Luz Clawthorne: Two Worlds, One Family Chapter 101: LC Sidetrack: It's A Waybright LifeQ&A, an owl house fanfic

After reading the Sidetrack, be sure to scroll down to see your answers from the Q&A

All characters from Disney and other properties are owned by their respectful owners. The OCs made here are written entirely for the story. Enjoy the fic.

Amphibia Sidetrack - It's a Waybright Life

It was a dark and rainy night in Amphibia, but we'll be focusing on Toad Tower. A bright and colorful flash of light appeared and coming out from the flash was a young blond girl who fell into the muddy ground.

"Oof!" she said before she got up with a groan. "Oh… Anne… Mar-Mar?" she asked, looking around for her friends, only to be met with spears aimed at her. Holding the spears were large armored Toads with glowing red eyes, glaring at her with wary looks. "Whoa! Watch it! Do you know who I am?!"

The Toads glared at the little human girl before glancing at each other. "What should we do with her?" one of them asked.

"I'd say tie her up and bring her into Toad Tower!" another suggested. "Captain Grime will want to see this… thing."

"Thing?! You think I'm afraid of ya just because you're a bunch of slimy, gross, toad guys?" Sasha asked as she stood up and took a fighting stance. "I'm not afraid of you! Hoooo-!" She charged toward them to make her attack…

…only to be quickly captured and tied up so she could be brought to the aforementioned Toad Tower. "Let me go! I was just going easy on you!" she shouted while crying out. "Anne! Marcy! Moooom!"

Sasha was soon brought to and thrown into a cell. She quickly got up and glared at the Toads before her. "Hey, you big bullie-frogs! Where are my friends? And my parents?!"

"She's still shouting," one Toad complained as the door to the prison opened up.

"Where is it?" asked a commanding voice as the Toads got out of the way. "Where's this creature I've been told about?"

"In her cell, sir!" another replied, giving the captain a salute.

Sasha looked up and saw the bigger Toad before her. She looked up in awe, seeing his scarred eye and his cape. He marched over and looked down on Sasha with the intimidating glare. "So you are the strange creature they have been telling me about."

"Creature? Takes one to know one," Sasha scoffed. "You're the… bizarre creature from where I'm standing, are you some kind of alien?"

"I don't know what kind of little monster you are, but you will not talk like that around me," he told her while turning his back to her to face his soldiers. "I don't know where this talking creature came from, but she's proven to be sentient and could prove to be of value in time. Eventually she will-"

"Uh, Captain Grime, sir," spoke up a yellow Toad.

"What is it, Percy?" Grime asked him.

"The uh, creature… has escaped," Percy pointed out.

"What?!" Grime shouted, turning to see that her cell was empty. He grabbed Percy. "Are you saying that you let the creature get out of her cell?! Wait, how did she escape?!" he demanded to know..

"She just, like, wormed her way out of there," another Toad answered. "Like, she just went between the bars, which had a gap big enough for her to fit through… kind of a design flaw if you asked me."

"Don't just stand there like frogs! Find her!" Grime ordered as the Toads quickly went to search for little Sasha.

Little Sasha was running through the hallways, knocking over a lot of stuff in her path. She was giggling and laughing as she was spotted by some of the Toads who tried to stop her.

"Halt!" one shouted, only for Sasha to run past the Toad, making her spin. "Whoa!"

"Stop in the name of-GAH!" the Toad was tripped over by Sasha knocking some stuff into him, making him wince in pain.

One Toad was just coming out of a doorway with a cup of hot coffee and he took a sip. However, Little Sasha knocked the coffee onto that Toad's face, making him feel the scolding hot burn. "Gyah! It burns!"

"Hehehe, can't catch me, ya freaks!" Sasha declared, but while she was distracted, she ended up tripping and falling into a small cage. "Oof!" she shouted as the door to the cage closed shut behind her.

"Got her, boss!" shouted a red Toad who held up Sasha in the cage. "Ha! Can't run out of this one, huh ya brat?"

Sasha just stuck her tongue out as Grime came over. "Well done, cadet Bog," Grime congratulated him.

"No problem, Captain. Just doing what I do best," Bog responded.

"What should we do with her?" spoke a light purple Toad with blond hair.

"I say we eat her and see what she tastes like!" suggested a green Toad with dark green hair.

