The intro opens with Anne's hands on the Calamity Box, opening it. Light from inside the box shines brightly before it switches to a scene that shows Kenji, Anne, Sasha, and Marcy, looking inside. Suddenly there was a white light and everything when blank.
Kenji was on the ground when the light faded, covered in mud with Anne next to him. When he woke up, he looked shocked to see he was in Amphibia with Anne. The two friends stood up and looked at their surroundings in awe.
The camera then zoomed out and showed the entire world of Amphibia.
Tenohira ni kizama re teru
Tsugihagi no yona sono sen ni furete
The scene then changed to the town of Wartwood as the frog inhabitants go about their daily lives. As a pair of dragonflies fly past the camera, it followed them until stopping at the Plantar farmhouse while the sun was starting to rise in the sky.
When the camera changed to show the house's front door, Kenji and Anne stepped out from inside and out into the world. Ready to take on the day. But first, they ducked their heads under some dragonflies that passed them.
Hibiware sona atama to
Gurasu ga sasata kokoro de mae hashiru
The camera moves up to a window on the side of the house. Sprig opened the window with a telescope in hand. He looked through it at the horizon before slipping off the windowsill and started falling. Inside the house, Hop Pop was reading one of his books in his study when Sprig's falling and screaming made him look at his window. Down on the ground, Sprig had landed in Polly's bucket. His little sister responded by punching her brother in the butt. Sending him flying out of the bucket. She then dove back into her bucket of water.
Sprig landed on Anne's head, and the three of them smiled at one another. Then Sprig pointed at something. Kenji pulled out one of his Class Cards, and the friends rushed off into the unknown.
The scene changed to show Kenji, Anne, and Sprig hopping across multiple mushrooms that lit up when one of them landed on it.
Koware kake no sekai
Kuzure so o de memai
The next scene showed Anne, Sprig, and Kenji running for their lives from a giant chicken monster. Kenji summons a black steed from his Rider Card then gets the others on and gallops away faster from the giant poultry. The scene begins to break apart as red line spread across the screen.
The next scene showed Sprig, Anne, Kenji, Polly, and Hop Pop fishing together on a lily pad before it suddenly rose into the air. Underneath it was a giant fish that started swimming around as everyone started screaming. Kenji, however, started stabbing it with a black broadsword. The scene to break apart like the scene before.
Another scene showed Sprig in a temple looking at something before Kenji and Anne came rushing down the stairs beside him. Anne picked him up as they ran away from a giant boulder that came crashing into the temple. And just like the last two scenes, it begins to break apart in red lines.
Karappo na karada de
Ibtsuna shikai
The next scene showed a red, dark area. Anne and Kenji had their backs together, and both having looks of determination. Anne raised her card: Alter Ego, and Kenji raised his card: Saber as the cards begin to glow.
Still, in the same scene, the viewer is suddenly pulled back to reveal that they were surrounded by dozens of twisted frog/toad/newt-like creatures and a giant snake crawling up from behind them. Towering over them and hissing.
Zokkuri to myako o utsu inochi no sen
Naifu de nazotte nobashite shimaetara
ne dareka oshiete Tsuki ga mierunara
The amphibian-like abominations started attacking as Kenji now armed with Balmung/Gram and Anne now armed with the Absolute Sword – Endless Three-Stage rushed towards the viewer. Smashing, slicing, and killing any twisted being that came at them. Just as the viewer watched them go past the camera on both sides, the Giant Snake lunged at the fleeing kids. Its mouth opens as it comes towards the camera before the viewer is in the blackness of the snake's mouth, but it didn't last long as Kenji swung his sword and cuts down the snake with one strike.
Kesenai de
mada kesenai de
The scene changed again to a split screen with the left side show Anne's photo of herself, Kenji, Sasha, and Marcy together being held in a gloved hand and on the right is an older man in his fifties with a grin on his face. A flash of light showed the man's face more and the infamous Toad Tower in the background.
Kienaide mada Kienaide
The final scene of the intro showed Kenji standing in the middle of a road looking at the Class Cards he has. He looked to his left and saw Anne walking over to him with a smile. Then Sprig came over to his right and jumped on Kenji's shoulders while Fou jumps on his head with a content smile on his face. Hop Pop and Polly walked/hopped over and joined the trio. The screen begins to pan downwards as it shows reflections not of the group but of legendary heroes of Earth's history.
The intro ends with the title of the story.
FATE / CALAMITY
Book 1: Amphibia
Chapter 14:
Hop Pop and Fated Lock
It's been a couple of days since Kenji's encounter with the toads, and the right side of his face was still bandaged up. After having the fight of his life and nearly being killed by the hammer of Tartarus, Hop Pop allowed him to rest. Kenji's wounds were starting to heal, but not enough to allow him to go back into the field and start working again.
