(After the defeat of Grime)
Anne and Sasha were taken down to the armory of Toad Tower. With their establishment as the new leaders of the toads, they needed to be outfitted with armor that reflected their status as leaders, as well as to acquire weapons that best suited them.
The two of them were led by Braddock to the armorer, another female toad with broad muscles and many scars from her years crafting armor and weapons.
"This is Rosetta, she's the best armorer around," said Braddock.
Rosetta was a bright red toad, with wild brown hair and yellow eyes that almost seemed to glow due to the embers of her forge. The burly female toad looked Anne and Sasha up and down as she crossed her arms and circled them about three times. The two human girls could practically feel Rosetta's eyes roaming over every inch of their bodies before she finally stopped in front of them.
"Yeah, definitely goin' to be a custom job. None of the armor we have here will fit ya two," said Rosetta with a Scottish accent.
"Not too surprising, considering we're humans and a lot taller," said Sasha.
"Not to mention gangly."
"Why does everyone call us 'gangly'?" Anne bemoaned.
Rosetta walked over to her workbench and looked through some of her tools before finding something and turning to face the duo. "Okay you two, strip down. I need accurate measurements to make this armor."
Anne and Sasha blushed bright red when they heard the toad blacksmith make that request.
"Whoa, dude, I am not taking off my clothes in front of some stranger!" Anne protested.
"I could still do it with your clothes on, but I can't guarantee the armor will fit right. Can't tell ya how many times well fitted armor has saved someone from getting stabbed in the back or in the gut," Rosetta argued.
Anne hugged her chest as she retorted, "Nuh-uh! When we transform, we get our own suits of armor! I'll just go with that!"
Sasha sighed and tapped Anne's shoulder with her left hand. "Anne, we can't be in those forms twenty-four seven. At some point we need to just walk around as ourselves. Having some dope ass armor to protect us will come in handy. Plus, it's more than just for protection and looks, it's a symbol. It lets the other toads know who they can look to when things need to get done."
Anne fidgeted a little and said, "Well…I mean…you do have a point but…"
"Here, I'll go first."
Sasha took of her denim jacket and was about to take off her shirt, but Rosetta raised her hand to stop her.
"Ah didn't mean right here. Behind that screen lass, jeez. No need to flash everyone," said Rosetta.
"Heh, okay." Sasha followed Rosetta to the concealment screen but stopped to look over her shoulder. "Guess you're not going to get to see my strip tease."
"SASHA!" Anne exclaimed.
The blonde teen giggled like a mischievous imp and went behind the screen.
Anne sat down on one of the stools and released a long groaning sigh. Braddock slid up next to Anne and rocked back and forth on her heels for a bit.
"Sooooo…uh…you and the new captain, huh?" Braddock asked.
"W-What? Oh…I mean…Y-Yeah, at least, I think so. We really haven't made it 'official'. Honestly, I'm still a little overwhelmed by the fact that she even feels that way towards me," Anne confessed.
"You know, Captain Sasha would talk about you and her other human friend all the time to me. I know she feels strongly for you two, but I didn't know that strongly. You're a lucky girl, Anne – oops! – I mean, Vice-Captain Anne," said Braddock.
Anne felt a twinge of fear creep up in her heart. This was something that she was also afraid of. People had become more tolerant of LGBTQ+ oriented people, but there were still those who would unfairly treat them as lesser than or as aberrations. The idea of being treated like that scared Anne, she was already bullied for being different just for the fact that she was Thai. Now add in the fact that she was at the least gay, then that just opened her up to more of the same, if not worse. But then again, Sasha was always there to protect her, just like how she protected her during the fight on the bridge against Grime.
Maybe…Maybe we can make this work? I mean, I don't know if Marcy will be onboard for all three of us being together. But…at the very least…I don't mind being with Sasha. She's always looked out for me, protected us, and never once ditched us for the "cool" kids. Hell, she even made some of those same cool kids' lives a living hell for days because they said something racist towards me and Marcy. And they swiftly apologized afterwards. If I have Sasha protecting me against those kinds of people…I don't mind being together with her.
"Yeah, I am. And you don't have to use that stuff when it's just us. You can call me Anne."
Braddock smiled at the Thai teen.
The privacy screen was drawn back, and Sasha came out, fully clothed.
"Okay, you're up next," said Rosetta.
"It's really no big deal, Anne. She's very professional," said Sasha.
Anne smiled and stood up confidently. "Okay, let's do this!"
"That's my girl!" Sasha praised.
Sasha sat down on the stool while Anne went behind the privacy screen. After a minute passed, they could hear Rosetta starting to take measurements.
"Holy Frog!" Rosetta exclaimed.
Sasha quickly sprang to her feet and asked, "What's wrong?!"
"What? Oh, nothin'. I was surprised by how big her chest is."
Sasha blushed when she heard that.
"Rosetta, c'mon! Don't say stuff like that out loud! She's kidding! Their not that big!" Anne countered.
"Say's you, your friend's at least five inches less than you," Rosetta informed.
Sasha's left eye twitched. It wasn't as if she didn't know that Anne was…developed in that area. Years of having gym class and showering in the girls' locker rooms had allowed her to see such things many times over. But to hear it said, that was another story. And it started to make her curious as to just how much…more they were compared to hers.
"She said five more inches so…"
Before Sasha could determine that size, the curtain was pulled back and a fully dressed Anne came out, her face flushed with embarrassment.
"Okay, I got what I need. I'll have it ready for you in three days," said Rosetta.
"Wow, that fast?" Sasha asked.
"I ain't called the best for nothin'. Anyway, now that we got that settled, I assume you'll be needin' a couple of weapons." Rosetta walked to a pair of double doors and threw them open. "If ya want a custom job, you'll have ta wait a bit longer, but either way, you can take what ya want from the armory. None of it is half assed, everythin's top quality."
Anne and Sasha entered the armory proper and marveled at all the different weapons. There were axes, swords, crossbows, bows and arrows, daggers, bolos, whips, shields, extra sets of armor, and a variety of other weapons. As they walked through the armory, Sasha stopped as her eyes caught sight of a very unique sword. The weapon was pink in color, with the hilt and guard sculpted to resemble a bird. Sasha picked it up and felt the weight of it in her hands. It wasn't heavy, but not too light either. The hilt length was just enough so that she could swing it with one hand or use both.
If I remember Marcy's RPG stuff right, I think they call this a "bastard sword".
"Hey, Rosetta, what's the story on this sword?" Sasha asked.
