Work Text:
Grox sat on his throne with his characteristic air of grandiosity, one leg crossed over the other; his thoughts were focused on devising new challenges for his villagers—a way to while away his tedious existence and, of course, to gratify his own ego
But these reflections were abruptly interrupted by a guard who came running up to him; the man looked as though someone were trying to peel his skin off alive—like the wrapper off a candy—to get at the sweetness inside
— Lord Grox, our security team found Froggydude prowling near the walls of the civilization, and he...!
— Froggydude?
Grox exclaimed joyfully, interrupting his guard. Grox may despise Froggydude with all his heart (?), but his civilization becomes much more interesting with him, even when it threatens his own well-being
— He knows he has no right to be anywhere near my civilization unless he’s my slave, doesn't he? I need to remind him of that! So, where is he?
— ... In the swamp biome, Lord Grox, but I should warn you—the other guards who were with me, he...!
— The swamp biome? How unoriginal. I expected something more interesting from Froggy
— But, but...
The guard had given up hope on his pathetic attempts to explain the gravity of the situation, though it was clearly no longer his problem, as he himself soon breathed his last right in front of Grox
Not that Grox cared...
A few hours later:
Grox and his two guards had been wandering through this swamp for two hours now, searching for Froggydude, who didn't seem to be showing up. And all of this was seriously irritating Grox
— Froggyduuude! Come out! I know you're here, in this swamp. Stop playing games, the sooner we end this, the better off I'll be!
Grox was almost about to kill one of his guards to deal with his anger, although for more reasonable purposes, namely, to protect himself, he still prefers not to do so
Suddenly, the silence of the swamp was broken by someone's loud chomping
Grox and his guards cautiously approached the source of the sound, but there was no one there except a couple of corpses of guards and ordinary villagers from the Grox civilization. The corpses were horribly mutilated, with their bellies ripped open and their entrails and limbs eaten
— What a bloodbath! What kind of foul creature could have done all this?!
— I’m gonna throw up!
Both guards screamed, their hands shaking as they readied their guns to defend their Lord
— Oh dear god...
Grox whispered quietly to himself, looking at the bloody mess before him. He'd seen worse, of course, but the thing was, he was the one doing it, and no one else...
— ... Lord Grox, do you think Froggydude could have done this?
— Only if it was Froggydude with rabies
— With rabies? What are you talking about? Can frogs get rabies?
— Normal ones don't, but this one certainly does
While Grox and the guard continued talking, the second guard, who had moved slightly away, heard strange sounds coming from the treetop next to him. Curiosity got the better of him, and he cautiously approached, his gun ready
—Come out! I know you're in there, bucko! ... Oh my god... AAAAAAAAH!!!
A sharp scream interrupted the small talk between Grox and the other guard. They quickly rushed toward the sound, but by the time they ran over, he was no longer alive; only Froggy's hunched figure, adorned with the blood of his past victims, was nearby. He greedily bit into his victim's skin, tearing off large chunks of flesh and swallowing them whole without even choking
This scene should have evoked overwhelming revulsion and all-consuming fear in any normal being, and it did, but Grox seemed to be drawn into the process of watching the devouring with every second; the longer he watched, the more captivated he became
—Lord Grox, stand behind me, please!
The guard said in a trembling voice, pointing the gun directly at Froggydude, preparing to shoot, though mentally he was already preparing to say goodbye to his life...
Froggy slowly raised his head, his entire face bloodied, his eyes unusually red, with small tears in their rims. Noticing Grox standing behind his last guard, his eyes widened sharply, and he suddenly became excited, as if he'd seen the most delicious piece of meat (or bone) in his life
— GROX!!!
At Froggy's loud scream, the guard jerked in fear, suddenly starting to fire his gun at him, emptying it of all its bullets. It was amazing how, under such stress, he never missed, though what did it matter when the frog seemed to be strangely enjoying it?
Having completely emptied his gun, he froze, having no idea what to do. He turned to Grox, who he thought was standing behind him... but he wasn't there; had he run away?