During one of those days, it was Grubhog Day, the annual festival where everyone takes off from work and celebrates the grubhog, a small pig-like grub that predicts the weather. Anne, Sprig and Polly are excited to try out the rides when Hop Pop appears out of a bush to tell Sprig that he had him volunteer to watch over the Grubhog after the previous one chosen to watch over it "caught the plague". The Plantars have not watched over the grubhog due to one of their ancestors eating it, which resulted in him being shunned by the family. Sprig reluctantly agrees even though that means he will have to miss the entire fair. Sprig is forced to wear a suit and hat and given a scroll congratulating him but adding "DON'T PULL A PLANTAR". Hop Pop and Polly leave, leaving Sprig to sulk with Anne.
As Sprig laments his inability to leave the Grubhog unattended to, Anne suggests that they go on the rides with the Grubhog in tow so that Sprig will technically be watching it. Together they go on numerous rides while avoiding Hop Pop and Polly. While riding a roller coaster, a misplaced nail causes the Grubhog to be launched from the cart and land on the tracks. When Anne and Sprig come back around to get him, a buzzard flies off with the Grubhog, scaring the two. They discover a socks and buttons stand and recreate the Grubhog as a puppet to use just in time for the ceremony.
The ceremony, surprisingly, goes off without a hitch until they must cut open the Grubhog to examine its liver. Sprig stops the execution and reveals that he lost the Grubhog telling him, and Anne tricked them all to cover it up and that he just wanted to make Hop Pop proud of him. Hop Pop apologizes as he realized that he unintentionally put a lot on Sprig's shoulders. However, the town is upset that they do not have a Grubhog to complete the ceremony, but they admit they did enjoy the puppets. Anne and Sprig start putting on shows nightly, redeeming the Plantar family name.
That's when Anne decided to take on his responsibilities. As her best friend rested and allowed himself to heal, she willingly did more work. Anne said it was the least she could do. And whenever Kenji got out of bed and tried to walk around, Anne was right there. Offering her shoulder to lean on as he limps.
And that was what Anne did for him as the two of them walked into town.
"Anne, I think I can walk on my own," Kenji said, even though with each step he takes, he grunts in discomfort.
"Not with half your face still covered up," Anne said, guiding him with a hand on his arm. Together, they walked over to the Plantars, who were standing in an alleyway. Ever since they lost the stand, the family has had to find new ways of making money. And some of them, like this plan, weren't so legal.
"Fou" Fou said as he was looking towards Kenji in concern as the young man scratches the back his ears, causing the little creature to lean in.
"Now kids," Hop Pop said, standing next to a wheelbarrow that had 'Inquire Within' painted on the front, "just because we lost the family stand doesn't mean we can't sell our produce out of a janky wheelbarrow."
"This...This is pretty sad," Anne said as she and Kenji stared at the almost pitiful state the family had been reduced to.
"And a little shady," Kenji said.
"Agreed," said Polly.
"Ah, criminal activity. Excitement!" Sprig exclaimed as he pulled out a ski mask and slipped it on.
"Take that off!" Hop Pop snapped, snatching the mask off Sprig's head. "This is perfectly legal."
"Then why are we hiding in an alley?" Anne pointed out. The five of them looked out at the busy market and saw many other frogs going about their lives.
"Um, stop asking questions and follow my lead." Hop Pop told her. The kids watched as he hugged the wall and moved around the corner. Walking up to the first frog he saw, Hop Pop tapped them on the shoulder.
"Psst, lady. Want to buy an eggplant?" He asked. When the female frog turned to face him, Hop Pop saw who he was talking to and gasped in shock.
She was an old frog with pink nails and lime green skin with orange cheeks and pink lipstick on her mouth. She wears a pink dress with a small pink flower pinned on her chest. On her face were large, oval rimmed blue glasses and had her white hair tied back into a ponytail.
"Hoppy!" The female frog exclaimed with joy.
"Wha- Sylvia!" Hop Pop exclaimed in total shock.
"Syliva?" Kenji asked, curious about this frog.
"Hoppy?" Anne added, even more confused by the nickname.
"Fou?"
"Come here, you sweet potato," Syliva said, pulling Hop Pop into a warm hug.
"Uh...I thought you had moved away," Hop Pop said, sitting in shock as he hugged her back with one arm. When Syliva pulled away, Hop Pop sweated a little as he stared at her.
"Yep, but I'm back in town," she told him with a smile. "Now, let's take a look at your veggies."
Hop Pop's voice stammered as his cheeks blushed bright red. Syliva walked past him and into the alleyway. Seeing her coming, Kenji and Anne stepped back as the lady frog picked up an eggplant. "Oh, I'll take this one," she said, turning it around to show it had a face like Hop Pop's. "I've always had a soft spot for the weird ones." Syliva gave the old frog a wink.
Once again, Hop Pop stammered and started to sweat even more.
"Well, I better be going. Goodbye, Hoppy." Placing a copper coin in his shirt pocket, Syliva gave her old friend one last hug.