"No, we're not doing that," Grime told them while looking at Sasha in her cage. "Though you should consider yourself lucky that we don't decide to eat you from where you stand."

"Don't you, like, eat bugs?" Sasha asked.

"Are you a bug?" Grime asked her.

"Heck no, I'm a human," Sasha responded. "Can you just let me go? I'm considered a missing and kidnapped child at some point."

"I wouldn't recommend going anywhere, or trying to escape again," Grime told her. "A creature of your size won't even survive or last long outside…"

"Right… so where the heck am I?" Sasha demanded. "And where are my friends?"

"You… have no idea where you are?" Grime asked her.

"Well, are there any other humans around this place?" Sasha asked him.

"No, in fact we've never heard of 'humans' before," Grime admitted while scratching his chin. "In fact, I don't think you even are from this world… where are you from, again?"

"California, USA," Sasha told him. "Where are you from, Mister?"

"Why, where I'm from is here, in Amphibia," Grime revealed to her. "A world populated by amphibian folks like us."

Sasha looked Grime over. "You know, we do have amphibians where I'm from, but you are much… smaller. Like, fit a toad in your pocket. And you don't talk."

"That's… just weird." Grime said. "So tell me, where did you come from and how did you get here?"

"Well… I am from a planet called Earth, for one," Sasha said as she told her story. "Me along with my best friends, Anne and Marcy, were just playing pirates when we dug up a music box…"

"Music box?" Grime asked in confusion.

"Yeah, I thought there'd be actual treasure in it… only for it to transport me down here," Sasha told him. "One moment, I was at the playground with my friends, and the next I'm trapped in a tower filled with giant frogs."

"Toads," Grime corrected her.

"Right, toads," Sasha responded before she realized something. "Wait, if I ended up here, did my friends also come here? And what's going to happen to me?" she asked in concern.

Grime was quiet for a moment, thinking about his answer. "I'll tell you what's going to happen to you," he said. "We will keep you here, but we will also look for your friends if they did end up here in Amphibia as well. After that, we will deliver you and your friends to the king in order to earn favor from him."

"Whoa, you guys have a king?" Sasha asked him.

"Of course we do, we're not savages… well, except Fen," Grimes said as he pointed at the dark-green haired toad.

"Yeah, it's true," Fens responded.

"But nonetheless, I do believe that the king will be interested in you and your story," Grime told Sasha. "You want to see your friends again and go home? Then your best bet is with us and King Andrias. We know this world, you don't. You can't find your friends or find a way home without us. So the more you cooperate with me and not cause any trouble, the better your chances of going home are. Do you understand?"

Sasha looked up at Grime, considering her options. "Okay, I'll do as you say, under one condition… can you get me something to eat? I'm hungry…"

Grime sighed. "Very well, just stay in your cage," he told her while marching toward the mess hall. "Take her back to the cell."

As the Toads began to carry Sasha back toward her cell, the little human girl pulled out a hair clip from her hair and sported a grin…

In the kitchen, Grime was preparing a meal for Sasha, mashing some bugs in a bowl. "Now, let's see. Half a cup of bug juice, a quarter cup of flour…"

"Hey!" Sasha shouted, startling the captain. "I want waffles!"

"What the-!?" Grime turned around and saw Sasha at the end of the table. "How in the hell did you get out of your cage, brat?!"

"I want waffles!" Sasha demanded.

"...No," he told her.

"I WANT WAFFLES!" Sasha shouted again, making Grime sigh.

"Alright, alright," Grime said to the little human girl. "Just wait here," he ordered her while he went to his cook book, looking up how to make waffles.

After some trial and error, Grimes managed to make some waffles for little Sasha. He placed the plate of waffles on the table for her. "Here you go, now eat."

Sasha looked at the homemade waffles, seeing that it was pink and filled with worms and bug essence. "Ew… I don't want it!"

"But you asked for them!" Grime argued.

"Yeah, until I see that you make them out of bugs!" Sasha complained. "This isn't like the waffles from where I'm from!"

Grime looked frustrated with her. "You are… look, you're free to not eat it, alright? Maybe I won't give you anything to eat."

"But I'll starve!" Sasha complained.

"Well, tough caterpillars, cause we don't know how to make waffles like you like them," Grime argued with her. "So you either eat what I provide or not eat anything at all."

