It was a surprisingly peaceful morning in the Owl House; Luz sat in the living room, reading one of her "Good Witch Azura" books, King was spread across her lap like a cat, and Hooty was outside doing... I don't know, something annoying. The peace and quiet was nice, but it came to a screeching halt when Eda came bursting into the room.
"HEY, FREELOADERS," she shouted.
Luz and King practically jumped out of their skins. "Don't scare us like that," King shouted in outrage.
"Yeah, Eda," Luz agreed as she clutched her heart, "you almost gave me a heart attack!"
Eda disregarded their complaints. "Eh, you'll get over it. Besides, I just came across something big!"
The Owl Lady reached into her hair and pulled out a rolled up piece of paper, then unfurled and presented it to her apprentice and roommate.
"Hooray, a list," King said sarcastically.
"This is no mere list," Eda said, putting the scroll back in her hair, "it's a recipe, a recipe for a more powerful version of my elixir!"
"Woah, really," Luz exclaimed excitedly.
"Yep," Eda nodded, "this baby won't just suppress my curse longer, it'll also save me a fortune."
"That's great, Eda," Luz replied, "do you need some help brewing it?"
Eda started to rub the back of her neck in embarrassment. "Well, I'm not exactly ready to make it yet."
"Why not," King asked.
"I'm missing the last, and most-important ingredient," Eda explained, "without it, the elixir'll just cure every known human ailment, and who needs that?"
"So what's this 'special ingredient' you need so much, Eda," Luz asked.
Eda reached into her hair and pulled another scroll, unfurling it to reveal a picture of a strange mushroom. "This, it's a very rare mushroom." She then put the scroll back in her hair. "It's so rare that it doesn't even grow in this world."
"Wha," Luz said in astonishment, "you mean something like that grows in the human world?"
Edna shook her head, "Nope, it grows in another world, one separate from both the Boiling Isles and the Human world."
"There's another world," Luz exclaimed.
"Yeah," Eda crosses her arms, "What, did you honestly think that the Human Realm and the Boiling Isles were the only worlds in the universe."
"The thought never occurred to me," Luz said, "how are we gonna get there, some sort of ancient, mysterious ritual?"
"Nope," Eda said as she dragged out her portal to the Human Realm. She pulled out a pair of bobby-pins and started to fiddle with the lock on the door. "There we go," she said as a bright light started to shine through the keyhole. Eda then opened the door, revealing an entirely new world; one filled with lush vegetation and clear blue skies.
"Wow," Luz said as she poked her head through the door, "it's beautiful."
Eda pulled Luz's head back, "Don't get distracted, kid. Just because something is beautiful doesn't mean it isn't deadly." She then gestured to herself, "I'm living proof of that."
King yawned and laid down on the couch. "You two have fun in a new and potentially deadly world, I'm gonna nap."
Eda reached over and picked King up by the scruff of his neck, eliciting a little squeal from the diminutive demon. "You're coming too."
"What," King shouted, "Why?!"
"Because I need an extra pair of eyes to find that mushroom," Eda explained.
Hooty poked his head in from outside. "Can I come too?"
"Hooty, you're a part of my house, you're not gonna go far," Eda explained with her hand in her hip, "besides, we'd have to leave the portal open for you to come through, and the last thing we need is squatters from some backwoods dimension in my house."
"Fair point," Hooty said, "well, back to what I was doing before."
Hooty stayed there for a moment, silent and motionless, just starring at Luz, Eda, and King. "Aren't ya gonna ask what I was doing?"
"Nope," Eda said as she walked through the portal.
"Not really," Luz said as she followed after her.
"Never," King said as he scurried after the pair.
The portal then closed, leaving Hooty all alone. He looked around quickly to make sure he was alone entirely before letting out a relaxed sigh.
"And now, the end is near," he sang in an angelic voice, "and so I face the final curtain..."
Luz, Eda, and King walked through the dense, marshy forest. While Eda was more concerned with finding her mushroom, King couldn't care less about any of this, Luz was taking in the scenery; it was all so lush and beautiful to her.
"Wow," she said, "so what is this place called, Eda."
"Amphibia," Eda answered, "mainly because it's inhabited by a bunch of frog people."
"Huh," Luz remarked, "not as interesting as a demon world, but I guess a frog world still has it's charms."
Eda groaned in frustration. "This is taking forever." She then hopped on Owlbert, "Let's split up; I'll search over that way, you two search down here."
"You got it, Eda," Luz said with a tiny salute, "we won't let you down."
"That remains to be seen," Eda said before flying off.
"Come on, King," Luz said enthusiastically, "let's go find that mushroom!"
"Luz, look around you, we're surrounded by mushrooms," King said as he walked over to a glowing blue mushroom, "we can probably just take a random one and Eda won't know the difference."
