Party like a human
"Ok, Marbles," Anne said, looking around the game room that used to belong to Emma the Newt. "We're all here, now can you tell us what you have found?"
"Yeah, it's been a while since you started to translate the notes about the Box in Hop Pop's book." Sasha continued, "Have you found out how to get us back home?"
"Sorry, not yet." The dark-haired nerd replied with a shrug, "Nevertheless, thanks to some help from Maddie, and with the support of Jacob and Amelia, I managed to translate enough parts of the notes to give myself an idea. Now I know what the Gems represent and how we can activate the powers they have imbued into us, as well as a good part of their backstory."
"You know how to activate them?!" James gasped, his eyes widening together with Sasha's and everyone else. "Why didn't you start with this?"
"Just because we know how, doesn't make it easy for us to achieve!" Marcy replied. "Moreover, there are some…worrying aspects. Let's start from the beginning. As some of us already know," she said as she glanced over at Jacob and Amelia. "There were originally only three gems: the blue one, the pink one and the green one." Her finger moved over every representation of the gems she mentioned. "They were found long before Amphibia was unified, and many nations waged wars for their control. Each gem could make nearby crops grow better, heal wounds, and cure diseases-"
Upon hearing this, Anne instinctively looked at her chest and at the power that was imbued into her body. "You mean that…I could as well?"
"If what the book says is true, then the gems could do that, yes. But since their powers are within our body now, we can only assume that it's a power the energy keeps. I guess we should make some tests to check out if this is true, on a later occasion-"
"And you two knew?" Sasha looked over at Jacob and Amelia. "Why didn't you say anything?!"
"Because we agreed that any information we would find, we would share at a proper time and place." The boy with the Viking hat replied, Sasha and Anne were genuinely surprised by how responsible he was acting. "And Mar-Mar wanted to be sure before telling you."
"Moreover, that's the old stuff," Amelia gave him support. "In the meantime, we have translated more of the runes and found out the Gems' history."
"And their history being?" James raised an eyebrow.
"As the gems could grant the power to grow and to heal, they could also grant the power of destruction to unleash against their owner's foes." Marcy nodded, continuing to read through her transcripts. "Apparently, hundreds of years ago, one Newt gained control of all three gems and thus managed to unify all the kingdoms under one banner. She is only mentioned as "The Inventor" for she was the one who built the Box in the first place and used it to usher the whole Amphibia into a golden age of peace and progress."
"And to think we found it in a low-level thrift shop," Sasha mused, unaware of the reaction her words had caused in Marcy.
"Anyway! According to what we've managed to translate, the other three gems appeared much later, during what the author called "the end of Amphibia's Golden Age"; followed soon after with by Box and the gems' disappearance."
"Huh. I guess we can safely assume it was around that time that the Box ended up on Earth." James deduced before continuing "But there is something I don't understand: when we were on Earth, the Box had only three gems, not six. Do you have an explanation for this?"
"Or even why the Box ended up on Earth in the first place!" Anne exclaimed. "I mean…ok, it's home and all that, but why send such an item to another world, without any fail safe to get it back?!"
"We didn't find any clear answers to those questions." Seeing that Sasha was about to argue, Marcy continues "Not because we couldn't, but because there just are none. Many events are… I don't know, simply not explained. It's almost like the author was either trying to hide key information or assumed the reader would know it beforehand as some kind of common knowledge." The black-haired girl took a deep breath before continuing "But, I may have an explanation."
Sasha blinked, noticing the nervousness spreading through Marcy's face, her fingers trembling, realizing that whatever "explanation" may be, it was something that ended up scaring her friend to the bone.
"Mar-Mar, we're here with you." The blonde said, trying to move closer, "No matter what, we're standing together. Whatever it may scare you, I'll protect you."
"And I will, too." Jacob nodded, "Forever, and ever, I'll be at your side."
"Me too!"
"And me!"
"Zattenayo!"
Marcy smiled, comforted by the warmth of her friends' declarations, before continuing. "The book…mentions a menace."
"A menace?!"
"Someone who'd be willing to do anything to get his hands over the Box, and who's apparently tied to its disappearance, over a thousand years ago. The book warns the reader to do anything to hide the box and never let this menace get his hands over it, otherwise, it would spell doom not only to Amphibia, but to many other worlds as well."
"Other worlds?" James said, his voice filled with dread, "You mean…like Earth?!"
"That's what I was thinking too." Marcy nodded with a weeping expression, "This is why there were all those warnings, and why the book advised to destroy the Box: any potential threat it describes clearly knows about its ability to make travel between worlds possible and is skilled enough to use it for its own gain."
"So, Hop Pop was right in the end?"
"No, Amelia." Sasha hurried to reply, "Hop Pop believed the box was a direct menace, and thus that just possessing it constituted a danger. Yet, if the warnings are because someone dangerous is looking for it, that makes it an indirect menace."
"Direct or indirect, it doesn't change the fact that we may have to be pickier on who we allow to know about the Box," Anne said, her voice full of determination. "Look guys, I trust our froggy friends just like any of you here do, but we need to be careful about who we inform about the existence of the Box. What if they end up revealing it to the wrong person, and this menace finds us?"
"But we don't know what kind of menace it may be! I mean, we are talking about a menace of more than one thousand years ago: it's impossible for anything to still be alive after so much time!"
"I think it should be a good idea at least to share our findings with them," Amelia suggested. "If we tell them the truth, they'll understand. And Hop Pop would take it well to know there was a reason for all those warnings."
"Actually, I think Hop Pop may be more interested with the 'growing crops' part," Sasha chuckled. "You think that once we tell him, he'll ask you to make his crops grow bigger and bigger, Boonchuy?"
"If I can do that…" Anne said, amused at the thought, "Still, why can't you do it? Nor any of you? I mean, Mar-Mar, you said you found out how we can activate those powers: Why did you say we can't yet?"
"The runes say that, when the powers of the Calamity Gems are imbued within a host, the wielder had to pass through a wide range of emotions in a short time to awaken it. Sadness, anger, fear, happiness… as long you can feel those emotions in their purest form, you can unlock the power. And only after that."
"So, basically, we have to go through an emotional turmoil?" Anne asked, her voice filled with dread, as she remembered the anger when she faced Sasha, the horror when she found out the Herons were attacking Wartwood, the shock and sadness as she thought they had killed Sprig and Polly…
Control yourself, girl, Anne summoned her willpower, breathing deeply as she tried to focus and control her powers. The last thing she wanted, beside reviving those dramatic moments, was to cause unnecessary concern by turning her hair blue once again.
"I guess that makes sense." Jacob pondered about it, "I mean, in many comics the awakening of someone's superpowers matches a situation where the hero or someone they loved is in great danger, most of the time a life-and-death situation."