Little Sasha pouted while looking at the waffles. But her stomach growled, so despite her disgust, she had no choice. She picked up her fork and took a bite out of the waffles. "Mmmm," she groaned in disgust while munching on the waffles.

Grime crossed his arms while watching Sasha eat. "And I thought my sister was spoiled…"

After serving her waffles, Grime tried to put Sasha back in the cage. "Come on, back in you go."

"No! I don't want to spend the night in a cramped up cage!" Sasha shouted at him. "I'm not an animal!"

"The way you're acting, you would be classified as one," Grime told her. "If not the cage, then the cells-"

"No! I don't want to sleep in a dirty old cell next to some skeleton!" Sasha shouted while biting Grime's hand.

"Gah! Why you-!" Grime glared at her, but that was then Percy and the blond Toad stepped in.

"Hold on a second, sir," spoke up the blond Toad. "Look, maybe instead of spending the night in a cage, we can have her sleep in the barracks with the rest of us."

"Yeah, Braddock's right," Percy agreed. "She might sleep better if she were to sleep on her own cot."

Grime hummed, thinking it over. "Well, if that is the case, then you two will be in charge of getting her to sleep. I believe that sounds fair, doesn't it, little… human, is it?"

"A human named Sasha Waybright, and don't you forget it, pal!" Sasha shouted, raising her fist up.

Grime just laughed. "Oh, this one has a lot of spunk." He threw her to Percy and Braddock, forcing them to catch her. "Give her a cot to sleep in, and make sure she doesn't cause anymore trouble. Or you two will get it. Understand?"

"Y-Yes, sir!" Percy and Braddock saluted before they took Sasha to the barracks.

In the barracks, other Toad soldiers were getting ready to sleep. Percy pulled up a cot for Sasha to sleep in.

"Here you go, Sasha," Percy told her, showing her the cot.

Sasha crawled onto the cot, laying on it for a bit. "Hmm… it is comfy," she said as Braddock helped with the covers.

"Now why don't we just tuck you right in, kid," Braddock said as she placed a pillow under Sasha's head.

"If there's anything you need, we'll be right here," Percy said as he went over to his own cot.

"Thanks, Percy, and thanks Braddock," Sasha told them as she yawned. "But… I don't usually sleep without a bedtime story."

"Oh we know tons of stories," Braddock said. "What do you human girls like to listen to?"

"Well… we like stories about princesses, and ones about knights slaying dragons, and one with bears…"

"I don't think we have those kinds of bedtime stories here," Braddock admitted.

"Oh! How about the story of Toadylocks and the Three Tardigrades," Percy suggested.

"Yeah, you can hear that story," Braddock accepted with a nod. "How does that sound?"

"Yeah… I guess a story's a story," Sasha replied. "Though, I don't know what a Tardigrade is…"

And so, Braddock and Percy began telling Sasha the story while Sasha listened. But as she listened, the young blond started to realize that… something was missing. Or more accurately, someone was missing…

"And then, Toadylocks went to sit in one of the chairs," Haddock continued with the story. "She said 'This chair is too sticky, and this chair is too-'" She heard sniffling sounds before she and Percy noticed the young human girl crying. "Sasha? What's wrong?"

"Yeah, why are you crying suddenly?" Percy asked her. "Is it the bed? Are you hungry?"

"No… it's just…" Sasha teared up as she looked down. "My… my mommy would always read bedtime stories to me like that, and…" She wiped her tears, but couldn't stop crying. "I… I miss my mommy!" she cried.

"Oh, Sasha, come here," Braddock said as she comforted her, Sasha crying onto Braddock's shoulder. "Hey, it's going to be okay. We'll help find your way back home."

"Yeah, once we find your friends, we'll take you to Andrias and he'll know how to get you back home to your mom," Percy reassured her.

Eventually Sasha calmed down and got herself comfortable again. "Can… can you tell me the rest of the story?"

"Of course, Sasha," Braddock replied. "Percy, why don't you continue?"

"Sure," he said, nodding to Braddock. "So, after trying out the chairs…"

As Sasha continued to listen, her eyes started to feel heavy and they began falling down over her eyes. She felt herself getting drowsy while the two Toads continued telling her the story. Eventually, the young Sasha had fallen asleep…

The next day, Grimes walks towards Fens. "How's our guest doing?"

"Well, after waking her up, we decided to try to find something for her to wear," Fens replied.