"But we will," Luz argued, "besides, you heard Eda: her new elixir needs that mushroom specifically, or it'll never work."
King crossed his arms, "Well it's either this, or we risk getting eaten by whatever's in these woods."
Luz was about to rebuttal, but a huge mantis came out of nowhere and roared at them.
"I TOLD YOU," King screamed as he leapt into Luz's arms, "NOW RUN!"
Luz and King darted away from the creature, but it spread its wings and started flying after them. They tried to lose it by running around multiple trees, but the giant bug wasn't gonna be ditched that easily.
"Luz, use one of your spells," King screamed.
"I would, but I need my hands free," Luz shouted back.
King quickly climbed around into Luz's hoodie, "How about now?!"
"Excellent," Luz said as she pulled out a pen and small notepad. She quickly drew a light glyph and threw it at the mantis, temporarily blinding it, and enraging it.
The mantis shrieked and swung its claws wildly, destroying the trees around it. Luz and King took advantage of the beasts confusion and continued to run away. However, their unfamiliarity of the terrain ultimately showed through, because they ended up running into a dead-end. The mantis, finally regaining it's sight, cornered them.
Luz was about to try another spell, but the beast flapped it's wings, creating a gust that scattered the pages to the winds.
"OH NO," Luz screamed as she tried to reach for the pages.
The mantis slowly stepped forward, Luz and King backed up against the wall. It looked like this was going to be the end for them. King held onto Luz tightly and the pair shut their eyes, they didn't want to see any of what was about to happen next.
The mantis raised it's claw, about to strike the pair, but something woodshed by and sliced it's appendage clean off. The beast shrieked in agony.
Luz and King opened their eyes, surprised that they were still alive, but they were even more surprised at what was in front of them. It was two figures; one very small, almost as small as king, the other was just a bit taller than Luz, including the frizzy hair. The tall one held a tennis racket in one hand, and a blade dripping with mantis blood in the other.
"Get out of here," the tall figure shouted in a feminine voice.
The small figure pulled out a slingshot and aimed it at the mantis. "Yeah, get lost ya creep!"
The mantis, still reeling from the loss of it's arm, retreated. Luz and King let out a sigh of relief. The pair of figures put away their weaponry and started to turn around, allowing Luz and King to properly identify them.
The small one was a pink, anthropomorphic frog boy in a dark green hat with goggles, a sleeveless jacket, and black shorts.
The tall one turned around, revealing her slender build, light brown skin, messy auburn hair, and school uniform with only one yellow sneaker. And not only that, but she was human as well.
Luz and the other human girl gasped at the sight of each other. "OH MY GOSH," they said simultaneously, pointing at each other, "YOU'RE HUMAN!"
Luz and the girl slowly approached each other. She had been in the Boiling Isles for so long, the sight of another human seemed almost unreal to Luz, and it seemed the same was true for this girl as well.
"I don't believe it," Luz said, "I thought I was gonna be the only human here."
"Well, if you wanna get technical, you're like the fourth human to visit this world," the other girl explained.
"Wait, fourth," Luz exclaimed in shock.
"Yeah, but I think I'm getting a little ahead of myself," the girl said, "my name is Anne, Anne Boonchuy." She held out her hand for a handshake.
"I'm Luz, Luz Noceda," she said as she shook Anne's hand.
"I'm Sprig Plantar," the pink frog child said as he hopped over.
"And I am THE KING OF DEMONS," King pronounced proudly.
"Aww, that is just the cutest thing I've ever seen," Anne cooed.
King growled, "DON'T ADORE ME, FEAR ME!"
Sprig cooed as well, "Aww, anger makes him cuter."
Frustrated, King leapt out of Luz's arms and started throwing a tantrum, all the while squealing like a tea kettle.
"So, Luz," Anne said, "how did you get to Amphibia?"
"Well, that's actually kind of a long story," Luz began, "you see–"
Before she could explain the circumstances of how she got to Amphibia, something popped out of nowhere and interrupted her.
"HEY, FAM," a little pink tadpole shouted as she bounded onto the scene, "WHAT DID I MISS?"
Luz gasped at the sight of the tiny creature. "Ay, que lindo," she exclaimed as she ran over and scooped her up, "she is so cute! Who's a widdle girl, who's a widdle girl? Is it you? Is it you?"
Luz nuzzled her, but the polliwog tried to break free of the teen's clutches. "AHHH! NO! HELP! STRANGER DANGER! STRANGER DANGER!"
"Who's that," King asked.
"That's my little sister, Polly," Sprig explained.
Anne cleared her throat, trying to get Luz's attention. "So, Luz, you were about to explain how you got here?"
"Oh yeah," Luz said, pulling away from Polly, "you see—"
Luz was interrupted again, but this time by the sounds of snarling coming from the brush.
