A/N: If you're reading this when I first posted this…this takes place before Reptile Mayhem. I switched the episodes around.

Jean took in a deep breath. The salty air stung her nostrils, but the older teen didn't mind. She'd always loved the smell of the ocean air. It reminded her of the old days, when she'd spend time at the beach with her friends as a little kid. When everything was simple, and rarely anything bothered her.

The older teen, Anne and the Plantars were currently hanging out in Newtopia, visiting a brand new area: the Newtopian Markets. A mall-like street with many shops like "Hop Topic", "Frog Claires" and others.
Anne gasps, looking around eagerly at all the shops. "Whoa! Look at this place! It's like the outdoor mega mall from back home!" She exclaims excitedly, holding Jeans arm and guiding her forward. The older teen nods, seeing the similarity. "I know! Man, who knew our worlds could be so similar yet so different?" She adds.
The young axolotl standing beside them squeals excitedly, eyes sparkling. "I've never seen anything like this! It's huge!" She shouts, spreading out her arms to prove her point.

Hop Pop hums in thought, now walking away from a barista stand with a hot cup. "Mm-hmm. Sure." He replies nonchalantly, sipping on the warm drink that Jean could only assume was a buggachino.
"Anyway," the elderly frog continues, gaining the kids attention. "Since we only have a couple of days left in the city, I figured we could spend the afternoon shopping for souvenirs." He explains, bringing out his wallet. "Now get out there and buy anything you'd like!"

The kids all cheer, getting pumped and excited. Jean grins, ready to buy something to remind her of her time in this amazing city. I mean, who wouldn't? This place is amazing!

"-For two coppers or less!" Hop Pop finishes, tossing all the kids a small pouch of coins. They land in their open arms, leaving all the kids speechless. As Polly starts complaining, Jean opens the bag to take a look inside.
There were 2 small copper coins. Jeans face drops, realising that the kids had every right to be angry. This wasn't even enough money to buy a small, good quality object. She was pretty sure whatever they'd buy would be so pathetic it'd break after using it a few times.

"What?! This ain't enough for a candy bar!" Polly whines, as Anne nods in agreement, a look of confusion on her face. "Yeah, what gives?" She questions. "Let's just use that sweet bling-bling from the king-king." She grins, trying to change the elderly frog's mind.

Sprig, hearing this news, hops up excitedly onto Flossie's shoulders. "Oh, yeah. The Royal credit card!"
The axolotl, not expecting the sudden weight placed on her shoulders, falls back, landing on top of Sprig as the two yelp in pain, hitting the cobblestone path. Everyone winces, as the two 10 year olds hurriedly get to their feet. "I'm okay!" Flossie says, brushing herself off as Sprig apologises.

Hop Pop shakes his head, before replying to the kids. "Nuh-uh. Kids, souvenirs are only meaningful if you pay for them yourself." He explains, to which the kids groan.
Jean places the pouch into her own pocket, half listening to Hop Pop explain to Polly what "haggling" was, only for him to lose the Polliwog as she bounced off, giggling maniacally.

Sprig stands, putting away his own pouch of coins. Flossie follows his lead. "Side note: exciting!" She exclaims, as Sprig nods. "Yep! I guess I'd better get an item for Ivy. Since we are an item." He snorts at his own joke, giving Anne a nudge. "Who are you gonna shop for?" He asks her.

"My mom."

At this statement, Sprig quiets down, surprised. "Your…mom?" He asks again, to which Anne hums. "Yep! I figured if I'm gonna go missing in a different dimension, the least I could do is bring back a gift."

As she talks, none noticed Sprig had wondered off. Flossie tilts her head, eyes wide. "That's so sweet! I'm gonna do that now! Thanks for the idea, Anne!" She smiles. The brunette grins. "No probs, dude. What are you gonna get her?"
Flossie hums in thought. "Well, I was thinking of getting her a cane. Her last one broke when we fought that giant crab." The axolotl explains.
Jean listened intently, a soft smile on her face. Like the axolotl said, it WAS sweet of the two to get a gift for their mothers. Maybe instead of getting something for herself, she could get a gift for someone too…

"Seems reasonable to me."

The trio look up to see Sprig was standing beside them, holding a brand new bamboo staff. They stared at him, bewildered. "Wha-when did you? How did you?"
"Where did you-"
"Sprig, we were just talking to you a second ago! How did you…"

Sprig shrugs at their questions. "Don't know. But isn't it perfect for Ivy?!" He asks, showing off the staff. Jean was still in disbelief, but shook it off. If there was one thing she shouldn't question, it was Sprig's superpower: somehow being everywhere at once.

