Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was a muggy night in downtown L.A. Not a ray of moonlight to be seen. The mood was just gloomy. What a good time to go shopping.

For Anne, shopping was sooooo boring. Not much a kid her age could do, other than hold her mother’s hand as they went around looking for groceries for the restaurant, or getting new clothes. But today was different.

She gripped her mom’s hand tight as she entered a stale store. Not too big, but a lot of different things she liked to look at. Anne knew her mommy wanted to get her daddy a birthday present, but there wasn’t much money this month, so this was the place they usually went to: a thrift store.

Anne gazed around at the many shiny objects. Jewelry, bedazzled jeans, watches, and silverware. Everything looked so pretty to her.

“Mommy, mommy!” Anne yelled, tugging at her mother’s shirt. “Can I please get something?”

“No, honey. We’re just here to get something for your father.”

“But pleaseeee…” Anne’s eyes got big, watering up into a puppy-dog face. She wasn’t one for throwing a tantrum, but she knew how to pick away at her mom.

Mrs. Boonchuy sighed, and rubbed her temples. “เอ่อ หัวของฉัน. Okay, honey, you can choose ONE thing. But make it quick. I need to be back at the restaurant soon.” 

A big smile came across Anne’s face. She let go of her mother, and started walking around the small store. There were so many different things she wanted. So many shiny things.

Anne continued to walk around, not finding anything. Then she looked up at a chest of drawers. It had a crest of a foot with three toes, kinda like a frog. Frogs weren’t something Anne was accustomed to liking, but then she noticed something on the chest. A music box, with three shiny gems.

Anne stared in awe at the box. She had to have it. She turned to see her mother browsing shirts. She looked at the cashier, fast asleep from a light shopping day. Anne nervously turned back to face the chest. She jumped up to grab the box. It took a few tries given her small stature, but eventually, the box was in her hands.

“Mommy, mommy! Look what I found.” Anne tried to show her mom, but she was on the phone with someone. 

Mrs. Boonchuy quickly gazed over at Anne, thinking nothing of it. “That’s very nice, sweetie.”

Anne gazed over the box. It had carvings of trees and lilypads etched into the sides and hood of the box. There was also a frog holding its hands out to the three gems attached. 

Entranced by the gems, Anne began to open the music box. Like it wanted her to do so.

Light poured out from the box, as she opened the lid. She covered her eyes, as the light engulfed her. Suddenly the ground disappeared, like she was falling. Anne screamed, clutching her backpack and the box tight, hoping that she would land soon.

And eventually, she did.

Anne opened her eyes, and the sun beamed down on her. It wasn’t sunny before. Once her eyes adjusted to the light, she gazed around at her surroundings. She wasn’t in the thrift store anymore.

Trees were everywhere she could see, some taller than buildings. The ground was soggy and wet, and covered in an assortment of leaves. Bushes with brightly-colored berries could be seen.

Anne looked down at the box, but noticed that the box was not in her hands. In fact, when she looked around, she didn’t see the box anywhere! 

It’s like it just vanished.

She looked back up, clenching her backpack tight. “Mommy? Anyone. Hello? Hellooo?” She cried out, seeing if anyone could hear her.

It was humid, and hot. She was used to heat waves, but this was something else. Sweat poured down the little girl's face. She reached into her backpack and pulled out a water bottle. She sucked down the contents fast, like her life depended on it. 

She heard noises in the trees, all around her. They weren’t like sounds she had ever heard before. Some sounded monstrous!

She got up, grabbed her bag, and began to walk. She needed to find some help, someone who could help her find out where she is, and how to get home. Her mom must be worried sick about her, Anne thought.

As she explored, she noticed the forest wasn’t like any forest she had seen. The trees twisted and bent like they were made of rubber. Water pouring down from the trees, most likely from a rainstorm, had made the ground soaking wet, and covered it in mud. 

Anne felt droplets of water plop on top of her bushy hair, and her clothes. She was hot, and wet. She could feel the sweat soaking her clothes even further. She had never felt heat like this before. Where was she?...

After about an hour of wandering through the forest, Anne came to a clearing. She noticed a dirt road as she exited the tree line. Maybe it led somewhere where she could find help. 

She walked along the path, with her feet getting tired with each passing second. She didn’t know how long she could keep going. She hoped she could find someone, who would be kind enough to let her stay with them. 

She slouched down, dragging her backpack along the rough dirt ground. She had never walked this long in her life. Usually she had her mom give her a piggyback if she got tired. And she wasn’t used to staying up for this long. Her eyes felt droopy like she was going to fall asleep. But it didn’t help that the sun was beating down on her.

Anne felt like she had been walking forever, and she didn’t know how much she could take. She just wanted to collapse on the ground and sleep, but dirt wasn’t exactly comforting to her.

Eventually, Anne made out a small building in the distance. Her pace quickened, as she dragged her soggy feet through the dirt, eventually turning to soft, green grass. It felt nice on her feet, given that the rough surface really tired her feet out. She felt her legs turning to jelly, wiggling as she trekked on.

As she got closer to the building, she realized that the building was different, or at least different to how she perceived buildings.

The building looked like a house, but not like any house she ever saw. It was inside of a tree stump, with the bottom half being put together by stone and clay. Bits and pieces of moss grew on the roof of the house, as it extended a small branch out. It held a sign with the letter “P” on it. A clothesline hung from the house with many clothes draped over what appeared to be a pond behind the house. 

Out front, there was a small garden, with rows of vegetables, with a scarecrow staked into the dirt.

Anne’s stomach began to grumble, and she checked her backpack. No snacks. She must’ve eaten them when her mom picked her up. She looked at the vegetables growing in the dirt. She didn’t want to steal anything from some farmer, but she was really hungry, and couldn’t wait. She ran over to the small farm, and looked for something good to eat.

She heard her stomach growl louder. She looked over the rows of veggies for something. She didn’t like vegetables, but if it was her only food, she would eat it. She pulled at a root, and up came a couple of carrots. She put them in her mouth, when…

“What are you?!” A voice piped up. 

Anne, startled, turned around but didn’t see anyone. Then she looked down.

In front of her, was a bright-pink ball shaped creature. It was wearing a pilot’s cap on its head, with small bits of orange hair spilling out. It had stubby hands and legs.

Anne dropped the carrots, screamed and jumped back, pinning her up against the scarecrow. This flipped everything on its head and she began to panic. Anne realized that she wasn’t just in a different place, she was not on Earth anymore!

The small pink creature slowly walked towards her, as tears filled her eyes. “It’s okay…it’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you.”

The door to the farmhouse suddenly burst open, as an orange-looking frog kicked the door out. He had luscious brown hair, yet had a stumpy body. 

“What’s all the ruckus?” The orange frog cried out, getting a glimpse of Anne against the scarecrow. He ran towards the pink creature.

A pink frog ran out as well. She was more slender and had the same color hair as the pink ball. 

“WHAT IN TARNATION IS THAT THING?!” The pink frog screamed. 

The two frogs grabbed the ball.

“Sprig, are you okay? Did it hurt you?” The pink frog asked.

“No, it didn’t. It was just looking in our garden.” The thing named Sprig answered. “I think it’s just hungry.”

“Maybe it’s hungry for frogs.” The orange frog questioned. He leaned in closer towards Anne, now on the brink of tears. “Do you want to eat us? Were you trying to eat my boy?”

“I…I…” Anne's lips trembled as she started crying. “I WANT TO GO HOME!” She screamed. The orange frog jumped back, startled by the creature’s crying. “I want my mommy! I want my daddy!”

He took another look at the creature. It didn’t look dangerous. It looked scared and sad, like a lost child.

“Hey, hey. It’s okay. Don’t cry.” The orange frog simmered down, taking a more calm approach. “I want to help, but I need you to take a deep breath, okay?”

Anne nodded, taking a few deep breaths. A stream of tears still ran down her face. She was still scared that she was staring at a talking frog, but she needed to stay strong. She clutched herself tight.

“Now, let’s try this again. Does your kind eat frogs?” The orange frog asked more gently. Anne knew some people ate frogs, but she never wanted to eat frogs. She shook her head.

The orange frog kneeled down. Anne tried to shuffle back further, but she was still backed up against the scarecrow. “Don’t worry. What are you? What’s your name?”

“Anne. A--Anne B-boonchuy. I’m a human.”

The orange and pink frogs exchanged confused looks, like they had never heard of a human. But this girl couldn’t stay out here.

“Let’s get you inside, is that alright?”

“Y…yes, sir.” Anne nodded, still a little shaken by the encounter.

Anne grabbed her backpack, and followed the frog family inside, quickly. They brought her in, and slammed the door closed.

The inside of the house felt just as much as the outside, very pastoral and rustic. Most of the furniture was carved from logs, like the kitchen table, and the table in the living room. A nice family painting hung above the fireplace. The couch Anne sat on was firm and rough, nothing like the couch back her house.

Anne squeezed her backpack tight, as the frog family sat across from her. She was still scared of them, despite coming off as a peaceful family.

“Well, I think introductions are in order. My name is Weed Plantar.” The orange frog said. He pointed to the pink frog, holding Sprig in her arms. “This is my wife Rose, and that little pollywog right there is our son, Sprig.”

Anne stared at Sprig who gave a little wave with his stubby hand. Anne waved back, with a small smile coming across her face. Anne looked back at Weed, nervous and scared.

“I’m sorry for trying to steal your veggies.” Anne said softly. “I was just hungry.”

“Well, we have some cookies if you want some.” Weed said. Anne nodded, really wanting a cookie. Weed stood up and walked into the kitchen. Sprig hopped out of his mother’s arms and onto the couch.

“You look so cool!” Sprig said excitedly. Anne felt a little uncomfortable with him being so close, but he seemed nice.

“Sprig, let’s be nice to the human.” Rose said gently, not to scare the kids.

“It’s okay, Sprig's mom. You look cool too.” Both kids giggle and laugh.

Weed returned from the kitchen, holding a fresh plate of warm cookies. Anne picked up a cookie, smelling the oatmeal and raisins. Just as she was about to take a bite her eyes realized something. What she thought were raisins were actually flies in the cookie. 

“Ewwwww.” Anne screamed, her hand still frozen to let the cookie go.

“What’s wrong with it?” Weed asked.

“There’s flies in it.”

“Of course there are flies. Do you not eat flies where you come from?”

“No! I hate bugs! I don’t eat bugs!”

“Well, it’s kind of a main source of protein here. They're good. Come on, give it a try.”

Anne nervously takes a bite of the cookie. She closed her eyes and pretended that the flies were raisins or chocolate chips. As she swallowed, she was surprised; it actually tasted pretty good.

“Hey, these are pretty good.” Anne finished off the cookie with haste. Guess bugs taste differently here.

“They’re delicious, aren’t they.” Sprig said, giddy. “So, where did you come from? How did you get here?”

“Uhm…” Anne was trying to piece the sentences together in her head, but she was struggling to comprehend her situation. “I just opened this box thingy, and suddenly I’m in a forest. I don’t know where it is, and I wanted to see if someone could help me.”

“What did the box look like?” Rose asked.

“It was yellow, and brown. It had lily-pads and trees on it, as well as a froggy. It had three shiny rocks. Blue, green, and pink, I think.”

Weed felt he knew that box from somewhere, he just didn’t know where. “Well Anne, we’ll do our best to help you find the box, but there’s no guarantee we’ll find it. Regardless, we’ll figure it out, and get you home as soon as possible.”

Anne thought about home, her parents, her kitten Domino. What was going to happen to them? How long would she be gone? Would she ever see them again?

