Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Anne, Marcy, and Sasha walk into the portal back to Earth. They end up back at the Saint James Middle Playground, the place where their journey began. The portal closes behind them. For a few moments, neither of them say anything. Anne starts to chuckle.

Sasha: “What’s so funny?”

Anne: “Oh, it’s nothing. It’s just…this past half a year, everything has been so crazy. We ended up in a world with talking amphibians and we ended up saving not just that world, but this one and countless others. It just…feels a little unreal that it’s all over, ya know? That we’re just…back to being…normal.”

Sasha: “Yeah, I know what you mean. It’s gonna take some time to adjust to being back here.”

Anne notices that Marcy looks dejected.

Anne: “What’s wrong, Mar-mar?”

Marcy: “Is it a little messed up that I think being stranded in Amphibia was a good thing?”

Anne and Sasha look at each other.

Marcy: “Even though we had some major disagreements, the fact that we’re still able to call ourselves friends is just a testament to just how strong our friendship is. Plus we grew as people. Anne, you were able to stand up for what you believed in. Sash, you realized that there are more important things in life than being in control. And I…I learned that I can’t force people to do something they don’t want to do. I don’t know if we would have learned any of these back home.”

Anne sighs. “I gotta admit, she has a point. If we had just spent the past six months here, we would have just been in our same routines. Nothing interesting really happens here. And it’s difficult for people to change if they don’t see a reason to.”

Sasha: “I guess you’re right. But, that life is behind us now. All we can really do now is resume life on Earth.”

Anne: “But we can take the things we learned in Amphibia and apply them here.”

Marcy: “Speaking of which, are you fine, Anne? I know it must have been heartbreaking to leave the Plantars behind.”

Anne: “Oh me? Pfft, yeah, I’ll be alright. Anyways, I should get you two home. Your parents are probably worried sick about you.”

Sasha: “You’re right! I totally forgot about them. They must be so scared as to whether we’re alright.”

Anne: “Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. When I was on Earth, I sent a letter to both of your parents. They more or less know what’s going on. I can call my parents and have them drop you off at your place.”

Marcy: “Uh wait, aren’t my parents…ya know, not in California anymore?”

Anne: “No, they’re still here.”

Marcy ponders to herself for a moment.

Anne: “Anyway, I’ll get my dad down here.”

Sasha: “Can you ask your dad to drop me off at my dad’s place? I wanna see him first.”

Anne: “Sure thing, Sash.”

Back in Amphibia, we see the inhabitants looking at the open sea, where the portal that sent Anne, Sasha, and Marcy once was. Everyone is silent for a few moments. Andrias stands up.

Andrias: “Attention everyone. Because of my many misdeeds done to you and the people of Earth, I will be stepping down as king of Amphibia, and giving that title to someone far more worthy: Olivia.”

Everyone turns to look at Olivia, who is in shock.

Andrias: “Olivia is a shining example of what it means to be honorable. She always did things by the book, and never once questioned me. But when she realized what I had been trying to do, she simply could not stand by and watch it happen. She disobeyed me and fought for what she knew to be right. If someone like that is not suitable to be queen, then I do not know who is.”

Everyone starts to clap, and Olivia starts to tear up. She wipes away her tears and stands next to Andrias.

Olivia: “Listen up, everyone. I know that we are all sad to see the saviors of this planet leave us. But as my mother once told me, ‘do not be sad because your friends are gone; instead, smile, because you had the pleasure of getting to know them’. Andrias, I think I speak for everyone here that you have some atonements to make. Therefore, I will be putting you, and anyone who supported you, into exile from Newtopia for the foreseeable future. Additionally, you will need to clean up the environment you damaged.”

Andrias: “As you wish, my queen. Bartley, Branson, and Blair, you’re with me.”

Andrias, Bartley, Branson, and Blair leave.

Olivia: “As for the rest of you, I know it will be difficult without Anne, Sasha, and Marcy here, but try to live your lives as you always have. You are all dismissed.”

Everyone leaves, except for Yunan.

Yunan: “I can still keep my title as general, right?”

Olivia: “Yes, of course. But I would also like to have another title.”

Yunan: “And what title would that be?”

Olivia smiles.

Mr. Boonchuy is driving his car with Anne, Sasha, and Marcy in the back. He pulls up to an apartment complex.

Mr. Boonchuy: “It’s good you two are reconnecting with your families. It might be a good idea for the Plantars to come here so we can have a big family get-together!”

Anne: “Huh?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Ya know, Hop Pop, Sprig, and Polly! You can just use the music box to transport them here!”

Sasha: “But we don't have the music box. It only-”

Anne puts her hand over Sasha’s mouth. “...had enough energy to send us here! But the Plantars said they would recharge the stones after they fixed the environmental damage, so it’ll be a while before they can come here!” she says.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Oh. I thought you were gonna say the music box became completely unusable. I can’t imagine not seeing them again. That Hop Pop was a little strange, but his heart was in the right place. I don’t think I ever really properly thanked him for looking after you…well, anyways this is your stop, Sasha. Please give me a 5 star rating if you enjoyed your Doober ride!”

The girls stare at him blankly.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Ah, I guess that joke’s really only funny to my wife.”

Anne: “I…think she might have just been laughing because she didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Ah, don’t be silly, she wouldn’t do that. Besides, I’m a tough man. It takes a lot to make me cry.”

Anne: “Dad, you cried during the last scene of “Mall-E”.

Mr. Boonchuy: “But those robots were just so cute together!”

Sasha: “Sorry if I’m interrupting anything, but I’m getting out now. I’ll see you two later.”

Anne: “Catch you tomorrow?”

Sasha: “Yeah, for sure.”

Sasha gets out of the car. She walks into the building and up to room 304. She hesitates a little before knocking. A middle aged man with brown hair opens the door.

Sasha: “Hi Dad, did you miss me?”

The man hugs her.

Sasha: “I guess you missed me a lot, huh?”

Mr. Waybright chuckles through his tears. “Maybe just a bit”, he says.

Sasha peers over her dad’s shoulder. She sees a middle aged woman with slightly redder hair.

Sasha: “Mom?”

Mrs. Waybright: “Hi, sweetie. I’m so happy to see you again.”

Sasha runs up to her mom and gives her a hug. They both start to cry.

Sasha: “I feel the same way. But how did you know I was here?

Mrs. Waybright: “Anne texted us. She told us you were heading here. So then your father told me. We wanted to both be here for you.”

Sasha chuckles. “Of course she did. But I thought you two hated each other.”

Mr. and Mrs. Waybright look at each other. They give each other a small smile.

Mrs. Waybright: “Oh, Sasha, your father and I don’t hate each other. We just found that living with each other didn’t really create the best of environments for you to live in.”

Mr. Waybright: “Yeah, when I met your mother in college, all I could think of was just being with her. We had the same interests and we really got to know each other on a personal level. At that point, we were both certain that we had found a soulmate in each other. So we got married and had you.”

Mrs. Waybright: “But then we realized that maybe we rushed things a bit too much. Soon, your father and I got into disagreements. Most of them were minor, but then they started getting worse and more frequent. At that point, we came to the conclusion that maybe we would be better off without each other.”

Mr. Waybright: “Of course, we couldn’t really be away from each other. After all, we wanted to make sure you were set up for a good life.”

Sasha starts to cry. “So then it was me, wasn’t it? If I wasn’t here you guys would have gotten along better. Maybe you two would have been happier if I had stayed in Amphibia…” she says.

Mr. Waybright grabs Sasha and looks her in the eyes. “Sasha, look at me. Don’t ever say that. Your mother and I may not see eye to eye on a lot of things, but one thing that we can certainly agree on is that you were one of the best things that ever could have happened to us", he says.

Sasha starts to cry. Her mother and father hold her in a tight embrace.

Sasha: “Thanks, Dad. Does this mean you and mom can maybe get back together again?”

Mr. Waybright: “I don’t really wanna make promises that I may not be able to keep.”

Mrs. Waybright: “But we will certainly try. And if we can’t, just remember that it isn’t your fault.”

Sasha smiles.

Mrs. Waybright: “Now, tell us what happened. I especially wanna hear about how you got that scar.”

Sasha: “Oh this? Yeah, I was thinking I could maybe just put on some makeup to cover it up…”

Mrs. Waybright: “Don’t.”

Sasha: “Huh?”

Mrs. Waybright: “I said don’t. You shouldn’t be afraid to show your scars. Besides, it makes you look cool.”

Sasha: “Well it’s a funny story how I got it…actually no, it isn’t. But I’ll tell you about it anyway.”

Mr. Boonchuy is driving his car with Anne and Marcy in the back. He pulls up to a house. Marcy gets out of the car quickly and closes the door without saying anything. She runs up to the house door, and looks back at Anne. Anne gives her a thumbs up and a small smile. Marcy turns back to the door and knocks. Mr. Boonchuy drives away as a middle aged Taiwanese woman with her hair in a ponytail opens the door. She says nothing and steps aside to let her in. She locks the door behind her. Marcy sits down in a chair in the living room. A middle aged Taiwanese man wearing glasses looks up from his computer for a few moments before looking back down. Marcy then covers her face with her hands.

Marcy: “Mom, Dad, I know you guys must hate me for what I’ve done. I should have just gone along with leaving California. Instead I just put myself and my two best friends in danger, and lied to them about it. I’m a horrible person because I’m the reason you two are stuck here!”

Marcy starts to bawl.

Mr. Wu: “Marcy.”

Marcy sniffles. “Yeah?”, she says.

Mr. Wu: “We’re not stuck in California because of you. We chose to stay in California because of you.”

Marcy: “Isn't that what I said?”

Mr. Wu: “Not quite. You’re implying that because you left us, that we had to stay here. What I implied was that because you went missing, we decided it was best for us to stay here.”

Marcy: “I’m…not following.”

Mrs. Wu: “What your father is trying to say is that he blew off your opinion to stay here, even though you had a legitimate reason to want to. We know that you’ve always had difficulty making friends, and you found two good ones in Sasha and Anne. Your father was so overcome with happiness about getting a new job that he didn’t want to let anything or anyone take that away from him.

Mr. Wu: “And that was wrong of me. The problem was I only realized this too late. When you ran away, I thought for sure you were going to come back that night. I thought you would just go to Anne’s party, have a good time, and then come to terms with the fact that we were moving away. But, you didn’t come back that night. And you didn’t come back the next day either. At that point your mother and I didn’t know what to do. We tried doing everything we could, but, no matter how hard we tried, nobody seemed to know where you and your friends were.

Mrs. Wu: At that point, we had assumed the worst had happened. That, we were never going to see you again. Your father became overridden with guilt. We still held onto hope, though. We just had to. But over time, our hope began to wane. Every day, a little bit more of it was lost.

Mr. Wu: That was, until Anne had sent us a letter on Christmas. She told us you were in another world and you were alive. Our hope for you had been revitalized.

Marcy: “But…Anne didn’t know I was alive. If anything, she probably thought I was dead. She saw me get stabbed by a giant sword!”

Mrs. Wu: “Hmm, if I had to take a guess, I’d say Anne was probably in the same mindset as we were. She may have had good reason to believe you were a goner, but she held onto that hope that you would be alright. And that’s what she conveyed to us.”

Mr. Wu: “Marcy, you called yourself a horrible person earlier. But that’s not true. Yes, you may have done something reckless, but you were at a low point. The horrible person is me. I really should have just heard what you had to say.”

Marcy: “But regardless of what happened, I’m still the reason you had to turn down that job, right?”

Mr. Wu: “Yes, you are right about that. But honestly, you being here, unharmed fills me with more joy than any stupid job could.”

Marcy runs up and hugs her dad. Her mom joins in. They all start to tear up.

Mr. Wu: “From now on, before making any major decisions in this household, I promise to consider what you think.”

Marcy: “And I promise to never do anything haphazard again.”

Mrs. Wu: “Anyways I like this look of yours. You look like you came straight out of a superhero movie!

Marcy: “Oh my gosh! Do you like my cape? It’s fireproof! I can’t wait to tell you all about my adventures in Amphibia!”

Mr. Boonchuy is driving his car with Anne in the back. He pulls up to their house.

Mr. Boonchuy: “It’s good to be home. I’m a little tired from all the driving. Well let’s go inside. I’m sure there won’t be a surprise for you.”

Anne: “Huh?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “I said I’m sure there won’t be a surprise for you.”

Anne: “It seems like you’re trying to say there’s a surprise for me.”

Mr. Boonchuy: “I’ll never tell…”

Anne: “Dad, you big goof…”

They both get out of the car. They go inside their house.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Welcome back, Anne! I made your favorite, mooncakes!”

Anne: “Wow, what a surprise…didn’t see that coming…”

She grabs one and eats it.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Yeah, I can’t wait to make more of these for the Plantars. Your dad told me they had the music box and would recharge the stones, but that it would take a while."

Anne starts to sweat. “Uh, yeah! That’s what I said!” she says.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Hopefully they will like them…”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Of course they’ll like them! You’re great at baking, and they normally eat bugs and fruits.”

Mrs. Boonchuy chuckles. “Yeah, I almost forgot. I remember one time, I was taking out the trash and they were eating the flies around it”, she says.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Yeah, hopefully they won’t take too long. Did they say when they think they would be done, Anne?”

Anne looks down. “Never”, she says.

Both her parents look at her.

Mr. Boonchuy: “What do you mean never?”

Anne: “I lied to you. The Plantars may have the music box, but the stones were destroyed. They only had enough power to send us home. And without the stones, the music box won’t work. Which means the Plantars won’t be able to come here…ever.”

She starts to tear up.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “How did the stones get destroyed?”

Anne: “When we came back to Amphibia, this evil thing called The Core wasn’t really defeated. It had a last resort plan, which was to crash the moon into the planet to kill everyone there. The only real defense we had against it was the stones. So Sasha, Marcy, and I became one with the stones to try to stop it. But we weren’t strong enough. It wasn’t very long before Marcy and Sasha started losing their ability to continue fighting, so it was really just me. It was then that I realized there was really one way to stop it. I had to completely absorb the stones to win. And it worked, but it came at a tall price…”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “What…was the price?”

Anne: “...my life.”

Both her parents gasp.

Mr. Boonchuy: “But…that’s not possible. You’re here, aren’t you?”

Anne: “Yeah, you’re not wrong about that. But something you should know is that I did lay down my life in order to stop The Core. The only reason I’m still here is because something known as The Guardian told me I had passed its test.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “What was the test?”

Anne: “The Guardian told me it had created the stones to see how mortals would deal with unlimited power. It has seen this scenario play out over and over again, only for it to not end well. Either the people who were supposed to save the world failed to, or they ended up misusing it…I was the first one not to do either. So it took pity on me, and made an exact duplicate of me, with all of Anne’s memories and feelings, just before she died. Anyways, after being brought back to Amphibia, we were given shards of the stones, but only enough for us to go back home. So we said our final goodbyes to Amphibia, and came back here.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “So we’ll never see the Plantars again?”

Anne: “Yeah, that’s right. It’s funny too…because Marcy asked me if I was fine, and I lied to her. I’m not fine. I’m glad to be back here with my family and friends but I would have liked to have been able to see Polly, Hop Pop and-and-and Sprig!” I miss you guys!”

Both Mr. Boonchuy and Mrs. Boonchuy hug Anne. 

A shadowy man gets onto a plane headed towards Los Angeles. He has a single backpack slinged over his shoulder.

Chapter Text

Sasha is sleeping in her bed, when her mother comes into the room and gently shakes her awake.

Mrs. Waybright: “Good morning, sweetie! Did you sleep well?”

Sasha: “Yeah, I did. Feels nice not having to worry about whether I will have to fend off raiders....wait...mom! You’re still here!”

Mrs. Waybright: “Well yeah, of course I am. I don’t think your dad and I would have had a major disagreement this early. But if you were worried about that, your father and I talked about how we could maybe make things work better this time. So we decided that if we ever have a disagreement, we’ll come to a compromise.”

Sasha: “Pfft, you hadn’t tried that before?”

Mrs. Waybright chuckles. “Your father and I can be very hotheaded people. We don’t really like to bend. But we will for you. In any case, Principal Murphy called. She wanted you at the school. Did you already pull a prank on someone?”, she asks.

Sasha: “What? I’ve been here for less than 24 hours. How would I have done that in such a short amount of time?”

Mrs. Waybright chuckles. “I kid, I kid. But she does want you there, so get going.”

Sasha: “Got it.”

Mrs. Wu: “Good morning, Marcy. Principal Murphy called and said she wants you at school. You didn’t help Sasha pull a prank already, did you?”

Marcy laughs. “That sounds like a tall order, even for Sasha”, she says.

Mrs. Wu: “Just making sure. Be ready in 5 minutes.”

Marcy: “I only need four!”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Good morning, Anne. Are you feeling any better?”

Anne groans. “Not really. What did you want?”, she asks.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Principal Murphy called. She wants you at school.”

Anne jolts upright. “My essay! I never wrote that essay!”, she says.

Mr. Boonchuy: “What…what essay?”

Anne: “No time to explain, gotta get going!”

She grabs her backpack and runs out the door.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Wait, Anne!”

Anne runs outside and sees a mob of people outside her porch.

“Hey, look! There’s Anne! We love you, Anne!”

“You’re my hero, Anne!”

“I hope my daughter will be just like you when she grows up, Anne!”

Anne: “What the heck is this!?”

Mrs. Boonchuy grabs Anne by the arm and pulls her back inside. “Those people have been outside all morning. Once word got out how about you were the one to fight that giant newt and win, everyone wanted to get your autograph”, she says.

Anne: “Can’t you just call the cops?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “I did. They’re out there, too.”

Anne looks out the window to see there are cops holding signs saying “We’re your biggest F-annes!”

Anne screams. “How am I supposed to get to school if there’s a bunch of weirdos outside! I can’t get past all of them. And I definitely don’t have time to sign all of their stuff”, she says.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Well, it’s not a perfect solution, but there is one thing you can do. I know from experience.”

Anne: “Huh? What is it?”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Easy. Just charge them every time you sign something of theirs. Lot of people will leave, and the ones who don’t you can get some cash from. Worked in college when everyone wanted my baked goods.”

Anne gasps. “Mom, you’re a genius!”, she says.

Anne walks outside. The crowd erupts in applause. Anne signals them to quiet down.

Anne: “Wow, it’s so cool to have so many fans. I can’t wait to give out my autograph to all of you.”

The crowd roars.

Anne: “However, there is a slight problem. You see, I don’t really get enough of an allowance from my parents, and there’s something I’ve been meaning to buy for a long time. So, I ask that for every item of yours that I sign, you give me a dollar.”

A few people leave.

“Wow, these people really want my autograph. I’ll have to do this quickly”, Anne mutters to herself.

Anne raises her voice. “All right everyone, listen up! If I’m gonna give you my autograph, I need a single file line…”

People start fighting to be the first in line.

Anne: “...and please don’t be unruly! If you do, you’re not getting my autograph!”

People calm down. Anne begins signing people’s belongings, whether they be shirts, tennis balls, or just pieces of paper. After a while, the last person gets their autograph, and leaves.

Anne: “Phew, that was exhausting. At least I got this wad of cash. Wait, what was I doing? Oh yeah, I needed to get to school! Principal Murphy’s probably gonna be annoyed with me, but she’ll be even madder if I don’t show up...”

Anne starts to run towards school. She bursts through the front gates and into Murphy’s office.

Anne: “Principal Murphy, I haven’t written that essay yet, but I’ll get started on it right away!”

Anne notices that Sasha and Marcy are also sitting in the office. Principal Murphy gives her a strange look.

Principal Murphy: “Essay? You mean the one where I asked you to write about who you were?”

Anne: “Yeah?”

Principal Murphy chuckles. “That’s not what this is about Anne. Just please sit down”, she says.

Anne sits next to Sasha and Marcy.

Principal Murphy: “So as you may know Saint James Middle School has a strict policy on attendance. People who fail to show up to enough classes with no prior notice generally will be held back a grade…”

Sasha: “You can’t hold us back! We were in another world for crying out loud! Not to mention that we saved the Earth!”

Principal Murphy: “Yes, I know, I know. I had a talk with the local government to see if they could perhaps waive this for you. They didn’t budge much, but they were able to make a special exception for you.”

Principal Murphy pulls out several large binders.

Principal Murphy: “Here is all the material you three missed while you were in Amphibia. All you need to do is study it, and, when you’re ready, you can take an exam that covers the entirety of the course. Whatever you get on the exam will be considered what you would have gotten had you take the course during the regular school year. So as long as you get a 70%, you will pass, and be able to resume school during the autumn.”

Marcy jumps up, grabs the binders, and stuffs them in her backpack.

Marcy: “This is great! I’ll get started on that right away.”

She bolts out the door. Principal Murphy blinks a few times.

Principal Murphy: “It’s a good thing I didn’t really have anything else to say…”

Sasha: “Wait, you said we need 70% to pass. What happens if we don’t reach that?”

Principal Murphy: “In the unfortunate circumstance that does happen, it’s not the end of the world. You can retake the exams as many times as you want, and the questions won’t change either. But because of that, we’ll just share your score with you, not what you got right and wrong. Additionally, you will need to pass these exams before summer break gets over. Thankfully you just came back yesterday, which was the last day of school, which means you have the entire summer to get this done. You are dismissed.”

Sasha and Anne get up, grab their binders, and walk out the door.

Anne: “So, better get studying, huh?”

Sasha: “Are you kidding me? There’s no way I’m studying for this. Not today at least. Come on, let’s go have some fun.”

Anne: “But what about-”

Sasha: “Look, Marcy’s probably gonna read those binders cover to cover by the end of today, and she’ll pass those exams with flying colors. Then we can just ask her to tutor us so we can do well.”

Anne: “So we’re just gonna have her do all the work while we goof off? That doesn’t seem fair…”

Sasha: “Studying doesn’t really seem like work to Marcy. You saw how happy she was when she left. She enjoys it, so it’s her idea of fun.”

Anne: “I guess you’re right…”

Sasha: “Of course I am. Besides, it’s been a stressful few months for us. So today’s just for unwinding. And ya know the best place for that? The arcade! I can ask my parents for some money so we can spend a few hours there.”

Anne: “There’s no need for that. Check this out.”

Anne pulls out the wad of cash.

Sasha: “Woah, where’d you get that?”

Anne: “This is the reason I was late this morning. There were a bunch of people outside my house that wanted my autograph. So I charged them a dollar per.”

Sasha laughs. “Maybe I should start doing that. Forget a few hours, we can spend the rest of the day there! Let’s go!”, she says.

Sasha and Anne run out the school towards the arcade.

Marcy gets off her bike and runs into her house.

Marcy: “Mom, Dad! I’m gonna be holed up in my room all day and all night studying five months worth of school material! So please don’t bother me.”

Mr. Wu: “Absolutely not, young lady. You can spend all day if you wish, but you need to get a full night’s rest if you wanna stay healthy.”

Marcy: “Dad, you’re no fun…”

Marcy walks upstairs with her backpack.

Mr. Wu: “Being healthy isn’t about having fun. Why do you think so many people are unhealthy?

Marcy walks into her room, pulls out the first binder, and begins reading.

Marcy: “All right, first up, history. Prepare to be read!”

Anne and Sasha get to the arcade.

Sasha: “It’s been such a long time since I’ve been here. Wanna go play Super Dance Fun Time Fusion first?”

Anne: “Do you even have to ask?”

Sasha and Anne go up to the machine. They notice their score has been knocked down to second place, by someone with the name “NSINK”.

Anne: “Who names themselves En Sink?”

“We did”, an unknown voice behind them says. Sasha and Anne turn around to see two teenage boys wearing school uniforms.

Sasha: “Who the heck are you?”

“I’m Varik, and he’s Kyne”, one of them says. “We’re the top scorers at Super Dance Funtime Fusion. We’re so good at it, that we’re perfectly in sync.”

Anne: “Uh, you spelled sync wrong.”

Varik: “Uh, no we didn’t.”

Kyne: “Yeah, it’s spelled the same way as the thing you wash your hands in.”

Anne and Sasha facepalm.

Sasha: “Well anyways, say goodbye to your top score, because we’re about to smash it.”

Kyne: “Oh yeah? we’d like to see you try.”

Anne goes to the token machine and puts in a dollar. It spits out five tokens. She puts in all five to the machine, and the game starts. After dancing for the whole routine, they get a near perfect score, enough to get first place.

Varik: “Woah, how’d you get so good at that?”

Sasha: “Guess you’re not as in sync as you thought you were.

Kyne: “No, we had that top score for like four months and now it’s gone!”

Kyne runs out crying from the arcade. Varik follows after him.

Varik: “Dude don’t cry, you’ll look like a loser!”

Anne: “Guess we still got it, huh?”

Sasha: “For sure. Now let’s play every game in the house!”

Marcy closes the history binder.

Marcy: “That was a lot of history. Not as much as the Amphibia history book though.”

Mrs. Wu: “Honey, come down for dinner!”

Marcy: “Be right there, mom!”

Marcy grabs her algebra book and brings it down with her to the kitchen table. Her mom takes notice.

Mrs. Wu: “Marcy, don’t you think you’ve done enough studying for today?”

Marcy: “No way, I’m on a roll! I just finished reading my history material!

Mrs. Wu: “Marcy, I don’t feel like you can be retaining a semester’s worth of history in a few hours.”

Marcy: “Well then, you can test me! Ask me anything in that binder, and I’ll get it right!”

Mrs. Wu goes upstairs and grabs Marcy’s history binder. She turns to a random page.

Mrs. Wu: “Who was the US’s 28th president?”

Marcy: “Oh, that’s an easy one. Woodrow Wilson! Some of his notable accomplishments were banning child labor and making sure railroad workers only worked eight hours a day.”

Mrs. Wu: “That is…correct.”

Marcy: “See? I can remember all this stuff. And now it’s time to learn about algebra!”

Mr. Wu: “Marcy, I think what your mother is trying to say is that there isn’t any need to do all this studying so quickly. You have several months to learn all this. You can go out with your friends or even play your favorite video games. You don’t need to do it all in a few days!”

Marcy: “But I want to! When I was in Amphibia, I spent a lot of my free time reading books for fun!”

Mr. Wu: “Marcy, I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself. But please, it’s time for supper. You should take a break. The material can wait.”

Marcy: “OK, fine. You’re lucky I love sushi. And that I haven’t had any for half a year…”

Marcy and her family have dinner. After clearing her dishes, Marcy goes back upstairs and resumes reading her algebra binder.

Anne is playing skeeball. After the time runs out, the machine spits out a bunch of tickets.

Anne: “That was my last dollar. Let’s see what I can get with all these tickets…”

Anne walks over to the ticket counter. She sees Sasha has a bucket full of candy that she’s eating.

Anne: “Did you spend all your tickets on candy?”

Sasha: “Yeah, I did. I haven’t had candy in such a long time, so I thought why not get some here?”

Anne: “You shouldn’t have all of it now though. Your body probably isn’t used to having so much sugar.”

Sasha laughs. “Come on, I can handle it! They don’t call me Iron Stomach Sash for nothing!”, she says.

Sasha eats a peanut butter cup. She then gags, and runs to the nearest bathroom.

Anne: “I told you so!”

Anne goes over to the counter.

Arcade employee: “Heya! You got a lot of tickets there. Do you see anything you want to get?”

Anne: “Well I don’t want any candy, that’s for sure. Let’s see…”

Anne scans the top shelves and sees several white, stuffed animals. She notices one of the animals is a frog.

Anne gasps. “What are those?”, she asks.

“Oh, those are called 'Draw-nimals'. They’re just stuffed animals, but they come with markers so you can doodle on them. The ink comes off easily in the wash, too!”

Anne: “The frog! I want that frog!”

“The frog? Don’t you want something cuter, like that cat?”

Anne stares at the employee. “Give. me. the. frog.”

“Alright, alright. That’ll be 100 tickets.”

Anne pulls out 100 tickets and gives them to the employee. The employee gets the frog plush and set of markers off the shelf and gives it to her. She hugs it, then puts it in her bag.”

“You sure like frogs, huh?”

Anne laughs while tears start to form in her eyes. “More than you could ever know”, she says.

“You still got a lot of tickets there. Is there anything else you wanted?”

Anne scans the shelves, but nothing else grabs her interest. She notices a kid is crying nearby.

Anne: “Actually, I have a better idea.”

Anne walks over to the kid.

Anne: “Hey, what’s the matter?”

The kid sniffles. “I’m here for my friend’s birthday party. Everyone else is having fun playing games, but my mom says I can’t play them. I just wanted tickets to get something…”, he says.

Anne: “Well, today’s your lucky day! I have all these tickets, but I don’t really need them. I want you to have them.”

The kid gasps. “Really? Thank you so much!”, he says.

Anne hands her remaining tickets to the kid. He then runs over to the counter. Sasha comes back from the bathroom.

Sasha: “I think I won’t be having any more candy today. Or for the next few days for that matter…did you get something from the counter, Anna-banana?”

Anne: “No, I gave my tickets to that kid. He really needed them, much more than I did.”

Sasha laughs. “Look at you! You’re not even in Amphibia anymore, and you’re still a hero. But don’t you want something to remember today?” she asks.

Anne: “Honestly, just the fact that we were able to get along and have so much fun today, even after we’ve been through together…that’s enough for me.”

Sasha: “Aww, thanks, Anne. I had a lot of fun today too. You know...besides me vomiting and all.”

Anne laughs. “Yeah, anyways we should get home. It’s getting kinda late”, she says.

Marcy closes her algebra binder.

Marcy: “And I thought math was complicated before. Who decided to add the alphabet to it?”

Mrs. Wu knocks on the door. “Marcy, it’s time for bed. Go brush your teeth. And don’t even think about staying up to study more. You’ve done enough for today”, she says.

Marcy: “Sure thing, Mom.”

Marcy gets up to the bathroom and brushes her teeth. She then goes back to her room and flops down on her bed. She closes her eyes. About an hour passes by without her falling asleep. She hears the sound of her dad’s footsteps on the stairs. She then hears a door close. Marcy groans.

Marcy: “Why can’t I sleep?”

Marcy gets up and turns on the lamp.

Marcy: “Hmm, Mom and Dad said not to stay up. But my brain isn’t letting me sleep. So maybe I just need to tire myself out. And what better way to do that than by studying?”

Marcy then gets out of bed and opens her English binder.

Marcy: “All right, I’ll just read this until I feel tired.”

Anne is walking up to her house. She opens the door and sees her parents sitting on the couch.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Anne Savisa Boonchuy! Where have you been? I’ve been calling you all day! We thought you went missing again!”

“Oh crud. I forgot I don’t have my cell phone anymore”, Anne mutters to herself. “Sorry Mom, but I lost my phone and kinda lost track of time. I was just with Sasha at the arcade”, she says.

Mr. Boonchuy: “You lost your phone?”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “And why were you at the arcade? You should have just come home to tell us what Principal Murphy had to say.”

Anne: “I know, I know. I just found out that in order to get to 8th grade, I have to pass exams based on all the material I missed while I was in Amphibia. It kinda bummed me and Sasha out, so we decided to have some fun at the arcade before we had to hit the books. But, that was wrong of me. I should have let you know what was happening. I’m sorry.”

Mr. Boonchuy and Mrs. Boonchuy look at each other.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Honestly, we’re just glad you’re fine. You had a stressful six months. It’s fine to let loose.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “However, covering all that material will take a while. You better get started on it right away. You can have your dinner in the fridge, and then I want you to go upstairs and study at least one chapter. But be in bed by 11:15 PM, OK?”

Anne: “Yeah, I will.”

Anne goes upstairs and pulls out her science binder. She notices the frog plush she got earlier today. She pulls it out, along with a pink marker. She spends a few minutes coloring it pink. After she’s done, she puts away the pink marker. She then smiles and holds the frog’s hand.

“Spranne against the world”, she whispers to herself.

She puts the doll on her desk and begins studying.

Marcy finishes reading her science binder. Next to her is a pile with the other binders.

Marcy laughs weakly to herself. “That was easy”, she says.

She yawns. ”I’m starting to feel tired. Time for bed. And then in the morning, I can take those exams”, she says.

Marcy hears birds chirping.

Marcy: “Well, that’s not good.”

Chapter Text

“OK, calm down, Marcy. I can just sleep for a few hours, then go take the exams.”

Marcy hears footsteps on the staircase. She throws herself onto her bed and pulls the blankets over herself as Mrs. Wu enters.

“Honey, it’s time for breakfast. I made you pancakes.”

Marcy groans.

“Come on, they’re your favorite.”

“I’ll be right down.”

Mrs. Wu nods and closes the door.

“All right, new plan. I’ll go downstairs, have breakfast, then go upstairs and say I will continue my studies and not to bother me, and then I can just take a nap.”

Marcy gets out of bed. She groggily walks towards the door and down the stairs. She sits down at the kitchen table, where there is a plate with two warm pancakes on it.

“You can’t have pancakes without maple syrup, right?”

Mrs. Wu drizzles syrup over her pancakes. Marcy’s eyelids start to droop, and then she faceplants into her pancakes.

“Marcy! I know you like pancakes, but please be civilized and use a fork like everyone else!”

Marcy raises her head. Her face is covered in maple syrup.

“Now look at what you’ve done. Go into the bathroom and clean yourself!”

Marcy gets out of her chair and heads inside the bathroom. She cleans her face off. She exits and sits back down at the table. Mrs. Wu notices she isn’t eating.

“Honey, what’s the matter?”

Marcy perks up a little. “What are you talking about, mom? I’m perfectly fine”, she says.

“Then why aren’t you eating?”

Marcy tries to grab the fork in front of her, but has difficulty trying to do so. Mrs. Wu stands up.

“Marcy, you’re clearly not fine. Do you wanna tell me what’s up?”

“Oh, alright. I know you two said to get a full night’s rest, but I had difficulty sleeping so…”

“...you stood up all night studying?”

Marcy nods.

“Young lady, please go upstairs and get some shuteye. Now.”

Mr. Wu enters the kitchen. “I’m afraid that wouldn’t be a good idea’, he says.