"Ah, ya got good taste. One of my custom jobs. Blade was hone to a fine edge and made from a special metal that won't ever lose its edge or rust. And I modeled it after one of the fiercest creatures in Amphibia, the heron," said Rosetta.
"And it's pink because…?"
Rosetta blushed a little and looked off to the side. "What?! I ain't allowed to like pink?!"
Sasha chuckled and sheathed the sword. "I never said that, and no there isn't. This is the weapon for me. Anne, you find something yet? Anne?"
Sasha turned around and noticed how Anne was staring up at an ornate scythe that was hanging on the wall. The weapon was black as night, with gold embroidery that looked like vines with leaves on them. At the top the blade was gleamed as if it were made of pure silver, an overall beautiful if not intimidating weapon.
Rosetta followed Anne's gaze and said, "Ah, not many wantin' to wield that thing as a weapon."
Anne turned to look at Rosetta and asked, "Why not?"
"Mostly 'cause it requires a level of dexterity and nimbleness that toads aren't known for havin'. But it still has its uses as an execution tool. This one in particular I made strictly for combat in case any toad had the balls to try and step out of their comfort zone. Honestly, any toad would look like death itself tearin' through droves of enemies with that," Rosetta spoke.
Sasha walked up beside her girlfriend and asked, "You seriously thinking about using that thing? I would've pegged you for a sword kind of girl like me."
"I mean, I wouldn't mind using a sword. Swords are badass. But when I was out there in the wild, I used a scythe that I – uh – 'borrowed' – from the frogs in the nearby town. I used to fight off a lot of big bugs and creatures that got close to my campsite, without having to transform. I guess you can say I got comfortable with using one," Anne explained.
Sasha chuckled as she lightly elbowed Anne and teased, "Looks to me like you're taking your old nickname, 'Angel of Death', literally. Huh?"
"N-N-No, it's just–!"
Sasha walked up and took down the scythe. She then handed it to Anne and smiled broadly at her. "Take it. Honestly, I think you're the only one here who could use this to its full potential. With your speed, combined with this, you'll be able to cut down anything that comes at us. Like a true, beautiful, Angel of Death."
Anne took the weapon, she could feel that it had some weight to it, but it was also light enough that it wouldn't fatigue its wielder too much. The Thai teen clenched her hands around the weapon before holding it upright.
"Alright, I'm gonna own it! This is my weapon," said Anne proudly.
"Great, now let's get things ready. We have some preparations to make before we tell the whole valley who's in charge now."
(4 Weeks Later…)
Anne sighed as she rode in the carriage, she had just left Swamp Shire, and the people of that town had nothing new to report. Weeks had passed and despite now having the help of the townsfolk from the four major towns in Frog Valley, and the toad soldiers that they would occasionally send out on scouting missions, they still haven't found any sign of Marcy. Anne brought up a map of Frog Valley and put an "X" near the forest region of Swamp Shire, there were a lot "Xs" on the map.
Since they're takeover of Toad Tower, Anne had led search parties into different wilderness areas of Frog Valley, searching each part by quadrants. At the end of each week, a report would be sent to Toad Tower about any possible sightings of Marcy Wu, and each week was the same thing, nothing. Anne was starting to worry if Marcy might've been eaten by one of the many giant wildlife that roamed around the valley. Or if she was lucky, Marcy didn't get sent to Amphibia at all, and was still back on Earth worrying about what had happened to them.
Regardless, even the scouting parties that were sent out to different quadrants still didn't bring back any news. It was both frustrating and saddening that even with their powers, and their newfound army, they still couldn't find their missing friend.
The carriage eventually arrived at Toad Tower. Anne exited the carriage and was saluted by the toads, which she saluted back before heading inside. Without really trying, Anne had gotten to know a lot of the toad soldiers, she was always good with making connections with people, shooting the breeze, and just being a comfortable person to talk and open up to. Sasha had commented on this one time and speculated that perhaps that was why other girls were jealous of her. Anne could easily and seamlessly make friends with boys and girls without any ulterior motives, and genuinely have a fun time hanging out with them. Whereas some would just pretend. Anne never really thought of it that way, but Sasha may've been onto something.
Anne headed up to her private room where she closed the door behind her and sighed heavily. She propped her scythe against the wall as she removed her top layer of armor, along with her gloves. She let them fall on the floor next to her bed as she plopped down onto it, resting there in her tank top as she stared up at the ceiling.
"Marcy…where are you?" Anne questioned.
*Knock!*
*Knock!*
"Come in."
The door opened and revealed Sasha. The blonde teen was wearing a brown shirt and black pants as she walked over to where Anne was.
"Hey, Anne." Sasha noticed the expression on Anne's face and said, "Ooh, no luck again?"
"No…Nothing. It's been four weeks, Sash. And we haven't found one thing of her anywhere!" Anne exclaimed in frustration.
Sasha sat on the bed next to her and retorted, "Anne, we both knew that she might not have landed here with us. It was always a possibility that she might not have gotten sucked into this world like we did. Plus, we're only searching in this valley, we haven't been able to go beyond it, yet."
"Yeah…I know."
Anne and Sasha had proposed that they search beyond Frog Valley, but the toads informed them that the mountain pass that leads out of valley was completely frozen over. And that it would take exactly three months before it was melted and passable. Anne was shocked to hear this, that meant if Marcy was not in the valley, she could be outside of it, in the wide land of Amphibia, alone.
"I just hate not knowing if she's alright or not…"
Sasha gently brushed her left hand over Anne's arm as she replied, "I know. I feel the same way. I want to know she's safe and okay, and I do feel anxious about her not being with us. We just have to hope that she can survive out there. Or that one of these Amphibians was nice enough to take her in. Anyway, let's change the subject a little. Have you given my suggestion any thought yet?"
Anne blushed as she recalled what the suggestion was. Not too long ago, Sasha had proposed that the two of them stay in the captain's quarters, together, and in the same bed. Sasha had explained that it would be more efficient for the toads to know where their leaders were, and so that reports could be given to them and not relayed back and forth. But that wasn't the only reason, Sasha also said that she wanted to be closer to Anne.
"Oh…uh…I-I don't know…I mean, that's kind of a big step, Sash. Sleeping in the same bed…as a couple…"
"We've slept in the same bed together before, one time all three of us passed out on the floor in a pile, and another time on my bed," Sasha informed.
"Y-Yeah, we have, but that was different. We were just best friends then…now we're…"
"Girlfriends."
Anne nodded.
"Anne, are you afraid I'm going to do something to you?" Sasha asked.
"W-What? L-Like what?" Anne asked nervously.