She just got Domino for her birthday. Who was going to feed her? What about her friends, Sasha and Marcy. They’d be worried sick. All these thoughts were too overwhelming. She retreated into herself, and she panicked.

“Hey, Anne, just breathe.” Sprig put his hand on her back, and wrapped tight, giving her a hug. Her breathing slowed down, as she calmed down. As the tears dried up, she looked up at the Plantar patriarch.

“Um…Mr. Plantar, can I stay here?” She asked quietly.

Weed’s eyes opened up, as he looked at his wife.

“Please dad?” Sprig begged, his eyes getting wider every second. 

“I promise to stay in the house or out in the yard. Please, just for a little while.” She said.

Weed looked at Anne, seeing the innocence in her eyes. Even if he was skeptical of the girl, Amphibia was a dangerous place. He couldn’t just leave her out there, a child no less. Weed took a deep breath, and sighed.

“Well, we can’t throw you out, so I guess it’s fine if you stay with us. You can stay with Sprig up in his room.”

“Yay! We’re gonna be best friends!” Sprig cheered, as he started bouncing around on his legs.

“Is he always this happy?” Anne asked, as she saw Sprig go from wall to wall.

“He does that sometimes, just getting ready for frog puberty.” Rose answered.

Anne was in amazement at Sprig’s energy. She then noticed Weed taking a seat next to her on the firm couch.

“Listen Anne, the people in this town can be pretty--small minded, and paranoid--of things they don’t understand. So for the time being, let’s keep your presence inside this house, is that alright?”

“Yes, Mr. Plantar, sir.” Anne gave a salute.

“Come on Anne! You gotta check out my room! It’s so cool!” Sprig cried, and Anne leaped off the couch to follow Sprig.

Weed watched as the two kids went up the stairs. He looked a little worried as he gazed over at an unhatched egg, resting in the kitchen. Another kid on the way. Soon, there will be 5 five mouths to feed, seven when Hop Pop and Bessie return. 

What were they going to do?

“Is everything alright, honey?” Rose asked.

“It’s nothing. I just…don’t know how long we can keep her hidden. The townsfolk are very talkative, it’ll only be a matter of time before they come after her with pitchforks.”

“And we’ll be here to support her. You know your dad would do the same.”

Weed nods his head admittedly. “You’re right. You’re right. I mean, what’s the worst that can happen?”

End of Chapter 1

Chapter Text

Dawn cracked over the Plantar farmhouse. Dragonflies flew by, and the water lit up under the bright reflection of the sun.

Light peered into Sprig’s bedroom, casting its rays upon the two kids, sound asleep in a freshly made spruce bunk-bed. Anne wrestled with the covers, trying to get just a little bit more sleep.

Eventually she relented, and shielded her eyes as she opened to see the horizons of Amphibia. She yawned, holding a stuffed animal caterpillar. It was one of the softest things she had ever felt in her life.

Croak!

Anne leaned over the top bunk’s railing to see, Sprig, still knocked out from last night. He must’ve had too much of Weed’s hot cocoa. Anne continued to look at him, noticing all his new features.

She had been in Amphibia for only a month, but Sprig had changed a lot in that short time frame. His tail had fallen off early on. His height had changed dramatically, with Sprig now being almost as tall as Anne. He was definitely looking more like a frog now than when they met. 

Anne looked around at the bedroom, seeing Sprig action-figures as he called them of Amphibian generals. A melted candle laid by the window, with the flame having been snuffed out hours before. 

Anne looked back at her bed, with all her stuff sprawled across the covers. Nothing too extraordinary, but one thing that did stick out, was a Christmas photo of her and her parents. Anne’s eyes grew big, and her lip trembled. She whimpered as she grabbed the photo.

Her cries were enough to wake Sprig. His eyes shot open, and he shot his tongue up to the top bunk. He grappled up and landed right in front of Anne.

“Anne! Is everything alright? I heard crying?” Sprig asked. Then he noticed the photo. “How bad was it?”

“Not as bad as the last time.” Anne said.

She only really confided in Sprig, but with each passing day, she was starting to forget little bits about her parents. She wasn’t trying to, but she missed them so much that her own mind was fighting to preserve their memories, no matter how miniscule.

“Hey, how about you tell me more about this ‘Earth’ that you’re from.” Sprig gestured.

Anne wiped away her tears, and showed the photo to Sprig. “Well, it’s a lot noisier than here, and a lot stinkier. But the people were nice, including my friends.” She said, feeling at ease now.

“You had friends? What were their names?”

“Sasha and Marcy. We’re the bestest of friends, or were, and I wish I could have one of them here.”

Sprig pondered for a moment, then a lightshroom went off in his head.

“Well, how about we meet one of my friends?” Sprig offered.

“I thought you said you didn’t have friends.” Anne said.

“I have one. Ivy Sundew, and she’s incredible. We can talk to dad and see if he’ll let her come over!”

“Yeah. Yeah I’d like that.”

“Great!” 

The two gave two high fives, then put their hands together and wriggled the fingers in between.

“Spranne against the world!” both kids said silently, not sure if the parents were awake.

“Sprig, Anne! Breakfast!” Rose called from downstairs.

The two kids hopped down from the bed, and rushed out the door downstairs.

Weed read the Wartwood Bulletin while sipping his coffee. It had been a restless month trying to keep Anne’s presence a secret. He was afraid she would be carted off, or worse killed on the spot. 

But aside from some close calls with One-Eyed Wally and some passersby, Anne hadn’t been discovered, nor had she broken her promise to leave the house property. But he could tell she was getting antsy.

Rose slipped some pill bug pancakes onto two plates and laid them down in front of Sprig and Anne. The kids tore into the pancakes like they hadn’t eaten in weeks.

One of the things that surprised Weed, was how adaptive Anne had become to their food. She sometimes struggled with the physical appearance, which he didn’t take as disrespect. But now, she just ate what was given to her, and she seemed to enjoy it.

Anne took a bite of her pancake, looking over at Sprig while she did so. He gave a nod.

“So, dad, me and Anne were wondering…if maybe we could have Ivy come over.”

Weed nearly choked on his coffee, spitting it back into his mug. Rose froze in her place. This was the moment they had been fearing: having someone over. While most of the neighbors were very nice, the Plantars weren’t sure how they would react to Anne.

“Sprig.” Weed started to say. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

“Please Mr. Plantar.” Anne begged. “It’s getting boring here, watching your baby’s egg every day, and playing around. I want to have some fun out there.” She pointed to outside.

Weed and Rose exchanged looks of concern and uncertainty. Was it worth the risk for them?

“Kids, can you give us a few minutes?” Rose asked politely.

“Sure mom. Come on Anne, let’s go see what swimming by.”

Anne and Sprig finished their breakfast, then rushed up to their room to get ready. Rose took a seat next to her husband, and she crested his hand.

“You know, it was bound to happen eventually. Maybe we will try to welcome her into town.” Rose said calmly.

“You know our town motto, right? Slow to accept, and even slower to respect. I just don’t want her to get hurt.” Weed said, looking at his wife with trepidation.

“We can’t keep her here forever. They won’t know her until they meet her. Let’s just…figure out how to do this.”

Anne and Sprig came rushing down the stairs, wearing swimming gear, and giggling together.. They ran to the back door, opened it, and closed it. Weed saw their friendship, and didn’t want that to be ruined.

“I guess we could--” Knock, knock, knock.

Weed’s heart nearly jumped out of his chest. They hadn’t had any visitors in the past month, and the ones they were supposed to have, they canceled due to Anne. 

Trying to keep his composure, he walked to the door, and opened it with speed, like ripping off a bandaid. In the doorway, a yellow frog with orange hair and a beautiful green dress stood, with a smile on her face.

“Oh, hi Felicia.” Weed said awkwardly, rubbing the backside of his head.

“Morning, Weed. It’s been a little bit since we last talked.”

“Yes. Yes it has. So what brings you by?”

“Well, Ivy wanted to see Sprig, since we haven’t seen him around for a while.”

“Oh, well uhhh…” Weed stammered, trying to think of something to say to the Sundew matriarch. He looked around, but didn’t see Ivy.

“So, where is she?” Rose chimed in.

“I don’t know, that’s why I came here. And maybe we can catch up.”

Weed looked at Rose, then back to Felicia. He took a deep breath.”

“Are you okay Weed?” Felicia asked.

“Yeah, it’s just been a stressful month. We have a lot to talk about.” Weed let Felicia come in, and he closed the door.

Anne and Sprig sat out back on the dock of the house, with feet dipped into the water. Anne watched as fish jumped up and down in the lake, and Sprig was too busy hocking loogies as far as he could.

“Eww, that’s gross Sprig.” Anne said jokingly.

“Well I want to try and win the spittin' trophy some day. I need to be ready.”

Just then, they heard a rumble from some crates lodged by the end of the dock. They turned to look at the crates, which was odd because Weed never had crates like this unless they were going fishing.

Anne stood up, to take a better look. Sprig slowly got up, but stood in place, scared by what could be behind the corner.

Anne walked over to the crate where the noise came from. She grabbed a fishing pole leaned against the wall to arm herself. Getting nervous with each passing second, Anne closed her eyes and opened the crate. When she opened her eyes, she was surprised that there was nothing in the crate.

“It’s okay, it’s just empty.” Anne said to Sprig.

“That’s odd, unless it’s an…”

“AMBUSH!” A voice screamed from above.

Before Anne had any time to react she was tackled into the water by some unknown figure. Sprig watched from the dock, as the two resurfaced. Anne swam to the dock ladder, and climbed up while the other frog leaped up.

Anne got a good look at her assailant. She was about Sprig’s size, and her guess was that they were all around the same age. She wore a blue cap on her head, with small spikes of orange hair poking out. The yellow frog was wearing a light blue shirt and overalls. She didn’t look like any girl she had ever seen.

“Ivy!” Sprig yelled in excitement. He rushed over to hug his friend, who was still fixated on Anne. 

“Sprig…what the heck is that?” Ivy asked curiously. She wasn’t scared or anything, but it was definitely a new sight to behold to her.

“I’m Anne. I'm a human!” Anne said proudly.

“Cool! What’s a human?” Ivy asked.

“I don’t know how to explain that, but a human is me.”

“Oh, where are my manners?” Sprig said. “Anne, this is Ivy Sundew. Ivy, Anne.”

Anne and Ivy got close to each other, and gave a little hug. They chuckled as Sprig smiled gleefully.

Suddenly, the door opened behind them, and Weed, Rose, and Felicia came out. Felicia saw Ivy, who whipped around.

“Mom!” Ivy said, shocked.

“Ivy Sundew, what have we talked about running off…” Felicia trailed off as she noticed Anne holding Ivy’s hand. Anne gave a small wave.

“Hi Ivy’s mom.” Anne said softly.

After a moment of silence, Felicia let out a blood-curdling shriek that scared Anne and everyone else.

“WHAT IN FROG’S NAME IS THAT THING?! IT SPEAKS!” Ms. Sundew screamed.

“Mom, this is Anne, she’s a human.” Before Ivy could react, her mom grabbed her hand, and pulled her away from Anne. She turned to run into the house, but Rose blocked the door.

“What are you doing, Rose?!” Felicia screamed.

“Felicia, I need you to calm down. This is what we were trying to talk about. Anne isn’t a danger to you or your daughter.”

“How do you know that thing isn’t a hungry amphibivore?”

Sprig bounced over to his mom. “Because she’s been staying with us for the past month. Anne and I really like each other, and she is just like me. A kid.”

Felicia got a second look at Anne, who now looked terrified at her. Now that the initial fear had passed, she saw Anne had tears in her eyes, and no claws of any kind. 