Both Marcy and Mrs. Wu look at him.

Mrs. Wu: “Babe, what are you talking about? She’s in dire need of sleep…”

Mr. Wu: “Yes, and she was supposed to get some last night. If she tries to get some now, then she’ll be wide awake at night. She will unfortunately have to go the rest of the day without any sleep. Then she can go to bed tonight at a reasonable hour.

Marcy: “Dad, you can’t be serious! I’ve been down here for all of five minutes and I’m already starting to nod off!”

Mr. Wu: “If you had just told me about this last night, I could have given you something to help you sleep. But instead you decided to study for…some reason.”

Marcy: “If I have to stay up today, can I go take my exams? I did study for them. ALL OF THEM.”

Mr. Wu and Mrs. Wu look at each other.

Mrs. Wu: “If you think you’re ready…you can take it as many times as you want, right?”

Marcy: “That’s right! But I don’t think I’ll need more than one.”

She yawns. “I also don’t think I can make it the rest of the day without sleeping…unless…”

Marcy notices the mug in her dad’s hand.

Marcy: “Coffee! Don’t you guys drink that to wake up in the morning?”

Mr. Wu: “Well yes but…”

Marcy: “Then give me some!”

Mr. Wu: “Marcy, something you should know is that coffee is an acquired taste. Most people hate their first drink because it’s awfully bitter…”

Marcy: “Mom, I ate worms and flies in Amphibia. I think I can handle coffee.”

Mrs. Wu: “Alright, but I don’t think this regular strength coffee will work. We’ll stop by at Willz Coffee and get you a large espresso. Go get ready.”

Anne wakes up. In her arms is the stuffed frog she colored pink last night.

Anne: “Good morning, Sprig.”

Anne (imitating Sprig): “Good morning, Anne. Did I ever tell you that you are my best friend and I don’t know what I would do without you?”

Anne: “Yeah, I feel the same way, buddy.”

Mrs. Boonchuy walks in.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Who are you talking to?”

Anne: “I was just…voicing out loud what I studied last night, that’s all.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “That’s a good strategy. You’re studying more today, right?”

Anne: “Yeah I will. I need to get through the rest of my science binder.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “That’s what I like to hear. Don’t forget to take breaks, though. By the way, we got you your new phone. It’s not as high tech as your old one, but it should still suffice. We’ve already linked your number to it. Don’t lose this one, got it?”

Anne nods. Mrs. Boonchuy puts the phone on Anne’s desk and closes the door. Anne rolls out of bed and resumes her studying.

Mrs. Wu is driving with Marcy in the front seat. She notices Marcy is starting to fall asleep.

Mrs. Wu: “Are you looking forward to your first coffee?”

Marcy: “Uh, I guess. Dad said it’s not good for the first time. Is it really that bad?”

Mrs. Wu: “I wouldn’t say it’s that bad. But it definitely takes some getting used to. Nowadays kids don’t really drink coffee. Everyone just drinks coffee flavored beverages. Back in my day, we didn’t have this wide variety of coffee. We just had a few, and the only things we had to make it taste better was cream and sugar. Anyways, we’re here.”

Marcy and Mrs. Wu get out of the car and go inside. They notice there’s a long line. Marcy groans.

Marcy: “This is gonna take forever!”

Mrs. Wu rubs her chin. Then she makes a devious smile.

Mrs. Wu: “Hey Marcy, you’re kind of a local celebrity, aren’t you? What with having saved the world and everything?”

Marcy: “Uh, I guess?”

Mrs. Wu: “Excuse me, everyone. This is my daughter, Marcy Wu. She was one of three girls that went to another world and helped save that one as well as this one.” 

The crowd murmurs.

“Oh wow, it really is her! Hi Marcy!”

Marcy: “Uh, hello!”

Mrs. Wu: “Anyways, I was thinking, as a small token of your appreciation, you let us cut to the front of the line.”

The crowd disperses, and they let Marcy and Mrs. Wu through.

Marcy: “Wow Mom, that was some good thinking!”

They walk up to the counter, where there is a barista waiting patiently.

“Hi, welcome Marcy! I can’t really thank you enough for what you’ve done for us. How about I give you a drink for free?”

Marcy: “Uh, thanks. But you don’t need to do that. We’ll pay full price.”

“Oh wow, so humble! Anyways, what can I get you?”

Marcy: “Your strongest espresso in your largest size.”

“Uh, that one’s a tad strong. Maybe I can get you something else?”

Marcy: “Nope, I just want that one.”

"Uh, sure thing. That’ll be $4.49.”

Mrs. Wu pays with her credit card. She and Marcy then go stand off to the side. A few minutes later, the barista hands Marcy her coffee.

Marcy: “Wow, I like the service here.”

“Try it! If it isn’t perfect, I can go back and make another!”

Marcy takes a sip. “Uh, this is good.”

"I’m glad to hear it! Come back anytime!”

Marcy and Mrs. Wu get back into their car and start heading towards Saint James Middle School.

Anne closes her science binder.

Anne: “That’s chapter 2 done. At this rate, I should be done with this by the end of the week. But now, it’s time for a break. I wonder what I should do.”

Anne (imitating Sprig): “Hey Anne, why don’t you draw yourself with me and the rest of my family?”

Anne: “That’s a great idea, Sprig!”

Anne pulls out some paper. She grabs some colored pencils and draws several illustrations of her with Polly, her with Hop Pop, and her with Sprig for several minutes. She then hangs them on her walls. Sasha enters.

Sasha: “Hey Anna-banana, I called Marcy and found out that she’s taking the exams already! She stayed up all night studying. That means we can have some more fun today and she can start tutoring us tomorr-”

Sasha stares blankly at Anne. She then notices the various drawings on the wall.

Anne laughs timidly. “Hey Sash, don’t you know it’s rude not to knock?” she says.

Sasha: “All right, girl, tell me what’s going on. What’s with all these drawings?”

Anne: “I was just taking a break. I thought I would, ya know, draw myself with my best friends. Oh! But it’s not what it looks like. That old looking frog over there represents Marcy, because she is so mature! And-and that pink tadpole over there represents you, because you look all sweet and innocent but deep down, you don’t take garbage from anyone! And that pink frog over there is…is…”

Sasha raises an eyebrow.

Anne: “Me! Gotta love yourself, right?”

Sasha: “Anne, I remember when we first got back, Marcy asked if you were fine. You said you were, but I had my doubts. I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt, but it seems like it’s worse than I thought…”

Anne: “But I’m fine! What’s wrong with having something to remind me of my second family?”

Sasha: “Nothing is wrong with that. But this…isn’t that. This is a coping mechanism for you to not have to accept the fact you’ll never see them again. And the more you do it, the more it’ll hurt. You can’t delay this forever, Anne.”

Anne starts to tear up.

Sasha: “Look, I wanted to hang out today. Can we just go out to the mall or something?”

Anne: “But I like being here with Sprig...”

Sasha: “But…Sprig isn’t here. Sprig can’t be here.”

Anne points to the spot on her desk, where her pink frog doll is. “No, he’s not here. But as long as I have that doll. He may as well be”, she says.

Sasha: “OK, yeah we need to get you out. If you wanna study, that’s fine. But we’re doing it anywhere but here.”

Anne: “But…”

Sasha huffs. “Look, Anne, as your best friend, I think it is objectively a good idea to be somewhere else. So can we please go?”

Anne: “Oh, all right.”

Anne and Sasha walk down the stairs.

Anne: “Mom, I’m hanging out with Sasha again. I’ll let you know when I’m back.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Thank you, sweetie.”

And so Anne and Sasha went to various places to study. They first head to the library, where there was a banner that states there is a seminar being held about the biology of frogs. Upon seeing this, Anne started crying and ran outside. They then headed towards the park, only to see two kids playing with frog action figures. Anne once again fled, and and they made their way to a cafe, only for them to realize that at one of the tables, someone brought their pet frog, at which point, Anne immediately left.

“Anne, wait!”

“I’m sorry Sash. But it just seems like everywhere we go I’m just reminded of the Plantars. At least if I’m in my room, it’s on my own terms. Please, just let me go home.”

“Anne, I told you, you need to let go!”

But how? I’m not like you, Sash. I can’t just forget people!”

“Wha-?”

“Oh, please. You were as close with Grime as I was with the Plantars. It must be easy to not feel anything if you just pretend he didn’t exist.”

Sasha clenches her fists and smiles while tears start to stream down her face. “You think I forgot Grime?” I couldn’t even if I wanted to…”, she says.

“Huh? How can you say tha-”

“Listen, Anne. Grime is largely responsible for the person I am today. Our friendship started off…a little rocky. But we became good friends. He was there when I needed him the most. When I came to terms that I might never see you or Marcy again when we first came to Amphibia…then again, when I thought I lost you as a friend at the Toad Tower…and then when I thought for sure you were going to leave me stranded in Amphibia after everything I had done to you. And when I thought I had lost Marcy forever…Grime was the one person who never left my side. And I owe my life to him. Here, take a look at this…”

Sasha pulls out a shield shaped locket that was draped around her neck and hands it to Anne.

“What…what is this?”

“When Grime and I had started the resistance against Andrias…both of us realized that it was possible that one of us was going to go on a mission…but not return. We wanted something to remember the other by in the event that happened. So we took the scrap from a Frobo and made two of those. Grime has the other. Open it up.”

Anne opens up the locket. On the left side, it says “Lieutenant Waybright”. On the other side, it says “Captain Grime”.

Sasha lets her tears flow freely. “We made a vow to each other when we made those. That, if the other didn’t make it back, that we would keep on living, so that the memory of the other would continue. And thankfully, both of us made it back from all our missions. I’m more glad for that than I can put into words. But…it sucks. It really does. That both of us did so much together and for each other, and we’ll never have any more memories like that”, she says.

Anne starts to cry.

“But that’s exactly why I had to let go. Even if we’re not together, he can live on through me, and I can live on through him. I don’t think you want the Plantars to be sad for the rest of their lives, do you?”

Anne sniffles. “No, of course, I don’t. I want them to live their best lives, even if I’m not there”, she says.

“Then, doesn’t it make sense that the Plantars would want the same for you?”

“You’re right, Sash. I-I guess I’ve just been holding on to this idea that somehow, someday the Plantars and I would be together again. But we won’t, not now, not ever. It’s so difficult to come to terms with that. But…I have to. For them."

Sasha gives Anne a hug.

Ah, thanks Sash. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I forgot that I still have people who love me here. And one of those people is holding me, right here and now.”

“Of course, Anna-banana. You’ll always have me. We’ll always…be friends. And I think I’m speaking for Marcy as well when I say that.”

Anne wipes her tears. “Wow, we haven’t really spent any time studying today, have we?”, she says.

Sasha laughs. “No, I guess some things came up. But I’m glad they did. We can go back to your place and study”, she says.

“My place? But I thought you said-”

“I changed my mind. Let’s go.”

Anne and Sasha walk home. Anne texts her mom that she is coming home soon, to which she replies with a thumbs up emoji.

Mrs. Wu drives up to Saint James Middle School. She gets out of the car with Marcy. She looks Marcy in the eyes.

“Alright Marcy, you didn’t spend all night studying just to fail these exams. So go ace them! I believe in you.”

She hugs Marcy.

“Thanks, Mom. I won’t let you down!”

Mrs. Wu gets back in her car. “Just call me when you’re done, got it?”, she says.

Marcy nods. Then Mrs. Wu smiles and drives away. Marcy takes a sip of her espresso, then walks inside. She goes to Principal Murphy’s office and knocks on the door.

“Hello? Who’s there?”

“It’s Marcy. I’m ready to take those exams.”

There’s a few moments of silence before Principal Murphy opens the door. “You seriously studied the entirety of a semester in one day?”, she asks.

“Yep! I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. It’s not too early to take them, right?”

“Uh, no…it isn’t.”

“Great! Just give me the exams in any order, and I’ll take them.”

“All right then, follow me.”

Principal Murphy grabs the exams and exits her office. Marcy follows her to an empty classroom.

“Take a seat anywhere. Put your bag and phone in the front of the room. And your coffee…”

“My coffee? What about it?”

“Let me just see it for a moment.”

Principal Murphy inspects it for a few moments and hands it back.

“Sorry about that. I’ve heard some people have gotten creative with how they cheat. Some people put the test material on their bottles or cans. I wouldn’t have assumed you would do such a thing, but I don’t wanna take any chances.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it…can I get started?”

“Yes, of course. Let’s see, Lady Luck says you will be starting with…history. You can take as much time as you need. Just turn it in when you’re done, and then, if you so wish, I can give you the next one.”

Marcy nods. Principal Murphy puts several pages on her desk. Marcy begins to answer every single question on this exam, before turning it in, grabbing the next exam, and repeating. Every so often she takes a sip of her espresso. As she finishes her last exam, the sun starts to set.

Marcy slams the last exam on the front desk. “Done!”, she excitedly claims.

“All right, just give me a few minutes to look this over.”

Several minutes pass. Principal Murphy then gets up.

“So? How did I do?”

Miss Wu, you are an incredibly scary individual.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“You got an A on every single one of your exams. You’ve done better than most of my regular students have in one day than they did in half a year. Congratulations, Marcy Wu. You’re now officially an 8th grader."

Marcy squeals in joy and jumps up. Suddenly, she starts losing her balance.

“Woah, are you alright?”

Marcy steadies herself. “Oh, yeah. I’ve been hyped up on coffee all day because I didn’t get any sleep last night. But this stuff works wonders! I guess I need a little more”, she says.

She tries to take another sip. To her dismay, she realizes the cup is empty.

“Well, that’s not goo-”

Marcy starts to fall facefirst. Principal Murphy grabs her before she hits the floor.

“Sweet dreams, Marcy. You deserve them.”

Principal Murphy grabs Marcy’s phone, finds Mrs. Wu’s phone number, and calls it.

“Hello? Are you done, Marcy?

“I’m afraid Marcy is sleeping. Poor thing ran out of coffee. But good news! She passed her exams with flying colors.”

Mrs. Wu laughs. “I knew she would. I’ll come get her now”, she says.

“Sounds good. I’ll see you soon. And I’ll make sure she stays safe.”

Principal Murphy hangs up.

Anne and Sasha head into Anne’s room. Anne looks at the drawings she made earlier today. She takes them off the walls, and stuffs them in her desk drawer. She looks at the pink frog doll. She attempts to take it off the desk, but Sasha stops her.

“You know how I have this locket to remind me of Grime? Well, I think that doll can be your locket. If you’re ever feeling down, you can look at it and remember all the good times you had with Sprig.”

Anne smiles. “Let’s get to studying”, she says.

The two spend the rest of the night looking over the science material. At one point, the doorbell rings. Eventually, Anne yawns.

“Hey, you’re looking a little sleepy. You wanna call it a night?”

“Sounds good. We can pick this up tomorrow.”

“Yeah, and maybe we can get Marcy to study with us, too. I still don’t know where she was today…”

“Who knows. But I’m sure she’s fine.”

“Yeah, for sure. I’ll get going.”

Sasha walks out of the room, downstairs, and out the door. Mrs. Boonchuy enters her room after she leaves.

“Anne, are you busy?”

“Ah, no. I was just gonna go get ready for bed. What’s up?”

“Someone left this package for you.”

“Who’s it from?”

“That’s just it. We don’t know.”

“You don’t know who it’s from?! What if it’s a bomb or full of leeches or something?!”

“Your father inspected it without opening it. He’s fairly certain it’s not dangerous. You can open it since it’s yours, but please tell us if something seems wrong, OK?”

“Uh, yeah sure.”

Mrs. Boonchuy hands the package to Anne and leaves. Anne notices there’s a letter attached to it. She opens it up and begins to read it:

Dear Anne Boonchuy,

You may not know me, but I do know you. While it may be a formality to tell you my name, all you really need to know about me is that I come from a family that did a lot of exploring and treasure collecting throughout the ages. The valuables my family has amassed have been passed down from parent to child. Most of them are just pretty to look at or have interesting history behind them. There was one set of items we had that we thought were ordinary, but they turned out to be anything but. After we heard your story, we came to a realization. I contacted some of my friends, and we made this for you. We know it doesn’t even come close to being a proper thank you for saving our world, but it’s the best we could do. Please use it as you see fit.

Sincerely,

Someone looking to help

Anne unwraps the packing paper in the box. She almost does not believe her eyes as she sees a golden music box, fitted with three gems. She starts to cry.

“Hop Pop, Polly, Sprig. Maybe we…maybe we really can be together again…”

Chapter Text

“I-I don’t believe it. This music box…surely it can take me back to Amphibia, right?”

She inspects the box. The gems are a shining green, blue, and pink.

Anne starts to cry. “I can really…I can really see you guys again…”, she says.

Anne goes to open the box. Suddenly she stops herself.

“No, I shouldn’t. As much as I want to see the Plantars again, I can’t leave my parents without a word. I’ll tell them about this tomorrow. For now, I just need to get some sleep…”

Anne lays down on her bed. She falls asleep within minutes.

Hop Pop is planting avocados and watering them. He plucks the ripe ones, and brings them inside.

Hop Pop: “Hey kids! The avocados are done growing!”

Polly and Sprig run down the stairs.

Polly: “Ooh! I can’t wait to try them!”

Hop Pop: “Now you’re not supposed to just eat these raw. You’re supposed to get this skin off, and then you get this nice spread you can put on bread!”

Hop Pop peels off the skin. Using a knife, he spreads it on two slices of bread. He gives one to Polly and one to Sprig.

Hop Pop: “Here you go, kids. I hope you enjoy it!”

Polly and Sprig take a bite.

Sprig: “Wow, this is amazing! It’s far better than your usual cooking!”

Hop Pop chuckles. “Glad you enjoyed it. Wait, what’s that supposed to mean?”, he says.

Polly laughs. “I think that’s about as close to a compliment as you’re gonna get from Sprig about your cooking”, she says.

Hop Pop: “And you, Polly? What do you think?”

Polly: “It’s scrumptious! With this food from another world, you’re sure to get enough money to keep this farm going!”

Hop Pop: “That is why I took it. We don’t have anything close to avocados here. I’m sure it’ll be a hit with Wartwood! Just gotta make sure they stay alive, because…we can’t get any more.”

Polly and Sprig stop smiling.

Polly: “Uh, well this was fun. I gotta get back to learning to use a comb.”

Polly heads upstairs. Sprig pulls out Anne’s phone.

Hop Pop: “Sprig, isn’t that Anne’s phone?”

Sprig: “Yeah, it is. She wanted me to have it. Said I could maybe use it for future adventures.”

Hop Pop: “Hmm…perhaps. But I don’t think that’s the only reason.”

Sprig: “Why do you say that?”

Hop Pop: “In the few short months Anne was here, I noticed she took a lot of pictures with that. She must have wanted you to have them”.

Sprig opens the photos app on the phone. He sees a gallery view of all the photos Anne took while she was in Amphibia. He starts to tear up.

Sprig: “I think you’re right, Hop Pop. But if I have these photos, that means she doesn’t. Why would she think these are better off with me?”

Hop Pop: “Aw, come on now, Sprig. She saw how sad you were when she was leaving, and she just wanted you to have something to remember her by. You and she were best friends. You were inseparable, like two peas in a pod.”

Sprig: “Yeah…except Anne isn’t here anymore. And she won’t be coming back.”

Sprig notices a photo of the statue of Anne when she won Frog of the Year.

Sprig: “You know what, I wanna do something in her honor. We should have a statue of her. I can design it and Loggle can get us the wood to build it.”

Hop Pop: “I’m sure she’d appreciate that.”

Sprig grabs his notebook and a pencil and starts doodling pictures of Anne.

Anne wakes up. She checks under her bed to make sure that the music box she got is still there.

Anne: “I thought last night was just my imagination playing tricks on me. But no, this is real.”

She grabs the music box and heads downstairs. She sees her parents at the kitchen table.

Anne: “Good morning, Mom! Good morning, Dad!”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “You sure are chipper this morning, huh?”

Anne: “Uh hey, you guys were probably wondering what was in that package, right?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “A bit. I thought it might have just been fanmail or something. What was inside?”

Anne: “Oh, nothing. Just a dream come true!”

Anne shows her parents the music box. Her parents gasp.

Mr. Boonchuy: “That looks like the music box you told us about! The one that sent you to Amphibia! How did it get here?”

Anne: “Well, it isn’t the same music box. This one has slightly different markings on it. But it should still work the same.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “You…weren’t planning on opening it, were you?”

Anne: “Well, not now, but eventually yes.”

Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy look at each other.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Anne, please don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t think you should.”

Anne: “What? Why not?! Mom, you said you wanted for the Plantars to try your mooncakes. And Dad, you wanted to properly thank Hop Pop for looking after me. We didn’t think we could ever do those a few days ago, but now we can!”

Mr. Boonchuy: “But Amphibia is dangerous…”

Anne: “Dad, you were fine with sending me back to Amphibia a few weeks ago. You even helped me. What has changed since then?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “We sent you because we had to. You needed to get the Plantars home, and you needed to bring Sasha and Marcy back. Both of those have been accomplished. Sending you back now is an unnecessary risk…”

Anne groans. “I can’t believe you two! What parents don’t want their daughter to be happy?”, she says.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “We do want you to be happy. But we also worry about you.”

Anne: “I don’t need you to worry about me. I can handle myself!”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “But we’re your parents. It’s difficult not to be concerned for you.”

Anne clenches her fists.

Mr. Boonchuy: “OK, OK, this is getting us nowhere. Why don’t we make a compromise? Anne, we will let you use the box, but on a few conditions.”

Anne: “What conditions?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Your mother and I will figure those out later. For now, you should go study. We’ll talk later tonight.”

Anne gets a text on her phone from Marcy:

“omg hi Anna-banana! sorry I haven’t seen you in the past few days, been studying a lot :P but hey! I passed my exams, so I can help you two! im already helping Sash. she kinda begged me to help her haha. if you want, you can come to my house today so i can tutor you :D”

Anne replies back with a thumbs up emoji.

Anne: “I’m going to study with Marcy today. That box better still be in working condition when I get back.”

Anne goes upstairs and stuffs her binders in her backpack. She goes downstairs and out the front door towards Marcy’s house.

Sprig enters Loggle’s shop. He has a piece of paper with a drawing of Anne in his hand.

Sprig: “Sup Loggle! I was hoping you could help me with something…”

Loggle: “Absolutely!”

Sprig waits for a moment. “Great! I was wondering if we could make a statue of Anne, with this design”, he says.

He shows Loggle the paper.

Sprig: “You can choose the wood. I’ll pay for it too. Well, actually, I guess Hop Pop will be paying for it because I stole his wallet, but either way…”

Loggle: “Oh, Sprig. You don’t need to pay me.”

Sprig: “Huh? Why not?”

Loggle: “You’re not really building this for yourself. You’re building it for the community. That makes it a donation more than anything.”

Sprig: “Thanks, Loggle.”

Loggle: “No, Sprig. Thank you. I know we don’t talk much, but you’ve grown so much in such a short amount of time. Before, you seemed to only think of yourself. Now you’re looking to do something nice for those around you.”

Sprig smiles.

Loggle: “Anyways, I think I have an idea for what wood I could use. I could probably have this done by tonight, and we can unveil it to the town tomorrow.”

Sprig: “That’s good! I have to get approval from the mayor that this can be built. I’m sure he’ll say yes, but I do need to make sure. Plus, I want to give a speech. Well actually, I don’t, but I feel like I have to….”

Loggle: “I can’t think of anyone more suitable than you. You may not be the best speech writer, but you were one of Anne’s best friends. As long as you just speak from your heart, I’m sure the townspeople will love it.”

Sprig: “I’ll go get started then. See you tomorrow, then?”

Loggle: “Absolutely!!”

Sprig walks outside and heads towards the town hall.

Anne walks up to Marcy’s house. She knocks on the door. Marcy opens up.

Marcy: “Good morning, Anne! I am Professor Wu, and I will be teaching you and Sasha everything you need to know as a 7th grader!”

Marcy steps aside. Anne sees Sasha sitting in a chair in front of a whiteboard on wheels. Sasha waves to Anne. Anne walks over and sits in the chair next to her.

Marcy: “Anyways, I just got done going over chapter 4 of the science book over with Sasha here. Did you want me to go over that with you?”

Anne: “No, I’m good. I’ve studied that already. I haven’t gotten to chapter 5 yet, though.”

Marcy: “Ooh, that’s one of my favorites! It talks about geology!”

Marcy begins writing various terms on the board, and drawing figures. She continues to lecture for a few hours.

Marcy: “...and, yeah! That’s basically everything you need to know about geology. Any questions?”

Sasha and Anne give Marcy a blank stare.

Marcy: “Great! Let’s go onto chapter 6…”

Sasha: “Uh, hey Marcy?”

Marcy: “That’s Professor Wu! Uh, but yes, what is it?”

Sasha: “I think I’m done for today. My brain feels like a brick.”

Anne: “Yeah, I’m with Sash on this one. You’re going a bit too fast, and I’m finding it difficult to be interested in learning about types of rocks…”

Marcy: “...I guess I find studying to be fun…but most people don’t, huh? But there’s gotta be a way to fix that…”

Marcy snaps her fingers. “I got it! How about we make this a competition?”, she asks.

Sasha: “Competition? What are you talking about?”

Marcy: “Whoever gets the highest collective score on their exams will get something from me! Hmm, but what could I give you that would motivate you enough to study this material with as much passion as I did?”

Mrs. Wu: “Honey, can you do me a favor and take out the recycling?”

Marcy: “Sure thing, Mom.”

Marcy goes over to the recycling bin. Then she gasps.

Marcy: “That’s it! Sasha, Anne! Whichever one of you gets the highest score, I will do one favor for you, no restrictions, no questions asked!”

Sasha and Anne gasp.

Marcy: “I know, right? You could ask me to do something humiliating, or you could ask me to do your chores for a week. The possibilities are endless!”

Marcy takes the recycling outside.

Sasha and Anne look at each other. They both nod. Anne puts out her hand.

Anne: “May the better student win!”

Sasha shakes Anne’s hand.

Sasha: “I intend to!”

Marcy comes back inside, and she resumes teaching Anne and Sasha. Several more hours go by, until Anne and Sasha decide to call it a day and go home. While walking home, Anne gets a text on her phone from her dad:

“We figured out an arrangement where you can use the music box. Please come home.”

Anne replies with a thumbs up. A few minutes later, Anne walks into her house.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Welcome home, Anne! I prepared you some Pad Thai for dinner. Did you have a good time studying?”

Anne: “Yeah, yeah. What did you guys come up with?”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Straight to the point, huh? Fair warning, you may not like what you’re about to hear…”

Anne: “Honestly, as long as I get to use the music box again, any conditions are fine. You could ask me to walk up Mt. Everest, and I’d do it. I just want to be with the Plantars again.”

Mr. Boonchuy laughs. “Our conditions are more reasonable than that. I don’t even know what the point of that would be…”, he says.

Anne: “It’s a joke, Dad. What I’m trying to say is they mean a lot to me. Almost as much as you guys mean to me.”

Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy smile.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Anyways, we really only have two conditions.”

Anne: “All right, let’s hear ‘em.”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Your first condition is that you have to graduate from high school.”

Anne: “What? I’m not even done with middle school yet! Why do I have to-”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Didn’t you just say-”

Anne: “I mean, yes, I did say I would do anything. But I was hoping I could see them sooner rather than later…”

Mr. Boonchuy: “Look, you did a lot of impressive feats for a 13 year old. But, you’re still growing. Imagine how much stronger, smarter, and faster you will be when you’re an adult.”

Anne: “I guess…that makes sense…Fine, I can wait five years, considering I thought I was never going to see the Plantars again. What’s the other condition?”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “You can stay in Amphibia for as long as you want. But we do ask that you come home for certain occasions, like your birthday.”

Anne: “Pfft, I was gonna do that anyway.”

Mr. Boonchuy: “It’s settled then. When you graduate high school, we’ll give this back to you as a gift.”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “I’m sorry we’re making your life more difficult than it may need to be, Anne. We’re just looking out for you.”

Anne: “It’s OK, you guys. I’d rather have parents that care too much about me than too little.”

Anne hugs her parents.

Sprig and Loggle are in the middle of Wartwood. Next to them is a fairly large statue that has a sheet draped over it. Mayor Toadstool approaches the statue with a microphone.

Mayor Toadstool: “Good morning, everyone. Hope y’all are doing well. Anyways, yesterday, Sprig came to me yesterday with a proposal for an addition to the town. And once I heard about it, I thought, “frog nabbit, that’s a great idea!”. Let me show you what he and Loggle made.”

Mayor Toadstool pulls off the sheet to see a statue of Anne. In her left hand, she is pointing a sword outward. In the other, she is holding the music box.

Mayor Toadstool: “Loggle obviously got the wood and built it himself. But Sprig was the one to come up with the idea to construct this, and he designed it, too. Because this statue is largely because of him, I’ll let him take over. Sprig, the floor is yours.”

Mayor Toadstool gives Sprig the microphone. The crowd begins clapping.

Sprig starts sweating. “Uh, hey everyone. Nice weather, we’re having right?”, he asks.

The crowd gives a blank stare as Sprig begins to stammer. He looks at his notes:

“Be nervous and ask about the weather. Fall over your own words. Tear these notes up, then just ad-lib”

Sprig rips the papers he was holding.

Sprig: “You know what, I spent yesterday writing this speech to give to all of you. But, in all honesty, I don’t think that was the right idea. No, I can’t really put on paper what Anne meant to me. So I’ll just speak from here.”

Sprig points to his heart.

Sprig: “For a long time, I had only thought of doing the right thing if there was some benefit to me. But Anne always did the moral thing, unconditionally…even if it put herself in danger. She helped everyone, everywhere she went. She was…more than just a friend to me. She was a shining example of how a person should live their life. She helped me become the person I am today. That’s why I wanted this here, to serve as a reminder that we should always live our lives like she did!”

Sprig raises his fist into the air. The crowd roars in applause.

Mayor Toadstool: “Thank ya, Sprig. So that’s how it is, folks. Live like Anne!”

The crowd shouts “Live like Anne!”

Mayor Toadstool: “Anyways, you all are dismissed.”

The crowd disperses. Loggle heads back to his shop, and Mayor Toadstool heads back to his office. Sprig looks up at the statue and starts to tear up.

“Spranne against the world”, he whispers to himself.

Ivy: “Hey Sprig!”

Sprig jumps up in surprise.

Ivy: “Oh, sorry, I just wanted to tell you that was a cool speech you gave. I thought it was heartfelt that you just ripped up your notes like that and just spoke your feelings. I think that’s the truest reflection of how much she meant to you.”

Sprig chuckles nervously.

Ivy: “Anyways, did you want to come by my mom’s tea shop? She’s trying out a new tea flavor.”

Sprig: “Yeah, I’d love to.”

Sprig holds Ivy’s hand. She blushes, and the two walk towards Felicia’s Tea Shoppe.

Marcy is erasing the board while Anne and Sasha close their notebooks.

Marcy: “Well, I’ve taught you everything you need to. The score you get is up to you now. But I’m sure you two will excel!”

Sasha and Anne look at each other and smile. They leave Marcy’s house, and arrive at the school. They head inside. They knock on Principal Murphy’s office door. She opens up, looks at them, then grabs the exams. She leads them to an empty classroom, and they sit down far from each other. Principal Murphy hands them one exam each. Each of them takes their time to complete it. After one finishes, they go up to the front desk, turn it in, and grab the next exam. This goes on for several hours. Both finish their last exam at the same time.

Principal Murphy: “All right, just give me a few minutes to look these over. I’ll let you know what you got soon.”

Anne and Sasha head outside the classroom. They both sit on a bench. Neither of them say anything for a minute. Suddenly, Anne speaks up.

Anne: “Hey Sash?”

Sasha: “Yeah?”

Anne: “Regardless of what happens, I just want you to know this has been fun. Which isn't really something I expected to ever say about studying and taking exams…”

Sasha: “Yeah, it’s strange. Why has this been fun? It can’t have just been because of the chance to get some reward…”

Anne: “This is just a guess, but it’s probably just been because it’s been a while since all three of us hung out.”

Sasha chuckles. “Yeah, I suppose when you’re with friends, you can be doing just about anything, and it’ll be a good time”, she says.

Principal Murphy: “All right, you two. I got your scores back. Here you go.”

She hands one paper to Sasha and one to Anne. They both breathe a sigh of relief as none of their scores were below passing. They both pull out their phones and open the calculator apps to average their scores.

Sasha: “Looks like my average was 90%. How about you, Anna-banana?”

Anne: “I got a 91% average.”

Sasha: “Ah, you gotta be kidding me! Ah well, I think the important thing is we can go back to school as 8th graders in the fall.”

Anne: “Yeah, that’s true. Come on, let’s go tell Marcy the good news!”

Both of them head out of the school and head towards Marcy’s house.

Sprig is sitting at a table in the tea shoppe. Felicia hands him a cup of tea.

Felicia: “Here you go, Sprig. I hope you enjoy it. But don’t be afraid to be critical if you don’t like it.”

Sprig takes a sip." Wow, this is delicious! I always thought tea was just some leaf juice. Thanks, Ms. Sundew!”

Felicia giggles. “Don’t thank me, Ivy was the one to get the ingredients to make that, and she brewed it herself”, she says.

Sprig: “Huh? She did?”

Felicia: “Yeah, my little girl told me she was ready to go exploring by herself to find new things to make tea with. I was a little hesitant to let her go, but seeing her handle herself these past few weeks made me realize, maybe my little girl isn’t so little anymore.”

Ivy: “Hey Sprig! Did you like the tea?”

Sprig laughs. “I think like is an understatement”, he says.

Ivy blushes. “I’m glad! I’ve never tried making my own tea before. But I guess I learned from the best!”, she says.

Felicia: “Aww, Ivy, you’re gonna make me cry…anyways, I have some other customers to attend to. You can do as you wish.”

Ivy: “Sounds good. Just let me know if you need any help.”