...
— Don't come near me! Get away from me, you bucko! ... Ah, ah, uuuh... AAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
A deafening scream pierced the swamp as Grox sprinted away. Yet, it was surprisingly difficult to overcome the strange urge to watch Froggy greedily devour the villagers before moving on to his main, bony dessert. After all, he didn't usually deny himself what he wanted—but today was no ordinary occasion...
Lost in thought, Grox did not hear the sound rapidly approaching him—a sound that was, unfortunately, all too familiar:
— RIBBIT RIBBIT RIBBIT!!!
— Oh dear god...
That was the last thing Grox managed to utter before the frog-like body lunged at him, slamming him to the ground with a thunderous crash and raining down blows with incredible force—as if trying to pulverize every single one of his bones into dust
They thrashed and struggled on the ground for quite some time while Grox tried to draw his gun, which he couldn't find anywhere... He hadn't dropped it somewhere, had he? Fuck...
For the first time, Grox felt so close to death. He had never felt so mortal—and so coveted by Froggydude, who wanted nothing more than to grab one of his bones and never let go. It's so weird, huh?
— Aoyyyy CHILL!! Stop! Froggydude, time-out! Wait, wait, wait—what about the deal? Just give me a minute!
Hearing such pitiful pleading from Grox for the first time, Froggydude paused, but he didn't let go; he still preferred to keep Grox pinned beneath him while he sat on him
— I could provide the food for you myself! I can give you villagers to suit any taste—from the elderly to children! Just imagine: food that doesn't run away from you but waits obediently on your plate, while you grip it tight in your slippery yet incredibly tenacious frog paws, press yourself against it, and then suddenly bite into it —tearing the skin, ripping the flesh, devouring the entrails, and hollowing it out completely... all while savoring the taste and relishing your delicacy
Grox himself felt a little uneasy when he began describing it so vividly — as if imagining himself in that victim’s place... Oh Lord, what's wrong with him?
Froggydude listened silently to his dessert offering and seemed to like it, judging by the drool building in his mouth, which slowly dripped onto Grox's face
— THAT SOUNDS DELICIOUS, OF COURSE, BUT YOU LOOK SO MUCH DELICIOUS, GROX! I WANT THAT SKELETAL BODY!
— I can't blame you for that, Froggy. But just hear me out again, there's plenty of food for every taste and... uh, you can gnaw on my bones whenever you want, okay? I'm all yours!
Froggydude fell silent, only his heavy breathing breaking the silence. It's as if he's trying to use his brain to its full potential right now, digesting all the information and weighing the pros and cons
— OKAY, GROX
— Aight bet! That's why I love you, Froggydude, you know when it's best to just agree!
...
The journey back to Grox's civilization was quite uneventful, except that Grox had to tear off his own bony arm to give Froggydude something to chew on during their journey
As soon as they arrived, Grox couldn't help but notice how the villagers suddenly hid in their houses, only cautiously peering out of their windows. This wasn't out of fear under Grox's majesty, but out of fear of the bloody and clearly rabid frog
Grox even briefly considered using Froggydude as his model for an epic execution for the guilty. It would have been a spectacular performance, no doubt about it
...
In the end, Grox fulfilled his promise, and Froggy truly did have the ability to eat almost everyone in his civilization, though he had reasonable limits. Such as giving back any of Grox's bones after gnawing on them
And so the days passed. He ate something, sometimes came to Grox and chewed on him. And Grox even began to get used to it, even getting some strange pleasure from it. The thought that Froggydude considered Grox one of his favorite desserts certainly stroked his ego. And to be honest, he was starting to like Froggydude with rabies more than him without. His madness, his bloodthirstiness, and his determination, which almost never stopped him, remind him of himself
And in a sense, if someone wanted to take him away, they wouldn't succeed—after all, he's his only lovely... dessert, right?
...