"Though, we don't know if they fit her…" Braddock said as Sasha appeared between them. Grime saw her wearing armor that was several sizes too big for her, causing her to struggle to walk.

"Hey Grimy, look at this… cool armor," Sasha said before she fell down. "Ow."

Grime sighed. "We'll just find her some better clothes for her to wear from the Frog villages," he suggested.

"But I like this armor," Sasha proclaimed. "Can I get a sword too?"

"No," Grime immediately told her.

Little Sasha's life with the Toads was… decent. No longer having to sleep in a cell, the young girl set out to befriend the Toads of South Tower.

"Hey, Bogs," whispered Sasha to Bogs. "Why do you have so much rations under your cot?"

"Oh, well it's from earning my keep from the last tax collecting," Bogs responded proudly.

"Hmm… well if you have that much, can I have some?" Sasha asked with her hands up.

"What? No way," Bogs denied her. "Like I'm sharing them with you."

Sasha pouted at him, but then she got an idea. "Pweeeaaaze?" she asked while her eyes were all cutesy.

"Like that's going to affect me, kid," Bogs responded before he saw her lip throbbing. "No, no, that's not going to work either."

"I promise not to tell Grimy that you hit me if you don't give me some of your rations…" Sasha told him, shocking Bogs.

"You wouldn't…" Bogs glared at her, but then he saw Sasha attempting to scream, which caused him to panic. "Okay, okay, you can have some!"

Sasha smirked and grabbed some of his rations. "Thank you, Boggy."

"Yeah, just don't call me that," he muttered while letting Sasha take some of his rations. But unknown to the red Toad, he won't be the last Toad she'll con…

"If you give me some of these bug crackers, I can give a good word to Grimy about how you perform well," Sasha told Fens. "He might give you a reward…"

"You mean the new Obsidian-made Sickle-Spear 3000 with extra cut action?" Fens asked as Sasha nodded. "Take the whole box!" She handed Sasha the bug crackers, which she accepted.

"Thank you kindly," Sasha replied as she walked out.

"If I give you some of these canned fruits, you'd put in a good word about Braddock about me?" Percy asked with hope in his eyes

"Of course, I'll tell Braddock all about how brave you were back when battling those invasive locusts," Sasha declared as Percy handed her the canned fruit.

"Here! These contain peaches and pears," he said. "Grown in a humble farm village."

"Thanks, Percy!" Sasha replied with a smile.

"No way," Braddock gasped while she let Sasha do her hair. "You think this will impress Percy?"

"Yup, I do hair tying like this a lot," Sasha replied while tying up Braddock's hair. "I'm sure he'll really like it!"

"Well I'll be a tick's uncle," Braddock commented with a smile before handing Sasha some food bars. "Here's the bars, kid."

"Thanks a lot, Brady," Sasha replied while putting the bars in her pockets. "I knew you'd look good with a Swedish Knot."

"Hehehe," Sasha said as she counted the rations she had collected. She rubbed her own hands like the little scoundrel she was. "I should do this more often…"

"So that's what you were after?" someone asked.

"Gah!" Sasha was startled and she turned around to see Captain Grime, who had found her with her stash. "Um… hey, Grimy," she chuckled nervously.

"Did you just con my entire army into sharing their rations to you?" Grime questioned her with a grim look.

"I… I earned these fair and square," Sasha said as she hugged her rations.

Grime just looked hard at the girl, but rather than give her a scolding… he just begrudgingly smirked at her. "Hmm, impressive manipulation skills for your age."

Later, Sasha had finally been given some new clothes to wear.

"I like this new look I got!" Sasha declared, wearing a scale vest with a fur cape, a furry skirt, and boots. "I look exactly like a warrior woman! Like Xena…"

"Yes, well, at least you're wearing something that fits," Grime responded as Percy came in.

"Sir… they're here," Percy informed him.

Grime smiled. "Excellent, Percy. Did you bring them into the Tower?"

"Yes, sir!" Percy confirmed. "They're ready for you and Sasha downstairs in the main hall."

"Excellent!" Grime said again, while Sasha looked confused.

"They? Who's they?" Sasha asked as Grime lifted her up to ride on his shoulder.

"A very special guest that you'd really like," Grime told her while heading downstairs.