"Does that mean that, if someone tried to hurt Ivy or Felicia…"
"That's just a hypothesis so far, Sash!" Marcy hurried to say. "So far, the only thing we know for sure is the name of each Gem."
"Wait, the Gems have a name?" Sasha questioned.
"Actually, it's more like the name of the virtue they're supposed to embody," Marcy continued. "These qualities tend to be…personified by the person who ends up hosting their power in his body."
"Since you're the only one who translated that part so far, what is the virtue embodied by the blue gem?" Amelia asked, snickering a glance toward Anne, "Recklessness?"
"Heart." Marcy quickly replied, gaining several reactions from the others, some of them nodding on the inside: Anne was the person to think more with her guts rather than with her brain, after all.
The Thai-American girl, from her own point of view, felt a small blush growing on her face: it did sound like one of those old Japanese cartoons that Marbles and Amelia liked to watch, with every team member being a representation of some immaterial concept. Wait…
"Then, the other two early Gems?" Anne asked, "The Pink and Green one?"
"They are the gems for Strength and Wit," Marcy replied, feeling a little embarrassed as she realized she couldn't be but the holder of the latter. "And the other ones are the gems of Courage," her finger pointed at the yellow Gem, "Imagination, and Respect."
"Wit?" Sasha raised an eyebrow, chuckling. "That must be yours, Mar-Mar: there is no way someone else here is smarter than you!"
"I could go with both Strength and Courage," Jacob said, glancing over the drawing of the gems in color. "If I get to choose, I hope for the latter."
"James, that means you would be Respect! What do you think?" Amelia teased him, "I mean-"
"…Even after beating me, you didn't try to take revenge, nor you went on accusing me. And that means you already hold the Art of Respect inside of you…"
Amelia stopped, her eyes widening as she remembered the words of her master, the day she met her and granted Akitsu to her. Those words to her appeared just a simple praise…but what if it wasn't?
What if, instead, her master had foretold her something important about her future? About her?
I…I may be Respect? Amelia huffed, silently, gasping for air. She realized how much she had grown ever since she had first arrived in Amphibia, both as a fighter and as a person: maybe, this was connected to her Gem?
"Wow, I feel like we're the next Power Rangers, or something like that." James quipped, a little worried about Amelia's lack of reaction to such a sentence.
"I guess we should reunite Hop Pop and the others and tell them," Sasha said, getting up on her feet. "Not now, however: it's late already outside, and we can't risk Hop Pop finding out we are still awake. You know how angry he is when we stay up late."
"It's because he worries for us." Marcy replied, "Plus, why do you worry? You live together with Felicia and Ivy at the teashop."
"Felicia is not that strict on my curfew!"
The next day, the humans (still a bit sleepy due to the sleep lost the previous night) were all gathered in Wartwood's central square, Sasha accompanying the Sundews, while the others stood together with Hop Pop and his grandchildren.
"Blimey!" James said in wonder, realizing that all Wartwood was there, "Look at all these frogs!"
"Hey HP, what is with this crowd?" Anne asked at Hop Pop, "Are fruit flies on sale or something?"
"Nah, Anna-Banana. That was two weeks ago!"
"Today's the day they announce the Frog of the Year award."
"Frog of the what?"
"Frog of the Year, Amelia." Sprig explained, "Every year, the town gets together and votes on the frog they think best embodies the values of Wartwood."
"Don't you remember?" Polly questioned, "We all voted last week."
"Oh, you mean that!" Anne chuckled, as her memory brought back a particular event of that day…
(…)
A long line of frogs was waiting for their turn at the booth, grumbling impatiently.
"Jacob!" Loggle, the first in line, said, stamping his foot. "How long is he going to take?"
"I'll talk with him," Toadstool groaned, getting up on his feet and walking to the booth before knocking. "Jacob!"
"Occupied!" The human's voice replied from the inside.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm voting!"
"Ah, ok…" the mayor turned around, only to twitch as he heard a sound like flushing coming from inside of the booth. Meanwhile, unseen by the frog and other amphibians outside, the human boy tried to suppress his chuckle as his phone played the sound effect.
(…)
"In my defense" the guilty boy said, "it wasn't as bad as the ruckus Amelia caused when she went to vote."
"They refused to allow Akitsu in the voting booth, even if it's pet-friendly!" His cousin replied in outrage, "If Mrs. Croaker could bring Archie with her when she went voting, why couldn't I do the same with Akitsu?!"
"Amelia, Akitsu was too big to fit in the voting booth," Marcy shook her head, as she watched Toadstool walk to the podium.
"All right, folks. It's time!" The reformed mayor said, earning a cheer from the crowd. "As you all know, the Frog of the Year goes to the most selfless, noble, generous, and altruistic frog, the one that with his or her actions, better embodies and personifies the valor that contributes to making our town-"
As Toadstool continued his speech, James couldn't help but smile, seeing how different he was from the arrogant, pompous, corrupt nincompoop who used to steal the money from everyone's taxes and used to be unable to stand their sight. Sure, it was a long and difficult road for Toadstool to regain the trust of its people, but now, the same frogs who used to talk behind their mayor's back were now cheering at his speech.
"And this year's Frog of the Year award goes to..." he opened a letter, reading the contents before smiling. "Well, I can't say I am surprised: Hopediah Plantar!"
"Say what?!" The old frog gasped, his eyes widening as the people around him burst into cheers.
"Woo-hoo!"
"Way to go, HP!"
"Congratulations, Mr. Plantar!"
"Hoppy, you've done it!"
"Let's take him in triumph!"
"Wha-" Hop Pop had barely the time to react before Jacob, Sasha, Anne, James, and Amelia moved around him, grabbing the old frog and carrying him on their shoulders, the frogs around them cheering as they brought him toward the podium.
"Hop Pop, frog of the year." Sylvia said, shedding a tear or pride. "I've never felt prouder of him in all my life."
"I'm his granddaughter!" Polly exclaimed.
"Marcy," Sprig said, turning toward the girl as she sketched a depiction of the heartwarming scene. "I-I can't believe this is happening." His voice trembled with emotions.
"I know," the human replied with a smirk. "Going from a simple vegetable seller to Wartwood's hero was quite a turnabout."
Still shocked by the unexpected turn of the events, Hop Pop barely reacted as the five humans placed him right behind the podium, Toadstool moving aside with a respectful glance. The old frog couldn't hide an expression of amazement, seeing everyone in Wartwood giving him cheers and applause, congratulating him for his victory.
This made him feel extremely touched as he smiled, looking back at the kids (his kids, as his mind didn't hesitate to remind him) and nodding, before speaking.
"I…I want to thank everyone for this." The old frog said, with an elated expression. "First of all, I'd like to say-"
"Are you people out of your frog-dang minds?!" A voice called from among the crowd, instantly ruining the moment. "Hopediah doesn't deserve such honors!" Instantly, the frogs moved aside, revealing the face of the one who said such accusations.
