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Chapter Text

A giant moss-covered creature walked out of the cover of the forest. They let out a small grumble before bending down to the ground. They scooped a part of the dirt in their hands and stood up. In the dirt was a wilted flower, a petal falling off. The beast let out a low rumble of sadness and worry. 

A smaller hand, one that was caramel-skinned, touched the beast’s hand. The beast lowered their hands towards the strange being. It was a woman with dark skin and long, curly brown hair that cascaded down her back. She scooped her hands into the dirt and carefully extracted the flower. Her hair glowed a bright blue with sticks growing out of her head like antlers. Her eyes turned blue as the dead flower began to perk back up and the petals bloomed again.

The moss creature let out a low grumble of worry instead of relief. 

“I agree. This is the work of whatever is poisoning our land. If this continues, we could see our whole forest destroyed and then the rest of the world if I don’t do something about it. I can’t idle any longer. I must travel to Newtopia and talk to the current Leviathan king. There, I may be able to get some answers.” The moss creature bent its head down towards her. The woman patted its head. “Thank you, girl but I think it would be wise for you to stay here with the rest of the Moss Men. You are their Matriarch. You may need to lead them away from this place if the poison hits. Keep them safe. I promise to come back.”

She leaned up to kiss their cheek. A flower bloomed in its spot. The woman watched the elder Mossman descend back into the forest. She turned on her heel and looked up to the night sky. Her attention was on a star that seemed to shine brighter than all the other stars in the sky. 

“Don’t worry my Guardian. I will get to the bottom of this. I won’t disappoint you. This is what you created me for.”

Newtopia is a grand city that had been built right in the center of their world, Amphibia.

A bustling city filled with vibrant creatures in forms you’ve never seen before. Humans and large Amphibian-like creatures live together in harmonious peace. 

These cold-blooded creatures are frogs, toads, axolotls, and newts. As strange as they could possibly be to the humans, that didn’t upset them as it was daily life for them. You can see they mingle together in a form of friendship since their ancestors, the founders of Amphibia, had settled the world they all call home.

They are thankful and blessed to their ancestors who had found Amphibia in their time of hardship and strife. They’ve learned by their ways on how to farm and to hunt to survive while building their homes out of wood and stone before better materials came to light.

Through their time of continuous difficulties, the Leviathan family has been a beacon of hope to push forward the future. The males from the family have large, intimidating bodies that are not for showing off. Their strength can be able to lift six boulders in one hand with ease, but they are gentle giants who swore to protect their people from harm’s way. However, their brute force was no match for the evil that threatened the lives of innocent people.

A being so powerful that could command every creature of Amphibia to obey as they had feared them. With one flick of its wrist, it could manipulate the very nature that surrounded the world.

She had no name except when she was called by all. 

The Spirit. 

The Spirit is as evil and as despicable as they say. She took the appearance of a beautiful woman, and her beauty could make even the diamonds envious of her shine. She could charm anyone who passes into her forest but once you are in her domain, you can never escape from her grasp.

She could reveal her true form. Hair ignites in blazing blue, eyes turn blue as it freezes your soul. And with her gleeful laugh, she would play with her new toy until she gets bored before destroying them.  

When they thought they’d lost all hope, Valeriana Leviathan, a female newt who was highly respected and beloved by all, stood up against the Spirit with her magic. They fought head-on as their magic collided, but Valeriana managed to scare off the Spirit back to the forest for the time being.

Thus, victory was theirs as they dubbed Valeriana Leviathan to be the first Queen of Newtopia who would descend on the throne as she swore to protect them from the evil Spirit.

The Spirit swore vengeance when she returned. 

They thought she was bluffing but the Spirit did indeed return but the Leviathan family were always there to protect their citizens. However, the Spirit remained a threat and always proclaimed that she would be back to fight again. As the seasons passed, the Spirit grew relentless for her bloody conquest. The citizens started to fear they could never have their peace from the Spirit.

But one man, who looked to be simply mortal, stood before the Spirit and faced her with no fear in his eyes. The Spirit laughed as if it was a joke to her that this one single man could stop her mighty magic. But to her surprise, she was proved wrong as the man released an array of magic that the Spirit could not counter. 

The Spirit realized that the man was too powerful and thus, she fled like a coward. They never heard from the Spirit again. Everyone rejoiced with the hero as peace was finally restored. They were saved from the spirit.

That hero was and is still alive to this day was Conrad Godfrey.

It is a known history that has been passed down through the generations.

In the middle of the beating heart of Newtopia was Leviathan Castle. Various humans and toads sat on benches facing steps and a large throne. There were low whispers as they chatted among themselves. Four toads sat on both sides of the throne. 

Soon, the doors opened, and an imposing figure stood in the doorway. They were a newt and one of the largest newts in all of Amphibia. Not only that, but it was also the King of Amphibia, Andrias Leviathan. His thunderous footsteps echoed through the room as he walked towards the large throne chair. Two smaller figures, a newt and a human, followed behind him. 

The female newt was Olivia Longclaw and royal advisor to the King. The human girl had her normally long black hair done up in a bun. When she turned towards everyone, her two different-colored eyes stared forward. The left eye was a soft brown while the right eye was a dark orange, an eye color she inherited from her late mother. Her name is Marcy Wu. Then behind them was a tall man, with his white hair pulled to the left and the right side cut short. His beard was white and cut close to his face. It was the legend himself, Conrad Godfrey. He carried a box in his hands.

King Andrias stood before the crowds, cleared his throat, and spoke as his powerful voice carried through the halls.

“Welcome Soldiers of Toad Tower. Today is a day where we celebrate you and your fellow soldiers. Many of you are cadets who have passed their training and who are ready to be moved into your respective towers. And some of you have been promoted to higher ranks.” King Andrias spoke in his booming voice. He smiled at the soldiers. “Olivia.” 

Olivia handed Andrias the large scroll that she had been carrying to him. He took it and pulled his pink reading glasses out of his pocket.

“First on the agenda. Sasha Waybright.” 

A blonde woman, no older than twenty, stood up and walked to the king. She kept her head held high. This woman was the first human promoted to lieutenant of a Toad Tower. Everyone talked about the blonde woman. There were comments about the giant scar that covered most of her right cheek.

“Wow. Do you see that scar on her cheek? It’s huge.”

“I heard she got it from fighting two herons when she was thirteen.”

“I heard that too and she beat them with just her fist.”

“No way. I heard it was three herons and she killed all three with a broken sword.”

“I heard it was an army and she defeated all of them while defending a town of frogs.”

The blonde smirked at the comments. She had made quite a name for herself. Some of it was true while the rest was false.

The blonde felt a glare coming from the crowd though despite the many praises. Her dark blue eyes glanced to where she was feeling the glare. There was a soldier, with short brown hair that pulled up, glaring daggers at her. She scoffed at him before focusing her attention on the black-haired human girl. She could still feel his stare on her back, but she ignored him. He was a bug compared to her. 

When she reached the steps, she dropped to one knee in a bow.

“Sasha Waybright. From the moment you became a cadet, you were a grunt climbing up the ladder of success. Now you have reached the top of that ladder. Today, you are a lieutenant of the South Toad Tower. Tomorrow, you could be captain.” Sasha beamed at him. “Marcy, if you may.”

The black girl, Marcy, came forward. She opened the box in Conrad’s hands and pulled a medal out. King Andrias’s hands were too large to be able to pin any of the medals onto the soldiers. So, Marcy did the honors. She carefully pinned the medal on Sasha’s chest before smiling at her friend. Sasha flashed a small, gentle smile back that she reserved for her dearest friend.

“You are now Lieutenant Sasha Waybright. Second in command to Captain Grime Waybright of the South Tower.”

Sasha bowed towards Andrias, fanning out in her cape.

“Thank you for the high honors, your majesty. I promise I will uphold my honor and pride as a member of Toad Tower. I will protect the lands from the evil spirit that could destroy it.”

Sasha walked away to sit down behind a toad with a large scar running down the right side of his face. He shot her a quick wide smile before focusing back to the front and on his king. The rest of the ceremony crawled for Sasha. She was bored out of her mind but her training as a soldier kept her from showing her boredom. Her eyes darted out to the windows and narrowed at the strange flash of blue before it disappeared after a mere moment.

She wondered what that was. It was soon out of her mind when her eyes then wandered over to spot a strange, hooded figure peeking out of a pillar. They ducked back in when they realized they were spotted. She almost went after them when she heard a familiar name. She looked up to see the guy who had been glaring at her walking up to the king. He received his post which was the North Tower and he sent one last glare at her. She looked back to the pillar and saw that the hooded figure was gone.

Once all the soldiers got their promotions and their new towers, they all left. Sasha had stayed behind because Olivia said that the King wanted to speak with her alone. 

Sasha watched the captains of the toad get up to exit the room. Grime patted her back as he walked by. Beatrix and Bufo both punched her arm as they passed her. Then Sasha was surprised to see Aldo suddenly stand up and walk over to her, albeit a bit slower with the aid of his cane. When he walked by her, he stopped and turned his head towards her.

“You saw that flash of blue, didn't you?” Aldo whispered to her. Sasha raised an eyebrow. “The winds of change are coming. The spirit has come back to us.”

Sasha watched the old toad slowly walk away from her; the tapping of the cane was the only sound. 

“I forgot how much that old toad freaked me out.” Sasha thought to herself.

“Congratulations Sasha. Truly a magnificent feat.” Andrias held his closed fist out for a fist bump. Sasha bumped her fist into his large hand. 

“Sashy, congratulations, girl! You are a lieutenant now. How does it feel?” Marcy threw herself into her friend’s arms.

“It feels…good! I worked hard to get here.”

“Yes, you did, Lieutenant Sasha.” The man with the white hair bowed. He held a glass of champagne up. “You are truly incredible, especially with your most impressive hunts.”

“Thank you, Conrad.” Sasha bowed her head towards the man.

“I would say I expect great things from you, but I already know that you will make us proud.” Sasha felt her chest puff up with pride from Conrad’s words. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “So, congratulations. Now you have earned yourself a small vacation. Go to that little village of yours and take it easy. Make sure that old farmer doesn’t work you too hard.”

“If I know Hop Pop, I doubt it,” Sasha exclaimed, earning a chuckle from Conrad.

“Yes, you are right! Nonetheless, we don’t want our best and brightest to get too tired when her first mission as a lieutenant comes up. Now Andrias, we had best be on our way. We have some unfinished business to attend to.”

“Of course! Now, run along Sasha.” King Andrias waved his hands. “It’s your celebration. Enjoy your time. Congratulations once again, Sasha. You have earned it.” He winked at her. 

Sasha and Marcy watched Andrias, Olivia, and Conrad walk away. Sasha looked over to Marcy and smiled. She gently jabbed her in the side with her elbow.

“The king is gone. You want to sneak into the throne room?” Sasha asked.

“I dare you to sit on his throne,” Marcy responded back. 

“I accept your dare.”

Sasha and Marcy waited for a moment before suddenly sprinting. They chased after each other down the halls like they once had when they were younger. They ducked into passageways to hide from some of the patrolling newt guards and even the robots that roamed the castle. The guards probably wouldn’t say anything to them as they were regulars at the castle and the robots were programmed with their images installed in their database. Part of the fun though was seeing how long they could hide from them before they were found.

They slipped into the throne room and carefully closed the door behind them. Sasha shushed Marcy who was giggling like crazy.

“Marcy, shut up! You will alert the guards.” Sasha giggled at her laughing friend. “This reminds me of when we were younger. When we would play hide and seek here in the pillars with your mom.” Sasha looked at her friend and saw her face sour at the thought. Talking about Marcy’s mom was always a sore subject for the girl. Sasha would admit that she would have loved to have a mother like Darcy. She viewed Darcy as a mother figure and was devastated when she heard the news that Darcy killed herself. She never understood why. “Sorry. Didn't mean to bring it up.”

“It’s okay, Sasha. I…I don’t want to talk about it. Now come on.” Her mood did a complete one-eighty turn. I think someone still has a dare to compete.”

Marcy punched her arm before bolting away from her. Sasha chased after her. She saw a blue spark dove behind a pillar. She stopped in her tracks and her hand went to her pink heron sword. She pulled her sword out of the sheath and held it close to her body. Marcy stopped and turned to see Sasha in a battle stance.

“Sash-” Sasha put a finger to her lips to tell Marcy to be silent and Marcy instantly knew that there was an intruder nearby. Marcy was a gifted magic user, having been trained in the dark arts by her mother. She waves her fingers as the spark of magic comes alive, summoning a spark of electricity. She nodded to Sasha to confirm to her that she was ready, and Sasha nodded back.   

Sasha carefully stepped to where she had seen the light from behind a pillar. She pressed her back against it. She could hear a different breathing between her and Marcy coming from behind the pillar. She tightened her grip and rapidly circled around the pillar, holding her sword in front of her.

“Halt you in…..truder, Uh?” Sasha’s eyes darted around to look around the throne room. There was no one there. She looked around the entire throne room and couldn’t see a single person besides Marcy. “What the? I could have sworn I saw something.

Marcy looked around the room, but she saw nothing out of the ordinary. She shook her hands to clear her magic and elbowed Sasha. “Come on Sasha. Let’s complete the challenge and let’s get out of here. It feels eerie here.”

“Yeah. I agree.” Sasha set her sword back into her sheath. “I’ll go first.”

They quickly completed their dare, with their eyes darting back and forth in the throne room for that mysterious blue light again. Marcy soon tugged Sasha away from the throne room to get away. 

“Sasha, my girl! I knew you would do it.” Grime thumped Sasha on the back. “Congratulations on your hard-earned promotion. Now you join the greats.”

“Leave the girl alone, Grimothy.” Beatrix slapped his face with her tongue. “Sasha, now give your auntie a hug. I always knew you were lieutenant material. Soon, you could be captain and bump Grimothy off his seat.” Grime just let out a huff as he crossed his arms.

“Thank you, Aunt Beatrix.”

“Always knew you had it in you kid.” Bufo nudged her side. “Grime finally did something good in training you.” Sasha laughed. 

Sasha noticed that Aldo was sitting in a corner by himself. He lifted his bony finger and motioned towards Sasha to come near him. She obliged.

“You saw the blue light.” She nodded. “That blue light is a sign. A sign that something is about to happen.”

“What is the blue light, Aldo?” 

Aldo hunched down. His head creaked as he looked back and forth as if to make sure that no one was listening.

“The Spirit!”

Sasha flinched at the name. She had been told as long as she could remember about how evil the spirit was and how they could easily destroy the world. It’s been centuries since the spirit was last seen and Sasha had hoped that they would never appear in her lifetime. 

“I don’t think that is a good sign.”

“Oh, believe me. It is! You must open your eyes much wider to the truth, Sasha.”

Sasha just stared at the old toad. “You will be surprised at what you see when you do…Congratulations on your new position and put it to good use.”

“I’ll…I’ll keep that in mind, Aldo. Thank you.” Sasha has no idea what the old toad is talking about but she’s not the only one. Not many could understand the senile toad as he rarely speaks, and when he talks, it is shrouded in mystery.

Sasha walked away from Aldo. His words wouldn’t leave her head, even as she drank more Bog Grog than she probably should have. She stumbled to her room as she yawned. She was still sober enough to spy a package on her desk. She grabbed the card on the top of the package. 

Dear Sasha, 

Congratulations on your promotion. It is well earned. You are truly a wonderful girl, and I cannot wait to see how much further you go. I hope you plan to put this gift of mine to good use. 

Your benefactor

Sasha set the card down. Since she was thirteen, every birthday and every holiday, she had been given gifts from this mysterious benefactor of hers. She never found out who it was. They definitely were a hard person to track or find. Sasha tore into the package and gasped. Inside was a sword that was nearly identical to her pink heron sword with the difference being the color. This one was blue. She lifted the blade up and examined it. She loved it.

“Thank you. I always wanted to try dual wielding.” 

After carefully setting her new blade next to her favorite blade, her drunken state allowed her to fall asleep more easily. There was a brief flash of blue outside her window.

“Wally! Get out! Get out!” A blue frog with one eye shut came running out of the restaurant. 

“Can’t a guy just try to get himself clean? Ow!” Wally was hit with a spoon to the head. “Well, I can see I am not welcome here.”

He walked down the dirt road as he played his accordion. There was rustling in the bushes. He stopped and looked around.

“Hello. Is there anyone there?”

There was more rustling in the bushes. He slowly turned around and his mouth agape as two blue eyes stared at him. He let out a scream that echoed through the morning sky.

The next morning, Sasha and Grime were helping Marcy get Joe Sparrow ready for their flight to Wartwood. Many of the soldiers from the night before were beginning to head out to their respective towers. Sasha spotted that one soldier from before. He made eye contact with her and walked over to her.

“Morning, Lieutenant.” She could hear the venom woven into his tone. He was mad at her, and she reveled in that anger.

“Morning, Ricki.” She smirked at his fuming face. “I’m surprised to see you up so early. You always had a nasty habit of sleeping in late.” He snarled at her. 

“It’s because of you that I am being sent to the North Tower.”

“I think you did that yourself. It’s because of you that I bear this scar on my palm.” She showed her left gloved hand to him. She had a long scar on her palm from him. “I trusted you. I trusted you and yet you backstabbed me and tried to kill me in what was supposed to be a friendly brawl. You got what you deserved. Don’t want me to beat you again.”

“Ricki! Get back in line, soldier.” The North Tower lieutenant yelled.

“Good luck Sasha in ever finding someone who will respect or love you. You stuck-up bitch!” Ricki scoffed, and spit at her feet before walking away from her.

“ I don’t need love. It’s just a lie.”

Sasha joined her friend in the back of her bird. Joe Sparrow set off into the air and soared to Wartwood, a small farming village tucked in Frog Valley, and it was there where Sasha’s second home was.

“Sasha!” When Joe Sparrow touched down in the village, Sasha was tackled by two pink frogs as soon as she jumped off.

“Hey, pipsqueaks.” Sasha picked the two frogs up and twirled them around. She ruffled the boy frog’s orange hair when she set them down. “I missed you two!”

“We missed you as well. Now, where is the candy?” The smaller pink frog rubbed her hands together. Sasha pulled a pouch out of her pocket and tossed it towards her.

“Right here, Polly. And I got you a little something Sprig.” Sasha pulled a pair of goggles out of her bag. Sprig gasped as he placed them on his head.

“Thank you, Sasha. Thank you.”

“Anything for you, you little scamp.”

“Sasha, welcome back.” An older orange frog made his way to her. “Congratulations, girl. I can’t believe it has actually happened.”

“Did you seriously doubt me, Hop Pop?”

“Never.” Hop Pop shook his head, fondly smiling. 

Sasha bent down and hugged the older frog. She had a lot to owe to the frog. Where Grime found her and raised her to where she was now, Hop Pop taught her a lot. He gave her a second family when Grime needed to be gone. It’s why she held pride in her scar. 

“It’s good to see you, girl. Welcome home.”

“It’s good to be home for a bit.”

“Sasha!” Sasha looked up at the strange mechanical voice. Before she could fight it, two robotic arms wrapped around her body and squeezed. She felt the air escape her lungs as her ribs felt like they were going to break.

“Polly. Polly! Tell Frobo to let go. I can’t breathe.” 

“Frobo, let Sasha go.”

“Sorry.” Frobo dropped her to the ground.  

“It’s good to see you too, you big metal tin can. Man, that is a squeeze. What did you do to him, Polly? Change his calibrations or something?”

“I did a few improvements.” This causes Marcy to turn into a starstruck nerd, and she starts talking about Frobo after she does a quick analysis of Frobo’s new improvement which boosts Polly’s pride. However, both Sprig and Sasha didn’t even understand any of it. They weren’t even sure if it was English. Their brains start to turn into mush.

“Judging by the new chips you’ve installed you’ve improved his Artificial intelligence. That’s AI for short. Any complex problems that Frobo encounters, he will easily be able to solve it. Which only improves his brain power.” Marcy mutters something in her breath as she calculates the math in her head and then she answers, “72%!!! Wow, Polly. You are one mechanical wiz! Oh! You’ve also upgraded his alloy into a-” Whatever Marcy was going to say went unsaid. When she was staring at her own reflection from Frobo’s chest, she noticed there was a person standing right behind her and she straightaway recognized her because she started to stutter when she turned around, “Li-Li-Li-.” 

“Hey, Lily.” Polly beat her to it. The two shared a high five.

“Hi, Polly! Hi, Marcy!”  

Sasha’s brain started to work again when Polly said Lily’s name and turned to see a woman with long black hair. She was pale with bright blue eyes. Her full name was Lilian Amery or Lily for short. She spotted Marcy blushing and stuttering as the woman talked. She was going to tease her friend about her crush later.

“Hey, Lily.” The woman turned her head towards Sasha. She smiled and waved. 

“Sasha! Oh, congratulations on your promotion. You’ve earned it.” Lily came up and hugged Sasha. “I should start painting a picture of you!” 

“Make sure you get my good side.” Sasha tilted her head to the side to show her scar off.

“I’ll make sure to include the scar, you brute of a warrior.” Lily jabbed her fist into Sasha’s shoulder. They laughed, and Marcy stopped stuttering, but she had a goofy look on her face when Lily started to laugh. They are like music to her ears. 

“MONSTER!” Sasha looked up to see One-eyed Wally come running out of the woods. Everyone turned to face the strange frog. Sure, Wally was a strange frog but he wasn’t a liar. He was caked in mud and his trusty accordion was broken as it trailed behind him. “A BLUE MONSTER!” 

“Wally!” Sasha got to her knees and grabbed his shoulders. “Wally, tell me what you saw?”

“MONSTER! Oh! Hey, Sasha. When did you get back?” 

“Wally! The monster?”

“Oh right! I saw a monster! They had glowing blue eyes and glowing blue hair. It scared the pants right off me.” Wally looked down. “Oh look. I still got me trousers.”

“Wally! Focus. Where is the monster?”

“In the woods.” He pointed to where he came out of the bushes. 

Sasha got up and pulled her swords out of their sheath. She started to race towards the forest. Marcy grabbed her arm.

“I’ll go with you!”

They ran into the forest to track down the monster. They decided to split up to cover more ground. 

Sasha is trudging through the woods with careful, silent steps. She keeps turning her head and spinning her body to spot anything that resembles a monster. Until she spotted a flash of blue and raced towards her. She popped into a clearing. She turned rapidly into a circle with her swords drawn.

“Come out you monster!”

Sasha heard a rustling and turned towards the noise. She held both of her swords out and widened her stance to prepare herself for whatever came her way.

However, what she did not expect was a woman in a dirty white dress stepping out from the bush. Sasha lowered her blades as she watched the woman with blinking eyes and then became wide. She is stunning to Sasha as Sasha focuses on just her face. There were hardly any blemishes or scars on her caramel skin and Sasha was pulled into her glowing blue eyes. 

“Whoa!” Softly she whispered, completely paralyzed by the enchanting woman. Then, the woman suddenly moved fast, appearing in front of Sasha’s face. Sasha noticed her glowing blue hair. This was the Spirit. She made contact with the Spirit. She is having a staring contest with a Spirit.

The Spirit reached out to touch Sasha’s face, close to her scar. Sasha harshly backed away, swatting at her hand with her blade. 

“Get away from me, you evil Spirit!” Sasha spat. The spirit was still curiously looking at Sasha’s face, not affected by her harsh words. Instead, she is tilting her head to the sides like a kill-a-pillar kitten would. 

“Sasha!” Sasha heard Marcy call out. She turned her head towards her voice. Marcy came barreling out of the woods, tripping on a branch and falling face-first. When she turned back, the Spirit was flying away from Sasha. 

“HEY! GET BACK HERE!” Sasha chased after her before quickly losing her. She turned around to help Marcy up. 

“Was that the Spirit?” Marcy asked as they watched the fading blue light.

“Yep. Damn it! I can’t believe she actually exists. Marcy, we have to keep this between the two of us for now. I want to try and trap her without any hassle and without Wartwood panicking.”

“Yeah.” 

Marcy nodded and backed away from the forest. They walked into the center of the village.

“Did you find the monster?” Wally asked. 

“There is no monster. Wally, it was just your imagination. Nothing more. Nothing less. Everyone is safe.” 

“Haha. Good old One-Eyed Wally.” 

“Now come on, Sasha. We’ve got a surprise for you.” The Wartwood villagers chatted among themselves as they forced Sasha to a tavern. When she walked through the doors, confetti and balloons fell on top of her head. 

“Surprise, Sasha!”

Sasha saw various toads from the toad tower inside along with more villagers. They had noisemakers and party hats on. One of the toads, a free-spirited toad who was called Percy, began playing his stitched-up musical instrument. He had a drum strapped to his front, a kazoo in his mouth, and an accordion strapped in between his legs. 

“Aw! Did you guys seriously throw a party for me?” Sasha was touched. 

She interacted with each of the toads. Marcy stood to the side, when she spotted Lily chatting to an old woman who she recognized as a resident of Wartwood and Lily’s grandmother, Caroline Amery. Marcy wanted to go over there just talk to her like a normal person and maybe ask her for a dance. But Lily, who had such an effect on Marcy that it would turn her into a love-struck fool, couldn’t form a word. No matter the amount of force to try to get the words out, it became impossible for her.

Marcy was frustrated with herself that she couldn’t talk, much less confess to the girl of her dreams. She stood away from Lily to just observe her as she moped.

Grime was already having a drinking contest with some of the toads and a few brave frogs. Sasha was smiling. She couldn’t believe they all did this for her. Sasha grabbed a drink and sat down next to Hop Pop, Sprig, and Polly.

“My Sasha as a lieutenant.”

“Aw Hop Pop, don’t be all mushy on me. You know I hate that.”

“Sasha, where did you get this sword?” Polly poked at her new blue sword when she noticed it.

“Oh, that weird benefactor of mine gifted it to me. I wish I knew who it was.”

“I’m sure they will eventually show themselves.” Hop Pop patted her arm. “But I’m proud of you Sasha. You made this old frog proud.” 

“Thanks, Hop Pop.”

Sasha looked over to the door and saw it open before someone slipped in. It was the Spirit, but her hair wasn’t glowing blue. Instead, it was curly brown. Sasha spits her drink out at seeing the Spirit. She quickly got up and raced over to her. Sasha grabbed the Spirit’s arm and harshly pulled it. 

“What are you doing here? Did you follow me? Why?” Sasha whispered through clenched teeth. She didn’t want anyone to panic about the Spirit. 

“I need to speak to you. I saw you at the castle and figured you were the best person I could ask to help me speak to the King.”

“There is no way I will let you go near my King.” Sasha’s hand went to her sword. “I’ll kill you before you lay a finger on him.”

“What? I would never do such a thing.” The Spirit seemed offended by Sasha’s comments. “I need to speak to him about what is happening to the world.” 

Sasha raised her eyebrow. She glanced at Marcy staring at her with a pale face but she was ready if Sasha needed back up. Sasha grabbed the Spirit’s arm and began pulling her out of the tavern before anyone could notice them. 

Percy suddenly raced up to Sasha with a look of excitement on his face.

“Sasha! Sasha! I got this new musical number I want to show you.” Percy glanced at the Spirit. She smiled and wiggled her fingers at him. Percy’s eyes widened in surprise before putting both hands to his cheeks and letting out a loud squeal. “Who is this beautiful woman in your arms? Ahhhh! Sasha, don’t tell me you had a secret girlfriend, and you DIDN’T TELL US!” Sasha’s mouth dropped in surprise. The spirit let out a small giggle. “Oh! Oh! I have to tell Braddock. She will be so thrilled.”

Sasha grabbed Percy’s jacket and pulled him close to her. 

“Percy, no! You keep this between you and me. I’m…..not ready yet to make the announcement. It’s our little secret. Okay?”

“Right.” Percy gave a thumbs up and began walking away giggling. 

Sasha dragged the Spirit outside the tavern to a more secluded area. She refused to let go of her and kept her hand on her sword the whole time.

“Now talk, you monster!”

“Anne.”

“Huh?”

“My name is Anne! Not monster.” Sasha stared at the Spirit’s face. Sasha noticed that her eyes were a dark brown. “I believe it is common courtesy for humans and amphibians to introduce themselves to each other. So, what is your name?”

“I’m not going to give you my name!” Sasha replied harshly which earned an eye roll from Anne.

“You are very rude, Sasha.” Sasha was taken aback.

“How did you know my-…Oh! Right, Percy!”

“So, Sasha, will you listen to my request? I need an audience with the King. I need to know what is poisoning my world. Please, you can bring me to him in chains if you feel it is necessary. I must speak to him immediately! I saw how close you were to the King back in that room. You are my only hope in getting close to him!”

The gears in Sasha’s head begin to turn. This was the evil Spirit asking her for a favor. A favor where Sasha could bring her in and actually claim the rather large reward for it. How could Sasha refuse? This was perfect. The spirit already was putting faith in her. 

Oh! How that will be her eventual downfall. Sasha was smiling in her head.

“Okay, Mon…’Ahem’ Excuse me, Anne. Stay close to me and I will reach out to my King and see about setting up a meeting between you and him. I may need you not to mention that you are the Spirit to anyone.”

“How come? The Leviathan King should know of me. They trust me!” Sasha gave the spirit a strange look. “Well, it’s been years since I’ve actually talked to a Leviathan. They could have forgotten about me. I hope not.”

Sasha looked at the Spirit as if she had told the worst lie of the century. Did the Spirit actually think this lie could fool Sasha into thinking that she is buddies with King Andrias or even the Levithan family? She must be really desperate to come up with such a dumb idea. Nevertheless, Sasha played along. 

“I’ll reach out to him. But I will not allow you to be out of my sight. We don’t ‘uhm’ want anything bad to happen to you until the meeting. Okay?”

“Agreed. Thank you, Sasha.” Anne grabbed Sasha’s hand and shook it. Sasha could feel the power coming from her touch. Anne wrapped her arms around Sasha’s arm. “Now let’s go back inside. I believe this was a celebration for you.” 

“Maybe not be all touchy-feely with me. Don’t want everyone to get the wrong idea.” Sasha shuddered at the touch. Anne let go. 

“Let’s go.” 

They walked into the tavern like nothing was wrong. Sasha could feel the eyes of everyone on her even if they were purposefully avoiding her. Anne stuck close to Sasha’s side as they walked to where Marcy was sitting alone when the black-haired woman spit at her drink when she noticed Sasha walking close with the Spirit. She stood up quickly and grabbed and pulled Sasha by the arm. 

“Sasha, what are you doing?!” She whispered harshly as she stared at Sasha as if she had lost her mind. “That’s the Spirit! What the hell is she doing here? What is going on?”

“Listen to me very carefully.” Sasha cast her eyes to where Anne was. Anne was preoccupied with some of the party favors a bit away from them. She then focused on Marcy. “She wants to talk to the king.”

“Andrias? Why?”

“She was rattling on about something about the world and poison. But she asked me to make an audience with the king because she saw how close I was to him. Marcy, this is it. We could trick her. We say we will get that audience she so desperately wants and then boom! We capture the Spirit. Andrias would deem us the heroes of the world. She already stupidly trusts me. I can use my charms and wits to lure her in. Marcy, I just need you to get in contact with Andrias as soon as possible. Don’t detail too much in the note. Just say we need an audience. When we get to Newtopia, then we tell him.”

“Okay. I’ll leave here soon on Joe Sparrow. Are you going to tell Grime and the Plantars?” 

Sasha looked at her family. Sprig and Polly were playing around the table with some of the other toads. Grime was having a drinking contest. “Yes, I have to tell them! To keep them safe. They mean the world to me. I will do anything to protect them. Even killing the Spirit, myself.”

Sasha looked at Anne. She turned to the Plantars; it was a risk but as long she stayed close to Anne nothing would ever hurt her family as long as she could still breathe. 

She got up and walked over to Anne.

“I think it would be wise if you stay with me and those frogs.” Sasha pointed to the Plantars. “That way, I can find you easier and let you know when we get word from my friend.”

“That’s a smart idea. Thank you, Sasha.” Anne beamed before leaning over and hugging her as Sasha resisted not to push her or groan.

“At least I don’t have to deal with her long.”

Night has settled in as the party at the tavern ended hours ago.

Grime had been drinking so much that he passed out and Sasha had to carry him back with her to the Plantar’s house. It was a humble home for a small family, and there’s nothing better for Sasha than to see the old place again as it brings back many fond memories of this place.

“Aww, what a cozy little place!” Sasha’s face turned sour as she remembered that she brought Anne to spend the night with them.
It raised Hop Pop some questions when Sasha introduced Anne to him. Anne was polite and did her little bow to Hop Pop as a way to respect an elder. Sasha frowned when Hop Pop seemed pleased to see that Anne was a respectful woman and was quick to invite her to sleep for the night.

The Spirit may have fooled Hop Pop, but she’s onto her.

When they entered the house, she put Grime on the chair and led Anne to a basement where she would sleep for the night.

“You can sleep here.” Sasha threw a blanket at Anne and tossed an old shirt of hers at the Spirit as well. 

“What about my request?”

“I’ve got my friend working on it. She is going to get a hold of the king. Once we get the word that we can see him. We will take you back.” And I can get rid of you. I won’t allow you to harm my family.

“Thank you, Sasha. I appreciate it so much.” Anne held the shirt out in front of her. It was a faded red shirt. 

“Don’t thank me yet. Just get some sleep and we should be hearing something tomorrow.”

Sasha left Anne and closed the door behind her. 

She pressed her head against the door to hear any strange signs of the Spirit talking or plotting but all she could hear was the faint sound of footsteps. 

“Well, she isn’t going anywhere.”  

Now, to talk to Hop Pop and she knows where he’s at. 

She found Hop Pop in his bedroom, reading his book on his bed with his glasses. He already tucked Sprig and Polly into their bed. The older frog decided to read his favorite book before bed.

Sasha knocked on his door, “Hop Pop, I need to tell you something.”

“What’s the matter?” Said Hop Pop after putting his book down on his lap. “Okay, so, ‘uh’ remember the girl that we invited her to stay with us for the night?” 

Hop Pop noticed how nervous she sounded. “Yes, what about her? Does she need something? More blankets or more pillows?”

“Ok, promise not to panic but…that is the Spirit!”

The ticking of the clock seems to make Sasha more anxious because Hop Pop hasn’t said a word except looking at Sasha with an unreadable expression. 

Did she break the old frog?

“Uhm, Hop Pop?” She walked over and poked his head.

Then, all of a sudden, Hop Pop starts to chuckle uneasily. “All right, Sasha! I know you love to joke but that isn’t funny.” 

Sasha is giving him a serious look. “Hop Pop, I wasn’t joking. This girl is the living, breathing, evil Spirit and she is down in our basement!”

After a few anxious moments, the old frog finally screamed.

“SAY WHAT?!!” Sasha slapped her hand over his mouth.

“Shush. Don’t alert anyone!”

“The Spirit? The evillest being in all the land? Oh, my frog. I have her in my basement. She is in our basement. Sasha, how is she still alive?”

“Because according to legend, she is hard to kill and immortal, and I’m going to bring her to the king. She is asking to meet him. But I can use that to turn her in. I can collect the reward. Hop Pop, we could be set for life.” 

Then, Hop Pop looked scared and uneasy to have the Spirit living in the same house with him and the kids.

“Sasha, this is too risky! Sprig and Polly are here. We can’t have her here. Get rid of her right now!” She knows that Hop Pop would react this way and is quick to coax the orange frog.

“Hop Pop, I get you are scared but you can trust me that I can protect the family from her. Let’s play her little game, take her to Andrias, and then she’ll be gone. What’s more is that the reward of capturing her will be so immense that you won’t have to worry about debt or taxes. We can provide Sprig and Polly with all the things they need, and we’ll be doing the world a favor with her gone. So, what do you say?”

Hop Pop rubbed a finger against his bed sheet as he pictured the scenarios in his head. Sasha is right, they’ll be set for life. No more debts. No more taxes. With the reward, he could send Sprig and Polly to the best schools in Amphibia to hone their gifts and share them with the world. He looked at Sasha. 

“How long?”

“Until we get the words from Andrias.”

“Okay, but I don’t want her around us any longer. She is a monster.”

What the two didn’t realize was that there was someone eavesdropping on their conversation.

“The Spirit? The girl is a Spirit?” Polly asked Sprig.

“I think so. But…She doesn’t look evil.”

“She could be in disguise. She could have vicious teeth. She could easily eat us in the middle of the night!” Then, Polly pretends to be the Spirit, putting her fingers on her lips to make them look like sharp teeth, and starts snapping her mouth as if she’s eating her food.

“Don’t worry, Polly! You’ve got your big brother to keep you safe, and we have Sasha to defend us. So, we’ve got nothing to worry about. But still. That spirit doesn’t look that evil to me.”

Anne stared out at the starry sky from her window. She sighed before pulling out a music box out of the bag she had snuck in. It was her most prized possession. She opened it up and the gentle music began to play, and two figures dancing together in a full circle with their hands clasped onto each other. She hummed along to the music before the music stopped. She closed the box and lay down on the bed. She tucked her legs up close to her body with the music box in her arms as her only comfort to lull her to dreamless sleep.

Chapter Text

The morning sun begins to peak over the horizon which will soon wake up the sleeping citizens of Wartwood to start their day.

However, there is something in the sky flying over Wartwood with a clear destination in mind. The only creature who was wide awake at this hour with a passenger on his back. 

A giant sparrow was adorned in a chest plate and a helmet. The giant bird was called Joe Sparrow and he is one of Newtopia’s finest and noblest steeds. He bears a scar across his eye from long ago when he was a small hatchling. The passenger on his back is none other than Marcy Wu and she is very nervous. 

“Oh man, Sasha is NOT going to like this!” Marcy groaned loudly, earning a worried chirp from Joe. “I’m okay, Joe. Let’s just hope that Sasha doesn’t blow a gasket.” Joe is giving her a deadpan look while Marcy stares back with her impassive look. “Yeah, you’re right! Who am I kidding? Sasha is gonna snap.”

Soon, Marcy and Joe arrived at the Plantar’s house. Marcy smiled at the house; it never changes, which is good. This house brings back many wonderful memories. She loved to play around the house with Sasha when they were kids, getting dirty, riding on Bessie the snail, and her mo-

She quickly shook her head, not wanting to go to that memory. She jumped down from Joe.

“OK! Joe, I’m going to deliver the news to Sasha while you- GASP! JOE SPARROW!!!”

Joe wasted no time when he spotted his darling snail munching on her grass, he chirped to get her attention and the snail looked up and purred when she saw him. 

Bessie was the Plantar’s loyal snail and member of the family. She has a lovely purple color with a light-violet shaded front and a rusty orange shell. 

Joe ruffled and puffed his feathers as he wiggled his eyebrows to her, and Bessie reacted with a shy blush and giggling like a bell which was music to Joe’s ears. 

“JOE!” Marcy exclaimed, “Behave yourself! It’s too early in the morning for this.” It was really cute to see how smitten Joe is with Bessie but her bird also has no self-control. “Just settle down, okay? I’ll be back! And no funny business.”

Marcy knocked on the door where she was pretty sure that Hop Pop was awake since he was one of the first ones to wake up. She can hear him from behind the door telling her to come in.

“Good morning, Hop Pop!” She entered and closed the door as she unhooked her cape and hung it on the hanger. She can smell pancakes wafting from the kitchen. 

She peeked to see Hop Pop whisking the batter for chocobeetle pancakes. “Yo, HP! Is Sasha awake yet? I need to tell her something!”

As soon as Marcy said her name, the sound of a loud argument was heard, and it was coming from Sasha’s room. Hop Pop passively said, “Just follow the sound of screaming.”

Looks like Grime didn’t take in the news very well.

“HAVE YOU FINALLY LOST YOUR MIND?!” Grime bellowed, not caring if he woke everyone up. He’s too mad to care right now. Sasha shushed the toad harshly.

“Would you keep it down! She’ll hear you!” And Grime’s expression darkens grimly. “And Sprig and Polly are still asleep.”

“Do you think I care if I disturb her beauty sleep? All I care about right now is that YOU brought the vilest and wretched creature known to man and amphibian alike into this house without considering the possibility that she could kill us in one fell swoop?!!” He demonstrated when he wiped his arm as if he slashed something in thin air, and then he sarcastically said. “But nooo, you decided to bring the Spirit for a sleepover!”

Sasha sighs loudly, she gets that Grime is concerned but he is missing the point of it all. 

“Grime, I’ve already told you the Spirit actually thinks I believed in her story. Besides, she won’t be here long. Once Marcy comes back with the news with King Andrias, we’ll be turning the Spirit in, claim the reward, and we’ll be hailed as heroes. Don’t you get it? We’ll be doing everyone a favor by getting rid of the biggest threat in Amphibia.”

Grime begins to growl, he still wears the heavy frown on his face while scratching his chin with his clawed fingers.

“I don’t know, Sasha. In the book, we are warned that her cunning ability is quite sinister. How do we know that we are being tricked?” 

Then, Sasha turned serious. 

“If it comes to that, then I’ll deal with her myself! I’ve dealt with monsters who are 100 times bigger than me, and I’ve been promoted to lieutenant! I can handle a Spirit!” Sasha is confident in her skills. No matter how powerful the Spirit is, she’ll protect her family no matter what.

A knock on the door snapped Sasha and Grime when they turned their necks and saw Marcy letting herself in, and looking a little nervous.

“Hey, is it a good time?” Upon seeing Marcy, Sasha’s face lit up. 

“Marcy! Just the girl I wanted to see all morning! I bet you’ve got good news for me!”

Marcy sucked her cheeks in and she is wishing for something, anything that could swallow her whole, and not be in the same room with Sasha and Grime as they are waiting expectedly with the news.

“Hehe! News, yes, I came here with news, all right! Hehe.” Then she starts to fiddle with her hands and avoids eye contact as she continues, “But ‘uh” funny thing, though. I have news but…It’s…Not…Good news!”

Marcy leaned back as if she were making a safe distance from Sasha as her friend looked at her with her smile gone and looked at her with an unreadable expression. 

“Sooo, what’s the news then?” 

Outside of the Plantar’s house, Joe and Bessie were cuddling against each other as if nothing could ruin this moment until a loud booming voice scared Bessie to hide in her shell and Joe screeched in fright, his feathers flying everywhere.

“WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN THEY’RE GONE?!! ” Sasha screamed. “Gone where?! How in the fuck does a towering newt and a living legend just up and disappear and nobody knows where they went?”

“Don’t ask me. Our king works in mysterious ways.” Grime just shrugged as he read the scroll that Marcy handed to him. “Look. Conrad and King Andrias are going to be gone for an undisclosed time. It didn’t say how long. For all we know we could be expecting days or even months.” Sasha just collapsed in the chair and loudly groaned. “So much for your plans to turn the Spirit in. What now?”

Then, Marcy answered with a worried frown, “With King Andrias gone, the Spirit won’t leave till she talks to Andrias then we have a problem.” 

Marcy raked her brain for the solution until Sasha got up from her chair.

“We go through with the plan!”

“WHAT?!” Both Marcy and Grime looked at Sasha as if she finally lost it, but the young lieutenant was quick to explain.

“Guys, chill! I got this. We’ll keep her happy long enough for Andrias to come back. Besides, I think she is already charmed by my looks.” Sasha bowed, fanning her cape out. “I think she is smitten with me.” Sasha ignored Marcy when she facepalmed.

“And that could also be a trick from her as well. She may be beautiful, but she is cruel. Don’t let your pride and stubbornness get you killed.”

“Grime, don't worry. I will be fine around Anne.”

“You named her? Sasha, that is rule number one. You never name them because then you will get attached!”

“She already had that name.” Sasha shrugged, Marcy and Grime double-take by the simple name.

“Wait! Her name is Anne. Uh, not a very bone-chilling name. It doesn’t strike fear in a warrior’s heart.” Grime rubbed his face. “Fine then. Since you’ve got this! Then, you will be staying here with the Spirit until the time comes. You are not allowed to bring her to the tower, and you will be forbidden to come to the tower. Unless I say so.”

“What?! That’s my home! You can’t just forbid me!” 

“As Captain of the tower, I can. Your mission is to watch the spirit until the king gets back. You know the life of a soldier is in the order of the king. Plus isn’t Hopediah’s home yours as well.”

Sasha wanted to scream and argue with Grime, but he had a point. She sighed in defeat.

“Fine. I’ll keep the Spirit happy and well until Andrias comes back. Then she will be taken into custody, and we will be safe from her wrath!”

“And the Waybright name will be praised for centuries!” Said Grime with a grin. 

Sasha just watched as the toads left Wartwood without her. 

“So, he’s gone?” Anne asked as they sat in the living room after Sasha explained to Anne about the King’s sudden leaving.

“Yes. So, for the time being, you will be staying here with the Plantars and me.” Sasha resists the urge not to roll her eyes or voice her sarcasm. Marcy advised her or more like pleaded to her to not lose her temper around the Spirit. She just needs to hang tight until he comes back from whatever mission they’re on.

As much as Marcy wants to stay with Sasha and the Plantars, she has important duties to attend to back at Newtopia. Since their king is gone, that leaves both her and Lady Olivia to take care of things in his absence.

“This is Hopediah Plantar. He prefers Hop Pop. That’s Sprig and that’s Polly. And that hunk of metal is Frobo.”

The Plantars waved awkwardly at Anne while Polly replied with a passive ‘sup.’ Sasha could tell they were nervous. She didn’t blame them. She was worried for them now that the Spirit was staying for a long time.

“And I’m Sasha Waybright.”

“Thank you, Plantars, for taking me in during this time. I understand it may be hard to have a stranger in your home, but you won’t even know I am here.” Anne bowed. She smiled at them.

“So ‘uh’ miss, you have any other clothing besides that dress?” Hop Pop asked before flinching. He backed away in fear of angering her. Anne looked down at her white dress which was just covered in dirt. 

“Oh. I guess this isn’t what most humans would be wearing. I’ve spent all my life in the forest so no. I don’t have anything else to wear.” 

“I have some old clothing she can wear,” Sasha said. 

She looked at Anne. Now that she was observing the Spirit up close, she was surprised that Anne was shorter than her. The top of Anne’s head was level with Sasha’s chin. But Sasha couldn’t get too confident. She heard about her magic and her strength, and she could easily kill her if she wasn’t careful. 

“Thank you, Sasha.” Anne beamed at Sasha. Sasha had to fight the urge to gag. “So, what do you guys do for fun around here?”

“Right now, we are going to go outside and do our farming. You can stay down there in the basement and don’t touch anything in the house.” Hop Pop pointed to Anne. Her face fell in disappointment.

“Oh. I understand, Mr. Plantar.” 

Hop Pop dragged the kids outside the moment Anne went down to the basement, dejectedly.

“So, what do we do Hop Pop?” Sprig yelled as they sat in the barn with the family snail, Bessie. She bumped her head into Sasha’s back.

“Quiet boy. The spirit has excellent hearing. She could very well be listening to our conversation as we speak. Which is why we must speak in code and hand signals.”

Hop Pop started to make crude hand gestures. Sasha was well-versed in sign language due to Darcy and Marcy teaching her and this was not it.

“Hop Pop, you literally just called me a bastard child that was raised by a Scorpileo and that I needed to…Wash behind my ears?” Hop Pop gasped at Sasha. 

“That’s not what I was trying to say. I said that we needed to be careful around her and not let our guard down. She could easily kill us. Who else knows she is here?” 

“Marcy and Grime. Percy saw Anne but he assumed she was my girlfriend.” She’ll deal with him later, just as long as he keeps his mouth sealed.

“Good. The less people know the Spirit is here, the less panic there is. So, we just got to play along with her until both Conrad and Andrias get back.”

“That’s great HP, but what do we do about her?” Polly asked with her arms crossed.

“Well…We have to keep her in the house and away from Wartwood. She is not allowed to go outside. I would like to keep her in the basement. Period. Sasha, as the oldest of the kids and a soldier, I am putting you in charge of taking care of Anne until the king comes back.” Sasha just let out a groan.

“Hop Pop. Come on. I am a soldier. Not a babysitter.”

“Well, you are one of the few who could probably fight her.”

“Okay fine. So, we entertain the spirit. This is going to be so much fun.” Sasha’s tone oozed sarcasm. 

“Glad to see you agree. Now we need to farm for our livelihood. Because well, it is our livelihood.”

Sasha rolled her eyes but to her, this was normal. She spent many days with Hop Pop when she could around the farm. Plowing the fields with a hoe was as common as swinging a sword to Sasha. 

Sasha had a bundle of old shirts and pants in her arms when she stopped in front of the basement door. She stilled her breathing and pressed her ear against the door, expecting to catch Anne in the act of discussing her evil plans. Instead, she heard music playing and a sweet voice singing along to the music. She rapped on the door before opening it.

She climbed down the steps to see Anne huddled on the bed, wearing Sasha’s red shirt, with a music box in her arms. From what Sasha could see, it was decorated with images of frogs and lily pads. The most interesting feature was the three gems on the lid. They were blue, red, and green.

“I brought you some clothes to wear. They will be bigger for you but they are only temporary clothing. What’s that?” She pointed to the box after haphazardly tossing the clothing in a corner. Sasha was curious about it.

“A music box that a dear friend gave me. I cherish it.” Anne smiled at it before looking up to Sasha. “Thank you for the clothes. So, when can I go and see Wartwood?”

“Hop Pop says it is safer for you to stay here.”

“How come?”

“Wartwood’s famous motto. Slow to accept, even slower to respect. They don’t like newcomers. Especially someone strange like you.”

“Oh. It has definitely changed since Lief’s time.” Anne mutters innocently. That perked Sasha’s interest. Lief was an ancestor to the Plantar family. Sasha shook her head. Maybe Anne had read the Plantar book and found the name to attempt to befriend them before turning against them.

“So, it’s safer to keep you here and away from them.” Sasha concluded and she was about to leave when Anne perked up and spoke. 

“Maybe I can help with the farming. I’m an expert in plants.”

“Still don’t want to risk them seeing you and Hop Pop wants you to remain here within these walls.” Anne seemed to deflate at that. She looked down at the box. Sasha was about to climb the steps.

“Can I ask you questions, Sasha?” Sasha rolled her eyes. 

“What sort of questions?” Sasha gritted her teeth so she wouldn’t snap at her.

“I...was hoping to get to know you better. Maybe we could be friends. Like how you got that scar?” Anne tapped her right cheek. Sasha faced her.

“We don’t need to be friends. We will never be friends. Once the king is back, you will be out of my life. As for the scar, that’s personal. You don’t need to know me. End of discussion!”

Sasha turned on her heel, stomping loudly, walked up the stairs, and slammed the door. Anne stayed on the bed and opened the music box again. As the melody played, she hummed along to it, only the tone was sadder.

A few days had passed since Anne had come into the house. Everyone was on edge around her. Especially Sasha since Anne had started to leave the basement and hang around in the living room when they weren’t working on the farm. Anne had started the habit of asking, or to Sasha, annoying her with questions. 

“So where are your parents?” Anne asked Sasha as Sasha worked on some exercises.

“Personal.” She grunted as she was lifting weights.

“Then…favorite color?” 

“Personal.” Anne pouted.

“Favorite flower?”

“Personal.” Anne looked away in annoyance.

“So, you won’t tell me anything about yourself?”

“Like I said. I don’t want to be friends with you, and we won’t be seeing each other once the king gets back.” Anne pouted again.

Sprig and Polly came bouncing in with Frobo behind them.

“Sasha! Sasha! Hop Pop said that vegetables are doing okay so he is giving us the day off. We can hang out.” Polly said.

Sprig was hopping back and forth on each foot. Anne’s face lit up at that. 

“Let’s go swimming. It’s been so long.” Sprig was now jumping as he said that.

“That actually sounds like a good idea, pipsqueak. We can go to the lake. It’s been a while since we did that.” 

“Swimming sounds like a wonderful idea. Being out in nature would be so nice after being cramped in here.” Anne said. 

“Oh no, you four ain’t going anywhere.” Hop Pop came out, tapping his right foot. “None of you are leaving this house.”

“Aw come on, Hop Pop.” Sprig pouted. “Why?”

“This town can be pretty small-minded and paranoid.” Hop Pop peeked out of the drapes. “What if someone sees you?” Anne doesn’t seem to be worried.

“I still keep on my disguise. No one will ever think I’m a Spirit. Besides, what’s the harm of me going out?”

Because I don’t trust you. That you’re evil and will kill us with your blue powers. 

Hop Pop shook off his terrible paranoia in his head and said instead, “We are just keeping you here until they can get used to you!” Then he pulls out the house key.

“And to make sure that Wartwood is ready to accept you, no one is allowed to leave. And to make double sure you can’t leave; I will be locking this door!” Hop Pop suddenly started to lock all the door locks before using the key to lock the padlock on the door handle. “And I will always keep this little beauty on me. So don’t do anything stupid. Now I will be in my study, reading.”

Everyone watched Hop Pop walk away. Anne sadly sighed before plopping on the couch and placing her chin in her hands. Polly sat down next to her. Frobo sat on the couch, causing it to lift from his weight. Both Anne and Polly slide into his metal body. 

“Darn, I was hoping we could go to the lake. But it looks like we are stuck here.” Sprig kicked at the ground. Sasha looked at the depressed Sprig and then the three on the couch. She hated to see Sprig and Polly depressed. She pinched her nose. Then Sprig perked up and lifted the mood with an idea. “But I’m sure we could find something to do. Oh Anne, maybe we could play a game together. There are a ton of board games we can play together.”

Sprig grabbed Anne’s hands and pulled her off the couch. She was smiling at the pink frog. 

“Or we could go to the lake together.” Everyone looked up at Sasha in shock. “Look, I’m just as bored as you guys are. Going to the lake would be a blast.”

“But how would we even do that?” Sprig asked.

“Simple. We steal from an old man!” Sasha pointed to the sky. Crickets chirped in the background. “Wow. That sounded really weird.”

“That was a little awkward,” Anne commented.

“Yeah, it was. But now come on. Let’s go steal a key and go to the lake.”

Sasha, Anne, and Sprig cracked the door open to see Hop Pop sitting on the chair. 

“Oh. You two could tie a rope around my waist and I’ll crawl on the ceiling. Then you use the rope to help lower me down to Hop Pop and I pull the key out. I’ll be like a shadow.” Sprig jumped on the wall before falling from the ceiling. He collided with the table, sending the vase falling. Sasha grabbed the vase and Anne grabbed Sprig before both could hit the ground. “I mean, shadows can knock things down.” 

“Wait, you hear something?” Anne asked. 

“It’s Hop Pop…snoring. Don’t tell me he fell asleep with his eyes open again.” Sasha shook her head. 

“He what?”

Sasha walked over to the old frog. Anne looked down and saw that Hop Pop’s eyes were wide open, but he was snoring loudly. Sasha waved her hand in front of him. 

“Yep. Out like a light.”

“How often does he do that?” Anne looked at Sasha for guidance on the weird frog.

“Pretty often. He makes a great scarecrow though.” Sasha shrugs her shoulders before grabbing the key out of Hop Pop’s pocket. “And one little key in our possession.” 

The three slipped out of the room. “Sprig, you know what these smells like?”

Sprig grabbed the key before tasting it.

“It smells like a metallic piece that had been sitting in an old man’s pocket for too long.”

“It smells like FREEDOM! Now let’s go to the lake, you nerds.”

As the frogs were getting ready, Sasha grabbed a cape and wrapped it around Anne, and tugged the hood over her head.

“Wear this until we get to the lake.”

“Why? I look just like you. Unless humans are on the verge of extinction.” Anne joked but Sasha didn’t take her joke lightly.

“Because the village will shun you if they see you! What if your hair turns blue again? That’s not a normal human hair color!” Sasha got up close to Anne’s face. “Don’t question me or Hop Pop’s authority. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Now come on, Anne.”

Anne looked at the fleeting form of Sasha. 

“I just thought that…Maybe we could be friends.” 

“Whoever touches the sign is the winner,” Sasha called out as she, Sprig, and Polly raced towards the lake. Anne followed slowly behind the three. She glanced up to see Sasha slapping the sign in celebration.

“Haha. I won! I beat you frogs.” Polly slapped Sasha in the face with her tongue. 

“You pushed me.”

“Should have been a little bit quicker, squirt.” 

Sasha picked Polly up and noogied her head. She set Polly down and turned on her heel. She stopped as she stared at the sign. Anne appeared next to her. 

“Keep out.” 

“That sign wasn’t here last week.” Sprig pointed out. Sasha looked at the sign before looking over it. 

“Maybe we shouldn’t be here,” Anne whispered, and she looked around the pond carefully. 

“I don’t see any danger.” Sasha huffed. She turned to everyone. “Come on everyone. You want to go back to Hop Pop and be bored or you want to have some fun in the sun?” 

“Fun in the sun! Fun in the sun!” Sprig, Polly, and Frobo chanted. 

“Now come on! Sorry, Frobo buddy. You have got to stay out of the water. You would rust.” Frobo let out a small beep of disappointment.

Sasha, Sprig, and Polly jumped into the water. Anne just stared ahead at them.

“Hey Anne, come on. Join us.” Sprig waved his hands. “The water feels great.”

“Come on, Spirit. I thought you wanted some fun. I rather not have to hear you complain about how you missed out today.” She makes a joke with a smirk, but they are dripped with callousness. Anne still can’t shake her feelings when she reads the sign and looks at the lake.  

“Something doesn’t feel right.”

“Psssh!” Sasha rolled her eyes, “I thought you were supposed to be an all-powerful Spirit. Not some scaredy cat who is afraid of getting soaked.” 

Anne waited on the shoreline for a moment before suddenly walking away. 

Sasha smirked when she was gone but she got drenched when Sprig splashed her with water. She coughs, “Hey! What was that for?”

“That was rather mean, Sasha.”

“Come on. She is bringing down the mood. Sprig, she is the Spirit. Don’t get too close to her. She could very easily be using you to try and turn you against us.”

“I know she is Spirit but…something feels different about Anne. I can’t describe it, but I don’t think she is all that evil.” He always tried to see the good in people. “I mean, maybe she is a different Spirit. A much nicer one than the evil one that threatens Amphibia. Maybe if you can get to know her better than you two can be friends.”

“Sprig,” Sprig looked at her with wide, puppy eyes but Sasha didn’t go weak on the knees. “Sprig, don’t try to use your big eyes on me. I taught you that trick and secondly, I don’t want to be friends with her, not now, not ever!” While no one is looking, someone has jumped and is diving down. 

Suddenly, they were drenched with a wave of water. They looked to see Anne’s head popping out of the water and she shook her head. 

“You are right. It’s been years since I’ve had any fun with humans or frogs.” Sasha stared at Anne in confusion. Anne splashed Sasha in the face with water. “Now come on. I thought someone wanted some fun in the sun.”

“I’ll race you, Anne. The first one to reach that lily pad wins. One, two, three. Go!” Sprig was already off. Anne and Polly followed behind before Sasha started swimming. Anne raced the lily pad first.

“I won. That was fun. What next?” Anne was smiling. It made Sasha’s stomach churn. 

“Ohhh, I know. See those two beady red eyes. Let’s go over there.”

“Wait, beady red eyes?” Sasha and Anne looked at each other before looking at where Sprig was pointing at. The eyes rose to reveal a water snake. It hissed at them. 

“Oh fuck!” Sasha screamed. Sprig suddenly jumped on Sasha’s shoulders and began digging into her hair. “Ow! Ow! Sprig, what are you digging through my hair for?”

“To find a dagger. You always hid a dagger somewhere on you.”

“Sprig, my hair is down! I don’t have a dagger on me. Frobo!” Frobo got up from making his sandcastle. “Toss me a dagger!” 

“Wait! You hid a dagger in Frobo!” Polly screamed.

“I’m a soldier. I always have to be prepared for anything.”

Frobo opened his chest cavity and pulled a dagger out of it. He tossed it to Sasha. She caught it and pointed it towards the snake. Anne suddenly grabbed her arm. 

“Don’t hurt him.”

“It’s trying to attack us!”

“Because we are in its territory.” 

“I don’t care! I refuse to let it eat my family.”

“Then start swimming.”

Sasha, Anne, Sprig, and Polly began swimming towards the shore. Anne grabbed Polly and hoisted her on her back. Sasha looked behind her to Sprig lagging. “Sprig! I’m coming for you buddy!” 

Sasha started to swim towards Sprig. The snake was faster and opened its jaw. Water splashed around as the snake lifted its head and swallowed. Sasha stopped dead in the water. She could hear the screeching of the herons in her mind. 

“Sprig!” Sasha finally screamed out. 

Anne tossed Polly into Sasha’s arms before her hair turned blue. Anne flew up to face the snake head-on. She crossed her arms. 

“You spit him out right now!” The snake recoiled in fear. It shook its head. “I said, spit him out! That is a dear friend of mine, and I would rather you not digest him. Now spit the frog out!”

The snake flinched at Anne’s tone. It bowed its head towards her. It started coughing before Sprig came flying out. Sasha swam towards him and pulled him out of the water. 

“Sprig, you okay buddy? Speak to me.” 

“I think I saw my life flash before my eyes.”

Sasha looked up to see Anne stroking the snake’s nose. She had laid her cheek against it. The snake seemed content with the Spirit. Sasha was surprised to see that the animals responded well to her. She was led to believe that the animals feared her. But this snake seemed calm around her.

“It’s okay. I understand. You were only trying to defend your territory. But next time, make sure your first instinct isn’t to eat someone. Okay?” The snake nodded. She kissed the snout. The snake looked happy. Anne patted its snout. “That’s a good boy.” 

The snake left, swimming away from the group. Anne floated down, hovering just above the water. 

“Wow, Anne. That was…INCREDIBLE!” Sprig sprung up into Anne’s arms. She hugged him. Anne laughed. 

“Was I cool?”

“Super cool. That was incredible. You can talk to the creatures?”

“Yep. I can understand all the creatures of Amphibia. Is that not common knowledge though?”

“Nope. We were told that you-” Sasha was quick to react, and clamped Sprig’s mouth shut.

“What?”

“Come on, Sprig. You must be tired. Let’s get back home before Hop Pop wakes up from his nap.” Sasha hoped that Anne wouldn’t ask any more questions.

Hop Pop snorted before his eyes blinked. He stretched and yawned. He scratched his butt. 

“Hmm, the house is quiet. Too quiet! Oh no! The kids! Is the town rioting? Is the town on fire? Did Anne kill Sasha? Did Anne eat the kids? Did Anne eat the whole town?” Hop Pop came running out of his room to find the kids gathered around the living room table with a board game. “Kids? Have you been here the whole time?” Hop Pop asked in disbelief.

“Yep! We’ve been showing Anne how to play a board game.” Sasha pointed to Anne who was shaking a pair of dice. “She is kicking our asses,” she said, truthfully.

“I owe her my firstborn child.” Sprig exclaimed. 

“Well, it looks like you kids stayed out of trouble. Good. I’m going to go and work on some dinner. I bet you all are hungry.”

Later that night, Anne was sitting on the bed, playing in her music box. Sasha climbed down the steps. 

“What’s the matter, Sasha?” Anne turned her head towards the blonde.

“I...um…Wanted to thank you for saving Sprig back there.”

“It wasn’t a big deal. I like the little frog. I would have been devastated if I lost him. I know you would have as well. You are close to this family, aren’t you?”

“They are my family. I refuse to let anything happen to them.”

“They mean a lot to you. I’m starting to get attached to them as well. They have shown a level of kindness that I haven’t experienced since…Since my friend.”

“The one that gave you the music box?” Sasha glanced at the music with a look of uncertainty. 

“Yes.” Anne looked at Sasha. “How did you get that scar?”

“Again, that’s personal.” Anne was hurt by Sasha’s harsh reaction. Sasha started climbing up the stairs. She stopped at the top. “I got it by defending the Plantars. If that’s any consolation to you.”

Anne watched Sasha leave. She had a smile on her face. She looked at her box. 

“I know she is brutish and appears mean but I’m confident that I can be her friend. I wish you were here, Valeriana. I could use your guidance with this new world and maybe why my heart beats rapidly around Sasha. Also, something seems off too. It’s like they are hiding something from me, and I don’t know what…”

Sasha was stretched out on her bed, staring at her ceiling. Her mind was racing with everything that happened. She couldn’t wrap her head around why the water snake didn’t cower at Anne’s presence. It seemed to be calm in front of the Spirit. And when did the Spirit have the power to speak and understand the creatures of Amphibia? Didn’t her studies tell her that the creatures feared the Spirit because they could see the evil in her heart? So why? Why did it not happen? 

Her door creaked. She turned her head to see Sprig there.

“Hey buddy, what’s wrong?”

“Mind if I sleep here? Today was sort of traumatizing seeing the inside of a snake.”

“Get over here, pipsqueak.” Sprig jumped right into bed.

“I don’t think Anne is evil.” He said after a while. “Something doesn’t fit the descriptions we’ve been told about the Spirit. She seems nice.”

“Be careful, Sprig. That could be her way of luring us into a false sense of hope. She is ruthless. You’ve heard the stories.”

“Yeah, but then why did Anne talk to the snake and why did it act like it was calm around her? We were always told she was cruel, and the creatures could see her cruelty. But that was different. She was gentle with it.”

“Don’t think too much about it. She will be gone and out of our hair soon.”

“Why do you refuse to tell her about the scar?” Sasha brushed her fingers along the scar. She could hear the screaming of the frogs and the screeching of the herons. She was told that the herons were sent by the spirit to destroy the village. 

“You were too young to understand. It’s also because it’s personal. I refuse to tell her that it's because of her that I have it. When the time comes, I want to look her dead in the face and tell her that it’s because of her that I wear this scar. But that I bear this scar with pride because I stopped the herons from hurting you and Polly.”

Then, in her head, she whispers in anger at what Anne did.

“ It’s because of her that your parents are dead, Sprig.”

It is a secret that she will never tell Sprig and Polly. It is a secret that turned into a vow that she will NEVER lose another member of her family again.

Chapter Text

Another day in the Plantar’s house. Nothing out of the ordinary as it was just another uneventful day for the Plantars.

Uneventful because it was another day of lockdown. Hop Pop once again set his foot down and prevented any of them from going out. 

“Ugh! It’s boring here.” Sprig was sprawled on his back on the sofa, kicking his feet in the air. “Please, Hop Pop, can we go outside for just an hour? I’m so bored!” He groaned so dramatically that he made Hop Pop roll his eyes.

“Still nope! You kids are on house arrest.” Everyone groaned, even Anne groaned.

“Hop Pop, I’m a soldier for Oracle’s sake. You know all of these sitting around isn’t good for me. I need some action!” Sasha stood up tall. “I need something to train with.”

“Then, you young lady, can go outside.” Said Hop Pop after much thought.

“Yes!” Sasha bumped her fist which earned Polly and Sprig to protest how unfair until Hop Pop spoke.

“But only in the fields. You can train by plowing the fields.”

“Fuck!”

“Language, Sasha! I swear that Grime is a terrible role model.” Sasha rolled her eyes before sitting down next to Sprig. “Oh shoot! I need some beetles for my broth. You know what that means. I think this calls for a trip into the village.”

“Whoo Whoo!!!” The kids celebrated. Anne jumped up from the couch. She had excitement written all over her face.

“Does this mean I get to go out to the village?”

“What? No, Anne, this does not mean you get to go out to the village!” Anne’s joy shattered like glass.

“Wait, I have an idea.” Sprig jumped up and raced upstairs. He soon came down with a cape, that had a large circle with a slash through it, in his hands. “Anne could wear Sasha’s cape. It has a hood on it.”

“Sprig, Anne can’t wear that. We would draw even more attention to us. No, she will remain here as usual, not even going outside on the field!” Anne flinched. He won’t even let her go outside to the field. She gets that Wartwood is not ready to greet her because she’s a stranger, but it’s been three days already, and she is still not allowed to be out of the house. She wanted to see outside of the house.

“B-but I could still have my disguise on. My hair only turns blue when I use my powers.”

“I would still rather not take any chances. Sprig and Polly can come along except for Sasha. You stay here and keep an eye on Anne.”

“What?! Come on Hop Pop. Don’t keep me stuck here with her.” Sasha pointed to Anne. Anne bowed her head down. “Why me and not Sprig?”

“Because I remember a certain someone who declared confidently that she can handle it!” Hop Pop pointed out and Sasha just frowned and rolled her eyes. “Now come on kids. Let’s go.”

Sasha huffed and puffed when Hop Pop left with Sprig and Polly in tow. It was awkward with just Anne here. Sasha crossed her arms and just glanced at Anne with a glare. Anne pulled her legs up into her body and curled them into her body. Sasha suddenly growled and jumped up from her chair. Anne looked up before moving from her spot. 

“You stay here! I’ve got to blow off some steam outside.”

Anne obeyed because she didn’t want to make Sasha angry and allowed Sasha to storm out of the house. Sasha grabbed a wooden sword and just started to swing it wildly around. She didn’t bother with her sword steps. She just wanted to whack or slice something up.

Anytime she looked at Anne, she was reminded of that day. It was all Anne’s fault. She sliced through a scarecrow cleanly. She stared at the straw remains. 

“I just have to be patient, she said.” She grunted while quoting Marcy’s advice with a funny voice. “You have to not let your anger get the best of you. Bleh.”

Sasha rubbed her face with her hand. She felt a tender hand on her shoulder. For a moment, she felt a calming sensation flow through her. She looked over her shoulder to see Anne wearing her cape and the hood over her head. Sasha jumped away from the touch. 

“What were you doing?”

“Sorry.” Anne lifted her hand away. “I was just giving something to help you relax.”

Sasha stared at Anne in surprise. “You can do something like that?” Sasha asked when she touched her shoulder from where Anne’s hand was.

“Yes? I’ve always been able to do that. You seemed…Surprised by it.”

“Look, I’m fine. We need to head back inside before someone sees you.” Sasha tugged on Anne’s shoulder and forced her inside. 

“I still don’t understand why Wartwood is like this. Maybe if they give me a chance, they will see that I won’t harm anyone.”

“They won’t give you a chance! You will scare them! They will cower in fear from your presence, and they will believe you will hurt them!” Anne opened her mouth and began to defend herself.

“But I wouldn’t hurt them. I would never hurt anyone! I was meant to protect. Like you!” Sasha gripped her wooden sword tight.

“You protect like me?! No, we are not the same. I protect them. You harm them!! ”

“We are not the same Anne. We will never be the same.” Anne looked hurt at Sasha’s comments, and Sasha took her distraction as she dragged her back inside.

Anne went back down to the basement, still wearing Sasha’s cape, and she didn’t look back at Sasha. 

Sasha watched the fleeting form for a moment before going into her room. She collapsed into her bed with her guitar in hand. She began slowly playing. 

She heard someone softly singing behind her door. She recognized the voice as Anne’s. Sasha stopped and Anne stopped. Sasha heard Anne get up and leave. 

“What is her problem?” Sasha just groaned. 

“You are still keeping us on house arrest?” Sasha yelled as the family ate breakfast and looked ready to lose her mind. 

A week had passed since Anne had come into the house. 

“Ugh! You can’t keep us from going to town. What if Ivy comes back? Sprig may want to see her. Polly is going to need to get ready for school again when, and if, they rebuild it after the centipede attack. I am also the town protector. Even if I am not at Toad Tower, I need to be ready to be out there just in case something happens. And you will need help on the farm.” Hop Pop sighs. Sasha made several valid points and he could see the kids were becoming moodier by the day.

“Look, you’re right. We really can’t keep holding up in the house much longer. I do need help on the farm and even need help at the stand. But we can’t leave Anne alone here.”

“I can help!” Anne was quick to plead. “Please, let me help you all. I want to repay your generosity and kindness. I will help with anything. The farming or the cleaning. Let me just do something.” She clasped her together, begging for Hop Pop to say yes.

“I…” Hopidiah was still uncertain about keeping Anne in the house and he still didn’t want her out of the house for fear the townsfolks would recognize Anne as the evil Spirit and that they were harboring her in their house. However, after a week of her stay here,  she never did anything to harm them. In fact, she has been nothing but kind and patient. Was Hopediah being too hard on her? “Let me think about that. Okay?” 

“…Okay.” Anne sighed dejectedly. She went back to eating her food before making a face. Sasha snickered as Anne slid the food away from her. Sasha had been the one making dinner for everyone. Today, Hop Pop decided he would cook. 

“What’s the matter?” Hop Pop asked, slightly frowning. 

“It tastes bland and…I’m sorry, Hopediah but it’s disgusting.”

“Well excuse me, princess. What can I do to make it more to your taste?” 

Anne poked her spoon into the bowl. Sasha could see she was embarrassed. It was common knowledge that Hop Pop wasn’t that great of a cook. When Sasha was around, she tended to help with the cooking as she had been taught by Darcy along with Sprig and Polly’s parents. She could say she was good at it. She had hoped that she could help Hop Pop improve but he was stubborn and tended to always talk about the ‘old ways’ Sasha rolled her eyes. Her poor stomach couldn’t handle his ‘old ways’.

“Come on HP. We all know your cooking is terrible.” Sasha decided to step in for Anne this time. “The slob I have at the Tower is better than this!”

Hop Pop gasped dramatically. “You take that back, young lady.”

“I’m just dropping the truth bomb down on you, Hop Pop. Your food sucks. If Anne is a princess, you are the king of fools.” Hop Pop gasped. Anne hid her laugh behind her hand. Sprig and Polly were both laughing.

“She got you good.” Sprig exclaimed.

“Well…Well if I’m the king…Then you…Ugh,”

“What’s the matter? Frog got your throat.”

“She got you again!” Sprig and Polly whooped, and Hop Pop threw his spoon in a fit.

“I’m done! I will not stand to be insulted by someone I call family! And you,” He pointed to Anne causing her to flinch. “I don’t want to hear another word from you about my cooking. I could easily kick you out of my house. You know what. One more incident from you Anne and I will. I’m going to take a nap. No one is to disturb me or leave this house!”

Hop Pop stormed to his room and banged the door shut.

“Well, that was fun. But what do we do for fun since we can’t leave and Hop Pop is pissed?” Sprig asked and then he snapped his fingers. “Oh, I know. Truth or dare.”

“Where did you learn that game?” Sasha asked.

“Ivy taught me.” Sasha and Polly snickered. 

“How do we play?” Anne was curious.

Sasha dug an empty bottle out of the trash. “We spin the bottle. Whoever it lands on, will either be asked truth or dare. You pick the option.” 

“Oh! It sounds simple enough.”

Sasha’s mind began to run with an idea. She could use this as a method of interrogation without raising any suspicion. 

“Let’s play then.” She smirked.

The group was soon sitting on the floor of the living room. Even Frobo sat next to them. Sasha spun the bottle.

“All right. Whoever it lands on will start.” The bottle spins around before slowing down on Sprig. “Alright pipsqueak, you start. Spin that bottle.”

Sprig spun it until it landed on Sasha. Sprig jumped up and pointed at Sasha.

“Truth or Dare!” 

“Dare.” Sasha crossed her arms.

“I dare you to…Cluck like a chickabeetle.” Sasha laughed. Too easy. 

Sasha got up and tucked her arms into her body. She waved her elbows and started clicking like a chickabeetle. Sprig and Polly were rolling around on the floor laughing. Anne was laughing as well.

“Okay, I think I completed my dare. Now, it’s my turn.” 

The group exchanged dares right and left with the occasional truths. Sasha had Sprig admit his crush on Ivy. Polly had been forced to run outside and bark like a spider. Sasha attempted to get a few things from Anne, but Anne never picked the truth from her. She only picked the truth whether it was from Polly or Sprig. It was like Anne was avoiding saying anything to Sasha. Sasha was wondering if Anne was suspicious of her. Sasha spun the bottle, and it landed on Anne again.

“Truth or dare?” She hoped she would choose the truth this time, but luck was not on her side.

“Dare.” Anne was smirking. She was ready for anything. Sasha cursed in her mind that she couldn’t get any answers from Anne.

“I dare you to...impersonate Hop Pop.”

Anne looked around the room and her eyes landed on the bucket near the front door. She pulled a black stick that looked like a branch had been cut out.

“Oh! Look at me. I’m Hop Pop. I’m old. I like to complain and reference the old ways.” Anne shook her fist. Everyone was laughing. Sasha had to admit that Anne was doing a good job. “My food is bland. Stop laughing you young whippersnappers.” 

Anne jerked her hand, sending the cane flying out of her hand. It crashed into the wall and shattered in half. Everyone gasped.

“Oops!” Anne looked over to the shocked looks on everyone’s faces. Even Frobo’s eyes had giant exclamation marks. “Please, tell me that wasn’t important.”

“Ohhhh shit! That’s Hop Pop’s favorite cane.” Sasha whispered. 

“Oh, he is going to be so angry. That cane has been in his family for ages.” Said Polly, getting so pale that she already pictured a livid Hop Pop.

“Sasha, what can I do?” Anne pleaded to Sasha. “I don’t want to be kicked out.”

Sasha looked at the broken cane and Anne’s face. She needed Anne to stay in the house so she could keep an eye on Anne and turn her in to King Andrias. 

“We try to fix it and make it seem like it was never broken in the first place. Sprig, get some of Hop Pop’s slob and Polly, give me your old bow.”

The two Plantar kids ran off to grab the items. Sasha took the cane out of Anne’s hands. Sprig came back with a bowl of the slob in his hands. Polly came running downstairs with an old, weathered bow in her hands. Sasha took the bowl and smushed the bottom of the cane into the bowl. She took it out and set the top part on top. Polly wrapped her bow around it. Sasha held it up.

“Ha hah! Just like new. Hop Pop won’t even know the difference.” The cane suddenly snapped in half. “Well fuck! That ain’t good.”

Anne suddenly grabbed the cane out of Sasha’s hands. She held the two together before her eyes and hair turned blue. Twigs and leaves grew out of her hair as a blue aura appeared around the cane. Sasha could only stare in amazement. The cane was fixed, but it suddenly changed from black to green but branches and flowers grew from it. Soon, Anne was holding a fully bloomed branch.

“Oops. I thought I could repair it but…I accidentally brought it back to life.”

“You can do that?” Sasha asked in amazement and surprise. When did the spirit have healing magic?

“Of course, I can! Why is it so surprising to you guys?” But then, Anne slumped while clutching the cane, “Once Hop Pop sees this, he will surely kick me out of the house! I don’t want to leave.”

“Hey, wait!” Suddenly, Sprig jumped on Anne, “Maybe Leopold Loggle can help get us a new one. He knows a lot about wood. Like a lot!…Maybe a little too much.” Sprig took Anne’s hand. “Let’s go there.”

“Sprig, what are you thinking? We can’t take Anne outside the house.”

“As long as Anne doesn’t use her powers it’s safe and if it makes you feel any better Anne can still wear the hood. C’mon on, Sasha, this is our fault too. We have to help her.” Sprig looked at Sasha with his big eyes.

“Ugh! Fine. Let’s go.” She hates it when he puts her on a guilt trip.

They quietly left the house with Anne wearing Sasha’s cape. They made their way to Leopold Loggle’s shop which sat just on the outskirts of the town. Sasha kept scanning their surroundings, one hand on her sword, while Anne kept her hand on Sasha’s shoulder. Sasha let out a sigh of relief when they arrived at the shop with no incidents. 

They walked into the shop to see a short blue axolotl man at the counter. He was fiddling with a wooden clock. Anne let go of Sasha’s shoulders and looked around the shop. She had a look of fascination on her face when she observed a clock hanging on the wall. As soon as the top of the hour hit, a little wooden bird came out of the clock and let out a chirp. Anne gently touched the clock. 

“Greetings, Loggle.” Sasha and Sprig approached the counter. “We need some help. You see, we broke Hop Pop’s favorite cane, and we need to know if you can have it fixed.”

“Hopediah’s favorite cane? Ah. That old black one. I sure can,” Anne came up to the counter while keeping her hood on to conceal her face and smiled. “Not!”

“What? Why not?” Sasha glared at Loggle.

“Because it is made from a special wood.”

“Well, do you have the special wood to make a new one?” asked Polly, irritated.  

“I sure can…not.”

“WHY DO YOU TALK LIKE THAT?!”

“An old smithing accident.” Loggle pulled down his scarf to show a hole in his neck. Anne gasped. Sasha, Sprig, and Polly flinched at it. “I tripped on an anvil and fell neck first into a metal pipe that pierced through my windpipe. That’s why I work with wood. The worst I could do is get a splinter.”

“O-kay. Loggle, we need to know where we can find this special wood?”

“It comes from an old tree far away from Wartwood. It is called the Doom Tree. Legend has it that is cursed. It could cause death to anyone who touches the tree.”

“A cursed tree sounds about right for old grandpappy Poppity.” Sprig said. Both Sasha and Polly nodded their heads. 

“So where can we find this so-called Doom Tree?”

“In an enchanted forest. I have the map right here.” Loggle pulled out a scroll and unveiled it.

“Can we have it?” Sasha pointed to the map.

“You can…not.”

“Oracle damn it, Loggle.” Sasha cursed as Sprig was quick to catch his sister before she could beat the stuffing out of Loggle.

“You would have to pay a pretty penny for it. This map is priceless!” 

Sasha, Sprig, and Polly are digging into their pockets, and each of them had just two coppers which made it a total of six coppers.

“What the? Where is my bag of copper? I know I have more than that.” She digs through her pockets again before she feels a piece of paper. She pulled it out and read a small message from Hop Pop.

“Dear Sasha, I took your pouch of copper and put it in a vault. Sign, your beloved Hop Pop .” He drew a winky face. Sasha growled, crushing the paper in her hands.

Anne looks disheartened before pulling her music box out of her bag. 

“Would this cover it?” she asked with a crestfallen voice.

Loggle gasped as he examined the music box. Even Sasha was surprised that Anne was giving her music box up.

“This work is amazing. This surely must be ancient. I don’t remember seeing you around the village before, young Miss.”

“She’s new around these parts.” Sprig covered.

“Where did you get this?”

“It…was something that has been passed down through my family.”

“It’s a marvelous piece of work. I think it will….” Everyone leaned in. “What? It will cover the cost of the map. Go on. Take the map. This little beauty and I need some alone time.”

Sasha was quick to grab the map and drag everyone out of the shop before anything odd happened in front of the kids. Sprig popped his head in.

“When we get back, we need to talk about these, Loggle.” Sprig pointed to the odd wooden statue of a buff Loggle. “Definitely need to talk about that.” 

Sasha reached in to grab Sprig’s shirt and dragged him away.

“Anne, why did you give away your music box? I thought you loved it.” Sprig asked as he hopped next to Anne. Anne was saddened at the loss of her music box.

“I did it for Hop Pop. I broke his cane. It’s only right I get him a new one from the same tree that his old one was made from. But, the Doom Tree does sound familiar, though.”

“According to the map, it should be just up ahead. We get there. Get a branch and leave before Hop Pop notices we are gone.”

“Right.” They exclaimed together.

After what seemed like a thirty-minute walk, the group came across a giant black tree. Sasha felt a strange sensation. Her hand gripped her favorite pink sword and examined her surroundings. Anne must have felt it too because her hair turned blue.

“Hey, look. That branch looks just like Hop Pop’s old cane. It could be perfect.” Sprig pointed to a branch that looked similar to the old cane. 

Sasha rolled her sleeves up and climbed the tree. She gripped the branch and pulled on it before it broke apart. Everyone heard a loud screeching sound.

“Did this tree just scream?” Sasha was suddenly tossed off the tree. The tree turned around to face the group. It had red eyes and when it opened its mouth, it let out a loud screech. Sasha drew her swords.

“That’s not a tree!? The damn thing is a BUG! Sprig! Polly! Get on Frobo.” Frobo grabbed the two, curled his arms around their bodies, and pulled them close to his body. 

Sasha charged at the living tree. It swung its pincer-like arms at her, knocking her to the ground. She held both swords in an X shape to block its attack. Sasha pushed on it, slicing it. She got up to fight it. Sasha looked behind her to see if Sprig and Polly were safe. One of the pincers shot forward and grabbed her left shoulder in her distraction.

“SASHA!” She heard everyone scream.

A surge of white pain coursed through her body. She sliced clean through its arm before ripping the claw off of her shoulder. Blood dripped down her arm, staining her white shirt and she could see a large gash covering most of her shoulder, even seeing some muscle and bone. Her vision went blurry.

Anne appeared beside her and caught her from falling. Anne held her hand over Sasha’s shoulder. The blue aura appeared around her hand with her hair and eyes turning blue again. Sasha looked at her wound to see the once, deep gash begin to disappear as if her skin was stitching itself right back up without the needles and pain. Sasha could only watch in amazement as soon as her shoulder was healed. Sasha reached up to touch her shoulder in disbelief.

Anne turned her attention to the Doom Tree. It launched its other pincer towards Anne. She lifted her hand up.

“STOP!” The creature stopped. “Enough.”

The Doom Tree backed away. Anne let go of Sasha and turned her attention to the tree-disguised insect. She walked forward, hair still blazing blue.

“Enough.” This time, Anne spoke to it gently as she kept her hand up. “I know you are hurting, and I can feel your pain.” The insect chirped as it scratched its face with its pincer, something was wrong with it. The hard shell seemed to aggravate him. 

Anne scooted close to it. “It’s okay. It’s okay. I’m right here. I’m sorry I’ve been gone for so long. But I’m here now.” The Doom Tree stared at Anne, and it finally calmed down as it chirped softly as if it held no grudge against her. 

She smiled in gratefulness as she placed her hand on the legs of the tree. Her hand glowed blue before the aura appeared around the tree. The black barks began to break and fall apart, revealing underneath something green. 

The black armor wasn’t armor at all but just irritated skin that needed to be peeled off. Finally, Anne shed its exoskeleton and instead of a terrifying blackened tree, it looked like a green thin walking stick bug with big eyes. It let out a relieved “meep!” and bowed to Anne before waddling away.  

“Anne! That was amazing.” Sprig tackled her and hugged her leg. Anne patted his head.

“Was it?”

“Yeah, that was super cool. I didn’t know your healing powers could do that!”

Anne tilted her head at Sprig. Sasha came up beside Anne, pulling her damaged sleeve up to try and hide her exposed shoulder.

“I…Thank you for healing me. But, why?”

“I don’t need a reason to help a friend in need.” Anne smiled so sweetly at Sasha that it made her stomach churn. “I would be devastated if anything happened to you.”

Sasha clenched her fist into a tight ball. Anne retrieved Sasha’s blades and held them out for Sasha to take. 

“We should head home. We are going to need to face Hop Pop’s wrath one way or the other. The branch is a lost cause.”

Everyone walked back to the house in defeat. When they walked through the front door, they noticed that Hop Pop was still asleep. Anne sighed before walking down to the basement. She soon came up with a small bag in her hands. 

“Well, it has been fun while it lasted.” Anne smiled at them, with tears down her face. Sprig hugged her leg. 

“Do you have to go?” Sprig cried. 

“And just when I was actually starting to like you.” Polly hugged Anne’s leg.

Frobo came up and wrapped all three up in a hug. 

“Come on guys. Don’t cry. I don’t want any more crying. I’ll still be around. Just not in the house. I’m sorry.”

“What is with all the crying?” Hop Pop came downstairs. Then he saw the bag in Anne’s hands. “Anne, where are you going?”

Anne held the cane out for Hop Pop. He gasped at the cane in its full bloom. He grabbed the cane and held it close to him. 

“My cane. My favorite cane! What happened to it?”

Anne opened her mouth to speak. Sasha suddenly stepped forward. 

“It was my fault, Hop Pop.”

“You? Sasha, you know how much this cane means to me!”

“I know. I’m sorry. We were playing truth or dare, and I dared Anne to impersonate you. She grabbed the cane, and it flew out of her hand. It was an accident.” Then, Hop Pop noticed her shirt was torn and bloody.

“Sasha, what happened to your shirt? Why is it covered in blood? Good frog, please tell me that isn’t yours.” Sasha had forgotten about the wound for a moment. She looked down to see her shirt soaked in blood from when she had been attacked. But there was no wound to see she had been attacked. 

“Oh!” Sasha grabbed a part of the ruined shirt. “We were attacked by the Doom Tree trying to get you a replacement branch. It managed to get my shoulder.”

Hop Pop grabbed his ladder and placed it next to Sasha. He climbed up and examined her shoulder.

“But there isn’t a wound there. With that much blood, I should be seeing a huge wound there.”

“Well…Anne healed it.”

“Wait, Anne?” He turned to Anne. “You can heal?” Anne nodded. He noticed the bag. “But then what is with that bag?”

“Well, you did say that one more incident will get me kicked out. I broke your cane so I’m assuming I will be kicked out.”

“What! You will not be leaving my house. I am not kicking you out.”

“You're not?”

“No, you are staying right here, missy.  And I’ve been thinking. Maybe we should allow you to leave the house if only for a bit. You must stay within our sight, and as long as you keep your disguise on. No blue hair. That will alert Wartwood to who you are. Now go put your stuff back in the basement.”

Anne dropped her bag and scooped Hop Pop up in the air. She hugged him tightly.

“Oh, thank you, Hopediah. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” She kissed the old frog on the cheek, making the old frog blush red and not expecting Anne to kiss him.

He cleared his throat, “All right, Anne. Now set this old frog down.” Anne set him down. Hop Pop pointed at Sasha. “And as for you, Miss Soldier. I am very disappointed with you, but you did the right thing by being responsible and admitting your wrongs. But you will be on dish duty for a month.”

Sasha saluted. “Yes sir.” Then she smirked softly.