“Is that why you haven’t been in town? To look after this…thing.” Felicia wasn’t sure how to feel.

“Her name is Anne.” Weed interjected. “Right now, she’s part of our family. She likes our food, and she has been really nice to our son. She doesn't pose a threat to anyone. Just breathe Sundew.”

Felicia took some deep breaths, and calmed down, letting go of her daughter's hand, who gave Anne another hug. Sprig joined in. Anne held them tight, feeling comforted by their presence.

“She certainly doesn't look like anything I’ve ever seen.” Felicia said, watching her daughter like a hawk.

“We had the same reaction, but it can take some time to get used to. Now that things have calmed down, could we ask for your help?” Weed asked.

“With what?” 

Before either Plantar could answer, the sounds of multiple people, or frogs started getting louder. The clanging of metal could be heard in the mix as well. Everyone rushed inside to see what the ruckus was.

A mob of frogs stood outside the house, armed with torches and pitchforks. Weed wondered why they were there until…

“That wasn’t the Sundew Shriek we heard outback, was it?” Weed asked.

“I see a gangly creature, I’m gonna use my scream!” Felicia defended herself.

“Oh, for frog’s sake.” Rose groaned.

“Okay everyone, just…stay here. I’ll try and sort this out.” Weed said as he walked towards the door. He was playing cool, but panicking on the inside. 

He opened the door, only for the mob to burst inside. Weed was knocked back into the kitchen. Rose hid Sprig and Anne behind her, while Felicia backed herself and Ivy into a corner.

“We heard the Sundew Shriek. What happened?” One frog said.

“WHAT IS THAT THING?!” Another frog screamed, pointing to Anne, whose head stuck out from behind Rose.

“Think it has claws?”

“Maybe it eats frogs.”

“What kind of monster is that?”

The townspeople murmured as Rose stood as still as a statue. What in frog’s name were they going to do??? Anne and Sprig squeezed Rose tight, with no intention of letting go.

“Don’t worry, Mrs. Plantar. We’ll get that monster out of your house.” The fuzz said, bringing a lot of rope with them.

“Harvest the toenails for medicinal purposes!” Wally cried out. 

As the mob inched closer, Weed saw the danger his family was in. He couldn’t think of anything that wouldn’t put his own life on the line. Instinctively, he shot his tongue out, blocking off the mob from Anne and his family. This genuinely scared the mob, who leaped back in fear, surprised by Weed’s sudden act.

“What the--”

Weed shoots forward in front of Rose and shields her. “You aren’t touching this kid right here! You so much as lay a finger on her, I will start throwing hands!” Weed cried out.

“But that thing! It’s--”

“Family. She’s family. Anne has been living with us for the past month, and has been nothing but great to us and our son. She’s sweet and smart, and needed our help. If she was going to harm us, she would have done so!”

Sprig jumped out from behind his mom.

“My dad’s right! Anne has been really nice, and she’s one of my friends. She loves oatmeal-fly cookies, she is a really nice person. Just give her a chance.” 

The mob looked at the two, who were visibly sweating, hoping for the best, but shaken. Weed sighed.

“Look, I promise I will take full responsibility for her, but she is a good kid and a great friend to my son. Just please don’t hurt her. She’s done nothing to you, and won’t do anything to you.” 

The townspeople reconvened, and whispers made their way through the house, saying “Sounds good to me.” and “Alright, fine.”

The townspeople cleared out of the house, including the Sundew’s, leaving only Mayor Toadstool, a giant green toad with a cane in his right hand.

“Have it your way Plantar’s, but if she does something, we’ll know who to blame.”

“Understood, Mayor.”

Toadstool turned around and waddled out of the house. Weed turned to face Anne, who looked visibly shaken by the whole ordeal.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. They were just a little riled up, is all.” Weed said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

Anne, now trying to hold back tears, looked Weed in his eyes. 

“Am I really part of your family?”

“Of course you are. And you always will be.” Weed brought Anne in for a hug, and Anne wrapped her arms around him. Crying tears of sadness and joy, Anne squeezed Weed a little tight. He didn’t mind. Sprig and Rose joined in on the hug.

“I promise I won't let anything happen to you.” Weed said, kissing Anne on the cheek. “I promise.”

Sun had risen on the following day at the Plantar household. Weed woke up to find Anne nestled in between his arms.

He smiled, and ruffled her giant head of hair. He got up, and did some stretching before checking on the egg.

“Only a few more weeks, then you’ll get to meet your brother and sister.” Weed thought, placing his hand on the egg.

He went into the kitchen to check on their food supply. To his surprise, there wasn’t much to eat, or at least enough for the amount of mouths they had to feed. 

He could always get something from the garden, but he wanted to make sure that there still was produce left to sell.

He knew it was that time of the month again, to get some shopping done. He walked over to the door, and pulled out a satchel containing a few dozen coppers. He stuffed them into his jacket pocket, and got ready to head out.

“Mr. Plantar?” 

Weed noticed Anne getting up, looking groggy and drained. She yawned, as she took off her hoodie. 

“Yes, Anne?”

“Can I come with you?”

Weed didn’t want to say no to her, but he wasn’t sure how she was feeling after the “incident” yesterday.

“Are you sure you want to come? If you don’t feel comfortable coming…”

“No, I want to come. Can you just keep me safe?”

“Of course, sweetie.”

Anne walked over and grabbed his hand as he opened the door for them, smiling.

Wartwood was a nice small town, with the center of it being lined with shops and business stands. Houses made inside of mushrooms and tree stumps. The morning was damp and cold. Most frogs had just opened shop. In the center of town, there was a statue of a frog, with no name of the frog anywhere. People said it was the founder, but no one knew his name.

Anne and Weed walked into town, with Anne clutching Weed’s hand very tight, not wanting to be separated from him. As they passed by other frogs, they couldn’t help but stare at Anne, which made her want to bury herself in her shirt.

Finally they opened the door to Grub & Go. It looked like the supermarkets on Earth, just a little old fashioned for Anne. 

As they strolled through the aisles, the looks and stares continued, as Anne started to regret coming with Weed into town.

“It’s okay, Anne. They’re not going to hurt you.”

“Excuse me, Weed.”

Weed turned around to see Felicia, with Ivy along with her, standing in the middle of the aisle. She was holding a platter of freshly baked cookies. Anne could smell the tasty treat, and she really wanted one.

“Mrs. Sundew. How was your night?”

Felicia extends the plate out towards Anne. Anne, now coming out from behind Weed, looks up at the yellow frog.

“Consider this, an apology for yesterday. I didn’t mean to act out like that. Plus, I heard you like these kinds of cookies.”

Anne took one of the cookies off the plate, and took some nibbles out of the cookie. 

“Thank you. Mrs. Sundew.”

“You’re very welcome, dear.”

Ivy rushed over to Anne, looking wide-eyed and everything. Anne was a little taken back by this, but the feeling quickly left her.

“Soooo…sorry about the ambush yesterday. It’s kinda my thing with Sprig. You wanna hang out today with him?”

Anne looked at Weed, who smiled and nodded, giving her the okay.

“Sure. that sounds awesome!” The two girls rush down the different aisles having the time of their lives. 

Anne may be a stranger to this world, but she has friends now who care for her, and a loving family.

And Weed could not be more happy to see Anne happy. Even with their baby hatching soon, whether it’s a boy or girl, he’s happy he’s already got one great daughter.

End of Chapter 2

Chapter Text

The day was humid, like most days, and the water surrounding Wartwood was just the perfect temperature.

While Anne was used to the humid weather, she wished her hair wouldn’t frizz out. It was like a big bush on her head. She was almost eaten by cicadas who thought her head was shrubbery. She still shuddered at the thought of the bugs. She tried to get it straightened, or flattened down, but nothing seemed to do the trick.

It didn’t matter. As the months went by, Anne was happy to have a family and a brother, regardless of the fact that they were frogs. And now, she has a little sister tadpole. Polly Petunia Plantar. It was funny that her name was three P’s.

But after 8 months of living under the Plantar’s roof, Anne was trying to help the family out to the best of her ability. She would join Weed at the vegetable stand some days, she might go for a supply run with Rose somedays. There was a benefit being about the same size as every other being in the town, despite being 5 ½.

Today, Rose and she were heading to pick up some bread at the Flour’s stand. They put in an order for 10 loafs a while back and just now the order was ready.

Anne ate her breakfast quickly today, not to make her mom late. As she looked over, she saw Sprig licking his plate clean, while across from her, Polly, just a few months old, was sipping on a bottle of pillar milk. She gave Anne the stink eye. She did that often. Why? Well good thing she couldn’t speak for the moment, ‘cause she was afraid of what might come out of the baby’s mouth.

“Anne! Sprig! Are we ready to go?” Rose called from the doorway.

“Coming mom!” Sprig called.

“Be right there, mom.” Anne said, still getting used to calling the Plantars her parents.

Anne finished off her eggs, and rushed to the door. She quickly strapped on these cute white and blue overalls over her shorts and shirt. It made her feel more like one of the family.

Outside, Rose was waiting with a light green slug attached to the cart. Usually, they would have Bessie, but since Hop Pop had been out for months, they had to rent a slug to compensate.

Anne wondered what Hop Pop would be like. She had heard a lot about him, from his canes, to his love of the old ways, to his past with Bessie. Sprig even talked about their fishing trips. But Hop Pop didn’t know Anne, so she was wondering if he would have a similar reaction to everyone months prior.

As the kids hopped in the cart, Rose stuck a leaf on a stick out in front of the slug, prompting it to chase after it. As they started to head to town, they passed Weed, who was uprooting some potatoes and carrots for the stand. He gave a loving wave, and his family waved back.

“See you when you get back!” He cried out.

“You too dear.” 

And soon, the cart disappeared from sight. Weed looked back at the house, and saw Polly sleeping in her bucket.  He smiled. He was proud of his kids, frog or human. He put his face back down to pull up a healthy gourd. He gave it a knock, then split it down the middle. A gourd maggot laid in the center.

“Not again.”

As the cart approached the market, the thought of Hop Pop once again entered Anne’s mind. 

“Hey, mom?” Anne said softly.

“What is it Anne?”

“So, I know that your Hop Pop will be back in a couple of days. I’m just getting a little nervous about meeting him.”

Sprig leaped over to his sister.He wrapped his arm around her, showing a fierce support for his adopted sister.

“Anne, you have nothing to worry about. Hop Pop will love you! And Bessie too!”

“But remember how you guys reacted when you first saw me. I just don’t know how to make a good first impression.”

The cart pulled to a stop at the market entrance. Rose moved the leaf away from the slug, and turned to face her adopted daughter. She ruffled her hair, cracking a smile.

“Anne, you are one of the brightest, kindest, and bravest kids I’ve ever seen. I know that he’ll love you. You’re his family too.”

“You think so?”

“I know it. Now, let’s go get that bread.”

The Plantars hopped off the cart, and walked into the market. Today, it was bustling with life. Many vendors were out selling bug parts, worms, fruits, veggies, but also pastries. They passed the Sundews handing out antique tea-ware. Ivy waved towards Anne and Sprig with a large grin on her face.

“Hi guys!”

“Hi Ivy!” Both kids said, as they kept moving forward. Sprig’s cheeks flushed red a little. Anne was quick to pick up on this.

“Someone’s in love…”

Sprig jokingly laughed it off. “We’re just friends, Anne. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Anne giggled at the response. She knew Sprig had feelings for Ivy. Maybe too young to understand them, but she knew. 

