After a vivid nightmare, Leo recalls back to a certain location in the woods. When no one seems to have an idea about it and he then chastises Polly for saying that she does, the pollywog ends up leading them both to a much more dangerous location.

...

...


Rain cried out onto the trees, with harsh crackles and roars of thunder echoing throughout the dense forest, reverberating off every single surface, making it only harder to traverse through it. It was a struggle to even take a step forward without slipping down the rough terrain and to a possible death.

Whoever they were, they were making their way up and over every obstacle that was in the way. They could easily make it up and over every surface they would face. With almost no sign of struggle, not even so much as an exhale from their mouth.

With whatever mission they'd been tasked with, or for whatever reason they were out here, all they knew was that there was no time to stop.

That was until, on the other end of a mudslide an unsightly looking creature, thrashed about relentlessly, trying any kind of attempt to escape it sticky clutches.

They were all too happy to watch the disgusting bug writhe about in pain, but as they were in the motion of hopping down the small cliffside, a single swipe from the giant mantis from out of the mud caused them to lose their footing and collapse downwards towards a single, conveniently placed rock peeking up from the ground.

Before they could however, they steered their crimson eyes over towards a weirdly designed tree, with a hole carved into the base of the trunk, it was as if lightning had struck right down the middle of it, and yet it was still standing.

Their vision dulled and slammed shut upon the immediate sensation of their head coming into contact with the small boulder, knocking them out within just a few seconds, the rumbling clouds fizzling out as their consciousness did.

Leo shot up, ramming his head into the overhanging wooden arch, wincing upon contact. He was in a profusely hot sweat, the night clothes he'd been gifted by Hop Pop feeling as if they were stuck to his skin, "What was that..?" He questioned to no one in particular.

He had no idea what that was, in the three weeks that he had memory of, there wasn't a single occurrence of a nightmare, at least not on the level of whatever he'd just dreamt of.

And yet, Leo didn't feel like the dream was random, he'd seen that place before, that small hill which was hardly going to be a struggle for anyone to clamber down from, and yet had managed to deal him in.

It was mainly the tree that Leo recognized, there was a vivid memory in the backlogs of what he couldn't remember from before, the only feature that he could make out from whoever he was before making his way into Wartwood and out of that horrendous forest.

Where it was, was an entirely different story. How could he possibly know? Even if he did have his memory back there was no way he'd be able to pinpoint where a single tree was, even if he had some idea of what the layout was.

Ignoring it for a second, Leo was awoken even more than he already was, glancing outside the window to see Sprig stuck to the glass, repeatedly banging on the stable walls, "Leo! You're up late, it's time for breakfast!"

"Uhhhhhhh..." Was all he responded with, slumping up from the surprisingly comfortable hay, getting help from Bessie as he struggled to stand, "I'll be there in a bit, just need to wake up."

"Aren't you already awake?" Sprig tilted his head, still crouched atop the window, "Wait, never mind you do look like a corpse."

"Then leave."

Countering back with his own harsh, lifeless groan, Leo watched the frog laugh and leave instead of staring shocked at his words. He'd grown used to the boy's emotions and behavior by now, so no matter how intimidating he seemed it didn't really matter.

Picking up the only pair of clothes he had on hand, they'd thankfully been washed; Leo fixed them over himself, pat Bessie good morning whilst leaving out her food and made his way to the Plantar household much like he did every morning.

He was still a little out of it as he did, but he opened the door nonetheless, hoping that maybe one of the members of the frog family had some clue on his dream.


"Sorry, but I don't think I've seen anything like that. Or maybe I have, but your description is just too vague," Hop Pop apologized, feeling a little guilty that he couldn't help the boy out.

Leo felt the same, solemnly feeding the bug filled breakfast into his mouth. Sprig denied any knowledge as well, much to his chagrin; Anne wouldn't know anything, and if she did it was unlikely that she'd even remember it.

On the other side of the table, Polly couldn't help but get a little immersed in what they saying. Usually, she'd tune out whatever Leo's droll voice had to say and continue on with her meal, but for some reason she couldn't shake the feeling that she knew what he was talking about.

"Leo I might kn-"

"Don't worry Polly, I'll figure out myself. I doubt you'll actually know anyway," Leo intervened before she could say much else, excusing himself from the table, helping Anne with the dishes.

Polly scowled; this is how it had been for most of the duration of Leo's stay. Unlike, Anne and her family members he treated her as if she were an actual baby. Not bothering to even talk to her or listen to any of the tadpole's possible inputs.