"Monroe," Toadstool shrugged in frustration. "Are there any grounds for your accusations?"
"You know I do!" The frog in a brown jacket replied, walking forward. "Did you forget? Plantars always mess up every assignment they get, and now you expect him, of all frogs, to host a party?!"
"Party?" Sasha raised an eyebrow, "What party?"
"Oh, that's one of our oldest traditions." Toadie started to explain, with rarely-seen enthusiasm, "The Frog of the Year has to put on an incredible party for the whole town."
"And that party is supposed to demonstrate the Frog of the Year's selflessness." Monroe kept shouting, ignoring how many frogs were getting further from him. "Hopediah isn't selfless!"
"By frog, Monroe: Do you hear yourself?!" Another voice called, revealing it to belong to Duckweed, the food critic and event announcer looking at Monroe with eyes full of contempt. "Hopediah not being selfless? Did you forget everything he has done for our town in the last two months?"
"He paid by his own pocket the taxes for our stands at the market!" One frog who Hop Pop recognized having a stand close to his yelled, "He had no obligation or reason to do so, and yet he paid in full for every one of us!"
"Plantars are always honest!" Another one, a female frog, joined in. "Ever since they had a stand at the market, they never attempted to deceive us!"
"Plus," yet another frog, this time a long-time customer of Felicia's teashop, nodded, "he never tried to use a public event or celebration to humiliate someone else! You know, like you attempted to do!"
Taking a step back due to the unexpected accusation, Monroe looked around, trying to come up with something to divert the attention from himself.
"B-but…what about them?!" He pointed an accusing finger to the humans, Marcy gasping as he did. "What about those monsters? He was the one who took them under his roof in the first place, and they ended up driving the attention of the Toads onto our city! If we'd simply banished them- OW!" He yelled, a pebble hitting on the back of his head.
"Sasha is not a monster!" Ivy yelled, her eyes filling with anger. "She is my sister! The best sister I could've ever hoped for!"
"And she's my daughter!" Felicia nodded, her voice cold in contrast to her daughter. "She helped me fix the relationship I had with Ivy, assisted me in my shop, took care of us… and yet, you still can't see beyond her face after two whole months?!"
"Sylvia-"
"When you insult Sasha, you insulted my daughter and my granddaughter, my whole family, my home, my life." The Sundew grandmother replied, her words and glare cold as ice. "This is why you lost me, this is why I chose Hoppy and not you: he knows what it means to have a loving family!"
"Anne helped me save my restaurant!" Stumpy joined in, "I was a broken shell before her, but she gave me back my hopes, my dreams, and the joy of my work. I for one can't even hope to thank Hop Pop enough for allowing her to be here!"
"And Marcy did the same with us!" Farine added, "She mended the relationship I had with my daughters, and between Maddie and her sisters. She helped me with my shop, and showed creativity and intelligence in everything she did. She allowed us to make peace with our past, to come to terms with the disappearance of my wife, and now you dare to say we would've been better off without them?!"
"I surely wouldn't have!" Maddie clenched her fist, as she tried to control her emotions, "Before I ever met Marcy, I was…broken. I didn't know at the time, but I was alone, I feared being judged for my magic, I saw my sisters as obnoxious at best! But she," she pointed at Marcy, the human girl blushing as she felt all eyes looking at her, "she healed my scars, she helped me grow more confident of my skills. I may have taught her magic, but she taught me trust. And ever since she came into my life, I've never felt happier!"
"James is the perfect gentle frog!" Mrs. Croaker yelled, "And he helped us every time we needed help!"
"Amelia is our master!" The Flour triplets jumped in, "She taught us everything she knew!"
"Jacob saved my shop!" Loggle said, earning a bitter, yet somewhat lukewarm look from the human.
"Plus, they didn't drive the attention of the Toads onto us," Leatherleaf said, Tritonio standing silently at his side. "They freed us from their control, from having to pay unjust taxes that grew heavier every year and stood up to their soldiers when we were too cowardly to do so. Then, they took on the responsibility to protect us, like we were supposed to be doing, and helped us build defenses and organized ourselves with other towns in the Valley. This way, even when the Toads will return, we will be ready."
"But we could have simply kept paying our taxes-"
"And for what reason?" Toadstool stopped him, a part of him amazed he was saying that. "To keep paying taxes while receiving nothing in exchange? To keep bowing our heads to people who never cared about us? For me to being nothing but their puppet, tasked to make sure Frogs stood in line and kneeled to other toads?" Jacob raised an eyebrow, as he felt the sadness in the toad's voice. He guessed Toadstool was very regretful about his past.
"And let's not forget the Herons." Duckweed began speaking again, as several frogs around him shuttered remembering that day. "Do you remember when the Herons attacked our city, a month ago? If Anne and her friends had not been there to protect us, many of us would have been eaten on that day: including myself…and you." The newt concluded, Monroe shuttering as the critic's words hit its mark, his embarrassment growing as he saw the glances everyone was giving him, the snickers and chuckling behind his back, as he realized the crowd was making fun of him.
"I-forget it!" Monroe shouted back, "If you think Hopediah can host a party, suit yourselves! I'm looking forward to seeing this thing go down in flames!" He walked away, Duckweed still glaring at him until he disappeared from sight.
"Wow…" Marcy said, moving beside the critic with an amazed expression. "That was…awesome!"
"I may be a harsh critic, I never tried to hide it," Duckweed replied, still glancing over where Monroe had disappeared. "But I've always been a professional, and I've always told the truth."
Later, Hop Pop and his family were back at the farm, relaxing on the couch as Sprig and Polly were finishing clearing the table. Even if he still felt irked about what Monroe had said (more than for the insults his old rival had thrown at him, for what he said about Anne and the others), he wasn't going to let that ruin the celebration. Being elected as Frog of the Year was one of the greatest honors in all of Wartwood, and even as he has never been elected before, he saw enough to know that running behind spiteful accusations was a fool's game.
Sadly, not everyone in the house was of the same opinion.
"Boom!" Anne announced, slamming a large paper filled with details on the table. "Here are our plans for throwing the best party ever and proving Monroe wrong. That stupid jerk with his stupid annoying voice."
"Anne, don't worry about what he said." Sprig said, "We can just have fun planning the party together."
"It's just a party." Hop Pop rolled his eyes, "We don't need to have something overly complicated. Just some music, food, and something to keep the guest entertained. We have one of these parties yearly, there is no need to stress over it."
"This is not "just a party!" Sasha replied, "In our world, it's also how you will be remembered. If your party's lame, then it means that you are lame, and people will make fun of you for the rest of your lives!"
"We aren't in our world," James shrugged. "Even if its' not perfect, what's the problem? I doubt people do even remember how last year's party was."
