know people who push their luck don't last that much, right?"

"Look, buddy," Sasha coughed again. "I don't give a damn about your philosophical mumbo jumbo. If you don't give me a straight answer or tell me where the hell there is a place to rest, then f-fuck off. I don't-don't have time for a lecture."

"My my, unruly and with a silver tongue. That hasn't helped you at all if you're in this situation, has it?" Sasha glared at the newt before coughing once again. 

The stranger checked on his pocket watch, his smug smile changing into a frown. "The script has changed. Wonder how much people like you or your friends will twist the outcome."

"Wha--?" Sasha couldn't finish her sentence for the newt vanished as if had never been there.

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The day in Wartwood has started pretty well. Getting up early to take breakfast, without any bugs, of course, then help Hop Pop with the crops and hang out with Sprig and Polly. Nothing out of the ordinary. 

"Man, these days have been sooooo boring! Isn't there something exciting like fighting toads or monsters again?" Polly complained. Anne found it fascinating how strong and full of energy the pollywog was even when that caused trouble.

"I think this is much better than trying to not get yourself killed."

"But we always trying to not get ourselves killed" Sprig commented at Anne's words which she had to admit were true. Domino 2, the zapapedes, the red mantis, the tax collectors, so many things could've killed her and here she was, still breathing and walking. So yeah, every day was a survival day. 

"Guys, guys!" Another voice, a female one, broke their little conversation. Ivy ran towards them with her club in hand, her eyes shined in a way that said 'I have great news!'.

"Hey, Ivy! Is something wrong?"

"You can't believe this but I think there is a monster cornering the town and eating the crops!"

"Meh, we know that already. Insects love our food or us as food." Polly replied.

"No no, not that kind of monster. It's one that no one has seen before. And I've been following their tracks!"

Anne, Sprig, and Polly watched each other with uncertainty. Of all the creatures on Amphibia that could tear them apart, insects the size of houses were the first ones on the list.

Anyone could've noticed them. Those things couldn't be stealthy.

"Are you sure it was a monster and not a thief? What if one of those toads decided to keep an eye on us?"

"Pffft yeah right. Those cowards were nothing against us besides, some people have started to talk about this monster. If we trap them, we can get a great reward!"

"Or be eaten alive. But eh, a bit of action is better than no action. Let's go!" Polly now was at Ivy's side with a huge grin on her face much to Sprig's concern. 

"Anne... What do you say?" He sounded insecure about the idea, so he pleaded for a better one. 

"Maybe we can just scout the area for a while." Ivy and Polly exclaimed in excitement. "Just for a while. I don't want anyone to get hurt."

With that resolution in mind, a determined Ivy and Polly, a hesitant Sprig, and an intrigued Anne prepared for the search of the Crop Thief as she called the monster.

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'Finding the monster will be easy' Ivy said. 'I know what I'm doing' Ivy said. Anne wondered how a kid could be so sure about something that might end up in Bloody-Mary disaster -emphasizing the bloody word of course- because 1) they had no maps, 2) they had no weapons, except some long sticks but those were too weak, and 3) their plan could be lucky at best or their grave at worst and Anne valued her life, thank you very much. 

The footprints Ivy had shown them were confusing. Long trails in the mud that stopped at times and weird holes, as if a knife had been used to make them. A big, big knife. 

Let's hope they didn't get lost and trapped, what if that thing could spit venom or spider webs.

"Ivy, are you sure where we're going? We've been walking for hours! This will take us the whole day!" Anne couldn't agree more with Polly.

Her mouth opened to suggest coming back to the town until the sound of a burp prompted everyone to jump.

"Wh-What was that?! The monster?!" Sprig held his stick tightly. Frightened eyes darted from one direction to another, searching the source. 

"We must be close. Perhaps it is resting here and eating the food it has stolen."

"Remind me again from who it stole?" Anne doubted the town could be this dumb to not have caught the Crop Thief. If it was after the crops, then using them as bait would've worked splendidly.

"Some of my neighbors, Stumpy, even the crops in my house. I can't believe it hasn't stolen you guys yet."

"Hey! That's it! What if we lure the monster with our food?" Polly suggested while glancing at Anne and Sprig. "I mean, it could work, right? Some leftovers and vegetables here, then we wait, then bam! We ambush it."

"Making a plan when we're this close will waste our time."

"No, it won't. Unless you want to keep searching and become its food."

"I'm with Polly here, Ivy. We have no plan except to find the Crop Thief and try to stop it but this might be more than we can chew. What if we go with her plan tomorrow? I can ask Hop Pop for some of his bug soup, add pieces of tomatoes and place it right here, where we're standing."

"Won't Hop Pop ask us why we want his leftovers?" Sprig's question was clever. They would need to lie to get this plan done and even if she didn't like that, it would be for the greater good. Once the monster has been handled, no crops would be unsafe again. 

"Eh, I'll find a way to convince him."

Ivy remained silent during the whole conversation. Her first option could lead her to the monster and possibly her doom and the other ones' because they were unprepared and who knew how big and strong that thing was. Her second option took more time which the creature could use to wreak havoc and keep stealing but the plan was much better than the first one. 

"Ugh, fine! Let's go back. We'll make your plan. But it'd better work!" 

As they turned around, Anne surveyed the area behind her again, wondering why the burp sounded so close to them. That thing couldn't have been watching them behind the trees or the bushes, right?

Chapter Text

The lie had been so easy. 

'Hey Hop Pop, me and Sprig, Polly and Ivy are going to take the leftover for a picnic. Don't worry, we'll be close to the town. Thank you!' And then she took the questionable food and went with the rest of the group to the outskirts of Wartwood. They had devised a well-calculated plan for this. Place the bug soup in a desert area, the same one where they heard the burp, hide some meters away, wait for the thing to get close enough, and then attack.

Practical and with minimal effort. 

The inconvenience was the loooong waiting. No matter how hard they wished the monster to approach the bait, it wasn't coming from any angle. Perhaps they had underestimated it a bit too much.

"Polly!" Ivy screamed, tearing bits of hair, her teeth gritted. "You said this could work!"

"Don't blame me for the thing's tardiness. Maybe... Maybe it flew away, dug a hole, or ran to somewhere else."

"So what? That's it? Problem solved?" 

"It's just a possibility, Sprig. But I bet the monster hates Hop Pop's food much more than Anne does."

"I don't hate his food." The girl argued.

"You once joked that compared to his dishes, death sounded better." Sprig commented. 

"Anyway, what now? Do we keep waiting or--?"

Suddenly, the sound of steps froze the little group who halted their conversation and hide again under the bushes. Meters away, an unknown silhouette blurred by the fog got closer to the steaming pot of soup. Anne couldn't see it very well but its sluggish movements gave her the idea that the thief was limping or outright drunk. However, the more it approached the food, the more startled Anne was when her eyes glowed in recognition. 

"No... It can't be..."

Not only her face was the embodiment of shock but her friends' too. The creature, the monster they had been hunting was a tall, gangly figure just like Anne. More disheveled, though. 

The Thai girl's expression screamed concern and fear at the state of one of her best friends, Sasha Waybright. The strong, confident girl had become a zombie-like shell. Her trademark ponytail was gone, her hair a tangled mess, like a rat net. Her skin was paler than a corpse, so much that you could count the alarming number of cuts, scratches, and bruises over it. Her right shoulder had a hole surrounded by crimson stains that had dried time ago, the wound expelling pus little by little. One of her legs had been poorly wrapped and it seemed the injury had gotten infected. There were gigantic bags on her eyes, sweat bathing her face; her clothes were thorn and dirty as hell. Her gaze was unfocused and pained, even her breathing was messed up. 

What the hell had happened to her?! All her body was in a huge amount of pain!

Anne got up, revealing her location much to the other girls' horror who lifted her sword. Yeah, a sword. Anne was aghast at the fact that she overlooked that detail. 

Whatever, it didn't matter. Slowly, she approached her delirious friend who trembled and glared instead of recognizing her. 

"Anne, no. What are you doing?" Sprig was beyond terrified. On one hand, he wanted to stop Anne and prevent her from getting hurt. On the other hand, the appearance of that thing petrified him.

"Sasha... Oh my God, Sash! What happened?! Where have you been?!"

Sasha raised an eyebrow. In her condition, she couldn't recognize Anne or her voice but her mind was trying to understand why it felt so familiar. 

"Sasha, it's me. It's me, I swear. Lower your sword, dude. Please. You're weak and sick. Just let me help you."

Sasha shook her head. Why it felt familiar being in front of that stranger? Why?

"Sasha, please."

Anne took the polaroid photo and showed it to her in hopes it could get rid of the haze in her mind.

Sasha checked the photo warily. Despite the exhaustion, a spark emanated from her eyes when she recognized the item, and then, a moment later, she acknowledged Anne with the same spark. 

"A-Anne...?"

"Yeah, yeah dude, it's me!" Anne was going to hug the girl tightly if it weren't for the fact that Sasha's eyes rolled back and her body went down.

"Sasha!!" The teenager caught her friend in time before she touched the ground. Her hand brushed some strand of once-shining blonde hair and recoiled at how hot Sasha felt. She was burning! 

"Sprig, guys, quickly! Help me take Sasha somewhere safe! She has a fever!"

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Since Hop Pop took Anne in and she became part of the family many weird things happened that weren't on his list besides surviving and raising his grandchildren. However, the most worrisome that could take first place was watching Anne carrying someone who looked like her or had some similarities while Sprig, Polly, and Ivy followed her behind. 

"What the heck is going on? And what is that?" He pointed to the unconscious Sasha in Anne's arms. Her eyebrows had turned into a frown and coughed a bit of blood much to her friend's horror.

"We have no time, Hop Pop! Let us in, please!" The urgency in her voice was enough for the old frog to let them enter the Plantars’ house. Anne put Sasha on the sofa, digging in her mind for a solution to cure her friend. The problem was Anne was no doctor, if she tried anything Sasha could get worse. 

"Hop Pop, is there a doctor here? Can you call one?"

Obviously, that was the right thing to do and there was someone who needed help quickly; however, Anne's new friend would be rejected for her appearance right away. Wartwood was known for being close-minded and it took a lot of hard work to earn their trust and respect.

A life was in danger, nonetheless. Pondering what to do forever would never get him anywhere.

"Alright, alright. Wait here. I see if there is a healer that might help." 

He doubted his chances though one look at Anne's despair prompted him to take action.

Sprig, Ivy, and Polly observed the new Anne, or as she called her, Sasha, shivering from cold even when a little touch shocked you for the high temperature of her body.

"I need some rags and water. Sprig, can you give them to me, please?"

"On it, Anne." In a matter of minutes, a wet rag was placed on Sasha's forehead. Dirt, sweat, and mud caked the skin of her best friend, how many days or even weeks she lacked clean water, soap, and shampoo, the essentials for hygiene, Anne had no idea. Not that it mattered when Sasha's fever reached a new high point and Hop Pop was taking too long in bringing a doctor. Just thinking about Sasha dying in front of her just when she had finally found her tore her heart apart. They were running out of time, medicines and bandages were her only resources to save the blonde.

"Everything will be ok, Sash. I swear everything will be ok." Anne mumbled, holding Sasha's hand like a lifeline.

She gasped when her fingers traced Sasha's wrists. They were brittle and boney. The fingers and rest of the arm had become a bunch of bones inside too-pale skin. Inspecting her face, Anne noticed the holes in Sasha's cheeks, and when her eyes went to her legs her horror increased because they didn't look like legs but sticks with skin glued to them.

For how long had Sasha been starving? 

"Oh God, Sash... What happened to you?"

Chapter Text

Anne's anxiety couldn't be higher. It had been what? Half an hour? A few hours maybe? Even with her phone, she couldn't measure time on Amphibia. There weren't even watches to know at which hour people should do their stuff. Sasha's fever had reduced a bit which was progress but it wouldn't last. A doctor! Where the hell was the doctor?!

"We're here!" Hop Pop exclaimed at the same time he opened the door, entering with the healer behind him. It was an average adult newt, with gray-blue skin, and eyes the color of a lemon. They wore a robe covered in pockets that stored many tubes and flasks with colorful liquids.

When the healer posed their eyes on Sasha, they scrunched up their snout in disgust. Their mouth opened to say something, Anne felt it was going to be insulting to Sasha who couldn't defend herself because of her condition so the Thai girl shut them up.

"Dude, if you're not here to save my friend then get lost. I need a healer, not a whiner!"

"Anne!" Hop Pop glanced nervously at the healer who was deeply offended at the show of disrespect; thankfully, they didn't leave but instead, in spite, the newt pushed Anne and the children away roughly to check on the blonde. Hop Pop led the group of younglings to another room and give the healer peace and quiet to work.

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Anne paced back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. It was a never-ending cycle as if two magnets were pushing her way to an extreme and then another.

Her mind had been replaying the scenes in which she and Sasha had met again, her terrible condition, the fever, the weakness of her breathing. Then it spiraled into harrowing questions. What if Sasha didn't survive? What if she got sick with something serious? What if this changed her forever? So many worst-case scenarios and so little time.

"Anne, don't worry. I'm sure the healer will help your friend." Sprig, always supportive and kind, took her hand and rubbed her knuckles with his thumb. Anne smiled for a second at his sweet gesture before her gaze pointed at the living room. The healer was taking too long or perhaps they weren't doing anything and this was a waste of time.

"Maybe I should peek a bit."

"Hold on, Anne. The healer won't do a good job unless we let them. We have to be patient."

"Patient?!" Anne yelled outraged. "Hop Pop, this is--!"

Her sentence was cut short when the healer entered the kitchen, their stoic face was either a good sign or a bad one. Though, Anne bet it was the second option.

"Doc, how is she?" The girl asked. The newt acknowledged her with disdain which she couldn't care less about, then sighed. "Severe malnutrition. I'm not sure if it started when she was younger or because she was in the wilderness for too long but more weeks without food and she wouldn't have made it. The many wounds in her body are infected, but the worse ones are the gash in the leg, the hole in her shoulder, and the hole in her back."

"Her back?" The newt barely responded to Anne with a tiny nod. "She was attacked whether by hunters or beasts. If I'm correct with this assumption, I'd say she was shot by an arrow."

"An arrow?!" Now everyone screamed in unison with millions of questions they wanted to solve.

"The fever was urgent too. I could keep it at bay but she will need supervision and extreme care. Also, light foods and water. You must bathe her to get rid of the infections. My medicine lessened the sickness but she has been in this condition for too long so she could relapse. Make sure that doesn't happen because her body can't defend itself from anything else if it's that weak. Here" The healer gave Hop Pop a little bag with herbs "She must drink a beverage with these herbs morning and night for a month, no more no less. It will strengthen her body. Now if you excuse me." The healer exited the house silently and closed the door.

Anne entered the living room to check on Sasha again. Almost all of her body had been bandaged and the wet rag was still on her forehead. Bathe her, that was one of the healer's instructions.

Bathe her to clean the wounds. Perhaps once Sasha woke up, Anne could help her to clean herself. She knew her best friend and if she tried to bathe Sasha and she found out, the pandemonium would start. The blonde hated to be seen as weak or that someone implied they knew her vulnerabilities. At least Sasha was slightly better, not that much out of danger but something is something, right?

"Don't worry, Sash. You'll get better."

----------------------

Being in and out of consciousness was irritating no matter if you didn't know your surroundings.

Sasha could feel that she was placed somewhere else, the terrain beneath her was comfy and soft, and the many voices she could hear once in a while mumbled words of worry and suspicion. Why one of them was Anne's though? Perhaps she was dreaming, it was a possibility. Then her mind showed her the last thing she did before collapsing. The figure, tall and gangly like her, tan skin, unruly, bushy brown hair, eyes filled with shock. She could recognize her anywhere. Anne was in front of her and then just blackness...

----------------

The roar and sharp teeth of the herons sent her to the land of the awake. Her heart was hammering like crazy, sweat pouring from her forehead. Her eyes took a while to adjust to the darkness and see where she was, a quaint living room of a stranger's house.

"Where...? Where am--?" She coughed. Her voice was painfully raw. The crimson droplets on her hand were worrying too. All her body felt sore and hot, but not overwhelmingly hot just uncomfortably warm.

"Sasha?" That voice...

She turned around and saw her again. Anne was in her school uniform, watching her with the eyes of someone who has seen a ghost.

"Oh my God, Sasha!" A pair of arms wrapped around her neck, and the new reality she was in hit her like a wave.

Sasha thought she was dreaming. She must be dreaming for this hug was too good to be real; her trembling hands caressed Anne's arms feeling the warmth radiating from them. This was surreal but it was happening. Her eyes got glassy with tears of longing and despair and love and pain, and she hugged her best friend hard enough to ground herself. She was alive, Anne was hugging her, everything was real.

"I've missed you so much." She mumbled and started sobbing on the other girl's shoulder.

"I missed you too." Anne's smile took up all the space on her face. Relief and happiness never felt so sweet as this moment.

"God, Sash, I thought... I thought you'd never wake up."

"What are you talking about?" Anne could feel a smug smile forming on her friend's face and she chuckled inwardly. "The world will need more than that to get rid of me."

"Don't say that!" Anne chastised her. It took Sasha by surprise. Before Amphibia, she was the one taking the lead, the one deciding what was the best option and what not, having Anne scolded her was new.

"You were in terrible shape, dude! You should've seen yourself in a mirror. Pale skin, bag under your eyes, super thin, with lots of injuries, heck you were even burning! For a moment I wondered if you were going to..." Anne paused. Imagining her friend as a corpse, cold and unmoving was too painful for her, especially because it could've been a possibility.

"Hey, hey, I'm alright. I'm alive, aren't I? You don't have to worry." Sasha, in a rare moment of softness, wiped Anne's tears from her cheeks with her thumbs.

The other girl blushed a little and tried to calm herself before continuing. "You need to tell me what happened to you. I mean, not now, you're still recovering and it might not be a pleasant thing to remember, but when you feel ready, then tell me, ok? Gosh, it must've been hell back there."

"Yeah, it was." Sasha didn't want to admit it but Anne was right. Recalling the fights, the danger, and the murder attempts of Grime against her put her on edge, and being in that state of mind could spend all her mental and physical energy which wasn't that much.

------------------

Having Sasha's head on her shoulder, threading her fingers through her hair, and hearing her even breathing were such blissful gifts. She hadn't been lying when she said that the fear of losing Sasha could become a reality if she hadn't been found in time. All the giant bugs, predators, and even crazy plants like the carnivorous tomatoes could've gotten to her. A broken arm was nothing compared to losing one to a meat-loving beast or falling into the jaws of a hideous plant with huge fangs. Miraculously, Sasha survived those dangers or evaded them carefully but not the ones who shot her in the back with arrows. 

"Sash..."

"Mmm?"

"I know I said that you can tell me what happened to you when you're ready, but... But I really wanna know. I was afraid that help didn't arrive soon to save you. The healer told us you have suffered a lot and haven't eaten anything. Just... Just give me a hint. It doesn't have to be a long sentence, but a word or two. Please, I want to help you."

Sasha's whole body tensed. Anne cursed at herself for her impatience and was going to apologize for asking at the worst moment when Sasha mumbled: "Toad Tower."

Toad Tower. The first word was enough for Anne to guess where Sasha had been or where she had escaped from. Bog, Fen, Miles, were any of them responsible for the injuries she had on her shoulder, her back, or even the gash on the leg?

Why it mattered though? Whether they were responsible or not, the toads were bad news. They almost killed Sasha! Maybe they're looking for her to finish the job for goodness' sake!

'If I see one of them again, I'll kick their butts.'

"Thanks for telling me, Sash."

"Mhm..." The blonde didn't say anything else for she fell asleep, head still on Anne's shoulder. The other girl yawned deeply. Some hours and dawn would greet them all, perhaps she could introduce Sasha to the Plantars once she had the energy to stay awake for more than 10 minutes. For now, knowing that her best friend was ok filled her with relief. They could finally relax.

Chapter Text

Her eyes met darkness the moment they were opened. Nothing above her, nothing beneath her, not even the horizon, just the void. 

"What is this place?" Despite the overwhelming blackness, Anne could notice something floating or standing, she wasn't that sure, but it seemed to be an object. Her legs moved as if they had a mind; the closer she got, the more anxious she was. Her gaze recognized an old piece of furniture, a sofa, strikingly familiar to the one Hop Pop had.

But there was something else, over the sofa there was an object covered by sheets. However, her eyes widened after glancing at the shape of the thing. It wasn't an object but a corpse and right now she had the urge to run away because she didn't like where this was going.

Unfortunately, one of her hands moved towards a corner of the sheet despite her protests and started uncovering the cadaver slowly, painfully slow. Her eyes refused to close, her face refused to turn in another direction; her body suddenly had a mind on its own and she hated it. A gasp escaped her mouth when she glanced at the color of the hair. Blond.

'No no no, please, not her. Not her!'

No one heard her begging as the face of a familiar girl revealed itself to her and sobs accumulated in the back of her throat. It was Sasha.

She recognized the wounds on her shoulder and the one on her leg as her hand kept uncovering the corpse of her friend. That word tasted like vomit, 'corpse'. It meant Sasha was gone. Her pale than ghost skin and the lack of movement on her chest were proofs of her death.

Tears fell from Anne's eyes. She wanted to scream, to shake Sasha so she could wake up, to stop this nightmare. Anything.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed her shoulder and shook her like a maraca. Her eyes finally closed and a scream was let out.

--------------

"Anne! Anne, wake up!" Sasha didn't know what was going on but one moment she was peacefully sleeping and the next one Anne was crying on her shoulder.

In a quick movement, though, the Thai girl expulsed a terrified scream, her eyes opening but unable to focus on one thing. Her breathing was uneven and she struggled to get enough air to her lungs.

"Anne, hey Anne!" The mentioned turned around meeting her friend's worried gaze. Instantly, she wrapped her arms around Sasha, sobbing like a baby.

"Y-You're alive... You're alive!"

"Yeah, yeah, I am. What happened?"

"Y-y-your body... You were... I-I didn't want to... I didn't want to see it... I didn't want to believe it, but-but..."

"Calm down, Anne. I'm here." Sasha couldn't understand the rambling of her friend, what did she see that got her so emotional anyway? She pondered while revising the memories before they fell asleep. Anne was worried sick due to her condition and even afraid she was so close to—

Oh.

OH.

Well, now things made sense.

"Hey, I told you, Anne, I'm fine. I'm not going anywhere, ok?"

"I thought you were dead!" Anne exclaimed and it was a miracle the Plantars hadn't woken up yet with this commotion.

"But I'm not. I'm alive. And I'm going to stay like that no matter what."

Anne pulled away from the hug and looked at Sasha with a mix of seriousness and despair as if believing in her words was impossible.

"Do you-Do you promise?"

"Yeah."

"Do you really promise I won't lose you? That Marcy won't either?"

"Of course, Anne. We'll find her and get out of here."

"Gosh, sorry, my face must be a mess right now."

"Sort of. But mine was too. And don't make me start with--" Sasha was interrupted by a cough attack and much to Anne's dread some red droplets landed on the blonde's hand and the floor too. 

"Fuck... I think I went overboard."

"What if...? What if we sleep together? I don't think the sofa is the best bed right now. My bed in the basement is bigger so we can have some rest. Especially you."

"Like some sleepover?"

"Yeah, like that."

Anne led the way while Sasha reluctantly leaned on her due to the weakness of her legs. It horrified her and humiliated her how thin and vulnerable her body was. She had been surviving the wilderness with too little water and no food, sickness and sleep deprivation, and even encountered a weird guy in a suit. Good news, she found Anne. Bad news, if she didn't get better, they would be stuck here because of her and they didn't know if Marcy was alright or struggling or heck even dead. But the last option was better to let it be forgotten in a corner of their minds. 

Sasha didn't take into account until now that she and Anne were finally in the basement, on the bed, covered both by the sheets. It felt more comfortable. 

"You were right, this is much better."

Anne smiled with a hint of amusement. "Sasha Waybright saying someone else is right? What a surprise."

"Don't get too cocky. I'm too weak to use another argument."

"You'll get better in time, Sash. Don't worry."

Sasha hummed and closed her eyes; she could get used to this.

"Good night, Anne."

"Night, Sash." Before falling asleep, the blonde girl felt her friend's arms wrapping around her and Anne's abundant hair tickling her nose.

---------------

Meanwhile, with the toads...

The situation on Toad Tower had become an utter mess after the herons left the building.

Many soldiers died either by injuries or being the snack of the feathered beasts. It would take them years to rebuild everything and Grime didn't have time for that. Not only that weird creature had escaped, defeated his soldiers, cut off Bog's arm, and attracted the herons with its ruckus but also, he had a frog rebellion to squash because unfortunately for him the goddamn peasants decided that it would be perfect to destroy the status quo and put themselves on the top, and they started with refusals of paying their taxes. With the lack of money they got in taxes, the reconstruction would never start. Unless...

"Are you telling me Sasha got rid of Bog's arm with a single move?"

"Yes sir. The creature looked berserk! No, she WAS berserk! She punched and sliced anyone who got in her way. Except for two toads." The soldier growled.

"What?" Now that was worrying. "Are you saying someone helped her escape?!"

"Yes. Percy and Braddock."

"Those two?" Impossible. They were too cowardly to disobey him. 

"I'm not lying, captain. I saw Braddock throwing a barrel of beer to stop a toad from killing the creature. And Percy, he did nothing to put it behind bars! They're traitors!"

Wonderful, just fucking wonderful. The tower in shambles, his men reduced to a few dozens, a frog destroying the societal order of Amphibia, and now this!

He could forget it, though. The thing called Sasha wouldn't survive the wilderness for more than a few days, maximum a week if she was lucky. Why waste time trying to stop her? However, she had not only made some of his soldiers quit using whatever witchcraft she had on her sleeves, but she also convinced two of them to betray him. What if she met the rebellious frogs who were disobeying the toads' orders? Or used her slimy tricks to get allies and make his work harder? What kind of creature she was to manipulate and fight this way and get away with it?

Suddenly, an imaginary lightbulb was turned on over his head. This was the most absurd, craziest, and stupidest idea he'd had in his whole life, though as he pondered his options, it was the best. Ruthlessness, slyness, fierceness, his soldiers lacked them but not Sasha. If she was able to cause such chaos just to escape, regaining control over the valley with her help would be easy.

"Marshall, call Bog, Fens, and Mire. Tell them to chain Percy and Braddock. There is a creature to hunt, and I know how she will surrender."

Chapter Text

The morning started with a yell.

"Anne, Anne!" That's it. No glamorous entrance, fancy descriptions, or cryptic introductions. Just a yell from an energetic and freaked-out pink frog who entered the basement as if the devil was chasing him.

"Wha--? Where am I? Of course, this is my natural hair color!" Sasha rubbed at her eyes not noticing Anne throwing a pillow at Sprig's face.

"For frog's sake, dude! You scared me to death!"

"Sorry, sorry. It's just, I went to the kitchen to drink some water but on the way, I found out your friend was gone so I came to tell you because maybe she had run away or something. But she's here, with you, so that's good news for us!"

"Can you please tell squeaky toy to shut up? His voice is scratching my ears."

Ok, not that much good news to be honest.

"Come on, Sash. Sprig was just worried about you."

"Spig?"

"No no. Sprig."

"Who the hell calls oneself Sprig?"

"Hello~! I'm still here."

Anne got up before her and tried to help Sasha to stand up despite the refusal of her friend.

The blonde got out of bed with her usual confidence but her legs trembled as if the weight of her upper body was too much for them, and it was. A single half-step was enough for Sasha to collapse on the floor but Anne caught her fall and helped her sit down.

"I told you, dude. You're still in bad shape. You need to drink your medicine."

"This is nothing. I've been walking since I escaped Toad Tower, and I haven't fallen face to the floor yet."

Sprig's jaw almost hit the ground at what Sasha had said. "Wow, wow, wow! Toad Tower?! For real?! You escaped from there?!"

"Sprig..." Anne glanced nervously at Sasha. That topic was serious and she wondered why her friend mentioned that place if it was filled with dark memories. Sasha, thankfully, didn't reply or react to Sprig's comments.

"What if we go to the kitchen already? Hop Pop and Polly must be waiting for us."

She offered her hand to Sasha and the teenager again debated if take it and show her vulnerability or try again to stand up and walk to the stairs. After minutes of silence, she sighed and reluctantly accepted the offer. Both walked slowly, Anne more than Sasha much to her annoyance. She loathed the fact that her body was so deprived of food, water, and rest that even an elder could surpass her in a race. She used to be so athletic and strong which helped her survive Toad Tower, the multitude of soldiers, and two gigantic herons, but now her limbs could be mistaken for sticks, the fever wasn't gone completely yet, and the wounds would take weeks if not months to heal. Sasha snarled; her frustration was palpable for Sprig maintained some distance due to her hostile expression.

The girl noticed but ignored it. She went from an unstoppable cheerleader to almost an invalid at the edge of death it was ridiculous!!

--------------

In front of her were a bowl of soups (no flies on it, thankfully), a generous piece of bread, and a cup with a weird semi-green liquid.

"What is this?" Sasha pointed at the beverage. The odor was starting to make her gag.

"That's your medicine. The healer said you must eat light meals and drink this medicinal tea for a month. Not a day more or a day less. But don't worry, it tastes better than it looks."

Hop Pop's words weren't successful at encouraging her at drinking the tea. But the soup at least smelled appetizing.

Slowly, she grabbed the spoon and started drinking it. Some carrots, potatoes, and celery floated or sunk in the salty water of her meal. She gave a huge bite of her bread. The crunch sound and the warmth reminded her of some kinds of bread she used to eat at home.

The breakfast went without a hitch, conversations here and there, jokes and pranks from the Plantar siblings while Hop Pop reprimanded them and began a boring speech about the importance of manners.

Anne, on the other hand, kept an eye on Sasha. Subtly, of course. She didn't want to come up as a creep, but she was worried about her friend's condition. Anne wondered if the blonde would be at her 100% after a month of medicine and regaining some weight and muscle. Though, if there was someone who could pull through the worst, that was Sasha. The girl was always tougher than nails and stubborn as a mule.

'But she could've died' A voice reminded her. The image of her best friend thin as sticks, her clothes in ruins, with serious injuries, eyes feral as the ones of a beast, and suffering a high fever diminished her appetite.

'But she's here. She's here with me and she's safe. Sasha's safe' Anne argued with as much conviction as she could convey. Then her nightmare assaulted her thoughts. The body of the blonde covered by a sheet, over the sofa. Pale and still. And Sasha could've ended up like this without Anne knowing. In the bottom of a hole or a ditch, rotting, or devoured by giant bugs.

Suddenly her right hand clasped Sasha's left much to the other surprise. When the blonde glanced at her, Anne gifted her one of her sweetest smiles.

Sasha blushed a bit and smiled in response, squeezing the Thai girl's hand. They didn't let go until they were almost done with her food. Or more like until Polly spoke.

"Hey, Sasha!" The teenager glanced at the pollywog who observed her with awe and admiration. Sasha would revel in the attention if it weren't for the lack of context. "Is it true that you escaped Toad Tower all on your own?"

Silence permeated the dining room and a second later, Anne swallowed a piece of bread that almost choked her.

"Polly, what the heck?! Who told you--?"

"It was Sprig." The frog boy glared at his sister for throwing him under the bus.

"Sprig!!" Anne and Hop Pop screamed for different reasons.

"I told her, yeah, but I also asked to not be betrayed in a snap."

"They were going to find out anyway." Polly shrugged. "But, putting that aside, is it true that you flee from that place and did it all alone?!"

Anne opened her mouth to stop this mess before it got worse. Sasha had been through a lot and even if she still didn't know all the details, it didn't mean she couldn't wait. Besides, Sasha might find it pretty rude that her misadventures were turned into entertainment.

"Yeah, I did," Sasha responded faster than Anne's protests could come out. The teenager pondered why her best friend wasn't uncomfortable with this topic. However, Polly didn't give her time to put an end to the conversation as she kept asking questions.

"Really?! How did you do it? With weapons? Strategy? Did you kick some toads' butts?"

"Polly Petunia Plantar, Sasha is a guest and Anne's friend. Not some weird specimen to look at." As he said this, Hop Pop analyzed the situation. If it was true that Sasha came from Toad Tower, then it meant they could be looking for her.

The probability was low due to the dangerous fauna and flora of Amphibia which was an excellent reason to have let her get away with her escape and think she was doomed because unless you have a death wish or knew some survival skills, then staying in a refuge or your own house was much better than the wilderness. Although, despite how low the probability was, Sasha being here meant the toads could track her and cause more damage to the town. It was bad enough that they resorted to violence when the frogs fought back during the taxes, if they started torturing the villagers to find Sasha, then no one would survive.

----------------

Breakfast went on with less banter and teasing. Hop Pop mentally debated if bringing up this topic was a good idea. When Anne brought her friend to the house Sasha looked like a corpse, not sugarcoating. She was thin, too thin for someone of her species, though what would he know about humans? And there were too many injuries and fever. To think it was all caused by the toads trying to kill her just amplified the fact that they were bad news.

One of them had broken Anne's arm, he even heard their captain was a warrior from the Coliseum. People from there were hard as rocks or metal and sharps as the claws and fangs of the most vicious of animals of Amphibia. For Sasha to survive an environment like this, was impressive but also worrying. She didn't look disturbed when Toad Tower was mentioned but Sprig and Polly should know some manners already. Perhaps he could talk about this during lunch with all the family, Sasha included, to make sure everyone knows the risks of letting her out of the house.

That's the other issue he dreaded to face. Wartwood was a small community, they don't accept outsiders in a snap. It's a process that involves patience and work. It took Anne a lot to be accepted and well-liked by everyone but what about Sasha? After finding out because of his grandchildren that she escaped Toad Tower, the villagers will get anxious. They don't want any reminders of the toads after the last tax session.

Some might want to kick her out of the town as soon as they know the news. Frog, what if the mayor did that? Anne would be devastated. He had never seen her so afraid when she came back with Sasha dying in her arms. He hoped the healer hadn't opened their mouth to the others or else the house will be pandemonium. For now, things are ok. Relatively peaceful. Maybe they would be lucky enough to not have the toads invading Wartwood to look for Sasha.

'Coming to think of it, why would they look for a prisoner that has escaped and gone to the wilderness? She has no money, no status, and belongs to another world like Anne.' His most daring theory is that they wanted to introduce her to the king as this exotic specimen they had crossed paths with to gain a fortune and be promoted to general or something. He chuckled inwardly.

What a waste of time that was! As if the king could spare some space on his schedule for such an attempt of the toads to climb socially. Perhaps they had forgotten about Sasha or given up after a few days of infructuous search. Yeah, maybe he was just being paranoid. There was nothing to worry about.

-----------------

There was a LOT to be worried about or more like to be mad about. For example, why for frog's sake the captain wanted that disgusting creature again!? Hadn't he listened when he told him how the gangly thing sliced his arm!? Now he had one!

ONE FUCKING ARM!!

How the fuck was he going to fight and make the useless frogs give him the money of the taxes with one arm!? Peasants would mock and pity him forever and still, captain Grime didn't care!

'But Captain, that thing Sasha is more trouble than it's worth! Just look!' He showed him again what used to be his right arm. 'Trusting it is a terrible idea! Better to leave her face the herons or the mantis or any monster that might make her into a snack! We can--'

'It's because it sliced your arm and could fight my soldiers that it has to be on our side whether it likes it or not. Toad Tower is at its bottom because of useless cowards that couldn't stop a single prisoner from getting out. Besides, it's not about trusting it. It's about using some of her allies against it. When it finds out Percy and Braddock are in trouble because of its stupidity, it will surrender and work for us.'

'We don't need to depend on that thing! Let it die on wherever it is for all we care! As toads--'

'Bog, your complaints are slowing us down. I'd made my mind already, so there's nothing to discuss.'

'But--'

'There's nothing. To. Discuss! And if you keep whining, you'll end up like Percy and Braddock. Do you want that, soldier?'

Frog-forsaken otherworldly creature! Gangly, with a too-short tongue, pink skin, and doesn't like bugs. It caused huge chaos while escaping and it gets Grime's attention to be his second in command. Meanwhile, he, a loyal toad, has lost an arm and was humiliated by that hideous beast and this is how he is treated? Bog swore mentally that once he had a chance, he would send that thing Sasha to the deepness of the closest ditch for it to rot.

Chapter Text

Cricket legs, pigeon eggs, or the big worms. Hop Pop had been spending almost all morning debating within himself what to cook. Anne didn't like bugs and her friend was in the same situation, so perhaps the eggs could work. However, eggs from birds were much more expensive than the ones from insects because they were extremely difficult to get and also it was a dangerous hunt with a low percentage of success, that's why the price was as high as the one from the tomatoes. Concerning tomatoes, maybe he could get a good penny by selling them, there were enough and in good condition.

"Hop Pop?" Sprig's voice broke his train of thought. It sounded nervous and timid. Alright, what did he do this time?

"What is going on now, Sprig?"

"Uh... There is someone at the door..."

Someone? The Sundews? Sadie? Loogle?

"Ok, tell them to come in."

"They want to talk to you outside."

Now that's weird. And worrying. He got out of his office and went to the door. When he opened it, his eyes bulged at the huge multitude surrounding his house. To top it all off, many of the villagers were holding torches and pitchforks.

"Alright, Hopediah," Mayor Toadstool spoke, "Where the heck is the other Anne-like creature?"

Wait what?!

"Anne-like creature?! But who told--?"

His question was answered by a fake cough that came from the healer. They didn't seem remorseful at all for divulging Sasha's whereabouts to the whole town much to Hop Pop's exasperation.

They even looked prideful as if they had done a good deed.

Note to yourself Hopediah: next time try to buy someone's silence. It can help you wonders.

-------------------

Anne never hated doctors more than at this exact moment when Sprig informed her why almost all of Wartwood was in front of the Plantars’ house, hostile and ready for battle.

Goddamn healer and their goddamn mouth! Now Sasha was in the spotlight and it wasn't a good one. To make it worse, Hop Pop's attempts to calm the people, especially Toadstool, were falling on deaf ears. She hoped at least someone could be on his side but this is Wartwood, they dislike outsiders and Sasha was one.

The only way to show the villagers that her friend wasn't dangerous was by introducing her to everyone but the blonde was sleeping and Anne had wanted to assist her with the bath.

Her plans, sadly, had to be ruined by one single mouth.

"Sasha, hey, Sash. Come on, wake up." Sasha batted her hand away, curling up more, taking all the sheets for herself.

"Sasha, please. We need to introduce you to Wartwood."

"Not now, Anne." She grumbled.

"Sash, the healer ratted you out to the town. Now they want to get rid of you."

Like a switch, Sasha's demeanor changed from drowsy and exhausted to seething. If there was one thing she hated with a ferocity that was being turned on by someone else to the authorities. Her eyes blazed, a determination of steel to crush that stupid healer which Anne considered motivation enough to get out of the basement. Though, Anne would have to prevent Sasha from killing the newt. Wartwood didn't need confirmation that her friend was a killing machine, thank you very much.

Her friend had made 5 steps until her stubbornness was pushed away by Anne's kind offer of help. Sasha took it quickly this time, glaring at the stairs towards the rest of the house.

"Who's outside besides that shitty traitor of a healer?" Sasha growled, her legs were still shaky and her efforts to advance faster to the principal door weren't helping at all.

"Don't push yourself so hard, dude. And if you want to know, well, there are the Sundews, Sadie Croaker, Loogle, Stumpy, Mr. Flour and his daughter Maddie, her three siblings, Wally, Mayor Toadstool, Toadie, Chuck, and many more."

"Hurray, a mob." Her beauty nap was interrupted by a mob, wonderful.

"Don't worry, Sash. Once the introductions are over, they'll love you."

The blonde doubted that. She didn't even know them and Anne might be a bit biased in her favor and anger them for all she knew. Anyway, there was no time for a plan of action as they finally reached the entrance of the house and meet Hopediah who smiled at them anxiously.

"Girls, thank frog you're here. Can you, uh, defuse this for a moment?”

The villagers pinned Sasha with their distrustful glares, some of them mumbled to their neighbors an insult against the teenager or a worst-case scenario. Others stepped back, afraid to be attacked by what they supposed was a monster.

Anne could get the apprehension because she and her friends were from Earth, but cornered those worries to give space to a more optimistic solution.

"Hey, guys!" She greeted with an infectious smile. Ivy returned the gesture. Good, someone on their side. "I know this is a surprise, trust me. But my friend here, Sasha, comes in peace. I've been worried about her and tried to find her, and now she's here. With me!" Sasha shot her a bewildered glance.

Happiness flooded every part of her body and soul at that statement. She wanted to say the same, that she escaped such a violent place to try to find her and Marcy, that she amputated a toad's arm because he had hurt Anne and laughed about it, that she was lucky to have found her and spent time with her.

Her mouth didn't open but her hand squeezing Anne's was sign enough to convey her joy.

"Why is she covered in bandages?" One of the townsfolk asked. Sasha checked him over. With turquoise skin, tattoos, a dirty beard, creepy collar with bones, the frog looked like one of those serial killers that lived isolated in a cabin in the middle of the woods. But was he a frog or a toad? Wait, why was she so focused on knowing this?

"My friend has gone through a lot, Joe." Anne started explaining but then she questioned herself if being totally honest was a good idea. Sasha's traumatic escapade from Toad Tower wasn't her business, it would be inconsiderate to say all the story without asking for permission. "Wait a second."