"It even whistles when you swing it! Watch this!" Sprig starts waving the staff around, knocking over several pots. The stand owner yelps as he watches the pots and vases clatter to the ground, smashing into several pieces. "My pots!"

Anne grabs Sprig, running away shouting "Sorry, sorry! Bill the king! Bill the king!" Jean follows suite, grabbing Flossie's hand and running in the opposite direction.

After they were some distance away, Jean stops, panting for breath as she lets Flossie's hand go. "I think we're far enough away by now." She says, the two girls bursting into fits of giggles.
"Did you see that newt? Sprig was like "wa-ta! Woosh!"" Flossie pretends to wave a staff around, adding in sound effects. "And then the newt was like "WAAAH!" A-and then-" Flossie starts to laugh harder, recalling the events.
The older teen grins, laughing with her. "I don't think that newt will be forgetting us anytime soon." She cackles.

The two continue walking along, looking at the different stalls and shops. Finally, they enter a store specialising in selling canes. Flossie had a blast checking out all the different designs.
Lifting one with a bird head for a handle up to the light, the axolotl hums in thought. "Hey Jean, what do you think about this one?" She asks the older human.
Not hearing a response, the red-head turned to face Jean.

The human was spaced out, looking out the window to where Anne and Sprig were seen in the shop opposite the street. Although her gaze followed them, it was obvious her mind was elsewhere.

-
(Jean's POV)

"My mom."

"Your…mom?"

"I figured if I'm gonna go missing in a different dimension, the least I could do is bring back a gift."

Those lines swirled through Jeans mind, as she watched Anne search for a gift for her mother. The mother back home who cared about her, who would occasionally let Jean stay at her house when home life became too much.
The mother who understood her child. Who doesn't judge her daughter for who she is and didn't try to control her to be someone else.

Or leave her to fend for herself when she realised she "messed up" on raising the "perfect obedient angel" somewhere down the line.

Anne's mother would never turn her back on her child when she needed her the most.

"She never loved you, did she? They never do."

Jean's brows furrowed, shoving her hands in her pockets as she tries to shove the voice and thoughts away to the back of her mind. This was no time to resent her friends parents. They were supposed to be having fun, and the teen should be looking for a gift too.

"Hello? Amphibia to Jean?" Flossie asks loudly, waving a hand in front of Jeans face. This seems to snap the human out of her trance, and she looks down at the axolotl. "H-huh?"

"I was just asking what you thought about this cane?" The axolotl asks, holding up the cane for the human to see. It had a sparrow head for a handle. "Mum likes birds! When they're not eating her new garden, of course." She explains.
Jean stutters for a reply. "Well, it looks nice…" she trails off, scrambling for words. Before Jean could continue, Flossie shakes her head, tossing the cane comedically aside. "No, this one ain't it. I need to find the perfect gift for my mum to let her know I appreciate all she's done for me and I'd never trade her for anything in the world." She states.
Jean raises a brow at the concerning line, but shakes it off. "Well, I'm sure whatever you decide to get her, she's going to love it." She encourages, shooting the young girl a smile.

Flossie's ears perk as her eye catches something around the corner. She disappears, leaving Jean alone for a brief moment.

Chuckling softly, Jean goes to follow her when she felt a cold aura surround her, sending a shiver up her spine. It felt like a blanket of ice was wrapping itself around her specifically, yet the teen could clearly see out the window that it was sunny and hot outside. She tries to ignore it, muttering the same phrase as she continues walking down the aisle. "It's not real, it's just my imagination."
The icy hand landing on her shoulder is what made her inhale sharply, heart pounding in fear as she whips around to see who touched her.

But there was nothing there. No amphibian, just an empty aisle. The cold aura she felt had disappeared, yet the teen couldn't help but feel like she was being watched.
Taking in a shaky breath, Jean wills herself to relax. "It's nothing…" she repeats, shoving her hands in her jacket pockets before turning back around to follow Flossie.

As she reaches the end of the aisle, the human almost had another heart attack when Flossie excitedly dashes in front of her, waving a cane around wildly. "I FOUND IT! IT'S PERFECT!" She squealed loudly.

Jean laughs nervously, once again willing her nerves to calm down again. This kid was going to be the death of her. "Really?" She asks, to which the axolotl nods happily. "Yep! Behold!"
She holds up the cane, showing off the mushroom-shaped handle. "Look! It's a mushroom! Mum always finds mushrooms cute! DO you think she'll like it?" She questions, now clutching the cane close as a look of doubt crosses her features.