"Of course we remember last year's party." Hop Pop grumbled, "It was…it was…how was it?" He looked at Sprig and Polly, looking for help.
"Huh, I don't remember."
"I have forgotten too."
"Case in point." James shrugged, as Marcy went to support her friends.
"I still think you should accept Anna-Banana and Sash's help: back home, they always threw the best parties!"
"For real?!" Sprig and Polly asked, their eyes widening.
"Yes," Jacob answered, before the girls could. "I remember the last crazy pool party we had at Sasha's house: the neighbors ended up calling the police because the music was too loud."
"Look who's talking," The blonde human replied while snickering, "You and your Double Pick Banana Dive almost broke the pool's coating."
"Then you shouldn't have challenged me to do that in front of everyone!"
"I agree for the first time. But the other two?!"
"Guys!" Marcy attempted to play peacekeeper, "There is no need to fight right now. We have a large party to plan, after all. Anna-Banana, do you already know what we need for the party?"
"Sure I do!" her friend replied, "Listen up. A great party has three main ingredients: entertainment, exclusivity, and spectacle. James, you're in charge of the entertainment." She bestowed on him a microphone with solemn expression. "I dub thee… Master of Ceremonies."
The British teen, confused by his supposed role (and the mock English Anne had used) decided to mock her in kind.
"I shall take this honor with mine utmost joy and warrant thou I shall prove myself to be up to the office thou've generously granted me, mine fair lady." James spoke in an almost Shakesperian tone, generating amused looks by everyone else, as he hinted with a bow. "I shall presently start gathering funds and assistance for this strenuous office."
"Geez, thank you for the enthusiasm, Jeeves." Sasha grimaced, before turning to Polly and Amelia. "Girls, you're in charge of the exclusivity. Your job it's to decide who gets into the party and who doesn't." She placed a single set of stanchions with a velvet rope in front of them.
"Wait, in short you want us to be the bouncers?" Amelia raised an eyebrow.
"I can't wait to abuse this power!"
"Polly, we can't just keep people outside at random!" The samurai girl replied, "We have to make some obnoxious-looking rules to act as a cover…"
"…written with such abstruse and misleading interpretation that we can freely interpret them any way we want," the pollywog nodded.
"Then, we have to come up with a supposedly secret backdoor way to enter the party even if they're not "officially" allowed," Amelia winked.
"To give them the illusion of exclusivity without having to force anyone out…" Polly's grin grew.
"-and make profit!" Both girls exclaimed at the same time.
"What a capitalist shark," Jacob rolled his eyes, seeing how Polly and her cousin were starting to plan such a scam.
"And what about me?" Sprig sing-sang, jumping on the table and striking a pose.
"Sprig," Anne said, once again with solemn voice, "you have the most important job of all: the spectacle."
"Oh, my frog, oh, my frog, oh, my frog!"
"At the party…you're going to pretend to confess Ivy that you love her, for a romantic show!"
"Wha - Huh?"
"Boonchuy!" Sasha replied with an irked look. "You can't force a love confession as some kind of exhibition!"
"And aren't Sprig and Ivy already an item?"
"Amelia!" Sprig covered his face with his hands, trying to hide his blush.
"Hey, a legendary party needs a legendary spectacle, Sash. And even if they are already together, this is not public information. They only would have to replay it a little bit, and make a scene for everyone to see. Can you imagine how excited the partygoers will be to see true love blossom before their eyes?"
"Huh, Anne?" Jacob raised an eyebrow, "Didn't we go through this already? Shouldn't have we learned already that pushing romance always ends up backfiring?"
"Pish-posh, that's all in the past now." Anne tried to minimize.
"And let's not forget," James added, "last time you and Sasha tried to force romance, you almost ended up eaten by love doves?"
"Well, yes. But that's' beside-"
"Boonchuy," Sasha put a hand over her shoulder, "I think James' got a point. You can't force Sprig and my little sister to confess in public just to put on a show: personal feelings are supposed to be private, not something you have to lay out in front of everyone! Still…" she continued, with a malicious smirk, "if we really need a fake romantic show for the party, we can cover that."
"We …what?" Anne stopped, caught by surprise by the sudden declaration of her friend. Even Marcy, Jacob and the others, hearing that, suddenly became very aware of what the blonde girl was saying.
"I mean, just because Sprig and Ivy have feelings for each other, it doesn't mean they are the only ones who can confess to each other." Sasha said, as she came closer to Anne, her eyes aligned with her best friend's, a mischievous yet teasing expression on her face, Anne realizing she was blushing by the sudden invasion of her personal space. "What if I, Sasha Elisabeth Waybright, was the one to confess in front of everyone? Telling all those partygoers about your strong arms? Your charming, attractive face? Your deep, thoughtful eyes? Your cute, kissable lips-"
"Sashaaaaa!" Anne gasped, her face red as a tomato, as she struggled to breath, her blonde friend chuckling as she leaned back, ignoring the expression her acting had caused in the others.
"Oh my!" Amelia gasped, the others too dumbstruck to say anything, as they tried to process what they just saw. That was…hot! Wait, does that mean I'm old enough to get on yuri manga now? This would need more personal research once when we get back home...
"I was just teasing you, Boonchuy." Sasha chuckled, before continuing her reasoning. "Still, I guess this shows you why involving personal feelings as a planned show for a party is not a good idea. How would you feel if the little stunt I faked now happened under the eyes of everyone at the party?"
"I-I guess I'll better scrap that idea." Anne said, turning to the others. "So, anyone have better ideas of what we could use to fill the spectacle part?"
"How about Sprig and I work on putting a musical show together?" Marcy gleamed up, "You have your fiddle, I have my violin: what if we improvise a musical challenge? I start with a small snippet; you follow from where I finished-"
"That's an amazing idea!" The young frog replied, with an equally enthusiastic expression, "I have a couple new music sheets I wanted to try…"
"We could even make some Test-Your-Strength-like challenge!" Jacob lightened up, "With Loggle's help, we could build a high striker that guests must hit or punch in some way. And the one who hits it the strongest or manages to ring the bell, wins a prize!"
"And we could do even more!" Amelia added as well. "Jacob, I may…request your assistance and skill for a plan of mine."
"Oh?" The boy replied, unsure of what his cousin meant. "And what are you planning?"
"Something involving both Maddie's magical skills," Amelia smirked, as Marcy looked at her, "And your black powder."
(…)
Later that day, the preparations for the Frog of the Year celebration were already in full swing. In the central plaza of Wartwood where the party would take place, everyone was busy helping as best as they could. On one side of the square, Stumpy was preparing a vast array of food, most of them being Thai specialties Anne had taught him during the time she worked at his restaurant, while nearby, Farine and Felicia had set up each a small stand, where several kinds of breads and sweets perfumed the air with a delicious, appetizing smell. And on the opposite side of the square, Loggle was setting up a large, wooden-made mechanism, under Jacob and Amelia's guidance.