Anne pushed Sasha inside the house, placing both hands on her shoulders. They were trembling slightly. "Sasha, I know what happened in Toad Tower must be still affecting you and I'll understand if you don't want them to know but they value honesty. We can give them a summary of how you ended up here and leave the rest, it's up to you."

She was acting as if Sasha was this fragile being with a too-young mind, it irritated her. She didn't show it nonetheless. If she was honest with herself, the blonde human struggled to process why Toad Tower didn't stir any emotions from her. During breakfast, she was asked how she had escaped and didn't lash out or storm off. That should mean she got over it, right? Because that was the point. If she didn't suck it up, she would be weak, weakness would be exploited and she would fall. If she fell, she wouldn't see her best friends anymore.

She had to push forward, endure, defeat the enemy, reach the goal, and take her mind off the pain and terror, and hunger because they were after her. The toads, Grime, the herons. She couldn't stop.

And as much as she loathed to admit it, that had become part of her life, not just a desperate strategy anymore. Being more cunning and brutal than whatever wanted to kill her had transformed into a survival race bigger than the whole Hunger Games Saga.

But was it normal that now that the giant birds and the soldiers were so far away, she couldn't feel anything? Wouldn't she be disturbed for being this apathetic?

"Sash? Hey, you wanna take a break or something?"

Oh, if she could, but 1) there was a certain healer her fists wanted to talk to, and 2) the peasants would enter the Plantars' house and demand answers. One of Sasha's best talents, pragmatically, of course, is that she was a terrific liar and actress. Fake it till you make it, right?

They would fall into her schemes as long as she maneuvered perfectly.

"Let's go talk with them. The sooner the merrier."

Anne's brain moved her mouth to object, to give a better suggestion, or maybe she wanted to take Sasha's place and placate the townsfolk.

Sasha didn't let her as her stubbornness gave her enough stamina, barely enough that is to get out of the house and met the eyes of everyone. 

Someone among the incensed mob was sending her a glare that rivaled hers, Mayor Toadstool. His fancy clothes and the tiny frog at his side that looked like a cartoonish sidekick or butler were enough evidence for her to figure out that he was in charge of the bumpkins.

"You must be Toadstool." No intonation that felt like questioning was used but her slightly raised brow and her crossed arms gave her that patronizing aura as if no one could be able to meet her standards.

Anne and the Plantars had mixed reactions at that first step in the dialogue. Anne was between interrupting Sasha to prevent an argument and let her deal with this because she trusted her friend. Hop Pop checked over his house, what if the outcome of this mess became violent? Sprig shared his grandfather's worries as his slingshot was well-hidden in his clothes in case an attack to defend his home and loved ones was necessary. Polly's eyes were almost the size of her body, brimming with amazement at Sasha's attitude against the money-grabbing fool of the mayor they had. 

"And you must be the Anne-like creature."

"It's Sasha for you buffoon, didn't you hear, or do you have coins stored inside your ears?"

The villagers gasped in unison while the mayor frowned deeply, thinking of a response as sassy as Sasha's or a way to humiliate her; however, Anne put her hands on their shoulders to stop what could be a serious confrontation.

"Ok, guys, I think that's enough introductions for today. Sash, let's take some tea, shall we?" Sasha remained quiet, hardening her posture and her glare. Toadstool did the same as he planned for a gracious comeback to make Sasha eat dust.

"Don't interrupt the adults, Boonchuy. Your 'friend' here must learn manners."

"From who? A coin-obsessed clown that ruined my beauty nap to organize a mob and pretends to have more than half a brain cell?"

The Plantars became part of the audience's gasp except for Polly who cheered the blonde teenager with huge enthusiasm. 

Before this embarrassment escalated, Toadstool derailed the conversation to another topic, a bit related to why the townsfolk were here. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Outsiders always sound so smart but are so ignorant. Don't you know the sacred motto of the town? Didn't Anne tell you?" He snapped his fingers and Toadie intervened obediently: "Slow to accept, and even slower to respect." 

"Exactly! You wanna have your precious beauty naps?" His smirk was getting on her nerves. Anne's hand grabbed her wrist in a silent plea to not punch him. "Then you'll have to work very hard to be a decent member of society."

"Pfffft, what society?" Sasha scoffed arrogantly much to the toad's frustration. "If you were able to fool everyone to waste their time on this useless demonstration of power then you must be the most desperate guy I've ever seen."

The frogs mumbled among themselves fueled by anger and offense. Within the sea of comments, Anne could distinguish the ones directed at Sasha; none of them were good. They called her insolent, preposterous, and disrespectful, some even backed away in fear, and the other half were guessing what Toadstool would do with her. Could it be banishment, manual labor, or being the target of rotten vegetables?

"Howdy! Is this the kind of people our dear Anne loves to hang out with? I know she had it difficult here but I never suspected that a friend of hers could be such a trouble magnet, I mean, what are the odds right? Maybe she got it from you." 

Sasha shared a bewildered glance at the Thai girl, her eyes filled with questions. The biggest one was if Toadstool was right about Anne struggling in this town. A backwater town with zero danger and just a lot of nuisances and annoying people. 

"Is it true?"                                   

"I-I mean, well... Ok, what do you want to ask about?"

"Did they cause you trouble?" 

"What? No!" That was half a lie. She wasn't loved by anyone in Wartwood before all the work and her heroic act by fighting the toads when they started stealing from the townsfolk, but Sasha didn't need to know that...yet. "I know right now they aren't happy you're here but all of them are great, and nice and very fun to bond with. I swear."

Anne wished Sasha wasn't that good at lying because that makes her pretty perceptive to liars too. And the blonde hadn't bought her story.

"Tell me the truth, Anne. Did they cause you trouble?"

Alright, time to rip the band-aid off. If this was the mayor's way to destabilize everything in the Plantars' house and sabotage Anne's plan to introduce Sasha to the villagers smoothly then it was working and he was a jerk. A big one.

"Ok, don't get mad, dude, but yeah. Things weren't the best here at the start." Sasha tensed, her fury on Anne's behalf made some frogs whimper, scared of facing her ferocity until the other teenager reasoned with her. "But hey, they love me now. They have accepted me so there is no need for beatings or anything violent."

"That's for me to decide." As if she's going to be soft on a bunch of slimy frogs that bothered her best friend.

"I think not." Toadstool's voice got her out of her thought train. For a second, she had forgotten she was dealing with this guy.

"What the heck do you mean?"

"Sash--"

"No more interruptions, Boonchuy. Now, let me be clear with you, Zacha."

"It's Sasha, you imbecile!"

"Ha, see? That's the problem here. Anne might've taken a while in being part of Wartwood, but at least she knew when to keep her mouth shut. I bet you won't last half a day, no no, half an hour before everyone gets sick of you and asks me, wise Mayor Toadstool to kick you out."

"Pfffft hahaha," Sasha's cackles were met with a deadpan stare. "Come on, you? Kicking me out? I beat assholes tougher and stronger than you and with a better regime. I mean, you wouldn't last 5 seconds in the wilderness and I've been there. For weeks. No food, no water, injured, and with a hell of a fever. I even almost died!!"

"Don't remind me." Anne pushed away those memories. It wasn't the time to have a sour mood or fear for her friend's life despite having Sasha here. 

"And this is the result. A feral, vulgar savage. Wonder why the Plantars decided to keep you with them. They can handle themselves; they don't need a bulldozer beetle to guard the house."

The audience cheered at the insult, surveying Sasha for a reaction.

"More like I wonder why people chose you as mayor. Or they have no standards or you cheated to keep all these fancy clothes to yourself!"

That was a harsh blow to his pride.

"Oh, you're enjoying this too much, aren't you? Let me remind you something, Zazha." 

"It's Sasha." She sneered viciously.

"Whatever. What you have is just the pity ticket. You might be Anne's friend. The Plantars might have taken you in. But the whole town has a say, I have a say, I'm the mayor for a reason. If they don't want you here, I can rally every frog and then banish you forever. Every decision goes through me. And after this shameless display of yours, it will take a miracle to be accepted by all of us. Your lucky hits won't last forever."

"Wanna bet?" Sasha loomed over him. No one, not even Toadie, saw the spark of fear in his eyes at watching the sudden ruthlessness vibing in the orbs of the human. They would have if it weren't for Hop Pop who put an end to the argument. 

"Alright, here is when we go our separate ways. Anne, please take Sasha inside. Polly, Sprig, help her."

"What?!" Sasha protested. "I'm not done with--"

"Not now, dude." Anne pushed her towards the entrance, ignoring the loud cursing while the two frog children followed them from behind.

"I'm so sorry about this, Mayor Toadstool, everyone. I know Sasha's presence is too much to process and her attitude was nothing but aggravating. However, this is Anne's best friend. Anne has been worried sick about her. If it's ok I'll make sure she doesn't get in trouble or bother you or anyone else in any way. Whatever happens, I will take full responsibility."

"You'd better, Hopediah. Your family can be all the decent, charming folks they want but all of you are on thin ice by keeping that Sacha creature with you." 

The old farmer nodded tiredly, watching the min dispersing and the villagers going back to their daily routines. Toadstool send a dirty look at the house imagining Sasha's face on it and stormed off, Toadie followed him like a lost puppy.

Frogs and swamps, what a day. This could've ended so much worse. 

No use in delving into what should've, though. A good scolding was in need to keep a leash on Sasha's temper or teach her how to behave in the town.

"Alright, Sasha. It's time to set some rules so this mess never happens again." Hop Pop was in front of the blonde who was sitting on the old sofa, Anne accompanied her on her left side while Sprig and Polly were on her right side. 

The teenager couldn't care less about adults reprimanding her and being insufferable goody-too-shoes. She was giving that fat idiot of a mayor a piece of her mind and it wasn't her imagination when she had seen a bit of fear in his eyes. She got him where she wanted to and then was stopped by the old man, much to her frustration.

"Why are you blaming me for what happened? Is that fucker of the healer that ratted me out! You should be mad at them!"

"I'll be mad at them when I see them, but what you have done was deeply irresponsible." Sasha tried to protest to no avail because Hop Pop started his long explanation. "Anne had it hard in the town for being an outsider, and Wartwood, as Toadstool has told you, isn't welcoming to that kind of people. Anne had to stand up for the villagers to get their respect and affection. With you... Unfortunately, the work will be thrice if not more and it MUST be genuine because if you try to scam one of them, they will resent you and shun you ruthlessly. This place might not be an outstanding touristic spot with luxurious houses and paths paved with gold and jewels like in Newtopia, but the townsfolk still respect it and want to be respected. I want you to be respected as well, Sasha. However, you have gained a big enemy by starting an unnecessary argument with Mayor Toadstool!"

"Because I was ratted out! I never planned to show myself up to those losers and that buffon!"

"And here we go with problem number one, Sasha. You're too confrontational and intimidating. That might have been useful in Toad Tower when you fought your way out, but this is Wartwood, not a fortress. My neighbors are farmers and sellers, not soldiers going to get you. Mayor Toadstool takes care of the town, he's not captain Grime. Your priorities here aren't planning a way to escape and not get killed but recovering from your injuries and preventing a mob from kicking you out. Just because I'm willing to give you a hand doesn't mean I can fight a multitude. And when people are terrified and enraged, it's almost impossible to reason with them."

"It's not that I need protection." Sasha waved her hand, smirking. "I could defeat those weaklings in the blink of an eye."

"Which is problem number two. Violence should be the last resort, not the first solution to every problem. It'll give people the idea that you need a leash to stop you from killing everyone."

"Yeah. Besides, you can barely stand or walk a few steps without Anne or someone to lean on. It was a surprise you could get out of the house on your own after Anne pushed you inside to talk."

Sasha petrified Sprig with a glare. He glanced to another part of the living room, fidgeting anxiously.

"Come on, Sash. Be nice. Sprig is right about that. You're still weak."

'I wouldn't be if I wasn't captured by those brutes.' The blonde growled with that sentence on her mind. And what if what she was going through couldn't compare with whatever Marcy was experiencing at the moment.

With Anne Sasha shouldn't worry too much; she knows she is safe with these frogs even if the rest of the waterhole were nuisances.

From Marcy, though, they knew nothing. And the girl's clumsiness has more chances of getting her killed than any savage toad or giant bird in this world.

"We need to look for Marcy." 

"I know, Sash, but the mountains are frozen. Hop Pop told me that if we went there. we would turn into ice cubes. We'll have to wait a bit longer and then our first stop will be... To be honest, that part of the plan is in the blank."

"Oh, come on!" She whined. 

Anne must have been kidding with her! 

So that's it?! A long waiting time while Marcy maybe is in the stomach of a fly the size of an elephant or starving and trapped in a hole? Or what if Grime and his henchmaniac have found her before them? Or other toads that might be worse? Were there other toad towers? Did they resort to medieval torture to get answers from prisoners? Or what if she had been encaged for being labeled a freak and was ordered to do tricks in a circus? 

----------------

"Achoo!" A raven-haired girl sniffed, checking her 'citadel' of books up and down for any sign of dust or mold finding nothing. 

"Mmmm... Must be the change in weather." She shrugged and kept reading.

Chapter Text

So, from chapters 1 to 8 I had everything written and ready to post, that's why every Saturday you had an update; however, here comes the part where this fanfic will be on hiatus until I have another 8 chapters ready to post. I have outlined 4, so this won't take that long, I hope because there is other stuff I need to do but rest assured, the ride will be great. 

Also, I want to thank you all for the nice comments and the kudos, and I know about the scandal with some Amphibia fan artists and one member of the crew but no, that won't stop me from making more content of this great show! 

So, again, here comes the time to wait, and thanks for having read part of this journey. Trust me, the rest will be a blast!

Chapter Text

In front of Sprig and Polly was a chalkboard Hop Pop used to homeschool them after the local school was destroyed by the giant centipedes; however, this wasn't a class about the importance of natural pesticides or how to take care of the business in times of crisis but a meeting started by Anne.

On the chalkboard had been written the names of some villagers of Wartwood: Stumpy, Mrs. Croaker, Maddie, Ivy, their families, Wally, etc. Above those names was the title: "Compatible new friend/acquaintance" and at the side of each name a series of cons and pros.

"Ok, with Gunther we have the last best candidate so any ideas of what he and Sash might have in common?"

"Beyond the anger issues and being super strong, I have nothing." Sprig opined.

"Yep, me neither. It will take a miracle to make Sasha be all nice and sweet with the townsfolk without getting into a fight with Toadstool like the first time." Polly commented.

"Come on, guys, have some faith in Sasha. Sure, she can be tough and a bit mean but she's not that bad."

"A bit mean? Anne, she called me Squeaky Toy!"

"Ha! Squeaky Toy! That's a good one!"

"Oh Frog, Polly! You too?!"

"What?! It's funny!"

"Ejem. I know she is not pretty likable right now but once you get to know her, you'll love her."

"As long as she doesn't start a war with the Mayor, I'll try my best." Sprig replied.

"Did you see the face of Toadstool when she called him a money-obsessed buffoon? I loved it. Hey, Anne, do you think I could ask her to use that sword she brought with her when she escaped Toad Tower?"

"Not a good idea, Polly. You might get hurt and Hop Pop might get a heart attack if he finds out."

"Come on! I used a weapon to save our lives inside the family tunnels"

"There are family tunnels here?" That interrupted the class; Anne, Sprig, and Polly spun around meeting the bored eyes of Sasha.

"Were you eavesdropping on us?" Sprig asked, suspicious.

"More like I'm very good at stealth." Her voice carried an edge of arrogance that inflated when she puffed her chest. "Anyway, what is this secret tunnel stuff?"

"Uh..." Anne pondered if telling her was a good idea. The worst that could happen would that she might get stuck there like Hop Pop and Loogle. Or she might get bored after a few minutes of watching the tunnels and ask to go back. "Wait a sec, dude." Anne pushed Sprig and Polly to a corner of the living room. "So, are you guys alright with showing her the Plantars secret basement, or do you want to give her details instead of opening the entrance?"

"Well, she's not the bad guy buuuut... What if she gets in trouble there and then we have to pick up the pieces and Hop Pop scolds us?"

"Pfffft, we had a great adventure in the tunnels and when we told him he got angry for 5 seconds before wanting to see what was in there." Polly opined.

"Ok, so we show her?"

"I don't see why--" Polly's sentence was interrupted by Sasha's fake cough. When they addressed her, she pointed with her head to the chalkboard much to Anne's embarrassment.

“What is this?”

“Oh, that… Well… I think that after your argument with the Mayor it would be better to show everyone that you’re not a threat early than wait for a mob to kick you out.”

“And you’re pairing me with one of these bumpkins? Annie, you’re making the same mistake Mrs. Morrison did when she put us in different groups for a project. You know already how that ended.”

“Sash, no offense, but even if I hated how Nick Harris took advantage of Marcy to get the project done without lifting a finger, that didn’t mean physical humiliation was the answer. You were almost expelled.”

“Expelled from what exactly? Prison? Because it feels like that.” Sprig said a bit nervously.

“School, twerp. School. And it wasn’t a big deal. I mean wedgie is the most repetitive cliché bullies used to intimidate others. If anything, I was being merciful with that dickhead, especially because after what he said to his friends about Marcy, he deserved worse. Much. Worse.”

Sprig gulped. This was the second time a human acted terrifyingly: the first one when he and Anne met for the first time, she had trapped him and wanted to eat him because she’d been in the wilderness near Wartwood for weeks, but Sasha’s aura had a different terror-striking taste.

“Hey, is it me, or this sword is blood-stained?” Sasha was startled, not having noticed Polly approaching the sword she was using as a crutch despite leaving holes on the wooden floor. Her brother carried her immediately, preventing the tadpole from getting hurt by accident.

Anne, on the other hand, checked the blade quickly in case Polly had attempted to scare them all. “Dude, I’m not a sword expert but this thing is super rusty, how could you survive with it?”

The blonde shot a look at her weapon, lifting it close to her face with difficulty due to her still-recovering muscles. “Uh… Can’t believe I’m saying this but you’re right. Thank goodness is still useful despite the blood.”

“Wow wow! So, that’s blood?!” Anne exclaimed, stepping back.

“Yep. Toad’s blood.” Sasha responded, patting the blade fondly as anyone would to their pet.

“YOU KILLED A TOAD?!!” The Plantars siblings yelled in unison.

“Not really, though he deserved it.”

“Please, please tell me you didn’t get rid of Grime.” Sprig joined the palms of his hands in prayer.

"Do you know him?”

“Wartwood have heard about him. The other towns inside Frog Valley too. He’s called the Beast of the Coliseum, the fiercest, most violent fighter ever known.” Polly elaborated.

“Yeah, and because of that, he became the Captain of the Southern Toad Tower! That place is not a soft flower field when tea and cookies are served to you!”

“Don’t have to tell me, twerp, I barely survived there. If it makes you feel better, it wasn’t Grime I sliced, but a fucktard who bragged about hurting Anne.”

“Wait, it can’t be…” Anne rummaged in her memory and three names popped into her mind. “You met Bog, Fens, and Mire?!”

“One of them. He had the gall to say you brought whatever he did to your arm to yourself. Ha! Last most ironic words of his life because he’s now one-armed!”

“SAY WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!!!”

**********

20 minutes. Just 20 minutes spent buying some groceries and health-enhancing tea from the Sundews and Hopediah felt already his life draining from every pore of his body, making space for dread because of Sasha.

Sasha, Anne’s best friend. She had cut a toad’s arm. And that toad worked in Toad Tower

What the FROG?!

One thing was that the girl had fought her way out of the toad’s headquarters in the south which earned her serious injuries. Another thing was that she had severely hurt a soldier while escaping. The scenario was nothing out of the ordinary because survival was survival and if you surrendered or did nothing, you’d be dead; however, knowing the reputation of the captain, attacking his soldiers to the point of killing meant a deep insult and threat punishable by death.

Sweet olms! What’s next?!

“Hop Pop!” his 3 grandchildren’s eyes bulged, wondering when he had returned.

“Yikes, man, first Molly and now you?! Is everyone in this family that good at being stealthy?!”

“It’s Polly.” The tadpole corrected her.

“Forget about that. You amputated someone’s arm?! On Toad Tower?!”

“Yeah, I mean he deserved it.”

“Sasha, do you know what that means?”

“It means that fucker got what put Anne through. I mean, he even knew her name!” Her gaze hardened on Anne when she realized that her friend hadn’t told her that part of her story in Wartwood either if it really had happened there. “Why didn’t you tell me, Anne? The idiotic Mayor said that the frogs here had given you a hard time, and now I found out that the toads did that too. Was it here? Somewhere else?”

“Sash, calm down. It’s not that I planned to hide this from you.” The Thai girl lowered the blonde’s arms and placed her hands over her shoulders. “When you told me where you’d been, I was shocked, but I was more concerned about taking care of you and having you back after so much time not knowing where you were that I forgot to ask questions. And even the questions were like walking on eggshells because you were pretty injured and I thought that trying to know more would trigger you; I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable after almost dying there. And before you ask, yeah, Bog, Fens, and Mire were here, in Wartwood, and they attacked me when I went against them. What they were doing wasn’t right.”

“What is worse is that slicing a soldier’s arm off will give Grime more motivation and reasons to look for you and punish you. Toad Tower is filled with the most ruthless warriors, including him, but if you ask me, they’re just a bunch of armored bullies filled with toxic masculinity and ego that use their badges as an excuse to ransack innocent houses whenever the taxes aren’t paid fully. Sasha,” Hop Pop addressed her with a deep frown on his face. “I prohibit you to mention Toad Tower, Grime, or anything related. In fact, if you forget the place, much better. It was bad enough that you’ve made Toadstool your enemy when Anne introduced you to the villagers. Imagine what would happen if he found out!”

“Pffft, what he’s going to do? Sell me to them? Only way to do that is by defeating my fists if he wants to rat me out like that shitty healer.”

“Again, you’re being too confrontational. There’s a time for fighting and a time for diplomacy. I suggest you focus on your recovery and try to befriend some of the locals. Anne and the others can help you with the list written on the chalkboard. Mmm,” he tapped his chin after reading each name on the list. “Perhaps starting with the Sundews might help you shape up. Kids, why don’t you introduce her to Felicia and her daughter? If I remember well, Ivy was there when you found Sasha.”

“Technically, she found us and it was by randomness.” Polly corrected.

“Still, the sooner the hard feelings cool down, the better. Now go.”

“Hey, I didn’t agree with this!” Sasha complained as Anne pulled her to the door. Hop Pop only waved them goodbye.

*********************

If Anne being the temporal monster of Wartwood felt uncomfortable and awkward, touring Sasha through the town after her fight with Toadstool was the equivalent of walking on eggshells, explosive eggshells.

“Hello, Spri—Oh Frog, goodbye!”

“And that’s the fourth person today scared of you, Sash, and without lifting a finger,” Anne commented worriedly.

“Yeah! At this point, everyone will be happier having a mantis as a pet than you as a new community member.” Polly joked.

The blonde crossed her arms, not paying attention to their attempts to make her more amicable. The worst part was that she couldn’t still go to places on her own: 1) her body needed more rest and nutrients or else she’d faint, and 2) her reputation. Although she couldn’t care less if these frogs liked her or not, her priorities were her friends’ safety and finding a way home. Also, relying on Anne to even make a few steps felt so patronizing.

“Wow, dude! What are you--!” Sasha ignored her friend’s sentence, dislodging her arm from her grasp. Her legs proceeded wobblily, almost imitating the steps of a baby penguin, towards their destination: Sundews Tea House.

Her ears captured the sound of giggling from a group of tadpoles and a hardened hawk-like gaze was enough to scare them away. A few farmers pointed at her murmuring about how ridiculous the Sasha creature looked, pondering if she was drunk. They were lucky she didn’t pay them any mind because her anger and stubbornness were solely directed at the Sundews’ property to show Anne, that she was no geezer.

The Thai teenager got closer to her friend but made sure to not stop her. She didn’t want a fight in front of the people like yesterday and additionally, despite her concerns for the health of her friend she was aware that Sasha was too proud to accept any help, considering it a handout out of pity, though coming from Anne that was anything but.

5 steps more. The Slavic girl straightened her back, chest out as if she had reached Everest. Her foot touched the group for the first of the five last steps…

“Sasha!!”

And her forehead knocked on the door. Goddamn clumsiness!! What was she now?! Marcy?!

As she lifted her head, feeling the bruise taking form, the blonde blinked when a pair of eyes greeted her, amused. It was a little yellow frog with ginger hair over a beanie; why it was so familiar?

“Hey, Sasha. Paying us a visit?”

“How do you--?”

“Ambush!!” Sprig exclaimed and launched toward his childhood friend who ducked in time much to the frog boy’s chagrin. “No fair! I was so close!”

“I’ll give you 7 out of 10. Next time, be faster.”

“Never mind that, how do you know my name?” Sasha asked again while kneeling and dusting off her ruined school uniform.

“I was there the moment you appeared like a living corpse in front of Anne and the others. You looked like this,” Ivy extended her arms parallelly, stuck her tongue out, rolled her eyes, and groaned as if she were being in great pain.

A chorus of cackles and giggles was heard inside and outside of the Tea House as everyone got entertained by her theatrics, except for Sasha and someone else.

“Ivy Sundew, what did I tell you about leaving the oven on?” The girl froze and grinned at her mother apologetically.

“Hey, mom. Look who is here. Anne, Sprig, Polly, and Sasha. Remember the weird girl who we met and seemed to come out from a grave?”

“Please don’t say that,” Anne mumbled.

“Yeah, especially after such a horrible zombie performance.”

“Zombie what?”

“Anyway, Anne, kids, do you want some tea? Hopediah asked me for a few products to help Sasha recover.”

“Tch, I’m fine.” She said dismissively.

“I found you with your face on the floor,” Ivy replied, not bothered at all by Sasha’s seething glare.

“Some cookies and tea would be great, thanks.” Said Anne after helping her friend get up.

“Lovely. Welp, Ivy, don’t just stand there, show them a free table and then help me with the snacks. Also, Anne, can you tell your friend to not glare that much? I don’t want my customers to be uncomfortable.”

“This is my face!” Sasha yelled.

*****************

The new girl in town sure was something, well someone. The day they’d found her or was it her? It wasn’t that clear for Ivy but anyway, that day, she couldn’t have been more afraid in her entire life. A dead person, walking and holding a sword!

The bedtime stories her mother and grandmother used to tell her were nothing in comparison to a real ghost or specter with a weapon, like an agent of Death. Though, Anne vanished that idea from her mind once she calmed Sasha down and asked them for help because her friend, who could’ve thought, was alive and with a severe fever.

Next, came the fight with Toadstool after bringing the whole town toward the Plantar’s house. If someone asked, Ivy hated the Mayor. He loved to make himself richer and richer while leaving everyone in the dust, so watching an outsider insulting him felt invigorating. Sasha at that moment had gone from a horrifying dead-not-dead corpse to a badass. Maybe she could tell her where did she get that sword too.

Thankfully for Ivy, her mother gave her a little break from helping in the Tea House that she used by joining Sprig and the others at the table.

“Ivy, over here!” Sprig waved with a huge grin on his face she reciprocated.

“Ugh, finally. Helping my mom with the chores is so boring, I could be doing something more exciting you know? Fighting, capturing bugs, having adventures…”

“Escaping from Toad Tower after slicing a toad’s arm,” Polly added much to Ivy’s shock and the group’s dread.

“Polly! Ssshhh!” Anne hissed at her. If someone from the town found out, hell would break loose.

“Wow, wow, what that was supposed to mean?”

“I wasn’t talking about me, by the way, but about Sasha.” The mentioned girl glared boredly before sighing. “Yep, here I am. I came from that hole of a place.”

“WOW! And you survived?!” Ivy leaned forward, intent on listening to the blonde’s story.

Feeling she could gain something from this, her lips transformed into a smug smirk. “Oh please, survival is minimal. I got my revenge. One of those brutes had hurt Anne but now he’s one arm less, you should’ve seen it.”

Ivy gasped; Sprig shushed her to prevent attracting unwanted attention. “That’s why you have that sword! Did you steal it from that guy?”

“More like from the guard of my cell. I tricked him with a bug that was crawling on a wall and then I grabbed the sword and told him ‘If you want to keep breathing, then let me out’, and then I punched him in the face!”

“More! Tell us more!” Polly banged the table, bursting with energy. “YEAH, MORE!!” Ivy raised her arms.

“Guys, don’t raise your voice~. We don’t want to send the whole town into a panic.” Anne advised, checking on the customers in case one of them was unintentionally eavesdropping on them due to the ruckus at their table.

“Relax, girlfriend. If I could defeat the toads, some peasants won’t be anything if they got annoying.”

“Sash, remember, you are on Toadstool’s bad side. You don’t want to worsen that, do you?”

She waved Anne off and leaned over, regarding an impatient Polly and Ivy. “So, what else do you wanna know?”

“How many toads’ butts did you kick?”, “Did you fight the infamous captain Grime?”, “Did you climb the walls of the tower to escape?” The questions piled up, feeding her ego as she placed her feet on the table and put both hands on the back of her head like a mafia boss.

“One, there were too many toads to count but none of them could stop me. Two, I didn’t fight Grime but I wish I could kick him in the balls for the arrow on my back.” Anne hugged herself, uncomfortable at that reminder. “Three, I didn’t climb the walls to escape. I used some huge herons to get out of there.”

“Herons?!” the three amphibian children exclaimed earning a few confused glances from the customers.

“Yep, herons. They attacked the tower; I climbed one of them and then ran away as fast as I could while those brutes were crying for their mamas. I think one of the toads was swollen alive.”

“Oh, crud.” ‘That could’ve been Sasha’ Anne thought, pale.

“And then I traveled until I found you and Anne. No supplies or a map, just me, a rusty sword, and my drive to find my friends.”

“Amazing!” Polly’s eyes were the size of a plate, shining out of pure admiration.

“I can’t believe it… Toad Tower is gone…” Ivy plopped on her seat trying to assimilate the news.

“Yeah, I mean, if captain Grime didn’t survive then the toads won’t have a leader and without a leader, no one can take care of the tower or protect the Valley.” Sprig commented.

“Now that makes things more complicated.” Not that she was happy that the Valley’s supposed protectors were heron’s food because saying or thinking it was mean and inconsiderate but after fighting Bog and his friends and having her arm broken by him, a vindictive part of her preferred the whole place to be gone and forgotten with all those corrupt soldiers. It would mean less trouble and danger for everyone despite the lack of an army to keep monsters at bay.

****************

“Here we go, Hopediah. A new cane, just like you asked it.”

“Thank you so much, Loogle. I have to say this is one of your best works so far.” Hop Pop praised as he inspected the crafted cane. It was made of a resilient species of wood on Amphibia, the color was a mix of mustard and beige. The handle had a beautiful frog-theme design too and along the body of the item was carved the name, Sasha.

“Say, are you doing ok with Anne’s new friend? Toadstool hasn’t given you trouble after his fight with her, has he?”

“Thankfully not, but I would like it if she didn’t resort to raw strength to solve her problems. Kids these days, I swear. Whenever they don’t find a solution, they prefer to punch anything to get things done. Or maybe it is a phase; it could’ve happened to anyone at that age.”

“Not me, that’s for sure.”

“Hehe, yep. We were a bit more thoughtful generation. Though, if I remember, Sadie—” Suddenly, a chorus of childish voices interrupted him, prompting Hop Pop and Loogle to get out and see what was going on.

Outside, Anne was chasing like a madman a teasing Sasha that was sweating profusely, behind them Sprig and Polly were asking them to stop, or more like Sprig was begging them while Polly cried from laughing.

*****************

Minutes ago…

“And this is the Flours bakery, here is where Maddie, her dad, and sisters live.” Sprig said as he extended his arms to the place.

“Weird, you never told me she had siblings, dude.”

“I think they always are inside the house.”

“Hey, Sprig,” the frog kid squeaked at hearing Maddie’s voice much to his embarrassment when the others started laughing.

“Oh, uh, h-hey, Maddie… Hehehe, how it’s going? So-Something new?”

“Apart from watching an outsider wanting to tear the Mayor apart, nothing out of the ordinary I guess.”

“Haha, cool…” Sprig searched desperately for a subject to talk about with her that could also help him not look as if he wanted to run away. “Hey, wanna tell Sasha what kind of painful death she might have in the future the same way you did me?”

“Wait, death? What are you--?” Maddie narrowed her uncovered eye at the girl in an ‘I’m suspicious of you’ manner and Sasha being Sasha glared at the frog girl to let her know she didn’t intimidate her.

After a few minutes of tense staring contest, Maddie tapped her chin. “Uh, I can’t see anything in her future. It’s too muddy.”

“Or maybe it’s because you’re not a seer.” Sasha spat.

“Trust me, when she told me my death would be a surprise, it became true. Well, almost, but it happened the same day she said it.”

“Being a clairvoyant is different from being a witch but the art of clarividence it’s pretty intriguing so I gave it a shot.”

“See? She can see people’s death!”

“Coincidence. This world is too dangerous, I bet you weren’t careful enough.”

“More like we barely survived while trying to make pizza,” Polly said.

“Dying by making pizza?”

“Yeah, long story short, there was this cooking contest and HP’s recipes were too old so I thought ‘Hey, people would love something breath-taking like pizza’ and that is how we started our arduous journey to make the most fantastic pizza dream!” Anne narrated. “But later we were eaten by giant tomatoes and the ingredient we have melted in stomach acid.”

“HAHA! Eaten by tomatoes!! Pffft, no way!”

“Sash, you fought two birds the size of buildings. What’s so impossible about being swallowed by food?”

“Sounds dumb, that’s what, Anne.”

“Unless you were inside its stomach, or wrapped by its tentacles, or if you were listening to its roars.” Sprig argued.

“Sorry twerp, but I won’t believe it until I see it. And how did you get the other ingredients, anyway?”

“They asked for the dough from my dad first--” Maddie began.

“And then Anne got Sprig engaged with Maddie for it.” Polly’s statement left her speechless and when she questioned the Thai girl with a bewildered glance, Anne shrugged apologetically. “I really wanted the Plantars to win.”

“I liked the outcome.” Maddie hugged Sprig’s arm, grinning at him. He laughed awkwardly, trying to give her his best smile.

Sasha whistled. “Winning at any cost, eh? Not bad, girlfriend. That was impressive.” Anne blushed at her compliment. “So, what kind of pizza you made? Something with pineapple?” Even if it was for teasing, the question riled her up.

“Don’t you dare to taint the deliciousness of pizza with pineapple!!”

“Yeah, don’t. First and only time I did it and she was ready to strangle me.”

“Oh, but pineapple on pizza is just the best. What’s more,” In a movement, she took Anne’s phone much to her annoyance. “What if we tell the whole town how much better it is!”

“Sasha, give me back my phone!” Anne tried to recover it but Sasha stepped back and yelled. “Hey, frogs! Wanna taste the perfection that is pizza with pineapple and that Anne here denies so much?!”

“That’s it!” The Thai girl threw herself towards Sasha meeting air and the ground as her best friend evaded the attack. However, Anne got up and chased the blonde as she waved the phone mockingly while screaming pineapple pizza to mess up with her.

“Isn’t Sasha still in recovery? Where did she get so much energy?” Polly asked her brother.

“Eh, she wants to show off.” Suddenly a realization hit him. “Oh Frog, if this causes trouble somewhere, the Mayor will have more reasons to kick her out and Anne will also get into his bad side for that!”

“Nah, Anne wants her to shut up. That’s all. Look,” In fact, the more the chasing continued with Sasha’s mockery and Anne’s vain attempts to get her phone back, the more cherry-red Anne got as her annoyance turned to pent-up frustration, and then into anger to the point that she kicked a little stone to make Sasha drop her phone only to miss and break a window.

“Hey! Who did that?!” Yelled the resident.

“Ok, enough fun, time to stop them.” Sprig freed himself from Maddie’s side hug, carried Polly in his arms, and waved at the witch frog. “Bye, Maddie!”

Anne, meanwhile, was losing her patience. Since when Sasha could move so effortlessly? Shouldn’t that happen after a long time of recovering from her wounds? Whatever, if she didn’t shut up and give her back her cell phone it wouldn’t be Anne’s fault what happened next.

“Quit it, Sasha! For real, you’re being a childish jerk!!”

“Come on… Anne…” Sasha panted, feeling the burst of energy from before fading at every time her chest raised and fell. “It’s just… fun… Loosen up… Besides, if you really want it,” she tapped the phone, smirking. “Then stop me, or else…I make everyone here talk about pizza with pineapple until you admit it’s better than…any kind of pizza.”

“Dead first!!” Anne sprinted towards her friend as the chase restarted.

Sprig pleaded for them to let it go though it went through her ears like Hop Pop’s questioning as he watched them gathering more and more attention. Suddenly, his eyes widened because the two girls were getting closer to the worst possible place ever: the town hall where Toadstool worked and lived.

“Anne, Sasha, stop it!” He ran, joining Sprig and Polly as Sasha kept pestering Anne until her left foot slipped due to a little hole in the ground and she fell, bumping into someone else.

“Sash!” Anne’s fury and displeasure vanished as soon as she saw her friend on the ground, groaning painfully. Forgetting her phone or giving Sasha an earful, she placed to her friend’s side, aiding her and both heard a kind of condescending, fake cough.

When the girls looked up, their eyes met an awkward Toadie picking up a few papers discarded on the floor and the Mayor whose face could win an arrogant deadpan expression contest.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Anne’s untamed friend. What is this now? Are you trying to dirty my home by wallowing in the mud?”

Sasha’s blood pressure increased like her anger at the insult, her mouth opened to fire back but Anne’s and Hop Pop’s hands covered it before she made things worse.

“So sorry, Mayor Toadstool. You know how children are. They’re full of energy, hehe. Anyway, time to go, kids. Dinner is waiting.” Anne and the Plantars waved an uncomfortable goodbye while dragging a rageful Sasha away from the toad despite her protests.

*******************

“What on earth were you two thinking?! Have you forgotten that we’re on thin ice with the Mayor?! Were you really trying to give me a heart attack?!”

“It was Sasha’s fault!”, “Anne didn’t want me to have fun!” Both screamed in unison.

“Actually, it was just you, Sasha. You were dragging this prank too far.” Sprig winced at her glare.

“Don’t take it out on him, dude. He’s right! I mean, ok, you can tease me with the pineapple on pizza but taking my phone and yelling nonsense to anger me? Like, what the heck?”

“Chill, Anne, what’s so bad about a bit of pestering here and there? You’re being dramatic.”

Hop Pop whistled, stopping the argument. “Enough! Now, first of all, I may not be there when the mess started but I saw you Sasha keeping going with the teasing despite the warnings. Two, Anne and Sprig are right, the prank should’ve stopped but you continued and we had to get you out of trouble before another fight with Toadstool began.” Sasha was going to object but he shut her up. “No, young lady, nothing of ‘You’re being dramatic’, ‘Chill, dude’ or whatever, you were being immature and caused a mess. Three, you also exerted your body too much, it’s a miracle you haven’t fainted after so much running. Remember that it hasn’t been long since you’re here, so no more recklessness. Now, talking about health and recovery, this is yours.” Hop Pop handed her the cane he had commissioned from Loogle.

“A cane,” she mumbled flatly.

“Exactly.”

“You know I’m a kid, right?”

“I’m not implying that you’re old but your time in the wilderness after escaping Toad Tower has left you weakened and sick. You were too thin, malnourished, with a high fever, and badly injured, all of that surely could’ve left a mark on your body. And maybe your stubbornness and pride might make you believe you can do anything but that can only take you so far. Therefore, this cane will help you until you are brand new.”

Sasha put her attention on the cane. The frog-themed design was a bit childish and it’s not that she liked frogs, but the detail of her name carved on the body of the item was kind of cool. And maybe, if she had the chance, she could ask for this cane to be the disguise for a new sword like the one the musician skeleton has, the one from that anime Marcy showed her a few months ago.

“It looks fine, I guess.” Hop Pop smiled at the slight compliment.

“Oh, HP, about Toad Tower, Sasha told us something very important.”

“Beyond the fact that they might be looking for her?”

“Wait, the toads want Sasha? Why?” Sprig inquired.

“Yeah, why? Obviously, they want revenge because they’re petty, especially Grime. But I don’t have anything useful.”

“As I said before, Sasha, attacking the soldiers of Toad Tower is a huge insult to their authority and power, and they won’t let that pass with anyone.”

“Yep, Bog didn’t spare my poor arm when I stood up against him.”

“Which is why I need to know if what Sasha told you is bad news or good news.”

“Good news, actually! Toad Tower is gone!!” Polly’s words shattered the gears of his mind. Did he hear all right? Was his granddaughter kidding with him? No, her eyes shined with excitement but it didn’t come from the intention to pull a prank. It couldn’t be though. How? Sasha couldn’t have been able to destroy the entire place. Did she know what a boomshroom was? And how could she put her hands on a box full of them if the toads had one without them noticing? And what about the aftermath? What if the other towers found out?

“Uh… Hop Pop? Hey, Hop Pop” Sprig waved a hand close to his face. “I think you broke him, Polly.”

“HP? Hello? Are you still there?” Anne tried to get his attention by snapping her fingers in front of him with no results.

Then the head of the cane bumped into his head. “IT’S GONE!!” his voice reached a new decibel as his scream echoed throughout the house.

“Finally, old man, you woke up.”

“But how? When? Where? Wait no, forget the two last ones. How exactly did YOU turn Toad Tower into a bunch of ruins?!”

“It wasn’t me. It was the herons.”

“Heron?!”