Ivy sits across the table from Sprig. Sprig looks down at the floor.

Ivy: “Sprig, what’s wrong? Oh no, did you not really like my tea? I knew I should have steeped a little longer!”

Sprig: “No, that’s not it. The tea is fantastic. It’s just, I’ve got something on my mind.”

Ivy: “What is it?”

Sprig: “I did make that statue to honor Anne, but that wasn’t the only reason. She’s been on my mind ever since she left. I thought by building it, it’d finally take my mind off her. But it didn’t. I just…I miss her so much…”

Sprig starts to tear up.

Ivy: “Hey Sprig?”'

Sprig: “Yeah?”

I haven’t told a lot of people this, but I had a good friend when I was younger. Her name was Emily. She and I did everything together. We went exploring in the woods, did arts and crafts, and played games. She was so important to me…but…", Ivy says, as she starts to cry. “One day, I got a notice that Emily had a rare illness. The doctors said she only had a few months to live. I was completely distraught. I…I had never known life without her. But the day she left this world, she told me she wasn’t all that special. She was just a girl who got bullied a lot when she was younger. But she told me she was blessed to have found a companion in me, when everybody else avoided her. She told me that I was unique, though. I may have been one of the cool kids, but I was one of the only people to treat her like a person. She told me to never stop being that way, even after she departed. So that’s what I did. I found you, Sprig, and I got to know who you really were. And you did the same for me. I guess what I’m trying to say is, friends may come and go. But they never really leave us. Whenever it’s their time, they leave a piece of themselves with us. And that’s what Emily did with me. And what Anne did with you. I’m sure you miss her, just as much as I miss Emily. But no matter what happens, I’ll always be by your side. So no more crying, OK?”

Sprig sniffles. “Thanks, Ivy, I really needed that”, he says.

Ivy gets up and hugs Sprig.

Anne and Sasha head into Marcy’s house.

Marcy: “You guys are back! So how did you two do?”

Sasha: “We aced those exams! But uh, Anne did slightly better than me, so she wins.”

Marcy: “All right! Anna-banana, you can use that favor whenever you want.”

Anne: “I’m gonna use it right now.”

Marcy: “Oh, I thought you were gonna save it for something important.”

Anne: “But this is something important. Marcy, I want you to go spend the rest of the day with me and Sash at the mall.”

Marcy smiles. “Well, I can’t say no to that!”, she says.

Sasha, Anne, and Marcy go around shopping, eating at the food court, and using the photo booth.

Marcy: “You were right, Anna-banana. This was important. It’s been a long time since we all had a good time together. I think the last time was…oh.”

Sasha: “Huh? When was it?”

Marcy: “It was back in Amphibia. When we had that battle of the bands.”

Sasha: “Oh yeah, you’re right. That was the day before…everything kinda went sideways.”

Everyone falls silent.

Marcy: “Well hey! That’s all behind us now. None of us are keeping secrets from each other anymore!”

Anne looks down at the floor. Sasha notices.

Sasha: “Anne? Is something wrong?”

Anne: “Uh, yeah. Kinda. I have been keeping a secret from you two for a few weeks now.”

Sasha and Marcy gasp.

Anne: “I was going to tell you, but I was just so busy with studying and taking the exams that it slipped my mind.”

Sasha: “Well, you can tell us now, right?”

Anne: “Yeah, I can. The truth is…”

Chapter Text

Sasha: “Woah, woah, woah. Just…let me see if I got this right.”

Anne: “OK…”

Sasha: “So, a few weeks ago, you got an anonymous package from someone who had their own calamity stones, who made a music box for you such that you could potentially return to Amphibia should you open it, but your parents insisted that you wait until you graduate high school until you do so. Is that the entirety of your story?”

Anne: “Pretty much, yeah. Like I said, I was gonna tell you two. I was gonna at least offer to bring you there if you wanted.”

Sasha and Marcy look at each other.

Anne: “Did…did you two want to go?”

Sasha starts to tear up. “Anne, I told you that I would give you anything just to spend a day with Grime again. If it’s just a matter of waiting five years, to see him as often as I want…do you really have to ask?”, she says.

Anne: “And Marcy?”

Marcy: “Ah, I did tell Olivia and Yunan I wanted to get to know them better. It’d be great if I actually got to do that.”

Anne: “Then it’s settled. Once we graduate high school, we can go back.”

Sasha: “Wait, Anne. It sounded like your parents were initially not OK with this…”

Anne: “You’re right, they weren’t. My parents even told me I shouldn’t use it. But we came to an agreement.”

Marcy: “But it stands to reason our parents might not be. What if we can’t convince them to let us go?”

Anne: “Oh, you’re right. I hadn’t thought about that. I guess I was just so happy that I could go back with my friends that I hadn’t even considered that your parents might not want you to.”

Sasha: “Well, hey. I got an idea. Why don’t we just tell them at the graduation?”

Anne: “Huh? Why?”

Sasha: “Think about it. They’re worried about us now because we’re just middle schoolers. If we tell them this when we’re adults, maybe they’d be more willing to listen.”

Marcy: “I guess that makes sense. I feel bad about not telling them, though.”

Sasha: “Well, hey. You didn’t tell us your secrets when we were in Amphibia. And sure, we thought it was a little messed up, but you had a good reason, and we forgave you afterwards. I imagine our parents might be the same way.”

Marcy: “I hope you’re right…”

Anne: “Anyways, today was fun, but I think we’ve spent enough time at the mall.”

Marcy: “Wait. I was just thinking, if there was another set of Calamity Stones here, do you think that means there is a set for every planet with sentient life on it?”

Anne and Sasha look at each other.

Anne: "I guess that makes sense. But...there's no use in wondering about it now. Let's go home."

Marcy and Sasha nod. The three of them head home.

Hop Pop: “Sprig! Polly! Breakfast’s ready!”

Sprig and Polly head downstairs. They see two cups of green liquid.

Polly: “Uh, what is this...?”

Hop Pop: “Good question! Back on Earth, I saw this thing called a breakfast smoothie. I was thinking I could try making one myself!”

Sprig: “Why is it green?”

Hop Pop: “Because I made it with avocados!”

Sprig and Polly look at each other.

Hop Pop: “Anyways, I was thinking we could start selling this to the community, because I’ve noticed my avocados haven’t been selling too well lately. But that’s nothing a little variety can’t fix! Now come on, try it! You two like avocados, right?”

The doorbell rings.

Hop Pop: “That must be the mail. I’ll go get it. You two can tell me what you think when I get back.”

Hop Pop leaves the kitchen and heads towards the front door. Sprig takes a sip of his drink and immediately gags.

Polly: “It’s that bad, huh?”

Sprig: “Yeah, I think Hop Pop has gone a little overboard with the avocados. But I feel like we have to drink it, because we might hurt his feelings.”

Polly gets up and dumps her beverage down the sink. “Suit yourself”, she says.

Sprig: “Polly!”

Hop Pop enters the kitchen with two letters. “Hey kids, look, this one’s from Sylvia!”, he says.

Sprig: “What did she send you? Doesn’t she just live across the street?”

Hop Pop: “Yeah, but she and I have been sending romantic letters to each other!”

Sprig’s eye twitches. “That’s great, HP”, he says.

“Yep, I’ll read it after you tell me what you think of the smoothies.", Hop Pop says, as he notices Polly's empty cup. "Oh, Polly! You already drank yours! Must have been good, huh?”

Polly: “Yeah, it was delicious! I think Sprig’s just been taking his time because he wants to savor it.”

Hop Pop: “That’s good! I’ll start making more and selling it today. I’ll call it the ‘Hop n Go’. Anyways, this letter is for you, Polly.”

Polly: “Huh? Who’s it from?’

Hop Pop: “Hmm, looks like it’s from Queen Olivia. Don’t know what she sent you, but it must be important if it came from her.”

Polly grabs the letter from Hop Pop. She opens it and reads it:

Dear Polly Plantar,

I hope things have been going well for you in Wartwood. We have a special assignment for you. We have many Frobos that are currently collecting dust. We would like you to reprogram and redesign them so they can help out the residents of Amphibia with various tasks. Additionally, we would like you to teach others your craft. Should you choose to accept it, please respond to this letter. And as Queen of Amphibia, you will be greatly awarded.

Sincerely,

Queen Olivia

Polly: “Oh. My. Frog! Guys, I just got my first job!”

Hop Pop: “First job? What is it?”

Polly: “They want me to be a mechanic for the Frobos! And a teacher so other people can be like me! And I’m gonna get a ton of money!”

Hop Pop: “Now that’s my girl!”

Polly: “So you’re fine with me going alone?”

Hop Pop: “Well, you did just grow your legs not too long ago. But, you’ve been looking after Frobo really well. I’d say you’ve shown me you’re more than capable of doing this.”

Polly hugs Hop Pop. “Thanks, HP! I’ll go pack my bags!”, she says.

Polly heads upstairs. Sprig stomachs the rest of his beverage and starts to walk upstairs.

Hop Pop: “Hey Sprig, it seems like your sister has a busy few weeks or months ahead of her. What were you planning to do today?”

Sprig pulls out Anne’s phone.

Sprig: “Hey HP, our family wrote a lot of books, didn’t they?”

Hop Pop: “That’s right! We got oodles of them from pretty much everyone in our family! Were you thinking of writing one?”

Sprig: “I feel like I wouldn’t be much of a Plantar if I didn’t. I was gonna make a guide to Amphibia. And I can use these pictures from Anne’s phone to draw illustrations. And I can use it to take more pictures, and draw more. Then I can sell them!”

“HP, I got my bags all rea-”, Polly says, as she heads downstairs and notices Hop Pop is starting to tear up. 

Hop Pop: “Both my grandkids are making something of their lives. I’m sure your parents would have been happy to see you like this."

Sprig: “Well, we couldn’t have done it without someone helping us every step of the way.”

Hop Pop chuckles. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. But you two are officially Plantars today. You can always ask me for advice, but I think you’ve learned enough to get by in life”, he says.

Sprig and Polly go over and hug Hop Pop.

Polly: “We’ll make you proud, HP.”

Hop Pop: “You already have.”

Polly heads outside. She jumps into Frobo’s arms, and they fly towards Newtopia. Sprig heads upstairs and pulls out a notebook. He writes on the cover “Sprig’s Guide to Amphibia”.

Five Years Later

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy are sitting amongst their classmates at their high school graduation. They receive their diplomas, turn their tassels, and throw their hats into the air. Each of them goes over to her parents and hugs them.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “My baby girl is a grownup now. It just felt like yesterday I was teaching you how to walk…”

Anne chuckles.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Anyways, you told Sasha and Marcy about the graduation party at our house, right?”

Anne: “Yeah, they know...but...they don’t know everything."

Mr. Boonchuy: “Good, I can’t wait to see their reactions.”

Marcy and Sasha start to walk over towards Anne.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “We’ll be in the car. Don’t be too long.”

Anne nods. Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy leave. Marcy and Sasha approach Anne.

Anne: “So, it’s today, huh.”

Sasha: “Yep, we tell them today. We already got our bags packed. I assume you do, too?”

Anne nods.

Sasha: “Good, but I want you to promise me one thing, Anna-banana. If neither of us are able to go, please don’t feel the need not to go.”

Anne: “What? I can’t do that! You guys are my best friends!”

Marcy: “It’s OK, Anne. Sasha and I are aware this may not go the way we want it to. We just want you to be happy. And if that’s with the Plantars, then we will be fine with you leaving us.”

Anne chokes back tears. “You better try your hardest to convince them”, she says.

Sasha: “Way ahead of you. I've been thinking about what to say for a long time now. And I’m sure Marcy has too, right?”

Marcy nods.

Sasha: “So we’ll give it our best shot.”

Anne: “That’s what I like to hear. I’ll see you at the party later tonight.”

They both nod. They all head towards their parents’ cars. They all drive home.

The Boonchuys, Wus, and Waybrights are at Anne’s house. They’re making chit chat with each other, listening to music, and eating food.

Mrs. Wu: “You two keep a fine home. And this food is amazing!”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Well, it is the reason my restaurant is still in business.”

Mr. Wu: “Hey, babe, we should go sometime! I feel a little bad having this food for free. We’ll make it up to you by giving you a good review on Belp.

Mr. Boonchuy: “Ah, thanks, you two. That means a lot to us.”

Mrs. Waybright: “Count us in, too! I didn’t really think Thai food would suit my palette, but it’s surprisingly good!”

Mr. Waybright: “Maybe we could go there for our anniversary? It’s coming up in a few weeks.”

Mr. Boonchuy: “We’d love for you to celebrate your anniversary there. It’s good you two were able to make things work.”

Mr. Waybright: “Well, there isn’t much we wouldn’t do for our daughter. I just wish…we could have been there more for her…”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Ah, nonsense. You’ve raised a wonderful person.”

Mrs. Waybright: “Aww, thanks. I think Anne is a fantastic person, too. And Marcy as well! Maybe that’s why they make such good friends.”

They all laugh.

Anne: “So, uh, when were you planning to tell them?”

Sasha: “Honestly, I don’t know. It’s funny, I’ve gone into dangerous missions without hesitation, but even something as simple as telling my parents something has given me cold feet...”

Marcy: “Yeah, me too.”

Anne: “Don’t worry, I got you covered. Watch this.”

Anne picks up her glass of water and a spoon. She clinks the spoon to her glass. Everyone looks at her.

Anne: “I’d…like to propose a toast. A toast to the best parents a girl could ask for. And a toast to the girls who I’m lucky to call my friends.”

Mr. Waybright starts chanting.

“Speech! Speech! Speech!”

Anne: “Anything you two wanted to say?”

Sasha and Marcy are at a loss for words. With shaky legs, Marcy gets up.

Marcy: “Uh, th-thanks Anne. I’m gl-glad to call y-you g-guys my f-friends t-too. And…I’m glad my p-parents started l-listening to w-what I h-had to say after I c-came b-back from Amphibia. You guys are super cool. Anything you’d like to say, S-Sasha?”

Sasha starts sweating profusely. She gets up.

Sasha: “Uh, yeah. Uh, I’m grateful for you two, uh, as well. Uh, and also that, uh, my parents were able to, uh, stay together. I know it, uh, must have uh, taken a lot of work. Uh, but you two did it.”

Their parents start to clap.

Sasha: “Wait, I had more to say.”

They stop clapping.

Sasha: “Uh...weather’s been crazy, huh?”

Their parents murmur.

Marcy clenches her fists. “OK, I’m sick of this. Mom, Dad, I need to tell you something. Anne has a music box that can potentially take us back to Amphibia. We’ve known about it for about five years now, and we didn’t tell you back then because we thought you might prevent us from going. But I don’t care if you don’t want us to go. Anne’s done so much for us, and I can’t imagine life without her. But I want her to be happy, and if she wants to go back to Amphibia, then I’m going with her. So don’t try to stop me!”, she says.

Sasha: “Y-yeah! What she said!”

Their parents look stunned. Suddenly, Anne and they start to laugh.

Marcy: “Why are you guys laughing? I’m completely serious!”

They start to laugh harder.

Anne: “Alright, alright, that’s enough. Sash, Mar-mar, When I came back home from the mall that day, I told Mom and Dad about your desire to go back to Amphibia, but how it might be a problem that your parents wouldn’t want you to go. So my parents told your parents.”

Sasha and Marcy: “What?!”

Anne: “And Marcy, you were right. None of them wanted you to go at first. They talked about how it was a miracle that you got back, and that they didn’t want to have to go through the experience of losing you again. But, then I told them how much you wanted to go back. How, Sasha, you owed your life to Grime, and you just wanted to see him again. And how, Marcy, you wanted to get to know Yunan and Olivia better, the two people who you didn’t really get to know all that well. Once I told them that, they realized maybe it wasn’t such a crazy idea. Of course, they needed one last piece of evidence to prove you really wanted to go. And you two, you just provided plenty of it.”

Marcy: “What…what did we just do?”

Anne: “I never told you what to say to your parents. You guys came up with it yourselves. But I noticed you two were hesitating, so I just set you up, so you could tell your parents how you really feel. Of course, there was the possibility that you wouldn’t have, but you did.”

Sasha: “Wait so…you all knew what we wanted to go back to Amphibia? And you’re fine with that?”

Mr. and Mrs. Waybright nod.

Mrs. Waybright: “I’m still a little apprehensive of you going, but if you still feel the same way about going as you did five years ago, then you must really want it. And your father and I want you to be happy. If going back there will do that for you…then I will put my feelings aside, just for you”, Mrs. Waybright says.

Sasha starts to cry and hugs her parents.

Mr. Waybright: “Just…don’t forget to visit us for holidays and special occasions, OK?”

Sasha. “Of course I won’t.”

Marcy: “Mom, Dad? Do you feel the same way?”

Mr. Wu: “Initially, we did. But we realized that you improved so much in the short amount of time you were in Amphibia. If going to a place as dangerous as that doesn’t stop our little girl, I don’t think much will.”

Marcy hugs her parents.

Mrs. Wu: “But, as was previously said, we expect you home for certain events.”

Marcy: “Sure thing, Mom.”

Mr. Boonchuy and Mrs. Boonchuy hug Anne.

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Sorry, didn’t want you to feel left out.”

Anne chuckles.

Mr. Boonchuy: “And here, this is yours.”

Mr. Boonchuy hands the music box to Anne.

Anne: “Are you two ready to go?”

Sasha: “Just gotta grab my bag. You guys go get yours too.”

Marcy and Anne nod.

Mr. Boonchuy: "Anne, do you mind putting this in your bag? And this too? They're for the Plantars."

Mr. Boonchuy hands his daughter a Tupperware container and a letter.

Anne: "Sure thing, Dad."

Anne grabs her bag from upstairs and stuffs the music box in it, and meets downstairs with Sasha and Marcy, who have their bags on their shoulders. They head outside.

Mr. Boonchuy: “See you soon!”

Mrs. Boonchuy: “Have a safe trip!”

Mr. Waybright: “Farewell!”

Mrs. Waybright: “Take care!”

Mrs. Wu: “Stay out of danger!”

Mr. Wu: “Godspeed!”

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy turn to see their parents waving at them. They wave back and Anne starts walking, and Sasha and Marcy follow.

Marcy: “That was…an experience. I still can’t believe you went behind our backs to tell our parents like that.”

Anne: “Yeah, sorry about that. I just couldn’t imagine not going with you two.”

Sasha: “Eh, it was probably for the best. If they hadn’t known, that conversation would have been a lot more awkward.”

Anne chuckles.

Marcy: “Uh, hey Anne? You kinda just started walking. Shouldn’t we just use the box here?”

Anne: “Not quite. I wanna do it somewhere meaningful.”

Sasha: “Meaningful?”

Sasha and Marcy see that the playground in Saint James Middle School is coming into view.

Anne: “Yeah, the place where it all began. I want it to be here.”

They hop the fence. Anne pulls out the music box.

Anne: “I’ll open it on three. One, two-”

Marcy: “Wait!”

Sasha: “Huh? What is it, Mar-mar?”

Marcy: “Last time we did this, we ended up in wildly different places. So how about this time, we hold hands, so we don’t get separated?”

Sasha: “Good thinking!”

The three link hands.

Anne: “Uh, well my hands are full now, so I can’t really open the box.”

Sasha and Marcy look at each other.

Sasha: “Don’t worry, you hold the box like this, and Marbles and I will open it from both sides.”

Anne: “All right, one more time. One, two, three!”

Sasha and Marcy open the box. There’s a great flash of light.

Marcy, Anne, and Sasha are lying on their stomachs in a forest.

Sasha: “D-did we make it?”

Sasha notices the music box on the ground. She notices the once bright stones are now colorless. Sasha screams. Anne and Marcy wake up with a jolt.

Anne: “What?! What is it?! Did you hurt yourself?”

Sasha: “No, look at the box!”

Marcy and Anne notice the colorless gems.

Anne: “What’s the big deal? We can probably just get them charged at the temples again.”

Marcy: “That’s assuming that’ll work. These stones are from Earth. The stones we charged were from Amphibia, and the temples were there too. There’s no guarantee it’ll work. But, there isn’t any harm in trying. We’ve already completed the challenges, anyway.”

Sasha: “You’re right...I guess I overreacted a little. But are we sure this is Amphibia?”

Anne: “Wait, this looks like where I ended up the first time I came here. Which means…”

Anne runs to a cave.

Anne: “Rocky! It’s so good to see you!”

Marcy and Sasha catch up to her and see a rock that somewhat resembles a human head. Sasha raises an eyebrow.

Sasha: “Uh, Anne? Why are you talking to a rock?”

Anne: “The first night I came to Amphibia, I got lonely. This was how I kept myself sane.”

Marcy: “But if that’s here, then this must be Amphibia!”

Anne gasps. “You’re right! It has to be! We’re finally…back…”, she says.

Chapter Text

Anne starts running towards Wartwood. She stops just before entering and hides in the bush. Sasha and Marcy catch up to her, and hide in the bush as well.

Anne: “Wartwood…the place I called home for five months.”

Sasha: “Anna-banana! Look!”

Sasha points to the statue of Anne. Anne follows where her finger is pointing.

Anne: “They…they built a statue? Of me? That’s so sweet…”

Sasha: “Well you did kinda save this planet. I think building a statue of you is the least they could do.”

Marcy: “They also might have built it to honor you because people believed you would never come back, and you being here would dampen its meaning.”

Anne blinks a few times. “Oh. Yeah…welp, too late for that!”, she says.

Sasha: “Yeah! Now come on, get there!”

Anne doesn’t move.

Sasha: “What’s wrong?”

Anne: “It’s just…what do I say? I kinda just disappeared in front of everyone and said my goodbyes. I didn’t really think what coming back would really entail for us…”

Sasha: “Anne, you’re overthinking this. Sure, life has gone on here, but I’m sure the people will be overjoyed to see you, so it doesn’t really matter what you say.”

Anne: “Yeah…yeah you’re right!”

Anne sees Mrs. Croaker looking at the statue. 

Anne: “I got an idea.”

Anne crawls out of the bushes. She walks towards the statue and stands next to Mrs. Croaker.

Anne: “Pretty cool statue. Who is that?”

Mrs. Croaker looks at Anne. “It’s you, silly. What, you don’t recognize yourself? Hold up…Anne?!”, she says. 

Anne: “It’s good to see you too, Mrs. Croaker.”

Mrs. Croaker: “Everyone, a miracle has occurred! Anne has returned to us!”

Various residents of Wartwood turn to look at Anne.

Stumpy: “She’s right! Anne really is here!”

The crowd starts cheering.

Anne starts to cry. “Oh, you guys. It’s so good to be here…”

Sasha and Marcy approach the crowd. 

Maddie: “Look! Sasha and Marcy are here too!”

The residents of Wartwood turn to look at Marcy and Sasha.

Loggle: “I thought you three were gone forever. How did you get back here?”

Anne: “Long story short, there was another set of calamity stones on Earth, and some random dude gave me them fitted in this box.”

Anne holds out the music box. 

Wally: “Oi, that’s great! Now you can come visit us whenever you want!”

Sasha: “But we didn’t come to visit. We’re staying here.”

The crowd gasps.

Marcy: “We…felt bad about leaving. Even though we were here for five months, it sure flew by. We had some unfinished business to take care of here. We…just really wanted to come back. Besides, even if this isn’t where we came from, it does feel like a second home to us. And we can always go back to our real home using that box.”

Anne: “And with no Core around, there shouldn’t be any issue with the stones.”

Sylvia: “We did miss you. But I think there’s a certain family who missed you more than any of us.”

Anne: “Oh my frog, you’re right. I gotta go see them!”

Marcy: “Anne, wait!”

Anne: “Huh? What is it?”

Sasha: “Mar-mar and I were just talking over there. And we were thinking I could go see Grime at the Toad Tower and she can go see Yunan and Olivia in Newtopia.”

Anne nods. “Yeah, of course. I’ll see you two around.”

Sasha and Marcy nod. They both leave town.

Anne runs towards the Plantar farm. The sign outside reads “Hop Pop’s California Avocados”. She sees Hop Pop planting and watering crops.

Hop Pop: “Polly! Can you give me a little help with these?”

Polly: “I’m busy fixing this Frobo! Go ask Sprig!”

Hop Pop: “Sprig!”

Sprig opens his bedroom window. “Sorry, Hop Pop, but I’m in the zone right now. If I help you with farming, I’ll lose my train of thought. Once I’m done writing, I’ll help you”, he says.

Hop Pop sighs. “At least they’re being productive…”

Anne walks over to Hop Pop. “Hey HP, you look like you could use an extra set of hands. Mind if I help?”, she says.

Hop Pop: “Ah, thanks Anne. You’re always the reliable one. Wait a minute, Anne?!”

Hop Pop hugs Anne. “I can still have my old room back, right?”, she asks.

Hop Pop: “Of course!”

Polly: “Hop Pop, how do you expect me to fix this Frobo when you’re making all this noi-”

Polly notices Anne. 

Polly runs up and hugs Anne. “Anne! You’re back!”, she says.

Anne: “Polly! I almost didn’t recognize you. It’s a little strange seeing you as a frog…and with hair.”

Polly: “Do you like it?”

Anne: “I love it. It suits you!”

Sprig opens the front door. “Anne?”, he says.

Anne: “Sprig!”

They run into each other for a hug. Both of them start crying.

Anne, Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop are sitting on Hop Pop’s couch.

Anne: “...so I used the music box to get back here. The stones are…uncharged…but we should be able to use the temples to fix that. And yeah, that’s more or less what happened these past five years.”

Hop Pop: “It’s good you and your friends patched things up with each other. And they patched things up with their parents, too!”

Anne: “Yeah. Oh! I almost forgot, my parents wanted you to have these.”

She pulls out the Tupperware and letter from her bag. 

Sprig: “What’s in there?”

Anne: “I don’t know for sure, but if I had to take a guess…”

She takes off the lid. It is full of mooncakes.

Anne: “Yeah, that’s what I figured. Mooncakes!”

Polly: “You guys made cakes out of the moon?!”

Anne: “No, silly. We eat these during something called the Lunar Festival, hence why they’re called Mooncakes. They were one of my favorite desserts and my mom made them, regardless of the time of year. She thought you guys would like them.”

Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop grab one each. They take a bite.

Polly gasps. “I had no idea the moon was this tasty!”, she says.

Anne: “And this letter is for you, Hop Pop. My dad thought he never really properly thanked you for looking after me, so he wrote that for you. Read it!”

Hop Pop tears open the envelope and starts to read the Hop Pop.

Dear Hopadiah Plantar,

I’m sorry I wasn’t able to give you my gratitude in person, what with all the craziness of trying to get you and your family home, but I hope this will suffice. I don’t know a lot of people who would take care of a complete stranger. More than that, my daughter spoke highly of you. She said you were a little old-fashioned, but your heart was always in the right place. If there were more individuals like you, I think the world would be a much better place. Please keep doing what you do.

Sincerely,

Mr. Boonchuy

Hop Pop sniffles. “Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever received such a heartfelt letter before. You really said that about me?”, he asks.

Anne: “Yeah…I know we may have had our disagreements on things, but you always pulled through for me.”

Hop Pop: “Thanks, Anne. I thought maybe I wasn’t the best parent I could have been, but I guess I was wrong.”

Anne: “Yeah…but that’s enough about me. What have you guys been up to?”

Hop Pop: “Well, after bringing that avocado from Earth, I planted it. I was able to get more, and people in town started buying them! They were super popular the first few weeks, but then they got a little sick of them…especially when they didn’t like my smoothies. But I still have customers every now and then. It’s the first time the farm hasn’t been in any financial trouble!”

Polly: “I think that last part is more so because of me!”

Anne: “Hmm? Why do you say that?”

Polly: “Oh my frog! Queen Olivia asked me to go to Newtopia and pass my knowledge about Frobos onto other people. I even reprogrammed them to help out with everyday tasks. I was there for a while, but eventually she let me go home…with a fat stack of cash! Now I just help fix Frobos that are in the area.”

Anne: “What’d you do with the money?”

Polly: “Well, turns out this farm had a lot of debt. So I used all the money to pay it off and was left with…almost nothing.”

Sprig: “I’ve been making a bit of money, too. I’ve been working on this book called Guide to Amphibia, and I’ve been using pictures from your phone to draw illustrations. It’s not done yet, and I don’t know if it ever will be, but sometimes I hold seminars to teach people about all the cool stuff here.”

Anne: “That’s so cool! Normally, I didn’t really like going to school, even though I kinda had to. But going to a seminar of yours sounds like fun!”

Sprig: “Yeah, I guess it does kinda suck you had to go to school for five more years. But I guess you getting the music box recently saved you from all that, huh?”

Anne: “Eh? I didn’t say the music box arrived recently.”

Sprig: “When…when did you get it?”

Anne: “Just a few days after I came back from Amphibia.”

Sprig: “Then why…why didn’t you come back sooner…?”

Anne: “Well, my parents wanted me to go back to school. They wanted to make sure I was equipped with enough knowledge.”

Sprig stares. “You know, I was happy just a few minutes ago, because I finally got to see my best friend. But here she is, telling me that instead of wanting to see me, she’d rather stay inside and study…”, he says. 

Anne: “But I had to respect my parent’s wishes…I didn’t want them worrying about me…”

Sprig: “What about me? Did you care about what I was going through?”

Anne: “Sprig…”

Sprig: “I was in anguish for several weeks! I designed that statue of you just so I didn’t have to think about you…but it didn’t help. In fact, it might have continued to this day if it wasn’t for…”

There’s a knock on the door. “Hey Sprig, are you ready for that adventure?”, Ivy says.

Sprig: “Her. Ivy was the one to pull me out of that dark place.”

Sprig gets up, heads towards the door, and opens it.

Sprig: “Yeah, let’s go.”

Ivy peers over Sprig’s shoulder and sees Anne. She gasps. “Anne, you’re back! Did you wanna go with Sprig and me on a mission?”

Sprig: “No, Ivy, this was supposed to be just us.”

Sprig looks back at Anne. “And frankly, I don’t wanna be anywhere near her”, he mutters to himself.

Ivy: “Ah, well maybe next time.”

Sprig and Ivy leave. Anne starts to cry. 

Anne: “Maybe coming back here was a mistake…”

Polly: “Aw, come on Anne. I think Sprig’s just overcome with emotions. I’m sure he didn’t mean what he said.”

Anne: “He still said it. Forget it, I need to be alone.”

Anne stands up and walks towards the door.

Hop Pop: “Anne, where are you going?”

Anne: “Look, the stones in the music box are uncharged. I don’t know why it happened again. Maybe it’s just because…I don’t know, just the three of us used it. I need to see if they can be recharged at the temples. I’m going there.”

Polly: “You weren’t planning on leaving Amphibia, were you?”

Anne sighs. “No, I wasn’t going to do that. But I did promise my parents I’d come home occasionally for visits, so I’ll need to do this sooner or later”, she says

Hop Pop: “OK, just…don’t do anything reckless. We care about you, Anne.”

Anne sighs. “I wasn’t going to”, she says. She walks out the front door.

Sprig and Ivy are walking on a snowy mountain.

“...oh, so that’s why you didn’t want Anne coming with us.”

“Yeah, can you believe her? You wouldn’t have needed to talk me out of my depression if she had just come back when she got the music box. But no, I guess school was more important than how I felt…”

“Sprig, did you try seeing things from her perspective?”

“What do you mean?”

“You and Anne were best friends. So she probably missed you just as much as you did. I’m sure she wanted to come back as soon as possible, and maybe she could have…but I don’t think you’re considering anyone besides yourself in the decision she made.”

“Oh…I get what you’re saying. I guess I just…felt a certain connection with Anne that I haven’t felt with anyone else. She felt like a big sister to me, and I felt a little betrayed when I found out the truth…but the Boonchuys took care of us and got us back home, even though they didn’t have to…I can’t really thank them enough for that. Anne trusts her parents, so maybe their decision to delay her coming back wasn’t such a bad thing…”, Sprig says, before sniffling. “In all honesty, I’m just glad she’s back. Having her here again makes me happy beyond words…I’ll have to apologize to her and tell her how I really feel…”

“That can wait. We’re here!”

Ivy and Sprig arrive at a shrine that’s partially covered in snow. They wipe it off to reveal a 5 by 5 grid, with 25 equally sized tiles.

“This is what I read about in the library. They say this puzzle stumped even the best of puzzle solvers. But since you’ve been playing that game on Anne’s phone, it should be no problem to solve it!”

“Yeah! Then we can get some treasure!”

Sprig starts sliding the tiles around. All of a sudden they hear a roar.

“Hey Ivy, did you have breakfast this morning?”

Ivy starts sweating. “Sprig…that wasn’t me…”, she says.

Behind them, a yeti appears out of nowhere and grabs them. They scream as it brings them to a nearby cave, and shoves them against a wall covered in ice. The ice starts to freeze over their bodies, leaving only their heads exposed. The yeti then goes over to a cauldron and lights the flame. He starts adding ingredients to it.

“Hey, I think he just wants us to try his cooking!”

“I think it’s more likely he wants us to be in his cooking!”

“Oh.”

“HELP! SOMEBODY HELP!”

Anne is walking towards the second temple when she knocks on the door of the hut.

“Valeriana? Are you home?”

Anne walks in to see a younger looking newt. She’s dressed in a purple cloak, and wearing a necklace with a sideways hourglass emblem.

“It’s not often I get visitors…”

“Oh, sorry. My name’s Anne. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Oh, I know you quite well. My name is Carly”, the newt says.

“You know me?”

"I can’t imagine many people who don’t. You may not have gotten to know everyone in Amphibia personally, but the story of you spread throughout the continent like wildfire.”

Anne chuckles. “Yeah, I guess I’m a bit of a celebrity here, aren’t I?”, she says.

Carly chuckles. “Yes, I suppose you are. Is there something I can help you with?”

“I was looking for Valeriana…do you know where she is?”

“I’m afraid she’s gone…”

“Oh. Like out to lunch?”

Carly shakes her head.

“Oh no…I’m sorry for your loss. When…when did it happen?”