"There!" The axolotl said with a tired, yet prideful voice. "This little beauty should ring every time… someone manages to pull the level with enough force to raise the puck and hit the bell. I can't say… it was a simple request, but surely, it was a nice challenge."
"I guess that makes us square in the end, Loggle?" The human boy replied with a small scowl. Even if it has been a long time since he stopped exclusively working for the axolotl, all those times he felt "scammed" by the artisan still burn inside of him.
"Come on Jacob. I surely… don't want to dwell in the past. The items you brought me…helped me to save my shop, and I suppose it is only fair I should…thank you."
"Thank me?" The boy shrugged, "So, this is how it ends? So long, good luck?"
"Actually, it is…not, it's not!" The axolotl hurried to say, showing him a small gift box. "This, is a thank you gift I worked on it in my spare time, using the leftover Toad Nut Tree wood you brought to me. I hope you will…like it."
Dubiously, Jacob raised an eyebrow as he opened the package, his eyes widening as he saw what was contained in it. Inside the box, Jacob was now seeing a wooden Viking hat, quite like his old one, but larger, sturdier and with longer horns. Moreover, this hat was provided with leather strap to secure it to his head, the interior was padded, and, on the sides, there was additional protection to cover his ears.
"Loggle!" Jacob gasped, looking back at his former employer "You-you-"
"Consider this a parting gift…for your upcoming travels." The axolotl said, with a prideful expression, "You and your cousin, as well as your friend, still have a long path before you go back to your home. I hope that this will help you on your travels."
"I… I think I should thank you for this," the human replied, all the grudges he had held against the axolotl melting away, "It's quite a nice gift. I appreciate that."
"And it's worth…much more than any money I may have withheld, rightly or not, for your work." Loggle nodded, turning away. "But if it could protect you and save your life, it will be worth it."
"Wow, cousin," Amelia chuckled, approaching Jacob from the back "I guess you're really a badass berserker warrior now." Then, with a kinder tone, she added: "I am happy for you."
"I guess I have no more reasons to stay angry at him anymore," Jacob replied, inspecting the wooden hat to guess its weight, still amazed by the unexpected gift, "Wow, it's super comfy!"
"Hey guys!" Amelia and Jacob turned, seeing Maddie walking toward them. "I have the rest of the ingredients for the fireworks show we had planned. We just need a little more gunpowder to add enough pyrokinetic potential to the mixture."
"I'm on it!" Jacob shrugged, careful to put his newest gift to safety. "Amelia, can you take care of the things here while I return to the barracks? Give me an hour at most, and I'll have more than enough gunpowder for the fireworks."
"Why must you make it at this moment?" Amelia asked with unsatisfied curiosity, "You already made enough of that stuff before, why can't you simply take some from the reserve?"
"Are you kidding?!" Jacob looked back at her, "Those reserves are to be used in the events the Toads come back! What would we do if they do return, and we have no time to prepare?"
"Relax, kiddo," Another voice replied, the two humans and the local wizard seeing Leatherleaf, Tritonio to his side, walking toward them. Both the frog sheriff and the former con-newt were dressed in formal clothes. "While I won't doubt that the Toads will come for us sooner or later, the chance that they will show at this time are very low."
"What do you mean?"
"The last snow in the mountain pass is melting," Maddie replied, earning an approving expression from Leatherleaf. "Many waterways are flooding these days. Thus, most of the roads connecting Toad Tower with Wartwood or any other village are impracticable."
"To reach our city," Leatherleaf summarized, "the Toad army would have to cover over one hundred miles into heavily hostile territory. Maneuvering between dangerous crossroads and hostile animals. And all of that without any safe haven to peacefully rest on the way."
"I guess that's a relief." Jacob said, walking away, "Still, better be safe than sorry."
"Soooo~ it's been a long time since we last saw each other, Tritonio." Amelia faced the former bandit, the newt looking aside, "How are you doing under Leatherleaf's care?"
"It is good…or at least it would be, if it wasn't for the alarm bug he glued to my beautiful hair!" The newt lamented, showing off the small bug that Leatherleaf had placed. "The second I take one step too far from him, it goes off and I won't shut up off unless I come back!"
"And it prevents you from escaping very well," Leatherleaf glared at him, "Did you really think we would take no precautions against you?"
"You could at least have glued it to somewhere else than my hair! I can't even remove it without cutting my beautiful hairstyle!"
"Hey, you tried to trick us into stealing that ruby for you," Amelia retorted. "Considering that, I'd say you're getting off easily."
"Your friend turned all blue and scared me to the bone!"
"Tritonio!" Leatherleaf called out, "Remember, your sentence is almost up: one more week, and you'll be free to go."
"Plus, you get to participate at the party," Maddie commented, "Have you ever seen a party like this?"
"I…can't really say I did." The former bandit replied with a somber tone. "As you know, before your friends caught me, I was always on the run, finding a new cover, plotting a new heist, laying down to avoid capture. The closest I ever got to one was during a period where I was in Ribbitville. I managed to sneak inside one of those posh frog's Society Parties. A simple heist, I just needed to flirt with some rich old ladies… and help them get rid of their jewels without them realizing."
"Well, no one here has jewels for you to steal," replied Maddie with a nonplussed tone. "Why don't you simply enjoy the party and try to have some fun?" suggested the blue frog "I mean, you still have your good looks, why don't you try to use them?"
"Hey, now that you make me think about it…" Tritonio said, peeking at Felicia from a distance. "That is not such a bad idea."
"Great, a scallywag who tries to play the philanderer." Leatherleaf shrugged, as he had a vision of what he was about to go through. "Why can't I get my pension yet?"
(…)
"All right, let's see how things are going," James said, walking around with a clipboard and pencil. "Stumpy, are you sure you got enough portions for everyone?"
"I added some extra on purpose, James." The restaurant owner replied with a big smile, "Even if everyone asks for seconds, we would've more than enough."
"I see," the human replied, taking a deep breath as the smell of the food reached his nostrils. "Wow, that must be some dish you have in there: I definitively want some later."
"I'll make sure to save you a bowl."
"Ok, Farine? It's your turn now. What are you- wow, are these-"
"Mooncakes," The bread maker replied with a smirk, as James took a step back out of surprise. "Marcy taught me the recipe some time ago, but I didn't make it until now. I have been saving it for some special occasion, and what occasion is more special than this one?"
"I…guess you are right. Frog, I have never seen so many delightful and appetizing sweets all at once before."
"Many of them are recipes Marcy or your friends passed to me, or that I treated with Felicia." He greeted the teashop owner, and was greeted in return, "And today is the day of truth: if they are as good as Pizza, we're going to become rich!"