"Uh, maybe there's somewhere safer where I can tell the story," Luz said nervously, "preferably out of sight from dangerous predators."
"Yeah, good idea," Anne said, mirroring Luz's fear, "let's get back to the fwagon." Anne and Sprig then ran off.
Luz and King sprinted after the pair, "Wait, what's a 'fwagon?'"
Eda walked through the forest, no matter where she looked, she still couldn't find her mushroom. "Ugh, I hope Luz and King are having better luck than me," she groaned.
Just then, Eda heard something approaching. She quickly hid behind a tree, preparing to ambush whoever it was. The footsteps continued to get closer and closer. Eda quickly prepared a fireball spell and a light blade. When the foot steps finally stopped, she leapt out from behind the tree, yelling, "SPICY TOSS!"
Her pursuer fell to the ground cowering and screaming in terror. Upon closer inspection, Eda realized it wasn't a threat, it was a small, orange, elderly frog.
"Please! Don't eat me," he pleaded, "I've still got unfulfilled dreams... and a family!"
Eda disposed of her spells, "Oh relax, ya big baby. I am not gonna eat you."
The frog popped one eye open, "Really?"
"Nope," Eda said with her hands on her hips.
The old frog stood up, "Well then, why did ya ambush me? And side note: WHO AND WHAT THE HECK ARE YA?!"
"I heard footsteps following me and I didn't know if they belonged to something hostile or not," Eda explained, "and to answer your second question: I'm Eda, a witch."
"Huh, and here I was thinkin' you were a human," the old frog said, surprising Eda.
"How do you know about humans," Eda asked, "I thought they didn't exist in this world?"
"Actually, for the past couple of months, my grandkids and I have been living with a human," the old frog explained, "they're actually the reason I'm in these woods anyway: I'm tryin to find `em."
Eda put her hand to her chin. "Hmm, And while you were looking for them, you didn't happen to see something like this, did you," she asked as she showed him the picture of the mushroom.
The old frog studied the picture, " No, but it does look familiar to me."
"It does," Eda asked, stuffing the picture back in her hair.
"Yeah, I've seen it in one of my farmers almanacs," the old frog explained, "as a matter of fact, I actually have the book in my fwagon."
Eda looked at him curiously, "'Fwagon?'"
The old frog sighed tiredly, "It's a family wagon, but first I need to find my kids."
"No problem," Eda said before hopping on her staff, "hop on!"
The old frog cautiously situated himself on the staff.
"Hold on tight," Eda ordered. The pair then flew off, with the old frog screaming all the way.
Luz, Anne, King, Sprig, and Polly made their way out of the forest, all the while, Luz explained how she came to Amphibia.
"So, you chose to go study magic in a dangerous demon world rather than go to a boring summer camp," Anne asked.
"Uh-huh," Luz nodded her head.
"Good choice," Anne replied, "I wish I had a choice when I came here."
"What do you mean," Luz asked, her expression shifting to concern.
"Well, me and my friends were brought here by some weird music box," Anne explained, "not only that, but it scattered us around."
"That sounds terrible," Luz said sympathetically.
"Eh, it wasn't so bad," Anne said, "the Plantars helped me adjust to this place."
The group had finally reached the family wagon, or "Fwagon" as the Plantars liked to call it. It was pulled by a large snail.
Sprig poked his head in the wagon, "Hey, Hop Pop, we've got guests!" There was no answer. "Hop Pop," he said again, this time a little worried.
"He's not in there," Anne asked.
"He must've went into the forest to find us," Polly posited.
"Oh no," Sprig panicked, "what if something happened to him?!"
Just then, King spotted something flying above the woods. "What's that?"
Luz looked up, she almost instantly recognized what it was. "That's Eda," she exclaimed, "maybe she can help!" She tried to wave down her mentor, "EDA! DOWN HERE!"
Up in the air, Eda looked down to see Luz calling out to her. "Huh, it's Luz."
Hop pop looked down as well. "And those are my kids, they got out of the forest."
"Well, what are we waiting for," Eda exclaimed before flying down to the youths. Hop pop clutched onto the staff and screamed.
Eda floated down in front of Luz and hopped off of her staff; Hop Pop was obscured behind her. "Hey , kid, any luck?"
Luz shock her head, "No, but did you by any chance see an old frog in the woods?"
Before she could answer, Hop Pop fell off the staff and landed on his side, he looked traumatized.
"Hop Pop," Sprig exclaimed as he, Anne, and Polly rushed over to him.
"You alright, HP," Anne asked.
Hop Pop was silent for a moment. "Frogs weren't meant to fly, kids," he said weakly.
Hop Pop plopped his farmer's almanac down on the table and skimmed through it. Anne, Sprig and Polly sat next to him, Luz, Eda, and King sat across from them.