It was fine at first, everyone quickly understood Leo's personality and behavior so they were used to how he would act. But now that he'd been there for a fairly long while, Polly was starting to get irritated by his actions.

She just wanted to be treated how everyone else was, even Hop Pop and Sprig were spoken to normally, and he even joked around with them.

All of a sudden, Leo readied his clothes, picking up a few pieces of hay off of them and sped his pace up to the door. No one was following behind him, so it was safe to assume he was heading out alone.

"Where're you headed Leo?" Polly questioned, hoping to get an answer as she hopped over to him on her bucket.

The white-haired boy stopped, his hand just on the door handle, "Into town, if no one here knows about it then maybe I can try and describe it to some of the frogs there," He replied, not sounding any different than he usually did.

Taking her chance, Polly decided to ask if she could come, getting nothing but a bewildered gaze from the boy, at least he didn't look annoyed.

"Um...sure, Hop Pop said I could take Besse so you'll have to get on," He pointed out, getting nothing but an excited look from the pre-mature frog, who didn't seem to care about whatever he was talking about.

As they both got atop the snail, Polly sat at the back of the cart, her pot shaking and spilling water as it did, that didn't mean all that much to her at the moment. She was going to make sure that before they got home, Leo wouldn't treat her like a pollywog.


Now in town, Leo was disappointed to hear that absolutely no one had any idea on what he was talking about. In all honesty, he couldn't blame the frogs; his description was pretty vague and remembering a single tree and cliffside would be difficult enough, so locating was a hellish request.

"Sorry dear, you'll have to go look for it yourself. All I know is that the you're probably talking about the deep part of those woods, you'll be looking for a while," Mrs. Croaker explained, patting the white-haired boy on the back.

Admitting defeat, Leo sulked onto the fountain in the middle of Wartwood. He'd unknowingly rested his hands into the water, pulling them out just as quickly, only making him feel even worse, "This was a waste of time.."

He was only feeling worse, after a while he'd finally gotten a snippet of information from his blocked-out memory and it had left to nothing but a dud.

Polly rolled over to him, hopping into the fountain and next to Leo, feeling a little bad for him, "C'mon Leo! I'm telling you that I know where that place is, a tree with a lightning bolt through it right? I've seen that!"

That wasn't exactly a lie, she was sure that she had in fact seen something that like that before. As a tadpole her memory was still blurry, but Polly was confident that she could pinpoint wherever it was, it was the perfect way to prove Leo wrong.

Not really paying that much attention to the young frog, Leo only acknowledged her words when they eventually turned to pleading, constantly tapping on the side of his leg, "Leo, Leo! I know where it is just trust me."

"Fine," Leo said sternly, finally getting her to stop, his voice empty and emotionless. He could tolerate Polly well enough; she was rambunctious despite her age and he admired that. But all he could see her as was a hyper child, even if she was a frog, all he could see her as was a tadpole.

It was just how his straightforward mindset worked; he wouldn't take that much advice from a toddler so why would the frog equivalent of them not be the same.

Nevertheless, he didn't have anything else to go off and this could be the only possible clue his memory would give him on who he used to be, and even she was just a baby, Polly was the only thing he had to go on right about now.

So, with some hesitance, he obliged, "Alright, if you know where it is, then lead the way, Polly. I'll be following your lead."

Although she kept it to herself, Polly could barely contain her excitement leaping off of the fountain's ledge and onto Leo's shoulder, "Then we'll start by going that 'a way!" Polly instructed, signaling her stubby limbs outwards.

"Don't pull on my hair," He ordered back darkly, shaking her down his shoulder slightly.


As they furthered into the dark woods, facing and running away from a plethora of various creatures and bugs who set their sights on the two of them the moment they came into eye contact with either of them.

"I don't...remember this forest being filled with so many killer bugs," Leo exhaled, sloppily wobbling through the forest, taking a breather against a tree, "How much further?"

"Not too far, I think. I know where it is just not the distance.." Polly replied instantaneously.

She was feeling just the tiniest bit nervous, it wasn't too much though, no it was just a slight worry at the back of her head...They were lost, Polly now had no idea where they were going, she hadn't for a while.

But she could swear that she'd heard of that tree before, one with a lightning bolt design down the middle of it, alongside a small hill that overlooked an even steeper one.

