Jaune and Courage the Cowardly Dog
Chap 80: Feast of the Bullfrogs
"Is the moon always red or only on certain occasions?" Willow asked, curious as she and Winter gazed out the window in wonder.
The Schnee family decided to have a family vacation together to travel around visiting various locations. However, instead of traveling across Remnant, they decided to travel across Earth. I was slightly worried about them, but thankfully, Iris said she would help them if they ever needed help or got lost. And as their vacation was ending, they decided to pay Nowhere a visit as well as see us. Weiss was also with us but was currently in the kitchen with Muriel drinking some tea.
"Only at certain points of the year." I answered.
"While it does look beautiful, I do have a sense of foreboding because of it." Winter said, not trusting the eerie red glow of the moon.
"Hopefully, that's only our tiredness speaking." Willow said as she moved to sit next to me on the couch.
"I hope so as well." Winter agreed before sitting down next to Willow.
"Eh? What's that?" Eustace suddenly asked, getting our attention. Turning to him, we noticed that he was staring down at his foot water.
"A frog?" Willow asked, confused when we saw a frog casually sitting in Eustace's foot water.
"EWW! Frog." Eustace complained after the frog let out a croak.
"Are frogs even native to Nowhere?" Winter asked.
"Where we are, no. But there are some frogs that live on the other side of Nowhere." I answered. Hearing the kitchen door open, we turned to it and saw Muriel and Weiss coming towards us with baffled expressions.
"The strangest thing just happened. Frogs are in our tea." Muriel said as she and Weiss showed us their teacups with frogs in them. The frogs croaked before hopping out of the teacups and landing on the floor. They then hopped out of the living room and out of sight.
"Yeah? Well, there is a frog in my foot water." Eustace said while raising his left leg with the frog lying on his foot. The frog croaked before hopping off his leg and onto the floor.
"What's-" Weiss began but was interrupted when we heard Courage scream from upstairs. I was about to get up and check on him but stopped when we saw him running down the stairs.
'AHHHH!' He screamed as he came to a stop in front of us.
"What happened, Courage?" I asked, worried.
'A frog. A frog hit me in the eye with its tongue while I was in the tub.' He answered while trying to convey the message with his hands. Unfortunately, neither Eustace nor Muriel understood what he was trying to say. Haring some hopping sounds, we looked back to the stairs and saw a frog hopping down the steps.
"You got that shiner from a frog? You girlie dog." Eustace mocked.
"Ignoring what Eustace just said, we should find out why these frogs are suddenly appearing and how to get rid of them." Willow said as the four frogs gathered in front of us.
"I got this." Eustace said as he picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Hello. Nowhere Pest Control? My house is getting overrun with-OOH!"
"What's happening?" Weiss asked hundreds of frogs rained down from the ceiling. But before anyone could say anything, the sounds of horns caught our attention.
"Why did we just hear the royalty entrance fanfare?" Winter asked, confused. Yet, again, before we could say anything, we heard something break through the front door. Quickly turning, we noticed that a buff-looking frog had kicked a hole into the door. And after a moment, a frog wearing a crown, the buff frog, and a frog wearing glasses entered through the hole.
"Um, are we all seeing this?" Weiss asked, unsure that if what she was seeing was real or if she was hallucinating.
"You mean a buff frog, a frog with glasses, and what appears to be a king frog, then yes." I answered.
"Much water here. Dig pond now." The king frog spoke, surprising us.
"What?" Muriel and I asked, confused. Yet, instead of answering, the king frog snapped his fingers with the frog wearing glasses hopping forward a second later.
"His majesty Buffo has declared, proclaimed, and officially stated with great succintitude, trasymmetry, and lack of redundantation, that you dig a pond... now." The frog 'translated.' Although, it left us more confused than anything.
'UH!' Courage gasped in terror.
"You can't dig a pond here." Muriel told Buffo.
"Not us. You! Now!" Buffo responded.
"DIG POND! DIG POND! DIG POND!" The rest of the frogs began to chant. Luckily, they stopped when Buffo raised his arm.