"Goodbye, Sylvia," Hop Pop said, still stammering. She pulled away and walked back out into town. Leaving to join her family. Seeing her leave and how much he's botched his chance to really talk to her, Hop Pop sighed in defeat.
"Who was that?" asked Kenji. Hop Pop let out a startled yelp when he heard him and turned to see Kenji and Anne looking at him with teasing smirks.
"Siliva Sundew," Hop Pop said, looking back at the old lady frog. "We met a long time ago, until she moved out of the valley. But now she's back!" He sighed dreamingly. "She's just as perfect as she was back then."
Anne gasped out loud in excitement. "Hopediah Plantar, you dog!" She exclaimed, leaning down at him.
Sprig and Polly rushed over when they heard Anne yelling. "What's happening?"
"What's going on?" Polly added.
"Hop Pop is clearly in love," Anne told the two siblings.
Sprig and Polly looked at her with narrow eyes before they widened in shock. "What?!" Sprig exclaimed, placing both hands on his face.
"I didn't think that was possible!" Polly exclaimed
"Am not!" Hop Pop yelled at Anne. "Okay, maybe a little."
"You should tell her how you feel, HP." Kenji said, leaning against the wheelbarrow as Fou nodded.
Hop Pop sadly sighed when he heard this. "I wish I could. But you saw how I was back there. I have trouble even putting sentences together," he told the kids, who looked at him with sympathy. "I wish there was another way to let Sylvia know how I feel."
Their conversation was interrupted when they heard hammering sounds from the town square. Looking towards the end of the alleyway, they saw the backs of a large crowd around something.
"What's that sound?" Kenji asked.
"Hmm. Kids, watch the wheelbarrow for a second," Hop Pop said, before walking over to see just what was going on.
As it turned out, it was Toadie hammering a new flier onto the town's message board. The frogs of the town gathered around the board to see what it was, and Hop Pop walked over to join them. Once he was done, Toadie turned to the crowd, revealing the flier had the word "Dance Fever!" on it.
"Dance Fever! With family fun, shenanigans! Romance! Tonight from 6:00 p.m. till, well, if you're lucky, however you can last, boys!" He said, before jumping off his stool and walking away.
"Hmm." Hop Pop hummed to himself, ponding over what to make of this dance. His attention was then turned to Syliva when she started talking.
"Been a long time since I've danced with someone," Syliva said dearly as she stood next to Felicia. The old female frog then pretended to dance with someone. "Might be nice to feel the embrace of a man."
Felicia chuckled with embarrassment. "Mom," she groaned.
Hop Pop stammered when he saw Syliva do this. However, someone poked him on the shoulder. He turned around to see who it was but saw no one. Then he felt someone brush their finger up against his hair, making him turn around. Again, there was no one. But when he turned around, Hop Pop got poked in the face.
"Ha-ha! Classic, gullible Hopadiah!" said the person that was missing with Hop Pop, flicking his lips up. He's a relatively tall, blue frog with a large head of gray hair, and a small mustache, trimmed in a French-like style. His eyes were buttercup yellow. He also wore a brown jacket over a pale-brown t-shirt, dark blue pants, and he walked barefoot, as did many other citizens of Wartwood.
"Oh. Hey, Monroe," Hop Pop said, annoyed to see him.
"Who's that tool?" Anne asked as she, Kenji, Sprig, and Polly peaked around the corner of the alley.
"That's Monroe. He and Hop Pop have been rivals forever," explained Sprig.
"Monroe wins at pretty much everything," Polly said while being held in Anne's arms. "Lawn bowling, shuffleboard, other old man activities."'
"You're not seriously thinking of going to this thing, are you?" Monroe teased the old frog as he moved around him. "Wouldn't want to embarrass yourself like last year's barn dance fiasco. See you around, old-timer," he said, before walking off while laughing.
Hop Pop narrowed his eyes at him. "Oh, we'll see about that, Monroe. We'll see."
Suddenly there was a loud whistle. Kenji and Sprig ran over to Hop Pop with looks of panic. "Hop Pop, it's the fuzz!" The red frog yelled.
"Run for it!" Kenji grabbed the old frog and limped away as fast as he could with Anne carrying Polly.
When they returned to the farmhouse, the two humans went down into the basement. Kenji sat on his bed as Anne stood in front of him. "Alright, dude. Are you ready?" She asked him, placing a hand on the side of his head with the bandaging.
"I'm ready." Kenji nodded. The time had finally come to see what kind of lasting damage was underneath.
Nodding back at him, Anne gently began to remove the bandages. First, she used his knife to cut it before she started unraveling them from his face. Layers were removed, more and more of his messy hair started to pop out, before she started to see more of his face. It was when Anne removed the last of it did, she stop and stare at him. But in shock and concern. Same can be said for Fou who had the same expression as Anne.