As she directed Leo through the forest, and they constantly came across all creatures that could be found, Polly had lost her sense of direction and was now going on total instinct and the environment she did somewhat recognize.

'No...now I'm getting scared that we're lost and could actually run into something bad. Not to mention how angry Leo will be when he founds out..'

Still, they both continued on, eventually making it to a clearing. Leo couldn't tell whether or not it was the same, his memory was still fairly mixed on what he could recollect and what was completely locked off.

Both the human and pollywog, were unaware of the combination of grass and leaves sculling about the mossy surface of the floor, it almost looked like a ritual ground, getting the frog on Leo's shoulder to shake on the spot.

"This definitely isn't it. All of this is just downright creepy, Polly are you sure-"

Leo went to glance at the frog that was supposed to perched upon his shoulder, she had utterly vanished from the spot, "Polly!" He droned out in a yell, immediately whirring his head around looking for any sight of her.

That was when he became entangled within a collection of leaves, branches and moss, all clamping down onto him, holding him in place just a little above the ground, he was doing a good job at managing to free himself spotting Polly also caught between the amalgamation of nature.

"Pollmmmmm!" His loud voice only came out in a muffle as he began to pull himself away from the moss and over towards her.

He wouldn't have that much of a chance to slow down as the living plant reached out for him, just barely missing his foot and tripping him up. Leo readied himself with the army knife held at his sleeve, slicing through the moss with fair ease, it was tough to escape its grasp, but not for someone else to cleave away at.

"Leo!" Polly gasped for air collapsing into his arms, free from the mossy tendrils.

Not responding, Leo swiped continuously at each and every one of the vines. Avoiding the leaves that were attempting to weigh him down. Dancing side to side he safely bounded from off a lone tree stump to another, landing out of the open, circular area.

Polly was astounded by the display, staring in awe at the crimson eyed boy, those dark pupils that were usually so intimidating and scary to the other frogs of Wartwood look cooler than ever.

"You were amazing!" She exclaimed hopping up and down on the spot, "You got out like it was nothing and then you pulled out that dagger!"

Leo didn't respond, instead slipping his small combat knife back into its sheath and crouching down beside the tree, his head in his hands, "That wasn't the spot, why did you act like it was?" He spoke up just loud enough for her to hear, his voice sounding plainer than ever.

"I was trying to find the clue, the only clue I had to who I was and you said you knew, you were the only one out of Wartwood who said they knew! And yet, you dragged me out on some wild hunt out in the woods and almost got us buried by some cursed plants!" Leo wasn't shouting, surprisingly he was mainly letting out his frustration with a deep groan.

The small tadpole struggled to get her words out properly, her eyes beginning to well up with tears as Leo continued to berate her, he wasn't thinking with the mindset that she was a child at the moment, he just wanted to let out his current anger on the situation.

"I-I d-didn't...I didn't mean to, w-we just k-kept g-getting chased and I-"

"No, it's because you're just a tadpole, a baby! I already didn't expect anything, you were just my last resort, all I want to do is find out who I am, and why I'm like this and you've ruined that!"

Leo let out an actual scream, getting Polly to flinch back a bit, his eyes piercing through her, every reset back to their usual horrific look.

She was angry with herself for crying, quickly wiping the tears away and bouncing away and out of view from the still grim looking Leo. At the end of the day, she hadn't been able to do anything helpful and had only worsened Leo's suspicions on her.

All she would ever be seen as was a pollywog.


Once everything had settled down and Leo had calmed himself, he began the search for Polly, which wasn't going to be as simple of a task as it sounded, a lone tadpole the size of a small rock in such a large forest would be a real struggle.

He couldn't help but feel guilty, it was his fault she'd ended up hopping off. He'd gotten to upset and had ended up shouting at her, an actual child, he'd made her cry, "I don't think I've got that angry before. Polly's just a kid, she just wanted to help."

Getting frustrated even more now, Leo began to pull and ruffle up his already sticking out and messy white hair, managing to let out some stick and leaves that were in them.

Luckily, she had left a convenient trail of where she'd stormed off to, with crunched leaves and pushed over branches covering the ground.

However, as he continued his walk, he spotted a weirdly familiar mudslide hastily spilling down an already pretty steep incline...it was somewhere he actually remembered; he'd fallen down here before; this was in his dream.

That didn't matter right now, though. He had also spotted Polly on the edge of a smaller hill, "Polly! Look...a-about before I'm sorry," Leo tried his best to sound genuine, but his usual monotone voice wasn't helping.