Grox is starting to develop a strange addiction to Froggydude. His daily routine becomes one of waiting for Froggy to break through some window and jump on Grox again, knock him down, and they'll both fly apart like rag dolls again
But if an ordinary Froggydude had done the same thing, he wouldn't have felt this strange thrill. There was certainly a spark in the ordinary Froggy, a spark of hatred that couldn't be broken, but a Froggy with rabies isn't a spark, it's a fire
A fire that saw nothing but its target, though in both cases its obsession was directed specifically at Grox, and that delighted it in its own way. The only difference is that one obsession is restrained, while the other is so frenzied and wild that it becomes downright scary
...
With each passing day, the rumors grew—ranging from claims that Froggy was a bad influence on Grox to suggestions that Froggydude pinned him to the floor for reasons other than a simple desire to gnaw on his bones. Villagers, guards, and others alike were waiting for some sort of explanation regarding the relationship between Froggy and Grox
And honestly, Grox wouldn't mind understanding what was going on between them either, seeing as the standard definition—enmity—no longer fit... But wait! He was a dictator, after all! He could decide for himself how he viewed their relationship; he didn't need the other party's opinion to know what was happening between them. The decision had always been his to make; the others simply had to resign themselves to that fate
...
Out of habit, Froggydude once again smashed the door down with his head—easily brushing past a couple of guards—in search of his favorite bone. Grox wasn't in the throne room, so he scurried around the lair for a bit. A twinge of anxiety set in; he had no idea where Grox was, and the situation had long since moved beyond a simple craving for a bite to eat. However, he soon realized he had missed Grox’s private quarters, so he hurried over there—not forgetting to smash the door down with his body along the way
Once inside, he was met with a rather unusual sight. The room was dark, devoid of any light source, yet he could still make out a bed in the center of the room—and sitting on it was Grox, wearing a wedding dress
— Sometimes candy tastes better in a pretty wrapper, don't you think, Froggy?
For the first time, Froggydude said nothing, not because he was building up his aura, but because he was confused, though his hungry eyes seemed to light up with a more intense hunger, which couldn't help but please Grox
— Don't just stand there, come closer to me, Froggydude. Quickly!
Grox extended his arms and beckoned Froggy to him, though it wasn't exactly a request...
Froggydude, confused and hungry, as if hypnotized, couldn't disobey Grox's command. Approaching him, Grox abruptly hugged him and pushed him down onto the bed next to him, towering over the frog. Eye contact was quickly broken by Froggy's sudden attack, who latched onto him and began chewing and sucking on his bones, where a human's neck would normally be. Not wanting to waste any more time, Grox hugs Froggy back before taking a pair of rings from his pocket, which he quickly slips onto his finger and then onto Froggy's
— Blah, blah, blah, don't worry, I've already signed all the necessary papers and forged your signature and blah, blah, love to the grave, blah, blah, and now you can kiss!
Grox said exclaimingly before slamming his kiss into Froggy's, which he immediately responded to, though it wasn't without some biting and licking, along with his drool, not to mention the fact that frogs have long tongues... And the kissing continued for a long time, while their hands chaotically touched and squeezed each other, trying to press and lose themselves in each other as tightly as possible and...
and...
...
Froggydude barely remembers everything else when he wakes up in the morning. His body aches, but his mouth and jaw hurt the most. And all this is again to blame for his sudden attacks of rage, which he still can't seem to control properly
Rubbing his aching head, he notices on his hand... a ring? Did he marry someone?? And who???
Noticing a figure next to him, he carefully lifted the blanket to see who it was, and oh how he wished it wasn't...
— GROX!!!!
Froggydude screamed sharply, falling out of bed, which abruptly woke Grox, who hadn't expected Froggy to ever return to his normal form. Grox certainly didn't want that, but it seems he's not always in control...
—Good morning to you too, my pet-husband...
While Froggy was burning with shame on the floor, Grox only giggled quietly at him, sitting on the edge of the bed
— WHAT TF?! Don't call me that! I... I... I WANT A DIVORCE!
— Sorry, I just recently passed a law banning divorce
— NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!