“Also, I wrote a list of comebacks to get back at you for everything you said. If I’m the king of fools, then you are the queen of mean.”

…

“Hop Pop, the moment passed.” Said Polly.

“Frog damn it!” 

Sasha made her way back to Loggle’s shop with Sprig hopping in tow. 

“So why are we going back to Loggle’s again?”

“Because, my annoying little brother, I am going back for Anne’s music box. It’s the least I could do since she did heal my shoulder.”

“Aww, you like her.” He teases her as Sasha stops dead in her tracks.

“I do not like her! I hate her! I’m just doing this to get on her good side.”

“Yeah, you like her.” 

“Sprig!” Sasha moved at Sprig, making him flinch but he laughed. The worst Sasha would do was possibly noogie him to death.

They opened the door to see Loggle with the music box. 

“Loggle, I’m going to need to buy that music box back from you.”

“What!? This thing and I have bonded well.” Sasha and Spirg raised their eyebrows. “You can’t have it back.”

“Loggle, I’m going to need that music box back. Look, I’ll make an exchange for it. How much did you pay for the map?”

“That map was priceless. It was handed down through my family for generations. No amount of copper will be worth it.” 

“Then why does the map have a sticker tag on it for two coppers?” Sprig flipped the map over to the back to show the sticker tag. 

“Wait, let me see that.” Sasha grabbed the map and stared at the sticker. “How in the hell did I not notice that? Loggle, explain why this map is from a gift shop in Newtopia.” Loggle awkwardly chuckled. Sasha flicked her thumb on the handle of her blue sword, partially popping the sword out of the sheathe.

“What can I say? Hehe. Oh, all right. You can have this back.”

“Pleasure doing business with you, Loggle.” Sasha tossed a few coppers onto the counter and grabbed the music box. 

Sasha walked down the steps of the basement to see Anne sitting up in bed, staring out the window. When she heard the creak of the steps, she turned her head. 

“Hi, Sasha. You are up late. I heard you and Sprig sneak out early. Where did you two go to?”

“We went back for something.”

Sasha pulled the music box out of her cape and handed it to Anne. She gasped as she took the box into her hands. Anne ran her hands along the lid. 

“You got my music box back. How?”

“It wasn’t hard. Just threatened Loggle a little bit.” Anne glared at her. Sasha held her hands up. “It was a joke. Actually, Loggle gave us a bum map. It came from a gift shop and was only worth two coppers. Not the priceless map he was saying it was. So, we got your music box back as a way of thanking you for saving us from the Doom bug thing or whatever.” Sasha looked away and crossed her arms, not wanting to look at her face for some odd reason or why she suddenly felt bashful around her.

Anne suddenly flew into Sasha’s body. Sasha’s body went rigid from the hug.

“Thank you. Thank you.” Anne squeezed Sasha’s body. “Truly. For everything.”

Anne planted a kiss on her cheek, right on her scar and Sasha felt like she had been electrocuted.

Sasha just numbly nodded, not saying a single word. She went into her room and shut the door. She decided to pull a book from her shelf. 

“When did the Spirit ever have healing properties? The Spirit is a being of evil and destruction. It wouldn’t make sense for her to be able to heal someone if she was made to destroy. This doesn’t make sense.”

Sasha sat down on her bed to read the history of the spirit. When she turned a page, she stared at the drawn picture of said Spirit.

The drawn Spirit has both her hands up and powered with her magic that looks like balls of thunder, sparking in her hand. A malicious grin was printed on her face. Around the Spirit are drawn humans, toads, frogs, and newts who are cowering at the sight of her with a look that pleads with her for any mercy.

As Sasha stared at the drawn picture, an image of Anne appeared in her head smiling kindly. The animals that saw her were calmed by her presence. Even Sprig and Polly felt comfortable being around her and did not cower in fear as Anne was so gentle with them. Even Frobo seems to have taken a liking to Anne.

Sasha stares back at the drawn picture of the evil Spirit as it grins back at Sasha, almost mocking her. She tried to superimpose an image of Anne over the evil spirit but she couldn’t. The same Anne came back smiling so sweetly at her. “Who are you really Anne? Are you good or evil?” 

Chapter Text

Yesterday, it was quite eventful and thrilling, not to mention, that the Plantars and Sasha have learned about Anne’s incredible healing powers. Even when Sasha woke this morning to check on her shoulder, she found no wound. It still surprised the blond as there were no scar on her flesh, no numbing pain, or even a sore muscle. As if the Doom Bug didn’t even touch her when it did.

Even last night, when Sasha was reading a book about the Spirit. Every page she read and found nothing about Anne’s healing powers. Not even a small hint about it.

Which ponders Sasha with questions. Then, her thoughts went back to what Sprig had said when they went to the lake. What if Sprig was right that Anne could be a different kind of Spirit from the evil one? However, the description of the Spirit was spot on.

Flaming blue hair, check.

Glowing blue eyes, check.

Flying, super strength, speed. Also, triple check.

All facts lead to Anne being the evil spirit.

However, ever since Anne stays with her and the Planters, the more it confuses Sasha even more.

Anne was not evil or manipulative. All she saw was a sweet and kind person.

Then the description that Anne would lure her victims with her charms and beauty but underneath it all, she is a deceitful creature who takes enjoyment in torturing tormented souls. But Anne had no lying bone in her body. In fact, she is so honest that she compliments Hop Pop on his yodeling during the night. Which forces Sasha, Sprig, Polly, and Frobo to bite their lips from laughing while Hop Pop is as red as a tomato. After Anne left to wash up, their laughter finally burst open as the four of them guffawed so loud that it echoed through the whole town and Hop Pop mutters about how they are ungrateful kids with a frown and with a deeper blush.

Another description that also made Sasha scratch out was that every wildlife creature in Amphibia would cower in fear at the sight of the Spirit and were forced to obey her every command or suffer her wrath. Sasha put down her book to see Anne surrounded by butterflies as the girl giggled when they tickled her. Bessie crawled close to her, asking her for another scratch on her chin. Anne obliged.

Sasha marched back inside the house before she could vomit rainbows if she stayed any longer.

“Now remember, Anne, you keep close to us at all times.” Hop Pop repeated once more. 

Today would be the first time Anne would see Wartwood. To say that she was excited was an understatement. She was nearly bouncing off the walls. Sprig was literally bouncing off the walls too. 

“I will, Hop Pop. I promise I will stay close to you and Sasha,” she said in giddiness.

“Good. Now let’s move out kids.” They exited the house to start their day in the market.

The moment Anne spotted Bessie, she squealed and ran over to the snail. Hop Pop gasped, fearing for his precious snail. When Sasha settled her hand on his shoulder, stopping Hop Pop from running.

“Just watch,” Sasha said calmly.

Bessie lowered her head towards the Spirit before letting out a small chirp. She then rubbed her cheek into Anne’s cheek, letting out a series of purrs and beeps.

“Who is a good girl? Who is a good girl? Yes, you are. Yes, you are.” Anne was rubbing her face into Bessie’s neck. “You are absolutely precious.” She cooed as she started to scratch under her chin when Bessie leaned back.

“Unbelievable! I thought you kids were exaggerating about how Anne can talk to the animals?” Hop Pop turned to Sasha.

“Told you.”

“Imagine our surprise when we found out.” Sprig jumped in.

“And how did you find out?”

“The doom tree bug.” Sasha butt in. She sent a quick glare at Sprig for nearly blowing their cover that they snuck out of the house to go to the lake.

Sasha helped load the last crate of vegetables into the wagon behind Bessie while Anne was still hugging the snail as she talked to her.

“Hop aboard, Anne. You can hug Bessie later.” 

“Okay, Hop Pop.” Anne planted a kiss on Bessie's cheek. Anne climbed into the cart and sat next to Sasha. 

The ride into town was quiet. Anne’s head was on a swivel as she looked right and left and behind her. Then, her excitement grew when she saw the town come into view.

“Wow. It’s really grown since I was last here. That wasn’t there! And that wasn’t there either! Oh, that definitely is new!” Anne was pointing at every single building. “I remember Leif telling me that they had discovered a way to build on the swamp. Right when the town was founded.”

“Yep, the townspeople knew not to put too much weight on top of the swamp, otherwise, our livelihoods and homes would sink!” Hop Pop smiled softly and in reminiscence of the good old days when he was just a pollywog. 

“I remember the celebration when the town was finished being built. It was a spectacular sight. They had these things called fireworks. They were really loud, but they were beautiful.” Anne was rambling as Hop Pop drove into town. He parked Bessie off to the side.

Anne gasped when she spotted the town statue. She made her way over to it. Hop Pop nodded to Sasha to keep an eye on Anne. Sasha walked over to stand next to Anne.

“Who is this?” Anne pointed to the statue. It’s a chubby toad with distinguished features as if he demands utter respect and devotion from his peers with his stone hands gripping his jacket. Anne doesn’t remember this toad from her past, but he could be important to the town.

“That’s Toadstool. He’s the town’s Mayor. A pompous ass if you ask me.” Sasha scoffed. Anne snicked. “My advice, stay away from him. He is money-hungry, and he would use anyone to improve his rating. Especially someone like you.”

Sasha dragged Anne away from the statue to where the vegetable stands sat. Anne was enthralled by the stands. She kept stopping by each one, pointing at different things, and asking Sasha questions. When Anne tried to ask the stand owners, they shunned her or ignored her. All the villagers ignored Anne. Some even backed away from the Spirit. Anne was beginning to feel that she was unwelcome. 

Sasha had enough of Anne’s depressed face and took her back to the Planter stand. Hop Pop must have noticed Anne's crestfallen face. 

“What’s the matter?” Anne collapsed on a crate.

“You weren’t kidding. The village is slow to accept. None of them paid me any mind. I smiled and waved and yet they ignored me, not even a small hello.”

“We warned you.” Sasha leaned against the counter. 

“Don’t mind them, Anne. Just give them time. You can stay here at the stand or sit with Bessie. The rest of you get to work. We need to sell these scream beans.” Indeed, the beans are screaming which dubbed them the scream beans.

“Hop Pop! Scream beans! You know those little fuckers don’t sell. Where did you even get them? From some shady guy in a back alley?” 

“Yep. Two whole silvers for the whole bag.” Sasha slapped her forehead. She was being sarcastic, but she forgot that Hop Pop was gullible and got easily fooled by a con.

“Oh, my frog. You are going to be lucky if you even make your coppers back.”

“Stop your griping and start selling.”

“Ugh! Fine, Hop Pop.”

Sasha grabbed the tray filled with scream beans. She looked up and spotted Anne next to Bessie. The snail had her head in Anne’s lap as Anne seemed to be talking to the snail. Sasha watched the scene for a moment until Hop Pop smacked her leg to get her moving. 

“So, what can I do to get them to like me?” Anne asked on the way to the house. 

“I know how!” Sprig leaped until he landed on Anne’s lap as Hop Pop shouted in the back, “No hopping during the ride!” But Sprig spoke and was too excited to hear Hop Pop, “Just be yourself or do an impressive stunt like Sasha.” He crossed his arms across his chest and puffed it out as if he had a brilliant idea.

“Like Sasha?” Anne blinked.

“Yeah.”

“It wasn’t that impressive.” Sasha focused her attention on Hop Pop driving. “Anyone would have done it.”

“Done what?” Sasha looked at Anne out of the corner of her eye.

“I'd rather not talk about it.” 

“Oh! Okay.” Anne dropped the conversation. Sasha looked over at Anne, surprised she didn’t push it, but she shrugged it off. 

“But” Anne started bringing up the subject again, “Is there anything I can do to earn the town’s respect?”

“Like Sprig said. Be yourself. They will come around. Eventually.”

Anne just sighed, not a great answer but she guessed they did make a point. “Things have changed since I was here…I barely recognize it.” she muttered under her breath in a sad tone and no one picked what she said.

When they arrived back home, everyone was about to go to their respective rooms for a nice rest. When Anne opened the door to the basement, she paused when her foot touched something wet. She looked down to find the entire basement was filled with water and she climbed back up and spotted Hop Pop in the kitchen.

“Hop Pop, why is there water in the basement?”

“Water?!” Hop Pop raced to the door and shrieked. “Frog damn it! Burrow bugs. They chewed the water pipes and flooded the basement. Hang on, Anne.” Hop Pop dove into the water and swam to save Anne’s things that hadn’t been soaked yet. The rest of the group rushed in and saw the whole basement was flooded with murky water. They could hardly see anything under the dirty water. They waited for a bit until he came up the stairs, soaking wet but he was carrying a bag.

“It’s a good thing you put this high up. Your music box and some of your stuff are safe. Can’t say for the rest of everything downstairs.”

“Thank you, Hop Pop.” Anne took the bag and held it close. “So, the basement is flooded?”

“Yep. And it will stay that way unless I find that leak.”

“Oh! Oh, I could help, Hop Pop. My underwater eyesight is better than yours.”

“Who was talking? Sprig?” Hop Pop grumbled as he narrowed his eyes. When he realized what he said, he shook his head and quickly said. “My eyesight is fine. This is river water! No telling what sort of creepy critters are swimmin’ around here.” As soon as he said that, a creepy critter’s eyes popped out of the waters, quietly chirping before it dove back into the waters. 

“So, while I go and fix the leak, Anne is going to stay somewhere else.” Hop Pop pointed at Sasha. “Sasha, she is going to have to stay in your room.”

“What?! Why my room?”

“Your room is big enough to house two humans. It will only be temporary until I fix that leak.”

“Anne could stay with me. I can show you my slingshots collection, my action figures, and-” Sprig offered.

“Where are ya, Sprig? I-I mean no, your room is too small. Polly’s room doesn’t have enough space because of her and Frobo and those unsettling dangerous tools. Anne can’t sleep in the same room as an old frog like me. Sasha's the only one who has a big room and a big enough bed.”

It can’t be that bad, right? It’s going to be just one night and the next morning, Hop Pop will fix the leak.

“Fine.” Sasha pouted and crossed her arms. 

“Then it’s settled. I’ll go get dinner ready and you can help Anne settle in.”

Sasha paled; her stomach could not bear another indigestion if she ate another of Hop Pop’s cooking. 

“No! I mean why don’t you start this leaky business; I’ll help Anne settle in the room, and I will do the cooking tonight. Hop Pop.”

“You sure about that?” And Hop Pop jumped back when three of his kids exclaimed all together, “YES!!!” 

“I’ll help Anne move into Sasha’s room.” Sprig hopped up and down.

“Don’t you dare even think of touching my sword collection?”

“Just one touch?”

“If I find one slime print, I will be your worst nightmare!”

Sasha began cooking dinner as Sprig took Anne upstairs while giving her the grand tour. 

Dinner was served and Sasha got a surprising compliment from Anne about how delicious it tasted.

Now that her stomach was full and very content to have real food to settle down. It’s time for Sasha to turn in for the night.

She enters her bedroom and stops. She spotted Anne on the floor, wearing that old red shirt Sasha had given her. 

“You still have that old ratty thing?” Anne looked up confused. Sasha pointed at the shirt.

“Yes. It’s comforting.”

Sasha just shrugged. She wasn’t going to fight against the Spirit. She cleaned up her room a bit and purposefully used her body to hide some books on her bookshelf from Anne’s possible prying eyes.

“Okay, Anne. You have a choice. Bed or floor.” Suddenly, Hop Pop can be heard through the walls, causing the girls to look to the other side of the wall.

“Sasha, you will not be offering our guest the floor!” Hop Pop called through the wall. 

“Man, I forgot these walls are thin as paper!” Sasha mumbled. “Fine! Anne, you’ll have the bed. I’ll take the floor.” 

“But wouldn’t sleeping on the floor be uncomfortable?” Anne innocently asked. 

“I’ve slept on dirty floors. On a stone floor. In the basement of a random person’s home. I’ve survived out in the forest long before I became a soldier.” Sasha paused. She said too much. Anne observed Sasha. “Never mind. Ignore that last statement.”

Sasha grabbed a blanket and a pillow and stretched out. Soon, she closed her eyes, waiting for sleep to overtake her until a sound snapped her eyes open wide. She turned her head to see Anne sitting up in bed with her music box. She shot Anne with a glare.

“Will you put that damn thing away?” 

“Sorry.” Anne closed the lid, shutting the music off. “I sometimes can’t sleep without it. I wouldn’t play it while I am staying in your room.”

“Good.”

Sasha rolled over in her sleep in the hopes that she could fall asleep. But then, it clicked in her head. What if this was Anne’s chance to make her first move? What if she kills Sasha in her sleep while she remains blissfully unaware?

She glances from her shoulder and sees Anne’s chest softly rise and fall indicating she is sleeping or pretending to be asleep. “ You think you can outsmart me? Ha, just wait until I see the look on your face when I expose your evil intention and be hailed as a hero .”

It’s a good thing she kept her pink heron close to her. She brings her sword close to her chest, resting on her back, and waits till the Spirit makes her move.

When a chickabeetle came out and let out its morning caw, Sasha was still awake, and she looked horrible. Her eyes were wide and red with terrible black bags. Her hair was a mess and she had her pink sword still clutched in her hands as she had laid there through the night so Anne wouldn’t make the first move. All Anne did though was sleep.

She heard Anne get out of bed and leave the room. Maybe now, she could rest her eyes. But as soon as she closed them, Hop Pop, Sprig, and Polly barged into her room.

“Rise and shine, Sasha! You missed breakfast!” Sasha reacted and flung her sword at the intruder and the throw impaled her sword into a wall. The sword was still jiggling right above Hop Pop’s head when gulped. “I’m guessing you didn’t sleep very well!”

“Huh? Sorry, Hop Pop.” Sasha rubbed her eyes before slapping her face. “I’m good. I’m good. I can help around the farm.”

“Not in that state, you won’t.”

“I’ll be fine, Hop Pop. I’ll be good. I’ve survived in the past on less sleep. It’ll be a breeze.” A complete and utter lie. Grime always said that an exhausted soldier was a terrible soldier. Sasha got up and cracked her back. “I can run the stand just fine while you look for the leak. Hopefully, you find it today.” Then she smiled, to try and convince them she was fine.

However, Sasha is not fine, not at all. 

When night settled in, she repeated her actions. Anne slept through the night but Sasha did not sleep a wink through her second night.

When a day rolled in and Sasha was at the stand, she kept falling asleep at the stand and she went home with a large red mark on her forehead. Hop Pop had yet to find the leak.

On the third night, as the two were getting ready for bed, Anne grabbed the pillow off the floor. 

“What are you doing?” Sasha asked the Spirit, hands on her hips. She looked more dreadful than yesterday and the day before that. Redder eyes, the bags under her eyes have become more visible, and she is swaying as if she is about to fall down on the floor.

Anne chose not to voice it out loud because Sasha’s temper was like a ticking time bomb. One wrong move and she’ll explode. Anne decided to be straightforward with her answer.

“Getting ready for bed. I’ll sleep on the floor tonight.” Anne threw her pillow on the floor when suddenly, Sasha took her pillow. “Hey!” 

“No, you aren’t. Hop Pop would have my head if he found you on the floor. You get the bed. I’m okay on the floor.”

“With what I saw today, I don’t think you can.”

“I’ll be fine!” Said Sasha, stubbornly getting up close to Anne. Anne crossed her arms, she refused to budge. 

“You just snapped at the poor frog after he asked you about the pumpkin! Look, just take the bed, and I will sleep on the floor. I have slept on the forest floor, it’s no big deal.” But Sasha refuses to budge.

“You take the damn bed or none of us take the bed.”

“Well, that is fine by me.”

Sasha and Anne huffed at each other. They both cuddled up on the floor, separated from each other. Sasha slept with her hand on her sword handle for the rest of the night.

“You know, I bet you can sleep if I play my music box. The music is soothing and-” Sasha harshly cut her off with a glare aiming directly at Anne.

It’s like a harsh slap of one big “Fucking no.” Anne huffed and mumbled, “It was just a suggestion. 

At one point, Sasha had nearly half a mind to either bury the damn thing or smash it to bits.

Hop Pop came into the room to check up on Sasha again. Anne has already woken up and she doesn’t look like she is in a chipper mood. He sighs, as Sasha’s mood and attitude are not affecting Anne and the kids. 

He creaked the door open and peeked inside and he swallowed his scream of terror. Sasha is on the floor, eyes wide open and staring at the ceiling or glaring at holes through the ceiling. She looks like the undead and way worse than before. Hop Pop silently crept back as he closed the door quietly. 

In the kitchen, Sprig and Polly were putting away the dishes and they looked pretty worried. 

“Did you see the look on Anne’s face? She looked pretty bummed out!” Said Sprig softly as he peeked through the window from the kitchen. He spotted Anne with Bessie, petting the snail. 

Polly grumpily agreed, “It’s not just Anne either! It’s affecting us too! Hop Pop better find that leak or those two will eat each other alive!” 

Sprig agrees with a nod, “Not to mention, Hop Pop won’t let me help him. Ugh, he’s so overprotective sometimes! But who knows?” Sprig starts to be optimistic, to look for the bright side of things. “Maybe today will be different!”

Sprig had never been right before because as soon as Sasha entered the kitchen, both Sprig and Polly yelped and then froze in horror.

Sasha is a literal zombie.

The two young frogs didn’t move as Sasha dragged her feet to the cupboard, or tried to open the cupboard because her hands were on the walls. She groaned and gave up. She decided not to get her cup and do something crazy. She blinked till she spotted what she was looking for.

Coffee, her precious elixir.

She grasped the handle of the tank and then she…drank her coffee straight from it. She is drinking the steaming hot coffee from the tank and Sprig and Polly gaped, still unmoving, and unnerved by the sight.

Sasha drank it all, licked her lips, and mumbled, “Good coffee.” And exited the kitchen, and she was unaware of two witnesses still standing frozen on the spot.    

Today is the same as the other days before, and it’s becoming downright disturbing.

And it’s even worse in the market. No one wants to get close to the Planter’s Stand with Sasha behind it, looking ready to maul someone on sight. Sasha instantly snapped at a customer for asking a simple question about a piece of vegetable. Sasha was so grouchy and earned a hard slap to the leg from Sadie’s cane because of her terrible mood. Even Anne’s sweet demeanor didn’t encourage any of the customers to come closer to the stand.

Hop Pop is starting to lose it. Sasha’s bad behavior and lack of sleep are driving his loyal customers away.

“We barely made six coppers. This is the worst I’ve seen in forever.” Sprig counted out the money. Hop Pop took the reins and drove back home but the mood of everybody was making this trip far less pleasant.

“Yeah. And whose fault was that?” Polly pointed as she stuck her tongue out at Sasha. Sasha growled but Hop Pop intervened before it escalated even worse.

“ENOUGH! Not one word from any of you.” He warned them and the trip back home was quiet but the tension hung over them.

When they made it back home, Hop Pop confronted Sasha head-on.

“No, you don’t! The only place you’ll be going is straight to your room, sleeping.”

“I’m fine Hop Pop.” 

“You clearly aren’t. You just spoke to a tree stump.” Sasha blinked before her vision cleared up. She was staring at a tree stump. “Sasha, it’s been five days and you haven’t slept a wink. It’s not good for your health. Your mood is getting worse, and YOU’RE SCARING ALL MY GOOD CUSTOMERS AWAY!” Hop Pop took a deep, calming breath and added, “Just go to bed, for Pete’s sake.”

“I…” Sasha hates to admit it but he’s right. Her head is hurting like it’s on fire, she can barely see anything, and her eye sockets sting so badly from the soreness. “Fuck. You are right, Hop Pop. Please tell me you fixed the leak. I can’t spend another night like this.” Now, Hop Pop looked guilty and answered.

“Sorry Sasha, I haven’t yet. Still can’t find it.”

“Fuck! Hop Pop, please let Sprig help. Your eyesight is terrible underwater.”

“My eyesight is not terrible. I can do it just fine.”

Sasha dropped to her knees and clutched Hop Pop’s shoulders, picking him up.

“Do you want me to continue being a raging bitch to your customers and risk losing more money because I can’t GET a good night's rest? What will it be HP? Because if I have to spend another night with HER , I will most likely commit murder.”

“Okay. Okay. I’ll let Sprig help!”  

“Thank you, Hop Pop.” She put him down and then she hissed when her head started to throb painfully. “UGH! That damn music box of hers is giving me a headache. It plays constantly all throughout the night.” Hop Pop looked at her, not getting it.

“What music box?”

“The one she always keeps close to her and treats like a stupid baby! She plays that damn thing every night !”

“But…I didn’t hear any music. You know how thin the walls are.” 

Sasha rubbed her temples. “Maybe I’m going nuts.” 

Perhaps a few hour naps would do her some good. The headaches were killing her and she was really desperate for some sleep.

As Sasha climbed up the steps to her room to try and take a nap, she heard that damned music box. That thin string of Sasha’s rage finally snapped. She stormed into her room and stared down Anne.

“I have had it up to here with you and that FUCKING MUSIC BOX!”

“My music box isn’t the damn problem. I haven’t been playing it at night. Only during the day and I don’t think that’s a crime.”

Sasha stares at Anne and the music box, the source of her sleepless nights, the headaches, and everything else. 

“THAT IT! I’M GOING TO CHOP THAT DAMN THING INTO A TOOTHPICK!”

Sasha unsheathed her sword. She stormed over to Anne. Anne had a look of panic on her face from the angry Sasha stomping over to her. What happened next was a complete accident. Anne shot her hand to push Sasha away. She meant to only push her gently away. But Sasha was instead shot backward into the wall. Her back collided with the wall, sending an old sword from Sasha’s collection to fall along with a picture frame hitting Sasha on the head. That aggravated the blond lieutenant.

Sasha growled as she got up from the ground, a nasty bruise on her forehead. She stomped over to Anne.

“ENOUGH!!!” Hop Pop rushed up the stairs, and he was so livid that the veins were popping out visibly on his wrinkled head.

“THAT IS IT YOU TWO. LIVING ROOM, NOW!” Hop Pop yelled.

Sasha and Anne walked downstairs. They sat on the sofa with heads facing away from each other and Hop Pop couldn’t take more of this tension.

“What the hell is wrong with you two?” 

“She started it!” Sasha angrily pointed to Anne.

“Enough Sasha. I heard it from downstairs and Anne had done nothing wrong. You are snappier than normal, I’ve been getting multiple complaints from Sprig, Polly, and our customers, and you are causing tension in the family. Sasha, it is very clear that you should go back to Toad Tower. At least, over there, you can get a good night's rest.”

“Oh, I would love that, Hop Pop.” She snidely said. She remembered how she got into this problem in the first place. “BUT I WAS FUCKING FORBIDDEN FROM GOING TO TOAD TOWER BECAUSE I HAD TO BABYSIT HER ASS! IT'S BECAUSE OF HER AND THAT DAMN MUSIC BOX THAT I CAN'T SLEEP!”

The news shatters the tension to be replaced with tender, aching gut-wrenching pain. This was the first time he heard the news but when he glanced at Anne, the old frog winced when he saw the hurtful look on Anne’s face.

“I’ll sleep in the barn then since I am causing distress in the home,” Anne spoke up, blankly and agonizingly. “I’m just a guest in the house.”

“Oh no, you won’t Anne. You will stay right here.” Then the old frog faltered when Anne shook her head.

“No, it's fine. I will leave the house, Hop Pop. It’s okay. I don’t want to cause any more fighting among the family.” And Hop Pop could do nothing to stop her as Anne climbed back up, probably to gather her things.

As for Sasha, she doesn’t know why it fucking hurt her to see Anne upset.

Sprig and Polly overheard everything from upstairs. 

“That’s it. I am tired of Sasha’s treatment of Anne. We need to fix that leak. Like now!” Sprig poked his head back into Polly’s room and Frobo beeped in agreement. 

“I am finished!” Polly screamed, showing her greatest invention to Sprig. She modified the goggles so that Sprig could see the murky water clearly. “I got the goggles done.” 

“Finally! I can use those to find that leak and repair this family.”

Sprig grabbed the goggles and put them over his eyes. He raced down the steps and into the basement. 

Hop Pop was not in the basement. Good, that way Sprig can look for the leak without Hop Pop hovering over him. He jumped into the water, and he was amazed at how clear he could see underwater. Polly really outdid herself.

“Now, to find the leak!” He gurgled and he did not notice two shadows swimming closer to Sprig.

Sasha was in the kitchen, looking like a complete grinch with her mood soured even more. Then she heard footsteps coming her way and she spotted Anne had gathered her things in her arms.

Anne was aware Sasha was staring and looked up. They stared at each other for what seemed like minutes before Sasha turned her neck away, now Anne was staring at her back. Anne sighs disappointedly.

Now, it seems impossible to make Sasha her friend now.

Anne was about to grab the doorknob when they both heard a familiar boyish scream coming from the basement.

“That’s Sprig! He is in the basement!” They both said together. Anne dropped her things as they raced into the basement. 

Sasha dove into the water with Anne behind her without a moment of hesitation. It was there that they spotted river lampreys in the water, the one who broke the water pipes. They wrapped their bodies around Sprig and were squeezing him tight.

Sasha swam towards them. She punched one in the eye. Anne swam up beside them and tried to fight back. One of the Lampreys let go of Sprig and circled around Sasha. Sasha was swatting at them with her fist, but it was swimming too fast underwater, and the waters and her exhaustion were slowing her attacks down. Anne tried to sneak up behind the other Lamprey that held Sprig in its coils, but it was quick to notice Anne, and it whacked her with enough force to send her flying into Sasha as they both were sent flying backwards.

They grunted in pain before Sasha pointed to the surface. They both swam up.

“This is useless. Those guys are in sync! How are we going to save Sprig now?” Sasha slapped the top of the water. Anne gazes down as her mind reels with an idea. She knows those creatures. They’re predators who work in groups to scavenge and hunt, and they are also mates. 

They were looking for a place to nest to make future generations. Anne is the protector of all living things and new life. She should know how the animals work. She just needs to steer these two Lampreys to a better nesting place.

“Sasha, we need to work together.” Sasha stopped her frustration and stared at Anne.

“Okay, Spirit. What’s your plan?”

“Grab that pillow.” Anne pointed to a floating pillow. “I’m going to toss them your way and you hit them with the pillow. It will make them realize that this is a terrible area to raise babies with predators close by.” Sasha stared at Anne before smiling.

“I like this plan.”

They both dove underwater. They spotted the lampreys as they were squeezing Sprig. Anne was quick to swim over to them. She grabbed one of the lampreys and spun around in the water before it flew through the water. Sasha was ready with the pillow. She swung it fast and hit the lamprey hard. The body was like an accordion. Once it righted itself, it was in a dazed state. Anne pumped her fist. Sprig kicked his feet at the other lamprey’s face. Anne wrapped her hands around the last one. Her hair turned blue before she threw the lamprey at Sasha. Sasha grinned viciously as she swatted the Lamprey as it landed next to its mate.

The lampreys admitted defeat and quickly drilled a hole in the floor which caused the water to drain into the hold, decreasing the water level. Everyone was pulled towards the leak but Anne grabbed Sprig and Sasha and used her strength to swim away until the water drained. Once the water receded, Anne let them both go.

Sasha spotted Anne hugging Sprig, keeping the little frog safe and comforting him when he got scared. For a moment, her heart skipped a beat. She shook her head as to why her heart skipped a beat.

“Sasha, that was amazing.” Sprig was hopping up and down. “And Anne, those moves. You two were amazing as a team!”

“Yeah. We surprisingly work together well.” Sasha smiled at Anne as she shook the river water off her hair. 

“We did.”

Once night fell, the basement was finally freed of any standing water, but it was still too wet for anyone to be able to stay down comfortably. 

But Anne had her things gathered in her arms and was getting ready to spend the night with Bessie. By tomorrow, she’ll go back to her room in the basement.

“I am going to go sleep in the barn with Bessie.” Anne grabbed her music box and a blanket. Sasha stared at Anne for a moment, rubbing her arm.

“You can still stay here. In my room. I’m sorry I yelled all of that to you. I let my stubbornness, my anger, and my exhaustion get the best of me.”

“It’s not fair for you to have to sleep on the floor. It’s uncomfortable for you!”

“Then we share the same bed.” 

“The same bed?”

“It’s not fair to you that I am forcing you to sleep on the floor just because I can’t deal with sharing a bed with someone. It’s either the bed or I will come out there to the barn myself and drag you back into the house. You can even play your music box.” She looked away with a blush dusted over her cheeks.

Sasha and Anne soon both crawled into the bed. Sasha lay on her back as she stared at the ceiling. She felt Anne’s arm brush against hers.

“Sorry.” She heard Anne whisper. She could tell Anne was restless and nervous of Sasha’s rage. Sasha didn’t blame her.

“It’s okay. You want to play your music box?”

“No, this is still your room. Besides, I don’t want to disturb you.”

Sasha leaned over Anne to where she knew the music box sat. She grabbed it which caused Anne to jump up. Anne was afraid of Sasha destroying it for a moment. Sasha opened the lid and saw two figurines pop up and began dancing around. The soft music drifted through the air. Sasha was enticed by the figurines. 

“You’re right. The music is soothing. I’m sorry that I threatened to smash it. You clearly love this thing and it wouldn’t have been right for me to destroy your treasure.”

“I forgive you. You should get some sleep. You haven’t slept in days.”

Sasha yawned. She slowly felt her eyes drop. She heard Anne begin to sing a lullaby. It was a lullaby Sasha was familiar with. For a moment, Anne was replaced with Darcy. 

“Darcy?”

She felt someone play with her bangs as she was lulled to sleep. Soon, Sasha was out like a light. 

In her dreams, she is not sure what saw. She saw the music box, but the two figurines were replaced with her and Anne. 

As Anne played with Sasha’s bangs, she stared at her peaceful sleep. She rubbed her finger along Sasha’s scar. 

“Who is Darcy and what does she mean to you?”

The next morning, the Plantars were happy to know that Sasha had finally slept through the night, which eased their concerns as they sighed in relief.

However, Sasha is more energetic than they could remember. 

With red eyes and baggy eyes gone, her skin looking healthy, and now she was helping the Plantars clean Anne’s basement.

It’s not really concerning. They are just bewildered.

They watched Sasha carry the two big crates with her hands as she climbed up to throw them out. She had a smile on her face. She was sweating like crazy, but it didn’t bother her. In fact, she was motivated because it was like training.

Even Sasha doesn’t know where that energy comes from, but she was not complaining. She was feeling great.

“Wow, I've never seen Sasha like this before!” Said Sprig as he followed Sasha with his eyes carrying another heavy load of crates with ease without taking a break.

“Yeah, you’re right!” Hop Pop agreed as he too followed Sasha's work with his eyes, in both amazement and perplexation. “Just a few days ago, she could barely have enough energy to keep her head up! Now, look at her go!”

“Which is weird, you know.” Said Polly. “She only slept for like nine hours, she shouldn’t be that fully recovered...Is she on drugs?”

“Pollyanna Petunia Planter!” As Hop Pop scolded her, no one seemed to notice Anne’s smile as she had something to do with it.

Anne used her powers to soothe Sasha’s troubled thoughts and the blond instantly melted as she slept. She giggled and went back to help clean the floor.

She wasn’t going to tell. Not yet.

Chapter Text

The sun peeked over the horizon as it rose, bringing another fine morning to the small town of Wartwood.

The sun's rays shine upon a humble home that belonged to the Plantars and a tiny Spirit who now lives with them.

In Sasha’s room, the blond is still sleeping as she snores quite loudly. Her arms sprawled in different directions, and a thin line of drool was smeared to her chin, but she was unbothered as she continued to get more sleep.

But then, her nose begins to twitch. The fogginess of sleep began to fade away as she blinked drowsily. Now that she is aware, her nose caught a whiff of something enticing.

It is the most wondrous smell to ever grace her nose. She blinked a few moments because it didn’t smell like Hop Pop’s cooking. She loves the old frog but not his cooking. One whiff of his cooking and the hair in her nose would wrinkle in disgust. 

So then, if this isn’t Hop Pop cooking in the kitchen, then who was?

She got out of her bed and hurriedly made her way to the kitchen. She was surprised to see it was Anne in the kitchen, cooking. With her long hair up in a ponytail and wearing an apron, she hummed and sang as she was cooking something. Sasha had been slowly teaching Anne how to cook in the few weeks since she was going to stay at the Plantar’s house.

“Anne?” Anne turned around to smile at Sasha. 

“Morning Sasha. Sorry I took over your cooking duties, but I can’t help it with how much I love cooking ever since you taught me. So, I wanted to make you all breakfast!”

“It actually smells really good! Like really good ! I mean, anything can smell better than Hop Pop’s cooking, but this smells exceptionally delicious.”

“Thank you, Sasha. That’s a high honor.”

“What’s this about my cooking?” Hop Pop came into the kitchen area, but his grumbled face melted when he smelled the food. “What is that heavenly smell?”

“I made breakfast, Hop Pop. Does it smell okay?” Anne asked. Hop Pop’s eyes widened, surprised that Anne was doing the cooking, but he was more surprised by the amount on the table as if he had entered one of those fancy restaurants. 

“You made all of this?” His eyes could literally pop out of his sockets because everything looked so delectable to eat. 

The toast looked amazing, perfectly toasted, and lined up nicely. Scrambled eggs mixed with mushrooms, herbs, and ants. Towering pancakes that look like clouds on a plate seeing at how puffy they looked. On the sides, some sliced-up fruits and syrup that would go along with the pancakes.

“Yes, I wanted to show you all my appreciation for allowing me to stay here with you.” Hop Pop is touched by her generosity and sincerity in her words.

“Yo! What smells so good?” Polly came running down the stairs. Sprig and Frobo were close behind her.

“Everyone, please dig in. Oh yes, I made some for you too Frobo. Just how you like them.” She turned around to reveal the last dish she was cooking. Gears and bolts are coated with oil and Frobo made an “oooh” robotic sound and clapped happily. 

Sasha anxiously stared at the food in front of her. For a moment, she thought what if Anne took the time to poison the food? Before she could voice her concerns, she watched the family dig into the food. They suddenly stopped eating and went still. Sasha believed that the worst of her thoughts came true.

“Oh, my frog! This is amazing. I never tasted anything so delicious.” Hop Pop sobbed as he took another spoonful of the scrambled eggs. Sasha decided that maybe if Hop Pop didn’t kneel over and die, then the food must be safe to eat. She dug right into the eggs, gathering the mushroom and the ants. When the food hit her tongue, her mouth exploded with flavor. She moaned at the taste.

“I’ve seen the face of God,” Sasha whispered. 

The family just shoved their faces with the food Anne had made for them. Anne was watching with a smile on her face. She was so happy everyone was enjoying the food. 

Anne is genuinely shocked. Sasha and the Plantars just finished everything, not a scrap left. She looks up to see all four of them looking very contented with their bellies stuffed and bloated. Heck, even Frobo who only eats oils and spare parts they don’t need. But she has seen Sasha cook for Frobo and you can imagine how astounded she was when she did. Frobo hiccupped as he patted his metal stomach.

“Whoa! It’s my first time cooking and I never expected it was that good!”

“Good? Good!?” Sprig looked at her like she was crazy. He heaved as he began to shower her with compliments. “Anne, you’ve got a gift! I feel my taste buds buzzing with life and my soul feels all warm and fuzzy. Which gives me an idea!” 

“Hm?”

“Guys, we need to have Anne make the meal for the annual potluck!” 

“Oh yeah. I forgot about that.” Sasha put her hand on her chin. “I’m usually at the tower during that time.”

“What’s that?” Anne wondered what this potluck was.

“It’s a potluck that the entire town participates in. Every family enters their best dish. The best entry wins the grand prize. The loser gets stuck into the cage of shame.” Hop Pop explained as he pointed with his finger through the window. Anne saw a scary frog heaving a cage up in the tree with a sigh that said “loser.” All capitalized.

“Brutal!” Anne commented. Then she hears the Plantars sigh dejectedly as Sprig said. “And you can probably guess which family gets stuck in the cage.” The frogs bowed their heads in shame.

“Not this year, my little family.” Sasha grabbed the frogs and pulled them into her buff arms. “Not only I’m here but we now have a secret weapon. Anne!” 

They could hear cricket sound in the background making things awkward. 

“Just Anne. Ummm Sasha, since Anne is staying with us and is now going to be out in the village more often, she is going to need a last name. Just to help disguise her true self.”

“Oh yeah! True.” Sasha’s eyes looked around till she landed over to a crate of bok choy then a name popped into her head. There was a cookbook that she would always read when she was learning to cook. It was made by a family called Boonchuy. “Boonchuy. Anne Boonchuy will be your human name.” She said it proudly.

“Anne Boonchuy. Anne Boonchuy. I like it!” Anne grinned at Sasha. She likes her new last name. It’s perfect.

“Then our secret weapon is going to be Anne Boonchuy!” Sasha exclaimed dramatically.

“We could actually win this year.” And they whooped.

Anne was reading a cookbook on her recipe that would be for the potluck later in the day. 

When suddenly, the front door was blown down. Anne’s hair turned blue as she was ready to protect her new friends. Sasha instantly jumped up and pulled a sword out of the umbrella bucket near the door.

“Sasha! How many weapons do you have hidden around the house?” Asked Hop Pop, astonished that she hid it there too.

“A lot! You never know when it may come in handy.” Sasha held her sword out in front of her. 

A form slid into the house. They had a rectangular box in their hands and Sasha recognized who it was. 

“Marcy?” 

“Sashy! You will not believe the good news.” 

“Good news? Did the king come back?” Sasha smiled. Marcy had a deadpan look on her face. 

“No.”

“Then what’s the good news?” Sasha was annoyed.

“I bring you the most delicious food item that you will ever taste in your entire life. I bring you…Pizza.” Marcy opened the box in her hands to reveal a circular item in the box. It was cut into triangles and was covered with melted cheese and covered with mini meat circles.

“Pizza?” Everyone parroted back. 

“Yes. Pizza.”

“What is this pizza made of?” Hop Pop asked.

“Four simple ingredients. Cheese. Bread. Pepperobeetle. And the most important ingredient of all. Tomatoes.” Sasha snapped her neck up and paled.

“Tomatoes! Dude, do you know how hard it is to get tomatoes? They are mindless, vicious creatures that eat anything that moves!” Sasha pointed out. She had fought against a tomato plant before when she was younger. It earned her a nifty scar, but she definitely wouldn’t want to fight one of those again. 

“I know. But that’s what makes this dish taste so good. You have to try this. Please, for me.” Marcy begged.

She placed the box on the table for everyone to try a piece. Sasha bit into the slice and moaned. 

“I’ve seen the face of God a second time and…It has the face of a kill-a-moth? I think. But that doesn't matter because this is amazing.”

“I don’t think I could live in a world without pizza,” Polly screamed out. “It’s delicious.”

“I need more. I need more of a taste. I think I’m addicted to it.” Sprig was going rabid.

“Holy frog! I have tasted a bountiful feast of flavor!” 

“I told you all. It is amazing.” Marcy squealed before noticing Anne and holding a slice of pizza. “Oh hey, Spirit. Oh oops. Sorry, Anne, was it?” Anne nodded.

“Yep, and Sasha gave me a last name too. Anne Boonchuy. Marcy, wasn’t it?”

“Marcelina Regina Wu. But you can call me Marcy.” Marcy held her hand out. Anne took it. She leaned in closer to Marcy’s face, making Marcy flinch which Anne didn’t notice because she was looking at Marcy’s two different eye colors like a curious child.

“Your eyes are interesting. I usually don’t see a human with two different colored eyes. Especially orange!”

“Oh! It’s called heterochromia. My mom…always said I had the best of both worlds. An eye from my dad and an eye from her.” Sasha walked over to Marcy and wrapped an arm around her. Anne got the impression that Marcy didn’t like to talk much about her parents. She didn’t understand why but she won’t pressure her to tell her.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring that up.”

“Nah. It’s okay Anne. But hey. How’s life going with the Plantars? They are a rowdy bunch.” Marcy smirked. “Now, what did you think of pizza?” Marcy is a bit anxious about how Anne is going to react when eating pizza but to her surprise, Anne moans.

“It’s delicious.”

“THAT’S IT! We should make pizza for the potluck today. Introducing Wartwood to something new!” Sprig shouted. Anne stopped chewing and felt heartbroken at that.

“But…I thought I was going to make something for that.” But she was ignored.

“If we make this pizza, we will set FOR LIFE! Marcy, we need those ingredients now.”

Sasha grabbed Sprig’s shoulders and gently shook him.

“Sprig buddy, Marcy told us what was on the pizza. As much as I would love to make a pizza, I am not fighting another carnivorous tomato plant.”

“But Sasha. We need that pizza. If we make it, we could be rich. Come on Hop Pop. You agree.” Polly begged. “Think of the riches!”

“I don’t know, kids. This pizza thing is new, and you know I always like to respect the old ways. What would Gram-Gram say?” He pointed to an old picture of an old lady frog that was knitting a long scarf that said, ‘Tradition means everything’.

Sasha rolled her eyes. She then noticed Anne, and she looked upset. Did she actually like the idea of cooking for the potluck? She was looking at making a dish to help them win the competition. She had been reading the cooking for the past hour studying and studying.  

Sasha hated the next thing that came out of her mouth.

“We can wait for the pizza. Hop Pop and Gram Gram are “ugh’ right. Tradition means everything.” Sasha gagged on it. Anne looked up at Sasha in surprise. Everyone stared at Sasha. “Let’s make something out of the old cookbook.”

…

“You know what? Let’s do this pizza thing because if Sasha agrees with me then something must be wrong.” Hop Pop nodded his face. “Gram Gram would say move on.”

“Frog damn it Hop Pop!”

Sasha was forced to tag along, and she hated it. She could see and feel the disappointment in Anne’s face. Their first stop was to Flour’s bakery where they were going to collect the dough for the pizza. Marcy had decided to tag along.

They watched Mr. Flour pound the dough with his feet and shove it into an oven.

“So, you need some dough? Oh, hey, Marcy.” Mr. Flour asked. 

“Hi, Mr. Flour. How’s Maddie doing?” 

And Marcy got her answer when they heard frantic footsteps coming down from the stairs. A girl frog with lavender hair appeared, and her name was Maddie Flour. She’s Wartwood’s best witch who specialized in dark arts and curses, having been taught personally by Marcy. She and Marcy were partners trying to achieve the ultimate witch level. A level only Darcy had achieved.

“Marcy, you’re back?”

“Hey, Maddie.” Marcy waved. “So, my dark partner. We need some dough to help the Plantars to win the Potluck this year. Will you help us out?”

“Dad.” Maddie snapped her fingers.

“Yes, my little darling.” It’s amazing how the grouchy baker melted and smiled at his daughter. He would do anything for his precious girl, Maddie, and his three little angels.

“They need some dough. Marcy is my best friend and fellow dark arts user. Let’s give them what they need. Consider it payment for everything she taught me.”

“If my baby girl says you need dough, then I’ll give you the dough.” Flour threw some dough into a bag for them.

“Oh, thank goodness. Here I thought for a second, I was going to have to offer Sprig’s hand in marriage to Maddie.” Hop Pop said as he jabbed Sprig in the side.

“Please don’t tease me about that.”

“Offer is still on the table.” Mr. Flour said as he wiggled his eyebrows. 

“Dad!” Maddie screamed, embarrassed. 

“OK! We gotta go now.” Sasha is pushing everyone out of the baker’s house. 

“Okay. So, we got the dough. Next on our list is cheese.” Marcy marked the dough off her parchment. “Then pepperobeetle and finally, tomatoes.”

“Miss Croaker has a dairy farm. We could go there.” Hop Pop suggested it.

“Maybe we should go home?” Sasha tried to inject it. She was hoping she could steer everyone back home because Anne still looked depressed. She wanted to keep the anger of the spirit to a minimum. Oh why did her heart ache at seeing Anne’s depressed face.

“Oh, come on Sasha. This could be good for all of us.” Hop Pop spoke up. “Sprig is right. We could try to make pizza and then we could be rich. I could send Sprig and Polly to a good school. Frobo could have fancier parts.” Sasha rolled her eyes. “I could get you better armor.” He tries to butter her up, but Sasha is stubborn.

“My armor is just fine Hop Pop.”

“Let’s split up. Hop Pop, Polly, Frobo and I will go get the pepperobeetle. Sasha, Marcy, and Anne can go get the cheese from Mrs. Croaker.”

Before Sasha could argue, Sprig was already hopping away from them along with everybody else. It just left Anne, Sasha, and Marcy alone. 

“Well, I guess we are getting that cheese. Let’s go girls.”

Sasha walked to Ms Croaker’s farm. When they arrived, Ms Croaker was fighting one of her Cowapillars as she tried to force it back to the barn. Anne gasped in happiness at the sight of them on how cute they were. 

“Sasha! Marcy! Weird girl.” Anne’s face fell at Mrs. Croaker’s comment. However, Archie the spider thought differently as he raced over to Anne’s legs and barked for attention. Anne picked him up and nuzzled her face into his body. Archie didn’t back away or growl. He curled up in her arms. “I could use some help.”

“What’s the matter Ms Croaker?” Sasha asked.

“I need some help to get these Cowapillars back in the barn. But those beasts won’t budge. No thanks to Archibald!” Ms Croaker pointed to the biggest Cowapiller in Wartwood. He is a very large male and he would stay close to his herd like a guardian. He huffed at Mrs. Croaker, rebelling against the old frog that they wanted to stay outside some more. Not to mention, he is the meanest Cowapiller in all of Wartwood. He would kick anyone out if they tried to pet him or command him. Even the most patient herders could not handle Archibald’s aggression.

“I love Archibald. He would never hurt me but he is starting to get on my nerves!”

“Where’s your herder?” Sasha asked.

“Out sick today. Got the nasty case of the human cold.” She exclaimed. 

“Oof! We will gladly help. We’ll get them back in the barn and you give us a wheel of cheese in return?” Sasha asked. 

“I don’t know, Sasha. I know you’re strong, but this is Archibald we are talking about. He has got a nasty temper that is worse than a wild hornet on a bad day!”

“Actually, it won’t be me to do it. I know someone who can! Anne, you’re up.” Sasha is trusting Anne to do it. The Spirit was touched that Sasha trusted her.

Anne set Archie down and ran to the Cowapillars. She hopped over the fence.

“Anne!” Marcy screamed out.

“Ah! The weird girl just jumped over the fence. Archibald will kill her!” 

Sasha noticed Archibald spin around when Anne was approaching as he mooed loudly and charged at Anne. But Sasha wasn’t worried about Anne. Marcy was almost about to hop over the fence to get her out before she revealed herself or worse hurt Archibald, but Sasha grabbed her friend’s arm.

“It’s okay,” Sasha whispered in her friend’s ear. “Watch this.”

“Watch what? Sasha, she is going to attack and reveal herself as the Spirit.”

Sasha kept a grip on Marcy’s arm. Marcy watched as the biggest Cowapillar were fast approaching and Anne remained still and calm. Archibald skidded to a halt creating dust to cover both Anne and Archibald. When the dust was cleared, Archibald was nose to nose with Anne. His eyes twitched forward and puffed some air at her face which earned a giggle from Anne. Anne rubbed her hands on his snout, and he let her. Everyone could see his tail was wagging lazily but happily. 

Mrs. Croaker couldn’t believe her one good eye. 

“She’s…Tamed him? She’s taming Archibald. The animals don’t seem to fear her like we were told.” Marcy lowered her voice down. “You knew.”

“She can also heal. I’ll explain later.”

Anne continued talking to Archibald. Soon, all the Cowapillars crowded around Anne, begging to be petted by her. Once Anne gave each one the attention they craved, Anne gently persuaded them to go to the barn.

“Well, I’ll be. That weird girl handled old Archibald as if she knew what she was doing. He doesn’t like anyone but me and yet that old grouch turned soft for her. It’s like she is an animal whisperer.”

“She’s something like that,” Sasha said.

“You held up your end of the bargain. I’ll hold mine up. Let me go get that wheel of cheese for you.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Croaker.”

As they walked away from Mrs. Croaker’s farm, Marcy instantly turned around and grabbed Sasha’s shoulders. 

“Spill the beans, Sashy.”

“Sashy?” Anne tilted her head like a kill-a-pillar.

“It’s a nickname between friends,” Marcy answered quickly before turning her attention back to the blond. “But that’s not important. Sasha, you mentioned Anne can heal?”

“Hold up,” She whispered to her as she took her hands off her shoulders and then she started to talk to Anne, gently this time to her. “Anne, why don’t you go home? You have been looking uncomfortable with all of these.”

“But I want to help.”

“Have you really been wanting to make a pizza?” 

“Not…Really.” She said it, truthfully. 

“Then go home. If you haven’t been wanting to make a pizza, then there is no sense in you being here. Go home. Take the ingredients we have collected with you.”

Sasha handed Anne the dough and the wheel of cheese. Anne looked like she wanted to argue back but then she nodded. She grabbed the ingredients and began walking away.

Once she is out of sight and out of hearing range, Sasha begins to explain to Marcy.

“Yes, she can heal. She even healed my shoulder.” Marcy stared at Sasha in disbelief. “It was cut almost all the way to the bone, but Anne’s healing magic is so powerful she managed to heal it like nothing. You couldn’t even tell I had been wounded if it wasn’t for the blood that soaked my shirt. It didn’t even leave a scar.” Sasha could tell Marcy’s brain was gearing up after listening to Sasha’s info about Anne.

“The Spirit never had the ability to heal in any of the stories when we were told.” Marcy shook Sasha’s shoulders. “She has the power of destruction!  Not healing!”

“I know. But you have an analytical mind. You believe in research and facts. The animals actually flock to her, not run away in fear. She heals. I wouldn’t have believed it myself if I didn’t see it with my eyes.”

“So…Is Anne not the evil Spirit we all thought she was?”

“I’m… Still not sure.” Sasha still wasn’t sure. She still believed that Anne was evil. But she wasn’t so sure now. She was still afraid it was all a lie, and that Anne was going to turn around and harm her family. She wasn’t going to stand for that. But…What if Marcy and Sprig were correct? What if Anne wasn’t evil? “But I’m still keeping an eye on her. Just to make sure she doesn’t pull a fast one on us.”

“I'm going to do some research when I get back to Newtopia. Something doesn’t add up.”

“Now let’s go meet up with the Plantars and,” Sasha shuddered. “Go get that stupid tomato plant.”

Sasha and Marcy caught up with the Plantars, who looked worse for wear. Sprig had a swollen eye. Polly was missing a boot. Hop Pop surprisingly looked fine.

“What the hell happened to you guys?” She looked puzzled and worried, the same for Marcy.

“Who knew getting ingredients could be so deadly.” Sprig smiled. Sasha noticed one of his teeth missing.

“That creature destroyed my good pair of pants.” Hop Pop turned around. Sasha and Marcy quickly covered their eyes as Frobo covered Polly’s eyes. There was a huge hole in his pants, revealing his carrot-printed underpants.

“Please tell me we are almost done,” Polly asked.

“We are almost done, gang. We just need one more ingredient. And that is our tomatoes. According to my journal,” Marcy pulled her trusty journal out. She flipped it to a certain page. “There is a carnivorous tomato plant just not too far from here. Once we get that, we can get back quickly and make our potluck.”

“Sweet.” Sasha instantly frowned. None of them even noticed Anne wasn’t there. Did they really forget about her and care about winning more than Anne’s feelings?

She blinked when she realized. When did she start to care for her? Of course, she doesn’t care about her. She doesn’t care if she’s sad or that it made her chest hurt to see Anne’s face. She doesn’t care if her heart is being weird at all because Anne was smiling at her.

She shook those thoughts out before they did something weird.

The Planters plus Sasha and Marcy begin marching along and chanting pizza. Sasha shook her head. She looked behind her for a moment, wondering if Anne had changed her mind, and decided to turn back around to join them.

“Hey, Sashy. Get a move on.”

“I’m coming.” She grudgingly followed them.

Sasha leaned over a hill and spotted the tomato plant. It had three large heads that let out a thunderous roar. She shivered when one of the tomato heads just swallowed a dragonfly with one gulp. Her mind flashed to when she was seven. She had stumbled across one of its vines and the vine cut her leg when the creature tried to devour her. She stabbed the chin of the plant with a large stick and that allowed her to escape unarmed.

“That thing still gives me the shivers,” Sasha whispered.

“You’ve fought one before?” Sprig asked. 

“Yeah.” She lifted her pant leg to show the large scar running down her leg. “It was before I met you, guys.” She said without looking away from the monster.

“Cool!”

“Now, let’s get us some tomatoes and be done with this quest.”

“Frobo, let’s show the others your new ability.” Frobo’s hands retracted and pulled out his saws as he grinned savagely. Sprig and Polly suddenly jumped onto Frobo’s shoulders. He begins running towards the plant.

“LET’S GO!”

“Sprig! Polly! Get your asses back here.” Sasha screamed.

Everyone ran after the kids. Sasha drew her swords. A vine encased her leg. She yelled as the vine pulled her leg forward and onto her back. She hacked at the vine. She looked back to see Sprig and Polly being pulled in the air. Hop Pop was yelling as he came speeding past on his stomach with a vine around his stomach. Frobo was covered in vines as his saws broke down from use. Sasha saw Marcy flying over ahead, being pulled by a vine. 

“Marcy!” 

Sasha felt a vine wrap around her stomach. As she went to slice it, another vine grabbed her wrists. One vine grabbed her leg. She was violently pulled to the ground and dragged along the dirt. She screamed as the vines pulled her closer to the creature’s mouth. It threw her in the air, and as gravity pulled her down into the monster’s maw, she was engulfed in darkness.

She tumbled down the throat of the tomato plant. She shoved her swords into the throat to slow her descent. She looked behind her and saw bubbling acid. She gulped. Suddenly she hears screaming and she recognizes it as Sprig and Polly come flying down. 

“Oh, crap!” And they landed on her chest causing the swords to slip down a bit, but she still held on. 

“You two numbskulls! If I wasn’t about to fall into a stomach full of acid, I would be so fucking furious! You know what. I am furious.”

“We’re sorry, Sasha.” 

Hop Pop soon came tumbling down. Sasha felt the swords slip again. Marcy followed. At least she summoned two vines to dig into the throat of the tomato plant. She dangled above Sasha and the Plantars as all of them are now trapped in the throat of a tomato monster. 

Sasha finally had it.

“Oh, this is just DANDY! Can’t believe I just said ‘Dandy’!” Did anyone ever think about how Anne felt?” Sasha finally shouted. 

“Huh?” Everyone looked at the blonde.

“Anne was looking forward to cooking for that potluck. And yet you all wanted to hop on the pizza bandwagon. I tried to get you all to listen to me.”

“So, that’s why you said to do something out of the old ways book.” Hop Pop slapped his forehead. “Wait, where is Anne?”

“I sent her home because she didn’t have her heart in the quest. She had her heart in the potluck. Yet you all took that away from her.”

“I didn’t think of that.” Hop Pop said, feeling ashamed.

“Yeah. I was just so obsessed with that pizza that I thought we could recreate it.” Sprig mutters, feeling terrible for what he did.

“We hurt Anne’s feelings.” Polly teared up.

“I’m sorry, guys!” Marcy cried out, “I was only trying to help you win this year and not seeing you being put in the Cage of Shame. I thought this pizza could help you but, in the end, I ended up hurting Anne’s feelings and ending up as food for a tomato…Talk about cruel irony!”

“At least, we all had the touchy-feely moment, but I think we need to find a way to get out of here!” 

Sasha felt the swords slip further. She looked behind to see the acid bubbling as dread took hold of them as their death was nearing.

“Now, I’ll never get to tell Anne how sorry I am!” Sprig cried.

“Sprig?” Everyone turned their heads to where they heard Anne’s voice.

“Anne! We’re in here! Help!” Everyone screamed.

The opening of the creature’s mouth was pried open. Anne was holding it open.

“Are you guys, okay?”

“How did you find us?” Marcy asked.

“I followed you all. I turned around as soon as I dropped everything off. I saw Frobo being squeezed by the vines but he’s okay. I freed him.”

“Anne, we are so sorry we hurt your feelings.” Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop cried. 

“I am too, Anne.” Marcy cried out as well.

“It’s okay. Now let’s get you guys out of here.” Anne held her hand out. “Marcy, use your magic to summon the vine and shoot it towards me.”

Marcy focuses her magic, and a vine grows from her arm. With her command, the vine shoots up towards Anne’s hand. It was wrapped around Anne’s arms. “Now Marcy, you grab Hop Pop. And Hop Pop, you then grab Sprig. Sprig, you hang on tight to both Polly and Sasha. Sasha be prepared to let go. Everyone else, hang on. That way I’ll pull you guys out at once!” Marcy let go of the other vine that was attached to the wall. Marcy reached down and grabbed Hop Pop’s shirt. Hop Pop grabbed Sprig’s shirt. Sasha pulled her blue sword out and put it back into its sheath before pulling the pink out and held onto the wall. Anne pulled hard, forcing them back through the throat and out the mouth. The monster roared and it squeezed its throat separating Hop Pop from Sasha and the kids. It ripped Sprig’s shirt.

“NOOOO, KIDS!” But he couldn’t go back to catch as the tomato monster spit Anne, Marcy, and Hop Pop out of his mouth.

Now, Sasha, Sprig, and Polly are being pushed by the throat, forcing their meal to go down to the bubbling acid. Sasha used her height to spread out and prevent their descent down the throat.

“WE’RE GOING TO DIE!” Polly sobbed. She wrapped her arms around Sasha’s neck. 

“No, we are not! Not if I have anything to say. Hang on.” Sasha grabbed Polly by her overalls with her teeth. Sprig wrapped his arms around Sasha’s chest.

“What're you going to do?” Sprig panicked as he clutched tight around Sasha, not letting go.

Sasha has a plan. A crazy plan.

“Whatever happens, don’t move a muscle!” She said through her teeth. Then she planted her feet against the squishy wall, and she drew her twin swords out of her sheath. She is looking down with an unreadable expression.

“Wait! What is the-AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!?” Sasha had fucking jumped through the throat as poor Polly and Sprig screaming and crying.

Sasha is even scared not when the pool of acid is getting closer. She got to a little section that Sasha could stand on. Then, she jumps and begins to spin like a twister, using her blades to cut through the plant’s body, splashing Sasha’s face with tomato remains. She is shredding the tomato from the inside.

Anne, Marcy, Frobo, and Hop Pop step back when the monster starts to hack and gurgle but they are staring at its stomach which is shaking violently. It was the source of pain. 

And before they knew it, Sasha cut through the tomato plant. She landed on the land, huffing and puffing with both swords held out and she heaved heavily. She was covered in red juice. Polly hung from her mouth with paling terror and looked like she had met death in the face. Sprig had a look of terror on his face, his body turned rigid, and he was literally and figuratively petrified.

“Don’t…You EVER…Do that again.” Sprig slowly let go of Sasha and let himself drop onto the soil.

“Sasha, you’re okay.” Anne came running forward. Sasha opened her mouth to say something and accidentally dropped Polly. Anne came forward and wiped the remains of the tomato bits off of her face. 

“I’m fine. A little traumatized from seeing the inside of a tomato plant. But I’m fine.” Sasha sets her swords back into their sheathes. Sasha wiped the tomato bits from her face with her arm. 

“A little traumatized.” Polly slowly rose like the undead and suddenly jumped onto Sasha’s head. “YOU ARE UTTERLY DERANGED, WOMAN!!!” She gently punched Sasha’s head.

“Why did you come back?” Marcy walked up to Anne, “I was the one who suggested the pizza thing, got the Plantars convinced to partake in the quest, and took away your chance to make a meal for the potluck. I’ve…hurt your feelings.” 

Anne looked down and said, “I was hurt. But you all mean so much to me. I wanted to cook not to win…Well, maybe to win but mostly, I wanted to show my gratitude and love towards you for taking me in.”

“I feel absolutely horrible, Anne.” Hop Pop came up beside Anne. “I ignored your feelings and went along with what the rest of the kids wanted. Sasha was actually the one who reminded us of what was important.”

“We are sorry, Anne.” Sprig and Polly hugged her leg.

Anne smiled at Sasha. Sasha her pulse quickened at that. 

“That’s okay. I’ve forgiven you, guys.” She hugs the Plantars as they awed that they were forgiven. Then she let go of them and looked at Marcy. “And I know you were trying to help. You are good friends with Sasha and the Plantars. It goes to show how much you care about them.” Marcy blushed at how sweet Anne was and was completely surprised too. In the end, Marcy smiled in gratefulness.

“Thanks, Anne. I had you all wrong.” Marcy came up to Anne’s side.

“Are we still friends?” Anne looked a bit scared, but Marcy answered with a grin.

“Of course, we’re friends.”

Anne launched herself at Marcy, picking her up with ease. It shocked Marcy because Anne lifted her up as if she weighed nothing to her. It’s amazing as Marcy basically towered over her and Anne was shorter then Marcy.

“Thank you. Thank you, Marcy.” Marcy chuckled and patted Anne’s curly hair.

“Anytime Anna-banana!” Anne froze for a moment and gasped with stars struck in her eyes as if she had the best gift of all. She was hopping up and down. 

“A nickname. I got a nickname!” Anne tightens her hug around Marcy, making the other girl choke.

“Can’t…Breathe!”

“Oh, Sorry.”

“Hey! We should probably head home. The potluck is about to start, and we should probably get something prepared.” Hop Pop suggested.

“Agreed.”

“Hey. The tomato plant is dead. We could take some of the remains. Oh. Maybe we can take some of the seeds and raise our own plant.” Marcy slammed her fist on her palm. “If we domesticate the tomato plants, then we would have an easier time with harvesting the tomatoes.”

“You are my science nerd, MarMar.” Sasha slapped Marcy’s back, making Marcy grunt. “I bet you would have solved it in no time. Everyone will be munching on tomatoes soon. Without having to cut one up from the insides.”

“Oh no! We only have less than an hour before the potluck.” Hop Pop panicked when he saw the time on his pocket watch.

“We need to make something fast.”

Marcy suddenly whistled. Soon, an enormous shadow covered the group. Joe Sparrow landed on the ground and let out a series of chirps.

“Hop on, everyone. Joe will get us back to the house in no time at all.”

Everyone piled onto the bird before he set off to the Plantar house. They raced through the door before an aroma hit their noses. Sasha looked at Anne.

“Were you cooking something?” 

“I was. I was cooking to give you guys a meal before the potluck.”

“Maybe we could use your cooking for it,” Sasha exclaimed. 

“That’s a good idea, Sasha.” Anne’s face lit up at Sasha’s suggestion, and Sasha’s chest is doing something weird again. She may need to have a doctor diagnose her.

An hour later.

All of the frogs and humans Wartwood were setting up their dishes for the potluck. The Plantars set their dish down at the very end of the table. Marcy cheered for them from the sidelines and she had a small flag with the Plantar symbol on it. 

Mayor Toadstool came up to the front of the stage as a judge like every year. 

“Now, it is time for the tasting of the food.”

Toadstool walked down the long table, sampling each of the dishes presented. So far, they could hear mumbles. 

“Oh, this is good. Oh, this is delicious. Oh, delightful.”

When he reached the end of the table, his mood soured when he saw the Plantars, Sasha, and Anne awkwardly waving at him.

“And last but not least, the Plantars. What filth have you cooked up this time?” While it was rude, the toad can easily remember when he had a terrible stomachache after eating Hop Pop’s atrocious dish year after year.

“Taste and find out for yourself,” Sasha smirked as she crossed her arms in front of her.

Toadstool took the spoon. He looked at the dish first and he has to say he’s more afraid now. The food looked edible at first glance, but there’s a saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” But he is the mayor and a judge, so he has no choice but to eat every competitor’s dish. So, he anxiously scooped up a bit of the food. He carefully placed the spoon in his mouth. Soon, his eyes nearly bulged out of his skull. Tears ran down his cheeks as he sobbed. 

“It’s just like how Mama Toadstool used to make. It’s…shockingly and the most marvelous food ever cooked!? I do declare that this is the best dish I have ever tasted.”

The Plantars cheered. Sasha, on the spur of the moment, picked Anne by her waist and twirled her around. When she noticed that she was touching Anne, she immediately released her grip and wiped her hands on her pants.

“Who made this? This couldn’t have been Hopediah. His cooking sucks.”

“It was me.” Anne raised her hand, and like a light mushroom, Toadstool’s smile disappeared.

“Her! Well, that changes everything! I do declare again to take back their wins and dub them losers, again !”

“Boo! Fool!” Marcy called out on the sidelines. “Impartial judge.”

That got the Plantars outraged. “SAY WHAT? Why?” Toadstool looked at Hop Pop as if he was dumb.

“First, Potluck is a contest for family, and last I checked this stranger here is no family of yours. She isn’t even a Plantar!” Anne felt like this toad just slapped her and what’s worse she failed her friends. 

Hop Pop saw Anne’s crushed face and something inside ignited. He spins around and jumps onto the table.

“Anne Boonhcuy is an honorary Plantar in my book.” He pointed a finger at Toadstool. “And if you have a problem with her, you have a problem with me.” Anne gasped when Hop Pop defended her.

“Why do you care? She’s a nobody!” Soon, Sprig, Polly, and Frobo step up to defend Anne.

“Anne’s dish won the potluck for us. Which makes her a true Planter. She was a Planter already.” Sprig exclaimed.

“And she is not nobody! She’s cool and nice, and I like her!” Polly sticks her tongue at Toadstool.

“And I was a stranger once to you all as well.” Sasha stepped forward. One hand rested on the two blades hooked to her waist. “And I am an honorary Planter as well. You don’t have a problem with me.”

“Because you all but single-handedly saved the town at thirteen. You’ve earned the town’s respect for that. Except me. But you all forget one crucial thing. I’m the mayor and I can do whatever the hell I want. So, there!” Then the toad stuck his tongue at them.

“WHAT!?” 

Everyone had to hold Sasha back from stabbing Toadstool when someone from the crowd shouted out. 

“I call bullshit.” An older woman from the tavern when she was talking to Lily, came up beside the Plantars. She put a hand on Sasha’s shoulders. “You just like to use your power to harass this poor family. You just said that it was the best dish you have ever tasted. I think I can say that everyone here agrees that it should be the Plantars declared as the winner.” 

“Thank you, Caroline,” Sasha whispered to the older woman.

“I never voted for him, anyway.” She winked as they both chuckled.

“I vote we put Toadstool in the Cage of Shame.” Someone shouted.

“Yeah!” 

“Cage of Shame!” Everyone chanted. “Cage of Shame.”

Sasha laughed as Toadstool and Toadie were thrown into the cage. They were pelted with slob nuggets as the box dangled from the trees. Sasha got one hit into Toadstool’s face.

“Wow. Who knew that nearly getting eaten by a tomato plant would actually give you an appetite.” Sasha collapsed onto the couch. Sprig and Polly collapsed next to her. 

“Wait right here!” Anne was quick to dart to the kitchen. After twenty minutes, Anne came back with several plates in her hands. She sat the plates down in front of everyone. Sasha noticed that there was a slice of pizza on her plate. They blinked.

“Did you just make pizza just now?”

“Yeah, it’ll be a shame to waste the ingredients you guys worked so hard to gather. So, dig in and tell me what you think?”

Everyone looked at the pizza. It looked cheesy and smelled delicious. Sasha was the first to take a bite. She moaned. 

“Oh, my Oracle. This is fucking amazing. Anne, you are cooking from here on out. Your cooking is so much better than mine’s and Hop Pop’s.”

Anne looked happy at the comment. 

“Aww, thanks, Sasha.” Everyone dug into the pizza that Anne cooked, and no one paid any close attention to Anne when she blushed at Sasha’s compliment.  

At night, the fireflies glow in the night and the crickets sing.

Sasha and Marcy are outside of the house where Joe Sparrow is, waiting for Marcy to travel back home. 

“Something doesn’t add up Sasha.”

“I know.”

“She can heal. The animals actually run up to her instead of running away. Sasha, she doesn’t match the description we’ve been told for so many years.”

“I know, Marmar. But if she didn’t match the description of her power, she does match the description of her blue hair and blue eyes when she powers up. Why do our history books list her as evil?”

“I don’t know. But…I’m going to find out why. In secret. This stays between you and me. No one else knows, not even the Planters can know.”

“I swear on my sword.”

Sasha and Marcy grabbed each other’s hands and performed their secret handshake. 

“Under the log. Through the river. Loop the string. Where’s the baby? There’s the baby.”

Marcy pulled Sasha into a hug. 

“Be careful out there, you dumb brute. Especially since this is so new to the both of us.”

“You be careful as well, nerd.”

Sasha watched her friend fly away. Marcy was right. Nothing made sense about the Spirit. 

Anne was caring and gentle. The Spirit she was told was not. 

Anne was thoughtful and beautiful. The Spirit was not.

Was it possible that Anne and the Spirit were too separate beings like Sprig said she could be? Or…Was it possible they were the same thing but everything they had been told was wrong?”

Chapter Text

700 years ago.

“Come on, Anne! I thought those long legs would be good for something!” Shouted a green toad with a giant hammer strapped to his back. He had two horns sticking out on his head. Then, a pink frog hopped onto his back as she lightly scolded the toad.

“Don’t tease our Spirit, Barrel.”

“Aw, Leif. You know I love Anne too much. Now come on girls. I’ll race ya!”

Anne chased Barrel and Leif to a hill. Anne squealed as she chased after Barrel in her long white dress. She is letting out a whoop of joy that reaches the night, starry sky. She looks back as Leif was gaining on them. Suddenly, Anne smiled mischievously. 

She ignited her powers as her hair and eyes perked up and now blue. Barrel was in the lead but suddenly, the ground on his feet pulled him back. “What the? Hey! Whoa!” The grassy field pulls him back, but Anne catches him in her arms. Despite the toad being heavily built after years of training, Anne was still able to lift the toad with no problem.

Barrel wasn’t upset, in fact, the green toad was having too much fun with Anne. Soon, Leif joined in the fun by hopping onto Anne when she opened her arm. 

Then Anne lost her balance and all three of them collapsed onto the grass, laughing loudly. Next, they looked up at the night sky where there was a meteor shower happening.

“Wow! Look at that sky. It’s so gorgeous. So many sparkly stars and those bright colors.” Barrel turned his head towards Leif and Anne. “I’m glad you two are my friends.”

“Aw, you big oaf. Don’t get so mushy on Anne and me. But I agree. I’m glad you are my friends.”

“Yeah, I’m glad too. You two are my dearest friends.” Anne sighed, focusing her attention on the stars in the night sky and on the Guardian’s light trail. Many of the amphibians and humans called them the Northern lights. Only Anne knew it was the Guardian just making his rounds.

“What do you think the stars are made up of?” Barrel suddenly asked, curiously.

“They are the realms of the many different universes, see that light trail.” Anne pointed at it and answered truthfully. “This is my Guardian. He watches over so many worlds, safely guarding them, and keeping the balance all at once.”

“Whoa. My mind is blown!”

“That is impressive!” Leif whispered she was amazed that such a being like the Guardian was up there watching every world. Such heavy responsibilities riding on its shoulders.

They lay there in silence.

But Leif seems to be something in her mind because she is smiling sadly while glancing at her two friends. Mosty, Anne. She loves her Spirit as if she is her daughter. She never meant to peek but she has caught Anne listening to her music box with tears streaming down her face as she gazed at a far-off distance. Probably, reminiscing about her.  

“Anne, when we die, don’t be too sad. Just know we will be in a better place.” Leif whispered.

Anne clutched her dress in her hands. She hated the thought that they would die, and she would carry on as always. Just as she had to do when Valeriana passed away.

“I know. You’ll be in the stars, looking down upon me and smiling as I do what is needed of me. But I’ll miss you both so much.” Said Anne while keeping herself from crying.

“Hey. No more mushy stuff. We haven’t passed yet. Let’s just make the moments we have now count.” Barrel took her hand into his.

Barrel and Leif scouted closer into Anne’s side. She felt a few tears escape her eyes.

Until she felt a kick in her side.

Anne woke up with a gasp to feel Sprig mumbling in his sleep. She looked over her shoulder to see the pink frog in her bed. He had woken up with a nightmare and asked if he could sleep with her. It was amazing how much Sprig resembles Leif. It was no coincidence that Sprig is a descendant of Leif Plantar.

Anne decided to get up as she could see the sun just barely above the horizon. It wouldn’t be long before the Planters got up so she might start making breakfast. She tiptoed down the stairs and walked outside. She would greet Bessie while cleaning her stable. After that, she’ll pick some fruits for the breakfast. 

She decided to make some nice, hearty oatmeal for them.

She stopped when she heard the sounds of huffing and grunting. She inched closer to where she heard the noise. She stopped when she spotted Sasha in the middle of an open field. 

She was wearing a red tank top and black shorts. Anne could just see Sasha’s back muscles pull back and those arm muscles flex. Anne knew Sasha was buff, but she never got a good look at her. Sasha was extremely well built, with defined muscles in her arms as she moved her sword up and down in a single motion. She could also see various scars that littered her arms and several peeking through on her back. Anne gulped when Sasha lifted her shirt up and wiped her face with it. Anne could see abs, along with a large diagonal scar on her stomach, and that made her blush.

“Anne?” Sasha blinked at Anne, who was still standing there in shock.

“Ye-yes?” 

“How long have you been standing there?” Sasha was red and Anne wasn’t sure it was a blush or because of her workout.

“Not very long.”

“Everything okay? What are you doing up so early?”

“Everything is okay. I just woke up because Sprig kicked me in his sleep.”

“I was wondering where he was. I didn’t see him in his bed.”

“He had a nightmare. He wouldn’t tell me what it was about, but it seemed to spook him.” Sasha stared at Anne’s face. She clearly knew why but didn’t discuss it with Anne. “I’m assuming you are out here for early morning training?”

“Yeah. It helps with the rest of my day and keeps me in shape.”

“I can see that.” Anne coughed when Sasha looked away, blushing. 

Sasha’s eyes looked up ahead to see something coming up over the hill.

“What’s the matter?” Anne asked. She subconsciously settled her hand on Sasha’s arm.

“It doesn’t look good.” Sasha placed her hand on top of Anne’s. “Be prepared. We may need to fight.” 

“Right.”

As the strange object came closer, more of the features could be made out. It was a black widow spider pulling a cart along. A spider that Sasha was all too familiar with. Sasha’s eyes widened to see who was driving the cart.

“Grime? What the hell is that old toad doing here?”

Grime pulled the cart to a stop and hopped off. Anne was surprised to see him without the red armor she had seen him wearing when she first met him. He had a simple cotton-red shirt and black pants.

“Sasha! How has farm life been?” He paused when he saw Anne’s hand on Sasha’s arm. Sasha had yet to remove hers. “I see some interesting things have happened while I was gone.” Sasha looked down at her arm and backed away from Anne. Grime walked up to Sasha. “Sasha, I would like a word with you. Alone.”

“Anne, why don’t you go start breakfast for us and wake up Hop Pop.”

Anne took that as a sign that Sasha wanted to warn Hop Pop about Grime. So, she nodded and took her leave. Sasha steered Grime to the barn where Bessie slept so she could settle the spider in there. 

“So, what was that all about?” Grime asked when he pointed with his thumb.

“What was what about?”

“That touch. The Spirit was touching your arm!” Sasha briefly touched the spot where Anne had touched her. “She was using her evil powers on you. She could have been using her mind control to make you turn against me.” 

Sasha looked behind her shoulder down at Grime. “Uh, Grime, it may come up with a shock but I…don’t think Anne is evil.” She turned around, knowing how badly Grime would react.

As she expected, Grime had a complete disbelief look on his face before his expression turned into a scowl. 

“Not evil?” He looked at her absurdly as if she was spouting nonsense on his face. “Not evil?! Did Hop Pop’s cooking finally mess up your head?...She isn’t turning you against Amphibia, is she?”

“What? Are you fucking nuts? Anne isn’t turning me against Amphibia. My loyalty is still to Amphibia and the crown. But…Grime, I’ve been observing her and I think there is a mistake somewhere.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Anne doesn’t match any of the descriptions we have about the Spirit.” Grime stared at her hard. “She heals. She healed my shoulder when I was attacked and bleeding. I wouldn’t have believed it if you told me. But the blood-soaked shirt told me something else.”

“She healed you? Wait, she has healing powers?”

“Yes. Like I said, I wouldn't have believed it if I didn’t experience it myself.”

“Sasha, keep your wits about you. She is still the evil spirit.” Sasha looked at Grime. Something about how he called Anne an evil spirit didn’t sit right with her. “Don’t let her get into your mind. Remember your mission.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t.”

“Haha. Good. Now, I am going to unpack. Make sure to get my girl all settled in.”

“Wait? Unpack?”

“SAY WHAT!” Hop Pop screamed through the house. “What do you mean you’ll be staying a week?”

“Ah. Don’t worry about it, Hopediah. The Tower is safe. I have my third in command, Braddock, watching over it. I decided to just check up on my daughter and make sure you were good.” Anne did a double-take at the “daughter” comment. She looked at Sasha. Grime was Sasha’s father! Would explain a few things.

Hopediah rubbed on his forehead, feeling a familiar headache coming back. “Fine then. I guess I can have one more mouth to feed. I don’t have any Bog Grug for you, though.”

“Don’t worry about me, Hopediah. I can help bring some meals myself. I can take us out for dinner one night. Is Stumpy’s as good as I remember?” 

“I’m afraid it has gone downhill recently.”

“What a shame. But that doesn't matter. I will be a good house guest. I’m going to go unpack now.” He heaved his bags over his shoulder.

“Wait! Grime, where are you going to stay?”

“The basement? I always stay there.”

“Oh! Sorry, but Anne’s staying there.”

“Then move her out. She can sleep in the barn for all I care.” Hop Pop gasped.

“I will do no such thing to Anne. She will stay in her room.”

Then Grime pressed his face against Hop Pop and growled, “Then, where am I going to sleep?” 

“You can sleep on the couch, for all I care! ” 

Before they know it, everyone could see sparks flying at each other as the two old men growl. And the spectators are watching with impassive faces except for Anne. That went tense pretty fast.

“She can stay in my room while Grime is bunking in the basement,” Sasha said. Everyone gasped in surprise except for Grime, not getting why they got so worked up about it. “Take it easy! We won’t fight this time. I promise.”

“Then I guess that will work.” Hop Pop sighed. He was still a little worried about Sasha and Anne fighting again. “Anne, I’m sorry, sweetie but can you go grab your stuff and move it into Sasha’s room for now.” Then the old frog smiled in gratefulness when Anne nodded with an understanding smile and then disappeared to her room.

While Grime looks between Hop Pop and Anne with his arms crossed and frowning. 

“Grime, get your dang feet off of my table!” Hop Pop yelled. Sasha flinched when she heard them arguing. She and Anne were working on the dishes. Sprig and Polly were helping put away the dishes.

“I was just resting my feet after a long drive!”

“I don’t care! My house, my rule!”

“Every single time those two get together, they fight.” Sprig mumbled with an eye roll.

“It sounds like Grime is going to stay in the house for quite a bit. How do those two know each other?” Anne asked as she dried a plate. 

“They are old army buddies.” Sasha responded as she scrubbed at a dish. She handed it to a surprised Anne.

“Army buddies? Hop Pop was in a war?” Sasha shrugged as she answered.

“Amphibia rarely has wars. The last true war we had was over 100 years ago. There was a huge battle between the Sand people and Amphibia for territory which was dubbed the Sand Wars. At first, Andrias didn’t take it seriously but when several nearby villages were destroyed, that angered Andrias, and decided that he wasn’t going to stand by any longer. So, he asked all of Amphibia for volunteers for the upcoming battle. The Toads Towers could have easily taken care of them but then we would have left the surrounding valleys alone and defenseless. So, they sent some of the best Toad Towers candidates and then the rest were volunteers. That’s how Grime and Hop Pop met. They were in the same brigade.”

“What happened next?”

“You’ve seen Grime’s eye; he got that scar during the war. But Hop Pop saved him from being killed and ever since then, they have been friends.” 

“They don’t sound like friends.” Anne looks back to see they're still bickering.

“That's just how they are,” Polly spoke as she set the plate. “They argue but they do make up. Eventually. For now, you better get used to this constant arguing. And get some earplugs because they are loud when they snore.”

“I can rest my feet anywhere I want, Hopediah!!”

Anne was beginning to get emotionally exhausted from watching Grime and Hop Pop. It was a constant back and forth between Grime and Hop Pop. Hop Pop would get mad at Grime for something, like starting a belching contest with the kids. Even Grime mocked Hop Pop for his habits like making his bed properly. 

“Our beds were always neat with no wrinkles.” Hop Pop likes how he can make the beds the way he likes it. Hop Pop grew out of the habit when he came back home from the war. But Grime thought otherwise.

“In case you forgot, we’re not in the army anymore!”

Every littlest thing and they turn into a huge argument. Bickering over everything. 

Then there was the incident at the dinner table. 

Anne felt uncomfortable when Grime was leering around her. So, she decided to try a new recipe and make cricket muffins in hopes of easing Grime and befriending him. She offered a plate to Grime, and he slapped her wrist away, saying that she had poisoned the muffins. The slap was hard enough that it bruised her wrist. 

And Hop Pop saw red. Anne had never seen Hop Pop so angry before that he was steaming. Even more surprised to see Sasha stand up for her, considering their relationship was a little rocky.

“You okay Anne?” Sprig asked as he looked at the bruise, already turning purple as Sasha examined her wrist. “Why don’t you heal yourself like you did for Sasha.”

“Oh, my powers don’t work on me.” All of them looked up, stunned. “My healing powers only work on other beings or on you guys. I can’t use it on me. If I really got hurt, a Mossman would heal my wounds. But I rarely get hurt.” She shrugged, unbothered by the pain in her wrist but it unnerved Sasha and it was not because Anne was used to the pain. But the fact that she is okay with the fact that her healing powers don’t heal herself.

She looks at Anne’s bruised wrist again, and somehow, her chest is doing a funny thing. It clenches painfully.

“Wait! Mossmen? They exist?” Sprig and Sasha asked. 

“Damn, I owe Wally a huge apology!”

Sasha rubbed a thumb on Anne’s wrist, on the bruise. It was so tender. “Well, you will have to take it easy. Sorry about Grime. I know he can be an idiot, sometimes.” 

Anne held her arm against her chest and rubbed her wrist. “It’s okay. It doesn’t hurt much, I promise.”

“I hate that they fight. I sometimes think it could get so bad that it would tear this family apart. Like the Hendersons.” Sprig sighed.

“The Hendersons?” Anne asked.

“A family that lived next door.” Sasha pointed out her window to a house that was falling apart. “They argued all the time that it got to the point that they separated and moved away.” Then Sasha blinked when she saw Wally just exited the broken house and he was robbing…Again.

“Nothing like scavenging the remains of a broken frog family.” Wally had a wheelbarrow filled with forks and knives. Sasha stuck her head out of the window.  

“Wally! What the hell did I tell you about stealing from abandoned houses? If I catch you again, I will throw you in the community service jailhouse.” Wally ran away laughing. “Weird little guy. Anyways, we just have to avoid angering them until they run out of steam.”

There was a loud knocking noise. 

“GRIME! HOW LONG ARE YOU GOING TO SPEND IN THE BATHROOM?”

“I'M USING IT!”

“FOR FORTY-FIVE MINUTES!”

“WOULD YOU STOP USING THE BATTERING RAM ON THE DOOR!”

Sasha and Sprig both stared off into the distance before slapping their foreheads.

“This is going to be a long week.”

Nighttime rolled by, and the town folks were sound asleep except for the Planter house.

Between Hop Pop's throat yodeling and Grime’s thundering snores, Anne could not sleep. She knew Sasha couldn’t either. They even tried to block the noise with their pillows, but it proved to be ineffective.

“Ugh. I don’t remember him being that loud before.” Sasha shoved her pillow in her face before she looked at Anne, pleadingly. “Think your music box could override both of their snoring?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Damn it. Let’s try it, anyway.” Sasha leaned up and tapped the light mushroom near her bed. Anne grabbed her music box and opened the lid. Sasha was enticed by the figures. It danced in a full circle in its ballroom dance and the music is so soft that it melts all your troubles away. She swore the short figure was Anne. “This is beautifully made. Your friend must’ve worked on it so hard to make something that beautiful.” She watches as Anne blooms into a smile softly and sadly.

“Yeah, she was. She also was the one who gave me my name too.” Sasha looked at Anne in mild surprise because she was not sure if she heard it right.

“Your name?”

“Yep. I was called just the Spirit for the longest time. But when I met her, I slowly befriended her. She was kind of like you.”

“Me?”

“Yep, just as stubborn as she was. She eventually warmed up to me. She was the one who suggested I should have a name just so it was easier to call me instead of having to shout Spirit. She told me that Anne meant grace and that it would suit me.”

“It does suit you well.” Sasha looked at the music box again. Her fingers traced the lid. Soon, the house seemed to rock from the noises. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to sleep this way.”

“Me either.”

“Me three.”

“Me four.”

“Beep.”

Sasha and Anne looked up to see Sprig, Polly, and Frobo peeking in.

“It’s so loud.” Polly groaned. 

“I got an idea.” Sasha hopped out of bed. “Everyone, grab your blankets and pillows.”

“Where are we going?” Anne asked as she grabbed her pillow and the blanket from the room. 

“We will sleep under the stars. Has to be quieter out there than in here.”

“It will be like camping. Only less extreme.” Sprig was enjoying the idea of camping under the stars.