“Yeah, while I was escaping and fighting the toads, the herons heard the scandal and attacked the place. I climbed one of them and that’s how I escaped.”

“Best story of my life!” Polly’s grin encompassed almost all of her body. Sasha chuckled and fist-bumped with her.

“Oh Frog…”

“HP, shouldn’t we like celebrate? I mean, no toads mean no gangs hurting people for money.”

“It’s not as simple as you think, Anne. The four Toad Towers are led by the fiercest, slyest toads that rose to the rank of Captains. They can summon the others to gather information if something suspicious happens and with the destruction of the Southern Toad Tower during the escape of a prisoner of another world, things will be much more difficult.”

“Sooo, we are like housing a criminal.”

“Hey!” Sprig shrugged awkwardly while Sasha sneered at him.

“In the toad lords’ eyes, yes, we are. And even if the argument of Sasha being a kid is used, that won’t be enough. And we don’t know how many casualties are there or if Grime is part of them.”

Casualties. Sasha shrunk between her shoulders, thinking about Percy and Braddock. Their bond wasn’t deep and she just befriended them to convince them to quit their job as a way to weaken Grime’s power. However, both made her time in the cell bearable with their gossip and shenanigans. The image of huge beaks with razor teeth trying to catch one of them made her nauseous for some reason.

“Alright, everyone, listen. This new information MUST NOT be shared with anyone, ok? It must stay between us.”

“About that… Sasha told the story not only to us but to Ivy when we visited her at the Tea House.”

“Dang it! Now I have to talk to her before she spills the beans.”

“Don’t worry, Hop Pop. I know Ivy, she would never do something like that.”

“She’d better not, I still want to break the nose of that fucking healer but I kind of like her.”

“UH uh, Sasha, no violence. If Sprig says she’s trustworthy then she is. Besides, she’s not a bad kid. Anyway, this news cannot reach anyone else’s ears, understood?”

“But what will we do if Grime is still alive?”

“If Grime is alive, his priority right now is rebuilding Toad Tower and counting the number of casualties. If he’s not, then word will spread and the toad lords will want to know about the culprit and make them pay.”

“Honestly, I doubt he has survived. He isn’t the most popular among his men, I saw it. Maybe they let the herons swallow him.”

Sprig gulped “That’s kind of creepy, and dark. Actually, all this chit-chat about punishments, herons eating people, and angry, violent toads is making me uncomfortable, so can we put it for later?”

“Sorry, kiddo, didn’t mean to ruin the mood after the little incident of today. Perhaps I get carried away with the pessimism, so a little optimism won’t hurt. Besides, nothing bad has happened yet and I’m sure nothing will as long as we stick together, ok? Oh, also, Sasha, you’re grounded.”

“WHAT?!” She got up in a matter of seconds and then almost fell on her knees if it weren’t for the cane. “Why?!”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe it is because you took your prank on Anne too far to the point that you bumped into Toadie in front of Toadstool. And to top it all, you were going to fight with him again!”

“But--!”

“Nope, no buts. Now go to your rooms, kids. This day has been exhausting and I really need a break and some me-time.”

Once again, Sasha’s attempts to protest were snuffed out when Anne gently pushed her to the basement to rest.

*************

Once inside, the blonde flopped on the bed. Her hands rubbed her left ankle, still feeling the bruise from the fall.

“What a day, am I right?”

“Mmm, yes.” Anne’s monotonous tone caught her off guard and watching her, she discovered a taciturn expression.

“Girl, are you ok?”

Anne wanted to say no. They day had started okay-ish until Sasha pulled that prank and almost got her in trouble alongside the Plantars. If she and Hop Pop hadn’t stopped her, the scandal would’ve escalated. Nonetheless, was it a good idea to share her feelings on the matter? She didn’t want to fight with Sasha or have her get mad at her, not after wondering if she was alright and finding her in such a terrible condition but well, the last time she wasn’t honest with a friend, Anne and Sprig had to fight water slugs before Hop Pop lectured them.

It wouldn’t hurt to give it a shot. This was Sasha who was at her side, how bad would it be?

“Look, dude, I told you the pizza prank was ok. Sure, it was annoying but was it really necessary to grab my phone and do all of that? You may have had fun but I didn’t like it, none of it.”

“Come on, Anne. It was a little prank. Is it because in the end I almost blew off at Toadstool?”

“Sash, there is some teasing I consider funny and there is another one that irritates me. I want to hang out and have fun while we try to find Marcy and a way home but some stuff isn’t my brand of fun. I just want you to understand that. And to try to not make the Mayor angrier at you, he may not be dangerous but he can find a way to hurt or kick you out of the town. Is that too much to ask? That you take this problem seriously?”

In her silence, Anne feared that she might have angered her though there was no physical reaction like crossing her arms, snorting dismissively, a ‘tch’ or anything. However, she noticed the glare she sent to the floor and the wall on the other side of the basement, it wasn’t entirely angry but a mix of frustration and confusion.

“I’m tired. Let’s sleep.”

Anne sighed disappointedly. Well, the silver lining was that at least they didn’t start a shouting match.

Chapter Text

His feet hurt, a lot, a hella lot.

In fact, many of the soldiers’ slight complaints had become a huge pain in his ass with time. The breaks were too short, just 5 minutes. 10 if Grime was feeling generous which sounded pure malarkey. The food was becoming scarce and their target was as slippery as ever. At this point, Bog would prefer to be in prison than walk another kilometer for an otherworldly beast that was only worthwhile for the captain.

“Alright, soldiers. Time to camp, night is approaching. Two of you find some wood, you three find an animal to eat. Bog, Fens, and Mire, take care of our prisoners.”

“Yes, sir!” Fen saluted. Mire grunted and nodded. Bog balled his fists, well his remaining fist.

Thinking about that tiny detail boiled his blood like the other times. He shouldn’t have been so lenient with that thing! If he had broken her skull or stabbed her with a spear, his other arm would be right in its place. That is exactly what it meant to be a toad: if you’re tough and quick-witted, nothing can stop you. If you soften a little bit, it’s over.

At least he still was useful as a soldier and not a chained traitor like the two idiots behind him.

“Hey, no! Don’t touch that! That’s my favorite horn!” Cried Percy. Mire glared at him, though the effect was nulled by his helmet. Still, it didn’t stop him from squashing the musical instrument and throwing it into a puddle while cackling.

“It’s ok, Per. I can buy you another one.” Braddock patted one of his hands as best as she could to comfort him despite the limitations the chains proved to be.

“Haha! Yeah, right! The only place where you’ll be going shopping is in a cell or the Pain Room where traitors and losers belong!” Fens mocked.

“W-We’re not traitors,” Percy protested weakly. Fens raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, seriously? Well, excuse me while I forget that you didn’t capture that thing that escaped the tower, or that your friend here threw a barrel at a soldier that was doing what you both refused to do!”

“Sasha is not a thing,” Braddock put on a brave face, or as brave as she hoped. “And she doesn’t even belong here. The only reason she was in jail was that she’s not an amphibian.”

“What do you mean by that? Are you saying she wasn’t dangerous? That she didn’t trick you to let her run away? That she didn’t cause the destruction of the tower?” Fens argued.

Mire made a series of grunts and eerie sounds. Fens grinned cruelly, regarding the prisoners. “Damn right you are, Mire. These two wanted a pet and of all things, it had to be that monster they chose. And look how much it cost us!”

“That was the herons’ fault,” Percy replied. “Sasha—”

“Sasha what exactly?” A deadly silence enveloped them after hearing Bog’s voice. His steps emulated the ones of a giant ready to crush a whole town with their own hands. “What? The killapillar got your tongue, traitor?”

“H-Hey, leave him alone,” Braddock diverted his attention towards her earning the tip of a sword almost touching her neck.

“Braddock!!”

“Silence, you imbecile! Now, tell me, if your pet is so darn perfect then what the fuck is this?!” Bog pointed at the bandaged stump.

“She—you-you attacked her. You even made her mad by telling her that you wanted to hurt her friend.”

“Because her friend got in our way during the taxes. And then she got in the way of our job by destroying the tower and trying to kill us!!”

“S-Sasha would never do that!” Percy’s protest got him a harsh slap much to Braddock’s indignation.

“Want to say that again?!” Bog loomed over them, pointing the tip of his sword from one neck to another. Percy whimpered, a red mark on his cheek while Braddock took his hand and glared at the soldier.

“You two truly are pathetic. Why useless pushovers like you are in the army eludes me. And if embarrassing us with your cowardice isn’t enough, you turned your back on your own kind just for a filthy thing!”

“Sasha is not a filthy thing.”

“You know what? You’re right, it’s not. Because the moment I find her, I’ll hunt her down, tear her limb from limb, and mount her disgusting, worthless head to enact my revenge! And as the cherry on the top, you two will be my main audience.”

“You wouldn’t!” Percy cried, horrified.

“I would. No no. I. Will. I’ll make you watch her as she bleeds to death, as she thrashes and fights until she can’t move anymore. I’ll force her to see you two chained and unable to escape to pay for having ruined my life. And when she peeps her last pitiful plead for mercy, I will--!”

“Ehem,” Grime’s fake cough froze Bog’s theatrics. His head turned around halfway and glanced at his superior. The other toad had a no-joke expression, his arms were crossed over the chest, and his left foot tapped the ground impatiently. “So, mind explaining to me why are you changing the plans behind my back, Bog?”

“Captain, of course, I have a good explanation for this,” Bog sounded calm for someone who was implicitly accused to go against orders. “I won’t complain about looking for the creature Sasha anymore. But I consider her help an utter waste of time.”

“And you think getting rid of her once she’s captured is much better?”

“Exactly!”

“Yeah, I don’t think so.”

Bogs snarled; it was pretty obvious Grime wouldn’t listen to him. “Captain, this isn’t an opinion but a fact: you’re overestimating that beast’s supposed skills too much. The tower, the casualties, and even my arm are proof enough that she can’t be trusted.”

“And I told you before I won’t trust her, I will force her to be our killing machine. Besides, all the destruction she caused is evidence that she can be exploited to put the frogs in their place. The civil unrest is growing bigger and stronger the longer it takes us to capture her. If she, by any way, joins the peasants it’s over.”

“Ha! That’s so rich, Captain! That thing and the frogs working together? As if! I mean, why would she? Almost 2/3 of the army on the Southern Toad Tower died because of her, the frogs wouldn’t stand a chance. I bet they will attack her or be fascinated by encountering an otherworldly beast for a little while before she creates a mess.”

“Still, I will not risk any chance we have to find her by waiting for the wild animals to rip her into pieces. We’ll find her, we’ll force her to fight and squash the rebellion, and—”

“And then we’ll kill her right?”

“No, she’s too useful. She just needs some toad-fashioned discipline and reminding her that the traitors will die If she doesn’t behave, and we’ll have our perfect weevil dog.”

“Are you kidding me? For real?! So, what, she kills a bunch of us with an old sword, and you’re gonna give her a badge?!”

“Don’t you have ears?! It’s about turning her into a weapon to eliminate every peasant that dares to oppose us!”

Bogs looked away for a few seconds; Grime pondered if he had finally gotten through him until the soldier spoke again. “Then, let me discipline her. I know one thing or two about knocking some obedience into people.”

“No.”

“Wha—No? What do you mean no?!”

“You wanted me to let the thing run away hoping it died in the wilderness. Next, you told me it is better to kill her. Now you want to be in charge of her. Do you take me for a fool, Bogs? If I trust you with the creature, you will torture her until she dies or ends up crippled beyond repair. Or worse, you’ll kill her while no one’s watching and make it look like an accident. I know you want her dead; I know you want revenge, and that is why I say no. She’s too strong and dangerous, she’s perfect to instill fear into the frogs. And if you try to ruin this mission, you’ll join the traitors to the Pain Room, is that clear, soldier?”

“You’re making a huge mistake! We should—”

“I said, is that. Clear. Soldier?” Bogs glowered and nodded frustratedly.

“Good, now, keep an eye on the traitors and no more new plans behind my back. I’ll be watching you.”

*******************

Trying to sleep while chained and tied to a tree was so hard. The position was uncomfortable, the ropes and the bark of the tree scratched the skin, the chains were rusty, heavy, and too cold, and going to bed without at least a snack to fill your stomach worsened the situation.

That was the life of a toad deemed traitor. No mercy or chances. You were labeled a burden, treated like an animal, and punished like a sinner.

Fights and weapons were never of Braddock’s interest but it was part of the toad tradition as they were considered warriors at heart by other amphibians. Tough, merciless, and fierce. Welp, not her. Not Percy. They had aspirations, likes, but those were mocked for not being manly enough. Stupid toxic masculinity. That’s why she never liked Bogs and his friends when she met them. And whenever they returned from taxes, they bragged about the last house they ransacked or the frogs they forced into submission.

She would be dead if she said this, but maybe the civil unrest had a point. The tower was just full of bullies; a lawless place pretending to be fair.

“Pssst, hey Braddock,” Percy whispered to her.

“Couldn’t sleep?” Braddock whispered back.

“Nope.”

“Yeah, me neither.”

“Braddock, will you promise to not get mad at me?”

“Why would I?”

“It’s just… This isn’t fair.”

“I know, Per…”

“I mean, you were trying to do what you thought was right. I did nothing because I was too scared but still, just because you defended Sasha and I couldn’t move a finger we’re being treated horribly… Don’t you… Don’t you regret it? Helping Sasha, I mean.”

That was a complicated question. On one hand, Sasha was nice to them and didn’t deserve to be put in prison again or killed. On the other hand, if she hadn’t tried to escape, the tower would be in one piece and they wouldn’t be in chains. But was it ok to blame her for the cruelty of the Captain or Bogs? No. Was their luck fair? Neither.

“I don’t know what to say, hon. I wished there hadn’t been witnesses to blame us for her attempt of escaping.”

“Yeah, me too… But does that make us bad people?”

“How so?”

“Because you said you wished for no witnesses.”

“Oh, well, with that I mean that if no one had seen me throw that barrel of beer, or you doing nothing. Then we wouldn’t be in this mess even with the tower in shambles and those herons. Just because I don’t like the soldiers here, except for you, it doesn’t mean I want them dead.”

“I-I didn’t mean to imply that, I—” Braddock chuckled fondly and patted his hand.

“It’s ok, Per. I know. I know you’re not like that.”

“Braddock, what do you think Sasha will do when she sees us?”

“Oh, uh, I don’t know… Like, what do you want her to do?”

“Well, she could escape and beat many toads, maybe get us out of here. That’s the only thing I want, for her to get us out of here. I-I know it is selfish because she doesn’t like this place, Toad Tower I mean, and I don’t want her to get hurt but I don’t want to be a prisoner forever.”

“It’s not selfish, Percy, and even if it is, I know you have a huge heart. Wanting someone to save you is not a bad thing.”

“But will Sasha do it if they find her? What if she runs away? What if she refuses to work for Captain Grime? What if she doesn’t care what happens to us?”

Those are the kind of questions she hated most. The what-ifs that made you lose faith in someone you knew. The thing was that Braddock and Percy didn’t know her well, just the superficial: she was nice, she was strong, and neither Grime nor any other toad could scare her. Would it be enough to trust her? Or a waste of time rubbed on their faces when she turned her back on them?

“I guess we’ll find out the moment we see each other again.”

“And if she’s never found?”

Braddock swallowed. There were a lot of cons to that possibility. If she was never found then that meant she had a talent for hiding or she was dead and her body might be in a hole too difficult to find or inside the stomach of a predator. It would devastate them if Sasha hadn’t survived the wilderness after fighting so hard to escape; it would also drive Grime crazy. So much time traveling and looking for clues just to find out one way or another that she was dead. Of course, Bog would celebrate and the other toads would argue with Grime about putting so much effort into a useless search instead of rebuilding the Tower.

“I wish I knew, Per. I wish I knew.”

*****************

The next day dragged them through the ground while feeling as if it was dragged too. Obviously, Grime couldn’t care less as he whistled again and yelled that if they didn’t hurry it would be their fault if Sasha escaped and the punishment for that was no food or breaks. Well, not that the few rations and breaks they had had were good.

“Sir, can we stop for a while?” asked one of the soldiers. “I need to pee.”

“For Frog's sake, Gary! I told everyone to do what they needed quickly before continuing. If you’re going to pee, do it while walking but don’t interrupt us!”

Gary opened his mouth in protest just to be silenced with a glare much to his displeasure.

“Too bad Captain Grime only focuses on that thing called Sasha, doesn’t he?” Gary turned his head to the right where the voice, Bog, was. He placed a finger to his chest. “Are you…talking to me?” He didn’t know why though. Both had nothing in common except working for Grime for taxes in different towns on Frog Valley.

“Sure, I’m at your side and I’m looking at you while talking. Gary, isn’t it?” Gary nodded, still confused.

“Aren’t you mad that he only pushes us to find a stupid beast instead of rebuilding the Tower after the failed attempt to trap again that thing?”

“Well, he’s the captain, he's the one in charge, right?”

“But do you agree with his ways? And by that, I mean this plan.”

“I… Uh… He-he has a point…” Gary said timidly and shrunk when Bog's smirk disappeared.

“Care to explain?”

“…That thing can make us look more menacing and take control over the Valley again if we force it to fight for us.”

“We can do that on our own too. That’s our job, taking the money of the frogs, showing them who’s boss, punishing them if they step out of line.”

“True, but by having that beast, we can show the frogs we're strong enough to tame something unknown and use it in case the towns want to rebel.”

Bog made a tch sound, frustrated. Of all the times, it had to be today for some intelligence and common sense to fall into the toad's heads unless this Gary guy was a single case among everyone.

“But do you like this plan? Even if it has pros, it’s not that we will find that creature in time. As far as we know, it might be dead and we're here chasing a corpse that is not useful anymore.”

“It's not that we have a choice. We must find it. Besides, If the creature is alive, perhaps I can get my revenge too.”

“Oh, you also want her dead? Then why not let the wild animals do that?”

“Death is too quick of a punishment. Better to see it struggle, fight and fail to escape, being forced time and time again to put the frogs in their place no matter how much it hates the job.”

Brilliant, this Gary guy was on the same page as Grime, better to end the conversation. “Alright then.” Bog said and walked away, maybe other toads can join his side for mutiny.

******************

None of the toads were willing to join his side for mutiny! Goddamn cowards! Grime again was too many steps ahead of him what with his classic maneuvers to keep the soldiers under control. To top it all, many of them wanted the creature to suffer more in life under the rule of the toads than waiting for a predator to eat it alive.

Asking Fens and Mire about their opinions didn’t count either. They rather see this mission getting done whether Sasha was found alive or not so they could come back to Toad Tower and prepare themselves to crush the civil unrest.

Olms have mercy, no one had the common sense to understand how demeaning this mission would be for the toads' reputation. That creature defeated them, brought the herons to the Tower, managed to gather the support of two soldiers and escaped without leaving a single clue about her whereabouts. Why would they need it? Toads don’t beg for help, toads are tough. The ones who could beg for help were the frogs, they were small and weak, but again, Bog seriously doubted that the beast would be merciful enough to aid them.

There was one last option he could resort to but the mere idea revolted him.

What other choice did he have?

“You two,” Bogs regarded Percy and Braddock who shrunk in fear. “I have a proposition.”

“I doubt it,” Braddock mumbled.

“Trust me, you’ll like it. What would you say if I told you there is a way for you two to regain your freedom?”

“There is?” Percy didn’t believe him but he was desperate. Braddock, on the other hand, suspected there was a catch.

“Help me capture the creature and teach it a lesson, and I’ll convince Captain Grime to free you.”

Both toads shared a shocked glance. Betraying Sasha in exchange for their freedom?

“Come on, it’s not that difficult of a choice. Grime wants to use that thing, I want my revenge, everyone here wants to make it suffer, and you two are like this because of that beast.”

“I-I didn’t help Sasha escape, exactly. I was too scared to do anything.” Percy said, looking at the ground.

“It doesn’t help your case, buddy. You’re in chains because of your inaction, but by helping me in trapping that thing, you might be forgiven. The same goes for your friend.”

“Why should we believe you?” Braddock questioned him. “You said you would be happy if she were dead, so what if you force us to kill her?”

“Ha! Force you? You both are doormats, you’ll be useless in shedding blood. No. We’re going to capture the creature and if you do a good work, you’ll be free.”

“But-But the other soldiers and Captain Grime are doing that already. And we don’t know how to track a lost prisoner.” Percy argued.

“Well, that’s where this plan gets interesting. It will be the five of us, me, Mires, Fens, and you both. We'll find her and make sure she doesn’t notice us, then Fens and Mire will incapacitate her, then I’ll kill her, and then we’ll come back to the group and guide everyone to the corpse without raising suspicions. Next, I’ll talk with Grime and tell him you two decided to redeem yourselves or whatever and you’ll be forgiven. How that sounds?”

This was so much worse. They would be sending Sasha to her death but saying no would solidify that they were on her side.

“For Frog's sake, you two are too slow. If I were you I would say yes.”

“Even if we say yes, how do we know you’re not just using us to get what you want? Besides, if Sasha could escape Toad Tower despite being filled with soldiers, how do you expect to trap her with a group of five including yourself? And without making a mess that can attract the Captain’s attention?”

“Y-Yeah, B-Braddock is right. This plan is too risky. And after fighting with Captain Grime too many times, I don’t think he will fall for your trap.” Bog snarled and punched Percy in the stomach despite the chains much to Braddock's dismay. “I hope you’re happy with your choice, you screwups. You’ve sealed your fate!” He spat at them and stormed off.

Cowards! All of them! The Captain was too attached to a messy chance for a new, better soldier and the rest of the group couldn’t get why the search was a bad idea. Why he wasted his time trying to convince that pair of idiots eluded him.

***************

Lily Paddington was known for many things in Frog Valley: its colorful houses, the extravagant cuisine, how the Summer and the Spring shined the most there, but the most important thing was the plants supporting the buildings. They were huge, no, massive. The stems were thick as towers serving as points to guard the town or jails for criminals. In other cases, luxurious houses were built to emphasize the different social classes, despite that the mayor’s hall was found in the center, over a giant tiger lotus capable to withstand the weight of the building.

The tiger lotus was one of those cases in which nature really wanted to show off by making a miracle for they were a kind of plant known for floating in the water and creating a sort of green bridge, but a giant version would sink like a rock. However, this wasn’t the case as this Amphibia version could support a building and float at the same time.

None of that mattered though. Grime had better things to do than touring a town so in love with water. Or that was his plan until a group of villagers stopped them. They had pitchforks and torches, their faces screamed justice with a will to fight too strong to ignore. He snarled, showing some of his pointed teeth only for them to take some steps forwards.

Accursed civil unrest! Whoever was putting crazy ideas into the townsfolks’ heads was gaining momentum because this never happened before.

“Let us pass, peasants. This isn’t about you.” Ordered Grime and a rotten fruit crashed at his head. His team gasped at the audacity.

“You don’t order us anymore, toad!” screamed a young frog that wore rusty glasses and an old cream t-shirt and shorts.

“Go extortionate someone of your size, hooligan!” yelled another.

This was getting tiresome but if those fools wanted to fight and die, so be it. He grabbed his sword ready to discipline the farmer until another voice intervened.

“Wait! We can talk about this!” the amphibian between the two groups was a gray-skinned toad a bit bigger than Grime with the typical attire of a teacher.

“Major Hilldawn, so pleased to see you.” Grime sheathed his sword and crossed his arms.

“Ah, Captain Grime, to what does it owe your…unexpected visit?” Hilldawn refrained to say “unwanted” because by watching the expressions of the soldiers and their leader he suspected they hadn’t had a good day and any more bad news or obstacles could lead to a slaughter.

“I was wondering if you could tell the gentlemen here to let us in. We have important news that every town in Frog Valley needs to know and we would be happy to start with Lily Paddington as quickly as we can.”

“Uh, y-yeah, about that, wh-what if you do it here? I mean, I can take notes and announce the news later to the people.”

“Whatever they have to tell us will be a bunch of lies!” A female frog raised her torch while screaming and the others agreed.

Hilldawn fidgeted nervously and turned around to the citizens regarding them with a pleading look. “Come on, everyone. Let’s give Captain Grime and his men a chance. Maybe… I don’t know, they wouldn’t have traveled here if there hadn’t been any noteworthy stuff to talk about.”

“The only noteworthy stuff they care about is our money and taking advantage of us!!”

“Threating innocents with the excuse to follow the law is what they’re good at! That’s why they’re here!!”

“Oh sure, you think we’re dangerous but you know us already.” Argued Grime. “What you don’t know about is the beast wreaking havoc in Frog Valley. An other-worldly creature tall as a newt, intelligent, cunning, bloodthirsty. It has caused us trouble and will do the same if it crosses paths with you.”

Murmurs brewed among the protesters which gave some time for Hilldawn to prepare a speech that could convince them to let in Grime and his soldiers.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I know our relationship with the toads of the Southern Toad Tower has been difficult but let’s not forget that they always risked their lives when wildlife threatens our lifestyle. We can collaborate to eliminate this new menace by giving them resources and listening to their warnings as Captain Grime here has been kind enough to deliver.”

An old frog snorted skeptically. As the minutes passed more townsfolks joined the group at the entrance of Lily Paddington much to the major's growing trepidation. Grime didn’t have time for this, he ordered one of his men to hand him the portrait of Sasha and showed it to the villagers.

Many gasps escaped the mouths of the audience, processing the image before them.

“This is one of their tricks!” Spoke a villager. “What if it’s just a common animal and they are spreading fear to make us depend on them?” Other villagers mumbled in agreement.

“Fine by me. If you don’t want to listen to common sense, that’s not my problem. But let me warn you all of something. That monster is a killing machine and must be put in its place, if I discover that any of you are hiding valuable information about it, you’ll be punished by death. Helping that creature in any way means treason, whether you believe us or not.”

“Such an inspiring speech from Captain Grime. Let’s applaud his resolve to destroy a terrible menace no one has seen before!” The major applauded to alleviate the tension between the townsfolks and the toads which just set a much more awkward air over them. “Ejem… A-Anyway, something else you want or need, Captain?”

“Some rations and a place to rest. We'll stay here for the night and leave before dawn.”

“We’re not going to give you anything, bully!”

“You’ve taken too much from us already!!”

“Please, everyone, these fine gentlemen have traveled for too long. Their stay will be temporal.”

“And how do we know they’re going to be faithful to their word?” A light-blue-skinned frog asked.

“I-I'll make sure of it. One night, food and resources, then they’ll leave. Just… Let’s keep it down with the torches and pitchforks, ok?” The villagers glared at Grime and his group for a while before going back to their houses reluctantly.

“W-Well, I think they decided to give you a chance. So sorry for the ruckus, Captain. People have been getting pretty heated after the news of a farmer confronting the tax collectors. But surely in the future, this will be old news.”

“Old news. Yeah, you couldn’t be more right about that.” Once he controlled Sasha, no civil unrest would be strong enough to defy his power.

Chapter Text

Tossing on the bed and murmuring nonstop weren’t Sasha’s favorite ways of sleeping.

In fact, whenever she was done with a cheerleader routine and all the school drama and homework, a single flop to the bed was enough to send her to the Dream Train.

This wasn’t the case, unfortunately.

‘Let me go!’ The blonde kicked at the legs of the soldiers that had her chained but none of them minded the pain of the kicks.

Her eyes burned with a fiery hatred at the culprit of her troubles: Captain Grime.

The toad had a mix of a snarl and a smirk, behind him were Anne and Marcy, both in cages tied to the necks of the same herons that destroyed Toad Tower.

‘I told you before, Sasha. Unless you cooperated, things would get ugly. And here you are now, watching the result of your mistakes. There is nothing you can do now.’

He unsheathed his sword and pointed the blade at her neck while Anne and Marcy yelled at him to stop.

‘Death is a pretty merciful punishment for someone like you and if you ask me, you deserve far much worse. Thankfully, you won't be there when the herons destroy the cages and eat your friends.’

Sasha lunged at him, or more like tried to as the soldiers kept her in line.

Grime raised his sword, his sharp teeth forming a malicious, vengeful smile. ‘Farewell, creature.’

Swooooosh!

“Aaaaaggggghhhh!!!” Sasha’s eyelids jumped like resorts and she fell to the ground still tangled with the bed sheets.

The teenager groaned and sat, massaging her temples, she could picture already the nasty bruise on her forehead as if she hadn't been injured enough.

She kneeled to get up but her legs were still prisoners of the sheets and she shook them off too many times for her weakened body. Free of them, she tried to stand up but her legs felt more like jelly than real legs.

Fortunately, her reflexes were fast enough to spot her cane and she grabbed it to stabilize herself.

She blinked, waiting for her vision to adjust to the darkness of her room. Well, Anne’s room, to be more precise, and after became a two-people room with some organization. Seriously, Anne should learn how to keep things tidy even if they were in another dimension.

Talking about Anne, where was she?

Bathroom, maybe. That was Sasha’s first option but did she leave minutes ago? Before Sasha’s nightmare? Or was Anne taking her time in whatever part of the house?

Just one way to know.

Sasha steadied her steps, keeping the cane straight and making sure to not be too noisy. The stairs that led to the entrance of the basement felt like a hike on Everest but her stubbornness gave her some more stamina and she finally open the trap door .

She could smell the sweat on her face and neck after so much work, yikes, a shower was in need.

“Anne?” She asked, her tone low enough for only her friend to hear. “Anne, where are you?”

Where was supposed to be the bathroom? Great, she should've asked that before being sent to sleep.

The Slavic girl checked on the kitchen, the dining room, and the living room but Anne was nowhere to be found.

Maybe she went to check on the frogs? Though, if it was due to paranoia because they might eat them while sleeping, Sasha didn't find any sense in that. Despite not knowing them that much, none of them felt or acted like threats.

What if she went to sleep with them because she was mad at the prank of yesterday?

Sasha scoffed, annoyed. Anne and her complaints about fun, what happened with being chill for once?

Anyway, the frogs’ rooms were her best option so she walked carefully to not get her cane stuck in a hole or break a plank of wood. Her eyes landed on a door with a mini door installed in it that looked like the entrance for a dog in a house. She willed her hand to not shake that much and twisted the handle. Inside, she saw the pollywog, Polly (’pollywog -> Polly... What a creative name -_-’) snoring like a truck driver in her tiny bed. No Anne inside.

She closed the door and proved the other one in front of the first one. Sprig AKA Squeaky Toy had a river of saliva running from the corner of his mouth and half of his bed sheets were on the floor. Still no Anne.

She closed the room and looked for the last door. However, once she found it, she discovered it was locked.

Oh perfect, now she couldn't know if Anne was inside. Unless...

Knock, knock, knock...

Knock, knock, knock!

The door opened, showing a sleepy Hop Pop whose eyes were so fatigued that he didn't notice Sasha taking a peek at his room and waiting for him to enter again.

So, Anne wasn't in any of the rooms.

What other options were there?

The bathroom, the porch, maybe she returned to the basement.

A yawn got her to curse mentally. Why didn't she leave a note at least? Didn't she know how dangerous it was to be outside in this world?

“Goddamnit, if she's not outside, I swear...” She grumbled as she approached the entrance and to her surprise and relief, the door was half-open.

She glanced through the aperture and there Anne was. Sat on the porch, looking at the stars as if there was no tomorrow.

Sasha desired to be exasperated that Anne had got her worried and didn't leave a note about where she was going but right now, the sad posture of her friend made her wonder what was going on in her mind so she opened the door.

The hinges squeaked scaring Anne a little and prompting her to turn around.

“Oh, S-Sasha! What are you doing here?”

“That's the same I want to ask you, Anne. I mean, you know it is like 3 in the morning, right?”

“It's not that my phone time settings know we're not on Earth anymore.”

“Mhm... So you like the stars a lot?”

“They relax me.”

Then something was off.

“Trouble sleeping?” The curly-haired girl chuckled mirthlessly which Sasha took as a yes and walked to her side to sit. Anne got up but a hand in front of her told her to not worry, the blonde could handle this.

With some difficulty, she sat and noticed the old photos on Anne’s cellphone. They were taken months before this mess.

“How do you think Marcy’s doing?” Anne’s question brought her eyes from the cell phone to her own coffee ones that radiated sadness and worry.

“I wish to know. She might be a genius with books and equations but in real life—“

“—that doesn’t help much.” Anne finished the sentence and sighed.

“Hey, if Marce has brains for school I bet she has it to survive too. Clumsiness can’t stop her if she proposes to herself to find us.” Sasha’s attempt to cheer her up was sweet but an invisible cloud of anxiety and spiraling thoughts still kept Anne its prisoner.

“Alright, girlfriend. What’s going on? Why so sad? Is it because of the cellphone prank? I told you before, I was playing. You’re exaggerating.”

“I wasn’t Sasha!” Anne glanced behind her, not a single noise came from inside. Then her relieved eyes hardened toward her friend. “I told you before sleeping that I like fun, hanging out, and some pranks here and there but I have limits. And you taking my phone without permission was one of them being broken. I didn't like it. Why can't you understand?!”

“Ann--”

“And to top it all off, there is a possibility that Grime or the other toad captains are looking for you after the destruction of Toad Tower! You always do this, Sash! You go with a new scheme that is too risky and while Marcy doesn't mind, I do mind. Because you might get hurt, Marcy might get hurt, I might get hurt. Then there are the adults lecturing us, my parents freaking out, and every time this happens you act as if none of this can stop you but don’t you care how it might affect me or someone else?”

“Hey, my ‘scheme’ this time was to get out of there! And how was I supposed to know the herons were kilometers away and would destroy the tower when they heard the noise? Escaping was more important!”

“I'm not talking about that. I'm glad you managed to escape; it is Toadstool, Grime, and the toad captains I'm worried about.”

“Come on, girl” Sasha’s rolling eyes made Anne’s blood boil. “I can beat Toadstool in a fight with closed eyes. Grime might be dead as far as we know, and I don't think the other toads will care.”

“Ugh! You're doing it again! You're dismissing everything that may be a problem.” Sasha opened her mouth to inject but Anne didn't let her. “Toadstool is not a super fighter but he can kick you out, he can tell the other toads where you are if you keep pestering him. Grime? We don't know if he has survived and he might be looking for you or going to tell the toads about you.”

“It's not that they will believe him.” Sasha reasoned.

“But what if they do? I don't know if they have told you this in Toad Tower but the toads who collect taxes are cruel and pretty strong. You cut the arm of Bog, Fens, or Mire and fought dozens of them but that is nothing compared to 4 armies! And I... I don't want to lose you, dude! I thought I would when I saw your condition... And it's not only you. Hop Pop, Sprig, Polly, and all of Wartwood! They're important to me as much as you are.”

“Anne, what are you implying with all of this?” Anne groaned internally at her friend’s inability to see that this wasn’t an accusation but a warning.

“Your actions, Sasha. Your actions have consequences. Whenever I had a plan or did something behind Hop Pop’s back, things went wrong, and the Plantars almost died because of me. You are bold and daring but that can take you so far and it might not be the best solution. Like, how many times your schemes have gotten you or the three of us in trouble? The crazy ride with the shopping cart, the puppy party prank before my birthday, forcing me to steal a stupid box. Don’t you see? The more risks to take without thinking the worse it gets, and...”

“And what?”

“And if you want to live like that even if you worry us so much with your choices, then fine, but I don't want to be part of it.”

“Wait, hold on. Are you saying...you don't want to be friends anymore?” Sasha’s voice broke a bit at the last part.

“I don't want to. I hate that as much as the idea of losing you but we're not on Earth, and even if we were, your kind of fun makes me uncomfortable. But... But it's not that you care.”

“I care, Anne! I care about you! I cut the arm of the toad that hurt you, do you think that's not caring?!”

“But what about the other parts?!” Anne snapped taking her by surprise. “What about not letting me go home? Making me skip school? Forcing me to steal? And all the years of pushing me around? I know you care, Sash. But sometimes it's like you having fun or having your way is more important and it hurts.”

It hurts.

For once, Sasha’s silver tongue couldn’t get out of this dilemma.

+++++++++++++++

“There you are!” the sound of the door being slap-opened startled Anne and Sasha that were seconds from falling asleep.

“Hop Pop, what the heck?!”

“Sorry for the scare, Anne. But first, where on Frog’s name were you two?! I thought you had run away!”

“We were just talking, old man,” Sasha explained bitterly.

“During the night on the porch? It's not that I can't allow you some private time but you could've left a note, you know?”

“Heh, funny, when I was looking for Anne, I was thinking the same thing.”

“Ironic that you have some consideration despite being a devoted troublemaker.” Anne’s mocking sentence got a glare from Sasha’s style that the Thai girl reciprocated with intensity.

The staring contest lasted until Hop Pop awkwardly coughed to stop whatever argument they had had or were going to have. “Anyway, let’s go to the dining room for some breakfast, shall we?”

++++++++++++++

If you ever went to a family dinner and saw the unspoken but palpable tension between two or more relatives for reasons you don't know anything about then you might get why Sprig and Polly were watching Anne and Sasha with a mix of curiosity, confusion, and dread.

Both hadn't sat together as they did days ago as Anne was seated at Sprig’s side and Sasha at Polly’s side. And the few minutes they weren't distracted by watching Hop Pop prepare pancakes or the house stuff around them, they shoot dirty eyes, silent-mouthed insults, and, in Sasha’s case, the middle finger.

“Anne, what's that supposed to mean?” Sprig innocently asked while showing her his middle finger, though he couldn't decide which finger was the middle because he had only four, unlike humans.

“It's nothing, Sprig. Just Sasha acting like a huge baby jerk.”

“At least this baby jerk won't have white hair at 13 by worrying every five seconds.”

“Forgive me for worrying too much about my pushing-around best friend and the rest of Wartwood, while she messes up and shrugs it off!”

“This pushing-around best friend has been kicking the bullies’ butts for years. She’d appreciate it if someone here wasn't so ungrateful!”

“This ungrateful person didn't find it funny when her pushing-around best friend forced her to do stuff she didn't like!”

“You don't know how to have fun that's what it is!”

“You don't know to accept when you're wrong, that's your problem!!”

“Ok, enough!” A plop sounded on the table as Hop Pop put, a bit harshly, the plate filled with pancakes to end the conversation. “I don't know what kind of issues you were talking about yesterday to be this mad at each other but please, if you want to discuss, do it outside, not in front of Sprig and Polly. Understood?”

“Sorry, HP.” Anne communicated with her eyes to Sasha that she should apologize too but the blonde crossed her arms and tched annoyedly.

As they ate the pancakes, Hop Pop checked over the two human girls as subtly as he could, counting the glares and snarls they sent against one another.

Maybe some chores could help them let off steam and cool their heads.

“Sprig, do you know what day it is?”

“Wait, it's someone’s birthday?” Sprig tried to remember who had a birthday today only for his grandfather to stop him.

“No, no, boy. It’s not. But it doesn't matter because still, it is important. Within a few days, it will be Grubhog day, and because of that, the house will be alone for a while. So, I’ll need some cleaning and organizing before the big event.”

“What about the crops?” Polly butted in the conversation.

“I’m not that sure. Unfortunately, the stand is done for so unless we need food, which we still have plenty of, we’ll have to irrigate and protect them from pests.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go! Oh oh oh oh, I have some ideas to make it easier!”

“Hold on, boy. This chore duty won’t be for you. It will be for Anne and Sasha.”

The mentioned ones stopped their glaring contest and looked at Hop Pop questioningly.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Excuse me?”

“As you heard, you are on chore duty now. At least I hope some cleaning activities can cool you down from your fight. So, this is what you’re going to do,” Hop Pop signaled at Anne. “Anne, you’ll clean the living room, the dining room, and the hallways.” Then he pointed at Sasha. “Sasha, you’ll take care of the basement, the bathrooms, washing the dishes, and cleaning the kitchen. And then both will clean the barn and polish Bessie’s shell. I want it to shine like a star. Is that clear?”

“Wow, wow, wow, you’re asking me to clean? Have you forgotten that I have to use this?” She moved the cane.

“If I remember well, you said canes were for old people, and yesterday you had a lot of energy during your prank.”

“Yeah, Sash, do some chores daunt you that much?”

Polly and Sprig making ‘Ohhh~!’ at her was the last straw. The Slavic teenager got up and puffed her chest like a commander ready to fight.

“As if, hell I can even clean the roof with a handkerchief covering my eyes!”

“Not that the roof needs cleaning but I like your spirit. BUT I won't allow you to fight or throw stuff at one another. You'll do the chores, you'll ask for help if you need it, and that's all.”

The girls nodded resolutely. Oh, Hop Pop might have had a good idea but what he didn't take into account was that sparks of competitiveness flaring in Anne and Sasha’s eyes.

+++++++++++++

Sasha might not be a Pokemon fan like Marcy but she had to admit that the few times the genius noirette convinced her to play Pokemon tournaments against her and then against other players, she had fun.

The information was useful too as she had planned the best way to wash the dishes in record time.

“Water gun” A jet of water clashed with the dish the blonde was holding with her left hand and she put it alongside the others that had been cleaned already.

“Water gun” Another jet of water did the work of washing away the soap. “Not bad. You have good accuracy for a tadpole.”

“Good accuracy? I could shoot a target within miles, baby!”

“Sure, kid.”

Even if she wasn’t close to the Plantars like Anne, Polly ended up being good company during her punishment. She was rambunctious, bold, fearless, clever, and with a taste for violence. If she had met her at Saint James School, both would’ve become the queens of mischief and the whole school body.