“I know you’re looking for a simple answer, but I think it’s best I tell you about her. You may not know this, but Valeriana was quite old. In fact, she was way older than she looked.”

“How…how old was she?”

"She was over a millennium old.”

Anne stands there in shock. “But…that’s impossible. I’ve never heard of anyone that could live that long.”

Carly chuckles. “For a witch as skilled as her, it was quite simple”, she says.

“But…why? Why would she want to live that long? I mean, living for over a millennium sounds cool but…death is kinda what gives life meaning. It serves as a reminder that our time is limited, so we should make the most of our lives. It’s what gives us a sense of purpose. And to see your loved ones come and go, while you remain here…I don’t think it’d be worth it.”

Carly chuckles. “I think that’s why she pushed people away from her, so that when she departed, they wouldn’t really miss her. I was one of the only people she wanted in her life, because she wanted someone to carry on her legacy and story.”

“Then why?”

“You mentioned earlier about a sense of purpose. Valeriana was someone who was passionate about fulfilling a duty. For her…it was more so seeing her mistake be corrected. One she made when she was young.”

“What mistake?”

“Giving the music box to King Aldrich, who was Andrias’s father. Valeriana was naive in giving it to him, because he had told her he would use it to promote good in the world. But I think you know that he did anything but that.”

“But…that error was fixed, wasn’t it? I mean the music box was stolen by Leif, and she brought it to Earth…why did she continue living?”

“Tell me, Anne. Did the Calamity Box ever return here?”

“Well, yeah of course. My friends and I used it to come here for the first time.”

“Of course. Valeriana was a bit of a clairvoyant. That’s why she brought you here, because she thought you were our best shot at stopping The Core. She didn’t know if you would, though. But she had to take that chance.”

“Did…did you just say that Valeriana brought us here?”

“Yes. I’m afraid you being here…was no accident.”

Chapter Text

“What…what did you just say?”

“You were brought here, by Valeriana herself.”

“But…how? She was never in our world. There’s no way she could have…”

“Due to her age, Valeriana was one of the best magic users out there. She mastered spells I could never hope to even learn. Now, observe.”

Carly grabs Valeriana’s old staff. She taps it to the ground. They are transported to a world of darkness, where Anne looks around in shock.

"What…what did you just do?!”

“Do not be afraid. We are still in the hut; I am simply showing you what Valeriana was able to do. Now, that individual over there. Do you know him?”

Carly points to a man in a suit. Anne scratches her head.

“No, I can’t say I do.”

“That is Mr. Wu’s boss. This…this is a dream he had the night before your 13th birthday.”

“This…is a dream?”

“More so a memory of a dream. Now look over there. Surely you must recognize her?”

Carly points to a newt with a black cloak. Anne recognizes her immediately.

“Valeriana? What is she doing here?”

“I will let her explain.”

Valeriana: “Hello, Mr. Gill.”

Mr. Gill: “Uh, who are you?”

Valeriana: “My name is Valeriana. I am something of a guardian. I have come here, into your dreams, to give you a request. If you fulfill it, you will be greatly rewarded.”

Mr. Gill: “Aw man, I’d do anything for a bonus…even if I have too much money as is…anyways, what’s your request?”

Valeriana: “Your employee, Mr. Wu. You must offer him a job out of state, and you must convince him to go.”

Mr. Gill: “Oh, that’s it? Mr. Wu is a good employee. Maybe he’s not the most suitable for that new job…but if it means I get some more money, who cares?”

Valeriana: “It’s settled, then. Once Mr. Wu moves out of California, you will receive the riches you desire. However, should you fail…you will not. Understood?”

Mr. Gill: “Loud and clear!”

The dream stops. Anne and Carly are back in the hut. 

“So…not only did Valeriana have the ability to travel into people’s dreams, but she could do it even if they weren’t in the same world…”

“Correct. However, this was the only time she did so.”

“But…what was the purpose of that?”

“This was Valeriana’s way to get the ball rolling, so to speak. As you know, Mr. Wu did accept that new job initially. He and his wife were happy. But their child…not so much. Which brings us to our next memory.”

Carly once again taps the floor with the staff. Instead of going to a world of darkness, though, they are sent to a library. Anne sees Marcy sitting at a table, reading a book.

“Marcy!”

Anne starts to run up to Marcy, but Carly stops her.

"Remember, Anne, this is just a memory. We can only observe, not change.”

“Oh, right. I forgot.”

Carly: “Now, pay close attention.”

Marcy gets a text on her phone from Sasha, telling her to meet them downtown, while an employee drops a book off her cart.

“Anne's birthday! I almost forgot!", Marcy says, as she gets up, and an employee drops a book off her cart, which she then picks up. "Excuse me ma'am, you dropped your...book?” 

Marcy picks up the book and flips to a page. Everything seems to stop.

“Anne, take a look at the page she just opened to.”

Anne goes over and sees a page with the Calamity Box on it.

“That explains how she found out about it…”

"Take a look at the corner of the page…”

Anne does as instructed. She notices it’s folded over itself.

“Wait a minute, was this page…marked?”

“Indeed it was. By Valeriana.”

“Huh?”

“Let me replay what just happened, but more slowly. Pay attention to the cart the book fell off.”

The scene replays. Anne notices the book is seemingly not there, but out of thin air, it appears, only to slide off the other books and onto the ground. The memory stops. Anne and Carly are back in the hut. 

“What…what just happened?”

Carly: “One of the things that Valeriana learned was how to send items to other worlds. She wasn’t able to transport organic life, but she certainly could for an object like a book. Again, this was the only time she ever did this.”

“But…why?”

“Good question. That should be answered by this last memory.”

Carly taps the ground with the staff once more. They are taken to an alleyway. There is a homeless man hugging himself for warmth. All of a sudden, the Calamity Box appears next to him, with a note attached to it. He takes off the note and reads it:

Dear stranger,

I understand you are having difficulty with fulfilling your basic needs. Please sell this box to the thrift store you are sitting behind. You will get a handsome price for it. Do not open it, or there will be grave consequences.

The man picks up the box and inspects it. He then takes it to the thrift store and sells it. He exits the store with a wad of cash and jumps with glee. He walks away. A few moments later, a crying Marcy arrives just outside the store window, and sees the Calamity Box. The memory stops. Anne and Carly are back in the hut. Anne sits down in a nearby chair.

“I…think I get it now. Valeriana told Mr. Gill to persuade Mr. Wu to take that new job…so that he would move away with his family. And Marcy, hating the idea that she would have to leave her two best friends, wanted to find something, anything that could save our friendship. She found a miracle in both reading about and finding the Calamity Box…knowing that it could send us three here, so that we wouldn’t have to be away from each other…except it wasn’t a miracle…it was all planned…I thought this whole time, Marcy was responsible for us being here…but…that’s not true at all, is it? It was all Valeriana.”

Carly nods. “I know this must come as a great shock to you, Anne. Valeriana took no consideration of your feelings when bringing you three here. All she focused on was making sure this planet had its best shot at continuing. And once it did, her biggest regret was put to rest. She finally allowed herself to pass onto the afterlife…”, she says.

“So she only stayed alive because of her regret?”

“That was part of it, yes. She didn’t know when the Calamity Box would return, but she knew it would. She was the one who took it from Leif, and sent it back to Earth, in the hopes that the most worthy would answer the call. But she had to keep herself alive somehow, so she…bound her lifeforce to the Calamity Box.”

“What…what does that mean?”

“It means that as long as the box was intact, she would continue to live.”

“Did she…destroy the box?”

“I wouldn’t say that…but it did disintegrate, along with the Calamity Shards, after you left. I think Valeriana was sick of this world, and she just wanted to go somewhere better…she always told me that, left to their own devices, people would hurt each other, even if there was no benefit.”

“Sounds pessimistic.”

Carly chuckles. “Yes, I would agree with that. But I think she also did what she did because she wanted there to be a better future for everyone, even if she was not here to experience it”, she says.

“Wow. I only knew her for a short time, and I always thought she was an old hag. But after hearing this, she sounds like the most noble of people.”

Carly chuckles. “I’m sure she would have liked to hear that. I hope, I too, can be like her, in both ability to use magic, and sense of duty. I think she mentored me because she wanted me to be better than her. I know at times the world may seem full of people who are just looking out for their own best interest, even at the expense of others. But there is good out there, if you know where to look. You just have to realize it’s there”, she says. 

Anne pulls out the Sprig doll in her backpack and looks at it. She starts to cry.

“Uh, excuse me if I’m interrupting anything…”

“Sorry, sorry, I was just", Anne says, as she wipes her tears. "…thinking about someone important to me.”

Carly chuckles. “No need to apologize. I know Valeriana may not be here, but I’ll try to do what I can in her place.”

“Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.” Anne says, as she pulls out the box from her backpack. “The girls and I absorbed the power of the stones accidentally…again…”

“Hmm, I think that’s because it was just you three that used it. If you bring someone else with you, or if one of you three does not use it at the same time, it shouldn’t happen again.”

“That’s good to know. Anyways, can you charge this one?”

“Certainly. Do you know how to take it out?”

“Uh…no. But let me see if I can figure it out.”

Anne inspects the box. On the back of the lid, she notices three buttons, one labeled “A”, one labeled “S”, and one labeled “M”. She then pushes the one labeled “A”. One of the stones pops out.

"I…, Anne says, as she hands the stone to Carly. "...think it’s this one…”

Carly pulls it in the staff, and it starts shining a blue color almost instantly. She hands the stone back to Anne.

“Huh?”

“Is there a problem?”

“Sorry, it’s just…last time, it took way longer for Valeriana to charge it…”

Anne puts the stone back in the box. She puts the box back in her bag.

“Hmm, I don’t know why that would be. The amount of magic is dependent on the holder. I’m not nearly as skilled as her, so there’s no reason it should have taken longer unless…it was intentional.”

“Intentional?”

“I’m sure she had a good reason. But there’s no point in worrying about it now. I’m sure I’ve kept you long enough.”

“Uh, yeah. Thanks, Carly.”

Anne walks outside. Back in the cave, the yeti is seen making the finishing touches to his stew. Sprig starts crying.

“Sprig, what’s wrong? We’ve faced certain death before and you’ve never cried…”

“That’s not what I’m crying about. It’s just that I might get eaten before I get the chance to apologize to Anne. If she was here, I could at least die in peace…”

Ivy gasps. “Anne!”, she says.

“Yeah, Anne. The one person I want to see most right now.”

"No, look over there! In the distance! That’s gotta be Anne, right?”

Sprig looks outside the cave. “Yeah, that’s gotta be her! We gotta call for her!”, he says.

They both start chanting Anne’s name as loudly as possible. Outside, Anne notices Ivy and Sprig in the distance. She starts running towards the cave and enters.

Anne: “Are you guys all right?”

Ivy: “Yeah, we’re fine. But that monster over there wants to eat us!”

Anne looks at the yeti. The yeti roars, and throws a snowball at her. Anne pulls out her racket and hits it.

Anne: “Oh, right...you can’t really volley a snowball…”

The yeti roars again. It charges towards Anne and attempts to pounce on her. She ducks. It manages to grab onto her backpack and rip open the front pouch, which the music box was in. The music box falls down the mountain, along with the yeti. Anne can only watch in horror as her only way home disappears out of view.

Anne: “NO!”

Ivy: “Anne! Are you hurt?”

Anne fights back tears. “I’m fine”, she says through gritted teeth.

Sprig: “Oh thank frog! If something happened to you, I’d never forgive myself. Especially since you…must hate me after what I said to you. In fact, I thought you wouldn’t even consider saving us…”

Anne pulls out her sword. She uses the hilt of it to break the ice surrounding Sprig and Ivy. She starts to leave the cave.

Sprig: “Anne?”

Anne stops walking, but doesn’t turn around.

Sprig: “Look, I understand if you never want to talk to me or see me ever again. I just want you to know…I’m sorry. In all honesty, I was a little mad at first when I heard that you could have come back sooner. I loved hanging out with you, because…you’re one of the most valuable people to me. I would have enjoyed doing that more with you these past five years…but…the important thing is you’re here now. And considering I never thought I was gonna see you again…I don’t think the timing of it really matters…”

Sprig starts crying.

Anne: “Sprig.”

Sprig: “Yeah?”

Anne: “I’m disgusted with you.”

Sprig: “Yeah, that’s well deserved. What I said earlier was pretty nasty.”

“No, what you just said was nasty", Anne says, as she turns around with teary eyes. “How could you even consider the possibility that I hate you? That I wouldn’t want to see or talk to you again? You’re not the only person who had enormous difficulty dealing with the fact that I might never see you again. In the same way that you built that statue of me so you could get me off your mind, I, too, did something like that”.

Anne opens up her backpack, and pulls out the Sprig doll. She hands it to Sprig. 

Anne: “My first full day back, I went to this place called the arcade and won a lot of tickets. There were a lot of cool items I could have gotten with them, but I got this stuffed animal you could color. It’s not an accident that I colored it pink. This…was how I coped with you not being here. Sprig, you’re my best friend. I couldn’t bring myself to hate you even if I tried.”

She goes over and hugs Sprig.

Sprig: “Oh, Anne…I really thought I lost you as a friend…but hearing you say that…”

They break apart from each other and smile.

Ivy: “Well, now that that’s settled, we should go see if we can get that treasure!”

Sprig: “Aw, yeah! I was so caught up in that yeti trying to eat us that I almost forgot why we came here.”

Anne looks down. “You two have fun”, she says.

Anne starts walking towards the cave exit again.

Sprig: “Wait, Anne. Did you…want to help us?”

Anne: “Thanks, Sprig. But I have something more pressing to take care of.”

Ivy: “Huh? What is it?”

Anne: “That yeti took the music box. I have to go see if I can find it.”

Sprig and Ivy look at each other.

Sprig: “Anne.”

Anne turns around.

Sprig: “That treasure can wait. We’ll help you find your music box. It’s the least we could do for you after saving us.”

Anne: “But I don’t even know if it’s still unscatched. Or if it can even be found. We could be out there for a while…”

Ivy: “Look, Anne, we’re helping you. I don’t care how long it takes.”

Anne smiles. “Thanks, you two", she says.

The three of them leave the cave. They head down the mountain. They spend several hours looking, until the sun starts to set. Sprig then sees something jutting out of the snow in the distance. Sprig pulls it out and realizes it’s the music box.

Sprig: “Anne! I found it!”

Anne: “YES! I might have been out here all night if it wasn’t for you two. It looks undamaged. I just hope it will still work…”

Sprig sighs.

Ivy: “What is it, Sprig?”

Sprig: “I was gonna write about that yeti. It’s too bad I never got a picture of it…”

Behind them, the yeti appears out of nowhere and roars. Sprig takes out his phone and takes a picture of it.

Sprig: “Score!”

Ivy: “Uh, Sprig?”

Sprig: “Yeah, we should probably start running.”

The three of them run away while screaming.

Anne, Hop Pop, Polly, and Sprig are sitting around the kitchen table.

Sprig: “...and then I took a photo of it!”

Polly: “Wow, that’s cool! And also really dumb.”

Sprig: “Dumb or not, I still can draw a good ilustration of it!”

Hop Pop: “It’s glad you two are on speaking terms again. Would have been a nightmare if I had you two bickering in my house…”

Sprig: “I mean, Anne and I may argue at times. But nothing will ever change the fact that we’re friends. Right, Anne?”

Anne: “Spranne against the world.”

Sprig: “Spranne against the world.”

Anne: “Well, I’ve had enough excitement for one day. Kinda missed this. I’m gonna go get some sleep. Are you going tomorrow with Ivy to get that treasure, Sprig?”

Sprig: “Yeah, and you’re welcome to come along.”

Anne: “Sounds like a plan. Good night, everyone!”

Hop Pop, Polly and Sprig: “Good night!”

Anne walks down the stairs into the basement. She flops onto her bed, and falls asleep instantly.

A hooded figure is standing in a bush outside the house.

“Life was better when they weren’t here. I’ll make them regret coming back."

Chapter Text

Sasha approaches Toad Tower. She notices two sentries are stationed outside. One of them stops her.

“Halt! You cannot enter unless you are accompanied by a toad, or you’ve been given special permission to enter!”

Sasha: “Aw, I’m sorry. Does being a previous first lieutenant to Grime qualify as special permission?” 

“First lieutenant? Grime only has a second lieutenant. He said he would never give that honor to anyone, out of respect he had for the one who previously held that title!”

Sasha: “That first lieutenant's name…what was it?”

“Her name was Sasha Waybright. We have a tattoo of her on our arms, just because Grime held her in such high regard!”

“Yeah! Would have been cool to meet her though…”

Sasha: “May I see this tattoo?”

“Uh, sure.”

The sentry lifts up his sleeve to reveal his tattoo. 

“Hey, doesn’t this look an awful lot like me?”

“Oh, yeah, it does! It’s so cool to see someone with such a similar appearance to her!”

Sasha: “Yeah…wouldn’t it be crazy if I was actually her?”

Toad sentry #1 laughs. “Yeah, it would be!”, he says.

“Yeah! I’d surely faint from happiness if that was the case.”

Sasha raises an eyebrow.

“Hank, I think that really is her!”

Hank: “WHAT?”

Hank falls face first into the dirt.

The still standing toad makes a salute. “Lieutenant Waybright! It’s an honor to meet you!”, he says.

Sasha: “Please, just call me Sasha. And you don’t need to do that.”

“Yes, L-I mean Sasha!”

Sasha: “So I guess I’m something of a legend here, huh?”

“Yeah! Grime always talks about how lucky he was to have found you. But he also talks about how he misses you every day.”

Sasha: “Well, make that two of us. I’m sure he’ll be happy to see me. I just hope he doesn’t faint like Hank here…”

“Yeah, I’ll make sure he’s OK. You can pass.”, he says.

Sasha starts walking. Then she turns around.

Sasha: “Hey, what’s your name?”, she asks.

“Oh, it’s Howard.”

Sasha: “Howard, why don’t you and Hank go out with me sometime? As friends?”

“F-friends? But you don’t even know us…”

“Are you friends with Grime?”

“Y-yes…he made friends with everyone in Toad Tower. I heard he wasn’t like that before you came along…”

“Yeah, I taught him that being kind to people is the way you earn respect. I’m glad he’s still doing that to this day…anyways, any friend of Grime is a friend of mine!”

Howard gasps.

“Hey, keep it together. This place won’t be well fortified if both of its sentries are out cold…”

“Yes, Sasha!”

Sasha enters Toad Tower. Inside, he sees a crowd. At the center is Grime, who, in place of his missing arm, he instead has one made of metal. He is wrestling with one of his soldiers. They exchange blows, but Grime sees an opening, picks him up, twirls him several times, and throws him to the ground.

Grime laughs. “Charlie, my good man! You put up a good fight!”, he says.

He holds his hand out to Charlie and helps him up.

“Thanks, Commander. But mark my words, one day, I will knock you down!” 

Grime laughs. “I’ll be looking forward to it! Anyone else wanna challenge me?”

Sasha pushes her way through the crowd. Grime is in a state of shock.

“Mind if I have a go?”

“Ah, if it isn’t my first lieutenant! Everyone, this is Sasha Waybright!”

The crowd gasps.

“Woah, that’s Sasha?”

“Yes! She is responsible for the person I am today. Before I met her, I was ruthless to everyone I met…even my own soldiers! But now I am only ruthless to my enemies! She inspired me to be a better person.”

“That goes both ways, Grime. I owe a lot to you for who I am today.”

“Ah, stop. You’re gonna make me cry. And I don’t want to cry in front of my soldiers. They’ll never let that go!”

The crowd laughs.

“Well, that’s enough of the sappy stuff. Show me what you got!”

Sasha and Grime run up to each other and start wrestling. Sasha dodges all of Grime’ punches, and Sasha can’t manage to phase him a little bit with hers. After several minutes, both of them are too winded to continue.

“Hey, Grime…wanna…call this…a draw?”

“Sounds good…to me.”

Grime straightens up. “Everyone! Since Sasha has returned, I propose we throw a celebration! So let’s go down to the Mess Hall!”, he says.

The crowd cheers. They head down to the Mess Hall. Everyone sits at the table and talks with each other. Sasha sits next to Grime. Some toads bring out food and beverages. Everyone starts to dig in.

“Ah, it’s good to see you again, Sasha. I thought for sure I wouldn’t. How did you get back here?”

“Oh, right. There’s another music box.”

“Ah, that makes sense. I see you’re still wearing your shield locket. You sure must have missed me.”

“You’re one to talk! You’re still wearing yours!”

They both laugh.

Anyways, I noticed you’ve grown a bit taller. And your muscles, they’re much bigger than the last time I saw you.”

“Yeah, after coming home, I realized I really liked fighting! For fun, of course. So I stopped my cheerleading and got into strength and conditioning. I also learned a bunch of martial arts.”

Grime laughs. “Well! I’m sure any man would be lucky to have you as his partner!”, he says.

Sasha gags on her drink. “Or woman."

“What was that?”

“Oh, nothing. Anyways, what have you been up to, Grimey?

“Well, after you left, Andrias stepped down as king. Now Olivia is in charge, and she appointed me as the Commander-in-Chief of Amphibia. I can command any soldier to do what I want! But, uh, there hasn’t been much conflict here, so most of the time we just pick up new hobbies. I’ve been teaching people how to play the harp!”

“That’s good!”

“Yeah, and I’d like to have you back as my first lieutenant.”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Excellent! With you growing like this, you will be quite the fierce warrior! Or, you know...whatever you want to be.”

“Oh, I’m done growing.” 

“What?”

“Yeah, humans go through this phase when they’re teenagers. It only lasts a few years, and I’m afraid those years are over for me. I can still get bigger muscles, but I’m afraid this is as tall as I’m gonna get…”

Grime spits out his drink. “Then we must have you go through our coming of age ritual as soon as possible!”, he says.

“Say what?”

“All toads in this tower go through a coming of age ritual when they’re of age. Since you are old enough, we will hold that for you tomorrow!”

“But I’m not a toad?”

“No, not physically. But you are a toad at heart. And as long as you are here, we do consider you one of us.”

“Aw, thanks Grimey. I’ll go get some sleep so I can be ready for it tomorrow.”

Sasha gets up from her seat and heads to her old room. She falls onto the bed and is asleep within minutes.

“Good morning, my friends! We are here for Sasha’s coming of age ritual! Today, she becomes a full grown toad!”

The crowd claps.

“All right, Sasha. This ritual consists of three challenges. All you need to do is complete each one.”

“Sounds simple enough.”

“And if you fail any of them, we’ll dump mud on you!”

Sasha turns to see that two toads have a cauldron of mud.

“Anyways, what’s the first challenge?”

“The first is the jumping challenge. Every toad should be able to clear large gaps with ease. So we have this obstacle course of sorts. All you need to do is get across this ravine by jumping on those spires. And don’t fall! It’ll hurt.

Sasha looks down the ravine. It’s a 50 foot drop.

“Uh, yeah. I think falling will more than just hurt.”

“You’re not giving up that easily, are you?”

Sasha shakes her head. “If you think I’m scared of heights, think again!”, she says.

She backs up to get a running start. She jumps onto one spire, then the next, until she’s almost across the ravine. She makes one last leap to the other side of the ravine, but her foot slips. She grabs the cliff wall to avoid falling, and she pulls herself up. She starts breathing heavily.

“My friends! Sasha has completed the first challenge!”

Grime comes over and helps Sasha up. “Congratulations, Sasha! Most people don’t make it this far.” 

“Wha-what happened to the people who didn’t make it?”

“Oh, they just fell down into the ravine. They just get a few broken bones. But I think their pride gets hurt more! Anyways, onto the second challenge!”

“The second challenge. The tongue challenge!”

“The…what?’

“You see those flies that are swarming that pile of garbage? All you have to do is grab one with your tongue. Like this!”

Grime sticks out his tongue, snatches a fly, and eats it.

“Delicious! Any good toad has to be accurate with his tongue. Now, it's your turn.”

“All right, at least there’s no impending risk of death.”

Sasha starts walking towards the flies.

Grime grabs her arm. “Oh, I forgot to mention. You can’t cross this line”, he says.

Sasha looks at the ground. There’s a white chalk line. She sees the flies are about five feet away. 

“What? I can’t do that! I can only stick my tongue out a few inches.”

“Well, that’s a shame. I guess we’ll get the mud ready.”

Sasha notices one of the toads is eating popcorn. Then she gets an idea.

“Hold it, the only condition is that I must get a fly with my tongue without crossing this line, right?”

“Correct.”

Sasha runs up the toad eating the popcorn and grabs it from him. “I need to borrow this for a second.”, she says. 

She goes back to the line and holds the popcorn out in front of her. Some of the flies start moving towards it. She continually brings the popcorn closer to her until one of them is within reach. She sticks out her tongue, snatches the fly, and swallows it.

My friends! Sasha has completed the second challenge!”

The crowd claps.

“Now, for the final challenge!”

“The third challenge is the lifting challenge. All you have to do is lift that boulder.”

Sasha sees a 100 pound boulder. “Grime, I can’t", she says.

"Sasha, you’ve been telling me that all day. But you got past the jumping and the tongue challenge. How is this one any different?”

“Because I’m not really a toad! I can’t do the same things you guys do! I mean, I almost got myself killed during the jumping challenge, and I had to use a loophole to get past the other one. But this…I don’t see how I could possibly lift that…”

“Sasha, do you know what it really means to be a toad?”

“Being green, having a long tongue, being strong…am I missing anything?”

“Well, yes. But it is more than that. A good toad is brave, even in the face of danger. A good toad thinks outside the box. And most importantly, a good toad never gives up! Yes, you may not have all the same physical qualities we do, but you’ve shown us more or less that you’re a good toad. It doesn’t matter that you’re a human!”

Sasha blushes.

“Most importantly, you aren’t just any human. You’re Sasha Waybright, the coolest person I’ve ever met, my first lieutenant, and my best friend! Are you really gonna let a rock get in the way of you achieving glory?”

“You’re right! I helped protect this tower from giant herons! I led a resistance force against Andrias! And I held my own against an amalgamation of Amphibia’s greatest minds! If I can do all that, no rock is gonna get the better of me!”

Sasha walks over to the boulder. She squats down, and starts lifting it from the bottom. She’s straining herself a lot, but slowly, it starts to rise off the ground. Her eyes turn pink as she holds the boulder triumphantly over her head. She then slams it to the ground.

“Ha! Take that, you dumb rock!”

The crowd cheers. All of a sudden, Sasha falls backwards, unconscious.

“Sasha! Are you all right?”

Sasha doesn’t respond. Grime grabs her, and slings her over his shoulder. He runs back into the tower.

Sasha is sleeping in a bed. She comes to.

“Wha-what happened?”

"Sasha! You’re awake!”

Awake? When did I go to sleep?”

“You passed out shortly after lifting the boulder. You’ve been out for a few hours. I’m sorry, Sasha. I shouldn’t have pushed you so hard.”

“Meh, it’s fine. After all, I completed the challenges, so now I’m a fully grown toad!”

“I almost forgot! We have to hold your ceremony! Are you able to stand?”

Sasha gets into a sitting position. She swings her legs across the bed and plants her feet on the floor. “Yeah, I should be fine”, she says.

“Splendid! Let’s go!”

“Wait, Grimey. Did you…stay by my side while I was unconscious?”

Grime clears his throat. “Well, yes. I had to make sure you were fine”, he says.

Sasha smiles. “Thanks, Grime”, she says.

They both walk outside, where there is a stage. Grime gets up to the podium and grabs the microphone. 

“My friends! Sasha Waybright has completed all three of the coming-of-age rituals! Thus, she has proven herself to be a toad of courage, of wit, and of persistence. Sasha, please accept this medal.”

Grime pulls out a medal and drapes it over Sasha’s neck. She smiles. All of a sudden, two toads dump mud on her from the cauldron.

“Hey! What’s the big idea? I thought you guys only do that to toads who fail the challenges!”

“We do! But we also do it to people who complete the challenge!”

The crowd starts laughing. 

Sasha sighs. “It’s good to be back”, she says. 

Chapter Text

Marcy is walking. She notices there are more majestic trees and pretty flowers around, the grass is lush and green, which she takes note of in her journal. She smiles. Newtopia comes into view.

“Oh wow! Last time I was here, the city was in rough shape. Now it looks like nothing ever happened.”

Marcy pulls her hood up and enters the city. A few moments pass before someone notices her.

“Hey guys, look! It’s Marcy!”

The citizens within earshot turn their heads to the hooded figure.

“Oh, crud.”

The citizens start swarming her and give her a collective group hug.

“Guys…I really appreciate the hug…but I kinda need to breathe…”

The citizens break away.

“Oh, sorry Marcy. We’re just so happy to see you!”

Marcy laughs. Yeah, I know. I missed you all too. Anyways, I had a wish to get to know two people a bit better…do you know where I can find Olivia and Yunan?”, she asks.

“Oh, they’re probably in the castle. They almost always are.”

"Thanks! I’ll see you all later!”

She takes a few steps before falling face first.

“I’m good!”

She gets up and walks towards the castle and enters. Two guards stop her.

“Do you have business with the Queen?”

“Queen? Queen who?”

“Queen Olivia.”

Marcy gasps. “Olivia is queen now? That’s so cool!”, she says.

“Wait a minute, Marcy, is that you!?”

“Yep, I’m back!”

“Ah, we're sorry to have taken your time. You can pass."

Marcy heads inside towards the throne room. She knocks on the door. A few moments pass before Yunan opens the door. She gasps.

Yunan: “Marcy?”

Olivia: “Honey, did you just say Marcy?”

Yunan: “Yeah, sweetie! She’s right here!”

Yunan steps aside. Marcy steps inside the room, to see Olivia sitting on Andrias’s throne.

Marcy: “You guys remember that wish I had before I left?”

Olivia: “I remember it quite clearly. You wanted to get to know both of us better.”

Marcy: “That’s right! Of course, my wish back then was more of a regret because I had to go home. But, as you can see, I’ve returned, so now I actually can!”

Yunan: “But how did you get back?”

Marcy: “Oh…well, this is just a theory, but it seems like every world with sentient life has its own set of Calamity Stones. There was one on Earth, and someone made and sent their own music box to Anne. She had us use it, so…here we are!”

Olivia: “Ah, so Anne and Sasha are here as well?”

Marcy: “Yeah! They’re off doing their own thing, and I’m doing mine. But we’ll see each other soon. Anyways, can I have my room back?”

Yunan: “Were you planning on staying here?”

Marcy: “Yeah! Like I said, I want to get to know you two better. And maybe I can make some friends with some other people here. Everyone already knows me, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to make friends…”

Olivia: “That’s wonderful, Master Marcy. We were just about to go to lunch. You’re welcome to join us.”

Marcy: “Let’s go!”

Marcy takes a few steps forward before falling face first. She gets up.

Marcy: “I’m all right.”

Olivia: “It’s funny, you’ve grown as a person, but you still seem to be the same clumsy Marcy that came into our city by chance five years ago.”

Marcy laughs. She looks at Yunan and Olivia’s hands and notices something odd. “By the way, why are you two wearing matching rings?”, she asks.

Yunan: “Isn’t it obvious?”

Marcy: “Isn’t what obvi…Oh. My. Frog! Congratulations, you two!”

Olivia: “Thank you, Master Marcy.”

The three of them head towards the dining room.

Marcy, Olivia, and Yunan finish eating their lunch.

Marcy: “I forgot how good the food was here! My compliments to the chef!”

Olivia: “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

Marcy: “Ah! I’m sorry, I totally forgot I wanted to get to know you two better. The food was just that good, I guess. Anyways, tell me your story, Yunan.”

Yunan: “My story?”

Marcy: “Yeah! You’re a general, so you must have had a lot of cool adventures.”

Yunan: “Ah, I have! It all started when I was a little newt. I was hanging out with my friends in the woods. Actually, they weren’t really my friends, because they bullied me a lot. Anyways, at one point I noticed we had gotten separated! I was by myself…but I wasn’t alone. A grubhog came out of the bushes. I…I didn’t know what to do. I tried punching it so I could get away but…I hesitated. And then it tried to bite my hand off! At that point, I ran away screaming. My ‘friends’ found me again because of that. When I told them what happened, they laughed at me…Since then, I vowed that I would prove I wasn’t a weakling. So I enlisted in the Newtopian army! I trained hard, and it paid off. I received several awards, like one for the time I defeated Ragnar the Wretched, whose mere presence caused even the greatest of warriors to shiver in their boots. I earned people’s respect because I got all these at such a young age.”

She points to her left pec, which has several ribbons on it.

Marcy stares in amazement. “Wow! You’re so much more awesome than I thought! I love the story trope of someone looking to better themselves because of a bad experience as a child!”, she says.

Yunan laughs. “And now, those girls keep sending me letters, asking me for my autograph. But I always tell them ‘no!’ You should have treated me better when we were kids!”, she says.

Marcy and Olivia laugh.

Yunan: “Ah, but that life is behind me now. Now I’m just here to lead the people of Newtopia. And, of course, help my wife out with anything she needs.”

Olivia: “And I appreciate you every day for that.”

Marcy: “Aww! Anyways, what about you, Olivia?”

Olivia: “Ah, I mean there isn’t really much to say. I was born into royalty, and taught to be prim and proper by my mother…everything I’ve done was mostly because of her.”

Marcy: “Oh, well…that’s nice. It’s good to listen to your parents. They do have a unique connection with their children. They instinctively want what’s best for them. Some parents…can choose to do what they think is best, without considering what their child thinks it’s best. And others just do as they please, but…no parent can truthfully deny that they love their kids.”

Olivia chuckles. “Yes, I was lucky that my mother loved me very much. That’s why I have to continue her legacy…”, she says.

Marcy: “But it’s also important that you do what you want to do. Children are a reflection of their parents, but…they’re their own people, too. They have their own desires, and maybe they don’t always line up with what their parents want…but if you live life just as your parents wanted you to, then people would be wondering who you really were after you’re gone. But, uh...that's enough about me! What are your dreams?”