"Slimy, stinking frogs. I'M GETTING ME MALLET!" Eustace declared before moving towards the stairs. However, as he began to climb the steps, Buffo snapped his fingers which caused the buff frog to leap onto Eustace. And due to the sudden weight, they began to fall back down the stairs. "AHH!"
"That's got to hurt." Weiss and Winter said with a wince when Eustace hit the floor hard.
"That's not very polite." Muriel said, upset.
"You are all going have to leave before-" Willow began to add but was interrupted when Buffo snapped his fingers which caused all the frogs to jump onto Muriel and Willow.
'AAHHHH!' Courage screamed in horror.
"MURIEL!" I shouted as I tried to free her.
"MOTHER!" Weiss and Winter shouted as they tried to do the same.
"Dog. Dig pond. Now." Buffo ordered Courage.
"You dig dog?" The frog wearing glasses asked after shoving Courage.
'I'm not going to like this.' Courage whined before beginning to dig through the floor.
8:00 A.M.
"Finally." Weiss and I exclaimed as we finally finished digging through the floor to create a twenty-foot-deep hole. Courage was nearly passed out from exhaustion in the center of the hole.
"Oh, my." Muriel gasped in shock.
"Take it easy, Muriel." Winter said as she made her sit back down. Throughout the night, Winter had been tending to Willow and Muriel after nearly being crushed suffocated by the frogs. Luckily, they were fine.
"Pond!" Buffo exclaimed.
"POND! POND! POND!" The rest of the frogs began to chant.
"Pond dry. You get water." Buffo told Eustace.
"Make me." He challenged. Annoyed, Buffo used his tongue to smack Eustace around a bit, causing him to fall to the floor.
"You two, get lily pads." Buffo told Muriel and Willow.
"Weiss, go help him. I'll stay and help Willow and Muriel find some lily pads." Winter told her.
"Okay, Winter." Weiss said before following me.
We then went into the kitchen with Weiss and me heading outside while the rest went to the cabinets. Grabbing the hose, I brought it back into the house while Weiss turned it on. Although, as I passed the kitchen, I noticed that the buff frog was having trouble removing some fly trap paper from his face. It seems like he tried to catch a fly that landed on it, only to grab the fly trap paper instead. And because his tongue was covered in mucus, it made it harder to remove.
'Best keep that in mind.' I thought as Weiss, and I reached the hole. Turning on the hose, we sat down and waited for the hole to fill with water. 'Eustace is going to like the bill this is going to cause.'
"How long do you think this is going to take?" Weiss asked, curious.
"Roughly ten minutes." I answered as the water level quickly rose. Hearing some groaning, we turned to our left and saw Eustace slowly regaining consciousness.
"OOOH!" All the frogs said, amazed. Rolling my eyes, I continued to focus on the water level so it would not overfill. Hearing some footsteps, we turned around and saw Muriel Willow, Courage, and Winter coming back with dozens of sponges in their arms.
"Let us help." I said as we got up and took some of the sponges from them.
"Thanks." Willow said as she could now see where she was going. Nodding, we went back to the hole and threw the sponges in.
"OOH! Lily Pads." The frogs said, excited.
"You three live like frogs. Hop like frogs." Buffo told Willow, Eustace, and Muriel while pointing at them.
"I'm sorry, but hopping just isn't my thing." Muriel said while shaking her head.
"I don't do no hopping." Eustace added, annoyed. Let out a quiet growl, the buff frog grabbed Eustace and Muriel and lifted them into the air.
"YOU! HOP!" The buff demanded before dropping them, where they bounced a bit before stopping.
"Slimy, stinking frogs." Eustace complained while shaking his fist at Buffo. The buff frog then moved over to Willow, but she swiftly kicked him away as soon as he reached her. Annoyed, he glared at her and was about to try again. However, he walked away when Winter and Weiss stepped in front of Willow with their weapons drawn.
"You two croak like frogs." Buffo demanded.
"I don't do no talking like slimy, stink-OOH!" Eustace began but stopped when the buff frog grabbed his cheek and pinched it. And to our surprise, Eustace began to croak precisely like a frog.