“You know, you're far more relaxed than Anne is. I swear she sometimes acts like a complete mother hen. Can't she let it go and try not to imagine her shadow is going to get her every hour?”

“Is that why you two were mad at each other? Who's more laid-back and who's not?”

“...Not exactly” Anne’s calling-out moment still reverberated in her head like a haunting echo. Sure, the pranks were out-of-the-comfort-zone but so what? Was she going to back off because she was scared of the smallest slip-ups? Marcy was a nerd but she knew how to have fun, why Anne couldn't do that? And Sasha always got in trouble, it's not like Anne had it worse than her.

“She’s just being like her parents. Mainly her dad, or perhaps her mom. They're too strict, and Mr. Boonchuy doesn't like me that much.” Sasha cut her vent right there. It felt weird, to be honest with a stranger, especially a stranger from another dimension.

“Eh, how should I know? I never met my parents anyway.” Sasha almost dropped the last dish on the floor when she heard that, her eyes bulged like sauces and clung to Polly. The pollywog found her staring strangely until she figured out what the blonde was feeling.

“Yeah, yeah, I know it sounds tragic but I don't know them at all. Sprig barely remembers them. Hop Pop is the only one who knew them well.”

“Oh... W-What happened?”

“Two herons attacked the town while Hop Pop was traveling, and when he came back, everything was a mess. Only Sprig and I survived.”

Shit, that explained why there were no adults apart from Hop Pop in the house. Her mind then wandered to her parents, how would they be feeling or what could they be doing with her missing?

“What about you? Your parents, I mean.” What a delightful can of worms to open, uh?

“They’re fine, I guess. Mom works in a hospital as a surgeon, and dad has his company of multiple blends of coffee and he travels a lot to make deals with people.”

“Wait, you're rich? Because that's what it sounds to me.”

“Mhm... Wealthy...”

Polly sensed that topic was upsetting for Sasha as she looked away while making sure the pile of dishes didn't collapse; she tried to look for another thing to talk about.

“Do you think Anne is done with her chores?”

“Pffft, as if. I bet I could finish my chore duty in 1 hour before she goes to the next one. And you know what? I think I have a way to save time and energy.”

+++++++++++++++++

Sprig was waiting for the moment, or more like expecting Anne to open up first about whatever was going on between her and Sasha.

For now, the Thai girl swept the floor fervently as if the dust had insulted her profusely and this was her turn to get at it. Then she scrubbed at the little ornaments until she left them polished and new. Her performance was excellent; however, her body language screamed bloody murder.

“...Anne, uh, what happened yesterday? I mean while we slept.”

She sighed and plopped onto the sofa, covering her face with both hands.

“Sasha’s a jerk.”

“Oh, well, your little fight at the breakfast made it clear but how it happened?”

“Ugh! She's just...! I told her the cellphone prank wasn't ok. I like having fun but our concepts of that are different. I can take the pineapple pizza prank or other kinds, but she went too far.”

“And what did she say?”

“Let's go to sleep.”

“That's all?”

“Yep. I expected her to be dismissive, downplaying it, an excuse but nope, she said that and we went to sleep. But then I had a nightmare... About the toad captains, and then I went to the porch to clear my mind. Then Sasha found me and asked me if I was ok, then she brought the whole cellphone prank and said it was no big deal. We fought. I told her I didn't like her pranks. Or that she usually pushes me around. Or that she doesn't take seriously the threat of the toads or Grime...”

“Ooooohhhh...” Oh indeed, Sprig didn't know Sasha that well but his opinion of her was constructing a negative image, negative but accurate too.

“She’s a bully.”

“What?! No!” Sprig’s skepticism undermined her resolve. “It's complicated, dude. And I--”

Her sentence was never finished because Sasha and Polly were walking to the trap door that lead to the basement. The moment she entered the picture, her eyes and Anne’s made contact for a few seconds until the blonde focused her sight on her destination and pretended they weren't there.

Anne groaned and leaned back on the sofa. Sprig sympathetically pat her knees. Unsure of how to help his best friend, he pondered his options. Telling Anne to stop hanging out with Sasha because she was being mean and unpleasant to her was the wisest idea. In his opinion, to be exact. And also, a huge part of him had the urge to blurt that.

The inconvenience? He didn't know Sasha well, and intervening would take the choice away from Anne. And what if it backfires? What if Anne wants to reach out and sort things out with Sasha?

Talking honestly was the other option. However, with Sasha’s attitude and what Anne told him about her, would it backfire as badly as option one or worse?

Besides, the blonde girl didn't seem someone willing to compromise or accept their mistakes. Anne would be hurt more if Sasha didn't own up to her wrongdoings and have a change of heart.

The frog boy wished he could convince Anne to forget Sasha for a while or forever if her friendship with her was so problematic; ‘Hey Anne, forget her. She's not worth your time, anyway’ and end of the story. But his words weren't magic and this was up to Anne. He could only support her and be ready to catch her if she fell.

“Anne, what do you want to do? You know, with your friendship with Sasha?”

“I want her to understand the stuff we used to do or she used to do and dragged me into isn't on my to-do list anymore. I've changed. And she... Well, I don't know. Has she changed? Or was it all for the worse?”

“Look, if she's not that great to you, then you should stop being friends with her. But I know you love and care about her. Do what Hop Pop said about friendships: be honest with her.”

“It's not that I wasn't honest during our fight that night or today at breakfast, but she must be honest with me too. Like, why forcing me to do stuff that makes me feel icky? Why being so controlling? Why being so stubborn all the time?”

“Then ask her, or, corner her? Whatever works for you, but you both must be honest with each other.”

“Yeah, yeah... You're right, this isn't a one-sided thing. I can't do all the job by myself, Sasha has to work hard too.” Filled with determination and hope Undertale-style, Anne got up from the sofa and grabbed the broom like a flag an explorer would hang a flag on new land.

Sprig smiled at the new resolve he inspired in his friend, hoping this course of action was the right one.

+++++++++++++

In the bathroom, which much to Sasha’s displeasure was only one and not more as Hop Pop had said -”Old people and their unreliable memory”, she groaned- another conversation took place while the Slavic teenager pointed to Polly every corner of the bathroom she had scrubbed clean to shoot a water gun.

“Sooooo~....., that was awkward.”

“What are you talking about?” If this was about the staring contest in the living room, Polly’d better keep it to herself.

“Oh please, Sasha. Don't play dumb. You two fought during breakfast to the point that Hop Pop gave you chores to calm down. And now there is the staring contest. It's clear as water you both have issues.”

“Seriously, you're more adorable silent than blabbering.”

“And you're the kind of person who prefers to avoid conversations that touch emotional vulnerability and maturity.”

The comment punctured really hard the sore spot.

“That's not of your business, brat! What mature speech a baby could give me anyway? You don't know me, or Anne, or our relationship.”

“1 and 3, yeah, but Anne, oh girl. If you knew all the stuff we've done together. Well, the first days, the troubles, she and Hop Pop arguing, she and Sprig having adventures, etc, etc.”

“Pfft, that's not enough to know Anne.”

“Let me summarize it for you. The moment we let her in, I thought she was going to eat us, she got in trouble by disobeying Hop Pop a few times, forced me to be girly and do girly activities even when I didn't want to, wanted Sprig to be a couple with Ivy and pushed him to do it even when they weren't ready yet, helped us to make pizza but the thing was a failure, defended the town from the toads, and now here you are. She's rebellious, obstinate, smart, funny, needs more work in her confidence, brave, likes girly stuff, adventures, and she and Sprig are like glued to one another.”

“Glued to one another? You're not telling me that--”

“No no!” Polly cringed at the understanding Sasha had of her statement. “Yeeesh, Sasha, don't take it too literally. They don't like like each other. They're best friends, she's kind of like a big sister to the both of us.”

Best friends...

A rock-like sensation put a grimace on the Slavic teenager’s face.

Best friends. Squeaky Toy was Anne’s new best friend. Unconsciously, her hand looked for the photo of her, Anne, and Marcy and touched it to ground herself.

Nah, this was nothing. So, what if Anne had gotten attached to the brat? She was still her best friend. She always sensed when a bully pestered Anne, finding a way to buy the kind of stuff she liked but couldn't get, the ways to make her laugh and try new things. What did have Squeaky Toy to surpass that? Nothing.

“Whatever, let’s work faster so I can get this over with, ok?”

+++++++++++

But she never got over this, you know, the unreasonable sensation of being like an old toy thrown away for a newer, funnier one that popped out of nowhere. And the more she caressed the photograph inside the pocket of her jacket, the more convinced (or she tried to be) Sasha was that this phase would end.

It was the most obvious conclusion with the most obvious reasons. One, they didn't belong here. Amphibia wasn't their homeworld. Two, Marcy’s whereabouts were still unknown to them. And three, sooner or later they would find out how to come back safe and sound. Then they’d say bye-bye, and the frogs would turn into a hazy dream caused by a sugar rush unless they were interrogated by their parents and the police after their sudden disappearance.

Again, let’s leave that for later. What was important at the moment was the big shell of Bessie cacked with mud, dust, and straw. The snail made a ‘meep’ sound amicably and tried to approach the blonde to offer some affection but animals like snails and slugs have never been Sasha’s favorites. She halted Bessie's attempts with a hand and a harsh expression and grabbed the sponge which was inside a water-filled wooden bucket. However, Anne also grabbed the sponge and the tension from half an hour ago rose to the surface when they watched each other’s determined eyes.

“Excuse me, I got it first,” Sasha emphasized the word ‘I’ as she pulled the sponge toward herself.

Anne faltered a bit due to the abrupt movement but it didn't deter her to remind Sasha about the real orders: “Hop Pop said we have to clean Bessie's shell together. Trust me, I would love to leave you all the work so you can lower from your big cloud and stop being a jerk but you don't know Bessie like me.” Anne pulled the sponge toward herself at the last few words.

Sasha scoffed mockingly. “What am I supposed to know about it? If it goes from snail-pace to turtle pace in an hour? It's just a snail, Anne.”

Sprig and Polly, who found themselves in the middle of the girls’ fight, were going to scold Sasha for her dismissive attitude toward Bessie until Anne spoke.

“It's not it; it's a she. And for your information, Bessie's a gentle, brave, and considerate soul and I would appreciate it if you treated her with more respect!” Anne pulled the sponge to herself harder. “If you can not or don't want to do that, then don't get in the way.”

“Oh please, Annie, you would've said the same of Domino” Sasha pulled the sponge much harder. “And it's just cleaning the shell. No big deal!”

“It's keeping Bessie healthy and happy, not doing a chore to get it over with!”

“Same chore you don't want me to do for stupid reasons!”

“Because you don't treat Bessie kindly, you don't take this job seriously, and you might hurt her!”

“The shell is bigger than me, how fragile it could be?! Now give me the sponge. End. Of. Discussion!”

Anne’s eyes widened in hurt and a bit of fear until Sprig placed a hand on her arm to show support. Her resolve strengthened as she inhaled and said “No”.

“No?”

“Exactly, no. Look, Hop Pop said this chore is a teamwork chore, and sure I could leave you with all the work and take half the credit if you are willing to give me that but it wouldn't be ok. I care about Bessie, and Hop Pop wanted us to do this together to let this stupid fight go but if you think cleaning her shell or being a bit kinder is useless stuff then no way in heck I'm going to let you grab the sponge. So, change your attitude, or let me do the job.”

What in God’s name was going on? Since when Anne was so focused on chores and so rebellious? She wasn't even this disciplined with her parents; Sasha heard her a lot of time complaining about homework or keeping her room tidy for a whole day.

On the other hand, why should she fight over cleaning the shell of a giant snail? Those creatures were slime-covered, filthy, and alien-like. She would never touch them unless she had some use to them and it happened a few times when idiots like Maggie pestered her friends.

Anyway, the choice was too easy. Let Anne do the job and rest. She’d done her chore duties with the other parts of the house. But then the old frog would ask how it went and Anne would become the righteous, goody-two-shoes and tell him the blonde was being mean to the slug and therefore was unfit to polish the shell. Anne then would get praise while Sasha would deal with a damn lecture all for a snail!

“Ugh! You're being too dramatic, Anne! As if you're going to get a trophy for polishing a shell!”

“I want to do this because I care about Bessie just as much as the Plantars or you. And doing the right thing is the real prize, not that you can understand!”

“You never acted like that, not even when Marcy did all the work in the group projects!”

“Marcy doesn't have anything to do with this! But if you want to know, I grew up. When will you?!”

“Hey, hey! What the heck is happening here?” Hop Pop came at the worst time as Anne and Sasha’s violent pulling of the sponge from the sides caused the item to be torn in two pieces. Both girls fell on their butts and the bucket of water toppled drenching Sasha’s feet.

“Oh for the love of--! What is this?!”

“Anne and Sasha are fighting again,” Polly said.

“And Sasha also insulted Bessie.” Sprig added.

“Say what?!”

“Hey!”

Alright, enough is enough.

“You two, to the living room, right now!” Hop Pop pointed to the house with a commanding air. Anne and Sasha obliged while sending each other glares. “Sprig, Polly, you'll clean Bessie’s shell. And do it quickly. I think it's time for drastic measures with this girls’ fight.”

“What kind of measures, Hop Pop?” Sprig asked at the same time he helped Polly to be on the top of Bessie’s shell to polish the top of it.

“Once everyone is in the living room, you'll know.”

Well, that was ominous.

++++++++++++++++++

In all his years as a father, grandfather, and even adoptive father, Hop Pop always had the motto that with patience, love, and discipline the most rebellious or difficult of youngsters could become a respected member of society. And yeah, it sounded sappy and cliche but he never stopped believing this and he would never do.

No matter if Anne and Sasha, two girls from another world he took in were this close to turning the other into shreds and burning them all while laughing like a maniac. Ok, that description was pretty morbid, he’d better stay focused on the positives like his new plan for example.

“Listen attentively girls, as I’ve said I don’t know what happened the other day because the only problem between you two was Sasha’s prank and her messy attitude.” Sasha shot him a dirty eye but he ignored her. “Unfortunately, your issues have grown and this chore duty solution made them worse. So, my next plan is this: grubhog babysitting.”

“What?!” The four children exclaimed but for different reasons.

“Hop Pop, that is insane! I mean, if it were me or Polly or Anne, sure, but Sasha?”

“Hey, don’t put me in the middle of this Squeaky Toy!”

“It’s Sprig to you!” Anne corrected her angrily.

“Who cares?!”

“I do!”

Hop Pop whistled loud enough to continue. “Let me explain myself, and not more interruptions. Grubhog’s Day is a tradition on Wartwood in which we take care of a grubhog until it’s time for the little guy to predict the weather.”

“Sounds like something from Earth.” Sasha interrupted.

“Yeah, we have that too.”

“Ejem, no interruptions. Anyway, the person who was assigned the task of watching over the grubhog the day of the festival was Ralphie Underbrook, but I’ve heard he hasn’t been feeling well lately which means that if he gets sick on Grubhog’s Day, then I can put you two as the grubhog caretakers.”

“In conclusion, we’re going to babysit a filthy larv.”

“It’s not a ‘filthy larv’, Sasha. Grubhogs are the base of this ancient tradition and sadly for the family, the last Plantar who was tasked with the babysitting busted it out so horribly it tainted our names for the next generations!”

“Busted?”

“He meant the guy ate the grubhog,” Polly explained to Anne and she gagged.

“Exactly! But now with two persons keeping an eye on it, nothing will go wrong and the family’s name will be cleaned from such a horrific failure.”

“And you don’t think this will backfire and embarrass us more?”

“Wow, thanks for the faith, Polly.”

“Just saying because you made a mess on the barn and Sprig and I had to clean it.”

“If Anne hadn’t been so stubborn about a dumb shell, the work would’ve been easier.”

“Ugh, again?! Dude, just because snails aren’t your favorite animals it doesn’t mean Bessie deserves to be referred to in that way!”

“EJEM,” Hop Pop faked coughing again and then a lightbulb turned on in his mind. “Polly, your worries have given me an excellent idea. Sprig, listen carefully, my boy, I’m gonna give you the biggest, most relevant, and challenging task of your life.”

“Oh! What is it? What is it?” The frog kid moved like a spring from the excitement.

“You will keep an eye on Anne and Sasha until the grubhog ceremony.”

The sentence destroyed every bit of enthusiasm the child had while it shocked Anne and enraged Sasha.

“Excuse me? Since when do I need to be babysat?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe after the fight on breakfast and the mess in the barn. And seeing that you’re too proud to make amends with Anne, it’s better if someone else helps calm you down.”

“But Hop Pop, taking care of the grubhog is the easiest thing to do! They’ll get bored! You don’t need me for this!”

“Number two, you don’t even know if that Ralph guy will be sick the day of the festival! This is a waste of time!”

Sprig hated to admit it but he agreed with her. Ralphie could get better and be ready to watch over the grubhog and then what would be next? Maybe his grandfather needed another plan to prevent more fights between Anne and Sasha.

“I don’t want to sound mean or selfish but having Ralphie sick can be the best chance for you two to work together on this task and patch things up. Apart from that, the hard feelings are still strong so what better way to keep them low than a third party as a referee?”

“You realize he will get on Anne’s side, right? That’s the most biased stuff that could happen.”

“That’s called helping a friend. Are you familiar with that, Sasha? Being a good friend? Mmmm?”

The blonde snarled and drew a line on her neck with her index finger and then pointed at the frog kid threateningly.

On the other hand, Anne couldn’t decide what was worse: this plan of reconciliation or the boredom of the task according to Sprig. Though if her pink friend joined her in the chore, it wouldn’t be so hard in the end. Unless Sasha picked on him, Sprig retaliated, and a new fight emerged between her and the blonde which would turn watching over the grubhog into a nightmare.

“Hop Pop, I get it. Trust me, girls’ fights can be messy but it’s not that bad. You don’t need to put Sprig as our guardian. We can find other ways to distract us.”

“Distract us? Oh no no no no, Anne. Taking care of the grubhog takes commitment, perseverance, and patience. It’s a work of focus of several hours.”

“AKA pure, soul-sucking boredom.” Sasha drawled.

“Fun is not the real goal of trusting you both with the grubhog but to be on better terms, young lady. Besides, the more you let this mood fester instead of shaping up, the worse it would be for you and Anne. I suggest that you put on your best behavior and be as helpful as you can. The same goes for you Anne.”

“I don’t think I need a reminder Hop Pop. If Sprig said watching over the animal is easy, then it is.”

“The ‘easy’ part doesn’t exist. Once boredom entered the room, you won’t want anything to do with this task. So, shape up both of you. I want you with your biggest smiles, full of passion, enthusiasm, and willingness to do this right. Don’t you think I’ve forgotten about you, Sprig!” The elder frog surprised his grandson that was incredibly close to running away from the reunion. “I’ll need as much perseverance and patience from you as I need from them!”

“Hop Pop, the games, the food, the rides! I’m too young to lose that!”

“Come on, HP. Just let this one go. I know Sasha and I have been mad at each other for a while but we’ll be fine. Trust me.”

“Mmmm, I’m not sure, Anne. The fiasco on the barn hasn’t left me a good impression.”

“It won’t happen again.” Still not convinced, the Thai girl got an idea. “What about this? If we manage to take care of the grubhog for a whole hour without killing each other, then you will let Sprig have fun. If we start fighting and accidentally hurt the grubhog, then Sprig will join us. Is that good for you?”

“Welp, that sounds reasonable enough. Alright, Anne, you’ve got a deal.”

“Woohoo!! Thanks, Anne!” Sprig jumped and wrapped his arms over her neck affectionately making her laugh. Sasha watched sparks of jealousy in her eyes but said nothing and flared at the ground.

It was a phase. This wouldn’t last.

++++++++++++++

Among the three girls, the one known as cheerful and optimistic was Marcy, no one else. Or maybe she hated conflict; nope wait, that trait of hers was no mask. Marcy did hate conflict and preferred to think optimistically and focus on the pros than the cons. Sure, she might be the most intelligent student in the school, but she had also a penchant for letting her fantasies override her reality.

At this point, Anne would rather be the most consummate optimist no matter how many people ridiculed her for her naivety than face the reality Hop Pop had put her in. Grubhog’s Day was today. Today! And if her nerves weren’t stressful enough, the news about Ralphie being in bed because of the plague sent her into a spiral of ‘What I’m gonna do?’ due to her deal with the old frog.

Sasha wasn’t faring appropriately either. Despite the hard feelings between the two girls, the blonde also wanted to not be stuck with her best friend babysitting an animal from another dimension.

It would be a matter of time before the pressure cooker blew up and Anne bet no one would try to pick up the pieces. She and Sasha had been avoiding each other the few days before the festival and being put in the same room and expected to work together equaled forcing a lion and a tiger to share the prey without killing each other.

Seriously, if this went horribly, Hop Pop would have to be held accountable.

“Come on, Anne, change that face. It’s Grubhog’s Day. The day when our questions for the future weather are answered in a humble tradition!”

“No offense, HP, but I can’t be that enthusiastic about this when Sasha and I have still some bad blood between us.”

The Slavic girl huffed and groaned. Or a mix of both. Anne couldn’t figure it out, much less if Sasha was being her difficult self or if she was agreeing with Anne without being explicit.

“This is a one-in-a-year thing. Besides, my other choice is locking you two up in the basement and waiting for both to reconcile.” That idea didn’t make her feel better. Anne was ready to retort but her adoptive grandfather held a hand to stop her and the group stopped in front of a tent with a letter that said: Grubhog’s room - Only candidate(s) elected.

“Here we are, girls.”

“Yep, here we are. Woohoo.” Anne’s excitement couldn’t be more fake.

“Yay” Sasha, however, won in the department with her demeanor.

The moment the two teenagers entered the tent, her eyes couldn’t believe the creature inside the cage over a wooden table.

“Squeee!”

“What the—? Is that it? That’s your oh-so-perfect grubhog? It looks as if a pig and worm had a baby.” Sasha commented.

“Hey, remember that girl from that cartoon who was fascinated with her pet pig? If she were real, she would be dancing at seeing this thing.” Anne joked. Surprisingly, Sasha chuckled and for a few seconds, it seemed that the issues between them never existed.

Emphasis on a few seconds because the bubble was punctured when their eyes met.

Hop Pop, perceptive of the tension, clapped his hands to grab their attention.

“Alright, Anne and Sasha, listen carefully because I won’t say it twice. This little being is not so difficult to take care of. Grubhogs are usually shy or friendly depending on how you approach one; however, you’d better not threaten or stress them because they spit acid, highly corrosive acid. And make sure to feed it with good vegetables because if it eats something rotten or too hard, it might vomit that with some acid too. Last but least, I’ve prepared some snacks for lunchtime. Sasha, your pack is the bigger one, by the way. The medicine is there, drink it all. Remember the deal: one hour without fights, and you won’t have Sprig breathing on your necks. But if you mess up, I’ll send him to you. Welp, I wish you the best, girls, and don’t forget that the family’s name is on your shoulders.” Hop Pop slowly backed away, getting out of the tent. “On your shoulders.”

“On your shoulders,” Polly repeated.

“ Good luck! Take care, Anne! I’ll bring you some souvenirs!”

With Sprig as the last frog leaving the tent, both teenagers were left alone with their issues and their task.

Sasha took a glance at the grubhog and lifted her head to the ceiling in exasperation. “Ugh! This is so lame!”

She found a patch of ground comfortable enough for her to sit and put her snacks and cane at her side. Then she took her cell phone out of her jacket pocket to find something to distract herself with.

“Wow, you still have it?”

“Have what?” Sasha raised an eyebrow.

“You know, your phone. I mean, you escaped Toad Tower and were traveling for a while until you found us. It’s hard to believe it hasn’t broken or fallen.”

“What is believable is that it has no charge anymore. Lovely.” Sasha placed the item back in her pocket and glared at the ground, hoping for it to do the unimaginable for her entertainment.

Anne stood at the side of the grubhog’s cage playing with the animal and petting it for a few minutes. During that time, she wished for inspiration to strike her so talking with Sasha wasn’t so daunting but her mind was an empty canvas.

Every possible opening or topic to talk about made her more nervous because what if it led to more fighting? What if the outcome was much worse? And would she gain from so much pessimism anyway?

Although, shouldn’t Sasha try to reach her or reflect on how her actions had hurt her? Why is it that Anne always had to bring a peace offering and apologize? This time she wasn’t wrong!

“Anne”

“O-Oh, what? What happens?” Were her wishes coming true?

“Could you use your cellphone timer? Maybe put it in 4 or 5 hours.”

Sigh.

Anne picked up her phone and choose the 5-hour option on her time. Start.

“There, done.”

“Thanks”

‘Come on, Boonchuy! No time for a loser attitude! 5 hours can help you both to reconcile. That is if Sasha stops being a buttface and accepts for once that she had been one!’

Anne kicked a little pebble and sat on the ground.

Sasha crossed her arms and leaned on one of the legs of the table. Lame and boredom were and would always be the bane of her existence. Why the geezer hadn’t chosen Squeaky Toy or Polly to do this job was a mystery. Why the heck would she and Anne learn from this anyway? Was he playing therapist with both because honestly, he was sucking at the job tenfold!

A part of her wished she could talk to Anne about anything to make time pass faster but what if she insists on the prank and the pushing-around stuff again? Couldn’t she let it go to make this easier?

After all she had done for Anne, the least she deserved was some consideration. Like, it’s not as if she had been scratching her butt in a fluffy bed. She was jailed by talking toads, they almost killed her when she escaped, and she could’ve ended up in a hole with broken bones or as excrement after being digested by a monster. Meanwhile, Anne was relatively safe in this waterhole with a bunch of frogs.

What else did she want from her? Kneeling and begging? Ha! As if!

Suddenly, the oinks of the grubhog made her turn around and see the little thing too close for her liking and wiggling its tiny legs toward the package of food.

“Hey no! Bad worm piggy! Bad worm piggy! This is mine”

“Come on, Sasha. Don’t be so hard. It’s hungry.”

“Then find a carrot or something because I’m not going to share my snacks with it.”

The grubhog squeaked sadly and moved to a corner of its cage.

“Awww, it’s ok, buddy. I can share some.” Anne peeked at Sasha who placed her medicine to the side. “Dude, don’t forget to drink your medicine. You’re still weak.”

“Sure, mom,” the blonde munched on a beetle meat sandwich, ignorant of the eye roll from Anne.

How much had passed since HP and the others left, she had no idea and she’d better not see her cell phone because that would increase her anxiety if Anne planned to reconcile with Sasha in any way, rushing this would ruin it.

Perhaps if she gave a little push in a seemingly innocent chit-chat, Sasha would feel compelled to be open about her controlling methods and behavior and try to be more understanding of Anne’s new lifestyle.

“Ugh, this meat is so bland,” Excellent! The perfect opportunity for her plan!

“What? The beetle meat sandwich? I don’t know, Sash. I think it’s great.”

“Beetle meat? There is a dead bug in my sandwich?!”

“Duh, this is Amphibia. You know, with talking frogs, giant flies, and insects as breakfast.”

Sasha made a disgusted face and threw part of her sandwich on the cage. The grubhog launched at the snack happily.

“I can’t believe you are eating it without gagging.”

“I’ve got used to it. You will too. Besides, they don’t taste that bad and are very nutritious.”

“The only thing I ate on Toad Tower was a sticky green paste with bits of larvae and half-rotten vegetables.”

“Yikes, dude. That bad?”

“Yep,” then, out of nowhere, her serious expression changed to a conflicted one. Anne thought she might have triggered a bad memory with the conversation but Sasha didn’t let her ask what was wrong. “Now that I think about it, I ate other stuff… After escaping the tower.”

“Oh… Really?”

“Yeah, but…”

“But what?” Anne asked softly.

“My memory is a bit hazy. Still, what I can recollect is that there were some crops in front of me. No one was around. I was too hungry and grabbed as much food as I could. They were fresh but it didn’t do me good.”

Anne was struck with a huge realization. “Oh my God, Sasha! You were the Crop Thief!”

“The what?”

“The Crop Thief! Ivy told me, Sprig, and Polly that something was stealing vegetables in the town but couldn’t be caught. We tried to trap it but instead, we found you. It was you all this time!”

“Oh…” Sasha didn’t sound remorseful or embarrassed for being called the Crop Thief. Anne had to know what bothered her.

“Sasha, are you ok? Look, if it is because I called you that, it wasn’t to be mean. I didn’t know you were struggling to survive. Stealing is bad, yeah, but your life was in peril, right?”

“It’s not about that…” Sasha massaged her temples and shut her eyes tightly. “Stupid head, I think I made that up.”

“Wait, you lied?”

“I said I think I made that up. Whenever I try to picture those events, things get too blurry. Like freeze frames flashing crazily. Get me?”

“Perhaps it’s the stress, who knows.”

“Mmm…”

“Hey, don’t feel bad about that. It’s over Sash. You don’t have to worry about finding food or shelter. You’re with me and the Plantars now. We’ll protect you.”

“Hehe, first time I hear your confidence speaking.” Anne couldn’t figure out if that sentence meant a compliment or an insult. As if a lightbulb had been turned on, the Thai girl knew what to say next.

“That’s the good thing about changing, dude. You’ll never know how far you’ll go unless you try. I mean, people here used to hate my guts, and now I’m their beloved protector. Hey! Maybe we could be the protector duo!”

“That used to work with Marcy. Until we lost her track, of course.”

“We’ll find her, Sasha. I swear we’ll find her and return home together.”

“Where do you think she might be?”

“A safe place, I hope. The animals and plants here are too dangerous.”

“Yeah, if she has a fraction of the self-preservation skills she blabbered about in video games or books, then she will be alright.”

Anne laughed slightly and nodded. She unpacked her sandwich and gave half of it to the grubhog that accepted the snack eagerly.

The conversation was going surprisingly well which relieved her a lot. No insults, glares of backhanded comments. It felt invigorating that Sasha responded to her answers without a hint of arrogance or mean spirit. Maybe she could push a bit harder now.

“You know, when I started living with the Plantars, I used to be such a dickhead with them. Lazy, disrespectful, disobedient. Have I told you that I trapped Sprig because I thought it was prey the same day we met for the first time?”

“Wow, no joking?”

“Exactly, no joking.”

“Hard to believe. He’s like your #1 fan.”

“We got very close to one another.” Anne thought she saw Sasha grimacing. Wait, was it jealousy what she was seeing or her imagination playing games? “Then there is Hop Pop. He loves to make rules and give chores. I had to pretend to be sick one day to not work when there was a huge storm!”

“Yeeesh, that would’ve been terrible. Good move, Anne.”

“It benefitted me but not the Plantars. I took care of them because they got super sick. The point is that I did wrong in lying and kind of put them in danger because I didn’t want to help with the crops. Maybe if you let them in for a while, you might learn a few things.”

“Pffft, sure.”

Stubbornness, though Anne was accustomed to that.

“I mean it, Sasha. They have helped me a lot. It’s because of them that I’m a much better person now. You should give it a try.”

“…Polly is pretty fun to hang out with.”

“See? That’s what I’m talking about!”

“I said she’s fun not that she will be my Master Yoda or something.”

“She could be an excellent teacher. She’s young but smarter than you think.”

Sasha scoffed and started to drink her medicine to cut the conversation. She had a feeling where Anne wanted to go with such a talk. Making her an example of the redemption trope from a TV show or movie. Bah! Ridiculous! What did Anne think Sasha was? A character to mold? She wasn’t Marcy to try this nerd stuff!

The plan was taking a nosedive to catastrophe. She needed something else to break through Sasha’s hard exterior. Maybe she could challenge her. Make her believe she was unable to change as fast or better than Anne, but nope. The Slavic girl is too perceptive, what if she figured out Anne’s motives?

‘Maybe I should rest for a while. Inspiration might strike me later.’ Good idea.

Anne leaned on the other front leg of the table and tried to get comfortable but wood is not the best replacement for a pillow so she resigned herself to lying on the ground, waiting for her eyes to close and her mind to land on Dreamland.

Sasha observed her from the other side, a bored expression on her face. A part of her craved a few hours of sleep after the nightmare she had the other night; although, testing her dreams didn't compel her to do it. She had no intention to see Grime’s vicious smile mocking her again.

She wished for her cell phone to be charged or have a charger in her pocket but there was no wifi in Amphibia and electricity didn't seem to exist either. What a shitty situation.

+++++++++++++++

This was the best day of his short life!!

The rides were awesome, the food was superb, the games were very fun, and no sign of disaster from Anne and Sasha.

Thinking about Anne, Sprig felt a bit guilty that she was missing the chances of entertainment but if Hop Pop said the babysitting task was his best card to make her reconcile with Sasha, then he would have to trust him.

Not that he didn't, but the blonde hadn't inspired the best outcomes after the prank and how much of a jerk she had been with Anne. He hoped Sasha hasn't gone back to being mean or she would ruin Anne’s chances for peace.

Friendship too. But the frog kid wasn't so sure that was possible unless Sasha reflected on what she did.

“What's the long face for, boy?”

“Hop Pop, do you think this will work? That Anne and Sasha will be friends again?”

“They haven't stopped being friends, Sprig. They need a moment to calm down and talk in a civil, peaceful way.”

“And putting them in the same room and telling them to work together is the best idea?”

“It sounds like your other plan of locking them up in the basement” Polly commented.

“Look, we have to trust them, especially Anne, and hope for the best. Besides, what's the worst that could happen? Having one of them fall from the sky?”

“Can that happen?” Now Sprig was nervous.

“Not unless you dress them as kill-a-pillars and put them in a love dove nest, that's for sure.”

The frog kid swallowed all his sugar cotton, resolve flaring in his eyes. His destination was waiting for him.

+++++++++++++++

Sasha stuck her tongue out. What she would give for chicken wings or buffalo ribs because beetle meat tasted atrocious! It was like eating tofu covered in bug dust!

She pondered for a while what she could do with her free time. Escaping from boredom? But then Anne would look for her and scold her that she wasn't taking this stupid chore seriously. Going to pee? Were there bathrooms here? She doubted it.

The grubhog oinked at her, its curious eyes and cute snout kind of endearing.

And what if she had some fun and watch over the animal? The old frog never said they couldn't do it, and she was pretty good at multitasking.

What about Anne, though?

She grabbed her friend’s cell phone and her eyes widened in anger and horror.

Half an hour! They had spent only 30 minutes of the excruciating 5 hours before the ceremony!

Ok, that's it! Time for plan B! Multitasking.

“Alright, worm piggy, you'd better not vomit acid on me or next time you'll be on someone else's plate as bacon. Understood?” The creature oinked and tilted its head while she carried it. Sasha turned around and wondered how to communicate her plan to Anne and prevent her from freaking out.

Her cellphone was blocked, but she could see the timer because it was present if she pressed the button to turn on the screen. However, she couldn't leave a message on the Notes app.

She wrote on the ground and got out before Anne woke up.

Freedom here we go.

++++++++++++++++

A yawn escaped Anne’s mouth as she stretched. This nap was an excellent choice. She should've had it days before after her disastrous night arguing with Sasha, now recharged and more optimistic, her chances to reconcile with her looked promising.

Or they were supposed to because her world turned upside down at seeing the empty place where Sasha had sat. And to make it worse, the cage was empty.

What the fuck?! Were they kidnapped?! Abducted by aliens?!

“Wait, that's stupid! I'm in--” Suddenly, everything made sense for her eyes landed on a message written on the ground:

‘Anne, I have the worm pig with me. I'm having fun and taking care of it. You know, multitasking.

Sasha’

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!”

+++++++++++++

Sasha felt a shiver in her spine. Her hold on the grubhog got tighter.

Yep, she found out.

+++++++++++++++

Sprig was a bit ashamed to admit that going to the tent took him longer than he wanted but it wasn’t because of a sudden lack of orientation; he supposed that Anne would get hungry after the sandwiches Hop Pop prepared so he bought some snacks, and then souvenirs.

Unfortunately, he spent a lot of time looking for a kill-a-pillar plushie for her; guess those weren't popular yet. Anyway, the frog boy moved the curtains of the tent and met silence and emptiness.

They were gone.

“Hop Pop! Hop Pop! Hop Pop!!”

+++++++++++++

This babysitting chore without rules had been the best plan she’d ever had. Except for the weird looks she got from the frogs because she had the grubhog tied to her chest using her jacket but she couldn't care less about what they thought of her.

“Squeeee! Squee squeee!”

“Calm down, piggy. One more ride, and we’ll be back in the tent before Anne kills me or the geezer finds me.” Sasha watched the giant clock of the town. The time left before the ceremony was 20 minutes, if she hurried up, both could make it.

She searched for another roller coaster to get inside on and smiled big when she met a huge one. Super dangerous, super blood-freezing, and with a punk theme if she guessed right.

“Bingo” The girl grinned much more because there was no line that could delay this experience and give Anne or Hop Pop the chance to catch her.

She sat on the trolley’s front seat, placing the metal bars that acted as security belts over her legs. The frog that worked on the roller coaster, rotated the lever until the trolley with Sasha and the grubhog was at the top. Gravity took care of the rest.

Her excited screams resonated all over the place and even kilometers beyond the limits. Anne, Hop Pop, Polly, and Sprig ran from the different places they were to the source of the commotion.

As the speed and the deadly curves continued, the grubhog’s stress which was mid at first increased tenfold prompting it to wiggle itself out from Sasha’s grasp in vain as she pushed it closer to her chest. What she forgot to consider was Hop Pop’s warning about threatening a grubhog and the animal, desperate to get out from the trolley, bit Sasha’s arm and jumped onto the rails of the roller coaster.

“Fuck!!” the blonde yelled. Not caring how insane her actions would look to whoever was watching, she also jumped out of the trolley to rescue the grubhog.

She cursed the weak state of her legs and tried to accelerate with the use of her cane. To put her in a much worse situation, her ears picked on the voices of Anne and the Plantars that were getting closer to the roller coaster.

The grubhog hadn’t managed to escape successfully for it had landed on its back and cried for help, moving its little paws erratically. Sasha was half a meter from him, exerting her legs to the maximum, and just when her fingers held the animal gently, both disappeared from the rails.

+++++++++++++

Anne’s eyes maybe needed a fix due to the impossible scenario that occurred minutes ago. She was a few meters from the roller coaster and spotted Sasha running, or more like trying to, toward the grubhog despite how hazardous it was to be on the rails when the trolley hadn't stopped yet. However, what took her breath away was the giant bird that grab the pig worm and her best friend at the same time. Her muscles screamed due to the soreness but she couldn't halt her athlete-like running when Sasha was in peril.

“Anne!”

“Anne, what's going on?!”

She glanced at her adoptive family and signaled at Sasha who seemed to be having a hard fight with the vulture.

“Not time for explanations! I have to do something or she will--!”

“Too late, look!” Polly pointed at the bird. Its curved, sharp beak grabbed Sasha from the neck of her uniform and threw her like a ragdoll before it flew away.

+++++++++++++

Dreams and nightmares, fantasy and reality, the subconscious and the imagination. All those concepts could give someone an idea about how the mind processes events before the eyes.

Well, for Anne right now, her mind couldn't figure out how to go back in time and prevent Sasha from plummeting to her death.

Her legs were doing their best to try to catch her best friend but she needed more and the excruciating fear and dread of the outcome kept repeating the same horrible image in her head.

This couldn't be how things were going to turn out. She and Sasha had finally found each other after months of worry and questions; she couldn't lose her! This couldn't be the end for their trio!

What was she supposed to tell Marcy if Sasha died?

The goal was to return home together!!

Unbeknownst to Anne, her eyes and the tip of her hair turned an electric blue while an aura the color of a sapphire surrounded her body. Her whole body felt drunk with a surge of energy unknown to it, her legs moved faster with longer and steadier steps like Flash the hero.

Nonetheless, those changes were mere games compared to the incredible jump she made that would've been too difficult for an inexperienced amphibian and impossible for a human. Half the way to a deadly encounter with the ground, Sasha was caught in Anne’s arms, though what the Thai girl didn't take into account was how to land safely and without destroying one of the many stands of the festival.

Luckily for the two girls but not for the farmer beneath them, both crashed in kind of soft vegetables turning a normal farmer's stand into a mush of produce and broken wood.

“GIRLS!!” Hop Pop ran beyond what his old legs could permit, his grandchildren behind him. A multitude of amphibians circled the area where Anne and Sasha has landed, murmuring and even poking the semi-unconscious teenagers.

The tan-skinned human sat up and made a gesture of disgust at the disaster that covered her entire school uniform.

“Wait-- Sash!!” She turned to her best friend who had sat up seconds later. She had multiple scratches and bruises just like Anne but thankfully, that was all, no hemorrhages or broken bones.

Anne hugged Sasha taking her by surprise, not caring if people saw her cry.

Suddenly, Hop Pop was hugging both, and the family hug got two more members as Sprig and Polly joined in. Despite the chaotic destruction minutes ago, the touching scenes got a unanimous ‘Awwwww~’ until the owner of the stand interrupted the sweet moment.

“Sorry not sorry for ruining the family picture but, what in Frog’s name is the meaning of this?!!” He said signaling to his used-to-be business.

“That's what I'm talking about!” And here it is the king of Rome. Toadstool, accompanied by Toadie, approached the mess, arms crossed and foot tapping the ground impatiently.

“So, any explanation for whatever happened here, Hopadiah?”

“Hey, Hop Pop doesn't have anything to do with this!” Anne defended him.