Jean, finally calm again, places a reassuring hand on Flossie's shoulder. "Hey, I'm sure she'll love it." She states with a confident grin.
Flossie's spirits lift once more, and she pulls the human into a quick hug. "Great! Let's go! You still need to find something!" She runs up to the checkout, Jean close behind.
The feeling of being watched still lingered in the air, but Jean decided to try and ignore it.

What she needed today was a distraction from her troubled thoughts.

"So who are you gonna get a gift for?" Flossie asks, as the two walked around the market.
Jean looks over the stands, trying to find the perfect gift. "I'm gonna get a gift for Charlie." She explains simply, lifting up a bracelet made from seashells and coral.
Flossie tilts her head, leaning on the cane. "Is this the "friend" Anne ships you with?" She asks curiously, yet Jean noticed the mischievous smile on her face. She rolls her eyes at that. "Oh no, not you too." She says, placing the bracelet back down as they move onto the next stall.

Flossie giggles, running ahead before walking backwards in front of the human. "Well either way, I hope to meet her one day!" She exclaims. "What does she like?"
"She's really into horror movie related stuff." Jean explains, looking at the stalls. "But I don't think I'd be able to find anything that would interest her here, so I could look for something related to her second favourite thing: astronomy. She's always geeking out to me about a stars life span, or something similar. Even though at times I don't understand some of the stuff she's talking about, it's always fun listening to her rant and learning trivia about the latest horror film or star news."

Jean hadn't realised she was ranting until she noticed Flossie listening intently, staring up at her to give her her full attention. She coughs into her hand, cheeks heating up as she scratched the back of her neck awkwardly. "B-but yeah, she's my best friend back home, so I wanna get her something." She explains.

"…she sounds like someone special." Flossie finally says quietly after a moment, eyes focused on the ground bitterly. Jean smiles softly at the axolotls words, not noticing her change of attitude. "Yeah, yeah she is." she says softly.
She looks up at the stalls once more, stopping at one to take a look at their products. It was a jewellery stand, with other accessories like statues sitting on display.

One caught her eye immediately, a sapphire moon necklace. The blue pendant even looked like the full moon, details and all.

Surprised, the human picks it up to take a closer look at it. She holds it up to the stall-owner. "Excuse me, did you make this?" She asks.
The owner, a newt who was busy counting money, looks up briefly. At the sight of the necklace, he shakes his head. "Nope. Sorry but I don't know who made it. The guy I bought it from had gotten it from the Bizarre Bazaar a few years ago." He explained.

Jean hummed in thought, rubbing her thumb over the stone pendant. "Charlie would love something like this… how much is it?" She asks.
"20 coppers."
The human pulls out her pouch of just 2 coppers, looking between it and the necklace in dismay. "Uh….you wouldn't sell it to me for 2 coppers, would you?" She asks sheepishly.

The newt gives her a scowl. "Lady, this is one of a kind, I'm not selling it for 2 coppers. Only an idiot would do that." He states, snatching the necklace from Jeans hands. The human looked between the newt and the necklace in despair.
"W-well, could you at least not sell it? I'll get the money, promise, just give me time." She begs. The newt thinks for a moment, before shrugging.

"Alright, I'll bite. If you can pay me back before sunset, you'll get your necklace. But I'm not waiting around for you after dark." He replies, and Jean lets out a sigh of relief. "Thank you! I'll be back, promise. Just don't go anywhere!" She calls, grabbing Flossie's hand as she hurries off. The newt rolls his eyes, but doesn't say anything.

Flossie, who'd been eyeing the pendant with wonder, glances up at her human friend as the teen guided her through the streets. "Wait, how are you gonna get the money to pay for it?" She asks curiously.
Jean looks around, spotting "Easy Street Chairs" in the distance. "I'm kinda hoping Hop Pop will take pity on me and let me have the Royal Credit Card." She says, entering the store. Flossie hums, scratching her chin. "Well, I think just this once he'll say yes."

He didn't say yes. In fact, the elderly frog hadn't said anything, just ignored everything around him as he sat in a vibrating chair.
The girls tried everything to get his attention, but failed. At last, the two leave the elderly frog by himself, sitting outside on the curb instead.

"I'm never gonna get that necklace." Jean grumbled, placing her head in her hands. Flossie pats her back gently, thinking. "What if we earned the money a different way?" She suggests.
At that, Jean sits up, also looking thoughtful. "Like put on a show?"
"Yeah!"
"I don't know…what'll we do?"