"Oh, maybe…" Sasha swiftly hopped onto the bed and straddled Anne, using her hands to pin down Anne's wrists as she looked down at her hazel brown eyes. "Something a bit risqué. Something 'R' rated, perhaps?"
Anne's heart felt like it was about to burst out her chest with how Sasha was on her. That predatory look in her blue eyes, that smirk, and her blonde hair that formed a veil that covered the sides of her face, making you look at her and only her. Anne couldn't help but gulp, she was fully aware of the fact that couples did things like, well, like that, but she didn't really think about them too much. Not like she had any one in mind that she ever wanted to, but now that Sasha was here, like this, on top of her, those thoughts were strangely rushing to the forefront of her mind. However, Sasha's smirk softened into a smile as she released Anne's wrists and laid her head down on Anne's chest, resting her right ear over where Anne's heart was.
"You're heart's really beating fast, Anne," said Sasha.
"Can you blame me right now?!" Anne asked, rhetorically.
"I like hearing it. It means you're alive, and that you're here with me." Sasha raised her body and gently took Anne's right wrist and placed the Thai teen's hand over her heart. "Can you feel my heart, Anne? It's racing, too."
Anne gulped again, never mind the fact that she was practically groping Sasha's breast, but she could in fact feel that Sasha's heart was beating almost as fast as her own. "Y-Yeah…I-I feel it."
"I won't do anything to you, Anne. Really, if I wanted to, I've had so many opportunities at our sleepovers, but I never did. I want you, but not if you're not ready to have me. But at the least, can you want to stay with me in the same room?" Sasha asked with a pleading look in her eyes.
Anne was about to reply to Sasha, but before she could, the door to her room opened and Percy walked in.
"Vice-Captain Anne, I was looking for Captain Sasha to – WHOA!" Percy exclaimed when he saw the two girls. "MY BAD!"
Percy slammed the door shut behind him, leaving the two teens alone again. Anne felt mortified to have been seen like this, but Sasha looked more annoyed than mortified.
"Well, that's a mood killer." Sasha gently removed Anne's hand from her chest and walked over to the door. She then opened and said, "Percy, do I need to have a talk with you about the importance of knocking before entering a girl's room?"
"S-Sorry Captain! I didn't know you were –!"
"We weren't. So, what did you need me for?" Sasha asked.
"Oh, uh, right! We got a report from Wartwood, and it's concerning," said Percy as he handed her a piece of paper.
Sasha raised an eyebrow as she took the offered paper and asked, "What's the problem?"
"Well, the report has to do with the taxes that are to be routinely collected from the towns in the valley. Wartwood has come up short for the past couple of months, but honestly, when we looked into it, they've been short more times than that," Percy informed. "As part of the tower's duty, we are to collect taxes so that they may be taken to Newtopia."
"How does that work, though? The pass is frozen," said Sasha.
"Yes, that's why we normally store it here. A-Anyway, what do you want to do about Wartwood?" Percy asked.
Sasha glanced over her shoulder towards Anne, who was now sitting up and looking at her right hand, the very same hand that she made Anne use to touch her chest. "Give me a minute while I consult with my Vice-Captain, Percy."
"Y-Yes, Sir!"
Sasha closed the door behind her and walked back to Anne. She stood there in front of her, watching Anne's fingers curl as if she had been holding a phantom object. "Anne, if you want to touch them you can."
"I – WHAT?!" Anne exclaimed.
"Great, now that I got your attention, did you hear anything that Percy just said?" Sasha asked.
"Huh? Oh, y-yeah, some parts. Something about no taxes or something?"
"Correct, we'll need to look into this before the other towns start thinking about doing something similar."
Anne scratched the back of her head as she asked, "Wait, why do we care about taxes? We don't need the money."
Sasha sighed as she said, "Anne, we may be working for free because we have powers, but these toads aren't just here out of loyalty or a just a need to act as the valley's protectors. They're soldiers, and soldiers, in any army, need to get paid. Just like back home, taxes give the soldiers a paycheck. And some of these toads have families they need to support. So, if one town starts paying less, then the others might, and soon this could damage morale for the troops."
"Okay, I get it. I mean, it would suck if they did all this work for nothing," said Anne.
"Good, so, I want you to go down there and speak to Mayor Toadstool and find out why there are so little taxes coming out of that town of his," said Sasha.
"Wait, you want me to look into this?" Anne asked.
"You have asked me to give you some missions to lead, because you want to lighten my load. Well, here's one you can take off my shoulders. Plus, it'll give you a chance to flex your detective brain."
"Well, Marcy's more of the brain than me," said Anne.
"You did ask how you could help me out or lighten the load a little last week. Well, think of this as doing just that. Go to the town, find out the cause, and put an end to it, simple," Sasha assured.
Anne released a reluctant sigh as she said, "Okay, but it might take a while."
"Hey, so long as the job gets done. We can't have the other towns think that they can just skimp on their payments."
Anne headed to Wartwood on a wagon, along with three other toads. Bog was the leader of his squad, normally, along with Fens, and the armored toad Myer. But today, Anne was technically leading this team as they rode into Wartwood proper. The citizens all gasped when they saw Anne and her toad soldiers arrive and were starting to whisper in speculation as to why. As they exited the wagon, Anne spotted a familiar trio of faces. An old orange frog, a pink frog boy, and a purple tadpole with a yellow bow on her head. She felt guilty when she saw them, remembering that she would frequently hit up their farm for vegetables. She even took their scythe.
It wasn't as if she hadn't stolen from other farms and homes, but the crops that that farm grew were certainly more delicious. It seemed the family of three was out shopping and were loading up their snail with their groceries. The pink frog child looked in their direction and waved shyly towards Anne. The Thai teen smiled and waved back at him, which seemed to make the frog boy brighten up a bit.
Anne figured most of the frogs were afraid of her and Sasha. It wasn't hard to understand why, they did make a show of their powers in each town, and it didn't help that Anne still carried around her ornate scythe, which made her a bit more intimidating. But if she could show here and there that they weren't there to hurt them, and that they were friendly, then perhaps she could improve their image a bit. The toads and Anne walked to town hall, where they were greeted by Toadie and ushered into the building. Toadie led them straight to Toadstool's office where the toad himself was sitting behind his desk.
"Ah! Vice-Captain Anne, and Bog and his crew, welcome, welcome," said Toadstool.
"Hello, Mr. Mayor. Captain Sasha wanted me to come down here to investigate the reason for why the taxes have been so low from Wartwood," said Anne.
"I don't appreciate being made a fool of either, Toadstool. You've been holding out on us for a while apparently. So, what's going on?" Bog asked.