“Have you forgotten that he put you and your unruly friend as the grubhog caretakers?” Toadstool inflated his sack to look more imposing as he spoke. “I don't care if it was your duty but according to Hopadiah, and I'll quote it: If it's ok I'll make sure she doesn't get in trouble or bother you or anyone else in any way. Whatever happens, I will take full responsibility. Welp, just look at this mess now! So much of a role model he turned out to be. Or maybe she just proved to be too much for him.”

“Stop it, Toadstool.” This time Hop Pop intervened. “Sasha almost died and it was by a miracle that Anne could save her. Couldn't you give them a break?”

“A break? Pfffft, as if. I mean, sure, if you had put Anne, or your other children as the caretakers I would've accepted it, but no! You included that mongrel too! I only said yes to prove you right about her. She's a living disaster!”

The audience mumbled in agreement which intensified when someone pointed out a significant detail:

“About messes, I saw her fighting a vulture that had in its claws the grubhog from the ceremony!”

“Yeah, I saw it too!”

“She lost our way to predicting winter!”

More murmurs became incensed yelling and glares. For Hop Pop, it meant trouble. For Toadstool, it was an advantage.

“Well, well, well, it seems that the Plantar family has touched rock bottom once again. Congrats, Hopadiah. I. Told. You.”

“Lay off, Toadfool!” Sasha’s insult made all the eyes turn toward her. The mayor bristled and inflated much more his sack.

“Excuse me?!”

“As I said, lay off! So the old man put me and Anne in charge of that piggy worm--”

“Ah, it's called grubhog, Sasha,” Sprig corrected her but she kept going.

“--and then I lost the grubhog because I wasn't strong enough. So what? It wasn't his fault. I decided of taking care of that thing while having fun and it backfired, why don't you have the balls to scold me for that?” The others gasped at her vulgar way of talking. “If there is a mistake you at least should be mad at is that he has tasked us with such boring stuff. That's all. There's no need to be overdramatic.”

“Oh sure, drama. Have you heard, everyone? Anne’s gangly friend believes our tradition is a bunch of dramatic nonsense!”

“I've never said that.”

“You implied it.”

“You started messing with the wrong person. If you had some intelligence in that peanut of a brain of yours, you should've got that it was me who lost the animal, not him!” She pointed at Hop Pop who shrugged awkwardly due to the unnecessary attention to him. “Heck, if the old had just said he wanted to take care of the pig worm to be the hero or whatever, we wouldn't be having this conversation. He would've handled this perfectly.”

“Uh, thank you?”

Sasha wasn't finished yet. “Besides, you think you can keep an eye on an animal for hours? You don't even have a pet!”

“I have a snail of the purest breed!”

“I've said pet, not steed. I bet you can only work with the money in your pockets because coins can't walk, or bark, they don't need to eat, or poo, and you don't have to bathe them or take them for a walk. Just putting them on a chest is good enough. So don't go with your holier-than-thou bullshit, buddy. You’re no better than anyone!”

The horrified gasps turned into a sea of murmurs as the people glanced warily at Sasha. The same scene from days ago came again for she and Toadstool were ready to stab one another with insults and dirty looks until one of them gave in.

As always, good ole Hop Pop intervened as an amateur referee, signaling Anne, Polly, and Sprig to take Sasha somewhere else while he picked up the pieces.

“Wait, Hopadiah! She can't leave yet! The creature must fix my stand. How am I supposed to work if my business it's in shambles?!” Oh yikes, he forgot that.

“Don’t worry, Freddie. In a few hours, you'll have your place good and new. For now,” He handed him a few coins. “This is for new products or to help you with the crops. Alright, guys, I think this was enough entertainment for today. Sasha, come here right now! It's fixing time!”

+++++++++++++++++++

Two exhausted groans escaped the teenagers as they plopped on the basement bed. What a day today was!

“Can't believe I had to learn carpentry of all things.”

“Can’t believe you left and almost plummeted to your death.”

“Oh yeah… Also that.”

Anne winced at Sasha’s tone of voice. Note to herself: don’t remind your friend about traumatic moments.

“…Hey, Anne.”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for saving me”

Like a spring, Anne bolted, her eyes watching the wall or maybe something invisible to anyone else but her. Sasha checked over her, worried at her sudden silence and alarms went off in her head when tears fell from her eyes.

“Ann--” The Slavic girl was interrupted by a punch in the stomach and then a fierce hug.

“You idiot! You big, jerky idiot! What the fuck were you thinking?! You could've died! What about returning home together?! What about seeing Marcy again? What about me?!”

“Anne, look--”

“Don’t ‘Anne, look’ me, dude! What you did was insane! Like, a bajillion times insane! I might care about the Plantars’ name but your life...! Oh God, Sasha! You were so close! I could've lost you! Don't you care?!”

Sasha’s best response was hugging her back and letting her hit at her chest while sobbing.

After a few minutes of spilling her guts emotionally, Anne sniffed, using her arm to clean her runny nose. Sasha looked away a bit disgusted but kept patting her friend’s back.

She had in mind a good speech to alleviate the tension and forget the incident but thinking it through if she ever tried that, she and Anne would fight once again like the night before. More pressure and salt to the wounds would put the last nail in the coffin and both didn't need that.

“I'm such an idiot.”

“Wh-What?”

“I'm such an idiot.”

“Thanks for stating the obvious,” Anne teased. Sasha chuckled, happy to have made her feel better.

“Look, Anne...” Here comes the hardest part. “I went overboard. After all the stress you went through when you saw me like a living skeleton with tons of injuries, I'll try to hold myself back. After all, we still don't know where Marcy is and two heads might find her faster than one, right?”

Anne, on the other hand, couldn't comprehend the Sasha in front of her. Was the blonde apologizing? She didn't say sorry but her tone showed regret and softness. Maybe she was taking the first steps to being the bigger person.

Her lips curled, hopeful.

“Thank you, Sash. You know for assure me that.”

“Of course”

“Also, thank you...for Hop Pop”

“What do you mean?”

“For defending him from Toadstool. For admitting you made a mistake. That was unexpectedly nice.”

“Honestly, the old man is much more tolerable than that buffoon. And... Well, he took you in, then he took me in. We're even now.”

“Heheheh...”

Both stayed quiet, covered by a comfortable silence that lasted a few minutes until Anne spoke.

“Sasha, about finding Marcy...”

“I know she is clumsy as hell, Anne. Trust me, I'm also worried about her but it's better if we don't let our imaginations go wild.”

“As wise as your advice is, the other goal we must reach is how to go back home.”

Sasha facepalmed mentally, though her sigh revealed she had forgotten that detail.

“Have you...found any clue to return to Earth?”

“More like I had it with me since I landed here.” Sasha arched an eyebrow, not understanding what Anne said. The Thai teenager got up l, rummaged through the stuff inside her backpack, and picked up the music box.

“No way...”

“Yep, here it is our key to come back. But... It doesn't work.”

“What?”

“I mean it. The box doesn't work. Like, I opened it some time ago, and nothing. No magic lights or weird stuff. I think it ran out of juice after I opened it on the playground.”

That left them with a much more important but daunting question.

“How do we charge it?”

“That's what we should find out. I have a plan: Hop Pop said that the path connecting Frog Valley to the outside is blocked by a huge wall of ice. Once it melts, we can travel to look for clues to charge the box and find Marcy.”

“Welp, at least we have the means to return, it just needs fixing.” Her stoic face changed to an amused smirk and she laughed softly.

“What's funny?”

“Nothing, nothing. But... Can you imagine the gift Marcy wanted you to have had powers all this time? Like, what kind of plot twist is this?”

“Dude, our luck then it's the worst! Especially mine!”

“And the cherry on the pie about plot twists could be that Marcy planned this all along.” Sasha laughed uproariously but a harsh slap on the head ruined her fun. “Ow, what was that for?!”

“That’s for saying such a thing about Marce! Sasha, she's our best friend! She is my first best friend!”

“Anne, chill, I was kidding. And of course, I know she would never betray us. She's Marcy. Sweet, clumsy, nerdy Marcy, not a criminal mastermind.”

“Good. And please, could you give me a break from these pranks? I told you, Sash, they're not funny.”

“Ok, ok,”

“Ugh, what's with the smell?” Anne said at the same time she covered her nose.

“Don’t remind me. I had to ignore it through sheer will.”

“Bathroom?”

“Yep, bathroom. I really, really hope frogs know what a soap or a shampoo is.”

“Eh, kind of. Race you there!!” Anne bolted towards the door.

“Oh no, it will be my shower time, not yours!”

Chapter Text

Before her, there was a mirror, a small square-shaped one with the corners a bit jagged and dirty, but a still functional mirror. And in front of her was her best friend, ready for an emergency haircut.

“Are you really sure you know what you’re doing?”

“Trust me, dude, if Marcy were in my place, you would be hiding from her right now.”

The blonde chuckled teasingly. “Yeah, I mean, no offense, but for a second I thought your head was a ball.”

“Worst humiliation of my life.” Anne watched in a painfully pleading manner at the ceiling of the bathroom before shaking those unpleasant memories off her head. “Anyway, unlike her, I know how to make a decent haircut. Thank goodness Hop Pop has a pair of scissors, I don’t think we could’ve gotten some progress with the makeshift sickle I have.”

“You mean the one that is a claw of a mantis tied to a wooden stick?” Anne nodded. “Yep, fair.”

The Thai girl began with the first phase: untangling the hair. From the middle to the endpoints, Sasha’s long blonde hair had become a battle that required delicacy and patience from both teenagers, especially Sasha as she cursed, groaned, and even yelled at every hard, messy tangle that proved to be too much for Anne’s hair comb.

She wished to have a notebook to take count of the easy and impossible knots in such long hair; cutting more than it was necessary would leave a bad presentation that could worsen Sasha’s mood.

“Why did you stop?” The Slavic kid’s eyes glanced bitterly at the scissors.

“Oh, uh, sorry… Just thinking…” Anne felt as if her friend was waiting for an explanation and she didn’t know where to start. “I’m surprised you accepted this. You like your hair a lot.”

A moody raspberry escaped Sasha’s lips. “Can’t take care of it properly in this crummy world. Better to cut the work in half.”

Anne hummed and resumed her job. Despite the shower, both had had a few days ago, the blonde’s hair still emulated a rats nest, and knowing she had fled from Toad Tower after a long stay as a prisoner, the Thai teenager wondered what other filthy places she had ended up to that turned her golden mane into a smelly bundle of hay.

“Alright, dude. Here I go,” She made noise with the scissors and Sasha straightened her back, her whole body tense but a refusal of showing hesitance burned in her eyes.

The other teenager cut the impossible knots, making a mental note in her mind of how many were falling and how Sasha’s hairstyle should look as a result. Her eyes fleetingly navigated to the mirror to inspect the other girl’s reaction. Despite her silence, Sasha’s body and face spoke volumes about this ordeal. All her muscles showed red and blue veins due to the extreme stiffness, and the thin hairs of her neck were standing up. Her posture imitated the one of a frightened cat.

“You can tell when to stop,” Anne suggested softly. “If it makes you feel uncomfortable.”

Sasha grunted. The Thai girl wished for a less vague answer to not screw this up, maybe a little push could tell her she was doing a good job. “I know I haven’t finished yet but how does it look so far? You like it?“

Her friend checked on the progress of her hair. The length has been shortened from her back to almost her shoulders; the expression on her face couldn’t be read and Anne’s nervousness skyrocketed though it didn’t seem she was panicking for she smiled encouragingly to show Sasha she knew what she was doing.

The blonde ran her fingers through her hair. She could still feel a few knots but those were tiny and too weak to stop the movement of her hand.

“It feels weird,” her voice didn’t sound dismissive or disappointed, more like she was trying to process what was going on.

“Don’t worry, Sash. It’ll grow back. At least you won’t have trouble using your scrunchie anymore.”

“That and my hair doesn’t attract twigs and leaves like yours,” Sasha teased.

“Wait, I have twigs and leaves in my hair?!”Her reflection in the mirror was answer enough. “Why none told me that?”

“You didn’t know?!” Sasha was shocked that Anne had been ignorant of something so obvious she could’ve found out using her cell phone or the mirror.

“Too much stuff happened lately, dude,” it wasn’t a lie though it sounded like an excuse too.

Almost half an hour later, Anne placed the scissors on the floor and observed her work. A pile of Sasha’s hair lay between them and what was left had a better presentation than the crazy mane her best friend had ended up with.

“So… Do you like it? If you ask me, I think it looks cool.”

The Slavic girl moved her from one side to the other as her eyes adjusted to the mirror, her fingers touched the new points of her hair reduced to a half. The hairstyle wasn’t anything beyond imagination but it was comfortable. “Not bad. Thanks”

Anne only hugged her from behind, content with her friend’s satisfaction. Perhaps she could give Marcy a new haircut too. She wondered if she was taking care of her hair instead of being so caught up with whatever got her attention.

“Girls, come to my study immediately! I have to show you something!”

“This time I didn’t break any rule.” Sasha defended herself.

“He didn’t say it was talk time but show time. Better go quickly before he thinks we’re ignoring him.” Anne opened the bathroom door followed by Sasha from behind.

+++++++++++++

The moment they entered the study, Hop Pop smiled at the two. At his side, over the table, were two piles of folded clothes.

“Hey HP, do you want us to help you with your sewing?” Anne pointed at both piles, thinking she got the guess right.

“First, don’t call me HP, second, no, this isn’t about sewing. This is about the clothes you’ll need for the rest of the journey.”

“Journey?” Sasha asked.

“I bet Anne hasn’t told you about the wall of ice that is between Frog Valley and the rest of Amphibia—“

“Nope, she told me.”

“Uh, well, then this explanation will be short. You see, once it melts we will be traveling to look for clues so Anne and you can return home. That’s why I crafted some clothes to make the experience more comfortable. Also because I know you might have nothing else than your school uniform and after the incident at Grubhog’s day, it’s just a matter of time before what you’re wearing reaches a breaking point. The same for Anne.”

“Come on, Hop Pop. My uniform is still in one piece.”

“What won’t be in one piece is the supposed protection it can give you. And let’s not talk about your missing shoe. It’s a miracle you can walk so happy and dandy when one of your feet is unprotected.”

At the mention of that item, Sasha’s eyes widened getting Anne and Hop Pop’s attention.

“Sash, are you ok?”

“I think I know where your missing shoe is”

“Wait, you do?”

“Yeah… Grime found it and showed it to me.”

“Say what?!” Anne and Hop Pop yelled but for different reasons. For starters, how was it possible? One thing was to be separated from her two best friends after opening the music box, but another one is to have her shoe taken away from her the moment she land on another dimension and it was not a few meters away from Anne but miles.

Hop Pop freaked out internally at the revelation. If Grime had survived the herons' attack on the Toad Tower and still had the shoe, it meant he could use it to track Sasha and get his revenge. But then his more logical side chastised him for letting that notion run through his mind because he didn’t know what Sasha had told Grime about her friends, especially Anne.

“Sasha, please be honest with me, have you told Grime what Anne looks like?”

“No. Never. I lied to him that I was the only human on his territory but then he found out it was bullshit when he rubbed Anne’s shoe in my face.”

Points in their favor, as long as Grime lacked an animal trained to track fugitives that is.

“Frog, this has turned out to be more complicated than I thought.”

“I know right? I can’t believe that jerk has had my shoe all this time.”

“Leaving the shoe aside. Having enough essentials to last you these months as the ice wall melts AND the journey is our priority. For that reason, I took the time to turn some old garments of mine into comfy pieces for the two of you. And yeah, Anne,” Hop Pop regarded her when he saw she was going to object, especially because his sense of fashion was centuries behind hers “I know you have your backpack but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Sasha gave a quick peek at the clothes and then touched them apprehensively. They were kind of her size, though the fabric or wool had a roughness that could be a bit uncomfortable. At her side, Anne compared her new garments with her school uniform to make sure the measurements were correct.

“Old man, please tell me you didn't measure us while we sleep because if not, I'll hit you in the face.”

“Come on, Sasha, I'm no creep. This was a work of a few days and hours sacrificed from my sleep schedule.”

“And it paid off. Thanks, dude.” Anne grabbed the stuff and waited for Sasha to finish inspecting her new fashion choices. However, unlike the Thai girl, the blonde found it difficult to fit in with the clothes, not literally because they were her size; it was impressive how accurate Hop Pop’s work had been. But the fabric smelled of humidity and was cooped up in a drawer for years despite the good condition of the material.

“Couldn’t you at least wash them before making new clothes?”

“They're alright to me.”

“Because your standards of personal hygiene emulate a troglodyte’s.” Anne winced, yikes that one hurts. Hop Pop inflated his sack and glared at her.

“Young lady, I understand this transition is hard for you but I would appreciate some consideration after all my hard work to make your stay in Amphibia easier.”

Sasha rolled her eyes which only increased the tension.

“Hey, Sash, it's ok. Besides, mine are a bit comfier and both have the same size. We can switch if you want.”

“Nah, it's fine. I bet I can make better clothes if I had wool or fabric that hasn't been stored in a closet and almost being eaten by moths.”

“Why? Because Mrs. Whiny Princess’ delicate hands can sew much better than me?” Anne felt like a deja vu was going to happen.

“This Whiny Princess could beat dozens of toads and survive so sorry to burst your bubble that I'm so fragile and harmless!”

A glaring contest started and intensified in a matter of seconds, not even interrupted by Anne’s growling stomach. “Dude, cut it out. They're just clothes. They don't even smell that bad.”

“Pffft, fine. Just so you know, if I get a rash or bugs bite me in my sleep, you'll have to make me new clothes with something of real quality.”

“I thought Mrs. Princess could do that. Are you actually saying you can't?”

“I can. But why fix someone’s mess? It's yours after all.”

“Guys, why are you taking so long?”

“Yeah, we want to eat already!!” Sprig and Polly’s impatience, fortunately, cut the little spat short as Hop Pop sighed and walked to the door, ushering Anne and Sasha to follow him.

Once sat in the kitchen, the old frog started preparing pillbug pancakes for everyone while the children talked and entertained themselves, except Sasha. Without Wi-Fi or electricity, using her phone to pass the time was useless. And even if her cell phone had enough battery to last her several hours or until tomorrow, she had rewatched her favorite shows a lot of times and Suspicion Island wasn't on her top list.

“Ugh...” Her groan was muffled by the table for having her face squashed in the wood.

“Is Sasha alright? She sounds pretty down.” Sprig poked her with his fork and got his hand slapped harshly.

“Dude, you ok. You're not catching a weird Amphibia fever, aren't you?”

Another groan resounded in the dining room. Anne was no medical expert but from the tone in her friend’s voice and the physical language, she deduced Sasha hadn't got sick from anything but boredom.

“Eh, she must be bored,” Polly commented nonchalantly and devoured her pancakes.

“Wow, great analysis skills...”

“You wouldn't be bored if you at least put some effort and enthusiasm into helping with the farm, young lady,” Sasha’s eye slightly twitched at Hop Pop’s lecture. “I don't know that much about human entertainment but after the mess with Anne’s phone, it's wiser to focus on other more productive stuff. Like farming, reading, being a new member of society.”

“Kill me...!” She put her hands on her hair, ready to pull it out.

“Don’t be so dramatic, it's not-- Wait, drama, of course! Maybe some time at the stage might get rid of that pessimism of yours.”

“Wait, you guys have a theater?”

Hop Pop smirked at Sasha’s sudden interest in this topic. “Well, of course, we do. We're not “troglodytes”. Every month the acting troupe returns to Frog Valley and plays new stories in each main town.” As he spoke, a nostalgic, melancholic aura surrounded him, “I remember the days when I wanted to be an actor and travel around every part of Amphibia, gaining experience, meeting new people, writing about the exotic and dangerous places, the diverse towns and create compelling scripts that capture the audience’s hearts!”

“How? By telling them the difference between a tomato seed and a pebble?“

Hop Pop frowned. “I have you know, young lady, that besides farming experience I also studied theater and gathered acting skills. Just listen,” and he picked an old parchment.

“Here we go,” mumbled Anne, Sprig, and Polly at the same time.

“Sadness. The word is sadness. But look. There. A pond! Is it deep or shallow?”

“So what? Your role is a frog version of Confucio?”

“Who's that? Anyway, no. This is a scene from The Shallow Pond, the most emotionally visceral play of all times.”

“Meh, so much philosophical mumbo jumbo will only mush my brain.”

“That’s because you only seek shallow pleasure, not thought-provoking knowledge. It's a flaw that is subtly portrayed in another classic Fear the Dry Swamp,” he rasped his throat before acting, “Hark. For I am homeless. I am friendless. I am the Dry Swamp.”

Sasha remained unimpressed.

“Well, you can’t please everyone I guess.”

“Har har. Trust me, old man, those scenes would be better as lullabies. One more example and I would've fallen asleep. ”

“Oh sure, and you have some experience with acting?”

“Of course I have! On Earth, there are not only theater plays but cinemas, tv shows, and cartoons, and all of them require acting, being the character. Do you know that I had one of the major roles in a play called Peter Pan? Remember, Anne?”

“Oh yeah, and I had the protagonist role. Kind of weird to be on opposite sides but it was super fun. Except ending up with a broken leg when Marcy didn’t pay attention to the technical issues because of her video games.”

“Big yikes. Anywho, listen, buddy, you wanna know what acting is? Let me show you,” she grabbed the knife at the side of the pancakes and pointed it at Polly. “This isn't over! For your crimes, you'll pay a worse debt than death!”

Polly picked up her knife, catching on to the game. “Crimes, you say? It is you and your friends that have gotten in the way of my family’s legacy! MY destiny! But not anymore because he, Sprig, set up all the pieces in my favor!”

The frog kid dropped his fork, distracted by the sweetness of his pancakes. “Say whaaaaat?! What do I have to do with it?”

“Come on, Sprig. This is just a play.”

“Ok, but why do I have to be the bad guy or the guy who inadvertently helped them?  Why not the hero’s sidekick or a mysterious but honorable ally?”

“The plot is already set up, and you ARE the sidekick but you just didn't know it was for the bad guy.”

“Then at least I should figure out if I'm being used before giving the hero a lot of trouble.”

“Too late. You caused trouble, you gotta deal with it.”

“Hop Pop!” Sprig’s complaint did little to move his grandfather as he finished his pancakes. “Boy, it's just a story. Let her have this.”

“But I don't want to be the oblivious, gullible, bad guy’s sidekick! She didn't even tell me I was going to be a part of the story!”

“What's done is done, Sprig. As the older brother, you must take care of your little sister. Now, stop whining and play your part.”

He groaned, and his frustration grew much more when he saw the fake, puppy eyes from Polly.

“Fine. Oh no!” he started playing with his unwanted role. “I thought we were friends, Polly! Why do you ALWAYS have to make choices WITHOUT TELLING ME FIRST?!!”

Anne could cut the tension with a knife. “Hey, shouldn't we stop them?” she whispered to Sasha.

“Nah, more tension means more fun. Besides, it's sibling squabbles, it's not going to blow something up.” Sasha changed from being enraged at Polly to glaring accusingly at Sprig. “How dared you, Sprig?! YOU?! Of all people?! I trusted you with my life!”

“I didn't know this was going to happen! But again, SOMEONE decided to do stuff and then involve me AT THE LAST SECOND!!”

“Blame me all you want, you fool! You all thought you were smart, but your petty fights gave me the boost I needed! Idiots!!” She threw pieces of her pancake to Sasha, Anne, and Sprig to add more drama. “Imbeciles! Slugbrains! You all talk about comradery, about unity but where that got you?! Let that teach you what happens when you open your naive hearts!”

“At least we have hearts!” Anne also grabbed her knife and walked to Sasha’s side. “You see weakness in our pain and struggles but in the end, those things will give us enough strength to defeat you forever!”

“So be it! A fight to the death!” Polly launched against the three kids with the knife. Thankfully that knife like Anne and Sasha’s was more similar to a butter knife than a meat-cutting one so no one would get hurt. Hopefully.

“Kids, be careful with the knives! You might get hurt! And wood is not a resilient material,” Hop Pop’s order was ignored as the food utensils were used as prop swords in a sea of laughter and made-up scripts. Meanwhile, Sprig resorted to his faithful slingshot, using the bits of pancakes from his unfinished breakfast as bullets because the ammo he had was harder and not a wise option. Not that Hop Pop liked his safe choice because it meant a waste of food.

“Just so you know, you'll clean all of this!” Again, his words weren't registered by the kids. Oh well, he would have to surprise them with a bunch of brooms and water-filled buckets.

Sasha backed off some steps, sweating and pretending to be fatigued. “She’s too powerful!” She grabbed Sprig’s shoulders, her eyes shining with somber determination. “Sprig, maybe there is a chance for you to redeem yourself for how idiotic and reckless you were!”

“Ok, you're overdoing it,” he mumbled, offended.

“But still,” Sasha continued as if she didn't hear his complaint, “I know that you can manage to turn the tables in our favor. Go! Tell our people what's going on!” Then, much to his and Hop Pop’s disbelief, she lifted and threw him like a ragdoll.

“Sasha! I thought this was a play! Be gentle!”

“Yeah! And also tell me if you're going to do that to tell you no!”

Before Sasha could respond, Polly threw her knife at her, hitting the center of her back. As Hop Pop scolded the tadpole, the blonde fell to her knees, struggling to breathe.

“Sash!!” Anne ran to her side, grabbing her arms. Her friend mouthed ‘I'm fine. Keep acting’ which helped ease her worries.

“Oh, Sasha, please hold on. What would I do without you? Losing Sprig was painful enough!”

“Anne... Dear Anne...” Sasha caressed her cheek tenderly, “Sacrificing myself for you...will always be something I'll never regret...” The Slavic teenager closed her eyes and expired. Anne hugged her tightly, releasing a fake sob.

“As I said, this is what happens when you open your naive hearts! Hahahahahaha!”

“Naive I am but never alone! And as long as I breathe, Sasha’s sacrifice won't be in vain and Sprig will be safe from you!!”

“Aaaaand cut!” Sasha got up from the floor and dusted herself off. “There, Hop Pop. That's how you make a real play.”

“Real play? Don't make me laugh. I've seen a lot of this stuff in amateur theater companies. Generic action and drama are what everyone asks but what about the deep context behind the characters’ actions? The backgrounds and personalities of each character and the places they travel to? The nuance and layers of life portrayed in each scene?”

“Buddy, this is entertainment. Not a history lesson.”

“Lesson or not, theater shouldn't be solely about stirring strong emotions but inspiring people, challenging them, and questioning the status quo!” As he spoke, Sasha mimicked him with her hand playing as a mouth eliciting giggles from the others. The old frog didn't find it funny. “EJEM! As the teacher was saying, there is more to theater than getting rid of your boredom. The arts aren't a self-serving business but a vehicle to change the world.”

“But it can't work if they don't woo the audience. You just don't want to admit money and popularity are what move theater. All that philosophical mush you blubber about will fly above their heads unless they are excited about the acting.”

“Well, then what about this? See tonight’s play and give me your honest review. And I don't want a “too boring” or “too dull”, I want a strong argument.”

“Fine by me. More ammo to rub in your face.” Sasha turned around to go back to the basement until Hop Pop stopped her with a broom.

“Uh uh uh, this mess won't vanish, missy. You and the others must clean this.”

Her eye twitched. She was going to protest but Anne calmed her down by whispering something to her ear.

Ugh, whatever. Let's clean.

+++++++++++++

The Thai teenager found it charming how her friend touched the material of her new clothes, no, new swapped clothes with mixed feelings pooling in her eyes.

She felt tempted to offer another swap in case Sasha couldn't find Anne’s garments pleasant; however, it wasn't necessary as the other girl accommodated the clothes to start with the farming work.

Hurray...

Anne understood and related to the boredom it brought Sasha taking care of the farm and doing the chores; personally, though, those activities were a delight compared to the dangers she and the Plantars faced once in a while due to the human’s irresponsibility or the brutality of Amphibia’s nature.

Today’s task was sowing the family’s terrain with turnips and cucumber seeds, next irrigating them.

“What if we make this a little more exciting?” Anne propones.

Sasha smirked “What do you have in mind?”

“A competition. Sprig and I vs you and Polly. The team that can end this task faster on its side of the territory wins.”

“Oh, and the loser team will have to do the chores of the winners. No buts.” Polly proposed.

Sprig had an “illuminating” moment when he heard the conditions. If he won, he could rest and give Polly a piece of his mind by watching her clean the house. A great comeback for involving him in a game as a character he disliked.

“You're on! Prepare to eat your words, Polly!”

“Not if I make you do it first!”

“Now that's how I like it!” Sasha high-fived the tadpole. “But trust me, Squeaky Toy, when it's about winning, I do not hold back.”

Biiiiit intimidating…

“Ok, guys, ready?” Anne had on her hands two rakes, the same as Sasha. Behind them, Sprig and Polly accommodated two buckets filled to the brim with water. “3… 2… 1… GOOOOOO!!!!”

The Thai and Slavic teenager sprinted, forming straight lines in the soil with the rakes to throw the seeds in; although, Anne’s speed level surpassed Sasha much to the other girl’s frustration. The blonde cursed in mumbles as her bestie had almost 50% of the terrain ready to be watered but her legs were still weak and she hadn’t gained enough weight and muscle to overexert herself.

Flipping off any game ethics, Sasha clutched at her chest and fell as if she had been shot in the heart.

“Sash!!” Anne put her on her arms and inspected her whole, trying to find the reason why she fainted and then was pinned to the ground seconds later.

“Tickling time!!”

Long, smooth fingers poked and touched her stomach, and abdomen, the armpits eliciting a sea of chuckles she couldn’t get rid of for the hands evaded her attempts to trap them.

“S-S-S-S-Sasha—!!!! Hahahahahaha! S-S-S-Stop!! Y-You k-know I’m t-t-ticklish!! Hahahahahahaha!!” Sasha ignored her pleas and doubled down by blowing multiple raspberries on her belly.

“Hey, no cheating!” Sprig made the first step and just that because suddenly Polly had his head inside a bucket and all of him was drenched. “Oh, come o—!” And now his clothes were muddy.

“Haha!”

“Come back here!”

As Sprig chased Polly around the terrain, Sasha kept tickling Anne to the point of not even letting her breathe. The Thai girl was this close to punching her to gather some precious air when the hands left her alone and through her tears, she saw Sasha hurrying to finish her side of the land.

She got up with the remnants of her energy to end her task but her lungs demanded rest after being pushed to the limit with the endless tickling.

Sasha made crooked lines with her rakes and even the cane, sending the seeds flying at top speed even when her work could be labeled as mediocre.

“There done! Polly, your turn!”

“On it!” Polly was going to grab her bucket of water but collided with Sprig’s foot as he picked up the item first. “Hey! No fair!”

“You and Sasha cheated, so it's fair to stop you.”

“Stop this!” Sprig shrieked as Polly’s teeth were nailed to his leg.

“Get it off! Get it off!”

“Kids, what is going on? Have you finiiiiiiii-- what is this mess?!” Hop Pop screamed, pointing at the not watered terrain with two unequal sides finished, Sprig shaking his leg that had Polly stuck on it, and Anne and Sasha watching the show dumbfounded.

+++++++++++++++++

“Let me see if I got this right, Anne. You proposed a team competition to make the farming work more fun.”

“Yep”

“And the deal was that the loser team would do its chores plus the ones from the winner team.”

“Aha”

“Then Sasha cheated and Polly followed after.”

“And she bit my leg!” Polly stuck her tongue at her brother.

“Yep, yep, yep. You got it all right, HP.”

“Please don't call me that. Anyway, seeing as you kids concentrated more on fun stuff than doing your farm homework right, you give me no choice but the deal is over. All of you to chore duty, right now!”

“WHAT?!”

“But there was no winner!”

“Polly Petunia Plantar, I said to take the farm work seriously, not turning it into a contest to then pin the rest of the chores to the loser. And none of you haven't even finished! So, no deal, no contests, and no more shenanigans. You'll fix this disaster and then clean the house, your rooms, feed Bessie, and help me with lunch. Now, up! There is no time to waste!”

The kids groaned and got up from the sofa to start, all except Sprig.

“Boy, you're also included.”

“Hop Pop, me and Anne would have been the winner team fairly. None of us cheated. I think Polly should do her chores and mine for a lesson.”

“And that's the reason why mixing games and farming isn't a good idea. Besides, I said chore duty for everyone and I meant it.”

“But Hop Pop, she--”

“Sprig, I've been clear and I won't go back on my word. Chore duty for everyone. And as the older brother, you must set a good example for Polly. Now get up and help the others. And if you keep complaining, I'll ground you.”

Sprig raised his arms and stormed off.

This was a never-ending cycle. Polly was slightly inconvenienced, Sprig had to give up something for her. Polly was small, Sprig had to be a babysitter even when he had plans for the day. Polly was a sore loser, Sprig had to surrender his own victory for her sake.

And the competition didn't even have a winner today! Hop Pop interrupted their game and put them all to work!

“Ugh!”

“Something’s wrong, dude?” He glanced at the kitchen; thankfully, Sasha and Polly were somewhere else like in their rooms or another part of the house cleaning or wasting time.

“It’s not fair.”

“Yeah, I know. We could've been the winners but... Eh... Sasha is too competitive and allergic to losing. She can also be quite harsh when it comes to crushing competence.”

“It's not that. It's Polly.”

“Polly?”

“Yeah! Every time she asks for something, I have to make the sacrifice for her to get it. But when has it been my turn? Hop Pop called her more mature than I but then he wants me to be the bigger frog.”

“Can't say I relate, dude. I'm an only child and it's awesome!”

“Lucky you. Sometimes it feels like Hop Pop cares more about her than me.”

“Oh. Well, she's younger. Adults tend to coddle babies more than older children.”

“But what about me? Aren't I a kid too?”

“Don’t think too much about it. We can still have fun at the theater and laugh at the actors if you want.”

“Mmm, yeah... I know Hop Pop wants me to be a responsible adult,” Sprig continued venting, he wanted it out. “And I’d hate to let him down but he expects a lot of me and then it's not enough and he points at Polly as if I'm not at her level. Doesn't he trust me?”

Didn't he trust him?

Anne looked away.

‘Another C, young lady?’

‘C+, mom. This time I did my best!’

‘Anne, do you think this score is doing your best? At this point, you'll repeat the grade!’

‘I also don't get it, Anne. Didn't Marcy help you study?’ Asked her father.

‘I bet she convinced her to waste time with magazines and video games.’ Oum opined exasperated.

‘Mom!’

‘Don’t Mom me, young lady. If you wanted to prove me otherwise, then this score should've been higher.’

‘But we did study! Marcy even insisted to hide all the distractions. Besides, she always plays video games but I don't see anyone complaining.’

‘Because she gets an A on every test.’ Her mother argued.

‘Maybe if you adopted her methods to study, your scores in school would improve greatly.’ Dad suggested.

‘Dad, I'm not Marcy. She's a genius.’

‘We don't ask you to be a genius, Anne. We ask you to take this more seriously. To work harder. For now, it's good that Marcy has your back and tutors you whenever you struggle but she won't be there when you try to get into a college or a job. You can't rely on her forever.’

‘Mom, it's Marcy. She was stuck in the hospital for 2 weeks after the zoo incident. Remember? The zoo incident with 500 snakes?’

‘I still can't believe she survived.’

‘That is a minor inconvenience compared to how stuck you'll be if you don't get your stuff together, Anne. At least have your friend as an example. You can't wander and let your future waste away like that.’

“Anne? Anne~. Hello~! Anne!”

“Uh? Wha-? Is it night already?”

“Nope, you just zoned out.” Anne made an “oh” expression and looked away again. “Are you ok?”

“Me? Pffft, of course, I'm ok.”

“Really? Because you weren't responding and you had a face that said “Oh boy, I'm in trouble” or “Yeeesh, that's embarrassing”, unless I got it wrong.”

“Don’t worry, Sprig. I'm fine. Hey, what if we finish the chores quickly to grab a snack later? I don't want to wait for lunch.”

“Sure!” As Sprig picked the dishes to wash, he didn't notice Anne’s conflicted expression when she glanced at her BFF picture.

+++++++++++

“Man, we could've won! Why did Sprig have to yell so hard?”

“I know, right? Less boring old man work, more time to relax and find a way to recharge my phone because it is pffffft.”

“It barfs?”

“No! Ew! It--”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Just kidding. Hey, Anne found a way to recharge her phone when Hop Pop used it all night.”

“Wait, really? Where?” Then she shook her head. “No no. You're messing up with me. It's not possible.”

“Uh uh, it is.”

“Aha, sure, and I'm Queen Elizabeth. Thanks for giving me false hope but I doubt people in this town or all of Amphibia know what electricity is.”

“Oh, but we have a creature that creates what you're looking for.” Polly wiggled her eyebrows.

Minutes later and having put aside their chores for an indefinite hiatus, the pollywog showed Sasha Hop Pop’s book about the wildlife of Amphibia. In front of her was a page with the image of a sharp-pointed mountain and beside that image was the picture of a cartoonish worm with long horns and weird-looking eyes, one with a + as a pupil and the other with a -.

“This thing can bring my phone back to life?”

“Yep, we tried it with Anne’s and it worked!”

“Alright then, let’s go!”

“Wait, what about the others?”

Wonderful, the others. The answer was obvious even for a fool.

“What about this? Tomorrow we'll go on a girl adventure, just you and I. It'll be quick and no one will ever know.”

“And Anne?”

“After the piggy worm incident, she's gotten a biiiiiiit overprotective, and annoying. Especially annoying.”

“Not that I can blame her but yeah, she would say no and tell Hop Pop. Anyway, it's settled, sis. Danger, here we go!” Polly high-fived Sasha with her little flipper. This would be so much fun!

As they exited the room before anyone caught them, the pollywog grabbed the book giggling.

++++++++++++

Night. Finally, night came, if someone were to tell Sasha that she would be waiting for a boring theater play of another world for hours as entertainment because her phone was dead and a geezer told her to, she would've laughed and crushed you in any way possible. Unfortunately, such a scenario was no hypothesis as she, Anne, and the Plantars entered the made-up auditorium and waited for Hop Pop to buy them popcorn.

“Here we are, kids! Theater night! Now go get your seats! Oh, and remember Sasha, no matter what happens, do NOT choose a seat close to Toadstool.”

“Even if someone offered me one million dollars, I wouldn't do it.” Her eyes saw two colorful blurs pass her by.

Sprig ran as if his life depended on it, never taking the tree stump on the first line of seats out of his sight. It was clean, plain, and with a lot of space. Luck in its purest form!

Behind him, Polly struggled to jump at a bigger length to surpass her brother. Seeing that he was getting farther away, she took advantage of her spherical shape, rolling around like a mad wheel to the seat only to be beaten by Sprig as he hopped high enough to sit there.

“Haha!” He stuck out his tongue at her.

“No fair! You have appendages!”

“Sprig, let Polly have the stump.” Blap! His triumph bubble burst. “Say what?! Hop Pop, I came here first. Why can't she look for another seat?”

“Boy, I told you before, older brothers must look out for their little sisters. Now, get up and go to the seat over there.” If his indignation was like a rebellious candle now it felt like a furious flame. The stump Hop Pop pointed at was rotten, bug-covered, and pretty unstable. Worst of all, it was on the last line of seats.

Oh, but the cherry on the cake was Polly’s smug, fake innocent smile and those deceitful sweet eyes of her rubbing his humiliation on his face!

The moment he got up, albeit reluctantly, Polly climbed the seat, and then Sasha and Anne sat there.

“Wait a second, since when you two were invited?”

“Ladies come first, twerp. And there is enough space for three. Now shoo shoo, the show is about to start.”

Anne smiled at him apologetically, mouthing ‘Don’t worry, dude. I'll join you later.’ and then she glared at her friend for being a jerk. It didn't cheer up Sprig in the slightest and he stormed off to the rotten stump.

“Sash, you didn't have to be so harsh with him.”

“You heard Hop Pop: Polly gets the seat and she likes us. Right, girlfriend?”

“Did you say something?” Polly asked or tries to, her mouth was filled with popcorn.

Anne felt compelled to protest but then Toadstool appeared on stage, maybe to present the acting group.

“Listen, everybody, I have bad news. The acting troupe has been permanently delayed because they accidentally crossed paths with love doves, and you know what happens when those beasts are bothered.”

“Love dove?” Sasha asked among the audience’s gasps and complaints.

“Giant doves that love to eat frogs.”

Sasha should be happy, she wouldn't have to be bored to death by some century-old acting troupe. The new problem was that no theater play meant hours of this day wasted for nothing. And more boredom, that too.

Thank goodness they had Anne and some of her creative ideas! She lauded herself as she got up. “Guys, don't worry. I have a much better option than drama and disguise, it is called: movies.”

“Mowhat?”

“Trust me, once you see it, you'll love it!”

She ran to the stage, took off her remaining shoe, and placed her phone on it. Clicking through buttons and apps, she managed to find a trailer for her favorite movie. “Hey, does anyone here have a giant pane of glass?”

“I'm on it,” Tad entered his glass workshop and emerged with the item she was asking for.

“Thanks, dude.”

“Yep.”

“Okay, so tonight I'm going to show you the timeless classic Love Choice, which has always been one of my favorites because--”

“Just start the movie!!”

“Hahaha... You got it,” she pressed play.

++++++++++++++++

Despite confessing his love for Suspicion Island many weeks ago, Hop Pop was still, and he bet he would always be, dumbfounded by Earth culture regarding theater and the arts. Sure, the season Anne showed them of Suspicion Island was captivating in its nonsense but this “movie” as she called seemed to elude logic at every corner. Or him whenever his brain processed the information for a scrap of reason.