"Time to eat like frogs." Buffo said, getting our attention. The buff frog then grabbed Muriel's head and did something that caused her tongue to shoot out of her mouth. Her tongue flew out and snatched a fly near the ceiling lamp before returning to her mouth.
"I find this all very demeaning." Muriel said, upset as she ate the fly. And then, to our absolute horror, she croaked like a frog with her lower mouth expanding like a balloon.
'OH!' Courage gasped before fainting.
"JAUNE!" Weiss and Winter shouted, concerned when I nearly fell over in shock. Luckily, they managed to catch me before I did so.
"I'm fine. Just need a moment to overcome the shock of what I just saw." I explained while taking some deep breaths.
"I can imagine as seeing a family member in that state must be hard for anyone." Willow said while helping me to the couch that was somehow still intact after all this. But as soon as I sat down, we heard the royalty entrance fanfare again.
"Where is that coming from?" Weiss asked, curious and annoyed.
"Buffo now declare pond, open." Buffo said, getting our attention. Turning back to him, we saw that he held some scissors and was about to cut a red ribbon. And as soon as he did so, all the frogs began dancing, with some even shaking maracas.
"They must have really missed the water of a pond." Winter commented when we saw the frogs circling the pond, almost as if they were worshipping it, before diving into the pond.
'OOH!' Courage screamed when he woke up and saw Eustace and Muriel's jaws inflated like balloons.
"You okay, Courage?" I asked.
'I'm not sure.' He answered as he sat down next to me.
"A celebration feast, your majesty?" The frog with glasses asked.
"Yes, Bluff." Buffo said with the buff frog hopping towards him.
"Get many flies. Use dog." Buffo ordered.
'Oh, no.' Courage gasped in fear before Bluff grabbed him.
Worried, we got up from the couch and followed them. They went into the kitchen, but stopped when Bluff spotted the honey and flypaper traps on the table. We became confused about what he was planning on doing when he opened the jar of honey and poured its contents onto Courage. But it became apparent when he exited the kitchen and looked towards the trash can that had lots of flies above it. Bluff then whistled, which attracted the fly's attention. They seemed to quickly take notice of the honey covering Courage as they immediately flew over to him and covered him from head to toe.
'AAHH!' Courage screamed when the flies started to bite him.
"Weiss, remind me later to get some anti-itch and mosquito bite cream for Courage." I said while mentally wincing at all the bites Courage suffered in less than a second.
"Note." She said, also wincing. Satisfied, Bluff went back inside with Courage. Yet, as soon as we entered the kitchen, we saw a horrifying sight.
'SHIT!' I mentally shouted when we saw the frog with glasses cooking Muriel and Eustace's mud-covered feet.
"Go tell his majesty, Buffo, that the fly marinade is exquisite. And soon, he shall enjoy a royal feast of human legs." The frog with glasses ordered as he effortlessly scooped all the flies off of Courage before pouring them onto Muriel and Eustace's feet.
"Muriel. Snap out it." I said as Winter, and I moved over to them. Unfortunately, all we got in return was them croaking again like frogs.
"What's wrong with them?" Weiss asked, curious as she snapped her fingers in front of Muriel to get a response.
"And can they be fixed?" Willow asked, worried.
"Seems like they are in a trance. We should be able to snap them out of it, but first, we need to make sure they are out of harm's way. And by that, I mean we have to get rid of the frogs." Winter answered.
"And how do we do that?" I asked.
'I have an idea.' Courage answered as he hopped onto the table and grabbed the honey jar and more flypaper traps.
"You sure about this?" I asked.
'Not really.' He answered before heading outside.
"Weiss, Jaune, go help him. Winter and I will stay with Muriel and Eustace and make sure they remain safe." Willow told us.
Nodding, we exited the house and saw Courage sitting next to the step. Grabbing the honey jar, I opened and poured its contents all over him while Weiss took roughly fifty sheets of flypaper from the package. Once he was covered, I turned around and whistled as loud as possible. And in less than a second, a swarm of flies appeared and immediately headed towards Courage. Once they covered him from head to toe again, Weiss began using the flypaper to 'clean' Courage and trap the flies. With that done, we hurried inside, only to panic when we didn't see Eustace or Muriel. Worried, we dashed into the living room, where we saw Winter and Willow fending off against the frogs that were trying to get Muriel and Eustace onto a bed of red-hot coals.