They approached the Flour stand. Mr. Flour stood at the stand, while his daughter Maddie, stood by the furnace. She looked nice and cute with her bow-tie on her hair, a small apron around her dress, and always seemed to have a smile on her face.

“Hi Mr. Flour.”

“Mrs. Plantar. Always a pleasure.” 

Mr. Flour rolled some dough into a nice spherical shape, then passed it onto Maddie. She tossed it into the burning oven, and slammed the cover shut. Maddie walked over to Anne and Sprig.

“Hey guys.” Maddie said with a small grin.

“How have things been Maddie?” Sprig asked, noticing she was more excited today than usual.

“Oh, my dad finally got me that book I’ve been wanting. It looks cool. Wanna see?”

“Sure.” Anne said excitedly. She really liked Maddie, given that there weren't many kids in the town, she had to find people her age. And Maddie seemed like a sweet little girl.

But, Maddie pulled out a book with a scary face on it. The cover looked like it was stitched together. You could even see some of the cover moving. Anne looked at it with shock and nervous joy.

“What was the book you wanted again?” Sprig asked, kinda nervous. He held Anne’s hand tight.

“Intro to the dark arts. I haven’t had time to read it, but when I do I want to see what kind of spells this book has to offer.” Maddie skimmed through the pages haphazardly.

“Why does the book have a face?” Anne asked, pointing to the cover. 

Maddie just shrugged.

“I dunno. My dad won’t answer me when I ask that. It’s not too bad once you get used to it.”

“Ookay, so we’ll let you have some reading time.” Sprig said as he and Anne backed up towards Rose.

Mr. Flour handed off a basket worth of fresh, warm bread, and Rose handed off a small bag of coppers.

“Pleasure doing business with you.” Rose said.

She saw the kids coming over, and she pulled something special out of the basket. A couple of pretzels with the right amount of heat. Sprig and Anne took a bite, and they tasted wonderful. 

“Alright kids, your dad probably needs our help.” 

The kids nodded. Rose slung the basket over her shoulder, and grabbed Anne and Sprig’s hands. She guided them back through the crowded marketplace towards their slug. 

Anne waved to Mrs. Croaker, an elderly purple frog who was carrying her pet spider, Archie. The spider was very small, but its black skin and candy red eyes pierced into Anne like it was staring into her body. She quickly turned her head and kept on walking, not wanting to be a spider’s meal…again.

She took another bite of her pretzel, and loved the taste of it still. She watched Sprig nibble on his pretzel. He was so funny when he tried to take small bites. One of the things she loved about him.

The Plantar family sat around the table, with Rose and Anne putting plates and silverware out, while Sprig got cups, plus a bottle for Polly. Weed was busy cooking his Plantar zucchini pasta, humming as he stirred the green noodles around. 

Anne drummed her hands on the table, her energy not wavering as Wed poured the noodles into four bowls, plus some crushed-up maggots for Polly. Weed brought the food over and placed them down at his family’s seats.

“Eat up everyone. Dad should be arriving shortly.” Weed said, taking a seat at the table.

Rose spoon-fed the maggots to Polly, who slurped them down fast. Sprig twisted a handful of noodles to his forks, then gobbled them up. Anne, on the other hand, like her frog parents, took her time with her food. One thing she remembered about her human parents was to have manners at the table, and she usually loved to savor the taste of the food.

“So, Anne. I heard you’re a little nervous about meeting my dear old Hop Pop, right?” Weed asked his adopted daughter.

Anne finished the noodles in her mouth, and gulped them down.

“Yeah, it’s just that I’ve been a part of this family for these last few months, and I want to make sure that he likes me.”

“Well he’ll ease in…eventually.”

“But he has been gone a while, honey. He might be surprised how much has changed here.” Rose says, before taking a bite of her own dinner.

“Well, regardless, we’re family. And family always finds each other.”

Anne giggled at the line. She loved when Weed was very heartfelt. She looked over at Sprig, who had finished licking his bowl. 

“Hey Sprig, you wanna go stargazing?”

“Sounds great!”

The two kids put their dishes by the sink, and rush upstairs to Sprigs room. Weed watches as they disappear up the stairs. He turns his attention back to his wife and newborn. Polly was asleep in her bucket, bobbing up and down in the water.

“She is so adorable when she sleeps.” Rose said, stroking her baby’s forehead.

Weed stood up and walked over to Rose. He took a seat next to her and brought her in for a hug.

“We’ve got three adorable children.” Weed said, looking down at Polly. “Hop Pop’s gonna love them.”

Both Plantars smiled. Suddenly, Rose’s nose smelled something. It made her nostrils retract at the pungency of the smell.

“Is the fire still on beneath the stove, dear?” Rose asked.

Weed looked over at the kitchen counter, and the cauldron stove. There were embers of the fire, but it was out, nothing too dangerous.”

“No, the fire’s out. Why?”

“I smell something…smokey.”

ROARRRR!

A horrible screech came from outside, waking Polly up, who started to cry. Rose picked Polly up from out of the bucket, rocking her back and forth to keep her calm.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

Weed rushed to the window to see what the noise was, but what he saw chilled his bones to the core. No words could describe what he saw.

Fire, everywhere. The grass, the trees, the buildings, everything. The entire forest and town was lit ablaze. Frogs ran, screaming for their lives, some brought pitchforks and spears out and were running towards the cause. Herons.

Big, blood-thirsty creatures that craved the taste of flesh. Flesh dripped from their beaks, as their eyes gave off a ravenous need to feast. And they picked Wartwood as their buffet.

Suddenly, screams came from upstairs. Weed and Rose whipped their heads to the staircase to see an explosion going off up there.

Weed ran to the trapdoor, and swung it open. Rose rushed over and started heading down.

“Stay down here with Polly, I’ll go get the kids!” Weed said as he closed the door. 

Hop Pop was keeping his eyes on the road. He had been traveling day and night. He was plain exhausted. He took a sip of coffee, and his energy shot up.

“Woooo nelly!” Hop Pop said rejuvenated.

He looked down at Bessie, the snail he rode. She was a gentle soul, with a fierce heart and protection of her loved ones. He sat atop her giant yellow shel, laying back.

“Must be happy to almost be home. You can sleep in your barn, I can sleep in my bed. Finally, some peace and…”

Hop Pop pulled on Bessie’s reins, bringing the snail to a stop. He looks on in horror at the outskirts of Wartwood. The town was going up in flames, and he saw a heron swallowing up civilians. He doesn’t know what to think. A tear dropped down his eye, and one went down Bessie’s as well.

Hop Pop attention turns to another heron, fixed on a house. The location looks very familiar…it’s his farm!

A look of determination came across Hop Pop’s face, as he gripped the reins tighter.

“BESSIE, THINGS ARE GETTING MESSY!” Hop Pop yelled at the top of his lungs.

“Gop, gop!” Bessie responded, and she dashed down the dirt road faster than any snail could ever go. She was faster than sound!

Hop Pop looked determined as ever. As if his life depended on it. Like his family’s lives depended on it. Because they did…

Anne and Sprig were huddled in a corner behind their bunk bed. Sprig’s telescope was on the ground smashed to pieces by the heron breaking into their room. The heron snapped its beak, trying to reach them like little small appetizers. 

Sprig and Anne held each other tight, hoping the monster would go away, but its cries were still loud, and still close. Anne didn’t want to die, and she didn't want her brother to die.

Suddenly, Weed came running through the hole where the door should’ve been, and faced down the maw of the heron. Armed with a spear, he launched it at the heron’s eye. Bullseye! The heron screeched in pain as it recoiled, trying to get the spear out of its eye.

“Kids, we got to go! NOW!” Weed yelled. 

He shielded Anne and Sprig as they ran back through the hole, and Weed turned to follow them.

“To the basement, kids! Hurry!”

Weed felt his clothes go tight, and his movement stopped dead in its tracks. The heron grabbed his clothes and its clutch was tight on him. Weed screamed as he was pulled back into the room, and out of the hole that the heron made.

“Dad!” Anne and Sprig cried seeing Weed being pulled away.

The heron pulled its head out of the house, with Weed dangling by its beak. Anne and Sprig ran to the edge of the room, knowing there was nothing they could do.

The heron thrusted its head up, and let Weed go flying, before opening its beak up wide. Weed closed his eyes and covered his head, as he descended into the gaping maw of the heron. 

GULP!

The heron swallowed Weed whole. Time fell still on the two kids. Tears welling up in their eyes. Sprig reached his hand out, in a desperate attempt to grab his dad, even though it wasn’t going to happen. He fell to his knees, crying. He grabbed his head as it hung low, and collapsed to the ground.

Anne was silent. Tears streaming down her face, she felt as if gravity was pulling her down. She braced herself with her arms, barely able to stay afloat.

She couldn’t believe it. Weed was gone. The frog who took her in when she had nowhere to go. The frog who protected her from the town when they wanted to cast her out. The frog who had been a father to her ever since she got to Amphibia. All of it was gone now.

Anne cried, closing her eyes, as the immense grief began to overwhelm her. Then…something changed. She wasn’t feeling grief, or not as much. It had changed to rage. 8 months of having her loving father ripped away from her by this monster bird. The pain began to boil and overflow. And when she opened her eyes…her pupils glowed with a light blue hue.

The room started to shake, as if an earthquake had hit the town. Sprig opened his tear-filled eyes to see Anne’s glowing eyes.

“Anne?” Sprig asked, worried.

A glowing aura began to encompass the little girl, as if like a protective shield. The shaking increased, drawing the attention of the heron. It looked at Anne with confusion.

“Anne, what is going on? Talk to me!” Sprig screamed.

But she didn’t hear anything. Whatever had gotten into her, she was blocking out all noises.

Sprig went inside the aura, shaking Anne to get her to snap out of it, but then he saw her hair.

Anne’s hair was always a nice brown color, so it was shocking that it was slowly turning light blue. Leaves and branches sprouted from her hair, as if she had roots deep within her bushy hair. Her hair stood up, and so did she.

“Anne, is this a human thing?” Sprig asked, begging for an answer.

This was not a human thing.

“Give him back!” Anne yelled, sputtering into a tantrum like cry. “Give. Him. BACK!” She screamed, before launching herself at the heron. 

She shot straight towards the heron’s stomach, hitting it with the power of ten freight trains. The heron could feel something coming up, so it hurled up the one frog that hadn't been digested fully: Weed. 

Weed went crashing down onto the front lawn. He was not looking good. His clothes were dissolving from the stomach acid, and blood dripped from his arms and legs. He could barely breathe. Sprig hopped down to his dad, fearful and grateful that he was alive. He comforted his father, trying to pull him back to the house, as Anne still battled the heron. He watched in awe at the sight.

Anne was landing blow after blow on the waterfowl, with each punch packing more power than the last. Anne was filled with fury, and she would not rest until the heron was stopped. 

Suddenly, her hands glowed blue. Instinctively, she raised them up, and out came two beams of energy, aimed directly at the creature. It engulfed the heron, for a solid 15 seconds, to the point where the heron wasn’t visible to anyone. 

When the beam ceased from Anne, all that was left was a giant cooked bird, looking like it had just come out of the oven. It collapsed to the ground, shaking causing a thunderous shock-wave that could be felt throughout the valley.

Anne turned her sights toward the other heron, which was attacking the town center.

“You won’t hurt my family. You won’t hurt anyone, ever again!” Anne yelled fiercely, she zoomed off towards the town. Frogs that were running saw her flying overhead, and cheered as she raced towards the giant bird.

Sprig still held his dying father in his arms. The outside door to the basement burst open, and out came Rose, wielding dual maces. However, she was greeted by the sight of her husband and son on the ground.