Like, how can teenagers be grounded and supernatural at the same time? The contradiction could ruin the plot. And why Hunter had his abs in neon colors? What kind of function they had like that or was it part of his character?

And Constance’s face... She embodied misery and drama in their finest form but maybe a bit too much. Perhaps the actress was taking the role too seriously.

And what's with Alastair's eyes? They were so black they looked creepy, and he didn't know if people on Earth used to do this but drinking from the tears of someone else while they were talking kind of killed the charm, if Alastair had it, of the deer boy.

If he did the same with Sylvia, she would break his jaw.

Anywho, the movie was over and as much as his brain couldn't compute with such a fever dream, he was glad Anne’s idea saved theater night. Of course, he spoke too soon because everyone even Sprig and Polly were fighting over whom Candance should be with, and much to his chagrin, his grandchildren took it to the next level.

“Listen up, I don't even want to live in a town with someone who likes Alastair!”

“Well, I don't wanna live in a town with someone who likes Hunter!”

“That does it! Everybody who chooses Hunter, get behind me!”

“Yeah!”

“He looks strong!”

“He's so attractive!”

“You teach them, girl!” Wait! Why was Sasha on the stage?!

“Well, anyone who likes Alastair, can get behind me!”

“Alastair’s my man!”

“Definitely Alastair.”

Alright, time to damage control. “Sprig, just let Polly win this one before everything gets worse.”

“No way, Hop Pop. I'm done with her pollywog special treatment,” special what? “We ain't backing down!”

“It's war!!”

People say that it is far easier to break something than to fix it and they were right. More ludicrous is the fact that all it took to divide the whole town was the different opinions about this “movie”.

“Oh no, dude. This is worse, so much worse. It's called shipping war.”

Anne’s terrifying, somber expression would've warned him enough except that he didn't know what she was talking about. Though, even if he knew, all Wartwood wouldn't be that obsessed with their own ideas to tear itself apart.

Waiting. The solution couldn't be more clear. Tomorrow morning, this nonsense would be over.

++++++++++++++++

“Listen, everybody, if we want to beat those Alastair’s weaklings we need 3 things: brain, brawn, and power!” The others cheered at Polly’s words, exchanging clothes to emulate Hunter’s fashion style and also crafting fake beards and cyborg's eyes.

“One question, why is the beast Sasha here?”

“Yeah, is it safe if she's in the Hunter team? What if she's a spy or sabotages us for her own pleasure?”

“Ok, buddy, number 1, Squeaky Toy’s team is for losers.”

“Squeaky Toy?”

“That's what she calls Sprig,” Polly explained.

“And number two, this team is the winning team by default. And I like Polly, she has attitude,” both girls high-fived. “Now, who's ready to kick some butts?”

“Because we are the Hunter team, the winners! For Hunter!”

“FOR HUNTER!!!”

The chorus could be heard for miles but it didn't echo as strongly as their enthusiasm to crush the competence.

“This feels awesome! So this is what power tastes like? Cool!”

“Yep, nothing better than a war cry for the biggest battle. People in my world get really invested in their favorite team. I even have to be the moral support for their favorite team.”

“You? Moral support?” Polly mocked but Sasha didn't mind.

“I was a cheerleader back on Earth. We were pretty popular because we tell others how cool our team was.”

“Even with movies?”

“Nope, just sports. And this shipping war is not so much of my interest anyway even if I like Love Choice. Humiliating Toadstool is the goal here to see his face contorting at the fall of his reputation!”

“Revenge then. Welp, you're welcome to destroy him, but don't exaggerate. Hop Pop will freak out if you do and ground us both.”

“Pffft, with the army we have, I doubt it.”

Meanwhile, on the right side of the town, Sprig gathered all of Alastair’s fans like him to plan their next move.

“We might not have muscles, beards, and those weird, shiny abs like Hunter, but we have heart and inspiration! Just like Alastair!  And those are much more powerful than a bunch of abs that can change color. Am I right?”

“Yeah!”

“Alastair is the superior man!”

“Boo to Hunter!”

“That’s what I'm talking about!”

“But, Sprig, what are you going to do with Sasha?” Maddie asked. “I saw her going with Polly and the other half of the town.”

“If that’s true, then should we be worried about what she might do to any of them? Especially to Polly?” inquired a Ferriaolo.

“I should be more worried about what they might do together to win. For that reason, we should take A LOT of steps ahead. Ears alert, eyes open! If a single filthy Hunter’s foot dares to enter our territory, we'll attack! Al hail Alastair!”

“ALL HAIL ALASTAIR!!”

++++++++++++++++

Aaahhh, Amphibia morning.

Birds chirping, giant dragonflies kidnapping poor travelers, the landscape as ominous and deadly as ever, and a bright sun on a clear blue sky. Nothing could ever r--

“Hop Pop! Hop Pop! Wake up, man! You have to see this!” Anne screamed frantically as she shook the poor old frog like a maraca.

“Wh-What? What the--?! Anne, calm down!”

“Let's go!”

“Go where?” He said while getting off his bed.

“To the town!”

His eyes saw the scenario though his mind was reluctant to believe this. Wartwood had become a bicolor town. Left side on red and the right side on purple. And to make it more nonsensical, each side sported a flag with the face of Hunter and Alastair.

Yep, this got worse.

From where he and Anne stood, Hop Pop could see the two teams saluting their ring leaders: Polly and Sasha, and Sprig.

“I can't believe this! The town split right in the middle!”

“Let's not freak out, Anne. I've lived here for a long time and I've seen Wartwood having feuds for the stupidest reasons. Once we had this disagreement over what was better produce: avocado or almonds and it almost destroyed the whole town.”

“No offense, HP, but knowing that doesn't make me feel better. And don't forget Sasha is in the middle of this!”

“Yeah, it is concerning. She might get hurt. We can get pretty...intense when we want to be right about something.”

“Not only that, Toadstool is on the opposite team, and knowing Sasha she would do anything to crush him!”

“Say what?! No! If that happens, she’ll be kicked out of town! That's it! We'll finish this feud before it starts!”

“Ok, then you go to talk with Polly and Sasha and I’ll go talk with Sprig—“

“No,” Anne’s bewildered look demanded an explanation. “I've started to learn that Sasha is pretty stubborn. A long lecture won't convince her. We need action. You stop Sprig any way possible; I'll do the same with Polly and Sasha.”

Anne nodded, “Good luck.”

+++++++++++++++

Shrieks and puzzling sounds escaped Sprig’s mouth while he made theatrical gestures, never opening his eyes as if he was communicating with the Afterlife. Once he finished, the frog boy bowed, receiving applause, his few spectators sniffing.

“Marvelous, leader Sprig!”

“Alastair would be so proud of you!”

“You have the voice of an angel.”

“Thank you, thank you. Now, who's ready to teach me their progress on Alastair’s call? Don't worry, there won't be mockery or judgment, just encouragement to do better.”

Before anyone could say anything, Maddie shoved the others, frantic and alarmed.

“Sprig, those Hunter idiots have painted Alastair’s statues red and destroyed the books with our schedules!”

“What?!” He picked up his quena, signaling with its musical notes to regroup and find the culprit.

An apologetic laugh rattled softly a bush that was in the middle of two houses. Anne got up and covered her mouth with a handkerchief; holding her hand-crafted scythe tightly, she climbed the wooden pole where Alastair’s flag waved elegantly.

Carefully, she tore apart the ropes and climbed down with the flag not without leaving a message:

‘You want your dumb flag so much? Then find me at the Plantar’s house asap. Just you Sprig!

Polly’

She hoped her handwriting can deceive Sprig. A sting of guilt churned in her stomach; this was her new best friend she was tricking, he would get mad for such a trap. Nonetheless, the sacrifice was necessary, and she could make up to him later when everyone has calmed down and forgotten this silly squabble.

The first phase of her plan was done! Now to phase two, too--

“Ow! Hey, watch where you--?” Her pupils expanded in horror.

“Well, well, well, Anne Boonchuy, getting in trouble, don’t you?” Toadstool narrowed his eyes, a foot tapped the ground impatiently. For real? Of all the times, why now? Why didn't he follow the others?

Anne bolted to escape, a tongue gripped her ankle and she kissed the ground. The flag was snatched out of her hand before she was carried like a sack of potatoes strongly despite her protests.

So much for a flawless plan.

On the other side of Wartwood, Hop Pop pouted shamefully at every step he conjured in his mind to destabilize Polly and Sasha’s army. Multiple fruits and a lot of mud had been stored in his pockets, same ones he would have to wash later, his eyes scanning the area for any Hunter fan that might cross paths with him. No matter if he hadn’t picked a side, he was still an outsider and the Hunter team could do whatever they wanted if Sasha ordered them to. A shiver traveled down his spine; being scared of a kid spoke a lot of how the blonde tended to influence others.

He would have to correct that.

Steps were heard two kilometers away from him, he hid in a flash. A Hunter squad checked the perimeter. Not for too long.

“Aaghhh!!” a mudball hit one scout in the face.

“Hey! Show yourself, you--!” A rotten fruit splashed on the other member.

The other two separated, searching for the attacker; two more fruits knocked them out.

“Sorry,” he murmured and tied them up with a rope.

Defeating the guards, checked. To step number two, wreak havoc, noisy havoc.

Clash!!

“Someone is attacking our base!!” Felicia blew a horn prompting 7 frogs to search for Hop Pop. He threw mudballs at different windows, confusing the Hunter fans until he spot Sasha and Polly that were probing for clues. No eyes were on him, and his steps were too light to be heard. In one, two...

“Mmmfmfm!!!!” A tongue wrapped itself around Sasha’s neck, a strong pull separated from Polly before the tadpole could discover who it was.

“Sasha has been kidnapped!! Find the kidnapper!! Find them!!”

“I mean, she wasn't that likable to--”

“JUST DO IT!!” Polly’s fuming gaze pierced through the hesitant frog and he and the others split into groups of 3 to rescue her.

While that happened, Sasha was being dragged to the borders of the town, the sudden lack of air evaporated as she could fill her lungs again.

A vicious snarl attempted in vain to intimidate the culprit once she saw his face.

“You’re really brave or have a death wish if you decided to do this to me, old man.”

“Sasha, listen, this feud you and Polly have with Sprig is over. You don't understand the danger you're putting yourself into.”

“Oh no, man. It's YOU who doesn't get it!!”

Raising her cane, her hit touched the air due to Hop Pop’s agility though it didn't deter her to beat him into a pulp. Fortunately, the farmer resorted to a simple but effective strategy: energy draining by evasion. For every kick or punch, he jumped high or far enough, pissing her off, and motivating her to waste her stamina.

“What happens, Sasha?” he asked after hopping for the nth time. “I thought a tough leader like you could rid of me in the blink of an eye! Was your bravado all talk in the end?”

“Shut up!” she threw her cane at him only to miss for a few centimeters. His tongue hit her left foot and she fell to the ground.

The blonde cursed, sweating, boiling in frustration.

Hop Pop peeked at his feet, apologetically. Perhaps he overdid on this mission; he hoped Sasha could understand his reasoning once she cooled off enough to listen.

“Aaagghh!!!” Or maybe not.

Much to his surprise, a net had been shot at him by Toadie and other two frogs. Polly and Wartilda helped Sasha get up. A triumphant smirk loomed over him; whatever the human had in store for Hopediah couldn't be worse than his humiliating and stupidly easy-to-prevent failure.

+++++++++++++++++

Talking about failure that could've been prevented easily, Anne struggled against the ropes and the gag in her mouth. Like, a gag in her mouth! What the heck?! These guys were exaggerating all for a piece of fiction!!

“Leader Sprig, what do you want us to do with her?”

“Let's put her into the deer prison. She might like it,” at Toadstool’s suggestion, the Thai teenager shook her head, her eyes pleading with Sprig to have her mouth free and explain.

“Guys, leave us alone for a while. Don’t worry, I got this.” His followers walked away, and although Toadstool still suspected of her he joined the others. Once it was only the two of them, Sprig took away the gag, relieving Anne from how uncomfortable it was.

“Oh, God! Thanks, dude! Seriously, doing that was overkill!”

“Yeah, sorry about that. Their devotion can be a bit extreme.”

“A bit?! Sprig, I'm tied to a pole!”

“Because you destroyed our stuff and ruined the statues! Why Anne?”

“We had no choice.”

“We?” Sprig’s confusion turned into horror. “Polly convinced you to do this?!”

“No! It's Hop Pop and me.”

“Hop Pop?!”

“Yeah. The thing is, if this war keeps going on, there is a chance Sasha might be kicked out of the town.”

“What do you mean?”

“She’s in the Hunter team. Toadstool is in the Alastair team.”

“Oh... OH...” He grimaced.

“Exactly, so, why don't you just tell Polly you and the others are surrendering and we can go back home laughing? Doesn't that sound good?”

“You don't get it, Anne. I’m always giving up stuff for Polly. And even if I gave up, I don't think that will stop Sasha from trying to humiliate the mayor.”

“Come on, Sprig. Do it for me? Please?” He pursed his lips, drumming his fingers on his arm. “What about this? Surrender but don't do it for Polly, do it for me. That's what best friends are for, right? Spranne against the world?”

His lip pursing intensified. Anne put on impressive puppy eyes, wavering her lower lip.

Frog, no. Why the puppy eyes?

“Fine! Fine,” Sprig said. “For Spranne, but it’d better be worth it.”

In a matter of seconds, the ropes were down. Now what was left was to find Hop Pop, maybe the three could come up with a good plan.

“Ok, dude, let's go!”

The moment they reached the other side of Wartwood, their jaws touched the ground. Before them was a pole and in that pole, Hop Pop was hanging from his underwear with a cone-shaped hat that said ‘Dummy’.

Yep. That was Polly for you. Or Sasha. Or both. Yeah, maybe both.

“K-Kids! Oh, thank Frog, you're here. Be careful, there might be guards scouting the area.”

“I can't believe Sasha and Polly did the wedgie with you,” Anne said while climbing the pole to free the old frog. Sprig checked the perimeter in case someone appeared. A few minutes later, the farmer was on the ground, butt numb because of the wedgie and with nasty back pain.

“I have to say I'm impressed with your first idea, Anne. I didn't think for a second that Sprig would be convinced so easily.”

“Just so you know, Hop Pop, I'm surrendering for Anne, not for Polly. Besides, now that we're here, we need to talk about--”

Glass breaking and multiple voices yelling cut his sentence. In the middle of Alastair’s town, a fiery battle between Hunter fans and Alastair's followers had initiated.

Fruits and vegetables of all shapes and colors flew from different hands, colliding with their targets. People even brought crafted catapults, machine guns, and bazookas!

“Keep firing! Don't let them take their territory back!!” Polly ordered, evading as many fruits as her tiny body could. A rotten lettuce was going to hit her when Sasha’s hand caught it and she threw it into the face of the attacker.

“Shoot the net!” Sasha screamed. Toadie fired, trapping Croaker and Maddie.

“Retreat! Everyone, retreat!”

“Wait, what about Leader Sprig? What if he was captured?”

“We can’t save him if we are also captured! Just go!” The frogs lucky enough to not be inside the nets escaped, getting lost in the buildings.

“Haha! Get that, you wimpy deer cowards! All hail Hunter!!”

Hunter team cheered and high-fived, invigorated by Polly’s fierceness and their victory.

“Ok, listen, everyone, the battle might be won but the war is far from being over. Their leader must surrender if we want complete control over their side of the town! So, we’ll corner them and hold them as hostages. That way Squeaky Toy will give up! Who’s with me?!”

Sasha’s idea was bordering on criminal but Polly figured she would calm down once they got Sprig to give in.

“Come on, Hunter team!” Said Polly after jumping onto Sasha’s shoulder. “For total dominance!”

“All hail Hunter!!”

Unbeknownst to all of them, three figures had witnessed everything.

+++++++++++++++++

Anne paced back and forth, pulling at her hair. Sasha was extremely competitive, yeah. She hated losing with a burning passion, of course. She never gave up, that’s obvious. She ruthlessly crushed her opponents, true, scarily true. However, hostages? Was she for real?! That was going more than far!

Maybe she shouldn’t have used the Love Choice trailer as a movie. I mean, look where it got them!

“What do we do, dude? What do we do?! This is madness!”

“Y-You know, I’m kind of regretting the “giving up” option right now,” Sprig commented, fidgeting with his fingers. “But I don’t want anyone to get hurt. Though I don’t want whatever punishment Sasha might have for me either!”

“We’ll separate them. If Sasha is brought somewhere else, I can knock some sense into Polly and the rest of the town. But the distraction has to be believable enough to keep her away from the conflict.”

An imaginary lightbulb appeared over Anne. “Me in danger,” at Hop Pop and Sprig’s confused expressions, she explained. “It’ll be easy. If she gets word that something horrible is happening to me, she will drop the commander act and try to save me. But someone has to tell her.”

“It cannot be me. After the trap I set on her, she will see right through me.” Hop Pop said.

“Then it will be me.” Sprig replied.

“Alright, but your act must be perfect. If not, it’s over.”

“And before anyone follows Sasha, I will stop the whole town and explain what happened.” Anne and Sprig nodded at his idea and split. The Thai girl ran until she arrived at the Plantar’s house while the farmer frog and his grandson searched for the girl and the Hunter team.

The chaos of the shipping war could be heard a few kilometers away. Some of Alastair’s followers tried to defend themselves from the fruit shooting, getting caught by nets and dragged to a corner.

The only people still fighting were Toadstool, Stumpy, Albus Buckweed, and two other frogs.

Sasha’s cheeks hurt a lot due to the huge smile on her face; the hurt was worth it. Oh! The face she would see on that imbecilic excuse of mayor’s face would be priceless!

“Game over,” She lifted a huge watermelon, panting due to the effort, and aimed at Toadstool…

“GUYS!! GUYS!!”

“It’s Sprig Plantar!” The remaining Alastair’s followers rejoiced at seeing their leader coming back for them.

“Guys! Stop the war, right now! This is serious! Anne has been kidnapped!!”

WHAT?!” The watermelon slipped from Sasha’s hands.

“What happened? Who did this?” The blonde asked Sprig, gripping his shoulders.

Now, Sprig didn’t like Sasha that much, she was intimidating, kind of a bully, selfish, and entitled. However, the moment he said Anne was in danger, her tough person vanished, replaced by a girl hardened by protective determination and deep care. Yikes, he was starting to feel guilty for lying to her. Nonetheless, if he hesitated, the plan would crumble and she would figure it out.

“She was approaching me to tell me something but then a giant dragonfly grabbed her and flew away!”

“Directions, now!!” Sasha barked.

“O-Over there,” he pointed to the right. “It flew over the path that leads to the house!” Sasha’s legs acted on their own despite their weakness and her arms used the cane as an oar to impulse herself and not fall.

As she got farther from everyone, Hop Pop got out from his hiding spot and pat Sprig on the back. “Well done, boy. We did it.”

A chorus of “Uh?” prompted them to turn around and regard the confused audience.

“Alright, fellas, calm down. First of all, no, Anne is not in danger. This was a plan she, Sprig, and I concocted to separate Sasha from this mess. Second, the war is over. No, I don’t care if there should be a winner. Don’t forget the town almost burnt because of the avocado vs almond feud. So, please, put your weapons down and return home.”

A new chorus, this time of groans and complaints, emerged from the multitude but no one dared to keep fighting, perhaps the heat of the battle had died down after they believed Anne needed help. Anyway, what mattered at that moment lay before him, his two grandchildren.

Unexpectedly, as he opened his mouth to give a heck of a lecture, Sprig beat him to it.

“Well, Polly, what do you have to say about this? Mmm?”

“That you’re a sore loser that resorted to cheating because I had the upper hand?”

“No! So-rry! Can you hear it? Sorry! Apologize!”

“What?! Why should I apologize? I wasn’t the one who cheated and lied!”

“But if you had given up instead of always expecting to be handed what you wanted, the town wouldn’t have split in half!”

“You should’ve surrendered first!”

“No! You first!”

“Kids, please, can we not travel through this path again? What if—“

“Oh no, Hop Pop, don’t go with “Hey, Sprig, what if you accept you’re wrong so Polly can be happy and we can rest?”. It’s the same every time! Why can’t you at least be harsher on her instead of giving her special treatment?”

Again with that? “Boy, mind elaborating on those terms?”

“Come on, don’t tell me you haven’t noticed. I’m always sacrificing something or dropping what I’m doing whenever she is slightly inconvenienced. But you never tell her to do the same!”

“That’s because—“

“Because I’m the older sibling. Yeah, yeah, sure. Aren’t I a kid, though? The play during breakfast, the seat on Theather Night, even when you told me to let her win about who was better -Hunter or Alastair-, and those were three! Year after year and she still is being spoiled rotten.” Sprig crossed her arms.

“Hey! I’m not!”

“You are!”

“Sprig, Polly is not spoiled rotten just because you give up stuff for her.”

“But she’s starting to be. Whenever she gets what she wants at my expense, she smiles smugly with those fake sweet eyes! Sometimes… Sometimes I wonder if you care about her more than me.”

“Boy, I care and love you both equally.”

“But you never expect that much from her. The day we met Anne, you said Polly was more mature than me; you didn’t ask her to prove herself. Meanwhile, I have to do that so you can trust me!”

“I didn’t ride a bull worm into the house or attract giant flies by letting the lights on when Hop Pop had said to turn them off. That’s why I’m more mature than you!” Polly argued.

“Those were mistakes! And yeah, I admit it, I’m no genius or the most responsible person but haven’t I tried to make you proud, Hop Pop? Or do the right thing?”

“Of course, you did, kiddo. You have a big heart.”

“Then why do you always ask me to give up stuff for Polly but don’t do the same with her? Just because she’s younger? What? Do you think that’s the only condition to have your wishes on a silver plate? I have wishes and wants too, you know!”

It illuminated him then, what Sprig was talking about. He considered sibling relationships a protective system: the older was the caregiver and the younger was the receiver of the protection. Sadly, his short-sightedness neglected his grandson’s feelings and turned this system into a one-sided thing. He must correct that.

“Sprig, I owe you a huge apology. I’ve been taught for a long time that older siblings had to look out for their younger ones; it also made sense to me. But I was blinded by that logic and put too much pressure on you. I can’t deny that you can be impulsive and reckless when you want to be, but your courage and kindness are admirable. I’m proud of how much you’ve grown, mistakes and all.” Hop Pop exhaled deeply. “Listen, kids, I’m still a fervent believer that older siblings should be there for their little siblings, but a change must be made. From now on, you two should take care of each other. Be understanding and supportive of one another. Make compromises for the sake of your sister or brother. And I won’t be the one telling you to do it. It must come from the bottom of your heart. Ah, don’t forget though, that I will give you advice or a lecture whenever things get out of control. Because yes, there will be fights, you will disagree, that’s siblinghood, but the love and loyalty are still there. Now, Polly, do you have something to say to Sprig?”

The pollywog glanced at her brother, reluctant to be honest about her own fault that provoked this mess. Reflecting on things, she comprehended begrudgingly and guiltily Sprig’s frustrations. If she were the older sibling and was told to always make sacrifices for the younger one and not have at least thanks or some appreciation, she would implode.

“Sprig… I’m sorry for not thanking you enough for what you give up for me. I’ll try to be more appreciative and do the same for you.”

“Thanks, Polly. I forgive you. Hug?”

“Hug,” and both hugged.

“Pat, pat.”

Hop Pop’s whole body filled with joy and relief. Finally some well-deserved peace and quiet.

++++++++++++++++

How much has she been running since Sprig told her the news? An hour? Two? Was she even going in the right direction? Maybe she should come back and ask for— No! Absolutely no! She couldn’t waste time. Anne needed her. She was in trouble!

Goddammit, why did she let this useless shipping war consume her this much to neglect Anne’s safety?

And how could she find the dragonfly or where it lived? What if it had dropped Anne from the sky?! Freeze frames surged in her mind, horrific memories from Grubhog day, the moment she plummeted to her death until Anne saved her.

She couldn’t let such a thing happen to Anne!

“Come on, come on! Keep working, stupid legs!” Her new clothes were damp due to the sweat and dirty for she had tripped several times because of her increasing anxiety. Her heart drummed incessantly, her muscles screamed for respite; she kept pushing them more and more.

Her mind must be playing with her because a few kilometers away she saw a dark brown ball with twigs and leaves. She rubbed her eyes; that same ball was nothing but Anne’s hair. Happiness flourished in her heart. She was ok!

The logical side of her brain refused to believe it. How? Squeaky Toy had said a giant insect had captured her and getting away from that without breaking half her skeleton because of the fall would take a miracle. Did Anne find out a way to save herself?

She would have to ask because the blonde was a few meters from her bestie now. “Anne! Anne!”

“Sasha!” The tan-skinned girl sprinted to her friend, receiving a tackle hug from her. “Wow, dude! Are you—?”

“You’re alive! You’re ok! I-I thought you—” Sasha tightened her hug, sobbing. If she had pulled away for a few seconds she would’ve seen Anne’s guilt-ridden face.

The plan was to separate Sasha from the shipping war with a powerful distraction. It worked; a biiiiit too much. Now Anne could see how worried she had been about Sasha and the fear of losing her in the trembling teenager, crying in her chest.

“Hey, hey, I’m ok, Sash,” Anne attempted to calm her down. Gently, her shoulders pulled her away from her. “Look at me, I’m ok. Safe and sound. In one piece.”

The Slavic teenager sniffed and checked over the other girl minutely. There were no scratches or bruises, and her clothes were intact. As if nothing had happened.

…

…

…

“Wha— Anne, how could you escape? The dragonfly—“

“Oh, Sprig told you that, uh?” Time for the truth to come out. “Sprig, Hop Pop, and I planned to distract you and I told them that if you were told I was in danger, you would quit and try to save me.”

‘If you were told I was in danger, you would quit and try to save me.’

The words at first were unable to be registered in Sasha’s brain due to the haze of her worst fears, then, slowly, sense sprouted from the corners of her mind, piecing the clues. The terror and worry in her eyes left the place to torment, to unbridled anger.

“You lied to me,” she mumbled, her hands balling into fists, shaking.

“Sasha, it’s not what you—“

“You lied to me!!!” The blonde girl got up too quickly for her weakened legs to handle; fortunately, Anne caught her in time.  Sasha slapped her hand, glaring daggers at her.  “How could you?! I was worried sick about you! For a moment, I imagined you had been turned into food! Or dropped from 1000 feet from the ground! Only for you to tell me you wanted to distract me! What the fuck, Boonchuy?! How can you be this fucked up?!”

“Fucked up?! This distraction wasn’t to hurt you, it was to protect you from Toadstool!”

“What kind of excuse is that?!”

“It’s not! Sasha, Toadstool was in the Alastair team, you were in the Hunter team. And you both hate each other. If we had let you try to win the war, you would’ve taken it to the extreme, which almost happened, and you would've given him a lot of reasons to kick you out of the town.”

“And you hadn’t a better idea than to mess with me?! Is talking like a normal person that fucking difficult?!” She shoved the Thai teenager hard. Anne’s hurt expression transformed into exasperation.

“Oh sure, if I had explained to you why you shouldn’t participate in that Hunter VS Alastair war, would you have listened to me? For real?” Sasha’s short pause answered that for her. “Exactly, you wouldn’t. You’re so determined to kick Toadstool’s butt that you don’t see how much that can endanger you!… Sasha, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you but you were going too far and if you had hurt him in any way, you would’ve been banished. I tried to do the right thing.”

“You suck at that,” Sasha spat.

“It’s not like you are a saint, dude. All the trouble you get into or cause, like, can’t you have a day without doing reckless stuff and giving me a heart attack?!”

“YOU gave ME a heart attack!!” She shoved Anne again.

“Stop shoving me!!” Anne shoved back.

“Make me!!” Sasha shoved her once again.

“You’re an immature jerk!!”

“You messed with my head!!”

A mutual kick to the stomach sent them both to the ground. They coughed and panted, exhausted; their rage screaming at them to keep fighting.

Then Sasha got up with difficulty. Anne did the same, preparing for another shove, kick, or hit; her face contorted in confusion as the blonde walked to the house, slamming the door violently.

“Anne?” She turned around. The Plantars must be super athletes if they were able to come back this fast. “Anne, is something wrong?”

The girl covered her face with both hands, groaning.

Back to square one, I guess.

Chapter Text

Sleeping in a coach sucked. Nothing funny or great came from turning a piece of furniture into your bed. Maybe the feeling originated from those cliche scenes where the character, whether protagonist or background, was a nobody without a job who spent all the week eating junk food and drinking beer while watching TV. How did they manage that if they couldn’t afford TV eluded her but the point was the same, sleeping in a coach sucked.

And the reason why her situation sucked so much might be waking up at this moment from the basement, not that she cared anyway. Better to not face her or the idiotic frogs that—

“Kids, get up! Breakfast is ready!”

The universe did hate her.

“Sasha, it’s brea—“ her glare silenced him. He backed down and returned to the kitchen, understanding the message. However, while her mood and the memories of yesterday prompted her to not join Anne and the Plantars in the dining room, her stomach protested. Loudly.

After a few insistent growls for nourishment, Sasha cursed with gritted teeth and got up. Then the moment she sat down her ears and eyes caught the sound of footsteps and two rage-inducing faces.

“Oh… Hi, Sasha…” Anne waved her hand shyly. The blonde only tched and waited for her food.

“Yeeesh, at least try to have some manners,” Sprig reprimanded her on Anne’s behalf. Sasha showed him the middle finger, though its effect was lost on him because he didn’t understand human insults.

“That seat isn’t yours,” Sasha spat at Anne. The other girl froze before rolling her eyes. Sure Sasha was angry for good reasons but picking a seat in the dining room shouldn’t be a reason for the blonde to boss her around.

“Sorry, dude, but I grabbed the chair first.”

“No, you grabbed it for her,” Sasha pointed at Polly, the silent witness of their clashing moods.

“Eh, fine, if you say so,” the pollywog shrugged and jumped right into the seat.

“Polly!” At Sprig’s indignant exclamation. His sister’s deadpan stare challenged him to lessen the hostility and tension between Sasha and Anne which was enough to stop his insistence.

Anne, on the other hand, sat down in a chair close to Hop Pop. Her eyes jumped from Sasha to her hands to the table and went back to Sasha. Before she could start apologizing, the old frog placed the honey and the cooked chocopede pancakes in the center of the table.

“Alright, kids. Time to eat. There is enough for everyone.”

“First comes first. Sasha,” the blonde snarled at her but Anne refused to let that intimidate her. “Listen, dude, I’m sorry for lying to you. I really do, and I wish there had been another way to stop you than scaring you with a fake story of me being kidnapped but you have to understand. Toadstool is bad news. He might not be a warrior like that Grime guy but he is the mayor, he can order the people to kick you out of the town, and knowing you’re not that likable, they will agree to send you away. Wartwood is the only safe place I know, Toad Tower and the rest of Amphibia could destroy you. You should know that. I was just trying to protect you.”

Sasha remained silent. A good sign? Maybe, because she hadn’t interrupted Anne but she kept glaring at the ground, crossed arms, refusing to listen.

“Dude, come on. I’m being honest,” Anne’s eyes bore into her; her friend ignored her.

“Really? Anne risked a lot for your safety and this is how you act?” Oh! Squeaky Toy here wants to be the goody-two-shoes, uh?

“Look at that,” Sasha replied, voice dripping with venom. “A hypocrite defending a liar.”

“What?! I’m not an hypocr—“

“YOU ARE!!” Sasha slammed her right fist into the table, destabilizing a bit the stack of pancakes. “You might look like a sweet pwecious baby~, but you lied to me too!”

Sprig sighed. “It’s not that I wanted to. I felt bad about it, but there was no choice. I mean, you should’ve seen yourself yesterday! You were going to throw a watermelon at the mayor, Sasha. A watermelon! It’s not a giant boomshroom, but it doesn’t mean it hadn’t hurt Toadstool. And he has a lot of power to banish you! Anne was pretty worried about you, the least you could do is be more considerate!”

Sasha loomed over him, her other hand balling into a fist. Her head turned around toward Hop Pop the moment he coughed. “Your intense dislike and feuds with Toadstool are touching a dangerous line, young lady. Regardless, I also apologize for being part of this lie. I may haven’t lied to you but I didn’t stop Anne and Sprig either and for that I’m sorry.”

“What do you say, Sash? Can we let this go and have a nice day?” Anne’s friendly tone went through her ears as she regarded Polly.

“Polly, tell that liar she’s just wasting her time.”

Anne’s hurt could be seen even from miles away. Alas, a frown appeared on her face, hardened by Sasha’s stubbornness.

“Oh, sure! You want to play dirty, don’t you? Fine! Two can play the same game!! Polly, tell that immature jerk I was doing the right thing because I care about her. Not that she can understand what THAT means!!”

As Polly pointed a flipper at her to protest the interruption of her breakfast, Sprig also joined the bickering.

“Yeah! Polly, tell that BRAT, because that’s what Sasha is, A BRAT, to don’t apply the Hollier than thou with Anne, or any of us! We wouldn't have had to lie if she hadn't gone too far!”

“Exactly!!”

“Sure, as if almost giving me a heart attack after pretending to be kidnapped was better than me kicking the butt of that bufoon!”

“Weren’t you ignoring me, Miss Petty?” Anne leaned over, her frown getting deeper.

“Are you denying I’m right, Miss Liar?!” Sasha’s snarl became uglier, her eyes sparkled with a thirst for violence akin to a beast’s.

While the bickering continued, Polly simply rolled her eyes, unbothered of being ignored after they turned her into a messenger in their childish fights. She resumed her breakfast or attempted to because Anne, in a burst of anger, threw Polly’s pancakes to the ground with only one remaining on her plate.

“Hey, watch it, Anne!” The pollywog’s protest didn’t deter her surrogate sister’s outrage from taking over Sasha’s yelling and cursing. And once again, another burst of rage, this time from Sasha, interrupted her breakfast as she punched the bug-shaped container of honey, spilling a good amount of it on Polly’s face.

The last straw though was when both girls flipped the last pancake on the pollywog’s face, making her ruined bow fall to the floor.

“ENOUGH!!!!!!”

Everyone froze.

“I had it with you all pining the blame to each other and not letting me eat in peace! You all are at fault! That’s it!”

“What?! Why is this my fault? I didn’t lie!”

“You were this close to getting a ticket to be kicked out of the town! That’s why!!” Anne yelled.

“As if you hadn’t—“

Polly pinched and pulled Sasha and Anne’s ears like an angry mother. “I said THAT’S IT!!”

“Since when you put the rules, uh?” Sasha grabbed Polly’s flipper but pulled her hand back when the pollywog snapped her teeth at her.

“There will be rules when I want there to be rules!” Then her eyes landed on Sprig and Hop Pop. “The same goes for you two! Because as you have said, you also partook in this mess!”

“Owowowowowowow! Polly, s-stop! Ok, we got it! We’ve learned the lesson! Let it go! My ear is burning!”

“You’d better!” Polly let them go and got out of the kitchen, mumbling angrily.

“…Well, who’s on dishwashing duty this time?” Hop Pop asked.

++++++++++++++++++

Zapapedes, the terrestrial thunderstorms, the devourers of lightning, and so on and so on. These funny-looking worms are deceitful in their appearance for they can kill anything with a discharge of lightning. Investigators are still wondering how a lethal sky-based nature phenomenon can be stored in those creatures without killing them. Some of them have even witnessed the zapapedes getting to the highest places from rocky mountains to decaying forests during a thunderstorm to absorb lightning which anyone would think it’s suicidal. However, for these worms, it’s a feast and a way to sharpen their killer instincts. The best it is known or theorized of its physiology is that they have an organ where they store the lightning. Unfortunately, this theory hasn’t been confirmed or proved wrong as zapapedes are too dangerous to be approached, but most importantly, because no one wants to be reminded they are at the bottom of the food chain.

 

“Ugh!!” Sasha plopped her head into the pages of the book. So much for investigation.

How was she going to get her phone to work if the book didn’t give her clear instructions? She could give it credit that it had a bit of decency stating the zapapedes’ time bomb nature due to the electricity.

The blonde’s options were too few: one, keep reading for clues to handle those things; two, give up which would never happen; and three, ask for help from Squeaky Toy, the geezer, or Anne. Her frown deepened at the last option. Those three were liars and her so-called best friend was the mastermind of such a scheme to stop her during the shipping war. Polly was the only one who didn't partake in the deceit; nonetheless, asking for her help would come with a price after ruining her breakfast, and if the other three caught them sneaking off, the teenager would be blamed and grounded.

Tch. Who did they think they were? Sasha was stuck in another dimension, her parents weren't here to tell her what to do, or just her mom. Anyway, no parents meant complete liberty, what was left was a good plan to recharge her cell phone and come back before anyone else found out.

“...It must be at night then.”

Gosh, of all the things she hated to do, waiting was the very worst. Oh well, a little sacrifice to have her cell phone in good shape, she guessed.

++++++++++++++++

The plop, plop, plop of the little ball Sprig was shooting at her wall pulled at her nerves with the force of thousands of horses trying to move a train like in that wild horse animated movie. Regardless, she let him play as noisy as he wanted, better this option than recalling her failed attempt at making peace with Sasha.

A groan formed a frown on her face and she sank her head into the pillow. It smelled like Sasha. The kind of adult perfume she had said fitted better on her than on her mother, and the mix of cheap colognes, according to the blonde, used by the other members of the cheer team. A soft smile grasped the muscles of her lips for a few seconds until it dissipated.

Why her best friend had to be so...frustrating?! Yeah, she lied. Yeah, Sasha thought she was in danger. Yeah, of course, it was a bit messed up but didn't Anne apologize? Didn't she explain why it was necessary? What else did she want?! Anne couldn't think of anything else to prove to Sasha how sorry she was for lying; although, the blonde also should hold herself accountable in the shipping war.

Toadstool would have kicked her out, no buts or protests if she had succeeded in humiliating him. When would she get it in her thick but empty skull that playing with fire had consequences?!

“Anne? You ok?”

“How can you show someone you feel remorse?”

“Are you talking about Sasha?”

“Dude, she's stubborn as a mule!! And not even mules can reach this level of stubbornness!”

“What's a mule?” Sprig’s confusion at that word only manages to irritate her more.

“What am I gonna do?” She gripped the edges of her pillow harder, cursing that the item still smelled like Sasha. How the girl could maintain the essence of the perfume and colognes from Earth all this time was a mystery only a brainiac like Marcy could solve.

“You must stop, Anne. Don't apologize anymore.”

“What?” Her eyes screamed the message ‘Have you gone mad?’ the moment they met his.

“I'm serious. You said sorry, you meant it, you tried to talk to her, and for what? She dismissed it! She has been acting so Holier than thou and I get it, she was scared and hurt, but you were honest with her and she's still being mean and petty.”

“But... She's still my friend.”

Sprig was reminded about Hop Pop’s lesson of honesty in friendships and the time he told Anne to apply that advice. Good advice with a huge problem: Sasha’s inability or more like unwillingness to listen.

And he hated to see Anne being hurt or let down whenever she tried to reach Sasha and watching her efforts torn apart by the other girl’s sharp demeanor.

Ok, time to be blunt. “Anne, you can either wait for her to cool down so you both can talk or stop with this. It's hurting you. You don't deserve that. And she's being unfair, an unfair jerk. Why should you waste your time on her anyway?”

It was kinda adorable to see him angry on her behalf. But...

“...I get it, trust me. Though, I understand why she acts like this. When she almost died on Grubhog Day I got pretty mad at her because if Sasha hadn't run away to have fun and if she had taken her duties more seriously, her life wouldn't have been in danger. And when I saw her so distraught for me, well... I knew we were running out of time but still...”

“You have a point,” he begrudgingly replied. “That doesn't mean she can be a jerk to you and rub your mistakes into your face as if you're a criminal. She's being too harsh.”

“Just give her time, dude. Besides, it's not that she can push me around anymore. Scream and tantrum all the time you want, Sash. It won't work on me.”

A wave of relief washed over Sprig. As debatable as Anne’s choice of still being friends with Sasha was, pride and calm kept him grounded in knowing that his best friend wasn’t going to put her boundaries in second place just for her friendship with the blonde. And perhaps with a bit of luck, Anne’s strengthening backbone might knock some sense into Sasha’s skull.

Knock, knock, knock!

Knock, knock, knock!

“I’ll go,” the frog kid ran upstairs and opened the door to the basement meeting his sister’s serious face.

“Uh… Hey, Polly. Um, are you still mad about—?“

“More than annoyed. I cooled off enough. Anyway, I need to tell you two something.”

+++++++++++++

Night came. Fucking finally, the night came!

Jesus Christ, having to maintain a low profile while keeping her anger and bitterness under control during lunch and dinner took a lot of her strength of will but here she was, outside the house, her rusty sword tied to her waist with her jacket, her cane as a support, and the book about the zapapedes in her other hand.

Her eyes squinted at the ominous horizon. Despite the cloud-free sky littered with stars and the bright moon all shining together, their illumination wasn’t enough to make sure not a single predator was hiding in the forest.

Nevermind. She had a sword, she could make it through.

Her steps were shaky and she cursed at them again, pushing them forward through sheer determination.

Crickets chirped, owls hooted, wait, were there owls in Amphibia or an abomination-like version of them? Anyway, the scenery’s tranquility boosted Sasha’s confidence in finishing this quickly.

As her legs trembled slightly with each movement, her mind unconsciously wandered to the residents of the house, especially Anne. Then memories of the disastrous Grubhog Day flooded her neurons, how mad and frenetic her friend was after she disappeared from the tent.