"I guess I'll let you keep on with your preparations then." James kept walking, reaching for a small spot where Hop Pop was looking over the feast in his honor that was taking shape.
"Hey, Hop Pop, are you ok?"
"I'm… fine, James." The old frog replied, before looking around. "Still, I am feeling a bit stressed because of all of this. First, all Wartwood thinks I'm some kind of hero, then I am elected Frog of the Year, and now you're all going to throw such a giant party in my honor. I feel…overwhelmed, in short."
"I guess I can't help but agree with you, "James chuckled, "I would probably feel the same if I was the one who got such a prestigious award. Hey, at least now you won't have to worry about Sprig and Polly's future anymore: I mean, the grandchildren of the hero surely will have an assured future here in Wartwood."
"Hey, Master of Ceremonies!" Anne, Sasha and Marcy said, walking toward him and Hop Pop, "How's the big bash looking? Everything good so far?"
"Aye, aye, ladies!" James replied, doing his best "British Admiral" imitation, "There were just a couple of issues so far, but I already took care of every one of them. I even wrote down some jokes to lighten the doom, and Hop Pop gave me a hand."
"Really?" Sasha raised an eyebrow with an amused look, "Let's hear!"
"Okay, let me check." The British boy searched through his notes "Have you heard about the snail who went on a diet? He's a shell of his former self!"
Marcy burst out laughing, like Hop Pop and a couple of other frogs who were near enough to hear the joke. Anne and Sasha, however, weren't very impressed.
"Hmm. Okay, okay. A little soft but keep working on it."
"Hey, it was one of my best ones!"
"Anne Boonchuy!" Toadstool laughed as he walked toward the group, Toadie to his side as usual, the mayor showing off a new formal dress and a rare kind expression. "Just the person I wanted to meet."
"Toadstool, what do you want?" The girl replied.
"I…wanted to congratulate you myself for the party you and your friends are putting up for Mr. Plantar," he looked at Hop Pop, the old farmer smirking as Toadstool acknowledged him. "From what I've been able to see, if you manage to pull this one off, this may be the most successful party we ever had here in Wartwood."
"I guess we have experience with parties." Sasha shrugged, something in her still weirded out that Toadstool was complimenting them. "Have you seen Jacob and Amelia?"
"Your friend with the pointed hat left a bit ago," the mayor said with sincerity, "he said he has some things to do for one of your shows. As for the other one…"
"Come on, Akitsu!" Amelia cheered on the large dragonfly. "Move those wings faster!"
"W-what are they doing?" Marcy gasped, unsure on what the girl and her giant pet were attempting to do.
"I have no idea," the Toad mayor replied with a sigh, covering his eyes, "But I've learned by now that it's less stressful not to ask."
"Yeah, good idea," Sasha shrugged. "Still, there is still one point we need to address: our party outfits!"
"Outfits?!" Anne and Marcy said at the same time, as Sasha showed them some sketches she had done…
"I have to give it to Felicia: she has advanced dressmaking skills," Jacob said, musing over the 'clothes' he was forced to wear: a pure white tuxedo with matching pants, a deep blue necktie, a pale-yellow undershirt, peanut brown shoes, and a green sash on his right shoulder. His hair was greased, with the fringe up, and perfume was sprayed over it; the hardworking result of the barber where Marcy brought her friends already.
"Jacob, you look great!" James said, walking over him. Like his bro, he too was dressed in a stylistic and formal tuxedo, black in color with a white undershirt. He wore black bowtie and shoes, had a yellow sash to his left, a (fake) monocle on his right eye, and had a cane with a golden firefly on it.
"Hey, James!" Jacob replied, noticing his dress. "You too! Still…what's with the monocle? Your eyesight is alright!"
"Well, I ran out of seriousness after all of today's planning work, so decided to play a bit on the 'British Aristocrat' label. Plus, it gives me a kickass scholar look."
"A monocle? It doesn't make you look British; it makes you look German!"
"Guten tag!" A third voice joined with a laugh, both guys turning to see Amelia joining in their conversation. "Hey, James, you decided to go supervillain? I pictured you more like the James Bond kind of guy."
Jacob's cousin had decided to brush up her purple kimono decorated with drawings of white flowers adding to it, however, new exotic elements: her long hairs had been combed in a Shimada hairstyle, a blue seashell acting as the hairpin keeping her hairstyle together; a blue obijime around her waist, while her underlayer was pure white. She wore classic Japanese sandals and socks at her feet and held a large red fan on her right hand, which she waved with condescension.
"You know what? Screw the monocle." James grumbled taking it off and placing it on one of his pockets, "I can take Jacob's joke, but to look like Ernst Stavro Blofeld? That I won't do."
"Hey, if you wanted to play the British aristocrat part, you should have got a top hat! No one misunderstands a top hat!" Jacob said, before his smile turned friendlier, "Are you ready for this?"
"I am, cousin," Amelia chuckled, "let's see if the party is ready for us."
"And I am the Master of Ceremonies," James reminded them, joining the happy chat. "That means that the party can't officially begin until I say so."
"Then, what are we waiting for?" Jacob hinted at the large party area where probably the rest of the girls and the Plantars were now, "Let's go and rejoin them."
"Sugoine!" Amelia happily exclaimed, holding onto his hand "Let's go…brother."
As that word left Amelia's lips, Jacob couldn't help but feel moved by it. Before Amphibia, he and Amelia had a very antagonistic relationship with each other, he saw her as an obnoxious intruder, who stole all of his parent's attention from the first day she came into his life, and that kept embarrassing him non-stop with her limited (and most of the time, imperfect) knowledge. And she, in turn, saw him as a constant troublemaker who kept on going with petty pranks and nonsense mischiefs, whose actions kept bringing grief to his parents (her aunt and uncle) with no apparent reason. As they went on with their lives while calling each other out for any mistake, the misunderstanding that could have been easy to fix kept on worsening due to the lack of communication.
Until the fateful night where they met the Trio at the park. Until that strange Box ended up bringing all of them to a strange new world, populated by giant, talking frogs. Until they were forced to confront each other, and they ended up revealing the true roots of their conflict. Until they started to talk, instead of simply ignoring one another.
And slowly, but relentlessly, the wounds began to heal, their division mended, their relationship healed as the cousins, left behind the ignorance of their past, came to grow closer to each other.
James stood still for a moment, smiling, as he watched how different his friends were acting. Then, he followed them, his mind already drifting to the party that waited for them…
(…)
Back to the entrance of Wartwood's central plaza, a large crowd was waiting at the entrance of the 'Frog of the Year' Party the humans had prepared, everyone waiting in trepidation to see what the teens had brought to the table. The night in the swamp, usually dark and silent, was now broken by the colorful lights shining up to the sky, while giant makeshift boom boxes spread unknown music that no frogs had ever heard before. The enthusiasm and excitement of the crowd, already lining up in a long line to the entrance, kept growing by the minute, everyone hoping to enter and see it with their own eyes.