The purple frog wasn't having it however, glaring back at Leo clearly not happy with him, "You're trying to apologize now? What does it matter, aren't I just some baby to you?" She sarcastically questioned, crossing her arms and facing away from him.

Leo deadpanned, not impressed with her response, "C'mon, I know I got a little upset, but it wasn't your fault that you didn't know where it was-"

"Stop talking to me like I'm just some kid, admit it! You didn't believe for a second that I knew where the place was, but hah! I found it so now you have to treat me like I'm older!" Polly exclaimed, rolling about cockily.

The teenage human got a little nervous when she began to get closer and closer to the edge of the small hill that was overlooking the pouring mudslide, "Is that all you wanted me to do? Treat, you like you were older; I can do that, I'm sorry before, I-I don't really know how to treat other people normally, that's why I want to get my memory back, to see if the me before was better than I am now."

"So, just step away from the edge. And we can see if I remember anything, this is where I fell so maybe-"

In one single slip, Leo fell off of the hill and straight into the mud, beginning to sink further into it. Normally, he would be able to find himself out of it but his body began to react to the fall, forcing him into a stiff flailing position, unable to escape.

When Polly saw this, she instantly began to panic, looking around for anything to help pull him out. She wasn't a baby she could do this; Leo might not have meant it, she didn't know.

But she had to help.

Dipping his head up and out of the mud, doing his best not to inhale any of it. Leo began to hyperventilate; he'd slipped before and that had led to his memory loss, he didn't want to do that again.

He'd become friends with Sprig, good friends with Anne. Was at least on Hop Pop's good side along with the towns, he hadn't even got to apologize properly to Polly, he'd never wanted to make her feel like that, it was a fatal flaw that he hated.

That he'd always judge something on the basis of what he'd observed about them, but now he'd began to look at people as more than that, they were more than what they looked like on the surface.

Polly might have been a child, at least in age. She got scared, sad and would act like one, but she was also determined, aggressive and was willing to bat away anything she was up against, he'd always viewed anyone at face value.

Suddenly, a large log towered over him before slamming into the mudslide just behind him. At the other end of it was Polly, sweating heavily as she kept hold of the other side, making sure it wouldn't fall in; with some struggle he clambered up it as quick as he could, collapsing on what was left of the small hill.

"Haaaaaahhhh...why does every outing we go on end in us getting in perilous danger of some kind," He moaned, his chest rising up and down.

"That's just how we are, but you can't call me a little tadpole anymore can yah!" Polly bragged dancing back and forth.

Sitting up Leo picked her up and stopped her, "Look, Polly I'm sorry, really, I am. I just can't help it sometimes, I got mad a few weeks back that Wartwood wouldn't give me a chance and yet I didn't even bother to learn more about you then what I'd seen, I guess I am a lot different from Anne."

He placed her down, not finished, "But you shouldn't think it's bad that your still little, your gonna have some things you won't want to or can't do, that's just how it is. There's nothing wrong with admitting that," Leo explained, a small but noticeable smile on his face.

Getting a little embarrassed the tadpole turned away from him in a huff, "I guess...I am still a kid, you just kept saying that I was that I wanted to ignore it," She admitted, albeit a little sheepishly.

Not replying, Leo spotted a piece of tattered clothing below the cliffside, taking over most of his attention he leant down to pick it up and bring it back up to his eye level – Polly observed it as well confused of what it even was.

Feeling the almost metallic design, Leo recognized that it was resemblant of the small cloth that was missing from his t-shirt, it was an incredibly faded color of orange, barely even visible if it had been left for a few more days.

There had originally been an insignia of some sorts on it, but it was fair to scarred and muddied to even hope to be able to make out, turning to Polly Leo had somewhat of a more confident upturn, "Well, it's not what I was hoping to find, but it'll work."

"And all with my help!" Polly bragged tapping her flipper onto the front of her body. Leo simply rolled his eyes and placed the smaller frog on his shoulders.

"Right, now let's head back after a semi-life-threatening adventure," Leo said dryly, beginning to walk away from the hill, until Polly pointed out the obvious.

"Wait. How are we going to get back, weren't we lost?"

Realize what she had said, Leo became silent and stopped dead in his tracks, "...Fu-"

...

I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, I was a little worried that it wouldn't be received that well, but I think it turned out pretty good for a character focused story, so let me know how you thought it was. The next chapter will be Snow Day so until then, see yah!