Sasha snarled. So Deja vu was happening, so what? She could take care of herself!

And it’s not that Anne could run at her face how ‘mature’ she was after lying to her!

She found out on Toad Tower that one of the toads had hurt her seriously, how could Anne have the nerve to act as if pretending to be in danger wasn’t a big deal?!

What if she had lost an arm during the fight with the toads? Would she even have the right to lie about being in peril like yesterday?

Worst of all, Marcy’s condition remained a mystery. The girl was so clumsy it would be a miracle if she was in one piece.

“Actions have consequences, she said. Being bold and daring can take you so far, she said. What a hypocrite! So, when I break the rules, people lecture me. But when she does it, people have to applaud her?! For real?!”

She kicked a pebble, it rolled and bounced until it clashed against a medium-sized stone. Her feet suddenly got hypnotized by the urge of kicking more pebbles and as she kept walking, her shoes lifted dirt and grass sometimes missing their targets and other times sending pebbles far away. It left her muscles more exhausted and demanding of recovery but she pushed away the soreness of her still weakened legs. She missed the days when she could extend her legs in a classic cheerleader movement, do pirouettes, jump high, or run so fast she felt like flying.

Even her late grandmother would be able to win her at a race and her legs had been consumed by the worst case of arthritis before she passed away.

What would she think of Sasha if she saw her? She used to comment she envied her granddaughter because of how young and resilient she was. Wait, why was she thinking about her grandmother anyway? She should keep an eye out in case a giant insect or a vulture ambushed her. Kicking another pebble hidden behind a few sticks, her eyes checked the area. Some fireflies and luminescent mushrooms helped in creating a clearer path; the right path to go to the mountains where the zapapedes lived? She hoped so.

Sasha opened the book and looked for the map with the location of the electrical worms. The names eluded her and the lack of signals in her half-hour or hour of walking made this more difficult.

Her right foot trembled and she swore the ankle would give in to either side. A twisted ankle in the middle of the night equaled putting a label on herself that said “Free Meat” which was the last thing on her to-do list, ergo, never.

She growled. She should rest.

A large stump was a few kilometers from her. Its roots looked comfortable enough for Sasha to sit on them.

At last, her butt and legs got comfortable once she reached her first stop. The bark of the stump was semi-hard, not the best headboard. Her new pants, courtesy of Hop Pop, were pulled by the pointy, jagged parts of the roots; if a tear appeared on the pants she would sue the old frog for not using a stronger material.

She opened the book to the page of the zapapedes wondering how long would it take her to arrive, charge her phone without dying, and come back before sunrise. The journey would take her hours if not half a day and by then, Anne and the others would be freaking out and preparing a soul-sucking 7-hour long lecture about the pros and cons of an impulsive journey in the night to charge her phone.

There must be another way to fix her cell phone. Maybe the book had other ideas.

She flipped through the pages, reading in seconds the titles of each one until her eyes landed on “History and uses of the lightshroom”.

The lightshrooms have been a blessing since immemorial times in Amphibia. The fluorescent ‘blood’ circulating through the whole specimen has served to guide travelers through treacherous paths or illuminate the houses of many amphibians. It is still unknown why some lightshrooms can work with a tap while others are always shining, but some scientists have theorized that the sunlight neutralizes the ‘blood’ of this species of the mushroom while dark or badly illuminated places fueled the intensity of its fluorescence. However, the lightshrooms have a short life. At best, they can last 7 years, and at worst, 4. Some studious have found out that dampness or water added to the darkness of the place they might be, prolong their lifespans which is the reason that during thunderstorms or rainstorms, those mushrooms are left out of the house or said water is collected to irrigate them later.

 

…And it stopped there. Sasha had lost interest in the other paragraphs, though perhaps she could find one of those things and try it with her phone.

She looked from right to left, up and down, and lo and behold, there it was. A small lightshroom, in all its turquoise shiny glory.

She plucked it from the ground, picked up her cell phone, and planted the base of the mushroom on the entrance for the charger. Nothing.

Irritated, Sasha squeezed the lightshroom, sinking her nails into the flesh of the fungus until fine streaks of turquoise started dripping from the punctures. As she moved her phone towards the bright liquid, Sash stopped at the last seconds.

Nope, this new idea was too risky. What if the liquid instead of fixing her cellphone, ruined it? It would be the same as accidentally dropping the item over the toilet or a big puddle of mud.

And her nails were now sticky and with a color she didn’t like! Ew!

She threw the mushroom staining her t-shirt in the process too.

“Ugh. Yuck!” Storing her cell phone in a pocket, her other hand went to the stain on her t-shirt. It felt more dense and sticky than the ‘blood’ of the lightshroom— Wait, why did she smell something familiar?

She sniffed the viscous substance on her right-hand fingers.

“Honey?” At the mention of that, her stomach growled. Perfect. Now she was hungry. No way in hell was she going to lick that thing and then fall dead because of poisoning.

This couldn’t be honey.

She sniffed again. The familiarity astounded her. Her stomach kept growling. Stupid stomach!

Tempted by the sweet smell, she stuck out her tongue and tipped the tip of it on the weird substance. Her pupils dilated.

Oh God, it was actually honey! And it was delicious! She savored the rest of it glued to her fingers until nothing was left, not even beneath her nails.

So exquisite flavor! It tasted better than the honey from Earth!

A weird whine froze her blood and in a matter of seconds she stood up, sword in both bands pointed at any possible enemy. The whine from before changed its tone, now sounding confused and afraid.

Sasha scanned the area. Was she followed? Did Grime manage to survive and find her?

Maybe one of his soldiers? Bogs? If that fucktard was trying to get the upper hand to enact his revenge, it wouldn’t be her fault if he lose another arm!

The whine once again submerged her into deep anxiety until her eyes noticed a bizarre furball with blueish eyes and, wait, were those antennae. The creature took a few steps showing its face. The fur, face, and front paws of a wolf, and the lower half, wings, and antennae of a bee or a wasp, she couldn’t distinguish pretty well in the darkness.

Anyway, the animal was small, just a puppy. And knowing how much of a dog person Sasha was…

“Oooooohhhhhh! You’re so cute! Bizarre, but cute!” She picked the little thing as if she were carrying a puppy from Earth, making sure the tiny sting didn’t poke her stomach or any part of her body. “Look at those antennae and those tiny, pwecious wings! Can you fly?”

The hybeena tilted its head more confused than scared at being picked by a stranger. Sasha booped her nose with its and the puppy wagged its tail, amused.

“Where are your parents, little guy? Are you lost? Are you the only one living here?”

The puppy barked.

“I’ll take that as a yes for questions 2 and 3.” Her eyes then spotted a stick and a great idea occurred to her.

+++++++++++++++++++

Sasha wasn’t aware of how much time she had been playing with the hybeena pup, not that she cared in the slightest. This was the much fun and normal she had ever felt since she landed in this crummy world and she loved it. Just her, her new furry friend, and a lot of time for the two to bond.

“Go again, Sticky!” She threw the stick, and the hybeena pup ran and lifted itself in the air for about 5 seconds for its wings weren’t still developed enough to support its weight. Because of that, the furry hybrid rolled unceremoniously on the ground and its snout clashed against the bark of the old tree.

“Are you ok?” Sasha inspected it carefully. No bruises or scratches painted the nose of the pup, or maybe she couldn’t notice them well because of the black fur and the poor illumination of the area.

As she tended and cooed at the pup, she failed to take into account the movement inside the tree and the growling and snarling until the little one tensed and turned around, its sting almost between its legs, and its ears flattened in submission. When Sasha glanced where it was watching, her blood froze. Before them 10 if not 20 hybeenas much larger and more muscular than the pup were showing their teeth at her. Saliva drooled from their mouths.

The little one wasn’t an orphan as she thought or maybe it was and this territory was forbidden. Not that she had a lot of knowledge of how wolves acted.

“Ggaaahhhh!!!” One of the hybrid-like creatures pounced at her, failing for a few millimeters, barely scratching the wool of her pants.

The attack had been the signal and in a matter of seconds, the other members of the pack began flying toward her, their stingers ready to stab any part of her body.

++++++++++++

While the troublemaker blonde is dealing with the consequences of her recklessness, what are the other heroes doing?

“GROARGHHRRR!”

Exactly! Snoring.

Croak, croak, croak.

Croak, croak, croak.

Croak, croak, croak.

Oh, and croaking too. For the frog children, of course.

Croak, croak, croak.

Croak, croak, croak.

Croak, croak, croak.

Croack, cro—

“WAKE UP!!!!”

“Aaaahhhh!!! What happened?!” Anne screamed.

“Hey! If this is a new prank, I don’t like it!!” Polly glared at Sprig for ruining her sleep.

“No pranks. Sasha’s gone!”

“What?!” The girls shouted.

“It’s true,” Sprig replied, pulling at his orange hair. “I got out of the bathroom, I checked on the living room, and the couch was empty!”

“Damn it! We overslept!!” Anne got up in a blink of an eye, picked up her crafted sickle, carried Polly in her arms, and ran upstairs to the front door, Sprig trying to catch up with her.

As the trio got out of the house, not caring if the noise woke up Hop Pop, the frog kid brought up another dilemma: “Wait, we don’t have the book where the map of the zapapedes is!”

“We’ll use our memory. That and Bessie.”

“Bessie?!” Sprig and Polly exclaimed.

“Yeah, the faster the better! Come on!”

“You know, we wouldn’t be in this mess if you and Sasha had talked things through or if you had confronted her about this idea. But noooo, for some reason, you don’t want to participate in serious, emotional conversations either!”

“No fair, Polly,” Sprig protested as he opened the barn’s doors. “You told her about our adventure with the zapapedes and how Anne fixed her phone. You even were invited to go with her!”

“Which I didn’t after she ruined my breakfast! Besides, if it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t even know where she planned to go!”

“Guys, rescue Sasha first, fight later!” Anne scolded them. Her arms shook Bessie’s shell, patting it like a drum to the point that the tired, sleepy snail exited her shell and blinked at the girl. Anne placed the mount on the shell, adjusted it, and jumped on it, followed by Sprig and Polly. As she took the leashes, she inhaled, “Bessie, it’s time to go messy!!”

The catchphrase triggered the snail and in the blink of an eye, the barn’s door was destroyed with the potent tackle of the runaway, lovable steed while Anne directed it with as much precision as she could which wasn’t much because she had no maps toward the zapapedes’ mountains, just her memory.

“Any ideas about how we can track Sasha, guys? Because we do need some if we want to save her from getting herself killed!”

Sprig raised his hand enthusiastically, like a kid showing the teacher a project done. “Oh oh! I have one! One of the Plantar’s hunting techniques!”

“Techniques?”

“Tracking, using the resources around you, and the hunting dance.” Polly numbered them.

Hunting dance? No no, you can ask that later, Boonchuy.

“Can you track Sasha, dude?”

“Yeah, first, we have to stop. Perhaps there are some footprints in the ground we can follow, if not, I can’t taste the soil for clues.”

“What the—?”

Polly didn’t give her time to finish her question for she halted Bessie and signaled Sprig and Anne to get down to look for such clues. Despite the protests claiming to be let out, Sprig grabbed her best friend’s hand and both searched for anything remotely Sasha-like: hair, clothes, a personal item, anything.

Good thing that Anne had her phone, she turned on the flashlight of it, inspecting the ground. Now, the quest for footprints is not as easy as some might think or imagine. Many variables can transform that quest into an almost impossible mission, especially for amateurs. If the ground is too uneven, or the weather erases partially or completely the track, if the soil is covered by debris, grass, or anything else that might ruin the footprint, or if other people have stepped on it, these are the kind of what-ifs you have to be aware of whenever footprint hunting comes into mind.

Fortunately for the Thai teenager, her frog bestie took the Plantar’s hunting steps pretty seriously. He had already scooped a lot of dirt into his hands and devoured it, his tongue tasted the soil, leaves, and insects, until a flavor, a mix between copper and bronze was detected.

“Ghot id!” He exclaimed with his dirt-filled mouth and spat the soil. “She was here!”

“Was she?!” Anne’s eyes pleaded for confirmation.

“I tasted something like copper, something metallic. She must have brought her sword with her and it is super rusty so maybe some rusty flakes may have fallen.”

“Make sense enough for me,” Polly said.

“Ok, then, this is the plan. Sprig, you’ll be our Sasha radar. We’ll follow you. If you notice something else, mainly a wild, hungry animal, raised your arm and we’ll be ready.”

The frog kid made a military salute and started running while scooping more dirt to taste, Anne, Polly, and Bessie right behind him.

His sticky tongue shot from one angle to another, feeding his taste buds a lot of different flavors from the ground. His right hand moved like the needle of a compass, guiding the team. Anne had to admit his quickness in both tasks was worthy of an expert even if it disgusts her a lot the idea of tracking someone by eating grass and soil. As if the insect and bug-based diet here in Amphibia wasn’t repulsive enough.

The mouthfuls of grime began to concern Sprig as new essences were introduced into his tongue: the saltiness of sweat, bits of honey here and there, saliva from… Frankly, he wasn’t sure if it belonged to the blonde or someone or something else, he hoped it came from her. Suddenly, his steps were cut short after a new bunch of soot entered his mouth.

“Sprig, what’s going on?”

He spat the soot. “It’s blood! I tasted blood!” Before Anne or Polly could say something, he continued rambling. “I-I mean, I’m not sure it’s her but I tasted blood! She must be here or something must have been hurt, or—“

“Pull yourself together. Where should we go now?”

At his sister’s command, Sprig tasted another mouthful of dirt. It had more speckles of blood; his right index finger pointed northeast. He went ahead, prompting the girls to follow his lead once again.

Although her body didn’t show it, Anne’s mind had succumbed to utter chaos when Sprig mentioned the word “blood” during his dirt-swallowing. She fervently prayed that the blood wasn’t Sasha’s because what if it was? How hurt could she be? Were the wounds superficial or deep? Could she be hiding and waiting for help, or fighting stubbornly? Sasha could effortlessly beat a mule when it comes to who was the most bullheaded which in cases like this one signified a sooner end.

Though, perhaps the blood belonged to someone else. An animal or a traveler maybe?

“Gaaaahhhhh!!!” Anne exclaimed, her cell phone almost slipping from her hands. When her eyes landed on Sprig, she noticed his hand raised to stop them.

“What now?” Polly took the words from her mouth.

“I heard buzzing. Didn’t you?”

“Buzzing…” Polly’s eyes widened. “Buzzing?!”

“So, by that reaction, we should expect a giant monster, right?” Anne lifted her sickle, inspecting her surroundings.

“Hybeenas, Anne. Lots of them. They aren’t dangerous by size but by using numbers.” Sprig signaled them to a space between some trees. “Ok, Bessie will be safe here but  someone has to keep an eye on her in case a hybeena finds her.”

“Fine, then. I’ll do it. But you’d better not come back with those things tagging along!” Polly crossed her arms.

Anne, who had to get off Bessie’s mount, nodded alongside Sprig. The duo ran, aimed by the frog kid’s soot-tasting skills; goosebumps multiplied throughout their bodies as the buzzing intensified, joined by barking, growling, and snarling. Suddenly, a pained canine-like whine echoed a few meters away from them and that’s where they saw it. A hybeena.

The creature had one of its wings amputated, translucent fluid flowed from the sharp edges of the cut. Two other hybeenas flew to its side, licking its face to comfort. A few more meters from where they were, their eyes could peek at a blonde-haired head and a sword held by steady hands. Or as much as they could hope so.

More than 20 hybeenas surrounded the beaten and exhausted teenager whose glare tried in vain to put the predators into submission.

In seconds, 5 of them flew quickly toward her, pointing their stingers as if they were missiles. Sasha parried with the stingers, slashing the creatures’ abdomens; nonetheless, one of the hybeenas managed to cut her right cheek with its stinger. The blood momentarily blinded her and her foot tripped on a rock.

Much to her confusion, though, the bites and stabs she dreaded never came for surprised whines and barking began for some reason.

Splat sounds entered her ears; as her mind conjured images to decipher what was going on, a pair of arms grabbed and lifted her by her armpits. Sasha’s mouth was closed the moment a scream reached her lips; she recognized that skin’s softness and warmth.

“Anne?”

“Shhhh, we’ll take you somewhere safe, dude. Don’t worry,” whispered her friend. The Thai girl placed the blonde’s arm around her shoulder and trotted to the team’s hideout. Some hybeenas managed the evade the rain of pellets and mud balls that had ambushed the pack but another wave of attacks impeded them from nearing the girls as they entered the forest again.

Watching the teenagers escape smoothly from the bush he was hidden in, Sprig ended his ambush shooting to the hybeena pack and ran to catch up with Anne and Sasha.

“Guys! Are you ok?” He whisper-yelled. Sasha tensed immediately, still overwhelmed by the events of minutes ago. Anne hugged her and placed her hand over her eyes to rid of the blood on them. The blonde blinked a few times; the remnants of blood disturbed her vision, causing an insufferable itching. She could barely distinguish Anne’s form and the color of her hair compared to the frenetic voices of the three children who came to rescue her.

“Easy, dude. Easy. One step at a time.” Anne instructed her, never letting her eyes wander too much on their surroundings or Sasha’s shaky steps to sit on the mount.

“Is that all? Can we go now?”

“Yeah, Polly. Let’s go!” Sprig replied. His sister made a “kyaa!” sound moving the leashes like a rapid wave. Bessie exited their hideout, happy to go farther away from the ferocious pack’s territory.

+++++++++++++

Anne had never in her life regretted not having left a note in front of Hop Pop’s door or at least go rescue Sasha without waking the old frog up more the moment they were received by pair of outrageous eyes, and a frown deeper than the Great Canyon.

“Care to explain what the Frog were you doing at this hour?! And why the heck did you take Bessie with—?! Wait, is that blood in Sasha’s cheek?!”

“Hop Pop, we’ll explain, I swear. But not now. We’re tired, Sasha’s hurt and I really want to sleep again.”

This demanded more than an explanation. It never failed to surprise and disturb him how easily the children found new ways to endanger themselves despite the lack of difficulties in, you know, avoiding deathly situations and thinking things through.

Seeing the exhausted young faces, nonetheless, compelled him to give in. Whether he asked now or later for a recount of the events, Hop Pop knew he would freak out at whatever had happened so, why not postpone it for breakfast time? They have a bunch of hours before that after all.

“…I’m going to look for the first aid kit. Come in.”

++++++++++++

Putting a piece of cloth over an injury shouldn’t be such a hard task but gosh, Sasha made it almost impossible.

“Sash, don’t move. At this point, you’ll open more the wound.”

“Don’t blame me! Blame the fucking mutt abomination who slashed my face!”

“If you hadn’t run away to try to fix your phone, you wouldn’t have been attacked by those dog-bees. And if that hadn’t happened, we wouldn’t be here fixing another of your messes!” Anne pressed the cloth over the wounded cheek a bit harsher for Sasha’s liking and used some Amphibia version of masking tape to put keep it there.

“Who told you about that?”

“What? Your phone mission during the night? It was Polly. By the way, she asked me to tell you that if you are going to complain about her ratting you out to us, you are the one to blame for ruining her breakfast.”

“Ugh! That treacherous little—!”

“Does it matter, Sasha? If it weren’t for her, you would be dead right now!”

“What? I didn’t get out unprepared. I ha—“

“That’s not the issue! The issue is that you did something idiotic again! You worried me sick again! You could’ve died, again!” Anne yelled, pressing her finger to Sasha’s chest to emphasize her angered accusations.

Of course, Sasha took that as a chance to retaliate.

“Well, welcome to the club of ‘This is how people feel when their best friend is in danger’, buddy!”

“Oh, so that’s it, isn’t it? A revenge scheme because I lied to you?! What else now, Sasha? Guilt tripping me? Rubbing my mistakes on my face? I was honest when I apologized, I felt bad about it, but I had no choice. Why can’t you believe me? Do you think me a liar?”

Instead of replying, Sasha crossed her arms and turned her back to her.

Marvelous! Talking about utter immaturity!

Anne bit her tongue. Lashing out would exacerbate the tension between them; another approach was necessary.

“Please, dude. Is this-Is this how stuff will be between us until we find Marcy and go back home? Don’t you remember what happened on Grubhog Day?”

“What does that have to do with this?” Sasha asked. She barely gave Anne a little peek.

“Before Grubhog’s Day, we had fought. And during the festival, you got into an incident and almost died. That pushed us to reconcile but I don’t want that, Sasha. We fight, then something happens that might kill one of us, and after surviving we reconcile. It will turn into a vicious cycle. If I want to reconcile with you, I’d rather do it without the danger. We’ll fight and disagree sometimes, that’s normal among friends but reconciling like this isn’t. We can talk about this. You can tell me why you’re mad.”

“Have you forgotten already?” Sasha’s spiteful remark made Anne flinch. “For…For one second, I thought I was too late to protect you. That I had failed again.”

“Again?”

“At Toad Tower, when the shitty toad, whoever he was, bragged to me that he had hurt you and wanted to kill you, I lost it. And what if hurting your arm had turned into an amputation? Or slicing your throat? I’m supposed to protect you and I wasn’t even there!” Sasha rubbed her arm over her eyes; she didn’t have the moor nor the time to deal with a concerned Anne over some tears.

“I couldn’t be there. And then when you… When you pretended to be in danger, it felt like Dejavú. When you needed me the most, I was absent or unable to help… I wouldn’t have forgiven myself if that imbecile had…”

“Sasha…” Anne placed her hands over her shoulders to make her friend look at her. “Listen, Sash. I don’t blame you. You shouldn’t feel responsible for whatever happens to me. This is not to say that I don’t appreciate how much you care about me, but if you saw me blaming and punishing myself because I wasn’t there to get you out of Toad Tower, would you let me suffer in silence?”

“No. And… And it’s good you ended up here at least. As annoying as the frogs are, you could find a place to be treated well. That tower is a living hell compared to this smelly basement.”

“Good point,” both laughed and fell silent. Awkwardly silent. “Sasha, if you still want to be mad, you can. You have the right, but please believe me. Despite how wrong it was, I only tried to protect you. You did the same when you cut the toad’s arm. But…” Anne sighed and prepared herself for the blonde’s protests. “Can you promise me something?”

“What is it?”

“Promise me to not get into any fights with Toadstool, ok? I mean it, Sasha. You’re aware of why I had to lie in the shipping war. He might not be Grime or one of the toad soldiers but he has power and influence here, and he will use it to hurt you. Tolerate him. Ignore him. Pretend he isn’t worth your time.”

“Actually, he isn’t.”

“Exactly! The point is, you must stay away from him. Besides, it won’t be forever. Once the ice wall has melted, we’ll travel to look for Marcy and a way to return home and you won’t see him again! But until then, please, do NOT anger him. Could you promise me? Sasha, could you promise me to not start another fight with him?”

Pleads and prayers danced in Anne’s eyes; a steel-like determination shined in them, it was expressed in her body language.

How firm would Anne be if Sasha refused to let go? She had become more confident which the blonde still struggled to comprehend.

Of the two, the Slavic teenager had always been the one with the strongest will, imposing control and order in their little circle. But the status quo’s stability was no more, or not for too long unless she said no and pushed back.

Had Anne’s eyes not been so piercing and determined to change her mind, she would’ve done it, though. How pathetic, where was the unmovable leader she used to be?

“Ok, you win. I promise.”

“Promise what?”

“You know. What you said before.”

“What did I say?”

Sasha’s expression screamed, “Are you for real?!”. She massaged her forehead. “Come on, girl. Isn’t it enough—?“

“No, Sasha. It isn’t. I need to hear the whole promise AND you have to mean it. Don’t do it to just get this over with or else we’ll be awake the whole night. Mean it.”

Meaning it too. Preposterous!

“Anne—“

“No buts, Sasha. Say it whole and mean it.”

‘Who the hell does she think she is? I’m supposed to lead, not her!’ Whatever, it’s not that dealing with Toadstool was the best entertainment for her, and living here wasn't permanent either.

“Fine…” Sasha raised her right hand. “I, Sasha Elizabeth Waybright, promise to you, Anne Savisa Boonchuy, that under any circumstances I will fight or mess with Toadstool. I will ignore him, tolerate him or pretend he doesn’t exist but not engage with him. I will not get in trouble with the guy no matter how idiotic, shitty, and utterly unbearable he is.”

After a few minutes, Anne slowly nodded. “Good, thank you.” She hugged her friend, lessening the tension hanging in the air. As they cuddled, a question emerged in her mind.

“Sash, what happened that stopped you from fixing your phone?”

“Oh… Well…” Sasha blushed in embarrassment. “I found like a…a hybrid puppy?”

“A puppy?”

“Yeah, that. But it had wings, and a stinger, and blue eyes.”

“A hybeena puppy?”

“Wait, that’s the name of those animals?”

“I can’t believe you got distracted by a puppy,” Anne chuckled. Typical of her dog-lover friend. “Have I told you that I found a clone of Domino in the forest?”

“Your cat has a clone? No way!”

“No kidding, dude. It was small, fluffy, black fur and white stripes, and so so cute!” Then her smile turned into a frown. “Until it grew into a giant, savage monster and it almost ate the Plantars. And it destroyed part of the wall. At least your puppy didn’t transform into a nightmarish beast.”

“But its family really hates me.” Sasha touched her bandaged cheek.

“Changing of topic… About your phone… I bet Hop Pop will ground you for weeks if not months tomorrow, but what if we ask him to take us to the mountains where the zapapedes are? Although it will take us longer to reach them because the bridge is broken, we’ll find another path.”

Oh, she’d forgotten. Her cellphone-fixing mission. For some reason, the failure didn’t bother her that much. Maybe it was due to exhaustion or resignation. Regardless, Anne’s suggestion put a smile on her face. “Of course. Thanks.”

“No prob. Hey, do you wanna see some pictures of Domino 2?”

“You mean your cat clone?”

“They’re awesome! You won’t believe how similar they are!” Anne picked up her cell phone and narrated the story of the little caterpillar while showing Sasha the photos.

Chapter Text

Every morning can start in any possible way. Sometimes it is with the classic yawn; other times, the person manages to turn down the alarm after a few tries. If that doesn't work and the alarm has decided to be unbearable, chucking it down to the wall is their last resort.

There are occasions when the person groans because today is Monday or a day they despise; another example is being woken up by your pet at 7 o’clock or having said pet interrupt your sleep all night, leaving you with bags under your eyes bigger than the craters of the moon.

Today, for the whole Plantar family, humans and frogs, it started with an endless—

“Uuuuuuggggggghhhhhhhh,” exactly. “Uuuuuuuggggghhhhhhh.”

“Please tell me he’s not dying. Who’s going to feed us if he dies?” Sasha’s question sparked deep anxiety in Sprig’s impressionable mind as he sprung from his seat and grabbed Hop Pop’s face to check on him.

“No red leg, no weird warts, just crippling sadness. Phew,” He dropped his grandfather’s face, relieved the threat was a product of his imagination.

“Sasha, don’t scare him. Hop Pop isn’t even dying, he’s just sad.” Anne reprimanded her from behind while cooking breakfast.

“On a scale from crying to utterly desolated emotionally, Hop Pop is closest to the second one.” Polly even proved it by poking his cheek hard and then pulling a few white hairs. He barely complained. “See?”

“You can’t blame him, Polly. His plan to save the stand almost worked until it attracted those giant flies, and he had to return everyone’s money.” Sprig patted Hop Pop’s head compassionately.

“Wait, wait, a scam that attracted giant flies? What kind of mess you all got yourselves into?”

“Long story short, Sash,” Anne began as she served everyone some omelets with vegetables. “The Mayor had increased the rent like crazy, and no one could pay it, Hop Pop didn’t know what to do until I gave him the idea of…” she trailed off, embarrassed for having suggested lying as a marketing strategy. “The idea of making a few *cough* white lies *cough* promises to sell his produce faster. Next thing you know, he took it too far, which brought those flies and he confessed to everyone. The money we gained was gone and no money means no stand.”

Sasha whistled. “Marketing via lies. Yikes, girl, you are a savage. Wish I had been there.” She nudged her in the stomach playfully earning an annoyed glare from the old frog.

“What I wish had happened is that I hadn't been such a liar. I could have told them it was just a juice made with my vegetables and that's it!”

“Come on, Hop Pop, don’t be so hard on yourself. At least you saved us and returned the money.” Sprig hugged him from one side.

“If there is someone to blame, that’s the Mayor. It’s like he expects us to reap money like we reap vegetables!” Polly blew a harsh raspberry, imagining she was doing that to Toadstool.

At the mention of the toad Mayor, both girls expressed different emotions. Anne, on one hand, felt conflicted due to her past actions with the Mayor during her time as a town celebrity thanks to her acne. She was given a mansion and luxuries, but the cost was losing her bonds with the Plantars which she fought for instead of being a jerk to them. Let’s not forget his crimes against the town: embezzling money, lying to the tax collectors, and putting everyone in danger to fill his pockets. That left a sour taste in her mouth she didn’t want to live again.

Most importantly, Toadstool had a beef with her best friend Sasha. She hoped the promise kept her far away from the toad because any misdeed, insult, or prank might be the last straw to kick her out. And too few people liked Sasha so a defense would be useless. She, Hop Pop, Sprig, Polly, and perhaps Ivy were the only ones on her side, 5 against a whole town. Of course, Anne was a beloved member and even the protector of Wartwood but she doubted her reputation would be enough to surpass Toadstool’s to prevent Sasha’s banishment if things went south.

On the other hand, Sasha gritted her teeth. A furious grimace overtook her face. This guy again! Toadfool. No, she wasn’t going to call him by his name. Toadfool would be from now on whether the imbecile liked it or not. As much as Wartwood bored her to death with their dull peasant frogs and working hours under the sun supervised by Hopediah, none of that boiled her blood to the point of wanting murder. Annoyed her, yes, but that was all, she could ignore them and move on. What she couldn’t move on from was Toadfool and his obnoxious, condescending presence.

Why though? It’s not that she was settling in the town forever. Finding Marcy and a way home were priorities not fighting a stupid toad. Besides, she had promised Anne to stay as far away from him until the ice block melted so they could travel and look for her friend. Patience, that’s all it was required. Patience.

For another person, that would be sufficient. For Sasha Waybright, not so much. She had never run away from a fight: she faced Grime, his soldiers, and two giant herons, she escaped Toad Tower not by cowering but by wreaking havoc. Surely there must be a way to kick Toadfool’s butt, subtly, without breaking Anne’s promise and getting a 2-hour lecture.

Racking her brain for a few minutes, an idea occurred to her. “Hey, what if we look for a job you and I, old man?” Her question prompted the others to raise an eyebrow as if they were hearing another person talking through her mouth. “Oh come on, it’s that or having him complaining and moping around, isn’t it?”

“It makes sense…I guess,” ‘What is she up to?’ was the millionaire question running in Anne’s mind. She hated to admit it but the last incidents and arguments with Sasha left her wondering about the blonde’s real goal. Why always getting in trouble? Why always picking fights with Toadstool? Why always act as if she knew better when she made mistakes? Was it due to boredom or to feel the rush of battle?

Whatever the reasons, leaving Sasha on her own devices equaled not keeping an eye on a time bomb. Anything could trigger it. Dread and distrust weren’t feelings Anne wanted to associate with Sasha; chasing her around to prevent another incident, pulling her hard to be more chill instead of aggressive and arrogant was exhausting. Could someone blame her for her slight suspicions about the blonde then? She even felt guilty about it. But perhaps Sasha had grown bored of mischief, of her feud with Toadstool mainly, and was trying to help. Maybe, giving her the benefit of the doubt wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

“OK, I think there might be something in the newspaper. Me, Sprig, and Polly can help you with it. What do you say, HP? Wanna give it a try?”

He sighed, poking his breakfast. “I’m not sure, Anne. If the stand was a fiasco, why another job would be different?”

‘Great, self-doubt’ Sasha quelled her annoyance. Her plan would never work if the old frog didn’t pull his shit together. That was phase 1! “Look, you’ll never find out if whatever job we catch for you is the ideal one if you don’t put some effort into it. Don’t forget that you’re a responsible, old-fashioned, strict guy; those are the qualities of a great employee. I bet you’ll be hired in no time.”

“Yeah! Just like Sasha said, Hop Pop!” Sprig squeezed his shoulder. “You could be perfect for any kind of job!”

“You’re smart, rule-loving, dependable, and other stuff too.”; “And people like you!” Anne and Polly added respectively.

Hop Pop straightened his posture, emboldened by his family’s words. Of course! Even in the most dire situations, a Plantar always finds a way. Whether he failed or succeeded, the important thing was that his loved one supported him. He wasn’t going to let them down!

“Ok, kids, I’m in.”

****************

Phase 1 of her plan had been somewhat difficult and kind of concerning. She couldn’t get out of her mind Anne’s incredulous look when Sasha suggested helping Hopediah look for a job. As if doing something nice was out of her list. Actually, she was aware her suspicions were valid and had a lot of evidence; still, having the old frog supervising her instead of the other two kids and Anne was an advantage they didn’t know they had handed to her.

Hopediah alone couldn’t be in two places at the same time. Therefore, while his focus was on job hunting, Sasha’s was on finding the key for phase 2.

“Hey, you!” Wally turned around, frightened until his eye checked on Sasha from head to toe.

“Uh, it’s just Anne’s angry friend.”

“It’s Sasha for you. Now answer me this, how do you choose your mayor?”

“Pffft, what kind of question is that!” He chuckled. “By voting of course! Unless you have been living under a rock.”

“I’m not a troglodyte—“

“Troglowhat?”

“Whatever. So, you have democracy, don’t you?”

“What’s democracy?” Is he kidding with her or are people in this world this backwards? Actually, no. Considering they lived in a medieval era, talking about democracy could confuse anyone.

“You know, the big number of votes wins, the small number of votes loses. That’s how you chose Toadstool, isn’t it?”

“Aha!” He pointed to a wooden version of a mailbox with the name of the mayor written on it. “Elections are beginning as we speak. Although no one has ever defeated him.”

Bingo! Phase 2 of her plan had begun. To make it better, right in the center of the town, Toadstool was giving a cliche political speech spiced by hypocrisy the moment he used Toadie as a ladder and covered a child in a cloud of dust and dirt the moment he left in his snail.

“I wouldn’t talk too soon,” she mumbled.

A sarcastic applause and eyes rolled to a side captured the attention of everyone as they approached warily curious. “Bravo, amazing job as a mayor.” She blew a raspberry and gagged, eliciting some reproval. “Seriously, is this the best you’ve all got?”

“As if you had a better option wherever you come from,” Maddie’s father retorted, others agreed in murmurs.

“Trust me, buddy. My home also deals with idiots like him. They spit sappy nonsense to gain your votes, then bam!” She punched her palm. “They forget you and do whatever they want with the power you help them to reach. Which reminds me…” Her eyes landed on Stumpy. “You? What’s your name?”

“…Uh… Stumpy…”

“Honest speaking here, Stumpy, has the mayor done a good deed to improve the town or anyone’s lives here? Maybe, I don’t know, yesterday? Last week? Last month? Last year?”

Stumpy regretted having taken a break to listen to Toadstool’s speech. For real, he had it recorded on his mind for all the times the mayor introduced himself for elections, word by word. Although, a few changes had been made to make it more attractive the coating didn’t mean a substantial result as the town kept being pestered by the same issues every year.

And now Anne’s blonde furry friend, Zasha. Wait, Zasha or Sazha? No, that sounded weird. It must be Sasha, mustn’t it? Never mind, she’s asked him an important question he’s not sure he could answer. The mayor might not be present to listen to whatever insults she is ready to spit at his face but if this is a way to get him in trouble…

“Come on, buddy! Speak up! Or do you not remember?”

What better way to answer a question than with another one. “And what makes you worthy of being a mayor if that’s what you want?”

“Oh, it’s not me. It’s Hopediah!” The multitude’s gasp evolved into hushed conversations and queries, unable to believe what Sasha had said. She faked a cough to continue, “That’s the reason for my question. You know Toadstool as much as Hopediah, but from the two who do you think can help the town?” She pointed at Wally this time. “Quickly, what’s the worst part of this place Toadstool has never fixed?”

“The holes on the road, of course!” He pointed to a few ones some children were jumping over to play. “One day I was walking, minding my own business when my foot fell into one. And it didn’t stop there because it grew bigger and swallowed me whole! It almost broke my sweet concertina!”

“And it’s hurting our poor snails,” Felicia piped in. “Whatever is in the bottom might injure them. And children aren’t safe using them as playgrounds.”

“The same goes for the schoolhouse,” intervened Mr. Flour. “Destroyed by a centipede stampede and Toadstool has done nothing to rebuild it. Kids could get injured because of the rubble!”

“Many buildings are falling apart!” Another frog complained. “Where is the help after giving him our votes?”

“He even raised the taxes to an unrealistic level,” Croaker stated. “Despite knowing many farmers and artisans are struggling.”

“Yeah! If he does the same for the next occasion, half the town will starve!” Loggle added, frustrated.

“Agh! Suck it! Fine, what I hated the most about his ‘mayoring’ was when he stole the money from the taxes and lied to the tax collectors saying we didn’t pay! He put us all in danger!”

“So, in the end, he damaged more than improved. See guys? He doesn’t care about you and I doubt he ever will. Money and power are his priorities, but Hopediah is different. I may not know him so well, but from all my time living in his house, I can say this: he’s a pain in the ass; an HONEST, RELIABLE pain in the ass. I mean, if any of needed something, you would trust him, right?”

“Hopediah made some mistakes,” Croaker replied. “Though, unlike Toadstool, he worked hard to fix them.”

“He’s a good frog,” Stumpy added. “Even after the herons tore his family apart, he didn’t give up and provided for his grandchildren.”

“He’s very brave too!” Opined another peasant. “He joined the townsfolk to fight back against those beasts!”

“Exactly! Brave, kind, honest, hardworking. A mayor must have those traits. A mayor must always be the best for you, all of you! Because you deserve nothing but the very best. So, what do you say? Are you ready to have Hopediah as your new mayor?”

All the frogs reunited smiled at each other, pumped by her speech. Wally raised his arms, chanting “Hopediah! Hopediah! Hopediah!” In seconds, the rest of the Wartwoodians joined him.

***********

Meanwhile at Grub & Go…

“Thank you so much for the interview, kiddo,” Hop Pop patted Quentin on the back. “I hope I have all that it takes for this job.”

“Are you kidding me, Mr. Plantar? You have organized the products alphabetically, saw the few issues the store has to fix, and you have experience selling produce. You are the perfect cand—“ Quentin’s sentence crossed paths with a giant chorus calling Hop Pop.

The old frog grimaced, wondering if the chant meant huge trouble. Come to think of it, Sasha being outside equaled having a magnet for unwanted shenanigans and consequences. Oh boy, he’d better fix whatever she had broken.

As they opened the door, both frogs’s eyes enlarged until they almost burst from their sockets. Before them, nearly all the Wartwoodians grinned, celebration shining on their faces. Sasha smirked at Hop Pop, arms crossed, waiting for the moment of truth.

“…What’s happening?”

Loggle strode to his friend and hugged him. “Just the obvious, Hopediah! You’ll be our new mayor!”

The others cheered, applauding and chanting his name.

In a moment like this, his usual response would be screaming “SAY WHAT?!”; instead, his jaw clashed with the floor and his mind blanched.

**********

The door hinges grated, catching the children’s attention. The return of their loved ones informed them that either terrible or transcendental events had befallen Sasha and Hop Pop -well, only Hop Pop- as they checked over their expressions. The blonde girl had a triumphant smirk decorating her face; the old frog, on the other hand, looked as if a ghost had sucked half his life expectancy.

“Did something happen? Please, tell me nothing bad happened. None of you are making any sense.” Anne’s pleading was answered by her frog grandpa yelling:

“I’m running for mayor!!”

“WHAT?!” Anne and Polly exclaimed.

“Woohoo!!” Sprig hopped in celebration. However, sensing his feelings didn’t match with his family’s he asked, “Uh… Am I supposed to be overjoyed or to be shocked like you? I’m kind of lost.”

“Hop Pop, I know we boosted your morale to find a job, but did we revive some insane ambitions too?!”

“This wasn’t an insane ambition,” He replied to Polly after regaining his composure. “This was all Sasha’s idea!”

Marvelous, a tattletale. As the rest of the family regarded her, Sasha huffed. “You’re being overdramatic, old man. So, people are willing to choose you over Toadfool, so what? Shouldn’t you be happy? You’d do a better job than him.”

“Don’t avoid responsibility, young lady,” Hop Pop inflated his sack and hopped on the living room table to glare at the same level. “You did this behind my back!”

“Sasha!!” Anne raised her arms, incredulous.

“Again, you’re making a huge scene over nothing. What’s so bad about being mayor anyway? Don’t you like Wartwood?”

“I do, but—“

“And your neighbors?”

“Yes, but—“

“And you also dislike Toadfool’s management, right?”

“Sasha, listen to me for once! All of that is true but it doesn’t change the fact that you planned this and kept it a secret!”

“Oh sure, and what if I had said “Hey, you’d do great as a mayor”? I bet you would’ve rejected the idea or never dared to try. I did you a favor.”

“You don’t even know if I had accepted the idea. And let me warn you, Toadstool—“

“—has never been defeated before. Yeah, Willy gave me the memo already.”

“It’s Wally, Sasha,” Anne corrected.