Toadstool nodded and replied, "Yes, yes. Actually, Ah was the one who brought it up to Captain Sasha in my letter."
"Seriously?" Anne asked.
"Mmm-hmm, Ah've been tryin' to offset the amounts with my own finances, but it's just gettin' to be a bit too hard to keep it up. Ah just didn't want Grime to come down here and start hurtin' my constituents. They're good people, but very stubborn. But Ah thought, with the new captains, you might take a different approach to this," Toadstool explained.
"Okay, but what can we do about it?" Anne asked. "Any ideas guys?"
"Well, we do have a big wagon with us, we could confiscate items that would make up for the amount still owed. If they've been doing this for a while, we should probably call in more toads to come help us, and with more wagons," Bog suggested.
"Whoa, whoa, wait. How much of everything?" Anne asked.
Toadstool opened a drawer in his desk and walked from behind it to hand Anne a piece of paper. "Here, ya may not have to take everythin' from everybody. Ah wrote a list of the ones who have been most delinquent in their tax payments."
Anne checked out the list and gasped, "Hoopa-da-boopa! That's a lot…"
Bog looked at the list and whistled. "Oh yeah, definitely going to need more toads."
Fens looked at it as well and she whistled alongside her leader. "Yep, more toads. Lot's more."
Anne didn't like where this might be going, if they brought in more toads, it might look like they were trying to invade. And if these amounts were right, they were probably going to end up taking everything away from these frogs. That was not going to look good, not that this was going to either way.
"Hold on, what if we just…take enough to meet half the amount for now?" Anne suggested.
"What?" Fens and Bog asked.
"Look, if we take everything from the frogs on this list, it'll just make everyone think we're merciless, heartless thugs. But if we just take enough to cover half the amount, we'll call it a warning that if they don't pay the regular amount, then the next time they try this, we'll come back and take them for everything they have!"
Bog looked a little disappointed by this suggestion. "Vice-Captain, I get where you're coming from, but if these frogs are as stubborn as the mayor says, then we need to show them who's boss."
Anne decided to channel her inner Sasha as she crossed her arms and glared down at Bog. "Well, Sasha put me in charge of this. And I say we're doing this my way. End of discussion."
"But–"
"End. Of. Discussion." Anne repeated as her eyes glowed a bit.
Bog, Fens, and Myer quickly saluted Anne and responded with a "Yes, Ma'am!"
"Cool beans. So, who's up first…?"
Anne and her soldiers headed to the first stop on their Delinquent Payers tour. They pulled up outside of the fairly nice home. On the list the name of the frog who lived at the address was named "Wally". Bog led the charge and kicked down the door to Wally's house, upon doing so, they heard Wally yelling. When Anne got inside, she saw that the blue-green, one-eyed frog was busy taking a bath, and it seems as though they interrupted that.
"AHAAHA! Jumpin' June bugs! What's all this then?!" Wally asked in shock.
Anne cleared her throat and said aloud, "We're here because you've been delinquent with your tax payments. And we're here to collect, dude."
"What! That's rubbish! I may live in squalor, but I always pay me taxes!" Wally protested.
"Sorry, but the list we received from the mayor says otherwise. And you owe a lot of money, Wally," said Anne as she turned the list around to show him.
Wally focused on the amount that had his name next to it and practically had a heart attack right there in the tub. "What in the name a Frog! That's ludicrous! I don't owe anywhere near that much!"
"Look, I don't know your situation, dude. But for now, we're only going to take enough to cover half the amount listed here. It's either that or I put in a call to the tower, and I can have more toads come to take everything. It's your choice, just enough or everything," said Anne.
Wally looked between Anne, the amount on the list, and the toads behind her. After a few seconds of hard contemplation, Wally released a sigh of reluctance and said, "Take what ya need to…"
Anne nodded and then turned to her crew, "Okay guys, just enough for half the amount, nothing more or less."
"Got it!" Bog stated.
From there the three toads began to loot Wally's home for items that would be a sufficient price to cover at least half of the amount he was still delinquent for. Once they done, Wally's home was looking just a little barren. Anne's expression fell a bit when she saw this. She didn't think only half would be this much.
But Sasha's counting on me to handle this, so…I have to do this.
"Vice-Captain, we got the correct amount," said Bog.
"Okay, let's move onto the next," Anne ordered.
As Anne and the toads left the home, Anne stopped in the doorway and glanced over her shoulder at the despondent look on Wally's face. Anne knew that look; it was the look of someone who felt as if they were punished unfairly, or was taking the blame for something they didn't do. It brought up memories of her own. But she had to remain resolved. This was her idea, so she had to follow through with it even if it was mean.
After heading to Wally's house, the next stop was at a local tea shop. Bog, Myer, and Fens were already taking things. Fine China, barrels full of exotic tea, and other knickknacks. The whole time this was going on, Anne was standing off to the side, watching them work as the owner of the shop, Felicia, and her daughter, Ivy, were standing in the middle of the shop, watching as Anne's soldiers took the things to cover half the amount.
"This is messed up! If Mom said she paid, then she paid!" Ivy retorted.
"Ivy, please," Felicia cautioned.
Anne walked over to the two frogs and said, "Look, I'm sorry, but we have a job to do, and I'm here to do it. In the future, this kind of thing doesn't have to happen again."
As the Thai teen turned around to walk away, Ivy jumped into the air and came at Anne with a flying kick.
"IVY!" Felicia exclaimed.
"VICE-CAPTAIN!" Bog and Fens exclaimed as well.
Anne dipped into her powers, making her eyes glow blue as she quickly sidestepped to the right, letting Ivy's kick pass right by her. Ivy skidded across the floor on her feet and jumped back at Anne to try and punch her in the face. However, Anne's speed was more than enough to help her avoid getting hit by the little frog girl, she kept dodging the kicks and punches until she decided to disappear and reappear behind Ivy just as she jumped to attack again. Anne reached out and grabbed Ivy the suspenders, holding her aloft in her hand.
"Well done, Vice-Captain!" Bog stated.
"Let me go! Let me go!" Ivy protested.
"Heh, you made a big mistake ya little runt. You know what the penalty is for attacking a toad soldier? Never mind the fact that you just attacked one of our captains, so you're in even deeper hot water now," said Fens.
Felicia quickly ran to Anne and fell to her knees before her. "Please! Spare my child! She's reckless sometimes, she wasn't thinking! Please don't hurt her! Please punish me instead!"
"WILL EVERYONE JUST SHUT UP!" Anne yelled.
The entire room went quiet.
Anne took a deep breath and released Ivy, letting the frog girl return to her mother's arms where she was embraced. "I'm not going to hurt you or her. We only came to get what we needed and that's it."
