Expedition Day 1: Entry 5
When I got back to town after the excursion to Simmering Springs, I was surprised to see that there was a campfire set up and that the current residents of Snaxburg were standing around it with a boombox playing and with Filbo being the only one dancing.
"Um... did a party start without me?" I asked in confusion.
"Peh, I'd hardly call this a party," Wambus said with a frown. As for Gramble? He had his back to Wambus and was looking at a small Kweeble.
"H-Hey, Beffica? Doesn't this music just make you want to dance?" Filbo asked with a small smile, though I could tell he was forcing it.
"With you? Not happening. I'm only here because of my bestie," Beffica said, me frowning at how she treated him, but I knew that calling her out would be the wrong move.
"Um... hey, Gramble? Wambus? You have any thoughts on the party?" Filbo asked, that making Gramble frown as I got closer to the fire.
"I got nothin' to say to a guy like Wambus," he said as Wambus then frowned.
"Really? Cause I've got plenty to say to you," Wambus said, me gulping... what was going to happen?
"That so? Then go 'head an' speak yer mind, 'neighbor'," Gramble said with venom in his voice, which I didn't expect from the tiny Bugsnax farmer.
"We'd have been quite fine on Snax if ya'll didn't let 'em all loose. Face facts, Gramble, Bugsnax will NEVER love you!" Wambus said, me gasping at that. And as for what happened with Gramble after? He snapped.
"YOU DON'T KNOW A THING ABOUT LOVE! THAT'S WHY YER WIFE LEFT YOU!" Gramble shouted, me feeling something brewing inside of me... this was not going well, and I was getting angry at how they were treating each other!
"I'm gonna do violence to ya," Wambus said with his own venom and Filbo then tried to get in between them.
"H-Hey, easy, we can't be fighting, we have to-" Filbo was about to say before Wambus shouted over him.
"SHUT YOUR GRUMPIN' MOUTH, FILBO! If ya'll had the SPINE to lead us, everyone'd still be here!" Wambus shouted, me then feeling even more furious. I felt like I was going to explode just from how things were going.
"Don't you mean Triffany would still be here?" Beffica said. And when she did, I then felt my anger explode!
"THAT'S ENOUGH! YOU HEAR ME?! STOP THIS FIGHTING! RIGHT! NNNNOOOOOWWWWWW! ! ! ! !" I shouted angrily as I felt my jelly-filled head go into overdrive, tons of jam, juice, and chunks of grapes exploding from my cranium in pure rage, which was definitely enough to get everyone to shut up and look at me. "Now that I have your fricking attention, I have a few new rules to enact, since Lizbert is gone and I'm the one supplying the Snax, both for consumption and for Gramble's barn, which leads me into RULE 1! No one but Gramble and myself are allowed in his barn or his pen. If you are found out to have gone inside of that barn and eat his Bugsnax, you will be left behind on the island when it goes to explode," I said, that making Filbo gasp.
"E-Explode?! The island's going to explode?!" Filbo asked, me nodding.
"Yes, I found out from the Bugsnax that the island has tonight and 6 days left before the volcano erupts. Anyone that breaks any of these rules are put onto a one and done system. If you break any rule, you stay behind unless I say so," I said, Beffica gulping at me.
"You mean... you're serious... I can tell..." Beffica gulped.
"Which leads into Rule 2. We will remain civil with each other at all times. No one is to have any fights, no ifs, ands, or buts. I will not tolerate any violence between each other. You're allowed to dislike people, but you cannot start fights.
Rule 3: While I am out of the town, Filbo is the one in charge, and it is to STAY AS SUCH! We haven't seen or heard of anything about Lizbert for quite awhile from what I've heard, and Filbo has been trying his damnedest to help out since I came. If I find out that you've taken advantage of him while I'm out hunting for Snax, then you're done.
And finally, Rule 4: We only have 6 days left after tonight, so we need to chip in as a group effort in order to try and find Lizbert's location as well as fix up my balloon ship so we can get off the island before it blows up. Does everyone comply with these rules? Because I do not need any more drama after seeing what I just saw," I said, still angry and with jelly still spewing from my head, which had completely ruined my clothes. But I didn't care, since there was a river in the town.
"Y-Yes..." Gramble said with fear on his face as Wambus simply nodded.
"Fine," was all he said.
"I-I'm sorry bestie... I'll keep my trap shut..." Beffica said with a sigh.