"Fou…" The little creature said in concern for Kenji
"Okay, um, try opening your right eye," she instructed him. Kenji did so and was relieved when he continued to see Anne's pretty face. Even when he closed the other eye.
Blushing at the thought of Anne being pretty, Kenji noticed how Anne was looking at him. "Okay I'll bite. What's wrong?"
"Ah, well…" Anne tried to tell him, but didn't know how to. So, instead, she reached into her backpack, pulled out a handheld mirror, and held it out to him.
Kenji investigated his reflection and saw what she was staring at. Running down and across his right side of his eyebrow was a newly formed red scar. Luckily though it wasn't huge.
"Yeah, that's not going away anytime soon," Kenji said, taking the mirror in one hand as he ran his finger across the scar. It didn't sting thank goodness.
"Aren't you a little bothered by it," Anne asked, sitting close to him on the bed.
"It does, but I'm mostly happy to not have lost an eye. Just wonder how Grandma or even mom would react to this," Kenji said, trying to play off her worries. However, he saw that Anne was still looking at him with concern. "Anne, it's okay."
"Dude, you were hurt badly. You had broken bones and…I thought you'd died!" Anne said, tearing up a bit when she remembered that fight. How close she was to losing her best friend, permanently. "I could have lost you…"
Kenji looked at Anne with a shocked expression before looking away sadly. It was clear just how much the fight influenced him, but he didn't think of how it affected Anne. Almost seeing her friend die is not something people just forget easily.
Kenji surprised her by pulling Anne into a hug. "You wouldn't," he whispered to her as she hugged him back. "I'm not going anywhere, Anne."
Anne smiled and hugged him tight. Blushing as she held him in her arms, and he held her in his strong arms. Realizing just how closing they were being, Kenji and Anne quickly pulled away from one another and averted their eyes. Wanting to reduce the somberness and the awkwardness, Anne had an idea. She got up and picked up a bucket before walking over to a shelf. Placing the bucket on its side, she placed her phone inside it and played some music. Turning it into a makeshift boombox.
"What are you doing?" Kenji asked as the music was blasted all around the room.
"Dancing," Anne said, as she started to move to the music. "Come on, man. Join me!"
Kenji sheepishly chuckled and shook his head. "I-I don't if I…"
"Come ooooon," Anne groaned playfully. "What do you have to lose?"
Knowing that she wasn't going to change her mind, Kenji shrugged and got up from the bed. Together with Anne, Kenji started to dance with her to the music as Fou curls up on the bed to take a nap. As he moved to the beat of the song, Kenji felt himself at ease. It was like nothing else mattered to him at that moment. Seeing him having fun, Anne smiled. Together, they danced with one another, occasionally stealing glances at one another with grins on their faces. Kenji then took Anne's hand and twirled her around, making her laugh happily.
But when she stopped twirling, Anne saw Hop Pop staring down at them from the door.
"AAAAAHHH!" Anne shouted in alarm when she slipped and fell back onto Kenji. The two crashed down on the floor as her only shoe flew off and hit Hop Pop in the face. Knocking him to the ground.
Getting up, Anne stopped the music. "Hop Pop, what the hell, dude?" She asked with a hand on her head.
"Kids, I need your help!" Hop Pop exclaimed.
Kenji stood up. "What?"
A few moments later, Hop Pop came back down to the basement. He showed Kenji and Anne the Dance Fever poster by setting it up against the wall.
"So, wait, you want us to teach you how to dance," Kenji asked.
"That's right!" Hop Pop exclaimed as he looked at the kids with pleading eyes. "Syliva's going to be there. That's why I'm begging you. Teach me your ways! I can't tell Sylvia how I feel, but maybe I can show her by dancing with her."
"Huh. Never figured you for a hopeless romantic, Hop Pop," Anne said, a little impressed with how far he was willing to go for love.
"So, what do you say, Kenji and Anne?" Hop Pop asked again, begging the two friends to help him.
"Of course, we'll help you, dude." Kenji said with a smile. "Let's do this thing."
"Hey, um, think we could keep this just between us?" Hop Pop asked. The last thing he needed was for anyone else to see him try and dance before the fever. Especially his grandkids.
Kenji smiled and said, "You got it, HP. My lips are sealed."
"Whoo! Dance it up, Hop Pop!" Sprig cheered as he, Fou and Polly sat on a log.
"Shake that booty!" Polly yelled with a bag of popcorn. After Hop Pop asked the two humans for help, Anne had Kenji and Hop Pop wait outside as she prepared to teach him. However, when she came out, she brought along Sprig and Polly, both eager to see their grandpa dance.
"Fou!"
"What happened to the zipped lips?" Hop Pop looked at the kids disappointedly.
"Ask Anne. She's the one that told them," Kenji said, having taken off his jacket and tying it around his waist. He was unable to stop himself from glancing at Anne and what she was wearing.