Sasha soon had a tent set up near a wall close to the house. Everyone huddled under the tent. Indeed, the outside is much quieter than the inside of the house. 

“This is so much better.” Sprig sighed as he collapsed on his back. He was soon out. Anne chuckled before making sure he was covered up, so he didn’t freeze. 

Polly was quickly out as well, way too tired to stay awake. Sasha pulled the blanket up to her shoulders and ruffled her hair. Frobo had pulled his legs and arms into his body and was in sleep mode. Sasha and Anne yawned before they both laid out on the grass. 

“Marcy would be rambling on about the constellations,” Sasha whispered. 

“I would believe that.” It feels like Anne is back with Barrel and Leif each by her side. All content and happy to be in each other’s company.

“I remember one story Darcy told me a long time ago.” Anne turned her head at the name. It was the same name she heard Sasha whisper out. She wondered what this Darcy meant to Sasha as she seemed sad when she said it. “She said that the stars are actually….heh….realms to other worlds and universes. I always wondered if such a place existed like is there another ‘me’ in another universe.” Anne beamed. She knows there are some who believe that there’s another universe, people from different lives living in different circumstances.

“Maybe one where you are a princess?” Anne earned a snorting laugh from Sasha.

“Yeah right, another ‘me’ as a princess? No way! A warrior princess is more like it, not some prissy, frilly junk, or a knight! Yeah, that would be WAY cooler!” They are laughing but not too loud to wake Sprig, Polly, and Frobo.

The laughter died down into a chuckle, then Sasha didn’t know why but she looked at Anne, still giggling like a bell and she looked to be glowing. Well, it had to be because of the firefly lantern next to her. But, somehow, she does look pretty when she is glowing.

Sasha blinked when she realized what she just thought. She cleared her throat and looked away. “We better sleep.”

Anne nodded. She watched Sasha settle comfortably and she instantly fell asleep. Anne stayed awake for a little while and she was looking up back at the stars. She imagined Barrel’s and Leif’s faces in the stars, and they were looking down on her.

The next day, the arguing only grew worse and it drove Sprig up the walls.

“Watch your steps, Grime.” There was a loud cuss word as Grime tripped on a tile that was sticking out.

“Well, if someone actually bothered to fix this crummy house.”

Hop Pop gasped. “You take that back. This house is like a family. Apologize.”

“To a house!?”

“Ugh. If they continue, I’m about to go crazy. We have to find a way to get them to get along.” 

“Give them time, Sprig. It will eventually work itself out.” Sasha shrugged her shoulders as she set the crate down. “It’s not like you can force two people to get along.” Sprig popped up with an idea in his head.

“Of course not, Sasha.” All the girls have picked up Sprig’s tone instantly and they knew that Sprig is about to do something really crazy and really stupid as the pink frog walks backward. “Of course, not…of course-”

“Sprig! You better not be planning anything.” But Sprig hopped away, completely ignoring her warning. Sasha turned to Anne and Polly and they were all thinking the same thing. 

“He’s planning something.” They both said at the same time.

“We’ve been robbed!” Sprig screamed through the fields.

“SAY WHAAAAAT!?” Hop Pop cut through the ears of corn. He gasped. “My prize-winning corn.”

“Hop Pop, you’ve never won a prize on them before.” Sasha pointed out.

“It’s an expression, Sasha.” Sasha rolled her eyes.

“The injustice! The outrage! We’ve gotta catch this thief!”

“Agreed. And it’s nice to see you so passionate about produce, Sprig.”

“Yeah. Very odd.” Sasha stared suspiciously along with Polly and Anne at Sprig.

“If the thief stole once, it’ll steal again. The only way to catch this monster is a stakeout.”

“That’s a good idea, Sprig.” Hop Pop agreed.

“And the only ones who can do it are…Hop Pop and Grime!”

“SAY WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?” Both Grime and Hop Pop called out. 

“Well, I obviously can’t because I have the attention span of a…” A butterfly flew by and landed on Anne’s head. “Oh, look at that.”

“Why not Hop Pop and Polly?” Grime pointed out.

“Polly is a baby, Grime.” Sprig pointed out the obvious.

“No, I’m not.”

“Polly is still too young to be up past her bedtime. Sasha could single-handedly take care of our thief.” Hop Pop pointed to Sasha.

“Aw thanks, Hop Pop.”

“Uuh, Sasha has to watch Anne! Remember.” Sprig pointed out. 

“Haha. The boy has a point, Hopediah. And maybe it’s not a bad idea. It’ll be just like the old days.” Grime slapped Hop Pop’s back.

“Okay, we will do a stakeout.”

“Now don’t be falling asleep on me, old man.”

“Ha! Let’s see if you can last long enough not to scream for “Mommy”,” They are bickering jokingly and goofing around while guffawing. 

Sprig was smiling. His plan was working. He was suddenly picked up. 

“You stole the corn, didn’t you?” He was facing an angry Sasha.

“Oh absolutely. But now those two will be forced to spend time together. And the bonds of friendship will bloom again.”

“Sprig! You know you can’t manipulate people like that. They are ALREADY friends except when they are just being weird and old!” 

“But I can make it better by just being friends with less arguing.”

Sasha dropped him. She pointed her finger in his face. 

“It’ll backfire pretty badly, I guarantee it.”

“Oh, on the contrary, my dear, brute sister. It will work!”

Grime and Hop Pop peeked over the ledge facing the corn. 

“Grime put that damn light out. We are trying to catch a thief. Not alert them we are here.” 

“I was simply able to allow your poor eyesight to adjust to the light.”

“Oh, excuse me. My eyesight is perfectly fine.” 

“Us toads have better eyesight for the dark compared to you, frogs.” Hop Pop rolled his eyes. “Make sure you don’t fall asleep on me, old man.” 

“I am a spry sixty-eight, numbskull. And you aren’t much younger than me!”

As the two argued, everyone could hear them in the house.

“Those two would be useless in a stealth mission.” Polly shook her head. Sasha and she were playing solitaire together.

“Agreed. It amazes me that they are considered war heroes for their deeds at the Sand Wars.”

“Yeah. But I am hoping this new tea will help them.” Anne hummed as she stirred the tea in a pot. “Barrel was a huge tea lover and he showed me this recipe. It’s a calming tea, guaranteed to ease the tension between them.” 

“A calming tea?” Sasha turned her head to face the kitchen.

“It has lavender in it.” 

Anne walked away from the pot after turning the heat down, then she went to the cupboard to get the mugs. However, as soon as her back was turned, Sprig snuck into the kitchen by crawling on the ceiling. He opened a vial he had snuck into his shirt. He sprinkled a bit of whatever in the vial into the pot and then bolted away on the ceiling.

“Now those two will get along. Time put my plan into action.” 

Sprig leaped out the window, dressed in a black hat and a cape. Anne turned back around with the mugs. She stirred the tea and then decided it was warm enough to drink. She ladled it into two cups and set them on a tray. 

“I’m going to deliver the tea to the two guards.”

“Okay.”

Anne walked out to where Grime and Hop Pop were. 

“I brought you guys some tea. It should help with staying awake.”

“Thank you, Anne.” Hop Pop graciously took the tea. “It smells wonderful, Anne.”

“Thank you. Grime?” She held out a tray with a steaming mug on it for him to take it. 

Grime grumbled as he stared at the tea. Hop Pop nudged him to the side.

“I don’t drink tea.” He mumbled and Hop Pop saw Anne’s face crumble when he rejected the tea she made for him and the orange frog snapped at Grime.

“TAKE ANNE’S TEA NOW!” 

“GRIME! JUST TAKE THE FUCKING TEA OR I WILL FORCE IT DOWN YOUR THROAT!” Sasha yelled out the window. Grime flinched at the two angry people.

“Fine! Geez,” Grime took the tea. “Thank you…Anne.”

Anne was quick to get back into the house. She could sense the hostility from Grime and didn’t want to remain there any longer. 

Grime and Hop Pop both sipped the tea. 

“Hmm! This tea…actually tastes good.” Grime finally admitted. 

“See Grime, Anne isn’t bad, and she doesn’t poison our food. We are still obviously alive.”

“I still don’t trust her. She could have my Sasha under her mind control. She is the evil spirit. She has to be. That’s what we have always been taught.”

“And I’m sure Sasha told you about her ability to heal.”

“She did.”

“And the animals willingly come to her and not run away in fear.” Grime turned to him.

“Really?” Hop Pop nodded. “The animals were supposed to fear her because of her power. That can’t be right!”

“We think there are two spirits. One evil and one good. We think Anne is our good spirit.”

“If we had a good spirit, I’m pretty sure we would have written tales of her good deeds. But all we have about ’Anne’ is her bad deeds.”

“Grime, trust me in this. Anne is not evil.”

“Then she has you under her control. I should go kill that spirit. Just to save you and Sasha.”

“You will not be touching a single hair on that girl’s head. She is an honorary Planter! Like Sasha.”

“If it frees you and Sasha, then I will.” Grime hopped up. He swayed a bit. “Whoa! That was weird. Hey, Hopediah, when did your head turn into a tea kettle?”

“A tea kettle? Well, at least my head isn’t a lumpy pumpkin.”

“A lumpy pumpkin!”

Both men looked at their surroundings as they warped and changed. “Oh, this is weird.”

Sprig cut through the fields of corn. He let out a small snicker. Grime and Hop Pop both saw the boy but didn’t realize that it was Sprig due to the strangeness. Because what they saw was a tall, scary corn-headed monster and it was laughing at them, menacingly. 

“The thief!”

“Let’s go, Hopediah. It is time to protect your most precious corn.”

“They hurt my babies. This means WAR!” 

The toad and frog came running down the road, shouting and screaming.

Sprig paled when he saw they were charging at him, and they didn’t recognize him. “My plan backfired!”

Sasha looked out the window to see Sprig running through the cornfield, screaming in bloody terror. She raised her eyebrow before hearing Grime and Hop Pop screaming at the top of their lungs to try to capture the thief. 

“Are those two blind or something? It’s clearly Sprig. Come on Anne, Polly. It’s time to save Sprig…As per usual.”

“I swear he’s getting into trouble like a hobby now!” Said Polly. 

“Starting to feel like he jus likes the wacky adventures.”

As they left the house, they knew something was not right. Hop Pop and Grime are raving like lunatics about…a corn monster?

“Get that corn monster!” 

“Girls! Help me!” Sprig called out, crying from the cornfield and trying to lose them.

“Sprig!” Sasha, Anne, and Polly ran into the field in separate ways. They could hear Grime and Hop Pop still screaming. 

Sasha is walking through the maze of cornfields; she lost sight of everyone. But then Grime appeared in front of her, and he suddenly let out a girlish scream.

“Mother!”

“…Excuse me?!”

“Grime? I’m coming, pal.” Hop Pop appeared next to Grime. Sasha could tell something was wrong with them. “It’s another monster and it’s the most horrifying thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Hopediah. Let's fight my mother together. It will be like the good old days when we fought the Sand people.”

“Something I can finally agree on. Grab those weapons.” Grime and Hop Pop raced to grab the farming tools.

“Uh oh!”

Sasha was forced to dodge and hop away from their wild swings. Hop Pop swings his spading fork into her foot, stabbing her. 

“Ow. Ow. Ow.” Sasha was hopping on one foot, grabbing her injured foot. Grime whacked her to the side with his rake. 

“Take that mother. I was a good little tadpole.”

“You monster won’t hurt my kids!”

“I’m not your mother or a monster. Ow!”

“Sasha!” Anne came tumbling out of the fields. Both Hop Pop and Grime screamed and hugged each other.

“What kind of monster is that? Her teeth are huge, and her claws are even bigger. It’s the BOG MONSTER!” Both men are blaring in terror. Anne was taken aback by their words. Sprig came out behind Anne with Polly on his head and fighting him.

This is getting even crazier by the minute.

“Sprig, this nonsense needs to stop!”

“Never. I refuse to let this family break apart.”

“The Bog monster has minions. How do we fight them, Grime?”

“We take out the minions first.”

“Minions?” Sprig looked up. He could feel Sasha’s glare on him. “Oops. Maybe I put too much into the tea.”

“Put too much of WHAT?” Sasha limped over to Sprig and picked him up. “What did you put into the tea?” She hissed and Sprig swore her pupils were on fire.

“A little pinch of…Sleeping powder from Marcy.”

“Sleeping powder? Sprig, you know that shit doesn’t work on frogs and toads. Only humans. It causes hallucinations if your biology takes it.”

“Oh. That would explain the warning label Marcy made.” Sasha slapped her forehead. “You know I can’t read Marcy’s scientific terms.”

“Quick! We must attack while they are distracted.” Grime suggested as these two were charging at them again with farming tools as their weapons.

“Shit.” Sasha lifted Sprig higher in the air when a sickle came flying. Sasha lifted her leg up to block a spading rake. It scratched her leg, drawing a bit of blood.

“Ow. Damn it, Hop Pop. Come to your senses!” 

“ENOUGH!” Anne’s hair turned blue. She sent a blue burst of power, knocking Grime and Hop Pop away.

“The Bog monster has too much power. How can we defeat it?” Hop Pop asked.

“This may be the end, Hopediah. I just want to say that I always loved you, man. You are like a brother to me. I’m sorry for bursting down your door. I just wanted to make sure you and my daughter are safe. You, Sasha, and your family are my world.”

“Grime, I feel the same. I love you man. My brother in arms.”

Both men grabbed each other and started sobbing. “It was an honor.”

Anne came up to them and dropped to her knees. She placed her hands on their heads. Her hair was still blue as branches came out of her head.

“Guys, please stop it. This needs to end. I’m so sorry. I’ve learned my lesson. I promise. I’ll never manipulate people again.” Sprig cried out.

“Wait, Hopediah. Why does that corn monster sound like Sprig?”

“It kind of does.”

The monsters slowly transformed into Sasha, Polly, and Sprig, who was on his knees begging for forgiveness. The bog monster transformed into a blue-haired Anne. Instead of a terrifying Bog monster’s sharp teeth, Anne was smiling. Grime felt a sense of calmness with that smile.

“Good, you two came back to your senses.” 

They both shook their heads. “Whoa! What happened? Ow, my head hurts.”

“My head is splitting,” Grime whispered.

Anne stood up and marched her way to Sprig, and like Sasha, she picked Sprig by the jacket and put him in front of Hop Pop and Grime. The pink frog avoids looking at Anne when she is giving the scolding look with her arms crossed.

“Sprig. Is there something you wanted to say to them?” Anne looked at Sprig as she tapped her foot.

“I’m sorry, Hop Pop. I’m sorry, Mr. Grime. I just wanted you two to stop fighting. I was the corn thief.”

“And?”

“And I also slipped some sleeping powder that Marcy left into the tea Anne made.”

“Wait, so the Spirit didn’t make us hallucinate?” Grime scratched his head. Sprig felt ashamed.

“No, Anne just wanted to make you guys a calming tea. I was the one who made you go crazy.”

“Sprig, I am disappointed in you. Messing with that kind of stuff, we could’ve hurt you and the others. I hope you learned your lesson.” Sprig nodded; he would never do it again. “Good! But you’ll be on corn duty for a week.”

“Yes, Hop Pop.” Nevertheless, Sprig smiled even if he was punished. 

Then, Grime noticed that Anne was healing Sasha’s leg and he gaped at the scratch that had disappeared as it was never there.

Sasha went down to the basement where Grime was. He was still up.

“You wanted to talk to me?”

“Yeah. It’s about the Spirit…Excuse me. I mean, Anne.”

“What about Anne?”

“I’m…Still unsure what to think of her.” Sasha raised her eyebrow. “I know. It’s strange for a hardened toad like me to admit that I don’t know something. But I think there is more to this tale than we have been told.”

“Yeah, Marcy knew too, and she was just as puzzled as you are.”

“Keep your eyes on Anne just to make sure she doesn’t turn on us and keep me updated on Anne but…And Sasha, you always know I trust your judgment, but I want to remind you what is at stake here.” Then, his voice turned grim with a far-off look. “And…Remember what she did seven years ago.” 

“…Yes, sir.” She saluted quietly. 

“Now good night, Lieutenant.”  

“Good night, Captain Grime.” She left the room, leaving Grime with his thoughts, alone. 

Sasha went back to her bedroom to see Anne was still up. She is lying on her back and staring at the ceiling with a far-off look.

“Anne, you, okay?”

“Hm! Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking.” 

Sasha crawled next to her and stretched out on her back.

“You’ve been around for a while, haven’t you?” Sasha asked. 

“Yeah. I’m not even sure how long I have been around. Time begins to blend together after a while.”

“Who was the friend who gave you your name and the music box?” Anne seems to hesitate at first. But, when she looked Sasha in her eyes, and thought she trusted her enough to tell her.

“Valeriana Leviathan.” Sasha choked in her own spits.

“Th-the first Queen of Amphibia? That Valeriana?”

“Yes, I do remember when she was crowned. I was her friend before she was crowned. I miss her a lot.”

Now, Sasha knew something was amiss here. In the book, Valeriana fought the Spirit and they’ve been hated enemies ever since. But now, she learned that Anne’s friend was Valeriana. This didn’t make sense.

What the hell is going on? 

“Remember what she did seven years ago.” Grime’s words echo in her head.

“…Did you have other friends?”

“A few. But once they passed, I couldn’t make any more. Soon, everyone seemed to avoid my part of the forest. Then they stopped coming altogether. It made me sad. I loved talking to amphibians and humans. I was isolated. Sure, I had the Moss men and Domino, but I wanted…Something more.”

Anne rolled onto her side, her back on Sasha. Then, Sasha could hear the soft sounds of Anne crying. Sasha got up on her elbows. 

“Anne.” She couldn’t believe it. She is crying and suddenly, her chest tightens ever tighter. She gently laid a hand on Anne’s shoulder.

“Sorry, I...Just felt so lonely for so long. Being with you and the Plantars has made me the happiest I have been in so long.”

“You’ve…Been out there so long by yourself. You just wanted a friend?”

“Yes, just to starve off the loneliness for a bit. And I want to know what is threatening this world and harming my Moss Men.”

Sasha looked at Anne for a moment.

She is an evil spirit that Valeriana had to fight off and they fled from her powers. 

But if she is evil then why does she talk so highly of Valeriana? She acts as if they are old friends. She wants to protect the world. Animals love her. So why? Why does nothing make sense?

“I’m an orphan.” Sasha suddenly said that. Anne slowly got up to look at Sasha in the dark.

“What?”

“You have probably been wondering why Grime called me his daughter. Because I am, by adoption, of course. But I was an orphan before he found me. Never knew my father and my mom…She was a bitch.”

Anne laid her head on Sasha’s shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“I got better though.” That got a chuckle out of Anne. “And you, are you better now?”

Anne angled her head to look at Sasha in the low light. She stared at the massive scar that took up most of her cheek. She reached up and tenderly ran her finger along the scar.

“Where did you get this?” Sasha grabbed her hand and gently pulled it away.

“It still hurts to this day. I don’t want to talk about it. Yet.” 

Anne understood. She suspected it had to do with what she remembered hearing Toadstool say about protecting the town when she was thirteen. She suspected that the impressive act was tied to the scar. 

“That’s fine. I won’t annoy you. You’ll tell me when you are ready.” Sasha is feeling thankful that she didn’t press on it, and all the more reason that something is definitely wrong with Anne.

For now, she’ll sleep and figure it out in the morning. They both curled up in the bed facing each other.

Once Sasha was sound asleep, Anne wanted to pump her fist in celebration, but she didn’t. Sasha was slowly warming up to her. She was happy. She was gaining Sasha’s friendship. 

But then she thought about how her heart would beat anytime Sasha smiled or did something impressive like cutting her way through the tomato plant. Then those muscles made Anne blush at the thought of being wrapped up in Sasha’s arms. She watched Sasha’s slumbering face.

Valeriana and Leif once talked a lot about how love made you feel unusual things. She wondered if this was love. 

She blushed when she felt Sasha’s arm brush against hers. 

Was this love she was feeling for Sasha? 

Chapter Text

Seven years ago . 

Anne was drawn to the noise she had picked up on. The sound was screeching and hissing, but it was not anger. It’s a cry for help. She followed the noises by running until she came into a clearing. She gasped when she saw three giant wasps surrounding a puddle of honey. 

They are easy to aggravate if anyone dared to enter their territory and steal their honey.  

She spotted something trapped in the puddle, the source of distress. It panicked as it wiggled and screeched when one of the wasps missed its mark. 

“Hey!” Anne called out to the wasps. “Leave the poor baby alone!” 

The wasps ignored her commands as they attacked the poor thing again. Anne had enough. She marched over to the wasps and let her hair glow blue. The wasps picked up on their Spirit’s anger. They slowly backed away from her. 

“Good wasps.” Anne walked to the puddle and noticed that there was a small black kill-a-pillar with three stripes on the back. “Oh, my goodness. Hold on, little one.” Anne pulled them out of the puddle and cuddled them close to her chest. “You three go home now!”

The wasps did as commanded and turned around. Anne watched them leave before looking at the kill-a-pillar. They were huddling close to Anne and shivering. She shushes the frightened baby, and she sings to the baby. After some time, the kill-a-pillar relaxed and started to purr.

“Let’s go try and find your momma.”

Anne did eventually find the baby’s mom, but the sight made her start sobbing after covering her mouth with her hands. She saw the kill-a-moth body pierced with arrows. It had long since expired. The little one jumped out of Anne’s arms and nudged its head to try and get its mother up.

“Oh, little one.” The kill-a-pillar let out a cry. “She’s long gone, little one. Not even my powers can bring her back. I’m so sorry!”

The little one started quivering again, and this time in sorrow that it tried to save its mother by finding the Spirit, but it was too late. Anne’s heart broke to pieces to hear them crying. 

There is nothing Anne could do now but just leave but her feet remain in the same spot, unmoving. She looks up at the kill-a-pillar and then at the kill-a-moth. She knows the law of nature; she understands the meaning of life and death. The strong devour the weak.

But Anne couldn’t find the heart to leave the kill-a-pillar all by itself. Without its mother to protect her young. It’s completely defenseless. 

This time, Anne will not allow such fate to befall the kill-a-pillar. She picked the little one and cuddled them close to her. 

“Don’t worry. I’ll be your new momma.” Anne held it up to face it. “Hmmm. Oh! A female. All right then, girl. Now, what should I call you?” She racks her brain to think of a good name for her as she tilts her head. The kitten tilted her head, it copied her. Anne giggles to find it cute and funny. She wondered. She sticks her tongue out and the kill-a-pillar does the same as Anne.

“Haha! Well, aren’t you a clever girl! You know, you’ve got a pretty color like a domino…Hey! That’s it! I hearby dub you as Domino!” She held Domino high up as the kill-a-pillar wiggled its legs and meowed with purr as if she had accepted her new name.

Anne is pleased. It was a name she picked after Valeriana’s favorite game.

A large kill-a-moth broke through the trees. It had a white head and white six legs. The body was black, and it had red and black moth-like wings. 

“I just saw this thing come through here. Come on boys. We got her.”

The kill-a-moth was panicking. She missed her mother so much that she decided to track her down. Now she was beginning to think this wasn’t a good idea.

Her front right leg was hurt by the trap. She let out a small chirp. She wanted to fly but she didn’t want to risk them shooting her down. 

She just wanted to be with Anne. 

She had to give them the slip. Then, a familiar scent caught her nose. Her eyes widened at the scent.

It was Anne. It was her mother’s scent. She started leaping towards the scent. 

A week has passed, and Grime has bid his goodbyes to the Plantars and Sasha to return to the South Tower. He even said goodbye to Anne. Sure he didn’t turn around to tell her to her face but Anne was too happy to care, and waved goodbye to Grime. 

Hop Pop needed some rotten gourds destroyed and Sasha decided to make a game of it.

“Hey batter, batter, batter.” Sasha held a scythe over her shoulder.

“This is it. The final pitch for the Wartwood Farmers. Up on the plate is Anne Boonchuy.” Sprig narrated on the sidelines. “Will she make the shot and take home plate for the win or will the Farmers be going home before the playoffs.” 

Anne wound her arm in a circular motion before tossing the gourd at Sasha. Sasha swung the scythe at the gourd. The impact was enough to slice the gourd in half, but the scythe slipped out of Sasha’s hands and it’s aiming for Sprig. 

“Sprig!” Both Sasha and Anne screamed.

“Huh?” Sprig yelled before ducking as the scythe caught itself in the tree. Thank frog it missed but the hat was the only thing that got cut and fell off of his head. Revealing a tuft of orange hair on his head. “Whoa hoo! Wanna go again?”

“We should be a bit more careful there, buddy. Don’t want to accidentally chop your head off.” Sasha pried the scythe out of the tree.

“Agreed. My healing magic is strong but it’s not strong enough to reattach your head.”

“Darn.” He pouted, making Sasha roll her eyes amusedly.

Sasha’s ears picked up some noises. It sounded like a creature in pain. 

“Hey, Sasha, there’s still one gourd-” Sasha put her finger on Sprig’s mouth, silencing him.

“Shush! You hear that?” Anne looked up and heard something as well and gasped in worry.

“It sounds like a creature in pain.”

“Let’s go check it out.”

“Yeah, Sasha is an excellent tracker and one of the best hunters around.”

The group raced to where they were hearing the noises. When they came across the creature, Sprig screamed and ducked behind Sasha’s legs. Sasha pulled her blade out to defend her and Sprig. 

It was a Coastal kill-a-moth. They had white heads with white legs. The rest of the body was black. They let out a small whimper. Sasha looked down to see a claw trap snared their right middle leg. It had several cuts and wounds on it, with splotches of blood on its white fur.

“Whoa! A Coastal kill-a-moth. What’s it doing all the way out here?” Sprig looked behind her legs.

“Sprig, stay back. You know these things like eating frogs.”

“Right.”

Sasha drew her blade and walked over to the creature. The leg was caught and bleeding. The creature looked like it had been trying to chew at the leg. By the looks of it, it looks to be clinging to life but fighting a losing battle.

Suddenly, Sasha’s ears rang with the sound of screaming that echoed in her head and that horrified screeching and bloody eyes that still gripped her soul like chains that wrapped around her to this day.

“SASHAA!! ”

“IT’S NOT SAFE! GET OUT OF HERE! ”

She lets out a shaky breath. No, she can’t let it live. If she puts it out of its misery, then she’ll be keeping Wartwood safe.

She angled it right above its heart. The kill-a-moth stared at Sasha for a moment before closing its eyes, like it had just accepted death.

“STOP! Don’t hurt her!” Anne appeared next to Sasha and grabbed her sword before it reached its target.

“Anne, it’s a Coastal kill-a-moth. If I don’t kill it now, it will terrorize all of Wartwood. And look at it. It’s heavily wounded. It won’t live long with those wounds.”

“She won’t harm anyone. I promise.” Sasha looked at Anne.

“What makes you so certain?” It came out harsh from Sasha, but she didn’t care. This time, it didn’t bother Anne by Sasha’s harshness. Instead, she let her go and turned to face the kill-a-moth. It still kept their eyes closed. Anne dropped to her knees and brushed her hand through its fur. The creature opened its eyes and stared at Anne.

“Domino.” 

Domino? 

Sasha tried to think of where she heard the name. It finally clicked on where she heard it. It was when she was talking with Anne the other night about Valeriana and her other friends.

Sasha looked down to see Anne rubbing her face into the fur. Domino was purring. Domino wanted to leap on Anne and give her kisses, but she was so drained.

“Domino, what are you doing?” Anne asked. Domino let out a small meow. “You missed me? Domino, that was stupid of you to try and track me down. Look at you. You are injured and got your foot caught in a trap.”

Sasha examined the trap that Domino was stuck in. When she briefly touched the wound, Domino let out a strangled cry and fought against Sasha’s touch. Anne threw her body on top of Domino’s head and whispered into her ear.

“Shush. It will be okay Domino. Everything is going to be okay. Sasha, I need you to remove that trap. I can’t heal her with the trap on!” Sasha looked at her like she was crazy.

“Are you nuts? If I take this off this thing will attack Wartwood and eat the frogs there!” 

Anne retaliated, “That’s crazy! No creature would dare attack a village or anyone. I know because I made that rule!”

The new revelation was like a big stab in the chest. She blinked as she tried to process this new information. No, she is a Spirit. She is, probably, making things up. Right? But would Anne lie to her?

“Please, Sasha!” Sasha broke out from whatever spell she was in and looked at Anne as she begged her, “Only you can do this. I’m strong enough to hold Domino while you remove the trap.” 

Nothing makes sense to her until she asks, “Why would I do that?” 

“Because I trust you!” Anne said it so simply.

Sasha looked at her like she couldn’t believe what she had just heard. She had known Sasha for a short time, and now she suddenly says she trusts her enough to save her pet.

But when she watches Anne stroke Domino’s head, she feels something. The kill-a-moth purred, being calmed by the Spirit.

They’re…A family.

“…All right!” Anne is relieved that she lets out a sigh of relief.

Sasha looked at the trap. Every trapper needed to have a number specific to them itched into the trap. But as Sasha examined the trap and noticed there wasn’t a number to show who the trapper was. Which could only mean one thing. This is an illegal trap by Poachers. That made her blood boil. She was a hunter as well, but she didn’t use any kind of traps. 

“This is an illegal trap. Poachers.” 

Sasha used her sword to pry the claw trap apart, careful with its paw, and pried it open. Once Domino was free, she began licking her wound. Anne moved to start healing the wounds. As she worked, Domino leaned over and licked her face on how she missed her.

“Domino, stop that. I’m trying to help you out.” Anne was giggling as Domino continued to nuzzle her face. Once the wound was healed, Anne turned to the kill-a-moth as Domino stood on her six feet. “Domino, what are you doing here? I told you to stay there till I get back.” Domino let out a small meow. Anne petted her head. “Aw, Domino. You missed me that much?”

“How do you know this kill-a-moth?”

“I found her when she was a kill-a-pillar. Hunters killed her mother, so I took her in and raised her.”

“Do you usually raise orphan babies?” Sasha meant it as a joke. 

“Not always. I usually let nature run its course. But I couldn’t just leave her like this.”

“Hey!” Sasha, Anne, and Sprig turned their heads at the voice. There stood a human hunter with two frogs by his side. The large frog, a blue one, stepped forward. Sasha suspected he was the leader. “That’s our kill-a-moth you are messing with. Step away before you get on my bad side.” 

Sasha stood in front of Domino, her hand resting on her sword handles. Anne hugged Domino’s head close to her.

“You must be the sick bastard who placed this trap. You do know this is an illegal trap.”

“And who are you? The trap inspector?” The three laughed.

“Lieutenant Sasha Waybright of the South Tower.” Their faces fell. “You know the rules. Article 20 section 13 of the Hunter Code states that you must have your hunter tag number on your trap. I saw no number. Also, that trap of yours falls under an inhumane trap as well. And Article 21 section 3 states that you cannot set a trap within 2000 feet of a property or of a village. Too bad for you, your trap is within that 2000 feet of a property line.” Sasha points towards the Plantar farm.

“You just made that rule up.” The smaller red frog shouted.

“Nope. It just recently changed with the new handbook which you should have gotten if you were valid hunters. But,” Sasha flicked her pink sword handle. “You aren’t valid hunters. You know what I hate more than anything in the world? Poachers.” 

“You made a fool of the wrong group, missy.” Said the ringleader.

“And you messed with the wrong soldier.”

Sasha pulled her swords out. Sprig hopped next to her with his slingshot. 

“Got your back, sis.” Sasha nodded in thanks, then she quickly gave Anne a hand signal and Anne understood. She told her not to engage or reveal her spirit powers. Anne trusts Sasha to take down those poachers who hurt her baby.

The three poachers attacked. Sasha blocked two of their sword strikes before kicking the human in the stomach. Sprig hit the red frog in the face with a mud ball before launching another one at the blue frog. As Sprig distracted them, Sasha pulled the trap out of the ground and swung it around, wrapping it around the three poachers and pulling hard on the chain. It ensnared the three in their own trap. The human was the only one tall enough to start hopping away.

“Yeah! You better run!” Sprig shook his fist.

“If I ever see you fuckers again, you will be seeing the sharp end of my sword!” She declared as she put away her swords.

As Sasha turned around, she was tackled to the ground. She was face to face with Domino.

“Nice kill-a-moth. Nice kill-a-moth.” Sasha could only stare at the tongue before it scraped against her face. Sasha blinked at the beast as she was soaked in drool and her bangs were sticking upward.

“Aww!” Anne squealed, “She’s saying thank you.” Domino purred.

“No…Problem, Domino.” Sasha petted her head awkwardly. “Will you get off of me?” To her surprise, Domino obeyed. She was not expecting that.

“Now Domino, go home.” Domino let out a hiss. “Don’t argue with me. It is not safe for you here. Go back home.” Domino shook her head before bumping her head into Anne’s stomach. Anne bit her lip. “Baby precious, please. Don’t make this so hard on me. I really do want you with me, but I can’t take that risk.”

Sasha watched the two. It was easy to tell that Anne and Domino had a deep bond. Sasha looked to see Sprig crying.

“It’s so beautiful.” 

Even Anne was crying a bit as she rubbed her face into Domino’s fur.

“Sasha, you have to help me bring her into the house,” Anne begged Sasha.

“What!? Hop Pop will freak the hell out when he sees that thing!” 

“Domino isn’t a thing. She is my dearest friend. What if those poachers go after her again? I refuse to let those monsters harm her again.” Sasha crossed her arms, still not liking the idea of Domino staying in the Plantars. Bringing one of Amphibia’s most dangerous predators into a house full of frogs.

“Sasha, I promise you that Domino will not harm anyone! I’ll keep an eye on her, making sure to be well-fed with other food she likes and look, she is already playing with Sprig!”

They watch Domino playing chase with Sprig as the pink boy hops all over the place and once Domino catches him, she starts to purr, and Sprig giggles as his body shakes.

“SheeEeEEEEeee IiiIss VvviIIbbraTTTIiIng!”

“Aaannnnd, she is also potty trained!” Anne added with a grin and looked up at Sasha with her big, sparkly eyes.

“UGH! Fine! We’ll bring her to the house. We have to ask Hop Pop first and see if she can stay.”

Anne squealed and hugged Sasha tightly.

“You gotta stop hugging me!” 

When they got to the house, Sasha had Domino stay in the barn while they entered the house to talk to Hop Pop.

“Hey, Hop Pop, old buddy, old pal.”

Hop Pop turned to look at the three. Sasha was leaning against the kitchen door. Anne and Sprig stood next to her, waving.

“What do you kids want?” Hop Pop stood with his hands on his hips. 

“Oh, nothin’. Just thinking. Doesn’t the house feel a little empty to you?” Hop Pop’s eyes darted between the three. 

“Not especially.”

“What would you say to have a sweet, fuzzy, loving critter around?”

“A pet?!” Hop Pop gasped. 

“A great idea, Hop Pop.” Anne clapped her hands. 

“No pets!” Anne’s smile fell into a frown. Hop Pop pointed the ladle at them. “Every time we get one, Sprig and Polly swear they’re gonna take care of it! Like this one spider, we had called Charlie Bigbottom. I mean, sure, they were there for all the cuddlin’ and the snugglin’, but who gets stuck doing all the work? Good ol’ Hop Pop, that’s who! I swear to Frog, whoever brings a fuzzy critter into this house will be on dung duty for a month!”

“But I’m responsible.” Sasha pointed to herself. “I can take care of a pet and animals flock around Anne. Besides, I thought you liked Charlie Bigbottom?” 

“I said no pets! That’s final!” 

“All right! All right!” 

The three slowly backed away as Hop Pop diverged into a tangent about the many antics of Charlie Bigbottom.

“I told Charlie Bigbottom to never get into….” 

Anne started pacing. “What do we do? I don’t want to risk her getting hurt or worse killed. I don’t even want to think about that.”

“Plan B. We sneak Domino in. The basement is big enough to allow her to sleep with you.”

“Why not keep her in the barn?” Sprig asked Sasha.

“Because if we keep her in the barn Hop Pop will instantly know when he goes to clean Bessie. We hide her in the house while Anne butters Hop Pop up.”

“Me?”

“You can convince him that you are responsible with a pet. It shouldn’t be hard. He already has seen you with the animals. Then we slowly introduced him to Domino. Piece of cherrybug pie.”

“Right. Let’s go grab her.”

Sasha and Anne snuck out of the house to see Domino was already at the door. Her bright red eyes stared at Anne before head-butting her. 

“Come on, girl. We are going inside. But you must be very quiet.” Domino nodded as she understood. Sasha figured she did. Anne had a good understanding of animals. Sasha opened the door for Domino to squeeze through. Anne opened the door to the basement when suddenly, Domino let out a sneeze.

“What was that?”

Hop Pop came out of the kitchen. Sasha and Sprig used their bodies to help Anne to push Domino into the room. 

“Say, Hop Pop, what’s the worst thing that Charlie Bogbottom ever did, since we’re talking about him.” Said Sprig, he and Sasha appeared in front of Hop Pop to distract him.

“Heh. How can I even choose? Jumping out in front of Bessie and overturning the wagon. Getting tarantula hair everywhere. Then there was the time he put a hole in the roof.

“Where’d that happen again?” Sasha innocently asked.

“Are you two blind? That big hole right there.” 

Sasha and Sprig looked up at the giant hole in the ceiling. 

“I’ve told you that I would fix that for you,” Sasha said. 

Anne pushed Domino down to the basement. Domino sniffed around the room. She spotted the faded red shirt of Sasha’s and grabbed it. She pulled it to the floor before walking in a circle and lying on top of it. 

“Domino. That’s my favorite shirt. No, you can have any of the other ones. Most smell like Sasha anyways.” Domino purred as she gave her a look that she knew Anne would give in. Anne chuckles. “Fine! You can have that for now. But I want it back. Sasha gave it to me when I first met her.”

So far, Hop Pop was none the wiser that Domino was in the house. Anne had snuck in some fruits, vegetables, and some leftover bugs for Domino, making sure they were her favorites. Soon, night fell. Anne was leaning against Domino’s body. It reminded her of their time in the forest. Where they would sleep with each other on the forest floor. She was glad that her bed was big enough for the both of them. Anne felt Domino throw two legs around Anne to cuddle her close. 

“It’s good to see you again, girl. I did miss you when I was away. I’m still a little miffed you left the forest though. You were safer there.” Domino just meowed. “I know, I just hope Hop Pop will let me keep you here. I would be devastated if you weren’t allowed to.”

There was a knock on the door. Anne was panicking, praying to the Guardian it wasn’t Hop Pop.

“It’s just me, Anne.” Sasha gently called out from behind the door. 

Sasha came down the stairs. The moment Sasha arrived at the bottom, Domino launched herself at Sasha, knocking her to the ground. 

Sasha stiffed as the kill-a-moth loomed over her, trapped. But then, she starts to lick her face. It feels weird because her tongue is like sandpaper, her breath is awful, and dare she say it, she is tickling her. She tried to push her off her with her hands and legs, but Domino flopped her whole body on top of Sasha.

“Get off, you overgrown furball! Ew, no ‘heh’ I just showered ‘hehaha’, stop! Stop it! Anne, stop laughing and do some’hehe’thing!”

Anne couldn’t help that scene was warming her big heart. How her heartbeat beat like a loud drum at Sasha’s smile and laughter.

“Domino, off Sasha now.” Anne gently pulled on Domino’s fur. Domino finally got off. Sasha got up and wiped the drool off her face. “See, I told you Domino likes you.”

“I know! I have the drool and hair to prove it!”

“She even stole that red shirt you gave me. She is just thanking you for protecting her from the poachers.”

“It wasn’t a big deal. I hate poachers. They give us hunters a bad name.”

“Please tell me you haven't been killing for trophy hunting?” Anne weakly asked.

“No. Never! I only hunted dangerous animals that threatened the amphibians or to eat. I don’t kill for fun.”

“I’m glad.”

Sasha directed Anne to come sit down. They sat down on the bed, pressed up against Domino’s body. They sat shoulder to shoulder.

“So, who was Charlie Bigbottom?”

“A tarantula that Sprig and Polly brought into the house. Between you and me, it was more Hop Pop’s pet than theirs. But he died.”

“How?”

“A blue jay bird came swooping in from the sky and picked Charlie Bigbottom up.” Sasha extended her arm forward. “There goes Charlie Bigbottom into the heavens. Hop Pop was inconsolable for weeks.”

Anne is saddened to hear. “But all he does is complain about all the troubles that Charlie caused.” 

Sasha shrugged before continuing. “Yeah, but he does that to hide how much he missed that spider. I think the reason he said, “no pets” is because…He doesn’t want to feel like he's replacing Charlie.” 

Anne can relate to Hop Pop ever since she lost Valeriana, Barrel, and then Leif. She was actually considering not making friends again but after meeting Domino, things changed, and then she met Sasha, Sprig, Polly, Hop Pop, Marcy, and Grime. The loneliness no longer lingered.

“I know it’s hard to lose someone you love…I know the feeling very well. But ever since I met Domino, she has been the one who encouraged me to make new friends. And because of her I met you and everyone I met so; I owe her for that.” Sasha’s heart skipped a beat. 

“And I believe Hop Pop will like Domino and I should tell him that it’s all right to miss your loved ones and honor them by remembering them but it is still painful. But if he gives it a chance and meets new friends or new pets, the pain will be less painful.”

That’s a nice insight.

Sasha looks back to see Domino is sound asleep. She remembered when Anne cried that she had been alone for so long since her friends’ passing but when she found Domino, in a way the kill-a-moth helped her by being by her side and stayed with her like a true, loyal companion.

“I see Domino means a lot to you.” Sasha reached behind her to pat Domino’s side.

“I found her when she was a kill-a-pillar. Her mother had died. Killed by hunters.” She felt Sasha flinch. Anne laid her hand on Sasha’s arm. “Domino had tried to find me so I could heal her mother. But I had first heard Domino crying out because she was stuck in a puddle of honey and harassed by wasps. I saved her. But…Her mother was already long gone by the time I found her. It broke my heart to hear her crying out for her mother. I normally wouldn’t intervene with nature as I let it take its course. But I just couldn’t do it. So, I took her in. She has become my faithful companion ever since.”

“You two have a tight-knit bond. I see why you care for her so deeply.”

Domino opened one eye, leaned over, and licked Sasha’s face. Her tongue was wet as she draped up, forcing Sasha’s bangs up.

“She really likes you.”

“I hope she isn’t just tasting me.” Domino’s head reared back in a look of hurt. “I’m joking. Geez. I know you won’t eat me.” Domino bumped her head against Sasha’s. It made Anne’s heart do little flips at how much her pet was acting around Sasha. She must have sensed the goodness in Sasha’s heart. “I better go to bed. I just wanted to check up on you two. Night, Anne…Night, Domino.”

Sasha walked upstairs. Anne laid against Domino. 

“I’m so happy you liked her, Domino.” Anne kisses Domino. Domino let out a small meow. She was saying yes that she did like her. That made Anne happy. She rolled her feet up and lay against Domino’s body. The warmth and Domino’s purring made Anne instantly fall asleep. 

The soft fur tickles her nose but she continues to sleep peacefully. But Hop Pop calls out to her.

“Food is ready, Anne!” Anne’s eyes shot open. She gasped when she realized she overslept. She looked over to see Domino still asleep. She sighed in relief. She raced up the steps. 

“I’m coming, Hop Pop.”

“Afternoon, Anne. I’m surprised to see you up so late. Everyone is already on the farm right now. Sasha told me you were really tired yesterday and that you wanted to sleep in later. I didn’t want any of the food to go to waste so I woke you up. Hopefully, you are feeling better.”

“I feel refreshed Hop Pop. Thank you.” Anne looked at the food. 

“Don’t worry, Sasha made the food. You…You won’t mind if you show this old frog how to cook?” Anne looked at the orange frog. She smiled.

“Yeah, I would love to.”

“Then let’s get started now. While Sasha is out. Then we will surprise them with the food we made.”

Anne decided that it would be the perfect time to try and ask Hop Pop about a pet. As they prepared the food, Anne asked.

“So, Hop Pop, what would you say to having a pet?”

“A pet? Please tell me Sprig and Polly aren’t trying to persuade you to bring a pet into the house.”

“What! No. They are not.” Anne was sweating. “I was…Thinking that maybe a pet would be good around the house. Sprig and Polly would benefit from a pet.”

“Yeah. They get to love the pet but guess who takes care of it? Me. Sasha isn’t around enough to have a chance to bond with it. So, it isn’t for her either.”

“Maybe Sasha could use one. She needs a companion.”

“I mean…Sasha could use a companion, but it may be hard considering her position as both a lieutenant and hunter.”

“Right. She would have to harm some creatures terrorizing towns.”

“Anne, be honest with me. You don’t hop around with things. Tell me why you want a pet in this house.”

Anne bit her lip. She tried to come up with a good lie. She looked over to see Domino coming out of the basement. Hop Pop had his back turned away. Domino turned her head at the frog. Anne stepped away before shooing Domino back into the basement. Domino resisted for a moment.

“Domino, please do not fight me,” Anne whispered. “Go.”

Domino whimpered a bit.

“What’s that sound? Anne, you, okay?”

“I’m fine, Hop Pop.” 

Anne pushed Domino out of the door. “You stay out here and don’t leave the farm.”

Anne turned around to see Hop Pop standing at the door, tapping his foot.

“Anne, what’s going on?”

“It’s nothing, Hop Pop. Just needed some fresh air. Now come on, let’s go finish that recipe.” Anne is walking Hop Pop back to the kitchen. Anne heard Domino cry out in pain. “Domino!”

“Domino? That sounds like a pet name.”

Anne ran outside to see Domino in chains. She gasped to see the three poachers from yesterday. That got Anne angry.

“What the? Is that a Coastal Kill-a-moth?”

“Domino, I’m coming baby precious.” Anne ran towards Domino.

“Baby precious!? That is a pet name.”

Anne grabbed the chains around Domino’s neck. The poachers pulled hard on her.

“You let her go!” 

“She was ours first.” 

“No, she isn’t. She is my friend.”

Anne pulled hard on chains and the three poachers fell to the ground.

“Damn, she is strong.”  Anne ripped the chains apart. “Damn. Frank, get your poison dart out.”

The red frog hopped onto the fence and pulled out a blow dart. Anne stood in front of Domino. The human poacher pulled another chain out and swung it around and it snagged Domino’s neck. She let out a painful cry. 

Out of nowhere, a pink heron sword landed close to the leader frog’s feet.

“Hey, you fucking idiots. I thought I told you that if I ever saw you around these parts, you would be meeting the sharp end of my sword.” Sasha is furious.

Sasha walked over to them, her hand over her other blade. Sprig and Polly stood beside her.

“Let the Kill-a-moth go. Before I spill your blood for trying to spill hers.” Sasha stomped close to them and pulled her pink sword out of the ground. She stood in front of Domino, blades drawn. “Anne, keep close to Domino and be careful about using your powers,” Sasha whispered. Anne nodded.

The human poacher drew his blade. Sasha went his blades with her own.

“Frank, do it now. Hit the blond.”

Frank, the red frog, held the dart to his lips. He puffed, shooting a poison dart towards Sasha. 

“SASHA! WATCH OUT!” Hop Pop screamed in warning, but Sasha was too late, the poison dart would hit her. But then, it all happened in slow motion.

Domino leaped in front of Sasha, taking the dart meant for her.

“DOMINO!!!” Anne screamed. 

Anne collapsed in front of Domino. The poison was fast-acting as Anne could hear the shallow breathing from her friend. She pulled the dart out. She placed her hand over the wound. Sasha looked down at Domino in stinging bewilderment. 

“She…Took a hit for me.” It came from her a broken whisper, and then an image she buried within her subconscious resurfaced.

A female purple frog has pushed a young version of Sasha out of the way, looking at her with a smile and tears, and with no regret, “Be safe.”

A HERON SCREECHED AND SNAPPED HER PEAK AT SASHA.

“Sasha, please!” Sasha blinked and looked at Anne with tears streaming down her face, silently begging to let use her healing powers to save Domino and did not care if she was seen. She wanted to save her friend, her family.

“Do it. Save her!” Said Sasha without a second thought. She turned around, her face darkening with vengeance. “I’ll handle those bastards. Frobo! Cover Anne!” 

Frobo raced over and used his body to help block Anne so the poachers wouldn’t see her blue powers. Hop Pop smacked the red frog on the head with a shovel.

“That’s for trying to kill my granddaughter!”

Sasha smacked the human on the head with both of her blades, knocking him out. Sprig and Polly tackled the blue frog before Polly hit him over the head with her wrench. Anne focused her powers on Domino’s wound, feeling her beloved friend slowly slip away. 

Once the poachers are dealt with, Sasha rushes to Domino’s side. She kneels before her, and Sasha brushes her fingers through Domino’s fur.

“Come on, Domino. Come on. You’re tougher than this.” Sasha chanted. Anne concentrated, feeling Sasha’s gloved hand touch hers.

Soon, she felt the poison leave Domino’s body and felt her breathing return to normal. She lifted her hand to see the wound was healed. Domino let out a loud meow and licked Anne’s face.

“Domino. You are okay.” Anne rubbed her teary face into Domino’s fur. “Oh, you had me so worried.”

“Thanks for saving me furball.” Sasha patted her body.

“Anne! Sasha! I am very disappointed in the two of you.”

“Wait! Don’t blame them, Hop Pop.” Sprig stood next to them. “I helped too.”

“You three, I should’ve known you would bring in a pet.”

“We are sorry, Hop Pop.” Anne, Sasha, and Sprig hung their heads.

“But…It saved Sasha’s life.” They snapped their heads in surprise and saw the old frog smiling in a mixture of relief and bewilderment. “Why I never heard of a Coastal kill-a-moth saving a hunter. That would be one hell of a story. I’m sorry for being hard on you kids about no pets. It just…I MISSED CHARLIE BIGBOTTOM WITH ALL OF MY HEART AND SOUL!!”

Hop Pop fell to the ground, crying, and hugging Sasha’s legs since she was close to him. Sasha just patted his back, awkwardly.

“It’s okay Hop Pop. Just let it out. Just let it out.”

“It’s my fault Charlie was taken!” He sniffled with tears and boogers running down.

“No, it’s not.”

Sasha peeked down into the basement to see Anne sound asleep curled up against Domino on the bed. Sasha smiled at the sight. Hop Pop had finally relented in letting Domino stay. She was allowed to sleep in the basement with Anne at night and during the day, allowed to fly around the forest and farm. 

Sasha noticed that Domino was sleeping on her old shirt. She grabbed the blanket from the bed and draped it over Anne’s body. She ruffled Domino’s fur. Domino lifted her head and nuzzled her glove. She stared at Sasha’s glove, curious. She was reluctant but for once, Sasha had removed her glove from her left hand. Domino licked the scar.

Sasha took immense pride in her scars. The scars show strength, perseverance, and all her accomplishments.

But the scar on her left palm and on her cheek. They are her least favorite scars, and they are filled with mistakes she made. The one on her palm is the worst mistake.

It was a stabbing wound. The scar on her palm looked like a jagged edge star shape while on the back of her hand was a ripple-lined scar like it had been sewn together.

She curled her left hand into a fist. She hated this. She hated him and she was a fool to believe that he cared about her. Domino sensed her distress and began licking her fisted hand.

“It’s okay. This scar…Brings some terrible memories.” Sasha whispered.

“Umm. Sasha? What’s wrong?” Anne woke up, rubbing her eyes.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Sasha tried to walk away and hid her left hand with her old red shirt so Anne wouldn’t notice but Domino snagged her shirt. “Hey Domino.”

Anne looked to see the large scar on Sasha’s palm. Anne gently took Sasha’s left hand. She ran her fingers along the scar. For once, Sasha didn’t back away, but she looked away with dark shame. 

“That’s a nasty one. Almost like the one on your cheek. Is that why you wear a glove.”

Sasha looked down at the scar. “Yeah, it’s one of my least favorite scars. I feel I failed when I got it. So, I hide it away, so I don’t have to be reminded of it.”

“What happened?”

“…I fought an old friend or so I thought.”

“Oh.”

“It’s fine. I realized we weren’t really friends after he tried to kill me and stabbed a blade through my hand.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I’ve gotten over it.” She pulled her hand away and put her glove back on. “It gives me fits every now and then. It damaged some of the nerves. The glove helps though. It’s Marcy's invention. It helps steady my hand.”

Anne brushed her fingers against Sasha’s left palm and Anne was quick to feel Sasha's strong hand that wielded her sword begin to shake, like a tiny vibration. Uncontrollable.

Anne couldn't believe a friend did that to Sasha but, when Anne smiled as she placed her other hand on top of the much bigger hand and used her powers to emit a blue glow that stopped the hand from shaking and Anne spoke in a softer tune. 

"I'm thankful that Marcy was there to help you through. You have one true friend who is there for you. No matter what." 

Sasha's heart didn’t feel the fluttering sensation but that spark when Anne used her powers or how her small hands gave her so much warmth that she wanted to drown in it and not plan to ever let go.

"...Y-yeah, we do. And it reminds me a bit of you and Domino.”

Then, Domino leaped on Sasha, forcing her to fall onto her back. Then Domino buried Sasha under her moth body.

“Domino, get off.” Sasha muffled from under Domino.

“Domino, let poor Sasha go.” Domino finally relented and let Sasha go to her own bed. Before Sasha closed the door, she said with pink blush dusted over her cheeks.

“I also wanted to say thank you, Domino. For saving my life back there. Night, you two.”

“Good night, Sasha.” Anne smiled, making Sasha’s heart do those weird flips.

Sasha returned to her room and clutched her shirt, right above her heart. 

Why?

Why? 

WHY? WHY? WHY?

She grinded her teeth. Her heart can’t stop doing these weird things to her. If only she could rip it out and bury it somewhere, deep. Deeper where no one can find it. Her breath was quickening and when she looked down at her left hand, it shook violently and uncontrollably. A constant reminder of him. She ripped the glove and watched the hand shake. She tossed it to the ground. She suddenly was talking to the glove as if she was talking to someone. Someone like Anne.

“Why do you do this? We aren’t friends. So fucking stop! If Ricki or my parents have taught me anything, it’s that true love doesn’t exist! You are a monster, and I’m going to deliver you to the king as my prisoner. I’ll get rid of you for good. You’re the reason why I have this scar on my cheek! You’re the reason why Bark and Jasmine are dead. Right…Right?”

Nothingness is her only reply as the glove sat there innocently.

Innocent.

Image after image of Anne smiling. Anne cooks a meal for her and the family. Anne laughing at something Sprig did. Anne playing with Sprig and Polly. Sasha grips her head tight as if to stop the images from flooding her mind.

“Because I trust you!”

Those four simple words. Anne said so easily. So confidently, that it made her bones quake, and her chest hurt more than before.  

“Then, why does my heart ache when I’m around you? Why does it hurt so much when you look at me like that? Why am I having a hard time hating you?”

Chapter Text

Crowds of buyers are swarming all around in the Wartwood market to try and buy the best fruits and veggies before they run out. Some frogs were buying their homemade jams from a scary, buffed frog with tattoos. But underneath the scary exterior is a nice guy. Other vendors even sold their best-pickled veggies of any kind they have. Fruits as large as a human head. There was even jars of honey from a frog with noticeable bee stings all over him. 

Then, there’s the Plantar Stand standing tall and vivid with bountiful vegetables from their labor of love, and there is Hop Pop selling his produce with honesty. Like he always does. 

“Come and get your Plantar veggies! They are good for you and will make you big and strong. Just like my Sasha.” Hop Pop nudged Sasha. She flexed her arms before making poses with her arms flexed. 

“Yes, sir folks. This is what the Plantars veggies can do!” Sasha stood next to the stand, flexing. It was making Anne blush at seeing those muscles. “Along with a regular diet and exercise.”

“If I can be that big then I’ll buy some.”

The Plantars were quick to sell out on their vegetables. Sasha was watching Hop Pop count out the money, leaning against the stand.

“This has to be the best we have done in a long time.” Hop Pop smiled. “I think this calls for a celebration and a treat.”

“Whoo hoo!” Everyone cheered.

“Hop Pop, can we get some swamp slushies on the way home? They have a new flavor that I really want to try.”

“Sure, we can, boy.”

“Can I drive Bessie?” Sasha asked with hopeful intent. 

“You…Cannot.” 

“Ugh. Hop Pop, you sounded just like Loggle.” She huffed and pouted as she crossed her arms. Turned down again. 

“Why can’t Sasha drive Bessie?” Anne asked, not understanding why Hop Pop wouldn’t let Sasha drive Bessie. He let her drive after asking him. 

“Because Anne, Bessie is a delicate creature. You should know that. But the only way I would allow someone to drive Bessie is if they have read her manual. Or in your case, Anne, have a connection with her.” Sasha just rolled her eyes. “Sasha here has yet to read Bessie’s manual.”

“I’m very busy Hop Pop.”

“No excuse, young lady. You don’t get to drive Bessie unless you read her manual.”

“Totally unfair, HP! Grime lets me drive the spiders at the tower.”

“Because spiders are mindless creatures. Bessie is a beautiful being with a heart of gold.” Hop Pop rubbed Bessie’s neck. 

“They are the same thing, Hop Pop.”

“They are NOT the same, Sasha. They are two entirely different things.”

Anne shook her head fondly as Sasha and Hop Pop argued about the difference between Bessie and the spiders at Toad Tower. 

“Hop Pop! I don’t need to read the manual. I’ve already got the experience of riding anything out there. I have even handled Joe Sparrow. I can perfectly handle a snail like Bessie!”

“Bessie is more than just a ride! You need to read her manual to understand her. To feel her heartbeat as one with you.”

“I don’t need that.”

“Then you ain’t driving.”

They stopped in town to gather a few things before heading home. Hop Pop left the kids to get some groceries. Sasha was leaning against Bessie as she sipped her slushy. She was a little irritated with Hop Pop. She felt a gentle hand touch her arm. She looked over to see Anne beside her.

“So why don’t you read Bessie’s book? It can’t be that bad.”

“Have you seen the size of this thing?” Anne shook her head. Sasha went to Bessie’s bag, and heaved a huge book out of it. She showed it to Anne. “This is why!” Then she dropped the thing, and it thumped really loud and made a cloud dust.

“Whoa, mama! That’s a big book!” Anne exclaimed.

“Yep, you have to read the whole thing before Hop Pop lets you drive her. Hop Pop wrote the damn manual in full detail!” She quoted Hop Pop’s words. “I’ll be old by the time I’m finished readin'!”

“Yep. I only got to page five before I quit.” Sprig hopped over to them. “Too much description, not enough plot.”

“Hop Pop says I am too young to drive.” Polly puffed a piece of hair out of her eyes. “And I haven’t installed a driving AI into Frobo here, so he is off limits according to Hop Pop. What does Hop Pop want me to do? Take his entire book and insert it into Frobo? His hard drives would go nuts from all the useless data.”

Frobo let out a small beep of disappointment as he gently stroked Bessie. Then, Hop Pop comes back with bags full of goodies. “All right, kids! I’ve got about everything so how about we head-” Hop Pop froze in mid-sentence when something caught his eyes and his face split into a grin.

Ascots. 15% OFF on all colors. Plus, free gifts.

“Whoo! What a deal!” Hop Pop ran to the store, dragging poor Frobo along, forcing the robot to carry the groceries. Sasha just laughed. “You are helping me carry everything this time, Frobo.” 

“Polly, help me.” Frobo cried out.

“Man, I feel sorry for Frobo. He is going to be in there for hours.” Sasha’s mind clicked with an idea. She leaned her arm up against Bessie’s shell and turned her body towards Anne, smirking and wiggling her eyebrows. “So, Miss Boonchuy, got any plans this afternoon?” 

Anne narrowed her eyes, knowing full well how Sasha was doing. As the blond signaled Anne with her eyes. Shifting between her and Bessie.

Sasha plus idea equals loads of trouble.

“Sasha, don’t!” Anne warned her but Sasha began to coax her with an idea.

“C’mon! How about you and the two pipsqueaks join me for a ride through the countryside.” Sasha extended her arm out as she said that.

“Sasha, you can’t take Bessie without riding her manual. Hop Pop will be furious when he comes out to find Bessie’s gone!” Anne won’t budge. 

“Come on Anne. Just for a bit. Just to prove to Hop Pop that I am capable of riding Bessie because I’ve got the experience. I don’t need some dry-ass manual that he probably fibbed. Please.” Sasha clapped her hands together and begged Anne. Anne sighed. She hated that Sasha was begging her. There was something in her stormy blue eyes that made her almost say yes. But she shakes her head. No way she was falling for it but when she turned away, she noticed Sprig and Polly joining in with their own big eyes. Then, she hears a chirp from Bessie and the snail is making big eyes, too.

“What? You too, Bessie!” Anne is cornered until she finally gives in. “Fine.” 

“Yes! You are the best Anne. I promise to make it up to you.” Sasha grabbed Anne’s arms. Anne blushes at the touch. “So, how about another round of swamp slushy?”

“You got the money for it, Sasha?” Sprig asked with an excited grin to have another. It was a really good slushy.

“Of course. I learned after the last incident. I sewed a special pocket for me to hoard my money.” Sash had a simple white cotton shirt on and black pants. Sasha reached into her pocket and pulled a pouch out. It jiggled with coins. “Who wants Swamp slushies? Anne, you comin’?”

“No, thanks. I’m good. I’ll stay with Bessie until either you or Hop Pop get back.” 

Sasha, Sprig, and Polly walked into the shop. Anne stayed with Bessie, and she started stroking her neck and she didn’t see a girl walking up to Anne. She had a white pair of overalls that was covered with splotches of color. Her black hair was done in a ponytail and her face was covered in the colors as well. She had a sun hat covering her head.

“Hey, are you the girl that is staying with Sasha and the Plantars?”

“Um, yes.” Anne shied away from her. Most of the folks in Wartwood still refused to talk to her. They still called her the weird girl and gave her glares.

“Hi. My name is Lilian Amery. Lily for short.” Lily shot her hand forward and smiled. Anne didn’t sense any hostility in her.

“Anne Boonchuy.” She shakes her color-spotted hand.

“Nice to finally meet you. I’ve been wanting to say hello to you since I got here when I saw you hanging out with them. How’s life with the Plantars?”

“It’s good. If I’m being honest.”

“They are quite the handful but life in Wartwood wouldn’t be the same without them.”

“You…haven’t said anything mean to me at all.” Anne is surprised. “I’m surprised. I am still the weird girl?”

“Huh? Oh, right. I understand the motto, but I don’t care about that. I actually live in Newtopia with my dads. I just come down to visit my grandma when I can and the Wartwood landscape offers some very great painting spots.”

“Oh, you are a painter?”

“Yep. I love painting. It’s so expressive!” Lily spun around in a circle. She smiled at Anne. Anne instantly liked the girl. She is nice and care-free. Enough to even try to befriend her. 

She noticed Sasha sneaking up behind Lily. She opened her mouth but paused when she saw Sasha put her finger to her lips. Sasha stood behind Lily and set two cold swamp slushies against Lily’s neck. Lily let out a huge scream and shivered. 

“Sasha, you asshole!” Sasha let out a huge bellow laugh. Lily smacked her stomach. “Geez. That was cold.”

“Sorry, Lily.” Sasha slung an arm around Lily’s shoulder to pull her close. 

“You are a brute.” Lily laughed like she clearly didn’t mean it because she hugged Sasha. 

“You know you love me.” 

“Tis a shame that I do.” Sasha and Lily laughed.

“Hey Lily, you care to join me and the others for a ride on Bessie? I’ll drop you off at your grandma’s.”

“Wait! Did you finally sit down and read the manual?”

“Haha! No.”

“Then…”

“Before saying anything, Lily. Hop Pop is busy in the store with a huge sale and knowing him he’ll spend hours in there. This is the best time for me to prove to him that it takes experience. We are going to take Bessie for a spin.”

“Well, I guess it’s okay.” She mumbled till she shrugged. “Sounds like fun. I’ll join.”

“Hop on, my dear friend.” Sasha took the stuff out of Lily’s hand and put it in the cart. Sasha helped Lily climb into Bessie’s seat. That sent a pang of hurt into Anne’s heart. Did Sasha like Lily more? Sasha’s hand appeared in front of Anne’s face to help her up. “You okay, Anne?” Anne nodded and chose not to say anything. 

Anne climbed up on Bessie herself and sat in the middle with Sasha and Lily sandwiched her.

“All right, everyone. Hang on tight. Here we go!” 

Sasha whipped the rope and urged Bessie to go. Bessie followed Sasha’s command. They started down the road with the wind in their hair, going fast but not too fast.

Anne will admit. Sasha is an excellent driver.

“So, Lily, I’m surprised to see you back in Wartwood so soon,” Sasha asked. 

“Yeah. I decided to come down for a bit. Marcy has…Been distracted lately. I feel like I haven’t had much time to visit her since she got back to Newtopia after she stopped by to drop the pizza off. She’s been shut in her room for some time.”

“Did she tell you of our misadventures with making the pizza?” Lily looked at Anne and Sasha before turning her head to Sprig, and Polly.

“Why am I not surprised when it concerns all of you?” She pouted.

“You’ve known me for how long?” Sasha leaned over Anne and wiggled her eyebrows at Lily. Anne felt uncomfortable with this. Being in the middle and how nice Sasha is talking to Lily. Very different from how she talks to her.

“Since we were eight.”

“Damn straight!” 

“So, how do you two know each other?” Anne asked. Decided not to want to stay quiet and hoped to remove the weird thing in her chest from seeing Sasha’s actions with Lily. 

“We actually met through Marcy. Marcy befriended Sasha first and then we met through her. We three have been friends ever since.”

“So, Marcy has been avoiding you?” Sasha asked. Anne heard Lily sadly sigh. “Do I need to go to Newtopia and smack some sense into Marcy?”

“No. I’ll find a way to see her. I just…Wish it was easier for her to be upfront and honest with me. It’s hard for me to talk to her when I have a crush on her!” That got Anne’s attention. Lily had a crush on Marcy?

“You will. I’m sure you will. Even if I have to somehow plan a love confession between you and Marcy.” That got a laugh out of Lily.

“Thanks, Sasha. You always knew what to say. Hey, I see my grandma’s house up ahead.” 

Sasha pulled on the reins to get Bessie to stop. Bessie slowed to a stop in front of a nice spacious house. It had a nice garden in the back. There was a woman in the back. When she saw the cart, she waved.

“Well, well, well. I see someone finally read the manual.” Caroline came up beside Bessie, petting the snail.

“Yeah. Finally did. Figured it would help Hop Pop out.” Sasha lied for a good reason. That old woman is not to mess with. She has a mean swing that would surely leave a red mark.

“Good for you, Sasha. Hopediah needs all the help he can get. Thank you for being a gentlewoman and bringing my Lily home.”

Sasha hopped down and helped Lily down. After she took the items in the cart and handed them to Lily, she jokingly kissed the back of Lily’s hand. That made Anne get that weird feeling in her heart again. Lily just smacked her arm.

“Smartass.” 

“Oh, you wound my fair maiden.” She joked and snorted loudly.

“I will see you later. And Anne.” Anne turned her head to face her. Lily smiled at her. “It was nice to finally meet you. I want to get to know you better and would love to be your friend.” 

Lily sent her a wink, sending a signal to her. She walked away from everyone. Sasha climbed back onto the cart next to Anne. Anne folded her hands into her lap.

“I like Lily.” Sprig said. “She is really cool and nice.”

“Yeah. Too bad that airhead Marcy has an issue with confessing her feelings.” Polly snorted.

Marcy likes Lily? 

“Man, do you know how long I have been trying to get those two idiots together? For years?” Sasha threw her hand up in the air while holding the rein with her other hand. “Marcy has been dancing around her for years ! Oracle, I just want to smack her upside the head whenever she stutters around Lily. Marcy is my best friend, a nerd, and I love her but frog damnit! She drives me nuts with her whining about not being able to confess her love for Lily.”

“I actually thought you liked Lily?” Anne asked. That caught Sasha off guard. She blinked.

“What!? No! Lily is like a sister to me.” I’ve forced my heart close to love. “Why do you ask?”

Anne suddenly felt bashful as a blush formed, “No reason.”

Sprig and Polly were snickering in the background. Sasha looked up to see Mrs. Croaker on her ladybug. Sprig suddenly grabbed the reins from Sasha and whipped them hard.

“Let’s speed up!”

Bessie let out a few beeps before suddenly speeding off. Anne was nearly thrown off the side, but Sasha caught her in time. She pulled her to her side and kept her arm around her waist as she wrestled the reins out of Sprig’s hands. Bessie sped past Mrs. Croaker, making her ladybug spin out of control. 

“What in tarnation?”

Sprig and Polly jumped up and smacked their bottoms. 

“Out of the way slowpoke!”

“Hooligans! Ruffians! Swamp suckers!”

Sasha turned to the two once they got further away. “What the hell was that, you two?”

“I’ve always wanted to try road rage.” Sprig said.

“And the verdict?” Polly asked.

“Exhilarating.” Sprig shouted to the sky. Polly agreed with her brother as they high-fived.

“Hey! Keep that road rage down. As long as Hop Pop doesn’t find out, we’re good. Maybe I am a terrible influence on you two.”

“Sasha, let’s do some sick stunts!” Polly pulled on Sasha’s head.

“I live to serve. Come on, Bessie. Let’s do those stunts.”

Bessie let out a beep again, already in for the fun. Her eyes narrowed and was ready to take off. Suddenly, she set off at a speed Sasha never realized Bessie could do. She performed slick turns and huge bumps. Everyone was laughing as Bessie jumped over the hills. 

“Whoo hoo!” They all whopped together except for Anne. She is clinging to her seat for dear life. One hand even grabbed Sasha’s hand, which didn’t flick Anne off. Then, she soon realized that Bessie was heading for that steep hill that would lead to the woods.

Anne screamed to Sasha, “SASHA, STOP! DON’T GO DOWN TO THAT HILL!” But Anne’s loud warning didn’t seem to work.

“WHAT?”

It was too late now.

Bessie jumped a hill and landed. Anne was right, the hill was steep, and it is sending them careening down. They screamed as they crashed through trees and branches slapped their faces.

“Ow. Ow. Ow.”

“Sasha, can we go back to the road again?” Begged Sprig and Polly.

“I’ll ‘oof’ try to ‘oof’ get us back. Oof.”

Finally, Bessie stopped at a center surrounded by trees.

Sasha spat the leaves out of her mouth. 

“Hot damn, that was a mess. Let’s get back on the road. Come on Bessie. Let’s go.” Sasha whipped the reins, but Bessie was looking around and panicked before retreating into her shell. “Bessie? What’s wrong girl? Everyone wait here.”

Sasha climbed down and bent down to Bessie’s shell. She knocked on the shell. 

“Hey, Bessie. What’s the matter, girl? Are you hungry? Need some leaves?” Not even a nice scrumptious leaf would make Bessie come out as she lets out a scared shrill.

“Is everything all right, Sasha?” Anne asked.

Sasha stood up and scratched her head.

“I don’t know, Anne. She just suddenly hid herself in there. I can’t coax her out. Let me try to push her.”

Sasha rolled her sleeves up and pushed on Bessie’s shell. She pushed and strained. It did nothing. Sasha leaned her forehead against Bessie’s shell.

“Damn. I can’t move her.”

“What are we going to do? We’re stuck.” Sprig leaned over the shell.

“We have no choice. Anne and I will stay here with Bessie. Sprig, Polly. You two try to hitch a ride back to town and…” Sasha groaned. “Go get Hop Pop.”

“A good idea. Even if we get an earful. Back in a flash.” 

“Later suckers.”

Sprig and Polly used their tongues to start swinging from the branches. Sasha leaned against the shell, arms crossed. Anne stayed on the bench, hands still on her lap.

“You want…To ask Bessie what’s wrong?” Sasha looked at Anne.

“She says she doesn’t want to talk.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” 

“Damn.” Sasha ran her hand through her hair. 

Even though they stayed with Bessie, it is starting to get boring really fast. They need something to pass the time just until Sprig and Polly come back with Hop Pop.

An idea popped into Anne’s head. If there was anything that would help stave off the boredom and maybe get some answers for Bessie, then Sasha was going to have to buckle down and read. 

She pulled the book out and hopped onto the ground next to Sasha.

“Well, considering we have to wait, why not read.” 

Anne scooted closer to Sasha with a book in her hands. Sasha glanced at Anne and then at the book and groaned. 

“Fine! But only to pass the time and just three pages. I’m not reading this whole damn book.” She pulled the book from Anne and started to flip the first page.

“Okay. Let’s see here.”

It was an especially cold morning the day Bessie was brought into this world. The leaves had just changed color, and now I shall describe those leaves to you in great detail. 

Sasha closed the book. “Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Can’t read Hop Pop’s dry ass tone.” 

“C’mon, Sasha, you’ve only read the first paragraph! Just give it a chance.” “Easy for you to say. Hop Pop lets you drive Bessie, and you didn’t read the manual because you bonded with her.”

Sasha slumped further down like a baby who got refused for getting a new toy. Anne, being patient, didn’t raise her voice. She lifts the book. 

“I’m bonded with Bessie, yes. But she only told me how much she loves her family and how lucky she is to be a Plantar. I think what I’m trying to say is that this book is more than just guidelines but to truly bond with Bessie and understand her better.” Anne smiled when she saw Sasha’s face soften a bit. Anne sat down on the ground and patted the spot next to her. She was nearly there with Sasha. “Why not read it out loud to me? It may help. Maybe make it like story time to the kids.”

“Anne, I am a warrior, not a weaver of tales.”

“Sasha, just try. For me and Bessie.”

Sasha stared at Anne’s pleading face. She sighed in annoyance. There was something on that face that made her not be able to say no.

“Okay fine. I’ll try.” 

Sprig and Polly hopped out onto the road. They looked left and right, hoping for someone to drive by. They stuck their thumbs out. Sprig spotted something and he saw a dust cloud. 

“Over here! Over here! We need a ride.” Sprig and Polly were hopping up and down. Soon, the ladybug stopped. “Oh, thank you so much for stopping. I uh-”

Both Sprig and Polly were staring at Mrs. Croaker. 

“Hi, Mrs. Croaker.” 

“Sprig, do you think this will be one of those decisions we will look back on, and oh boy! We probably shouldn’t have done that.” Polly leaned over and whispered in her brother’s ear.

“Yeah! Yeah, I am starting to believe that.”

“Well if it isn’t Sprig and Polly Plantar.” Archie leaned over and barked.

“Hey, Mrs. Croaker. Hey, uh, sorry about earlier. We got a little carried away back there.”

“Oh pishposh. Sadie Croaker never holds a grudge, honey.”

Sprig and Polly both looked at each other. They find it hard to believe, but they aren’t going to say anything to Sadie. 

“Well, that’s lucky. Will-”

“Hey, old lady. Can you give us a lift back home? It’s urgent.” Polly cut in.

“Of course. Hop in dearies.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Croaker.” 

“My pleasure. Now, you two get comfy. Watch out for Archie as his venom can cause paralysis.” They looked at the small spider with his tongue sticking out and panting with venom drool. “Now hold onto your eyebrows. ‘Cause here we go!”

Sadie pulls a pair of sunglasses out of her bag and whips her ladybug’s reins.

The ladybug lurched forward before slowly taking a small step.

Both Sprig and Polly leaned into the seats and Sprig screamed seconds later.

“CAN THIS THING GO ANY FASTER!!!”

“I regret my choices.”

“And it was at that moment I realized that Bessie was no ordinary snail but a kind, clear soul who would help others at the drop of a hat. I raised my bid to 400 copper pieces, winning the auction and in the process, saving Bessie from the nefarious Jim Snapes.” 

Sasha narrated with a voice that sounded exactly like Hop Pop. Both Anne and Sasha were giggling. Anne clapped at the end.

“Haha! In your face Snapes.” Sasha cheers for fictional Hop Pop on saving Bessie from that low-life Snapes. Then, she realizes that she is…Enjoying this. “Wow. Sprig was wrong about the book. It is actually really good.” 

Anne leaned further into Sasha’s body as they both seemed so engrossed in the book to notice the closeness. Sasha had even slung an arm around Anne’s shoulder to pull her closer.

“Want me to keep reading?”

“Yes, please. Maybe keep doing the voice.”

“Okay.”

Sprig and Polly both tapped their hands against their legs as Mrs. Croaker slowly drove down the road. They were bored out of their minds.

“Hey, can this ladybug go any faster?” Polly asked.

“Oh no. Nope. This is the highest speed she will go.”

“Ugh.” Sprig and Polly groaned. They feel boredom is draining their life force.

“You know what would make the time go faster?”

“Yes, tell us, please. Anything to speed this up.”

“A song! Ohhhhh. Ninety-nine jugs of juice on the walls. Ninety-nine jugs of juice on the walls. Take one down. Pass it around. Oh, Ninety-eight jugs of juice on the walls.”

Sprig and Polly leaned against the chair with terror-stricken faces.

They deeply regretted their decision.

The snow swirled around us, and I knew we were doomed. I could feel the strength leaving my body bit by bit. The sweet embrace of eternity crept closer and closer. Until, suddenly I heard a sound pulling me back. It was Bessie. Bessie was singing to me.” 

Anne wiped several tears from her eyes. While Sasha was crying furiously, like full-blown ugly crying. Sasha was unaware of her tight grip on Anne’s shoulders in a sort of way to comfort her. 

“You go, girl.” Anne cried, and Sasha couldn’t help herself as she turned around and hugged Bessie’s shell, smearing it with her tears.

“I never realized you were a noble, noble creature. Man, this story is messing me up. You okay Anne?” she asked while drying her tears.

“Yeah. Yeah. I’m okay Sasha. Keep reading, I have to know what happens next.”

“Okay, now where was I? Here we go.” Before she could continue, she blinked, and then Sasha was wearing an alarming look, making Anne worried. “Sasha, what’s wrong?” 

“The reason Bessie had hidden in her shell was now very clear to me. A predator was close. And not just any predator. A natural enemy of snails.” Sasha answered by continuing to read with her regular voice but filled with fright. The last sentence was riddled with distress.

Sasha glanced up and looked over at Anne. Anne was staring at Sasha.

“Oh no!” They both said.

There was a rustling sound. Sasha put her hand on top of Anne’s, pulling her up and she unintentionally pulled her to her back. 

“Quick, Sasha! Pull your sword!” Anne looked down to notice that Sasha looked uneasy.

“Uuuh, I don’t have it…With me.” She sucked her cheeks in.

“…What?!” Anne was shocked. “You always have something on you. Anything hiding in Bessie’s cart.” 

“Nope, not this time because Hop Pop asked me not to.”

“…Sasha, that is weird. Even for you.”

“I know.”

There were more sounds coming from the forest. Sasha grabbed the book and began flipping through it.

“C’mon, c’mon! Is there a page about a predator?” Sasha paused on a page that had shown a cutely drawn page of a hedgehog. “Heh! That’s a cute drawing but I don’t think those things actually look that cute.”

Sasha lowered the book to come face to face with a blue hedgehog. It was ugly as it snarled at them. Both Anne and Sasha grabbed each other and screamed as even more hedgehogs popped out of the forest. 

“GO! GO!” 

Sasha quickly grabbed Anne by the waist, thrusted the book into her arms and  picked her up. She helped Anne to climb on Bessie’s shell. Sasha jumped in time before the blue hedgehog could bite her leg. Sasha kicked his snout.

They were surrounded.

Sasha grabbed the book, almost ready to use it as a weapon until it clicked in her mind. She grabbed the book and began flipping through the pages again in hopes of finding answers. Until she found one that caught her attention. 

“When Bessie senses danger, you gotta sit on her shell and yell at the top of your lungs, ‘Bessie, things are getting messy!” 

Bessie suddenly popped out of her shell and let out a triumphant beeping sound. She suddenly spun forward, knocking some of the hedgehogs out of the way. 

“Haha. Bessie, that’s my girl, that was incredible.” Sasha reached over and hugged Bessie’s neck. She beeped again. Sasha grabbed the reins. “Now we are moving. Eat our dust hedgehogs.”

Anne looked behind her to see the hedgehogs chasing them.

“Sasha, they are chasing us. And they seem to be catching up.”

“Damn. We need something to lose them.”

“Sasha, read the book!”

“Right. Here, you take over!” Sasha handed Anne the reins and grabbed the book. She flipped through the pages. “Here. If you still haven’t escaped, give Bessie some berries from the secret compartment in the front of her shell.”

Sasha climbed onto Bessie’s shell. Bessie did a quick turn and it nearly made Sasha fall off the shell. Anne grabbed Sasha’s shirt to prevent her from falling off while keeping her other hand on the rein. 

“Hurry, Sasha!” 

Sasha opened the compartment, which saw muscles and a heart. Sasha flinched for a moment at seeing the weird pulsating muscle. She swore she heard a heartbeat. She spotted a small pouch and grabbed it. She sat back down and opened it. Inside were some red berries. She crawled back again onto to Bessie’s neck.

“Alright, Bessie. Let’s do this thing.” Bessie beeped, ready as always.

Sasha tossed the berries into Bessie’s mouth. Sasha then jumped back onto the bench next to Anne. Bessie let out a beep before a stream of goo came from beneath Bessie. It allowed her to speed up and slide across the ground. When they turned the corner, Bessie smeared the goo on the ground. It caused the hedgehogs to slide into the trees. 

“Take that.” Sasha turned around and gave the hedgehogs the middle finger. Anne focused on the road ahead and drove Bessie back onto the road. It was silent for a bit between the two. 

Anne dropped the reins and the two let out a sigh of relief and jumped down from Bessie’s shell.

Anne reached over and brushed her hand along Bessie’s neck to check to see if she was injured and thankfully, she was all right. Bessie let out a small purr, telling Anne she was okay.

“Well,” Sasha broke the tension. “That was mortifying. So, how about we get back to the road, find Sprig and Polly, and get back to town before Hop Pop finds out.”

“I won’t say a single word about today.” Anne turned to face Sasha, promising her to keep it a secret.

“Thanks, Anne.” She scratches the back of her neck. “Not just to tell Hop Pop but…Forcing me to read that book. We probably would have been hedgehog food by now. And I had a bit of fun putting a bit of a spin on the book.” Anne giggled. Agreeing with her.

“It was very entertaining. You would definitely be a good parent to your kids.” Sasha looked down and scoffed. “What? Was it something I said?”

“I don’t plan on having kids.” She said it bluntly.

“Why?”

“I just don’t think I would make a good mom.” And having kids means I would have had to find someone. No. I would never do what my parents did to me to my own kids. My heart is closed off to the world. I will gladly be okay with dying alone. Ricki is right. There is no one who would want to love me.  

Sasha jumped slightly and saw Anne had laid her hand on her own. It was comforting almost. Sasha didn’t make Anne remove her hand. 

“Hop on! We should go find our two pipsqueaks.” A smile was forced on the lieutenant's face, grateful and feeling sudden butterflies in her chest.

“You’re right. Maybe they already arrived at Hop Pop’s location.”

As they drove down the road, they saw a slow-moving ladybug. Sasha recognized it as Mrs. Croaker’s. She could hear singing from the old frog. They pulled up beside Mrs. Croaker. When Sasha spotted Sprig and Polly looking ready to break down. 

“Hey, you two. Need a lift?” Sasha called out. Sprig and Polly instantly jumped from Mrs. Croaker’s ride onto Bessie. They hugged Sasha and kissed her cheeks while the blond was perplexed by their actions.

“Oh, thank you. Thank you.”

“Uuuh! Okay, thank you for giving them a lift, Mrs. Croaker.” Sasha waved.

“No problem. Now tell those two they need to watch their road rage.”

Sadie cracked her reins and the ladybug reared up before speeding away, fast this time. Everyone stared at the quickly fading form.

“I knew we were getting played by her.” Polly said.

“I didn’t!”

“Damn. I want to be her when I get older.” Sasha looked at the group. “All right everyone. Let’s head back to town before Hop Pop finds out. So, what’d you say, Bessie? One more fast run on the road?” Bessie revved it up like an engine and they cheered for Bessie to go faster.

When they arrived at the same spot they had left, they noticed that Hop Pop was not around. Sasha let out a small sigh of relief. At that moment, Hop Pop and Frobo came out of the store.

“Hey, kids. Man, who would’ve thought I spent five hours in that store? I bet you all are tired and ready to go home?”

“Yes, please.”

“Let’s go.”

Hop Pop never suspected a thing. Everyone kept quiet.

That night, Sasha decided to slip out of the house and finish the rest of Bessie’s book. When she entered the barn, she was surprised to see Anne in Bessie’s stall and stroking her head. Domino rested close by. 

“Hi, Sasha. What’s wrong?” She had a knowing glint in her eyes and Sasha looked away.

“I…Uh...Wanted to catch up on Bessie.” Anne glanced up at Sasha. Sasha broke under that look. “I actually came in to finish reading the book.” Anne rolled her eyes, amusedly. She lifts the book up for Sasha. She pulled it out before Sasha came in with the intention to read it herself.

Anne patted the spot next to her. Sasha obliged and sat down next to Anne after grabbing the book. 

“Would you like me to continue reading it out loud?”

“Yes, please. And maybe make those funny voices too. I love your Hop Pop voice.”

Sasha just smiled sweetly at Anne.

“Okay.”

Sasha opened the book on the page that they had ended up on before they were attacked. Anne cuddled close into Sasha’s side and Sasha slung an arm around Anne. Neither one moved from that position. 

“At that moment , Bessie came out of her shell and began attacking the predator. I was saved. Bessie saved those villagers from near death. I knew that Bessie would risk her life to save anyone.”

The sun was beginning to rise as Hop Pop slept. It would soon be time for him to awaken. He snored before his sleep was disturbed by a heavy object landing on his lap. He jolted awake to see Sasha standing there. She looked tired with bloodshot eyes.

“Sasha, what the hell is wrong with your eyes? Oh no! Did you and Anne have another fight?”

“What? No. But I did it, Hop Pop. I did it. I finally read all of Bessie’s manual.”

“You…did?” Hop Pop looked at her in disbelief.

“Yep. Thanks to Anne, she persuaded me to just sit and read it.” Sasha collapsed into the chair. 

“How much have you been reading?”

“I read the whole book in one night.”

“Impressive! Kinda scary but impressive!”

“Bessie isn’t just something or a vehicle to use to hitch a ride. She is a beautiful, amazing, kind creature. I had her all wrong!”

“And now that you read all of this, all that’s left is… experience .”

Experience!

Experience?!

EXPERIENCE!!!

Sasha’s right eye twitched. She let out a low chuckle before standing up. The chuckle evolved into a maniacal laugh. She bumped into the door that was closed before opening, still laughing at that creepy laugh and she continued to laugh as it echoed down the hall.

“…I don’t feel safe.”

Chapter Text

2000 years ago. 

A large, brown-scaled newt, about the size of a human woman, sat under the shade of a tree. She was engrossed in some reading from a large book in her lap. She leaned her chin on her hand as her eyes scanned the pages. She didn’t notice a person hiding behind her in the trees above. The figure is of a woman with an hourglass figure and her blue hair was ablaze as their blue eyes scanned the newt below them was the only giveaway. She smiled with a twinkle of mischief. 

She jumped down but hovered just behind the newt. She draws out her hands very slowly to the unexpected newt, making sure that the newt woman remains unaware of her presence, and then when she is now close enough, she throws their hands over the newt’s eyes. 

“Surprise!!!”

“Spirit! Unhand me this instant.” The newt yelled, gently smacking the Spirit’s hands with her cane, earning a giggling-like bell from her.

The Spirit hovered over the newt and floated upside down in front of her. Her long hair cascaded like a waterfall in the newt’s face.

“Hi, Valeriana.” The Spirit smiled.

“Hello to you as well. What brings you around?” Said Valeriana while hiding a teasing smirk from appearing on her face.

“I remember someone asking me to meet her here.” The Spirit said before flipping right side up and plopping down next to Valeriana. For a moment, the Spirit was deep in thought. “You didn’t forget, did you?” The Spirit looked hurt.

“No,” Valeriana smiled softly this time. “I didn’t forget. I’m glad you arrived. I wanted to give you something. As a sign of our friendship.”

The Spirit’s face lightened up from that. Valeriana grabbed the cloth object next to her. She handed it to the Spirit. The Spirit unwrapped the cloth to reveal a music box. She gasped as she examined the box. The wood carvings are so beautifully detailed with pictures of trees and lily pads. An offering frog is carved on the lid of the box, spreading his arms to show the Spirit three gorgeous gemstones. Each with different colors, pink, blue, and green. The box is ornamented in gold.

When she opened the lid, two figures came out and began spinning in the same spot as music played. The Spirit marveled as her eyes focused solely on two spinning figures in a hypnotic trance.

“Valeriana, what are they doing?”

“Dancing. An activity I think I should teach you someday. I believe you will find it enjoyable at my coronation!”

“That one looks like me.” She pointed to the short one.

“I may have designed that one after you.” 

“I adore it, Valeriana. Thank you!” The Spirit hugged Valeriana.

“I wanted to give you something as well.” Said Valeriana as she placed her hand on her cheek. “You know I will soon be crowned queen and because of that, I may not be able to spend as much with you as I would like.” She looked upset that their time together wouldn’t be the same and would be limited. Then she said, “I made this music box for you. If you ever feel lonely or sad, know that this music box will be as if I’m with you, always.” The Spirit was touched by her humble gift, and she understood that they wouldn’t spend time together like before but being the queen of her people is an important job and a high honor because the people of Amphibia voted Valeriana to be their queen.

