"Oh my frog I can't believe it Anne and Sasha are gonna be here today I'm so excited aaaah what if I pass out Lady Olivia do you know how to wake someone up if they faint I bet you can you're so smart oh no what if Anne and Sasha are mad at me it's my fault its all because of my dumb curiosity I already mentioned this to King Andrias and he said they won't because true friends will never abandon you but what if he's wrong what if they'll hate me forever Anne's parents are so nice Anne must miss them so much and I guess I miss them too they were so nice to me I'm not sure about Sasha now that I think about it she never really liked her parents they weren't great so she probably likes it better here oh no what if Anne and Sasha fought because of this that would be terrible we promised each other we would be best friends forever—"
"Please calm down, Marcy dear!"
Marcy had been running all around her room in the castle for a while but luckily Olivia managed to get her to stop.
"I'm sorry, Lady Olivia. I'm just so worried and excited at the same time!"
"You have nothing to be sorry for," said Olivia, wrapping Marcy into a hug. "It's natural that you feel overwhelmed right now."
Marcy sniffled. "Okay."
"And Anne and Sasha aren't mad at you." Olivia leaned back and looked Marcy in the eyes. "The letters I've received from Wartwood indicate they're looking forward to coming here."
Marcy's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Yes." Olivia smiled. "And what the king told you is correct. True friendships can withstand any and all hardships. No matter what happens, I want you to always remember that."
"Okay." Marcy had a determined look on her face. "I will."
The birds landed in the shallow water right outside the Newtopia walls. Sasha and the Wartwoodians were blown away by the city's landscape. Even when most of it was covered by the walls, what they could see at the moment was still breathtaking. Tall mushroom-like towers poked out from behind the walls, almost looking like a cage surrounding the grand castle. There were also some ruined structures just outside the walls which reminded Anne and Sasha of the Roman Colosseum.
"It's beautiful…" said Anne.
"It looks like it came right out of an anime or video game," said Sasha. "It's perfect for Marcy."
"I can practically taste the Newtopian street food," said Sprig as his mouth watered.
"I can't believe I'm actually at the beating heart of Amphibia," said Hop Pop. "A bustling metropolis full of ancient knowledge, run by the wisest newts. An untapped mine of information—"
"We get it, Hop Pop," said Polly. She ran up to the gate and banged on it a few times. "Hey! Let us in!"
"Slow down, child." Grime shook his head. "Newtopia is a slow city but things would be best if we just wait for things to happen."
"But that's booooooring!"
Luckily, Polly's protests didn't last much longer. One of the seashells on the ornate city door opened up and a blue newt poked his head out. "What do you want?"
"Open up, Ted," said Karina.
"Who are you?"
"Just open it already!" Shouted a voice from the other side.
Ted gulped. "Right away, General."
The doors slowly opened soon after. A legion of Newtopian grunt guards on the other side stepped forward before moving aside to let Yunan approach the group.
Grime frowned. "Ugh, her," he said quietly.
"Who's she?" whispered Anne.
"That's General Yunan," said Grime. "She's always unnecessarily over the top."
"Greetings!" the tall newt said as she reached them. "My name is General Yunan, Scourge of the Sand Wars, defeater of Ragnar the Wretched, AND THE YOUNGEST NEWT TO EVER ACHIEVE THE RANK OF GENERAL OF THE GREAT NEWTOPIAN ARMY!"
Throughout the whole spiel, she gesticulated in dramatic fashion.
"I see what you mean," Sasha muttered.
Yunan continued. "King Andrias has tasked me with bringing Anne and Sasha and company to the castle where Marcy awaits. Oh, you don't worry about your baggage either." She gestured to a couple of guards who were unloading the bags from the finch. "They'll take that stuff to the castle for you." And with that, the group headed for the castle.
Well, everyone except for Karina. "My job here is finished."
It seemed that Newtopian architecture had a significant aquatic motif that was absent in the rest of the continent. There were fancy buildings and stone statues on every corner— most of them with coral or a barnacle attached somewhere. For Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop, seeing stuff like this in person was only possible in their dreams before today. For Anne and Sasha, Newtopia was both new and familiar, since nowhere else in Amphibia was quite like Los Angeles. Hopefully they could see their home city again one day.