"Aha," He exclaimed, pointing to a page, "here it is."
Eda, Luz, and King looked at the page, sure enough, it was Eda's mushroom.
"The 'Beast Tamer' mushroom," Hop Pop explained, "so called because when consumed, it can calm even the most dangerous of beasts."
"That's all fine and dandy, but where does it grow," Eda asked impatiently.
Hop Pop read a little further. "According to this, the Beast Tamer grows in the 'Ascendit Mortiferum' mountain range... which we just so happen to be approaching."
"Wow, what a strange and beneficiary coincidence," King said in a stilted tone.
"Yeah," Polly added, mirroring King's cadence, "it's almost like some outside force arranged for events to occur in such a way."
"Great," Eda said as she stood up and grabbed her staff, "now that we know where to go, we'll be on our way and out of your hair."
"Now hold on," Hop Pop said as he hopped out of his seat, "why exactly do you need such a rare fungus anyway."
Eda groaned, "If you must know, I need it for an 'ailment' I've been dealing with."
"Well whatever you're reasons are, I don't think it's a good idea for you guys to face that mountain alone," Anne suggested. "This book says that the Ascendit Mortiferum mountain range is one of the most treacherous mountain ranges in in all of Amphibia; it's got harsh weather conditions, dangerous plants and animals, and to top it all off, almost-constant rockslides."
"Oh please," Eda scoffed, "I'm the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles, I'm pretty sure I can handle a little rock climbing."
"But what about me and King," Luz said, "you may be able to survive getting blown up, chopped apart, or crushed, but we can't. Having someone to help us may not be such a bad idea."
"Now hold your horses, Anne," Hop Pop objected, "it's kind of you to want to help these folks, but we've got a schedule to keep, I'm not sure we can afford any delays."
"Oh come on, HP," Anne pleaded, "they need our help."
"Plus, according to the map, we're actually ahead of schedule," Sprig added.
"Yeah," Polly shouted, "and I wanna see how this trainwreck ends!"
Hop Pop sighed, "Alright, I guess we can make a quick detour."
"Yes," Luz shouted, "Magic mushroom here we come!"
"It's not really magic," Hop Pop replied, "when ingested, the mushroom–"
"Please don't ruin this for me," Luz said, maintaining her excited expression.
Later that evening, Sprig was having trouble sleeping, so he decided to go hang out with Anne, driving at night could get lonely after all. He walked through the Fwagon, being extra careful not to wake Eda or King, who were asleep at the table. He made his way up to the hatch and was about to open it, but stopped when he heard Anne's voice.
He cracked the hatch open ever so gently as to not make a sound and peeked out to see Luz sitting right next to her. For some reason, Luz was driving the Fwagon, while Anne was scribbling something on a piece of paper with a quill.
"Like this," Anne asked as she showed the design to Luz.
Luz nodded her head, "Yep, now just tap it."
Anne poked the center of the design, and the paper suddenly crumpled into a ball of light. "Woah."
"Congratulations," Luz said confidently, "you just learned light magic."
"Thanks, Luz," Anne said, "Now maybe people won't think I'm crazy if tell them about meeting a witch in a world of frog people."
Luz chuckled, "Yeah, I cant wait to show my mom that magic is real when I get back home."
"Yeah, home," Anne sighed before leaning back, her optimism seemingly turning to melancholy.
"Are you okay," Luz asked, concerned about her new friend.
"I'm fine, it's just," Anne said unenthusiastically, "sometimes I worry if I'll ever get home. I mean, hopefully, they'll be able to help in Newtopia, but right now it's honestly just a hunch."
Luz was silent for a moment, she was starting to realize just how lucky she was: the pair were in similar situations, only difference was that she chose to stay in the Boiling Isles, she could go home whenever she pleased. Anne was stuck in Amphibia, she had absolutely no idea when she'd go home, or even if she'd go home. She couldn't help but feel sorry.
"Ya know, I'm pretty sure Eda can bring you home," Luz suggested.
Spring gasped softly, too softly for anyone to hear. Anne sat up, "Really?"
"Yeah, she goes to the the human world all the time," Luz explained, "that's how she gets all the human trash that she sells on the Boiling Isles."
"You really think she'd be willing to help me," Anne asked.
"Of course," Luz said cheerfully, "Eda may seem kinda surly, shifty, and generally untrustworthy, but when you get to know her, she's really nice."
"Wow, thanks, Luz," Anne said.
Sprig, heartbroken, closed the hatch as softly as he could, and quickly hopped over to Polly's room while Anne and Luz continued their conversation.
"But no thanks," Anne finished, "I mean I appreciate it, but the Plantars have done so much to help me, I can't just abandon this trip we've been on together."
"I guess that's fair," Luz said, "I don't think I could stand saying goodby to all the friends I've made in the Boiling Isles so soon."