"Um... that was uh... very surprising... um... I'm gonna call it a night..." Filbo said as he then went off to his own house and the others then dispersed shortly after, me feeling a little bit ticked still, so I decided to go and dunk myself in the river... sure, I was going to be cold, but I didn't care. I simply went to the river, washed the jelly off of all my clothes, and then went over to the fire so I could dry myself off while laying on the ground. I needed to have a good sleep and a good think on what to do for the next few days... you know, before the island blew up... and what was it with my jelly head that made it so testy with anger issues and being able to let me talk to Bugsnax?
I thought long and hard about this as I slowly drifted off to sleep.
...
...
...
Expedition Day 2: Entry 1
I woke up the next morning to the sounds of Beffica taking a picture of me with her Snakscope, which made me annoyed... but then, I noticed something... odd... she was looking at me in shock as she took the photo.
"Um... what's with the look, Beff?" I asked as I then got up and put my hand to my head, feeling a bit sore... but then I gasped as I suddenly felt a searing hot temperatures engulf my entire hand! IT WAS ON FIRE! "AAAAHHHH! HOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOT! PUTITOUTPUTITOOUUTT!" I shouted in a panic as I rushed towards the water of the river and placed my hand in it, me sighing as I felt my hand cool off.
"Yeah... um... that's what I was going to ask... why does the top of you head have fire on it and why aren't you freaking out about that?" Beffica asked. And when she did, I then gasped as I noted that, despite my hand having been touched and lighted by fire, it was completely unharmed! That and the fact that my hair, clothes, and my skin didn't feel any pain from the fire made it even weirder.
"Um... I do not know... why is my head fire instead of jelly? That is probably the dumbest question I've ever asked, but I need an answer!" I said with confusion engulfing me like the flames a second ago.
"Well... I wanted to let you know that I told Gramble you were doing interviews and he's currently waiting for you at his barn with his other Snax," she said, me nodding as I was about to head over there, before both her and my stomach started to growl.
"Well... time for breakfast, I guess..." I said as I then took out my bag and looked at the Bugsnax, them looking at me in confusion when I opened the bag, mainly for the fact that my top of my head was different.
"Um... why you have fire now? Weren't you jelly before?" asked a Snaquiri, who sounded adorable with the high-pitched voice.
"I do not know... I woke up after sleeping next to the fire and I discover that I'm not only ablaze on my scalp, but I'm unharmed by fire," I said with visible confusion.
"So... can I have the Snaquiri?" Beffica asked, me nodding and giving it to her, which she scarfed down and, in response, her left foot, no joke, turned into a mini umbrella.
"How do you walk with that?" I asked.
"Best not to ask," she smirked. I then decided that I would have my breakfast in the form of the Caramel Poptick I found along with Filbo yesterday. I then stuck it in my mouth and found that it was slightly easier to get down than the Lollive, but only slightly. I had to breathe in and out a bit after eating it because it took a bit of effort to swallow it down. And just as before, none of my limbs had changed in shape and my stomach distended to show that the Poptick was bouncing around inside me. It was getting digested and it did not sound like it wanted to go out that way, which made me confused. Also, I found out that Wambus is so lonely without Triffany that he's dressed up a cactus to look like her... but I'm not gonna say anything, I promise," she said, me nodding at that.
"Okay... I'm gonna go check on the others, see if any of them are hungry for the other Snax I caught... minus Gramble. What does he eat, anyways?" I asked. I then heard a voice from behind me, towards the south of town.
"I eat the sauce fruits an' any edible plants I find," the voice of Gramble said as I looked behind me and saw that he was by his pen and that his Bugsnax were inside, but they looked a bit down in the dumps.
"Okay... would you like to do your interview, Gramble? We can have it in your pen along with your Bugsnax," I asked him, which made him smile.
"Sure, that sounds okay... just gotta hope that Wambus don't listen in," he said, me frowning at that and simply walking with him to his barn and looking at Wambus with seriousness.
"Hey, Wambus? Two things I need to tell ya," I said, getting his attention away from his crops.
"Yeah? What?" he asked.
"Firstly, I got you the Bugsnax to try growing in the soil... one Rootle from the south of the island and one Razzby from the Simmering Springs... just plant 'em in the dirt?" I asked, Gramble looking at me with a furrow in his brow as I sighed.
"Yer gonna bury them lil' ones in the dirt?... I'm not too keen on that idea," he said, but I could tell he was a bit shaky when saying that to me.