“Oh my frog.” She gasped, running towards her family. “Weed! Weed, talk to me!”

She knelt down, taking over for Sprig by holding her dying husband. She looked at him with tears forming in her eyes.

“Wh-where’s Polly?” Weed croaked, finding it difficult to breathe.

“She’s safe. And Anne?”

“She s-saved me. Our little gi--girl’s a powerhouse.” Weed coughed up some blood, now staining Rose’s dress.

“GOP, GOP!”

The Plantars turn to see Bessie pulling up out front of the fence, and coming to a screeching halt. Hop Pop leaped off of Bessie’s saddle, and ran over towards his daughter-in-law and grandson.

“What happened?!” Hop Pop yelled, sounding exasperated.

“They just came out of nowhere…it all happened so fast.” Rose stuttered, shaken up by the ordeal.

Hop Pop saw Weed, gasping for air. He knelt down next to his son, and grabbed his hand. Weed used all of his remaining strength to pull his head up to face Hop Pop.

“Son.”

“Dad. Y--you made it.”

“Of course I did. Family always finds each other.” Hop Pop could feel an overwhelming sense of sadness welling up inside him. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be here.”

“It’s okay, dad. I’m happy you’re here now.” Weed was struggling to keep his head up. “Just, p-promise me s-someth-ing…”

“Anything, my boy.”

“Look after Rose. After our baby. After our kids. After Anne.”

Hop Pop’s mind was racing. “I-I don’t understand. Who’s Anne?”

“You’ll find out.”

And with that, Weed’s head slowly lowered back to the ground. His eyes remained wide open staring at the night sky, as if he was looking towards the horizon of space. And his breath exhaled for one last time.

Hop Pop felt his son’s hand go limp. He clutched it tight, not wanting to let go. He gave his son a kiss on the cheek, and the family came in to give Hop Pop a hug. Sprig was twitching, but fought through the shock to comfort his grandpa. But he noticed something out of the back of his eye.

The second heron was no longer visible. He heard cheers coming from the town center, sounding victorious. And finally he saw a blue light rise above the treeline and fly back towards the farm.

Hop Pop also noticed the light. His eyes widened in terror. He let go of Weed’s hand, and put Sprig and rose behind him. He lost a family member tonight, he wasn’t going to lose anyone else.

Anne, bathed in blue light, touched down in front of the Plantars. Hop Pop looked terrified of her, while Sprig and Rose were in complete awe at what Anne looked like. 

As she opened her eyes, she saw the Plantars standing in front of her, then she turned her attention to Weed. He wasn’t moving. Wasn’t breathing. He was dead. 

Suddenly, her rage cooled, and returned to grief and sadness, as her eyes widened and shock filled her tiny face.

“Daddy…” She weeped softly.

Her hair lost its blue color. Her body started to become heavy, and tired. She tried her best to stay upright, but Anne collapsed onto the ground, with the blue hue now gone.

“Anne!” Sprig screamed. “Anne!” He rushed over to his human sister, and hugged her tight. “Come on, Anne, you’ll be okay.” Sprig tried to force a smile, but it was foolish.

Rose ran to Anne’s side, scaring Hop Pop out of the way. She knelt down and felt the girl’s head and body. She felt her chest rise and fall at a steady rate.

“She’s breathing. I think she just passed out.” Rose guessed.

“What in the frog is going on here?!” Hop Pop questioned, as he cautiously approached Anne. He looked her up and down. So this was Anne? This was…not what he was expecting. 

“It’s a long story.” Rose said, as the forest in front of them still burned.

Anne could feel something pulling at her hair. She couldn’t hear anything really, and what she could hear sounded like it was being drowned out.

Struggling, she slowly opened her eyes. From the location, she realized she was in the basement. She was lying on a spare cot that the Plantars kept down here just in case of visitors. But right in her line of view, was Sprig.

Sprig pulled Anne’s hair back, to try and look at her eyes. He noticed her coming to, her body starting to move again.

“Anne!” Sprig screamed.

He did a little flip, and faced his sister. He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tight. Anne, still coming to, slowly reciprocated, with her arms squeezing tight.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.”

“Thanks, Sprig.” Anne spoke softly.

“Morning, Anne.” 

Anne looked up, to see Rose, holding Polly by the staircase watching over the two. She had a smile, and yet she cried.

“Mommy!” Anne yelped.

She ran over to Rose, and gave her and Polly a big hug. Rose closed her eyes and embraced her adopted daughter. She wanted this moment to last forever. But it couldn’t.

“Anne, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

She took Anne’s hand, and led her upstairs. Anne was still readjusting, so her foot coordination was a little wonky. But she managed, thanks to Rose.

The girls opened up the trap door, to enter the living room. Anne was surprised to see Hop Pop, sitting on the couch, looking at a withered tadpole tail. He kinda looked like Weed, just older. Much, much older.

“Uhhh, hi.” Anne said, waving her hand at Hop Pop.

Hop Pop, who was too busy focusing on the tail, was startled by the sudden greeting. He leaped back in his seating, startling Anne, and throwing the tail behind the couch.

“Son of a slug! Sorry, you just startled me, is all.” Hop Pop apologized.

“Anne, this is Hop Pop. Hop Pop, this is Anne.” Rose said, now standing in between the two.

Anne looked at Rose, worriedly. This was not how she wanted to make a first impression, and now she was afraid that Hop Pop hated her.

“It’s alright, kid. Rose told me everything. It’s a pleasure to meet ya.” Hop Pop said, as he extended his hand out.

Anne bit her lip, but relented, and shook Hop Pop’s hand. As she took her hand away, some slime from Hop Pop’s hand stuck to her hand. When she first got here, that was super gross, but she was honestly numb to these types of things at this point.

Anne looked around the house. Holes were still everywhere. Small debris on the stairs. The house was just in shambles.

“How long was I asleep?”

“Just a few hours.” Rose replied. “What’s the last thing you remember?”

“I was up in my room with Sprig, and then all of a sudden, I’m in the basement. What happened?”

Rose and Hop Pop looked at each other. Should they tell her about what they saw Anne do last night? Would it all come flooding back if she remembered? They didn’t know what they should tell her.

“Where’s dad?”

That one question made Hop Pop’s head shrink. Rose looked away, as if not wanting to talk about it.

“What’s wrong? Where’s dad?” Anne pestered.

After some thought, Hop Pop took a deep breath, and sighed. There was no hiding it.

“I’ll show ya.” Hop Pop said, looking defeated.

“Hopediah, you don’t have to.” Rose interjected.

“It just feels right.”

Hop Pop opened the door, and waved his hand for Anne to follow him. As she walked out into the burning sunlight, she brought her hand up to shield her eyes. She saw that the heron was gone, nowhere to be seen. The forest looked worse for wear. While the fire’s had gone out, the land looked devastated, with ash and embers covering the grass and plants.

Anne turned around to still see the giant hole in her and Sprig’s room. She tries to remember what happened, but everything after trying to leave the room was fuzzy.

Eventually, they stop at a patch of freshly dug dirt. The dirt was risen up, so Anne thought something was underneath it. She had no idea…

“Why’s the dirt like that? Where’s dad?”

Hop Pop sighed. He pointed to the dirt.

“He’s in there.”

Anne’s eyes widened. She realized what the patch was; a grave.

“I’m sorry, Anne.”

Anne began to shake her head. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing, and hearing.

“No. No, no, no, no. It can’t be true.” Anne stammered, with tears forming. “We were having dinner yesterday, he was good, he was with us. What happened?!” 

Hop Pop gulped a big breath of air, like the world was closing in around him.

Anne collapsed onto her knees, and tried to start digging. She wanted to see her froggy father, even though, deep down, she knew the truth.

“Anne. Anne, don’t!” Hop Pop screamed, pulling the girl away from the shallow grave.

Anne was a full blubbering mess, trying to comprehend everything that just was thrown in her face.

“I can’t lose him. I can’t lose him! I’ve already lost my parents, I can’t lose anymore!” She cried.

Eventually, Hop Pop let go and placed Anne back down on the ground. She crawled back to the grave, which frightened Hop Pop. But he saw her kneel her face to the ground, holding the soil tight.

“Don’t leave me. Please don’t leave me. Don’t leave us. Please. Daddy.” Anne whimpered, with her vision becoming blurred by the tears. She held the dirt in her arms, like he was a part of the world now. She held it close. 

“Please, daddy. I need my daddy.”

Hop Pop inched closer. Soon, he was standing next to the crying girl. Anne looked up at Hop Pop with red eyes, drained of any bit of happiness she once had. Without warning, she jumped up and hugged Hop Pop tight. 

After the shock had worn off, Hop Pop closed his eyes, and wrapped his arms around the human child. He rubbed her bushy hair, trying to soothe Anne.

“It’s okay, Anne. It’s okay. It’s okay.” Hop Pop repeated.

Hop Pop looked down at the kid, and saw what his son saw in her. A loving, caring soul, who loved this family. He embraced her tighter, seeing her not as a human, but as a Plantar.

“It’s gonna be alright, Anne. You have Rose. You have Polly. You have Sprig, and you have me. And we’re not going anywhere.”

Anne looked up at the elderly frog. She was breathing less rapidly, and she wiped away her tears, only for fresh ones to take their place.

“You promise?”

“I promise.” 

Anne buried her head in Hop Pop’s shirt. She and her new grandfather hugged for a long, long time. Weed was right. Family always finds each other. 

End of Chapter 3

Chapter Text

Hop Pop sat at the kitchen table, sipping his coffee, and reading the paper. Just like every other morning. He honestly needed a break, with all the farming and all the time he spent at the vegetable stand, he was just so hoppin’ tired!

“Hey, Hop Pop!”

Hop Pop looked up to see Sprig standing in the archway. He was all dressed up, with a nice red scarf tied around his neck. His orange hair poked out of his pilot’s cap, but it suited him.

“Oh, mornin’ Sprig.” Hop Pop said, putting his paper down.

Sprig hopped over to the table, where an assortment of pastries were laid out. Dung beetle scones, dragonfly doughnuts, croissants, as well as some fruits picked fresh from their garden.

“Woah, Hop Pop, where’d you get all this food? It looks so incredible!”

“Aw shucks.” Hop Pop blushed. “No, your mom just got some from the Flour’s stand yesterday.”

“Oooooh! They look so good. I just want…” Sprig reached his hand to grab one of the doughnuts, but Hop Pop swatted his hand away. Sprig held his hand as he looked at Hop Pop, confused.

“No one’s eating anything until the birthday girl comes in.” Hop Pop whispered.

Sprig’s eyes widened. How could he have forgotten? 

“Anne’s birthday! Must’ve slipped my mind. Do you have her mud crown?”

Hop Pop pulled out a crown made entirely out of stone-hard mud. Little pebbles, sticks, and leaves were stuck in the crown, but it helped to add “character,” as Hop Pop would put it. Two worms were infused into the crown to create a number: 13.

When Anne turned six, the Plantars gave her a mud crown as was per their tradition. However, Anne was still used to the Earthly customs of birthdays, where she would get toys and gifts and get to celebrate with her friends and family at the restaurant. So the Plantars were left scrambling, trying to find gifts that Anne would’ve liked. 

Word in Wartwood spread like wildfire, and the customs of Anne’s world slowly made their way through the whispers and murmurs at the market, Grub & Go, as well as the festivals. And it didn’t take long for those customs to take hold. While the mud crown and reflecting still stayed the same, there was now a whole new side to celebrating a birthday.

“That’s a nice mud crown. Hope my 9th one is just like that!”