“I know. But I’ll be around. I am the protector of Amphibia, and well, you are my first true friend, and nothing will change. Not time or distance.”

“Yes, you’re right. You know what else I’m thinking about.” Valeriana has thought about it ever since she befriended the Spirit of Amphibia. “You are the Spirit, and you are a high being from the stars and the galaxy. But I think it would be easier if you had a name of your own.”

“A name?”

“Yes. Something easier to call you, instead of me having to shout SPIRIT anytime I wish to talk to you.” That made the Spirit laugh and then she thought about it. It would be nice to have a name. She never considered it at first but the time she spent with Valeriana and her people, she saw how they addressed each other by their names. She had been wanting one of those.

“I would like to have a name. But what would I call myself?”

“I did some digging. How about the name Anne.”

“Anne?”

“Yes. It means Grace.”

The Spirit, Anne, smiled at Valeriana as she extended her hand to her. 

“Hi, Valeriana. My name is Anne.”

“A pleasure Anne.” And then shook her hand.

Anne and Domino are huddled close to share warmth and are sound asleep. On the side table above the bed sat Anne’s music box, playing its music to her as always as a steadfast friend, always lulling her to sleep and guiding her to another blissful dream. Anne could only smile in contentment as the music slowly stopped playing and then the lid closed on its own after it performed its duty.

Suddenly, a figure slipped downstairs to the basement. They eyed the sleeping Anne and Domino as they carefully grabbed the music box and slipped back upstairs. Anne and Domino were oblivious to the strange figure taking the music box. 

In one of the rooms, in a muffled silence, the music box is playing softly, unheard by all.

Sasha was doing her early morning workout. She couldn’t start her day without it. She was performing a one-handed push-up. Sprig and Polly were sitting on her back, already up at the same time as Sasha. 

“Come on soldier! You are slacking. Give me twenty more.” Polly shouted.

“Sir yes, sir.” Sasha was quick to switch from one arm to the arm. The frog kids cheered. “How is that Captain Sprig and Captain Polly?” She played along as she worked up a sweat.

“It is acceptable for now, Lieutenant Sasha. But more backtalk from you and I will have you cleaning spider poop for a week.”

“Sir yes, sir.”

Then, they jumped when a loud scream came from the basement. Sasha instantly jumped up, knocking Sprig and Polly off. She raced to the door to the basement and raced down the steps with her Pink Heron in her hand.

“Anne! What’s wrong?” Sasha paused at the bottom of the stairs. 

The basement looked like it was hit by a hurricane, a mess with clothing and items spewed about. Domino was on the bed, huddled in a little ball, watching the scene in front of her. Anne was next to a chest that was filled with Sasha’s old shirts and some of Anne’s newer outfits. She was tossing shirts out of it. Sasha could hear her mumbling. 

“Where is it? Where is it?” Sprig and Polly came down too and they too paused when they saw the mess in the basement. 

“Whoa! And I thought my room was messier!” Polly commented.

“Anne?” Sasha approached Anne slowly, and when Anne spun around, Sasha could see her cheeks were stained with tears. That hurt Sasha’s heart to see her crying,

“Sasha, I can’t find it.” Anne nearly collapsed in Sasha’s arms. Sasha grabbed her arms to help steady her and held her up. 

“Can’t find what?”

“My music box! I can’t find it anywhere!”

“Do you remember where you put it?”

“By the side table, like I always do. I played it for me and Domino before we went to sleep. I woke up to see it gone. Not even Domino can find it. I’ve torn this room apart.” Anne was sniffling, she started to cry again. “Sasha, you know how much that means to me.”

“I know. I know. I’ll help you find it. You said you left it on the side table?”

“Yes. I left it there last night and now it’s gone!”

“Are you sure you or Domino didn’t just knock off in your sleep?”

“Of course not. I even checked under the table and under the bed.”

Sasha went over to the side table where she knew Anne kept her music box. She could make out a vague outline of where the music box usually sat. She didn’t hear anything unusual last night. All she heard was Hop Pop’s yodeling and Sprig getting a glass of water before coming into her room. But nothing else out of the ordinary. 

She spotted a slime thumbprint on the table and something else. She bent down and picked a hair up in her fingers. It definitely wasn’t hers.

She looks to see Anne collapsed on the bed and crying. Domino was nudging her head against Anne’s sobbing body and letting soft meows in distress.

Sasha walked over to Anne and put her hand on her back. Anne suddenly threw her arms around Sasha’s neck, making her body go rigid from the touch. She slowly wrapped her arms around Anne.

“We will find it. I promise.”

“We will help.” Sprig and Polly said it together, not wanting to see Anne’s heartbroken sob.

“Multiple eyes are better than one. Everyone, let’s all look together.” Sasha stood up, allowing Anne to lean into her for support and comfort. She knew how much she loved that music box, especially since Anne had told her who gave it to her.

After an hour of looking thoroughly in the basement, they found nothing in the room, which Anne cried even worse. 

“Somebody stole it.” Sprig accused. Sasha thought for a moment. Maybe Sprig was right. Especially with those clues she found.

“I daresay that you are correct, Wartson.” Sasha said. Sprig gasped with familiar excitement while Polly rolled her eyes.

Oh, brother. Here we go.” 

“Everyone upstairs. Even you Domino. FAMILY MEETING!”

Sasha brought in the large Drawsidoodle board. Everyone was sitting on the couch, with Anne in the large chair next to Sasha. Sasha began drawing pictures on it. Well, a badly drawn picture of the music box, or is that a sandwich? No one could tell as Sasha was not the best artist.

“Sasha, can you explain what the hell is going on? I’ve got chores to do!” Hop Pop waved his arms.

“I am so glad you asked Hopediah Plantar because you are suspect number one.”

“Suspect number one? For what?”

“The theft of Anne Boonchuy’s music box!!!”

“ SAY WHAT !”

“Haha. Hop Pop is in trouble.” Polly pointed and chuckled.

“Polly is a suspect as well.” That put a damper on Polly’s mood.

“Haha.” Sprig snickered. 

“Sprig, you are suspect number three.”

“What?! Why me? I’m the lovable Plantar. I’m Anne’s best friend.” Then he did the cutest expression with his tongue sticking out a bit with big, sparkly eyes that would make anyone gush. Anne did.

“Because I can’t leave no stone unturned, and you like shiny things.”

“True, I do like shiny things.” Sprig couldn’t argue with that logic.

“Then you should be a suspect.” Polly pointed out. “You hated that music box.”

Sasha shrugged and wrote her name on the board. She then wrote Frobo’s name.

“Me?” He beeped as he pointed to himself.

“Sorry, Tinman. Gotta do it.”

“This is so exciting that we are acting like Sherlock Toad.” Sprig shouted in glee. Anne looked at Sasha.

“Who is Sherlock Toad?”

“He is the greatest detective of all time.” Sprig jumped into Anne’s lap, answering her. “He and his frog assistant, Wartson, solved all sorts of mysteries. They were the greatest duo of all time.”

“I never heard of them before.”

“That’s because they don’t actually exist. They are simply characters in a book. But we can pull inspiration from them to find our culprit. Now Hop Pop, where were you at the time of the crime?” Sasha begins to interrogate her first suspect. 

“Do you even know what time the theft occurred?” Hop Pop counterpointed as Sasha narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

“Fair enough. Anne, what time did you last see your precious music box?”

“Well, like I said. I played it for Domino and me right before we went to bed.”

“And when you woke up, it was already gone?”

“Yes.”

“Then our timeframe for the crime is between nighttime until early this morning. Now, who wants to confess?”

“Sasha, I don’t think this is necessary.” Hop Pop got off the couch and thanks to Sasha’s keen eyes, she spotted sweat bulbs forming on the side of his head, and the weather was not particularly hot today. It further her suspicions. “We all know you hate the music box. You could have easily snuck down and stolen the box to get rid of it.”

“Fair point, but counterpoint. I can’t enter the basement because Domino would have detected me.” Sasha made her point by pointing to the giant purring kill-a-moth by her legs. “I would have been flat on my back with Domino on top of me which would have alerted Anne so I wouldn’t have the opportunity to steal the music box. So that eliminates me as a suspect.” Sasha crossed her name out. “Which leaves us with four suspects. Polly, where were you at the scene of the crime?”

“Me?! I was sound asleep. Like a good little frog.” She blinked her innocent eyes like a good girl.

Sasha hummed as she paced. “How can we be sure?”

“Look, even Frobo can attest that I was asleep.” Polly’s eyes darted back and forth before throwing her arms up. “Fine!” Anne looked up happily. “I wasn’t exactly asleep. I was up until midnight.”

“Polly! You are too young to be staying awake that long.” Hop Pop starts to scold her.

“I know Hop Pop. But I just had a massive breakthrough with my latest invention to enter this year’s Wartwood science fair. I am going to win this year. I know it. Even Terri says that my idea is amazing. But I swear that the minute that I went to bed at midnight, I was out. Ask Frobo.”

“Correct.” Frobo beeped out.

“Polly is out then and therefore we can eliminate Frobo too.” Sasha crossed Polly and Frobo’s names out. She turned to the pink boy frog. “Sprig, where were you?”

“Asleep.” 

“Do you have any witnesses?”

“Yeah, you.” Sprig had a nightmare about the herons again, and because Anne now had Domino and Sprig was a little freaked out by the kill-a-moth, he opted to see if he could sleep with Sasha. She wasn’t going to deny her little brother some comfort.

“And Sprig came into my room around one o’clock. I remember seeing the time on my clock.”

“Yep. I went to get a drink of water first then went to Sasha. I slept there until morning.”

“And there is my witness as well.” Sasha crossed Sprig’s name out. “Which leaves us with Hop Pop.” Sasha turned to Hop Pop. Anne was staring at Hop Pop with a hurt look on her face. Sasha knew it was Hop Pop when she found the hair. And the slime print. Hop Pop had more slime on his fingers compared to Sprig and Polly. 

But Sasha couldn’t fathom why Hop Pop would steal Anne’s music box or where he hid it. One thing is for sure, she’ll make that frog croak.

“I was asleep. As you would like to point out Sasha, I’m old and need a good dose of rest. You probably heard my ‘yodeling’ all night as well.” Sasha’s eyes narrowed thinner. Making her suspicions very clear.

“So, I guess Hop Pop is out.” She scratches Hop Pop’s name off, but Anne is not taking it well. Yes, she was very relieved that none of them stole her music box but it’s still missing!

“So, no one in the house took it.” Anne let out a watery laugh. She wiped her tears away. “I’m glad that none of you took it. I would have been hurt. But now I need to find out who took it. I need it back.” She sniffled and Sasha managed to catch Hop Pop’s guilty expression before he looked away.

Sasha put her hand on Anne’s shoulder. She got to her eye level.

“Like I said. I promise to get it back for you.” She whispered. She hated seeing Anne crying over this and it made her heart clench so much. Anne grabbed Sasha’s hand and held it close to her face. 

“I appreciate it, Sasha.” Anne smiled in gratefulness, making Sasha clear her throat and look away before she noticed a blush had formed on her cheeks.

“So, it is clear that the music box thief is not within the house. The thief broke into our house and stole the music box from under our noses!” Sasha could see Hop Pop’s eyes dart back and forth. “Then we must go into Wartwood and find our thief there.”

“You think someone snuck in and stole my music box? But who and why?” Anne couldn’t believe it. The people in the town can be mean to her and they still call her a weird girl, but they are respectful folks and she imagined that they wouldn’t dare to steal precious items from one another.

“I’m not sure who did it. But I am sure we will find out why.” Sasha helped Anne up. She knew poor Anne was taking this hard. “Hop Pop, why don’t you take Anne to see Bessie as that will cheer Anne up while getting Bessie ready.”

“Hehehe…Okay, Sasha. Come along, Anne. Let’s go get Bessie ready.” 

Hop Pop took Anne’s hands and patted her hand. They walked outside with Sasha watching it with her arms folded. Once the door closed, Sprig spoke up.

“You knew it was Hop Pop right away, didn’t you?” Sprig looked at his human sister.

“Yeah. Figured it out when I found the gray hair and the slime fingerprint.”

“But why?” Polly asked.

“I am not sure yet. But we will find out. Anne deserves it considering she told me how much that music box means to her. She told me who gave it to her. It’s near and dear to her heart.”

“So, what’s the plan, Sash?” Sprig asked.

“I am planning to get Hop Pop to spill the truth and tell us where he hid the music box.”

“So, you are going to render an old guy into a guilt trip. Cool. Count me in.” Polly pumped her fist. 

“Let’s go.”

As they made their way to Wartwood, Sasha was formulating how she could get Hop Pop to confess. Anne was just hanging on to Sasha and for once, Sasha wasn’t pushing her off. Sasha could see Hop Pop’s face every time she looked over at him. He was sweating like crazy, and his face was set in a permanent panicked look. 

Sasha was going to get him to break. 

“Think we will find it?” Anne whispered to Sasha. 

“I know we will.” Sasha looked back at Hop Pop out of the corner of her eye. He slumped further onto the bench.

They arrived in Wartwood and Hop Pop parked Bessie off to the side. Sasha spotted the first ‘suspect’ they were going to question. Sadie Croaker was walking with Archie.

“Mrs. Croaker,” Sasha walked over to her with Sprig by her side. 

“Ah dearie, do you need something?” Sasha dropped to her knees. 

“I need you to play along with Sprig and me.” She whispered. Mrs. Croaker had a look of confusion on her face. “Anne’s music box went missing. Hop Pop took it, and I am going to guilt him into telling us.” 

The old grey frog grinned toothily and winked. 

“Gotcha!” Sadie was totally in. Sasha always loved that old woman. Then she winked to Sprig to begin the act.

“Was it you, Mrs. Croaker, you stole Anne’s music box?” Sprig shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Mrs. Croaker. Anne flinched and looked worried for Mrs. Croaker. No way did she take her music. Hop Pop, however, looks like he has seen a ghost by how pale he became.

“You’ll never get the answers from me. You’ll have to torture me to get me talkin’!” Sasha had to hold in a snicker. “You hoaglins will have to fight me if you want any answers.”

“Okay kids, stop bothering Mrs. Croaker. I don’t think she took it.” Hop Pop steered Sprig as the boy struggled and gave her a dirty look.

“Don’t you get it, Hop Pop? Everyone is suspect here! We will question every single one of them .” Sprig looked back and pointed to his two eyes before pointing at Mrs. Croaker, and Hop Pop looked ready to pass out as he got even paler.

“Hehehee! I-I’m very sorry, Sadie. Have a good day!” He left in a hurry dragging his grandson.

“Whoo! Haven’t had a rush like that since my days as a spy.” Mrs. Croaker chuckled. “Thank you for that Sasha. Hope you eventually get that music box back for the weird girl.”

“I will. I won’t stop until he breaks.”

“It’s so nice of you to do this for her. She is a sweet girl. Weird but sweet. She will have to work hard to get the rest of the town’s respect but…She has mine.” Sasha smiled. At least Anne has one townsfolk’s respect. She started walking away. “And Sasha!” Sasha paused her steps when Sadie called her out and looked her way to see what she needed. But then, she sees the old frog woman smiling sadly but with hope.

“Don’t try and close your heart off completely. That weird girl is a sweet gal. I see the blossoming emotions between you and her. Open your heart to her, Sasha. You deserve love and I think…She deserves it too.”

Sasha stopped before turning to Mrs. Croaker fully and shockingly. She was already walking away. Sasha couldn’t believe her ears. Her head was confused. She looked over to see Anne still by Bessie. It hurt her to see Anne so visibly upset. But she had vowed to close her heart off completely.

She joined back up with her family to see Polly pointing a finger at her own teacher Terri. 

Terri was a lanky human with short blue hair and freckles. They are Polly’s science teacher at Wartwood. At the moment, the school was destroyed by the centipede, but Terri had a way of still teaching the kids by using the town square as a classroom.

“Whoa whoa whoa! Polly, what are you talking about?”

“Anne lost her music box. It was stolen and we are trying to find it.” 

“Polly, don’t be alienating us from the town.” Hop Pop grabbed Polly and dragged her away. “Sorry, Terri.” Hop Pop apologized and prayed that it wouldn't affect Polly’s grade.

“Tell us the TRUTH!” 

Sasha popped into view. “Sorry, Terri. But you’ve met Anne? She lost her music box.” Sasha dropped her voice down. “Hop Pop took it. We are mostly guilting him into telling us the truth.”

“Ah. I get it.” Terri looked over Sasha’s shoulder. “Hey Polly, I want to see your invention when you get a chance.”

“You got it teach.” Polly gave a thumbs up.

They went all around town, asking their closest friends and continued asking people about Anne’s music box. Sasha, Sprig, and Polly were quick to explain the situation before throwing the accusations around. All of them easily joined in and helped with their own acting skills.

“Maybe I cursed it to disappear.” Maddie laughed. It was enough that it spooked Sasha.

“Remind me to talk to Marcy about teaching you that evil laugh.”

“Good. I’m learning from the best.” Sasha slowly backed away.

Sasha finally sent Hop Pop to grab everyone some swamp slushies. Sprig jumped on a fence. 

“This town is a filthy, filthy cesspool.” He put his hands on his hips. Anne didn’t have the heart to laugh at the hairy caterpillar on his face. “No laws. No dignity.”

“Get that thing off your face.” Sasha ripped the caterpillar off of his face.

“Ow. That hurt.”

“You don’t know where that’s been.”

“I will not rest until we find Anne’s music box.” Sprig dramatically pointed towards the sky. “I will look under every nook and cranny until we find it.”

Anne finally collapsed onto the ground. 

“It has to be here. I don’t know what I would do without it. It means the world to me.”

“It’s all right, Anne.” Hop Pop came back and handed Anne her swamp slushy.

“Hey, everybody. Why the long face?” Lily came up to them.

“Hey, Lily. Anne’s music box disappeared, and we are trying to find it.”

“Was it you?” Sprig dramatically pointed. Sasha gently slapped the back of his head.

“It wasn’t Lily. I know Lily. She wouldn’t even touch it without asking first.” She didn’t want Lily to know that they were tricking Hop Pop to confess because if Lily knew…Well, let’s just say she had a scarier way of making Hop Pop beg for mercy. Sasha learned that the hard way when she was much younger.

“A music box? Oh!” She snapped her finger. “Hey, I think I saw something like that in Loggle’s shop.”

“Loggle?” Everyone shouted. Even Sasha was a little surprised by this news. She was so sure it was Hop Pop. But would Loggle even sneak into a home to steal something? Sure, he was weird. But not that weird. Right? 

Anne looked hopeful that they would find it.

“Yeah. Let’s go together. I need to pick some wood I ordered from him anyway. We kill two bugs with one stone.”

“Let’s go.” 

Sasha, Sprig, and Polly were sure it was Hop Pop since all the clues led to him. Have they been wrong? Did they accuse their Hop Pop wrongly?

They arrived at Loggle’s shop and saw the woodworker at the counter. There, sitting next to him was the music box. Sasha, Sprig, and Polly dropped their jaw, even Hop Pop was flabbergasted.

“MY MUSIC BOX!” Anne walked to the counter and picked it up.

“Yes sir. Isn’t it a beauty?” Anne huddled it close to her.

“Loggle, where in the world did you get that box?” Hop Pop asked.

“I made it.” Sasha could’ve sworn she heard glass shattering in the background. They looked at the music box in Anne’s arms. It had all the same designs in it. Then she noticed that the lid didn’t have the three gems and instead of a frog with an offering pose, it’s Loggle posed like the carved frog. “After you crazy kids came in with it, I had made extensive notes on the design before you bought it back.” Loggle pointed at Sasha. “I just finished making the first one of its kind. Pretty, ain’t she?”

Anne opened the lid. There was no music playing and Sasha noticed that the figurines were…of Loggle.

“Loggle, the fuck?” Sasha asked, pointing at the box. Anne’s face fell when she realized it wasn’t her box. She set it back down. 

“What? I need to make some sort of unique feature with it if I am going to sell it.”

“I’m so sorry to have bothered you! It is a pretty box.” Said Anne gloomily before exiting the store with her head bowed and walked away. 

Sasha watched Anne walk away. She felt something jab in her side, she had never seen her like this. Lily had hit her and nudged her towards Anne. 

“Go to her! She needs you right now. This music box clearly means a lot to her than I originally thought.” Lily whispered to her.

Sasha nodded. She shot one death glare at Hop Pop who had his back to her. He must have felt the glare because he shivered. Sasha followed Anne.

“Anne, wait up!” Anne turned around. She was crying again. Oh no, Sasha felt another sharp jab in her chest.

“Sasha, no one in town besides Loggle knew my box existed. Only you and the Plantars did. Please tell me it wasn’t you.”

“No. No.” Sasha grabbed Anne’s arms and held her close. “I would never. Sure, I was an ass towards it when you first stayed in my room during the whole basement fiasco. But Anne, I know how much it meant to you. I understand the sentimental value of items. My…The Pink Heron sword was a gift to me. It…Came from Darcy.” Anne looked at Sasha. It was that name again.

“So, I know how you feel, and I would be crushed if someone took my sword from me. I promise you that it wasn’t me. But I will get your music box back. I won’t rest until it is back with you.”

“Thank you, Sasha.” Anne smiled, touched by Sasha's willingness to keep that promise to find her music box for her and share other information about herself with her. 

She then pressed a quick kiss to Sasha’s scar. Sasha’s heart began hammering in her chest. “I have confidence in you.”

The Plantars waved goodbye to Lily as they set off for home. 

The ride was silent and solemn. No one said a thing. What could they say? They are waiting for Hop Pop to confess and the stubborn frog hasn't made a single sound during the ride and they are irritated while Anne hugs herself. 

Hop Pop could sense the heavy tension in the air, as three of his kids were giving him the nastiest-looking glare in the history of glares. He gulped.

“Sorry kids. Looks like we had no luck in finding Anne’s music box.” Hop Pop held onto the reins of Bessie. “Look, Anne, if it makes you feel better. I’ll buy you a new music box.”

Did he just say that!? Sasha slowly turned her head towards Hop Pop.

“I don’t want a new music box. I want my music box.”

“Anne, it was just a simple music box. Nothing less!” 

That was the last straw.

Anne glared heatedly at Hop Pop. He gulped when her eyes turned that electric blue. Bessie immediately froze and hid in her shell when she felt the wrath of the Spirit rising up.

Sasha quickly grabbed Polly and Sprig and hid them behind her. This is the first time she has seen her angry and it even scared Bessie. 

Is this it? Is Anne going to show her true colors?

“A simple music box?” Her hair then turned blue. “IT WASN'T A SIMPLE MUSIC BOX! IT'S THE ONLY THING I HAVE LEFT OF VALERIANA!” Everyone was shocked at her outburst. “It’s the only thing I have of her. She gave me that music box the day she gave me my name. She was my first real friend. No music box will ever replace it because she made it and gave it to me as a sign of our friendship.”

“Valeriana? As in the legendary first queen of Newtopia? THE Valeriana?” Sprig looked starstruck as if he wasn’t scared a second ago. 

“Valeriana was my friend. That music box means the world to me. I…can’t. I don’t. I don’t…” 

Anne was lost. Every image of Valeriana and the statues of her friend were gone. She had nothing else left of her friend but that box. Anne couldn’t stand the idea that someone in the Plantar family had taken it. She hated the idea that maybe Sasha did destroy it. But it wasn’t in town. It wasn’t in her basement.

It was gone! 

“I made this music box for you if you ever felt lonely or sad, know that this music box will be as if I’m with you, always!” 

She suddenly shot off the bench and flew away. She could barely hear the Plantars and Sasha call out to her.

Sasha watched as Anne flew before letting out the loudest, most inhuman growl anyone had ever heard. She focused her attention on Hop Pop, who was sweating bullets and had a large frown on his face. 

“It was you!” Sasha sneered as she pointed at Hop Pop. “Where is it?”

“Me?” Hop Pop stuttered. 

“We knew it was you all along. I found a hair and your slime print all over Anne’s side table. We even staged up this whole detective thing with everyone in Wartwood to play along to get you to confess! So, spill it! Where is it?”

Now, Hop Pop looked weary and defeated, but most of all, shameful.

“…It’s in Bessie’s barn.”

“Why would you take it, Hop Pop?” Sprig asked.

“Yeah, Hop Pop. Why? That’s just messed up.”

“The truth is, I had trouble sleeping. I haven’t had a decent good night's sleep in two days. Then, I remembered Anne’s music box and I thought of borrowing it to help me get some rest. Anne was already asleep so I couldn’t ask her, so I snuck in the middle of the night to bring it up to my room. I promised to give it back before the crack of dawn, but the soothing music was like magic. I finally had a great night's sleep. Before I knew it, I slept all morning, and I had the music box in my arms. Then Anne was screaming, and I panicked. I rushed out of the house and hid the music box in the hay. I never meant for it to go this far…I never knew how much it means so much to her!”

“Frog damn it! Hop Pop.” Sasha leapt up. “I’m going to find Anne. You get back to the house and get her music box.” Sasha jumped off the bench and was already racing towards where she had seen Anne go.

“I’m coming with you, Sasha.” Sprig leaped onto Sasha’s shoulders. 

Anne sat down where she wasn’t even sure where she was. Tears have dried up on her face. She leaned against the tree, wondering why. Why are Valeriana’s statues gone? Where are the paintings of her glory days? 

Did everyone forget her as well just like they’ve forgotten her? The thought of that hurt her still.

“Anne!” She looked behind her to see Sasha and Sprig crashing through the woods. “Anne! There you are.” 

Sasha stared at Anne’s tear-streaked face. It hurt Sasha’s heart again. She slowly approached Anne like she was a wounded animal. Sprig hopped forward before hopping in Anne’s arms. Anne just closed her eyes as she held Sprig close.

“Just to be clear. It wasn’t Sasha.” Sprig told her. 

Anne smiled. Anne looked over at Sasha. She was just standing there, looking off to the side. Anne set Sprig down, walked over to Sasha, and took her hands. Sasha, this time, gently pulled her into a hug. At first, Sasha was surprised at how easily Anne’s body fit into her arms. Sort of like a missing puzzle piece she never knew that was missing in the first place.

“Anne, let's go home, okay?” Sprig tugged on her hands. 

“Okay.” 

Anne allowed Sasha and Sprig to drag her back to the Plantar home. When she arrived, Hop Pop was standing there with his music box in his hands. Anne gasped before ripping it out of his hands. She hugged it tight to her.

“I’m sorry, Anne.” Hop Pop kept his head. “I never meant for all of this to go this far. I only took it to get some good night’s sleep. As soon as I heard the song, I fell asleep instantly and…I’m sorry. I panicked when you screamed, and I just didn’t want you to be mad at me. But I still managed to make you upset.”

“I wish you had told me. I don’t mind sharing my music with you, with any of you. I got scared when I found it was gone. The one and only piece of my friend I have. This box means the world to me.”

“I know that now. Especially since you told me who gave it to you. I don't know what I can do to make it up to you.” Anne looked at Hop Pop and she noticed that the poor elder frog hadn’t had any good rest lately, and he was desperate to sleep. He looked truly sorry and brimming with self-reproach for allowing it to happen.

Anne begins to smile and comes to everyone's shock and awe. Anne puts the music box on the floor and engulfs Hop Pop in a tender embrace. 

“Huh? A-Anne?” 

“It’s all right, Hop Pop! I forgive you.”

And like a broken dam. Hop Pop burst into an ugly cry and Anne patted his back.

Sasha had an idea. She was going to need to talk to Lily tomorrow. But first, she had something else in mind to do here.

Anne sat in her bed with Domino already curled up beside her, sound asleep. Anne was holding her music box in her arms. Domino’s head perked when the door opened. She let out a meow when she spotted Sasha.

“Hey, Anne.” Sasha waved, holding a book in one arm. “How are you feeling?” 

Sasha could see Anne was feeling better now. She nodded with a smile of relief. Now, that her music box is back where it belongs, and promised to give it to Hop Pop later tonight to help him sleep.

“That’s good! Mind if I sit down?” Anne patted the spot next to her. Domino leaped down and bumped her head into Sasha’s stomach, rubbing her head against her torso, and asking to pet her. Sasha complied with her demand before she sat down next to Anne.

“What’s with the book? Are you reading me a story?” Anne pointed at the book in her hands. 

“I wanted to show you something.” Sasha flipped to a specific page. On the page was a painting of the first queen of Newtopia. Anne’s fingers traced the image of Valeriana. She hasn’t seen it in a long, long time.

“Valeriana. She looks so young here.” 

“Here.” Sasha ripped the page out. She knew there wasn’t anything else on the page besides Valeriana’s image. “She was your friend. You should have at least an image of her.”

Anne stared at the image of Valeriana, smiling. “Thank you, Sasha.”

“Also, I knew it was Hop Pop.” Sasha finally confessed.

“How long did you know?”

“Since the moment the box went missing. I found Hop Pop’s hair. I just didn’t know why. I was dragging it because I wanted him to confess. I’m sorry.”

“You tried to do the right thing. I appreciate that.”

“Still, I’m sorry.” Sasha pulled her glove off and held her scarred hand out. “Friends?”

Anne shook the offered hand as if she was offered a whole world to her. Anne is squealing and pulling Sasha into a hug. Sasha kept trying to tell herself that it was to appease the spirit. But deep down, she didn’t think being friends with Anne was so bad.

The next morning, Sasha traveled to Caroline’s house and knocked on the door. She sighed when Lily answered.

“Hey Sasha, what’s up?” 

“Hey, can I ask you a favor? Could you do a painting for me?” Sasha didn’t say Anne’s name but Lily smiled like she knew exactly who it was for. “Fine, it’s for her. Happy?”

“Yes! So, what’s the painting about?”

“I need it done of Valeriana, the First Queen.”

“Valeriana? That’s sort of an interesting painting to be doing for your crush.” Sasha was red on her face, redder than the tomato monster.

“She’s not my crush! She is simply a friend.”

“For now.” Lily laughed. “I hope you have an easier time confessing to her than compared to me and Marmar.”

“I’m…NOT…in love with her. She is a friend! Nothing more! Nothing less! You know that I close my heart to love!” Sasha yelled, making Lily’s face drop.

“I know. I didn’t mean…I’m sorry.”

“No! Sorry, I didn’t mean to yell at you.”

Lily hugged her friend tightly. Sasha returned the hug.

“I just want the best for you Sasha. Especially after the shitty start-up life you’ve dealt with.”

“So long as I still have you and Marcy, Grime, and the Plantars. My life is good now.”

“Okay. I’ll get started on your painting. I’ll even give you the friendship discount.” Lily jabbed her side gently. Sasha smiled.

“Thanks, Lily. And I think Anne will love it.”

As Sasha drove Bessie away, she couldn’t stop thinking of Lily’s words.

“ME! Nuh uh! A relationship between me and Anne will never work. I’m going to turn her into King Andrias and collect the reward for her capture. Then why does my damn heart flip around her when she smiles? I should hate her. Scorn her name to the heavens. But then why does it feel wrong to think Anne is evil? Why does it feel so wrong?” Sasha shook her head. “No. Stay strong, Sasha. Focus on your resolve. She will be out of your hair soon and you won’t be confused by your strange reactions around Anne.” Sasha leaned back into Bessie’s shell. “Then why does it feel so wrong to be doing that to Anne when she hasn’t done anything evil since I…Dragged her here!”

Sasha covered her eyes when she briefly wondered what Anne’s lips tasted like.

“Ugh! You stupid heart.”

Chapter Text

“TOADIE!” A little teal frog came running into the mayor’s office and spotted Mayor Toadstool looking out the window, with his arms crossed and resting on his back. By the sound of his mayor’s booming sac, the toad doesn’t sound happy.

Mayor Toadstool is having the worst election of the year. This year, his vote had dropped drastically. The citizens have started to complain and rebel against him since the increase in taxes has become outrageous. 

The only thing is that he has his job but only because Toadstool and Toadie managed to hide the clues of the extra tax money they hoarded for themselves. But everyone from Toad Tower is becoming quite restless with their demands of taxes either being short or delayed. Now with Sasha as Lieutenant, she will investigate the matter by using any method she can to find where Toadstool has hidden the money.

Toadstool let out an annoying growl with his eyes on the window, glaring at Sasha who is staying close to the weird girl with her.

Toadie is worried for his mayor. Knowing full well and hearing that growl indicates that he is seething at Sasha again. Sasha seems to be getting close to the truth about the stolen tax money and he has a dreaded feeling that there’s a pretty good chance that Toadstool will lose his election in the next month.

Toadie cleared his throat and spoke up, “Yes, sir?”

“How are my poll numbers doing?”

“Um! Should I be h-honest, sir?” He fiddled with his fingers.

“Yes, Toadie!”

“Then, it’s terrible, sir!” And just as he predicted, Toadstool is cursing every single curse word in the world. Good thing no one from outside of the building heard that.

“Ugh! If this keeps up, then I won't be elected mayor. Scamming taxes just isn’t cutting it. I need a grander scheme to earn us some money. Something that will really reel in the votes. Suggestion, Toadie?”

“Well, I have a couple of suggestions. We could finally fix the school.”

Toadstool scoffed rather loudly. “No way, do you know how much it costs? Since when has knowledge become so expensive?” 

“Well, how about building a nice park? People love parks!” Toadstool is giving him a deadpan expression, “Toadie, I’m running for mayor, not a charity!”

“But sir. These suggestions will help improve your image as a generous and humble mayor . That’s the only way you would be able to win back their votes!”

Yes, Toadstool wanted those votes, but he would not spend a single copper for anything. 

“C’mon, Toadie. There has got to be something I can be able to do. Something that’s free ?”

Toadie sighed and checked the list again. 

“Well, it’s not much but the residents want a better theater built and they want their own theater group to provide them entertainment.”

“Theater? Hmm.” Toadstool scratches his chin, thinking. Wartwood already has a theater which is good that he doesn’t have to spend his money on building one. But the problem is to find a theater group to perform a play. 

Hiring experienced actors and actresses is way too pricey. So, he could make the town folks volunteer. But thanks to Sasha at the potluck, she embarrassed him which caused his poll numbers to drop. No one would want to volunteer for him. But he could get someone to make them volunteer. 

Toadstool then noticed the weird girl walking around town. She seemed to be ignored by the citizens despite her attempts to befriend the residents. She managed to earn a wave from Mrs. Croaker and from Carol as well.

Toadstool rubbed his chin as he stared at the curly-haired girl trying so hard to befriend them. Then, it gave him an idea. A very brilliant idea.

“Toadie, I think I found our solution. They want me to be generous and humble! Well, I will turn the town weirdo into a star! That will surely win me back some polls, I-I mean win back the people’s love! Toadie, let’s set up a theater and make an announcement at the town square.” 

He smiled as he watched the town weirdo soon get led away by Sasha Waybright. “The weird girl will be my one-way ticket to get my popularity back!” 

Hop Pop was helping Anne cook breakfast when he noticed the girl hadn’t said a word since she got back home, and he knew why.

It broke the old frog’s heart to see the Spirit struggling to befriend the folks. He was glad she was able to win over Mrs. Croaker, and Mrs. Amery, who prefers to be called Carol. The two ladies of Wartwood already liked Anne so far. 

However, the rest of Wartwood still treated Anne as an outcast in the village and made zero progress with them. Even the other children, but not Maddie, would avoid Anne.

Hop Pop begins to comfort the ailing girl, “Hey, Anne. Don’t let them get you down. I know they can be…A bit stubborn but they’ll come around sooner than you think.” He earned from a hum but a sad hum while she stirred the pot. 

Well, Hop Pop can’t have that. 

“Well, I know one way to cheer you up!” Anne noticed right away that Hop Pop was inching closer, drawing his hands, and wiggling his fingers. Not sure what he was going to do but she was too late to escape his clutches. 

Hop Pop begins to poke her side, making her squeal in surprise. “I poke you! I poke you! I poke you again!” Hop Pop successfully made Anne laugh, getting her to giggle like crazy.

Sasha heard the sound of laughter coming from the kitchen with Anne playfully protesting to Hop Pop to stop.

She smirked. Of course, Hop Pop would use his poking fingers to get anyone to laugh. He always did that to cheer Sprig and Polly up whenever they were down. He even did for her too. It was a sure fire way to get anyone to laugh.

Anne’s laughter died down and she looked down at the old frog, smiling in gratitude. “Thanks, Hop Pop!” 

“Always, my dear.”

There was a knock on the door as everyone had finished breakfast. Hop Pop opened the door to see Marcy standing there with a couple of bags in her arms. Hop Pop spied Joe Sparrow behind her. 

“Marcy? What a surprise! What are you doing here? I thought you’d be helping Lady Olivia with the kingdom.” He lets the girl in and closes the door.

“Hey, Hop Pop. Hope you don’t mind if I bunk with you guys for a bit.”

“What happened?”

“Ooh! It’s nothing, I was kicked out of the castle.” She made no big deal out of it. But it wasn’t a big deal to Marcy.

But Anne gasped when she came to the door to see who was standing at the door and heard what Marcy had said. 

“Marcy! Oh no, why? What happened?” Anne guided her in. Anne wanted to hug her new friend. But Marcy seemed okay about being kicked out of her house. Which Anne thought was strange. 

“Oh, nothing serious. Olivia said I was spending too much time in my room. I said I needed to get out more. That Andrias would be disappointed with me if he saw me spending my days with my nose stuck in a book. So, she told me to go to Wartwood. Told me I needed a break. So here I am.”

“You can gladly stay here, Marcy. You are particularly family.” 

“Thanks, Hop Pop.” Marcy dropped her bags down. “And I will sleep on the couch. I know Anne has the basement and I don’t want to disturb her.” But Anne won’t have that.

“It’s not fair for you to sleep on a coach. I’m sure there’s enough space for you to make a bed, right, Hop Pop?” Hop Pop nodded, agreeing with Anne. “Don’t worry about it, Marcy. We have an extra mattress for you to sleep on, some covers, and pillows. It’s not like the bed from the castle but it’s comfy.” 

“Don’t sweat it, HP! I have slept on harder surfaces as a Night Ranger. It will be like old times when I used to stay here more often.”

“Marmar!” Sasha came down because she heard Marcy’s voice. “What the hell are you doing here?” Sasha leaned over the balcony when she spotted her childhood friend. 

“Been kicked out of the castle until Olivia tells me that I come back.” She summarized her explanation and began to remove her cape and she didn’t see Sasha smirking.

“Do you know Lily is in Wartwood?” Marcy froze and she began to stammer and sweat nervously.

“Li-Li-Li- Lily’s here?” Marcy’s voice cracked as she pulled her shirt away from her neck. “Oh boy.” And before any of them could predict, Marcy took a step back and tripped by some invisible force, making her fall on her back. 

“Marcy! Are you okay?” Anne pondered all the stars in the galaxy how Marcy was so clumsy. 

Then, Sasha began to snort and then chortle as she pointed at Marcy, “Oh man, you turn into a complete klutz whenever Lily is mentioned!” 

“NOT COOL, DUDE!”

Hop Pop could only shake his head at their silliness of the two. Those two never change. But he wouldn’t have them any other way.

“Marcy can stay in my room, Hop Pop. It will be like the sleepovers we used to do.” That got Anne’s attention. 

“What’s a sleepover?” Sasha slowly smiled.

“Oh, we are going to be showing you pretty soon.”

After settling the newest guest in, the family and Marcy set out to the Plantar stand to sell some vegetables. Anne was trying again to make the Wartwood citizens like her. But so far, she is not having any luck with them.

“Man Sashy, she is so desperate for their friendship.” Marcy leaned against the counter as Hop Pop put her in charge of finances. He always trusts Marcy since she is a mathematical genius. 

“Yeah, it’s hard seeing her struggle.” She watches and then scowls when another frog just went past Anne, ignoring her completely and Anne’s shoulders dropped.

“I’m…Beginning to think that Anne isn’t evil.” Sasha finally confessed. She turned to her oldest friend. Marcy was smiling and Sasha didn’t see any malice in it. “She even mentioned that she was good friends with Valeriana.”

“WAIT! WHAAT?! Valeriana? The first queen of Amphibia? That,” Marcy dropped her voice. “Sasha, that changes everything. In the books, they hated each other. They were heated rivals, but they were instead good friends.  What do you think it’s going on?” Sasha was about to open her mouth when a familiar voice interrupted them.

“Hey. Are you guys selling vegetables or just slacking off?” Marcy froze when she turned and spotted Lily. “I’m surprised to see you here, Marcy!” Marcy could swear that she saw Lily sparkling with radiance.

“Li-Li-Lily. Hi. Um…yeah. I’m vegetables. I mean, I sell vegetables.” Marcy awkwardly laughed. Her face was red when Lily started laughing. 

“Oh Marcy, you are absolutely adorable.”

“I’m cute!” Sasha was almost swearing that she could hear steam coming from Marcy’s ears.

“Of course, you are.” 

“All right, you two. Stop flirting in front of the vegetables. They are very impressionable.” Lily punched Sasha playfully while Marcy just kept awkwardly laughing.

“So why are you here?”

“Olivia kicked me out of the castle for now because I was spending so much time in my room. Sorry I had been avoiding you for a bit.”

“It’s okay. At least I can see you now.” Sasha rolled her eyes at the faces these two were making at each other. 

“Folks of Wartwood!” Everyone turned to see Mayor Toadstool standing on the cart. He always liked to be above everyone. “I have an exciting announcement to make.”

Everyone gathered around the toad while mumbling. They were curious but also cautious with the toad, predicting either another raise in taxes or one of his schemes to bribe the citizens. Anne joined in with Sasha, Marcy, Lily, and the Plantars.

“Hey, that’s Mayor Toadstool from the Potluck! What do you think he’s announcing?”

“Most likely up to no good! This guy is the worst mayor in Wartwood history. He never cared about anything except himself and money. All of us in Toad Tower hate him because he always makes up excuses about why our taxes are delayed or short. Not to mention, he never uses his money to fix this town.” Anne looked at the toad with an unreadable frown. 

“Why would he do that?”

“Because he is a greedy, son of a bullfrog. My advice for you, Anne. You stay hell away from him. This toad is nothing but trouble! I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Sasha’s right.” Said Lily, “This guy is a royal pain in the ass. Grandma always complains about him in her letters.” Lily sent a raspberry to him. Anne chuckled. “And I’ve seen some of his greed for my own.”

“Simmer down, simmer down now! After much consideration, I’m here to declare I will be opening up a theater in Wartwood!”

Everyone cheered while the girls and the Plantars just stared at Toadstool with cynical looks on their faces except Anne who just looked genuinely surprised by his announcement.

“Okay, what the hell is he playing at?” Sasha asked. 

“Something not good,” Marcy responded back. 

“And we will be opening up our first theater here next week. And I have already selected our first director. Hopediah Plantar!” Everyone gasped. Hop Pop screamed before fainting. Anne raced to his side and helped him up. “And our star of the show will be, none other than our town weirdo!” He pointed with his wooden cane and the gasp had grown louder.

Everyone turned to Anne. Sasha’s eyes nearly popped out of her skull. She was stunned. Even Anne was shocked.

“Me?” She pointed to herself.

“Yes, you girl. Now, everyone, I hope you will all be excited when our first play has its first grand opening.” Toadstool walked over to the still-surprised Anne. “Now, weird girl.”

“Her name is Anne Boonchuy!” Sasha, Lily, and Marcy all three shouted at the same time. Toadstool sweated a bit.

“Right, sorry. Anne Boonchuy, mind if you and Hopediah join me for a stroll? It will be very productive in setting up the play.” He opened his arm to show off his beautiful, fancy snail with a fancy seat.

“Oh! of course!” Hop Pop was revived and grabbed Anne’s arm and dragged her away. Anne looked back to Sasha, signaling her for help. But Anne along with Hop Pop already took off, leaving the rest with dubious looks.

“Okay, can someone tell me what the heck was that?” Sprig shouted.

“I am not sure Sprig. I am not sure.” Sasha shook her head.

“If Toadstool is involved, it isn’t good.” Lily shook her head. She turned to her friends. “I’m worried about Anne. He is going to use her.”

“Whatever he’s planning we’ll stop him.” Sasha pushed off the counter.

“Count me in.” Marcy’s klutziness made her flip over the counter. Both Sasha and Lily shouted Marcy’s name. She just gave them a thumbs up. “I'm okay.”

Hop Pop is so busy admiring how soft these cushions are that he is not paying any attention to Toadstool talking to Anne, and the Spirit turned shy and wary of the toad since Sasha had warned her about him.

“So, Miss Anne, have you had any acting experience?” Toadstool leaned back into his chair with a drink in his hand. 

“Honestly, no. I have seen some plays but never acted.”

“That's perfectly fine. Hopediah will help you become the star you deserve to be.” Hop Pop is fiddling with some of the buttons until out pops a tray filled with mini sandwiches and a fizzy drink, making the frog go oh. 

“A star?”

“A star in our little theater. Your name in lights. Your popularity would soar through the roof. You wouldn’t be able to walk through the town without someone hounding you.”

“That sounds…Dangerous.” It made Toadstool chuckle.

“They will shower you in love. Listen, Anne, I will improve your reputation within the town, and you will help me stay popular with the townsfolk. Deal?” Anne paused. She still wasn’t sure. Sasha’s warning was still ringing alarmingly in her ears. 

Toadstool frowned when he was not getting the answers from her but when he glanced at Hop Pop shoving those mini sandwiches, which got him an idea. “Come on, dear. I’m sure you don’t want to upset your dear old Hopediah, would you?” That got her attention.

She looked at Hop Pop and he saw he was enjoying himself and she remembered how he cheered her up when she was down. He always cheered  her up. She wanted to return the favor.

“I…No, I don’t.”

“I can even…cast Sasha Waybright as your love interest in the play.” Toadstool wiggled his eyebrows. Anne blushed. “What do you say, girl? Help your old man out?” He held out his hand for Anne to accept.

“Okay.” She made up her mind.

Anne shook his hand.

“THE DAMN PLAY IS ABOUT WHAT!” Sasha shouted. She was seething. 

“It’s about a knight and her princess.” Hop Pop seemed to not pick up on the angry Sasha. “A knight; that’s you Sasha, has fallen in love with a princess, who is Anne. But the secret relationship is found out and the knight is exiled by the king. A monster kidnaps the princess. Despite her exile, the knight races to save her beloved.”

“Damn it, Hop Pop. I’m a soldier, not an actress.”

“And Mayor Toadstool has picked you as our main star! Can you believe it?” Sasha pinches her nose in frustration, “Hop Pop, Toadstool hates me! So yeah, I find this very HARD to believe.” 

But Hop Pop brushed it off, “Look, no one fits the role of the exiled knight better than you! Anne will be your co-star and our main actor. Marcy, you will be my stagehand. Lily, I need your help with the set pieces along with Polly.”

“Yes, Hop Pop.” 

“Sprig, you will be the music.”

“Wait! Wait! Toadstool is buying for the building but not funding any of the play itself?” Sasha was getting angrier and angrier. She knew Toadstool was using Anne and Hop Pop, and she had a sneaky suspicion about why. “Hop Pop, you know he is a greedy bastard.”

“Oh, I know Sasha. I know. But this is my big break. I can finally reach for the stars.”

Sasha sighed. She knew Hop Pop always had a dream of being an actor or a director. This is his dream, and he’s doing those big eyes of his. Frog damn it, is Sprig teaching everyone with those eyes?!

“Ugh. Fine. I’ll do it.”

“Great! Let’s get to practice. Here’s a scene that we will practice with first.”

“Wait! If you’re the director, then who is playing the king?” Sprig asked.

“Oh, an old friend and college roommate of mine and he’s coming over soon.” As soon as Hop Pop said that there was a knock on the door. Marcy opened the door. Anne noticed an older gentleman, who looked eerily similar to Hop Pop if he was a human. 

“Hopediah!” The old man smiled. Both of them hugged. “Congratulations you old frog. I knew you could do it.”

“Humphrey. I’m glad you could make it. I would like you to meet my other star of our show. Anne Boonchuy, and an official Plantar!” Hop Pop pointed to Anne. She waved, a little nervous at his reaction. 

“A pleasure, dear. Hopediah has told me so much about you. Why, you are even more lovelier in person!” That made Anne blush as he took her hand. Then he turned to Sasha. She smiled at him. “And Sasha! Look at you. You sprouted up like a tree. Why, I remember when you were barely taller than me.”

“It’s good to see you again, Humphrey.” She smirked softly. She always liked the old man. 

“Now, let's start the show.”

“You will never be allowed in my kingdom ever again!” Humphrey shouted. “You are hereby exiled from this kingdom.”

“Father, no!” Sasha had to admit that Anne’s acting was pretty good. “I love her.” 

Sasha’s brain paused. She couldn’t fathom hearing Anne say those words. She shook her head to get rid of those thoughts. 

Sprig shot a wade of parchment at her head to get Sasha to start working again.

“Your majesty, you can’t. I have been your loyal knight.” Sasha put no emotion into her reading. She knew this was for Hop Pop but she just couldn’t put her heart into it due to Toadstool. Every toad and human in the tower despised the greedy toad. Grime complained about the lack of proper taxes from Wartwood and long suspected Toadstool had a hand in the missing money. Sasha did too and tried to find evidence of his schemes. She had trouble proving it. “Your majesty, I ask you to reconsider. Please. I love her.”

Anne flinched at her monotone. 

“She is terrible!” Toadstool yelled. Hop Pop was sitting in the director’s chair, and he looked embarrassed. That hurt Sasha. “Hopediah, I think it would be best if you replace her.”

Anne looked at Toadstool with a look of fury on her face.

“What! No. I know my Sasha. She is a great actress. She just needs…A moment. Sasha, a word, please.” Hop Pop walked away with Sasha in tow backstage. “Sasha, what the hell was that back there? When we used to do plays together, you were amazing!”

“Sorry Hop Pop. I just can’t put my heart into it. If it was just for you, then I would be the best. You know that toad is just using you two.”

“Oh, I know. But I’m not doing it for me.” That surprises the lieutenant, “I’m doing it for Anne. Look at her.” Hop Pop pulled the curtain back to reveal Anne reading her lines off to Humphrey. Sasha felt her heart clench at Anne’s smile. “She is having fun. She’s a good girl but none of the people in Wartwood can see that. This play could be the only way for everyone to like her. Do it for her.”

Sasha sighed. “Fine. I’ll do it for her.”

“That’s my girl. Now get out there and show us your stuff.”

Sasha walked out onto the stage. She looked to Toadstool who was frowning before focusing her attention on Anne who was smiling at her. 

“Let’s have Sasha try one more time. Just to show that she is the best person for it.”

Anne grabbed Sasha’s arm. 

“Please, Sasha. I don’t want anyone else but you to be my co-star. I feel more comfortable around you.” She whispered to her innocently, but her innocence did something weird in Sasha’s heart.

“Fine. But she fails one more time and she is out of here.”

Sasha rolled her shoulders back and prepared herself to deliver her greatest performance.

“You will never be allowed in my kingdom ever again!” Humphrey was great in rolling into his role. “You will be exiled from this kingdom.”

“Father, no! I love her.”

“Your majesty, you can’t!” Sasha put her whole soul into this act. “I have been your loyal knight! Your majesty, I ask you to reconsider.” Sasha begged. “Please. I…love her.” 

Sasha could see a little bit of a blush appear on Anne’s cheeks. Anne ran into Sasha’s arms and settled her head on her shoulders. Sasha knew it was part of the play, but she couldn’t help but feel…Another weird thing in her chest and it’s stronger. She wasn’t sure what it was, but her heart fluttered as she held Anne close. 

“Father, please reconsider. She is my world.”

“Never! Guards, remove that traitor from my daughter and remove her from my kingdom this instant.”

Some of the townsfolk, dressed as guards, forced Sasha and Anne apart. Sasha struggled against them.

“Ophelia!” Sasha screamed. 

“Samantha!” Anne held her hand out towards the disappearing Sasha behind the curtain.

“Cut!” Hop Pop shouted. He wiped a tear away.

Toadstool stood up and clapped rather slowly and with a blank expression. 

“Well, I do dare say that Miss Sasha is an excellent actress.” Hop Pop was going to thank him when Toadstool’s face morphed into delight when he said, “But Miss Anne is another thing. Why I’m positive that she is natural at this acting. I’ll be heading to my office and be sure to practice for your big day!” 

Once Toadstool is sure that he is out of hearing range and out of their sight. He let his smirk appear on his face and leaned down towards Toadie. “Toadie, get in touch with my contacts in Ribbetville. He will want to see Miss Anne in action. She may be the perfect person for his plays there. We could craft a deal with them and win me some votes.”

“Yes, sir.”

Sasha narrowed her eyes at Toadstool when he left with Toadie as she peered at him through the curtains. She didn’t hear what he said but she knew it wasn’t good. Anne suddenly threw her arms around Sasha’s neck, nearly making them fall backward.

“Sasha, that was amazing. You were incredible back there.”

“Oh! Thanks, Anne.”

“Bravo, Sasha. That was amazing. Even my heart was fluttering with the emotion you put out.” Humphrey walked through the curtain.  

“Thanks for the boat of confidence, Humphrey.”

“It reminds me of the days when you helped me and Hopediah put on those plays when you were little.”

“You did plays when you were little?” Anne asked.

“Why yes, she did, and she was an amazing actress. She would have made a great actress. But she is an amazing soldier, so the world got a great gift out of it either way.” Sasha blushed at his words.

“Thanks, Humphrey.”

“Let’s return tomorrow and continue working on the play. We have a lot of work ahead of us. See you ladies tomorrow.” Humphrey tipped his hat off.

The group made their way back to the Plantar house along with Lily.

“Oh. We should warn you guys about the kill-a-moth living with us.” Sasha said nonchalantly as she drove Bessie home. 

“The kill-a-WHAT!” Marcy and Lily were shocked.  

“How in the hell have you been hiding a kill-a-moth?” Marcy shouted.

“Domino is Anne’s friend. She is chill around the Plantars. She won’t hurt you. You may get tossed to the ground from her hugs, but she is harmless.”

When they arrived back home right on cue, Domino appeared from above the roof of the house and spotted them. Then she spotted Sasha and dived in to welcome her. 

Sasha sensed her upcoming approach. “No! Wait, Domino! ANNNNEEE!!!” But Domino didn’t obey her command and Anne was too late to stop Domino as the Kill-a-Moth trapped Sasha on the ground as she mercilessly licked her face.

Marcy and Lily were jaw-dropped by the sight of a killer predator acting like some kind of pet and giving Sasha many kisses.

“GET OFF ME, YOU OVERGROWN FURBALL! No ‘EW’ stop it, stop it! Hehe, Anne!” 

Anne is busy giggling until she has enough and begins to pull Domino off Sasha. 

“C’mon, girl! Go, now!” and Domino obeyed her momma and left.

Marcy and Lily are amazed that such a powerful predator obeyed Anne’s command without hesitation. It’s simply mind-blowing. Until Lily asked with a cute pout and stars in her eyes. 

“…Can I pet her?” Marcy snapped her neck and was about to protest when Anne told her she could. 

And Lily squealed, “Oh man, Papa and father are not going to believe this when I tell them!” She runs off to find Domino with Marcy chasing after her, just to make sure she’s going to be okay.

Lily worked on sketching out some of the sets for Hop Pop. The girls crowded in the living room with Domino. 

“How’s the sketches coming along Lily?” Sasha asked. She was ruffling Domino’s fur.

“Good so far. I even have the designs for your outfits. We have most of the costumes and Humphrey is the size of a frog so that saves us some money.”

“I think I saw a couple of old set pieces that we can use too. Polly and I could easily rig those up.” Marcy smiled, crossing her arms. “Splash a little new paint on them.”

“Lily, it’s getting late. How about you stay the night with us?” Hop Pop walked downstairs.

“I wouldn’t bother you, Hop Pop.”

“It’s fine. You are particularly family. I have extra covers and pillows. I’ve already told your grandma that you were at my house.”

“Thank you, Hop Pop.”

“Girls, you can all sleep in the living room. Just try not to stay up too late. We have an early start tomorrow. Night girls.”

“Night, Hop Pop.”

Sasha watched over the group as they slept. Something still didn’t sit right with her about the whole play. Especially when it comes to Toadstool. She didn’t trust him at all. She didn’t want Anne hurt thanks to his greediness.

Anne was nervous. It was the opening day of the play. Everything has gone smoothly so far. It was either a good sign or something that could go terribly wrong.

“You okay, Anne? You looked nervous?” Lily asked as she helped Anne get her costume ready. 

“Yeah. Just really nervous.” She answered, truthfully.

“First play stage fright. Happens to everyone. You should have seen the first play Marcy, Sasha and I put on. It was terrible. But we had fun.” She didn’t want to tell her that Marcy’s klutziness had somehow managed to set the curtains on fire. How did it happen? No one will ever know. Thankfully, Darcy had been there to dose the fire out. 

“How long have you been friends with Sasha and Marcy?”

“Marcy and I were friends when we were four. We fought off some bullies together and have remained friends since. Then Sasha came into our friend group. At first, she was rough. Refusing to really talk much. She had a lot of pain in her eyes. She’s so much different now than when I first met her. I…I was afraid she was going to hurt Marcy. But I soon realized she was misunderstood and hurting, and just wanted love and friends. Now, we three are inseparable.”

“Sasha sounds like she had a lot happen in her past.” Lily smiled sadly. 

“She has. But it’s not my place to tell you her story. She needs to tell you that herself.”

“Anne! You are on in five minutes.” Hop Pop popped his head into the dressing room.

“We are done.” Lily turned her head to Anne. “Now, as I have heard all the theater nerds say, break a leg.”

“Thanks.” Anne inhaled before exhaling.

She walked out to where the rest of the actors were standing. When she caught sight of Sasha in her costume, her breath felt like it was sucked away. She had only seen Sasha in her armor one time back when she had first met her in that throne room. She looked dashing in it, with her blonde hair down from its usual ponytail. Her hair cascaded down her shoulders and her bangs were parted. Sasha turned her head, and she had a look that Anne couldn’t describe. She just stared at Anne.

“You…Look beautiful in that dress,” Sasha whispered. “It matches you perfectly.” Anne looked at the costume. It was a light blue, like the color of her hair when her powers activated.

“Thank you. You look quite dashing in your outfit.” Sasha blushed. 

“We begin our tale in a land far away. In this land, a little kingdom sits, undisturbed by time or war. A princess sits in a gazebo, waiting for her love. Her knight from a common rank.” 

“Sounds like our cue,” Sasha whispered. 

She held her hand out and guided Anne to her seat. The opening scene was meant to introduce the audience to Ophelia and Samantha and their love. The curtain opened and Sasha focused all her attention on Anne. She was doing this for both Hop Pop and Anne. 

She is doing this for Anne to get the people to like her.

“Ophelia, my love.” Sasha instantly went into her role. She was on one knee as Anne sat on a bench. “I am afraid we cannot hide our relationship for much longer. We must confess to your father.”

“Oh, Samantha. I want to but you know my father. He is a stubborn man. And I am meant to marry High Prince Stephen.” Anne as Ophelia began to tear up and Sasha was certain that she believed that they were real tears.

“To hell with his majesty! We will run away together if we must. I cannot bear to spend a single day of my life without you in it. Coming back from a battle to your warm embrace is all I live for.” 

Sasha stood up and took Anne’s face. It was the moment they had been practicing. Sasha was meant to hide the kiss with her body, so she didn’t have to actually kiss Anne. But Sasha paused as she stared at those red lips, already done up with red lipstick. That damned thought entered her mind again. 

“ I wonder what Anne’s lips taste like?”

“Sasha?” Anne whispered. That got Sasha out of her trance. She tilted her head to allow her hair to curtain around their faces. “You, okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

Sasha couldn’t shake that thought.

Thankfully, the entire play went off without a hitch. There was a resending cheer from the crowd. Hop Pop was seen crying as the roses were thrown at him along with a huge bouquet. As they meandered backstage, Sasha watched Anne from afar. She looked happy that the townsfolk were once calling her name out and not a weird girl. Maybe this was the boost Anne needed. Anne paused when she turned her head to Sasha. She raced over, grabbed Sasha’s hand and dragged her away.

“They are saying they want an encore. What’s an encore?” 

“It means they want another show from us.”

“They want an encore. Sasha, we were amazing out there. You were amazing out there. I’m not a weird girl anymore. They actually like me! They called me by my name.”

Hop Pop came over to Anne and handed her the bouquet.

“Here Anne. I think this belongs to you. You did great out there, kiddo.”

Anne took the bouquet and kissed his cheek.

Sasha looked out to the audience and spotted a rather distinguished toad next to Toadstool. She could instantly tell he came from Ribbetville with gold lining around his outfit.

“What the hell is a toad from Ribbetville doing here?” Sasha asked herself.

“Yeah. I noticed him too.” Marcy came up beside her. “You think Toadstool brought him here?”

“He had to be. There is no other reason for a toad like that to be here in a sleepy town like Wartwood.”

“But why?”

“I’m not sure.” Sasha looked over to the happy Anne who had been dragged onto the stage by Hop Pop where the crowd was all screaming her name. “But if it has anything to do with Anne then he has another thing coming.” She scowled even further when she saw them whispering to each other.

Everyone was chanting Anne’s name. Anne finally felt like she was a member of the town. She could barely walk through the town afterward without someone asking for her autograph. She finally had earned their respect. They loved her like they once had long ago. But then why did it feel so wrong? Anne wasn’t sure why she felt odd about the circumstance. She should be happy. Everyone loved her. They respected her. They called her by her name and not the weird girl. 

But it’s not the same. That’s when she figured it out. They loved her because of her performance in the play, not as a person. That hurt her.

She plopped onto the steps of the town statue.

“That doesn’t look like the face of someone who just got the applause and love of an entire town?” Lily came up beside her.

“It doesn’t feel right Lily. I should be happy. They finally respected me and called me by my name. But…It doesn’t feel right.”

“Then, why did you do the play in the first place?”

“Because it's for Hop Pop. I did it for him. He looked so happy to be doing the play that I didn’t want to disappoint him.” She looks down in sadness. “He did so much for me when he took me in and not because he let me stay but because he made me a Plantar and he always cheers me up whenever I’m sad. So, I want to give back for everything he’s done for me.”

Lily is honestly touched by how much this girl went up and beyond for the family who have become an important part of her life for just the month she stayed with them.

How could anyone in this town turn a blind eye to see how sweet Anne is?

“You know, my grandma had made some tea and cupcakes for me and Mrs. Croaker, and they invited you to join them. Wanna come?” Anne’s face brightened up like the sun and accepted her invitation. 

Humphrey was humming to himself as he walked down the hallways of the manor. Toadstool had invited him as a special guest for his wonderful performance and also because a toad from Ribbitvale asked him to meet him. 

Humphrey was looking for the mayor’s office until he found it. But he paused when he heard voices through a cracked door. What had caught his attention was the name they said.

“Miss Anne Boonchuy will be coming with me back to Ribbetville as promised. She will be a fine addition to our theater group. I was moved to tears by her acting. Now, the blonde girl. You sure she isn’t a part of the contract as well? There was some real chemistry between her and Anne.”

“I’m sure Sasha Waybright isn’t a part of the contract. She isn’t an actress but a soldier from Toad Tower. She just did it because she has a close relationship with the director of the play.”

“Darn. A fine shame. It would have been wonderful to have her along with us. But no matter. Anne is perfect. We could even be talking about touring Amphibia with her.”

“I do appreciate the patronage.”

“Not a problem, Toadstool. That money will do well to help your election cause. Now I think the group agreed to one more performance. This will cement the idea of whether Anne is a good actress or not.”

Humphrey gasped.

“I have to tell Anne and Hopediah.” Humphrey was quick to run off to the Plantar home.

“SAY WHAT!” Hop Pop was outraged. Humphrey just ran to his house and told him what he had just overheard. 

“Toadstool is using Anne and is working on a deal to have her go to Ribbetville for their theater group. If they succeed, Anne will tour all of Amphibia. And all to fill Mayor Toadstool’s pockets.”

“He can’t do that. Anne is a Plantar through and through. He’s not taking her!” Hop Pop crossed his arms.

“I will kill him.” Sasha snarled. Anne was taken aback by that. She was a little happy that Sasha was so willing to stand up for her. “I refuse to let him take Anne away.”

“If only to collect my award. Maybe? Or maybe it’s because she is my friend.” Sasha thought to herself.

“We need to stop Toadstool’s plan somehow.” Marcy came up beside them. 

“We sabotaged his performance.” Hop Pop shouted. Sasha was shocked to hear him say that.

“What? But Hop Pop, this was your dream.”

“I know Sasha. But if it means keeping Anne safe from Toadstool’s greed, then I am all for it.” Hop Pop turned to Anne. “I’m sorry, Anne. I knew he was using you, but I did it for you to get these stubborn townsfolk to like you but looks like I made it worse.”

“Aww, Hop Pop. I have to confess too, I was doing it for you, Hop Pop. Mayor Toadstool told me that I would break your heart if I didn’t go through with this.”

“Then he was using both of you. It’s agreed. We knock Toadstool down a peg or two.” Said Sasha as she fisted her hand and thumped on her opened palm. “I am going to enjoy this.”

“What’s the plan?” Humphrey wanted in.

Everyone gathered in a huddle and began whispering.

“Why are we whispering!? It's just us!” Polly popped out of the huddle and yelled.

It was the second performance of the play, and the plan was in motion. Everyone was set to fib their lines and just make absolute fools of themselves. They were going to show that Anne was the worst choice possible. Sasha needed Anne around just so she could keep an eye on her. She needed to make sure Anne wasn’t evil. Just to be extra sure. That’s the lie Sasha was trying to tell herself but she wasn’t even sure of that lie at this point.

Sasha peeked out through the curtain to see Toadstool and the Ribbetville toad.

She smiled before turning towards Anne.

“Ready to make an absolute fool of yourself in front of the townsfolk? You will probably lose all the reputation you just built up with them.”

“That’s fine. I can always try to earn it again.”

“Spoken like a true Plantar.” She smiled, proudly.

“As long as I have you, Marcy, Lily, and the Plantars by my side, I can do anything.” Sasha blushed, looking away from the Spirit. “Thank you for remaining by my side.”

“Yeah. No problem. Let’s do this thing.” Her sincerity felt like a piercing wound from the Doom Tree, only this time, it was through her chest.

The curtain opened up with no one sitting on the bench. Anne quickly ran out onto the stage as she had been late for her cue. Sasha decided a deadpan reading would be the best way to get rid of that toad.

“Ophelia, my love,” Sasha said with the least amount of emotion in her voice, she held in her snort when Toadstool choked up his drink. “I am afraid we cannot hide our relationship for much longer. We must confess to your father.”

“Boooo.” Marcy shouted from the rafters. “You stink.” She tossed a rotten squish at her head. Lily was chuckling from the rafters next to Marcy. It was enough that it made Marcy turn bright red. 

Toadstool is biting his nails and sweating like crazy, and the Ribbitvale toad is scowling at Toadstool. 

“What is this?! Are you making fun of me?” Toadstool was quick to deny it and said he had nothing to do with this, but the Ribbitvale toad found it hard to believe him.

The entire play was a mess. At one point, even though Frobo was not in the play, he came out on stage and then spilled oil all over the stage and everyone was sliding around clumsily.

They even got Domino in the plan as a monster to kidnap the princess, and she was a natural in making messes.

She kept licking Sasha when she was trapped on the stage. She leapt everywhere and broke everything, and she accidentally wrapped Marcy and Lily up in a ribbon. When Marcy was pressed nose to nose with Lily, her entire face erupted in a blush. Her flight and fighting instincts kicked in, forcing her to try and step away from her. However, it forced them to trip and fall down, crashing through the curtains. 

“Marcy! Lily!” Sasha ripped the fabric to help pull them out and untangle them. “You two, okay?”

“Yeah, we are fine.” Marcy helped Lily stand up. She continued holding onto her, without realizing it only because she was so worried if she got hurt. “You okay, Lily?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Lily reached out and tenderly wiped some blood from Marcy’s forehead.

“What the hell is the matter with you all?” Toadstool jumped on stage. “You are making a mess of the play that I worked so hard to put on. Now how am I supposed to convince these idiots’ to vote for me?” 

Sasha smirked as she held a microphone close to him. He gasped before slowly turning around. Everyone in Wartwood held rotten vegetables in their hands. 

“Now hold on everyone. I meant these idiots.” He pointed at Sasha and the gang but that only made the citizens begin their aim.  

Sasha set her hand on his shoulder. “Tough luck, Toadstool. You are going to struggle really hard to earn everyone’s respect again.” She slapped him so hard that he nearly fell down.

“GET HIM!” Someone shouted from the crowd. Toadstool grabbed Toadie and used him as a frog shield as he ran away. 

Sasha and Marcy just laughed as they watched Toadstool run away. 

The next day, everyone had gone back to normal. Anne was still called the weird girl again. Sasha felt bad for Anne and felt bad for Hop Pop. 

“Hey, Hop Pop, how are you?” Sprig asked as they worked at the stand. 

“I feel…Good. I was only doing it because of Anne. She looked so happy and excited to do the play.” Sasha looked over at where Anne was. She was trying so hard to have the residents to even talk to her.

“And she was doing it for you, Hop Pop.” Sprig said.

“I know! We were both doing it for the other’s happiness. She is a true Plantar.”

“Yeah. I guess she is.” Sasha kept staring at Anne. She must have felt the stare because she turned around to look at Sasha. She smiled and waved at them. “Maybe we are wrong. Maybe Anne isn’t the evil spirit we think she was.” Sasha said it out loud.

“Hopediah Plantar.” Mrs. Croaker and Mrs. Amrey are walking over.

“Sadie and Caroline. I’m sorry about last night.”

“Last night? Last night was the best night I have ever had. I don’t think I ever laughed as hard as I did last night. You got a gift, Hopediah. We were talking to the town, and we would like to continue this theater production with you at the helm. Anne was a great star, and I sensed some great chemistry between our main star and Miss Waybright over there.” Mrs. Croaker pointed her cane at Sasha. Sasha glanced away, trying to hide her blush. 

“What do you say, Hopediah? Want to continue a monthly play for Wartwood?” Said Caroline, urging him to say yes.

“I think…Maybe Humphrey would be the best man for the job. And I’ll ask Anne if she wants to keep acting but just for the fun of it.” Both ladies could only smile, liking the idea.

“I think it sounds like a good deal.”

Sasha sat in bed, reading a book based on the play that they had just performed. Anne peeked her head in. 

“Hey, Sasha, I see you are still up.” Sasha set her book down. 

“What’s wrong Anne?”

“Oh! Nothing, I just wanted to say good night.” Sasha knew there was more to this. She patted the bed for Anne to sit down next to her. Anne sat down.

“You were pretty good as an actress for a first-timer.”

“Thank you. I used to observe these plays they used to put on back in Valeriana’s time. They were amazing. The emotions the actors put into their performances. The sets were so grand. It was breathtaking. For a moment, I was back there watching them again. I had fun even if we won’t be doing it again.”

“I…Wouldn’t be opposed to doing another play with you. It had been a while since I even did one. I had fun with you.”

“I wouldn’t do one without you. I’m glad we knew of Toadstool’s plan. Because of you, Marcy, Lily, Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop, this is starting to feel like home to me.” Sasha looked at Anne in shock. “I feel happy that I could be here with you. I probably would have found a way to return back to you all if I was taken with the Ribbetville toad.”

She is a great actress, Sasha. She is pretending to be nice to you all before she reveals her true colors. She is the evil spirit. 

But Anne is being sincere here. She has been nothing but sincere the whole time. I…am beginning to generally believe Anne isn’t evil. Our history books have to be wrong. How can someone so beautiful and kind be this evil person who wants nothing but death and destruction? 

Wait, did I call Anne beautiful and kind?

Sasha felt a hand touch her scarred cheek. She looked at Anne, who held a genuine look of concern in those chocolate-brown eyes. She looked at those red lips. That accursed thought entered her head again. 

“You okay, Sasha?”

“Y-yeah. I’m okay. I’m good.”

“I should let you sleep. It was a long day.” Anne got up to leave. Sasha got up with her. “Have a good night, Sasha.”

“Good night, Anne.”

Anne leaned up and pressed a brief kiss to Sasha’s scarred cheek. Sasha watched Anne walk away, touching where Anne’s lips had touched her skin. She had that feeling in her chest. She didn’t feel as repulsed by it as she had in the past.

“Maybe I am changing for Anne too.”

Chapter Text

It was another normal day at the Plantar farm. Well, they hoped this day would be a normal day and not another whacky adventure.

Sasha was carrying sacks of fertilizer on her shoulders. The muscles in her arms were so defined that Anne was trying to cover her face with her hair to hide her blush before Sasha noticed. She tried to get back on planting but it’s becoming hard when she gets distracted. 

Marcy and Lily were helping on the farm as well.

Marcy stood up and wiped the sweat from her eyebrow after plowing the field. Even when she wore a sleeveless shirt the heat was unbearable, but she could handle a little sunlight. She looked at Lily, whose face was bright red from the sun despite wearing a sun hat. Worried about her, she quietly whistled to Joe. When she got the sparrow’s attention, she signaled him to help Lily.

As Lily takes out the weeds. Suddenly, a shadow fell over her head.

“Thanks, Joe.” Lily patted the sparrow as he chirped, happy to help whoever. He was holding his wing up to give her shade from the blazing sun. She did, however, glance to the side to where Marcy was, and Marcy was quick to turn away before she could see her blush. But Lily saw it and smirked knowingly and softly with a small blush of her own.

“Hey, Anne. How are you holding up?” Sasha walked over to Anne. She was bent down in the dirt as she coaxed a stubborn seed to sprout up.

“This little seedling does not want to listen. Come on, little guy.” Anne whispered to her. Sasha dropped to knees. One to cover Anne up from Lily’s eyes as they had yet to tell her the truth and to see what Anne was doing. She gasped when she noticed Anne’s hands glow blue and a tiny little plant sprouted from the dirt.

“There we are. You are one stubborn, little seedling!” Anne cooed.

“Wow!” Sasha looked at Anne in amazement. “You continue to amaze me every day.”

Anne blushed bashfully and looked away, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear.

“Hey, Hop Pop!” Sprig leaped over to his grandfather with eyes wide open that he had a good idea for him. “Maybe we should get some shade around the farm to allow some of the workers something to cool off.”

“Hup bup bup! You know the rules. Suggestion barrel is over there.” Hop Pop pointed to a barrel that was close to the farm.

Anne looked to where Hop Pop had pointed at. She saw a big, wooden barrel with a rectangle opening on the side. The barrel looked like it had seen a better day. The woods looked old, it sprouted some mushrooms, and there are flies hovering over the barrel.

She wondered what the suggestion barrel was for. So, she tapped Sasha’s arm. Sasha leaned her head down to Anne’s level.

“What is the suggestion barrel?”

“You can write suggestions onto a piece of paper for ways to improve the farm.”

That perked Anne up, “Oh! That’s actually pretty neat!” But the look on Sasha’s face says otherwise.

“Yeah, but underneath the barrel leads to a fire pit.” She whispered lowly before glancing at Sprig as he wrote his suggestion and slipped into the barrel.

“What!?” That took a dark turn. Sasha quickly shushed her.

“Not so loud! Sprig and Polly don’t know about it except me! I rather not burst their bubbles that Hop Pop is destroying their suggestions.”

“That is brutal! But why would he do that?”

“Yeah, it is! But Hop Pop is so set in his old ways, that it’s kind of hard to persuade him. Also, because most of the suggestions are bad ideas that could ruin the farm!” Sasha shrugged. Hop Pop did make some sense, but the old frog didn’t even bother to read them.

“Have you put anything in the suggestion barrel?”

“Yep. A few things. One time, I asked for a pool. I have been waiting for days and Hop Pop didn’t say anything about my suggestions or if he had read my suggestion. So, I decided to sneak outside one night to look through the barrel.”

“Oh! So, that's how you found out about a fire pit.” Sasha nodded.

“Yep, I realized that Hop Pop was set in his ways and wasn’t going to change. I never told him that I knew the truth. Still pretty bumped not getting a pool, though.”

“I kind of feel bad for them. They are looking forward to something and it won’t happen.” Anne looked at Hop Pop as he worked while barking orders. He is a traditional frog, but he should be more open-minded and listen to other people’s ideas. His old way kind of crushes anything new.

“Yeah. But trust me on this, Anne. That old frog will never change even if the world stops spinning!”

A loud whistle alerted everyone on the farm, and they looked up to see a large cardinal landed on the road next to the farm and a toad was on top of the cardinal. Anne noticed an armor plate on his chest that bore a symbol she was now familiar with. Sasha’s capes had the same symbols embroidered onto them.

The armored toad came from Toad Tower.

“That’s a toad from the South Toad Tower. What does he want?” Sasha mumbled out loud.

The toad hopped off the bird. He walked over to Sasha and saluted to her as Sasha stood up tall and nodded once to the toad. “Lieutenant Sasha! I have a message for you from Captain Grime. He is requesting you and Master Marcy’s presence at the Tower.”

Sasha looked over to Marcy and nodded. “Tell Captain Grime we will be there soon. We will take Joe Sparrow.”

“Yes, Lieutenant.” He saluted as Sasha saluted back, and then the toad jumped on the bird and flew away.

“So, you have to leave?” Anne asked. She really didn’t want Sasha to get up and leave the farm forever. She was beginning to feel that connection with Sasha.

“I have to. But I will be back.” Sasha softly smiled at Anne and grabbed her shoulder. “I promise. Besides, I am trusting you to hold down the fort while I’m gone.” She winked, earning a giggle from Anne.

“I won’t let you down, Lieutenant.” Anne copied what the toad soldier did and saluted. That got a small chuckle out of Sasha.

“You are dismissed, soldier.” Sasha and Anne laughed. “I better pack a few things.”

Sasha and Marcy were getting Joe Sparrow, and they were ready to set off.

Lily walked over to Marcy. “Well, looks like you will be leaving soon. Take care and say hi to Grimesy for me!” Lily smiled.

“Yeah, I will, and ‘um’ we won’t be gone for long…” Marcy turned to Lily. She blushed when Lily turned to her. “So…Um…Be hot. I-I mean…BE-BE GOOD!”

Lily chuckled before pecking Marcy on the cheek, and Marcy was steaming like a tea kettle. She was mumbling random words until Sasha picked her up and carried her like a board with an impassive look. She tossed Marcy onto Joe Sparrow, who just shook his head at his master. Sasha hopped in front of Marcy, who was still mumbling, steaming, and blushing red as a cherry.

“We will be back before you know it. Sprig and Polly, try not to burn down the farm.”

“That sounds like a challenge.” Polly gave her thumbs. Sasha rolled her eyes.

Anne watched as Sasha flew away in Joe Sparrow. Domino let out a small cry of sadness for the blonde as she flew away as the Kill-a-Moth was going to miss her. Anne scratched her fur to comfort her.

“She will be back before you know it, Domino.”

The house seemed quiet without Sasha and Marcy in it, and Lily had gone home after helping on the farm as she didn’t want to keep her grandma waiting.

The next day was spent on the farm, helping pull any pesky weeds. Anne was surprised to see Hop Pop relaxing on a chair. He usually helped out on the farm.

As Sprig was on his hands and knees pulling out the weeds, he looked over to see a few of the cowapillars they had on the farm, eating the weeds. That gave Sprig a brilliant idea.

“Hop Pop, I just had a great suggestion.”

“You know the rules, boy. Into the suggestion barrel.”

Sprig ran over to the barrel and began writing his suggestion down.

“Suggestion #89...” Anne walked up behind Sprig with Polly.

“You really think he reads these?” Polly asked, sounding skeptical. The idea of training cowapillars to eat weeds sounds bizarre and these creatures are good at making cheese, not designed to train.

“Oh, come on guys. Have a little more faith in Hop Pop.” Sprig said. He stuck his hand in the slot of the barrel to drop his suggestion in, but his hand got stuck in. He tugged on it. “Oops! Hand’s stuck.” He tugged hard enough that it made the barrel topple over, revealing the fire pit in the hole. “What the…”

Sprig’s suggestion fell into the fire pit and burnt up.

“Huh. Whoa. A fire pit! That’s kind of dark for Hop Pop.”

“Why Hop Pop?! Whhhhhy?!” Sprig fell to his knees in despair.

“Because your suggestions were ridiculous! You can’t just dig swimming pools anywhere. It attracts pests, we can’t throw a party on the farm, and we most certainly can't bring a clown into the farm. Polly is scared to death of them, remember!”

Polly remembered the horror of this painted fool, smiling. Always smiling, it gave her chills.

“I want to erase them from existence!” She mumbled shakingly.  

“Running a farm ain’t easy, kids.” Hop Pop added.

“Maybe it isn’t. But if I were in charge, I’d listen to other people’s suggestions, not burn them!”

“You! Run the farm? You would run it into the ground.”

“Oh! Would I?” Sprig enlarged his vocal sac into Hop Pop’s face, pushing him.

“Whoa! Hey now.”

“Is that an official challenge?” Polly shouted. Anne crossed her arms and pressed her hand against her forehead.

“Oh no. This isn’t going to be good.” Anne whispered.

Sprig ran past Hop Pop to climb up the large bell that held a bell. He jumped and grabbed the rope hanging it from the bell. He hollered as he rang the bell.

“Sprig Plantar, you have the rung the Plantar family challenge bell!” Polly jumped onto the fence and raised her arms wide. “What is your challenge?”

“I wish to replace Hop Pop and run the farm my way.” Sprig pointed at Hop Pop. Hop Pop crossed his arms.

“Hop Pop, do you accept this challenge?”

“I do formally accept the challenge.”

“This isn’t going to be good.” Anne inhaled.

Anne sat on a log as both Sprig and Hop Pop prepared for the challenge. Her eyes darted between the two as they smeared mud on their bodies.

“What the heck is going on here?”

“The Plantar Family Challenge, Anne. Where the winner claims the prize. It's a battle of manhood…But they basically push each other until someone falls off the lily pad. It’s dumb but also really fun to watch.”

“So has Sprig ever won a challenge?”

“He has challenged Hop Pop a total of forty times.”

“So, no.” Anne sighed.

“Enough talk! Time to fight!” Sprig yelled as he raced towards Hop Pop.

Hop Pop and Sprig clashed. Anne wanted to say that it was a splendid battle to relay to Sasha later, but she would be lying. Both Hop Pop and Sprig were just pushing on each other. Anne slumped in her seat as she watched.

“How often do they do this? This seems pretty consistent.”

“Almost every month.”

“Wow!”

Hop Pop picked Sprig up and tossed him onto the lily pad. Sprig rushed into Hop Pop’s body and tried to push him. Hop Pop inflated his vocal sac and knocked Sprig back into the ground. He jumped onto Sprig and held him down.

“Give it up, boy. I’ve got the experience and upper body strength.”

“Yeah well…I’ve got the moral high ground!”

“Wait what?”

Sprig used his distraction to push his feet into Hop Pop’s stomach and kicked him, sending Hop Pop flying through the air and landing in the mud outside of the lily pad.

Sprig blinked slowly to see if it was not a dream.

Polly and Anne hung their mouths down after witnessing a shocking revelation.

“I…I won?” Sprig was in shock.

“Sprig won?” Anne was shocked.

“Sprig won!” Polly rang the bell and leaped over to Sprig and helped him up. “Whoot Whoot! YOU’RE HEAD OF THE FARM, SPRIG!”

“I won! I WON! THE FARM IS MINE TO RULE!!!”

Anne didn’t know where to cheer for her friend or be disappointed with Hop Pop. She looked over to see Hop Pop sulking away. Anne held her hand to him.

“Don’t worry about me, Anne. This old frog has seen it all. My time is up.” Hop Pop patted her hand before walking into the tall grass. Anne could hear both Sprig and Polly chanting in the background.

“Sprig is head of the farm! Sprig is head of the farm!”

“Something tells me this will not end well!”

Polly and Sprig burst through the door and were still continuing their chants of ‘Sprig is head of the farm’. Sprig bought the board in again.

“Okay. Enough with the chanting…Okay, maybe one more.”

“Sprig! Sprig! Sprig!”

“That’s enough. Now, this farm is going to be a farm that listens. So, the first order of business is that there are no bad suggestions.”

“Can we finally get a swimming pool? Just like how Sasha always wanted.” Polly was practically bouncing off the walls.

“Sure.”

“Ohh! Maybe we could even have a dance party!”

“Let’s have one right now!”

Frobo walked over to Hop Pop’s vinyl record and set a record. Music begins playing. Sprig and Polly begin dancing to the music. Anne just stood off to the side as she watched them with uncertainty. She hoped Hop Pop was okay and she prayed that Sasha would return soon. She figured Sasha could set Sprig straight. For now, she would have to try her best to steer Sprig in the right direction as well.

Sprig soon hoisted a flag that read ‘A Farm That Listens’. He saluted the flag along with Polly. Domino tilted her head at the sight.

“I know, girl. This is all so nuts. I just hope Sprig and Polly know what they’re doing. I hope Hop Pop is doing okay.” Then, she hears Sprig talking.

“So, let’s first work on making that pool. Imagine Sasha’s face when she comes back. She is going to be thrilled.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t. Look Sprig, I know you mean well but maybe you should learn from Hop Pop’s experience. I know his old way can be a bit brutal, but he knew what he was doing!” Anne chimed in.

“Come on Anne. Hop Pop burned our suggestion and didn’t even bother to read even one of them. Hop Pop’s way of running a farm was nothing but tyranny! This is our chance to make the farm ours that listens. Just give it a chance, please.” Sprig looked at her with those big eyes. Anne sighed.

“Fine, but if things get out of hand would you promise to listen to my suggestion?”

Sprig hugged her legs in appreciation of giving him a chance, “Of course, Anne. No suggestion is a bad suggestion!”

“Now let’s get started on that pool.” Sprig and Polly ran off carrying shovels.

Anne followed the two to prevent them from harming themselves any further. She could see they were already in the process of digging a hole in the dirt. “I’m so excited to be able to run this farm my way.”

Anne helped them dig the hole and watched as Sprig filled it with water.

Soon, Anne was riding Bessie to have her lift a mushroom to allow some shade to cover everyone. The only good idea that Anne agreed with. Anne looked over to see Sprig hammering a sign into the side of the house. It mentioned something about a party patio. Soon, the wall collapsed. Sprig just shrugged and walked away.

Anne was coaxing some cowapillars to the field so she could train them to eat the weeds.

“Come on little buddies. If there is one thing I can do, then it is to train you to eat weeds.” The cowapillars followed her lead and sniffed at the weeds she held in her hands. “Yeah, come on. This is what you need to eat. Not the vegetables we have worked so hard to plant.”

The cowapillars sniffed the weeds before beginning to eat them. Anne pumped her fist in excitement. At least she got one suggestion out of the way.

Anne plopped down on the couch as she wiped her forehead from the sweat. Sprig suddenly hopped in front of her and revealed his blueprints to her. Anne could make out a pool and a slide that led into the pool.

“Soak it in, Anne. This is what good leadership looks like.” Sprig puffed his chest out.

“You are doing a good job, Sprig.” Which Anne was telling the truth. Sprig was doing really good. For now. “Which is surprising! But is anyone else worried about Hop Pop? I haven’t seen him since we got back.”

“Eh, he’s probably off licking his wounds.”

Hop Pop walked through a Wartwood cemetery where he passed by a skull that resembled his head, even including gray hair patches on the sides of his head. He sadly sighed.

“Might as well get comfortable here with all the other frogs nobody needs anymore.” He looked down to see a little blue beetle struggling on its back. Their little legs wiggled as he tried to move his body. Hop Pop helped the beetle out by flipping them onto their belly. “There you go, little buddy. Now, where was I? Oh right…Crippling sadness.” Hop Pop begins walking away. But he soon heard a scuttling sound behind him. He looked behind him to see that little blue beetle following him. “Hmmmm? Well now, you’re more loyal than my own two grandkids. You know, I think I’m going to call you…Jeremy. I wonder how Sasha is doing right now?”

Sasha and Marcy sat down at the South Toad Tower. Sasha marched through the halls as the toads and humans saluted her.

When she arrived at Grime’s office, she saluted him. Marcy did the same.

“Captain Grime, I heard you had a request to see Master Marcy and me.” They both stand up straight, no slouching, and with their hands crossed on their backs.

“I did. I’m glad you two arrived in such a timely manner! The first on the agenda is that I want full updates on Miss Anne, and I have things to discuss about her as well. But first, old Nathaniel is having his retirement party.” Grime pulled out two party hats out of his desk. He handed them to the girls. “Let’s have that party then we will discuss some things about what to do concerning Anne. NOW, LET’S PARTY! WOOO!!!”

Sasha let out a whoop as she followed Grime. She liked the old toad and was excited to see him finally retiring. Marcy followed behind. She figured there was a party as she had seen the cake on the tables when she walked in.

All the toads and humans celebrated the old toad for his many years of service.

“Oh boy. I am getting hungry.” Sprig said as he crashed on the couch. Anne smiled.

“Good thing I just started dinner.”

“Another great suggestion, Anne. Oh. Maybe we could have pizza.”

“I’ve got dinner already planned out. But you could put in a suggestion for dinner tomorrow.”

“As long as it doesn’t lead into a fire pit.”

“You can put suggestions for dinner in my little box right here.” Anne set a box down on the table.