"B-But, Vice-Captain, we can't just–" Fens began.
"She's just a kid, Fens. Any kid would act the same way to defend their parent. Plus, it's not like she actually hit me or anything. Now, let's go."
"Thank you, thank you Vice-Captain Anne!" Felicia groveled.
"Don't worry about it," said Anne as she turned around to leave.
"Big dumb bully," Ivy hissed.
Anne felt a stinging pain in her heart when she heard that.
They hit a lot of different houses, and this was not getting any easier. If anything, this was weighing down on Anne's heart with each house they went to. Even though all of this was her idea, she was starting to wonder if this really was the best solution. Not only that, but each house they went to, every one of them insisted, vehemently, that they paid their full taxes. Anne voiced this concern to Bog, and he replied with, "They're probably lying to get out of it. The list don't lie, Vice-Captain."
Maybe, but what if the list is lying? Anne thought.
"Who's the next name on the list?" Anne asked.
"Eh, some frog by the name of Hopadiah Plantar."
"Okay, let's go."
It took a few minutes, but Anne and the toads finally arrived at the home of Hopadiah Plantar. And when they did, Anne couldn't believe her eyes. This was the farm she had stolen a lot from, not once, not twice, but multiple times.
Oh cruuuuuuud…
Unfortunately, their arrival was not a surprise as the old frog in question was outside with his, supposed, grandchildren, and was working cultivating some of the vegetables growing there. Hopadiah Plantar furrowed his brow the moment he saw them and began making his way to the front of his house as Anne and her soldiers walked up the dirt path towards it. They stopped halfway when Hopadiah met them there, rake still in hand.
"Why are ya on my property?" Hopadiah asked.
"We're…uh…We're here to collect some items to make up for the amount of taxes your delinquent on," said Anne.
"Say what?! Delinquent?! Ah've never been 'delinquent' with my taxes a day in my life!" Hopadiah exclaimed.
"The mayor's list says otherwise, old frog," said Bog as he showed him the list.
Hopadiah put the rake down and took out his reading glasses to see the amount. "WHAT! This is pure malarkey! Ah don't owe this much! Heck, Ah don't owe anythin'! Wait…" the elderly frog read the amounts next to the other names on the list. "You can't be serious. There's no way any of these frogs are delinquent! Even Wally!"
The pink frog child hopped up and saw the list. When he did, he gasped. "He's right, Wally always pays his taxes."
"Look, frogs, we've heard the same damn thing from every frog we've visited so far. The tower has been receiving less taxes from this town, not just recently, but even before that apparently. So, now, we're here to collect enough to cover half the amount. You all should be down on your knees in gratitude, because it was our Vice-Captain here who made the suggestion rather than just take you all for the full amount!"
Anne was starting to feel that sting of guilt again, she was about to take more from these frogs, and now that she thought about it, maybe it was her fault for their coming up short? Maybe not in the past, but probably more recently. Those vegetables she stole weren't just for them, she knew farmers relied on selling their crops for money. If her taking some of those crops added to their financial trouble, then that was her fault, and now they were possibly paying the price for that.
"Okay, now that we have that established, what should we take?" Bog questioned aloud.
Fens looked around and spotted large snail grazing by the house. "What about that?"
Bog looked at the snail and smiled, "That's great! That should cover everything they owe actually! You guys are lucky you're only losing one snail."
"You leave Bessie alone!" Hopadiah exclaimed.
"I'll bite your faces off!" the tadpole threatened.
Myer hopped over their heads and landed behind both of them. He quickly grabbed Hopadiah by his jacket and shirt collar, hoisting him up in the air, and grabbed the tadpole by her round head/body. The pink frog rushed to Bessie and stood in front of her, brandishing his slingshot and readying to fight for their snail as Bog and Fens got closer. The guilt was starting to well up inside of Anne more and more, but she couldn't take it anymore.
"EVERYBODY STOP!" Anne ordered.
Fens, Bog, and Myer looked to their Vice-Captain, as well as the Plantar family.
"Myer, release them!" Anne's eyes glowed as she added, "That's an order!"
Myer released a squeak of fear as he released both the old frog and tadpole.
Anne looked at Hopadiah and asked, "Do you have proof that you paid your taxes?"
"W-What?" Hopadiah asked.
"I asked if you have any proof that you paid your taxes. We've heard the same thing from all these different frogs that they paid, but I'm asking if you have any proof that you did," said Anne.
"Heh, if ya want proof, Ah'll give ya proof. C'mon inside and Ah'll show ya," said Hopadiah.
"Vice-Captain," Bog protested.
"Stay out here and don't mess with anything. That's also an order."
Anne went inside with Hopadiah. When she was inside, Anne took a moment to gaze upon the rustic appearance of the house, as well as enjoy the homey feeling that it radiated.
"You have a nice house," Anne commented.
"Thank you. Over here, now," said Hopadiah.
Anne followed the elderly frog into his study, and once inside, she watched as he took out a huge book and laid it out on his desk.
"Bein' a farmer means not only knowin' how to work the land, but also how to balance yer books. Any farmer worth their salt should know how to manage their finances," said Hopadiah.
"Makes sense to me, Hopadiah."
"Good, now look here."
Hopadiah began showing Anne all the different times he paid his taxes, and what amounts he did or wasn't able to pay in full but made up for it in the following payments. Anne wasn't an expert in this stuff, but the numbers seemed pretty consistent with each turning of the page, leading up to the most current tally of expenses.
"Okay, so you have paid then," said Anne.
"See. Didn't ya bother to ask these other frogs about their ledgers?" he asked.
Anne frowned as she answered, "No…I didn't…I just assumed…"
"It may not be any of my business to tell ya how to do yer job, but if yer gonna be doin' this kinda thing, ya might want to double check yer sources," said Hopadiah.
Anne sighed heavily as she nodded in agreement with Hopadiah. "I know, and you're right. I've been feeling like this whole thing was wrong, but now I know it is. Something isn't right with this list. Hopadiah, would you mind going with me to these frogs to see if they have similar ledgers? I want to hear their side of the story."
"Well…if that's what ya want, then Ah'll help ya out. But Ah want to take my grandchildren with me. Can't really leave Sprig alone here, he ain't that reliable," said Hopadiah.
"Really? You mean that pink frog boy? He seemed pretty reliable back there when he was defending your snail," said Anne.
"Heh, well, can't deny that. But all the same, Ah'd rather they were with me."
"Alright, you grandkids can come with us."
Anne and Hopadiah exited the Plantar home, and when they did, Anne made her announcement.