Anne wore her hair in a bun on her head with a green ribbon tying it together, with a light pink headband. She also wore a green undershirt with a slightly darker pink T-Shirt. She also wore dark brown athletic shorts complemented by fuzzy pink legging cuffs. Kenji would ask where she even got those clothes, but now, all he could think of was how good she looked.
"Couldn't help it. This is just too juicy!" Anne said excitedly as she stretched her body. "Besides, when I'm done with you, you and Sylvia will be locking lips by the end of the night."
She moon-walked away as the others groaned in disgust and Hop Pop blushed brightly. "Dude! Uncool!" Kenji yelled. That was the last thing he needed to think about.
Setting up her phone inside of a metal bucket, Anne turned on her training montage playlist. She and Kenji were now ready to give Hop Pop dancing lessons. Being the one that didn't have much dancing experience, Kenji let Anne do all the moving as he explained the lesson.
"Lesson one. Footwork," he said with his arms crossed. "When it comes to dancing, this is very important. Not only are you moving your feet, but you're also moving to the music."
He nodded to Anne. She nodded back and started showing off some of her moves. Tapping her foot first before dancing to the beat of the music. She then stopped and signaled for Hop Pop to try with finger guns.
The old frog tried to replicate her moves, but then he tripped and rolled over on the ground, before landing face first into an ant hill. Popping his head out of the top, he screamed in agony. "It burns! It burns!" He yelled before his grandkids dumped water on him.
Kenji and Anne cringed and shared a glance. This was going to be harder than that thought.
"Lesson two. Rhythm," Anne said. "Footwork and rhythm play a hand in one another, as it's important to stay in tune with the music. If you want to impress Syliva, stay in sync."
Picking up a metal bucket, Kenji tapped on it rhythmically with a hammer. Hop Pop tried doing the same with a wooden bucket. However, he was tapping off-beat. And when he swung down in frustration, he missed and hit his foot.
"Lesson three. Freestyle," Anne said, as she, Kenji, Sprig, and Polly stepped up to show Hop Pop how it's down. "Freestyle is expressing yourself in your own unique way."
Anne went first, before ending in a pose. Kenji's dancing style was much more of a fighting style, with punches and kicks. Nonetheless, Anne was very impressed with his style. When it was Sprig's turn, he did flips with both his feet and his tongue. Polly, having no legs, bounced up and down happily, before Anne spun her around and the tadpole gave a pose. Fou did a little dance himself and you could say it was adorable. And finally, it was Hop Pop's turn and…
Honestly, Kenji and Anne could not tell if the frog was possessed by a demon or losing his damn mind. He flopped around on the ground like a fish out of water before finishing with what could only be called a bird's mating call. "Ta-da!" Hop Pop exclaimed, stopping with a pose. Feeling impressed with himself while also being a little out of breath. "Whoo! I got to say, that's the first lesson I felt good–"
He was cut off when Anne grabbed his face and lifted him up.
"Hop Pop, if you want to win over Sylvia...Never do freestyle again!" She said in a dark, serious tone.
Kenji walked over to her. "Okay, okay," he said, gently having her let the old frog go. "Let's just focus on the first two lessons."
And so, it was. Throughout the rest of the day, Kenji and Anne would help Hop Pop with his footwork and rhythm. Afterwards, they moved onto more advanced lessons like how to move your arms while dancing and even poses. And as the sun started to set over the horizon, the two friends and the frog kids watched as Hop Pop was let loose and did some dance moves on his own. He had made staggering progress and was now able to dance just as good as Anne.
When the music ended and he stopped dancing, the rest of the group applauded him. "Whoa! Yeah, Hop Pop!" Sprig cheered, clapping his hands with Kenji and Anne.
"Miracles happen!" Polly added.
"Nice work, Hop Pop," Anne said. "Or maybe we should call you 'Hip Pop?'"
"Boo," Kenji jeered while giving her the thumbs down causing Anne to give him the stink eye.
"That reference means nothing to me," Hop Pop told her.
"You're definitely ready for the dance tonight," Kenji said. However, all celebration came to an end when Sprig jumped on the human boy's head.
"Guys, there's only ten minutes till the dance. Come on!" He yelled.
"Oh, we got to go!" Anne exclaimed, before they all quickly rushed back to the house to get ready to tonight.
A few moments later, Kenji, Hop Pop, Sprig, and Polly were standing together at the area where the dance was being held. There was a large dance floor with giant floors that lit up the place, as well as a band that played music. There were many adult frogs that came to the dance. Must have had dates, and some didn't. Kenji, Sprig, and Polly were the only kids and teenagers in attendance. With his feet still bare, Kenji wore a black tux with a red tie, which he was trying to adjust. His hair remained unkept and messy, as it was almost impossible to comb it, which was good for Fou since he likes to nap up there.
Unable to adjust his tie with it choking him, Kenji left it loose. He then turned to Sprig. "It's been five minutes. Where's Anne?"