“Anyway, wanna know why I’m so sure you can be a better mayor?” Hop Pop opened his mouth only for Sasha to answer herself. “Because of all the complaints against Toadfool. The destroyed schoolhouse, the hole-covered road, stealing money, raising taxes too much. He has done nothing for them! You can stop that by becoming mayor. Make them happy, make them love you, you have the power.”

“It’s painfully true that Toadstool has been looking for himself a lot and has gotten worse; however, you didn’t tell me anything! I was this close to having a new job and now I have everyone’s expectations on my back to change things!”

“Again, a favor I did to you. What? You seriously believe a mere job as a cashier or whatever is going to improve the town? Why not use your skills in politics and put that buffoon in his place?”

“You’re being too sure I’m gonna win. Have you ever wondered why Toadstool has never been defeated? It’s because frogs are at the bottom of the hierarchy. Even if I participate, there is no chance I’ll be elected.”

“People like you.”

“Unfortunately, Wartwood’s population doesn’t represent the whole Frog Valley.”

Uh… What? “OK, hold on. Since when Frog Valley is involved in this? You’re mayoring for Wartwood, not the whole land. That’s how it works.”

“In your world, maybe. Here, though, hehe, all Frog Valley must have a say in this. And it happens in the other main towns too. So even if the townsfolk like me, those numbers will be squashed by hundreds, thousands even! And to make it worse, not everyone in Frog Valley is a frog, there are toads too whether from the posts connected to Toad Tower or they are civilians. So yeah, this is a waste of time.”

Sasha facepalmed. “For real? Giving up before trying will always be your strategy? And what about the people desperate for a no-corrupt mayor? Are you going to tell them no because of those prospects?”

“I wonder when you’ve started to care about Wartwood, missy.” Hop Pop retorted with a face screaming ‘Suspicious of you’. Jesus Christ, convincing this old man has never proved to be this hard!

“For the last time, dude, you will never know unless you try. Instead of focusing on the negatives, head toward the positives.” She side-hugged him, extending her other arm in a typical salesman gesture. “Imagine, a humble farmer frog plunging into the chaotic world of politics not because of popularity or personal gain, but to help his fellow frogs and put a stop to the corrupt cycle of a miserable toad. It will inspire hope, the will to fight, to change the system! Victory or not, your participation will inform the whole valley that it’s possible to improve things and beat the odds!”

The speech’s attractiveness was surely alluring, he could give her that. Nonetheless, a bit of apprehension clung at his heart. He’d hate to witness his friends' and neighbors’ disillusion if he failed. So much work to kick Toadstool out of the office only to end up beaten and humiliated. What kind of message would he be leaving? That toads were favored no matter the circumstances and frogs were resigned to a life of strife and mockery?

‘Kiddo, mistakes and failure should never be a reason for you to quit.’ His father’s words joined Sasha’s speech. His gaze hardened.

“Alright, I’m in,” the blonde yelled ‘Woohoo!’ in celebration but Hop Pop raised a hand to explain himself. “This will be for Wartwood, not to defeat Toadstool. Victory is a mean, Sasha, not the real goal.”

Eh, good enough.

*****************

Arms swinging around, legs and feet swaying endlessly, Sasha’s body couldn’t get enough energy to express her excitement. Phase 3 had been a success! What was left was phase 4: crushing Toadfool with an ocean of votes!

It wouldn’t be easy knowing now that toads held the advantage due to the hierarchy, an obstacle that had survived for who knew how long. Whatever! Her charisma and people skills would be enough to butter everyone up. Not a single amphibian would vote for Toadfool!

Hopediah would be in all of—!

“Hey!!” Sasha exclaimed the moment Anne dragged her by the neck of her shirt. “What was that for?”

“End this.”

“End what?”

“Hop Pop’s participation in the elections, Sasha. End this right now.”

The blonde chortled. “Wow, Anne, I know the old man’s pessimism can be bothersome but not this contagious.”

“It’s not about about pessimism, Sasha! It’s about you breaking the goddamn promise!!”

“I didn’t—“

“You did!” Sasha backed away at the volume of her friend. “You did, you jerk! Staying away from Toadstool, don’t anger him, don’t do anything, but what did you do in the end? Push Hop Pop to compete against the mayor, that’s what!”

“Ok, girlfriend. First of all, I didn’t insult him today, or attack him, heck I wasn’t even sarcastic to him. Second, I’m not the one competing, Hopediah is and he said he would be mayor for Wartwood only. Which means, the promise is intact.”

“Ugh! Don’t you get it?! You’ve encouraged the whole town to vote for him! What if Toadstool finds out? What if this is the breaking point and he banishes you? Your doing is all over the fucking place!!”

Sasha sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Her posture emulated an exhausted adult clueless about how to explain the most basic of things to an unruly child; it boiled Anne’s blood much more. “You’re seeing monsters when it’s all shadows, Annie. I stated the obvious to them and they understood. That idiot is greedy, Hopediah isn’t; therefore, having Hopediah as a mayor is wiser. End of story.”

“No, Sasha. There is no end. Even when I made you promise me to let this go you haven’t. You’re obsessed!”

New strategy, changing the topic. “What’s more important to you, Anne? To help the old man win or to prove me a point?”

“Hop Pop wasn’t even aware of your plan until you rubbed it in his face!”

“So? He likes Wartwood, you like Wartwood. Heck, it is super important to you. Don’t you want to make it better? To have it under a better management?”

Anne turned around, exiting the basement.

************

She was accusing her of not caring about Wartwood enough. Sasha! Her own best friend!! Who the hell did she think she was?! Anne had spent more time than her in the town, she met and befriended a lot of people, she protected them from the tax collectors! She fucking cared!

And if Hop Pop won, she’d be ecstatic and cheer for him to bring the best out of his home. If he lost, she’d comfort him and tell him how proud she was of his efforts. However, Hop Pop’s campaign would be pure obligation for the sake of the town, not because he wanted this. And Sasha still would call it a victory as long as he didn’t quit.

“Hop Pop, can we talk?” She asked, her eyes peering timidly from the little space made by his barely opened door.

“Of course, Anne. Did something happen?”

“Be honest with me, do you really want to run for mayor?”

The farmer sighed, joining his hands to support his chin. “When the villagers told me how Sasha ‘opened their eyes’ about the state of the town and Toadstool’s incompetence, that I would do a better job than him, I was shocked. I couldn’t believe them. I may have been ready to not get any job or maybe one with an average pay but politics? Heh, the surprise of the century. It’s like treading unknown waters. I’m experienced in theater not politics. But… I’ve been thinking… Before you came into our lives, Toadstool was apathetic and barely helped unless he scavenged hard enough for personal gain. And when you became part of the family, nothing had changed for the better. I don’t know how our lives will be if he keeps the position indefinitely but his increasing greed is concerning. It got to the point of endangering everyone like you saw when the tax collectors ransacked the town… You even got hurt…” He trailed off, cringing at the horrible scene of a hammer breaking Anne’s arm. “I could defeat Toadstool, enjoying the victory, or move on because I did the right thing. Guess what? I’ll do both. I’ll do what’s correct and savor the victory.”

“And if you lose?”

“It’ll still be a win in the end. I hate to admit it but Sasha’s right. Despite how somber the prospect is, if I try and do my best, I will let them know that we frogs can reach unimaginable places instead of resigning ourselves to being simple peasants.”

Anne chuckled fondly. Good old Hop Pop. “If that’s what you want, then I’ll support you 100%, HP. But if this is too much or you lose, no one will blame you. You’ll have done your best.”

“Thank you, kiddo,” both hugged and Anne exited his study room.

Hop Pop had set his mind on making the town better but that wouldn’t deter Anne from knocking some sense into Sasha: one thing was for sure, this mayor race would have anything but a peaceful talk.

Chapter Text

Nothing could beat the peace you experienced by sleeping in your bed, moved by your subconscious as it created subliminal worlds where everything was possible. The mushy pillows hugged his head and neck, like the embrace of living clouds, or giant balls of cotton. The softness of the mattress relaxed his sore muscles to the point of turning them into jelly; if he were as light as a leaf, he could dance without a care in the world, pushed by the slightest breeze. The warmth from the sheets resembled the beginnings of spring, fresh and welcoming.

But everything changed when the whistle attacked…

“Aaaaggghhhhh!!” Hop Pop’s head almost crashed with the ceiling, falling into the bed unceremoniously. His frenetic eyes looked around for the source of danger only to meet an already dressed Sasha who had kicked his door open. “What the frog was that for?!”

“More planning, less sleeping, Hopadiah. The elections will be ruthless and knowing Toadfool, he will do anything to win so we can’t stay behind. Up up! Quickly! You have 5 minutes!”

His ears got all the words but his brain felt empty what with the sleepiness and the shock of the scare mixed. Hop Pop shook his head to rid of the tiredness, remembering the events that transpired yesterday. Oh yeah, he was Toadstool’s rival for the major place now.

Sasha snapped his fingers in front of him, eliciting some blinks. “Hello~? Earth to the new major! This isn’t the time for daydreaming! You can do that after beating Toadfool! Let’s go!”

As Sasha marched toward the kitchen, Hop Pop wondered if his age-worn body would be able to make it through whatever routine she had.

***********

The kitchen elicited tempting aromas of eggs, vegetables, and even some roasted insects, prompting 3 mouths to water as they waited for their orders.

Anne placed a bowl of fried, sauce-covered bugs on the center of the table, then put in front of Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop their vegetable-filled omelettes, leaving hers and Sasha for the end.

“Here,” The blonde didn’t waste time, handing Hop Pop a huge glass filled with a green, thick liquid that resembled poison.

“What is this? Can I drink i— Ow!” Sprig caressed the bruise on his hand, glaring at Sasha.

“It’s not for you, Squeaky Toy. And you, Hopadiah, you’d better swallow the juice in one gulp because today will require all your energy.”

“I fear to ask but how much time you’ll give me to enjoy my breakfast?”

“10 minutes, and it has started already.”

Anne choked on her omelette. “Dude, 10?! Give him a break, it’s the freaking morning—“

“Bup bup bup!” Sasha shut her up. “Victory doesn’t wait. He can have some vacations AFTER Toadfool’s butt has been kicked.”

For once in her life, hearing the current major’s name soured her mood and food. Not that they were close before; nonetheless, the tension between him and her family had spiked with each confrontation he had with Sasha. Did the blonde care though? Actually, stupid question, what mattered to her at this moment was any chance at her reach to defeat the major.

Hop Pop, on the other hand, ate his omelette in silence, grimacing at the foul taste of his ‘juice’. Yuck! Was this the same flavor Anne got with his cooking? Maybe he should experiment more for next dinner. No, wait, he couldn’t. Cooking wasn’t a ‘major’ thing, and knowing how determined Sasha was that he won, she wouldn’t allow it.

The sacrifices a new politician must make, he guessed.

***********

Almost ten minutes later, plus a maximum of 5 given by Sasha to wash his teeth and get well-dressed -for real, such a time limit should be considered a crime!-, he finally entered his living room. His eyes bulged enormously at the sight of his clothes and favorite ascots on the sofa, but a glance at Anne, Sprig, and Polly warned him that Sasha had a plan for customization.

“May I ask why the heck you grabbed all my clothes without my permission?”

“Easy! The first impression is always important.” Yep, customization.

“You could‘ve ju—“ Sasha’s hand cut his sentence short as the girl grabbed him by the shoulders like a child-size doll, placing him in the living room table.

Before he could complain about the surprising manhandling, Sasha put the bathroom mirror (wait, when did she get that?) on the table too.

“Alright, let’s not waste time. Step 1, presentation. People in Wartwood know you and how you look but if you want to impact to the point they talk to others outside of town about your qualities, you must leave them speechless.”

“And what are your ideas?”

“One question, how would you present yourself for a formal, life-changing meeting?”

Hop Pop pointed his arms at himself, raising and lowering them. Sasha’s deadpan expression silently questioned if that was all he had but he simply shrugged.

“Yeah, nope. This look feels old and repetitive.”

“I don’t know, Sash.” Anne piped in. “HP can do a lot with the right attitude. His appearance is neat enough.”

“Almost neat enough,” she corrected sharply. “Using the same clothes spoke volumes about your commitment on a meeting where power and confidence are keys to succeed. It says that you are choosing the easy way out instead of taking time to wow them.”

“But these clothes are well taken care of. I always wash them two times.”

Sasha pinched the bridge of her nose like a parent dealing with a mischievous child who paid more attention to their toys than to the lecture. “Once again, that’s just the last option, and those colors aren’t even good anyway. They make you look like a geezer that sells trinkets.”

Hop Pop frowned, crossing his arms. “Welp, Mrs. Fashion, then tell me, how should I dress for the campaign?”

Sasha picked an amber shirt, a burgundy coat that had no patches, dark brown pants, and a silver ascot. “Now look at this set. These colors represent determination, grace, power. When people see you, they feel that kind of message and be drawn to you. If you—“ She quelled her annoyance at Sprig’s interruption as he raised a hand. “Yeah? Make it quick.”

“How do people know what kind of message a color conveys?”

Pretty clever of Sprig. “He’s right. I might look fancy with this set of colors but the message won’t be clear to them unless I say it.”

“Let’s use an example. Anne, what colors do you associate with a clown?”

This better no be an experiment where Hop Pop had to dress like one so her friend could prove a point. “Usually vibrant colors like yellow, red, green, purple, and blue.”

“Now see this set of clothes,” Sasha picked a few garments of said colors and placed them in front of him. “If you wore them for the election, do you think Wartwood would take you seriously?”

As his mind conjured an scenario where he gave his speech, dressed so colorfully, he struggled to imagine if his neighbors would care about his appearance. Maybe they’d pay more attention to the clothes he was wearing because of their brightness, but his speech should be the real attention-grabber just like his actions, not how he looked like. Being presentable paid-off more than becoming a living distraction.

“…I see your point,” those words received a nod of approval from his ‘representative’. Actually, should he have a child as a representative? Including one whose reputation in Wartwood and in the eyes of the mayor is questionable? Oh well, as the big frog in the house, he could put all the boundaries necessary. Now, drilling the importance of respecting boundaries into Sasha’s head was another story but it’d work in time. At least, he can acknowledge her reasonings concerning appearance for the campaign were valid.

An imaginary lightbulb, suddenly, turned itself on when he remembered what the elections really entailed. “Before the presentation, Sasha, I consider better to prepare myself for the votelympics.”

She blinked, lost at the word.

“Let me explain,” he begun. “Despite being called Frog Valley, the mayors of each main town, Wartwood included, are all toads because they represent what the leadership must be: reliable, strong, and unmovable. If someone wants to be a mayor and competes against the current one, they must be ready to take on the Three Pilar Challenges.”

“Is it some kind of exam for politics?” Sasha asked.

“Yeah, do you have to study a lot?” Anne bet that if Marcy was here, she’d create a study plan in a matter of minutes and pick the thickest, most complex, and sleep-inducing books about how to mayor a town.

Hop Pop laughed softly, shaking his head. “If the mayor was a newt, then an exam would be the battlefield. But with toads everything is about physical strength and endurance.”

Sasha massaged her arms, tensing as she felt the closeness between the skin and the bone. Gaining fat and muscle has been arduous for the only source of protein in Amphibia were the bugs and the bug-dairy products Anne advised her not to ask about. A wise recommendation because the image of an amalgamation between a cow and a worm milked by a frog extinguished any appetite she could have and brought worrying questions regarding the healthiness of food in this world.

Of course, giant bugs weren’t the only animals to eat; birds and reptiles also inhabited the wilderness; however, either you had to be an expert hunter with top gear or the most foolish daredevil to look for such predators.

The giant claws, the deafening shrieks, and the piercing glances of the herons made her shiver. Was she going to hate or fear chicken once she returned home? Was she going to be forced by those memories to become a vegan? Was she going to—?

She gasped, almost choking, as something was pressed onto her shoulder. Her frantic eyes met Anne’s hand and then her eyes that silently asked if she was ok. Much to her embarrassment, the others were regarding her with concerns too.

“I’m fine,” she said to go back to the planning.

“Maybe we shou—“ But Anne didn’t finish her suggestion because a glare from Sasha shut her mouth. Even her ocean eyes were sharp enough to communicate the ‘End of discussion’ warning.

Anne fought between letting this go for her friend’s sake or insisting in taking a break, again for her friend’s sake. It wouldn’t be so difficult if Sasha’s stubbornness wasn’t as big as the Sahara but the blonde’s pride wanted to keep fighting for its honor so it pushed back against Anne’s indecisiveness.

“Ehem!” Hop Pop’s fake cough debut lessened the tension “I think we stopped at what toads represent in general, didn’t we?”

“Yeah… You’re right,” Sasha shot him a glance, her eyes shining with some relief and gratitude. “So, you need to be as tough as them in the Three Pilar Challenges?”

“It’s not a hundred percent toughness exam. You see, they are called like that because Wartwood created this voting method to verify which candidate had the 3 main qualities: intelligence, compassion, and might. The other towns have their own ways, but the Three Pilar Challenges has Wartwood all over it.”

“And what about the votolympics?”

“Votelympics,” he corrected. “It’s a series of long physical challenges implemented by the toads that ran as mayors centuries ago. It’s a must that you participate because if not you’re disqualified. First, it’s the Three Pilar Challenges, next is the votelympics.”

“What do you have to do in each one of them?”

“Prove you can apply the 3 qualities. For example, a way to get certain item in nature without hurting the fauna could be to see if you have compassion or intelligence. They use to be explicit about it when the challenges start.”

Sasha observed the assortment of clothes and the mirror she had brought for the bathroom. Maybe she was starting at the end instead of addressing the heart of the campaign. She clapped her hands, “Ok, change of plans, Hopadiah. Fashion later, training first.”

“Training?” Said everyone.

“Exactly!” She put her cane over her shoulder like a warrior would their war hammer. “Training.”

**********

From a farmer to a soldier, that’s how Hop Pop felt as he witnessed his beautiful and fertile farm becoming a sharp, hardened training ground.

He'd preferred that the training he'd receive take place in the woods, near the house, but Sasha refused, saying that fighting wild beasts was beyond his capabilities, which... well, it sounded like he was handicapped.

"Just so you know, young lady, I have plenty of experience fighting wild creatures."

"That's true. He even had to take on two bullworms that Sprig led into the house WITHOUT THINKING." Polly emphasized that last point to annoy her brother. The frog boy threw his arms out in exasperation. "It was an accident!"

"But I bet you he's never faced giant herons," Sasha puffed out her chest with pride, the same pride that pushed the roars of those infernal birds into a corner.

Hop Pop remained silent. Engaging in battle with predators like those didn't bring back good memories. "Anyway, where do we start? The Votelympics or the Three Pillar Challenges?"

“Second. Of course, you'll have to figure out on your own what quality you should demonstrate in the challenge. I won't make it too difficult so you're not playing charades. Anne, Squeaky Toy, Polly, come on. Stand over there,” Sasha pointed to a rectangle drawn in the field where radishes are usually planted. Now, instead of radishes, what covered the ground were some unfriendly-looking handmade mannequins, holding some of the farm tools as if they were weapons. Some branches had also been gathered together to simulate a barrier of wooden spikes.

With Anne, Sprig, and Polly behind her, Sasha pointed. “Rescue mission. This is my army, I am their leader, you must defeat us if you want to save them.”

It sounded simple except for the thin figure—thicker than it should be by human standards, which she didn't understand—and the bones that showed beneath the skin. How tough could someone be who was only skin and bones? “I don't know, Sasha. I have a clear advantage over you, and I don't want to hurt you.”

“Argh! Please, old man! I'm not an invalid. Do you know how long I've survived to get here?”

“But you're still convalescing, and you know what the healer said.”

“Forget that. Focus on the prize, on winning, it's not a small thing.”

Hop Pop extended his arms toward her, “Your health isn't a—!”

“Focus on winning. End of discussion.”

Anne touched Sasha's shoulder, causing her to turn around and ask with a look why she was interrupting. “Sash, he only cares about you. You know you're not in condition to fight yet. At least tell him to go easy on you.”

“Go easy on me?” she said, as if Anne had weighed in on a subject she didn't understand. “Anne, I understand that you've been comfortable in a nice little house in a random little town, picking flowers, but this isn't a walk in the park. If Hopadiah wants to win, then he should forget I'm under his care, and you should stay where you are. If you go along with him, he'll never advance.”

“Advance in what? Break your leg or something else?” Sasha just rolled her eyes, until a better idea came to her. “I know, since you're so scared I'll shatter like porcelain, how about you help me?” Anne's eyes widened. “See those mannequins? Control one or two to make this test more interesting, but don't make it easy for him. If he's not allowed to do it, neither are we.”

“You know, when I wanted to change your mind, I didn't mean to be a part of it like this.”

“Don't be pessimistic, Anne. We're going to win.” Then she glared at Hop Pop. “And I already told you, old man! Don't hesitate, just attack!”

This is going to be a disaster, huh?

And to top it all off, he didn't have a weapon at hand. Should he take them away from the mannequins then?

“Start!” Sasha yelled. Argh, dammit! What does it matter?

Like a walking spring, Hop Pop advanced toward his grandchildren, but in a few seconds Anne blocked him with the first mannequin. The shock made him forget to stop his advance, causing him to crash into the obstacle. Even so, it took very little time for him to recover and take another path, only for Anne to use the mannequin again to trip him up.

“That's not enough, Anne. Pretend those mannequins are real people.” Anne gave Hop Pop a look that said “Act quickly” and threw the mannequin at him.

Of course, the old frog dodged it. Sasha clicked her tongue. Anne was making it too easy for her.

On the other hand, the same brown-haired girl was grabbing a few mannequins and throwing them at Hop Pop. Some tripped him up, others missed.

Sasha grunted. It was time to get her act together.

Like swords, she grabbed the wooden poles of two mannequins, lifting them with all her might. If her bones and muscles were made of metal, they would grind until they ruptured her eardrums from the overexertion she was exerting, but she didn't care.

Hopadiah was already a few steps away from reaching her, so Sasha seized the moment to swing her two swords, nearly knocking the frog to the ground.

"Friend, relax! Any more and you'll kill him!" Anne cried, amazed and terrified by Sasha's strength.

"You can do it, Hop Pop! Save us!" Sprig encouraged.

"Show your manhood!" Polly exclaimed.

Sasha attacked the old man again with the mannequins, swinging them like daggers. One swung to the right, and Hop Pop jumped but was struck by the other mannequin. Both were raised for a powerful attack until he remembered, hey, if Sasha wants a good fight, then she'll have to teach him a lesson for asking for such a foolish thing.

His tongue lashed out at Sasha's stomach. Her lungs expelled the air they had left, and she fell flat on her face, inhaling and exhaling desperately. Ah, it was easy enough.

Hop Pop spun around to "rescue" his grandchildren, but after taking a few steps, he was charged by the blonde, to everyone's surprise.

"Hop Pop!" Anne and Sprig shouted simultaneously.

"Come on, Hop Pop! Attacks from behind are easy to avoid." Polly snorted as if this was common knowledge.

Sasha had Hop Pop in a typical wrestling hold and could use her own weight plus the old man's in a body slam, but her legs wouldn't stop shaking, and sweat was beading her forehead.

Besides, the frog's legs kept pounding against his skeletal midsection; he'd have a ton of bruises after that.

"Give it up!" he demanded. "You're at your limit!"

"Will being polite make Toadfool give up? Think again, old man!" She tightened her grip with her remaining energy, and one of her arms reached for her cane, only to realize she'd dropped it to use the two dummies. She could have thrown Hop Pop to the ground and run for her cane, or used the body slam; however, the old frog took advantage of her hesitation to wrap his tongue around her legs, knocking her off her feet.

And if that weren't enough, he resorted to the body slam.

A leap, unfolding his entire body so that his weight collided with Sasha.

Anne, Sprig, and Polly murmured "ouch" when they saw that.

Seeing that Sasha had no more energy, Hop Pop ran over to his grandchildren and hugged them, overcoming the challenge.

"Sasha, are you okay?!" Anne asked as she helped her up. Sasha's hair was messed up, she was sweating profusely, and I could already see her lips were a little blue from lack of air. Hop Pop didn't puncture a lung, did he?

“Now you see this wasn't a good idea?”

“N-No…” she murmured, but her face reflected great satisfaction. “H-He did it…perfectly…”

*********

After a warm bath, new bandages, and a hearty lunch, Sasha felt energized enough to continue training, so she drew several of her ideas, most of which involved arm wrestling or hand-to-hand combat.

"Why do you have to be so aggressive?" Hop Pop blanched at the challenges she would have to endure to begin the Pillar Challenges. "Wasn't humiliating you in that test enough?"

"You were tough and very clever, I'll give you credit for that, except for when you asked me to give up. That's what people with a loser's mentality do."

"I did it because you were overexerting yourself!"

"Because of you!" Sasha added. "The training camp, the new lessons, all of that is for you. Do you think you're the only one competing? Toadfool could be training right now. Focus on winning at all costs. Win, win, win. Nothing else."

“You were right, Anne,” Sprig murmured to the girl, “She’s too competitive.”

Sasha snorted, taking that as an insult. “Oh, excuse me, but a race isn’t a race if you’re walking while everyone else is speeding. Either you run as fast as you can or you don’t participate. Has Anne told you how many times we’ve won talent shows at school?”

“They do something like that while they’re studying? Ha! They’d make classes more fun if the mayor hadn’t yet organized a reconstruction plan for our school,” Polly complained.

“We get visits from sponsors who host talent shows, but they’re rare because they come from Newtopia.”

“Newtopia what?” the two girls retorted simultaneously.

“Newtopia, the capital of Amphibia and the city of the merfolk. It is where our esteemed and wise king, Andrias Leviathan, Peacemaker of 1,000 years, lives.”

********

“AAACCCCHHHUUUU!!!” A giant pale blue merman took a handkerchief from his pocket to blow his nose.

“Your Majesty, I suggest you close your study window. You might catch a cold,” suggested a female merman with long, slightly wavy, and sophisticatedly styled black hair. Her attire was reminiscent of Disney princesses in its creative opulence.

“Don’t worry, Lady Olivia. Maybe it was the dust.”

*********

They have a king, and yet they vote for a mayor even though they have one who isn’t even a frog but a toad? Well, the complicated political intricacies of this world weren’t their problem.

“Let's get back to the point. Hopadiah, no pleading or talking the talk. If you want to be mayor, you must be unstoppable, just like you did with me.”

“And what was that test for? Strength or intelligence?”

“Strength, determination, stamina. You said toads have those, right? How about you show them that a frog possesses those attributes too? Earn their respect, let them see your potential!”

“Uh oh, I know!” Sprig raised his hand, jumping up and down in ecstasy. “How about Hop Pop rings the Plantar family Challenge Bell?”

“Me what?!” “Challenge Bell? Wow, I didn't know you had a ring, old man.”

“No no no, Sasha, it's not a ring or whatever you're thinking,” he corrected her. “That bell has been and is part of a long tradition for the Plantars whenever disputes escalated. And the last time we used it, things didn't go well at all.” The tall frog accusingly reminded her nephew of the mess he wreaked on the farm after taking control. He shrugged, laughing nervously.

“You know what, Sprig has given me an excellent idea. Let's use the traditional family challenge.”

“You want to fight Hop Pop again?!” “Hey, you said my name.” “It's only been half an hour since we had lunch, young lady.” “Yeah! More action!” The small audience in front of Sasha was a barely comprehensible jumble of voices.

“No, no action. Sasha, while your passion for this campaign is both admirable and questionable, as your guardian, I am responsible for your health.”

His eye was already twitching. Oh, wait! “How about we make a deal, family challenge style? If I beat you, you’ll shut up about how ‘fragile’ I am. But if you beat me, you can keep treating me like a baby.” ‘Which will never happen,’ she added in her mind.

“I’m not—” Hop Pop blinked. How had he not noticed Anne standing behind Sasha? And for what? “Anne, why are you standing behind Sasha? Did you want to go to the bathroom?”

The blonde turned around, meeting her friend’s awkward smile, who broke out in a cold sweat. The other girl said nothing about it and returned to the topic with Hop Pop, “So, it’s a deal?”

Anne crossed her fingers. Polly nodded wildly, even though her grandfather couldn’t see her. Sprig just looked at Anne with concern.

The old frog sighed. “Fine, we’ll do it. BUT after this, you’re going to rest.”

“Tell me after you beat me, old man,” the teenager challenged him with a sly smile and the two shook hands.

**********

“Just so you know, even though this was my idea, I won’t be wearing a loincloth,” Sasha said, grimacing at the mere thought of wearing such a thing in the Plantar challenge.

“It was basically my idea,” Sprig commented.

“Shut up! Let the battle begin, I want some action!” Polly shouted and, like last time, rang the challenge bell with her tiny tail.

Although Hop Pop wasn’t in favor of any more training that would push the blonde teen’s physical limits, his mind had already planned a way to end this quickly and not so painfully.

His tongue darted out of his mouth and, acting like a snake, wrapped itself around Sasha’s arms and waist.

In an instant, both his mind and body agreed that they had been through this before and wouldn’t be doing it again. Her breathing became ragged, her heart sounded like an orchestra of frantic drums, her eyes no longer seeing the strict, old frog who had taken her in, but a robust, vulgar, and violent toad.

His eyes were whitish, his warty skin was colorless, and a kind of smoke that smelled of putrefaction emanated from his mouth. All his armor was rusted and barely held together by rotten pieces of leather.

"What the fuck?!" she exclaimed.

In response, the toad let out a roar, not just any roar, the same one those infernal herons let out. Her heart froze, and the hairs on her neck stood on end as the toad propelled itself toward her. His helmet, its rust-eaten tip, took the shape of an arrow. The wound on her back began to burn.

Burn, burn, burn!

He was going after the same wound!

He was going to kill her!

With teary eyes and gritting his teeth almost to the point of breaking them, Sasha instinctively rocked back, and his head collided brutally with Hop Pop's.

"Aagghhh!!" The old frog rolled onto his side. He muttered under his breath at the massive bruise. Oh my God, I didn't know human teenagers' heads were so tough!

His surprise didn't end there, as Sasha ran toward him, her eyes filled with rage. Murderous rage!

*********

The moment Sasha was caught by Hop Pop's tongue, Anne realized something wasn't right. It wasn't that she hadn't seen it before; Sasha's mind seemed to wander off and become somewhat chaotic for some reason, like when HP was talking about toads as representatives of strength and toughness, and within seconds, her friend's subconscious seemed to fall into a hole where she saw or heard truly unpleasant things that disturbed her greatly.

Was this due to stress? Was it due to her body still recovering from her ordeal fleeing Grime and his army?

Whatever the reason was, it returned now, but with devastating force. She could tell by her eyes, which held back tears but were unable to hide the panic and the survival instinct.

"Aagghhh!!" A gasp of shock escaped Anne, Sprig, and Polly at the sight of Sasha's tremendous headbutt on Hop Pop.

The farmer frog struggled to his feet, swallowing every curse word he knew while rubbing the enormous bruise on his forehead. However, that was the least of his worries compared to what Sasha did next.

"Sasha, stop!" It was as if Anne had screamed at her from hundreds of miles away, because Sasha didn't stop but instead launched herself like a bloodthirsty beast at Hop Pop, pulling him off the enormous lily pad and herself as well.

They fell into the mud; however, the girl cared little, as her hands clamped down on Hop Pop's neck, intent on breaking it.

"Sasha, stop! What's wrong with you?!" Anne hugged her waist to pull her away from the frog while Sprig and Polly helped their grandfather up. The blonde, on the other hand, was a mass of anger and despair, but a few minutes were enough for her to calm down, as her energy was quickly depleted.

Standing in front of her and debating whether she should scold her, see why she acted that way, or take her home, the Thai girl placed her hands on her shoulders and shook her, hoping to make any madness she'd caught disappear.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Sash?! You said it was just training! Why did you attack Hop Pop?!"

Sasha shook her head several times and then raised an eyebrow, confused by that question. "Hopadiah... Wait, but the toad—"

"What toad are you talking about? There isn't one here!"

Sasha watched the old frog being hugged tightly by her grandchildren, who viewed the girl as a threat or a ticking time bomb. She then turned her eyes to Anne's, who was still waiting for an explanation. There was no toad. But she had seen one, and it had attacked her. She was sure of that.

“Sasha, why did you attack him?” Anne asked, trying very hard not to raise her voice.

“It wasn’t him. There was a toad in front of me.”

“Didn’t you hear what Anne told you?” Sprig butted in. “There was no one there but us.”

“I think she’s crazy,” Polly whispered.

Hop Pop was trying to sort this whole mess out even though he wanted to cancel training and go to bed. When he reluctantly agreed to be trained by the human, he never imagined he’d be the target of a bloodthirsty rage that had nothing to do with winning the election.

The only clue in such an incident was that Sasha “had fought a toad.” Which was absurd, except that maybe her mind was on another page compared to her body, though she didn’t know why.

Or perhaps the reason was obvious considering where he'd fled from a while ago.

"S-Sasha?" Hop Pop approached her cautiously, even though his grandchildren were still clinging to him out of caution. "What did the toad you said was fighting you look like?"

Sasha blinked a few times, and even that was seen as a sign of calamity. She finally replied, "He was wearing armor, but it's very rusty. And he looked like a zombie."

"Zombie?"

"That's what we call an undead person, Hop Pop," Anne explained.

Zombie or not, Sasha's explanation solved the mystery of his aggressive behavior. Or so he thought; he wasn't an expert on psychology, and yet...

"I think... I think what happened to you at Toad Tower has affected you more than it seems, Sasha."

Affected? She was about to open her mouth and protest, but upon closer inspection, she realized there was a serious problem with her plans. With today's incident, plus what Hopadiah had said, what were the chances of her being able to continue training him without having to be subjected to intense scrutiny as if she were a suspect in a crime?

Now they would see her as a dangerous lunatic. And what about Anne? Which side would she take: Sasha's, her best friend, or those frogs?

And to think she was worried Toadfool would do something to get ahead in the election, but this was much worse because she was sabotaging her own plans.

She needed to think.

“Sasha, where are you going?” Anne asked, still worried.

“I'll go home and rest. Training's over for today.”

**********

Of all the obstacles Sasha has faced since ending up in a dangerous world filled with talking amphibians, she never imagined the memories of that devastating day when she barely escaped Toad Tower with her life would haunt her. And to top it all off, now everyone else knew!

How would they treat her from now on? Kicking her out of the house would be like agreeing with the conceited idiot mayor.

She had to come up with something special or charming enough—though it's hard to find a better adjective—to win their trust again. Hell, at this point, she'd stoop to doing boring farm chores, feeding the snail, or even making them dinner. No, no, the latter would be much more suspicious. They might think she's poisoning them!

"Sash?" Sasha spun around, almost slipping. Anne walked down the last few basement steps. Then she played with her hands and scratched the back of her neck. “Listen, friend, we need to talk.”

“Look, Anne,” Sasha began before the other girl could open her mouth again. “I don’t like Hopadiah that much, but I don’t want to kill him, and I DIDN’T WANT to kill him. Whatever he told you about me isn’t true.”

“We know.” Those two words left Sasha’s mind frozen, like when a computer displays a 404 error on a web page.

“Y-You know? What do you mean by that?” she questioned, because it was better to be safe than sorry.

“It was like Hop Pop said, Sasha, your experiences at Toad Tower have affected you more than you’re letting on.”

Sasha clicked her tongue. Back to the past… “That’s the past, kid,” she retorted, repeating part of her own thoughts. “That shithole is just ruins if you don’t forget the… giant herons…” The blonde cursed under her breath at the pause in her response. Anne had noticed.

“Past or not, it affected you. And no, Hop Pop doesn't think badly of you if that's what you think. He's worried. Yes, this incident was upsetting, but after what you told him, he now has the context to explain your reactions.”

Ah, well, that was an advantage in her favor.

“What about you?” Sasha asked because, after all, even though Hop Pop winning was important, she couldn't remain uncertain about whether Anne feared her or was starting to see her as a lunatic.

Her heart wrenched at the first thought: Anne's fear of her, terror of her friend because she only sees a creature with Sasha's appearance and voice but hiding horrible intentions.

Some memories in which he used his famous phrase “End of discussion” spun around in her mind. She didn't like how similar they were to the possibility that Anne might fear him if she thought he'd gone wild or something.

“I’m very worried,” Anne replied, and Sasha could see in her eyes that her response was genuine. “One part of the entertainment was going well, but the next, you went completely off the rails. I’m not saying this to accuse you of anything, it’s just…” Anne looked away, anxious and frustrated, as if whatever was on the tip of her tongue was going to make everything worse. She squeezed her eyes shut and blurted out, “You haven’t told me anything about how things went at Toad Tower!”

“Arrghh! That again? Didn’t I tell you it’s the—?”

“No matter how much it's in the past, your life was in danger. I faced some Toads, and it wasn't pretty, my friend. They're rude, cruel, violent, and stubborn. If fighting three of them was a challenge, I can't imagine how terrible it was to battle an army plus their captain, in his own tower. Sasha, do you remember the nightmare I had shortly after I brought you to the Plantar house?”

Did Anne have a nightmare after that? She didn't remember much. She searched her mind for clues, but the fragments were vague. Had she been too tired to remember?

“I don't remember much, but I do remember you crying and hugging me.”

Anne nodded, melancholy. “In my dreams… There was nothing but darkness. But then I saw something. It was a couch like the one Hop Pop has. And when I got closer… I saw a body covered by a blanket…” Sasha paled, some memories beginning to become clearer. “I wanted to run away, I wanted to turn around and pretend it didn't exist, but my body moved on its own. My hand uncovered the body and…” Anne paused again, holding back tears. “It was y-you… It was you… Sasha… You were dead, and I just wanted the torture to end. I didn't want to believe you were gone.”

“And… it happened after I showed up…”

“Yes, because you were badly injured, thin, and very sick. Now do you see why I'm worried about you? If seeing you as the living dead affected me, the hell you went through in Toad Tower is much worse. I just want you to be okay. We were so lucky you found Wartwood, because otherwise, I wouldn't know where you would be.”

Sasha could only move to the bed and sit down. Having the Plantars scared or Hopadiah reluctant to be trained were options she didn't want to face, but being the target of so much worry? Well, at least Anne was on her side, but she saw her like a porcelain doll.

Trying to convince her to let her keep training the old frog was the only idea she could think of, although Anne could be as stubborn as Sasha, and a fight between them was the last thing she wanted right now. She couldn't waste energy on nonsense.

"What do you want me to do, then? Obviously, Hopadiah is going to have to choose between letting me stay even though the others are afraid of me, or making me sleep with the snail."

"Her name is Bessie, and no, Hop Pop wouldn't do that. I told you, he's worried. He cares about you."

The blonde blushed a little. How long has it been since she's felt the affection of a parental figure?

She shook her head. There was no point in thinking about that now.

The strategy to fix this mess was the priority.

“We’d better get some rest, Anne,” Sasha finally said. “Tomorrow… Tomorrow I’m going to take the leap of faith and greet them. Apologize to Hopadiah and see what we can do to help him win the election.”

Anne raised an eyebrow. Sasha raised an eyebrow too. “What? Don’t you want me to apologize or try to prove to them that I’m not going to eat them in their sleep?”

“No, it’s not that, it’s just…” ‘The elections aren’t that important.’ , ‘What if this incident happens again?’ , ‘Why are you so intent on this instead of your health?’ “I think you’re taking the events at Toad Tower too lightly.”

Sasha pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers. “Anne, we can’t stay stuck in the past just because it affected us. And yes, sometimes we’ll have nightmares or fear, but if I’d been shivering in terror and waiting to be rescued like a damsel in distress, I would have rotted away in the filthy dungeon of that silly tower. And don’t you remember your adventures with Sprig, Polly, and Hopadiah? Like that time you went for the last pizza topping and wouldn’t back down because it was all or nothing. When you faced those giant tomatoes, did you give up just because they were vicious?” Anne shook her head. “And what about Domino 2? Were you going to abandon him just because he wasn’t a cat but a species you’d never met?”

“Sasha!” Anne gently pushed her shoulder. “Don’t remind me. I still miss her. But raising her went horribly wrong.”

“You still tried. It was something new, you were nervous, it was challenging, but it didn't stop you. If giant tomatoes or raising Domino 2, even if it was a different species, didn't stop you, why would Toad Tower, or Grime, get in the way of my life? Wouldn't that be giving them more power?”

“Uh, you're right,” Anne scratched her head. Now that she thought about it, what was the point of focusing so much on what happened there if you were going to be obsessed with it and neglect other things? “Looking at it that way, it would be for the best. I wouldn't want those toads hanging around in my head all day, or I'd get paranoid.”

“Exactly! If it's not beneficial, then we're not going to think about it. Ever,” Sasha emphasized with a look that conveyed that this was an order. Then that look softened as she invited Anne to sit with her on the bed. “So, since we're not going to waste our time with that, do you have any ideas for how HP can win the election?”

“Yes. Although it's a surprise they'll find out tomorrow. For now, we'd better rest; I'm exhausted.”

“Haha, I haven't seen you this exhausted since you coached the cheerleading squad for the basketball championship.”

“They didn't even remember the choreography, but with Hopadiah, at least I know he has some insight into how things are done around here. It makes it easier.” Suddenly, an idea occurred to her. “Hey, how about we come up with a good speech for when he wins the election? There's nothing better for a winner than having excellent talk.” And she grabbed her cell phone.

“About that, it won't work; there's no Wi-Fi in Amphibia.”

Sasha grimaced as her cell phone fell from her hands.