"What do we do?" Weiss asked as she took out her weapon and joined in with Winter and Willow in protecting Muriel and Eustace. Looking around, I remembered that there was a stapler in the kitchen. Rushing towards the kitchen, I grabbed it before returning.
"Courage, think you can use the flypapers to get to the ceiling?" I asked while handing him the stapler.
'Yeah.' He began before realizing what I was getting at. 'You want me to use the flies as bait on the ceiling?'
"Yes. And once there are secured, get the frog's attention. Then use the lamp's wire to tie their tongues together." I told him. He nodded before flapping the flypapers as fast as he could, which lifted him to the ceiling. Once he reached the ceiling, he bit onto the lamp's wire. He then took out the stapler and used it to staple the flypaper to the ceiling.
"HURRY!" Weiss shouted as she launched a few frogs away from Muriel and Eustace.
'EEE!' Courage screeched before whistling as loud as he could. Luckily, this caught every frog's attention.
"Appetizers." All the frogs said while licking their lips. They then shot their tongues at the flypaper, achieving the desired result. And that was all the frogs hanging in their air as their tongues were stuck to the flypaper.
"What the?" Buffo asked, shocked. Throwing the stapler to the side, Courage used the lamp's wire to tie up all the frog's tongues together. Once secured, Courage pulled on the frog's tongues, freeing them before dragging them outside, where he proceeded to spin in a circle before tossing them off into the distance.
"Nice job, Courage." I said once he returned.
'Thanks.' He responded before looking towards Muriel and Eustace. 'How should we snap them out of it?"
"I have an idea. Weiss, help me with this." I answered as I lifted Muriel with Weiss doing the same to Eustace, albeit hesitantly. We then walked over to the pond's edge and threw them into the water.
"UH!" Eustace gasped as he reached the surface and gasped for air.
"Oh, my." Muriel gasped as well.
"Grab my hand." I told them. Muriel smiled while she grabbed my hand, allowing me to pull her back to the floor before I did the same with Eustace.
"Thanks, dear." Muriel said as she hugged me. But before I could say anything, Buffo hopped towards us.
"Buffo, alone. Buffo, go find new worshippers." He said before hopping towards the entrance. "Stupid dog and kid."
"Well, that takes care of them." Willow said as she and Winter helped Muriel and Eustace onto the sofa. "Now, let's clean this place up."
Eight Hours Later
'Done.' Courage said as we finished filling in the hole. 'Whew.'
"Tomorrow, I can repair the floorboards." I said as I dusted myself off.
"But first, perhaps a shower." Weiss added, causing us to look at ourselves and realize we were covered in dirt and mud.
"I'm off green tea for a spell. Pekoe suits me just fine." Muriel said as she returned from the kitchen with a cup of tea before sitting down in her chair.
"Pekoe is a lovely tea." Willow agreed as she and Winter sat down on the couch.
"Quiet! I'm trying to watch the game." Eustace complained.
"Who's winning?" Winter asked.
"The home team. Not sure exactly what the team's names are." I answered. Hearing the sound of the bat hitting the ball, we turned to the television to see the visiting team successfully hit the ball.
'Ah, hah! A high fly to center field. Going... going. I don't think anyone is going to catch this fly.' The announcer commentated. However, just as the ball reached the stadium's walls, a catcher's mitt suddenly appeared in the ball's trajectory, catching it. And after the camera was brought down, it was revealed that Buffo had caught the ball. 'Wait! A tremendous catch by the center fielder, Buffo.'
"Wow, that was quick." I said, surprised at how fast he got new followers. However, our attention was drawn to Courage, who let out a croaking sound followed by shooting his tongue out to catch a fly. Fortunately, he was only messing with us.
Note:
Next Chapters: Snowman's Revenge. Tulip's Worm. Mondo Magic and Swindlin Wind. Just need who you all want to appear and if Iris should appear as well.