"She said that she was trying to find a dress," Sprig said, wearing a tux that was too big and his hair combed. Polly only had a top hat. "I got to say though, as long as you're not being forced to date someone, dances aren't half bad."
"Sorry! I was trying to find something that fit me," said Anne as she ran over to them. Kenji turned around to her and was stunned to see her attire. Anne wore a dark marine blue dress with her hair tied onto one side with a blue ribbon. Kenji gave off a low whistle as he stared at her with wide eyes. His cheeks flushed a red tint at how beautiful she looked.
As she approached the Plantars and Kenji, Anne saw her old best friends staring at her. "What? Is it bad?" She asked, looking at her dress.
"No! Not at all," he quickly said, before smiling and looking away. Lightly scratching his left cheek, he said, "You look…absolutely beautiful."
"Aww~ thanks." She said, blushing at his compliment. Anne then walked up to him and adjusted his tie so that it was straight and not choking him. "And might I say, you dress up nicely." Kenji blushed and smiled bashfully.
As for Hop Pop, who was dressed in a fancy tux, he looked around the dance floor for Syliva. He gasped and pointed to her when he spotted the lady frog. "She's here! I feel like I'm going to faint. Can frogs faint? I don't know anything anymore!" He yelled, already freaking out.
Kenji and Anne walked over to him and knelt beside him. "Hop Pop, calm down. You are the king of this dance floor!" She told him.
"That's right! You've come this far," Kenji said with encouragement. "Now you walk right up to that lovely lady and ask her to dance."
Realizing they were right, Hop Pop straightened himself and started walking towards Syliva. "I got this."
"Get it!" Anne shouted, cheering for him.
Hop Pop nervously approached Sylvia. He cleared his throat and tried to talk. "S-S-Sylvia? Uh…"
"Sylvia Sundew!" To Hop Pop's shock and horror, Monroe cut in front of him. With an arrogant smirk, he offered her his hand. "Would you do me the honor of this dance?"
"What?!" Anne screamed as Sprig and Polly gasped.
"That bastard!" Kenji exclaimed.
"Why, Monroe. I'd be delighted," said Sylvia, placing her hand on his. Seeing the two of them walk away, Hop Pop started to gasp in a panic. This was bad. Really bad. However, he was determined to not lose this chance.
"Sylvia!" Hop Pop yelled, running up to her and Monroe. "Dance with me instead!"
"Well, Hopadiah," Syliva said, flattered.
"Him? Ha!" Monroe mockingly laughed at the thought of it. "He can't dance."
"I can dance better than you," Hop Pop retorted with confidence. "I've been trained by the best, and I'm going to take you down!"
"Is that so?" Monroe asked with a challenging look in his eyes. "Then let's settle this."
As the crowd around the two old frogs started to applaud them, the kids gasped in shock. "The drama," Sprig said.
"Come on, guys. Hop Pop's going to need backup," Anne said, gulping down her juice before throwing it away. Shattering the glass as they started running over to Hop Pop. However, Kenji ran over to the stage and took a guitar that was just laying around.
The frogs around Hop Pop and Monroe moved out of the way, forming a circle around them on the dance floor as they stood facing each other. Kenji, Anne, Sprig, and Polly came sliding in behind Hop Pop. While the others had their arms crossed, Kenji used a guitar he took and quickly played a quick note. Anne snapped her fingers, and Kenji played another quick note.
"Oh! What's this?" Mayor Toadstool said, very intrigued with what was happening. He reached on stage and grabbed the microphone. "It appears two stallions have taken to the floor and are about to battle it out!"
Seeing this, the band started playing music for the two opponents to dance to.
Hop Pop went first and performed a decent dance routine. Using everything that Anne and Kenji taught him in the short time they had. When he was done, the other frogs were impressed with his moves. Even Sylvia was impressed. Kenji and the kids cheered for Hop Pop.
"A solid effort by Hopadiah Plantar!" Toadstool announced to the people. The orange frog panted for a moment before smiling. Monroe just stared at his rival, not impressed with what he saw. "But how will Monroe respond?"
Dusting off his right shoulder, Monroe chuckled and started walking forward. Throwing away his hat, Monroe began to dance.
At that moment, Kenji knew that they lost. Monroe's dance moves were miles beyond Hop Pop's and even Anne's skills. Kenji, Anne, and the Plantars gasped, before the Thai girl said in defeat, "Oh, no."
Monroe continued to perform an excellent dance routine, before ending it with a breakdance and a pose as a stage light shined down on him. Everyone cheered for Monroe and Syliva was very impressed.
"We're screwed," Kenji said.
"Well, looks like that's it for Hopadiah," Toadstool said, before turning to the frogs to his right. "Unless he has something special or unique to show."
Realizing that it was all over, Kenji, Anne, Sprig, and Polly sighed in defeat. It was over. There was no way they could beat Monroe.