Anne walked back into the kitchen and began cooking. Once dinner was done, Sprig and Polly suggested to play a game together. At least the evening was normal, just without Sasha, Marcy, and Hop Pop. But Anne was beginning to dread the morning as she wasn’t sure what other suggestions Sprig would make to the farm better.

A week soon passed after Sprig became head of the farm and it was a disaster.

Anne tried so hard to reverse the effects of Sprig’s terrible ideas. It was becoming an ecological disaster. The crops weren’t growing like they should and if one did, it came out rotten. Sprig was using the wrong fertilizer.

It was hurting Anne to see the land the way it was. She was overworking herself to try and maintain the land. She was barely getting any sleep as she would slip out in the middle of the night and try to salvage the fields, only being able to sleep for an hour. She was beginning to look like Sasha when the basement flooded. There were deep bags under her eyes and her magic was beginning to suffer from her exhaustion.

“Hiya, Anne. You, okay?” Sprig hopped over to Anne. She was jolted awake by his voice and fell from the pole she was leaning against. “Wow! You kind of look like when Sasha didn’t get enough sleep.” Anne glanced over at him and glared. Sprig could’ve sworn he saw lightning flashes behind Anne, making Sprig gulp. “Whoa! That is a nasty glare.”

“Sprig, this farm is A MESS! We don’t know anything about farming. At least you don’t. It has been a week now and the farm is getting worse by the day. So, here’s my suggestion, we need to get Hop Pop back.” Then, Anne could’ve sworn she heard something like glass shattering, and Sprig frowned.

“That is a terrible suggestion!” He said it as if it was plain and simple, and Anne’s eye twitched.

“What happened to no suggestions are bad suggestions!”

“Well, that one is a BAD suggestion! Hop Pop was a tyrant!”

“A tyrant who knew how to run a farm! Sprig, there are some things that you don’t know. Things take time and experience.”

“I can do this, Anne. There are just a few kinks to work out. I mean, look at Sasha. She was made a lieutenant in no time.”

“Yeah! But how many years did she spend training to get to where she is now? Look Sprig, I love you. But you have gone too far. There is no food in the house. The crops are rotten. You have mosquitoes infesting the pool. I have tried to reverse the effects. But I can’t do it if you continue this path. Soon, the farm will be ruined. What then?”

“I can do this! And I don’t need you acting like my mom!” Anne froze. “Now, I am going to work on training the cowapillars. You can go to the stores and stock up on groceries, and I suggest you come up with a good suggestion.”

Sprig hopped away. Anne just stared ahead. She couldn’t believe what she had just heard. Sprig yelled at her and even broke a promise about no bad suggestions, and he didn’t listen to her.

Sprig is now a tyrant AND a hypocrite. Anne collapsed on the soft ground. Feeling exhausted and muttering to herself. “I have no idea how to buy anything.”

Anne rapidly stood up. “I need Hop Pop. I have to find him.”  Anne looked to see Polly tapping her foot. “Polly, listen. I know you like fun and everything but-”

“Oh, I know. We need Hop Pop like yesterday. Sure, it was cool at first but when you nearly get eaten by a mosquito, then it’s time we need to get Hop Pop back.”

“Let’s go, little sister.” They paused when they saw Joe Sparrow land. Sasha was quick to jump off the bird and race over to them followed by Marcy and Lily. The look on Sasha’s face is stricken with horror. Everywhere she turned, rotten disaster was on every corner of the farm, and Sasha was losing it.

“WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO THE FARM!?” Sasha looked at the two for an explanation. She has only been gone a week and she comes back to see a farm turned into a horrifying nightmare. Anne walked forward before nearly collapsing in the mud. Sasha was quick to catch Anne and allowed her to lean against her. “WHOA!!! You look just like me when I was exhausted. What happened?”

“SPRIG HAS GONE MAD WITH POWER!” Polly shouted, answering Sasha for Anne.

“What? Sprig?!” Sasha asked.

“Sprig challenged Hop Pop in a Plantar Family Challenge and he won!”

“Sprig? OUR Sprig won the challenge!!!”  Sasha, Marcy, and Lily were in disbelief.

“Yes, and now the farm is in terrible shape.” Now, Anne spoke with exhaustion in her tone. Something that Sasha doesn’t normally see in Anne. She looks awful with black bags under her eyes, her skin looks pale to Sasha, and the leaves and twigs in her hair are wilting?! “I’m sorry, Sasha. I’ve tried! I tried to help to keep the farm in good shape, but I couldn’t on my own. My powers aren’t enough.” Anne briefly forgot Lily was standing there.

“Powers?” Lily inquired confusedly.

Marcy flinched and quickly covered up the slip up with a quick lie. “S-she meant by low in stamina! Hehe.”  

“It’s okay! It’s not your fault. I shouldn’t have left you on your own like that. I didn’t even know this could happen. Don’t worry, we’re going to set things right! Come on, Anne. Let’s go find Hop Pop together.” Sasha continued to hang on to Anne. Sasha turned to Marcy and Lily. “Listen, you two go to Sprig and distract him. Anne, Polly, and I are going to find Hop Pop. He’ll know what to do!” They took off to find the old frog. They hope they’ll convince him to come back.

The girls arrived at the cemetery where Sasha and Polly knew their grandpa wanted to finally rest.

Hop Pop was always so dramatic.

They spotted Hop Pop wearing a fur cape wrapped around his body. He was surrounded by a bunch of little beetles of different colors.

“There he is!” Sasha pointed to him.

“Hop Pop!” Anne raced to him.

“Oh, Anne. Sasha, I see you girls are here. Have you come to scavenge for food? It’s going to be a long winter.” All the beetles climbed onto Hop Pop. “More bodies mean more warmth for everyone.” Their days couldn’t get any whackier.

“Please tell me this isn’t some weird cult thingy.” Sasha waved her finger at the sight. Hop Pop laughed.

“Oh no, Sasha. This is my new family. I realized that my time was up. Here I am appreciated more for my insight.”

“Hop Pop! Sprig is destroying the farm.” Sasha pointed out. “I just got back, and everything went to hell.”

“Hop Pop, please. You need to come back. You need to set things right. I’m sorry for not understanding but I get it now! Farming isn’t easy. Please, come back!” Polly begged her grandfather to come back home and make everything right but to her shock, Hop Pop shook his head with a calm smile.

“Oh, sweet Polly, I am happier here than when I was at the farm.”

“Hop Pop, stop being so fucking stubborn.” Sasha stepped forward. Anne held her hand. Sasha just nodded her head and allowed Anne to take care of the situation.

“Hop Pop, you were appreciated at the farm. But Sprig is a kid. He is a good kid, but he needs to have someone show they are listening to him. Sprig was hurt when you burned his suggestions when you burned all of their suggestions.” Said Anne as she spread her arm to Sasha and Polly looking away, and the orange frog could see that their feelings were hurt.

“You could at least listen to our suggestions. Maybe it won’t work but at least communicate to us why it won’t work. Look at the beetles. They are a community. They teach equality and listening. Something you could learn from them.”

Hop Pop looked over at the beetles and then at Jermey. He could see the beetle nodded his round head that he agreed with the Spirit. He sighed.

“You are right, Anne. I need to listen better. I’m sorry. And I’m sorry, Sasha, Polly! For burning your suggestions.”

“It’s okay, Hop Pop. I figured that out a long time ago, and Anne is right about communications. Sprig and Polly are very smart. Some of their suggestions are pretty good to improve the farm.”

Hop Pop smiled with pride, “I am proud of you all!” Then he sighs, “But how will I get to my farm? Look, girls, I’m not as young as I used to be!” Anne expected he would say that. So, it’s time to bring out the big gun.

“Sprig is sleeping in your bed.” Anne pointed out.

“He WHAT!” Hop Pop screeched. “That’s it. I am taking back the farm. Jeremy! Beetle boys. Let’s fly!”

All the beetles latched onto Hop Pop. Their wings fluttered before taking off, carrying Hop Pop into the air. Anne, Polly, and Sasha just stared as they blinked at the scene.

“So, is that normal?” Sasha asked, still confused.

“Not normally.”

“It has to be a cult thing with those beetles. Come on. Let’s meet up with Hop Pop.”

Sprig was pacing back and forth as he observed Marcy and Lily. They both were sweating, both hoping that Sasha and Anne would come back soon with Hop Pop.

“Where are the rest of those ungrateful brats?”

“Wow, he really sounds like Hop Pop.” Marcy whispered to Lily.

Suddenly, Hop Pop landed in front of Sprig with a bunch of beetles surrounding him. Polly, Sasha, and Anne came running up behind Marcy and Lily.

“I have returned!”

“I don’t believe it!” He spotted Anne. “Backstabber! Conspirator!”

“Sprig, you are nearly destroying this farm.” Anne’s flashed blue. Sprig gulped. “It’s time we put Hop Pop back in charge! You are a child! Maybe Hop Pop didn’t listen to us but at least he knew what he was doing. Sometimes, it’s fine to have someone tell you that your suggestions are harmful. It’s sometimes okay to disagree with someone. But you went too far!”

“We had a beautiful dream, but I guess I am the only one willing to fight for it.” Then Sasha snapped.

“Sprig, you fucked up a perfectly good farm is what you did. Look at it, it looks like a disaster.” Sasha pointed her finger at the state of the farm and the mosquitoes and cowapillars eating everything in sight.

“I’m also pretty sure you messed up the ecology system.” Marcy pointed out.

“Sprig Plantar,” Hop Pop rang a bell. “I challenge you to a rematch. The winner gets control of the farm!”

“Sprig Plantar, do you accept this challenge?” Sasha held her arm out.

“Say yes!” Anne said through clenched teeth. Her eyes flashed blue again.

“I gladly accept your challenge.” Sprig accepted…Only because Anne was scary, when angry.

Sprig and Hop Pop were smearing mud all over their bodies. Sasha and Anne were sitting on the branch with Polly and Lily. Marcy held the bell up. All the beetles were sitting on Anne’s shoulders and hair, and a few sat on Sasha.

“I am going to prove to you that my way is the right way. I beat you once, I can do it again.” The young pink frog narrowed his eyes, still clinging to his belief that he was a better leader than Hop Pop.

“Sure Sprig. We will see.”

“Let the Plantar Family challenge begin!” Marcy rang the bell.

Both Sprig and Hop Pop pounded on their chest before screaming their heads off as they ran towards each other. They gripped each other’s arms.

“The girls told me everything.”

“What? The traitors!”

“You’re destroying the farm. Don’t you see? Even if you win, you lose.” Sprig pushed Hop Pop down on the lily pad.

“So what? I’m supposed to go back to the way things were. You never listened to us!” He pointed out and Hop Pop’s heart winced in regret when he saw his boy was still hurt like a fresh wound. Sprig trusted him and Hop Pop regretted it.

“And I was wrong! I know now that you can’t work together unless everyone has a say. Jeremy taught me that. Sprig! Girls! I promise to listen to your suggestions. Even if they may be terrible.”

“You…You mean it.”

“I mean it.” Sprig stopped pushing on Hop Pop and stepped away. He rubbed his arm as he looked away.

“Marcy is right. We caused damage to the ecosystem. And Anne was right. My ideas were pretty terrible.”

“I mean it. But some of your ideas could work. We will never know unless we try. I promise from now on to actually read your suggestions.”

Everyone gasped. Sprig observed his grandfather for any lies, but he saw none. He inhaled before holding his arms out and purposefully fell backward into the mud with peace of mind.

“And the winner is Hop Pop!”

Everyone sighed in relief. Lily waved to the Plantars and left to go home to her grandma’s but not before kissing Marcy’s cheek again, and Marcy mumbled random words again before she fell into the mud.

When the Plantars, Anne, and Sasha got home, they breathed in a sigh of relief.

“Well group, we do need to clean up the farm.”

As Anne climbed down from Bessie’s shell, she nearly fell off, but Sasha was quick to catch her. Sasha carried Anne, bridal style, down to the basement.

“Sasha, what are you doing?”

“Making you get some rest. You need the chance to recharge and reset. I am assuming your special rechargeability only works on others and not you.”

“How did you know?”

“I figured it out after observing some of your abilities. I do appreciate it though. Now you sleep. If I see you up for anything other than to eat, I will force you back downstairs and tie you up if I have to!”

Anne chuckled, already feeling the effects of sleep, slowly embracing her. Sasha covered her up and popped the lid of her music box open for Anne to listen to it. The music slowly allowed Anne to drift to sleep. She smiled as she slept.

Sasha went upstairs to help fix the farm and repair the damage.

The next day was backbreaking work but with everyone working together along with Lily’s help, they were able to fix a majority of the problems. Sasha stood up and wiped the sweat from her forehead. Suddenly, a shadow fell overhead. She looked to see a mushroom behind her.

“There you go, Sasha. Some shade to keep you, kids, nice and cool. And I know you wanted a pool a long time ago.” Hop Pop had Sasha follow him towards the back of the house. There was a small pool with some mushrooms providing shade for it. “It ain’t much and probably not as cool as the pools in Toad Tower but it will cool you off and won’t attract mosquitoes.”

“It’s perfect Hop Pop. Thanks.” Sasha smiled in gratefulness for him.

“So, what did that old windbag want anyways?” He was referring to Grime.

“Oh! He wanted a few updates on Anne.”

“What did you tell him?”

“I told him that I was still observing her. He says he still doesn’t trust her.”

“And you?”

“I…” Sasha ran her fingers along the scar on her cheek. “I want to hate her. I want to hate her for what she did to our family. But…If Anne didn’t send the herons, then who did?” On the day Anne said that she made a law to the animals great and small that they mustn’t attack anyone or the village. A law she made to protect both sides.

“I wish I knew. But I don’t think Anne sent the herons. Sasha, I know you want revenge. But May I offer a suggestion?”

“Yeah, shoot.” She shrugged.

“Let go of the revenge. It’s not good for you. I have always feared for a day that you fight that same heron and die in the process. I don’t want you to be consumed by your anger. Use your skills to continue to protect this family and this village. The answers we seek may come sooner than we suspect.”

“…Okay, Hop Pop.”

“And I trust Anne. I see you are slowly letting go of your anger towards her as well. She is a good girl. And maybe…You should open your heart again to love. Maybe find it in your heart to accept Anne as a member of this family.”

“I’ll try, Hop Pop.”

“That’s my girl.”

“Now, the real question is, you are keeping those beetles?” She pointed out the beetles that suddenly and out of nowhere appeared around Hop Pop’s feet. Chittering and chirping.

“Well, of course. They are family too.”

A red beetle flew to Sasha’s shoulders as it chittered.

“I ain’t calling you, Sasha Jr.”

Chapter Text

Sleeping soundly in the bedroom is the little pink frog of Wartwood, Sprig Plantar. He snored softly with a sweet smile on his face. Probably dreaming of something nice or a great adventure he’s having in his dreams.

All of a sudden, Sprig’s alarm bug went off and he sprung up in excitement. 

“Today’s the day! Today’s the day!” Sprig came bounding down the stairs in excitement. He ran into the kitchen and around Anne and Sasha’s legs.

“Today’s the day! Today’s the day!” The pink frog keeps repeating the same phrase like it’s a mantra.

“Today’s the day for what?” Anne asked.

“Only the best day ever! Hop Pop, Grime, and I are going to Lily Paddington for the Annual Frog Valley fishing trip!”

“What’s that?” Anne asked Sasha.

“It’s basically a competition for everyone in Frog Valley to partake in. Grime and Hop Pop used to take me until I really started my training for the lieutenant role.”

“And this is the first year I am able to participate in!” Sprig shouted. 

“First year?”

“You have to be twelve years and older to be able to participate,” Sasha explained.

“Oh. So that’s why you are excited!” 

Sprig nodded vigorously, “And I’ve got everything packed for this trip. Fishing vests, fishing poles, my favorite slingshot, and best of all BAITS!!!” He pulled out a bucket from out of nowhere and filled it to the brim with wiggly worms.

“What is going on?” Marcy came in, rubbing her eyes. She spotted Sprig with an excited grin and a bucket full of worms until she got it. “Oh yeah! The Annual Frog Valley fishing trip is today!” 

“Are you ready to go Sprig?” Hop Pop came downstairs in full fishing gear and a tackle box near him.

“Am I ever!” Sprig raced upstairs to grab the rest of his stuff.

“All right, girls. Sprig, Grime and I will be gone for three days. Sasha is in charge, but I trust the rest of you to watch over Polly.”

“Don’t worry, Hop Pop. We won’t have a wacky adventure while you’re gone.” Sasha crossed her arms. “I hope!” She mumbled.

“Just make sure you kids keep an eye on the farm for me.”

“Got it, Hop Pop.” The trio said it simultaneously.

The girls watched as Hop Pop left on Grime’s black widow spider. They waved as the boys left. 

In a day’s time, the house had turned into a mess. Anne could barely keep up with the mess. Polly had tossed various Frobo parts around as she worked on upgrading Frobo with help from Marcy. Marcy had books spewed around the house as she looked to be working on multiple things at once. Anne had thought Sasha would help to keep everything under control but much to her frustration, the blond actually used the time to make more of a mess rather than helping around the house. 

Anne remembered Barrel saying that life as a warrior is about commitment, order, and most of all, discipline. She remembered the toad, a great warrior, and that he would make sure everything was unkempt and clean in full detail. For an upbeat and passionate warrior, he was a total neat freak.

Now, Anne had to deal with Sasha starting a belching contest with Polly as they sat outside on the patio, overlooking the pool.

“Chug! Chug! Chug!” Polly was egging Sasha on, who was chugging a can of Bugsi. Correction, her third can of Bugsi. Once she finished her third drink without stopping, Sasha took the can and crushed it against her head. Sasha had picked up the trick from Grime. Then, Sasha belched so loud it felt like it shook the ground beneath Anne’s feet.

Anne was watching the two as she leaned against the door and scrunched her face in growing fury. 

“How was that?” Sasha asked as she didn’t notice Anne’s heated glare.

“It was brilliant! I bet that was so loud that it picked up on the earthquake scale.”

“Hah! Nothing can compete with Grime’s belches. Those could rupture an eardrum.” Anne could feel a headache coming on, but her eyes were shining blue. Hot, blazing, and any minute to explode of their misbehavior.

“I bet! Man, you soldiers have the best fun. You get to train with swords and have belching contests.”

“You know it isn’t all fun and games, Polly. Being a soldier is tough. Look at me.” She flexed her muscles, and she wore a t-shirt and she pulled it up to show off her impressive, toned abs. Normally, Anne would blush like no tomorrow but she is too mad to care.

“Yeah, you are the coolest soldier I know.”

“But I’m also the strictest and have nearly lost my life multiple times. Look at my left hand. I can barely hold a sword without it shaking like a fearful pollywog.” Anne noticed that Sasha had taken her glove off. It had a slight tremor in it.

“You are still the coolest person I know.” Polly hugged Sasha’s waist.

“Aw, thanks, you little tadpole. Now, hawk one up and see if you can hit that tin can over there.”

Polly began gurgling before launching a huge spitball across the pool and landing on the target.

The two whooped that Polly scored a whole new record. 

Anne had enough. She needed to get these three outside and away from the house. They spent the whole day indoors, playing games, having those belching or spitting contests, making a general mess of the house.

“Hey Sasha, Polly. I think we need to have a talk.” She made herself say it in a calming tone. But underneath it, it’s the calm before the storm.

“About what Anne?” Sasha turned to Anne and both she and Polly flinched back when they finally noticed Anne’s eyes flashed blue, eyes narrowed like daggers, and she was provoked as she fisted her hands and bared her teeth.

“Into the living room! NOW!” Anne seethed through her teeth. Both Sasha and Polly scrambled up and raced into the house. 

Marcy was sitting on the couch when she spotted the two running into the house, followed by an angry Anne, and flinched when Anne turned to look at her. “You two, sit! And you, drop the book NOW!”

Sasha and Polly obeyed. Marcy was quick to put away her book and sat with her hands folded in her lap.

The silence is stressful. Sasha, Marcy, and Polly sat on the couch and looked at Anne nervously. Sasha could never admit it, but she found the tiny woman Spirit is quite intimidating when she gets mad. Sasha doesn’t normally get scared so easily. Sasha could scare off the fiercest of beasts with her glare, but Anne is implausibly menacing when angry. 

How can this tiny woman be so sweet, and kind can have so much hot fury?

“What’s the matter, Anne?” Marcy spoke first, to break the tense silence. 

“This whole house is a mess! Books are spilled everywhere. I tripped over an extra Frobo arm. No thanks to you and Polly.” Marcy and Polly ducked their heads down. Even Frobo did too. “And you,” Anne pointed to Sasha. “Are a terrible influence on Polly.”

“Me!?” 

“Yes! You started a belching and spitting contest! I thought you’d be helping me around the house but no, you’re making a mess, and your disgusting habits are driving me insane!”

“Well excuse me, Princess Spirit. But I can do whatever the fuck I want!”

“I don’t think being a sloppy grubhog is the way to go.” Sasha crossed her arms and let out a small huff. Then she belches again. “Ew! Gross!” Anne could smell the awful stench coming from Sasha’s breath. “Are all toads this disgusting? Barrel was never like this.”

“Then Barrel was a pansy!” Anne gasped, offended that Sasha dared to call Barrel, her friend, a pansy!

“You…You take that back about Barrel! He was a brave and honorable warrior, and he wasn’t a sloppy grubhog. He was a gentletoad.”

“More like your Barrel is a wuss.” Anne curled her hand into a fist, fighting the urge to punch Sasha in the face. How dare Sasha insult Barrel. She was tarnishing his noble deeds. “I was raised this way, and this is the only life I’ve known.”

“That’s it! You know what you three needs. A moment to reset and recharge. A moment in nature.”

“A moment in nature?” Sasha doesn’t like the sound of that.

“Yes, I have been dying to show you guys my world. With the boys gone, maybe we will have an easier time. At least Sprig won’t pull us into some sort of wacky adventure. But maybe a day out in nature will help you three to see the world through my eyes. It could be...That camping thing you mentioned, Sasha.”

“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Anne, your camping is mild compared to ours. We toads and Plantars camp extreme. Yours is probably filled with rainbows and sunshine and uniturtles.” Sasha gagged.

“What’s a uniturtle?” Polly asked.

“A mythical turtle with a single horn in the middle of its forehead. But that’s beside the point. Going on your little camping trip will be a waste of my time. You can take the other two as for me, I’m staying here.”

Sasha walked away and she didn’t see Anne smirking after Sasha walked away with her back turned.

“Oh, then you must be pansy for not wanting to go!” Sasha stopped and turned around. She glared at Anne while Polly and Marcy’s mouths dropped in shock. 

“What did you call me?”

“A pansy. If you truly do hardcore camping, then this will be a walk in the park for you. But I understand not wanting to go.” Anne crossed her arms and watched Sasha’s face. Sasha narrowed her eyes as Anne challenged her with her eyes and that little smirk of hers. She walked up to her, towering her, and spoke.

“I am not a pansy!”

Anne didn’t back away as she put her hands on her hips. “Then prove to me that you’re not. After all, you’re Lieutenant Sasha Waybright, the youngest high-ranking officer who achieved the rank through extreme, harsh training. You’ve fought and survived! I’m sure you can handle this mild camp of mine. So, what’s going to be, Waybright? And, for your information, there’s no such thing as a uniturtles!”

Blue stormy eyes locked eyes on chocolaty brown eyes in a showdown. None of them are backing out but Sasha is starting to lose her resolve while the spectators are watching anxiously. 

Until, finally, Sasha sighed.

“Fine, oh Spirit! We will go on this camping trip and be close to nature.” She quoted.

“Good. Now pack up. We leave in an hour.” 

The girls all set out on Joe Sparrow to where Anne pointed them too. It was a beautiful area with lush trees and a waterfall. When they landed, they set out to camp.

“What did I tell you? Easy peasy.” Sasha smirked as she took in the sight. This place screams too easy. She is confident that they’ll pass Anne’s ‘boot’ camp with no sweat.

“Oh, we will see about that.” Anne looked behind her shoulder. 

Marcy let out a loud gasp. She raced over to the edge of the lake and picked something up.

“Guys! I just found a normal frog!” Marcy held a small frog, wrapped in a cloth, in her hands. It was pink, sort of like Sprig. “Do you know how rare this is?! Not even my mom saw a normal frog in her entire life.” 

Sasha was surprised. Marcy was so excited that she made a mention of her mother without that far-off hurt look on her face. Maybe she was healing a bit. Or it could be the frog. 

“I have to journal this.” Marcy carried the frog to a tree stump and was quick to pull a journal out of her bag. Marcy doodled in her journal as she was absorbed in her own world. “This is so exciting!”

Polly was hopping all around the trees before using a tree branch from a nearby tree to dive into the lake. 

“THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!”

“Polly, be careful. You don’t know what’s in the pool.” But Polly ignored Sasha’s warning as she was having the time of her life.

“Aw, come on, Sasha. You started to sound like Hop Pop.”

Sasha rolled her eyes and looked to where Anne was. She stopped because the sun was hitting Anne just right and she looked to be glowing. And her powers weren’t even activated. Anne looked over at her.

“Sasha! You, okay?”

“Ye-yeah, I’m fine! Why won’t I be?” Sasha was quick to recover. Anne sped up close to Sasha’s face and pressed a hand to her forehead. “What are you doing?” Did Sasha just screech?

“Checking your temperature. You seem rather hot.”

“H-hot?!” Sasha’s voice cracked. She wasn’t sure why. “I’m fine.” Sasha glances away.

Anne smirked a devious smile and tossed Sasha into the lake making the blond yelp and hit the water. Sasha surfaces, spitting water out. She wanted to curse Anne but hearing her laugh made her not.

“Not fair, Anne.” Sasha splashed Anne who was laughing. “You have super strength.”

“It's not my fault now, is it.” Anne smiled. “So, what should we have for dinner?”

Anne turned to everyone.

“Can we hunt for something?” Polly asked. “Oh. Right. Sorry, Anne.”

“No, It’s okay. I understand the way of life. You need to hunt to survive. So long as you kill only what you need.” That’s a relief.

“Polly! Can I see the Plantar family hunting dance?” Marcy begged. 

“Yeah, sure. Follow me.” Polly waved her hand and Marcy eagerly followed her.

Sasha just snickered before beginning the process of building a fire. Anne watched her.

“So, out of curiosity, how’d you camped hardcore?”

“Well, we didn’t bring much with us. The Toad method of camping is just to dump you in the middle of the forest, and you survive on what the forest provides. It’s a trial for one who is training the toad tower.”

“So, you were thrown into the woods to train?”

“Yep. And like I said. This trip will be a piece of cake.”

“You are so confident, Waybright.”

“In the Toad Tower, you have to be confident to show you are the toughest. So, I needed to carry my head high to be at the top.”

“Not a good life to have,” Anne advised. 

“Well, it’s the only life I know. I’m now a lieutenant and I don’t plan on quitting. Soon, I’m going to be Captain of Toad Tower.”

“Just don’t get yourself hurt, Sasha.” Anne looked over at her.

“Thanks for the concern but I don’t need it.”

Anne just huffed in annoyance before turning away. 

“I was just looking out for you, you’re my friend.” 

“I…I know, Anne.” Anne looked up. “I just have been this way for so long. Remember. A man I thought was my friend backstabbed me. Forgive me but I have to hold people at arm’s length until I feel I can trust them.” 

“I wish I could earn your trust.” She sounded sad that Sasha felt bad.

“Maybe you will.” Sasha forced out. The confusing feelings that Sasha is feeling are becoming strong and she can’t handle seeing Anne sad.

Sasha walked away to the campfire to get it set. Anne just watched Sasha get the fire going. Some bugs came up to Anne and crawled up on her. She picked some of them up in her hands and cradled them. 

Sasha was getting bored. This whole camping trip was boring. They were waiting for Marcy and Polly to get back from their hunting. Sasha looked to see various bugs surrounding Anne. Soon, Polly and Marcy came back with a bunch of food in their arms.

“We bring snacks.” Marcy smiled.

Everyone gathered around the fire as they ate. Night was beginning to fall, and Sasha thought it was the perfect time to tell scary stories around the fire. 

“There lives a legend of the Mud Men!” Sasha began with an eerie and low voice and used the fire to shadow her face to make things even more scary. “They live deep in the woods. Monsters who feed on the flesh of frogs and humans.”

“I’ve never heard of the Mud Men. I know all the creatures of the forests and I’ve never heard of them.” Anne looked skeptical. First, Uniturtles, and now Mud Men

“Because they are cannibalistic frogs. Who eats other frogs!” Sasha let out a low chuckle. Polly yelped and huddled close to Anne. Anne wrapped a comforting arm around her. 

“I don’t like the Mud Men.” Polly let out a small whimper. Anne shot Sasha with a glare. Sasha was already beginning to drop the act when she saw how scared Polly was and Anne’s face made her decide against it.

“Don’t worry, Polly. You have me, Anne, and Marcy to protect you. And the Mud Men don’t live in this area. I should know. I’ve tracked down a few myself. You are safe.” She sniffed and lifted her head up high as she boasted how she single-handedly scared those wimpy mud-covered frogs away.

Soon Polly was sound asleep next to a sleeping Marcy. Sasha was dipping her toes in the water. Anne sat down next to her.

“I told you this was easy.” 

“Oh. This was just day one. We have tomorrow to travel back to the house on foot, and I have a trail I think we should take.”

“Why? Is it made of sunshine and rainbows?” Sasha snorted but Anne rolled her eyes.

“You’ll see. But you must promise me that you will listen to me every step of the way.”

“Pshh! That’s easy.” Sasha crossed her arms behind her and cradled her head in her hands. She leaned back to collapse onto the grass. “Trust me, I’ll pass your little boot camp with flying colors.”

Sasha looked at Anne in the moonlight. Her breath hitched again as Anne seemed to glow from it with fireflies dancing around her. She looked so ethereal. 

Anne looked behind her shoulder to look at Sasha. Sasha patted the spot next to her. Anne complied, stretching out next to her.

“Tell me about some of the constellations,” Sasha whispered in hopes Anne wouldn’t notice her blush. “I bet you have some stories.”

“I do. See that one.” Anne pointed to the brightest star in the sky. The two bumped heads together. “We called that one the Guardian's eye! Long ago, soldiers and travelers used it to help guide their way back home.” Anne’s calming and patient voice helped Sasha relax and let a smile curve her lips.  

“Attention!” Anne, Marcy, and Polly stood straight in a single-file line in front of Sasha. “Good. Now, Anne here is going to take us home. But she has a different path she would like us to take. We will obey Anne’s orders. Do I make myself clear?”

“Sir yes, sir!” 

“I can’t hear you.”

“SIR YES, SIR!”

“Now, move out!”

Sasha followed behind Anne as she led them to the path she wanted to take them. She took them through the forest where the sun barely peeked through the tree leaves. Sasha was amazed at how high the trees got. 

Then they heard a rustling noise. Her hands went straight to her sword. Then she felt the forest floor rumble from movement. Polly instantly hung onto Sasha’s leg.

A giant horned beetle came walking out of the forest. When it spotted them, it let out a roar. Sasha stood in front of everyone and pulled her sword out of her sheath. 

“Everyone, stay back! It’s a King Rhinobeetle! They will attack on sight.” Sasha charged at the Rhinobeetle, nicking its horn as she slid on her knees when it reared its head. Marcy held her crossbow up and shot off an arrow at its armor, but it bounced back.  

Marcy decided to use her magic. Marcy’s eyes glow and magic begins to flow to her hand and then stomped on the ground creating a powerful shockwave that makes the King Rhinobeetle tumble and fall. Sasha used her momentum to strike it down.

“Sasha! Stop!” Anne called out as she caught Sasha’s sword in mid-strike, halting her in place. “You can’t just attack the first thing you see!”

“Anne, this is a dangerous three-ton Rhinobeetle. I once heard it could crush a man’s spleen with its horn. It attacked us first!” Now, Anne looked really peeved as if Sasha just slapped her. 

“No, you and Marcy attacked him first when we entered his territory!”

“Then what do we suggest we do instead?” 

“Let me handle this, Sasha. I know my creatures. You promised you would listen to me.” Sasha stopped. She made a promise and wasn’t one to go back on her promises. She put her sword back in her sheath.

“You are the spirit. Do what you do best.”

Anne nodded before holding her hands up to King Rhinobeetle. She slowly walked up to him before bowing. Sasha wondered why Anne was bowing. Then the beetle sniffed her and then licked her cheek.

“Forgive us. We were just passing through. We did not mean to upset you.” The Rhinobeetle just let out a low rumble, forgiving them for trespassing. Then, Anne made a quick heal on the King Rhinobeetle’s leg. 

Sasha and Marcy looked at the giant beetle in disbelief. This monstrous-sized behemoth earned a reputation as a ruthless creature with no remorse. Yet here he is, calm and lets out a happy rumble as Anne heals his wounds and his beady eyes shine with gratefulness.

Once Anne was done, she turned to the girls. “Everyone, bow to him. Show him that you are sorry for invading his territory and to ask him permission to pass through.”

“What!? I ain’t bowing to some bug!!” Sasha yelled. Anne shot a glare at her as the beetle looked insulted. 

“Rhinobeetle won’t let any of you through unless you do exactly as I say, and you promised! Now, Bow. To. Him!” She said through clenched teeth. 

Marcy and Polly were quick to bow to the beetle just like Anne did. He sniffed them both and licked their faces. Allowing them to pass.

Then, the King Rhinobeetle looked at Sasha as she stared back at the beetle. Unmoving and unflinching. She is refusing to bow to him. The beady black eyes narrowed at her. He let out a snort.

“Sasha!” Anne screamed.

“Fine.” Sasha hastily bowed. The beetle was still focused on her and did not budge as he made a disapproving rumble and pawed his front leg on the ground.Sasha is still aggravating him. 

Anne stormed over and grabbed Sasha’s cape. She tugged Sasha towards the beetle. Sasha could feel the glare radiating from both Anne and the beetle. She hated that she was upsetting Anne. She turned to face the beetle. 

She swallowed her groan and performed a proper bow this time. 

“Forgive us for trespassing into your territory. We are simple travelers. I ask that you give us your permission to continue passing through.”

The King Rhinobeetle lowered his head towards Sasha. He let out a loud snort, blowing hot air into Sasha’s face. She slowly lifted her head. The beetle licked her cheek.

“He gives us his permission to continue to pass through.” Anne motioned for everyone to follow her. Anne thanked King Rhinobeetle and apologized for Sasha’s behavior.

Once, they are far away and they are surprised except for Anne that the Rhinobeetle didn’t turn around to crush them. He just continued to crawl away.

“Whoa, Anne. That was amazing.” Marcy leaped in front of Anne. “I never knew we have to bow to King Rhinobeetle to leave us alone!”

“Forget that!” Polly spoke up and looked at Anne with stars in her eyes, “Did you see the SIZE of that beetle? NOW, THAT’S KING-SIZED! Oh man, Sprig is going to be so jealous when I tell him!” She cackled.

“You just have to speak their language and respect them. There’s really nothing to it. I can teach you guys about taming these creatures without inflicting violence. Soon, you’ll realize that every creature is civilized and can be reasoned with.”

Sasha just scoffed. She crossed her arms. “I don’t need no stinking training. I am perfectly fine just the way I am. I am not changing.” Sasha whispered to herself. 

She could feel Anne’s eyes on her. 

The group soon came up to a field of flowers. But Sasha knew just by looking at them that they were carnivorous sunflowers. They were a plant that held a giant sunflower on their head and would trick their prey to fly into their disguise and then they devour their trapped prey. 

Sasha pulled her swords out of her sheath. “Looks like I’m going to have to cut my way out. This will be fun.” She grinned devilishly. 

Anne threw her hand and pushed against Sasha’s chest. 

“Don’t you dare even think about that? Do you even know what happens when you slice a head off?”

“Yeah, they die.” Sasha made a “duh” sound, only for Anne to counter it.

“No, they don’t. They grow new heads. They all share a single body buried in the ground.” There was the sound of furious scribbling. “Cut a head and one more will appear. The more you cut, the more that grows. Too many heads aren’t good for the ecosystem.”

“What then? Should we bow to them too?” Sasha said sarcastically.

“We disguise ourselves as sunflowers. They will assume we are one of them and let us pass by without any issues.”

“I ain’t fucking doing that. I am a soldier, not some pansy.” Sasha retorted with a horror look that they had to dress up to fool a bunch of weeds.

“Then you, Miss Luitenant,” Anne jabbed a harsh finger into her shoulder. “Can gladly slice and dice your way through. If you get eaten, then I won’t be there to save you.”

Sasha closed her mouth. She looked at the angry Anne before focusing her attention on the carnivorous sunflowers as she saw one of them had just eaten a snail who bypassed carelessly. 

Anne did have a point. She had heard rumors of the plants growing new heads from others who managed to survive the attacks. She thought they were rumors. She didn’t really want to be in the plant’s stomach again.

“Okay fine. Have it your way. But the moment they attempt to attack us, I am chopping them off!”

“Fair enough. But my plan will get us through without bloodshed.”

Anne managed to create makeshift sunflower hats for Sasha, Marcy, and Polly. Sasha wondered why Anne didn’t make one for her. 

“Hey Anne, why didn’t you make one for yourself?” Marcy pointed out.

“Because I am the Spirit. They won’t hurt me. They know better.” Anne shrugged her shoulders. “Now let’s go, everyone.”

Anne marched them through the plants. The carnivorous sunflowers watched the group with interest but didn’t attack. Sasha was beginning to feel ridiculous, but she was also pissed that it was actually working. She hated that. 

Once they were further away from the murderous plants, Sasha ripped the disguise off and threw it to the ground. 

“It actually worked! Anne, you are a genius.” Marcy exclaimed. She grabbed Anne’s arms and shook her. “You have got to tell me more.”

“I will. Once we get back home.”

“Oh, man. This is amazing. I never knew that the carnivorous sunflowers grew their heads back. We all thought it was an urban legend. And the King Rhinobeetle. That was amazing. There is so much you could show us.” Soon, Marcy and Polly are bombing Anne with questions, all keen to learn more about everything she knows.

Sasha just grumbled before marching off in front of everyone. Anne looked at her before following behind.

“Sasha! What’s wrong?”

“This whole camping trip was a waste of my time!” Sasha yelled. “I should never have listened to you. You could be tricking us for all I know.”

“I would never dare trick you. You should know that. I love you all like family.”

“I don’t give a shit if you view me as family. You tricked me into going on this trip.”

“I…I mean…I did trick you only because I wanted to spend time with you. Show you my world. To make you see the world through my eyes!”

“I don’t care about any of this mushy shit. I am a hunter. Trained to attack monsters that threaten the peace of this world. Like the herons. This whole way of communicating with them is pointless because as soon we turn around, they’ll attack us without a second thought.”

“But they won’t!!! They would never willingly harm anyone.” Anne is quick to defend.

“THEN TELL THAT TO THE HERONS WHO ATTACKED FROG VALLEY!” Anne was stunned into silence. Sasha watched Anne’s face for a reaction, to see the guilty expression of a criminal that nearly killed everyone. That it was her herons that took away the two most important people in Sasha’s life. 

But what she got was a look of shock written on the spirit's face. A look that she…Never knew about the heron attack. She even looked pale and startled with newfound terror. And Sasha felt sick when Anne looked like this. Everything felt wrong. And Sasha felt disgusted by her own feelings and words.

“I’m going home. You three can frolic through the flowers for all I give a shit.”

Sasha stormed off. She left a sad and bitter Anne alone with Marcy and Polly.

Sasha cut her way through the forest with her sword. She was angry and needed to blow off some steam. Marcy looked to where Sasha disappeared and then at Anne. She hadn’t moved a muscle which worried her. Polly looked disappointed at Sasha for saying mean things to Anne when she was only trying to help.

She walks up to Anne and all she can do to comfort her is hug her leg. She can’t find the right word to comfort the poor brunette but then she feels a hand on her head.

“I am not some pansy. I am a warrior.” Sasha shoved her blue blade into a tree trunk. “This is all so fucking stupid! Those mushy stuff don’t work, we are nothing but menus to these monsters! That’s all there is.” 

She grabbed her heart again and leaned her forehead against the trunk. “Why am I like this?” Sasha sighed and repeatedly hit her head against the bark. “I am a dumbass. I am an idiot. I should never have yelled at Anne. All she wanted was to show me her world. Anne has proven to me she was good, and she was trying so hard to help me see that the creatures are good. All she has been doing is being nice. She has never once tried to harm you or anyone. Why are you so stupid, Sasha? Why can’t you just accept her friendship? Because you are too much of a coward, that’s why!” Sasha sighed. “I’m going to have to apologize. I promised Anne and here I am throwing a little hissy fit like some spoiled ass kid.” 

Sasha turned around before collapsing to the ground on her butt. She leaned her back against the trunk. And leaned her pink heron sword beside it.

“I was also called the asshole in the training hall. It fits. I am an asshole. Look at how I’ve been treating Anne, and yet she still stays close to me!” Sasha looked down at her gloved hand, remembering Ricki’s harsh words. “Ricki was right. Even if I wanted it, no one would love me for me. I would treat my lover like shit. Like how I’ve been treating Anne. I don’t blame her for never wanting a friendship or relationship with me.”

As Sasha continued to bemoan her destroyed friendship with the spirit, she failed to notice a green vine slither by her leg. It quickly wrapped around her ankle. When she did notice she was too late, the vine tugged on her leg. She yelped as she was hoisted in the air. She was hanging upside down when she came face to face with the origin of the living plant. 

It was a Wolfant. 

It was a large wolf that instead of fur, had moss covering it from head to toe. On its back was a large plant bulb with vines that appeared from under the bulb. It was a towering creature. 

“Oh shit!” Sasha tried to fight against the vine, her hand went to her sword, but much to her horror it was not in her sheath. 

Her pink sword was leaning against the tree and her blue sword was in the tree. She had no daggers hidden on her as she had just worn a simple white cloth shirt and black pants. Not her armor. She was dead. The Wolfants were notorious for attacking travelers without remorse. Maybe that was because the travelers attacked first. 

The creature dangled the vine and Sasha over its large maw. She gulped, realizing she was about to die.

“You know what. I had this coming. I should have listened to Anne.” Sasha just closed her eyes. She briefly saw Grime and Hop Pop. 

She saw Sprig and Polly.

 She saw Marcy and Lily. 

She even saw Bark and Jasmine. 

Then Darcy popped into her vision. 

Finally, as her head was in between its mouth, she saw Anne for one final time. At least she was smiling at her and didn’t have a hurt expression. At least she could die seeing Anne’s happy, beautiful face.

“SASHA!” Sasha’s eyes opened when she heard Anne call out to her.

“ANNE!”

“You put her down!” Anne commanded the Wolfant. The Wolfant lifted Sasha in the air again, away from its mouth. “Put her down!”

The Wolfant snarled close to Anne’s head. But she didn’t flinch back, it only made her upset that the Wolfant wasn’t obeying her.

Anne crossed her arms, in a manner similar to Sasha. She didn’t say anything but simply pointed her index finger in a down motion. The Wolfant finally obeyed. They moved the vine that had Sasha, close to Anne. They let Sasha go, dropping Sasha to the ground hard. She groaned as she landed on her back. Anne helped Sasha up before she marched up to the Wolfant. 

“What is the matter with you?” Anne asked the Wolfant and it whimpered. “She isn’t food. You know that you can’t be attacking people or villages. I told you all so.” The Wolfant just plopped down in front of Anne. They laid their head down and felt truly sorry. “That’s a good Wolfant. What’s your name?” The Wolfant let out a bark. “Okay, Verde. Now tell me what is going on?”

Verde let out a series of barks, growls, and whimpers. Anne nodded her head, not speaking but letting out a few gasps.

“What is he saying?” Sasha asked Anne. She turned to her.

“He said that he was being forced out of his home and some of his pack had disappeared under mysterious circumstances. He says that he has had to resort to drastic measures to survive. He is sorry. He normally would never eat a human, but his hunger got the best of him.”

Sasha just nodded as she looked over at the Wolfant. He had his tongue rolled out and was panting in a fashion similar to Archie. Anne gently tilted Sasha’s face towards her.

“Are you okay?” Anne softly asked and Sasha felt even worse. Anne was worried about her, and she acted like a total jerk.

“I’m sorry, Anne. I just stormed out and yelled at you for no fault of your own but my damn pride. You were showing us your world. You wanted to show the side you love, and I just threw a fit like some brat. I’m so sorry!” Sasha rubbed the back of her head. Anne still hasn’t let go yet and she is smiling. 

“I forgive you, Sasha, and I’m glad you are okay. I got worried when you left and followed you. Marcy and Polly hopped onto Joe Sparrow to head back home and clean up the house before the boys got back.”

“Thank you for saving me, Anne.”

“Of course! You are my friend.”

“And I've been acting like a complete ass to you. I can’t even imagine I would still be considered a friend to you.”

“You are. I know deep down; that you have a heart of gold.” Anne poked her heart. Sasha looked at Anne and smiled. Verde suddenly walked over and licked Sasha’s face, making her hair stand up and dripping with saliva.

“Ugh! What is it with those animals and having to lick me.”

“Verde is saying he likes you.” Sasha had a stare-down with Verde. His tail was wagging like crazy. Sasha looked over to the spirit. Sasha used to think Anne was the evil spirit. But now, she doesn't believe it. The history books were wrong. Everything about an evil Anne was wrong. Sasha saw that now.

“How would you soothe Verde?” Sasha asked Anne. Anne turned her head to Sasha in shock. “Like, what does he like?”

“Well,” Anne smiled, which made Sasha’s heartbeat loudly. “He likes a good belly rub. I’ll show you.”

Anne guided Sasha to Verde and made the motion with her hands to have him roll over. He obeyed and rolled onto his back. Anne and Sasha proceeded to give him belly rubs, and it made Verde let out a happy pant, his leg kicking, and his tail wagging much faster. 

Once they were done, Verde was nuzzling Sasha’s head.

“We should get back home. Do you have a secret path to take?” 

“I don’t think so. We’re off trail. But I think our new friend can help us.”

Verde rolled onto his belly and laid his body down. Anne had Sasha climb onto his back and then wrapped her arms around Sasha’s waist. Anne whistled and Verde got up. He suddenly started running, forcing Sasha to hang on tight. 

“Whoa! Slow down, Verde. Slow down.” Verde ignored her and continued his bounding. Soon, he came jumping out of the forest and in front of the Plantar home. Sasha saw Joe Sparrow hitting on Bessie again. Marcy and Polly saw them and were about to greet them but instead, they screamed.

“AHHH! STAY BACK! IT’S A WOLFANT!!!” Marcy’s hand went to her crossbow and the other was to push Polly behind her. Sasha held her hand up.

“It’s okay Marcy. He is harmless.” 

Sasha jumped down and held her arms out to catch Anne. Anne slid down Verde’s neck but slipped and fell. Sasha was quick to catch her by grabbing her waist. She stared at Anne’s face for a bit as she held onto the spirit.

“What happened to you, Sasha?” Marcy came up to her.

“It’s a long story. But I almost got eaten by Verde here before Anne saved me. Don’t worry about him, he was just hungry, and he was sorry.” Said Sasha truthfully as she scratched Verde’s ear.

Marcy relaxes but is surprised by how Sasha just went from a brooding hunter to something soft. Even Polly is surprised by the sudden change of behavior.

“At least, you are safe. Now come on. I think I saw Grime’s spider while we flew back. We better hurry before the boys get back.”

Sasha ran inside with Marcy and Polly. Anne patted Verde’s cheek. 

“How about you stay around here? It’s a bit safer and you do have a ton of food and not eat humans. Just avoid them so they don’t attack you.”

Verde let out a happy bark and licked her cheek. He quickly ran off into the edges of the nearby forest. Anne went inside to help clean up. The girls had the house cleaned in under an hour. They were sitting around outside when they saw Grime’s spider roll up. The boys looked terrible, like they had been in a fight.

“Whoa!? What happened to you guys?”

“Oh! Nothing, girls. We weren’t attacked by flying locusts if that’s what you are asking.” A traumatized Hop Pop answered.

“Nope. Just a normal fishing trip.” Grime said, looking very done.

“Yep. No wacky adventures here.” Sprig said with an expression that he saw death in the face and it freaked him out.

“How did you girls do?” Hop Pop turned to them.

“No wacky adventures here, Hop Pop.” The girls said.

“Good. Good. So, we both definitely didn’t have two wacky adventures.”

Sasha sat outside on the wall just close to the Plantar house. She just needed some air. 

“Hey, Sasha. What’s wrong?” Sasha turned her head to see Anne. 

“Nothing. Just needed some air. And needed to clear my thoughts.”

“I have a confession.” Anne started. “I did trick you, Sasha. But I did it with good intentions. I wanted to show you my world. But I didn’t know how. Then this whole opportunity popped up and allowed me to try and persuade you that the animals are harmless.”

“That’s okay. I’m glad you did. I can see that now. All the animals have a side that I need to open my eyes to. You helped that.” Sasha looked over and saw Anne’s hair fall in front of her face. Sasha suddenly reached over and tucked a piece behind Anne’s hair. “I don’t know how you still view me as your friend. I have been an asshole to you since the day we met.”

“Like I said. I see a heart of gold buried under that gruff interior of yours. It just needs some coaxing out.”

“I would like to be your friend, Anne. If you would let me.” 

“I would. I still do.” 

“And…I don’t know…maybe you could show me some of your ways with animals?” She shrugged bashfully.

“Yes!” Anne shouted before covering her mouth. “Sorry.”

Sasha just chuckled and removed her hand from her mouth. “It’s okay. It’s kind of cute how excited you are.” Anne blushed. “Well, is it okay if you show me now?”

“Yes. Let’s start with this guy.” Anne picked up Jermey who came by to say hello. “Run your finger along his back. They like it.”

Sasha listened intently as Anne talked about any animal that Sasha asked Anne to tell her about. They had subconsciously moved so close to each other that Anne was lying on Sasha’s shoulders as Sasha was asking her questions.

The night was much darker. Stars have been obscured by the dark clouds in the sky. 

A long, slim figure in a blue armor is walking through the night alone. One would think that the person is crazy to be walking alone but she has one destination in mind.

She made it to a clearing and the sight is a true nightmare left in its wake.

Gray and ashes.

Death hanging in the air.

A pack of Wolfants has withered into nothing but bones. 

Verde’s home and his pack have all expired.

The female figure stood in the middle of a repugnant, deceased field. Then, the figure begins to glow in blue, and her eyes flashes blue like a supernova as she lets out an earth shattering wail.

Chapter Text

It was another day in the small town of Wartwood. Marcy had finally been sent a letter saying that she was finally allowed back into the castle. Lily’s time in Wartwood had ended and was called by her two dads to come home and help in the flower shop.

So, Marcy and Lily had to fly back to the castle on Joe Sparrow. Anne hugged both of her friends goodbye and wished them a safe journey back to Newtopia. As they promised to Anne that they would be coming back soon.

After putting their luggage in place, Joe is saying goodbye to his sweet, beautiful snail with kisses making Bessie blush like crazy until Marcy yells at him to behave. Although Joe got a good laugh when Lily hopped on his back and wrapped her arms around Marcy’s waist causing Marcy’s brain to have a total meltdown. Marcy kept her gaze ahead so that Lily wouldn’t see her blushing face. Lily kept it to herself, commenting in her head that Marcy is being cute. 

Sasha, Anne, and Sprig were wandering through the forest. Sasha had asked Anne to give her a few lessons about animals. Sprig didn’t question anything just because it meant he could have an adventure with his two favorite people as he walked ahead with happy feet in his steps.

“Remember to be patient, Sasha.” Anne coaxed Sasha gently. Today’s lesson was introducing Sasha to a mole. Anne was holding onto Sasha’s hand. “I understand that you are defending the farm from the moles, but violence is never the answer. First, you must approach them slowly. They use the vibration from the ground to sense anyone because they are blind.”

“Wait! They are blind?” Sasha turned to Anne. She felt Anne squeeze her hand. “I didn’t know that. I…Feel terrible for having hurt them before. They were looking for food to survive.”

“That’s why we are here. To learn.”

“Right! Thank you, Anne.” Sasha smiled at Anne’s understanding. Anne is so proud of Sasha that she has become so open with the idea of learning how to communicate with animals, to persuade them to leave without inflicting harm.

Sasha is slowly, and most assuredly changing for the better.

Anne walked with Sasha close to the hole. Sasha was feeling at ease thanks to Anne’s guidance. She normally would have the first instinct to just attack the mole as they were a nuisance to the farms around Frog Valley. There had been several bounties on some more troublesome moles.

Sasha looked through the dark hole with her mouth in an “O” shape as she tried to see the mole through the darkness, but it was hard to see anything.

Sasha took a step back when Anne approached. Then Anne whistled and the ground beneath them rumbled and shook but not enough to make them fall.

A large-sized mole, almost the size of King Andrias, poked out of his hole. The mole sniffed the air, and it picked the familiar scent of the Spirit. The mole’s nose got close to Anne and chittered out a “hello” to Anne. She giggled when his nose tickled her. 

Anne signaled Sasha to come close and Sasha walked up to the mole who gave them trouble at a slow pace so she wouldn’t alert him. Then Anne guided Sasha’s hand to the nose of the mole. The mole sniffed it a few times as Sasha took notice that his eyes were completely closed, and she was admiring those buck teeth that looked solid enough to break a boulder. 

“Harold, this is Sasha. She is a friend of mine. I promise she won’t harm you; she just wants to talk to you.” The mole’s head inched close to Sasha. “Sasha, tell him what you want,” Anne whispered encouragingly to Sasha to step forward and say her words.

Sasha is surprised at first that the mole didn’t bear any grudge because it’s the same mole who burrowed underneath the Planter’s farm and she had striked him when he was eating their hard-labored produce.

Now, he stood still and calm around Sasha as he waited for her to speak up. “We simply ask that you don’t bother this farm anymore. I know of some good areas you can scavenge for food. Head northwest from here. The food there is bountiful, and no one can disturb you.” Harold nodded his head as he buried himself back down into the ground. Sasha turned to Anne. “Did I do it?”

Anne let out a little giggle and squeal. She squeezed Sasha’s hand for assurance. 

“You did excellent. I’m proud of you.” Anne leaned over and pecked Sasha’s cheek. Sasha can’t stop smiling a bit dreamily. She could never admit it to anyone, not even to her family, but she relishes Anne’s praises and wants to have more of her praises, and maybe her little sweet kisses.

“Get a room.” Sprig laughed teasingly, making Anne look up but Sasha was redder than a tomato.

“Why you little, come here!” Sasha started chasing Sprig around. 

They both stopped when they heard some rustling noises nearby. Sasha held her hand out to gently push Anne and Sprig behind her. She picked up a stick as she had left her swords behind at Anne’s request. 

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

“I don’t know.” Sasha inched closer to the bush they had seen moving. She pushed some of the branches back. Sitting on a tree stump was a gourd with a crudely drawn smiley face and two small branches sticking out of it. Sprig gasped in alarm.

“Oh no! It’s an-”

“AMBUSH!” Anne looked up to see a yellow frog jump down from the tree, she stepped back, and the yellow frog tackled Sprig. They rolled a few times until the yellow frog launched themselves into a nearby bush.

“I’m hit. Sprig is down! Sprig is down!” Then he dramatically died with his tongue sticking out.

Before Anne could ask what was going on, Sasha and Sprig started laughing as the yellow frog emerged from the bush. She had a turquoise hat covering her head with small tufts of orange hair peeking out, dark blue overalls with a light blue shirt. She had her hands in her pockets as she laughed.

“Nice one, Ivy.” Sprig jumped up and dusted himself off. “Decoy gourd. Classic!”

“Can’t take all the credit. You are pretty easy to trick.”

“Guilty as charged.”

Sasha was smirking at the two while Anne looked on with interest. Ivy and Sprig looked over at the two when Sasha coughed. 

“Hey, Sasha.” Ivy jumped up and high-fived Sasha. “Nice to see you again. It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, it has been. I know you were gone for a bit with your mom.”

“Yeah. Grandma is thinking of moving back to Wartwood permanently. Aannd I heard about your promotion! Lieutenant Sasha Waybright. It has a nice ring to it.” Ivy looked at Sasha like a celebrity. Ever since she was a pollywog, Sasha was so cool and strong that it inspired Ivy to be like her. 

“And I am damn proud of it.” Sasha winked.

“Oh! Oh!” Sprig was jumping up and down between Ivy and Sasha. “Ivy, meet Anne Boonchuy. My new best friend and currently living in our basement. Anne, meet Ivy. Childhood friend and occasional sparring partner.”

Sprig threw a punch at Ivy, which she blocked, then she kicked Sprig in the face. He laughs as he pulls himself off the ground while sporting a bruise.

“And current crush.” Sasha coughed out. Sprig glared at her and tried to kick her, but Sasha blocked him.

“Hey, I’ve seen you around a few times.” Ivy held her hand for Anne as they shook hands. “Nice to officially meet. Do you like being randomly attacked?”

“She isn’t one for being attacked,” Sasha answered for Anne, as she smirked but not haughtily but more proud to say. “She is more than likely to chop your little body away. Anne is pretty tough.” Sasha said. Anne blushed at her words.

“I’ll keep that in mind if you say it, Sasha. Well. I’ll see you all around. See you later, Sprig.” Ivy slowly walked backward. “But you won’t see me.” 

Ivy walked backward into the bush. Sasha leaned down at Sprig and wiggled her eyebrows. Sprig pulled his hat down over his eyes.

“Sasha! Don’t tease me.”

“I would never…Okay, maybe a little. Sprig and Ivy sitting in the tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!” Sprig jumped onto Sasha’s face to clamp her mouth shut and hit her, but Sasha grabbed him by the waist and she gave him a noogie.

“STOP! HAVE MERCY!!!” 

“NEVER!” Anne giggled at the adorable sight, and she didn’t want it to stop. Sasha set him down. Sasha got down to her knees as she pulled Sprig close. “Little bro, you have to tell her.”

“But I’m scared, Sasha. What if she doesn’t like me back like that? What if it destroys our friendship? What if she thinks I’m super weird?” As he said it, he pulled his hat down to hide his face.

“You will never know unless you try, buddy.” Sasha knew her little brother was truly shy around Ivy. But she can see Sprig would do anything to make Ivy happy. They’ve been together ever since those two were pollywogs. 

Sprig was struck when Ivy, the littlest pollywog of the school beat those big bullies when they stole Sprig’s favorite hat, and ever since then, Sprig’s heart has soared and fallen hard. 

“Let’s head home.” Sasha said as she fixed his hat.

Sasha, Anne and Sprig walked through the front door.

“We’re home!” Sasha called out as she took her mud-covered boots off by the door. Anne followed her direction as well. Domino came bounding towards Sasha and Anne from the basement, and Domino locked on her target.

“No, no, noooo! STOP!” But Domino didn’t listen as she knocked Sasha to the ground and started licking her.

“What have you three been doin’? I’ve been lookin’ for you all morning.” Hop Pop came in from the kitchen.

“Sorry, Hop Pop. Anne and I wanted to get out early for our lesson. Sprig tagged along.” Sasha got up from Domino’s kisses. 

“And I got to meet Sprig’s crush, her name is Ivy, and she is super cute.” Anne was pretty happy to have finally put a face to Sprig’s mysterious crush.

“Anne!!!” 

“Sprig’s crush!? Ivy!? Do you mean Ivy Sundew!?”

“Anne! It isn’t like that. Ivy and I are just friends.” Sprig was shaking his head along with Sasha, who was making a cutting motion to her neck. She had always willingly hidden Sprig’s crush for Ivy from Hop Pop because she knew he would go overboard. But it is too late and Sasha forgot to tell her.

“Nobody move!” Hop Pop suddenly raced upstairs. “I’m gettin’ the courtship kit.”

“The courtship kit?” Anne asked Sasha who sighed.

“Yeah. It’s a huge ordeal for the Plantar family. I thankfully am saved from it.”

“Why?” Sasha leaned in close to Anne and held her hand up to cover her mouth. 

“Because you have to wear a special courtship outfit and it only fits frogs.”

“Don’t be too sure about that Sasha.” Hop Pop came down with a small chest in his arms. “I can easily have Grime get your measurements for me.” Sasha paled. Especially more so when Hop Pop pulled a hat and a neck ruff out of the chest. “But first, we have Sprig to worry about.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hop Pop, what?” Sasha was stunned. 

“Are we mocking Sprig? Because I’m in!” Polly popped her head out of her room before racing out.

“The Firefly Formal is tonight. It’s the perfect opportunity to begin the ritual.” 

“Aw, that’s boring. And honestly, don’t actually care.”

“Ritual?” Anne was confused. Sasha shook her head as Sprig was getting redder and redder.

“Only frogs who have performed the ceremonial dance in the ceremonial garb.” Hop Pop showed Anne an illustration of two frogs in some sort of ceremonial garb with the words “ True Love ” written at the top and bottom. “Are allowed to be wed.”

“Aw! That’s kind of cute.” Anne said and then she realized what Hop Pop had said and jumped back. “Wait? Wed?!!”

“I’m just friends with Ivy!” Sprig shouted to make his grandfather stop. “Nothing more. Nothing less. Besides, ain’t I a little young to be getting married?”

“You know, this could be the perfect opportunity to confess your feelings for Ivy.” Sasha pointed out. Sasha got down to Sprig’s level. “I bet Hop Pop probably wouldn’t remember in a month. Think about it Sprig. Ivy could be your soulmate. Little bro, you could finally get over your anxiety of confessing. It’s the perfect moment.”

“I don’t know, Sasha. I just…It’s too much to process, you know? I just have so many thoughts about it.”

“FORGET THOSE THOUGHTS!” Hop Pop grabbed Sprig’s shoulders. “I was hoping I could marry Sasha off.”

“What!?”

“But Sasha isn’t inclined to be finding romance.” Anne was surprised by that revelation. Sasha didn’t want to find romance. Why? “The Sundews have secret proprietary crops. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THAT MEANS?!”

“Uhh…”

“IF OUR FAMILIES MERGE, WE’LL BE RICH!!!”

Anne blinked, she didn’t see that coming. 

“Wow, so romantic.” Polly sarcastically said, rolling her eyes.

“Hop Pop, how about we hold off on the whole marriage thing first?” Anne spoke up and she is feeling at fault for putting Sprig into this embarrassing situation. “Let him confess to his childhood friend first then in a few years maybe see where it goes.” Anne advised “Confession takes time, and love takes a lot of commitment! Meddling their relationship would not end well!” Anne added, and Sasha stared at Anne for a moment before she looked down at her gloved hand and frowned.

“An absolutely good point, Anne, and also a little too late on holding out in the marriage. I’ve already asked her family.” A large mosquito messenger arrived through the open window. Hop Pop reached over to take the letter out of its bag. “Hmmmm,.,Mm-hmmm…Mm-hmmm. They agreed to the date!” Hop Pop looked over to the mosquito messenger. “What do you want? Oh, your tip. All right, here you go. But don’t take too much, I have chores to do later.”

Sprig begins to think. Maybe Hop Pop and Sasha are right. This could be the perfect chance to finally tell Ivy how he feels about her.

“Well, since it’s just a dance. I guess one date couldn’t help.”

Hop Pop slapped Sprig’s back. “That’s my boy!”

Anne was puzzled and overall, shocked about Sasha’s thoughts of her not finding love. Did something happen to Sasha to make her feel that way? Then she thought back to Sasha’s left hand. From Sasha’s tone, Anne could tell there was more to it than she was letting on. Maybe she once had feelings for this guy and when he turned around and betrayed her, that made her bitter.

Anne looked over to Polly, who was tinkering with something. Hop Pop and Sasha were helping Sprig get ready for the Firefly formal. 

“Hey Polly, you know Sasha pretty well.” The young frog looked over at the spirit. “Why does she believe she won’t find love?” Immediately, Polly dropped her wrench and had this far-off along with bitter fury.

“She doesn’t think she will find someone who loves her. Sasha’s been that way for as long as I can remember. I’ve known Sasha for pretty much my whole life so that’s a long time.”

“Has she told you the reason?”

“She not only told me…But I’ve seen it. We all did!” Polly was silent for a moment. She stopped working on Frobo’s part. Frobo just reached over and patted her hand. Anne did the same. “I was there. There was this fellow cadet that was her friend and for a bit, a boyfriend. I hated the guy if I was being honest. Dude was a real jerk.”

“Then he turned around and hurt her. What was his name?”

“Um,” Polly rubbed her arm. “Sasha doesn’t like for us to mention him. But yeah, he hurt her. Pretty bad. It was the final trial for cadets to see which one could advance and who stayed behind. Sasha had been looking forward to the trial because she was getting close to her dream of being the Captain of Toad Tower, the highest-ranking officer of Amphibia. He was up for a trial as well. They were both meant to fight in a spar. But he took it too far. He was relentless. Then he broke the number one rule…Never to draw blood.” Anne covered her mouth with her hand and then she remembered Sasha’s gloved hand where she hid her scar. 

“That cadet is the reason Sasha’s left hand is scarred and he is the reason why it shakes without the glove.” Polly nodded solemnly. 

“Yep. He hid a dagger and stabbed her right through her hand. There was so much blood and Sasha was screaming.” Polly shivered. Anne pulled her closer to her. “I sometimes hear it in my dreams. She couldn’t move her hand for a long time. She was pretty upset by it and swore off love forever.”

Anne hated this guy. How dare he hurt Sasha who didn’t deserve it. She was bitter at him for making Sasha bitter at the idea of love. Then, it sort of made her bitter that Sasha never would give love a chance. Anne wondered why she was feeling that way.

“Thanks to Marcy, if it hadn’t been for her, they would’ve demoted Sasha out of the Toad Tower. In truth though, the Captains of Toad Tower didn’t want to let her go and Sasha came back, took the trial again, and won. As for the jerk, he got demoted and punished for breaking a rule and got held back. But Sasha decided to turn down love and it was his fault.”

“That’s terrible. Maybe she would find someone who would love her for her.”

“Yeah. Maybe she will but she wouldn’t give them a chance. She has scorned it from the world.”

“I hate him. I hate this guy that hurt Sasha.” Anne said. Her hand tightened into a fist.

“Same. I wish I could go beat him up. Jerk is still alive but at least he is forever trapped in the North Toad Tower. That’s one of the worst towers you could be stuck with.”

“I wish I could convince her to give love another chance.”

“Eh. Good luck. She is more concerned for Sprig right now.” That’s another thing. Why is Sasha so hellbent to help Sprig’s crush when the boy is not ready and too nervous to say it?

“Introducing Sprig Plantar!” Sasha came downstairs. Anne’s eyes widened when she noticed Sasha wearing a suit with a cape. For once, she was gloveless. Sasha moved out of the way. Sprig stood there with that ceremonial hat on his head and the neck ruff around his neck. Thanks to the tightness of the suit, the poor frog could barely move or walk. Sprig waddled. “Ready for the dance, sir?”

“Sasha, I feel stupid. I look stupid. Ivy is going to think I look stupid!”

“Don’t worry about it, buddy. Remember, just have fun and be yourself.” Sprig sighed. Sasha looked over at Anne and Polly. “Why aren’t you dressed?”

“I don’t have anything fancy to wear,” Anne said.

“And I honestly don’t care about any of this.” Polly crossed her arms.

“You two go get dressed.” Hop Pop came from behind Sasha. He was wearing a nice suit as well. “Don’t want to miss Sprig’s date.”

“Ugh. Do I have to Hop Pop?” Polly whined. Hop Pop just pointed upstairs. “Fine.”

Anne looked at Hop Pop. “I don’t think I have anything to wear, Hop Pop.”

“I got something.” Sasha went upstairs into her room. Soon, she came out with a red dress in her arms. “I’ve worn it a few times. It’s been a while since I got a bit too tall in it. I think it may fit you.” 

Anne took it before graciously nodding her head at Sasha in thanks. She went into her room and slipped into the dress, amazed that it fit her well. It had straps that hung around her biceps, with the back missing. When she came back upstairs, Polly was dressed up and didn’t look so happy about it.

When Sasha noticed Anne came back and wore a red dress, all matters of thinking went silent. Anne looked like she had come out of a fairy tale. The dress hugged her curves and the red color matched perfectly with her tanned skin. She is a beauty to behold.

Hop Pop gushed about how pretty Anne looked and asked her to do a twirl and she did. The old frog is very pleased.

“All right, gang! Let’s go.”

The Firefly Formal was a special event for everyone in Wartwood to attend. It was an event to celebrate the birth of the new fireflies. 

When the Plantars arrived, everyone was on the dance floor. Anne was hanging onto Sasha’s arm as they observed everyone dancing. Sprig waddled in. They could see Ivy in the back, wearing an outfit similar to Sprig with a purple wig on the top of her head.

“My little girl’s a woman.” Felicia Sundew let out a small “Aw” at her daughter, fiddling with her dress, and making her perfect.

“Mom!”

Sprig gulped when he spotted Ivy. Hop Pop slapped him on his back.

“All right, my boy, go get that lucrative business relationship. I-I mean, romantic relationship!” He gave him a bouquet and pushed Sprig to walk up to Ivy. “Saved it.” He mumbled.

Anne starred at Hop Pop and then at Sprig. Now she was beginning to dislike the idea of forcing Sprig to marry Ivy when they hadn’t even had the chance to really tell each other how they felt. Sprig waddled over to Ivy as Ivy shuffled her way to him.

“Hey, Ivy!” Sprig squeaked out. 

“Hi, Sprig.”

“These…are…for you.” Sprig sounded like Marcy when she was stuttering around Lily.

“Oh! Thanks.”

“So…You’re looking like a….Girl frog.” Sprig wanted to slap his forehead, but he couldn’t because his arms were stuck in this stupid, stuffy suit.

“Oh! okay. I like your, uh, collar.”

Anne leaned over to Sasha. “Sasha, this is looking to be a disaster. Maybe we shouldn’t have pushed Sprig through with this.”

“Give them time. They just need a little push is all.” Anne noticed that Sasha was forced to say it and Anne was quick to confront it.

“Sasha, you and Hop Pop didn’t give them a little push. You all but threw them into this.”

“It’s fine Anne. It will work itself out.” Sasha is being stubborn.

“Why are you so concerned with Sprig’s love life?” Anne knew the answer, but she wanted to hear directly from Sasha’s mouth.

“Because I don’t want him to end up alone like I will!” Sasha yelled. Thankfully, most of the frogs and people were too preoccupied with the two younger frogs to notice them. Anne looked at her with a surprised expression and in need of an explanation. Sasha sighed tiredly and said, “Sprig has always idolized me since we were kids. He wanted to follow in my every footstep. I closed my heart to love because of what happened to me. But I don't want him to do the same.”

“So, you are pushing him to Ivy in the hopes he won’t end up being alone?”

“Yes. In all honesty, I am not too keen on this idea either. But Hop Pop is dead set on this. And you can’t argue with Hop Pop.” But Anne will not accept this.

“Sprig and Ivy are far too young to be thinking of marriage. They needed time which Hop Pop and Ivy’s mother should reconsider and another thing,” Anne grabbed Sasha and forced her to face her and spoke. “Do you really think you will be alone forever? That you won’t find someone who truly loves you for you?” Anne had never seen Sasha look so vulnerable when her eyes seemed to go dark and melancholy. 

“I don’t know, Anne. I’m too afraid of getting hurt again.” Sasha whispered. Sasha looked down at her scarred hand. Anne settled her hand on top of Sasha’s palm. “I’ve been burned one too many times with relationships. I’m too afraid to become what my parents were.” Another thing Anne doesn’t know is Sasha’s parents. Her real parents. What did they do to her to make scornful of love?

“I know. But maybe don’t completely close yourself off. You may find someone. Someone who cares about you, someone who would love you for you, and would never ever hurt you!” Sasha stared at Anne’s brown eyes. They seemed to pull her in like a moth to the flame.

Anne weaved their fingers together. Sasha looked away from Anne’s gaze but didn’t remove her hand from her and then her heart was beating, rapidly.

“I’m so happy we agreed on this merger, Hopediah. That Sprig of yours looks like a hard worker.”

“That he is, Felicia. He learned it from the two best people. Me and Sasha. Now, like we agreed. You’ll get Sprig to work at your restaurant two days out of the week, and I’ll get the seeds to those Sundew vegetables.”

“Agreed.”

Hop Pop went over to Sasha and Anne. They still had yet to let go of each other’s hands. 

“Now, let’s watch our little love doves fly, which mate for life, but you already knew that don’t ya, Anne.” Hop Pop was quick to turn away because Anne’s face scowled sullenly. This caught Sasha by surprise when she saw.

“Ugh! Don’t remind me!” Anne even rolled her eyes as she whispered under her breath.

A little green and yellow newt walked up to the microphone.

“Excuse me, everybody.” He tapped on the microphone, sending the feedback to everyone. “But I hear we have a couple of love doves here tonight. Ivy Sundew and Sprig Plantar. Whoo! A big hand for them. Come on, let me hear it. Hopediah Plantar says, ‘Sprig, don’t mess this up for us.’ And Felicia Sundew would like Ivy to ‘have a great courtship. Wink.’ It says wink here. ‘Love, mom.’ All right, then. Hit it, boys!”

Sprig and Ivy awkwardly stared at each other as they attempted to begin dancing. Sprig awkwardly laughed.

“So, Sprig, I didn’t realize you felt this way about me.” Ivy is getting uncomfortable from the spectators and her mom giving her a thumbs up.

“Oh yeah. I uh felt this way for a long time. Definitely don’t want to be alone like Sasha.” Sprig awkwardly laughed again. 

“Hey!” Sasha yelled out. 

“Still don’t care!” Polly screamed out. 

“But yeah, I am…Really….Do…I can’t do this, Ivy.” Ivy looked at Sprig with a concerned look when he started to look guilty. 

“Sprig, you, okay?” 

And Sprig spoke the truth, “No, Ivy! I don’t want to date you if you don’t feel the same.”

“Oh, thank goodness. I only went along with it because…I didn’t want to hurt your feelings. Also ‘cause my mom forced me.” 

“Ha! Parents, am I right?” It hurt a bit, but it made Ivy better and that’s what’s important to Sprig “What do you say we ditch this thing and go watch some fireflies? They’re in season.”

“After you, friend.” Ivy pointed towards the forest as she bowed. 

“Why, thank you, friend.”

The two frogs ran toward the forest, holding hands and laughing.

From far away, both sets of families watched the two frogs run away. Sasha was smiling.

“That is adorable. Young love.”

“They are abandoning the ritual! If those two don’t finish that dance…” 

“Then courtship will be ruined. Along with my financial security! Come on gang. Let’s get this merger back on track.”

“Uh, counterpoint. Why don’t we just leave them alone?” Polly yelled.

“I agree with Polly. We should just leave them alone. We shouldn’t have forced them into this in the first place.”

“Ridiculous.” Felicia scoffed.

“Not a chance.” Hop Pop ignored her.

Anne turned to Sasha. “You with me, Sasha?”

“I mean….” Anne squinted her eyes at Sasha before there was a small flash of blue. “Yeah. I’m kind of too invested in this right now. Like I said, I want Sprig to fall in love. Not to be like me.” When Anne growled, Sasha gulped and ran after Hop Pop and Felicia when they went ahead. “Wait for me!”

There was ceremonial clothing spewed on the forest floor. Sprig was hopping out of the tight clothes. He reached into the ceremonial hat and pulled his trusty hat out. They had both worn their normal clothing underneath the fancy clothing.

“Wow, man, this is way better than that stuffy old dance.” Sprig and Ivy gasped when they spotted the fireflies flying in front of them. “Whoa! So many of them and so pretty too right, Ivy? Ivy? Ivy?” He noticed Ivy was gone and then he gasped. “Oh no!”

“Ambush!” Ivy came flying out of the tree above Sprig and tackled him to the ground. 

“Oh no, you don’t.” Sprig grabbed a stick and began dueling with Ivy. “Have at thee, you pirate.”

“This will be your grave!”

“That’s, uh…That’s kind of dark.”

The kids were laughing as they chased each other around as they fought with the sticks.

Sasha stopped when she spotted some of the ceremonial clothing on the ground. She picked up the hat. Hop Pop walked up beside her. 

“Hmmm. Where are those dang kids?”

“Hop Pop, do you think that maybe we were a little too quick on the draw to marry Sprig off?” Sasha asked.

“Come on Sasha, you said so yourself. You don't want him to end up like you. Dying alone in an empty house.” Hop Pop twisted his wrist as he said that. He didn’t pay close attention to Sasha’s pained expression. Sasha rubbed the back of her neck as she looked away. Anne hated seeing Sasha upset. 

“Hop Pop,” Anne stood up for her little frog friend. “I agree with Sasha and Polly. You forced Sprig into this because of greed. Sure, he had a crush on Ivy, but you needed to let him do his own thing. Figure out his feelings. He is young. He has all the time in the world to figure out what he wants in life.”

“But I don’t want him to end up like Sasha.” Hop Pop pointed out. Anne raised an eyebrow at his comment.

“Maybe he will. Maybe he won’t. But you don’t know that. People change, Hop Pop. Time can change things. The rest of you will stay here. I am going to track Sprig and Ivy.”

“I’ll come with you, Anne.” Sasha followed behind Anne.

They walked through the forest together in silence. Anne kept looking at Sasha’s scarred hand. She moved her hand to gently bump up against it. Sasha was quick to move it away, startling her.

“Sorry, I ‘uh’ didn’t mean to scare you…Polly told me what happened.” Sasha stared at Anne in confusion. “She told me exactly how your hand got injured.”

“Oh!” Sasha lifted her hand up and stared at the scar. Anne could see a slight tremble in the hand. “So, she told you about my ex-boyfriend who tried to murder me?” She spits venomously.

“Sasha,” Anne tried to go up to her and comfort her, but Sasha began to rave it all out.

“The guy was an asshole! I finally thought that maybe I had found someone. Someone I could share my life with. Someone I could trust. Someone who loved me for me. But then that asshole had to show his true colors and made a complete fool out of me!” Sasha tightened her fist before slamming it into a nearby tree trunk. “I’m just some fucked up person with parents who orphaned her the minute they could!” Sasha began repeatedly punching the tree with her left hand. Anne could make out some blood flying. “That I will die alone.” Sasha repeated what Hop Pop had said. “That my heart is too black for it to find any sort of light. That no one will love this fucked up person.”

Anne finally had enough. She grabbed Sasha’s wrist to stop her from damaging her hand any further. She cupped Sasha’s left hand with both of hers. She looked up to Sasha, who had tears streaming down her cheeks. Anne began healing the new wounds. She couldn’t heal the old scars but maybe…She could heal a broken heart.

“He’s wrong about you! Your parents were wrong about you! And you are wrong about yourself!” Sasha looked down at Anne with a hurt look in those blue eyes. “Your heart isn’t black. Far from it. You have a heart of gold.” Anne tugged the left hand close to her chest as she continued to heal the wounds. “You are wonderful, Sasha. Don’t let that jerk and your past get to you. People change. Time can change people. Definitely not today but maybe…Maybe in the future, you will find someone who loves you for you. I know because I cherish our friendship and I care so much about you...You mean so much more to me than I realized!”

Sasha’s breath hitched. She felt the tears fall even harder. She suddenly pulled Anne into a hug, who was still clutching Sasha’s left hand. Anne nuzzled her face into Sasha’s neck. 

“Thank you, Anne.” Sasha doesn’t know what overcame her to hug Anne, but it felt so right to pull Anne into her arms, tucked safely and protectively in her chest. Even if Anne is capable of holding her ground Sasha feels the urge to protect this tiny woman from all types of harm.

“Anything for you, Sasha. You really have been my first friend in a long time.”

Anne slipped one hand and wrapped it around Sasha’s body. They continued to just hug each other. 

“Whoa! Are we interrupting something here?” Sasha and Anne lifted their heads to see Sprig and Ivy standing there.

“Sprig! Ivy!” Sasha fell to her knees and pulled them into a hug. “I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you both. I just wanted you both to be happier!” Sasha begins to sob hard.

“It’s ‘uh’ okay, Sasha.” Sprig patted her back awkwardly.

“Anne told me how wrong I was.” Sasha sobbed. “I hope you two can forgive me for forcing you to confess your feelings.”

“I don’t blame you, Sasha.” Ivy patted Sasha’s back. “At least we don’t have to marry each other.”

“Thank you.” Sasha pulled away and wiped her tears. “I’m sorry you two. I shouldn’t have followed along with Hop Pop. Sprig, I just didn’t want you to end up alone. I didn’t want you to follow in my footsteps.”

“Huh? Sasha, I only wanted to follow you because of how cool you are. You are this awesome soldier who shows no fear. You inspired me to be brave even when things are a little scary.”

“Thanks for the confidence boost there, buddy. But you get to decide your future. Don’t let anyone decide it for you.”

“I promise.” Sprig saluted.

Everyone heard a scream coming from above them. They looked up to see two love doves flying above them. In their talons was the rest of their family.

“Love doves!” Sasha shouted. 

“We have to save them.” Anne started running, not yet activating her powers. She heard everyone running after them. She wasn’t going to be able to fly but that’s fine. She could hide her powers from Ivy and Felicia. 

The love doves dropped Polly, Hop Pop, and Felicia onto the ground before hacking some green slime on them. It was like a really sticky glue. The three struggled to break free, but that only seemed to make it more stickier the harder they struggled. 

“We’re stuck.” Polly sighed before angrily turning her head towards the two adults. She looked up at the two doves. “So, are they not gonna eat us?”

“Not right away! Love Doves preferred to leave their prey marinated in fear first, and-” Hop Pop was cut off by a scoff from Felicia.

“Oh! can it, Plantar! This is all your fault. If you taught your grandson proper courtship technique, we won’t be in this mess!”

“My fault? It’s obviously your daughter. She is a bad influence on my sweet boy.” They begin to throw accusations and insults, and the arguments grow worse which makes Polly steaming mad.

“ENOUGH! It’s all your fault!”

“Say what!” Hop Pop shouted. 

“Impossible.” Felicia shook her head.

“Zip it both of you! The only reason we’re here marinating is because you all had to play matchmaker. You two were greedy, plain and simple.”

“Maybe a little.” Hop Pop shrugged his shoulders.

“Can’t argue with that.”

Sasha and others were high up in the trees overlooking the nest. 

“Okay, my creature whisperer,” Sasha turned to Anne. “How do we deal with love doves without using violence?”

“Oh! Violence would be the only answer for these two.” Anne said it bluntly.

“Wait what!? Anne, these are your creatures.”

“Yeah they may be but they absolutely hate listening to anyone but themselves. They hardly ever listen to me. I’ve had to beat them up to get them to stop arguing over land or a tree they take from other creatures. Love Doves are nothing but stuck-up, narcissistic bullies!”

“Frog, damn it! And here I was hoping that we could find a bloodless solution.”

“And you left your swords back home.” Sasha chuckled nervously.

“Well, the doves are asleep. Maybe we could sneak in, free our family, and then sneak away without them noticing!” Sprig said his idea.

“Good plan Sprig. Time for a rescue mission.”

The group inched closer to the group. Thankfully, the love doves were still sound asleep. Sasha had a branch in her hands that she used to stab at the guck. Anne pulled on Polly before she broke free. 

“Kids, what are you doing here?” 

“We are here to free you!”

“And me and Sprig don’t want to date each other. Yet!” Ivy pointed out as she tried to free her mom. Sprig stared wide-eyed at Ivy in disbelief before he knew it, his face split into a hopeful grin. He reached over and tugged Sasha’s pant leg. 

“She said yet! She said yet! Sasha, I have a chance with her.”

“That’s great, buddy but maybe you can fantasize some other time. Get me that stick over that.”

Sprig ran over to the nest before peeking inside it and gasped.

“GUYS! THEY HAVE EGGS!” Sprig shouted at the top of his lungs. 

“SPRIG!” Sasha ran over and picked the frog up before one of the beaks of the doves pierced his little body. Sasha tucked him up under her armpit. “Remind me to never take you on a stealth mission.” Sasha raced by Hop Pop grabbed his jacket and pulled him out of the guck.  But then she heard the shredding sound of a material and she glanced down and saw that Hop Pop had lost his pants. “And now I am traumatized!”

The group started running from the love doves. Sasha noticed a large log. Big enough for the frogs and too small for the doves. She hastily threw Hop Pop and Sprig inside. She picked Felicia and Ivy up and threw them inside as well. Anne gently set Polly down and pushed her into the log. Anne turned around to see Sasha hollering and waving her arms to the dove and she got their attention.

“Anne! Get them out of here and go!” The doves chased after Sasha. Anne was in full-blown panic mode. She knew that if they caught Sasha, she would be ripped to shreds. Love doves were merciless in their attacks. They loved to massacre all living things.

“You guys stay here and don’t move until Sasha and I come back.” Anne turned to them. 

“Right.” 

Anne set off. Once she was further away, she ignited her powers and flew up past the treetops. She looked around for Sasha. She spotted the love doves. She dove down towards them. 

“Hey, you two.” They tilted their heads at her. Anne gasped when she saw Sasha under the male’s talons. Anne could see some blood surrounding the area around Sasha’s shoulder. “Knock it off. Go back to your nest now!” The love doves let out a few choice words to her. They told her that they would go back to their nest once they finished playing with their food, and they said so in a condescending manner. 

“Anne, something tells me that they aren't going to go nicely.” Sasha called out.

“You will leave NOW! And you leave the blonde alone. That is a very dear friend of mine and if you harm another hair on her head, I will not be letting you leave this area unscathed.”

The love doves looked at the angry, blue-haired spirit and then at Sasha. They let more swaks at Anne and it sounded like an insult as Anne heard a little cry of pain from Sasha when the talon of the male Love Dove clenched tighter. 

That set Anne off. She flew to their faces. Her body flared with a blue aura around her. She punched their beaks causing them to let go of Sasha.

Sasha was on the floor and when she looked up, she was stunned. No, mesmerized. Anne is punching the Love Doves like a pro, sending ruthless punches and a round-house kick on the doves as the giant birds stood no chance, and all Sasha could say with her eyes sparkled with admiration.

“Whoa, mama!”

Anne dropped the doves down and they quivered in fear.

“Now leave!”

They gulped and they quickly flew back to their nest. Anne flew down and raced to Sasha’s side and helped her up. 

“Sasha, what were you thinking?” Anne healed Sasha’s bloody shoulder.

“I was trying to save our family.”

“Yeah, and you were almost killed. I almost feel like you have some sort of death wish.”

“Well, I also know a beautiful spirit would have come to my rescue.” Sasha quickly realized what she said. She stared wide-eyed at Anne, who did the same. Both of their faces erupted in red. Sasha looked away as Anne worked, both still wearing their blush. “Um. Thank you, Anne. For everything. For listening to me and for helping me save our family.”

“I should be thanking you though. I finally have a place to truly call home and people I can call family.”

“That’s how we Plantars are. We take in the ones who have no home or have been hurt. Family isn’t always blood.”

Sasha reached up and touched Anne’s hand. They arrived back where they had left the families. Sasha swung her cape over her shoulder to hide the blood and around Anne when she noticed she was shivering from the cold and they had subconsciously held hands on the way back

“Sasha!” The Plantar came running out and hugged her legs.

“You really think I was going to leave my favorite froggy family behind.”

“You were so brave and super cool.” Sprig was crying.

Felicia and Ivy came following out of the log. “I must say, Hopediah. That human girl of yours is pretty impressive. She took on a pair of love doves and lived to tell the tale.”

“Actually, Felicia!” Sasha spoke up and said, “Anne was the one who saved us. I distracted the Love Doves, but they managed to grab me by their talons. Anne…Outsmart them and send them flying away!”

Felicia blinked and then looked at Anne in bewilderment and found it hard to believe but Ivy spoke up.

“Whoa Anne! Sasha wasn’t kidding when she said you were tough. You’re so cool!” Anne blushed shyly. Then Felicia smiled, happy and grateful.

“Thank you, Anne! As for the ritual, our two children wouldn’t be forced into a marriage, but I’ll give you a few of my seeds as thanks for being saved.” Hop Pop gasped.

“Felicia. Why thank you.” 

“Now, let’s go home Ivy where it's safe and where I can properly say I’m sorry for dragging you into this.”

“Bye Sprig. See you tomorrow.”

Sprig was waving as he had snot and tears running down his face. “She likes me. She really likes me.” Sprig turned and clung to Sasha’s leg. She patted his head.

“Well, you are one lucky frog.”

“I say we all go home as well. And I’m sorry everyone for dragging you all into this. I guess I was a little greedy.” Hop Pop glanced over at Anne and Sasha’s intertwined hands. “It seems somebody got a little closer.”

“Greedy! Hop Pop, you nearly got us all killed!” Polly screamed, interrupting Hop Pop’s teasing.

“Well, how was I supposed to know we’ll be running into Love Doves?” 

“Ugh!” 

The two walked away, still bickering.

“Come on you two. Let’s head home. I’ll cook you something as appreciation.” Anne let go and walked away. 

Sasha could only stand there watching Anne leave with a dreamy expression. Sprig observed the two and spoke.

“You fell in love with her, didn't you?” Sprig asked.

“Did I? I-” Sasha clutched her shirt again, right above her heart. “I…did.” She said it but with a horrible realization. “I think I did. But I can’t. Sprig I can’t fall in love with her.”

“But why not? She is amazing, smart, she is so nice, and beautiful. She makes us happy, and she makes you happy!”