Sprig and Hop Pop see Polly walking into the kitchen, flipping a wrench in her hands. She had really grown up. While she still had the bowtie on her orange hair, the rest of her attire showed how strong she was. She wore her mechanic overalls, along with a glove on one hand, and tape wrapped around the other. Her purple skin was very vibrant in the morning.

She went for a croissant, but Hop Pop slapped her hand. So she tongued one into her mouth.

“Don’t you dare eat that!”

“Watch me, old man!” Polly swallowed the croissant whole.

“I am a crisp 68!”

“What’s going on in here?”

The Plantars now saw their adopted human standing in the small archway, compared to her size.

One of the things that took the Plantars by surprise was just how big Anne had grown over the last few years. She was tall and lanky, and that could be a little jarring for the frogs, but thank frog they knew her. She was literally three times the height of Sprig. But just because she was human, doesn’t mean she didn’t grow up like a frog.

Her hair was still curly and frizzy, but she now had her hair back in a ponytail that shot up towards the sky. She wore a red handkerchief on her head. She wore a bright pink shirt over some dark blue overalls. She had some scrapes and cuts on her arms, but they were next to nothing.

Her feet were the only parts of her body that weren’t covered. When she outgrew her tiny sneakers, Anne just stopped wearing shoes. It took some getting used to, and after several pieces of rock in her foot, she got the hang of walking on the hard ground shoe-less.

But today, Anne was curious why the breakfast wasn't Hop Pop’s gnat gumbo or worm waffles.

“Uh, what’s going on?” Anne asked.

“Oh you know exactly what time it is, girl,” Polly said excitedly. Hop Pop raised the mud crown up. Anne’s eyes glowed with joy and surprise.

“Aw, you guys shouldn’t have.”

“Nonsense, Anne. We’re not going to miss our little girl growing up a year, now are we?” Sprig and Polly shook their heads.

Just then, Rose entered the room, carrying a couple of gifts in her arms.

“Good morning, Anne! How’s the birthday girl?” Rose asked.

“I’m great. Thanks, mom.”

Rose gave a little kiss on Anne’s cheek. Anne blushed a little, with the past eight years being some of her best years.

“Shall we?” Hop Pop asked, holding the mud crown, and he looked tired trying to hold it up.

“Hold up. One sec.” Anne said as she took off her handkerchief, leaving her curly brown hair exposed. “Okay, we’re good.”

Hop Pop rushed over to the birthday girl. He hopped up and placed the mud crown atop Anne’s head. The mud started to ooze off into Anne’s hair, but it was rather soothing in her hair, like conditioner.

“Froggy little birthday here, it’s crystal clear that you were born this hoppy time of year!” The family sang, surrounding Anne in a small circle. When they finished signing, they all jumped and kissed Anne on the cheek.

“Thanks, guys,” Anne said warmly, with tears welling in her eyes.

“And you know what time it is…gifts!” Sprig yelled with excitement.

“Hold on dude. I want to reflect first this time.”

Sprig stopped dead in his tracks. Anne had always wanted to open gifts first on her birthday, and usually, when she reflected, she waited until the sun went down to do that.

“Uhh, okay.” Hop Pop said, confused as well by Anne’s sudden shift. “Let’s give her the room.”

The family stepped out into the living, where they still watched Anne from afar. Anne, still wearing the mud crown, walked over to the kitchen window, and stared out at the break of dawn. The vibrant orange and yellow in the sky, reflected along the river water. The valley had never looked so beautiful.

It was customary for the frogs to reflect on their time alive, and Anne was pretty much considered a member of frog society. As she gazed out across Amphibia’s horizon, she thought about when she came to this world she now called home.

She vaguely remembers that fateful day, not only being her introduction to the Plantars, but it's the last memory of her mom that she could remember. Over the years, her memories of her parents, her home on Earth, had started to dwindle, becoming fuzzy and hard to remember. It was one of the downsides of living in Amphibia for the majority of her life; she forgot the world she came from.

She thought about Weed, and the short time she had with him. She still remembered him taking her on a small trip out of the valley with Sprig for a couple of days. That was awe-inspiring. But she still remembers finding his grave, and holding Hop Pop tightly for hours.

She looked down, wondering if she would ever see her human family again. Would she see a human again? If she could go back to Earth, would she? She didn’t know.

“Okay, all done!” Anne said with a bit of pep.

“Nice. Now open our gifts, we didn’t spend money on them for nothing.” Polly butted in, throwing in a sarcastic flare to her quip.

“Polly!” Rose interjected sternly.

“Sorry, mom.”

“Don’t worry about it, mom, I can take some sarcasm,” Anne said to ease tensions down.

She sat down at the table, and three gifts were placed in front of her. Each was a different size and shape: A long case, a cube, and a rectangle, all covered in wrapping paper with little bows glued on.

Anne went for the cube first and tore the wrapping paper off quickly. It was a regular wooden crate, but on the inside, it had a book. It read Bessie’s Manual .

“Thought you might wanna start getting to know how to drive Bessie.” Hop Pop said. “You haven’t experienced driving until you’ve taken Bessie’s reins.”

Sprig leaned in and tried to whisper quietly into Anne’s ear.

“Should we tell him, we’ve taken Bessie out for a spin…multiple times.”

“What was that?” Hop Pop said, his eyes squinted with suspicion.

“Nothing!” Anne and Sprig said, with guilty smiles running across their faces.

Hop Pop, looked them up and down, sniffing something was afoot. He just couldn’t put his finger on it. 

“Anne, open another gift!” Sprig blurted out, somehow making the room feel more awkward.

Anne pulled the case over and opened it up. Inside, was a long-sword, with a shiny gold hue to it, on both the handle and its sheath. 

“Woah, you sending me to combat camp, HP?” Anne said slyly with a hint of excitement.

“Don’t call me HP. And I got it from a combat instructor. Paid top copper for this bad boy. It even glows blue, like you!”

Anne unsheathes the sword and holds it up. Rose and Polly blow out the candles, allowing darkness to seep into the room. As it got darker, the sword glowed a bright blue. 

“I can’t believe what I’m seeing. It’s…hurting my eyes.” Anne rubbed her eyes trying to shield her eyes from the increasing glow.

“I wanna touch it,” Polly said, like she was under a spell. She reached a hand out only for Rose to slap it away.

Anne puts the sword back in its sheath and lays it on the table. Rose instead, hits the glowing mushroom above the table giving a better light.

“Okay, that’s mildly concerning. Why would I need a sword?”

“We thought the warrior of the family could use a good weapon,” Rose said.

“Ah come on, mom, I’m a warrior too!” Sprig loudly stated. He picked up the sword, holding it above his head. But it became too heavy, and he crashed back down onto the ground.

“Okay, this is for Anne.” 

Anne turned her attention to the last gift. It was thin, yet long. She tore open the gift and was shocked to discover what the present was. It was two photos, one of Anne with Rose, Sprig, and Weed, and another of her, Hop Pop, Polly, Rose, Sprig, and Bessie, all in one picture frame.

Anne, despite not knowing him for very long, still heard Weed’s voice in her head sometimes. She distinctly remembers the clothes he wore, and the sweaty smell of them, which contradicted Sprig saying frogs didn’t sweat. 

Anne squealed with glee as a tear went down her face. She hugged the photo.

“I love it!” She wept.

“We all thought you should have one of these. It’s so nice to see the contrast between us.”

“Thanks, dude.”

Anne and Sprig performed their handshake. “Spranne against the world!” Anne honestly wouldn’t have life any other way. I mean sure, she could be living off in a ditch, or in some other part of the world, but what she had here, in Wartwood, was perfect. A perfect little life, for a human in a frog world.

“Alright, alright, settle down kids. Now, Anne, since it’s your birthday, you don’t have to, but I need some help with the vegetable stand today.”

Anne took the mud crown off her head and placed it on the table, where it began to melt from the morning humidity.

“Nah, can’t let you have all the fun today,” Anne said.

“Uh, since when did you find vegetables ‘fun?’” Sprig asked, not sure why Anne would respond to this.

“I just want to help out. Also, I need to return this to Loggle.” She pulled out of her hair a miniature wood carving of a buff Loggle.

Hop Pop started to ask Anne, dumbfounded by what he saw. “Anne, how long has that been--”

“Too long. Wayyyy too long.” Anne ominously stated.

Anne tapped her fingers against the hardwood of the vegetable stand, as she watched the market customers come and go with ease. She said she wanted to be there, but she felt time go by slower when she was there.

Just then, Wally peeped up from below the stand, coming out of nowhere. He just appeared in front of Anne, who fell back on her butt.

“Good day, Anne. Sorry for the scare.”

“Little warning next time would be good, Wally.”

“Can’t promise you that.” Wally whistled to her. “Anyway, how’s your birthday been?”

“It’s good. Mrs. Croaker gave me a pie like she did last year. Boy, that woman knows how to make a mean slice. Anyway, did you need anything?”

“Nope, just came to say hello. And now, I’m off!” Wally pulled out his small accordion and started playing a song, which Anne could never figure out. 

“Hoppy trails, Anne! Happy birthday!”

“Thanks, Wally!” Anne called out.

As Anne looked around the crowded stands, she saw Sprig holding a crate full of scream beans, and shouting out to all the customers. He was always the salesman kind of guy. 

“Come one, come all folks! We got the beans you’ll be screaming about.” He pinched one of the beans, letting out a high-pitched scream. Anne could never understand how a bean could make that kind of noise.

Behind her, Anne heard the sound of bolts tightening and nails being hammered down. She looked over her shoulder to see a giant catapult right behind her. Dang, she was getting better at making those.

Sprig, still roaming the buzzy market, noticed his older sister, sulking around at the stand. Sprig never liked to see Anne down in the dumps, but he didn’t know what was wrong. Should he say something?

“Ambush!”

Sprig had little time to react to Ivy’s surprise attack. She tackled him to the ground, spilling the scream beans everywhere.

“Oh, hey, Ivy.” Sprig chuckled, his cheeks blushed redder by the minute.

“Still blind to what’s in front of you. What’s up?”

“Ah, nothing. Just thinking about Anne.” He pointed to her passing out samples of carrots to passing customers.

“What about her? She’s looking pretty good to me.”

“Nah, it’s just…I feel like she wants something, like the call to adventure, or something special for her birthday! I’m just not sure.”

“Well, maybe, she would appreciate this.” Ivy pulled out a blue moon shell. Its sparkly, crystalized swirl entranced Sprig, whose eyes opened up wide.

“Woah. Where’d you get it?” Sprig curiously asked.

“Found it on the back of a cart. Thought you might like it, but it sounds like Anne might need it more than you.”

“Aww, thanks, Ivy!” Sprig gives Ivy a kiss on the cheek. Her face became flushed with red. She always seemed to go red whenever Sprig kissed her. She didn’t understand it.

Sprig rushed over to the stand, with the shell behind his back. He screeched to a stop right in front of Anne. 

“What’s up, Sprig?”

“Eh, nothing. Except I found this awesome blue moon shell!”

Sprig whipped out the shell and raised it up to Anne’s face. The sun reflected off the shell and beamed onto Anne’s veggie juice-covered face. She stared in awe at the sight of such a beautiful item.

“Sprig, this is so incredible! Thank you so much, dude.”

Then something dawned on Anne like a glowing mushroom turned on in her head.

“Wait, where did you say you got this?”

“From Ivy.” Sprig waved over to Ivy, who returned the gesture.

“And where did she get it from?”

“GROWLLLLL.”

The entire market froze. Everyone turned their attention to three toads standing at the entrance of the market. Bog, Fens, and Mire towered over all the citizens of Wartwood, except for Anne of course.