"Bog, Fens, Myer, we're postponing going after the rest of the frogs on this list. I want to look into something first before we go any further with this," said Anne.
"What?!" Fens exclaimed.
"Vice-Captain, don't tell me you're letting that frog trick you like this?!" Bog asked.
"Look, I just want to investigate this properly before we just blindly keep taking things from the people of this town."
Bog crossed his arms he lowered a slight glare at his Vice-Captain. "Captain Sasha's not going to like this. She sent us here to do a job."
"Yeah, to investigate. In fact." Anne reached into the skirt pocket of her pants and took out her cellphone. "Maybe I should ask her myself."
Anne's eyes glowed blue as she concentrated and made the connection from her phone to Sasha's. Once she was sure the connection was good, she immediately called her cell. It didn't take long for Sasha to pick up.
{Hey, Anne, what's up? You done in Wartwood yet?}
"Not just yet, Sash. Listen, I think there's something else going on here. I'm going to investigate it a bit further. If that's alright?" Anne asked.
{Wait, further? Something wrong over there?}
"Not exactly, it's just a lot of things aren't adding up."
{Okay, maybe I should come down there and check things out for myself.}
Anne now started to feel a little pathetic, did Sasha not think she could handle this?
"No, you don't have to. You put me in charge of investigating, and I plan to do that."
{Alright, well, you keep doing that. But I'm coming down either way. I'll see you in a few.}
"Wait, but–!" The call ended, leaving Anne a bit frustrated. But nonetheless, she had a job to do now. "Bog, Fens, Myer, you three head to town with the wagon and keep it there. Captain Sasha's on her way. Do NOT leave this town with that stuff until I've sorted all of this mess out. That's an order."
Bog released a sigh of frustration but motioned for the others to come with him. Anne watched as the three mounted the wagon and were on their way to the town square.
"You alright, Miss?" Sprig asked.
"I'm fine. We just need to figure this out before my friend gets here. And call me Anne."
It did take some time, but Anne and the Plantars managed to talk to all the frogs Anne and her troops confiscated stuff from. After apologizing to them, and with the Plantars' help, Anne was able to collect some evidence that the frogs that were on the list did, at least according to their ledgers, pay their taxes on time. Anne also went to the remaining houses with the Plantars to find out more about their ledgers, and it seemed as if they were also up to date with their taxes. It was as she thought, something was not right. So, together with the Plantars, Anne marched into town with the Plantars and the "delinquent" frogs. Determined to get to the bottom of this.
When they arrived, Anne saw Sasha there, along with their private carriage and a few toad soldiers. She could see that Sasha was talking to Bog and Mayor Toadstool, probably about what they had been doing up until Anne decided to change up their plan. Anne kept her determined expression as she walked to the center of town. Sasha spotted her and headed over to where Anne was and looked a bit confused by the small army of frogs she had with her.
"Whoa, Anne, what's with all the frogs?" Sasha asked.
"Sasha, I've talked to all the frogs on this list that the mayor gave us, and each of them not only say that they did pay their taxes, but they have ledgers that prove that they did," said Anne.
"Uh-huh. Anne, can I have word with you in private?" Sasha asked.
Both Anne and Sasha broke away from the two groups, making sure they were not in earshot of them.
"Anne, look, you can't really trust these warty little things, right?"
"Look, I just have a feeling about this. Especially after showing me those ledger things," said Anne.
"And how do you know they didn't just fake those numbers? Neither one of us are experts with this sort of stuff, and they could've easily made up those numbers," Sasha suggested.
"I mean, it's possible, but…"
"Look, don't let them throw the wool over your eyes, Anne. People like them will try and take advantage of us because we're in charge. They'll try and cozy up to us or convince us to give them a break. We can't let them think they can just make us do whatever they want with just a little sob story," said Sasha.
"Sash…"
Sasha rubbed Anne's back lightly as she said, "Look, let's just go through the rest of the list. I heard what Bog told me about your original plan, it was a good plan, Anne. You should've stuck to it. It got the point across without being too severe and has the promise of giving them the chance to make up for it. It's a solid plan, you need to have more confidence in yourself."
Anne glanced over her shoulder at the frogs. "I mean…I guess…I just started to feel bad about doing it."
"Look, keeping control of this place is not going to be easy. We'll have to make hard decisions sometimes and we'll probably feel like shit for making those decisions and having to do what we need to, but in the end, it's what we have to do. Now, let's turn around and tell these frogs what's up. And then get back to collecting and be on our way to the tower."
"…A-Alright."
Sasha smiled and turned around with Anne following behind her. "Okay, everyone! After conferring with my Vice-Captain, since we can't verify with any hard evidence that you all did pay your taxes, we conclude that the only safe thing to do is continue with our collection plan."
A round of jeers and protests erupted from the group frogs upon hearing this turn of events.
"Hey, hey, look, we're not calling you liars. But again, we can't verify your claims. So, the safest option for us to continue the collection. Look, at the very least, you have my word that we'll keep your belongings secured at the tower. And if you don't come up short with your taxes, again, then we'll gladly return your items," Sasha promised.
The murmuring quieted down some, although there was still some dejected grumbling amongst the crowd. Anne noticed that the Plantar family looked particularly disappointed by this, as they were sure that Anne was going to come through for them. Anne couldn't look at the Plantars, so she glanced over to her right to distract herself. However, as she did, Anne noticed something off. There was a statue of a frog that looked distinguished, possibly the founder of the town. And a few feet away from it was another statue that looked like Toadstool kissing a baby.
Anne slowly began walking towards it, feeling like it was really out of place for some reason.
Sasha glanced to her right, noticing how Anne was gravitating towards the statue. "Anne, what's wrong?"
"Hey, Hopadiah, this statue's new right?" Anne asked.
"Now that ya mention it, that's never been there before," said Hopadiah.
"Oh, that's new! I had it commissioned a while back and it just got finished," said Toadstool.
All the different times I came to this town, I haven't seen this thing before, thought Anne.
"Anne, c'mon, let's get started."
Anne, as hard as it was, ignored Sasha and got closer to the statue. The Thai teen took one glance at Toadstool and noticed how he was getting more nervous as Anne continued to inspect the statue. Anne brought up her right hand and knocked against the statue at different points as she listened. On her fourth knock, Anne heard something. An echo, which meant this thing was hollow inside.
It can't be…can it?
"HEY, BOG!" Anne shouted. "Bring your hammer over here and smash this thing open!"
"What?" Bog questioned.
"WHAT?!" Toadstool exclaimed.