“Because if I’m in love with her, then how will I turn her into the king? I can’t betray Anne like how Ricki betrayed me!” Sprig looked at his tall, older sister in worry when she grabbed her head and paced back and forth. “I can’t do that to her. But…I can’t ignore the way my heart beats when she smiles. I can’t ignore the skips in beats when I catch Anne with the sun hitting her just right. She can never find out. Because…I refuse to break her heart like mine has been so many times. And I refuse to let my heart break again.”

“But Anne is different. She is nothing like him or your parents. Anne is too good.”

“You are right about one thing, Sprig. Anne is too good…Too good for me. Sprig, I’m a monster. An asshole. Anne deserves someone better than me.” Sprig was about to protest but Sasha walked away hurriedly.

Sprig’ shoulders shagged down. He wanted Sasha to be happy but now, just when he thought things would get better, it became much messier than before. 

Why can’t Sasha see that Anne could be the best thing that ever happened to her? Sprig will cling to hope that his sister will see that Anne is her one, true love. Even if he has to help her see that.

Sasha sat on the ledge wall outside with Domino next to her. She looked down at her scarred hand, remembering the whole fight as clearly as day.

The excruciating pain.

The blood was everywhere.

He was smirking.

She clutched her hand into a fist. Then a caramel-skinned hand touched hers. She looked up to see Anne smiling down at her, freely. 

“Hey, Anne.”

“Hey, Sasha. How are you feeling?” 

“Better. Your healing powers always amaze me.”

“I meant in here.” Anne poked Sasha’s heart.

“It’s…A mess right now. I’m not sure what to make of it right now. But I’ll try to be better.” She is sincere and Anne is glad.

“Just make sure you don’t get hurt. When I saw you trapped under the dove’s talon, I was worried I would lose you.”

“But I was saved thanks to you.” Sasha stood up. “Did you ever learn how to dance?” It came out of nowhere, but Anne answered right away.

“Valeriana taught me so I could dance at her coronation. But I’m sure she taught me a newt dance.”

“You do know that most fancy dances are the same among species.” Then she held her hand out to Anne.

Anne took the offered hand. She settled her hand on Sasha's right shoulder. Sasha took her left hand into hers and placed her other on her waist. 

The two slowly danced under the moonlight. Without realizing the closeness, Anne placed her head on Sasha’s chest. For once, Sasha didn’t push or tug her away.

“ Maybe I am falling for you, Anne.”

Chapter Text

Eight years ago .

Sasha shivered as she could feel a painful cold and sweaty at the same time. Her breath labored trying to take in as much air as she needed but found it difficult as if something was preventing the air from going into her lungs. 

Then, she felt a warm, tender hand touch her forehead. Sasha blinked a few times and looked up to see a long dark-haired woman leaning over her. Their bright orange eyes stared down at her.

“Where am I?” Sasha weakly called out. One minute, she was out helping the Plantars to get ready for the harvest in a raging rainstorm, and then the next thing she could remember darkness consumed her vision.

“D-Darcy?” 

“Shush. Yes, it’s just me, Sasha. Bark had sent me a batsquito saying that you had fallen ill. I raced on Leander as fast as I could to you. The Planters had never dealt with a human cold before and they weren’t sure what to do. I took you back to the castle with me.”

“Darcy?” Sasha weakly coughed. “I’m sorry.”

That confused Darcy. She wiped Sasha’s forehead with a rag. “For what?” 

“For making you come get me.” Darcy looked like she was about to cry but kept it in and put a smile in assurance instead.

“Oh, Sasha. I would move the heavens and earth for you. You are like a daughter to me.” 

“…Thank you.” Sasha tried to get up but was pushed down on the bed, forcefully but gently.

“Don’t get up. You are on bed rest until your fever breaks down, and until you feel better. And I, young lady.” Darcy waved her finger in circles and then pressed it against Sasha’s forehead. “Will be watching over you like a hawk. So, you will not be getting up for any reason. Now, get some rest, Sasha. If you need anything, just ring this bell on the side table and I will be there in a flash.” Darcy is giving Sasha a motherly smile to her.

Sasha nodded her head before her eyes slowly closed but she tried to keep them open. But, she watched as Darcy faded out of her vision.

“Darcy…Darcy, don’t go!...Darcy!”

Sasha woke up with a gasp to the sound of thunder and pouring rain hitting her window. She blinked a few times as she gathered her thoughts. 

It had been a while since she had dreamt of Darcy. She reached over to her nightstand and pulled a photo out of her drawer, keeping it hidden, and began to gaze at it longingly.

It was of a younger Sasha surrounded by everyone whom she considered family on her twelfth birthday with a banner that said, “Happy 12th Birthday, Sasha!” There was a nice-looking, two-layered cake in the middle of the table. 

Standing next to her was her best friend Marcy with her tongue sticking out and hugging Sasha by putting her arm around her shoulders. A pollywog Sprig was in Sasha’s arms and making a silly face at the camera and standing right next to Sasha is a younger version of Lily, hair messy and tied into a bun and sported a big, toothy grin and did a peace sign to the camera. Behind Sasha, Grime wore a proud grin and placed his hand on Sasha’s head. On the left side of Sasha was Hopadiah smiling in contentment with two different frogs in the picture. The male was a pink frog with a tuft of orange hair and in his arms was a purple frog with brown hair. Sasha traced their images with her finger. 

Bark and Jasmine. Her other parents.

Behind Sasha and bent down so she could be level with Sasha and Marcy was a woman that looked identical to now older Marcy. The only way to tell the difference was her eyes. They had both orange eyes compared to Marcy’s one eye.

Sasha missed her dearly just as much she missed Bark and Jasmine; Darcy was like a second mother to her. It’s why she loved her pink blade. It was the last gift she received from Darcy before she- 

“Sasha!” Hop Pop screamed out. From the panic in his voice, Sasha knew something was wrong.

“What’s wrong?” Sasha came running down the stairs, putting on her shirt.

“Everyone put on your rain gear. We have a full day ahead of us.” Hop Pop sounded like a commander ready for battle, armed in a raincoat and heavy rain boots.

Sprig and Polly have already dressed in their rain gear, but Sprig begins to protest

“Rain gear! Hop Pop, we’re frogs. We should be taking off our clothes.” Sprig ripped his jacket off and swung it around in the air. “Whoo hoo!”

“Keep your pants on, boy. This ain’t no ordinary storm.”

At that point, the group looked outside to see Wally outside, fighting against the storm. Suddenly, he was hit by a large tree and lifted high in the air. They could hear the faint scream from the weird frog.

“Welp, there goes, Wally.” Sprig pointed out.

“We gotta cover up the crops before they’re destroyed! It’ll be hours of back-breaking work in the mud and muck. Thankless, hard, character-building labor.” Hop Pop really makes things dramatic in everything. Sasha rolled her eyes, but Anne seemed to be the only one who thought that his speech was good.

“Okay, Hop Pop. You keep talking like that and it ain’t going to sell this work at the stand. Let’s go before this gets worse!”

The family and Anne made their way outside in the harsh storm. They could feel the wind hitting their bodies and the rain pelting them. Sasha was quick to grab Sprig before he flew off in the harsh wind. Anne held on to the tarp for dear life as she tried to spike it into the ground. Sasha came up to help her get it driven into the ground. 

“Come on, gang. Hurry up. I think this storm is getting worse.” Hop Pop screamed when he was suddenly sent flying by a fierce wind gust. Frobo extended his arm to grab Hop Pop and drag him back down. “Thanks, Frobo!”

“We are trying, Hop Pop. Doesn’t help when the very elements are fighting us!” Sasha wrapped a rope around Sprig and Polly and tethered them to Frobo. She turned to Anne. “Anne! How are you holding up?”

“Almost there.” Anne had dug her hands into the soil and was summoning vines to help hold the tarp down. 

The storm was truly relentless.

The wind gusts were so strong that they knocked Sasha into the water puddles several times. She was shivering and freezing from the water hitting her. 

Soon a tornado appeared and sucked the Plantars up. Sasha and Anne had to chase them down and bring them back.

Sasha and the Plantars walked through the door and groaned blearily. The rain gear was ripped to shreds and barely hanging on by a thread. Sasha ripped her gear off and shivered. She looked down to see Polly’s eyes swollen shut. Hop Pop sniffed as mucus dripped from his nose and coughed. Sprig looked the most normal out of the four.

“Wow! You guys look rough.” Anne said. She pressed her hand against Sasha’s forehead. “You are warm.”

“I feel all sticky.” Hop Pop whined.

“It’s fine Anne. I just need to get out of these wet clothes and take a warm bath.” Sasha gently pulled away from Anne.

“Yeah, that would be best. You all go get comfy and warm. I’ll cook you something to help. I think I saw a recipe called chickabeetle noodle soup. It says it helps with colds.”

“I’ll help you, Anne. I feel fine.” Sprig’s tongue suddenly shot out of his mouth and smacked Hop Pop in the face, knocking him over.

“Dang it, boy.” Hop Pop weakly said. 

“It got, Sprig too!” Anne and Sasha shouted. Sasha pushed his tongue back into his mouth. 

“Anne, go get the soup started. I’m going to take care of the Plantars.” Sasha suggested as she suddenly sneezed.

“But you are sick too.”

“I’ll be fine, Anne. I’m feeling better than the frogs.”

Anne knew she couldn’t argue with Sasha. Too stubborn for her own good. She sighed. 

“Fine! But the moment you are done helping, you will be taking care of yourself, got it?”

“Agreed.” 

Anne raced into the kitchen to get started on the soup. The sooner she could get the soup simmering, the sooner Sasha could take care of herself. She was quick with the soup already beginning to heat up and had all of the ingredients in the pot. She came into the living room to see Hop Pop covered up with a blanket. Sprig had a handkerchief wrapped around his head to keep his tongue in his mouth. Part of it was sticking out of his mouth. Polly was wrapped up in a blanket with Frobo squeezing eye drops into her swollen eyes. Sasha was missing.

“Where’s Sasha?”

“She went upstairs to get changed.” Hop Pop answered weakly.

Anne climbed up the steps to Sasha’s door. She was about to knock when she heard a loud thump. She opened the door, not caring about common courtesy. She spotted Sasha collapsed on the floor. Anne gently picked her up.

“Sasha!” Anne felt her forehead. Her face felt unusually warm. As she cradled Sasha in her arms, she could feel her shivering. “Oh, no! You developed a fever. Come on. Let’s get you to bed.”

“No!” Sasha grabbed her arm. “I’m…Fine. Let me help you get the soup on.”

“Sasha, you are not feeling well. The longer you try and toughen it out, the more likely you are going to get sicker.”

“This is just a common human cold. I’ve had worse. Besides, can’t you heal me like always?” Anne felt her shiver in her arms.

“Oh, Sasha. I wish I could, but my powers don’t work on colds or illnesses. I can only remove poison, heal wounds and bruises.”

“Oh.” Sasha huddled closer to Anne. Anne just wrapped her arms around the blonde. “I guess I learn something new every day about you.”

“Maybe you could tell me more about yourself?”

“There’s nothing special about me.” Sasha shivered again. 

“I disagree. Now come on. Just let me help just a little. Soup is about ready.”

Anne helped Sasha down the stairs and into a chair. She picked each of the Plantars up in her arms and carried them to the table. Once she had them at the table, she finished up the last of the ingredients for the soup and dropped off four bowls for them.

“Soup’s on.” 

Everyone tried a spoonful and let out a sigh of contentment. 

“Anne, I’m feeling better already. Thank you.” Hop Pop tried to set his spoon down, but it got stuck to his hand. “Stupid stickiness.”

Sprig was having a harder time eating as his tongue had swollen up a bit. Polly couldn’t see and was missing her mouth. The soup was soaking her shirt. Anne plopped down next to Polly and took the spoon out of her hand. 

“Let me help, Polly.” She took her spoon as Polly began to dispute that she was going to have spoon-fed her like a baby.

“I’m not a baby, Anne. I can eat the soup myself.” Her voice is hoarse and even her struggles are weak. But as soon as Anne puts her hand on top of her head, Polly is soothed when her blue powers calm her down. “That’s cheating.” Polly mumbled restfully.

Anne didn’t take her words to heart, she smiled at how Polly was trying to act tough. “I know you’re not a baby, Polly. But just for today, I’ll feed you till your eyes are open again, okay.” 

And Polly no longer complained, so happy to have warm soup warming her belly.

Anne looked over to Sasha, who surprisingly was using her left hand. But the tremors seemed to be amplified by her cold and the spoon shook from it. Anne wondered why Sasha wasn’t using her right hand.

“Hey, Sasha, why are you using your left hand?” Anne looked down to see Sasha had her right covered up.

“Oh, I’m ambidextrous.”

“What’s that?” Anne had never heard that word before.

“It means I can use both hands. I used to be dominant with my left hand but the orphanage I was at thought I was a freak for it and forced me to have to use my right. When I went to the tower, I just kept it up. It helps though because I can use both of my hands for my swords.”

Anne looked down at Sasha’s right hand again and narrowed her eyes. She held her palm out at Sasha.

“Give me your hand.”

“What? What for?” Gotcha! Anne picked up her tone of voice that she was hiding something.

“Sasha, are you hiding something from me?”

“NooOooO.” Sasha shied away from Anne. Anne just wiggled her fingers. Sasha finally relented and showed Anne her right hand. It was cut and bleeding.

“Sasha! What happened?”

“I cut myself on some glass from a picture frame that fell out of my hands when I collapsed.” Anne took the wounded hand and began healing it. Soon, all of the cuts were gone, and Anne took a rug to wipe down the dried blood. “I feel like a kid getting scolded by her mother.” Sasha pouted when Anne was giving her the look.

“You should be. This was stupid of you, Sasha, to hide this from me. Polly, are you done?”

“Yes.” She burped. 

“Go upstairs and lay down in your bed and rest. Sprig, Hop Pop. That goes for you as well.” The frogs left the table. Polly was carried upstairs by Frobo. Anne focused on Sasha. Sasha was still shivering and spilling the spoon due to her left hand. Anne gently took the spoon out of her hand. Anne dipped it in the soup and held it to Sasha’s mouth. “Say ah.”

Sasha is giving her a serious deadpanned expression.

“Anne, I’m not a little kid.”

“Please just humor me this once.”

“…Ugh! Okay.” Sasha whispered. She opened her mouth and allowed Anne to feed her soup. 

The bowls were empty, and Anne was beginning to gather them up and take them into the kitchen to clean them. Sasha grabbed her hand.

“Shouldn’t you be taking it easy too? You spent the same amount of time outside as us. Aren’t you feeling sick?”

“Sasha, I’m an immortal being. I don’t get sick.”

“Oh. Right.”

“I appreciate you being concerned about me. But I am more concerned about you. Sasha, please. Go upstairs and rest.”

“I’ll be fine, Anne. Just let me help you out.”

“Sasha,” Anne growled. Sasha ducked her head in like a turtle. 

“I just…Want to help you.”

“You have a fever and being sick isn’t going to help me, Sasha. Go to bed.” Anne scolded her again.

“Anne, let me help you. Please. I don’t want to seem worthless.” Anne felt her heart break from Sasha’s tone. It was so sorrowful and broken. What made Sasha think she would be worthless? She would never think less of Sasha, but now, her friend is very sick and the fever seems to make her vulnerable and bear negative feelings like an opened book. 

“Sasha, you won’t be worthless to me. I am more worried about you. You’re shaking like a leaf and your fever will get worse if you overwork! I am begging you to just go to bed and rest.” Anne took Sasha’s hands. “Please. I cherish you and our friendship. The last thing I want is to see my friend get sicker.” She hopes she reasoned with the blond but now, worried that Sasha remains unresponsive and seems to be in a far-off place, seems to be thinking of something.

As Sasha stood there for a few moments. She settled her hand on Anne’s.

“I’ll listen. I will rest.” Anne lets out a sigh of relief after holding it in.

“Good. And if I see you up, I will tie you down in your bed.”

“Message received.” Sasha chuckled.

Sasha allowed Anne to kiss her cheek before heading upstairs. Anne sighed before cleaning up a bit. The storm was still raging outside. Anne turned around to see Frobo standing there. 

“Help?” He said as he pointed to himself.

“You want to help me?” He let out a series of beeps and clapped his hands. “Thank you, Frobo. That would be really helpful, and it would allow us to bond.”

“Yay!” Frobo threw his arms up.

“Hehe! You are adorable, Frobo.” Frobo couldn’t blush but he made it known that he loved Anne’s comment. He let out a series of happy beeps. “For your first job, I want you to go and clean up some of the water we left behind. I’m going outside to go check up on Bessie and the cowapillars and the crops.”

Frobo saluted much like how Sasha did. 

Anne went outside and headed towards Bessie’s barn. They had nailed up as many boards as they could to the open windows. Anne carefully slipped into the barn and spied Bessie against the wall. She let out a few beeps when she saw Anne. The three cowapillars were huddled together for warmth. Anne rubbed her hand along the snail’s head.

“Hey, girls. I’m just checking up on you. How are you feeling?” Bessie beeped. “Good. I just had some special mushrooms I cut up and figured you deserved them for being so good during this storm. And I brought you all extra blankets, things will be pretty chilling.” She stated.

Bessie beeped and rubbed her head against Anne’s in thanks. Anne walked out of the barn after she quickly examined the whole barn for any potential leaks. So far, it was holding up. That was good. Anne checked the crops and was glad to see the tarp was holding up. The vines and spikes were keeping it down tight. At least the crops and their hard work would be safe. 

She came back indoors and saw Frobo was moping away. Domino was taking up most of the couch with her body. Anne chuckled at her friend. Anne heard a noise upstairs. She hoped Sasha wasn’t up.

She walked upstairs to Sasha’s room. She peeked in and sighed in relief. Sasha was in her bed, sound asleep. Anne noticed a few pieces of glass on the floor and a picture frame. She bent down to carefully pick up the pieces of glass and then picked the frame up. She stared at the picture.

There was no doubt the smaller blonde was Sasha. The child had the same blue eyes that Anne cherished and there was the same mole under her left eye. Anne spotted a younger Marcy next to Sasha, and Lily. Anne chuckled at the tadpole Sprig in Sasha’s arms. He had his favorite hat on his head. She loved that Sasha had such a close relationship with Sprig. She spotted Grime looking proud with his huge grin.

She saw a much younger Hop Pop with a full set of hair. Anne had to admit that it was fancy. She looked all over for a little Polly but she figured that maybe Polly wasn’t born yet. She stared at the two frogs next to Hop Pop she had never seen those frogs before. The female purple frog had a tender hand on Sasha’s shoulder, smiling so lovingly, and the male looked a lot like Sprig from the color of his skin to his hair. It was clear these two were Sprig and Polly’s parents. 

The woman behind Sasha and Marcy is what caught Anne’s eyes. She looked like Marcy. Only she had two orange eyes. She remembered Marcy’s words.

“My mom always said I had the best of both worlds. An eye from my dad and an eye from her.”

Anne suspected this was Marcy’s mom. They looked too much alike for it to not be the case. She was beautiful, Anne had to admit.

“Dar-cy.” Anne looked up, startlingly to see Sasha had moved in her sleep. Anne approached her bedside and set the photo frame down. She brushed a few strands of hair from Sasha’s forehead.  Sasha opened her eyes and said, “Darcy. I’m sorry.” She is still half asleep, and she mistook Anne for Darcy.

“Sorry for what?” Anne played along, not having the heart to wake Sasha up or to tell her she was not Darcy. It’s clear that this Darcy woman means a lot to Sashe.

“For making you take care of me.” Anne smiled down. 

“I will always take care of you.” Anne leaned down and kissed her forehead. 

“Thank you, Darcy.” Then Sasha scrunched in sadness. “Why did you leave us?” 

That tore Anne’s heart. She wondered who this Darcy was to Sasha. Sasha sounded so heartbroken about her. Was she another love of Sasha’s that broke her heart and made her swear to never love again? As Anne tried to leave, Sasha grabbed her hand. 

“Don’t leave me. Please.”

“Sasha, I won’t leave. I’ll be back soon.” Anne rubbed her hand.

“Please, no.” Sasha let out a cry. “Please stay. Don’t leave me, Darcy. Please. Please.”

Anne felt tears sting her eyes. How she wished Sasha was begging her to stay. Not this Darcy woman. 

“Sasha, let me go.” She coaxes her gently but that only makes Sasha cry even more.

“I don’t want you to go.” 

Anne tearfully looked at Sasha. She sat down on the bed beside Sasha and slowly began singing to her. It was a tune Anne had picked up from many years ago. Slowly, Sasha fell back to sleep and let Anne’s hand go.

Anne stayed a bit longer before quietly leaving the room with her heart torn in two.

Anne was reading a book as the storm raged. The Plantars and Sasha were still asleep, and Anne wasn’t going to disturb them. She heard a cough and saw Sasha coming down the stairs, wrapped in a blanket. 

“By the Guardian.” Anne let out a small curse. “Sasha, what are you doing up?”

“I just got up. And my body doesn’t want to go back to sleep.” Sasha coughed. “I wanted to check up on you. How are you feeling?”

“Sasha, remember. Immortal being. Can’t get sick.”

“Right. Right.” Sasha plopped down next to Anne. Anne looked at Sasha. 

“Sasha, can I ask you a question?”

“Yeah.”

“Who-” Anne didn’t want to really ask such a personal question, but her curiosity got the best of her. “Who is Darcy and what did she mean to you?”

Sasha got really quiet. Her eyes had that far look in her blue eyes. Anne settled her hand on Sasha’s shoulder.

How many times did Sasha cry about this woman?

How many times has Sasha had a broken heart?

“Darcy Wu was her name. She was Marcy’s mom.” Wu? Marcy’s mom? Anne thought to the human woman she had seen in the picture. It all made sense. “In a sense, I viewed her as a mother as well.”

“Oh!”

“Why did you ask?”

“I’ve heard you call her name a few times and I…Assumed she was your ex-lover.” Sasha snorted rather loudly.

“What? Oh man, that’s just crazy. Why did you think like that?” Now, Anne is blushing and quickly comes up with a lie. 

“No reason!” Then after they both calmed down, Anne asked the question that made her curious but more worried. “What…Happened to her?”

“She died…By suicide. Nobody knows why though. She didn’t leave a note behind. She seemed pretty happy to me.”

“Is that why Marcy doesn’t like to mention her mother because of that?”

“You catch on pretty quick. Yeah, Marcy was heartbroken. She and her mother were pretty close. They only had each other so it makes sense. And Darcy always told me that I was a second daughter to her. As much as I want to remember Darcy’s memory, I know Marcy is torn because she doesn’t understand why her mother did that.”

Anne slipped her hand into Sasha’s. 

“I am sorry for bringing up such a memory.”

“I loved Darcy. I still do. I would gladly talk about her. Especially with you.” She smiled at her genuinely. 

“So, was she the one who gave you your pink heron sword?”

“Yep. It was a birthday gift when I turned twelve. She…She always called me her little heron. Graceful and beautiful and yet deadly at the same time. Marcy was her little raven 'cause they’re wise and knowledgeable.”

“They fit you both, perfectly.”

“I miss her a lot. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of her. And I think of Bark and Jasmine as well.”

“Are they Sprig and Polly’s parents?”

“Yes.”

Anne didn’t need to know what happened. She suspected they died as well. From what, she wasn’t sure. Maybe she did suspect. Sasha had made a mention of herons attacking Frog Valley. Anne’s eyes went to Sasha’s cheek. It amazed her how big the scar was. Like something unnatural caused it. Something like…a bird’s talon. The jaggedness of the scar and the size would point towards something like a talon. She wasn’t going to force Sasha to tell her.

Sasha soon zoned out and fell asleep on the couch. Anne smiled before gently guiding Sasha’s head to her lap. She played with Sasha’s blonde hair and began to sing.

The day after, everyone was feeling much better. Sasha’s fever finally broke during the night. Hop Pop wasn’t as sticky, so the spoon didn’t stick on his hands as long. Sprig’s tongue finally swelled down enough for it to stop launching out of his mouth. Polly’s eyes were still swollen but she could barely see through them. 

Anne was smiling as the family ate her soup. 

“Anne, your cooking is absolutely fabulous.” Sasha lifted her spoon. 

“Thank you, Sasha.”

“I must agree. It is delicious.” Hop Pop patted his stomach. “Let’s go check the crops and make sure they survived the storm.”

They went outside to examine the crops and were relieved to see that many of the crops did survive. There was some damage to the barn and some of the fields were filled with rain puddles. 

But once they were done, Anne made them continue to rest as she didn’t want them to get even sicker. Anne slipped into Sasha’s room to see her staring at the same picture. Anne held a picture frame behind her back. She had been working on it during the night and the times the family was sleeping.

“Hey, Anne. What’s up?”

“I ‘uh’ have something for you.” Nervously, Anne walked to the side of the bed. She held the picture frame out to Sasha. “Your old frame broke. So, I made you a new one. For your picture.”

Sasha took the frame. Anne had decorated it with images of Sasha and images of her blades. She also had images of the Planters and of Marcy and Lily in it. Even a little Domino and Bessie were included. She had found a way to include Darcy and Plantar’s parents. Finally, Anne included an image of a heron that had blue markings over it. Sasha smiled at the frame.

“Thank you, Anne. It’s lovely. How long did you work on this?”

“While you were resting.”

Sasha took the picture and inserted it into Anne’s picture frame. She smiled at the image. 

“Thank you again, Anne. For taking care of me as well.”

“You are my friend. I would do anything for you.” Anne sat down on the bed. “Sasha, I want to make sure you never get hurt again. Because…I cherish our friendship. And as your friend, I want to make sure you are happy. I want to make sure you can eventually find someone to love you.” Sasha looked up and didn’t know why but she picked up a tone that Anne seemed to have forced those words out of it but why? Even though her gesture was kind it didn’t sit well with Sasha that it have to be with someone else than Anne. She shook that thought out.

“I appreciate that, Anne. But I decided long ago that I am not cut out for love. Even if I found someone who loved me, how would I treat them? I would treat them terribly.”

“I doubt that.”

“Anne don't worry about me. I’ve made my choice. But that doesn’t mean we can’t still be friends.”

Anne wanted to grab Sasha, hug her, and tell her how wrong she was. That she would treat her lover greatly, tenderly, and respectfully. Sasha had already shown a great deal of kindness and respect towards her. That Anne loved Sasha and wanted to show her that her heart deserved love.

Suddenly, everything clicked. Her feelings. Her thoughts about Sasha. It all made sense. 

“I have to go.” 

But Sasha didn’t hear what she just said but she heard her hurried footsteps as Anne left her room. 

“Anne?” 

Anne went to her basement and collapsed on the steps. She clenched her heart. 

“I’m in love with Sasha. I’m in love with Sasha. I love Sasha. But,” Anne cried. Domino came over and nuzzled her cheek. “Sasha will never love me back. As much as I wish for it to be different, I can’t. Sasha had made her choice. But that doesn’t help my heart. My heart yearns for her. I want to hold her and tell her that everything is alright. That nothing will harm her ever again. That I would never harm her or break her heart.”

Anne softly cried in Domino’s fur at the thought that she would never receive Sasha’s love.

Chapter Text

Pictures of frogs young and old littered everywhere on the table. But these pictures are more than just pictures. They are the past of the great Planter ancestors. 

A Family Shrub is an important and vital part of Amphibia. A powerful link to the past of these great people and amphibians. Their struggles and hardships are what made them root. A root that can grow and flourish. The Family Shrub symbolizes appreciation for the ancestors, and to always remember them.

Everyone was gathered around the table in the living room. Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop were sitting on the couch while Anne and Sasha leaned against Domino. Sprig and Polly had been assigned a school project to present their Family Shrub.

They were supposed to create a Family Shrub to showcase their family history and ancestors. Hop Pop made a big deal about it because his kids would showcase his family legacy. But Sprig and Polly are bored out of their mind because as soon as Hop Pop started showing every picture of their family as boring farm frogs and wouldn’t stop babbling boring details about them.

Each and every picture of their family was wearing their farming attire, smiling softly, and just plain boring.

Nothing they did was cool, exciting, or groundbreaking.

All they did and shared was how to tend to the farm the Planter’s way.

“Now Great Aunt Gertrude was a masterful dirt tiller. How cool is that?” Hop Pop exclaimed joyously.

“Eh.” Everyone, even Anne, groaned in boredom. Domino gagged a bit.

“Oh, and you can’t forget second Cousin Alfred. He was the king!”

“A king!” Sprig and Polly gasped. Even Anne leaned forward a bit. Sasha chuckled. She had done the assignment once before when she was younger and once was enough. Especially when you involve both Hop Pop and Grime.

“Yeah! The king of single-tiered irrigation systems.”

Everyone let out groans. Anne fell back against Domino and against Sasha’s side. 

“Sorry, Hop Pop, but you lost me.” Anne groaned.

“Our ancestors are boring!” Polly exclaimed in a huff. 

“Were they really all just farm frogs? Where are the artists? The poets? The dreamers?” Sprig jumped up onto the table. 

“Just farm frogs? Kids, the point of the shrub is to give you an appreciation for your past. The Plantar family has layers. You just have to know where to look.” Now, it was Sasha’s turn to groan and speak up.

“Layers, Hop Pop? Where in the hell were the layers when I was working on the shrub?”

“You didn’t look hard enough!” Hop Pop was quick to point out the obvious. Anne quickly intervenes to avoid an unnecessary feud.

“What’s so special about her?” Anne pointed to a Plantar that was a green female with a handkerchief wrapped around her head. 

“Polliana? Oh, brace yourself. We named Polly after her. She wasn’t just any farmer.” Everyone leaned close with an exciting gasp from Polly, except for Sasha, who knew what was coming next because she knew that frog from the picture. “She was a turnip farmer!” 

Everyone groaned again. Sasha just laughed.

“I warned you all. The Plantar family history is pretty boring.” Sasha rolled her hand as if it were the most obvious thing and Hop Pop retorted back at her.

“Oh yeah! What about Grime’s history? His family are all warriors and such. No variety.”

“Warriors are better than simple farmers!!!” Polly shot back and then crossed her arms. “If we show our Family Shrub to the whole class, they’ll think we’re lame and uncool!”

Hop Pop scoffed at the audacity. “Lame? Uncool?!! The nerve of you, kids.” Hop Pop feels so disappointed in them for still not understanding the point he was trying to make. His family prided themselves as being farmers.

“You listen here, the lot of you! Farmers are the heart and soul of this very world. We should be proud of our family’s heritage! ”

“Maybe I would if our history wasn’t so dang lame.”

“Hop Pop, while I don’t appreciate the three of you calling your  history lame, I have to agree with what they said!” Everyone looked up at the Spirit in surprise. “Your history is so much richer than this. There is so much more to your family than just farmers.”

“Anne dear, it’s not like you know this family personally.” Anne remained silent and he didn’t realize that his words stung her. 

Hop Pop grabbed the glue bottle and was about to squeeze a drop out. He paused when nothing came out. He shook the bottle. “Uh oh! We are out of glue.”

“Yes! That means we can finally do something fun.” Polly jumped up. Hop Pop grabbed her shirt.

“Oh no you don’t, missy. You both need to finish this assignment. No fun until the Family Shrub’s done. Just gonna run to the store really quick and get more glue. Be back in a jiffy. Don’t go anywhere!”

Hop Pop grabbed his jacket and left the door. Anne sighed unhappily as she grabbed the book from the table. 

“You are so lucky you aren’t related to this family Anne. Our family history is weak.” Polly crossed her arms and collapsed against the couch. Frobo copied her movements, and Sprig soon followed.

“Hop Pop is wrong. He has to be.” Anne flipped to the front of the book. It was the page that Hop Pop skipped. She stopped when she stared at the image. She smiled and her eyes lit up like stars. “It’s Leif!” That got everyone’s attention. 

“Leif? Isn’t Leif that one friend you keep mentioning from your past?” Sasha asked. Sasha leaned over to see the pink frog. There she was. It was sort of uncanny how much she looked like Sprig and Polly.

“Yes. I recognize that frog anywhere.” Anne ran her fingers along the image of the first Plantar. “One of my dearest friends. You know, she and her husband sometimes liked to say I was their child. They said I was a Plantar despite not being blood.”

“Whoa! Anne, you are a Plantar. Long before you met us.” Sprig jumped up from the couch onto the table. “ You are one of us.”

“Hang on!” Sasha grabbed Sprig by his waist, and she had this look of realization. “I just thought of something. If Leif is your friend and if she did adopt you into the family. Then why don’t we have anything detailing about Anne?” Sasha pointed. She was now curious that there wasn’t a mention of Anne in all the Plantar books. 

“Hmmm. Maybe Leif had…A secret journal!” Sprig triumphantly said.

“Now that you mentioned it! Leif was always writing something in this book of hers.” Said Anne, remembering she caught Leif writing something, but she closed them before Anne could peek.

“Maybe she hid it somewhere in the house. This house has been in the Plantar name since Leif’s time.” Sasha stood up. 

“Maybe it’s in a secret compartment. Oh, maybe in the attic.” Sprig was excited to embark on another new adventure to uncover a mystery in Leif’s journal.

Sprig leaped onto the fireplace. “We must search every nook and cranny of this house for Leif’s journal.” Sprig looked over at the painting of the husband and wife farmers that hung on the wall and they looked so boring it made Sprig frown. “Man, this painting has always made me depressed. Look at how sad they are.” Sprig tried to grab the painting, but it wasn’t budging. The painting seemed to be glued to the wall!

“Hey guys, I don’t think this painting isn’t moving!” 

Sprig was touching all around the painting until he pressed a brick that receded. The house suddenly shook. Domino leaped up and let out a hiss as she cowered behind Anne and Sasha. Sasha held her arms out to cover Anne and Domino. Sasha managed to grab Polly. Frobo comforted the scared kill-a-moth. They had developed a good bond as Frobo was already a lover of animals and gentle around them.

“Sprig! You broke the house!”

The bricks in the unused fireplace broke into a door shape and slid to reveal a doorway. Everyone inched towards the dark passageway. Everyone let out an ‘oh’ of wonderment. 

“Yo! This looks so unsafe. We have to go down there.” Sasha turned to everyone. She reached over and snagged her cape off the nearby hanger. “Sprig was onto something about there being a secret passageway. I don’t remember ever seeing something like this on the house blueprints. Anne? Did Leif mention anything like this to you?”

“No, this must have been built sometime after I left the family.”

“Wait! You left the family, but why did you leave?” Sprig asked. Polly looked a little hurt that Anne never stayed with their family. But Anne was stricken with grief.

“I didn’t mean to leave you guys, honest. It just…I was devastated by Leif’s passing. Sure, I got to spend the last few moments of her life with her. But her death tore me apart but then…..I was told I wasn’t allowed back.”

“She was your friend. You had every right to grieve.” Sasha laid a hand on Anne’s shoulder. “But the Plantars asked you to leave?”

“Yes. I still don’t understand why.”

That got Sasha thinking. There had to be a reason the Plantars didn’t want Anne around.

“So, who wants to go down the dark scary passageway?” 

Everyone piled down the stairs. Suddenly, there was a noise behind them. Then, the door shut on them, and darkness lurks in the stairways.

“Uh, did we just get locked in here?” Sprig asked.

Sasha and Sprig begin pounding on the door and begin yelling. Sasha even tried to heave the door from the bottom.

“Hey! Let us out! Frobo, can you hear us?”

“Come on you two.” Anne put her hands on their shoulders. “It won’t open, and I don’t think Frobo is going to be able to break this door down. But let’s find another way out. There has to be another exit somewhere.”

“Yeah! Let’s find a way out, you babies.” Polly was already heading down the steps.

Sasha found a bioluminescent mushroom and used it as a light source. They walked down the steps in silence. Soon, they came upon a light source. 

They came into a room that looked like something out of a mad scientist’s room or possibly Marcy’s room. 

“Whoa. All this was under the house?” Sasha was amazed before she walked into a cobweb and began coughing. “Oh, there’s dust everywhere.” Anne came to Sasha’s aid by helping her clean the dust off.

“This place is amazing! Whoa!” Sprig went running to a shelf that housed various jars filled with bizarre items that not even Sasha was sure were in there. “Wow!” Sprig was picking up some of the odd tools on the large table.

“Hey, why do you think the entrance was hidden like that? Do you think Hop Pop knew?” Polly asked as she picked up one of the jars. It moved to reveal a zombie turnip with a face in it. Polly made a mortified face before setting it back on the shelf and pushing it away from her.

“Nah! Hop Pop never touched the fireplace as long as I've known the family. I think I remember him mentioning one time that the fireplace never worked properly even when he was a pollywog.” Said Sasha while looking through the shelves.

“I wonder why this was even built,” Anne said out loud.

“I wonder that too,” Sasha replied. 

“Hey, listen to this.” Sprig was standing next to a plague with a picture of a frog with goggles that reminded Sasha of Marcy and Maddie when they performed their dark magic together. “It says here that this place belonged to Great Uncle Skip Plantar. He was a farmer and a brilliant scientist! He experimented with all kinds of stuff. This is wild.”

Sasha stared at the shelf. She picked up a jar and inside was a carrot but when the carrot spun around, the carrot groaned, and Sasha was perturbed by the horrifying carrot. Anne was a little spooked by the carrot. That was the first time she would look at something in disgust. She shivered in response. Sasha took her cape off and wrapped it around Anne. 

“Thank you.” Anne blushed and Sasha looked away, bashfully.

“I have to know more! Like, what does this do?” Sprig grabbed a lever and pulled on it. Sasha yelled before picking Sprig up.

“Sprig, I am going to have a serious conversation about you touching things. 

A gate opened up before a zombified, gigantic pumpkin monster came out of the opening. It let out a growl.

“Whoa!” Sasha glanced at Anne. “Anne, think you can talk to this creature?”

“No, I can’t hear it. Something doesn’t feel right with it. It doesn’t feel natural.” Sasha gently pulled Anne close to her. 

“M-Maybe it’s a harmless creature.” Sprig shrugged.

The monster let out a fiendish roar before charging at them. Everyone screamed as they leaped out of the way. Sasha and Anne were flung onto the shelf. Sprig and Polly hopped out of the way.

Hop Pop was humming as he walked down the aisles of the hardware store. 

“My, my, so many glues to choose from. This is gonna be a little difficult. Which one is the right one?”

“Hey, Hopadiah.” Loggle appeared from behind a shop display, scaring poor Hopadiah. “What brings you here?”

“Oh hey, Loggle! J-Just trying to find some glue. Sprig and Polly got the class assignment of the Family Shrub and we ran out.”

“Oh, Hop Pop. All you need for that is this.” Loggle put his hand over his heart.

Hop Pop started crying. “Dang it, you’re right. In the end, it’s all about love.”

“What? No, I meant you need this.” Loggle reached into his pocket and pulled a thing of glue out. “Nothing stronger. This stuff will fix your shrub. Heck, it’ll fix your house.”

“Hmmm. Intriguing. Yet another choice. Looks like my day just got a lot more challenging.”

The monster pumpkin was screeching as it kept roaming itself into walls. Sasha and Anne had hidden themselves behind the table next to the shelf. Sasha had Anne tucked up in her arms and was using her body to shield Anne from some of the debris falling. 

“What do we do?” Anne was covering her ears with her hands. The voice of the creature was hurting her head. She couldn’t understand it and it made her head and heart ache from it. Sasha squeezed her closer to her. 

“This abomination must be destroyed!” Polly shouted from the top of the shelf, then Sprig pulled her down.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! If Anne had taught us anything, it’s that all living things deserve to live.”

“Sprig, that is a fucking abomination and not even Anne likes it,” Sasha shouted. 

“Maybe there is another way.”

Determined, Sprig leaped in front of the pumpkin. Sasha and Anne leaped up from behind the table.

“Dude, what are you doing?” Sasha asked.

“Sprig, get away from it. It will squash you.” Anne begged.

“There, there.” Sprig held his hand in a similar fashion to Anne. The pumpkin crawled towards Sprig and let out a low rumble. “Easy does it.”

Sprig pressed his body against it. He rubbed small circles on its jaw all the while shushing it.

“There, there, you beautiful, disgusting thing.” The creature let out a sigh and giggled rather ominously.

The girls didn’t know what to make of this, but it sure made them uncomfortable.

“What is happening?” Anne asked, completely weirded out.

“It seems you aren’t the only one that can whisper to creatures.” Sasha shrugged.

“That’s right, Mama Sprig is here.” Sprig was tickling the creature as they walked backward. It was crackling as Sprig continued. “Oh, you horrible, horrible sweet boy. Forgive me.”

Sprig pushed the pumpkin into the gate it had come from. Sprig leaped up and tugged on the lever, shutting the gate. The pumpkin was clawing at the gate and whimpering.

“Bro, that was ice cold.” Polly patted his back. 

“Love is the cruelest weapon.”

Sasha was helping Anne. She had flipped the hood up and pulled it closer to her head to try and drown out the noise of the snarling pumpkin.

“Let’s get out of here before Sprig finds another lever with another veggie abomination.”

Suddenly, the floor collapsed underneath them, sending them plummeting down. They landed on the ground. Well, Sasha, Sprig, and Polly fell on the floor, and Anne floated down. 

“Is everyone all right?” Anne asked as she gracefully touched the ground. 

“Get off of me!” Sasha shouted. Sprig and Polly had landed on top of her. They scrambled off her. 

Anne helped Sasha up before everyone gasped at the room. It was lit up and there were rows and rows of weapons and armor.

“Whoa!!!” Everyone was in awe.

“Is this some kind of armory?” Sasha is in heaven. She picked up a sword that was almost as tall and as big as she was. “Whoa! A claymore. You don’t see this anymore.” Sasha did a quick swing of it and managed to cut a nearby rock that was huge like it was made of butter.

“Sasha, be careful with that,” Anne called out. 

“Sorry, Anne.” Sasha laid the claymore down. 

Polly picked up a morning star and swung it around.

“This is heaven! This place is so cool. Huh?” Polly to see a plaque of a Plantar that was very familiar and it’s Polliana. Her portrait is completely different from the picture though. This Planter is rugged with scars, armor-ready, and ready for battle but she had the same handkerchief. “Guys, this is the same Polliana from Hop Pop’s shrub. She wasn’t just a turnip farmer. She was a turnt up warrior!” Polly flexed her arms in a fashion similar to Sasha.

“Hey, check it out.” Sprig found a diary. “I found her diary.”

Sasha took the book from Sprig and flipped through it and her grin grew wider. 

“The Bogwater Wars of ‘48. The Bullfrog invasion of ‘53. Damn, she was in a lot of battles.” 

“She was the coolest, most terrifying Plantar ever. Like me!” Polly leaped onto Sasha’s shoulders. 

“Wow, we sure are learning a lot. I’d like to learn even more. Like, what does this do?” Sprig pulled another lever.

“Sprig! Seriously. Remind me to have a conversation about you and pulling unknown levers. Now stop pulling levers.”

“Levers are for pulling, Sasha! Why is there a death trap here, anyways?”

There was a rumbling noise before the ground shook. Suddenly, a bunch of armored suits appeared with various weapons. They begin moving around and one slams an ax down near Sprig. Anne grabbed the book out of Sasha’s hands as Sasha pulled the kids behind her back. 

“According to the journal, this is Polliana’s training simulator.”

“Does it say in there how to turn it off?” Sasha yelped as she picked Sprig before he could be sliced in half by a claymore. Sasha kicked an armored suit away. 

“The shut-off switch should be by the exit on the other side.” Anne pointed to the other side of the room. 

“Great. But how do we get across this craziness?” Sasha leaned against the wall when a blade struck close to her, a few blonde hairs fell to the ground. Arrows flew at them, striking the wall. 

“Maybe we just gotta go very slowly.” 

Polly suddenly leaped into the simulator with gusto, she was leaping and dodging the various weapons. The suits went after the little frog. 

“Polly!” 

Polly swung her morning star into a shield-bearing dummy. The shield shattered upon impact. Everyone could only watch in amazement as Polly made it through the simulator without a scratch. She punched the button, turning off the simulator.

The suits shut down. Polly stood on top of a fallen suit of armor. 

“Whoa, Polly! That was impressive and intense!” Sasha walked over to the frog and gave her a high-five. 

“So, you guys wanna do it again?” Sprig asked. 

Anne and Sasha picked up the two frogs and carried them away from the room.

“Nope. Nope. Nope. Not going through that again.”

Hop Pop had a large cart filled with various glue bottles. Hop Pop was humming as he kept throwing more glue into the cart.

“You know what? I’ll just buy all of them. You can never have too much glue, I always say.” Once Hop Pop neared the counter, Loggle popped out from under the counter and spooked Hop Pop again with a shout.

“Good choice.” 

Hop Pop let out a girly scream, tossing the glue up in the air.

What goes up must come down! And unfortunately for Hop Pop. All the glue landed on Hop Pop, squirting the glue all over him. Hop Pop continued screaming in pain when glues were stinging his eyes and now, he can’t see. He backed away into the glue aisle. “Ah, Aah! I can’t see!”

“Hop Pop, no!  That’s more glue!” But Loggle’s warning came too late.

Hop Pop broke the shelves that were filled to the brim with glue of every kind, and they all fell on top of Hop Pop, covering him with more glue. Hop Pop slowly emerged from the glue gulp. He was covered in glue and looked like a hideous monster.

“Loggle!” He croaked out. “Help me!” He slowly crawled towards Loggle.

“No. No!” A petrified scream was heard from outside the store.

As the group made their way further down the tunnels. There were so many rooms dedicated to every member of the Plantars. They discovered that Second cousin Alfred turned out to be an inventor. The irrigation system was a simple invention compared to his many other ones. Great Aunt Gertrude was not only a master dirt tiller, but she was also an infamous bandit before she finally settled down in Wartwood. 

“Our family has this rich history, and it was right under our feet this whole time!” Sprig was marveling at the plaques of the past Plantars. 

They entered another room that was bigger than the rest of the rooms they had seen.

“Whoa!” 

It was filled with plants that seemed to still thrive. Mushrooms, fauna, and all forms of organic life forms are still striving underground. 

Anne could hear the plants whisper in her ears. It filled her with the warmth that these beautiful plants have been well-tended and loved by their gardener.

“This must be Leif’s room then. Everyone, search the room. Leif’s book has to be here somewhere.” Sasha ordered.

They tore the room apart searching for the book. Sasha stepped on a panel that opened a secret wall. Everyone tensed up, waiting for something to attack them. When nothing happened, they inched closer to the opening. Inside was a pedestal with a large book on it. Sasha cautiously reached out to grab the book. She blew the dust off the book. 

In big bold cursive letters was the name of Leif Plantar. Sasha opened the book and began reading.

“I have decided to begin a journal detailing my experiences with the Spirit, Anne. I first found out our Spirit doing what she does best. Healing animals. The stories did not do her beauty justice. Her blue hair seemed to shine in the sun as she performed her magic on a Mossman. When she noticed me, she smiled.” Sasha flipped through a few more pages of the journal. She stopped about midway through the book. “My husband and I have decided to give Anne the name Plantar. She has become so much like a daughter to us that it makes sense. Anne may be an immortal being and will outlive both of us, but she needs a family. It will help her starve off the loneliness in her heart.” Then a piece of paper flew down from the book.

When Sprig picked it and let out the longest gasp ever. “Oh, my frog! LOOK!!!”

Sprig showed a very old paper, but their eyes lit up when they read it. It’s an adoption paper that had Leif and her husband’s name. They adopted Anne.

“Anne is a Plantar!!! The paper said it all, Anne.” Sprig was hopping up and down before leaping into Anne’s arms. “I can’t believe it. Anne is a Plantar! Anne is a Plantar!”

“It says here that Leif Plantar was a farmer.” Sasha read from the plaque. 

“Aw man. She was just a simple farmer.” Polly kicked a rock. 

“Well, not quite. It says here Leif was a royal gardener to the king of the Levithan family!!!” Sasha finished. 

“Yep!” They all looked up to Anne as she confirmed it with a grin. “She was hand-picked by King Rupert Leviathan. I was there when she was made a royal gardener. It was because of her extensive knowledge of agriculture and of the animals that she was picked. I observed her before I was asked by the King and I put in a good word for her.”

“So, she was a farmer for the king! It’s not royalty but it’s just as cool. Even better is that Anne knew our ancestor.” Polly shouted gleefully. 

“Wait, if Anne knew Leif, then Anne had to have taught the Plantars the Plantar family planting secrets,” Sasha said out loud. “All the secrets passed down from Plantar to Plantar originated with Anne.”

“I do recall something of that nature. I even got to help Leif create the Plantar hunting dance.”

“Whoa. This is so cool!” Sprig and Polly gasped. “Our family was the coolest! Anne, you have to tell us more.”

“Okay. But let’s get out of here first then I will.”

“Sprig, we need to improve the personal Family Shrub. We have to add Anne there.” Polly suggested.

“Wait! The black smudge on the personal family shrub that was connected to Leif. That has to be Anne.”

“If that’s Anne, then why did we remove her?” Something caught Sprig’s attention. “Hey, wait! What’s that over there?”

Sprig pointed to a painting on the wall. It was one of the largest paintings in the room, covering up most of the wall. Because of the lack of sun, the painting was still in great shape. The darkness only concealed the top half of the painting, but they managed to see two beings in the painting.

A little pink frog with orange hair and a pink handkerchief around her head. That’s Leif in her beautiful youth. Standing next to the most of the black portion was a horned green toad with a giant hammer, smiling broadly. Sasha is gabbing at the toad. 

“Th-Th-That’s Barrel the Brave! One of the strongest and bravest toads ever! That toad was a legend that he single-handedly beat an entire army all by himself. He is my idol and-” Sasha gasped before her face paled when she noticed Anne was smirking and one of her eyebrows raised. “And I insulted him.”

“It’s okay. I understand it probably didn’t click right away.”

“I am so sorry, Anne. I never realized and I opened my mouth and insulted him. I feel terrible.”

“Sasha, please. Don’t beat yourself up. It was an honest mistake and you showed me that you didn’t mean it.”

“Anne, look at this! You did know our family before, you knew our great-great-great grandmother Leif Planter, and the legendary hero, Barrel the Brave!”

“Uh, not wanting to burst your happy bubble but I think there’s a smudge on the painting!”

They look up to see but it’s hard to make out. “Hold on!” Sasha walked up to the painting, lifted it up from the wall, and set it up somewhere where there was light. As soon as they got a good look at the painting their joyful expression crumbled when they saw it.

A big splash of black smudge is obscured in the middle of the painting, completely covering the person behind the smudge. They can clearly see curly hair from the top edge of the smudge.

Sasha, Sprig, and Polly glance at each other not sure what to make of this. But when they glanced at Anne it tore their hearts. Anne stares at the painting in confusion and hurt. Her painted version has been splashed over it, but why?

She walks up slowly and puts her hand over the black smudge. “I…I don’t understand! Leif, Barrel, and I were so happy with how the painting looked. Leif loved it so much she would hang it up in her room…So, w-why?” 

The three watched, heartbroken by the revelation and more confused. If Leif loved Anne as a daughter, then why is the painting down here? In fact, why hasn’t she mentioned it to the rest of the Planter family about Anne? What’s her reason to hide her existence?

“Was it…” They looked up when Anne spoke, “Was it because I left? Did they hate me for leaving?” Sprig, Polly, and Sasha couldn’t bear it and quickly hugged the poor, confused girl.

They had no idea on what to say but they hoped by hugging, it would soften the blow. Anne hugged them back as she cried. 

After Anne calmed down. Sasha gently put her hand on Anne’s lower back. 

“Let’s go.”

“…Right.” Anne sniffled.

“And look guys! Another lever!”

“Sprig!” Sasha raced over, picked Sprig up by his jacket and dragged him away. 

A part of the ground lifted up allowing them to walk out. It was large enough that it could fit three Bessies through it. Sasha wondered what the purpose was for. Maybe an impending war? Sasha shook her head.

“We are really far away from the farm.”

“Yeah. Those tunnels definitely expanded out far and wide. Marcy would have a field day with these when I tell her.”

“You are going to tell Marcy?” Anne asked.

“Yeah. Marcy is an honorary Plantar too. Her mom knew Hop Pop from way back.” Sprig said. “Apparently Hop Pop adopted her.”

“It’s a long story and Hop Pop should be the one to tell you. Darcy was like a daughter to him.”

They walked back to the house and saw that Hop Pop had yet to come back. So, Sasha went into Hop Pop’s study and pulled out the shrub while Sprig and Polly made edits to their school one. Just like Sasha said, there was a smudge part next to Leif and her husband. It looked like someone had worked on completely removing the image of Anne until they just gave up. Everyone in the family assumed it had just been a child that was disowned by Leif. But now Sasha was wondering why Leif had Anne’s image removed. Sasha had found a journal from one of Leif’s grandchildren and slipped it out. 

Sasha had given up on her revenge quest against Anne. Especially after discovering that Anne couldn’t and wouldn’t have sent the herons to Wartwood. Sasha’s newest quest and one that only Marcy knew about was to search for the truth about why Anne was all but wiped out of history and why they said she was evil. Memories may die out when people die but their written words don’t. Sasha now believed that there were clues out there about Anne and her duties as the good spirit. Especially when she saw the painting. 

But what about their history? Could it be because their books and history had been rewritten? If so, then this is serious. Sasha was confident that there existed some books that had survived. 

Then she thought to Barrel. She knew there was at least one remaining relative of his. Aldo. Sasha needed a private word with him. And the way his words rang in her head from her promotion told her he knew a lot about the secret of Anne.

Sasha’s thoughts were snapped out when a knock on the door was heard and Hop Pop walked through the door, covered in bits of glue, and looking very tired.

“Kids! I’m home.” He said it exhaustedly. 

“Hop Pop, we found those Plantar layers you were talking about.” Sprig exclaimed. 

“Eh? Found them? Kids, I wasn't being literal.”

“There is a moving fireplace!”

Sasha leaned against the fireplace and slammed her fist into the wall where Sprig had found the button. It opened to reveal the secret passageway.

“Whoa! You weren’t kidding. What does it lead to?”

“The Plantar family history. Rooms upon rooms of each of our family members. Everything we knew about Plantars was wrong.” Sprig jumped up.

“We were painters! Poets! Scientists! Warriors! Bandits! Hop Pop, we were so much more than simple farmers!” Polly shouted. 

“And, Anne is a Plantar!” Both kids shouted.

“Well of course Anne is a Plantar. I made her one.”

“No, Hop Pop.” Sasha cut in. “Your ancestor, Leif Plantar, was friends with Anne. Anne was adopted by Leif and made a Plantar. We have proof in paper!” Sasha pulled out the paper and gave it to Hop Pop and the old frog’s eyes popped out of his skull. “That’s not all! See this smudge on the painting,” Sasha pointed to the black mark between Leif and Barrel. “We believe it is Anne.” 

“Anne? Anne, you knew our ancestors?”

“Yep. We even found Leif’s journal and she talked about Anne.”

“This is amazing. This changes everything. I can’t believe we had this hidden in our house the whole time. There was nothing ever in the Plantar records about this. It’s not even in our blueprints.”

“I know! It’s so cool. There is a horrifying pumpkin creature down there that I loved and then ultimately betrayed.” Sprig puffed his chest out.

“I need to see this.” Hop Pop almost started to walk down the stairs but was pulled away by Sasha. 

“Sorry Hop Pop. But it is filled with booby traps. And you know Marcy is going to want to search the rooms and document it all for you. And destroy the booby traps.”

“True. I’ll send a letter to Newtopia and just let her know that she can come down when she gets a chance.”

“You know her. The minute you tell her, she will be on Joe Sparrow in two minutes.”

“True. That girl and her mother are all the same. Darcy used to race on Leander as fast as she could when she heard any news about the farm.”

Hop Pop sighed before turning to the original Family shrub. Anne noticed that at the bottom of the shrub was a list of honorary Planters. There was a newt that resembled Anne a bit. Then Anne saw the same black-haired woman from Sasha’s photo that was branched out from Hop Pop. Next to her was Marcy with a line connecting the two. Then there was Sasha. 

Anne smiled at the images. She touched their images and then traced Leif’s image, but the wound was still fresh. 

“Anne, so it seems that you have always been a member of this family. I think…We should update our shrub to reflect with you on it and it’s only right you’d be right next to Leif.”

“Hop Pop.” Anne was shocked. She began crying. Sasha tugged her into a hug and allowed her to cry in her arms. “I was so sure Leif had forgotten about me. That's why I didn't say anything.”

“Oh, Anne. How could ANYONE forget that sweet little angel like you? We will get you added back on where you belong.”

Anne just cried in Hop Pop’s arms and Hop Pop just held her close to his chest, holding his dearest and official granddaughter.

“I do have a question, though,” Sasha spoke up when her eyes were on Hop Pop’s back. “What’s Loggle doing on your back?”

Anne looked up in surprise and looked at Hop Pop’s back and held in her giggling. Loggle is stuck on Hop Pop’s back, looking very calm for the whole ride. 

“Hello. I got glue in my ears. I can’t hear anything.”

“Oops! Hehe!” Hop Pop looked embarrassed, “I had a little accident at the store, and well, I got into a sticky situation. Sasha, would you be a dear and remove Loggle from me? My back couldn’t take it!”

“Why do I feel like someone just insulted me?”

Sasha was reading the journal she had slipped out of the tunnels. Everyone was asleep but Sasha couldn’t. She was sitting on the couch with a light mushroom as her reading light.

A passage in the journal caught her attention.

Grandma Leif always talked about the Spirit to me. I loved her stories and even seeing Anne herself was a treat. My mom named me after our Spirit as a way to honor her. I heard Anne had cried at my birth. But Anne stopped visiting as much since Grandma died. She was torn by her death. 

But there are winds of change happening. It doesn’t spell good things. I heard a rumor that any images containing the Spirit’s image and books about the Spirit are to be surrendered to the king. I disagree with this. Something doesn’t make sense on why they want those books. I think they are trying something horrible. But why? I don’t know. But they won’t get our books. 

As much as it pains me, I will cut all ties with Anne. She needs to be safe. I will hide any images and books about Anne in the family tunnels. I will have my husband make a hidden doorway that can only be activated by a switch. But my husband and I will be the only ones who know of this. We will take this secret to our graves. 

And I have to remove Anne from our Family Shrub. I cried over it when I did. I love Anne. I know my grandma would be hurt by the very idea, but I know she would also agree with my choices. She would want to protect Anne. 

I don’t know how I will convince Anne to stop visiting. But I must. Even if it breaks both of our hearts. 

Anne, wherever you are, please don’t take it the wrong way. I love you. My grandma treasured you as one of her own. We Plantars love you. So, I beg of you...Don’t come back until it is safe.

Sasha is bombarded with questions. Even though it explained why images of Anne were smudged over to protect her. But to protect her from what? 

Sasha sighed as she rubbed her eyes. So, the books about the spirit were sent to the king of Newtopia at the time. She racked her brain to try and remember from her studies who were the past kings. She was going to have to brush up on her history. Sasha stood up and stretched her body, hearing the bones crack.

“Hey, Sasha.” Sasha hid the journal behind her back as Anne came up the stairs. She wasn’t yet ready to let Anne see the journal. She needed to figure out some things first. “Hey! Why are you doing up?”

“I couldn’t sleep. What are you doing up?” Sasha answered with a half-true answer.

“Same here. Couldn’t sleep and Domino was grubhogging the bed.” Anne answered back.

“…Was it also because of Leif?” Anne paused and looked towards the ground. Sasha gently guided her to the couch.

“Yeah. It just…Was she embarrassed about me? Why did she hide my image from the family? Is that why little Anne didn’t want me around anymore because I stopped visiting so much and they hated me?” Anne was crying. Sasha carefully slipped the book into the cushions of the couch all the while rubbing Anne’s back. 

“No. No. It wasn’t you. They…Wanted to protect you.” Sasha pulled Anne into her arms. “Listen, there is a good reason why you were essentially forgotten by everyone, and I will get to the bottom of it. For you. But know this, that you were loved by all of the Plantars.”

“Thank you, Sasha, I feel a little better now,” Anne whispered into her neck. Sasha wasn’t sure why she did what she did, but it felt right at that moment. Sasha pressed a brief kiss to Anne’s curly hair. After she was done crying, she leaned away from Sasha. “Thank you, Sasha. You should go to sleep.”

“You as well.”

Sasha watched as Anne went back downstairs after getting what she had originally gotten up for. A glass of water. Anne smiled one last time before closing the door. Sasha was smiling, much softer.

“Well, I’ll be.” Sasha jumped at Hop Pop’s voice.

“Hop Pop, by the oracle, you scared me.” She whispered.

“So, how long has that been a thing? I thought you hated the Spirit.” He quoted.

“Hop Pop, quiet down. She’ll hear you. And no, I don’t hate Anne…Not anymore.”

“Good. I was afraid I was going to have to fight you to get you to admit Anne isn’t evil.” He was so relieved.

“I agree. She isn’t. And…” Sasha grabbed her heart again. “Hop Pop, I think I’m falling in love with her.” Hop Pop gasped.

“When did you figure it out?”

“During the whole ordeal with the love doves. I realized I had fallen for her, hard. But Hop Pop, you cannot say a thing. I’m still trying to sort myself out.”

“I know. Your heart was broken by Ricki. But, I don’t think Anne has it in her heart to break yours. She clearly loves you and cares for you deeply.” 

“Probably not, when she finds out the truth.”

“Would you still have turned her in?”

“No. Not now. I believe Anne is innocent.”

“Sasha, don’t wait for it. Confess to her. I know she would make you happy.”

“I know Hop Pop. But I can’t, n-not yet. I still need to get past my past to truly open my heart to her.” Hop Pop patted her hand. “I know she won’t hurt me but I’m afraid of hurting her.”

“I know you won’t. Now, go to bed, missy. It has been a tiring day.”

Sasha smiled at the old frog before staring at Anne’s door. Sasha hung her head. 

“Oh Anne, I wish I could just say what is in my heart. But no. You don’t deserve to have your heart broken.”

Sasha went upstairs to her room with a painful heart.

A mysterious figure was watching the family for any signs that they had all gone to sleep. They had received notice that the secret Plantar tunnels had been discovered. They ran across the fields and into the house with ease. They paused when they saw the family shrub. They ran their finger along the images of the current Plantars before tracing the images of both Marcy and Sasha. They turned to the fireplace and walked right over to it. They pressed the button, activating the door which now slid open quietly and walked down to the tunnels. 

Chapter Text

It came as a surprise for the Planter family when today was a peaceful day with no crazy, whacky adventure to make their adrenaline pumping. Sure, the adventures are fun and exhilarating but were downright exhausting.

So, here they are. They’re having their peaceful day. Hop Pop along with Polly and Frobo are working on adding Anne’s picture they’ve taken to be put back into the Family Shrub. Since they can’t remove the smudge from the old painting which is truly a shame. But that didn’t stop them.
Anne is a Plantar, and she deserves to be put back where she belonged, and it will be right next to Leif Planter. Hopidiah could’ve sworn that the picture of Leif seemed to shine brighter having Anne’s image next to her. 

While Anne is cooking a meal for today and they’ll be having pizza. Anne is showing Sprig how to knead the dough and even showing him how to hand toss the pizza dough.

“That’s it! Here you go! You’re doing great, Sprig.” Anne complimented the little pink frog boy. He never knew tossing dough in the air could be this fun.

Anne watches over Sprig one final time before she goes back to stirring the sauce. 

“Hey, Sasha, can you cut up some of those vegetables for me.” Anne looked to her left where the lieutenant was standing. 

“No problem, Anne.” Sasha grabbed a knife and twirled the blade. She began dicing the vegetables for Anne in quick precision. Anne ‘oooh’ at Sasha as she cuts. 

“Who taught you how to dice like that? It couldn’t have been Hop Pop since his cooking was terrible before I taught him.”

“Darcy taught me how to cut vegetables for as long as I could remember. Then, Jasmine taught me how to cook.”

“SASHA! I need your long legs!” 

“Coming, Hop Pop. You’re going to be okay on your own?” Anne giggled cutely, secretly liking how protective Sasha had become. 

“I’ll be fine. Go before Hop Pop marches in here!”

Sasha chuckled amusedly before she dried her hands and walked out of the kitchen. 

Anne smiled as she watched Sasha help Hop Pop set up the new family shrub. It made her heart warm to see them putting up the shrub. She was glad to be officially recognized as a Plantar. 

She gazed at Sasha as she helped out when, all of a sudden, there was an explosion next to Anne. She whipped around to see Sprig on his back, covered in bits of pizza remains and smoke rose from his body.

“Sprig! Are you okay?” Anne dropped to her knees and helped the pink frog up. She wiped the soot off of his face. 

“I’m okay.” He coughed but then frowned when he saw the state of their dinner. “I think I may have destroyed the pizza.” Then they both looked to see the oven door was busted and hanging on one hinge. Black smoke rose from the oven. “And I think I destroyed the oven.” He looked apologetically. But Anne would never be mad, she is just glad that Sprig wasn’t hurt.

“What happened!?” Sasha and Hop Pop came running into the kitchen. Hop Pop saw the smoking oven then he looked down at Sprig. “Oven’s busted again. I have to call Chuck and get him out here to take a look at it. Sorry Anne but it looks like dinner is a bust. I haven’t gone to the grocery store yet, and Polly is getting hungry and when she gets hungry, she is…scary.”

“I am…GETTING HANGRY!” Everyone heard Polly scream out. 

“How about we go out for dinner?” Hop Pop suggested.

“Go out? To where?” Anne wondered what Hop Pop was talking about.

“You mean at Stumpy's? Hop Pop, his food isn’t exactly what it used to be. Hell, it’s about as bad as your cooking used to be.” Said Sasha.

“Hey now! Stumpy may have gone downhill since he lost his wife but that doesn’t mean we can’t go support the guy.” Sasha sighed. Hop Pop made a point, and they hadn’t seen Stumby in a while since she came back. Maybe it was better.

“I mean true. But still. I don’t think his food would satisfy a hangry Polly.” They all looked through the kitchen to see Polly let out a maniacal laugh as she shredded a pillow with her teeth.

Bessie was parked next to a large restaurant with a sign that read Stumpy’s . Anne stared at the building in interest. She tugged on Sasha’s sleeve.

“Sasha, what is this?” Anne asked, dropping her voice down. 

“It’s called a restaurant. People and amphibians will come to eat here if say, they don’t want to cook or are just too lazy to cook.”

“So, they will come to eat. Eat what?” Anne remembered eating with Valeriana in the castle and she did mention that her people had opened a place called a restaurant but she had never been there before.

“Well, whatever the restaurant is serving. There are a ton of restaurants that cater to different tastes. For example, you are carving a pizza. There is a restaurant made specifically for that. Or hamburgers and fries. Fried rice. There are so many options you can choose from.” 

“You think this Stumpy’s has a variety?”

“No. Stumpy really doesn’t offer much in his restaurant. His food used to be really good. But I don’t think Stumpy has his heart in the place anymore.”

“Hop Pop mentioned something about his wife.”

“Yep. She passed away a couple of years ago due to an illness. Stumpy loved her and it’s clear he still grieves for her. It’s why his restaurant has been on a steady decline. The passion isn’t there.”

“The passion?” 

“Yep. His passion is cooking. It’s all but gone now.” Sasha held her elbow out for Anne. Anne took it and they walked into the restaurant together.

The moment Anne walked in; she could sense something was off about the place. She could feel the sadness dripping from the very walls. She held onto Sasha as she took her to where the Plantars were sitting down at. They talked amongst themselves as a serving robot came up to them with a few wires sticking out.

Anne had been given a breakdown of the world and all the changes. Especially where Frobo came from. That was Polly’s proudest moment of telling Anne how she found Frobo walking around like a soulless husk. His head was damaged and he had dents everywhere until Polly worked on fixing him up with Marcy’s help. Now, he is the lovable robot that everyone in Wartwood knows. After seeing another robot like Frobo in different designs and colors, it’s impressive how much her world has evolved.

“Hello.” The voice was going in and out. “What…can I…get you today?” The wires are letting out sparks making Anne lean back. The poor thing needs repairs like now.

“Just water for all four of us, please.” Hop Pop ordered, as the robot beeped and rolled away. Then a burly frog appeared and in his arms five bowls he was carrying, and he placed them in front of everyone. 

“Here you go. Five bowls of slob. Enjoy or don’t. Makes no difference to me.” The large, bulky frog with a single tooth sticking out of his bottom jaw emitting an aura of depression really made Anne want to comfort the poor frog. Anne couldn’t help but notice that both hands were missing and were replaced with a cleaver and a spatula. His right leg was missing and replaced with a wooden leg. His chef hat and apron are covered in grease. 

“Thanks, Stumpy.” Sprig politely said and the chef grunted. 

“Excuse me, hello. Over here. Yoo hoo!” Anne looked over to see a familiar yellow newt. She saw him during the firefly formal. Then, she noticed Sasha roll her eyes.

“Is there a problem, sir?” Stumpy walked over to him. Sasha scoffed.

“Um, yes! There’s only one fly in my soup. There should be dozens. I mean how hard is it to run a restaurant anyway? You just put food on tables. A tadpole can do it.”

“Who is that newt? Why is he being a jerk to Stumpy?” Anne asked and Sprig answered.

“That’s Albus Duckweed. He writes reviews for the paper. They have comic strips sometimes. My favorite is Monday Spider. A spider that talks, eats lasagna and hates Mondays. I can relate.” Sprig said.

“Bleh! He thinks he’s better than everyone else ‘cause he talks good.” Polly gagged.

“It is true though.” Hop Pop said. Sasha had an annoyed expression on her face.

“He’s a foodie. I’ve had to listen to them a few times when I was in Newtopia. Especially the annoying hipsters that come to David and Siegfried’s flower shop. They think they are better than anyone.” Then Sasha realized that she just said the word “hipsters” and paled. “Oh, my frog, I sound like Hop Pop.” Sasha gasped in horror.

“Hey!” Hop Pop retorted.

“Who is David and Siegfried?” Anne asked. She didn’t recall those names.

“They are Lily’s dads. They live in Newtopia and own a flower shop. Remember Caroline? She’s Siegfried’s mother. Great guys.” Sasha exclaimed, missing them. She’ll remember to visit them soon when a chance arrives. Maybe she could get a bouquet for Anne while she is there. 

“And another thing.” It seems Albus won’t shut up until he points out every flaw of it and his voice seems to annoy the blond.

“Ugh. Does this guy not shut up? I didn’t realize how annoying he was.” Sasha stared him down. Anne put her hand on her forearm.

“I agree. I had enough.” 

“Girls, ignore him and eat your slug gruel…Anne?” Anne got up and walked over to them. Hop Pop nearly fainted.

“I mean seriously. Look at this place. Your wife would never have let this go this bad.” Anne witnesses’ Stumpy wince and his face drops in grief at the mention of his wife, and Anne is furious. 

“Hey! That is a low blow. Especially for someone who lost their wife.”

“Kid, what are you doing?” Stumpy whispered at her.

“It’s not my fault that this restaurant is failing. This is a mess. A disaster. My job is to post my honest opinions and if need be, shut an establishment down.”

“Shut it down! That’s unfair!” Anne shouted.

“This is just the pits, girly. It’s not like you could run this restaurant. I bet you can’t even cook!” Sasha had listened to what Albus just said to Anne, and she just bent the spoon in half and spun around.

No one talks to Anne like that and gets away with it.

“Hey, Duckweed!” Sasha got up and walked over to them. “Just because you like to go around and make others' lives hell, doesn’t mean you have to. And excuse you but Anne here is an excellent cook and won the Potluck. How about this? You can come back in five days and this place will be turned around with our help.” 

“I, uh, I beg your pardon. What?” Stumpy was stunned. So was Anne. 

“Yeah! What he said!”

“Oh a wager, is it? Fine, I’ll take your bet. I’ll be back in five days. If this place isn’t turned around and I post my bad review, then I get to have you as my personal chauffeur for one whole week. Meaning, you got to carry me on your back. If you win, then I will praise this place and leave it alone, forever.”

“Deal.” Sasha held her hand out and they shook on it and Albus left the building. Once he’s gone, Stumpy spoke to Sasha with an unnerved face.

“Sasha, what were you thinking? That was the most popular critic in town. One bad review from him, we’re finished.” 

“Come on. With Anne's cooking and my skills as a leader, we will turn this place around. What do you say, Stumpy?”

“I say…You just put me out of business. Bound to happen eventually, I suppose.” Now, he’s even more depressed as he walks away and disappears into his kitchen.

“Sasha, did you just promise to save this restaurant with Anne’s help?” Hop Pop walked over to them.

“In five days?” Sprig hopped up on Sasha’s shoulders. “And if you lose, you’ll have to carry Duckweed as a chauffeur.”

“Sasha is going to become a snail. Wish I had a camera.” Polly just chuckled.

“Guys, have a little faith. What could go wrong, right, Anne?” Then she turned around only to meet a very furious Anne. Hop Pop, Sprig, and Polly hid behind Sasha as the blond gulped and chuckled nervously.   

Anne didn’t like the idea of participating in the bet. She was still angry at Sasha. Sasha could easily tell that Anne was upset with her. She sat down next to Anne. 

“Look, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have put you up to the bet. But it’s not that bad!” Sasha flinched when Anne twirled her neck and gave Sasha a nasty glare.

“Not that bad?! You just threw me in there. Sasha, I don’t know anything about running a restaurant.” 

“But you know how to cook. You won the Potluck competition with flying colors; you can help Stumpy reignite his passion for cooking. Please, For both me and Stumpy.” Sasha put her hands together in a prayer motion and stared at Anne with big eyes. She was hoping her charms would work. Anne reluctantly sighed.

“Fine. But I’m doing it for Stumpy. Not for your pride.”

“I know. I was a jerk. But it will help Stumpy’s dream.”

“Dream?” Anne turned her head. “Why would Stumpy go to sleep to dream?”

Sasha looked up at Anne in complete shock and asked her carefully. “I didn’t mean that kind of dream…You never had a dream before?” Anne shrugged.

“What is it?”

“Well, basically, it’s something you want to do. Like what you want to be when you grow up…Never mind!  That’s a terrible analogy. What I mean is, it’s something you wish you could do. Like ‘uuh’,” Sasha scratched her neck to think of something until she got it. “Oh! Like my dream is to be captain of Toad Tower.”

“Why that dream?”

“Because it meant something to me. To show everyone my worth. Anne, I was an orphan before I was found by Grime. Before then, I was doing what I could to survive so I didn’t have any dreams. I didn’t have the time. I was just focusing on surviving the next day. When Grime found me and took me in, I saw how cool those soldiers were. All are armed and ready for battle without any fear. Then when I saw Grime and the other Captains were capable. Every cadet dreams of being just like them. I want to make Grime proud. I want to make my family proud of me. Do you understand where I’m going with this?”

“So, a dream is something you want, and work hard to achieve that dream.” 

“Yep.”

“I too had a dream.” Hop Pop walked into the room. He heard everything. “My dream is to be an actor, starring as the main character and become a star!”

“What happened to that dream, Hop Pop?” Anne asked.

“Well, I couldn’t get an acting gig. Then I got word that my father was dying, and I had to come back to the farm. Then I met my wife, and we had Bark.”

“So, you couldn’t achieve your dream.”

“No! But I wouldn’t change anything for the world. Sure I lost my wife to a plaque that hit Wartwood but I had my son and I got my grandkids. And then I got Darcy and Sasha and Marcy. Then a strange little spirit came into my home. My life right now is fulfilled.”

“I want to be an engineer!” Polly popped in. She had a wrench in her hands. “That way, I can work on some of the robots around. I could upgrade them and maybe make even more that will help people.”

Sprig came in. Anne turned to her friend.

“You got a dream, Sprig?”

“Yep. I want to play my fiddle around Amphibia. And maybe an explorer to discover new things. Or a soldier like Sasha. The possibilities are endless.”

“See,” Sasha exclaimed. “Dreams are something you want to make happen. Something you want so desperately in your life.”

“And Stumpy’s dream is his restaurant…All right, we’ll help him.”

“That’s my girl.” Sasha jumped up. Anne blushed at having Sasha call her ‘her girl’. But now Anne was wondering if she could have a dream too.

Sasha and Anne traveled to the restaurant. Anne was nervous and hoped this would work. She would hate to see someone lose their dream and it’ll be her fault. Sasha knocked on the door. They waited a minute before Sasha tried the door. It was unlocked.

They peeked inside to see the place was deserted. There was no one in it. Well, except Wally who is snoozing on the side table.

“It seems this place hasn’t gotten the business it used to back in its heyday.” Sasha put her hands on her hips as she examined the counter, she wiped it with her finger and cringed to see dust and grease on her finger. “Man, this place definitely isn’t up to code. I am surprised it hasn’t been shut down yet.”

“Sasha!”

“Sorry. Let’s find Stumpy and get started on this. The sooner, the better. I really don’t want to be a two-legged snail for Duckweed.”

At that moment, Stumpy came in, with a large fish on his shoulders. He gasped in alarm.

“Sasha! Anne! What are you doing here?”

“Remember Stumpy? The bet?”

“Aye. Forgot about that. I had just given up at this point. No sense in running this anymore. It hasn’t done the business it used to.”

“That’s why we are. To ignite that passion again.” Sasha shook her hands.

“Sasha, I appreciate you trying to help. I do. Me wife always had a soft spot for you. But I think it’s time to throw the towel in. This place ain’t what it used to be.”

“That is where you are wrong. We will fix this place up. Make it newer and fresher. So, what do you think we should do first? Reorganize the menu? Redecorate?” Then, they heard the wood groaning and then the wood broke. It couldn’t hold on as a big green slob splattered on the floor. Anne shivered when that slob moved, and she yelped in fright. Sasha didn’t look but she heard it. She felt Anne get behind her as the green slob was not of this world. “Burn the place down to the ground and start fresh?”

“Look, Sasha! Anne! You are both on your own. I don’t have the heart in it. It isn’t going to make a difference anyways.”

“That is loser talk.” Stumpy just rolled his eyes and walked away. Sasha and Anne looked at each other. “This is going to be harder than I thought.”

“I wish I could heal heartbreaks.” Anne pities the poor frog. Losing his wife is a hard blow.

“Let’s wash the dishes first. I think those may take us the longest.”

Sasha and Anne went into the kitchen and began cleaning the dishes. They needed to be scrubbed hard. Anne carefully hoisted the sleepy Wally and put him on the table outside as the one-eyed frog continued to sleep.

Sasha grabbed the hose and gave Anne a side glance before smirking. She angled it towards Anne and squirted her with water.

“Hey! Not fair. You have the hose.”

“Whatcha you going to do about it?”

Anne playfully tackled Sasha and tried to wrangle the hose out of her hands. Sasha kept squirting her with water. They were chuckling as they wrestled for the hose, spraying water at each other. Stumpy came in to see the two. For a moment, he was taken back to a time when his wife was alive. They would do the same thing too.

“I see you kids having fun.” Sasha and Anne stopped but Stumpy looked at them with a small smile. This is the first time Sasha has seen that smile in a long time. “Me wife and I used to do the same thing too. It’s nice to see you kids acting like a couple of love doves.” Anne gagged a bit at the mention of the love doves. “Did I read the room wrong? I assumed you two were dating.” Both Sasha and Anne blanched at Stumpy. 

“No, we aren’t dating.” A blushing Sasha said.

“No, we’re just friends.” Anne’s face is redder than Sasha's. 

“Yeah, we’re just goofing off.” Sasha.

“Yeah, just playing.” Anne.

Then, both of them giggled awkwardly and avoided making eye contact with each other.

“Right.”

Anne and Sasha both looked at each other and looked away quickly before blushing. 

Anne was looking through an old recipe book in Stumpy’s restaurant before her eyes focused on a recipe that sounded interesting to her. She smiled before getting to work on it. As she worked, Sasha was cleaning the counters. She scrubbed hard to remove the grease that had been built over the past few years. As she sat down on a stool to rest a bit but it broke underneath her. She cursed as she picked up the pieces. They were rotten over from termites. She took all the stools as they were rotten as well and tossed them into the garbage lizard. Which proceeded to chase her around before Anne had to come out and save her. Sasha begin working on some new stools. Stumpy was just watching them from the sidelines before Anne tapped his shoulders.

“Here, I want you to try this.”

She made Stumpy sit down to try her food. He sampled a small piece before his eyes widened.

“This…This is delicious. Anne, is this the first time you have done this?” Anne nodded. She had never attempted that recipe. “This is amazing.”

“Thank you.”

“I don’t know about you, lass, but Duckweed was wrong about ya. You are pretty good.” Anne blushed. Sasha smiled before swinging an arm around Anne’s shoulders.

“I told you, Stumpy. What do you say? We help your dream stay afloat?” Stumpy’s mood went down like a flip of a page. He looks at his restaurant. It was once his pride and joy. He could still remember the day when he and his wife, Martha, first opened with a huge smile on their young faces. 

“Sasha, I don’t know. It just doesn’t feel the same without her.”

“Stumpy, she wouldn’t want you to keep wallowing in despair like this. Look, I know exactly how you feel. Losing someone you love is hard. You wonder how you will carry on. But you think about what they would want you to do.”

“Sasha, Martha was my light. She helped me through the pain after I was discharged from the Royal Navy and the loss of my hands.” Sasha sighed. “She was my world. This restaurant was her dream. Cooking for people was mine. When she was gone, I was devastated.” Anne did what she could by comforting the frog by putting her hand on his shoulder.

“Yeah. I feel you. She was amazing. I remember she always slipped me chocobeetles whenever Hop Pop and Grime took me here. She was one of the few people who accepted me when I first came to Wartwood. I remember you and Martha visiting me when I woke up after the herons’ attack on Wartwood. She had a box of chocobeetles just for me. I cried in that box as I thought all that had happened and all that I had lost.”

“I ‘member well. She was worried for you when we heard you were wounded in the attack. Then to see your wound just made the devastation set in.”

Anne was just a bystander. But everything was clicking into place for her. Anne now knew that Sasha’s scar was from the herons that she had heard brief mentions about. 

“Stumpy, Martha would want you to keep cooking. With the same passion you once had. But that doesn’t mean you forgot about her. Grief makes us feel and act differently. I should know. I’ve had a declaration of revenge against those damn herons for seven years now.” Stumpy looked at Sasha. “What I’m trying to say is that…A way to honor her is by continuing her dream and continuing yours. Don’t let this restaurant fall apart just yet. Fight for it.”

“Stumpy, I may just be the new girl here, but I want you to know that I am here for you.” Anne stood up. “Your dream is my goal. I want to help you succeed. I’ve never had a dream before, so I don’t know how you feel but I want to do what I can to help you.”

“I appreciate it you two. Maybe,” He looked at Sasha and Anne, and then at the restaurant. After listening to Sasha’s story and how she overcame her own grief, he should too. His determination is resolved.

“If the three of us worked together, we could get this restaurant running again. The way Martha used to run it.”

“That’s the spirit, Stumpy.”

“All right girls. You got me on board with this crazy bet.”

“I’ll look at getting you some new stools. I can put my old woodworking and whittling skills to good use. And then maybe we could refreshening the place up. It needs it. And needs to get the Wally out of it.”

“We will meet back here before the chickabeetle crows.” He saluted. 

“Yes sir.” Both Anne and Sasha saluted.

Anne was busy working on the different dishes to have the two sample them and decide which ones would go on the new menu. Stumpy had pulled out his wife’s old cookbook and Anne was using that. Sasha and Stumpy were working on fixing up the exterior. Fixing the lights. Getting the new stools up. Sasha even started getting new covers for the booths. 

“Food’s ready!” Anne called from the kitchen. She brought out the dishes for them. 

“Now, you sound like an expert in the restaurant business, Anne. Have you thought about working in one?” Anne turned her head at Stumpy. “I have a good sense of character. You would do well in a restaurant setting. Especially with your way with food. Why, I think Martha would be proud.”

“Thank you, Stumpy.” Anne went to hand the book back after reading all of it but Stumpy stopped her by pushing it back to her. 

“I think…Martha would want you to have it. You seem to know what you are doing and as Martha would say, you put your heart and soul into your cooking. I can taste it.”

“Thank you, Stumpy.” Anne was almost about to cry; she was touched by his generosity. She felt happy that Stumpy loved her cooking. Then she thought about how her cooking made the Plantars and Sasha happy. Maybe even making Wartwood happy with her cooking.

Anne watched as Sasha was sawing wood to make new stool legs. 

“You are pretty good with woodworking,” Anne said as she mostly watched Sasha’s muscles flex. 

“Yeah. I was self-taught. I had to survive.”

“I heard you mention that. You are pretty handy. What is whittling?”

Sasha straightened up and walked over to Anne, who was sitting on a nearby log. She had a small piece of wood in her hand. She sat down next to Anne and began slowly working on it. She didn’t say a word as she worked on the wood in complete focus. Anne could see features coming through. Soon, Sasha had a miniature Domino in her hands.

“This is whittling. I learned it to survive. I could sell my pieces to earn coppers.” She handed it to Anne. “For you. Maybe I can paint it later for you.”

“You had to do a lot to survive.” Anne slipped her hands into Sasha’s. “How long were you alone?”

“A couple of years. I ran from that orphanage.” Anne leaned her head on Sasha’s shoulder. 

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry you had to deal with that. You didn’t deserve this. No one should go through with this like you did.” 

Sasha smiled and spoke. “I have what I always dreamt of. A family.”

“That was one of your dreams.”

“Yeah, it was. Now that I have that, my next dream is to be captain of the Toad Tower. Who knows, maybe I’ll be the personal guard to the king if things work out. Have you thought about your dream?”

“I’m not sure yet.”

“You have all the time in the world.” This dream thing for Anne is not strange but she never thought of it before. All her life, since she was created, was already planned out and decided on what she should be and what she should do when she was sent here. Now, hearing about everyone’s dream sounds so beautiful and it has such freedom to choose what you love to do.

“Do you think we will get Stumpy’s dream back?” Anne asked softly.

“I think we already have. I think the old Stumpy is back.” Anne looked up and saw the large scar on Sasha’s cheek. She reached up and ran her finger along it. Sasha didn’t move her hand away like in the past.

“I think I know what happened. You were wounded by a heron. Weren’t you?”

“Herons attacked Wartwood. I fought them. One of them pinned me down and,” Sasha stopped. Anne felt her breath hitch. Anne held onto her arm and rubbed her hand.

“You don’t have to say a word.”

“Their talon got my cheek. It shattered the bone and ripped my cheek open. I managed to stab it in the eye before it flew off. I passed out from the amount of blood and the shock of everything. Soon, everyone in town was praising me for my deeds…But at that time, I never felt I deserved such praise. I couldn’t save the people I needed to save.” 

Anne kissed the scar. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Sasha. The people were grateful for what you did, you protected them and did your best. You deserve the praises they offer you!”

“Thanks Anne. Well, I kind of like this old scar now. All the ladies love it, and the men think it’s hot.” Sasha wiggled her eyebrows at Anne. Anne giggled. 

“Stop it, Sasha.” Anne pushed Sasha gently, making her laugh until Stumpy interrupted them.

“You sure you two ain’t dating?” Stumpy came out and crossed his arms. “Because you two sure act like a couple of teenagers in love.” Sasha and Anne blushed. 

“No, we aren’t.” They both yelled all at once and blushed at the same time.

“You ‘mind me and my wife when we were younger. We acted the same as you two. Now come on you two. Stop your flirting. We only have four more days before Duckweed comes back.”

The three worked well together. Anne and Stumpy were pros in the kitchen, perfecting recipes. Anne used Martha’s book as guidance while Stumpy helped with ways to improve on the dishes. Sasha worked on fixing the inside before she eventually moved outside. Anne was impressed with her woodworking skills.

“Anne, I dare say you are a pro with those cooking skills. You sure you ain’t been in the restaurant business before?”

“I’m sure. I’m self-taught.”

“You are amazing for a self-taught chef. I was the same way. I had to teach myself these skills and once I got better, I experimented with my recipes.”

“How did you meet your wife?” Anne shut her mouth as she realized she hit a sore spot.

“It’s alright lass. I met her when I first joined the Navy. She was a server at this restaurant me and the boys would frequent. She was so beautiful. We hit it off and I would go see her anytime we docked there. Soon, we were married and decided that we would open our own restaurant. It was a dream we both had before we met each other, and we shared that dream together. So, once I was honorably discharged from the Navy, we moved to my old hometown of Wartwood and we settled down and we opened this here restaurant.”

“It sounds like a beautiful dream.”

“You got a dream, lass?” Anne looked down but not in sadness, just looking unsure.

“No, I have never really thought about a dream before. I guess I never had time to dream about what I wanted to do in my life. My life…Was already decided the moment I was born.”

“Aye. So, you already had a life planned out. Well, you are here now. Maybe break away from the mold. Make your own decisions.”

Anne now looked shocked. Break out the mold! Make her own decision!! That never occurred to her before. Could she do that? Do something that she wants to do. It’s not like she hated her job, she loved it. But she had been doing that all her life. She fulfilled her role as a Protector of Amphibia but she wasn’t content. Maybe she could be something else besides the spirit. Would the Guardian be too mad at her for changing course or would they be happy their favorite star was branching out?

“Hey, Stumpy!” Sasha’s voice brought her back to reality and saw her carrying on her shoulder a very large piece of wood. “I got that giant piece of wood,” Sasha yelled out from the front.

Anne and Stumpy came out to see Sasha with the wood that she had cut and sanded down into a sign. It just needed some paint.