Of course, first they had to pass the bouncer, that is, Polly.
"Duckweed," the tadpole said, glazing over the newt critic "Are you sure you can enter?"
"What is that supposed to mean? Of course I can enter: I am a critic!"
"And this is not a restaurant, but the Frog of the Year's Party. Moreover-"
"Why don't you simply check the list. Here's…" he took something out of one of his pockets and gave it to Polly, revealing it to be many delicious sweets. "…my entrance ticket."
"You're free to go!" The tadpole smirked, as Duckweed rushed in, leaving place for the next one in the line: Wally. The town's vagrant, for the occasion, had cleaned up somewhat nicely: his clothes were no longer all ragged and worn, he was wearing two shoes this time, he didn't bring his hat and his hair was less messy.
"Uh-uh!"! Polly stopped him before he could enter "Not you."
"Aw!" Wally sulked in, before Polly started to chuckle.
"I'm just kidding: Get in there!"
"Validation!" Wally shouted as he rushed in, before someone changed their mind.
As everyone gathered inside, their amazement grew as they were able to glimpse the result of the human's hard work: a large fountain, supplied with fresh, clean water and decorated with several lotus, stood in the middle of the square; to their right Jacob was prepping for his role as DJ, already choosing the track music he would remit to the party guests; to their left, Stumpy, Felicia, Farine and many others were ready to supply to their hunger. And, right in front of the fountain, stood Marcy, Sasha, and Anne, all three girls dressed in formal clothes like bachelor's dresses, with long, funny ball gowns.
Anne's dress was light blue with a slightly low-necked cut, flower decoration all over her gown's circumference, an Amphibian logo over her chest, a lapis lazuli necklace and blue earrings, a hairpin resembling a dragonfly on the left side of her head, and she wore white gloves.
Sasha's ball gown was ruby red, a big white bow at her waist, a neckerchief and two glowing red earrings at her neck and ears, black mittens over her hands, a white sash over her shoulder and her blonde hair, instead of being tied on a ponytail or let free as she was getting more used recently, was combed on a bouffant of curly hair.
Finally, Marcy wore a long aquamarine dress with gloves of the same color, a light shawl over her shoulders and forearms, the frog-shaped pendant (the Mossman's gift over her chest) her hair tied into a bun with several glowing decorations over it, and several ribbons all over the dress. Overall, the three girls looked more like princesses than common middle school students, and the frog crowd couldn't help but stare in awe.
Just as they planned.
"Welcome, friends," the Trio said almost verbatim "to the best Frog of the Year party ever!"
Immediately, Amelia (standing just behind them, James at her side) turned toward Maddie, the magician frog dressed in a black, yet somewhat better dress than what she used to wear every other day, and winked. It was the signal to start off the fireworks.
Barely a couple of seconds later, several fiery lights shot from the ground, and quickly flew toward the sky, exploding in a riot of colors, generating even more awe and enthusiasm from the party guests. Right then, Jacob started his music, and with it, the party officially started.
(…)
"Sasha!" Ivy happily chirped, jumping toward her older sister, Felicia and Sylvia just behind her, all three frogs of the Sundew family dressed in elegant, formal clothes (especially Felicia). "This party is amazing! And it was you that made it!"
"What can I say," the blonde human replied, savoring the enthusiasm and attention she was getting, "If there is one thing I am good at, it's making awesome parties!"
"I have to admit that, while the style may be…peculiar," the teashop owner said, giving a steady glance around, "this may be one of the best parties I've ever witnessed. And I even attended parties held by Newtopian nobles."
"No way! Mom, you attended parties held in Newtopia?"
"She did," Sylvia chuckled, "When she used to do adventures and work for some noble families, there were many families who tried to take advantage of her fame by inviting her to their parties."
"They weren't…much," Felicia continued, trying not to think about how uneasy she had felt at those gatherings of old, pompous frogs, so much taken by their past and pettiness they couldn't do nothing with their present. "Anyway, the party you've organized looks so much better already. At least, this time there is no obnoxious lecher attempting to seduce every girl at the event."
"Miss Sundew, what a pleasant surprise to meet you." Tritonio spoke from behind Felicia, the former adventurer grimacing as she realized she had spoken too early. "Did the sky lose a couple of stars tonight? Because surely your eyes-"
Before he could evern finish his sentence, Felicia turned around and slapped him, Tritonio falling onto some punch of pinkish drink as Leatherleaf went to rescue him and give him a "talk" about flirting with ladies.
"Gosh, that was amazing!" Sasha said enthusiastically, before catching herself "The slap, of course! That joke was old and overused even from where I came from."
"Believe me, I faced worse suitors past in my past days," Felicia hurried to restore her façade of perfect ladyhood-ness. "Sorry, I guess I still have some…knee-jerk reactions to them."
"Hey, if you wouldn't have done anything, I would!" Sasha chuckled, carrying her adoptive frog family toward another area of the party, where Marcy and Sprig were playing their fiddle and violin together, the dark-haired girl playing the intro of the Vagabondia Chronicles with her instrument.
(…)
"Come on, people, let's measure your strength and win the prize!" Jacob called out, many adult frogs looking at him at the machine near to him with interest. "Prove your manliness and win one hundred golden coins!"
Spurred by his world, many more frogs tried the challenge, only for their hopes to crash when even their strongest attempts didn't manage to ring the bell, to the amusement of the rest of the crowd.
"Come on, come on!" The human called out, "No one else wants to try?"
"I want," a voice called out, the crowd opening to reveal a tall, slender frog with carrot-orange hair, wearing brown overalls. Seeing him, some frogs on the frogs started to laugh, indirectly mocking him: stronger frogs had tried and failed already, how could someone like him hope for even to have a chance?
Only Jacob, recognizing him, didn't laugh.
"Gunther!" The human welcomed him, "You…want to win the golden coins? What do you plan to do with those?"
"Well, I kind of promised someone a special sweet if she behaved good for this month," he replied, looking at his side, where a young frog, who grew from tadpole in the last year, peeked with curiosity. "And I need some money."
"And are you sure about…that?" Jacob said with a knowing glaze. "I mean, weren't you all gun ho about trying to start anew and avoid misunderstandings?"
"Hey, you helped me already with that, remember?" Gunther replied with a heartfelt smile, "I am a member in the militia now, thanks to you, and I've been working on my self-control. And if someone is going to judge me for wanting to make my niece happy, that's their problem, not mine!"
"I guess it was fun while it lasted," Jacob shrugged, moving aside, the crowd becoming even more amused. Was the human mocking him? How could he plan to win? "Just…try not wreck the machine."