"Besides, my friends, Sasha and Marcy, are still out there somewhere," Anne tacked on, "What kind of friend would I bee if I just ditched them here?"
"Good point," Luz agreed.
The pair sat in silence for a moment, before Anne decided to speak up. "So, are there any cute boys on the Boiling Isles?"
"Yep," Luz nodded, "and even cuter girls."
"Cool," Anne responded before fully realizing what Luz said, "Wait, what?"
"Polly," Sprig whispered as he poked his snoring sister, "Polly, wake up."
"No, Luz, these are unauthorized snuggles," Polly said, still asleep.
"Polly," Sprig whispered as he shook his sister.
Polly gasped as she was jolted awake. "Phew, thanks, Sprig, you just saved me from a horrible nightmare."
"Well, we're about to be in an even worse one," Sprig whispered urgently, " I just overheard Anne and Luz talking, and after they get the mushroom, they're gonna take Anne back to the human world!"
Polly was unamused, "Uh-huh, I'm going back to sleep."
"But Polly," Sprig quietly pleaded, "these people are gonna take Anne away from us!"
Polly opened one eye, "Sprig, Anne wouldn't just abandon us like that, besides, haven't we been through this before?"
"What do you mean," Sprig asked.
Polly groaned, "Remember when Anne and Hop Pop weren't getting along, so you pretended to be a corn thief to get them to work together?"
Sprig rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, "Yeah..."
"Or the time we went on that fishing trip with Sylvia, and you almost got her eaten by a giant crab?"
Sprig hanged his head in shame, "Yeah..."
"Both times you overreacted, and both times, it blew up in your face," Polly scolded, "besides, do you really think Anne is gonna abandon us just like that after everything we went through on this trip?"
"No, I guess not," Sprig said defeatedly.
Polly sighed, "Look, I know you're scared, but I don't think you actually have anything to worry about. Besides, Anne's other friends are still out here somewhere, she wouldn't abandon them."
"I guess you're right," Sprig said, "goodnight, Polly."
Polly then went back to sleep, and Sprig went back to his bed. "Yeah, Anne wouldn't abandon us," Sprig tried to reassure himself, "would she?"
Sprig then drifted back off to sleep, but what he heard still troubled him.
The next day, Sprig was still worried, and the fact that Anne and Luz were practically inseparable didn't help either. He couldn't stand the idea of loosing her; he knew she was gonna leave one day, but he never thought he was gonna loose her because of another human... well, except for the fight at Toad Tower. Sprig squinted at Luz and Anne, watching as they laughed and talked at the table.
"Yo, Sprig," Polly said, snapping her brother out of his jealous trance.
"Huh, what," Sprig sputtered, caught off guard, "oh, hey, Polly."
"You're not still thinking about Anne leaving with Luz, are you," Polly asked.
"Nah, I'm not worried anymore," Sprig said.
"Good," Polly said as she was about to hop off.
"Because I've got a plan," Spring tacked on.
Polly sighed and hopped back over to Sprig, "What are you planning?"
"Simple, I'm gonna be super helpful and awesome to Anne," he explained, "proving that she should stay with us on our trip to Newtopia."
Polly stood there, looking at him disapprovingly, completely silent.
"Isn't this the part where you tell me I'm acting crazy and I could mess things up terribly if I do it," Sprig asked.
"Nope," Polly said, "in the past, you've made it very clear that you're not gonna listen to me with stuff like this, so I'm not even gonna try to talk you out of it."
She then hopped away, leaving Sprig alone with his thoughts. "Hmm, maybe I should listen to her," Sprig thought out loud, "Nah! I don't see any flaws with my plan."
The Fwagon then came to a halt, Hop Pop poked his head in. "We're here, everyone."
The Plantars and "Bad Girl Coven," as Eda called them, stepped out of the Fwagon and gazed upon their destination: the Ascendit Mortiferum mountains. The word "terrifying" seemed a bit too soft to describe the monstrosity that stood before them. It was huge, terrifying, and shrouded behind a huge mass of ominous, black clouds.
"Yowza wowza," Luz said, her tone filled with fear.
"And you're sure we can't just fly up there," Eda asked Hop Pop.
Just as she asked, a bird flew towards the mountain, but as it neared the clouds, a bolt of lightning came out and struck the poor creature, instantly burning it to a crisp.
"Yep, I'm sure," Hop Pop replied.
As the two groups scaled the mountain, Luz and Anne kept up a continuous conversation.
"So you're seriously telling me that giraffes are actually demons that were banished because people thought they were freaks," Anne asked.
Luz nodded her head, "I know, I didn't believe it either."
Sprig watched this with distaste. Just as they rounded a corner, they happened upon their first obstacle: a tremendous gap.
"How are we gonna get over this," Hop Pop asked.