“That looks good, Sasha.”

“It just needs a name.”

“How about… Martha’s Place .” Stumpy suggested and both girls loved it.

“I think that’s a great name,” Anne commented. 

“This place looks so good. We even got the Wally out.” Sasha crossed her arms.

“That’s what you think.” Wall shouted as he ran across the kitchen.

“Well, tomorrow is the grand reopening. And when the bet happens. How are we feeling? Nervous? Excited?” Sasha inquires. 

“Aye, a bit of both if you ask me.” Stumpy nodded. 

“Same. I really don’t want to be a personal chauffeur to Duckweed.”

“I’m nervous about what people will say about my food,” Anne said. 

“I am confident in you, lass. You’ll do great.”

“I agree with Stumpy. I have tasted your cooking, and it is amazing. Once they get a taste of your food, Anne, they’ll be wanting more of Anne’s specials!” Anne blushed at their compliments. “All right, everyone. Put your hands and spatula in. Let’s go.” Sasha put her open hand out. Anne placed her hand on top of Sasha’s and Stumpy put his spatula on Anne’s. They cheered when they raised their hands and spatula together.

“Go Martha’s Place!”

The day of reopening is finally here, and everyone in Wartwood is muttering with awe and excitement. 

Martha’s Place looked incredible and so clean.  

When the doors opened, there was a line of people waiting to try the new menu. Sasha was the server as they just dumped the old robot out. Or rather, they gave Polly the robot to see about fixing him up so Stumpy could use him for later. 

Anne and Stumpy were busy in the back, cooking as the orders came in with gusto and a grin on their faces. Anne was actually enjoying the fast pace of the restaurant. 

The heat of the stove seemed to ignite her. The aroma of every food made her senses tingle with enchantment as if she was pouring magic into the food and the food seemed to sing with her.

Bubbling.

Sizzling.

Grilling.

Every sound is music to the hungry soul. And it only made Anne sing loudly to its presence.

“I need a plate of maggot larb!” Sasha called to the kitchen. She poured a glass of fly iced tea into Mrs. Croaker’s glass. 

“Thank you, dearie. Oh boy. This place is the cleanest I’ve seen in a long time. Reminds me of the good old days.”

Sasha looked around for Duckweed and had yet to see him. Her eyes drifted to a strange-looking patron. The door rang and Sasha saw the Plantars coming in.

“Hey, guys. Welcome to Martha's Place.”

“Wow, Sasha. You and Anne really turned this place around. You don’t smell the sadness here.” 

“Sorry guys. You’ll have to wait for an open table. All of ours are filled.”

“They can have mine.” The strange frog Sasha had seen earlier suddenly unzipped its head and out popped Duckweed. “I am done here.”

“Albus Duckweed!” Both Anne and Stumpy delivered their plates and walked over to Sasha. 

“What was with the disguise?” Sasha asked. “Is it a food critic thing?”

“It’s so I get a genuine experience. If you saw me, you would have tried to zhuzh it up a bit. But with a disguise on, you’ll serve me just like everyone else.”

“Ah! That’s actually pretty clever.” Sasha noted that even Anne and Stumpy agreed that was pretty smart.

“So, did you like the food?” Anne asked nervously. Everyone in the restaurant held their breath in keenness. 

“It was…Terrific.” Duckweed said. All three were surprised. “The food was delicious. The texture. The taste. It was all splendid. I enjoyed it all.”

“Really?” Anne wanted to make sure she heard right.

“Yes! With this review, I will let everyone know that they need to come to this place. Hmmm.” Duckweed looked at the review in his hand.

“What’s wrong?” Anne asked as she got down to his level.

“I…I’m a food critic but if I’m not going to criticize this place anymore, then what do I do?”

“What do you mean?”

“Martha’s Place is the only restaurant in all of Wartwood! I have no one else to post my review about. All I have is the comics. And Dad never liked my comics.” Sasha caught on to what he was saying.

“Wait! You drew those comics that Sprig likes.” Sasha said. “He loves waiting for them on the board.”

“Someone likes them?” Albus couldn’t believe his ears.

“Oh yeah.” Sprig came up and Sasha ruffled his head.  “Hell, I even like them. They are pretty funny. Say, what if you dedicate yourself to those comics full-time then? Get them out once a week or every day instead of once every other month. I bet everyone would love them.”

“I…Always dreamed of being a comic artist. But Dad was in the food critic business and wanted me to follow in his footsteps. He didn’t like my drawings and he said it was a waste of time!” It hurt Albus that his own Dad doesn’t support his dream.

“Now is the time to break free of that,” Anne spoke up, surprising everyone. She remembered what Stumpy said to her. “You have the chance to break that mold. Make your own choices! Do it.”

“By golly, you are right, weird girl.” Anne flinched. “Excuse me. Anne. I’ll post my review on our message board and then I can finally draw my comics.”

Duckweed was quick to run out of the restaurant and was nailing the review up on a board outside.

“Wait, you guys have a literal board?” Anne questioned in surprise.

“Yep. That’s how we get our news. I really tried to get them to start a newspaper business here.”

“Well Stumpy, we did it. The bet is off.” Sasha turned to the frog. “Sorry, I went a bit overboard with it.”

“Hah. You two managed to convince this old frog to have a second chance. You are right, Sasha. I can still grieve for her, but this restaurant was her dream, and I will honor that. She loved this place.”

“She would be proud of you.”

“Aye, yes she would.”

Stumpy slipped Sasha a box with a bow around it. Sasha opened the lid to see a bunch of chocobeetles. She took a bite of one.

“It’s like how Martha made them.” Sasha looked up to see Stumpy wink at her. Sasha began tearing up a bit and she quickly rubbed them before they could escape from her eyelids.

“Come on, Sasha. No more tears. We have a shift to finish up.”

Anne sat on her bed down in the basement. She had a small notepad in her lap. She had been thinking a lot since they left Martha’s Place and Stumpy’s words still echo in her head. 

She looked at the night sky and saw the brightest star shining. The Guardian's Eye. 

“I know you created me to watch over this world. This world was your favorite, and I was your special star. But Guardian, please forgive me. I want to follow my path. I will stay watch over Amphibia as its protector but…I want to have a dream of my own. A dream I didn’t realize until today.”

“Hey Anne, you, okay?” Sasha came downstairs and noticed Anne was staring through the window and didn’t turn around.

“Sasha…For as long as I could remember, my life was already planned for me, and I was fine with that. I didn’t complain about it, I was happy. But…I always feel a void in me here like something is missing. I always felt that I could do more, but I never figured it out…until today!” Anne twirled around with an earsplitting grin on her face and stars lit in her eyes.

“I have a dream.” 

“Oh! Mind spilling your secrets to your friend?”

“I want…I want to run my own restaurant. I want to have a place where I can cook for the people of Wartwood and maybe Amphibia. Stumpy said I would make a great chef. I want to make everyone happy, laughing, and forgetting all their worries once they taste my food!”

“And I would believe him. I can see it now.” Sasha sat down next to Anne; Sasha spread her arms as if she saw the headline. “Anne Boonchuy, the spirit of Amphibia and restaurant owner. Beloved by all. Like how she was so many years ago.”

“You have a lot of faith in me.”

“Because I know you will be amazing.” Sasha tucked a piece of hair behind Anne’s ear. “After what I saw today, you will be the most amazing chef in Amphibia.”

“Thank you, Sasha. Would you be by my side to make a dream a reality?”

“Of course. I had fun getting the shop ready and helping with the restaurant. I’ll even make a sign for you.”

Anne smiled before kissing her cheek. “Thank you, Sasha. For everything.” 

Sasha looked down and saw the notepad. Anne had drawn the design of a restaurant. But just the base of it.

“So, this is your new dream now?” Sasha asked. She had brought Anne close to her body. 

“Yes. I finally have a dream. A dream all my own.”

“And I would love to experience that dream with you.” Sasha and Anne stared at each other. 

“And I would love to experience yours as well.”

“I’m living it now.”

They could deny it all they want but they could not deny the truth in their eyes. They’re locked on only each other, feeling gravity pulling them close to each other and yet so different like the opposite like fire and water. 

Sasha never realized in close perspective that Anne’s eyes looked so beautiful when shining under the light of the moon. 

Was she always looking so angelic? Her heartbeat is drumming very fast but fills her with warmth, and all Sasha can think is…Could Anne love Sasha littered with scars, and would often be called by her fellow cadet, a demonic warrior with a heart of stone…

Suddenly, Anne hummed, and Sasha looked down to see Anne resting on Sasha’s shoulder. Completely at ease as if being with Sasha is the safest place in the world.

Sasha just wrapped her hand around her shoulder and tightened her hold. 

She can’t tell her how she feels, she is still too scared. But, for just a moment, she will relish it. 

Chapter Text

Ten years ago.

A young Sasha Waybright was carrying the produce to the stand. People and the Plantars are still in awe of her strength coming from a ten-year-old girl. 

She was assigned to help with the Plantar stand today. Hop Pop and Bark said it would help build character. She was excited as this was her first time working at the stand with her new family. She wanted to prove to them that she was a hard worker and that she wasn’t going to fail them. 

“Hey Sasha, let old Bark help you there.” The pink frog with orange hair came beside her. “You can barely see above the crate.”

“I got it, Bark.”

“Well…Okay but be careful there little one. Don’t want yah tripping!” Said Bark in a concerned manner.

“I won't trip.” Sasha was determined to carry this herself. She needed to prove she wasn’t worthless.

“Just be careful. Don’t want yah hurting yourself.”

But Sasha brushed it off as she was confident enough to be careful with the crate full of goods. However, Sasha didn’t see the rock and she yelped, wobbled, and tripped right over, in a similar fashion to her friend Marcy. She cried out as the crate fell out of her hands and landed away from her. It shattered, dropping the vegetables onto the ground. Some had rolled away but most of them were splattered on the ground with juices. 

Sasha panicked, scrambling to pick up the pieces. She was crying a bit. 

“Sasha! You, okay?” Hop Pop dropped to his knees as he observed the crying human, checking for injuries. 

“I…I…I’m sorry, I’m useless!” Sasha was crying. “I can’t do anything right! I am worthless! I destroyed your livelihood.” The poor blond panicked, like the terrible thoughts swirling in her head that nothing she could do right. Now, they’ll be mad at her and send her away.

“Whoa! Whoa! Calm down kiddo. You are not worthless! You didn’t destroy our livelihood. They are just a few vegetables, kid. We will survive. Look, a few got dirty but nothing that a little cleaning can’t fix. And sure, we lost a few but that doesn’t matter.” For most of what Hopadiah Plantar learned about Sasha, he knew she had a rough life. If he ever meets that woman who was Sasha’s mother, he’ll give her a piece of his mind. But, right now, he needs to help this poor girl to calm down.

“But what about Mrs. Croaker and her veggies? She ordered these.”

“We will tell her the truth. We Plantars live by a code and our stand lives on the idea of honesty.”

“So, you’re not mad?” Sasha made herself look small and still feeling guilty for not watching where she was going but Hop Pop smiled.

“No.” Hop Pop ruffled her hair. “Now come on, sweetie. Well now looky here.” Hop Pop picked up one of the destroyed gourds. Inside was a maggot. Sasha sniffled. “Sasha, I think your little accident just uncovered a maggot.”

“I did?”

“Yep. You helped. If you hadn’t fallen, I would never have discovered the maggot. These things taste terrible and make our vegetables taste terrible. Now we are going to need to check our vegetables and make sure there aren't more of them.”

Sasha wiped her eyes. Hop Pop held her close to him. “And remember, Sasha. Your Hop Pop got your back!”

The Plantar stand was a stand that was passed down from generation to generation. It was run on the idea of honesty. It was the pride and joy of Hopadiah Plantar and he hoped to eventually pass it to Sprig one day when he would take over the Plantar stand.

Sprig was currently leaning against another stand. The stand was Gentle Jon’s Expensive Jellies. 

“Ah, the Wartwood Farmer’s Market, where the salt of the earth frogs come to sell stuff and fill up on free samples.”

Sprig had grabbed a jar of jellies. He chugged the jar of jellies into his mouth, and Gentle John was not looking very gentle right now after Sprig ate his jelly without paying.

“That wasn’t a sample.” Sprig slowly allowed the jelly to fall from his mouth back into the jar.

“Now it’s like nothing happened.” He chuckled nervously, in hopes that John would go back to being gentle.

Sprig was terribly wrong.

Gentle Jon held up a spiked mace like he was about to smack Sprig with it. Sprig awkwardly laughed before suddenly being hoisted up in the air. He looked to see Sasha with a sour expression on her face.

“Hehe. Sorry. I’ll pay for that.” Sprig dropped a few coins on the stand. Then, Sasha gives him an apologetic look.

“Sorry about him, John.” Gentle John put down his mace and grunted. 

“It’s all right but if he does it again, Macey won’t be forgiving next time.” He was petting his mace, who was named Macey like a pet.

Then Sasha walked away with Sprig back to the stand and dropped him on the soft ground. “Stay out of trouble!” She gave him a pointed look to stay put before she went back to help load the crate. Sprig huffed, he hated when he got scolded and treated like a kid.

“You need to pay close attention, Sprig.” Sprig looked up and saw Anne laughing and wearing a blue-ribbon hat, and saw the whole thing. “I’m glad Sasha was there to get you out, but she won’t be around all the time! You need to be careful!” She was right but Sprig crossed her arms in a fashion similar to Sasha and pouted.  Anne leaned down and kissed his cheek, which caused him to blush. “C’mon, help me put the rest of the gourd in the barrel.” Feeling a whole lot better, Sprig leaped to help. 

Mrs. Croaker came up to the stand and looked over the vegetables. She had been Plantar’s number one loyal customer since she always bought their vegetables from their stand since Hopadiah’s father took over the family’s stand. 

“Good morning, Mrs Croaker.” Anne and Hop Pop said at the same time. 

“Good morning Hopadiah and Anne. I will take this here gangly gourd.”

“Oh, I sense a batch of Croaker stew coming on.” But then, Hop Pop noticed something odd at the gourd Sadie picked. “Hmmmm! Hang on there, Sadie. You don’t want that one.” Hop Pop walked over to Mrs. Croaker. He took the gourd from her and rolled it over in his hands. He knocked on it twice before shaking it. “Mm-hmmm….”

Hop Pop broke the gourd in half. Everyone could see a large larva sleeping inside it. It jumps out of the gourd once it is awoken. “Knew it. A gourd maggot. Those guys taste terrible.” 

Hop Pop grabbed a new gourd, one that Anne had inspected herself. He offered the new gourd to Mrs. Croaker. “Here, take this one instead. It’s maggot-free.”

“Classic Plantar honesty. I’ve been buying from this stand since your father was running it. And y’all never steered me wrong. Especially when this little cutie was helping run it.” Mrs. Croaker playfully pinched Sasha’s left cheek since Sasha was bent down. Sasha just chuckled.  

Mrs. Croaker walked away. Anne just stared at the scene in front of her.

“Wow, Hop Pop. That was impressive.”

“That is the Plantar difference, Anne. You can’t taste honesty. But if you could,”

“It’d taste like a Plantar stand vegetable.” Sasha, Sprig, and Polly all groaned out together.

“This stand is the heart and soul of our family. I don’t know what I’d do if we ever lost it.”

“You won’t ever lose it, Hop Pop. I have faith in you. I can feel love from the stand!”

“You are a sweet one, Anne.”

“Bad news everyone! Bad news!” Toadie appeared, walking through town with numerous scrolls in his little hands. As Toadie was nearing the Plantar stand, he froze when he saw Sasha and gulped loudly. “Hi, Sasha.”

Sasha just crossed her arms and her eyes narrowed like daggers. 

“This better not be what I think it is.”

“What? No.” Toadie was nervous as he pulled his bow tie away. 

“Toadie!” He stood still for a moment, shaking and sweating until Toadie tried to run but Sasha was faster. She picked up the little frog. “If I see it’s another rent increase, I will be having a personal conversation with Toadstool, myself.”

Anne came up and lowered Sasha’s arm that was holding Toadie. 

“Easy, Sasha.” Sasha lets Anne force her to put down Toadie before the poor guy goes into a coma. She smiled at the frog before taking one of the scrolls from him. Toadie was backing away. Sasha made a sudden movement, and let out a loud ‘BOO!’, and it freaked out Toadie. He went scampering off with his tail between his legs. 

Hop Pop rolled his eyes and took the scroll from Anne. He pulled his reading glasses out of his pocket.

“That Toadie.” Hop Pop read the scroll. “SAY WHAT?! Mayor Toadstool is quadrupling the rent! And he wants it in three days?!”

“WHAT?” Anne, Sasha, and the kids couldn’t believe what they just heard and then they heard a riot coming from the whole market.  

“Have you seen this?”

“This is outrageous!”

“That’s it! I’m going to the toad and slicing his fat body open!” Sasha was about to start storming over to Toadstool. She had that murderous intent. Anne grabbed her arm, halting her from committing murder.

“We’ve more pressing concerns.” She pointed to a panicked Hop Pop. He was pacing back and forth.

Sasha had never seen Hop Pop looking like this. The old frog appeared to have a look that he’d lost something that was dear to him. The stand had been there since Leif built this stand with her very hand. The stand had helped the family through their dire time. Now, they only had the renting money to pay the usual rent fee before Toadstool increased it to quadruple.

“At this rate, we’ll lose the stand. How are we going to make enough money in three days?!”

Sasha can’t let that happen. 

“We need a new selling point. Something to draw the crowds in.” Sasha stood there and thought for a moment. 

Then, she thought back to a time when she was younger. When she was still an orphan and hadn’t found Grime yet. She had come across a traveling newt merchant that specialized in potions. She had spent some time with them to just get coppers. But as she discovered, he was a liar. He had embezzled the effects of his potions. He made claims that they grew hair back or would get rid of wrinkles. As much as she despised the idea, the people are easy to bamboozle.  Once the people caught on to the lies, they ran them out of town. 

It's a risky maneuver. It’s stupid but that greedy toad will take away their stand if they don’t pay the rent. As much as she hates it, it’s only temporary.

“I have an idea.” Sasha popped up. Hop Pop stared at her in hope. “Just watch.”

Sasha took a gourd and she squeezed the gourd with ease. 

“Whoa!” Sprig and Polly exclaimed in awe and Sasha's strength made Anne blush. She squeezed a few more vegetables into it. 

“TA DAA! Introducing Plantar’s Potion. It has your daily intake of your vegetables.”

“It has all of that in there?” Hop Pop looked at the veggie juice, almost believing it.

“Hell, if I know. It’s a little white lie. I was around a traveling merchant for a bit that would sell potions. Most of the things he advertised weren't true, but he sold a ton of them. Just ham it up a bit, tell a little white lie and I’m sure you’ll sell a ton. But don’t and I repeat, don’t advertise things you can’t promise.” Sasha pointed her finger at him. “Just do this long enough for us to get money for the new rent.”

Hop Pop seems unsure about this but when he looks at his stand and their Plantar family motto. This stand has been part of the family since he was a tadpole. He used to play around with it while helping his father. Losing the stand will be like losing it all. 

He looked at Sasha and then the veggie juice. “A-alright,” Sasha pushed Hop Pop towards the crowd. Anne came up to Sasha’s side. 

“Sasha, you sure about this? It seems wrong.” Anne said with uncertainty, taking Sasha’s hand. 

“No, trust me, Anne, I don’t like this idea too. But I’m going to try everything I can to help my family minus murdering a greedy toad!”

They watched on the sideline with their fingers crossed as Hop Pop walked up to the crowd and cleared his throat. 

“New product! A new product, everyone. This here is a freshly made bottle of…What was it again? Plantar’s potion!” Wally raised his hand. “Yes, you in the back.”

“Does it taste good?”

“Wouldn’t know. Haven’t tried it yet.” Hop Pop shrugged after telling the truth, you can hear triple facepalm coming from Sasha, Sprig, and Polly.

“Oh.” Wally lowered his hand. 

A frog in the back coughed in the deafening silence. 

“This is looking pretty bad over there.” Said Polly. Hop Pop was looking around at the crowd, sweat dripping down his forehead.

“Folks, I’d really appreciate it if you brought this drink. Uh…” Hop Pop is trying to come up with what he has to say but the pressure is too much. All his thought is about losing the stand. How will he keep the house and feed the kids without the stand?

“ I need to do something fast. If I don’t, I’ll lose the stand in three days. The kids could be homeless. Quick Hopediah. Think. What was it Sasha said? Uh, make promises you can’t keep? Yeah, that sounds about right for her.” Hop Pop looked up to see his sign that read honesty first. Then he looked at his grandkids. “ Well, if Sasha says it will work then I will give it a try.”

“Because it’ll make you…Stronger like my Sasha.”

“Huh!?” 

“What is he doing?!” Sasha heard what Hop Pop just said and the citizen was quick to believe him. Sasha's sweat dropped. “Oh no!”

“Unbelievable.”

“Smarter too, like my Polly.” 

Sasha is pulling her face, “Oh nooo!!!”

“Smarter! Smarter!” The citizens were cheering.

Hop Pop smirked. He ran over and took the blue-ribbon hat from Anne’s head. 

“Folks, one sip of Plantar’s Potion,” Hop Pop grabbed the juice Sasha made and chugged it before shattering the jar on the ground. “And you may very well LIVE FOREVER!”

“I’ll take ten!” 

“I’ll take a hundred!” 

The crowd immediately began throwing coppers in front of Hop Pop. He grabbed the hat and began catching the coppers in the hat. Sprig and Polly couldn’t believe that people were fooled by the lie as more copper came raining down on their feet. They played in the coppers like it was snow.

When Hop Pop looked at the money, he was in shock. He never sold this much before. The amount of money he had doubled what they get in a week. 

“Suffering swamp gas! We gotta step up production on this stuff. Fast!” Then, Hop Pop took off to make more. Sasha, Anne, Sprig, and Polly watch Hop Pop go behind the stand as he begins to squeeze vegetables to make the Plantar potion.

Sasha mutters again, “Oh no!!! That wasn’t- I told him not to- UGH!!!” 

Sasha knew the idea was bad from the start, but she made sure to warn Hop Pop not to make promises that he couldn’t keep. Now, Hop Pop is roped into this, and she is to blame for this. She looked up at the sign and the words “ Honesty first .” Made the guilt worse. She covered the side of her face with her hand so she wouldn’t have to see the sign. 

The next day, everyone began grinding their vegetables into juice to make more Plantar Potion. There was a line already forming when they got to the stand. Hop Pop was giddy with excitement and the guilt was eating at Sasha. She didn’t have her heart in this. Anne was running the counter as Sasha passed the fresh jars to Anne. Hop Pop jumped onto the top of his sign with a cane. 

“There he is!” 

“Look Daddy, the potion man.” A little frog kid pointed to Hop Pop. 

“Folks! Say, have any of you been losing the stick on your tongue? One sip of Plantar’s potion and,” Hop Pop swallowed the liquid from the jar. “And my tongue has never felt stickier. Feeling dry? Plantar’s Potion will make you moist and smooth. Just look at the sheen on me!”

Hop Pop ripped his shirt open, and the sun hit his shining body, nearly blinding the crowd if they didn’t put on a pair of sunglasses. 

“Ohhh.” 

“My eyes!” Sasha screamed. 

As the day progressed, Hop Pop’s empty promises kept building up and up.

“They will make your warts bigger. It’ll make your kids talk back less. It’ll erase all the regrets that keep you up at night!”

Sasha just collapsed on her bed and threw her arm over her eyes. The guilt was eating her alive. She could feel the trickles of tears in the corners of her eyes.

“Hey, Sasha.” Anne peeked in.

“Leave me to wallow in my despair.” She heard that bell-like giggle which made her heart warm. 

“Oh Sasha, it’s not your fault. Hop Pop misinterpreted your warning.” Sasha felt the bed dip before her arm was removed. “You were just trying to do what was best for the stand. You warned Hop Pop not to go overboard, and yet he did. That was his choice. Not yours.”

“But still,” Sasha shot up. “I put the idea into his bald head. I am at fault here. If this whole thing goes south, we will lose the stand. I refuse to let that happen. Because if we lose the stand, I don’t know what I’ll do because it will be my fault!” 

Sasha stood up and grabbed her blades. Anne jumped up and followed Sasha.

“Where are you going?” Anne chased after her.

“I am going to talk to a certain toad. This reeks of fraud.”

“I’ll come with you. Just to make sure you don’t actually kill the guy.”

“…Fair.” Sasha pouted.

Toadie is in the kitchen, making his mayor his favorite treat. Cricket nuggets. When, suddenly, he screamed like a girl when the door was slammed open. When he saw Sasha, he paled with dread when Sasha followed by a worried Anne. She was storming into Toadstool’s office. Toadie raced after her.

“Miss Sasha, you can’t be here! Mayor Toadstool is very busy.”

“Too bad!!! I don’t give a shit about his so-called busy schedule.”

Sasha kicked the door down. Toadstool panicked when he saw the angry blonde. She stabbed her blade into the desk. “Toadstool! We need to talk about the stand.”

“Lieutenant Waybright. What a surprise! And I see Miss Anne as well. What is this about the stand?”

“Your tax hike! If you keep this up, you’ll make everyone so poor that they won’t be able to funnel your money. Did you think about that, you greedy ass toad!” Anne guided Sasha away so she wouldn’t stab him. 

“Sasha, I don’t know what you mean. I just got word from your father, Captain Grime, that he issued out a tax hike. I’m just doing what is told of me.”

“I don’t believe you.” Sasha snarled. 

Toadstool pulled a piece of paper out and showed Sasha. Her face fell when she read it. It looked like Grime’s scribble. But Grime always had an ineligible signature. When she had lived at the Tower, she was the one who signed his important documents. Now that she was gone, Grime was having to do his own signing. 

“See! Grime sent that to me. He was asking for more taxes, and I was obliged by his rules. So, you see, I had to raise the taxes on the stands. It was the only way to raise the taxes we need to give to the South Toad Tower.”

Sasha sent the note down on the desk and walked out, leaving Anne to just watch her go. She was quick to pull the sword out of the desk, making Toadstool flinch, and followed Sasha out. She saw Sasha climb down the steps before plopping down on them. Anne sat down next to her in silence.

“I shouldn’t have told Hop Pop to make those potions. If he keeps this up and…It will soon come to bite him in the ass.”

“You sound like an expert on this.”

“Remember how I talked about that one traveling merchant newt?” Anne nodded. “Well, he promised a ton of stuff. Like the potions would grow the hair back. They would improve your eyesight or hearing. But the catch was that they did none of that. Everything he promised wasn’t true. It’s like with Hop Pop. Soon, people will catch on to his lies and run us out of town. I had vegetables thrown at my head. I just don’t want that to happen to Hop Pop. He can’t lose the stand. It’s been in the family since Leif’s time.”

“That just shows you care. If we can persuade him to stop, I’m sure he will thank you later.”

Sasha sighed before putting her face in her hands. Anne could tell that something was really wrong with Sasha. Her shoulders are shaking but she hears no sob. It would seem Sasha was trying to keep it all in without falling apart.

“I screwed up!” Said Sasha, vainly.

“No, you are not.” Anne kissed the top of her head. “You didn’t screw up!”

“It will be my fault that the stand shuts down.”

“No, it will not.”

“It will. I’m…Worthless.” She slurs the words she hates so much like drinking poison. The very word was used by her so-called mother.

“YOU’RE FUCKING WORTHLESS!” 

Sasha can barely remember her face, but she’ll never forget her words toward her.

Anne pulled Sasha away and shook her, snapping her back to the present.

“Sasha, shut up!” This first time Anne said that, and she wasn’t done. “I refuse to let you call yourself that. None of it, it’s your fault. We will do what we can to help Hop Pop, and you are NOT worthless!”

“I am. Everyone always leaves me when I don’t meet their expectations.” Anne was staring at Sasha in shock. “First, were my parents. Then Hop Pop will. Once he loses his stand. Eventually, you will too.” More in shock than ever for Anne.  

“No, never! Sasha, I don't know where this comes from, but I will always be here. Always!” Sasha allowed herself to curl into Anne’s arms. It was so comforting. Anne rubbed her back. “We have to get Hop Pop to realize what he is doing wrong.”

The next day, it was the same process. Hop Pop had a giant barrel with a faucet attached to it. Sprig and Polly were meant to squash the vegetables with their feet while Sasha was tasked with filling the jars. Frobo was security as everyone tried to crowd the stand for a jar. Anne was the cashier.

“Step right up folks for Plantar’s Potion. The one drink you will only need. Need a little pick-me-up? Well, look no further.” Hop Pop pointed his cane to Anne. 

It was the first real good interaction for Anne with the citizens. They didn’t call her weird or back away from her. But Anne figured it was because of the potion. Sasha was placing jar after jar. At one point, their hands touched as Anne was grabbing a jar and Sasha was putting a jar on the stand. They both paused and blushed. 

Sasha was quick to turn away from Anne. Anne watched as Sasha’s shoulders dropped.

Anne needed to talk in private with Hop Pop. This has been going on long enough. 

Hop Pop was shaking a large jar filled with copper and giggling with greed in his eyes.

“Whoa kids, look at this. This jar is filled to the brim with coppers. Just a few more sales, we will be able to pay the rent.” Hop Pop was hugging the jar to his face as he seemed to be in his own little world. 

“Hop Pop!” Sprig and Polly came sliding down the ladder. Sasha peeked her head around the barrel. “We have a problem. A big problem.”

“We used up all our produce. There’s nothing left.” Sprig’s feet were hurting from all the squashing. 

“No!!! We’re so close! We can’t fall short now. Let’s see.” Hop Pop’s eyes darted around until he spotted some garbage. “A-ha! Jackpot!” When Sasha saw it, her face went green.

“Hop Pop, no! That is literally garbage.” Sasha came running up to them. 

“Garbage? Or the Plantar Potion’s new secret ingredient?”

Sasha flinched. She couldn’t believe it. The frog she loves as a grandfather is so blinded by greed that he will sell garbage to his people in town. People will get sick if they drink that stuff but Hop Pop doesn’t seem to have shame written on his face. He is going for it.

“Still need a bit more, though.” Hop Pop was laughing. “Maybe some of these. That’ll work. Yeah.” 

“You sure about this Hop Pop?” Sprig asked, rubbing his arm. Hop Pop was climbing the ladder and throwing the garbage into the barrel. He even threw in a boot.

“Oh, I’m sure. Everyone’s hooked. They’ll buy anything I sell them. Now get in there, stompers.” 

Sprig and Polly looked at each other before blindly climbing into the barrel. As they climbed up the ladder, a giant fly appeared, blocking them from entering the barrel. He kicked it away before another fly appeared. Polly kicked it. 

“Go on. Get, get!” Sprig and Polly were quick into the barrel and Sprig closed the hatch behind him.

Hop Pop was beginning to laugh hysterically as some of the black tar-like substance dripped into the jar. 

“Yes! Yes! Let it flow! Come to Hop Poppa.”

Sasha had enough.

Sasha begins to yell, “You seriously going through with this? Tricking your friends into drinking this slob just to gain more coins!? The Hop Pop I know won’t stand for it! Have you forgotten the Plantar’s code? Honesty first.”

To everyone’s shock, Hop Pop counters back. “And look what honesty did for me! NOTHING! A whole bowl of nothing! The Plantar potion is the answer to our problem. You were the one who suggested the idea of making a new product and making empty promises.”

“I literally said the opposite thing! Hop Pop, you need to stop this right now before it’s too late!” 

“No way! The Plantar potion will not only pay our rent but secure our future!” 

“I refuse to accept the money that’s based on lies!!!” Anne has seen them banter before, but this is a full-blown argument, and she is beginning to worry.   

“Fine! If you don’t want to save the stand then go home!” The silence turned cold and defeated.

Sprig and Polly peeked from the barrel and their jaw dropped, stunned by what Hop Pop just said. Frobo whined sadly. Anne covered her mouth with her hands and looked at Sasha who stood frozen in place.

Sasha looked at Hop Pop with an unreadable expression, but her eyes were swirling with unimaginable pain and alarming disbelief. She didn’t say anything, her tongue went numb.

Then, Sasha turned around and she was walking back home, surprising Hop Pop.

“Eh! That’s it! You’re not going to help? I thought you had my back, Sasha!”

Sasha halted her steps and spoke but didn’t turn around. 

“Funny, I was about to say the exact same thing.” Then, she walks away.

Nobody saw Hopidiah flinched and actually looked guilty, but he quickly wiped it away and twirled to Sprig and Polly. 

“C’mon, keep stomping those feet. We’ve got work to do.”

But Sprig and Polly didn’t listen. They instead climbed down from the barrel and tried to catch up to Sasha. “Hey! Where do you think you’re going? Get back here!”

“Hop Pop!” Sprig begins to speak. “Our feet hurt but this, right here, hurts way worse! Goodnight.”

“You’re on your own!” Said Polly, coldly and angrily, and they walked away.

Anne never felt so disappointed in Hop Pop, and she too had something to say.

“So, you’re going through with this? Destroying your family’s reputation for a few coppers. And you don’t even realize that you are hurting your family! I’m going after them. I hope you come to your senses.” Then Anne left Hop Pop. Leaving the old frog on his own. 

“F-fine! I’ll do it on my own! Who needs ya?”

Hop Pop watched them fade away before something was eating at him. He looked down at the jar and then the Plantar sign and the motto seemed to look at him with angry, judging eyes.

He shook it off, “I’m saving this stand, no matter what…”

The next morning, Hop Pop was running the stand without the kids. No one was in the kitchen this morning; they stayed in their rooms. Not even Anne came down to cook breakfast.

Hop Pop grumbled through the walk to the market. He believes that they’re wrong and he’ll save the stand without them, and they’ll see how wrong they were.

“Friends and townsfolk, step right up. New limited edition Plantar’s Potion. Only twenty coppers a bottle.”

Unaware of Hop Pop, Sprig, Polly, and Anne are watching on the sideline, away from Hop Pop’s view, and hear what he has offered.

“Ain’t no one going to buy that slob.” Sprig exclaimed. Everyone was suddenly set into a roar of cheers. “Wow, I was wrong.”

“Thank you for your patronage.”

“I’m gonna feed this to my baby.” One frog shouted.

“I still can’t believe he’s going through with this…” Said Polly in a huff but soon became sad. She looked at Anne for reassurance. “Do you think Sasha is going to be okay?” 

Sasha never came to the market; she stayed in her room and didn’t come out. She was still hurt by what Hop Pop had said to her last night. But she did ask them to check on Hop Pop.

Anne rubbed Polly’s head and smiled sadly as she said truthfully, “I don’t know, but we’ll help Sasha in any way we can to cheer her up.”

“Yes! If I sell to one more sucker and we’ll be home free!” Hop Pop laughed as he shook the jar that was nearly filled up.

“I’ll take a bottle, Hopadiah.” Mrs. Croaker shouted. The people parted for the older frog to step forward.

“Sadie Croaker, the stand’s oldest and most loyal customer.” He mumbles and sweats.

“Usually, I find potions and the like to be a bunch of malarkey, but if Hopadiah Plantar says it works, then it must be true!”

Hop Pop was sweating like crazy. His eyes darted around. He spotted Anne, Sprig, and Polly pushing their way through the crowd.

“Been saving this gold farthing for a while now. Waiting for something special to spend it on. One bottle, please.”

“Uh! we’re all sold out!” Sadie looked at Hopadiah weirdly.

“It’s in your hand.”

“Oh! Uh,” But Sadie took the bottle from Hopidiah and she put a gold coin in his hand and said. 

“To Hop Pop and the Plantars, the most honest folks in the business.” And the people cheered in agreement.

“Oof, even I felt that one.” Anne winched and held her chest.

“To the Plantars!” 

Hop Pop looked at the sign that read honest first, and then the words Sasha said from last night began to echo in his head. 

What had he done?

He felt his heart fall before he realized that he needed to make things right.

“No!” Hop Pop jumped out and slapped the jar out of Mrs. Croaker’s hand before she could sip that drink. 

“What has gotten into you, Hopadiah?”

“It’s no health potion! It’s garbage!” The air grew silent, and all looked at Hop Pop in disbelief. “Folks, I’m so sorry. I never meant any harm. All I was trying to do was save my stand. But I let it happen, and I’ve hurt my family because of my greed.” 

Then, someone in the crowd is screaming. 

“FLIES!!!”

They all looked up to see flies, a dozen of them were swarming the barrel, and some of them were napping frogs and humans. The flies are attracted by the garbage juice and try to pull it from the ground, but the steel beams are nailed down.

Anne couldn’t activate her powers as there were too many people around. “Anne, can’t you tell them to buzz off?” Said Polly before she screamed when a fly was hurling toward her. Anne was quick to catch her and save her. She grabbed Sprig and they hid behind one of the stands.

“I’m afraid it’s not possible, Polly. Those guys are mindless, literally and figuratively! All they think is food and…” Then Anne looked as if she saw all the horrors of the world. “Other things.”

They heard a familiar shriek, and it was coming from Hop Pop. They looked up to see he was in the fly’s clutches.

“Hop Pop! We have to save him!” 

“They want the garbage potion, we should give it to them, they’ll go away!” Polly shouted an idea before punching a fly that spotted them. 

They jumped over the stand and ran toward the barrel through the crowd panicking and running away. When they get close, they try to tear the steel beam from the ground. Anne would’ve easily done it with her blue powers, but people and frogs would see her. 

The flies noticed Anne and the little frogs, and they swooped in and one napped Sprig as he screamed. 

“Sprig!” Then she heard Polly's battle cry and saw her swarmed by two flies till one grabbed her. 

“Eaten by flies? Oh, the irony!” Wally said as the fly scooped up in the air.

“Hey, stop! Let go of my family right now!” Anne shouted as she ran towards them. But they are getting further away, and she’ll lose them if she doesn’t activate her powers. 

She doesn’t have a choice. She’ll break a promise, but she’ll save her family. Just when she was about to activate her powers suddenly, the fly who was holding Sprig and Polly was sliced in half. Sasha landed on the ground, with Sprig and Polly in her arms and her pink sword out, dripping with green blood. 

She wasn’t done. She leaped again to the fly that had Hop Pop and sliced it in half, catching Hop Pop. 

“Gotcha!” Hop Pop was tearing up when he saw her. 

“Sasha~”

When she landed and put Hop Pop on the ground and approached the flies. “Hey! You maggots. You want something to snack on? Then eat this.” Sasha slashed the steel beam with her dual blade and began to lift the giant barrel above her head.

Anne feels a stutter in her heart now.

Sasha then tossed it as far away as she could. “You leave this town and my family alone! If you don’t, you’ll end up like your friends.” The flies looked at each other and then at their dead friends before flying away toward where the barrel of garbage was. 

Once they were gone, Sprig and Polly hugged her legs.

“You saved us!” 

“Sasha!” Anne came running over to Sasha. She grabbed her shoulders.

“Sorry about cutting the flies.” She felt bad killing them, but Anne shook her head.

“It’s okay. They are mindless creatures, and they live like what? A day? It’s hard to connect to them.”

“Kids! Anne! Sasha! Are you okay?”

“We are okay.”

“Sasha, I’m so sorry. I realized that I was hurting you.”

“It’s okay, Hop Pop.”

“No, it’s not. I messed up big. I was so desperate to save the stand that I forgot what the stand was even about and said awful things to you. To all of you! Can you all forgive this silly, old frog?” 

They were smiling at Hop Pop, and they said together, “We forgive you, Hop Pop.” And they hugged their grandpa in a comforting circle and Hop Pop felt so lucky to have such wonderful kids.

“I’m glad you finally realized that Hop Pop. But what do we do now?” Sasha asked.

“We go make things right. That’s the Plantar way.”

Hop Pop was giving coppers back to the people who had been sold the potion too. 

“Apologies.” The female frog just scoffed.

“Here you go, sir. I hope you’ll give Plantar’s another chance, someday.”

“Well, I have to be honest.” Sasha turned to Hop Pop. “I know it’s bad, but you were a pretty good salesman back there.”

“I was good, wasn’t I? I’m truly sorry, Sasha. Anne told me that you were hurt by how I ignored your feelings and I nearly broke my promise to you that I always have your back. You always dealt with issues of feeling like you needed to prove your worth. But you never need to prove that to me.” Sasha looked at him. Her lower lip quivered.

“You make me proud every day.” Sasha let out a loud sniffle. But she turned around to hide her tears. But Hop Pop hugs his tall granddaughter as tight as he can.

Mrs. Croaker came to the stand, and she didn’t look too happy.

“Well, Hopadiah, looks like you’re going to have to earn our trust back. That being said, I think your father would be proud that you did the right thing today.”

“Thanks, Sadie. I’ll work hard to earn your trust back.”

Toadie cartwheeled in. “Not with this stand, you won’t! No coin, no stand. Time to clear out!”

Toadie hammered a sign into the stand. It read foreclosed. Hop Pop’s face fell. They made their way back home. As they were walking towards the door, Hop Pop stopped.

“You want me…To off Toadie.” Polly clicked her tongue and made a cutting motion across her neck. “I’ll do it. You know I will.”

“Thanks, kids. Let’s just relax a little. You know, maybe the end of one tradition means the start of another. Maybe I ought to start over the Hop Pop way, experiment with those new seed varieties I always try.”

“That’s the spirit, Hop Pop.” 

“Yeah, we’re gonna make it after all.” Sprig patted his grandfather’s arm. 

“The future is ours,” Polly shouted.

“I’ll find a way to get the stand back,” Sasha said. “I do have some cash on hand that I can use to help the family out.”

“Oh, Sasha. You don’t go dipping into your funds to help us.”

“But you are family. I will. I may have to see about having Grime send my paychecks here. I’m surprised I didn’t think about that.”

“Sasha, I will figure something out before you have to spend your hard-earned cash.” Hop Pop paused for a moment. Everyone watched as he walked through the door.

“OH FROG! I’M UNEMPLOYED!”

Chapter Text

A week had passed since the Plantar stand was foreclosed. 

It was supposed to be the day the Plantars went to the stand to sell their produce but since the stand was taken from them, they had nowhere to sell. It still bummed Sasha out that she was the cause for the stand being shut down, and Hop Pop was taking it hard as well. 

He had actually shut himself in his room for the day, he didn’t come down to say good morning or eat breakfast with them. Losing the family stand was a hard blow for Hopediah Planter.

Sasha wasn’t going to let him or the farm down and decided she would run it until Hop Pop felt better. She had requested Grime to send her trunk. It had a lot of her personal belongings and some of her savings in there.

Stumpy’s restaurant had finally kicked off and was doing well. Enough so that Stumpy needed to hire more cooks and servers. Anne was instantly hired by the chef due to her previous help. Polly, thanks to her robotic engineering skills, was going around the town and selling parts and fixing not just robots but also other household appliances. Sprig is helping Sasha on the farm and would go to the town to play his fiddle to earn extra coppers for his performances. 

They were all trying to find ways they could pool money together to buy back the stand. When they had first approached Toadstool to buy back the stand, he told them that they needed to give him eight hundred coppers upfront and that they needed to pay back the rent that they missed along with interest. 

It just made everyone’s mood drop. They didn’t have enough for it.

Sasha took her hat off and wiped the sweat from her forehead. It was hot as the sun beat down on her. The humidity was high. Sasha took a small break by resting underneath the mushroom, providing shade from the sun. Anne came up to her. It was Anne’s day off as Martha’s Place was closed for two days. 

“I got something for you. It should help cool you off. I’ve been trying to figure out this recipe. Mind trying it for me?” Anne handed Sasha a glass filled with a yellow substance. It was made of lemons and Anne was trying to find ways to help decrease the sourness of the drinks. 

“Sure.” Sasha took the glass from her. She took a sip. Sasha’s eyes widened at the taste. “Anne, this is delicious. What did you do differently?” Anne shrugged and answered.

“I added more sugar this time around. Oh! And mint.”

“This tastes amazing.” Anne blushed at the compliment. 

There was a loud sound that frightened Domino. She tried to hide behind Anne but most of her body was sticking out. Sasha turned to the sound, trying to figure out where it was coming from and what it meant. Soon, there was a carriage pulling up to a stop. A young toad, covered in various instruments, jumped down from the carriage. A very familiar toad.

“Percy!”

“Sasha!” Percy came running up to Sasha, who easily picked up the toad as if he’s made of a handful of grapes as he hugged Sasha around her neck. “We have missed you back at Toad Tower.”

“I missed you guys too. What are you doing here?” She said after putting him down.

“We came to see you.” A female toad with light purple skin and violet-shaded spots dotted across her cheeks as freckles walked over to her.

“Braddock!” Sasha picked the female up like she did with Percy and hugged her tight. “I’m so glad to see you.”

“It’s good to see you too Sasha. Grime couldn’t come but wanted us to deliver your trunk as it was on our way to our new post.”

“Thanks. It was a pleasant surprise.”

Then Percy whispered something to Braddock and then pointed at Anne who was watching on the sideline. Braddock’s face instantly transformed into elation. “Awww, you must be her!!!” Before Sasha could ask what she meant, Braddock fast-walked toward Anne and grasped the other woman’s hands to gently pull her down. Anne complied confusedly by bending her knees and flinched when Braddock was squeezing her cheeks. 

“Look at you! Percy would never exaggerate but WOW! You are absolutely gorgeous! Such doe eyes, lovely skin, and oooh!” Then Braddock only turned her neck to look at shocked Sasha. “Sasha, don’t be mad at Percy but he told me that you had a girlfriend when we celebrated your promotion back at the tavern and I finally got a chance to meet her! I’m so proud of you that you found love!!!” 

Sasha’s brain went blank while Anne was completely red in the face. Until Sasha’s brain finally rebooted and quickly replied. “Nononononooo! Ugh, Percy! Braddock! I ‘uh’ SHE IS NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!”

Percy’s elated grin dropped and looked confused, the same for Braddock. “Not your girlfriend?” Braddock repeated what Sasha had said and looked at Anne for confirmation. 

“Um, sorry but it’s true. We’re just friends!” Anne forced those words out of her mouth while hiding the hurt.

“B-but, at the tavern. You said it was a secret? I thought she was your secret girlfriend!” Sasha pinched her nose. This is her fault for not clearing things up with Percy because she completely forgot about it. And it was around the time that Sasha still believed Anne was the evil spirit.

“No, Percy. You speculated too quickly. C’mon guys, you know that I’m done with love. Anne and I are just friends.”

“…Oh.” Percy and Braddock’s moods dropped. They’d wished for Sasha to give another chance at love, but the wound was still too fresh for her.

Braddock and Percy apologized for the assumption, but Braddock actually picked up the hurt from Anne when she said that we were just friends. Braddock can tell that this woman genuinely cares for Sasha. She hoped that Sasha would give Anne a chance.

They carried a large trunk into the living room. Percy and Braddock were sadly unable to stay long as they needed to get back to their new post. 

Sasha picked up the trunk and started the process of carrying it up the stairs. Sprig and Polly came into the house as they were walking back from town. 

“Hey, we saw the Toad carriage. What’s going on?” Polly asked.

“Oh, nothing serious. Finally got my trunk in.”

“Oh, can we see it?” Sprig asked. 

“Hell, why not? Let’s look inside.”

Sasha turned around and dropped the trunk. Everyone crowded around on the couch. Sasha popped the lid wide open. Inside were various objects. 

“Whoa! That is a lot of junk.” Polly said. 

“It’s not junk. It’s my memories.” 

Sasha dug around the trunk, looking mostly for her pouches of copper. Her fingers brushed up against something soft. She pulled it out. It was a little stuffed spider that was pink with a little blue heart on the back, but the toy looked rough as there were some threads sticking out and it was a bit torn and the colors had faded over time. She remembered that it was a kid who had made it for her. She remembered it so well.

“Sasha?” Anne touched her arm, and it snapped Sasha out of it. She blinked and looked at Anne before she sighed. 

Well, Sasha knew she was bound to tell Anne about her past. She earned enough of her trust and the family too to know about her. Especially considering she wanted to eventually tell Anne how she felt. She wanted to let Anne know who she really is, especially if she ever confessed to Anne.

“I think it’s time I come clean about my past. You have gotten a few details about me but not the whole story. You deserve to know.”

“Sasha, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Anne laid her hand on top of Sasha’s. Sasha threaded their fingers together. She felt happy that Sasha was comfortable enough with her now to tell her about her past but she also didn't want to upset Sasha.

“But I want to.” Sasha said. 

Sasha inhaled before beginning. 

“I wasn’t always Sasha Waybright. I had a different last name. But I don’t remember much about it. I was born to some guy and my mother, Eleanor. But my dad left before I was even born. It was just me and my mom for a bit, but she made things very clear that I was a mistake. A worthless being. I was like a thing, as she so fondly liked to call me, living in her home. I had to learn at a young age how to cook for myself, fold my own clothes, and even earn a small number of coppers. Mom was hardly around, spending her time with a different guy each night. I was maybe five when she dropped me off at the orphanage . ” It was a night that Sasha will never forget, no matter how many times she tries to erase it.

A five-year-old Sasha stared at the large building in front of her. 

Her mother had told her they were playing a game. Sasha would need to close her eyes and not open them until she was told as they rode on the cart. She had felt the bumpy road but didn’t disobey her mother. She knew the wrath of her mother very well. But then her mother helped her off the carriage and told her to keep her eyes closed. Sasha waited and waited and waited before peeking an eye open. 

All little Sasha sees before her are empty roads, no carriage, and her mother is nowhere in sight. And it dawned on her with a cold realization.

It was then she realized that she had been abandoned. That cut her deeper than a knife. She believed her mother had finally decided to treat her better and not some object taking space in the household. She had heard her mother talking about finally moving to a better place with her latest man. Sasha had naively believed she was allowed to go there as well. But the small bag that weighed nothing by her feet told her otherwise. 

How wrong she was. She looked at the sign before lifting her hand to knock. A burly woman opened the door with a large black mole on her nose, and a face as hideous as a bog monster.

“What the hell do you want?” Sasha gulped. She had hoped that some of the orphanages were good. 

Sadly, this one is not.

The burly woman eyed Sasha up and down. Sasha wasn’t exactly skin and bones, but she was very skinny from the lack of food and nutrition. “Who the fuck are you kid?”

“I’m…I’m…” 

“I’m WHAT!” The woman snapped back at her; she didn’t have the patience. Sasha flinched. 

“Sasha! My mom…Just left me here.”

“Ugh. Another kid! Fine, get your ass in here. Don’t want the other people talking.”

Sasha was quickly ushered in. The state of the building made her wince. It creaked and groaned from under her feet. The wallpaper was torn and stained.

Sasha could see different species of kids just staring at her. Sasha ducked her head a bit into her ratty shirt. The lady grabbed a bell and rang it. There was a stampede of kids running into the living room before all standing in a straight line. 

“You got a new one. Make sure she is caught up in the rules. You,” The woman pointed to a female gray toad with a ton of warts on their face and her hair was red and tied into a ponytail. “Keep an eye on Sam.”

“Sasha.” The woman glared at Sasha for her correction. Sasha took that as a sign to not say anything that would be considered out of line. 

“I am the queen of this place.” The caretaker spoke haughtily and crudely, “You will address me as Queen Brahne or your Majesty, got it?!”

Is this woman for real?! But the look on her face told Sasha that she was serious, much to Sasha’s displeasure.

She kept her anger under control since she had no place to go to and she didn’t want her new caretaker to punish her on her first day. “Ye-yes Your Majesty.” Brahne seemed pleased.

“Smart kid. You know your place.”

Brahne walked away. Sasha already hated this place. She just wanted to get away from it. She couldn’t even say that she wanted the comfort of her mother’s arms since she had never felt that. She just wanted out. Then, the toad came up to Sasha. The one Brahne pointed to. 

She is shorter than Sasha and looks at her with a sweet, polite smile after Brahne leaves.

“Hiya. My name’s Matilda. Sasha, wasn’t it?”

“I don’t want to be here.” 

“Same. But we have to stay somewhere, don’t we?”

“I don’t like it here.” Sasha backed away from the toad. The toad’s face fell. 

“I get how you are feeling. You wish you were back home. You wish to be anywhere but here. You wish to be back home with your parents before they die.” That’s when Sasha scoffed coldly.

“My parents just left me. Both of them! I don’t even want to go back home. I just want to be somewhere else than here.” 

Matilda looked at Sasha with pity. She wished to comfort Sasha, but they just met, and she might make things a bit complicated. Matilda sighed, putting on a friendly smile, and spoke.

“Come on. Let’s get you settled into bed. There was a bed that just opened up.” 

Sasha allowed the toad to guide her to the various rooms. Many were filled with beds on top of beds and almost all squeezed together. Sasha was guided to the back. Matilda pointed to the empty bottom bunk. 

“That will be your new bed. I just changed the sheets and covers so they are clean.”

Sasha just stared at the bed for a bit before climbing into it, she laid down with her back facing Matilda. 

It’s a clear message to Matilda that she wants to be left alone. So, she bade her goodnight and informed her that breakfast starts at eight in the morning, and we have to wake up by six to prepare. After the headcount, the door is slammed loudly, making Sasha flinch.

And Sasha spent that night crying as quietly as she could. She hated it so much. Why did her dad leave her? Why did her mother leave her? Is she really just a worthless thing? She did everything her mother asked of her. She didn’t complain and yet, she received nothing from her except hateful spats and harsh slaps. 

Sasha had already planned that she would not be staying here long. She’d get out of this hell hole and find someplace where she could truly feel not worthless. 

As a year passed, Sasha was slowly planning her escape, and she’ll escape tonight.

She hated Brahne with passion. That burly woman was a menace. 

The orphanage’s caretaker was a heartless tyrant. Sasha was left-handed, and when Brahne saw that, she called Sasha a she-devil toad and tied her left hand behind her back. She was punished anytime she used her left hand. She was quick to adapt to using her right hand when around the woman. 

She hated living here. Being outside in the wilderness with the wild animals was better than this hell. Hell, she would even deal with the spirit.

But, on the brighter side, she befriended Matilda. They hit it off well. They played together and ate together. They were inseparable. Sasha wanted to escape this place and she wanted her new friend by her side to leave this sad-pit forever. They were going to find a new place and maybe a new family. Maybe one that would love them both. 

So, Sasha was biding her time. Brahne didn’t care about the kids. She basically left them to their own devices, which is perfect for her escape. 

Brahne is a heartless tyrant, but she is, by all means, not so smart.

“Sasha.” Sasha was pulled by her friend to the side one day. “I made you something.” 

Matilda handed Sasha a handmade doll. It was of a spider that was pink with a little blue heart on the back. It was soft. Sasha took the doll into her hands. She marveled at it.

No one has ever made a gift for her, not even her mother bothered to make her a gift. Hell, she didn’t even bother to remember Sasha’s birthday.

Sasha could feel wetness in her eyes and a wobbly smile formed. She wiped her tears and spoke. 

“Thank you, Matilda. I’ll…Never forget this!” Sasha meant it, she’ll cherish this spider toy like a treasure. Matilda beamed in joy to hear it from her best friend.

Then, Sasha looks left and right and signals Matilda to lean close. The gray toad got confused by the sudden change of behavior but complied as she leaned close. 

“Guess what? I’m planning on leaving this dump and you’re coming with me. Tonight!” Sasha actually thought that Matilda would share the excitement as she did, but Matilda snapped back up and looked at Sasha in utter fright.

“What?! Sasha, what are you talking about? You can’t leave. Where are you going to go?”

“Anywhere. Anywhere is better than here.” 

“But-but Sasha, this is too risky, don’t you think?”

“Hey, don’t be like that. Besides, I’ll keep you safe. We’ll leave this hellhole together. We’ll go wherever we want! We can be whoever we want!” Sasha hopes to convince her friend to come along but Matilda’s fear hasn’t diminished. In fact, she is getting more scared by the minute.  

“Sasha, I don’t know. I don’t feel comfortable with this.”

“Come on, Matilda. Think for a minute. We’ll never get adopted here. That witch will continue to use us as slaves here. Out there, the possibility is endless. We just have to reach it!”

Matilda’s frightened face seems to have lessened a bit after listening to Sasha. Just when Sasha thought she convinced her friend, Matilda suddenly went back to doubt and fear. 

“I-I do agree but it’s dangerous out there. There are dangerous animals out there. The Spirit is still out there. She is evil and deadly. She could eat you!” Sasha started to feel a little bit annoyed that she was clenching the spider in her hand. She could fight the spirit.

“Psst. I ain’t afraid of no Spirit. I’m leaving tonight! Come with me, Matilda!”

“Sasha, please don’t leave. Please. I don’t want you to die.” Matilda was crying. Sasha was shaking in frustration. She wanted out of here. But she wanted her friend to come with her. But she couldn’t persuade her to join her.

“Fine, you scaredy-spider! I’m leaving regardless. You can come with me or stay here. I’d rather take my chances with the Spirit than with Her Majesty. ” 

Sasha’s loud outburst made Matilda flinch and suddenly, she was sobbing. Sasha finally simmered down before hugging her friend and whispering a soft apology. 

That night, Sasha had her bag packed. But there wasn’t much she had to pack. Whatever her mom had packed for her a year ago was all she had. She made sure to pack the stuffed spider that Matilda gifted her. 

She mentioned to Matilda that she’ll be waiting for her to escape together and reminded her they’ll leave before Brahne makes the headcount which will happen in an hour. Sasha will leave before Brahne is busy counting.

As Sasha waited but no sign of Matilda moving. Then she looked at the clock hanging on the wall, and it said 8:48 PM. She needs to leave now. The count was in twelve minutes.

Sasha bit down the hurt that Matilda chose not to escape with her. She had thought she was her friend. Sasha can’t wait for her any longer.   

She slipped out the window and carefully slid down the drainpipe. 

“It’s time for a head count.” She heard Brahne call out. She was early! She fell the last few inches and crawled on her hands and knees to get away from the window. 

Then, Sasha began to climb up the stone fence, and when she reached the top, a loud, screeching scream came from the window. It was Brahne’s scream. She saw her on the fence from her window when she noticed her. 

Sasha jumped up and ran. 

“ Get back you, little ungrateful shit! ” 

“Sasha, run!” She heard Matilda call out to her.

Sasha ran until she was sure her lungs would collapse. She ran as she felt the twigs and branches hit her face. Without warning, she fell down an embankment, hitting a few rocks on the way down.

But Sasha quickly got up, ignoring the pain, and kept on running.

She pushed through the mud and water to the other side. She heard yelling but continued running, refusing to stop. If she did, they would take her back. By the time she did come to a stop, she was exhausted. Her legs and her lungs are on fire. She felt like she ran for hours without stopping but she didn’t hear Brahne’s stomping feet or her yelling.

She is safe to assume that she has escaped her wrath and is finally free. 

She looked up at the night sky. She gazed upon the brightest star in the sky. She looked at that bright, blinking star.

Everything hurt. Her lungs. Her legs. Her body hurt from the tumble that she took.

She walked until her legs finally collapsed from exhaustion. She hoped that Brahne hadn’t chased after her, but she figured Brahne wouldn’t waste time with her. She curled her legs up to her body and tried to keep as much warmth as she could. She soon closed her eyes. 

She vaguely remembers waking up to the sound of someone talking. But she could not understand a word they were saying. It was gibberish to her. She opened her eyes to see blurry figures talking.

One is tall and green and the other is short and brown. 

Sasha is not sure if they are humans, and they are most certainly not toads, frogs, or newts. Sasha barely could keep her eyes open. She passed out again. 

Then, a voice. So gentle. So loving. When talking, she feels her whole body is light and floating. All the physical pain is gone. Only lulling solace.

“Don’t worry, little one.” Sasha vaguely could make out a shape. But she couldn’t see her face. Although, she could make out the person’s eyes. They’re so blue. “You will be safe. I’m going to drop you off where you will be safe.” Sasha’s eyes closed again. “You will be safe. I promise.”

Sasha woke up again when the morning sun hit on her face with a leaf blanket wrapped around her body.

She looked around and to her shock, she was much further away from the orphanage. But then, a person. It was a woman who saved her and made this blanket made of leaves to keep her warm. She remembered the tender touch that made Sasha tear up. But the mysterious woman tenderly wiped those tears away. She snuggled deeper into the blanket feeling once at peace in a long time.

“What happened next?” Sprig asked but then, his eyes caught something in the trunk. “That’s cool.” 

Sprig pulled out a wooden sword.

“That’s my old training sword.” Sprig gave Sasha her wooden sword. When she grasped the handle, fond memories flooded her mind. “Man, I never thought it was this small. But it sure brings back memories.” Then, Sasha grinned when she turned to face Anne, “I was the youngest cadet but I was top of my class. As soon as I wielded a sword, nobody saw me coming!” Sasha boasted and reminisced how great it was back in her cadet days.

“So, how did you meet Grime?” Anne asked. Sasha was ready to answer with elation.

“I’ll tell you. First, I was found by a group of travelers. They took me into town and I was dropped at an orphanage. I didn’t stay long. I usually left in a day or week. I kept just hopping from place to place. Sometimes I hitch a ride with people before they drop me off at another orphanage but I always left that night. I always carried my bag with the few clothes I had, my spider and that blanket. That’s all I needed. I picked up odd skills here and there. Like my woodworking or whittle skills. I would either sleep on the forest floor or sleep on other people’s houses on the floor. Then I was found by a traveling potion man. I traveled with him for about a couple of months.”

“What happened to him?” Everyone asked.

“Well, he got arrested. I was already gone. I finally had enough of his antics and his treatment. I left him behind one night in a town just near Lily Paddington. I stayed there for a bit. Then, that’s where I met old Grimesy.”

Sasha wandered through the streets, eyeing each citizen that walked right passed her. She was looking for an easy mark. She just needed just a bit more coppers to survive.

Luckily, today’s is more crowded which means she’ll blend in without being spotted, and steal their coppers.

As she looked around when, suddenly, she heard a loud commotion coming from the center.

She spotted some newt with a bandana wrapped around his head to conceal his face. He clutched a bag close to his body as he outran the toads. 

“Get back here, Tritonio!”

“Someone get him. He got the Tiger Moth Eye gem.”

“You’ll never catch me, toads.” The thief, Tritonio, mocked them.

Sasha looked around before sticking her foot out. The newt tripped right over her leg and the thief skid on the ground with a painful grunt. The bag he was holding fell out of his hand. Sasha picked it up. She took a quick peek inside and saw the gem inside.

She never saw a gem up-close before and it must be worth a great fortune. But the bag was snatched right out of her hand. She looked up to see a towering toad. He snarled, one eye squinting and the other was wide open with a large scar running down his face. 

The bulking mass of a toad is eyeing Sasha as he growls with intimidation but Sasha doesn't flinch or back away. She snarled back at the toad as he hid his surprise well.

“Were you the one who tripped him?” The toad pointed towards where they were arresting Tritonio.

“Yes.”

“I must say I am impressed. We have been trying to catch this thief for weeks. But you made our job easier. Come with me, little one. We will grant you a reward for your help in his capture.”

“A reward?”

“Did I stutter?”

“No.” 

“Then follow me.” The toad whipped his cape around his body. Sasha did as she was told. She followed the toad. “So, got a name?”

“Sasha.”

“Sasha!” The one-eyed toad tested her name with his tongue and then said, “Such…A tiny thing! Smaller than a toad pollywog!” He grinned, which frightened Sasha a bit but she hid it well. 

Then Sasha counters him. “Yet, this tiny thing caught the thief in less than a day while you couldn’t even catch him for weeks!” Some of the toads were nearby and were so shocked by her sass that they paled. Then, they freaked out when Grime said nothing and his face held no emotions.

Like the calm before the storm!

Then, unexpectedly, Grime bellowed so loud that Sasha thought this old toad had gone senile. While one of the Toads close by fainted.

“Touché! You’ve got guts, kid! Like a warrior. Perhaps, a defender. Well, you stopped that thief single handedly. You definitely showed him.”

They stopped at the jail cart. The bigger toad reached into the cart and pulled a bag out. He flung it at Sasha. She just stared at the bag due to the heaviness of it. The toads climbed onto the cart and they pulled away. Sasha just watched them leave but she mostly stared at the one-eyed toad the longest. 

She then stared at the bag of coppers in her hands in shock. She had money. She had money! She slipped the bag into her shirt and walked away. 

Sasha hoarded her coppers for dire emergencies and saved it. She wanted to keep her coppers for her eventual escape.

She continued to steal when she could, mostly food. She always manages to get away without anyone noticing her. 

But she made one mistake. The toads had come back into Lily Paddington. Sasha hadn’t noticed that they were around. She slipped into a shop that sold bread. She was hungry. She grabbed the bread closest to her, slipped the bread in her shirt, and slipped out. 

“Hey! That kid just stole my bread without paying!” 

Sasha ran. She could hear the heavy boots of the toads chasing after her. She was nearly into her normal hiding place when suddenly, a toad walked out of the alley and she collided with them. She fell down and the bread flew out of her hand. She was picked up by the toad she met before.

“Well, well! We meet again, little thing.” He snarled. “Come on. Let’s get you to the tower.”

“The tower?! I only stole bread. That doesn’t warrant me a trip to the tower.”

“Stop arguing!” The big toad threw her into the back of the cart. 

“No, wait! You can’t do this. I didn’t hurt anybody, I only stole food!” 

“Then, what happened to the bag of money we rewarded you? Did you spend it all?” 

“That’s…That’s none of your business! Let me go already!”

The toad ignored her rudeness and said, “Usually, people would spend their reward on something useless but you didn’t. You instead saved it.” Sasha blinked owlishly and the toad lifted the bag, the same bag that Sasha saved and hid it away. “How did you-“

“We have been following you, Sasha.”

“…That’s kind of creepy.” Sasha backs away.

“What? No. I mean, yes! Ugh! Look, we have been following you because we have been getting a lot of reports of a small child on her own without parents. So, we are taking you to the tower. It’s safer there than being on your own.”

“So you are rolling me into the life of a soldier! Fat chance, ugly. There is no way I’m joining your little brigade!” Then, the toad grabbed Sasha’s face. 

“You are annoying as hell! And I’m afraid for you, you left me with no choice.”

The cart finally rolled on the way to the South Toad Tower. Sasha huddled her belongings close to her chest as she dreaded every minute they inched closer to the tower.

Then the scenery soon changes. She sees the surrounding forest is dark and eerie with dead trees stretching for miles, and dangerous, hulking creatures are looking for their next snack.

Then, Sasha saw it. The looming tower in the middle of the dark forest. The ominous structure sends shivers right down her spine. She hears tales of the South Toad Tower filled with the roughest and meanest soldiers in all of Amphibia. However, their Captain, the Lord of this tower is far more cruel than the rest of his soldiers altogether. Captain Grime Waybright, a fearsome toad and a former gladiator. 

She gulped. When they arrived, she expected the eerie sound or cries of torment, but it sounded like a party.

Sasha raised her eyebrow. Soldiers of Toads and humans are having the times of their lives. Some Toads are wrestling using their tongues, some of the humans and toads were playing darts using mosquitos, or chugging their drinks and letting their loudest belch as they laugh wholeheartedly. 

When the cart parked, the jail door opened and the leader grabbed her. 

“Where are you taking me? The torture chamber? To…Captain Grime?” The toad halted and grinned, and lifted the girl up to his level. 

“I am Captain Grime!” Now, Sasha looks like she is going to be sick. Just hours ago, she had insulted the fiercest and most cruel toad who happened to be the Lord of this Tower. “Besides, you are too soft and delicate like a little tadpole to handle the torture chamber.” Sasha huffed. “But we won’t be taking you to the pain room. Here we are.” The toad set her down and opened the door. It was bare with a bed, a table, a chair and a chest. “It’s a room. We have been getting reports of an orphan kid. That’s you. We normally would have dropped you off at an orphanage. But many of our orphanages are so filled with kids due to the plaque that hit us a couple of years ago. And something tells me you have been in and out of them.” 

Sasha shied away. This toad knew a lot. “Yeah, so?”

“I sensed something in you, Sasha. Something strong that not even you realized it. A warrior! That’s why I brought you here. It’s safer here than out there. You would have three meals a day. You can do what you want. We even have a school here. What do you say Sasha?”

Sasha thought long and hard. She decided to stay here, for now. If she hated it, she would try to leave. 

“Fine.”

“As you were aware, I am Grime Waybright. But you will refer to me as Captain Grime.” Grime walked away after closing the door. 

Sasha unpacked her little belongings into the chest. It was a large chest. She was pulled out of her train of thoughts when a female toad, light purple skin with violet spots on her face, her blonde hair was tied in a bun. She walked into her room and looked mildly surprised when she spotted Sasha.

“Captain Waybright said we got a new cadet in the tower. Wasn’t expecting a kid though. No problem. My name is Braddock. I’ll be helping you, sweetie. What’s your name?”

“Sasha.”

“Just Sasha?” Sasha nodded. “Okay. I have some fresh clean clothes for you. Hopefully it’s your size.” Braddock set the clothes on the bed. “Dinner is at six.” 

Sasha blinked a few times. This was the nicest anyone had treated her since she had run away. She hoped it wasn’t all an act.

When dinner rolled in, Grime had personally come up to Sasha’s room and walked with her to the dining hall.

“I figured you would have been lost in this tower.”

“Are there other kids like me here?” 

“You are our first. Our king had a proclamation sent to us in the towers that if we found any orphan kid, we were to take them with us to the Towers.”

“Just because of how full the orphanages are.” Sasha said.

“You catch on quick. Yes, King Andrias can’t keep up with the orphanages and we have had to shut down a couple of them.”

“Why?”

“Too much abuse from the caretakers.” Sasha witnessed that first hand but stayed silent about it. She doesn’t need to tell him and she doesn’t trust him yet. “Now, no more running. You will be staying with us. I will be your personal guard so I have my good eye on you.” Grime pointed to his yellow eye. “Were you taught at all while you were in the orphanage?”

“No, I don't have any real formal schooling. Most of what I know, I taught myself.”

“Hmmm. Maybe I’ll ask Darcy to make a trip down here if she can while I try to find a teacher. Especially if we take in more kids.”

“Darcy? You mean Darcy Wu? The most famous and most powerful sorcerer in all the land? That Darcy?” Sasha was excited. She idolized Darcy for her power and imagined what a life would be like with her. Dare she say that she had even imagined having Darcy as a mother. 

“Yes, that Darcy. She would be happy to hear she has a fan.” Sasha will ignore his sarcasm. She is too excited to know that he is friends with the famous Darcy Wu.

Sasha never imagined a life in the Towers could be this fun. 

She just assumed she would probably end up dying on the streets alone. But time in the South tower made her crave for something she never thought she would never have. A family. And Grime was constantly around her. He kept a watchful eye on her and dare she say it, she was starting to like the old toad like a father would watch over their kids. But she wouldn’t admit it to his face. She was afraid that he would disappear. Just like how her own father did. 

“Sasha!” Sasha jumped out and saluted. She was a little spooked by his tone. “Oops. Sorry kiddo. Didn’t mean to spook you. Now lower your arm and get packed. We’re leaving soon.”

Sasha’s face fell as her arm dropped as well as her heart. “Where am I going? Am I getting kicked out of the tower?” 

Sasha didn't want to leave. She loved it here. She loved the toads and the humans. They didn’t treat her any differently, they treated her as if she had been one of them since forever. Grime’s eye widened in shock at the implication of his words.

“What? No, no! You are not leaving the tower, permanently. This is your home and I wouldn’t dare take you out of it. No, I was requested to go to Newtopia by the king ‘s orders and I thought it may be a good…Bonding time for the two of us.” Suddenly, Grime scratched the back of his neck, looking anywhere but Sasha. “And it would get you out. Have you ever been to Newtopia?” Saha shook her head. She had never been there. But had dreamed of seeing the famous capital. “Good, I’ll take you around the sights, and I have a really good friend that I think you should meet. Now pack up, kid. We leave in an hour.”

Sasha hurriedly packed her stuff up in excitement. She got to see Newtopia and she wasn’t leaving the tower, her home. She wondered what it truly looked like. She was all packed in record time and by Grime’s feet, bouncing on her heels. Grime just chuckled and ruffled her hair. A cardinal landed on the ground, bearing the Newtopia symbol. Grime easily picked Sasha up and lifted her onto the bench of the cardinal. The newt holding the reins bowed his head as he handed them both a pair of goggles.

“Captain Grime. Greetings. The winds are favorable. We should be in Newtopia in an hour.”

“Go a little slow. We got a passenger that I don’t know how well she does with flying.” They both see little Sasha hopping everywhere since this is her first time riding a cardinal.

“Copy that Captain! Slow and steady. Alright, Roger! Let’s go.”

The cardinal chirped before taking off. Sasha couldn’t help herself. She was too excited. She leaned over the edge as she watched the trees fly by. Grime gently tugged her back. 

“Don’t want you falling over the edge there.”

“This is so cool, Grime.” Without thinking, Sasha hugged Grime, barely hugging around his chest since her arms are short. Sasha’s eyes widened when she realized what she did. She let go. “Sorry.” She looked up to see Grime with a single tear. 

“You hugged me.” Sasha flinched. 

“Sorry, sir.” Sasha felt like she had insulted Grime and invaded his personal space. But she was suddenly pulled into his side. Surprising her once again.

“It’s okay, Sasha. It’s okay.” He said it in wet gruff. He was trying to fight back the tears.

Grime patted her shoulder. Sasha felt safe. She remained there for the rest of the flight until the cardinal landed on a landing pad. Grime hopped down first and held his arms out for Sasha. He caught her with ease. Sasha looked up to see a beautiful black haired woman, with orange eyes, walking over to them. The black dress accented her hourglass figure and she had a long black cape with a red lining. Grime smiled as he walked over to her. 

“Darcy! It has been so long. Where’s your little one?”

“Grimesy!” Darcy dropped to her knees so she could hug the toad. “Marcy is playing with Lily.” Darcy stood up and looked over at Sasha. Sasha flinched at the stare. She felt like she was being judged. Darcy walked over to her. Sasha looked down and watched as the black high heels came into view. Sasha slowly looked up at the tall woman. Darcy stared her down before softly smiling. “You must be Sasha. Grime told me a lot about you. Follow me.” 

Darcy held her hand down to Sasha’s level. Sasha took the offered hand. Darcy took her to where she could see two kids playing tag. One of them looked awfully similar to Darcy herself. 

“Marcy.” One of the girls stopped before running over to Darcy. They hugged her leg.

“Momma!” When Marcy spotted Sasha, she smiled. She held her hand out towards her. “Hiya. My name is Marcy. Who are you?” Sasha jumped back a bit. “Sorry.”

“Marcy.” Darcy gently chided. “Be a bit more careful with your approach. But this is Sasha. Sasha, this is Marcy, my daughter.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” Sasha bowed. Marcy giggled. 

“Marcy, why don’t you take Sasha and go play with Lily. Grime and I need to discuss a few things with Conrad and Andrias. Then I will come get you girls later.”

“Okay, momma.”

Marcy waved as Darcy and Grime walked away. Then, Sasha noticed a man with white hair standing by a doorway. She recognized the man as Conrad, the living legend himself. The one whose powers had scared the Spirit away.

“Whoa! That’s Conrad.” Sasha was in awe. 

“Yep. He is pretty cool.” Marcy turned to Sasha and smiled.

Conrad walked over to them. “Greetings, you must be new here.” He motioned to Sasha.

“Uh! Greetings, sir.” She bowed. “My name is Sasha.” Conrad chuckled. He held his hand out. Sasha looked at the pristine white glove. She took his hand and shook it.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Sasha. Hm! What a great grip. You are strong for someone so young.”

“Whoa!” Sasha looked at her hand. She didn’t really believe anyone in Toad Tower when they told her that she was unusually strong. “You think so?”

“I do. Keep that up and you’ll surely be an amazing warrior.”

“Conrad! Come on.” Darcy called out to him. 

“Well, duty calls. It was a pleasure to meet you Sasha.” He bowed his head and walked away with his hands behind his back. Sasha never felt so lucky. First, Darcy and now Conrad. Two great and powerful people have greeted her like a friend. The feeling is so incredible that it's hard to describe into words.

Then, she felt a hand clamped around her hand and it was Marcy. “Come on. Let’s play.”

Marcy tugged Sasha along. Sasha felt awkward. It had been so long since she even had a friend about her age and the last friend she had, she called her a coward and left her behind.

Marcy dragged Sasha along until they reached the other girl. She had messy black hair tied to a ponytail with pale skin. Her blue eyes are much darker than Sasha’s and she is scanning her. 

“Who are you?” The other girl asked.

“This is Sasha. Sasha, meet Lily.” Marcy pointed to the girl. Lily didn’t seem too happy with Sasha. Not that she blamed Lily. She was a stranger invading their friend circle. “Mom has an important meeting with Grime, Conrad and Andrias. Let’s play together.” Marcy tapped Sasha. “Tag. You're it.”

Sasha stared at her shoulder where Marcy tapped her and then at Marcy for a moment, confusedly. “I’m it?” 

“You…Never played tag before?” Marcy asked. Sasha shook her head, and Lily snorted.

“Wow! You are weird.” Lily said. Sasha felt her shoulders lowered a bit.

“I’m sorry. You two keep playing. I’ll just be over there.”

Lily and Marcy watched as Sasha just walked over to a bench and plopped down. They both looked at each other. Lily was the first to approach.

“Sorry I called you weird. My Baba always scolds me to think before you speak or I’ll hurt people’s feelings.” She apologized while fiddling with her fingers.

“I am a weirdo though. It’s fine. You two can play together. I’ll be fine.”

Lily and Marcy suddenly grabbed Sasha’s arms and tugged her off the bench. 

“Nope. No more sadness. We will fix that up. Come on.” Marcy tugged Sasha to a fancy looking female newt who had been watching over them. “Olivia! We need ice cream. Immediately!” 

The newt chuckled. “Now, Master Marcy, what would your mother say if she knew you wanted ice cream before dinner?”

“It would be a small treat. Please, Lady Olivia.” Marcy begged.

“I will not be falling for those sad looking eyes Master Marcy. No treats before dinner.”

Marcy let out a sigh before turning around. The girls sat on the grass. Sasha had an idea.

“How about we sneak out and get some ice cream?”

“What?” Marcy and Lily stared at her.

“Yeah! When Olivia isn’t looking, we will sneak away, and I got some coppers.”

“Are you sure? Would our parents freak out if they noticed we are gone?” Marcy had never done this before behind her mother’s back but the idea is tempting and she had been craving ice cream for some time. 

“Nah. They wouldn’t even notice we were gone.” Sasha crossed her arms. 

“I don’t know Sasha.” Lily spoke up. “I think we could get into big trouble.” Lily would want to partake in the idea but she is already in big trouble with her father and baba after her little incident involving balloons filled with paints. The walls were never the same again.

“Don’t worry. We won’t. We'll come back before any of them even knew we were gone. I promise.” Sasha was confident in herself. This is her chance to impress them. To prove her worth as a friend to them. 

They waited until Olivia was suddenly called away by a newt. The girls snuck away when the opportunity opened up. They hid through the bushes before escaping the castle. Sasha was in awe. The city was bustling with life.

“Come on. Andrias has this really good ice cream parlor that he takes me to.” Marcy pointed them in a direction. As soon as she took one step, Marcy fell forward.

“Marcy!” Lily helped her up. Sasha was surprised that Marcy had tripped so easily. 

“I’m okay, Lil-Lil.” The girl giggles, despite, her forehead is a bit bruised.

“You and your clumsy feet. But I wouldn’t change you.” 

Sasha could tell these two were close, and Sasha feels like an outsider. She can change that when she enters their circle. They’ll accept her once they see how worthy she is to be their friend.

“Now let’s stop dallying and go get us some ice cream.”

They ran to an ice cream shop not too far from the castle. They entered and were greeted by a frog. The girls were in awe at the numerous ice cream flavors. Sasha was eyeing a strawberry flavored one. 

“Well, if it isn’t little Marcy and little Lily.” The clerk said. “Let me guess. The usual for the two of you?”

“Yes, please.”

“Well now. You are new. What do you want, kiddo?”

“A strawberry one.”

“Alright. One mint chocobeetle chip. One chocobeetle flavor and strawberry.”

The ice cream guy got the girls their flavors. When Sasha dug into her pockets, the guy laughed. “Don’t bother dear. Anytime Marcy comes in, we are to put her stuff on King Andrias’s tab. He is good about paying. So enjoy the ice cream.”

The girls took their ice cream outside and sat on the grass as they ate. They were laughing and giggling once they finished their ice cream.

“Marcelina Regina Wu!” The girls flinched. Marcy looked to see her mother walking over to her. Sasha swore she saw a flash of orange come from Darcy’s eyes. 

“Oh no! Momma said my whole name.”

“Get your butts up and throw away your trash. We are leaving.” Darcy pointed to the trash can. The girls dropped their trash in the can and followed Darcy back. 

As soon as they passed through the castle gate. Darcy stopped and turned around. “Alright, why did you leave the castle? Whose bright idea was it?” Darcy is eyeing on Marcy and Lily but not on Sasha.

Sasha knew it was her fault. They had gotten in trouble because of her. Sasha knew she would have fess up because they didn’t deserve to get in trouble. 

“It was me ma’am.” Sasha stepped forward. “I was the one who suggested we go eat ice cream.”

“Why?” 

“Because I wanted to prove to them that I am not worthless.” Darcy was taken back by this. She expected Sasha to say that she wanted to impress them or be their friend. But not Sasha trying to prove she was worthy. She stared at Sasha. Grime had explained to her that Sasha was an orphan but hadn’t explained much about her past as she hadn’t disclosed much to him. He had gathered a few things from her comments like her need to prove her worth to people so they wouldn’t leave her. Darcy was going to change her mind. “I...Just wanted to be friends with them but also proof that I am useful to people. I don’t want to leave Grime, I didn’t mean to disappoint you, and I never meant to get Marcy and Lily in trouble.”

Sasha was furiously wiping the tears away. “Marcy, take Lilian to your room. I’ll inform Lillian’s parents later about what happened. Then you and I will have a little conversation about not leaving the castle once I’m done with Sasha.” It broke Darcy’s heart in two when she saw Sasha flinched like a frightened hybeena pup.

Marcy trusts her momma to make Sasha better again. She also knew she would be in trouble but she understood why. She tugged Lily to walk to her room while Lily looked back at Sasha, worriedly. She didn’t want Sasha in trouble for their actions. She knows that Sasha just wanted to be friends with them.

Now, Sasha is alone with Darcy. It feels like one of her worst days comes back when she was in front of her so-called mother, throwing insults and yelling to her face that she is worthless.

“Sasha. You don’t need to prove to anyone that you are useful so that they can be your friend.” Sasha sniffled as she wiped the tears. Darcy got to her level. “And yes, I am disappointed in you.” Sasha lowered her head down. She made Darcy be disappointed in her. Now she was going to be kicked from the tower. “But I’m disappointed that you didn’t think things through. You girls could have been hurt or worse. When I saw you three were gone, I was worried sick. Panic set in because I had no idea where you had gone. But I’m glad you were all safe.” Darcy hugged Sasha tight. Sasha cried a little as she was hugged. Darcy’s hug felt so warm and loving. Something that Sasha had never felt before. It was something she had been craving for so long. “Let’s go to the castle. I’m sure everyone is worried sick about you. Especially Grime.”

Now, Sasha dreads when she faces Grime. She hopes he won’t get too mad. They were walking through the hallway and Sasha heard a familiar voice. It’s Grime, and he’s talking in frantic worry. When Grime noticed them, he immediately stopped. “Sasha!”

“I’m sorry, Grime.” Sasha said as they entered their room. 

“You skipped off to the town without an adult. Do you know how dangerous that was?! What if you three went into the forest? The spirit would have grabbed you and devoured you.”

“I know. I realized what I did wrong. I’m sorry.” Sasha kept her head down. 

Usually when she messed up at the orphanage, she was put into the punishment chamber. It had no light and no windows. Just darkness. She was just hoping that Grime didn’t send her to the pain room. She had never once gotten in trouble at the tower. She didn’t want to ruin her chance at staying there. Grime just sighed.

“Just never do something like that again. I just want you to know how scared I was.” It shocked Sasha that made her look up at Grime as the toad chuckled.
“Heh! Look at me now, I was a toad that never wanted a kid. But with you, I am maybe starting to believe that I do want one.” Sasha looked up in surprise. “But we will cross the bridge later. For now, I am glad you are safe.”

“So, you aren’t going to get rid of me?”

“Oracle no child. I would never dare just drop you off again like you have in the past. You are stuck with me forever.” Even though it was a silly tease, Sasha couldn’t help the smile on her face. She hugged Grime and this time, Grime just patted her back. “I would never get rid of you. Now, you will be grounded for a day though.”

“Grounded?” Sasha lifted her head.

“Meaning you’ll be writing an essay about never leaving without adult supervision, and…No sword training for a day once we get back to the tower.” Now, Sasha gapes like fish.

“No sword training for a whole day ?! Aww, no fair.” Well, it wasn’t the pain room. But no sword training is the worst.

“Nope, you're grounded and you need to own your mistake like a good soldier. Do I make myself clear, cadet?”

“…Yes, sir.” Sasha said with a huff and a pout.

“Good. I want that done now. Darcy has a special plan for you later. Come along!” Darcy smiles as she waves to Sasha as the little girl waves back. 

Sasha got to work as she didn’t want to be late for whatever surprise Darcy she planned. She had barely finished her paper when she heard a knock on the door. She was surprised to see Darcy, Marcy, and Lily standing there.

“Grime, is she ready?”

“She is all set.”

“All set for what?” Sasha stood beside Grime.

“Come on, sweetie. We are hosting a slumber party in the library and you are invited.” Darcy waved her hand. Marcy grabbed Sasha’s wrist and dragged her out of the door. 

“So you two aren’t mad at me?” Sasha asked Marcy and Lily. 

“Nope.” Marcy was quick to answer. “You are awesome, Sasha.”

“Yeah. You are pretty cool.” Lily smiled. “I would love to be friends with you.”

Sasha smiled. She felt a gentle hand touch her head. She saw Darcy smiling at her. It was so kind and sweet. Something in Sasha is filling her up with warmth and it was clear to her what’s happening right now. She finally found what she had been looking for so long. 

She finally found a home and a family.

“Whoa! Sasha.” Sprig made a cute face. “You find the family in your heart.”

Sasha scooped him into her arms and noogied him. “Yeah, I did. I got Grime. I got Darcy and Marcy. I even had Lily. And then I eventually got you guys.”

“So, how did you meet the Plantars?” Anne asked. This was one thing she was curious about. 

“I can answer that.” Hop Pop came downstairs, surprising everyone. “Sorry, kids. I just overheard you talking and I didn’t want to intrude.”

“Come on, Hop Pop. Join in.” Sasha waved her hand towards him. He smiled and came over to them. 

“Ah, this old chest. I have fond memories of it.”

Sasha pulled a picture out. It was of Darcy, Marcy, Lily and Sasha again. Hop Pop sat down next to Sasha and Anne. Hop Pop spoke as he gazed on the lovely woman in the picture with a sad smile.

“So to start. Darcy was a troubled child in her youth. A real pain in the rear sometimes. But she just needed a guiding hand. That’s where your old Hop Pop comes in. Darcy had lost her parents when the plague ravaged our world. Darcy and Sasha shared a similar backstory of being orphans. But she was arrested in Wartwood for theft. She was given an option. She can work on my farm or be sent to the Newtopia’s prisons for her sentence. She chose the farm. And that’s how we met. She was a good kid. Just misunderstood. I needed some help since I just lost my wife.” Anne reached over and took his hand. “So it was just me and Bark. Then Darcy came to us. I soon adopted her as an honorary Plantar. She worked off her debt and stayed just a bit longer around the farm. She proved herself to be amazingly smart. I had some coppers on the side ready to give to Bark in the event he decided to go to Newtopia to study something else. But he chose to give it to his new adopted sister.”

“She said she was so grateful to you that she was never sure how she could repay you.” Sasha said.

“She never needed too. But I managed to send her to Newtopia University. She was a shining star there. She graduated early and at the top of her class. Then she decided to stay in Newtopia and was soon hired by King Andrias himself. There, the rest is history.” 

“Who was Marcy’s father? I never heard her talk about her father.” Anne mentioned.

“Marcy’s father was a Night Guard. He died pretty early. She was only like two when he passed.” Sasha answered. 

Hop Pop answered next. “Darcy had met him when she was in the university and married him soon after their positions. Once he died, she never married again. She said she never found a love like him again.” Then, Hop Pop picked another photo and this time, there’s young Sasha standing between Bark and Jasmine and behind them is Hop Pop, all smiling at the camera.

“Now, let me tell how Sasha became a true Plantar.”

Darcy sat on Leander as the large purple crow flew the skies. The two kids leaned over the edge. 

“Careful, you two.” 

“Yes, momma.”

“Yes, Darcy. But I’m just so excited. I never get past the feeling of flying. It’s so much fun.” Sasha loved flying.

“Yeah. It’s so much fun. I can’t wait until I get my own bird.” Marcy exclaimed. 

“So where are we going, Darcy?” Sasha asked.

“We will be heading to Wartwood. I have some family that lives there that I think you will love to meet, Sasha. And even Grime knows the Patriarch of the family.”

“Grime knows them?”

“Oh, yes, Old war buddies.”

“Cool. I bet they have a scar like Grime.”

Darcy just chuckled. How wrong Sasha was. They soon soared over a small frog village. It was tiny and Sasha could see frogs and humans walking around. 