Along the way they passed by many newt citizens were pleasantly surprised to see humans other than Marcy walking the city streets. Some of them knew Marcy had friends who were also in Amphibia, but no one expected to actually see them.
"So what's Marcy been up to?" asked Anne.
"Ooh, lots of stuff!" exclaimed Yunan. "She's made friends all over the city, she helped solve a civil property dispute, she's working on some special project with the king right now, she gave a guest lecture at Newtopia University— well it was less of a lecture and more of her gushing about her favorite stuff back on Earth." Yunan chuckled. That was a fun day. "But above all, she never stopped thinking about her two best friends."
Happy tears welled in Anne and Sasha's eyes upon hearing this
Before long, the group got close to the castle. It was even more impressive up close: multiple round sections arranged in an almost conical fashion, with a tall, seemingly ornamental structure protruding out of the top one. And the castle was yet another structure decorated in gold to highlight the status of those residing there.
Yunan turned around. "Get behind me and the other soldiers, I need to make this dramatic."
The group looked at each other confused but followed Yunan's orders. Well, Grime wasn't very confused but he begrudgingly compiled anyway.
Olivia stood in front of the castle entrance, and Marcy stood next to her in one of her dresses. A small crowd gathered around them.
Marcy was confused. "I see General Yunan but where's Anne and Sasha?
"I'm sure they're there." Olivia rolled her eyes at her girlfriend's antics. "Yunan's probably just doing something fun."
And indeed she was. "Can I have the attention of everyone gathered?" She paused for a couple of seconds before continuing. "We've all waited quite a long time, but the best friends of Young Master Marcy are finally here! Presenting Anne Boonchuy and Sasha Waybright!" Yunan grabbed Anne and Sasha and shoved them in front of her.
The court herald played a short tune on his horn, a bit mad that Yunan did his announcing job for him, while the crowd cheered and applauded.
Marcy gasped. "Anne! Sasha!" It was finally happening! Marcy leaped forward and ran to meet her friends.
The other girls' eyes lit up. "Marbles!" "Mar-Mar!"
Anne and Sasha ran forward so all three girls could meet in the middle. They were moving pretty fast, but the whole situation seemed like something that should've been in slow motion to emphasize the moment. When they reached each other, what resulted was possibly the greatest, most meaningful group hug in history. After 1 year and 25 days, the trio of friends are all together again.
Marcy leaned her head into the other girls' shoulders and sobbed. "I'm so sorry! I'm sorry I found that music box and got us all stuck here!"
Anne and Sasha looked at each other for a second before moving to comfort Marcy.
"It's okay, Mar-Mar," said Anne. "You had no idea what would happen."
"Yeah, blame whoever was dumb enough to leave it in a thrift shop," said Sasha.
Marcy look up in surprise. "You're… not mad?"
"Nope!" Sasha insisted. "Besides, it's not like Amphibia's been awful to us. We should be thanking you. I love it here."
Anne nodded. "Yeah, I feel at home in a place that shouldn't be real. Thank you, Marcy."
Marcy was beyond touched. "You're welcome…"
Olivia cleared her throat as she walked over to where the girls stood. "Yunan, aren't you going to present the rest of the visiting party?"
Yunan blinked in surprise, having forgotten that there were still four people behind her. "Oh… and uh… a few adopted family members are here too."
Sprig, Polly, Hop Pop, and Grime awkwardly made themselves visible.
"Ooh! Come here, everyone." said Anne happily. The Plantars made it to the girls and stood by Anne. "These are the farmer frogs I've been living with: Sprig, Polly, and Hop Pop. They're my frog siblings and grandpa."
"Hello." "Hey." "Howdy."
Hop Pop offered a handshake which Marcy gladly accepted. "Wow, this is so cool! One day you'll have to tell me all about farm culture. I'm super interested!"
"Hububububub…" Hop Pop loudly gasped and shook Marcy's hand. "Thank you, thank you!"
"You're welcome!" Marcy moved over to Sasha and Grime, who had approached while Anne introduced the Plantars. "And you must be Captain Grime!"
"It's nice to meet you," said the captain, also offering Marcy a handshake.
"He's my toad Dad," said Sasha.
"Cool…" said Marcy while shaking Grime's hand. "Is that a sword?" She pointed at the weapon hanging from Sasha's belt with her other hand.