"I know," Sprig exclaimed, "I can stretch my tongue to the other side, and you guys can walk across it like a tightrope."
Everyone just looked at him like he was insane.
"Dude, there's no way that'll work," Anne said.
"Don't worry, friends," Luz said as she approached the gap, "I've got this!"
She then pulled out a slip of paper and slapped it on the edge of the cliff. The ground shook, and ice erupted from it, forming a bridge for them to walk across.
"Woah," the Plantars, excluding Sprig, exclaimed.
Sprig stood there with his mouth agape; he couldn't compete with magic, there had to be something else he could do to make Anne want to stay, something that Luz couldn't do I a million years. That's when it hit him.
Sprig walked up next to King. "Hey, King, you've known Luz for a long time, right?"
"It's really been a couple of months," King explained, "but I've gotten to know her any better than anyone else in that time."
"So, since you know so much about her, I have to ask you something," Sprig said deviously with his hand on his chin, "does she play any instruments, and if so, how well?"
King looked at him funny. "No, I don't think so, but she is a really good artist."
"Hmm, interesting," Sprig said as he hopped over to Anne and Luz.
"That is one weird walking, talking, frog child," King said, now alone.
"Hey, guys," Sprig said as he walked with Anne and Luz.
"What's up, dude," Anne greeted.
"Oh, nothing," he said facetiously, "I just figured this trip could use some musical accompaniment."
He then pulled out his violin and started playing a little tune. Anne really seemed to enjoy it, and Luz did as well.
Hop Pop, however, gasped in shock. "SPRIG! DON'T," he shouted as he raced over and snatched the instrument out of his grandson's hands.
"What did you do that for, Hop Pop," Sprig asked.
"Yeah, I was just starting to get into it," Anne said.
"Because your fiddlin' could attract a predator," Hop Pop explained.
Then, as if some cruel twist of fate, a giant ferocious creature appeared behind Hop Pop. It looked like a mix between a red lion, and a scorpion.
Hop Pop jumped back and joined the others in terror.
"WHAT IS THAT," Luz exclaimed.
"It's an Alpha Scorpileo," Hop POP shrieked.
The beast roared at the group, terrifying them all, except for Eda. She stepped forward defiantly, a cocky smirk on her face. The Scorpileo leapt at her, Eda responded by twirling her staff, creating a huge blast of magic the sent the monster flying.
The Plantars were in awe of her might, Luz just crossed her arms and smirked. Eda turned back to the group, "Alright, now that that's taken care of, let's get going."
"That. Was. Awesome," Anne exclaimed as they started walking again.
"Yep, that's my mentor," Luz said confidently, "THE most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles."
Sprig sighed in defeat: it looked like everything he did just made Anne want to go with Luz more. Was he really going to lose his best friend so soon? What could he do? How could he change her mind? These troubling thoughts were overwhelming.
The group pressed onward, with Sprig defeatedly trudging along in the back. They soon reached their third obstacle: a deep, dark cave that led into the mountain. There was no other way, if they wanted to progress further, they had to go in.
"How are we gonna be able to see in there," Hop Pop protested.
Anne stepped forward, "Actually, think I have just the thing for this." She then pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from her bag, drew a light glyph, and tapped it, activating the spell.
"Ooh," Polly and Hop Pop marveled at Anne's new skill, Sprig just crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.
"Where did you learn that," Polly asked.
"Luz showed me last night," Anne explained confidently, "apparently to do magic, you just need to draw a circle, put a specific design in the middle, and then boom: Magic."
"Woah," Polly gasped, "is there one for fire?"
"You bet," Luz chuckled, holding up a slip of paper with a fire glyph on it.
She handed the slip of paper to Polly, who tapped it, instantly creating fire. "Yes," she extolled, both parts malicious and excited.
"I don't suppose there's one to help your crops grow, is there," Hop Pop asked.
Luz handed him another slip, which he tapped, creating a large gourd. "Wow, this magic stuff can really come in handy!"
Sprig scoffed, it was bad enough when they were trying to take away Anne, but now it looked like they were trying to steal his sister and grandfather too.
Luz noticed Sprig's negativity and felt bad for the little frog, he must've felt left out. She'd have to figure out a way to cheer him up.
The two groups walked through the cave and came upon a fork in their path.
"Which way do we go," Polly asked.
"How about we split up," Luz suggested, "Anne, Sprig, and I'll go left; you guys go right."
"Nu uh," Hop Pop objected, "there is no way I'm letting you kids be alone in this cave without any supervision."
"Yeah, I've gotta agree," Eda added, "this place is way too dangerous for you to go in on your own."
"Wait, I've got an idea," Luz said as she walked over and handed her phone to Eda, "now if we need help, we can just call you with Anne's phone."