"We could sing! Or I could do water tricks!" The axolotl says excitedly, creating a bubble of water to float in her palm. "It'll be great!"

Jean thinks, looking around the busy street. There were plenty of people. But they had nothing to show other than Flossie's water tricks, and the teen didn't want the axolotl doing all the work only for Jean to spend the money.

But she HAD to get Charlie this pendant. What if….

Jean gets an idea. "Floss, would you be okay with people laughing at us?" She asks. Flossie tilts her head, confused what her friend was suggesting. "Huh?"
"I have an idea, I just want to know if you're okay with it."
The teen leans in close, whispering her idea to the young axolotl.

Standing up, Jean looks around at the busy street once more, clearing her throat nervously. What she was about to do was nerve wracking, especially after what happened at the Frog of the Year party.

"Ladies a-and gentle-newts!"

A few heads turned at her voice, their eyes piercing her from every direction. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Jean puts on a confident smile.
"Why are frogs rarely angry? They eat whatever bugs them!"

There was a moment of silence as the crowd glances at each other, before turning their gaze back to her. The human sweats, getting more nervous.
"Uh, a pair of slugs were talking in the field. One says, "Have you heard about the mad slug disease that's going around?"
"Yeah," the other slug says. "Makes me glad I'm a sparrow!""

One member of the crowd coughs. Suddenly, Flossie bursts to the front of the crowd, carrying a bucket, "Boo!" She shouts in a loud fake voice, before throwing the bucket full of water at the older teen.
The crowd starts laughing hysterically, as Flossie smiles sweetly at them. Now drenched, Jean smiles as well. All was going according to plan.
Flossie held up her now empty bucket. "5 coppers and I'll throw another bucket of water on her!" She calls. Many newts hurriedly brought out their wallets, eager to see this child throw more water at the strange creature with bad jokes.
Physical comedy always gets em.

Jean didn't mind getting a little soaked. By the end of the day, she and Floss will have the moon pendant and spare money for whatever else they want.

"Here you go, one blue-moon pendant." The surprised newt says, handing Jean the pendant. The older teen takes it, a wide triumphant grin on her face. "Thanks!"
"Have a good day."

Jean and Flossie walk side by side back to where they knew Hop Pop was, the human still soaked through, but happy. Giving Flossie the left over coins, she gives her a grateful smile. Thanks again for helping me, Floss. I owe you BIG time." She says.
Flossie grins back. "No worries! What are friends for?"

Jean shivered as a breeze blew by, the water making everything feel much colder than it actually was. Noticing this, Flossie pulls out her cloak, handing it to Jean. "Here! This can keep you warm until we make it back to the hotel." She states. At first, Jean shook her head. "No, I don't need it, I'm fine-" she starts, but the axolotl wasn't having it.
"Put it on!"
Jumping up, she covers Jeans head with the cloak, completely failing to get it over her head and making her look like a blanket ghost.

Chuckling, Jean gives in. "Alright, alright, yeesh. You're starting to sound like Pebbs." She says, fixing up the cloak to fit. Flossie beams with victory.

They reach the Easy Street Chairs, and spot Hop Pop beside two newts, who were busy putting a large chair into a box labelled "Ship to Wartwood". He turns to face the two approaching girls. "Oh, heya kids!" He greets nervously, as the two girls look at him in disbelief.
"Wa- Hop Pop, what the heck? There's no way you got that for 2 coppers!" Jean says, as the elderly frog starts sweating. "W-well, I-"

"Whoa, Hop Pop!"

The trio turn to see Anne, Sprig and Polly approaching. The polliwog had a large golden bucket and a small snail, making Jean and Flossie stare in disbelief. Before they could ask how she got them, the polliwog notices the older teens appearance. "What happened to you?"
"uh, long story."

"Eh, just packing a small souvenir, uh, then we can head out." Hop Pop continues as Anne continues to ask him questions.
"You got that for 2 coppers?"

"Uh, sure did! Amazing what you can get for 2 coppers these days!"
Everyone stares at him suspiciously, until he eventually caved.

"Okay, fine! I used the credit card! I'm so ashamed!" He wails. "But if you could feel this thing, kids! It's heaven on your rump. Nirvana on your tush. Bliss on your-"

"We got it!" The kids interrupt, not wanting to hear anymore. They head back to the hotel together, happy about their outing that day.

It was nightfall, and the Plantars were asleep. The city lights flooded in through the open door to the balcony, illuminating the room in a soft, purple glow.