"Ugh, Anne, what are you doing? We have a plan, let's stick to it," said Sasha.
"Sasha, please, trust me on this," Anne begged.
Bog glanced to Sasha, waiting to see if his captain would give the order.
Sasha crossed her arms and sighed as she said, "Fine. I'll humor you. Bog, go over there and smash that thing."
"B-B-But Captain Sasha! Ah just got that thing!" Toadstool whined.
"Commission another and I'll make sure to pay for it. Just do it already, Bog."
Bog shrugged his shoulders and walked over to the statue with his Warhammer. Once he was there, Bog hefted his weapon up, which made Toadstool begin to sweat bullets. Which made Anne believe that she was on the right track, either that or he was just fearful for his commissioned statue. Bog then swung his hammer and struck the backside of the statue, smashing a big hole in it. Upon busting it open like a piñata, a small deluge of copper coins came pouring out of it and onto the ground before the statue.
Everyone gasped, staring with gaping mouths. Even Sasha was shocked to see what she saw. Anne just smiled as she fist pumped into the air, repeatedly saying "yes" under her breath. Bog's shock shifted to anger as he turned his gaze upon the mayor. However, it was Sasha's glare that made even the toads freeze up with fear. The new captain of Toad Tower glared at Toadstool as she turned her whole body to face him.
"N-N-Now A-A-Ah can explain this!" Toadstool insisted.
Sasha marched up to Toadstool as her eyes glowed a bright magenta, she then picked up the toad with her right hand and dragged him over to where the copper coins were spilt and threw him at the foot of the pile.
"You just lied to me, used me and my Vice-Captain to cover up for your skimming of the tax money, and what's worse, you made us look like fools!" Sasha exclaimed.
"I-I-It wasn't my intention, Ah swear," said Toadstool.
"Be quiet!" Sasha ordered.
Toadstool shut his mouth and remained cowering on the ground.
Sasha turned to Anne and softened her expression as she approached her. "Anne, I'm so sorry I didn't believe you. Can you forgive me?"
"Sash, it's alright, I doubted myself, too," said Anne.
"I know, and I only helped with that." Sasha turned around and began to address the frogs. "Citizens of Wartwood! It's clear that your mayor has been embezzling your tax money and was willing to put the blame on you! He even tried using me, my soldiers, and my Vice-Captain, to cover up his misdeeds!"
The frogs started cry out in anger at Toadstool, even going so far as to throw tomatoes and cabbages at him. One of the toad soldiers kept a good hold on Toadie, making sure he didn't do anything to try and help his boss.
"This kind of crime, indeed, his past crimes of continued embezzlement, will no longer be tolerated, and as such, swift and immediate punishment will be dealt to him." Sasha turned around and stated, "Mayor Frodrick Toadstool, as the current captain of Toad Tower, I, Sasha Waybright, sentence you…to death."
The jeers and angry yelling stopped upon hearing the sentence handed down by Sasha, and while the toads were all for fighting and violence, that was not what they were expecting.
"S-Sasha, that's like super severe! Can't we just, throw him in a cell at the tower or something?!" Anne asked.
"Anne, he's a repeat offender. The only reason he didn't go so far when Grime was in charge, was because he knew full well that Grime would've done the exact same thing. He thought he could take advantage of us, of you and me, because he thought we were weak. We can't let them think that," said Sasha.
Sasha walked towards Toadstool and pulled out her sword as she let it ignite with flames. Toadstool was continuously begging for his life as Sasha raised her flaming heron sword, ready to kill him. However, the flames were snuffed out and her eyes returned to their natural color as she sheathed her weapon.
"Oh, thank you! Thank you for your mercy," said Toadstool.
"No, this isn't mercy, this is a change in executioners." Sasha turned around and said, "Anne, use your scythe, and take his head."
"W-W-What?! S-Sasha, I-I–!"
"Anne." Sasha shot Anne a serious glare. "I'm not asking as your friend, or as your girlfriend. I'm telling you as your captain. Execute him. He tried to use you to hurt these frogs, to take all that they had and leave them with nothing, his greed would've hurt all of them. How much worse do you think you would've felt if you found out later that this guy used you to cover his tracks?! Because that's what he almost got away with! But you saw through it! And as such, you have to be the one to end it."
Sasha walked up to Anne and patted her right shoulder pauldron with her right hand as she passed by and added, "I'm counting on you, Anne. Now, take your scythe and take off his head."
"But I never…I never killed anyone before…!"
"Anne, you technically did already."
"What?"
"When Grime turned into a monster, you were the one who dealt the final blow," Sasha pointed out.
"B-But he was a monster! He turned into one!" Anne retorted.
"Yeah, but he was a toad first. So, again, you did already kill someone."
Anne just felt a lead weight drop in her stomach, she didn't think about it before, but Sasha was right. She did kill someone already.
"Anne, we're done talking about this. You have a job to do, so do it. End. Of. Discussion."
Anne looked at Toadstool, and back at Sasha, trying to see if maybe there was way around this. But there wasn't. Sasha gave her a task to do, and right now all eyes were on her. In a way, Sasha did have a point, Toadstool used her, and was willing to throw his own citizens under the bus just so he could keep embezzling more and more money. Even if they put him in jail, how long were they going to keep him? Until he promised to never do it again? And even if he did say he wouldn't, what guarantee did they have that he wouldn't try to do this again? None. This was the only way, it has to be, Sasha wouldn't have said to execute him if she wasn't sure. She's never steered her wrong before.
Anne carefully unhooked her scythe from her back and held it both hands. Somehow, Toadstool looked even more fearful than he did when Sasha had her sword out. Perhaps because the scythe was more symbolic with death, the reaping of souls. To him, Anne must've looked like the Angel of Death herself. Anne took a deep breath as she channeled her power and let it flow through her body. Her scythe's blade started to buzz with electrical energy as she opened her eyes and revealed their blue glow.
"I'll…I'll make this quick," said Anne.
"I suggest you make sure your children keep their eyes closed for this!" Sasha called out.
"No! Please! Ah beg you! Mercy!"
Anne widened her stance and reared back her weapon. But that's when Toadstool began to make a break for it and ran in a random direction. However, that was not going to help. Blue lightning ran up and down Anne's body, and in the blink of an eye, she had dashed straight for Toadstool and reappeared several feet ahead of him, but when she did, she held her scythe in a different position. Toadstool had stopped running, and remained where he was. But after a few seconds, Toadstool's head rolled off his body and hit the ground next to him. There was a brief geyser of red that came out before his body fell over.