“Welcome to Wartwood. A small settlement but has some of the best farmland in Frog Valley.”

“So, why are we flying away from them?” Sasha asked.

“Because we will be landing on a farm.” Leader landed on a patch of farmland. There sat a little tiny two story house. “Sasha, this is the Plantar farm. The home of the Plantars and my family.”

“Wait, you are part of their family?”

“Yes, they may be frogs but they are family. They took me in when I needed a family. I was in a similar boat to you Sasha. I was an orphan too until I was eventually adopted by the Plantars. So make sure you do treat them with respect. But I trust you.”

“Yes, Darcy. I promise I will. I won’t disappoint you.” 

“That’s my girl.” Sasha felt her heart flutter at being called that. She has begun to view Darcy as a mother. And Darcy didn’t hide the fact that she viewed Sasha as her own kid. Grime had the running joke that Darcy had shared custody with him for Sasha. “Now, let’s go girls.” 

Darcy hopped down and held her arms out to catch each of the girls. Then she grabbed the luggage. Darcy walked them to the front of the door and knocked. 

“I’m coming.” Sasha heard a voice. Soon, an orange frog opened the door. He smiled when he spotted Darcy. 

“Darcy! Little Marcy!” 

“Hop Pop.” Marcy ran into his arms. He picked her up with ease. 

“Well, hello there, little cutie.” Hop Pop kissed her head before setting her down. “And don’t think I forgot about you.”

Darcy bent down and hugged him. “It’s good to see you, Hop Pop. It’s been awhile.”

“Do I hear Darcy!” Another frog came out of the kitchen. She is a small purple frog and her hair is a color of a hazelnut that seems to shine by the sunlight, and she is shorter than Hop Pop.

“Hi, Jasmine. Where’s Bark?” She hugged the little frog woman.

“Out at the stand.” 

The orange frog looked over at Sasha. “Darcy, who is this?”

“This is Sasha. She is currently staying at the Tower with Grime and also with me. She is also Marcy’s friend.”

“Oh. This is the girl you mentioned in your letters. Hey, Sasha. I am Hopediah Plantar. But you can call me Hop Pop.”

“OH, nice to meet you, Hop Pop.” 

“Come in. Let’s get you kids all set up. I got a room open for you ready, Darcy. Finally got that old one all cleaned out for you. The kids can sleep in the basement. I already got a bed down there for them.”

Darcy guided the girls into the house. Sasha was looking at the inside of the house, soaking every inch of its detail without missing a beat. She was memorized by the house. It felt homely and warm. It was similar to Darcy’s room in the castle. She could feel the love and care radiating from the very walls. 

The purple frog came up and introduced herself. “I am Jasmine.”

“A pleasure.” Sasha bowed. Jasmine laughed cutely, making Sasha blush a bit.

“You are such a cutie. And so polite.” Now, Sasha blushed deeper red. 

Sasha enjoyed the company of the Plantars. They were kind, although a bit loud but a loving family. Sasha already liked Hop Pop because he was a funny frog. Then a male orange frog walked through the door, wiping the sweats from his forehead. 

“I’m home!” He called out.

“Welcome home, Bark.” Jasmine welcomed her husband and they kissed on the lips. Then, Bark noticed Darcy as he exclaimed in surprise.

“Bark!” Darcy called out. The orange frog gasped before leaping and hugged Darcy.

“How’s my annoying baby brother?”

“Oh! Shut up you.” They laughed. Marcy came running up to him.

“Uncle Bark.” 

“Hey Marcy. Oh my. You have gotten so big since the last time I saw you.” Bark looked over at Sasha. “Oui, Darcy, when did you have another kid?”

“This is Sasha.” Sasha was surprised. Darcy didn’t even bother correcting him that Sasha wasn’t hers. She just rolled with it. “She, as Grime so kindly likes to remind me, has shared custody with him.” She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. When Grime always acts like a spoiled pollywog, showing off his best toy, when it comes to Sasha.

“Well any family of Darcy’s and Uncle Grime is a family of mine. Nice to meet you, Sasha. You’ll love it here at the farm.”

“Thank you.” Sasha was excited. She already liked it here.

As time marched on, Sasha was beginning to split her time among the three homes. Wartwood and the tower were able to evenly split her time as the tower wasn’t too far from Wartwood. Newtopia was a bit further but when she visited, she stayed longer. 

She had overheard a conversation one night between Darcy and Grime. She hadn’t meant to eavesdrop but she was thirsty. 

“Of course I am fucking pissed Grime. You ripped that right out of me.”

“Oh dear, dear Darcy. You’re forgetting one tiny, little thing…I found her first.” Sasha heard a loud huff. 

“Stupid toad.”

“Hey!”

“You knew I wanted to adopt Sasha!”

“Well, I’m adopting her. And it’s not like you won’t see her ever again when I sign the custody papers. I’m just making it official. She will be a Waybright but she’ll be an honorary Plantar and with the shared custody, she is still going to be your honorary daughter.”

“When you put it that way, then I can’t really argue with that. I’m still perturbed at you though.”

Sasha slipped into the room. 

“You’re adopting me?” She didn’t know why she entered the room. But she wanted to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. That this was happening. No one had ever even attempted to make their intentions known that they wanted to take her in. Most of the people she had traveled with would dump her at an orphanage when they were given a chance. 

Darcy and Grime both turned to her and were surprised to see her standing there. 

“Sasha?” Darcy jumped up from her seat and walked over to the girl. She guided Sasha into a hug.

“You weren’t supposed to know until tomorrow.” Grime was in shock. “What are you doing up?”

“I was thirsty. But I overheard you. But you…Want to adopt me ? Both of you?”

“Yes. I’m making it official with me. But Darcy and Hop Pop have also adopted you into their family. I just filed the paperwork first. Hah.” Darcy turned and growled.

“I was busy, you ass of a toad.” Grime just laughed.

“Well, since you are here. I want to present to you this.” Grime handed Sasha the paperwork. It wasn’t some sick joke. It was real. Sasha Waybright. That was her name now on the official paper. She could feel the tears fall down her face. She glanced up at Grime.

“This is my name now.” 

“Yes, sweetie. That’s your name now.” Darcy smiled down.

“I have a last name now.” Sasha was now full blown crying. She was wrapped into a tight hug by both Darcy and Grime. She felt Darcy press a kiss to her head.

It had felt so surreal to Sasha that she now carried a last name. She was now Sasha Waybright and she carried that name with pride. And she was soon an honorary Plantar. Her image was placed on the family shrub. That made her happy. She was even given her own room in the Plantar home and in the castle. 

Sasha even got better news. Soon after, Bark and Jasmine had a little tadpole by the name of Sprig. Sasha instantly loved her little adopted brother. When he became a pollywog, she even got the honor of getting to carry the little guy around. She loved him. She helped around the farm when she could. Even in Newtopia, she was doing what she could to help around. Then she decided that she wanted to become a soldier like Grime. She never really had a dream when she was on her own. But now, she had that luxury. And she wanted to make everyone she loved happy. 

Soon, when Sasha hit twelve, the Plantars had another kid. Polliana Petunia Plantar. Or simply known as Polly. Sasha wept when she got to hold the little tadpole.

This was her family now. She was going to do everything in her power to protect them.

Then tragedy struck where they least expected. 

Sasha was devastated. She had no idea why. Why did Darcy kill herself? Why? Why? 

That question echoed all in her head. She couldn’t think clearly. She needed to be there for Marcy. But they couldn’t get a bird out until morning. So Sasha was stuck in Wartwood. She knew Marcy had Lily at least. Lily was her rock and she was beginning to see that Marcy had a little crush on her. Sasha just sat downstairs with her adopted siblings. She was still thinking  and staring at the image of Darcy. 

She remembered how it was painful for Bark and Hop Pop. Sasha has never seen Bark break down so bad but he was overall confused. Same for Hop Pop. It made no sense at all. Darcy was happy and content with everything she had in her friends and family. People loved her and respected her. 

No one has given them the answer they need but the heartbreak was still fresh in their mind.

Sasha cried just as hard as Bark as well. They knew how important she was to Sasha. She confused as well as to why she committed suicide and there was no note as to why. Darcy had no indication of depression. 

The first strike was sudden and they were still mourning. But the second strike of tragedy will forever be remembered for the rest of their lives. 

Sasha’s head shot up when she heard a loud shrieking noise. It sounded like a bird but not just any bird Sasha was familiar with. She looked outside the windows and her eyes widened in alarm. 

Two giant herons invaded and started attacking Wartwood as fire burned. Panic sets in because they’re attacking at the location she knows where. Frog Market. 

Hop Pop had left on a small trip earlier in that day to go to Toad Tower so he was gone. Bark and Jasmine had left to go sell at the stand as it was harvest day and they wanted to give Sasha some space to deal with her grief.

She looked over to her siblings. She could tell that they were spooked by the loud shrieking. Sasha instantly grabbed Polly’s bucket and carried her down to the basement. Sprig followed her.

“What’s going on?” He looked back in alarm when they heard birds screeching again.

“Sprig, you stay down here and don’t ever leave. Don’t make a single sound. Got it?”

“Sasha?”

“Don’t argue with me, Sprig.”

“But Sasha, what was the noise?”

“No time! You and Polly stay here.”

“But,”

“No more buts. End. Of. Discussion.” Sasha yelled. She ran upstairs and closed the door before moving a chair in front of it to block it. To make sure that they don’t try to help. She couldn’t risk them getting hurt.

She grabbed her blade and raced outside. She ran to where she could see the herons. She hoped that Bark and Jasmine were okay. She hoped that the Tower saw the herons flying to Frog Valley and sent out the forces. But they would take an hour to get to Wartwood. She needed to act fast. 

She was the only soldier available.

The sound of panicked screams and children crying for their mothers and fathers to save them only fueled Sasha’s fury.

When she arrived at the Frog Market, she could smell the blood and death. She gagged at the smell before swallowing her bile down. Wartwood didn’t need her to wimp out now. 

She raced to the Farmers Market. She could hear the screaming and the sounds of people dying. She looked up to see one of the herons. They were so big. Bigger than Darcy’s Leader. Her whole body shook as she held her sword high.

“Hey! You!”

One of the herons turned towards her. Sasha shivered at the eyes. They were purple. 

“ Did herons have that eye color? I don’t remember that in my studies.”

The heron shrieked before diving towards her. Sasha jumped away before bringing her sword down on its beak. It reared its head back.

“Sasha!” Sasha turned to the voice. She saw Bark and Jasmine. They were okay. Bark looked hurt, blood on the side of his head but he was alive. “Sasha what are you doing here? It’s not safe! Get out of here!” Bark yelled to leave with eyes filled with fear for Sasha’s life.

“I’m helping until reinforcements show up.”

“Sasha, just run. The toads won’t be here in time. Run back to the house and hide.”

“Not without you.” Sasha dodged another beak snap. “I’m not losing another family member!”

“Sasha!” 

Sasha looked up but she was too slow to dodge, and was swatted by the heron’s wing into some nearby barrels. She collided with them, shattering them beneath her. She groaned in pain. Bark has leapt out in front of her. He swung a branch around at the herons.

“Get away! Get away from my daughter!” One just watched him swing his branch around. The male heron finally had enough and smacked Bark away. They lifted their talons and smashed Bark like an insect. 

Sasha could only stare in shock. Her eyes went blank when she heard his screams of agony and gagged when she saw blood dripping from the beak of the male heron as it lifted its head up and it stared at Sasha with it’s deadly eyes. 

She was forcibly grabbed by Jasmine and hoisted up. She was dragged along.

“I'm sorry. I’m sorry. It’s my fault.” It was all she could mutter out.

“Sasha, it wasn’t your fault. Bark was doing what he needed to do. That was to protect you. Now run. Don’t let his death be in vain.”

“I’m sorry. It's my fault. He died because I needed to be a hero.” Sasha collapsed to the ground.

“Sasha!” Jasmine grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her. She wiped her tears. Jasmine placed a brief kiss on her forehead. “Stop. He loved you. I love you. Just do what you need to do to survive.” Jasmine pulled her into a hug. “It’s okay. Sasha, I want you to run. Be safe. Just remember, we love you! I love you!”

Sasha looked up at Jasmine. She heard another shriek. The female heron appeared, entered and stared at the two with the same purple eyes. Jasmine threw herself in front of Sasha and pushed her out of the way. Sasha fell but not before she looked up to see Jasmine get picked up in the beak of the female heron. 

“Be safe!” She said with a smile on her face.

There was a loud snap like bones cracking and a screech. Blood splattered Sasha’s face and body. Sasha was shaking. She looked at her hands that shook violently. She finally let out a loud yell.

“YOU MONSTERS!” She sobbed out. 

She grabbed her sword. The female trapped Sasha with their foot. The large talon slashed her right cheek when it came down, shattering part of the bone and breaking the skin apart. Sasha could only scream in pain as that’s all she could feel. 

Physical pain and emotional pain swirled altogether. She stared death in the face. She was not going to let their deaths be in vain. 

Sasha gripped her sword before using her strength and stabbed the heron in the foot. Blood squirted as Sasha dug her blade in. It was enough for the heron to let go. They focused their attention on Sasha. Sasha heaved before holding her blade high. 

The male heron attacks first. The beak came at her. Sasha sidestepped before stabbing her heron sword into the eye. The heron screeched in pain. The blood splattered on Sasha. She looked up to see the remaining purple eye turn blue and it suddenly backed away from Sasha.

The heron looked around and it looked confused but the pain in the male’s eye made it start to shriek in panic.  

“YOU LEAVE HER ALONE!” Sasha looked up to see Hop Pop standing on one of the buildings. He leapt forward and stabbed the female in the side. 

“HOP POP!” Sasha screamed. Sasha stumbled forward. Her wound was bleeding profusely. 

Hop Pop was bouncing around like crazy, easily avoiding the attacks. Sasha was amazed by her Hop Pop but she remembered he went into war with Grime. 

She collapsed onto the ground. Someone grabbed her and carried her away. 

“No. Let me go. I need to save my Hop Pop.” Sasha weakly pounded on the human’s chest. 

“He will be fine, kid. He’ll be fine. He is a tough frog. We need to have your wounds looked at. You are going into shock.” 

Sasha looked up and saw the herons finally fly away. She saw her Hop Pop running towards her before passing out. 

Sasha eventually woke up in a white room. She looked around to see a large, towering blue newt. He was reading with pink glasses on his face. She groaned as she got up. That got the giant newt’s attention.

“Sasha, you’re awake.” He leaned down close to her. 

“King Andrias? Am I in Newtopia?”

“Yes, I had heard about the report of the herons attacking Wartwood. I raced as fast as I could. It seemed I was too late. But your wounds were just too much for Wartwood to take care of so I brought you back to Newtopia.”

“Is my Hop Pop okay?”

“Yes. He is fine. A little upset but he is fine.”

“Is he upset with me?” That caught Andrias by surprise

“Oh no, Sasha. He isn’t upset with you. He is just glad you are safe. He is upset with the herons. He doesn’t blame you. You are not at fault for what happened.” Sasha openly sobbed and broke down in front of King Andrias.

“They died! They died because I needed to be a hero. They died because I couldn’t afford to lose them like how I lost Darcy. Yet I still did.”

Andrias desperately wanted to just scoop the girl up into his hands and hold her close. But she was hooked up to a couple of machines and he didn’t want to tassel her around and make her wound rip open. He gently patted her back instead.

The door opened for Conrad to walk in. He stood next to Sasha’s bed. 

“I am glad to see you are up, Sasha. We were worried about you.” Sasha looked over at him. For a moment, his deep purple eyes made her remember the purple eyes of the heron. Sasha panicked and let out a gasp. She pushed herself as close to her bed as she could. Conrad reached a hand out to her. “Whoa! Calm down there. You must still be scared of what happened to you. You poor thing. We are here for you.”

Sasha inhaled and kept trying to do the breathing exercises. Conrad patted her shoulder.

“I just wanted to come in and tell you that you have a couple of visitors.”

The door was opened for Hop Pop to come in with Sprig and Polly. He carried Polly in his hands.

“Hop Pop!” Sasha wanted to jump up and run over to him but she is still attached to machines.

“Don’t get up, Sasha. You need to rest. We are okay.” He set Polly onto the bed. She was so young. Sasha picked her up and held her close. Sprig jumped up in bed and joined her. She held her family close. She cried a little bit. Hop Pop came up and held her hand. 

“I’m sorry, Hop Pop. It’s my fault they are dead.”

“No, it’s not Sasha. It’s not your fault. They wanted to protect you. They died doing what they thought was right.”

“Why did they attack?” Sasha asked.

She saw the dark look on Andrias’ face. Same with Conrad. 

“We are looking into that.” It was all Andrias said. Sasha didn’t like the look on her king’s face. She much preferred his golly look. He got up. “But I will find out what happened. Rest assured Sasha. I will. I will. But you must rest yourself. Do you want to go back to Wartwood or stay here?” 

“I want to go home.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to the doctors and get you prepared to leave as soon as the doctors check up on you.”

Andrias left the room with Conrad behind him. Leaving the poor family mourning another loss as they silently cry together.

After Darcy was laid to rest. Marcy was inconsolable. Marcy just cried in Sasha and Lily’s arms. But Andrias made sure to give her full honors as she was his right-hand woman. Marcy would be allowed to still live in the castle. Andrias treated her as his own child. And according to a conversation Darcy once had with Andrias, she had asked that Andrias take care of Marcy if anything bad happened to her. 

Then, Sasha was soon back in Wartwood, witnessing the burial of Bark and Jasmine and many others who lost their lives from the attack. Sasha had overheard Hop Pop say that it was hard since there wasn’t much left of them to bury. 

Sasha was just like Marcy. Both Marcy and Lily held onto her. Sprig was holding onto her as well. He was trying to be brave but she knew he was scared. Polly was so young to even know what was happening. 

When the bandage came off, Sasha couldn’t help but stare at her wound. It was large and covered most of her cheek. It still was stitched up and she was told to take it easy until the stitches came out. 

Even Grime was given time off for both funerals. He stayed in Wartwood with Sasha while she recovered. 

Sasha had eventually heard from Grime talking with Hop Pop that it was the Spirit that had sent the herons. Why, they weren’t sure. 

But it was at that moment that Sasha vowed revenge against the spirit. She would bring the Spirit in and make sure she answers for her crimes. She also vowed to kill the very herons who killed her family.

Everyone all hugged Sasha, even Anne. Anne laid her head on her shoulders. 

“I’m so sorry for what happened to Darcy, Bark, and Jasmine.” Anne whispered.

Sasha had left out the part about how they supposedly were told that it was the spirit who had sent the herons. But Sasha now knew it wasn’t Anne but she wasn’t sure who now had sent them. 

“It’s okay, Anne.” Sasha held her close to her. “My life has gotten a lot better. I still mourn their deaths but I have moved on.”

Everyone was still huddled close to each other that day. When night fell, Sasha tucked Sprig and Polly in. Hop Pop kissed her head when she went to tell him good night. Then Sasha went downstairs to see Anne was still in the living room. Domino stayed close to her, sensing her distress and tried to comfort her with her purrs and licks, but she could tell the Spirit was still crying. 

“Anne, are you okay?”

“No, You didn’t have a very good beginning. You had a mother and father who just abandoned you. The closest family that you cared for ended up dead. Darcy, Bark and Jasmine. Your ex-boyfriend tried to kill you.” Anne turned to Sasha. “Sasha, I wish I could take all the pain you have suffered away.”

Sasha took her hands into her own. She had taken her glove off, so there was a slight tremor in her hand. She wanted to show Anne her vulnerability and not hide her scars anymore.

“Then I wouldn’t be the person I am today because of it.”

“But you lost everything after you gained what you’ve been wishing for! And you don’t want to fall in love.” Anne cried out. “Because your parents and your ex-boyfriend ruined that for you.”

“And that’s fine for me, Anne. I have accepted the fact that I am not built for love.”

Anne tearfully looked at her. That hurt Sasha’s heart. Sasha wanted to eventually tell Anne how she felt. But she needed to work on herself to accept that she was capable of love. She did care for Anne. And she also wanted to know if Anne cared for her too. “Maybe, in time, I will open my heart to love.”

That seemed to brighten Anne up a bit. Anne’s eyes landed on Sasha’s cheek. Anne tenderly ran her finger along the scar. Sasha didn’t pull her away. She allowed Anne to continue her actions. 

“I’m so sorry my herons injured you and killed Bark and Jasmine. I…Never heard of them doing that. I have no idea what would have possessed them.” 

It clicked in Sasha’s mind. Possession. She remembers in her studies that herons never have purple eyes. It’s either red, blue, or yellow.

If Anne didn’t send those herons to attack Frog Valley then they must have been possessed but by what? Sasha was going to get to the bottom of it. Even if it meant to clear Anne’s name. 

“That’s enough. It wasn’t your fault that they attacked.”

“I vow that I will find out why.” Anne was steadfast in her vow. She was going to find the herons who injured Sasha and murdered some of the members of her family. Based on Sasha’s story, one was surely missing an eye from Sasha stabbing it. She was going to get answers from them.

Sasha couldn’t help the smile on her face. She held Anne’s hand up and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. Anne blushed.

“Thank you, I know I have your back.”

Sasha couldn’t help but stare deeply into Anne’s eyes. How she wanted to kiss Anne’s lips. She slowly moved her head towards Anne’s head. 

“You should go to bed.” Sasha stopped. She was slightly hurt. Did Anne not feel the same? But she saw Anne looked away, shyly and she was blushing. “It’s been a long day. And as much I would love to continue talking. I have to work in the morning.”

“Yes, you are right.” Sasha got up. Anne followed Sasha to the stairs of the basement. Sasha turned around and pressed a brief kiss to Anne’s cheek. “Good night, Anne. Sleep well, my Spirit.” Then, she disappears into her room.

Anne could only stare at Sasha before touching the cheek. She smiled and she was still smiling when she got up and walked up to the opened chest. Sasha left the trunk here to organize it in the morning. Then, Anne picked one item that she recognized since Sasha told that part of her story.

The blanket made of leaves. Anne hugged the blanket close to her chest. “It was you, all along!”

Anne was surprised when her Mossman had a small blonde child in their arms. She pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Bush, where did you find this child? Take them back.” Anne spoke to them in Amphibian. The Mossman let out a low rumble. Anne sighed. “Look, we can’t keep her. She needs to be with her own people. Not raised by a Spirit and a bunch of Mossman. We will take her somewhere where she can be safe.”

Anne looked down at the girl. Her blonde hair was a mess, with twigs and leaves in it. Anne gently pulled them out of her hair as she examined her face. There were little cuts and bruises. Anne begins to heal them. There was nothing on her face now except a little black mole under her left eye. Anne took the girl from the Mossman. The other Mossman worked on a blanket for the girl.

“Don’t worry, little one.” Anne saw the girl barely open her eyes. They were blue, like the sky and the sea. “You will be safe. I’m going to drop you off where you will be safe.” The girl’s eyes closed again. “You will be safe. I promise.”

Anne set her down on a hand-made bed made of soft leaves and tucked the blanket around her body.

“I promise I will help find you a new home.”

Anne knew that Sasha was the same little blond girl that Mossman, Bush, had found in the forest. The same Sasha who was found by kind people and took her into a family.

“What you’ve lost, you’ll gain from the loss. I’ll uphold my promise, I’ll keep you safe, Sasha.”

Seven years ago.

The herons’ attack on Frog Valley was a terrible and unfortunate tragedy. But King Andrias knew what had transpired and it ignited his soul with justified fury.

King Andrias is in his bed chamber, and he stood in front of a fireplace as the fire lit up the room, and still has the dark look on his face. Tall, outraged by the cruel audacity of the report he had received. It was enough to make him want to punch a hole in his own walls.

The herons didn’t attack Wartwood by random. They were sent by the Spirit.

“Conrad,”  Conrad turned to his king. He was there, waiting for him to make a command. “I want a bounty on her head.”

“A bounty?”

“Yes, a large bounty on the Spirit’s head. She will pay for what she has done. I want her to pay for attacking Frog Valley. She had spilled blood and burned their homes! She will pay a heavy price for her crimes.”

“Yes, sir. I will get a bounty out as soon as possible. Should it read ‘wanted dead or alive’?”

“Just alive.”

“Alive?” Asked Conrad, shocked.

“Yes,” Andrias twirled with his booming voice like thunderclap. “I want her brought in alive just so she can answer for her crimes. I want to see the look on her face when she receives her well-deserved punishment!”

“Yes, sir. I will get on it right away.” Conrad bowed and walked away. 

Andrias was left alone. Then, he picked a book on top of the fireplace and opened the page where he scowled darkly.

A picture of an evil Spirit, her hands shooting destruction on the innocents, and she grinned evilly with satisfying glee.

Andrias then ripped the page from the book, staring at the drawn Spirit and said, “I will hunt you down to the edges of Amphibia, and when I capture you, you’ll beg for my mercy!” A dark vow as he threw the page and watched it as the page being eaten away by the fire as the drawn picture of the Spirit burned to ashes.

Chapter Text

Hopediah had sent Sasha and Anne for grocery shopping. He instructed Sasha to teach Anne how to shop since she had insisted on learning. But Hop Pop reminded them not to go and buy too much. They were sadly still unable to get the stand back as they lacked the funds. 

Sasha steered Bessie into town for some groceries. Sasha pulled up to the store. She hopped down and helped Anne down. 

“I’m starting to think you just like to be a gentlewoman.” Anne teased with a playful smirk.

“Maybe. But I was taught to be courteous around a beautiful woman such as yourself.” Said Sasha with a soft smirk that made Anne giggle shyly. 

They walked into the general store together. 

“Okay, just stay close to me and I’ll show you how it's done, okay.” Anne nodded in eagerness. 

Sasha began to teach her about how the whole buying and selling works, on how each product has price tags is where she knows the value of the products but also to ensure the quality of it.

They’re eyeing the produce of fruits, vegetables, and bugs as Sasha continues to explain. 

“OK, the key is to find a really good produce. Hmm, oh! These tomatoes look good and it’s five coppers off!” Sasha eyed the reddish tomatoes that looked fresh and fully ripe. However, Anne is expressing otherwise. 

“Hold on.” Anne picked one of the tomatoes. On the outside it looked quite tasty enough to eat it but when Anne sniffed the tomato and frowned. “Nope, the tomato has a bland smell, way too squishy, and was rushed growing them without the proper care.” Anne tsked at the farmer since it didn’t seem that they didn't take care of these things well.

After she put it down, she looked around until she spotted another tomato stand, and it shaped differently from the other tomatoes. Sasha watched in fascination as Anne strolled to the tomatoes. As she felt the smoothness of the tomato skins a small smile appeared but still needed to make sure. When she took a long whiff, she let out a delightful sigh. 

“Now, that’s a good tomato and the price is more reasonable too, right Sasha?”

Before Sasha could reply, a whitish frog with braces and a tuft of curly hair heard it all and was quick to make a notion. 

“Excuse me, but how would you know? The tomatoes look fine as any other!” Sasha scowled for butting in. “How about we taste each of the tomatoes from each stand, and if Anne was right about both tomatoes, you’ll give us ten percent off. Deal?” 

The clerk huffed and agreed as he and Sasha picked the tomato that Anne said was bad and took a bite. One chew and they do not want to chew anymore. They spit it out. Then, when they each picked the other tomatoes that Anne deemed were good, they each took one bite, and they were speechless. They were just as Anne said they were. Sasha grinned mischievously to the frog clerk. 

“Welp, Anne was right.” 

“Fine, a deal is a deal.” 

The clerk gave them ten percent off for the tomatoes as Sasha complimented Anne. 

“Way to go, Anne. Not only do you understand how the economy works but that quite a nose you’ve got there!” Anne blushed. 

The clerk stayed behind as they walked away but heard mumbling under his breath and Anne heard it loud and clear.

“Weirdo!” And he walked away.

Anne winced when he just called her behind her back. 

“Is something wrong, Anne?” Anne snapped back at Sasha; she didn’t want to cause any trouble. No matter how much the clerk’s words affected her, she didn’t want to bother Sasha, not when she was in a good mood.

“I’m fine, don’t worry.” Anne forced a smile on her face. Sasha studied her face; she knew that smile was forced but the look in her eyes almost begged her to let go. 

Sasha sighs, “OK, let’s get a few things on the list and then we go home.”

Sasha decided that Anne could go browse for the remaining list and she trusted her in getting them. As Anne browsed the aisles, she examined some of the products. But then she noticed a little human boy trying to grab a bag of jerky off of a high shelf. She grabbed what he was trying to reach and handed it to him. He looked up at her before backing away from her.

“I’m friendly.” Anne’s face fell when the boy ran away. She was about to set the jerky back when Wally suddenly grabbed the jerky right out of her hand with his tongue.

“Thanks, weirdo.” Another stab in her heart. This is the second time another one called her a weirdo today.

She decided to just find Sasha and get out of there as soon as possible. She found Sasha down one of the aisles, talking to another female human and laughing. Anne felt something in her heart when seeing the two, chatting and laughing. 

Did Sasha think of her as a weirdo too? Anne sighed before taking a step, she suddenly slipped on the wet floor. She fell backward on her butt. She could hear everyone begin laughing at her. 

“Didn’t you see the sign weirdo?” It’s the same clerk who called her a weirdo first and glared at her.

She never felt so humiliated, it hurts. She felt so small and helpless, it was unlike anything she felt. What happened to Wartwood? They were always so kind and friendly toward any newcomers, especially when she came, being greeted by the friendly folks as she walked toward Plantar’s house as Leif and her husband, Arlo, would welcome her with open arms. But now, and ever since coming back here, nothing is the same anymore. 

They ignored her.

They treated her like she was invisible.

And they’re laughing at her clumsiness. 

She feels like Anne is going to cry but looks up to see Sasha storming over to her. Anne wanted to just hide. She had embarrassed Sasha. Sasha gently helped her up before glaring at everyone.

“Don’t you all have something better to do than torment a new person?” Everyone in the store went back to their own thing, trying to ignore the glare from Sasha, and none of them even muttered an apology to Anne. It aggravated Sasha to no end. She wanted to lash out at them, but she felt Anne clench her hand around her arm. It pains her to see her like this. “Come on, Anne. Stay close to me and we’ll finish up here real quick. Then we will get out of here.”

As promised, Sasha and Anne finished their shopping trip and carried everything to Bessie. Anne is still hurt by the name-calling and their treatment. She wishes that things would go back to the way they used to be. She was loved by many. Now, it’s not the same Wartwood she used to know.

Sasha was glancing at Anne with a sad and worried look. It has been two months now and Anne is still an outcast in the community. Anne had tried, truly tried to connect with them openly but to her and Plantar’s disappointment, the folks ignored Anne’s friendship.

It angered Sasha and the rest of the Plantars. Even Mrs. Croaker, Mrs. Amery, and Stumpy share the same disappointment with the Plantars. They’ve tried to comfort Anne the best they can, but the poor girl still feels unwanted in the town.

Sasha wished she could do something about it.

When Anne turned to pick up another bag of groceries she spotted two spiders with a carriage in the town square, parked near Mayor Toadstool’s house. In one of the carriages sat an armored man and a teal-colored toad bearing an eye symbol on their shoulder pad. Then, the door to the mayor’s house opened with a bang, and three toads exited together. One red toad was holding a scroll in his hand, and they looked unfriendly.

“Hey Sasha, I think they are from the tower.” Anne grabbed Sasha’s arm.

“They are!” Sasha turned around but then she soured when she noticed the three toads. “Oh, great! What is Bog and his goons doing here?”

Sasha walked over to them. Anne followed her. When the human and toad noticed her, they were quick to jump off their carriage and saluted. Anne watched as a green female toad and a toad with a helmet covering their face saluted towards Sasha. But the red toad didn’t at first. He rolled his eyes and performed a half-assed salute, in which Sasha noticed it too. 

“Lieutenant Sasha!”

“At ease, soldiers.” They lowered their arms and kept their backs straight. Except the red toad as he kept his back turned.

Sasha steeled herself as she strides towards Bog. “Bog, what are you doing here?” The red toad finally turned around.

“We are on orders from your father to attempt to collect the missing taxes. He told us to collect them by any means necessary.” 

“So the Tower was skimmed again on our taxes.” Now, Sasha is scowling. She understood the protocol but why would Grime send Bog, Fens, and Mire to collect missing taxes? They bring trouble wherever they go. 

She’ll never forget during her cadet days that those three were officers and they've been bullying the new cadets as if they’ve the right to do so just because they had a higher position. Sasha was the one who put a stop to their bullying when she single-handedly beat Bog in a one-on-one duel in a trial against the senior officer. The trail was to prepare when facing a tough enemy and the officers have a bit of experience in strength and combat.

Sasha humiliated Bog during the trial when the red toad was overconfident that he could beat her and ever since then, Bog bears a dark resentment toward Sasha.

“Lieutenant, Ma’am!” The human soldier stepped forward. “Aldo is at the Tower; he is waiting for you and Captain Grime asked us to come pick you up.”

“Good! So, he did get my letter. Thank you.” Sasha turned to Anne. “Sorry, Anne. Looks like I am going to be leaving. Will you be okay heading home by yourself?”

“I am, but how long will you be gone?”

“A couple of hours at most. I’ll be back before dinner. That I promise. Just tell Hop Pop where I am.”

“Okay.” Just before she climbed on the other carriage, she turned around facing Bog, Mire, and Fens with seriousness. “While I’m gone, I expect the three of you to follow protocol and not cause trouble, am I clear?” 

Mire could inhale and exhale loudly but nodded. Fens grunted and then saluted, “Yes, Lieutenant.” 

However, Bog remains silent, challenging Sasha with his eyes. Sasha narrowed her eyes as deadly as daggers. 

“Am I clear, soldier?” Sasha repeated her statement again. That wasn’t a question. It was an order.

Bog’s hand clenched. How he hated taking orders from Sasha. As much as he wanted to rebel against her he bit his tongue. 

“Crystal clear, Lieutenant.” Bog said, through his teeth. 

Sasha huffed and walked away while ignoring the heated glare coming from Bog.

Anne watched as Sasha climbed into the cart and she was off. She then noticed Bog was staring at her. She did not like how he looked at her. 

“You are close to the lieutenant, aren’t you?”

“Well, yes. We are friends.” Anne replied truthfully.

“Friends? Hah! That girl only looks out for she, her, and herself. She isn’t friends with you. She is just using you for her own gain.” Now, it was Anne’s turn to scowl. 

“You’re wrong about Sasha.”

“Am I? Look girly, Sasha isn’t friends with anyone. She claims she doesn’t need friends. But you can decide if you believe me or not.” Then Bog turned around facing Mire and Fens. “Now, come on, gang. We’ve got the list of the people who didn’t pay from Mayor Toadstool. Let’s do what we came for!” 

Anne took the chance to get to Bessie as the snail chirped at her and rubbed her head against her curls. Anne gave her a good scratch and put in the last bag of groceries. However, Anne was unaware that Bog, Fens, and Mire were looking at her, Bog was whispering to his friends, and they were chuckling.   

Bog shushed them before he turned and walked toward Anne. 

“Hey, how about you coming with us? Hang out with us. You look like you could use some company. We can learn a little bit about each other. What do you say?”

“I don’t know.” Anne was feeling uncomfortable when he came so suddenly.

“It’s a great way to earn the town’s respect.” Anne glanced over at him in surprise. “I saw what happened in that general store. They don’t respect you. You are just a weird girl to them. You join us and you’ll get the respect you solely deserve. What do you say?”

Anne stared at Bog for a moment. She knew the town didn’t respect her. That much was clear. But Sasha? Sasha truly acted like she was being her friend. She found it that hard to believe that Sasha didn’t view her as a friend. She felt Bog tap her waist with his elbow. 

“Come on now. Don’t look so gloomy. I even have an honorary badge for you to wear. Hell, you could be so amazing that even Captain Grime will respect you, and I’m pretty sure you’re gonna make Sasha very proud of you!” Then, Anne remembered Sasha when she was talking to another woman in the general store which caused a bitter taste in her mouth. If she successfully get the town’s respect and love then Sasha won’t have to worry about her, she’ll make her proud, and she won’t think she’s a weirdo. Maybe she could earn Sasha’s love on top of that. 

“Okay, I’ll join you guys. But give me a second. I need to drop Bessie off at my home.”

“Great! We will join you. So let me introduce ourselves. I am Bog. This is Fens.” He pointed to the green female. Fens waved at her. Then he pointed to the helmet-wearing toad. “And that one there is Mire. He doesn’t talk much.”

“Nice to meet you all. I am Anne Boonhcuy.”

“Come on, Bog. Let’s hurry up.” Fens exclaimed. 

“All right. All right! Let’s be gentle toads and make sure this little lady and her snail get home safely, okay.”

Anne steered Bessie home with toads right behind her. She stopped Bessie and was beginning to undo the cart. Bog came up to her with a toothy grin.

“Don’t worry about that, lass. We’ll help you with that. Mire, you go help Anne.”

As Anne grabbed the groceries. Mire was quick to snatch them from Anne’s arms. They walked into the house.

Hop Pop was in the kitchen, chopping some vegetables, when he heard a knock on the door and Anne’s voice. “I’m home.”

“Hey kids, welcome home.” Hop Pop came out but he let out a scream. He had walked in to see an armored toad standing in his living room. 

“It’s okay, Hop Pop. This is Mire. He is a toad from Toad Tower.”

“I know who he is. He is trouble.” Hop Pop pointed at Mire. The toad just walked forward and dropped the groceries off on the table before clambering away. Anne stepped forward. “Anne, what is going on and where is Sasha?”

“Sasha had gone back to the Tower for a couple of hours. She’ll be back.” Anne said as she put her things away.

“Okay. Then what’s with Mire?”

“You know the toad?” 

“Of course, I know the toad. That toad and his leader, Bog! They are nothing but trouble. Sasha always complains about him and his gang.”

“Yeah, and how do you know Sasha isn’t lying about them?!” Anne yelled out. Hop Pop was stunned by her outburst. Anne had never lashed out at him before. When Anne realized what she had done, she glanced away as she hugged herself. She felt bad for yelling at Hop Pop. 

“I…I mean, Sasha has no reason to lie. Especially since I’ve heard even Grime complain about them. But what’s wrong with you, Anne?” Hop Pop got worried as Anne frowned and Hop Pop could see the poor girl looked ready to cry.

“Nothing happened, Hop Pop. It’s not like I was just humiliated at the general store today and being called a weirdo three times in a row! That’s got to be a record or something.” She said, her tone filled with sarcasm and full of hurt.

“Anne-”

“Hop Pop, the townsfolk still don’t like me. It’s not like how it used to be. I used to be loved by you all. Now, I’m just the weird girl who lives in your basement. Wartwood hates me now. It’s…Not like the good old days.”

“Anne, I know it’s different now. And I know you want everything to go back to how it was. But Wartwood has changed from your time. They will eventually love you again. It just…Takes time.”

“I just…want to be loved again. I just want the love of the town again. And if that means Bog will help me get the respect I deserve by looking for the missing taxes then so be it. If I find the missing taxes then towns folks will respect me, you’ll be proud of me, and…Sasha won’t have to worry about me anymore. I won’t be the town’s weirdo anymore!”

Instead of hearing Hop Pop tell her no, he remained silent. She suspected he would have told her no. It saddens Hopediah to see the Spirit struggling to be accepted by the community she loved when they still shunned her. She tried so hard and failed. 

She is frustrated, tired, and feeling so helpless. Something Hop Pop wishes he could take away from her. 

When Hop Pop glances at the painting of Leif, smiling still. If she had been alive and seen how Wartwood was treating her Anne, she’d be furious. 

“Anne, are you sure about this?” Hop Pop is still unsure of letting Anne go with them. Without Sasha to guide her.

“Yes. I’m sure about this Hop Pop.” Anne gives him her begging eyes and Hop Pop instantly melts as he sighs.

“All right. I won’t get in your way. But please be careful.”

“I will, Hop Pop.” She hugged him and kissed his head before she left. 

Hop Pop just watched Anne walk outside and hop onto the cart with the toads that were pulled by the spider. Hop Pop scowled when Bog gave him a back glance and smirked as if he earned a victory.

Once they’re gone, Hop Pop is mumbling colorful curses in his walk as he is unaware that Sprig and Polly have watched the whole exchange from upstairs. 

“Something doesn’t sit right with me.” Sprig whispered to his sister.

“Yeah. This is too weird that Bog is offering to help Anne and with Sasha gone, who knows what sort of trouble they’ll cause!”

“I’m going to follow Anne around. Making sure they don’t try to hurt Anne or worse expose her as a Spirit and see if I can maybe find those missing taxes.” 

“Alright, bro. And I’ll keep Hop Pop distracted.” Sprig and Polly gave each other a thumbs up before Sprig leaped out the window and followed the toad cart. “You really couldn’t have used the front door?” 

On the road, Anne is staring at her new badge. Bog said if she wears it then people will know who she works for and respect her.

“So, Anne, how long have you been in Wartwood? I don’t recall seeing you before.” Bog looked behind his shoulder.

“Not very long. I lived somewhere else before the Plantars took me in when I had nowhere else to go.”

“Ah, so you are living with the old frog. Well, we will help you get the respect you so rightfully deserve.”

Somehow, that didn’t ease her at all. Anne just stared down at the badge that was currently in her hands. It suddenly felt really heavy.

“So, how are we going to find the missing taxes, Bog?” She got Bog and Fens to laugh loudly while Mire remained silent while holding the reins. 

“We’re not looking for missing taxes, Anne.” Then Bog pulled the scroll, the same scroll when she saw them exit from the mayor’s building. “See here. This is the list of the citizens who didn’t pay their taxes. Our first stop is…A frog named Wally.”

Anne looked over at the list. She raised an eyebrow. She knew Wally was weird, but she figured she paid his taxes. 

“But Sasha said that Toad Tower hasn’t received their taxes and the citizens have claimed they’ve paid their taxes?” She did not see Bog rolling his eyes and was sneering because his back was turned.

But when he turned around, he smiled sympathetically at Anne and spoke. “Oh, Anne. I hate to break it to you but not everyone is that honest. Things have changed, people have changed! The list does not lie, and as for…Lieutenant Sasha, she had found no clue about the taxes, not even one measly copper. Captain Grime gave us the order and Mayor Toadstool gave us the list of people who didn’t pay.”

Anne found it hard to believe that the people of Wartwood would be dishonest in paying taxes…Then again, things aren’t the same as before. Hop Pop and Bog both said the same phrase. People have changed. She had been away for so long that the village she loved became unrecognizable and the citizens became closed-minded. Did they also become misguided as well?

Anne doesn’t know anymore. One thing is true, they’ve changed. 

“All right. So, what do we do? Do we just remind Wally how much he owes or-” 

“Just follow our example, Anne.” They arrived at Wally’s carriage and Bog kicked the door down. Wally was in his tub, cleaning himself. He screamed when the toad came bursting through. Anne walked through the door and flinched at the destruction.

“Jumping June bugs! What’s all this about?”

“Well…Uh…I guess you own the town money?” Anne shrugged her shoulders.

“Rubbish. I may live in squalor, but I always pay my taxes.”

“The mayor’s list says otherwise. And since you haven’t paid, we’ll be taking your stuff in return.”

Wally whimpered as Bog ripped the brush and his rubber ducky out of his hands. The toads begin grabbing everything they could get their hands on. Bog grabbed the very same bag of beetle jerky that Wally ripped out of her hand in the general store. He thrust it into her hands.

“Here you go, Anne. A little something extra for you.”

“Bog, this seems a little extreme.”

“It’s just the way we do things here. Plus, it’s not like we enjoy it. Now who wants to race to the next house?” Clearly, they’re enjoying the breaking, entering, and vandalism. Thank goodness they didn’t hurt him, but they took everything in his own house and Wally looked defeated and miserable,

Wally gasped when Anne handed him the beetle jerky back. 

“Here, take this back,” Anne whispered and winked at him. Wally stared at her in shock. He didn’t expect her to return the jerky even after he took it from her hand.

“Come on, Anne!” Bog screamed from outside.

“Comin’.”

“Thanks.” Wally smiled at her. It was the first genuine smile Anne got.

Sprig watched as Anne and the toads left Wally’s house. He was currently hiding in a nearby bush with a pair of binoculars.

“That’s weird. Wally always pays his taxes. Actually, most of the people in Wartwood pay their taxes.” 

Sprig caught some voices. It sounded like Mayor Toadstool. He crawled close and peered open the bush to see Toadstool carrying a small bag and Toadie hurling a huge bag, way too heavy for a small frog to handle.

“Come on.” Sprig hid deeper into the bush. “Come on, Toadie. While the townsfolk are preoccupied.”

“Coming, sir.” Toadie sounded like he was out of breath as he came running by with a large bag on his back. 

Sprig caught the sound of jingling noises. Sprig saw something shiny fall out of the bag.

“Oh! Shiny.” Once Toadie was further away, he slipped out of the bush. He picked up the shiny piece. It was a copper coin. “A copper coin? The mayor? A hole in that bag? Hmmm. That is suspicious. As Sasha would do, she would investigate it further.” Sprig looked behind his shoulder to watch the cart roll away with Anne on the back. “You’ll be fine, Anne. I hope so. I’ve got a mayor to follow and to bust.”

Sprig felt something behind him and then something licked his back. He turned around to see Domino who followed Sprig

“Domino! What are you doing here? Hey, wait. I got an idea. Domino. Go to Sasha. Follow Sasha’s scent. Get Sasha.”

Domino tilted her head and let out a meow. The moment she heard Sasha’s name, she quickly flew off.

In the meantime.

Sasha walked through the halls of the South Tower. She knocked on the door to where Aldo was present.

“You may enter.” She heard that guff voice speak from the inside. She walked into the room to see Aldo sitting in one of the nicer chairs. They were alone. “So you wish to speak to me.”

“Yes, Aldo. I know your ancestor was Barrel the Brave.” She went straight to the point.

“Why, pray tell, are you asking about my ancestor?”

Sasha looked around the room. She had to be sure. She quickly searched for any listening bugs. She found none. She got down to her knees in front of Aldo.

“I ask because…” Her eyes looked left and right before dropping her voice. “I believe the Spirit has finally made her presence known. And your ancestor knew her well.”

Aldo stared at Sasha for the longest time. One bony hand lifted to stroke his bread. “That flash of blue you and I both saw was the Spirit. But Aldo, I need to know what Barrel knew about. I need to know the truth about the Spirit.”

Aldo stared at Sasha, not saying a word. 

“So you wish to know more about the spirit? I…Don’t have anything of relevance to you.” 

Sasha blinked three times till the words were processed into her head.

“What!? Oh, come on you old toad. You have to know something about the Spirit. Something I am missing. I am trying to find out the truth.”

“You are not yet worthy of the truth about the Spirit.” 

“Worthy?! Why in the fuck do I have to be worthy to know the truth about A…” Sasha stopped herself from blurting Anne’s name out. She closed her mouth. “Why do I need to be worthy to know the truth about the Spirit?”

“The lies of the world are too great to say out aloud. Only the right ears may be able to hear the cries of its people. Only the chosen ones of the star may be able to discover the truth.” Sasha stared at the old toad dubiously.  

“I’m talking to a tadpole.” She facepalmed as she dragged her hands across her face. “That is what I’m trying to do! To uncover the truth. Just tell it to me straight!”

“That is all I will say, young one. For now. I trust in time you will uncover how to prove your worth to know the truth.”

Sasha sighted. She wasn’t going to get anywhere with him. She was going to have to cut her losses for now. She would need to decipher what Aldo told her and maybe figure out how she could prove her worth to him. 

“Thank you for meeting with me, Aldo. It was…Insightful.”

“It is a pleasure, Sasha and I trust you will figure out what I have told you.”

Sasha nodded her head. She left the room and wiped her face with her hand. She was going to have a hard time. She walked back to Grime’s office. Her toad father was sitting in his chair with piles of paperwork next to him. That was the one thing he hated. Paperwork. She ignored protocol and just plopped into the chair across from him. 

“So I see you didn’t get much from Aldo.” Grime just chuckled. “As I suspected. But why were you so interested in asking Aldo a question?”

Sasha leaned forward. “We found a secret tunnel under the Plantar’s home.” That caught Grime’s attention. He set his pen down. “It led us into the history of the Plantars. They had a colorful history. Scientists! Warriors! It was so cool. Then we found a room that belonged to Leif. Anne said that Leif was a dear friend of hers. We found proof, Grime. We found proof that Anne wasn’t evil.”

“You…How? What did it say?”

“It said that,” Sasha paused and looked around the room. “One of the kings wanted all the statues to be taken down and books about Anne to be taken. The Plantars hid their connection to Anne to protect her. Don’t you see, Anne isn’t evil. Leif loved her like a daughter, and Lief’s granddaughter has erased Anne’s images to protect her but from whom, I don’t know yet.”

Grime set his chin on his hands. “You have the proof?”

“It’s at the Plantar’s place. A journal from Leif’s granddaughter.”

“You know that I still don’t trust her.”

“I know. But I will help convince you that Anne is good.” Because I want your approval of her. Because I care deeply for her and I want you to be proud of me.

Someone came charging into the room.

“Sir! We got reports of a white Coastal Kill-A-Moth heading this way.”

“A white Coastal Kill-A-Moth? That’s Domino! Don’t you dare touch her! Put your weapons down and allow her to land.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“You know that beast?” Grime asked as he got up. He followed Sasha out the door. 

“Yep. She is Anne’s friend and she is my friend too. I trust her.”

Anne and the toads traveled to Felicia’s Tea Shop. The toads crashed through the door. They were taking everything they could. Teas. The fancy silverware. Even some of Felicia’s fine china. Felicia forced Ivy behind her as the toads were laughing as they shoveled food down their throats. When Fens didn’t notice, Anne grabbed the tea set from the pile they were ready to take out.

“This should pay for those taxes you skimped on us.” Fens laughed as she left.

Anne waited behind. When the toads were gone, Anne handed the tea set back.

“Here, take this.” 

Felicia gasped as she held her set close to her. Ivy and Felicia watched Anne leave the shop before looking at each other in surprise.

The toads crashed Loggle's shop next. They took his clocks, his woodwork, and his statue. As Loggle cried as they took all of his hard work. Anne just waited for the toads to leave before handing Loggle the music box he had made based on hers. 

“Here, Loggle. You should have something you made with your own two hands.”

“Oh, thank you. Thank you.”

When they raced to a house Anne wasn’t familiar with, they kicked the door down. Anne noticed a man jump up from his chair and then to the little boy next to him. It was the same boy from the general store. 

“What the hell are you toads doing here?” The male asked, outraged that they broke his door and frightened his son.

“You didn’t pay your taxes. We are taking what we should be owed.”

“What? I paid my taxes.” 

“The list doesn't lie,” Bog responded. He smiled as he snapped his fingers. The toads rushed in and began taking things. Anne gasped when Mire took the stuffed rabbit out of the boy’s hands.

“No! Mr. Snuggles.” The boy was crying as his father comforted him.

“It’s okay, buddy. Daddy will buy you a new one.” The father shot the group a glare.

When Mire was searching for more things to take, Anne sneakily grabbed the stuffed rabbit from the cart. When the toads left the home, she handed the toy back to the boy. He stared at her in surprise. For a moment, Anne believed that he would snub her as he had done earlier. He surprised her by grabbing the toy and quickly hugged her legs.

Anne smiled and patted his head.

They then crashed into Carol’s house.

“I paid my taxes, you brutes. Anne?” Carol was surprised to see Anne with them. She weakly waved at them.

“Sorry Amery, but the list doesn’t lie. You didn’t pay your taxes, so we are here to take something in return.”

Fens suddenly appeared holding a painting in her hands.

“Is this a Lilian Amery’s painting?”

“Why yes, it is!” Fens grinned sadistically.

“Sweet. I call dibs.”

“Hey wait. That’s my granddaughter’s painting. And that’s my statue.”

Anne waited until the toads cleared out before slipping one of the smaller paintings into Carol’s hands. 

“I know it’s not a bigger Lily’s painting but it’s something.”

Anne tried to turn away but Carol grabbed her hands. 

“Anne, what are you doing with those heathens?”

“I was…I was hoping to get respect from the town.” Anne felt so ashamed because this was not what she had hoped for. She was hurting Wartwood instead.

“Anne sweetie, you don’t have to go about it this way though. But I trust you will do the right thing.”

Anne left the house in a guilty state. Carol’s words echoed in her head.

Then they kicked the door down to Mrs. Croacker’s house. She was shocked at first before yelling. 

“Archie, sic them.” The little black spider let out a vicious squeak as he was ready to defend his master with his acid. Mire climbed on the ceiling before leaping in front of the spider. All Anne heard was the heavy breathing before Mire roared. It was enough to spook Archie and run behind his master. He whimpered as the toads stole anything that looked valuable in Mrs. Croaker’s house. When Mire wasn’t looking, Anne slipped Archie’s bed out of his arms and replaced it with a vase. She handed Archie’s bed back to her.

“I'm so sorry, Mrs. Croacker.”

“Dearie, you don’t need to be hanging with them to get respect. You have mine. But I think I can already tell you are trying to make things right.” Anne smiled at her.

“I’m going to set things right.”

Archie rubbed his body against her leg. She scratched his head before leaving.

The cart rolled down the road.

“Now, let’s see here. The last name on our list is…Haha. Old Hopediah Plantar.”

Anne’s brain stopped working and her heart just froze with dread.

“What?! Hopediah Plantar?! Bog, that list has to be wrong. He is totally honest.”

“Anne, the tower didn’t get any taxes, okay? And if we didn’t get the money, then where is it?” Bog screamed in her face. Anne tried to think. Then what Sasha had told her echoed in her mind.

“That Toadstool. I swear, I think he is stealing the Tower’s taxes. I just can’t figure out where he is keeping them or what he is actually doing with them.” 

Anne wasn’t sure. She looked up to see a storm rolling in. 

Sprig followed Mayor Toadstool to the center of town. He peeked over the ledge of a screen. Toadstool had them put up earlier because he said that the statue needed some repairs. Toadie set the bag down.

“It’s flawless, Toadie. The perfect plan. Who would think to look for the missing taxes in plain sight?” 

“Masterstroke, sir.”

“Quickly now. Let’s skedaddle before anyone notices.” Then, Sprig jumped out from hiding and pointed his finger at the perpetrators.

“The taxes! That’s where you have been hiding. Everyone’s gonna be furious when they find out about this. Sasha is going to be so mad too, and delighted because she also knew it was you.”

“Damn it! It’s Sasha’s annoying little brother.”

“Darn straight. Just wait when I tell her.” But then Toadstool smirked.

“Well, then it’s a good thing you’ll never get to tell her.” He leaped to grab but Sprig was too fast for him, so he flipped backwards onto the ledge. 

“Well, ya gotta catch me first.” He blew a raspberry at them. He jumped off and began jumping away.

“Hey! After him.” Toadstool began chasing after the frog.

Sprig only hoped that he could delay Toadstool long enough for either Sprig to alert the townsfolk or until Sasha came back.

Hop Pop put his hands on his hips. He was blocking the door to his home. Polly had her wrench in her hands. Frobo looked ready to throw hands.

“Like I said, I already paid my taxes. You can’t come in here, and that’s final.”

“Listen, Hopediah, you may be buddy buddy with Captain Grime but he ain’t here now. Or did you forget who you are talking to?” Anne appeared in front of Bog as she implored him to listen.

“Bog, please. I am telling you that he paid his taxes. I should know. He was teaching me and Sasha was there too.”

Anne flashes back to when Hop Pop was showing everyone how to do taxes. 

“So, then you add up your deductible and…Oops! Guess what, Anne? You’re a deductible.”

Anne had no idea what a deductible was, but she felt happy to at least be included. Sasha was sitting on the other chair, and it appeared that she was being tormented while alive. 

“Kill me~”

“Anne, they all say they’ve paid. I don’t care what you think you saw.” Anne looked down. “The list doesn’t lie. Now, what should we start with?”

“Well, how about the snail?” Fens pointed to Bessie. Bessie let out an anxious chirp. 

“You stay away from her! She’s family!” Hop Pop went defensive for his precious snail.

“I’ll bite your faces off!” Polly and Hop Pop stepped in front of Bessie.

“Good choice. That snail should cover everything. Mire! Fens! Anne, move out.”

Anne stayed stuck to the floor. She could hear Bessie calling out for her and her family. The pain was too much for Anne. She had to set things right. 

This is not what she wanted at all. She wanted the town to love her like it used to, not to fear her. 

“You monsters!” 

She was going to have their respect another way. But this wasn’t the way. Bessie was still crying out when Anne yelled.

“STOP!” Anne marched forward. “You keep your claws off that snail. Better yet!” Anne walked through the toads and to their shock, Anne stepped up and defended her family. “Get off our property!”

There was a loud thunderclap above her head and the wind began blowing.

“Care to repeat that?” Bog spoke lowly and bent-up fury as he dared her to say it again.

“I will. Get off our property. I said get lost. Now!”

Everyone who had come by their house gathered around and stood there in shock. Bog’s eyes kept looking right and left. 

“Oh, she’s brave.”

“He ha! That’s Anne for you.” Mrs. Croaker screamed in a cheer.

Anne ripped the badge off and stared at it in her palms. It still felt heavy in her hands. She looked up to see the citizens. Some of the same people who had their houses ransacked by her and the toads.

“All I wanted was the town to love me. I just wanted to be a part of the community.” Just like I had so many years ago. “But just because these people treated me like shit doesn’t mean I’m going to do the same to them. I’m done with this.” Anne threw the badge into the mud. “I’m done being your pawn. I don’t care if they’ve broken the law. Actually, I don’t even think they did. But you don’t go around treating people like they are the scum of the earth.”

The townsfolk were in shock. 

“She stood up for us.”

“Even after we treated her!”

“She is looking death in the face.”

Bog just growled. He snapped his fingers. Fens suddenly tackled Anne to the ground. She hit the ground hard, mud smearing her face. Fens rubbed her face in the mud while she was laughing. 

“Anne!” Hop Pop yelled. 

Mire grabbed Polly and Hop Pop in his arms and squeezed. Polly roared before biting down on Mire’s arm. He just stood there like it didn’t bother him at all. Anne struggled before Bog stepped on her head, pushing her further into the mud.

“You ass.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. How disappointing. I had high hopes for you Anne.” Bog pulled his hammer out and held it over his hand. He had that evil glint in his eyes. 

Anne was struggling. She could activate her powers but that was a bigger risk. The hammer came down towards her head, she rolled away. The hammer instead hit Fens’ foot. She shrieked in pain as she held her injured foot. Bog focused his attention on Anne. She stood tall. Frobo stood behind Mire and transformed his hands into claws. His yellow eyes flashed red. But Mire quickly used Hop Pop and Polly as a shield making Frobo stagger back and beep sadly.

“Domino!” Anne looked up, hoping to see her Kill-A-Moth and help her. But Domino never answered her call, which was strange.

Fens kicked her in the face. Anne collapsed to the ground. Anne grabbed a stick and was using it as a weapon. She smacked Fens over the head. She raced to Mire to save Polly and Hop Pop. But Fens tackled her to the ground. They struggled for a bit. Fens scratched her face a bit. Anne kicked Fens and clawed her way back up. 

Bog swung his hammer into her body, hitting her arm and she was too late to dodge. 

Everyone could hear the bones crack in her arm as Anne howled and collapsed to the ground, clutching her broken arm. Anne was crying as the pain was so severe. Anne had never felt such pain before in all the years she had been alive. A shadow loomed over her, and she glared at Bog as the wretched toad grinned.

“Sorry, Anne. It’s just business.” He lifts his hammer again, ready to deliver the final blow when something hits the back of Bog’s head. “What the hell was that?”

“You leave her alone!” Ivy had tossed a mud ball-filled rock into Bog’s head.

“Yeah, you leave our Anne alone.” Wally walked in front of Anne.

“She's one of us.” Felicia stood next to Wally. Both were shielding Anne. 

“If you got a problem with her, you got a problem with all of us.” Mrs. Coaker stood next to Felicia as Archie barked and growled at the offenders. Then, Mrs. Amery stood next to Croaker.

“Yeah!” 

“One of us. One of us.” 

One by one, every frog and person formed a shield to protect Anne from harm and none of them called her a weirdo, they called her name. They called her Anne.

Anne could feel the trickle of tears in the corners of her eyes, and she knew it wasn’t from the pain. The townsfolk were standing up for her. They really liked her. She had their love again.

“We will defend Anne with our lives if we have to,” Wally screamed. Bog just chuckled.

“That’s fine by me. Do you folks forget who you are dealing with? We are toads from Toad Tower. We could easily squish you all like bugs. Now out of my way. I have a personal score to settle with Anne.” The townsfolk threw their hands up like they were ready to brawl. “I said, OUT OF MY WAY!” Bog had a crazed look in his eyes, but no one was budging, they stood their ground. 

“You have to go through us!” Mrs. Amery exclaimed.

“And you’ll have to go through me.” The new voice has made Bog’s red-colored skin pale while the people of Wartwood are happy. Anne looked up and smiled. Sasha was standing there with her gloved hand on her sword. Domino was standing behind her, growling. 

“Sasha!” The citizens cried out.

“Lieutenant Sasha!” Bog and Fens both said. “It’s not what you think. Allow me to explain.” Bog begins to talk to defend himself.

Sasha had a neutral look on her face as she didn’t say a word. Sasha walked forward, towards the townsfolk. They still surrounded Anne. Sasha waved them off, as they let her through to get to Anne. Anne looked up to see Sasha standing over her, with that blank look on her face.

“Sasha, I-” Sasha stopped her by holding her hand up to stop Anne. She clamped her mouth shut. 

Sasha bent done to Anne’s level, taking her cape off. She gently wrapped the cape around Anne’s arm before tying it together to act as a temporary tourniquet. She helped Anne up and kept an arm wrapped around her shoulders. She turned to Bog.

“You attempt to cut a single hair on any of these townsfolk or attempt to harm Anne or my family again, and I’ll see you in pieces.” Sasha flicked her pink sword out of the sheathing. Her voice was monotone. 

“They didn’t pay their taxes. We were just here to collect.”

“And harass these good people? I won’t stand by and let you continue your little party. Especially when you hurt Anne.”

“Your father, our captain, told us to collect the taxes.” Bog shot back. “I’m only obeying the rules of our captain. Our captain is in charge.”

“And I am in charge when Grime isn’t around! I am your lieutenant! Never question my authority again, or maybe I should remind you that protocol 5-99 was abolished by King Andrias himself and for a good reason too. The law was printed by King Aldrich. Storming into people’s houses, vandalizing, and seizing their belongings is considered a high crime, and you three will pay the consequences of your actions.”

But Bog isn’t backing down. “Then, how do you explain the missing taxes then? They left us no choice but to use drastic measures. If they haven’t paid the taxes, then where is it?”

An answer has come in the form of a young pink frog who appeared out of the blue.

“Sasha!” Sasha glanced up to see Sprig come bouncing out of the brushes and hopped right into her arms. “I know where the missing taxes are!” 

Toadstool at that moment came out of the brushes, huffing and puffing. 

“Oh boy! Gotta cut back on them cricket nuggets. Whoo!” Toadstool glanced up and saw Sasha’s glare along with the three toads. “Uh oh!”

“He stole the taxes!” Sprig pointed to the large toad. “He has been stealing the taxes right under your faces.” Everyone glared at the toad. He just awkwardly laughed. “And I know where they are.”

“Now, just wait one flippin’ minute. I mean…A-are you really going to believe a child, Lieutenant Sasha?” Toadstool nervously asked. 

“Show me the way, Sprig.” 

They gathered in the center of town and around the statue that had sat in the town square for months.

“May I?” Sprig grabbed the hammer and tried to lift it up. Sasha chuckled and watched him struggle for a bit. “I think you should do it, Sasha.”

“My pleasure.”

Sasha picked up the hammer with ease and swung it, smashing the large butt of the Toadstool statue. Copper coins came spilling out of the statue. Everyone gasped as they witnessed their hard-earned money come tumbling out. They focused their attention on Toadstool.

“You no-good son of a bastard slug!” Mrs. Croaker shouted.

“People, I needed the extra money for my campaign. Do you know how much it costs to buy your love?” The citizens pulled produce out. “And as mayor, I hereby pardon myself of any wrongdoing. Thank you and good day.” 

A bunch of the frogs begin chasing after Toadstool, hitting him with the vegetables. Sasha just laughed as she watched the toad get pelted with vegetables. She still had an arm wrapped around Anne’s body.

Sasha decided to have Bog and his goons personally hand back the items they had taken. Anne was trying to grab a grandfather clock off the cart with just one hand. Sasha walked over and grabbed the clock from Anne.

“Here, let me get that. You need to rest.” Sasha easily threw the grandfather clock over her shoulder. Anne blushed as she marveled at Sasha’s strength.

“Thank you.” Sasha gave her a smile. Anne followed her. “So how did you arrive so quickly and why was Domino with you?” 

“Apparently, a little pink frog sent her to my location. I’m glad I got there in time. But I’m sorry I didn’t come here sooner.” Sasha looked at Anne’s broken arm. They were put into a cast as soon as they could.

“It’s fine. It hurt but nothing compared to the pain I caused to Wartwood.”

“But, you did the right thing. Wartwood loves you again. Like they should.”

“It does feel nice.”

“Let me finish this last load and let’s get you home. You need to take your pain medication.”

Then, all of a sudden, Anne flinched when the whole town came walking down bearing gifts. Wally walked up first as he removed his hat. 

“I was wrong about you, lass. You’re no weirdo but an honest, sweet lady who just wants to fit in.” He offered her a smile and Anne was rendered speechless. “Oh! I made this. It’s not much but I thought you might like it.” He gave Anne his beetle jerky. “I never liked jerky. I just took it to annoy you, I’m sorry.”

Anne teared up, “It’s okay, and thank you.”

Before she knew it frogs and people had each given Anne a gift to thank her, but Anne didn’t care about gifts. All she cared about the most was that she was one of them and she earned the love and the respect from everyone.

In the background, Sasha and the Plantars are smiling with pride.

“You three will be sent immediately to the pain room!” Grime roared. Bog, Mire, and Fens both gulped. “You harassed the folks of Wartwood. Stole their property. Broke Miss Boonchuy’s arm. Threatened my dear friend and his family. Threatened the townsfolk. When you KNEW that protocol was taken down by King Andrias…No, the pain room won’t be enough. I hereby banish you from the tower! You will live out the rest of your days outside. I see you hanging around here and I won’t be so kind next time.”

“Captain Grime, please. Reconsider. The Spirit is still out there.” Bog begged. 

“Then may the Spirit have mercy on your souls. Now leave!” 

Grime watched them leave. Percy came beside him.

“Wasn’t that a little cruel, Captain?”

“No, it wasn’t. If they survive, they will learn their lessons.”

Sasha helped Anne down the stairs as the potion from Maddie was already taking effect. She helped Anne into her bed. Anne grabbed her left hand, which had the glove off. 

“Sasha, stay. Please.” Sasha chuckled. 

“All right. I’ll stay until you fall asleep.” Sasha sat down. Sasha weaved their fingers together. 

“Thank you, Sasha.” The drugs seemed to be having a quick effect on Anne. She closed her eyes and was out. But not before muttering something. “Love you.”

Sasha sat there in shock. Anne's hand was still in hers and the warmth spread all the way to her chest. Beating fast. She feels like she’s floating.

Sasha gently pried her fingers free and laid Anne’s arm across her stomach. Sasha’s left hand brushed some of Anne’s curls out of her face and then her eyes were drawn to her lips.

She had been wondering for quite a while to feel her lips against hers.

She is leaning down. 

Getting closer she could feel the soft breath coming from her lips, but she stopped. She froze when she was mere inches away.

She leaned back and pressed a kiss on Anne’s forehead. 

“I…Care for you too, Anne Boonchuy. No, Anne the Spirit.” She couldn’t force those three simple words out of her mouth, and it hurt her that she couldn’t. But maybe, hopefully, she could say those words to her. Someday.

For now, Sasha stayed down there, gently stroking Anne’s hair and face. 

Chapter Text

Sasha couldn’t be more happy or relieved that the missing taxes case was finally closed after discovering it was Toadstool and his buddy, Toadie had been keeping the people’s taxes for his campaign. That’s good news.

However, much to Sasha’s frustration, that doesn’t mean they could buy back their stand. Not even the money she earned when she sold her items from the trunk wasn’t even enough. 

And they must pay the medical bills for Anne’s broken arm inflicted by Bog. Anne felt awful and apologized for her carelessness. But they don’t want her apology, they understand how frustrated she was with Wartwood but now, she finally got their respect and love from them.  

The Plantars were still upset by the fact that they had lost the stand. They were still trying to find ways to gather enough coppers to buy it back. Sadly, they were vastly short on funds.

Anne is even more determined to help in any way she can to get Hop Pop’s stand back.

However, she didn’t imagine it would come to this!

Hop Pop has decided to sell their hard-labored produce in the dark, smelly back alley.

“Now kids, just because we lost the stand doesn’t mean we can’t sell our produce out of a janky wheelbarrow.” Hop Pop said. He showed them the wheelbarrow and the thing looked ready to be broken down any second now.

“This is pretty sad, Hop Pop. I’m sorry.” Anne looked down at Hop Pop and winced.

“Agreed.” 

“Ah, criminal activity. Excitement!” Sprig pulled out a mask that had holes cut in it. He put it over his head. 

“Sprig, take that off.” Hop Pop ripped it off his head and tossed it at him. “This is perfectly legal!” 

“Then why are we hiding in an alley? And why are we hiding from Sasha?” Polly threw her hands up in the air. Polly and Anne looked through the opening to see Sasha in her armor talking to toads and men, with her back turned.  

“Well, uh well, Stop asking questions.” Hop Pop let out a huff. “This is fine. What we are doing is fine.” 

Anne didn’t believe in Hop Pop. She knew this was wrong, but she wasn’t going to argue against him. She was just going to have to deal with it on her own. She knew Sasha was stressing herself out by trying to gather the necessary funds so they could buy the stand back. 

Anne grabbed some of the produce as requested and slipped out of the alleyway. She looked around for someone who she hoped would buy the produce from her. Anne walked around, looking for someone. She wasn’t looking where she was going and bumped into a female frog.

One of the vegetables fell out of her hand. The female frog was quick to catch it before it fell. 

“I am so sorry. I should have been looking where I was going and thank you for catching it.” Anne suddenly flinched. She had never seen this frog around before. 

She had long white hair in a ponytail and lime-green skin. She was fearful that someone she never met would call her weirdo, especially after having just earned their respect.

“It’s okay, dearie. At least I caught this lumpy guy before he fell. Don’t want your vegetables to be damaged.”

“Oh! I’m actually trying to sell these.”

“Oh! Well then, I will take the lumpy one. I always did have a soft spot for the weird ones.” That got a chuckle out of Anne. “I haven’t seen you around here before. You new?”

“Yes. I’m Anne Boonchuy.” Anne shifted the vegetables to one arm and held her hand out for a handshake. 

“Sylvia Sundew.”

“Sundew? Oh, you must be Ivy’s grandma? She talked about you!”

“Yes, you know my grandbaby then. So, Miss Anne, where do you live?” 

“Oh, I’m living with the Plantars and Sasha.”

“Hoppy.” Anne was confused. Who was Hoppy? “Of course, Hoppy would take in a sweet girl like you. He was always a kind man.” 

“Oh, you meant Hop Pop.” Anne smiled. “Yeah. He took me in when I needed a place and made me a Plantar.” 

“That is my Hoppy for you. Always been a sweet gentle frog.”

“I can take you to see him.”

“Oh, if you could be so kind.” 

Anne held her arm out for the frog to take. They walked through the streets to find Hop Pop. Anne spotted her adopted grandfather looking right and left with his wheelbarrow in hand.

“Hop Pop!” Anne called out to him. He glanced up before his eyes landed on Sylvia. His face went beet red, and he started to stammer. 

“Hoppy!”

“S-Sylvia!”

“Oh, it is so good to see you again.” She went to hug him with just one arm while she was still holding the lumpy pumpkin in her other hand, up in the air.

“I thought you had moved.” Hop Pop didn’t hug back, too nervous to put his arms around the woman of his desire as if he was afraid he’d get burned.

“I did but where I was at wasn’t feeling like home. So, I decided to come back to Wartwood. Now I see you adopted this beautiful and gorgeous young girl.” Anne blushed at the comment. “You always had a good heart, Hoppy. Now how much will it be for this weird little vegetable?” She held up the weird veggie that was oddly shaped like Hop Pop’s head.

“Uh…uh…Two coppers.” Hop Pop was tongue-tied. It reminded Anne of Marcy when she was around Lily. 

Sylvia flipped two coppers coins in Hop Pop’s direction and pecked his cheek. He stood there stammering with a big old red lip imprint on his cheek. She waved goodbye to Hop Pop with pumpkin in her arms and said farewell, “Hope to see you soon, Anne. Bye-bye.”

“It was nice to meet you, Sylvia.” 

Hop Pop let out a huge sigh with a dreamy expression. He gazed at Sylvia, the woman who still made him stammer and make his heartbeat rate so fast he’d afraid it’d leap out of his vocal sac. 

Sylvia Sundew was like a fire, too hot to touch. But Hopediah Plantar would gladly be burned alive to be with her. 

“Hop Pop, you hornfrog!” Sasha came up to them. She was smiling. “Did I just see you getting hit on by Sylvia?” Hop Pop shrieked like he saw a ghost.

“Sasha! I wasn’t trying to sell our vegetables illegally.” Hop Pop had the look of panic on his face. Sasha pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Hop Pop, because I love you and you are my grandfather, I am going to ignore that statement. But you and Sylvia, huh? I see you two love doves hitting it off.”

Anne gagged. “I wish you guys would stop using love doves as an example of a loving relationship. How about love bugs? Those are way cuter!”

“I’ll try Anne. It’s an old habit. But no, I was not hitting on Sylvia Sundew.” Hop Pop denies it.

“Right! Sure, Hop Pop. What are you even doing in town?”

“We are illegally selling produce.” He said it with a straight face.

“I am going to ignore that again. But back to Sylvia. Come on, Hop Pop. It’s been years since your wife died and you have had a crush on Sylvia even before I came into the family.”

Hop Pop sighs both tired and sad. 

Sad and mourning the loss of his wife and ever since then, he never went on a date because he was too busy taking care of his family. He was tired because he couldn’t overcome the nerve to talk to Sylvia and tell her how he truly felt about her.

“I wish it were that easy, Sasha. But you see how I act around her. I…Wish there was a way to let Sylvia know how I feel.” 

Everyone turned their heads when they heard a loud hammering sound. “Kids, watch the wheelbarrow.”

Hop Pop walked over to where everyone was gathering around. Toadie is on a step ladder, hammering a poster onto the message board. On the sign in big letters was Dance Fever. 

“Dance Fever! With Family fun. Shenanigans! Romance! Tonight, from six pm till…Hmmmmmm?” Toadie shrugged his shoulders and hopped off the ladder.

Hop Pop just hummed in thought as he stared at the sign. He heard Sylvia in the back.

“Been a long time since I’ve danced with someone. Might be nice to feel the warm embrace of a man.” Said Sylvia to her daughter, Felicia. 

She blushed in embarrassment, “Mom, please.” 

Hop Pop’s mouth fell. He couldn’t believe his ears. Then, he felt someone tapping his left shoulder. When Hop Pop looked to see who it was, there wasn’t anyone standing there. Then he felt another tap on his right shoulder then more pokes into his back. A blue frog jumped in front of Hop Pop. 

“Ha-ha! Classic, gullible Hopediah!” 

“Oh. Hey Monroe.” Hop Pop didn’t hide his disdain for the frog. 

Anne was observing Hop Pop from the alleyway with Sasha and Polly. Anne turned to Sasha.

“Who’s that?”

“That old windbag is Monroe. Dude thinks he is cool. He and Hop Pop have been rivals forever.”

“Monroe wins at pretty much everything. Lawn bowling, shuffleboard, other old man activities.” Polly stood next to them. 

“You’re not seriously thinking of going to this thing, are you? Wouldn’t want to embarrass yourself like last year’s barn dance fiasco.” Monroe started laughing before slapping his knee. “See you around, old timer.” 

Monroe walked away, laughing. Hop Pop just glared at him.

“Oh, we’ll see about that. We’ll see.” 

A loud whistle went off. Hop Pop turned to see the sheriff and Sasha chasing after Sprig. He still had his mask on.

“Hop Pop, it’s the fuzz. Everyone scatter! Aah!” 

“Frog damn it, Sprig!” Sasha screamed at her little brother. “What did I tell you about illegal activity?”

The Plantars, minus Sasha and Anne, scattered in different directions.

Hop Pop was upset from what Monroe told him was still ringing in his head. Sylvia was back in town and maybe what Sasha said was true. Maybe he could ask her out. It had been years since his wife died. Bark was only a year old when she passed. Maybe it was time he found his own happiness. 

But there lies a problem. Hop Pop couldn’t dance to save his life. He was a bumbling mess of flying limbs that couldn’t hold a rhythm. Even Sprig had a better rhythm than him. Hell, even Marcy could dance better than him and she was naturally klutzy. Dance actually helped her coordination. 

He had until tonight to improve his dancing. He had a book open to show him the movement of a dance. 

“Well, let’s see here.” Hop Pop grabbed a nearby mop and held it in his hands as if he were holding Sylvia in her arms. “Sorry, Sylvia. And a-one and a-two and.” Hop Pop tripped over his own two feet and broke the mop underneath him. He collapses to the floor and refuses to move.

“I’m hopeless. Who can teach me how to dance in a short amount of time?” Hop Pop finally got up and walked out of his room. 

Hop Pop mourned himself in pity that he would die alone when he picked up the sound of laughter and music coming from the kitchen. 

He peeked his head in, and he saw Anne was in the kitchen, making dinner. Anne was twirling in a circle as the small radio played in the background. She was dancing around and singing as she cooked and even the pots were playing their own tune with whistling and sizzling.

 Hop Pop was in awe as he watched Anne dance with such grace and beauty. Anne spun around and came face to face with Hop Pop staring at her. She let out a scream, hair glowing blue, and threw a wooden spoon at his head. 

“Ow.”

“Hop Pop, what the hell!” 

“I’m sorry, Anne. But I…I need your help in teaching me how to dance.” Said Hop Pop.

“You could have asked before sneaking up on me like that.” Anne turned off the radio and lowered the heat from the stove.

“I’m sorry.” Hop Pop sadly walked away. Anne sighed. She followed him into the living room. 

“I’m sorry, Hop Pop. I didn’t mean to sound rude! I would gladly teach you how to dance. Although, my dancing is probably old school though. Valeriana taught me how but that was more for the fancier parties.”

“I don’t care. Anything is better than mine.”

“Well, let me be the judge of that. Let me see you dance.”

“ANNE, NOOOO!” Sasha suddenly bursts through the front door, shattering the door into pieces. Sprig was in her arms, having just bailed him out of jail. 

She had somehow been summoned by Anne’s words that Hop Pop was about to dance. Anne jumped in surprise again. “Don’t let Hop Pop dance. Ever.!” The look on her face was as if she witnessed absolute horror. Even Sprig looked horrified as well. “Anne, for the love of all that’s good! Don’t. Let. Hop Pop. Dance!”

Before Anne could ask what was going on when she heard the loud crashing coming from upstairs, she looked up to see Polly and Frobo just burst out of the door and broke the door in the process. Polly screamed all the way downstairs. 

“DON’T MAKE HOP POP DANCE, PLEASE!”

“Hey! I’m not that bad.” Hop Pop shouted in response to being insulted by three of his kids.

“Hop Pop, we were scarred for life for having to witness your freestyle dancing. You scared Polly and Sprig when they were younger so much, they had nightmares for a week! It was terrible.”

“OK, hold on, you three! Don’t you think you’re exaggerating a bit here?” Anne came up beside Sasha and wrapped her arm around Sasha’s arm. Sasha’s face told her otherwise.

“Anne, Hop Pop almost set the barn on fire because he tried to dance freestyle. Teaching him how to dance well is hopeless. Believe me, I’ve tried teaching him, and all I can say is even Marcy can dance better than him, and she is a total klutz!”

“Look, Sasha. I can’t help Hop Pop if I don’t see how he dances, and besides, I’ve seen bad dancers before. How bad can he be?”

The answer is that Sasha was right. Hop Pop’s dancing was atrocious. More like he’s been possessed by an evil demon.

Anne had to keep her eyes closed as she witnessed his dancing. She wasn’t even sure frogs could have bent like that. Sasha covered Sprig and Polly’s eyes with her hands while Frobo withdrew his head inside like a turtle. 

Hop Pop was huffing and puffing as he had just finished dancing.

“Hehe. Well, kids, I don’t think that was half bad.”

“Hop Pop, I don’t normally say this, but your freestyle dancing is, by all means, the worst thing I’ve seen! Just never do that again.” Ouch. Harsh. Hop Pop hung his head. “But I think I can help you to improve it. So, what exactly is this dance going to be?”

“Probably something similar to how you used to dance with Valeriana. It’s a simple slow dance really.” Sasha stood up.

“Unless Monroe decides to show off his dance skills.” Polly gagged. “Then Hop Pop will be a lost cause. We should just pack it and go home.”

“Have a little more faith, Polly. Who knows, I trust Anne will show Hop Pop how to dance.” Anne smiled at Sasha’s compliment, “Thank you, which is why I chose you to be my dance partner!” 

“See, Anne knows what sh-…Say what now?”

Anne turned to Sasha and tugged on her hands. Sasha’s mind was shut down and the warmth of Anne’s hands seemed to have paralyzed Sasha. 

Until she spoke, well, she stuttered. “W-what you are doing, Boonchuy?” 

“Hm? To dance, of course. Well, we are demonstrating Hop Pop, the slow dance. Now, hold my hand and put your other hand on my waist.” Anne instructed with an innocent face and Sasha looked at her as if she asked her to stab someone.

“To where?!” Sasha heard a snicker coming from Frobo, Polly, and Sprig, laughing at her dismay. She growled but stopped when Anne grasped her left hand, guiding it to her waist. 

“Just put it around here. That’s how slow dance works. I thought you knew how to dance. Whoa! Sasha, are you okay? Your face is bright red and why are you sweating?” 

“ Because my hand is on your waist and you’re asking me with an innocent look on your face!!?”

Sasha gulped, her nerves seemed to have frozen like solid ice, and her hand was on Anne’s waist as if she had invaded something way too personal space. It made her throat turn into a tight knot that she couldn’t swallow, her heart was ready to explode because of how fast it was beating, and she was over the moon but so terrified. 

Sasha didn’t even notice Anne was snapping her fingers in front of her face. “Sasha…Sasha…SASHA!!!” Sasha finally snapped out of her trance and looked down to see Anne was worried. “You zoned out for a minute. You, okay?” 

Sasha just answered without thinking, “Yes!” 

“Oh, okay! Just follow my lead but if you’re feeling tired let me know, okay?” This time, Sasha answered with a nod, because being up close and personal, Anne looked so beautiful and never thought for a mere moment that she would fit perfectly in her hands.

Anne put her hands on Sasha’s shoulder, similar to that night after the Firefly Formal. Sasha helped Anne guide her through the steps of a formal dance.

Sasha, for the most part, is as stiff as a board, but she feels like floating over the clouds as she dances with Anne. Correction, showing Hop Pop how slow dance looks like. But still, it’s all the same as Sasha unconsciously got close to Anne just so she could be near her. 

“You take it easy. I was the same as you, Hop Pop. I couldn’t dance. I stepped on everyone’s toes. I also had a bad habit of just floating in the air when I’m happy.”

“Y-you sound like Marcy.” Anne looked up to Sasha and she was looking a bit better. “She was the same way. She would step on everyone’s toes.” 

“Darcy was the same.” Hop Pop spoke up as he watched them dance. “She would keep apologizing anytime she stepped on people’s feet.” Hop Pop mentioned, fondly remembering seeing Darcy dancing once. She was terrible. But she never gave up. Darcy was as klutzy as Marcy. Marcy was actually better at dancing than her own mother. Dancing helped her coordination rather than hindered it.

Anne continued dancing with Sasha before letting go. She turned to Hop Pop.

“Alright, Hop Pop. Let’s just run through the steps. Ummm. Sprig, you act as Sylvia.” 

“Okay. Oh Hoppy.” Sprig, Polly, and Sasha started snickering at Sprig’s high-pitched voice. “Dance with me you, you strong man.”

“Not funny, Sprig.” 

Hop Pop grabbed his grandson’s hands and slowly danced. He was smiling as he seemed to be doing well. But much to misfortune, one misstep, and Hop Pop was suddenly slipping into the mud. His movements caused him to fall into the ant hill. He screamed as the ants attacked him. Anne and Sasha just winched in pain. 

“AAAHHH!! IT BURNS! IT BUUURRNNSS!!!”

“This may be harder than I thought.” 

“Hey wait! I got it! Lily once took me and Marcy to this nightclub in Newtopia a while back. Maybe traditional dance may not work with Hop Pop. But some of the newer dance moves may help him!”

“Teach me your ways, girls. I just need help.” Hop Pop fell to his knees.

They spent most of the afternoon teaching Hop Pop how to dance and this time, they’re teaching him the more modern style dance moves. 

Sasha was beginning to see he was improving. If by a margin. She just prayed he decided to not freestyle. Out of all the things she had faced, that was one of the scariest.

“Guys, the dance will start in fifteen minutes!” Sprig called out, looking at the sun.

“Let’s get dressed, quick.” Sasha picked up the two younger frogs and dragged them inside. Polly protested that she didn’t want to get dressed.

Anne slipped into a new dress that Mrs. Amery lent to her. She said it belonged to her when she was as young as Anne was. Anne felt she didn’t deserve it, but Caroline thought otherwise and said that the dress hadn’t been out since she no longer wore it. She believed that Anne would look stunning in that dress and that it would make her very happy if she wore it one day. Looks like Carol will get her wish in the dance party.

Indeed, the dress hugged her dreamily. The dark marine blue dress made her feel like she was in a fairy tale. Then she decided to pull her hair onto one side with a blue ribbon to go well with the dress. Some light makeup and she is done.

Then someone knocked on her door.

“Anne, are you done?” It was Sasha.

“Yes, I’m done.” 

That gave Sasha the okay to enter and she wore the same outfit in the Firefly Formal dance. Then, when Sasha looked, she was about to say something to her but she stopped. When her lips hung open, and blinked. Taking in the sight.

“Wow! You look gorgeous.” Sasha whispered.

“Thank you.” Anne blushed.

Sasha held her arm out for Anne to take. Anne took the offered arm and they left for the party. It was a peaceful walk until they could hear the sound of music from the distance as they inched closer.

The party is full of vibrance, good times and new memorable moments between lovers and old couples. They are also married couples as they watch their kids having their own fun either with silly dances or eating.

“I gotta say, as long as you’re not being forced to date someone, dances ain’t half bad.” Sprig said, waving his arms. The suit they had was once Hop Pop’s, but it was still too big for Sprig. The sleeves dangled over his hands. 

Polly just rolled her eyes. There was everyone here. Mrs. Croaker was with Archie, with a little bow tie on, as she sipped multiple cups of punch. Carol was chatting with an older human man. Soon, Sylvia soon appeared along with her daughter and granddaughter. 

“She’s here.” Hop Pop gulped. “I feel like I’m gonna faint. Can frogs faint? I DON’T KNOW ANYMORE!”

“Hop Pop, please calm down.” Anne raced to her grandfather and grabbed his shoulders. She gently shook him. “You got this! Walk up to her and ask her for a dance. I am one hundred percent sure she will say yes. And yes, frogs can faint.” 

Hop Pop’s panic melted away and got the boost of confidence he needed.

“Hmmmm! You’re right! I got this.”

“Go get your woman, Hop Pop!” Sasha called out and gave her the thumbs up.

Hop Pop nervously walked over to Sylvia. He was sweating like crazy. He had slime covering his hands. Until he got in front of Sylvia.

“S-S-Sylvia? Uh…” Hop Pop was nervous as he stuttered. Sylvia looked at him with her dazzling smile that made his knees weak.

Hop Pop was suddenly pushed out of the way by Monroe. Monroe smiled and tugged on his suit jacket. His eyebrows wiggled at Sylvia.

“Sylvia Sundew! Would you do me the honor of this dance?”

“Whoa.” Anne was taken aback. Even Sasha, Sprig, and Polly gasped in surprise.

“That little fucker.” Sasha snarled angrily that the jerk just pushed her grandfather.

“Why, Monroe. I’d be delighted.” Sylvia said but she looked a little upset that Hop Pop didn’t ask her first. 

Hop Pop was sweating. He was about to lose the frog woman of his dreams to his rival. Hop Pop curled his fist. He was going to fight. He was going to take a page of Sasha’s handbook. 

“Sylvia! Dance with me instead.” Hop Pop pushed Monroe out of the way. 

“Well, Hopediah.”

“Him? Ha! He can’t dance.” Monroe started laughing.

“I can dance better than you. I’ve been trained by the best, and I’m gonna take you down!” Hop Pop crossed his arms.

Sasha smacked her forehead in frustration. Anne covered her eyes with her hands. Sprig and Anne both cringed.

“Is that so? Then let’s settle this.”

Everyone cheered. Everyone at the dance gathered around the dance floor to see what was transpiring. 

“The drama.” Sprig said.