"Alright," Eda said, still uneasy, "but you be careful, and keep an eye out for anything dangerous."
"Will do," Luz nodded, "let's go guys."
They split up and went their separate ways; Luz, Anne, and Sprig went left, while Eda, King, Hop Pop, and Polly went right.
As Luz, Anne, and Sprig walked through the cave, they were completely silent, it was kinda unsettling.
"So, Luz," Anne asked, "what exactly is this 'ailment' that Eda needs the mushroom for so badly anyway?"
"Well, I probably shouldn't say," Luz disclosed, "but since we live entire worlds away, I guess it would be fine."
Luz was about to explain, but she was interrupted by Sprig screaming in terror. The two girls looked to see the ground come out from underneath him, as he fell into a pit. They quickly rushed over to grab him, but they weren't quick enough.
The girls looked down into the hole and sighed with relief when they saw that Sprig had latched onto a ledge.
"Don't worry, Sprig," Anne shouted down the pit, "we'll get you back up in no time."
Sprig sighed, he had messed up again, this time without even trying. Anne was never going to stick with the Planters now. Just as all hoped seemed lost, he looked to his right and saw two glowing orange mushrooms. That's when it donned on him.
"The Beast Tamer Mushroom," he gasped.
Sprig then reached for the fungi. "Sprig," Anne shouted, "what are you doing?!"
"It's the Beast Tamer," Sprig shouted up to them, "I can almost reach it!"
"DON'T," Anne screamed, "you're gonna fall!"
Sprig ignored Anne's pleas, this was his chance, he was gonna prove that he was just as capable as a witch. "Almost... got it," he grunted as he inched closer to grabbing the rare mushrooms.
He was finally able to grab it's stem, "Got ya!" But his victory was short-lived, the ledge he had been holding onto finally gave out, and he started to plummet further into the pit.
It looked like this was it for him, his life was flashing before his very eyes, and it was really short. That would've been the end for him if something didn't wrap around his waste and stop his fall.
He looked up to see that Anne had used a plant glyph to grow vines to catch him. She and Luz then pulled him up out of the pit.
"Guys," Sprig exclaimed excitedly, "I got the mushroom!"
Anne, however, wasn't having any of that. She crossed her arms and glared at the small frog child. "Alright, dude, no more messing around. Why've you been acting so weird lately?"
"Whaaat," Sprig said, feigning ignorance, "I'm not acting weird."
Anne raised an eyebrow at him, she wasn't falling for it.
"Okay, I give up," Sprig sighed defeatedly. "The truth is, I heard your conversation with Luz last night."
Anne and Luz gasped. "Eavesdropper," Luz whispered.
"And I know you're gonna leave with them so you can go back to your world," Sprig confessed, "so I thought maybe if I could prove that I'm more helpful, you'd consider still going to Newtopia with us."
Sprig hanged his head in shame, but Anne put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Dude, you clearly didn't listen to all of our conversation."
"Yeah," Luz added, "she said no, and that she didn't want to abandon you guys."
Sprig perked up, "Really?"
Anne nodded, "You guys have gone through so much for me, what kind of friend would I be if I just abandoned you guys the first chance I got?"
Sprig's eyes started to well with tears and he hugged Anne. Anne returned his hug with one of her own. "Aww," Luz cooed, "that's so sweet."
The pair of unlikely friends separated and Sprig handed the mushrooms to Luz. "Two," she exclaimed, "nice going, Sprig!"
"No problem," the young frog replied, "and sorry for how I was acting earlier."
"Don't worry about it," Luz said, "it's all water under the bridge."
"Hey, let's call the others and tell them we found the mushroom," Anne suggested as she pulled out her phone and handed it to Luz.
"Yeah," Luz said as she put in her phone number, "Eda'll be so happy when she finds out."
The phone started to ring until someone on the other line answered it. "Hello," Eda said over the line.
"Eda, we found the mushroom," Luz exclaimed excitedly.
"That's great, kid," Eda said, somewhat distractedly, "but there's one problem."
"What is it," Luz asked, slightly concerned.
"We've been captured by a giant spider," Eda said, wrapped up in a web cocoon, "it's already got us wrapped up in its web, and it's either gonna lay eggs in our brains or drain us of our bodily fluids."
Hop Pop, King, and Polly we're wrapped up around her. They were all swaddled in such a way that their heads were out, except for Polly, she was completely covered.
"Given that our heads are out, I'm guessing the first one," Hop Pop butted in, "OH FROG! HELP US!"
"Don't worry, you guys," Anne exclaimed over the phone, "we'll be right the– Wait, if you're tied up, then how could you answer the call?"
"You don't wanna know," Eda said, holding the phone between her shoulder and her cheek.
"Doesn't matter, we'll be right there, Eda," Luz exclaimed, hanging up the phone.