Sasha blushed a little. "Yeah, I got it from Aunt Beatrix a few months ago. I'm kind of good at it."
"Don't sell yourself short, Sasha," said Grime. "You're a remarkable swordswoman."
Sasha's face went even redder.
Marcy squealed in excitement. "We all have amphibian found families! Right here is Lady Olivia, she's like a mom to me."
Olivia gave a small curtsy. "Greetings."
"And you already met General Yunan. She's also like a mom, but crazier."
"Hello!" shouted Yunan.
"Yeah, I can definitely see that," said Sasha.
"Well then." Olivia clapped. "Before we talk any further, the king wishes to meet Anne and Sasha. We shouldn't keep him waiting."
Olivia led the now-larger group toward the throne room. "Anne, Sasha, Plantar frogs, you're about to be face to face with royalty. I want you all to be on your best behavior."
Hop Pop glanced down at his outfit "Oh no, I'm not dressed nice enough!"
"Don't worry," said Marcy. "The king might look scary but he's really nice."
A couple of royal guards opened the throne room doors and everyone walked toward the throne. Andrias sit there impassively.
Olivia spoke again. "May I present to you His Majesty Andrias Leviathan, Lord of Amphibia, peacekeeper of 1000 years, and the first of his name."
Andrias stood up with a sudden grin on his face. "Ah, welcome to Newtopia!" Yet again, he took off his crown and set it on a nearby table. He knelt down and offered his large hands for high fives. "Marcy speaks very highly of the two of you. Anne, who's always courageous, and Sasha, who always fights for those in need."
Now it was Anne's turn to blush at a compliment.
"You're big," said Sasha bluntly.
Hop Pop gasped loudly. "Are you crazy!? You can't say stuff like that to the king!"
To Hop Pop's surprise, Andrias simply laughed. "It's not like she said something that isn't true. Marcy likes to say I'm 'king-sized'." He laughed a bit more before turning to the frogs in the room. "And you must be the Plantars."
"Yes, sir!" said Sprig, doing a salute.
"I'm, uh, sorry that my choice of postal service delayed this meeting by a year," said Hop Pop nervously.
"Oh no, that's nothing to be sorry for," said Andrias. "It's better that I had more time." He muttered that second sentence quietly enough so no one else could hear him."
"Are you really 1000 years old?" asked Anne.
Andrias' expression darkened slightly. "Yes. I don't… like talking about that…" The uneasiness on his face quickly disappeared. "But this isn't about me. You girls can have plenty of fun in Newtopia now that you're all together again."
"But what about the music box?" asked Sprig.
If anyone noticed Andrias' happy expression briefly falter again they didn't comment on it. "I'll admit the search for the box has stagnated somewhat in recent months but once Marcy and I finish our special project."
"What is this special project?" asked Grime, suspicious. "The general mentioned it earlier."
"It's nothing bad," said Marcy. "I'm just helping King Andrias build this little gizmo."
"And what does it do?" Grime prodded again.
"All will be revealed in due time," said Andrias cryptically. Just then, the king noticed a low rumble reverberating through his crown. "Oh, I have something to attend to right now. Olivia, Yunan, please show our guests to their rooms. Everyone's belongings should be there already."
"And then you can see my room!" said Marcy excitedly.
Everyone quickly made their way out of the throne room while Andrias grabbed his crown and stepped into the adjacent study. The orange eye once again appeared on the crown as he put it on.
"These unnecessary delays are really testing our patience."
"I assure you my lord, the device will be completed soon," Andrias replied nervously. "Until it is, we can't harm the girls."
"But will you actually complete that task? Or are your sentimental feelings getting in the way as usual?
Andrias blanched. "My lord, I—"
"You have eight days. No exceptions."
Andrias sighed. "Understood."
He didn't expect the Core to be this suspicious of him. While it's normal for his master to show disdain for his personal projects, it usually just lets him be. But this was different— the Core took personal interest in this current project and that worried Andrias. He hoped he would be able to execute his plan, but he wasn't as confident as he once was.
This certainly became more complicated.
It'll be a while before the next chapter of this. I'm taking a little break from fanfic writing so I can make a video about the new Owl House episode, and the next thing I write after that will be a Halloween chapter of Calamity Moms. So this won't be back until November.