“Who stole our cargo?” Bog said menacingly. His low voice made the frogs feel smaller than they already were.

Fens butted in. “One of you brats stole a moon shell off of our cart, meant for Toad Tower, and we aren’t leaving until someone coughs it up.” 

Mire, who wore a knight-like helmet, pointed over to Sprig and Anne. They saw the shell in Sprig’s hand.

The toads grinned and stomped over to the vegetable stand.

“Well, well, well. Looks like we caught the thieving little runt.” Bog said, pulling out his sword. He raised it up like he was going to deliver a killing blow.

Anne’s eyes widened. She was thankful she brought her new sword with her to the stand. She wanted to sneak away for some practice, but this was the best practice. 

She leaped over the stand’s counter, unsheathing her sword in the process. She landed, blade out, and ready to face the toads.

“Woah, dude. Back up!” Anne declared her stance firm.

The toads halted, shocked at the sight of Anne. They never really came around to Wartwood, so they were surprised to see a creature like Anne.

“Well, what have we here? A monster sticking up for a thief.” Bog growled at Anne.

The words didn’t phase her. She knew she wasn’t a monster, and the town knew she wasn’t. So, their words held no sway here.

“Look, I don’t know what you're doing here, but today’s not tax collection day. Get out of here.”

“Or what?” Bog questioned.

“Or I’ll throw you out myself!”

“Is that a challenge?” Fens charged at Anne, with a spiked club. 

Anne dodged with ease and kicked Fens down. Fens hit the ground hard, only to be met with a stone to the eye by Sprig’s trusty slingshot. She grabbed her eye in agony.

The entire market took cover behind the stands. They knew a fight was about to go down. It was both scary and entertaining to watch. Some people even pulled out popcorn to watch the action.

Bog lunged at Anne and the two locked swords, each struggling to hold the other one-off. The tension broke, and Anne went on the offense, clashing her sword with Bog’s.

Sprig, on the other hand, easily maneuvered past Fens and Mire, slapping them with mud and rocks. Unbeknownst to the toads, Polly snuck up behind them. She winded up her swing, then slammed her giant wrench into Mire’s leg.

“Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee.” Mire squealed, before collapsing to the ground. It really didn’t take much to take him down.

Sprig bobbed and weaved, bending his head backwards, and running in circles.  Suddenly, he felt his leg get grabbed by Fens.

“Well, this can’t be good.” Sprig said, bluntly.

In an instant, Fens picked up Sprig and twirled him around like a cloth in the air. Before he could even contemplate his spinny situation, Fens hurled him toward Polly

Polly, who was looking over Mire, turned to see Sprig, hurtling towards her.

“Oh hi, Sprig.”

The Plantar siblings collide and go flying into a cricket stand. The vendor ducked as their stand was blown to smithereens!

Anne, swapping back between offense and defense, continued her duel with Bog, easily matching him in skill and prowess. Once again, their swords locked, and both glared at each other. 

Then, the screams of Sprig and Polly pierced Anne’s ear. She whipped her head to see Fens, standing over them, with her club above her head.

“Game over, you little runts!” Fens snickered.

“No!” Anne screamed. 

In an instant, her eyes went light blue. The aura surrounded her eyes like flames on a torch. Her hair still stayed brown. Whatever power was in Anne, she had more control of it this time around.

Bog, stunned, lost focus, leading to Anne pushing him back with the sword. Before he could have any time to react, he was met with a punch with the power of a praying mantis to the face. Bog was out cold, and on the ground instantly.

“Hey, swamp brains!” Anne called out.

Fens looked to see Anne, seething with fury and rage, and her fists glowing blue. She was a snarky warrior, but this was new territory for this toad.

“If you think I’m just going to let you hurt the family I love, you’ve got another thing coming!”

In an instant, Anne moved from one side of the market to the other, like she had super speed. Fens couldn’t even process the speed and agility in Anne’s little burst.

Anne swung her sword, right through Fens’ hand holding the club. The severed hand landed on the ground with a THUD!

Fens, in shock, didn’t notice that a super-charged punch was coming her way. The punch knocked her out of the market and into a tree. She crashed into it hard, then landed, face first, on the dirt.

After taking some deep breaths, Anne powered down, using a stand’s counter and balancing herself. Those powers were taxing on her body, but she had them for so long that she had gotten more used to the power in her body.

The frogs peered out from the vendor stands, to see all the toads down, Anne breathing heavily, with Sprig and Polly alongside her. The crowd leaped up and cheered like there was a rave party happening.

“Three cheers for Anne, the birthday hero!” Wally called out.

“Anne! Anne! Anne!” The crowd kept chanting her name. Anne smiled with joy. Her town, which she had grown to love for 8 years, was so compassionate and supportive towards her, that she wanted to cry.

Rose and Hop Pop ran over and hugged their children tightly.

“Anne, are you okay? Are you hurt? Did you overdo it this time?” Rose kept asking questions, like the worried mother she was.

“I’m fine, mom. Just a little winded. It’s not that bad.”

“Oh, I’m so proud of you, sweetie!” Rose pulled Anne in and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Anne’s body went limp with love. She felt glad to have a mom like Rose. She let go and hugged Sprig and Polly.

“So, what are we gonna do about these guys?” Hop Pop pointed to the unconscious toads.

Anne pondered that same question. She then looked over at the catapult behind their stand. Her grin widened to a mischievous smirk. She and Polly looked at each other. They both knew they had the same idea.

“I think I have an idea.”

After minutes of lifting the heavy toad into the catapult, Sprig tossed a note in, saying ‘ Eat our dirt, toads! ’ 

“Alright, let her rip!” Polly screamed.

Anne, using her new sword, cut the line, and let the toads fly. The toads went soaring beyond the market. Beyond Wartwood, and into the sky. They disappeared and silhouettes in the sun.

The crowd again started cheering the names of the Plantar family, who all came in for another group hug. 

For Anne, this just made her birthday a lot more interesting.

The night sky always looked so beautiful during this time of year. No lights from the town. No loud noises. Just the peaceful water ripples, the fireflies buzzing through the air, and the stars shining bright.

Anne sat out on the dock, holding the blue moon shell in her palms, and felt the smoothness of her gift. She looked up at the sky and gazed at the stars. They were so pretty tonight.

Sprig opened the door, and peeked outside. He hopped out and quickly shut the door. Anne disrupted, stared longingly at her adopted brother.

“Hey, Anne. You doing alright?”

“Yeah, I’m good.”

Sprig walked over and plopped himself right next to Anne. He couldn’t help but feel a little guilty about the day’s events. He looked up at the sky and observed the stars.

“They’re really pretty tonight, aren’t they?” Anne said, relaxed.

“Yeah. Yeah, they sure are.”

Silence filled the air. All either of them could hear was the chirping of crickets out in the distance. 

“Look, Anne, I’m sorry about today…”

“Pssh. Don’t worry about it, dude. You just wanted to get something nice for me, even if you almost started a gang war with the toads.”

“Yeah, well, I guess I ruined your birthday, huh?”

“Ruined? Sprig, you gave me a great birthday! I got some action, and some awesome gifts, and I got to be by your side. I couldn’t ask for a better day.”

“Then why did you look all sad at the market?” That hit Anne like a horde of stink bugs.

“I…I was thinking about my life before Amphibia.”

“What do you remember?”

Anne shrugged her shoulders.

“Honestly, not much. I know I had friends, and my parents loved me, but that’s all I can really remember. It’s like all fuzzy and stuff.”

Sprig pondered for a bit before responding.

“Do you miss home?”

Anne felt a weight, pushing down on her heart. She didn’t know how to respond to such a question.

“I don’t know. At first, I did, but the thought of being away just disappeared over these last few years. I’ve been in Amphibia for most of my life, so it’s difficult to miss a place you never really knew.”

“But, if you could go home, would you want to?”

It didn’t take long for Anne to answer the question.

“No. ‘Cause I am home. And I have my family. And I know who I am.”

“And who’s that?”

Anne stood up and got into a heroic position.

“I’m Anne B. Plantar, and I’m your sister. Come here, little guy.”

Sprig, with a goofy smile across his face, leaped up into Anne’s arms, and the two embraced. Such a loving connection for the siblings.

“Spranne against the world?”

“Spranne against the world.”

Sprig hopped down, and Anne got onto a knee. They did their handshake, with loving smiles on their faces. When they wiggled their hands together, they chuckled with glee.

CRASH!

A sudden noise came from the front of the house, which knocked Anne and Sprig to the wooden dock.

“What the heck was that?” Anne asked, surprised.

Sprig shrugged his shoulders in disbelief. They sprinted to the door and ran into the house.

When they exited out the front of the house, they noticed a small crater, with Polly standing over it. Black smoke rose up from inside the hole like a fire was down there.

“Polly, what did you do?!” Sprig screamed, panicking for his little sister.

“I didn’t do anything! Something just crashed down in the yard.”

Anne and Sprig walked closer, with caution. They didn’t know what was in the hole.

They approached the hole, and everyone leaned in to see what was down there.

“What do you think it is?” Sprig asked.

“Maybe it's an alien life-form, sent here to kill all living things and take over the world!” Polly screamed at the top of her lungs. Her siblings just stared at her in bewilderment. “My impulses flare up sometimes.”

The smoke began to clear, and in the hole, the source of the smoke became clear. It came from a box, a gold ornate box, with small etches of leaves and trees and a frog on the lid. There was a gray gem on the lid as well, along with two holes, which could possibly hold other gems.

Anne thought the box seemed familiar, but she couldn’t place her finger on it. She thought she saw it in one of Hop Pop’s books in his study.

“Is that a music box?” Sprig asked.

“Hop Pop!” Anne screamed, to get the patriarch's attention. She kept looking at the box as if she knew it from somewhere, but like it never existed in her mind. What was it?

End of Chapter 4

Chapter Text

Thunderous clouds loomed over a wilting forest. Trees had been burned down, nothing grew in this part of the valley. Almost like something terrible was abound.

Out in a clearing, laid Sasha Waybright, a spunky middle-schooler with blonde hair, blue eyes, a pink skirt, and a jean jacket. 

“Ugh, my head is killing me.”

Sasha rubbed her temples, as her vision returned to her, barely able to make out anything.

“Mar Mar? If you used one of your tech upgrades on your phone and it blew up, I’m gonna kill you.” Sasha muttered. 

The last thing she remembered was she and Marcy were at the playground just a block down from their school. A place where they had another friend, who disappeared 8 years prior. They still thought of her every day, even when Sasha tried to shove those feelings down.

They were sitting on one of the benches, looking over a music box. Marcy found it at a thrift store and said it was perfect for her, so she decided to steal it.

It had a lot of frog decor, except for three stones, one gray, one pink, and one green. She didn’t understand why one of the gems was gray, but she didn’t care.

She opened the box, and there was a flash of light, and the next thing she knew, she was on the ground, which didn’t feel like the soft grass of the playground. Now, everything felt muddy, rough, and overall disgusting.

Sasha’s vision had finally fully returned, and now she got a better picture of the environment. 

“Yeesh, looks like someone let this place go.”

Sasha pulled out her phone, to see if she could call Marcy. She found the contact and dialed the number. It immediately disconnected.

“What?!”

Sasha checked her service. There were no bars whatsoever. No calling, no texting, and no watching the next season of Suspicion Island. She shook the phone and hit it with her hand to try and fix it.

“Come on, you stupid piece of junk! Give me some service!”

Sasha calmed down and checked her phone again. No bars, still. She facepalmed, as she sighed in defeat.

“I can’t believe this. Could this day get any worse?”

Sasha would later come to regret those words.