Anne didn't dare turn around, as brief as it was, her hands could still feel the moment her blade sliced through Toadstool's neck. She fell to one knee, holding her scythe with her right hand while putting her left over her mouth, trying to stifle herself from throwing up.
"And with that, we're done. Soldiers!" The toads stood at attention. "Please help these good people get their things back and have them returned to their proper owners."
Sasha turned around and looked upon the frogs who were still in shock from seeing their mayor get decapitated.
"Now, we need someone to run this town in the meantime. You, orange old frog!"
Hopadiah glanced about and then pointed at himself asking, "M-Me?"
"Yes, what's your name again?" she asked.
"H-Hopadiah Plantar, ma'am."
"Congratulations. Hopadiah Plantar, you're officially interim mayor of Wartwood until a proper election can be held," Sasha stated.
"SAY WHAAAAAT?!" Hopadiah exclaimed.
"You seem to have a good head on your shoulders, no pun intended. And you seem to have earned the trust of my Vice-Captain, which is a plus for you. So, for now, you're in charge, got it?" Sasha asked.
"Y-Yes, Ah do. Thank ya kindly, Captain Sasha," said Hopadiah.
"Also, soldiers, please clean that up as quickly as possible. We don't need any kids traumatized." With that said, Sasha walked over to Anne and crouched next to her. "Hey, you did great, Anne."
"I…I think I'm going to be sick…" Anne warned.
"Hey, hey. Keep it in until we're out of sight. I need you to stand up tall and hold it in until then. Can you do that for me?" Sasha asked.
Anne simply nodded.
"Good girl." Sasha turned around to face the crowd and stated, "Okay everyone, we're heading back to Toad Tower. We'll come by personally after a bit to check and see how things are going."
Anne turned around as well and put on as convincing a smile as she could. Sasha led her to the carriage where the two of them left town.
Anne couldn't get over what she did, she killed someone, with her own hands she cut someone's head off. She threw up after the carriage got at least a few yards out of eyesight of Wartwood, thankfully Sasha helped by keeping her hair out of her face and rubbing her back as she continued to retch. Once she was done, they returned to Toad Tower where Anne went to her room. She brushed her teeth to get rid of the bile taste and laid down in her bed. Although, as she did, she couldn't help but see visions what she did to Toadstool. Visions of herself looking like a black winged angel and removing his head. Now that she thought about it, when she checked her scythe's blade, there was barely even a drop of blood on it. She was moving so fast that the blood barely had any time to stick to it.
After waking up for the fifth time in a row because of these visions, Anne couldn't take it anymore and headed to Sasha's room. She was nervous, she didn't want Sasha to think that she was weak, but she just needed someone near her right now. Anne knocked on the door and heard Sasha's voice tell her to come in. When she opened the door, she saw Sasha. She was wearing the same leisure outfit from earlier, as was Anne, but her outfit consisted of a tank top and some shorts.
"H-Hey," Anne greeted.
"Hey, what's up?" Sasha asked. "You okay, Anne?"
"Not really…I…I can't really sleep all that well. Can…Can I sleep with you for now?" Anne asked, feeling ashamed that she needed to ask to have someone sleep next to her.
"Anne, babe, of course. I'm sorry, that must've been so hard on you, come in," said Sasha.
Anne didn't hesitate and entered. Sasha led Anne to her bedroom where the two of them laid down together. They laid down with their backs against each other and were silent for a few minutes before Anne finally asked the question.
"Why did you tell me to do that…Sasha?" Anne asked.
"Anne, you know I wouldn't have told you to do that if I wasn't sure you needed to," said Sasha.
"But why me? You were about to do it yourself."
Sasha turned her body around to face Anne and said, "Because, I love you, Anne. And because I love you, I need you to be ready to do things like that in the future. Don't forget, we're in another world, completely cut off from our own. We don't know what kind of dangers we'll face in the future, and it may very well come down to us having to do more things like that. I resolved myself to making those kinds of hard choices. But…I know how kindhearted you are, Anne."
Sasha reached over and gently made Anne turn around to look at her directly. She then cupped Anne's right cheek and looked into her eyes.
"I love that about you, but at the same time, I don't want your kind heart to be the reason you get hurt or killed out there. I need you to be able to grit your teeth and do what needs to be done when the situation arises. This was just the first step. I know you feel bad, and that's a good thing. You don't need to feel good about taking someone's life, but sometimes you just need to," Sasha explained.
"You…You really did that for me?" Anne asked.
"Of course, Anne," Sasha replied.
"I still can't sleep…I can still see and feel what I did to him…I can't forget."
"…I can probably help you forget," said Sasha. "But only if you want me to, Anne."
Anne was on the verge of tears as she asked, "Please, whatever it is, just help me forget. If even it's just for a little bit."
Sasha leaned forward and pressed her lips against Anne's, making the Thai teen's eyes fly wide open. However, after a moment, Anne got over the shock and melted into the kiss. Their kiss started out innocently enough, but then became a bit more passionate as Sasha prodded at Anne's lips with her tongue. Anne parted her lips, not hesitating to open her mouth, inviting Sasha in as the two began French kissing each other. The two teens' moans echoed within the room, as they deepened their kiss, their tongues wrestling for supremacy.
However, the two teens had to break their kiss to get some air. Anne and Sasha's faces were bright red, panting hard. A single string of saliva still connected them, as cliché as it was.
"Did that help?" Sasha asked.
"Y-Yeah," Anne answered.
"Do you want me to keep going?"
Anne wordlessly nodded a "yes".
Sasha rolled Anne onto her back as she straddled her once again. Anne felt as if her heart was going to burst out of her chest, she couldn't believe that this was happening, but at the same time, she didn't want Sasha to stop.
"Anne, I'm going to ask you one more time. We can stop right here," said Sasha.
"Sash…I trust you…"
Many things happened that night, clothes were removed, hands roamed over bodies, and moans of pleasure and ecstasy were released from both girls throughout the night. For Anne, it was an experience she would never forget, and in the process helped her forget about what she did in Wartwood. Although it wouldn't erase what she did, having this night of passion with Sasha helped Anne to sleep as her mind was filled better things, and as she fell asleep in the arms of the strong and confident girl whom she had undoubtedly fallen for, Anne believed that everything would be alright, so long as they were together. So long as Sasha was by her side, everything would be alright.
A/N: Yeah, ya'll thought you were going to get a hot "X" rated scene between these two. Well, it's not like I haven't written such scenes before. My Loud House fic will tell ya that much.
But this fic isn't about this. It's about the process of Anne slowly falling into the path of darkness.
So, unfortunately or fortunately, depending on your POV, this is about as far as it goes. You can use your imagination for how the night went.