"Easy, Gramble, this is just... an experiment. We're trying to see if we can find out how Bugsnax reproduce, since Wambus has seen them popping out of the dirt, fresh and gooey. We're thinking that, if we can get them planted in dirt, we might be able to get more Bugsnax, therefore, we wouldn't need to go out hunting as much. Plus, it could mean more little friends for you," I said, him finally smiling at the last bit.
"Well, okay... I sure hope it works... yeah..." he said as I then looked at Wambus and he smirked at me.
"Thanks for explaining it... better than I coulda done," he said.
"And as for the second thing. I'm going to be interviewing Gramble with his Bugsnax giving him a bit of ease. We'd appreciate it if you could take a small break so we can have it in private? Maybe, say, five minutes?" I asked, him frowning and nodding.
"Fine, I'll go an' have a snakwater break," he said, me tilting my head at that as Gramble explained.
"Snakwater is what you get when you mix the river water with a sauce fruit of any flavor. It turns fizzy and bubbly, almost like soda or beer," he explained as I then led him to the pen and proceeded to turn on the tape for the interview.
"Okay, just for convenience sake, who are you?" I asked with a smile.
"I'm Gramble Gigglefunny. I'm an aspirin' Bugsnax breeder," he smirked.
"Why did you come to Snaktooth Island?"
"Well, I heard that Lizbert was gatherin' up some Grumps to be a part of a family. An' I thought I could sure use one of those," he said, me tilting my head at that.
"You mean you didn't have a family before?" And Gramble then looked to be a bit touchy as he clicked his paws together and I then simply held his hand and he sighed.
"I... I had a family once... b-but... somethin' bad happened... they all went out on a trip while I looked over the ranch back home... an' they never came back..." he said, me sighing at that.
"I'm sorry..." I said, knowing that it'd probably take a toll on anyone. I had a feeling that Gramble felt betrayed by his family for leaving him, or maybe they died on the trip out?
"I ain't never told anyone before... b-but... I trust ya... since ya'll said you'll protect my new kin..." he said, me smiling at that as his one Kweeble came over and nudged his foot.
"It's okay, daddy. We'd never betray you," Kweeble smiled as I then looked at him and smiled.
"The Kweeble said that that he and the other Bugsnax would never betray you," I smirked, Gramble smiling.
"No, that's not what happened... sure, they left an' never came back, but there was a reason... they were goin' on a bridge... the one that got bombed a few years back... they drowned..." he said, me looking at him and simply pausing the tape and petting him on the back.
"I can understand if you'd like to stop the interview now, Gramble. No one would blame you," I said, him sniffling at me and sighing.
"I-It's fine... H-how 'bout we continue it in the barn?..." he said, me nodding as we then went into the barn and, once the doors were shut, I then went onto the next question.
"I'm sure I know the answer already, but what's your thoughts on Bugsnax?" I asked.
"They're so cute... an' if yer interpretations are right, they all love me like a family should... I can't imagine why anyone would look into their googly eyes an' wanna eat 'em," he said, me smiling at that.
"What I don't get is the limbs turning into food, to be honest... anyways, why did you leave Snaxburg?"
"Well, when Lizbert went missin', everyone got mighty hungry. They done an' treated my barn like a grocery store! I held 'em off for awhile, but... Wambus never quits at anythin'," he said, me nodding.
"So what'd he do?"
"I caught him luggin' my kin in a big sack. I managed to release the rest of the Bugsnax before he could nab 'em, but that only made him angrier... I left for the beach that day to try an' start rebuilding my family," Gramble said, me nodding again.
"Were they safe from Wiggle?"
"Mmmmmmaaaayyyybbbeeee... Wiggle's a lot, but she has a good heart. I just hope that one day, she can treat Bugsnax just like I do..."
"Any information about Lizbert?"
"L-Lizbert? She'd bring me lots of new friends. Even helped me train some of 'em... sometimes she'd ask for one an' I'd... have to say goodbye..." he said, me nodding at that.
"I'll move onto something else, then... do you know anything about Lizbert's last known location?" I asked.
"W-Well... sometimes, I sleepwalk at night, an' I'm deep in the woods... an' I think I can feel Lizbert watchin' me... like a vengeful spirit... c-can we talk about somethin' else?" he asked, me smiling.
"It's alright, the questions are done," I said, him nodding as I pressed the stop button.
"Oof... I reckon I don't like interviews too much... b-but I do have somethin' here for ya," he said as he then produced a key. "This 'ere's the key to Liz's journal. She dropped it in my barn an' I never got around to givin' it back. I hope you can use it to find her," he said, me nodding at that.