Once they went downstairs, Sasha saw the Toads lining up, saluting her and the captain. The Toad and the blond human looked to see who was at the other end of the hallway with Braddock. Sasha's eyes widened when she spotted the bushy brown haired girl who had an old red frog with her. "No way… Anne?!"

"Sasha?!" Little Anne exclaimed, her eyes widened upon seeing her friend again. "Oh my gosh… is it really you!?"

"EEEEEEE!" the two squealed as Sasha got off from Grime and ran down towards her best friend as Anne ran up to Sasha. Tears of joy ran from their eyes, smiling as they were glad to see each other again. "Sasha/Anne!" the two shouted as they ran and hugged each other, laughing and twirling around.

"Oh my gosh, I've been wondering where you were, Sasha!" Anne declared.

"Yeah, same!" Sasha replied happily. "I'm so glad to see you… is Marcy with you?"

"No, I… when they told me they knew someone like me, I assumed both you and Marcy were here," Anne admitted.

"The one you call Marcy we are still searching for," Grime said as he marched up. "If I assume correctly, you must be Anne."

"Oh… um… hi," Anne said, waving to Grime. She was nervous due to how big he was… and how scary-looking.

"Oh, this is Captain Grimy, Anne. He may not look like it, but he's kinda cool when you get to know him," Sasha said while Grime just grumbled. "So who's the old frog with ya?"

"Oh, this is Hop Pop Plantar," Anne introduced. "He's the one who found me."

"Nice to meet ya, Sasha," Hop Pop replied. "Anne's told me a lot about her friends."

"Cool, are you also a warrior like Grimy is?" Sasha asked him.

"Not much of a warrior, I'm just a farmer providing for his family," Hop Pop admitted.

"Oh…" Sasha said, looking slightly disappointed.

"Well then, now that Anne is here, I've decided that you two will be kept here while we look for the third human girl named Marcy," Grime declared. "Anyone opposed to this?"

"Well, if it means I get to hang out with Sasha, then I guess it's alright to stay here. Will you be staying with me, Hop Pop?" Anne asked him.

"I…" Hop Pop said, briefly hesitating. "Of course, Anne. I did promise I would get you home, didn't I?" Anne smiled at this. "I just hope we don't have to stay here too long." He looked around nervously at all the warrior Toads. "And that we are here as guests and not prisoners…"

Sasha grabbed Anne's hand. "Come on, Anne, let me show you around the tower!" she said as the two ran off so Sasha could give Anne the tour.

"Don't fall off from the windows!" Grime told them, sighing while turning to Hop Pop.

"So uh, Captain Grime, are you interested in some vegetational lifestyle?" Hop Pop asked, making Grime groan.

Sasha brought Anne around the tower, showing her the barracks.

"This is where I sleep with the other Toads," Sasha said while showing Anne the Toads at their cots. "There's Fens, Bogs, Mire, Percy, and Braddock." She then whispered to Anne. "Percy's the sensitive one."

"Whoa… they're just as big as the Toad Mayor at Wartwood!" Anne commented in awe.

"I'll admit, it is strange to see another Sasha running around," Braddock admitted.

"She's not gonna try conning us out of our rations too, is she?" Bogs asked sternly.

"Oh no, I could hardly convince my mom to let me eat spicy food," Anne admitted. "I'm not someone who can outfox another."

"I've been meaning to teach you my ways," Sasha replied.

"Well it is still nice meeting you, Anne," Percy greeted her, offering a handshake. "Any friend of Sasha's a friend of ours."

"Yeah, nice meeting you all too," Anne replied, shaking Percy's hand.

Sasha then continued to show Anne around the tower, introducing her to the other Toads and showing her the different areas. These included the training room, the weapons room, mess hall, dungeons…

Eventually the two climbed up to the top of the tower. "Come on, check the view here," Sasha said to Anne, who was in absolute awe.

"Whoa…" Anne said. "We're so high up… is this safe?"

"Don't worry, there's a Watch Toad on stand by," Sasha said as she pointed up to a Toad holding a large telescope while at his post. "Hi, Jeffery!"

"Hi, Sasha! Just be careful, there's no railing up here!" Jefferey the Watch Toad shouted back to her.

"We will!" Sasha replied before turning to Anne. "Isn't this place great, Anne?" she asked, only to hear Anne sniffling. "Anne? Are you okay?"

"I'm… I'm just glad to see you, Sasha, and…" Anne teared up. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For what?" Sasha asked her in surprise. "What do you have to be sorry about?"

