That night, the Mithcells' masquerade ball was already getting into full swing. People were in all kinds of wonderful costumes. Some were funny, some were crazy, some were pretty, and some were even a little scary.

"Ah, Mayor Verdine." said Nicholas, approaching a woman dressed as a green butterfly. "Hello, Mariana. Have you tried those bloosom buns? Best in town."

"I'm watching my figure at the moment." said Mari.

Padme looked at the mayor and felt a bit starstruck. She was one of the reasons Padme believed she could do big things. If a woman could be elected mayor of a town filled with male-dominated jobs, Padme could certainly open a successful restaurant.

"There you go," said Padme, serving someone else a bun. "Piping hot. Oh! Excuse me. Rosie, no!"

Padme pulled the buns away as Caroline's pink and silver dog Rosie whimpered, wanting a bun.

"Okay," she chuckled. "but just one."

Padme tossed a bun to the pooch, meanwhile, Caroline, dressed as a beautiful swan princess, was searching the ball for either of the princes.

"But, Miss Caroline," said a young man dressed as a jester. "You said 'later' two hours ago."

"Shaun, when a woman says 'later,' she really means 'not ever.' Now run along. There are plenty of other ladies dying for you to waltz them into a stupor."

Caroline quickly grabbed napkins like her life depended on it.

"I need napkins, quick!"

"What's the matter, Carrie?" Padme asked.

"I'm sweating like a pig out here!" Caroline whisper yelled. "It's getting so late!"

"There's still a few stragglers." said Padme.

"It's just not fair!" Caroline started to cry. "My prince is never coming!"

"Now, Carrie."

"I should've known this wish was too good to be true!"

Caroline rushed up the stairs and cried to the point where her mascara started running.

"Maybe I just need to wish harder." Caroline said, looking at the evening star and begging it to make her wish come true.

"Caroline. You can't just wish on a star and expect things to..."

"Ladies and gentlemen!" called the announcer. "Their royal Highnesses, Prince Anakin and Prince Carmine!"

Caroline got so excited. She fixed herself up and whistled for a spotlight to shine on her. And she walked ever so gracefully down the stairs and met Prince Anakin, the first to approach her, and she took his hand, joining him in a waltz on the dance floor.

Padme watched as her friend was happily dancing with a prince like she'd always dreamed of.

Suddenly, Padme was approached by someone in a horse costume.

"Evening, Padme. Marvelous party." said the horse head, which underneath was one of the Harden brothers.

"Even Mr. Harden and Mr. Harden." Padme greeted, seeing the other brother pop out from the horse's back end.

"Fine-smelling blossom buns." said the other brother.

"Going to be the house specialty once I sign those papers you brought." Padme smiled, presenting them with some buns.

"Yes. About that." said the older brother.

"You were outbid." said the younger brother.

"What?" Padme said, shocked.

"A fellow came in, and offered the full amount in cash." explained the older brother. "Unless you can top his offer by Wednesday."

"You can kiss that place goodbye." said the younger brother.

"Do you know how long it took me to save that money?!"

"Exactly!" said the older brother. "which is why a little woman of your stature would have had her hands full trying to run a big business like that. You're better off where you're at."

"Now wait a minute!"

"Love the buns, though." said the younger brother.

"Now hold on there! You come back!" Padme pulled the fake horse tail, only for it to slip right off, sending Padme flying right into the table, leaving her a mess.

"Padme! Time to hit Prince Charming with those- Oh my gosh!" Caroline said, seeing her friend's state.

"I... I just..."

"You poor thing." Caroline said, helping Padme up. "Oh, Prince Carmine. Be right back. Save a dance for me."

Caroline took Padme to her room.

"I have just the dress for you."

Caroline was so excited.

"Oh, Padme. Did you see the way Anakin and I danced? Oh, I just don't know how I'm supposed to choose between him and his brother. But after tonight, a marriage proposal can't be far from one of them... once I know which one I like, anyway."

Padme just finished getting changed while Caroline fixed her makeup.

"You know, I was starting to think that wishing on stars was just for babies and crazy people." Caroline said, and she gasped when she saw Padme in the mirror.