"Well, we did our best. And isn't that what counts?" Sprig said, trying to raise their spirits.
"What kind of loser talk is that?!" Polly yelled at him.
Kenji looked to Anne. "Anne, you're the teacher, what do we do?" He asked hoping that she had a solution up her sleeve.
"I honestly don't know what to do," Anne instead said, sitting on the ground. Kenji joined her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Monroe's just a better dancer, Kenji. I can't even do what he did."
Seeing that there was no other way out of this, Hop Pop realized there was only one thing left to do. "Well, then I guess I'll just have to express myself in my own unique way," he said before walking out onto the dance floor.
Hearing this, Kenji's eyes widened. "Wait, HP, you're not going to…"
Anne gasped in realization. "Oh, no. Hop Pop! Hop Pop!"
"Don't do it!" Kenji yelled, but it was futile. "Okay, now we're screwed."
Hop Pop approached his crush and spoke with confidence. "Sylvia, I don't think I'll ever be able to tell you how I feel about you. But I can show you. Hit it, boys!" He yelled, pointing at the band.
The trombone player said, "Uh, yeah. We've been hitting it, but okay."
The three frogs started playing together, and Hop Pop took a deep breath. This was it. It was all or nothing. And so, Hop Pop began doing his freakish freestyle dancing. He started off by being a crab as he cawed. Then he bounced up and down, before he started downing bird mating calls as he cawed and gagged.
"Unbelievable! I never seen moves like those." Toadstool exclaimed, before cringing. "It's horrifying."
Hop Pop waved his tongue around, before hooting and rooting body up and down. Then, to Kenji's horror, Hop Pop pulled out a jar of fire ants. Then, with no regains for his safety, Hop Pop poured them all into his pants.
He screamed in agony as they bit all over his butt and crotch as he moved his feet, and his arms at blazing fast speeds, causing a fire to form on the floor. Kenji quickly grabbed the juice bowl and ran back to Hop Pop. He quickly dumped the juice all over the old frog, killing the ants and putting out a small amount of the fire.
"Ta-da!" Hop Pop exclaimed as he finished. Kenji looked up and cringed.
Everyone was looking at the old frog with looks of disgust and shock. Never had they seen a dance like that, and after seeing it, they never wanted to see it again.
"Is it safe to look yet?" Anne asked. Her hands covering her face. However, Sprig and Polly were covering their faces too.
"No idea," Sprig replied.
"Couldn't tell you," Polly added.
Kenji sighed and walked back over to them. Sitting down next to Anne, he sighed and said, "You can look, Anne. It's over."
"Oho, yikes. Well, I think it's clear who the winner is," Monroe said with a smug look on his face.
However, the town completely agreed that he was the winner. There was no doubt in their minds about that. As they voiced this, Hop Pop's smile fell from his face, and he looked sad.
"Come along, Sylvia. No need to waste time with losers," Monroe said, giving Hop Pop a side-eyed glance.
"Oh…" Hop Pop groaned with misery as Kenji walked over his friend.
Placing a hand on Hop Pop's shoulder, Kenji glared at Monroe. "He didn't lose! He merely failed to win!" He yelled as Anne walked over and placed her hand on his shoulder.
"You can stop now, Kenji," she said. Together, the three turned and were about to walk away from the dance. However, someone wanted Hop Pop to stay.
"Oh, Hopadiah!"
"Huh?" Hop Pop turned around and his eyes widened in shock.
To the shock of everyone around her, Sylvia started doing freestyle and she did it just as Hop Pop did it. Grunting and humming and even gurgling as the lady frog went nuts.
Everyone around her gasped in shock. Monroe looked horrified. "Wha-She's as freaky as he is! The horror!" He yelled and ran away.
Kenji stared at Syliva as he said to Hop Pop, "I know that I'm going to hell for this but…get in there, Hop Pop."
Hearing this, Hop Pop's look of shock turned into a big smile. And so, he did. Joining her in what could only be described as a mating dance, which sickened the crowd around them.
"Kawaii janaidesu ka?" Kenji smiled, asking how cute the two were in Japanese. But then he cringed and shook his head. "Nope, no way. It's still horrible," he said, covering his eyes in disgust.
"Why? Whhhhyyyyy?!" Anne yelled, covering her eyes again.
As the dancing dragged on, Toadstool finally had enough. "Okay! That's enough of that!" He yelled into the microphone, and the band stopped playing. "Pack it up. Dance is over! Everyone go home!"
Everyone but the Plantars, Kenji, and Anne agreed. This was too much for them to bear, and they all started leaving. As everyone else departed from the area, Hop Pop and Sylvia stopped dancing, panting, and laughing together.
"I don't get it. Why?" Hop Pop asked after falling on his butt.
Syliva smiled lovingly at him. "I have a soft spot for the weird ones, remember?"