Olivia stutters. “Dreams? I’ve never really had any…”, she says.

Marcy: “Whaaat? Come on, everyone has a dream. You should really think about it.”

Olivia: “I’m sorry, but I’ve always had a duty to fulfill. First I was an advisor, and now I’m a queen…I can’t just shirk my responsibility…”

Marcy: “But you don’t have to do it all alone. You have me!”

Yunan: “And me!”

Marcy: “Yeah! Just because you have an important job doesn’t mean you can’t try something new. We can cover for you every so often.”

Olivia: “You two…would do that for me?”

Yunan: “Sweetie, you’re my wife. There’s not much I wouldn’t do for you.”

Marcy: “And you helped me five years ago. Even though I was a stranger from another world. You’ve done a lot for me, and I wouldn’t be a good friend if I didn’t do the same for you.”

Olivia starts to cry. She gets up, and hugs them both. “Thanks, you two. I…I’ve always felt like I’ve needed to have my mother live on through me…I will continue to do that, but I will be my own person too”, she says.

Yunan and Marcy smile. Marcy looks around the table. Her smile falls.

Olivia: “Is there something wrong, Marcy?”

Marcy: “Yeah, it’s just…this table seems a little empty…”

Yunan: “Ah, did you want more food? I’ll go ask for more…”

Marcy: “No, that’s not what I meant. I meant there should be someone at this table that isn’t here. Someone who I’ve…also wanted to talk to…”

Olivia starts sweating. “I was hoping we could avoid this conversation…”, she says.

Marcy: “Huh? But I didn’t even say who-”

Olivia: “You didn’t need to. I know you want him to be here…we do, too. I’m…sorry, Master Marcy. But I made a mistake shortly after you left. One that I still regret to this day.”

Marcy: “What…what did you do?”

Olivia: “After Andrias passed the crown to me, I knew the people would want him to be punished. Andrias knew he deserved it, too. So, I put him into exile until further notice, and asked him to pay for the damages he did to the environment.”

Marcy stands up and goes to the window. She looks outside, and sees a beautiful landscape.

Marcy: “But…the environment seems to be back to normal. So why haven’t you ended his exile?”

Olivia: “You are sadly correct. It’s been like this for a little over four years now. Andrias has done enough. But when I brought the topic of ending Andrias’s exile to Newtopia’s citizens…”

Yunan: “We were met with a resounding ‘no’. They think what he has done is unforgivable.”

Marcy: “But, he redeemed himself a little, didn’t he? I mean he ordered his Frobos to help stop the moon…”

Olivia: “We had brought that up with them, but…they said he was just doing that to save himself. Other people being saved would just be a secondary effect. They believe Andrias would never risk his skin if there wasn’t any benefit to him.”

Yunan: “And, unfortunately, we can’t really end his exile, because then there would be riots. As much as we want him back, I don’t think he would like to see his old city like that…”

Marcy: “...well, this sounds like a simple enough problem to solve.”

Yunan: “It does?”

Marcy: “Well, yeah. People think Andrias wouldn’t put his life on the line for anyone other than himself. So all we have to do is prove he would.”

Olivia: “I suppose that is simple. But how will you pull that off?”

Marcy: “I got an idea. But I’ll need my crossbow. Where is it?”

Yunan: “Ah, don’t you worry about that. Once you came back, we asked one of our soldiers to get it back. He should be back any min-”

The door opens. A newt walks in holding Marcy’s crossbow, and hands it to her. She attaches it to her wrist.

Marcy: “Sweet! All right, here’s the plan…”

Marcy is in the castle room by the window. Olivia is sitting on the throne. They both look at each other and nod.

Olivia: “Master Marcy, be careful!”

Marcy: “Ah, quit your worrying, I’m not that clumsy-”

Marcy then trips over her own feet and falls out the window.

Olivia runs towards the window and screams. The citizens take notice, and they begin panicking as well. As Marcy is hurtling towards the ground, she fires her hookshot into the castle wall, and starts dangling.

Olivia: “Master Marcy, are you all right?”

Marcy: “Yeah, I’m fine. But I can’t get back up there!”

Olivia: “Do not worry, I will find some way to rescue you!”

Olivia leaves the window with a smile. Marcy smiles too. 

“I’ve done everything I need to do, Olivia has played her part, now it’s just up to Yunan to get Andrias."

Marcy notices the rope in her hookshot is slowly starting to break apart.

Marcy: “What?! That should be impossible…I fortified this rope to hold me indefinitely…”

Marcy comes to a realization.

Marcy: “No, that’s not quite right. I strengthened it to hold me when I was 13. I’m heavier now. This might have been a mistake…”

Yunan is running. She pulls out a tablet, which has a map on it. There are four red dots on it. One of them is larger than the other three. Andrias, who has had his cybernetic body restored, comes into view, along with Bartley, Branson and Blair. Andrias is watering flowers, Branson is planting saplings, Blair is raking leaves, and Bartley is pulling out weeds.

“Andrias!”

Andrias stops watering. “Yunan? What are you doing here?”, he says.

“We require your assistance.

Andrias sighs. “What…what do you want?”, he says.

“Marcy has come back, but she’s in trouble!”

Andrias goes back to working. “Can’t you just get someone else to help her?”, he asks.

Yunan stares in shock. “You…how could you say such a thing?! Marcy never once mistreated you. She gave you a proper goodbye, even after everything you did to her! And all you could manage was to tell her to take care!”, she says.

Andrias goes back to working as Yunan scowls.

“Honestly, I felt bad for you! You, of all people! You, who only looked to conquer the multiverse, and didn’t care what happened to anyone else! Olivia and I tried to end your exile four years ago, but nobody else did. But…maybe they were right, and maybe it was a good thing that they didn’t agree with us! You are a heartless monster!”

Andrias sighs. “No, you’re not wrong. I did some awful things. And I don’t blame anyone for how they think of me”, he says.

“But this is an opportunity to do the right thing! Marcy might die, and you would live the rest of your life in regret, not only that you choose not to save her, but also that you couldn’t patch things up with her!”

Andrias starts crying. “I…I don’t think I can make things right with her. Of all the people I hurt, I don’t think there’s anyone I hurt more than her. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. Even if I did rescue her, it wouldn’t even come close to making amends…”, he says.

Yunan’s expression softens a little. “Look, Andrias, it doesn’t matter what you did. It’s what you do now that does. If something happened to Marcy, and you could have prevented it…I don’t think you’d be able to live with yourself. And sure, maybe she will never forgive you. But, that shouldn’t matter. You should…because it’s the right thing to do”, she says.

“You’re right. I can’t believe I even considered not going…show me the way!”

Yunan unlocks the shackle around Andrias’s foot. They start running back towards Newtopia.

Marcy is still hanging from the wall. The rope snaps, and she grabs onto the hook with the palm of her other hand to prevent herself from falling. She starts sweating.

Marcy: “I’m fine! I just need to hang on! It’s not like I can fall from this. Metal doesn’t break easily. And I’m not so weak that I can’t support my own body weight!”

Suddenly, her palm slips and she has to hold onto the hook with her fingers.

Marcy: “Oh no, my sweat! Metal doesn’t absorb water. It just slides off. But…I just need to…hold on…long enough for Andrias to get here…”

Yunan and Andrias run into the town’s entrance.

Yunan: “Up there!”

Andrias: “Don’t worry, Marcy! I will save you!”

The bottom of Andrias’s feet turn into jets. He starts flying towards Marcy as fast as possible. Marcy sees him, and smiles. Her fingers slip off the hook. She starts screaming.

Andrias: “MARCY, NO!”

Andrias manages to catch Marcy. He then turns down the thrusters on the bottom on his feet to slow his descent. They make it back to the ground.

Andrias: “Oh, Marcy, please tell me you’re unharmed!”

Marcy starts to cry. “Andrias, you…saved my life…”, she says.

Andrias: “Of course I did. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you. But…I’m sorry…”

Marcy: “Sorry? Sorry for what?”

Andrias starts to cry. “Yunan had to convince me to come rescue you. I really wanted to, I just…thought you never wanted to see me again…after all the grief I caused you. But…I’m ashamed…I just thought that my view of how you saw me was the way you really saw me…and I didn’t even consider that you might see me differently. But I don’t blame you if you hate me. I just did this because…there’s plenty of other people who are far more deserving of your friendship than me…and I didn’t want them to have to go through you being taken away from them, just so soon after you came back”, he says.

Andrias puts Marcy down. He notices everyone is looking at him, he looks down, and starts to leave the city, but he is stopped by Olivia and Yunan.

Olivia: “Where do you think you’re going?”

Andrias: “Those flowers aren’t gonna water themselves…”

Yunan: “Andrias, I told you. We couldn’t end your exile because everyone thought you were a terrible person. But, I think people’s opinion of you may have changed. You did just save Marcy, after all. And that speech you gave…I don’t think anyone without a heart could have given that”.

Andrias turns around to see people muttering to themselves.

Olivia: “Well then, I suppose there’s only one way to know for sure. I’d like to hold a public vote here. Who here believes that Andrias’s exile should continue, and that he should continue to pay reparations?”

A few people raise their hands. After seeing almost no one else is, they lower their hands.

Olivia: “And how many of you believe that Andrias has done enough for Amphibia, and that he should be allowed to roam the streets of his city once again?”

Many more people raise their hands. Andrias is in a state of shock.

Olivia: “Then I guess that’s settled. Andrias, I hereby declare that your exile from Newtopia has ended, and you do not need to pay any more reparations.”

Andrias frowns. “I…no…I haven’t done enough…”, he says.

Yunan: “What are you talking about? Everyone has forgiven you…”

Andrias: “Not everyone. I appreciate their ability to forgive me, but until one person has, I won’t feel comfortable being back here…”

Marcy: “Andrias…I forgave you…”

Andrias: “Forgave? That’s in the past tense…when did you…”

Marcy: “Five years ago.”

Andrias: “How could you have forgiven me so easily? I stabbed you! I had The Core control you! I tried to conquer your planet!”

Marcy: “Look, Andrias. The first time I met you, all I really saw in you was a benevolent king and a good friend. Even after you did all those things, I never got the sense that you changed. I know you were still the same person who helped me when I came here five years ago. You were just…dealing with an internal conflict between the person you wanted to be…and the person your father wanted you to be.”

Marcy starts to cry. “And I know what it’s like to have a strict parent. You know I came here because my father wanted our family to move away. I wanted to do anything I could to save my friendship with Anne and Sasha. That was all that really mattered to me but…I was just thinking of myself. I put them into serious danger, and I…couldn’t forgive myself for doing that. But that makes us similar, doesn’t it? We were both people who were haunted by our fathers, and driven to hurt the people around us”, she says.

Andrias chuckles. “Yes, I suppose you’re right”, he says.

Marcy: “It wasn’t really until Anne and Sasha forgave me that I was able to forgive myself. And finally, that awful feeling of not being able to forgive yourself, just vanished. I don’t want anyone to feel that way. That’s…why I forgave you, Andrias. Because…you’re my friend. You always have been.”

Andrias starts to bawl. “This whole time, I thought I was never gonna see you again. And for you to not only be here, but to forgive me and to still consider me your friend…makes me happy beyond words…”, he says.

Marcy: “Andrias, you said there isn’t anything you wouldn’t do for me. So please, do me a favor and forgive yourself.”

Andrias: “I will.”

The two hug as the crowd cheers.

Olivia is walking hand-in-hand with Yunan in the castle. Marcy and Andrias are following behind.

Olivia: “Anyways, Andrias, you’re welcome to stay here in the castle. I have been running this place for quite some time, but perhaps you can give me advice every once in a while.”

Andrias chuckles. “Do you really need it? Newtopia seems to be doing better with you in charge”, he says.

Olivia chuckles. “True as that may be, there’s always room for improvement. In any case, you can stay here in the guest room. We’ve made a few changes to accommodate you. It may not be as luxurious as your old room, but I hope it will suffice”, she says.

Andrias: “Nonsense, my queen. Being able to live in the castle is good enough for me.”

Olivia: “Very well. Sweet dreams, Andrias.”

Andrias opens the door and sees a bed big enough for him. On the bedside table, there is a robot pin. He picks it up, and smiles. He puts it on his robe. He thinks to himself for a moment, then leaves the room. He walks around until he sees Yunan.

Andrias: “Excuse me, Yunan. Where can I find Marcy?”

Yunan: “She said she was going to bed. You should be able to find her in her room.”

Andrias: “Thank you.”

Andrias walks towards Marcy’s room and knocks on the door. A few moments later, Marcy opens it.

“If it isn’t too much trouble, may I have a word with you?”

“Sure!”

Marcy steps aside to let Andrias in. Marcy sits on her bed and Andrias sits down on the ground.

“Were the events of today…planned?”

Marcy sighs. “Yeah, mostly. Yunan and Olivia were in on it too. The only thing I didn’t plan was my hookshot not supporting me. I…just wanted for people to give you a second chance. In the same way that Sasha and Anne gave me one. Are you mad at me?”, she asks.

Andrias sighs. “I am a little mad, yes. You’re important to me. And the fact that you could have gotten yourself killed, without me ever getting to tell you how I really felt…but…at the end of the day, I’m glad you did. I’m back here in Newtopia, with its citizens accepting me back in, and the people close to me loving me again. Just…let me know if you’re gonna do something life-risking next time, OK?” he says.

“I will. I promise.”

“Good night, Marcy.”

“Good night, Drias.”

Andrias smiles, and leaves to go back to his room.

Olivia and Yunan are sitting on the throne together.

"Well, today was…certainly eventful.”

“Yes, it certainly was. But it’s good that Andrias, Branson, Bartley, and Blair are all back here.”

“What? I thought I was supposed to just release Andrias.”

“Didn’t you hear the plan? Master Marcy said to release all four of them.”

“Must have missed that part. Should I go get them?”

“Eh, there’s always tomorrow.”

Bartley: “Do you think he’s coming back?”

Branson: “No! He should have been back by now, you moron!”

Bartley: “Sorry for asking questions, it’s how one learns! But I’m sure you find great difficulty in that, you idiot!”

Blair: “Hey, come on you two. Gardening is fun!”

Bartley and Branson: “Shut up, Blair!”

Chapter Text

Hop Pop is tending to his avocados. The mailwoman comes by and drops off the mail. Hop Pop opens the mailbox, grabs the mail, goes inside, and puts it down on the table.

Hop Pop: “Let’s see, a 10% off coupon at Stumpy’s Diner, an advertisement for a new type of muffin at Flour & Daughters Bakery, and…huh?”

Hop Pop notices there’s a letter addressed to Anne, but with no return address.

Hop Pop: “Anne! You have a letter!”

Anne: “Who’s it from?”

Hop Pop: “Don’t know. Whoever wrote it didn’t put their name on it.”

Anne: “Oh. Well...it’s not like I haven’t had to deal with that before. But if it’s just a letter, it can’t be anything dangerous…”

Anne grabs the envelope and takes out the letter:

My dearest Anne,

I am writing this letter to you in the hopes that you will go on a date with me. Ever since I first laid my eyes upon you, it was love at first sight. Your elegant hair, your sparkly eyes, and your kind personality are just a few of the qualities that I adore in you. I apologize it took me this long for me to realize how I really felt about you. I didn’t even put my name on this because I am shy. If you don’t wish to go out with me, I completely understand. There are far better men than me. But I at least hope you will give me a chance.

Anne: “Aww! It’s a love letter!”

Polly and Sprig come downstairs.

Polly: “What? There’s a frog in love with Anne? That’s kinda gross…”

Sprig: “Ah, come on, Polly. Going on a date doesn’t mean you have to marry that person or have a family with them. I mean, look at me and Ivy!”

Anne: “That’s right! Besides, I’ve never gone on a real date. Even if it’s not with another human, that’s something I can scratch off my bucket list! We can just go and have a good time.”

Hop Pop: “Just remember that if you don’t wanna continue dating them, you don’t have to. But you gotta let ‘em down easy. People can get real scary if their heart is broken.”

Anne: “Yeah, I know. It’s kinda sweet that he’s shy but he was able to admit this stuff to me. I can’t wait to find out who he is!”

Polly: “Whatever, sister. Boys are gross. Robots are way cooler!”

Anne: “To each their own, I guess. Anyways, from what it sounds like, the person who wrote this must be living in Wartwood. I just gotta figure out who it is…”

Polly: “Can’t you just write your own letter to them?”

Sprig: “Nah, that’s not how you should go about this.”

Anne: “Yeah! Writing isn't really my strong suit. And romance isn’t really my cup of tea either. That makes writing a love letter twice as bad of an idea.”

Sprig: “I can help! I can write down a list of people in town who might have sent you that. Just give me a minute!”

Anne is sitting on the couch. Sprig comes down with a piece of paper.

Sprig: “Here it is! Your secret admirer will be on this list!”

Anne looks at the list.

• Loggle
• Stumpy
• Toadstool
• Toadie
• Buck
• Wally
• Gunther

Anne: “That’s a…lot of people. Well, better get started!”

Anne runs out the front door with the list.

Anne: “Let’s see, first up is Loggle. He should be in his shop…”

Anne enters the wood shop. She notices Loggle is no longer buff.

Loggle: “Oh, hey Anne! Were you looking to buy something?”

Anne: “Uh…what happened to your muscles…?”

Loggle: “Oh, I took a cheat day. Kinda regret it…”

Anne: “Oh, that’s too bad. Uh, anyways, would you say we’re friends?”

Loggle: “Friends? Uh…I mean yeah?”

Anne: “Would you consider us being anything more than that?”

Loggle: “Ah…you mean best friends?”

Anne: “No, more than that.”

Loggle: “Hmm…super best friends?”

Anne: “Never mind. I’ll see you later.”

Anne exits the shop. She crosses Loggle’s name off. She heads towards Stumpy’s.

Anne: “I guess Stumpy might make sense. I did help him save his restaurant…”

Anne enters Stumpy’s Diner.

Anne: “Heya, Stumpy!”

Stumpy: “Ah, if it isn’t Anne. The one who rescued my business! I never did thank ya properly for that…”

Anne: “Oh? Did you have something in mind for how to repay me?”

Stumpy: “I sure did. Been waiting five years to give it to ya! Go take a seat over there.”

Anne takes a seat in one of the booths and squeals in glee. Stumpy comes by and hands her a dish with a kraken tentacle on it.

Stumpy: “This is one of our finest, most popular, and most expensive dishes! But for you, it’s on the house! And don’t worry, it won’t try to attack ya like last time!”

Anne: “Oh…thanks, Stumpy. Did you want to eat with me?”

Stumpy: “Ah, I wish. But I’ve got a restaurant to run.”

Anne eats the tentacle, then pulls out the list, and crosses Stumpy’s name off. She leaves the restaurant.

Anne: “At least I had a free breakfast. And it wasn’t something Hop Pop cooked…next, we have Toadie and Toadstool.”

Anne heads into the town hall. Inside, she sees Toadstool filling out some paperwork. and Toadie sitting in a leather chair.

Anne: “Huh? Why are you two sitting in the wrong spots?”

Toadstool: “What do you mean? Oh, I guess we never did tell you. I got kinda sick of being mayor, so Toadie decided to run. I helped him win, so now he and I have swapped positions!”

Anne: “Wow, congratulations Toadie!”

Toadie: “Aww, thanks Anne.”

Anne: “Hey, did you maybe want me working here? I can endorse you, and can help with the documents.”

Toadstool: “Nah, we’re good. I never realized Toadie’s job was so fun! And Toadie here was already friendly with a lotta people, so our ratings are out of the park!”

Anne: “Oh. Well, uh, good luck you two!”

Anne exits the town hall, and crosses off Toadstool and Toadie’s names.

Anne: “Buck…who’s Buck?

Buck: “That’d be me.”

Anne turns around to see the sheriff.

Anne: “Oh, Buck! I remember you!”

Buck: “What’s that you got there?”

Buck grabs the paper from Anne’s hand and reads it.

Anne: “Hey! That’s mine!”

Buck: “Oh, I see what this list is…”

Anne blushes.

Buck: “This here is a list of people you’re trying to steal from! And the crossed out ones are people you’ve stolen from!”

Anne: “No, no! You’ve got it all wrong! That’s just a list of people I’ve uh, uh…”

Buck raises an eyebrow.

Anne: “Played a prank on! I was gonna troll Wally by telling him there’s a fairy in the woods! It’ll be so funny!”

Buck squints his eyes and hands back the paper. “All right, but I got my eye on you! Nobody does this job better than me, and I don’t need anyone helping me neither!”, he says.

Anne breathes a sigh of relief. She crosses out Buck’s name, and heads towards Wally’s place.

Anne: “I guess Wally was the first person I met here. Even though he thought I was a monster…but we did have some bonding when we went to go find that mossman, and when I was his ride for Beast Polo…”

Anne knocks on Wally’s door. He opens the door.

Wally: “Oi, good day, love!”

Anne: “Did…did you just say…love?”

Wally: “Well yeah, I love ya!”

Anne: “Oh, Wally!”

Wally: “Just as much as I love the other people in this town! Like Loggle and Mrs. Croaker!”

Anne: “Oh, you meant like…as friends.”

Wally: “Yeah. What were you implying?”

Anne: “Uh, nothing. Have a good day.”

Anne leaves and crosses Wally’s name off the list.

Anne: “Well, I guess it has to be…Gunther.”

Anne starts walking towards Gunther’s house. She hesitates before knocking on the door, and he opens it.

Anne: “Uh, hey Gunther. Remember me?”

Gunther squints his eyes. “Oh, yeah! You were with that frog who got me all riled up! I’m surprised you came to see me again…”, he says.

Anne chuckles nervously. “Uh, look. I know you wrote this letter to me”, she says.

Anne hands the love letter to Gunther. He begins to read it.

Anne: “And honestly I did appreciate what you had to say. But I don’t think it’s best that we be together.”

Gunther: “But I…didn’t write this”

Anne: “Oh, come on. Sprig gave me this list of people who could have sent me that. I went through everyone else, so it has to be you!”

Gunther: “Oh, I see. Sprig tricked you! He made you think that I wrote this so you’d play with my emotions. Why, when I see him, I’m gonna-”

Gunther starts to grow in size. He roars, and Anne runs away screaming. He chases her into town. She runs into the Plantars’ house and slams the door behind her. Hop Pop, Polly and Sprig notice that she’s out of breath.

Sprig: “Uh…how did it go?”

They hear Gunther roar. Sprig, Polly and Hop Pop look outside to see him.

Gunther: “ANNE, I KNOW YOU’RE HERE SOMEWHERE. IF YOU DON’T COME OUT SOON, I MIGHT HAVE TO START HURTING PEOPLE!”

Hop Pop: “Anne! What did I tell you about letting people down easily?”

Anne: “This is all my fault. I really thought that Gunther was the person who wrote that letter to me. And now people are gonna get injured because of me!”

Polly: “See, this is why robots are cooler.”

Sprig: “Wait, nobody on that list wrote you it?”

Anne: “No! And he thinks you tried to deceive him!”

Sprig: “Then it’s my fault. I…have to go make things right!”

Sprig runs outside. He sees that Gunther has picked up Loggle.

Loggle: “Oh…now I really regret taking that cheat day!”

Sprig: “Gunther, stop! Put him down!”

Gunther turns around, and drops Loggle to the ground, who lands on his feet. “OH, IF IT ISN’T THE LITTLE PRANKSTER. I’D MUCH RATHER ENJOY GIVING YOU SOME BRUISES THAN THAT GUY!”, he says.

Sprig: “Gunther, I’m sorry. Anne got a love letter in the mail today from some unknown sender. I compiled a list of people who could have sent it, and on that list I put your name. I told Anne that I was certain of it, too. But, I shouldn’t have been so confident in myself.”

Gunther starts to revert back to his normal form. Anne walks outside. “Oh, was that all? You should have just said so, Anne”, he says.

Everyone in the plaza is staring at Gunther.

Gunther: “Uh, ya know what? Maybe I should just leave town. This is the second time this has happened…”

Anne: “Wait, Gunther. Why don’t you just try managing your anger?”

Gunther: “Hmm? What do you mean?”

Anne: “Just, ya know…if you feel yourself starting to get angry, just to be aware of it. You might hurt people if you get mad like this, and I don’t think you want that on your conscience. And maybe some things like deep breathing and meditation might help.”

Gunther: “Huh. That’s not a bad idea. Thanks, Anne!”

Gunther heads back towards his house. Everyone else returns to what they were doing.

Polly is impatiently tapping her foot against the ground, while Anne and Sprig are sitting on the couch. Sprig and Anne look at each other.

Sprig and Anne: “We’re sorry, Polly.”

Polly: “See? Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

Anne: “Yeah, you were right. I should have just written back.”

Sprig: “And I shouldn’t have been so sure about my list. Still, I wonder if there’s someone in Wartwood that I missed or didn’t consider…”

Polly huffs. “Or…maybe the sender isn’t in Wartwood at all!”, she says.

Sprig: “Oh. Right. I guess the letter never specified they lived in Wartwood. Anne has been all around Amphibia, so it’s possible they’re not here.”

Anne: “Ya know, all things considered, today was good for me.”

Sprig: “Huh? Why?”

Anne: “Now I have an interesting story to tell this dude. I’m sure he’ll find it hilarious.”

Sprig: “Yeah, I hadn’t thought about that!”

Polly groans. “You two are so crazy and I can’t take it anymore! I’m going to bed!”, she says.

Polly walks upstairs. 

Anne: “Something else I learned today is that even if this guy isn’t the one for me, who cares? People don’t need a lover to be happy. Especially not when you have a loving family and good neighbors.”

Sprig: “Aww, thanks Anne. Anyways, I’m gonna hit the hay, too. See you tomorrow!”

Sprig walks upstairs. Anne spends a few minutes writing a response, puts it in an envelope, and seals it up. She goes outside and puts it in the mailbox. She then goes back inside and down to her room to sleep.

Chapter Text

Anne is sitting outside the mailbox in the morning. The mailwoman comes by and drops off the mail. Anne then immediately pulls open the mailbox to find a letter addressed to her. She smiles, opens it up, and her smile falls a little.

“Oh. Was kinda expecting a response from that guy…but meeting up with Sasha sounds good! I haven’t seen her in a while. We can exchange stories! Let’s see…she said to meet her at…this spot. I guess that makes sense, it’s about halfway from here to Toad Tower…”

Anne goes inside and grabs her backpack. She puts the letter in her backpack and walks past the statue of her, and towards the place marked on the map. 

Anne arrives at a mound in the ground with a door attached. 

“Uh…I guess this is the place? Seems a little creepy, though.”

Anne turns the knob and enters. She notices there is a large staircase going downwards that’s dimly lit by candles on both sides of the wall. She starts walking down the steps. After she reaches the bottom, she sees Marcy and Sasha are both tied to a pole, with their backs to each other. They also both have gags in their mouths.

Anne: “Sasha! Marcy!”

She runs over and unmuzzles them. 

Sasha: “Anne! Get away!”

Anne: “What? Why?!”

Marcy: “It’s a trap!”

Before she even has time to process what was said, a band of energy comes out of nowhere and binds Anne to the same pole as Marcy and Sasha. A hooded, yellow frog comes out of the shadows. 

“Good afternoon, ladies and gentle-phibians! I am the great Frogdini! For my next trick, I need a few volunteers! Oh! Thank you for volunteering, you three!”

Anne: “Hey! What’s the big idea! Let us go!”

Frogdini: “Oh? Did you not want to volunteer?”

Anne: “Definitely not!”

Frodini: “Well, I’m afraid there’s no take-backs.”

Sasha: “Listen up, you! If it wasn’t for us three, you wouldn’t even be here right now!”

Frogdini: “Oh, I’m well aware of that and I do thank you for that. However, I’m afraid you three have done wrong by me. Especially you, Anne.”

Anne: “Me? But I don’t even know you!”

Frogdini: “True, but surely actions can have unintended consequences for people you don’t even know, correct? Like you may buy the last of an item at a store, and someone else was looking to buy that same item for a special occasion. You didn’t intend to interfere with them, but at the end of the day, they weren’t able to get it.”

Anne sighs. “Look, I’m sorry for…whatever I did to you…”, she says.

Frogdini: “”Silence! Your words are meaningless! Life was better for the past five years when you weren’t here. I almost forgave you for what you did. But then you came back…and you were here to stay. I don’t want you here in Amphibia, but, ah, getting rid of you seems too nice for what you’ve done to me. So I will make you suffer the same way you’ve made me. I will make you want to leave!”

Frogdini pulls out a staff and starts to twirl it around, while reciting some mantra. The building starts to shake, then everything is enveloped in a white light.

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy are facedown in the mud when they first came to Amphibia. 

Sasha groans. “What…what happened?”, she asks.

She goes over to Anne and starts to shake her.

Anne: “Wha?”

Sasha: “Anna-banana, are you OK?”

Anne gets up and checks herself. 

Anne: “I appear to be fine. I’m assuming you are as well?”

Sasha: “Yeah, no complaints over here.”

Marcy comes to. She looks around.

Marcy: “What are we doing out here? Last thing I remember…we…we were tied to that pole. Then that frog did…something.”

Sasha: “It looks like he just sent us outside…”

Marcy: “But why go through all that work just to send us outside? I mean, he made a perfect forgery of my writing, and it seems like he did that with you two as well…”

Anne: “Forgery? What are you talking about?”

Marcy: “Anne, did you send me a letter recently?”

Anne: "I...don’t think so. Why do you ask?”

Marcy: “Well, take a look at this.”

Marcy pulls out a letter from her backpack. She hands it to Anne. She looks in shock as the letter seems to be written in the same way she normally writes.

Anne: “What…what is this?”

Marcy: “I received that in the mail yesterday. When I read it, I recognized it instantly as how you wrote it. But you’re saying you didn’t write me this, which means it has to be a fake.”

Anne gasps.

Sasha: “It wasn’t just her, either. I received a letter from someone who I thought was Marcy, but she told me she didn't do such a thing when we were stuck down there. Which must mean that you received a phony letter from me?”

Anne nods. “But how did he perfectly mimic how we write? He didn’t even know us…”

Marcy: “I know how. A few days ago, I received a letter from someone who claimed they wanted me to write them a toast to give at a wedding. But there were no weddings planned for several months, so I was a little confused as to why they were having me write it so far in advance…”

Sasha: “I had a similar story. I also received a letter from someone congratulating me on passing the toad coming of age ritual-”

Anne: “The what?”

Sasha: “Not important. Anyways, they claimed they wanted me to write an introduction about myself to give at a ceremony they were going to hold in Toad Toad, which I did. But when I came by the next day, no one had any clue what I was talking about. Again, I assume something like this happened to you.”

Anne: “Polly really was right…the person who wrote me that love letter wasn’t in Wartwood at all. In fact, it sounded like they didn’t even really feel that way!”

Sasha: “He wrote you a love letter? Real or not, that’s super weird…”

Marcy: “Regardless, it seems like he was able to copy the way we write very accurately, such that none of us even considered the letters we received may not have been from us. And it was all to bring us there and cast that spell…of which it is still unclear what it did…”

Anne: “He said he wanted us to suffer. But we’re not injured, so I’m worried about what he actually did…”

Sasha: “Well we’re not gonna learn anything standing around. Let’s go to Wartwood.”

Marcy: “But we should tread carefully. We don’t really know what the limits of magic are…”

Sasha and Anne nod. They head towards Wartwood.

Sasha, Marcy, and Anne arrive just outside Wartwood. Suddenly, Marcy stops.

Anne: “What is it, Mar-mar?”

Marcy: “Anne, wasn’t there a statue of you right around there?”

Marcy points to where the Anne statue once was. There is nothing there.

Anne: “Huh? I know for a fact it was there this morning…”

Marcy’s eyes go wide.

Sasha: “Maybe they tore it down or something?”

Anne: “But why would they do that?”

Sasha: “I don’t know, but clearly it’s not there…”

Anne: “I’ll go ask around. Someone has to know about it…”

Anne enters the town. Marcy tries to stop her, but she hesitates.

Anne: “Excuse me? Does anyone know what happened to the statue of me? It was definitely here this morning, and now it just seems to have vanished…”

The townspeople turn around to look at her. None of them say anything.

Anne: “Um…hello?”

Wally: “It’s a monster!”

Stumpy: “Quickly, we have to subdue it before it hurts anyone!”

Anne: “Huh?!”

The townspeople swarm Anne. Once the dust settles, she’s been tied to the ground.

Anne: “What the heck, guys?!”

Sasha jumps out of the bushes and draws her sword. Marcy stays hidden.

Mrs. Croaker: “Oh no, there’s more of them!”

Sasha: “Let her go, or I’ll make you regret it!”

Toadie enters the town square, with Toadstool by his side. Other townspeople walk outside.

Toadie: “All right, all right. What seems to be the trouble?”

Wally: “Oi, mayor! This monster tried to attack us, but we stopped it! But then there’s that one over there with the sword.”

Anne: “We’re not monsters! What has gotten into you guys?!”

Toadie: “Now, now. It’s possible that…whatever these are…aren’t monsters.”

Toadstool: “Toadie, you’re too nice. Ya ever seen something in the swamp that looks like that?”

He points to Anne.

Toadie: “No…but monsters don’t really act like this. They don’t wear clothes, use weapons, or speak. Plus, if that one with the sword really wanted to harm us, I think she could have easily. Sure, they may look a little…odd…and I know our town’s motto is about how slow we are to accept people…but just because you don’t accept someone doesn’t mean you can treat them poorly. First impressions are important, ya know.”

Marcy jumps out of the bushes.

Toadstool: “Oh, great! How many of ya are there?!”

Sasha: “It’s just us three. But you should know that!”

Toadstool: “Huh? What are you talking about?”

Sasha looks confused.

“Follow my lead”, Marcy whispers to Sasha.

Marcy: “Let me explain. My name is Marcy, this is Sasha, and the one you have there is named Anne. We’re, uh, from another world, and we’re called humans. We, uh, accidentally got ourselves trapped in this world, and we, uh, don’t know how to get back. We know we may have, uh, maybe left a bad first impression on you guys, but we don’t mean you any harm…”

Stumpy: “If you really mean no harm, then that one should lower their sword!”