She whipped around to be met with the pointy end of a spear. She quickly paused, as the spear touched her jacket.

“Hey, easy with the jacket buddy! This cost $50…”

Sasha trailed off when she saw who was at the receiving end of the spear. She saw a large, lime-green toad. It wore scale-like armor with a knight’s helmet on top of its head.

“Miss, stay where you are.” The toad spoke.

Before she could begin to process what was going on in front of her face, she heard twigs snap from all different directions. About 6 or 7 toads surrounded her, most of them with spears, one with a bundle of rope.

“There’s more of you?” Sasha whispered to herself.

“Hands up, creature!” One of the toads called out. 

The toads began to close the circle, inching closer to her with every thunderous step. Sasha groaned and put her hands up.

“Look, guys, toad thingies…this is all a big misunderstanding,” Sasha said with an innocent voice. She thought that if they thought she was fragile, maybe they would capture her, or worse…kill her. “I’m just a little lost, and I stumbled into the wrong neighborhood. So how about we let this go, and we can all move on? Cool? Cool.

She tried to walk forward, but the toad with rope rushed her like a defensive lineman, and she was on the ground in seconds.

She struggled with the toad, but she felt the rope wrap around her, getting tighter and tighter. Soon enough, she was tied up, and couldn’t move.

“Let me go, jock for brains!” She yelled.

“Sorry, ma’am. Captain’s orders.” The green toad said. “And that was also a little hurtful.”

As Sasha was picked up, her mind lit up. These things were just like humans; they could be emotionally manipulated. She could definitely use that to her advantage, now that she’s a prisoner.

The toads carried her out across the field, and towards a bridge. The bridge looked to be made of the ground beneath their feet, with an arch underneath the bridge.

Sasha looked up at where they were taking her, and it was giving off some real medieval vibes for her. The tower looked decayed and falling apart. Stones were poking out of the infrastructure. However, it had some nice spires at the top. They made the place more intimidating. Not to her, but she thought others would be. But they were getting closer to some giant gate-like doors.

Once the doors opened, she got a better look at the tower’s courtyard. More toads looked on in interest as the toads carried her along. Then she saw something that actually put a lump in her throat.

A giant Venus-fly trap, growing right out of the ground. It was held down by ropes, and a large enclosure. She hoped they wouldn’t feed her to that. Would it like the taste of humans?

Once inside the tower, there wasn’t much to see, as she was taken up a long spiral staircase. Like the ones she read in those dumb fairy tales, but just grosser and with more moss.

Eventually, they leveled out at a floor, from what Sasha guessed, was really high up. The toads set her down, which showed her a dank, dirty jail cell. 

While three toads untied her, the green one locked a chain around her ankle. Then, in one fell swoop, she was thrust into the cage, where the door slammed behind her.

Sasha felt something jingle in her pocket. She pulled it out to see it was one of the stones from the box, only this one was gray. She got the lame one.

“Hey, this is illegal, you know, I want my one phone call!” Sasha called out. 

The green toad approached the bars, with a bowl. She thought it must’ve been some food. She hadn’t eaten a lot for dinner, so she needed something in her stomach.

However, when she saw the food, it made her stomach churn. It was bug legs in dark green soup. She saw the cricket leg twitch on the spoon. She instantly swatted the food away.

“I’m sorry, but what’s your name?” she asked.

“Percy.” The toad replied. “And can you tell me who you are, and why you just splattered a toad’s hard work all over the floor?” Percy was getting a little teary-eyed.

“Well, Percy, the name’s Sasha, and I don't eat anything that looks like a pool of dirt.”

“Hey, we worked hard on that.”

“Enough!”

Silence filled the room. Everyone faced the entrance to the cell room. A toad breathed heavily, grabbing a fly with his tongue and swallowing it. He was dark green, had a green eye and a glassy-looking eye, with a scar across his right eye.

“Captain Grime! We’re getting the prisoner ready for you…”

“Silence you fools! Stop blabbering on, and leave us!” Grime shouted.

The room quickly cleared out, leaving just Sasha and Grime, both locked in a stare-off.

“I must say, you’re a fascinating creature. I’ve never seen something like you in all my time in Amphibia.”

“Yeah, well, I tend to be fascinating.”

“Enough! You will speak only when I say you may.” Grime bellowed, his voice shaking the room. “Now, who sent you, how did you get here, and what are your intentions?”

“Uh, no one, don’t know, and I just want to find my friend and go home, wherever home may be. We good, Grimesy?”

Grime snarled, his teeth sharp enough to be called daggers. Sasha didn’t think this was the response he was looking for.

“This may take some time, but we’ll get the truth out of you, sooner or later,” Grime growled at his prisoner.

“Yeah, you are definitely not Mr. Popular around here,” Sasha said, rolling her eyes, and checking out her nails. She just had a manicure two days ago! And it was all for nothing. 

In the back of her mind, she prayed that Marcy was okay and safe. It was going to be a while before she could leave.

Marcy definitely got the better spawn point. But she didn’t know that as she was laid down, face first on the ground, her head still buzzing.

As her vision was coming back, she felt the ground around her. It was hard, rough, but felt refined in a sense. Maybe a stone pathway, possibly marble. She started to see the beige ground more clearly.

“Ugh, Sashy?” Marcy said, a little queasy.

As she looked up she saw houses lining the street she was on. The street was empty. But as Marcy looked closer, she saw the houses were a little different than what she was used to.

She had read about people carving houses inside of a hollow tree, but she took a look at the houses and saw that they were formed out of coral. An interesting design choice.

Marcy finally stood up, whipped around, and saw the vast greatness that was Newtopia!

It was like a city in Vagabondia Chronicles , her favorite JRPG of all time. But the aquatic aesthetic continued into the streets below.  She saw so much beauty fill the streets of this kingdom.

Her eye-line continued to watch the streets below, as she saw the residents going about their daily lives. But she saw that they weren’t human, they looked amphibian based on what she could see.

Judging from the pigment of their skin, tails, and tall stature, she presumed that the citizens were newts, which made her giggle with glee. Newts, living like humans, and thriving in a beautiful world.

Finally, her eyes rested upon what looked like a castle. It looked like something out of War of the Warlocks . It was like a giant cake, with a smaller layer stacked up on top of the other. Atop the castle, there was a giant beacon-like structure. It looked incredible.

After taking a few steps, a giant, gaping smile came across Marcy’s face. It worked! The music box actually worked! She was now in another world, and she had to assume Sasha was too. 

“Wow! String theory, multidimensional realities, and matter displacement. They’re all real! I can’t believe it! This is the coolest, most Isekai thing to ever happen to me!” Marcy hugged herself, proud of the decision she made.

DING! DONG!

Church bells went off in the distance. Marcy squinted to see a small square, a city center like Times Square in the heart of the city. Newts were flocking towards the center.

Questions started piling up in Marcy’s head. What was the economy like? Did they have any electronics for an advanced civilization? Did they have froyo? Too many questions!

As if instinctively, Marcy started walking towards the sound of the bells. Like she was drawn to it like a whale call.

Marcy couldn’t help, but adore the beauty of the buildings, all created inside of coral or other aquatic plants. To her, this was the Atlantis people had been searching for! She loved every little inch of the streets, corners, and buildings she passed.

Her gaping smile was present as she continued to scour the environment. She was so invested in the infrastructure of this place. She was so invested that she failed to see a flight of stairs in front of her.

Before she could look down to see the steps, she missed the first one…

BLAM! CLONK! 

Marcy fell down the flight of stairs, rolling head over heel, as the stairs seemed never-ending.

“Woah, woah. Where am I after? Where have I gone? Why am I going?” Marcy said as she tumbled for what felt like minutes.

Finally, she reached the bottom of the stairs. She crashed down hard on her left leg, and rolled a few extra feet, leaving her in a three-way intersection of traffic.

Cars, buses, and trucks all froze, as the teenage human laid in the street.

Marcy’s head was spinning again, as she looked up at the bright blue sky. She was seeing stars and a crowd began to form around her. 

The newts looked shocked to see Marcy, who wasn’t like anything this city had ever seen.

“What is that thing?” One newt said.

“Maybe it somehow got through the wall.”

“Wonder what it wants.”

“You think it would like gnachos?” A purple newt asked.

Marcy felt bruised all around. She had taken some falls before, but this was on another level. She felt like the world was spinning around her.

As the number of onlookers kept multiplying, a small group of newt soldiers with spears approached the crowd. Instantly, all the newts let the guards funnel through to the center.

Some of the soldiers surrounded Marcy, with their spears drawn and ready, but Marcy was too out of it to notice. 

“Hmm, pointy.” She poked one of the spears, feeling like she was gonna pass out.

“Make way, people. Make way for Lady Olivia.” A soldier cried out.

As the soldiers pushed the civilians back, an aqua-marine-colored newt began walking towards Marcy and the soldiers. She was shorter than the guards, about average height for a newt. She had wavy dark blue hair, with the top tied in a band made of seashells.

Her attire was more royal, with her wearing a lovely taffeta dress with scale designs etched in. She wore a lovely golden brooch around her neck and had a nice purple shawl wrapped around her shoulders. 

She looked business, as she didn’t pay any attention to the thousands of newts trying to get a peek at the human.

“Barbaric,” Olivia whispered to herself as she scurried along.

Olivia approached Marcy with caution, unsure if she was a danger to newt society or not. As she peered over the teenager Marcy tried to focus on her but found her vision blurring again.

“Greetings. I am Lady Olivia, Royal Advisor to the King of Amphibia. And who might you be, creature?” Olivia said in a polite manner.

Marcy tried to piece together a cohesive sentence, but she felt her mind fading, so she said whatever came out of her mouth first was what Olivia had heard.

“I’m a scrunkly little scrimblo. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.”

Marcy’s head collapsed back to the ground, where her eyes closed. She might’ve gotten a concussion from the fall as well.

“I must say, this is very…underwhelming.” Olivia tried to say without coming off as a jerk. She tended to rub newts the wrong way, given her upper-class status.

One guard stepped forward and poked Marcy with the other end of his spear, so as to not harm her.

“Welp, she’s out of it.” They said, bluntly.

Olivia scoured the scene, looking for any clues to the identity of their new “guest.” Then, she noticed a glimmer coming from the road. She walked over, and saw a gray gem, just lying on the ground, along with some other trinkets that were in the human’s pocket.

Olivia picked up a card that was right next to the gem. It had the creature’s picture, along with her title.

“Marcy Wu.” Olivia said, trying her best to pronounce the name correctly.

“So what should we do with it, Lady Olivia?” One of the newts asked, looking at his fellow guards with worrisome eyes.

“Whoever this “Marcy Wu” is, she is indeed special, and not something we usually see in these lands.”

Olivia had been raised to care for wildlife and its creatures, as taught by her late mother. She thought this creature needed some help, after all, it didn’t look like it was from around here.

Olivia looked down at Marcy’s legs and noticed her left was bending the wrong way, with blood and bruises covering it. She definitely broke it coming down the flight of stairs.

“First, let’s get her to the infirmary. Guards, help carry this “Marcy Wu” to an ambulance. I will stay with you. You.” She pointed to a random guard out of the dozen standing there. “Go to the king, and deliver a message.”

“Yes, ma’am! What should the message be?”

“That we have a guest coming to the castle.”

The new guards picked up the unconscious Marcy and carried her toward the castle. Olivia followed close behind them, with her own team of guards surrounding her. She was fascinated by Marcy. So tall and lanky. 

“This will be a most interesting topic with Andrias,” Olivia said, suddenly  getting nervous about actually showing her to her king.

End of Chapter 5