"Thanks, Gramble... and sorry if I made you uncomfortable," I said, him nodding.
"Just make sure that my little ones are safe an' I'll be okay." I simply nodded at him. "Talking of which, I wanted to ask... the barn's pretty lonely as of right now... I'd mighty appreciate it if you could catch me a couple snax to keep my other kin company," he said, me nodding at him.
"I can do that, Gramble. I'll just need to rely on net scooping so that they'll be more willing to come back in bigger groups," I said, him smiling at me.
"Thanks, I mighty appreciate it," he smirked at me. I then left the barn with him (after putting the key in my important zipper fold on my backpack) and I then noted that Wambus was back in the fields and I then smiled at him.
"Hey, Wambus? You want some breakfast?" I asked, him smirking at me.
"Thanks, but I can get by one the sauce harvest, to be honest. Maybe ask Filbo?" he asked, me nodding at him. But he did look at my fiery head and looked at me in confusion. "By the way, wanna explain that thing on yer head? I thought it was jelly?" he asked, me then simply shrugging.
"I have no clue... my guess, maybe it happened from me sleeping next to a fire?... Are there any Bugsnax that have fire on them?" I asked.
"Come to think of it, I've seen some Scorpeppers in the Scorched Gorge that lob fiery peppers at ya. It really stings. That's one of the reasons I don't go out lookin' for Triffany... ya'll think you can check up on her?" he asked, me nodding at that.
"First I need directions on where this Scorched Gorge is, then I can go do that," I smirked, him then pointing towards the northern part of town. "The gorge is due north, past Filbo's pad. You mosey along now. An' try not to burn anyone with that hothead of yers," he said, me smirking as I then simply took out one of the ketchup fruit in my sauce container and simply threw it at his face. "Fine, guess I deserved that one," he said.
"That you did... but thanks regardless, for allowing some privacy for Gramble and me. He got a bit teary-eyed at one of my questions, so we continued the interview in the privacy of his barn. If you want to know what it was, then you'll need to treat him kindly during my absence, alright?" I said, him frowning at me.
"Not my place to know that stuff about him, to be honest," he said, me looking behind me and seeing that Gramble was preoccupied with his Peelbugs and Strabbies.
"Let's just say, there's a good reason he thinks of the Bugsnax as a family. A very personal, heartbreaking reason," I said, Wambus then looking at me in confusion... before his eyes went wide and he looked at me with a frown.
"Ah... um... I think I got it," he said, me nodding at him.
"Just keep it on the down low. If anyone asks, I told you nothing," I whispered that bit to him as I noted that I only had one snak left in my pack, it being the Tropicabug that I'd caught in the Simmering Springs. It was basically a fruity version of the Shishkebug. I then went over to Filbo and saw that he looked at me with a smile.
"Hey, buddy. I wanted to thank you last night... you inspired me a bit back then, with all that stuff you said. But... were you being serious about the leaving people behind on the island to die if they break the rules?" he asked, me sighing at him.
"Let's just say, I say things I don't mean when I'm furious. And it takes a lot to get me to that point. After everyone got in a fight, I lost it when Wambus and Beffica were insulting you and Wambus respectively... I think that you should tell them in my place that, instead of being one and done for all of the rules, only stealing from Gramble is the one and done rule. Everything else is a three strike rule, unless I say so," I said, him nodding.
"Okay, I'll let them know that... thanks again, Felicia," he said, me then smirking as I presented the Tropicabug. "Oh? Breakfast? Thanks again!" he smirked happily as I fed him the fruity ant Bugsnak and, after doing so, I decided to use the Snaktivator and change a specific body part, wondering what it'd do. I decided to change his nose... and I immediately regretted it as his nose turned into a giant purple dragonfruit with a bite taken out of it.
"Oof... maybe shouldn't have made it there..." I frowned, Filbo smirking at me.
"Don't worry, I don't mind it."
"I still feel weirded out by this whole Snakification thing, as Floofty put it... I ran into him in the Springs and he gave me this device. It can change specific Grumpus body parts when you feed them a Bugsnak," I said, him smirking at that.
"Sounds cool... weird, but cool," he smirked.
"Anyhow, I gotta get going to the Scorched Gorge. I need to see if I can find anyone over there," I said as I then proceeded down the path towards the gorge... I just had to hope that the Snax didn't get spooked by me having fire for hair.