Sasha: “Not until you let my friend go!”

Toadie: “All right, this is getting us nowhere. If we let your friend go, you will put away your sword. Agreed?”

Sasha nods. Toadie unbinds Anne, who looks dumbfounded. She walks back over to Marcy and Sasha, as the latter sheathes her sword.

Toadie: “Good! Now we’re building bridges instead of burning them. Uh, Marcy, was it? Do you mind continuing?”

Marcy: “Not at all. Uh, as I was saying, we’re kinda lost. And so, uh, if it isn’t much of an inconvenience, do you mind if we stay here?”

Toadstool: “You’re crazy if you think Toadie’s gonn-”

Toadie: “Sure, Marcy. You can stay as long as you like. However, there are two things you should be aware of. Since you’ll be considered a resident here, you will have to follow the same laws as everyone else. Secondly, even though you are a resident here, people may not treat you as such right off the bat. We won’t be…tying you to the ground like we did here…but people may be rude to you.”

Marcy: “We understand, mayor.”

Toadie: “Good! Everyone, you can resume what you were doing.”

The crowd disperses. 

Sasha: “Wow, Mar-mar, you diffused that situation really well…”

Anne: “But why was everyone treating us like they had never seen us before!”

Marcy: “I think from their point of view, they haven’t…”

Anne and Sasha scratch their heads.

Marcy: “It wasn’t until you mentioned the statue being missing that I noticed this was something that spell must have caused. An idea began to form in my head, and what they just did more or less confirmed what I thought…”

Marcy takes a deep breath.

Marcy: “I think that Frogdini…wiped everyone’s memory of us.”

Sasha and Anne gasp.

Marcy: “More so than that, I think he also got rid of any physical evidence that we were ever here…hence why the statue is missing.”

Anne: “Wait, so nobody remembers us? That means…”

Anne gasps, and starts running towards the Plantar farm. Marcy and Sasha run after her.

Marcy: “Anne, wait!”

Anne starts knocking furiously on the front door of the Plantar farm. Hop Pop opens the door, just as Sasha and Marcy stop on the front lawn. They stand there and watch from afar.

Hop Pop: “Yes?”

Anne grabs Hop Pop by the shoulders. “Hop Pop! You remember me, right?”

Hop Pop: “Eh, no? Unless my memory is failing me…”

Anne starts shaking him. “Please, you have to remember!”, she says.

Polly comes by and smacks Anne’s hands away from Hop Pop. “Hey, only I can do that!”, she says.

Anne: “Polly! Remember me? Team P-Anne for life, right?”

Polly: “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Anne peers over Polly’s shoulder and sees Sprig.

Anne: “Sprig…Spranne against the world…”

Sprig looks at her blankly.

Hop Pop: “Listen, stranger. You’re being a little strange. This town has enough weirdness in Wally. Unless you’re here to buy avocados, I’m gonna have to ask you to leave.”

Polly slams the door in her face. Anne starts bawling, as Sasha and Marcy pull her by each of her arms, away from the Plantar farm.

"They don't...remember me..."

Chapter Text

Anne, Marcy, and Sasha are sitting on the fountain in the Wartwood town square. Anne is looking at her phone.

Anne: “You were right, Mar-mar…all the pictures I took with people here are gone…”

Anne puts her phone away and sighs.

Anne: “Ya know, I don’t ever think there was a time when I felt alone in Wartwood. Everyone here was rude to me at first, but the Plantars…they welcomed me in with open flippers. And then I gained everyone’s respect when I stood up to those toad tax collectors. But now they just treat me like a stranger…”

She starts to cry. Sasha and Marcy look at each other, and nod.

Sasha: “Then I guess we’ll just have to fix this then!”

Marcy: “That’s right! First off, we need some more information. That Frogdini might have lived here in Wartwood. We should go to the town hall and see if we can find any of his files!”

Sasha: “Great thinking, Marbles! Come on, Anne, we could use your help!”

Anne wipes her tears. “Huh?”, she says.

Sasha: “You want people to remember us, right? Then the only thing to do is to find out more.”

Anne: “Oh…yeah…let’s go…”

Sasha and Marcy stand up and start walking towards the town hall. Anne stays seated.

Anne: “Sasha, Marcy…”

Marcy and Sasha stop in their tracks and turn around.

Marcy: “What is it, Anna-banana?”

Anne smiles. “Th-thanks, you two. I said I felt alone, when in reality, I’m not. I got two of my best friends here to help me”, she says.

Sasha smiles. “It’s like I said, we’ll never leave your side”, she says.

Anne starts to tear up.

Marcy: “Well, come on! Those documents aren’t gonna read themselves!

Anne and Sasha: “Yeah!”

Wally: “Oi! What are we cheering about?”

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy stammer around in confusion.

Anne: “Wally? What are you doing here?”

Wally: “Word around town is you’re weird. That makes you just like me!”

Sasha: "Uh..."

Wally: “I like people who are strange. That means you don’t give a flying frog what people think of ya! So, as a celebration of our new friendship, I’d like to play a song!”

Sasha: “But we didn-”

Wally pulls out his accordion and starts to play. After he’s finished, Anne and Sasha are in complete shock. Marcy begins to clap.

Marcy: “Wow! That was pretty good!”

Wally: “You…you like it? Most people run away when I start playing…”

Marcy: “Yeah! The accordion is a difficult instrument to play, but you make it look like it’s no big deal. You could easily become a music star with talent like that!”

Wally blushes. “You…you really think so? But I’ve never tried to make it big before…”, he says.

Marcy snorts. “Anyone who is famous could say that about themselves. All it really takes is a little belief in yourself. And, hey, you already have a believer in me. That should make it a little easier, right?”, she says.

Wally: “Well…all right, I’ll give it a go! Do you promise to help me?”

Marcy: “For sure! Here, I’ll even put it in writing…”

Marcy grabs a piece of paper from her backpack and writes on it.

I vow to help you, Wally, on your journey to becoming a music star.

Marcy Wu

She then hands the paper to Wally, who put it in his accordion case.

Wally: “Wow, thank you! I don’t have any froggin’ idea what this says, but I appreciate it!”

Wally walks back towards his house.

Anne: “Uh, Marcy?”

Marcy: “Yeah? Oh, right! We were supposed to go to the town hall. Got a little distracted there…”

Marcy, Anne, and Sasha walk towards the town hall.

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy walk inside the town hall, into the mayor’s room, and see Toadie in his chair and Toadstool filling a cup of coffee for him. 

Toadie: “Oh, hello you three!”

Toadstool: “Toadie! I know I’m not your superior anymore, but please, we don’t know what those…humans are capable of!”

Toadie: “Oh, hush up. Yes, they might be dangerous, but I want to give them the benefit of the doubt.”

Toadstool: “If they eat ya, I’m writing that on your tombstone!”

Sasha clears her throat loudly.

Marcy: “Um, I was wondering if you had records of the residents of Wartwood?”

Toadstool: “And what do you need those for?”

Marcy tries to think of a reason, but fails. Anne steps forward.

Anne: “We just…wanna know about the people of this town!”

Toadstool: “Couldn’t ya just…ya know…strike up a conversation with them?”

Anne: “Uh, we tried, but, ya know…people aren’t too friendly with us.”

Toadstool: “Well, all right. Just make sure you read me and Toadie’s records. We got some mighty impressive feats. That way, you can learn why you should treat us with respect!”

Anne: “Sweet!”

Toadie: “The records are in that filing cabinet over there. However, I do have one request. They are organized in a certain manner. If you take a document out, please back it back exactly where you found it.”

Marcy: “Toadie, I’m a neat freak. I cannot sleep if there is a lack of order. You have my word that we will maintain the organization.”

Toadie: “Glad to hear it!”

Marcy goes over to the filing cabinet. She notices there are two folders. One is marked “Current residents”, and the other marked “Past/missing/deceased residents”. She grabs both of them.

Toadstool: “Hey, don’t think I didn’t see that! What are you doing with that other folder?”

Anne: “Uh, we…also wanna know about the previous residents of this town! I’m sure this place has a lot of cool history!”

Toadie: “Eh, not really. Our town has an interesting origin story, but other than that, this place is uninteresting. But suit yourself. You can read those in our break room.”

Toadstool: “But don’t eat my lunch in the fridge! I’ll make ya regret it!”

Marcy takes the folders and walks with Sasha and Anne outside the mayor’s room. They find the break room and set the folders down on the table. Marcy picks up the one labeled “Past/missing/deceased residents” and opens it.

Marcy: “So…assuming Frogdini lived in Wartwood, his record should be in here.”

Marcy flips through the folder. After she has gone through a few records, she finds one that catches her eye. 

Marcy: “Girls, I think we found our guy!”

She slides a document across the table. Anne picks it up, and she and Sasha read it. Marcy notices another record, picks it up, and begins reading it.

Anne: “Things do seem to line up. He went missing five years ago, and he’s yellow, just like Frogdini…Clarence Bell…so that’s his real name.”

Sasha: “I feel kinda bad for him. Take a look here, it says he’s a widow.”

Anne: “I guess…but there’s several widows in this town, and they don’t act like this…”

Sasha: “That’s true. So now we know the who. But we don’t really know the why…”

Marcy: “No…but take a look at this.”

Marcy slides another document across the table. 

Marcy: “Take a look at his last name.”

Anne and Sasha look at the name. It reads “Daniel Bell”.

Anne: “Is this…his son?”

Marcy: “That seems to be the case. Also, look…the date he went missing. It was a few days just before Clarence went missing.”

Sasha: “What does that mean then?”

Marcy: “This is just a theory, mind you, but based on what we’ve been told and what we read here, it seems like Anne did something five years ago, which caused Daniel to run away. And it seems like Clarence left shortly after, maybe to go look for his son. He didn’t find him, and realizing he had no family at home, he instead planned on how to get back at Anne.”

Sasha: “But…why so complicated? Why couldn’t he have just gotten rid of Anne more directly?”

Marcy: “That likely would have caused an uproar. Besides, I think he knew that Anne’s first time here was going to be short.”

Anne: “Now it’s just a question of what I did.”

Marcy: “Yeah…unfortunately, I don’t think we’re going to find that out here. I think…it’s best that we ask someone else. Daniel’s record said he was attending Wartwood School before he disappeared. Maybe the teacher there knows something.”

Marcy puts the records back where they were supposed to go. She grabs both folders and heads back with Anne and Sasha back to the mayor’s room.

Toadie: “Did you ladies find what you needed to?”

Marcy: “Yes, sir! I’ll put your folders back…and don’t worry, the files are where they need to be.”

Marcy goes over to the filing cabinet and puts the folders back. Toadstool comes up and pushes the drawer shut, leaving his hand on it.

Toadstool: “Do you ladies remember what I asked you to do when you went to read those records?”

Marcy starts to sweat. “Ah, of course I do! You asked us to read about you and Toadie!”

Toadstool: “Yeah…so what’d you find out about us?”

Marcy clams up.

Toadstool: “Or did you not actually read about us, and you’re up to something shifty?”

Anne: “Toadstool, you used to be the mayor of this town, and you had Toadie as your assistant. And Toadstool, you had someone by the name of Hopadiah Plantar challenge you around five years ago, who beat you in every challenge. But you, you sure showed him! He only got 100% of the votes in Wartwood, but you got a bunch of votes from everyone in the valley! And you two…I’ve heard you’re good Bugball players! And Toadstool, you were asked to be the Head Toad of Toad Tower, but you…you realized that you wanted to stay here in Wartwood! And Toadie, you’re good at the drums, I’ve heard! And you also showed your brave side when you got away from those raiders when you were in the resistance! And…”

Toadstool: “All right, all right. Ya read our files. Sorry for being suspicious of ya.”

Toadie: “Wow, I’ve never had someone be so passionate about speaking of me. This is the best day ever!” 

Toadie extends his arms outwards in excitement, not realizing his cup of coffee was in the way. It falls to the ground and shatters, spilling coffee everywhere.

Toadie: “Oops. Better get the dustpan, broom, and mop…”

Anne: “No! I’ll clean it up!”

Toadie: “What? But it wasn’t your fault…”

Anne: “No…but you’re a respectable mayor. And someone like you shouldn’t have to do such menial work!”

Toadie: “But…”

Anne: “Look, I worked at a restaurant back home. People dropped plates and glasses sometimes, and I was often the one to take care of the mess. This isn’t anything new to me. I’ll get this done lickety split!”

Toadie: “Ah, I don’t know what to say…”

Anne: “Mind telling me where the cleaning supplies are?”

Toadie: “Ah, yes. If you leave this room, it’ll be the second door on your left.”

Anne runs out the room. A few minutes later, she has a mop bucket full of water, a mop, a dustpan, and a wet floor sign. She sweeps up the mug shards into the pan, and dumps them into the trash. She then puts the mop into the water, and mops the floor. She then puts up the wet floor sign, leaves the room, and returns. Everyone stares in shock at what they just witnessed.

Toadie: “Uh, thank you Anne.”

Anne: “No problem!”

Toadie: “Well, I suppose I need to get a new mug. That was one of my favorites too…”

Toadie tries to get up from his seat, but Anne stops her.

Anne: “No! I’ll get you a new one.”

Toadie: “Anne, please. You’ve done more than enough for me…”

Anne: “Hey, you can’t work at your fullest potential if you’re going out to get a new mug. Just leave it to me. I’ll even pay for it myself.

Toadie: “Well, all right. Thanks…again.”

Anne walks outside the town hall, with Sasha and Marcy following behind, looking a little confused. 

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy walk into Grub N’ Go. Anne looks at the mugs, then looks at her wallet. She finds only a few copper coins. 

Anne: “Oh, right. I forgot I’m dirt poor.”

Sasha: “I mean, no big deal, right? We can just ask the mayor for some money.”

Anne: “Yeah, but I told him I’d pay for it. I’ll see what I can get…”

Anne looks at the mugs. She notices there is one for seven coppers, which is exactly how much she has. She notices the mug has a hideous design on it. She grabs it anyway, goes over to the counter, and checks out.

Anne: “Hopefully he’ll like this.”

Marcy: “I mean, they say it’s the thought that counts, right?”

They leave the store.

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy walk into the town hall and into the mayor’s office. Anne puts the mug on Toadie’s desk.

Anne: “Uh, sorry. This was the only thing I could buy…”

Toadstool: “That mug is so ugly! How dare you insult the mayor, presenting him something like that! Don’t worry, Toadie, I’ll get you a bett-”

Toadie: “I love it!”

Toadstool: “What?!”

Toadie: “You are right about it being…difficult to look at. But Anne got me this mug even though she had no obligation to…and she helped clean up my spill…and she enjoyed talking about me earlier! She’s done a lot for us in the past hour, and I’m afraid I haven’t really done anything to show my appreciation.”

Anne: “Oh, that’s all right. You just keep doing what you’re doing.”

Toadie: “No, I insist. Normally, people need to be residents of Wartwood for two years for them to be able to vote, create petitions, and so on. But I can make an exception for you. I’ll add your name to the list of people who can participate in local elections.

Toadstool: “Toadie, please! If ya let her in, she might not vote for you!”

Sasha: “Dude, she just did a bunch of stuff for him. If anything, that’s evidence that she would vote for him. Besides, even if she didn’t…would one vote really matter?”

Toadstool: “Erm, well, no, I suppose not…fine, you can add her to the list. See if I care!”

Toadstool stomps out of the room. 

Toadie: “Aw, don’t mind him. He’s a little rough around the edges, but he’s a softie when you get to know him. Anyways, go ahead and write your name down here, at the bottom.”

Toadie shows Anne a piece of paper. As instructed, she writes “Anne Boonchuy” on the bottom of the list.

Toadie: “Now, just in case I forget, I’ll write a note here, saying that while you should not technically be able to participate in local elections, that you’ve more or less shown me that you’re trustworthy enough to do so.”

Anne: “Thanks, Mayor.”

Toadie: “Anytime, Anne.”

Sasha clears her throat loudly.

Anne: “Oh, right! I have something to take care of. I’ll see you later!”

Anne walks outside with Sasha and Marcy. Together, they head towards the school.

The Wartwood School, once a pile of rubble, has now been restored to a proper place to learn. The kids are outside playing for recess, while the teacher, Sylvia, is observing them. Anne, Sasha, and Marcy approach her.

Anne: “Oh, hey Sylvia. Didn’t realize you were the teacher here…”

Sylvia: “Hmm? Oh, it’s you three. You were those, uh…what did you call yourselves?”

Marcy: “We’re humans. More specifically, my name is Marcy Wu, this one is Anne Boonchuy, and that’s Sasha Waybright. Pleased to meet you.”

Sylvia smiles. “Is there something I can help you with?”, she asks.

Anne: “I was hoping we could ask you a few questions about one of your previous students.”

Sylvia: “Oh, I’d be happy to tell you what I remember about my little angels. What was their name?”

Anne: “Daniel Bell.”

Sylvia’s smile falls.

Anne: “I’m sorry. If it’s a sensitive subject, you don’t have to talk about it…”

Sylvia: “No, that’s all right. I’ll tell you what I know. Daniel was…one of the most behaved kids I’ve ever seen. He never hurt anyone, even if they did the same to him. He always turned the other cheek, and most of the kids liked him.”

Sasha: “Do you know what happened to him? All we know is he disappeared around five years ago…”

Sylvia: “That’s sadly one thing I don’t know. One day, he just didn’t show up. Didn’t show up the next day, either. Then there were missing posters of him. Then his father left without a trace, too.”

Anne: “I’m sorry that happened. He sounded like a good kid...”

Sylvia: “Yeah, he was. I…try not to think about him. I apologize for not being able to tell you much…”

Anne: “No, that’s OK. Every little bit of information helps.”

Sylvia: “Are you three trying to figure out where he went?”

Marcy: “Something like that. We are trying to solve a major mystery, and figuring out where Daniel went might help us towards that goal.”

Sylvia: “Oh, well, I wish you the best of luck on your endeavors. It’d be nice if we could see Daniel again…”

Two kids start yelling at each other. They appear to be fighting over a toy.

Sylvia: “Oh, not again…”

Sasha: “What seems to be the problem?”

Sylvia: “You see them two youngsters over there? They don’t get along too well. Every time I tell them I’ll punish them if they continue, and then they stop for the day. But the next day, they’re just back at it…”

Sasha: “Sounds like a job for me. Watch this, Sylvia, I’m about to show you how to nip this problem in the bud.”

Sasha walks over to the kids and kneels down. “What’s going on here?”, she asks.

“Michael took my favorite action figure!”, one of the kids says.

Michael: “You never let me play with it, Ben!”

The two resume pulling on the toy. 

Sasha: “All right, you two, that’s enough!”

The two stop fighting at the sternness in her voice.

Sasha: “Look, have you guys heard of sharing?”

The two kids shake their heads.

Sasha: “Well, sharing means you let someone borrow something of theirs for a little bit. Why don’t we try it now…Ben, why don’t let Michael play with your action figure for 5 minutes. And Michael, after that, you give it back to him. Sounds good?”

The two kids nod.

Michael: “Hey Ben, I’m sorry for taking this from you. It just looks like so much fun!”

Ben: “Yeah, it is! But, uh, since you like it so much, you can use it for a bit.”

Michael: “Thanks, dude. I’ll give it back to you soon!”

Sasha: “Just remember, you two. Sharing is caring!”

They both nod. Michael sits down and plays with the toy.

Sylvia: “Wow, Sasha. I’ve never seen those kids agree on something before. How did you do that?”

Sasha: “It’s simple. Negative reinforcement doesn’t teach anyone anything, it just makes them feel bad, and bad feelings tend to display in the form of destructive behavior. Now, if you make them feel good for doing the right thing, they’ll be motivated to do it in the future. Works like a charm.”

Sylvia: “And that quote you said, ‘sharing is caring’...now that’s catchy. Do you mind if I steal that?”

Sasha: “Uh, not at all.”

Sylvia takes out a notebook from her handbag. In it, she writes “‘Sharing is caring’ - Sasha Waybright”. She then puts the notebook back in her bag.

Sylvia: “I like to keep a list of phrases like that. Makes it easier to teach them to the kids.”

Sasha smiles. “Well, happy to help. See you around”, she says.

She turns and meets back up with Anne and Marcy.

Anne: “So where to next, Mar-mar?”

Marcy: “Honestly, I’m outta ideas. We’ve gotten a fair bit of information, but I don’t know where to go from here…”

Anne and Sasha tap their chins in thought.

Sasha: “Maybe we’re not looking at this the right way…”

Anne and Marcy look at Sasha in confusion.

Sasha: “Well, think about it. This whole time, we’ve been focused on figuring out who did this. But maybe we should focus on what he did.”

Anne: “How do we do that?”

Sasha: “Simple. We just ask someone who knows about magic. And I know just the frog to talk to…”

Sasha starts walking towards Flour & Daughters Bakery. Marcy and Anne follow her.

Sasha, Marcy, and Anne arrive at the bakery. They see Maddie is brewing something in her cauldron outside. Sasha approaches her.

Sasha: “Hey, Maddie! How’s it going, girl?”

Maddie looks up from her cauldron. “Oh, hey Sasha. I’m good, just trying to make an invisibility potion”, she says.

Sasha goes over and inspects the concoction. Marcy looks at Maddie in confusion. Anne notices.

Anne: “Marbles, what’s wrong?”

Marcy: “Anne, Maddie wasn’t in the town square yesterday…”

Anne: “Yeah, so?”

Marcy: “So how did she know Sasha’s name? And why is she acting so friendly with her?”

Anne rubs her chin before Marcy goes over to Maddie.

Marcy: “Maddie, you just referred to Sasha here. How did you know her name?”

Maddie: “Uh, you guys are my friends. Why wouldn’t I know your names?”

Sasha, Marcy, and Anne gasp. Marcy grabs Maddie by the shoulders.

Marcy: “Wait, so you remember us?”

Maddie: “OK, this is getting a little weird, even for me. Mind explaining what’s going on?”

Chapter Text

Maddie, Anne, Sasha, and Marcy are sitting in Maddie’s room.

Sasha: “Are you sure your dad is fine with us here?”

Maddie: “My dad knows I’m a little strange. At this point, I feel like I could bring in a vampire and he’d be cool with it.

Sasha, Marcy and Anne laugh.

Maddie: “Anyways, let me see if I got this right. Some frog named Clarence Bell, who now calls himself Frogdini, cast a spell that not only made everyone forget you exist, but also removed any trace that you were ever here. And your best guess as to why he did this is because he thinks Anne was the indirect cause for his son running away from home. Did I miss anything?”

Anne: “Yeah, that’s about right.”

Marcy: But what about you, Maddie? How can you remember us?”

Maddie chuckles. “And they thought I was paranoid”, she says.

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy look at each other in confusion.

Maddie: “Sorry, I was just thinking to myself. Anyways, the reason why I remember you is because, every day, as part of my morning routine, I cast a low level protection spell on myself.  It only lasts the day, but it doesn’t require too much effort on my part, and it might help out a little if someone were to try to use magic on me. My sisters kept telling me I was being way too cautious, but it seems like I was right.”

Marcy: “So, your spell prevented you from forgetting?”

Maddie: “Well, not fully. I likely had more memories with you guys, which his spell got rid of. But at the very least, I have one memory of each of you. So I know for a fact that you were here five years ago. And the memories I kept were likely the ones that were most precious to me. Marcy, for you, that was the day when you helped me revive that flea, and helped me give that antidote to my sisters.

Marcy: “That was a fun day!”

Maddie: “I think that memory remained not only because you were someone who initially thought I was cool instead of creepy, but also because you helped me save and reconnect with my sisters. Sasha, for you, that was when you began the Wartwood Resistance.”

Sasha: “That was quite the glorious day.”

Maddie: “Indeed. And Anne, for you…that was the day you stopped the moon from crashing into this planet.”

I’m glad you didn’t remember the time I was a bird”, she whispers to herself.

Maddie: “What was that?”

Anne: “Oh, nothing. Anyways, Maddie, is it possible for you to reverse his spell?”

Maddie: “Yes.”

Marcy, Anne, and Sasha gasp.

Anne: “Great! Then do it!”

Maddie: “I can’t.”

Anne: “What? But you just said…”

Maddie: “I said it was possible for me to reverse the spell. I never said I had the capability to do so right now.”

Sasha: “Can’t you just…hocus pocus?”

Maddie stares at her. “No, I can’t just…hocus pocus. While most magic spells have a simple way to reverse them, I’m afraid a memory erasing spell has a…bit more of a complicated fix”, she says.

Sasha: “What? Why?”

Maddie gets up and walks over to a set of building blocks. She constructs them in a certain fashion. She then makes eye contact with the girls, and, without breaking it, knocks the structure down with her foot.

Maddie: “If I asked you three to rebuild perfectly what I had just knocked down, how likely do you think you would be able to?”

Anne: “Uh…close to zero.”

Marcy: “Oh, I see what you’re saying. Restoring everyone’s memories doesn’t just require bringing everyone’s memories back, but putting them in the right place.”

Maddie: “Exactly. There’s also…another reason why it’s complicated…but I don’t think it’s worth mentioning.”

Sasha: “Yeah, I think maybe telling us what you need to cast that spell would be more worthwhile.”

Maddie goes over to her bookshelf and grabs a book titled “Amphibia’s Magical Artifacts”. She turns to a page. “Here, this is what I need”, she says.

The girls go over and look at the page. On it, there is a crystal ball illustration, which is labeled as a “Rememb-orb”.

Maddie: “This was first created by a wizard named Muddy the Wise. He passed on his knowledge to create this item, among others, to his children. One of them should be alive today.”

Sasha: “Then…sounds easy enough right? We just ask him to make one, then we get everyone’s memories back.”

Maddie: “Sadly, Muddy’s grandchild decided to cut himself off from the rest of the society several hundred years ago, and none of his descendants have been seen since.”

Sasha: “Oh.”

Anne: “Who cares? Now we finally have a way to fix this. We can scour the ends of Amphibia until we find him!”

Sasha: “But that’ll take forever!”

Anne: “Do you have a better idea? It’s not like we know anyone that could have personally known this Muddy dude!”

Marcy: "...what if we did?”

Anne and Sasha look at Marcy. 

Anne: “Mar-mar, this person would have to be centuries old…”

Marcy: “Yeah, and the only way you could likely reach that age is if, I don’t know, you had cybernetic enhancements…if only we knew someone like that…”

Sasha: “No…you don’t mean…”

Marcy: “Yes, Sash, I do.”

Anne: “Marcy, have you forgotten what he did to you?”

Marcy: “No, I haven’t. But he and I became good friends recently.”

Anne: “Except, he won’t remember any of that. There’s no telling how he might react to seeing us…”

Marcy: “No, I suppose there isn’t. But, let me ask you two this: if all three of us had our memories wiped of the other two, do you think we could still become friends?”

Anne and Sasha look at each other briefly before smiling.

Marcy: “That’s what I thought. Now, come on! To Newtopia!”

Maddie: “Hang on, I just need to pack a few things…”

Maddie goes over to her bag in the corner of the room and starts packing. Anne, Sasha, and Marcy head downstairs and outside. A few minutes later, Maddie walks outside. They head towards Newtopia.

Maddie, Sasha, Marcy, and Anne are walking when Newtopia comes into view.

Maddie: “Hold up, you three.”

Anne: “What is it?”

Maddie: “You need to put these on.”

Maddie pulls three leashes out of her bag. The other three stare at her in shock.

Sasha: “This is a joke, right?”

Maddie: “Afraid not.”

Anne: “And why exactly do we need these on?”

Maddie: “Think about it. People in Newtopia have never seen a human before. If they see you walking around, they might get a little anxious. But if they think you’re just my pets…”

Marcy: “Aw, come on guys. It’ll be fun!”

Sasha: “You have a strange definition of fun.”

Marcy: “If you were to see someone holding a leash with a full grown adult on the other end, you’d think they were weird. But here, people will think it’s kinda normal.”

Anne: “Ah, I guess that makes sense. They also match my hair color, so it’s fashionable…”

Maddie: “It’s settled then. Also, no talking. Pets don’t talk.”

Anne, Sasha and Marcy allow themselves to have leashes be put on their necks. 

Sasha: “You’re not gonna have us walk on our hands and make us eat from bowls, are you?”

Maddie chuckles. “Not unless you want to…”, she says.

Sasha rolls her eyes. They start walking towards the city and enter. A few people give them a few strange looks, but most people ignore them. One Newt comes up to them.

“Er, excuse me. What kind of pets are these?”

Maddie: “Oh, these are humans. Don’t worry, they don’t bite.”

“Can I pat them?”

Sasha growls at the man.

“Or not, I’m fine with just looking.”

The newt skedaddles. Maddie continues walking and heads towards the castle. She is stopped by the guards.

Maddie: “Ah, I’m sorry. Is this place not pet friendly?”

The guards look at each other. “Uh, no, that’s not it. We were just wondering why you were here”, one of them says.

Maddie: “I’m here to see Andrias.”

“What for?”, asks the other.

Maddie: “Uh, I’m a witch who’s trying to learn more about magic. I, uh, heard Andrias has a wealth of knowledge, so I want to see what he, uh, can teach me.”

The guards look at each other and shrug. They open the doors, and Maddie walks up the steps. She walks aimlessly around the halls.

Maddie: “Now I just gotta figure out where Andrias is…might take a while, considering how large this castle is...”

Sasha: “There he is.”

Sasha points towards a room, where Andrias is drinking a cup of coffee while reading a book titled “Making Friends”.

Maddie: “Good eye, Sasha! But what did I say about talking?”

Sasha: “If nobody hears, does it really matter?”

Maddie: “I can’t argue with that…”

Maddie walks over and enters the room with Andrias. He notices them, smiles, and closes his book.

Andrias: “Oh, hello there! I recognize you!”

Maddie: “Huh? You do?”

Andrias: “Yeah, you were one of the members of the Wartwood Resistance, right? The army that stood against me? I caught a glimpse of you using magic. You were quite the skilled fighter for such a young age.

Maddie: “Oh, um…thanks. The name’s Maddie.”

Andrias: “You are quite welcome. To what do I owe this pleasure?”

Maddie: “We were looking for some information.”

Andrias: “Ohoho! Look no further, my friend! There is little I do not know. What do you need to know?”

Maddie: “I was hoping you could tell me if you ever met a man by the name of Muddy the Wise…”

Andrias’s smile falls. “Uh, yes. I have. I’ve also met his child, Muddy II, and his child, Muddy III”, he says.

Maddie: “Do you know where Muddy’s current descendant should be?”

Andrias grits his teeth. “Yes, I do…”, he says.

Maddie: “Can you tell me wher-”

Andrias: “No.”

Maddie: “What?”

Andrias: “Muddy III told me he thought his magic was too dangerous, which is why he secluded himself from everyone else. He trusted me, though, so he told me where he’d be hiding, under the condition that I never tell anyone.”

Maddie: “But we really need to know-”

Andrias: “I SAID NO!”

Maddie shuts her mouth.

Andrias: “Look, I’m sorry. I really am. I’m sure you have a good reason for wanting to see him…but…I’m not the one to break promises.”

Maddie: “Is there any way we could change your mind?”

Andrias: “I doubt there’s anything you could give me that would…unless…”

Andrias looks at Marcy, Sasha, and Anne. Then a smile grows across his lips.

Andrias: “Who are your friends here?”

"These are my pet humans...", Maddie says, before pointing at each of them in sequence. "I…named this one Sasha, this one Anne, and this one Marcy.”

Andrias bends down, and puts his face a few feet away from theirs. “My my, in all my years of living, I’ve never seen creatures such as these”, he says.

Andrias straightens up. “Tell you what, Maddie. You leave these…humans with me so I can study them, and I’ll give you the information you desire”, he says.

Maddie: “Uh, when can I have them back? They’re important to me…”

Andrias: “Well, considering I’ll be dissecting them, I’d say never.”

The four of them gasp.

Maddie: “No way! I’ll give you something else! I’m good with magic!”

Andrias laughs. “Welcome to the club, Maddie. You either give me them, or you can exit the way you came.”

Maddie sighs. “I’m sorry, Andrias. I’m afraid we won’t be able to come to an agreement”, she says.

Maddie turns and walks towards the exits. Andrias nods at the guards, and they use their spears to block the exit.

Maddie: “What…what are you doing?”

Andrias: “I’ve changed my mind. Letting those three walk out of here without me studying them properly would be a mistake on my part. I’ll be taking them with me.”

Maddie: “No!”

Andrias: “Oh, hush up. You’ll get the information you need from me, too. Everyone wins! Well, maybe not them, but…”

One of the guards grabs Maddie by the arms while the other forces her to release her grip from the leashes. Andrias then puts his hands out to grab Sasha, Anne, and Marcy.

Marcy: “STOP!”

Everyone in the room comes to a complete halt. Nobody says anything for several moments.

Andrias: “You…you can speak?”

Marcy: “Yeah, I can. And I challenge you to a game of Flipwart!”

Andrias laughs. “I’m one of the best players in Amphibia! You really think you can beat me?”, he says.

Marcy: “I’m at least going to try. Here’s the deal. If you win, you can…study us. But if I win, you have to let us go and tell us where Muddy’s descendant is!”

Andrias laughs. “You could have wagered that I be your servant for life and I would still have accepted it. Nobody has won against me at Flipwart, and you will be no exception!”, he says.

Marcy gulps.

Andrias: “Now then, let’s take this to the stadium, shall we? That way, I can publicly shame you, before making you my lab experiments.

Anne, Sasha, and Maddie are in a cage that’s overlooking a crowded stadium. In the center is a Flipwart board. On one side, Marcy is sitting. On the other side is a robot. Andrias is nearby wearing goggles, and has motion sensors on his hands. The robot mimics his actions. A newt grabs a microphone.