Outside on the balcony, Anne leant on the railing, Jean stood to her right. The younger of the two gently fiddled with the butterfly she'd been gifted by a young newt named Pearl.

Jean looks down at the butterfly, knowing what she was thinking about. "So you found the perfect gift for your mum?" She asks, trying to lighten the mood. Anne nods, smiling as she turns to face her. "Yep. It's nice, isn't it?" She holds it up for the older teen to see.
The older teen nods, agreeing with her. It was a lovely and thoughtful gift, especially for someone as special as Mrs. Boonchuy.

"What do you think she's doing right now?"

Anne turns back to look down at the city lights, a thoughtful look on her face as she smiles softly."Usually on a night like this, she'll be busy preparing the restaurant for tomorrow. What do you think Charlie would be doing?"

"Probably binge watching the latest horror movie, laughing at everyone being jump-scared."

The two chuckle, falling back into a content silence as they look out over the city. Jean notices a few amphibians walking about on the brightly lit streets. Looking out further, she's able to see the ocean, only seen by moonlight.

Hearing a creak behind them, Jean glances over her shoulder to see Sprig wander over to stand next to Anne. "Hey buddy. Couldn't sleep?" She asks. The pink frog nods.

All is quiet, until Sprig speaks up, noticing Anne's thoughtful look. "It's so pretty. I'm sure your mom's gonna love it." He reassures, motioning to the butterfly still in her hands.
The younger teen nods, giving him a hum in response.

"…What's she like?" Sprig asks. At that, Anne stands up straighter. "My mom? Um, kind….in her own way. But strict too. She wanted me to study more. Thought I goofed off too much.
We didn't always see eye to eye. She annoyed me sometimes too. Like, in the kitchen, she'd always sing these goofy Thai love songs, and, man, was her singing bad. Woof! That woman was beyond tone-deaf." She chuckles, resting her head in her hand.

"You know, the funny thing is…right now I would give anything just to hear her singing."
Tears stream down her cheeks at the fond memories. The older teen gently rubs her back, assuring her that it was going to be okay.

She was going to make sure they all get home. She had to. She was the older sister, after all.
It was her responsibility.

After all, it was partly her fault that the girls got stranded in Amphibia, anyway.

"You could've stopped them before they stole the box. But you didn't, did you?"

"Whoa! Sorry, sorry." Anne hurriedly wiped the tears away, moving over to one of the chairs to sit down. "I just, uh, need a moment."

Sprig sits down too, his back leaning against the railing. "What's your mom like?" He asks, directing the question to Jean.
The older teen pauses, taken aback as she looks down at him for a split second. She wasn't sure she wanted to answer.

"Well, she's…something." She finally replies, making a point to avoid his gaze.

Wonderful speech, Jean. Absolutely fabulous.

"I don't really like talking about her that much. Sorry, buddy."

Sprig nods in understanding, fiddling with his hat as everyone fell into silence again.

"…I-it's cool you guys know your moms, though. Mine passed away when me and Polly were really young."

Anne and Jean share a shocked look, as they listened to the young pink frog continue.

"I don't even remember what she looked like really. Much less the sound of her voice. You know, I've always wondered…"

Jean kneels down, wrapping an arm around the small pink frog as he continued. "Can you miss someone you never actually knew?" He chuckles, brushing it off. "That's silly. I mean, of course you can't-"

Anne dives down, embracing him into a tight hug. After a quiet moment, he hugs back, tearing up. The older teen holds the two of them close, gently rubbing the young frogs back as he quietly sobs.

From afar, an unknown entity watches them, tilting their head as they stare at the quiet moment. A sense of longing and loneliness filled their chest, remembering the good old days they'd spend with their friends and sibling.

They felt guilty for what they were going to do. But it had to be done.

They've waited a millennia for this plan to fall into action. They couldn't let their emotions get in the way now.

The fate of the dimensions counted on it.

A/N: I KNOW LIKING ASTRONOMY IS CLICHE BUT I REALLY HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO DO. PLUS WHO DOESN'T LIKE STARS? STARS ARE COOL.

Also, sorry if this chapter is so confusing. Jean is going through a lot lol. She probably partly of blames herself for them getting lost, since she felt she could've stopped the girls from stealing the box.
And even though she doesn't want to return HOME home, she still has friends back on earth who were special to her.

(okay honestly i dont think this chapter is gonna age well but this is what i had planned so we'll see how this goes. as the story progresses i may come back and do some edits)