Eda sighed, "I'm really gonna miss that misplaced confidence."
Hearing Eda's admission of defeat, Hop Pop, Polly, and King all screamed in terror.
Luz, Anne, and Sprig quickly retraced their steps and made there way over to the other tunnel.
"Okay, dude, what's the plan," Anne asked Luz as they ran through the caverns.
"We rescue Eda, King, and the rest of your adoptive frog family," Luz explained urgently.
Anne and Sprig looked at her puzzled. "And," Sprig said, hoping there was more to the plan.
"That's pretty much it," Luz explained.
"That's seriously the entire plan," Sprig exclaimed.
"I'M NOT GOOD UNDER PRESSURE," Luz panicked.
The trio soon reached the web. Luckily, it's creator wasn't around.
"Kids," Hop Pop exclaimed jovially.
"Luz," Eda and King shouted in joy.
"Don't worry guys," Luz said as she pulled out a fire glyph, "I'll have you out in a minute!"
Polly then shouted something, but considering her entire face was covered, it just sounded like a bunch of muffled nonsense.
Luz tapped the fire glyph and gently held the flame to each of their bindings; close enough to burn the silk, but not close enough to burn them along with it.
Polly gasped the second she was freed, "Fresh air, I'll never take you for granted again!"
"Good job, kid," Eda said as she patted Luz on the head, "now let's get out of here before the spider comes back."
A loud screech cut through the air around them, they looked over to see the creator of the web: A giant, dark spider with a pattern on its back reminiscent of a red skull. It had glowing red eyes, long legs, and razor sharp fangs and mandibles, dripping with venom.
The beast screeched at them, Luz stepped forward to face it. "Don't worry guys, I'll take care of this!"
"LUZ! WAIT," Eda exclaimed, but she was too late, the giant spider spat it's venom onto Luz.
"Blegh," she gagged. She started to shake it off, but her body started to get stiff. "Uh, guys... I... can't... move!"
"Yeah, that's what I was trying to warn you about," Eda explained, "the spider spits a paralyzing toxin."
"Yeah, that's how it caught us," Hop Pop added.
"QUIT EXPLAINING HOW IT'S GONNA KILL US AND RUN," Polly screamed.
The group then sprinted away, except for Luz, she was still paralyzed. "GUYS," she shouted.
Anne then ran back and lifted Luz over her head. "I got ya, buddy!"
The crew ran as fast as they could to the entrance of the cave. They were so close, they could see the light, freedom and safety were in their grasp. But that relief was taken from them, when the spider shot a web at the exit, blocking it off.
"We're trapped," Hop Pop screamed, "that giant, unruly beast gonna eat us!"
As the spider slowly closed in on them, Anne and Eda stepped foreword, ready to fight it. Suddenly, Sprig remembered what Hop Pop said the day before. 'When consumed, it can calm even the most dangerous of beasts,' the words rang in his head.
"That's it," Sprig gasped. He quickly hopped over to Luz and got one of the Beast Tamer Mushrooms from her.
"Sprig," Luz shouted, "what are you doing?!"
The young frog pulled out his slingshot and hopped over to the spider. The spider was about to spit more venom at Anne and Eda, but Sprig leapt in front of them, and fired the mushroom into the beasts mouth.
The spider coughed and wheezed for a second before regaining its composure. It menacingly took another step forward, but almost immediately fainted.
Everyone took a collective sigh of relief. "Nice thinking, bro," Polly said.
"Yeah, we're safe," Eda said, partially annoyed, "but now we gotta find another Beast Tamer Mushroom."
"Nun uh," Luz replied. She then struggled for a bit, but was able to pull out the second mushroom.
"You found two," Eda said in shock.
"Actually, Sprig was the one who found 'em," Luz explained.
"Huh," Eda said as she patted the young frog on the head, "not bad kid."
"This is touching and all," King interjected, "but we should really get out of here before that thing wakes up."
The two groups stood in front of the fwagon. Eda had set up the portal back to the Boiling Isles, it was time to say goodbye.
Luz and Anne hugged each other. "I hope you find your friends," Luz said.
The pair then pulled apart, "And I hope you become a great witch," Anne told her.
"Thanks for the help, HP," Eda said to the elderly frog.
"No problem," Hop Pop replied with a handshake, "and don't call me HP, please."
"So long, King," Sprig said to the diminutive demon, "you didn't really do anything during this adventure."
"I know," King nodded, "and I'm comfortable with that."
"I heard that," Polly chimed in, giving King a high-five.
The residents of the Owl House waved goodbye to the Plantars, and walked back through the portal, leaving Amphibia behind.
The Plantars went into the fwagon, and back onto the track to Newtopia.
"Do you think we'll ever see them again," Anne asked.
"Maybe," Hop Pop said, "it all depends on how well this adventure is received."