Hearing this, Hop Pop stammered as his cheeks turned red. Syliva down next to him as he said, "Ah, shame the dance is over. I could dance for hours with you."
"Maybe it can," said Kenji's voice. The elderly frogs looked over to see the boy standing next to Sprig, who brought out his fiddle. The red frog then started playing a smooth song for his grandpa.
Hop Pop stood back up and offered Syliva his hand. "Ahem, may I have this dance, Sylvia Sundew?"
"Why, yes you may, Hopadiah Plantar," Syliva said, standing back up. Together, they started dancing.
As the two danced the night away, Kenji looked over to Anne. She was leaning against the stage, watching the two new love birds with a satisfied smile. With his hands in his pockets, Kenji walked over to Anne and rested next to her. "You know, I didn't think this was going to work, but you really pulled it off, Anne," he said, smiling at Hop Pop and Syliva.
"Aw, thank's Kenji," she said, blushing as she placed a hand on her heart. "That means a lot coming from you."
Kenji smiled back at her. However, then he blushed as a thought entered his mind. "So…you mind following me for a moment," he asked. "There's something I want to show you."
Anne was a little confused but complied. She followed Kenji out of Wartwood and into the woods, unsure of just where he was taking her. It was strange that he would want her to come with him somewhere alone.
"So, where are we going, dude?" She asked, pushing away a large leaf from her path.
"We're almost there," Kenji said, still blushing.
When they reached their destination, Kenji stepped aside to show Anne the secret large pond. Anne's eyes widened as she stared at the glowing green water, as the fireflies buzzed around it. Looking at her, Kenji smiled at her reaction to the pond.
"Kenji, this place is beautiful. How did you find it?" Anne said, kneeling and running her hand through the water.
"I found it," Kenji said. "I usually come here to be alone, do some writing, and just get away from everyone."
"So, why bring me here if it's supposed to be a secret?" Anne asked, looking up at him with a raised eyebrow.
Still blushing, Kenji pulled out his phone and opened the music app. He found the right song for the moment and pressed play on it. Soothing dancing music started playing. Setting it down on the ground, Kenji stood back up and faced Anne. The young girl looked up at him as he stood tall and proud, even though he was still blushing heavily. Kenji then leaned down and offered her his hand. "May I have this dance, madame?" He asked in a gentlemanly manner.
Anne was most surprised and stood up. "Wait, you want to dance with me?"
"Well…yeah," Kenji said, looking away with an embarrassed form. "I…I just wanted to do something nice for you."
Anne blushed at this, before giggling for a moment. "You, doing something nice for me?" She asked jokingly, before crossing her arms. "Are you growing soft on me, Richards?"
"Ha! If your dreams, Boonchuy," Kenji retorted. The two friends laughed together. Afterwards, Kenji again offered his hand to her. "So…what do you say?"
Anne glanced at him and his hand as another blush started to form on her face. In the end, she smiled at him, and placed her hand onto his. "Thought you'd never ask," she said, playing along with their little game.
Kenji then led her to the large lily pads and stepped onto it, before helping Anne down onto it. As the pad started to float away out onto the pod, Kenji placed his left hand on Anne's hip, and she placed her right hand on his left shoulder. All while their other held hands onto one another, and their fingers interlocked.
Then, they started to sway to the music. Although they suffered some missteps and almost tripped over, one would pull them back up right and the two would laugh it off. They would then go back to dancing together. The two were lost in thought. In that moment under the red moon, nothing mattered to them.
As he danced with her in his arms, Kenji's smile grew bigger. He really was happy to be doing this with her. Anne felt the same way and smiled back at him. Their eyes began to sparkle as time seemed to slow down for them. A blush started to form on their faces, but neither one of them tried to look away from one another. Then Anne felt bold and leaned her head on his shoulders, savoring every second she was in his arms.
Holding her soft, smooth hand in his rough and strong hand, Kenji looked back on most of the events that had happened to him and Anne. About a month ago, they wouldn't have even looked at one another. Now, they were together again, in another world, and closer than ever. Allowing Kenji to smile every time he would look at her beautiful face.
Yes, he wouldn't deny it himself. Anne really has become a very beautiful girl in the 3 years they were separated. More beautiful than she was in the past. It might seem strange for Kenji to say that a few days ago. However, he didn't feel weird for thinking Anne was beautiful. In fact, lately he's been feeling so much different around her. He felt his heart pumping a bit faster when around her now, or more than usual. But not only has she become very pretty, but she's also become strong and brave during their time together.
Anne was a changing girl, and Kenji took notice and admired her for it. He didn't know what these new feelings were, or what they meant for him and her, but for now, Kenji just wanted to enjoy this moment with her.
Little did he know it, but Anne was starting to develop the same feelings for him as well. 'Don't worry, Kenji,' she thought to herself, as her grip on his hand tightened slightly. 'I'm not leaving your side again.'