Padme came out dressed in a lovely gown of emerald green.

"Oh, Padme. Look at you. As beautiful as a queen." Caroline said, picking up a tiara for Padme and placing it on her friend's head. "Seems like only yesterday we were both little girls dreaming out fairy tale dreams, and tonight they're finally coming true. Well, time for me to meet my other potential prince. Wish me luck!"

Caroline left the room to go meet Prince Carmine, while Padme stayed behind, feeling sorry for herself. She didn't have the heart to ruin Caroline's happy moment by telling her that her dreams had just been outbid from her grasp.

Padme looked at her father's drawing, tears coming to her eyes.

Almost

Almost there

People would have come from everywhere

I was almost there

Padme walked out to the balcony and cried. She'd worked so hard to make her father's dream a reality, and now just because she was a woman and didn't have all the money right away, she was being denied her dream she'd worked herself to the bone for.

Padme looked up to the sky and saw the evening star like she'd seen years ago. She looked at the drawing and then at the star again.

"I cannot believe I'm doing this." Padme said.

It was a longshot, but Padme was desperate at this point. She wished and wished with all her heart for her dream to come true, a sign, something, anything to help her.

Padme looked to her right and felt a great hit of deja vu as she spotted a frog sitting beside her on the balcony.

"Very funny." Padme sighed, looking at the little frog. "So, what now? I suppose you want a kiss?"

"A kiss would be nice, wouldn't it?" said the frog.

Padme screamed and ran back into the room as she'd done as a child.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare you, Ma'am." said the frog, hopping in after Padme.

Padme picked up stuffed animals and threw them at the frog.

"Whoa! Okay!" the frog dodged the objects the best he could. "Please! Put the horse down!"

Padme threw the horse plushie at him and picked up a book.

"Stay back, or I'll-" Padme threatened.

"Wait, wait, wait!" the frog begged, hopping up onto the vanity. "Please, Princess. Let me introduce myself. I am Prince Anakin."

Padme hit him with the book.'

"Of Coruscant." said the frog dizzily as he was knocked silly.

"Prince?" said Padme. "But I didn't wish for any..."

"Hold on. I saw both princes out at the ball." Padme said. "Unless you have some triplet you forgot to mention, if you're really Prince Anakin, then who was that waltzing with Carrie on the dance floor?"

"All I know is one minute I am a prince," said Anakin. "Charming, handsome, cutting loose. And then I'm tripping over these."

The prince held up one of his now webbed feet, Padme preparing to hit him with the book again.

"Wait!" Anakin said, catching a glimpse of the book in Padme's hands. "I know this story. The Frog Prince."

Padme put the book down and Anakin opened it.

"My mother read this to me and my brother and sister every night when we were kids!" Anakin said, skipping to the end of the book. "This is the answer! You have to kiss me."

"Excuse me?" said Padme.

"I can guarantee you'd enjoy it." Anakin sang. "All women want a kiss from Prince Anakin, but none have been so lucky as to get one from me."

"Gee, I wonder why." Padme said sarcastically.

"Please, all I ask is one kiss to make me human again." Anakin said. "My brother has no idea I'm missing. Do you really think he won't freak out like you did just a few minutes ago? The guy has anxiety, for heaven's sake!"

"Look, I'd really like to help you, but I just don't kiss frogs." Padme turned her back.

"But on the balcony, you asked me-"

"I didn't expect you to answer!" said Padme.

"But you must kiss me. Please. Look, besides being unbelievably handsome, okay, I also happen to come from a fabulously wealthy family. Surely there must be some kind of reward I can offer you. A wish I could grant, perhaps? Jewels, gold, a castle? You name it."

Padme looked at her father's drawing sitting on the floor and thought about. One kiss to a frog to get the money she needed for her restaurant. Just one kiss standing between her and her dreams. Padme was hesitant, but at this point, what did she have to lose?

"Just one kiss?" Padme asked.

"Just one, milday. Unless you want another once I'm human again." Anakin said.

Padme picked the little frog up, shut her eyes tightly, and puckered up. But, she found herself struggling to go through with it. This was not something she wanted to do.