“Good afternoon, ladies and gentle-newts! Today, we have, uh, a human…by the name of Marcy challenge Andrias to a game of Flipwart. But this is no ordinary match, as Marcy is playing for her and her other two human friends’ lives! And Marcy is just looking for some, uh, information. Talk about a nerd, am I right, folks?

The crowd laughs.

Sasha: “Ya know, I’ve never been in one of these booths near the top of a stadium. Glad I got to cross this off my bucket list before I die…which is probably in a few minutes.”

Anne: “Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that. Have a little faith in Marbles, all right?”

Andrias: “Marcy, you may choose which color you want to be.”

Marcy: “I choose…black.”

Andrias: “Interesting choice.”

Andrias goes first. The two make plays, with Marcy losing her pieces early on. The game continues like this, until Marcy only has two pieces left, with Andrias having significantly more. Marcy starts sweating profusely.

Andrias: “Oh, Marcy. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but in just three turns, your wart will be flipped. Seems like you’re not as good a Flipwart player as you thought you were.”

Marcy chuckles to herself. “You need 3 turns?”, she says. 

Andrias: “That’s right. Any last words?”

Well, that’s a shame...", Marcy says, as she grabs her wart. "...because I only need one!”

Marcy moves her wart one space forward. The referee looks at the board and confirms that Andrias’s wart has been flipped.

“I…I don’t believe this. For the first time ever, someone has bested Andrias in Flipwart!”

The crowd goes wild.

Andrias: “NO! That cannot be! She must have cheated!”

“I’ve been watching the board this whole time. Neither of you made invalid plays.”

Andrias is in a complete state of shock. Marcy receives a small trophy for winning, as confetti rains from the sky.

Andrias: “Well, a deal’s a deal. I’ll let you four go, and…I’ll tell you where Muddy’s descendant is. Do you have a map?”

Maddie pulls out a map from her bag, and hands it to Andrias.

Andrias: “Around right here, where it seems like where there should be the ocean. There’s actually a small set of islands there. It’s on the biggest one that you should find Muddy’s descendant.”

Maddie: “It’s in the ocean? How are we supposed to get there?”

Andrias: “We have ships you can use. I can also get you a sailor to navigate the seas.”

Maddie: “Oh…thanks Andrias.”

Andrias: “Don’t mention it.”

Andrias goes back and sits down at his table, reading his book. Marcy goes up to him.

Marcy: “Hey, sorry about embarrassing you like that…”

Andrias starts to chuckle. “You didn’t embarrass me, kid. I embarrassed myself. Besides, I was…a bit too serious about me wanting to study you. I still would like to…although in a less violent way…but it seems like you’re busy…”

Marcy: “Well, hey. I have a solution for that.”

Marcy pulls out a human biology textbook from her backpack and hands it to Andrias.

Marcy: “That book contains knowledge of everything you’d need to know about humans. It, uh, can get a bit detailed at times…but if there’s anything you wanted to know about us, it’ll be in there.”

Andrias: “You’d give this to me…even after what I did?”

Marcy: “I noticed you were reading a book about how to make friends. I’m…not really the best person at it either…but doing favors for one another is a good way to do so.”

Andrias: “You…even want to be friends with me?”

Marcy: “Yeah. I think we’d make good friends. It’s just…a hunch, though.”

Andrias smiles. “Thank you, Marcy. I will cherish this book forever. Have a safe trip.”

Marcy: “Thanks, Drias.”

Andrias looks astonished. “You know, there was only one person who ever called me that. You kinda remind me of her. You know what, I think we will make good friends”, he says.

Marcy waves, as she, Maddie, and Anne leave the room. They exit the castle and head towards the harbor.

Anne, Sasha, Maddie, and Marcy are on a large ship on the ocean. There is a newt steering it. Anne and Maddie are relaxing on some recliners, while Marcy is leaning over the edge, taking in the view. Sasha comes up next to her.

Sasha: “Uh, hey Marbles. I’m sorry.”

Marcy: “Sorry? For what?”

Sasha: “When I was in that cage, I thought for sure you were going to lose. I didn’t really believe in you, even though Anne did…”

Marcy: “Ah, don’t worry about it. The important thing is we’re one step closer to our goal.”

Sasha: “Yeah, you’re right. Anyways, it’s super cool that you beat Andrias at Flipwart. Fair and square, too!”

Marcy giggles. “I wouldn’t say that’s accurate…”, she says.

Sasha: “But the referee said you didn’t cheat…did you somehow sneak a move past him?”

Marcy: “No, nothing like that. But Andrias was the one to teach me Flipwart, and he always chose white. I lost to him over and over, but…one day, I won. I figured if I just played the exact same way as that time, he would respond in the same way.”

Sasha: “But…you certainly didn’t seem confident when you were playing…”

Marcy: “Well, part of that was because I didn’t know it would work. But the other part was something I call a ‘mind game.’”

Sasha: “Mind game? What’s that?”

Marcy: “It’s basically leading someone to think a certain way about you without explicitly telling them to do so. I figured that if I was too confident, Andrias may think I was actually a good Flipwart player, and he would play better. But because he thought I didn’t really know how to play, he held back.”

Sasha: “Mar-mar, you scare me sometimes.”

Marcy giggles. “Don’t worry, I don’t do this often. Just in cases where losing isn’t an option”, she says.

Anne, with Maddie following closely behind, goes over to the sailor.

Anne: “So, you know where we’re headed, right?”

"Yes. Andrias told me we are going to a remote set of islands known as the Axolotl Archipelago. I know the specific island which Muddy’s descendant should be on. Should take a few days. So, for the time being, make yourselves comfortable. And if you get seasick, please hurl over the edge and not on the deck.”

Anne: “Sounds good!”

Maddie: “You excited, Anne? We’re about to see islands that most people don’t even know exist!”

Anne: “Yeah…hopefully, we can just have a nice cruise.” 

Chapter Text

Anne is playing music on her phone and dancing, Sasha is sunbathing, Maddie is doing yoga, and Marcy is talking with the sailor. 

Marcy: “What fuel does this ship run on? How much does it weigh? How fast can it go?”

“Miss, please. You’ve been talking my ear off. Can you just let me focus on steering?”

Marcy: “Oh, sorry. I’ve just never been on a boat like this before. Nor have I had the opportunity to talk to a real sailor! I imagine it’s pretty difficult…”

The music on Anne’s phone stops. She wipes off the sweat using a towel and goes over to join Marcy’s conversation.

Actually, no, it isn’t. You just use this wheel to change directions and this pedal to go faster. And if you wanna stop, you just throw that anchor overboard in the other direction.”

“Oh, that doesn’t sound too much different than driving a car. The anchor is kinda like the brakes!", Marcy says, before turning over with a smile to Anne. "Anna-banana, I think you’d make a great sailor!”

Anne: “What? Why?”

Marcy: “Remember that street race you won?”

Anne: “Yeah, I remember. But my parents forbade me from driving for a month after I almost crashed into a wall!”

“Uh, sorry. What’s a car?”

Marcy: “Oh, I should probably mention. We’re from another world. Other worlds exist besides this one.”

“Oh.”

Marcy: “And a car is like a snail, but it’s made of metal.”

“A metal snail, huh? If you can operate something like that, this ship should be no issue to you. Come on up here, uh, Anna-banana?”

Anne comes up to the steering wheel. She grabs it, and rocks it back and forth. She notices the ship moves slightly in the direction she turns. She puts her foot lightly on the pedal, and the ship accelerates a bit.

Anne: “Wow, this really isn’t much different than driving a car!”

“All right, move over. I gotta get us back on course…we need to be heading 45 degrees towards the southeast…”

While Sasha is sunbathing, she notices the sunlight disappears. She takes off her sunglasses, and notices gray clouds are rolling in.

Sasha: “Uh, hey guys? I think a storm is brewing…”

Anne, Sasha, Maddie, and the sailor look at the sky. They notice it is starting to rain.

“You four should go inside.”

Sasha, Marcy, and Maddie head towards the bottom deck. Anne stays by the sailor’s side.

Sailor: “Did you not hear me?”

Anne: “I’m not leaving you out here, dude. You might get sick!”

“Someone needs to steer the ship. Besides, I’m a newt. We love water.”

Thunder booms in the distance. The sailor screams, and runs towards the bottom deck. Anne sighs before grabbing the steering wheel, and noticing a compass on it.

“Let’s see, that sailor dude said we need to head 45 degrees towards the southeast...", Anne says, before steering to the right, and looking out in the distance. "You got this, Anne! If you can drive in the rain, you can sail in it, too!"

All of a sudden, a giant kraken comes out of the water and roars.

“But I’ve never driven with a kraken on the road before!”

The kraken tries to slam one of his tentacles to where Anne was standing, but she manages to evade it. She then runs towards the bottom deck.

Anne gets to the bottom deck, where everyone else is standing.

Sasha: “What the heck is going on up here?!”

Anne: “Giant kraken!”

Sasha, Maddie, and Marcy gasp. The sailor has no reaction.

“Why are you all so worried? If the ship gets torn apart, we can just swim to the nearest shore.”

The four girls look at the sailor.

Maddie: “Uh, yeah, except they’re not like us. They’re good at walking on land, but swimming...not so much.”

“Oh. Well, glad that’s not my problem!”

Suddenly, the ship starts to be lifted slowly out of the water by the kraken. Marcy looks out the window.

Marcy: “Uh, guys…I think the kraken is raising us into the air, and is planning to drop us back into the water! I don’t think we’ll survive the fall!”

Sasha, Maddie, and Anne gasp. The sailor still has no reaction.

“Well, it is a sailor’s dream to die on the sea. This still isn’t my problem.”

Anne looks around for something she can do to stop the kraken. She notices there’s a pitcher of lemonade on a table. She then gets an idea.

Anne: “All right, everyone. Listen up! I’m gonna save us! Just grab onto something, and don’t come after me!”

Anne runs and grabs the pitcher. She then runs towards the stairs to the top deck. Everyone grabs onto the hand railing.

Sasha: “Anne! If you don’t come back alive, I’m gonna kill you!”

Anne runs outside and leans over the ship. She sees the kraken has lifted the ship just above its head. 

“Hey Kraken! Did you order lemonade?”

Anne then dumps the entire pitcher over the ship, directly into the kraken’s eye. She starts running towards the bottom deck. Once the lemonade makes contact, it roars, then drops the ship. Anne then hits the ceiling of the staircase. Once the ship hits the water, she then hits the floor of the stairs and falls all the way down. Her ears are ringing, and the last thing she sees before losing consciousness is Maddie, Sasha, and Marcy huddled around her, with tears in their eyes.

Chapter Text

Anne is sleeping in a bed on the ship. Sasha, Marcy, and Maddie are sitting around her, looking worried. Anne comes to and groans.

Anne: “What…what happened?”

Marcy: “Anne! You’re OK!”

Anne chuckles. “Well yeah, I didn’t want Sasha killing me…”

Sasha and Marcy chuckle with tears in their eyes.

Sasha: “You really saved us back there! How did you even know what to do?”

Anne: “Not my first time dealing with a squid before. This is the first time I’ve dealt with one this big before, though…”

Maddie: “Well, if it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t be here right now. We appreciate it.”

Anne smiles before looking around. “Uh, where did we land, anyway?”, she asks.

Maddie: “Oh, funny story! After you blacked out, the waves carried us to the island we needed to go to, which is awfully convenient, since the ship isn’t in working order right now.”

Sasha: “Yeah, the kraken really did a number on it. The sailor went into town to go get some materials to fix it. He said there’s a good blacksmith here.”

Anne: “Wow, talk about lucky! I thought for sure we would be stranded in the ocean…”

Marcy: “Meh, the sailor said we were close to the island anyway. Besides, the one we needed to go to is the biggest one anyway…”

Maddie: “Anyways, the sailor gave us a map of this island. It’s a bit outdated, but we’ve marked on here where that wizard should be.”

Anne takes a picture of the map. “Great! Let’s get going!”, she says.

Anne tries to sit up, but winces in pain.

Sasha: “Woah, girl. You took a nasty fall. You’re in no condition to move right now.”

Maddie: “That’s right. Leave it to us. We’ll find that wizard.”

Anne: “All of you? But who will look after me?”

Marcy: “Don’t worry, there’s a clinic in town, too. We’ll help you get there, and they can fix you right up!”

Sasha and Marcy help Anne get up, and they help her walk outside. There, they see the sailor with a bunch of tools and metal plates.

Anne: “Oh, hey dude. Too busy trying to fix the ship to see if I was OK?”

“Andrias told me I needed to get you four here. He never specified that you needed to get here safely.”

Anne groans and rolls her eyes.

"But, for what it’s worth…I am glad to see you are unharmed. While it is my dream to die at sea, that was the first time I ever went sailing. I didn’t want it to be my last, but you saved us. The least I could do for you is fix my ol’ girl, so I can get you off this island when the time comes.”

Anne: “Wow. I was…not expecting that. I don’t know what to say…”

“No need for words. I wish you a quick recovery, Anna-banana, and good luck to you three on your quest.”

Sasha, Marcy, Maddie, and Anne nod. They turn and head towards the clinic.

Marcy, Anne, Sasha, and Maddie get to the clinic. They open the door to see the waiting room is completely empty. There is no one at the front desk.

Sasha: “Hey, looks like there’s no wait. They should get you checked in quickly.”

Marcy and Sasha help Anne down into one of the chairs.

Anne: “Ah, thanks, you two. I’m sorry I can’t really help you. But, I guess I’d just slow you down anyway...”

Maddie: “Hey, friends look out for each other. Just take it easy, OK?”

Anne nods. Sasha, Marcy, and Maddie leave the clinic. 

Marcy, Maddie, and Sasha are walking through the forest at the edge of town.

Marcy: “OK, according to this map, Muddy should be around here somewhere…”

Sasha: “Hey, look over there!”

Sasha points to a hut in the distance. The three of them walk towards it. They notice there’s a patch with crops growing in it.

Maddie: “I guess that explains why he doesn’t need to go into town. He just grows his own food.”

Sasha: “But…we’re in a forest. And this doesn’t look well-protected. How does he keep it safe from wild animals?”

Suddenly, a giant rabbit comes out of nowhere. The three girls let out a scream, but the rabbit just tries to swipe at the carrots growing in the garden. Once its paw gets within a few feet of it, it appears to be hit with a light electrical shock. The rabbit lets out a roar, and runs away.

Marcy: “...oh, right. Rabbits are herbivores. They wouldn’t try to eat us, anyway...”

Sasha: “But what just happened? That rabbit didn’t even touch the vegetables and it got electrocuted...”

“A good question, my dear friend!”, a voice to the side of them says.

The girls turn around to see a young, adult axolotl. He’s wearing an orange robe and is holding a staff made of a mystical-looking wood.

Marcy: “Oh! You must be Muddy!”

The wizard puzzledly looks at her before chuckling. “Oh no, you must be thinking of my father”, he says.

Sasha: “What? Wasn’t the first of your line named Muddy?”

The axolotl nods.

Sasha: “And his son was named Muddy…”

The axolotl nods again.

Sasha: “So…following that same logic…”

The axolotl chuckles. “Yeah, I can see why you would think that. But my mother was the first to break that tradition. My father’s name was Muddy, but mine is Jim. Nice to meet you”, he says.

“Yeah, it's a pleasure to meet you, too...", Maddie says, before pointing to the crops. "Now tell me about how this forcefield works!”

Jim chuckles. “Eager to learn, are we? Very well. I set up a spell around my crops because of the wildlife here. Anything that gets too close to it gets an…unpleasant surprise. But the cool thing about it is this…”, he says.

Jim walks over to his mini farm, grabs a grape, and pops it into his mouth.

Jim: “As you can see, I’ve made it such that it will shock anyone except me. That way, I don’t have to take down and reapply the forcefield every time.”

“That’s so cool! Oh, by the way...", Maddie says, before holding out her hand. "...my name’s Maddie. I’m training to be a master witch.”

Jim: “Maddie, huh? That’s a nice name. And who are your…friends here?”

Maddie: “Oh, that one’s Sasha. And this here is Marcy.”

Jim: “Interesting. I’ve never seen something like them before…”

Marcy: “Oh, that’s because we’re from another world.”

Jim: “Ah, that makes sense.”

Sasha: “You don’t sound too surprised to hear that.”

Jim chuckles. “When you have a family like mine, it’s difficult to be flabbergasted by things. In any case, what brings you here?”, he asks.

Maddie: “Seeing what you’re capable of, I want to learn magic from you, but…I’m trying to help my friends here.”

Jim: “What seems to be the problem?”

Sasha: “Long story short, some guy cast a memory wiping smell. So now nobody in Amphibia remembers us, besides Maddie here.”

Jim: “Did you cast a low level protection spell on yourself, Maddie?”

Maddie: “Was it that obvious?”

Jim chuckles. “Memory wiping spells are quite powerful. For you to remember them, I was certain you must have. That’s a good practice for magicians to follow”, he says.

Maddie: “Thanks. Anyways, can you make us a rememb-orb so we can restore people’s memories?”

Jim: “Of course. But first, I must test you. Not too far from here, there’s a cave that has a set of challenges that only the most skilled of magicians can pass."

Maddie: “If it’s for magicians, does that mean I’m the only one who can enter?”

Jim: “No, you can bring anyone you wish.”

Maddie: “Sasha, Marcy, if it isn’t too much of an inconvenience…”

Sasha: “Dude, this is our mission. You offered to help us. Of course we’re going with you!”

Marcy: “That’s right!”

Maddie smiles. 

Jim: “All right then, follow me.”

Anne is still sitting in the clinic. She checks her phone.

“It has been almost 30 minutes. There’s not even anyone else. Why are they taking so long?”

The axolotl receptionist comes out and sits at her desk. Anne manages to get up, but it takes a lot of effort. She walks over to the counter.

“I don’t mean to be rude, but where have you been?”

“Didn’t you see this?", the receptionist says, pointing to a sign that says 'We are out to lunch. Do not have a medical emergency until we return."

“Oh.”

“Anyways, what can I help you with?”

Anne holds up her arms. “Uh, do you not see all these bruises?”

"My, you certainly are cranky today. But sure, we can have someone see you right now.”

The receptionist pushes a button. An axolotl doctor comes out of the door with a wheelchair.

“Miss, please sit.”

Anne gets in the wheelchair and the doctor pushes her to a room labeled “Examination Room A”.

“Let’s see, you have quite a few bruises on you…do you mind explaining what happened?”

“Oh, I was on a boat and a giant kraken attacked us, but I poured lemonade in its eye so that we could safely get away from it. But, uh, I kinda fell down a bunch of stairs...”

“Sounds like you might have some internal damage as well. Let me just get the X-Ray…”

The doctor opens his cabinet and pulls out a portable X-Ray. He uses it to look at Anne’s bones.

“Yeah, it’s just as I thought. You have several fractures as well. But don’t worry! I have something to remedy both those and your fractures.”

“You…you do?”

“Yep! Us axolotls have regenerative abilities, so we were able to create this lotion that can restore just about any injury.”

“That’s amazing! What’s it made of?”

“It’s…better you don’t know.”

Anne shudders. The doctor puts his fingers in the lotion, before applying it to her arms.

“Let’s see, let me just dab a little here, and a little here…how are you feeling?”

“I…feel better, I guess.”

“Glad to hear it! This stuff isn’t magic, so you shouldn’t be back to 100% right away. But give it a few days, and you should be A-OK! And you don’t even need to reapply it.”

Anne tries to get up. Her legs are a little wobbly, but she otherwise has no difficulty doing so.

“Well, thanks, doc...”

“Anytime. Did you want a report of your visit today?”

“I’m good. I have to meet up with my friends.”

“Well, enjoy the rest of your day!”

Anne walks out of the examination room. She goes up to the counter and pulls out her wallet, only to remember she doesn’t have any money. Her eyes go wide. 

“Oh no…”

The receptionist looks up from her magazine. “Is there a problem?”, she asks.

“I just realized I didn’t have any money! I can’t pay for my expenses…I can just…maybe work off what I owe?”

“What are you talking about? The healthcare here is free.”

“It’s free?!"

“Well, technically speaking, it isn’t free. Nothing ever is. We just charge high taxes for people here, and that money covers the cost of visits here. People do pay for healthcare here, it’s just not direct.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Anyways, have a lovely day!”

The axolotl goes back to reading her magazine. Anne walks outside the clinic and pulls out her phone.

“Let’s see, according to that map, the girls should be-”

Anne knocks into someone. 

“Oh my frog, sir! I’m so sorry!”

Anne goes to help the frog up, only to realize it's someone she knows.

“You…you…”

The frog looks up at her. “Well, it’s a small world, isn’t it?”, Frogdini says.

Frogdini gets up and dusts himself off. “It’s been a while, Anne. I’m surprised you didn’t just up and leave Amphibia. But I guess you’re the type of person to never quit, huh?”, he says.

Anne picks up Frogdini by the collar. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t just sock you right here!”, she says.

“It won’t bring back your friends’ memories. Besides, if I were you, I’d take a look around..you’re causing a bit of a scene.”

Anne looks around, and sees that several axolotls are staring at her. She puts down Frogdini. 

“Honestly, for you to have the audacity to not only knock me down, but also to threaten me…”

Anne grits her teeth. “I’m sorry, sir. I don’t know what came over me”, she says.

“That’s quite all right. I’ll be leaving now.”

Frogdini turns and heads towards the forest. Anne starts following him. This goes on for several minutes.

“I’m not gonna stop following you unless you talk to me, you know.”

“And why would I talk to the likes of you? I hate you.”

“Because I know about you…Clarence.”

Clarence stops in his tracks, shortly before Anne does as well.

“And while I don’t know the full story, I do have good reason you think I’m the cause for Daniel leaving…which is sad, considering he seemed like a kind kid…”

“I don’t think, I know...", Clarence says, before turning around. "...and don’t you dare speak his name!”

“Look, maybe my first apology wasn’t sincere, because I didn’t really know anything about what I had done. But…I can sympathize with you. I know how difficult it is to lose someone close to you…”

“I’m sure you do. But tell me, the people you’ve lost in your life…did they ever leave because of you?”

“N-no…but D-I mean your son didn’t leave because of you. You just said you knew it was because of me.”

“You had a big part in him running away. But so did I.”

“What…what happened?”

Clarence sighs. “You’re not gonna stop bugging me until I tell you, are you?”, he says.

“Uh…”

“Fine, you’re right. Daniel was a nice kid. I taught him to be. At his request, actually.”

“Your son…asked you to teach him to be nice?"

“Not exactly. But there was a title he really wanted. And, being the good father I was, I wanted to make sure he got it, and in order to reach his goal, he had to be kind. I roleplayed with him, acting like the biggest bully you’d ever seen. At first, it was difficult for him to just…ignore me. Even if it was just pretend. I even felt bad about doing it, even if it was for a good cause. But after enough time, he became instinctually genial. He didn’t even have to think about it. I told him he was a shoo in for…Frog of the Year.”

Anne gasps.

“Now you get it, huh? Here’s me, an only parent faking being mean to his son just so he can get what he wants, and both of us hating every minute of it. And then, out of nowhere, comes this human, who took everything Daniel had worked for away from him in one fell swoop. He was beyond distraught that night. He accused me of lying to him. And that night, he ran away from home...", Clarence says, before a tear falls down his cheek. "...and so, I went looking for him…but I didn’t find him. I thought something must have eaten him. I lost my only reason to live. I wanted to get back at you…but I figured I’d get over it. I knew you were going to go back home. Even after you and your friends became globally famous, I still managed to contain my feelings of rage towards you. But…I just couldn’t when you came back. And let me be clear: I don’t want any apology from you. Nothing you say will bring back Daniel. I understand that me wiping everyone’s memories of you won’t bring him back, either. But…I have to do this. For you to have lived such a good life until this point, while people you don’t even know around you suffer because of you…it’s not fair!"

“Clarence...do you really think this is what your son would have wanted? You taught him to be nice to people no matter what. And here you are, not doing that…”

“I could easily say the same thing about you. Have you always been unconditionally kind to me? You threatened to hurt me back in town. And yet you were Frog of the Year, and Daniel wasn’t. You don’t deserve that title!"

“I…I agree with you. Maybe he could have won after I left…”

“Except he couldn’t. Because he’s dead…", Clarence says, before huffing. "...and here you are, trying to undo my work. But I'm not gonna let that happen, you stubborn brat...which is why I'm here."

“Huh?”

“Don’t you find it kinda odd that I just so happened to be in the same location as you? Especially a place like this?”

“What…what are you saying?”

“My goal was to get you to leave Amphibia for good. Clearly, making everyone forget about you wasn’t enough. But I knew you might find your way here. What I’m going to do…if this won’t make you leave, nothing will.”

Clarence pulls out a wand from his coat pocket and casts a force spell to push Anne into a tree. She then falls facefirst into the dirt, as Clarence runs away. 

“It hurts to move. But…I have to help my girls…there’s no telling what Clarence will do!”

Anne’s musters every bit of strength she has to get up, and start walking.

Sasha, Marcy, Maddie, and Jim walk into the cave. The first room is large but empty.

Jim: “These challenges will test you on your knowledge and application of the three lessons that any good magician must have learned. Just walk through the door at the end of this room, and you’ll find your first challenge!”

Marcy and Sasha begin walking forward. Maddie stays still, and narrows her eyes. Then they go wide. 

Maddie: “GUYS, STOP!”

Marcy and Sasha stop in their tracks.

Sasha: “Wh-what’s wrong?!”

Maddie: “One of the first things I was taught is that a magician should always trust their gut. And something feels…off about this room…”

Maddie picks up a rock, and throws it across the room. It seems to stop midair.

Sasha: “That rock just…stopped?”

Marcy: “There must be invisible walls!”

Jim: “You’ve figured it out!”

Sasha: “Wait, so…this is just an invisible maze? That doesn’t seem too bad…”

Jim: “Oh, it’s more than just an invisible maze. Should you make contact with any of the walls, you will disintegrate.”

Marcy and Sasha gulp.

Maddie walks up to and stands beside Sasha and Marcy. “Don’t worry, you two! The walls have a magical aura around them. I can tell where they are…kinda…”, she says

Sasha: “Kinda? What sort of guarantee is that?”

Marcy: “Sash, if it wasn’t for Maddie, we’d be dust right now. Let’s just trust her ability to navigate us through the maze, OK?”

Sasha starts to sweat a bit. She looks at Maddie, then nods.

Maddie: “Sasha, grab my hand, and Marcy, grab her other. I’ll lead us across…”

The three link hands, and start to move slowly throughout the maze. After a few minutes, they get to the door, and unlink their hands. 

Sasha: “Maddie, you did it!”

Jim: “Congratulations, you three!”

The three girls jump in surprise, as Jim has seemingly appeared next to them.

Marcy: “How did you get here so quickly? I was certain nobody was following us…”

Jim chuckles. “A good magician never reveals his tricks. Onward to the second challenge!”, he says.

The four of them enter the next room. There is a set of five doors that look identical.

Maddie: “What’s this challenge, then?”

Jim: “This is a test of luck, you might say. Four of those doorknobs have been laced with quite a virulent venom. It’ll permeate through your skin and kill you in a matter of seconds.”

Sasha: “Wha…but there’s not even enough of us to try every room. Isn’t it possible that none of us can get through this room?”

Jim: “Not quite. All of you will have to try the same door.”

Two additional two knobs appear on each of the doors.

Jim: “The venom won’t activate unless all of the knobs are being touched by a different person.”

Maddie: “So we either all make it through…or none of us do…”

Marcy: “Hey, Maddie, you seemed to know the lesson that got us through the first room. Can you think of something that might apply here?”

“Well, one thing we’re taught is that a good magician should always be observant.”

Jim: “Correct! Now then, let me give you a hint. Those doors in front of you, they all look the same…but is that really the case?”

Marcy: “It’s like a spot the difference type game! I loved those as a kid!”

Marcy examines each of the doors thoroughly. After a few minutes, she points to one.

Marcy: “It’s this one. It’s gotta be.”

Marcy puts her right hand on one of the knobs.

Sasha: “Are you sure, Mar-mar? I mean, if you’re wrong…”

Maddie: “Hey, her guess is as good as mine.”

Maddie walks up and puts her right hand on the second knob. Sasha sighs.

Sasha: “All right, you have me convinced.”

Sasha walks up, and hesitates before putting her hand on the third knob. 

Sasha: “Are we…safe?”

Maddie: “That does appear to be the case. Let’s just turn the knobs.”

The three of them open the door. Somehow, Jim is already on the other side.

Jim: “Congratulations, you three! You’ve passed the second challenge. Now, for the last!”

The four of them walk into the third room.

Sasha: “Maddie, that last lesson. What was it?”

Maddie: “Uh, a magician shouldn’t always rely on their magic.”

Jim: “Correct! A magician is nothing if they’re made useless without their magic. And that’s the test of this room!”

A pile of runes in the center of the room congregate to form a monster.

Jim: “Don’t try using any magic on that fella, Maddie. It’s completely immune! As long as you’re not within this circle, though, it won’t attack you.”

Marcy: “I’ve never needed magic to fight before. And today will be no exception!”

Marcy charges forward and fires her crossbow at the monster. It’s not even phased when it hits.

Marcy: “Oops.”

The monster swings its giant arm at Marcy. She manages to avoid it by throwing herself onto the ground. It prepares to take another swipe at her, but Maddie starts throwing rocks at it to grab its attention. The monster twirls its arms in a sweeping motion, which sends Maddie and Marcy flying against the wall. The impact knocks Maddie out, and leaves Marcy dazed.

Sasha: “No!”

Jim: “Ah, do not worry. This monster doesn’t like to attack people who are down. I’m afraid it’s only interested in harming you.”

Sasha pulls out her sword, as her eyes turn pink.

Sasha: “You’re gonna pay for hurting my friends!”

Sasha runs towards the monster, and dodges its blows with ease. She can’t land any hits on it.

Sasha: “That…that all you got?”

Marcy comes to and sees Sasha fighting the monster.

“Ugh, that thing hit me so hard I can barely move. I can’t even talk. But there has to be something I do, otherwise, Sasha is just gonna end up like the rest of us…”

Marcy notices something about the monster. The punches it throws seem to be rhythmic. It also seems to be using the same attack pattern.

“Hey, that perfectly matches the tempo of…!”

Marcy pulls out her phone and starts playing “Heartstomper”. The monster and Sasha quit fighting for a moment. 

Sasha: “Marcy, what are you doing?”

Marcy points to the monster. The monster then tries to hit Sasha, then she notices something before smiling.

Sasha: “Marbles, you’re a genius!”

Sasha dodges another of the monster’s punches, in rhythm with the song. She sees an opening at the monster’s side, and takes full advantage of it. It tries to use its sweeping attack from before, just in time as the beat drops, which she dodges by jumping. She then stabs the monster in the chest, causing it to stagger back a bit. She then takes one final swing at the monster’s head as the guitar solo stops. The monster behind her turns into pebbles.

Sasha: “Looks like your heart got stomped!”

Jim: “Bravo! Bravo!”

Sasha goes up to Marcy and picks her up.

Sasha: “Are you all right?”

Marcy nods. Jim approaches.

Jim: “Oh, this won’t do. Let me heal you.”

Jim uses his staff to cast a pink cloud over Marcy.

Marcy: “Ah, I can speak again! And I can stand, too!”

Jim does the same for Maddie. Maddie comes to, and approaches Marcy and Sasha.

Maddie: “Uh, what happened?”

Sasha: “Oh, nothing. Just turned that monster into gravel.”

Maddie: “Wow, my respect for you just skyrocketed!”

Sasha chuckles. “Yeah…but, uh…I wouldn’t have even gotten this far if it weren’t for you two. You two were pretty cool back there. So you two have earned my respect as well”, she says.

Maddie: “You…you respect me? You really mean that?”

Sasha: “Yeah, girl! You’re the bomb!”

Maddie smiles.

Jim: “Well! I think this entire challenge has proved you’ve learned the secret fourth lesson…”

Maddie: “Huh? What’s that?”

Jim: “To believe in one another. You believed in Maddie’s ability to get you across the maze, Marcy's ability to choose the correct door, and Sasha's ability to defeat that monster. Truth is, nobody makes it in this world on their own. But when people work together…there’s no limit to what we can accomplish. Don’t forget that.”

The girls nod. 

Jim: “Now then, let us proceed to the final room!”

The four of them walk through the door to the last room. It is small and empty.

Jim: “Ah, now this brings back memories…I remember when I passed this same challenge several years ago. It was then I received this new staff from my father.”

Sasha: “I mean, that’s just a branch, right?”

Jim: “Kinda. But it is able to cast spells that regular staffs are not.”

Marcy: “Like creating a Rememb-orb?”

Jim: “Among other things, yes.”

Maddie: “Do you mind making one now?”

Jim: “Yes, you have proven you will not misuse it.”

Sasha: “Misuse…?”

Jim taps his staff to the ground, and, at the top, a crystal ball starts to take shape. It then solidifies.

Jim: “It is made.”

Jim is then knocked out by an unseen assailant. He drops his staff and the Rememb-orb, which he catches before they hit the floor. 

Clarence: “You girls are certainly obstinate."

Sasha: “You!”

Maddie: “Who…who is that?”

Marcy: “That’s Clarence! The guy who took away everyone’s memories!”

Maddie: “What…what are you doing here?!”

Clarence: “Isn’t it obvious? This artifact poses a threat to my goal of getting you to leave. On the other hand, if I use it, it will significantly help me…”

Sasha: “That thing only brings back memories. How could you possibly use it to your benefit?”

Clarence looks at Maddie. He recognizes her.

Clarence: “You…I know you. You’re that magic girl, who works at the bakery.”

Maddie: “The name’s Maddie. I’d say it’s a pleasure to meet you, but it isn’t.”

Clarence: “And you lot are all friends then?”

The girls nod.

Clarence: “And friends, they don’t keep secrets from each other, do they?”

Marcy and Sasha look at each other while frowning.

Sasha: “No…friends sometimes keep secrets from each other…”

Marcy: “And even if it’s for a good reason, it’s not right. But real friends understand why they keep secrets from each other.”