"I promise," Gunther replied, turning to face the small frog. "Mabeline, you know what to do."
"Ok, Uncle Gun," the former tadpole said, taking out something from one of her pockets and showing it to her uncle: a licorice donut.
The crowd's amusement turned into confusion, before they saw Gunther's body growing plus half his normal size, and gaining suddenly, his skin becoming more yellow and the lower canines growing into giant tusk, many frogs taking steps back out of shock…and fear.
The hulking colossus didn't even bother to look at them, his now huge arm moving to the machine's level, and pulling it with all of his strength. Barley a second later, the bell rang, and the machine confirmed the victory.
"Ladies and gentle frogs, we have a winner!" Jacob shouted, the still transformed Gunther roaring, raising both hands to celebrate his victory as the crowd who once mocked him, started to cheer for him.
(…)
"Girls, I have to congratulate you myself," Toadstool said, looking over what was safely the best 'Frog of the Year" party Wartwood had ever seen, "Looks like everyone is participating with enthusiasm at your party. Well, almost everyone." The mayor added, looking at Monroe, who was sitting in one of the corners, alone, sipping a drink with badly hidden anger.
"Well, thanks, we appreciate that." Anne said, genuinely happy that they were now on good terms with Toadstool, "But we also have to thank you too: you did help us with setting this whole party in the first place."
"Hey, I witnessed many 'Frog of the Year' parties before this one, even presided over a large majority of them. True, I used to win because I bribed the voters, but…"
"Water under the bridges, Toadstool," Amelia chuckled, joining them. "Oh, Konbanwa!"
"Kon-Kobna-what?"
"That's Japanese, it means 'good evening'" James replied with a chuckle, before taking a good breath of fresh evening air. "Wow, I still can't believe we've come this far. It seems just like yesterday we were strange creatures seen as monsters, and now-"
"-now we are the adoptive grandchildren of the most popular frog in all Wartwood," Sasha joined in, the Sundews just behind her. "I'm still a bit jealous that the winner wasn't any of us."
"Don't be, Sash!" Marcy joined as well with Sprig. "Maybe one of us could be the winner next year."
"Next year?!" Sasha turned toward her all of a sudden "I don't plan to be here next year."
"I-I didn't mean that we will still be trapped here next year!" The dark-haired girl hurried to explain better, "Still, if we manage to discover how to get back…maybe we could also find how to visit. Wouldn't you like to come and see Felicia and the others, once awhile?"
"Sasha, wouldn't you want to visit us?" Ivy said, pretending to be offended.
"I didn't say that!" Sasha replied, "I guess coming back every once in a while wouldn't be too bad. Also, who said we couldn't do the reverse? Maybe you could come and see our world."
"Your world?!" Sprig gasped, his eyes filling with star-shaped excitement, "If that happens, can I come to see too?!"
"Me too, me too!" Ivy jumped enthusiastically. "Mom, could we go and see Sasha's world?"
"I guess we could do that." The teashop owner replied, sharing a look with Sylvia. "And maybe you could invite Maddie as well, what do you think Marcy?"
"I suppose that would be good too." The girl replied, "We would be all together, right?"
"Of course we would be all together!" Anne went to hug her nerdy friend "Best Friends Forever, remember?"
"How would you two even make it without me watching over you?" Sasha joined,
"Me as well!" Amelia shouted, "All for one, and one for all!"
"Evening, everyone!" A voice called out, everyone turning to see Hop Pop, "So, I don't know if this is the right time, but…there is something I own to tell you."
"Hop Pop?"
"Anne, Sasha, Marcy, Amelia, Jacob and James." The Frog of the Year spoke slowly, "The day Sprig found you in the forest, I won't lie, I was scared of you. Scared by how you looked, by how different you appeared, there were times I seriously thought you were dangerous. But ever since that day… everything around me changed, and always for the better. You helped me grow out of my fears, you helped me reconnect with my family, you protected my grandchildren, and you even helped me come to terms with the guilt of my past."
"Not only that you became part of my heart, not only had I grown to love you as you were my children, but you became part of this town as well. You may not be frogs, but you will always be part of our family, just like Sprig and Polly and…myself. Don't let anyone bring you down. And, let me apologize for how I acted with you in the past. You placed your trust on me, and yet, I was blind enough to betray you, because I was scared, because I chose to let fear and paranoia dominate my mind. I just want to say…thank you, for becoming part of my life."
"No, Hop Pop," Jacob appeared just then, apparently having heard everything "Thank you for taking us under your wing, that day. Guys?"
"For he's a jolly good frog," many frogs began to sing at once, "For he's a jolly good frog. For he's a jolly good frooooooog!Which nobody can deny!"
This is the party I was hoping for, Anne felt a tear of emotion drop from her cheek. And nothing, nothing can ruin this moment.
"For he's a jolly good frog! For he's a jolly good frog! For he's a jolly good froooooog! Which nobody ca-"
"THE TOADS!" Wally shouted with full lungs, rushing among the other partygoers with fear in his eye. "THE TOADS ARE COMING!"
"Wally!" James facepalmed. "That's not how the song is supposed to end. It's- wait, what did you say?!"
"It's the Toads!" The vagrant frog yelled once again, many people shuttering as they realized that was no joke. "They're marching toward Wartwood!"
Anne, Sasha, and the other humans didn't say anything, as they all turned their gaze toward the direction Wally was pointing and saw the lights of the enemy soldiers in the horizon, the might of the whole Toad Army marching in columns through the forest and toward them.
Toward their home.
Toward Wartwood.
"Looks like those frogs didn't waste time either," Grime murmured, glancing over the defenses that the rebels had built in anticipation of their return. Wall and moat, watchtowers at the gates… he knew with one glance that breaking through such defenses, to reoccupy the town, wouldn't be a joke. Especially since neither he nor his troops had siege engines with them.
"Captain," one of his soldiers saluted, while still giving a fearful glance toward his Lieutenant. "We have lost one third of our soldiers during the march, and many warriors are too wounded or exhausted to fight. I suggest we set camp here and-"
"Nonsense!" The lieutenant hissed, his two giant bodyguards gazing over the unfortunate toad, the latter taking a step back as he felt his own blood turn cold. "Captain, you shouldn't allow these rebels to contest your authority anymore. We must strike now, before they manage to reorganize, and crush their rebellion!"
Grime nodded, silently agreeing with his subordinate. He knew they couldn't afford to show mercy if they wanted to display their strength. Yet, the laments of the soldiers around him quickly brought him back to reality: his troops were in no shape for a battle.
"I…I still want to offer them a chance to surrender peacefully first." Grime muttered, once again examining the town's defenses. "Yet, if we come to a fight, could you and your soldier be ready to assist and support us?"
"Absolutely, Captain!" The black armor-clad creature said, the helmet hiding his smirk, "I always have your back…in my sight."