"Okay, Padme, you can do this." she whispered to herself, looking away from Anakin for a moment. "You can do this. Just a little kiss. Just one little kiss."

Padme took a breath.

"I'm gonna need to brush my teeth ten times after this!" Padme mumbled to herself.

And very quickly just to get it over with, Padme kissed Anakin on his green froggy lips.

Magic started to happen, but Anakin found himself falling to the floor. Luckily, he landed on a soft teddy bear. He looked at his hands. They were still green and webby.

"You don't look that different." Padme said, looking at Anakin, but then she saw Anakin looking right at her with wide eyes. "Why are you looking at me like that? And how are you the same size as..."

Padme looked to the side where a mirror happened to sit, and she screamed.

"Easy, Princess. Princess, do not panic!" Anakin said.

"What did you do to me?!" Padme said. "I'm green and I'm slimy!"

"No, that's not slime."

"What?"

"You're secreting mucus. I should know. I used to have a pet frog."

"You... you..." Padme got so angry she tackled Anakin and chased him around the room.

The ended up on a rocking horse, and a book landed on one end and flipped them out the window and over the balcony, and they landed on the drum set of the ball's band. Conveniently, they ended up helping the drummer turn the beat up.

But as the two frogs were hopping the heck out of there, someone shouted out, "Thieves!"

And that was when some non-humans were spotted. A young Togruta girl, a Wookie, a Twilek and a Kel Dor were all stealing food and from the water supply.

"Stop them!"

People, however, got distracted by the frogs hopping all around.

"Rosie! Get the frogs!" Nicholas commanded the dog.

And Rosie went after them.

Two of the thieves' horses, named Comedia and Citrus, also distracted the people by kicking pastries in people's faces and knocking over tables, giving their riders time to run.

"Run!" Anakin said.

"I can't run, I'm a frog!" Padme said.

"Then hop!"

The two frogs kept moving going as fast as they could with Rosie after them until they got tangled up in some balloons.

"Down, doggie!" Anakin said. "Down! Weird, it usually works on Artoo."

"Rosie, it's me, Padme!" Padme said as she and Anakin began flying away.

"Padme?" said Rosie, Padme shocked that she understood her.

"Rosie just spoke to me." Padme gasped. "The dog just spoke to me."

"You know," said Anakin. "If you're going to let every little thing bother you, it's going to be a very long night."

And neither of those frogs knew they were being watched by none other than Dr. Palpatine.

"Prince Anakin" was actually Mas Amedda in disguise. In a panic, he went inside the guest room set for the real Anakin, and looking into a cupboard where he found an empty jar.

"Oh, dear!" gasped Amedda. And he was taken by surprise when Palpatine came from behind him. "Oh! You're so quiet."

"You let him go?!"

"The poor devil was gasping," said Amedda. "So I loosened the lid ever so slightly."

And the fake prince fell back as another shadow tripped him.

"Now how did I ever get tangled up in all this voodoo madness?" He yanked the amulet off himself. "I can't go through with this!"

And he transformed back to his true form.

"You wear this ghastly thing!" said Amedda, throwing the amulet.

"Be careful with that!" said Palpatine, catching the amulet before it hit the floor. "Anything happens to this, I'm gonna be..."

Palpatine breathed and held up the amulet.

"Fun fact about voodoo, Amedda." Palpatine placed the amulet around his neck to demonstrate. He didn't transform. "Can't conure a thing for myself. Besides, you and I both know the real power in this world isn't magic. It's money. Barrels of it."

"That's true." said Amedda.

"Are you not tired of living on the margins while all those fat cats in their fancy cars don't even give you a sideways glance?"

"Yes, I am."

"All you have to do is marry Big Daddy and Mommy's little princess, and we'll be splitting that juicy Mitchell fortune right down the middle." Palpatine placed the amulet back on Amedda. "Sixty-forty, like I said."

"Yes, but what about Anakin."

"Your little slip-up will be a minor bump in the road," said Palpatine. "So long as we got the prince's blood in the amulet."

"And what if Caroline falls for Carmine instead?"

"Not to worry, then we do the backup plan. Two for one." Palpatine said. "A perfect deal."