Clarence: “Well then. Let’s put that theory to the test, shall we?  I can tell you now that while Rememb-orbs can be used to restore people’s memories, they can also be used to…corrupt them.”

Marcy and Sasha gasp.

Clarence: “That’s right. I failed in my first attempt to get you to leave Amphibia. But this time, I won’t just make everyone a stranger to you. I’ll give them memories that will make people abhor you. In other words, it won’t just be me that will want you gone. It’ll be everyone else, too!"

Marcy: “You…you can’t do that!”

“I can, and I will...", Clarence says, before smirking and looking at Maddie while holding up the orb. "...but you already knew that this was capable of doing so, didn’t you, Maddie?”

Maddie’s eyes go wide.

Sasha: “That…that can’t be…”

Clarence: “I know you two have lied to your friend Anne in the past. But she was able to forgive you, even after what you made her go through. Now it’s time for you to do the same for Maddie. Of course, whether you do so is entirely up to you.”

Maddie has tears forming in her eyes.

Clarence: “Now, Maddie. You should know I have no quarrel with you. I just want them gone. But rest assured, if you continue assisting them, I won’t be so kind to you the next time we meet. Besides, considering you just shattered what little trust you had with them, I think it’s best that you just cut your losses.”

Clarence hears fast footsteps behind him. He turns around and sees Anne.

Clarence: “Well, this was a nice talk. But I’m afraid I have to get going. Oh, but just so you can’t reverse this…”

Clarence takes the staff and snaps it against his knee.

Sasha, Marcy, & Maddie: “No!”

Clarence uses his wand to teleport. Anne tries to tackle him, but barely misses him and lands on the ground. She groans.

Anne: “What were you guys doing?! How could you just let him get aw-”

Anne looks up from the ground to see Sasha with her hands balled into fists. Marcy is holding her face in her hands. Maddie is looking at the ground.

Anne: “What…what’s going on here…?”

Sasha: “I can’t believe you, Maddie. This whole time, I thought you were helping us.”

Maddie: “I…I was. That was my only intention…”

“But you didn’t think to mention that maybe something like this could happen? You’ve just made things go from bad to worse…", Sasha says, before turning her back to Maddie. "...I don’t even want to look at you right now. All the respect I had for you just vanished.”

Maddie shakes her head before runing out the cave. 

Anne: “Maddie, wait!”

Marcy: “Sash, that was harsh…”

Sasha: “Oh, come on, Marcy! All of this could have been avoided if she had just been honest with us!”

Marcy: “But-”

Sasha: “And yeah, I know that sounds hypocritical coming from me. But…I hate seeing people who remind me of who I used to be.”

Jim comes to.

Anne: “Guys, what happened?”

Jim: “This is something I, too, would like to know. But this isn’t the place to chat. Let’s just go back to my hut.”

Chapter Text

Anne, Sasha, Marcy, and Jim are sitting inside the hut. 

Anne: “...so that’s what he meant. He wants to make everyone remember us as awful people.”

Marcy and Sasha nod. 

Anne: “And Maddie knew this was a possibility, and didn’t tell us.”

Marcy and Sasha nod once more. Anne sighs.

Sasha: “Anne, how did you do it?”

Anne: “What?”

Sasha: “When we were on the Toad Tower. I betrayed you. I tried hurting Sprig. I almost got Hop Pop killed. But you…you still leapt to my rescue without even thinking about it.”

Anne sighs. “Look, I haven’t told anyone this, but…there’s a reason I try to be kind to everyone I meet. When I was young, I had an uncle we tried to visit every weekend. He was a selfless person. He helped everyone out, in whatever way he could…whenever he could. He made everyone around him smile. I wanted to be like him when I grew up. But there was one weekend, where my uncle wasn’t at home. My aunt just told me he was on a journey, to spread love and kindness to others in the world. It wasn’t until I was older that I found out he was sick”, she says.

Marcy puts her right hand over her mouth. Sasha closes her eyes and faces down.

Anne starts to cry. “I didn’t understand why nobody told me. If I had known he only had a few years left in him, I would have cherished my time with him more. But…my aunt told me why. He knew his time on Earth was limited. And so he lived by this motto, that it’s not how long your life is that matters. It’s what you do that counts. And he just wanted to make the world a better place for as long as he could”, she says. 

Anne wipes her tears. “And so, that’s why I try to be unconditionally nice to people. Sure, it’s…difficult at times. But you never really know what a person is dealing with. Even small gestures remind people the world isn’t such a cruel place. You guys did some bad things. But you had good reasons, so you’re not bad people. That’s why I didn’t even have to think.”

Sasha starts to cry and stands up. “I…have to go. I have to find Maddie and apologize to her”, she says.

Sasha walks out the front door, and starts to run.

Maddie is in the alcove of a rock wall. Sasha sneaks up behind her and observes her using a stick to sketch Marcy and Sasha’s face in the dirt. Sasha jumps down. Maddie notices her, but then looks back at her art.

“Hey, that’s a pretty good drawing of us. You ever think of being an artist?”

Maddie continues to draw. “What do you want?”

Sasha sighs. “Look, what I said back there wasn’t right.”

“No, I think you hit the nail on the head. You three naturally came to trust me quickly because I was one of the only people who could help you. And I let you down.”

"Yeah, but...I can't say I haven't done the same.”

“That’s not the same. You three are friends. Besides, I’m sure you had a valid reason. What reason do I have for not telling you?”

“...hey, besides us three, do you have...any other friends?”, she asks.

"Huh? No…I mean I guess I’m friends with my sisters, but I don’t think that counts. Sprig and Ivy are also kinda my friends, but they tend to hang out with each other, and they really only talk to me if they need a favor. You three were kinda my first real friends, but ya know, you were gone for five years.”

“Then it just sounds like you have difficulty talking with people. If you don’t have friends, it’s difficult to know how to act around others. And besides, I’m sure people would like the real you if they just gave you a chance. I know because I did.”

“I don’t know, I’ve been told I creep people out. But that’s just kinda the way I am.”

“Well, that kinda makes you like a…uh…pineapple!”

Maddie looks at Sasha with a confused look.

“Uh, I mean…the first person to discover the pineapple probably didn’t think it was meant to be eaten because of all the spikes, right? But they cracked it open and found it to be delicious. In a similar way, people might look at you and think you’re eerie, but if they got to know you, they’d find you were cool.”

“Uh…”

Sasha: “Look, it’s not the best analogy, but you get what I’m saying, right?”

Maddie: “Yeah, I guess…but…”

Sasha: “Look, I’ve lied to Anne before…more than once. I hated myself for it, even after she forgave me. So I tried to make things right. You may have messed up, but I know your heart’s in the right place. I’m giving you another chance, in the same way that Anne did for me.”

Sasha stands up, and holds her hand out to Maddie. Maddie grabs her hand, and Sasha helps her up. Maddie smiles.

Maddie: “Thanks, Sasha.”

Maddie and Sasha head back to the hut.

Jim is outside the hut, casting some spell over it. Sasha and Maddie run up, and he notices them.

Jim: “Ah! Good to see you two back. I just finished applying a forcefield to my abode.”

Sasha: “Forcefield? What for?”

Jim: “That Clarence fella is going to use that Rememb-orb soon. You will be safe here.”

Sasha: “Can’t you just…”

Anne opens the door. “Sasha, Maddie. Get in here. Now”, she says.

Sasha and Maddie do as instructed. Anne then closes the door behind them.

Sasha: “Uh, so what’s the plan?”

Anne: “Don’t really have one.”

Sasha: “Huh? But…”

Anne: “Look, while you guys were patching things up, Jim explained to us what would happen. Once Clarence casts that spell, everyone will think we did terrible things to them. They’ll come after us, and because his staff was broken, he can’t make another Rememb-orb. And because that staff was sorta “one-of-a-kind”, he can’t just go and get a new one. And while he could get one for Maddie, he wouldn’t have enough time to teach her how to make one.”

Marcy: “She’s unfortunately right. Our biggest concern isn’t restoring everyone’s memories at this point. Right now, it’s just making sure we get away from-”

Outside, there is a large mob with pitchforks approaching the hut.

Marcy: “-them.”

Jim: “Oh dear, that spell was cast sooner than I expected. You two need to get going. Now. There’s a back door you can sneak out of.”

Sasha: “But what about-”

Jim: “I’ll be fine. They just want you. Besides, just because I don’t have my staff, doesn’t mean I can’t use my first wand. Just get out of here!”

The four girls nod. They run out the back exit, with nobody noticing them. One of the members of the mob tries to grab a potato, but he gets shocked by the forcefield. The rest of them head towards the hut and bust down the door. They see it is completely empty. They scratch their heads, and leave.

Jim chuckles. “Invisibility potion. Works every time”, he says.

Sasha, Maddie, Marcy, and Anne run into town, but hide in a nearby bush. They see the town is overridden with people holding signs with insulting messages about them about Anne, Marcy, and Sasha.

Anne: “OK, the only way off this island is the ship.”

Sasha: “Yeah, but look…”

They see the sailor that ported them across the sea there is standing guard by his ship.

Marcy: “That’s actually pretty smart. He knows we can’t get off the island any other way.”

Anne: “Yeah, but how do we get on it, then?”

Maddie: “I’ll provide a distraction. On my cue, you three run towards the ship. Got it?”

Marcy, Anne, and Sasha nod. Maddie walks out of the bushes, and people notice her.

Maddie: “Hey everyone! You guys like magic?”

Random axolotl: “Ooh! Can we use it to hurt people? Because I really wanna do that to Anne, Sasha, and Marcy!”

Maddie: “Uh, yeah! Of course! I hate Sasha, Marcy, and Anne!”

The crowd cheers.

Maddie: “Here’s one of my favorites!”

Maddie grabs two smoke bombs from her bag. She throws them into the air. When they land, everyone’s vision is obscured. Anne, Sasha, and Marcy make a break for the harbor. Sasha pushes the sailor into the water.

Marcy: “Sash!”

Sasha: “Dude, he’s a newt. He won’t drown. Now let’s go!”

Sasha, Anne, and Marcy get onto the ship. Then Anne makes a realization.

Anne: “Wait, how are we supposed to sail this thing without the sailor?”

Marcy: “The sailor taught you to sail, didnt you?”

Anne: “For like a few minutes.”

Sasha: “Anne, we have to get away. Just embrace your inner sailor, and get this ship on the sea!”

Anne nods. Maddie boards the ship.

Maddie: “Let’s move!”

Anne turns the ship towards the sea, but it stops moving.

Marcy: “Oh no! The anchor!”

Sasha notices the anchor is still at the port. She grabs the chain and tries to lift it out of the water.

Marcy: “Sash! There’s a lever you can pull!”

Sasha: “That’ll take too long! Look!”

Another angry mob is approaching the ship. They’re swimming in the water and trying to get on board. Maddie casts some wind spells to blow some away. 

Maddie: “I can’t hold them off forever! There’s too many of them!”

Sasha: “Just sit tight!”

Marcy: “Sasha, you can’t lift an anchor!”

Sasha smirks. “Wanna bet?”, she says.

Sasha strains herself to pull the anchor out of the water, as her eyes turn pink. She manages to pull it up and put it on board. She lays on the ground out of exhaustion. With the ship no longer encumbered by the anchor, it moves full speed ahead, leaving the mob behind.

The four girls are sailing on the sea. Maddie is twiddling her thumbs, Sasha is sitting on a recliner, Marcy is looking at a map, and Anne is steering.

Anne: “So, where are we headed exactly?”

Marcy: “Hadn’t really thought of that. We just have to stay away from civilization. I think the best place to dock would be…here.”

Marcy points to a spot on the map.

Anne: “Why there?”

Marcy: “It’s far from society, but there isn’t anything dangerous that lives around there. Plus, there’s a forest, so it’ll be easier to hide.”

Anne sighs. “Yeah, hiding. How long are we supposed to do that for?”, she says.

Marcy: “Oh, come on, Anna-banana. We’ll figure out something. We always do.”

Anne steers the ship onto the beach and docks it there. The four of them get off. Marcy leads them to the forest she mentioned earlier. After walking for several hours, they decide to call it a night.

Sasha, Marcy, Anne, and Maddie are sitting around a campfire.

Marcy: “Uh, so I was thinking tomorrow, we could go into Wartwood. Then we can just try to convince people we’re not bad by telling them all the good things we did. And then we can do that for Newtopia-”

Anne: “Stop.”

Marcy: “Huh?”

Anne: “Marcy, you are too hopeful. At this point, we just need to get the Calamity Box recharged, go home, and never come back.”

Marcy: “But I said we’d figure out something…”

Anne: “There’s nothing to figure out here! Clarence got what he wanted. Or, he got what he thinks he wants. I don’t want to live as a hermit here. It sucks that everyone will think of us the way they do, but there’s nothing else we can do. We just…need to go home. We have friends and family there.”

Sasha: “Anne, where is this coming from? You’re not the type to give up so easily…”

Anne: “Oh, come on. You saw what those people were saying about us, and what they wanted to do. And it’s not just them. Everyone will be like that. All the people we once called friends are just going to want to get rid of us. It’s better for everyone if we just go home.”

Sasha: “Anne, you’ve conquered every challenge you’ve come across. You mean a lot to everyone here, even if they don’t remember you that way. If you leave, I don’t think you’ll be happy, because…you will wonder why you didn’t try.”

Anne: “But we could get killed!”

Marcy: “It’s like your uncle said, Anne. It doesn’t matter how long you live, it’s what you do with your life that counts.”

Anne sighs. “You’re right. If I give up, that’s how it ends. And I’m not letting that happen. Not without putting up a fight”, she says. 

Sasha: “We’ll make them believe.”

Maddie: “And I’ll help you.”

Anne: “But-”

Maddie: “No. I did wrong by you three. This is my chance to make amends.”

Sasha, Anne, and Marcy nod. The four of them go to sleep.

Sasha, Marcy, Maddie, and Anne hide out in the bushes near Wartwood. They see that Clarence is in the middle of the town, next to the bulletin board, which has wanted posters for Anne, Sasha, and Marcy.

Marcy: “So, do we have an actual plan here?”

Maddie: “Yeah. You three just go up there and tell Clarence you’re not leaving. Make sure you stand your ground, and I’ll play my part when the time comes.”

Anne: “Sounds good. Let’s get this done!”

Sasha: “Guys, wait. Maddie, regardless of what happens, I just wanted to let you know, that despite all the hardships we’ve faced on this journey, and the disagreements we’ve had…I’m glad we got to know you better.”

Maddie smiles. “There will be more opportunities for us to learn about each other. I promise”, she says. 

Anne, Sasha, and Marcy nod and jump out of the bushes. They only walk for a few moments before Stumpy notices them.

Stumpy: “Anne, Sasha, and Marcy are here!”

The townsfolk stop what they’re doing to turn around. They catch sight of Anne, Marcy, and Sasha.

Mrs. Croaker: “Let’s get them before they can cause any more damage!”

The townsfolk start advancing with pitchforks towards Sasha, Marcy, and Anne.

Clarence: “My friends, please! There is no need to resort to violence…yet.”

The townsfolk stop.

Clarence: “Anne, have you finally come to your senses and realize there’s no point in you staying here?”

Anne continues staring at him.

Clarence: “Not much for conversation today? Suit yourself. You can either go home and never come back. And don’t worry about the stones, I got them recharged for you!”

Clarence waves his hand, and the Calamity Box appears on the fountain, with all three of the stones glowing with color. Anne, Sasha, and Marcy are a little surprised, but they don’t show it.

Clarence: “Or…you can stay here. But I don’t think you want that. Here, everyone hates you. But back at home, you have a loving family. So what will it be?”

Anne: “No.”

Clarence: “Still as persistent as ever. Whatever, you can’t say I didn’t give you a choice. Get them!”

Again, the townsfolk start advancing with pitchforks towards Sasha, Marcy, and Anne. Before they get too close, Maddie jumps out of the bushes and stands in front of them.

Maddie: “STOP!”

Clarence: “Y…you! I warned you!”

Maddie: “Yeah, you did. And I don’t care.”

Chef Flour: “Daughter, what are you doing? Why are you defending these villains?”

Maddie: “They’re not villains. They’re my friends!”

The townsfolk gasp.

Chef Flour: “How can you call them friends? After what they did to me? To your sisters? And especially to you?”

Maddie: “I know it doesn’t make any sense why I should be doing this. But the reason why is because…you’ve all had false memories planted in your minds by Clarence over there. Ones designed to make Anne, Marcy, and Sasha look evil.”

Clarence laughs. “So you claim I did something to their memories? Don’t you think it’s more likely that you’re delusional?”, he says.

Maddie: “Yeah, perhaps. But I am willing to give up a lot for what I believe in.”

Clarence: “What do you mean?”

Maddie: “These three have been some of the kindest people I’ve ever met, even when the rest of you have treated me poorly. Marcy was one of the first people who treated me like a person when we first met. Sasha helped train me in the Wartwood Resistance, and she saw my magic as a talent, not something to be afraid of. And Anne…well we wouldn’t be here right now if it wasn’t for her. I’m not going to stand by and watch this happen. So if you want to get them, you’ll have to go through me!”

The townsfolk gasp. Clarence chuckles.

Clarence: “Are you not even going to fight back?”

Maddie starts to tear up. “Even if we’re at a disagreement right now…I would never hurt any of you”, she says.

Clarence: “Well! It seems like we have a new target on our hands. This ultimately changes nothing. Get them!”

The townsfolk don’t move.

Clarence: “Uh…why aren’t you attacking them?”

Chef Flour scowls. “That’s my daughter! I’m not gonna hurt her. I’m not really sure why she’s acting this way, but family looks out for each other.”

Chef Flour goes over and stands by Maddie. Rosemary, Lavender, and Ginger stand next to them as well.

Chef Flour: “Are you oout f your mind? They don’t even have any proof!”

Marcy gasps as her eyes meet Wally's. “Wait, maybe we do, actually!”

Clarence: “What?”

Marcy: “Wally, in your accordion case, you should have a piece of paper. Do you mind taking it out and giving it to someone who can read?”

Wally: “Uh, sure.”

Wally does as instructed and hands the paper to Loggle. He then reads it out loud.

Loggle: “It says, ‘I vow to help you, Wally, on your journey to becoming a music star signed by...Marcy Wu’”.

Wally: “Oi! I don’t remember you saying anything like that to me…”

Sasha: “I have proof, too! Sylvia, in your notebook, you should have a quote that says ‘Sharing is caring’. Do you mind reading who said that?"

Sylvia pulls a notebook out of her satchel.

Sylvia: “It says you said this…but I don’t remember writing this down.”

Anne: “And I have proof as well! Toadie, on your list of people who can vote here. Whose name is at the bottom?”

Toadie pulls out a list from his briefcase. “It says...‘Anne Boonchuy’. It says I put down this note of why I would let you participate in local elections so I wouldn’t forget…but somehow…I did”, he says.

Felicia: “Maybe Maddie is telling the truth. Maybe Clarence was just trying to get us to hurt good people!”

The townsfolk have now turned to Clarence.

Clarence: “People, please! There’s a perfectly valid explanation for this!”

“So, you think it’s fine to have us hurt our friends?", Stumpy says, as he raises his pitchfork, along with the other townsfolk. "...if that’s the case, don’t take this personally!” 

Clarence has to back away from the townsfolk trying to stab him. He is nearing a wall.

Anne: “N-no…this isn’t what I wanted…”

The blue gem in the Calamity Box starts reacting to Anne’s feeling. It pours energy over her, and changes her into her Calamity Form. Her body then moves towards the mob before she even realizes what’s happening. Just as Clarence has nowhere left to run, and someone tries to deal a finishing blow to him, Anne blocks it with her sword. Everyone is in shock. 

Toadstool: “Anne! What in tarnation are you doing?”

Anne calms down. 

Anne: “Look, Clarence here has done some outright dreadful things to me. By all means, I should hate him. But…I can’t bring myself to…”

Loggle: “Uh…why not?”

Anne: “Because I caused his son to run away from home. Even if it wasn’t intentional, I am still responsible. He was angry at himself, and he just channeled that towards me. He may have some…wrongdoings to answer for, but he doesn’t deserve this. No one does.

The townsfolk lower their weapons.

Clarence: “Anne, please…”

Anne turns around.

Clarence: “I have no one left. The people of Wartwood hate me and I’ve done appalling things to you. I just…I wanna see my wife and kid again…”

“Dad?”, a meek voice calls out from the crowd.

Clarence: “...th-that…that voice. It can’t be…”

A green frog takes off his hat. Clarence sees him and his eyes go wide.

Clarence: “Daniel! You’re alive!”

Clarence runs and hugs him. “Daniel, I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have lied to you like that…” he says.

Daniel: “It’s fine, Dad. You didn’t lie to me. Honestly, it wasn’t until later that I realized that you should always be kind, even if people don’t take notice. I was so focused on getting attention that I didn’t really think about that.”

Clarence: “Wait a minute…you went missing five years ago. How is it that you’ve been here the whole time?”

Daniel: “I did leave for a few days. But…I realized the wilderness was dangerous, and I almost got eaten. So I came back, but…you weren’t here. But I figured you’d come back. And yesterday, you did. But…I saw you devastated at the loss of me. I didn’t really wanna say anything because…I realized I also left you alone. That was wrong of me, and…I’m sorry.”

A tear falls down Clarence's cheek. “Just you being here is enough to make that all OK…”

Toadie clears his throat as Clarence lets go of his son.

Clarence: “Ah, I apologize to all of you too. I’ll serve whatever punishment you have in mind.”

Toadie: “Life in prison seems the most appropriate, considering what you’ve done.”

Daniel: “I can at least visit my dad, right?”

Toadie: “Yes, you can.”

Clarence: “Before I go, I have one more thing to do.”

Clarence pulls out the Rememb-orb from his pocket and gives it to Maddie. “Here, this is rightfully yours. You passed that challenge, and I didn’t”, he says.

Maddie nods, as Buck Leatherleaf takes Clarence to jail. 

Maddie: “Anne, do you mind coming over here?”

Anne walks over to Maddie. 

Maddie: “Attention, everyone! In order for me to restore your memories, I…first have to make you forget about Anne, Marcy, and Sasha…”

Sasha: “What? Why?”

Maddie: “You can’t have conflicting memories. In other words, everything that’s happened these past several days…none of you will have any recollection of this. Which is why I’m asking you what you want to do.”

The townsfolk think for a moment. 

Toadie: “Well, from what it sounds like, you three were upstanding inhabitants of Amphibia. It’d be nice to have the good memories we had of you, rather than the fake ones.”

The townsfolk murmur in agreement. Maddie then pulls out her wand, and the town is enveloped in a white light.

Anne, Sasha, Marcy, and Maddie are sitting in Maddie’s room.

Marcy: “So, you used the Rememb-orb to just think that everyone lived their lives normally these past few days? And that everyone just thought we were out of town.”

Maddie nods.

Marcy: “And the memories that people had, they really took place?”

Maddie nods again.

Anne: “Magic is some powerful stuff, dude.”

Maddie chuckles. “Yeah, it certainly is. That’s why I like it so much.”

Anne: “So what are you going to do with the orb? I mean, it sounds like it’s gonna be the only one for a while…”

Maddie: “Hadn’t thought of that. I’ll just keep it to myself for the time being. I’ll figure out what to do with it later.”

Sasha: “Hey, Maddie?”

Maddie: “Yeah?”

Sasha: “Uh, thanks for having our backs back there.”

Maddie: “Well, that’s what friends do for each other, right?”

Sasha smiles. “Yeah, they sure do. Come on guys, bring it in!”, she says.

Sasha forces everyone into a group hug. Marcy, Anne, and Maddie smile.

Anne: “Eh, it’s getting late. I hope we can meet again soon.”

Maddie: “Yeah, me too. Don’t be a stranger.”

Anne, Marcy and Sasha leave the bakery.

Sasha: “Hey Anne?”

Anne: “Yeah?”

Sasha: “How come you were able to use your calamity powers, even though your stone had been recharged?”

Anne stops in her tracks. Then she remembers her meeting with Carly.

Anne: “I didn’t tell you guys this, but Valeriana is gone. Her successor is named Carly. She was the one to recharge the stone, but she did it much quicker than Valeriana. Then she told me her taking a long time might have been intentional on her part, but she didn’t specify why…”

Marcy: “Do you think Carly did this on purpose, too?”

Anne: “Maybe…but I don’t know why. I guess I can just ask her tomorrow…”

Marcy: “Yeah, because your birthday’s in a few weeks, isn’t it? And your parents wanted you back for that.”

Anne: “Yeah, I can’t miss that. I don’t want my parents worrying about me…”

Sasha: “Well, I gotta head back to Toad Tower. Grime has missed me. And you gotta get back to Newtopia, Mar-mar.”

Marcy: “Oh, yeah. There’s a snail taxi over there. We can get a ride together, I can just use the royal credit card to pay for the trip!”

Anne: “Well, see you around!”

Sasha and Marcy wave as they head towards the taxi. Anne heads back home.

Anne opens the door to her home. Hop Pop is drinking juice. He notices Anne and spits out his drink.

Hop Pop: “Anne! You’re back! Sprig, Polly, your big sister’s home!”

Sprig and Polly come running down the stairs and hug Anne. Hop Pop joins in. Anne starts to bawl.

Polly: “Aw, come on, you didn’t miss us that much, did you?”

Sprig: “So where did you go?”

Anne: “Oh, uh…we went to this place called the Axolotl Archipelago. Axolotls live there.”

Hop Pop: “That must be where Loggle’s from!”

Anne: “Yeah, I think you’re right. There was a blacksmith in town, and I know Loggle used to be one. Uh, anyways I’m kinda tired. I’m going to bed.”

Anne heads downstairs to her room and flops onto the bed. She falls asleep almost instantly.

Maddie is trying to sleep. She hears her father’s footsteps outside her door, and then his door closes. She then gets out of bed, picks up the Rememb-orb and grabs a shovel. She then jumps out the window. She digs a hole and buries the Rememb-orb.

“I’m sorry, you guys. This item is too valuable to get rid of. But it’s also too dangerous in the wrong hands. It’s better if only I know where it is.”

Chapter Text

Anne is sleeping in her bed when her alarm goes off. She groans.

“Gotta get ready…I have to go ask Carly about the Calamity Box…”

Anne shuts the alarm off her phone. She rolls out of bed, puts the Calamity Box in her backpack, and puts it on her back. She walks upstairs, and walks into the bathroom. She brushes her teeth and washes her face. She then walks outside to see Hop Pop sitting at the table drinking some coffee. He notices her.

Hop Pop: “Uh…good morning, Anne! You seemed tuckered out last night, wasn’t really expecting you to get up this early…”

Anne: “Oh, yeah…I had something to take care of today. Don’t you normally get up later?”

“I try to, but when you get this old, sometimes your body just wakes itself up, and you can’t get back to sleep no matter what you do", Hop Pop says, before narrowing his eyes. "You weren’t…looking to avoid me, were you?”

Anne sighs. “I mean, kinda…it’s not like I don’t wanna see you. But I figured that you guys might wanna spend the day with me if I got up at the same time as the rest of you. And it’s not like I don’t wanna hang out with you, I just have something to take care of today”, she says.

Hop Pop: “When will you be back?”

Anne: “I shouldn’t be gone long. When I come back, we can hang out.”

Hop Pop: “Sounds good. Want a cup of coffee before you go? I just made it.”

Anne yawns. “Yeah. I’m not the biggest fan of coffee, but I am still waking up…”, she says.

Hop Pop pours her a cup of coffee. She takes a sip and immediately spits it out.

Anne: “Why does this taste like…guacamole?”

Hop Pop: “Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention. I really liked the avocados I brought back with me, and so I paired it with my coffee! The kids never want to drink it, though. They just get energy drinks at the Grub n’ Go.”

Anne: “Uh, yeah. Maybe I’ll do that instead. See you later. Make sure you let Sprig and Polly know where I went.”

Hop Pop: “Can do!”

Anne walks out the front door. Sprig walks down from his room.

Hop Pop: “Wait...she never told me where she was going...”

Sprig: “Where who is going?”

Hop Pop: “Oh, Sprig! Good morning! Fancy a cup of coffee? I can make some without avocado!”

Sprig: “I’m good. Hey, where’s Anne?”

Hop Pop: “Oh, she just…uh….went to…uh…practice tennis with herself in the woods. She said she would be back later.”

Sprig: “Aw, I was kinda hoping we could just chill. Haven’t seen her in a few days…but I guess I can wait one more day. I guess I can go hang out with Ivy in the meantime…”

Sprig walks out the front door towards Felicia’s Tea Shoppe.

Anne is walking towards the Grub n’ Go. She passes the statue of herself and smiles. She walks inside the store and finds the “Beverage” section. She goes to grab the last can of Red Bullfrog when another hand tries to grab the same one.

Anne: “Oh, sorry. You can take it.”

“No, you were first”, the frog says.

Anne takes a closer look at the frog. He is green and wearing a hat that covers his face. She notices he’s a bit familiar. Then it clicks.

Anne: “Hey, your name wouldn’t happen to be Daniel, would it?”

His eyes go wide. He looks around, and sees that the rest of the store is empty, save for the cashier, who is sleeping.

Daniel: “Shush, keep it down. I don’t want anyone to know who I am.” 

Anne: “Oh, sorry…”

Daniel: “But how…how did you know my name?”

Anne: “Uh, I can’t really explain it in a way that would make sense. All I know is I took something from you five years ago. And…I just wanted to apologize for that.”

Daniel rubs his chin before smiling.

Daniel: “Oh, I know what you’re talking about. You must know I was trying to win Frog of the Year, right?”

Anne: “Yeah. And I kinda just came out of nowhere and stole that from you. You should know I didn’t vote for myself, and well…if I had known how hard you were working for it, I would have taken myself out of the running.”

Daniel chuckles. “You didn’t take anything from me. You won fair and square. And the fact that you think this way just proves you earned that title”, he says.

Anne: “Oh, thanks…but because you ran away, you weren’t able to win these past few years…”

Daniel: “You didn’t cause me to leave, though. That was my choice. You don’t have anything to apologize for.”

Anne: “True as that may be, I still feel bad…”

Daniel: “Look, when I came back after running away, I figured people would ask why I left. I didn’t really wanna deal with that, so I made a deal with Toadstool. He told me that he would keep my being back in Wartwood a secret, by giving me a fake name. That way, I could stay until my dad came back.”

Anne: “But…were you ever in the running for Frog of the Year?”

Daniel chuckles. “No, I wasn’t. I wanted to attract as little attention to myself as possible. But then I realized the title didn’t really matter to me. I was so focused on winning that I completely missed the meaning of what the title really means. You shouldn’t be kind so you can get a reward; you should do it because it’s the right thing to do”, he says.

Anne smiles. “You know, I’d think we’d make good friends”, she says.

Daniel: “R-really? But you just met me…”

Anne: “Yeah, but…I have a similar motto I live by. Besides, you’ve kept yourself hidden because you don’t want people learning who you really are. But I know who you are. And sure, maybe being kind isn’t something you need to be regarded for. But, it certainly helps to feel appreciated.”

Daniel: “You won’t tell anyone about me, will you?”

“Eh…I’m not really one to keep secrets...", Anne says, before winking. "...but I can make an exception for you.”

Daniel smiles. “Thank you”, he says.

A stock clerk walks through the doors and restocks the shelves. Among the items he puts on the shelves are more cans of Red Bullfrog.

Anne: “Hey, now we can each get one!”

Daniel: “Yeah!”

They each grab a can and check out. Then they walk outside. 

Daniel: “It was nice meeting you. I’d like to hang out, but…I gotta visit my dad. He’s in jail for life, but they won’t tell me what he’s done…must have been pretty bad though…”

Anne: “Ah, well, he did something right. He raised you.”

Daniel: “Yeah…anyways, I’ll see you around.”

Daniel heads towards the jail, while Anne heads towards the snowy mountain.

Anne approaches Carly’s house. She knocks on the door.

“Hey Carly? Do you have a few minutes? I just wanted to talk…”

Anne waits a few moments. She pulls on the door knob.

“Carly, did you hear m-”

Anne notices that Carly isn’t here, nor is her staff. There is a sign in the middle of the room that says “Out to Lunch. She raises her hands in the air in frustration.

“Oh, come on! Who has lunch this early in the morning!", Anne says, before lowering her hands. "Oh, wait…I’ve had lunch this early in the morning…whatever. She’ll be back soon.”

She notices there’s a bowl of wrapped, hard candies. She grabs one, unwraps it, and pops the candy into her mouth, leaving the wrapper on the table. She then sits down, and within a few moments, she pulls out her phone.

“I guess I can play that Bonbon Bash game until she shows up…”

Wally is sleeping in a hospital bed, with a doctor overlooking him. He comes to.

“Oi, how did I get here?”

“Wally, can you tell me what happened?”

“Oh…I was just having a pint at Stumpy’s, and the next thing I knew, I was here.”

“How often do you go there? And what do you typically eat?”

“I’m in there pretty much every day. I normally just get a few drinks there. And I just eat whatever bugs I can find outside my house.”

“Hmm…Wally, as your doctor I can’t legally force you to do things, but I highly recommend you change your diet. Stumpy brought you here, because he said you just passed out in his restaurant, and I suspect a lack of nutrients might have been the cause. If you don’t change what you consume, you might have more of those.”

“Aww. Well, I suppose a change of pace never hurt anyone…”

“That’s the spirit! I recommend trying Felicia’s Tea Shoppe. Their beverages are delicious but also healthy.”

“Thanks, Doc!”

Wally gets out of the hospital bed and walks outside the clinic. He starts heading over to Felicia’s Tea Shoppe. Inside the shop, Sprig, Felicia, and Ivy are talking.

Ivy: “Thanks for coming over today, Sprig. I didn’t have any quests I could fulfill, and I know helping out at a tea shop isn’t all that exciting…”

Sprig: “Ah, not everything we do together has to be full of danger. Just hanging out with you is good enough for me!”