"The treasure box I found that brought us here," Anne replied while wiping away her tears. "I… I was the one who opened the box in the first place. It's my fault, I'm the reason that we're here." She cried as Sasha immediately hugged her. "I'm the reason we're not with our parents…"

"Oh Anne, no, it's not your fault," Sasha reassured her, comforting her friend. "I don't blame you at all, and I don't hate you for it."

"You… you don't?" Anne asked her.

"No, none of us knew what would happen if we opened it," Sasha pointed out. "It just… happened."

It had been a week since Anne and Sasha had reunited, and they had been staying together in Toad Tower since then. While Grime was in his quarters, a scout Toad marches in.

"Sir!" the scout shouted to him. "We just received information from Newtopia!"

"Newtopia?" Grime asked, looking curious.

"Apparently King Andrias is looking for two humans who have ended up in Amphibia," the scout said, which made Grime's eyes widen.

"What?!" Grime asked before the Toad formed a smile. "Interesting…"

Meanwhile, Sasha and Anne were with the other Toads playing cards.

"Ha! Eight hearts," Sasha said while slapping the cards on the table.

"Now you gotta pay up!" Anne said as the Toads groaned.

"Oh man, this is my last jar of peaches," Bogs said while handing his rations to the two girls. Percy, Fens, and Mire did the same.

As the other Toads handed their rations, Grime showed up. "Attention all, especially you, Sasha and Anne. We have big news."

"Is it mail time?" Anne asked in awe.

"What? No, well, I did receive word that King Andrias of Newtopia is looking for two humans," Grime said, which shocked the girls.

"Two humans…" Sasha said before realizing something. "Holy-moly, Anne, do you know what this means?!"

"That we're going to meet a king?" Anne replied.

"Not just that," Sasha said. "How would he know to look for two humans? What if Marcy's over there? What if she asked the king to look for us?"

Anne gasped. "Oh my gosh, Marcy would be smart to ask the king that!"

"We're gonna reunite our bestie!" Sasha declared.

"Yeah!" Anne replied in a cheer.

"Alright, we're gonna need to get supplies ready for a trip to Newtopia," Grime ordered his garrison. "It won't be an easy journey, but we will help you two get an audience with the king and reunite with your human companion," he told Sasha and Anne, the two girls smiling at the thought of possibly reuniting with Marcy again.

Fast forward to Newtopia after Sasha and Anne had reunited with Marcy. The adults were deciding on what to do about the girls and their living situation.

"Okay, so until that music box is found, we need to discuss where the girls should stay for the time being," Andrias said to Grime and Hop Pop.

"Ooh! Anne and Sash could stay here in Newtopia!" Marcy suggested. "I mean, that way we can still be together!"

"I don't know, Mar-Mar," Anne said while rubbing her arm. "I've kinda grown attached to the Plantars already," she admitted while looking up to Hop Pop. "They took real good care of me and I already miss them."

"Aw, but I would really like it if we're always together," Marcy said with a pout while turning to Sasha. "How about you, Sasha? We could have a lot of sleepovers whenever we want."

"Actually, I think I would like to be the one to take care of Ms. Sasha Waybright," Grime offered, much to Sasha's surprise.

"Wow, really, Grimy?" Sasha asked him. "I thought you'd be annoyed by me running around the tower."

"Yes, well, come here for a sec," Grime said as he pulled Sasha aside and whispered to her. "Look, I have an offer for you. If you return with me to Toad Tower, you will not just be taken care of, but we will also help grow your potential."

"My potential?" Sasha asked him in confusion.

"I've come to recognize your talents in manipulation and how you have my troops twisted around your fingers. You have an ability that could be put to good use," Grime explained. "So, I can offer you a chance to be trained back at Toad Tower, where you will be helped to reach your full potential. Just think about it, if you choose to stay with me, Sasha, I can help you become a strong and feared warrior."

"Strong…" Sasha contemplated. "Well… I guess I could accept, and I think it sounds fun," she said as Grime smiled. "But… under one condition."

"And that is…?" he asked.

"That you eventually make me your second-in-command," Sasha declared.

Grime sighed. "Well… I supposed that could be arranged."

Sasha smiled and shook Grime's hand. "Great! I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful partnership."

It was early in the morning at Toad Tower when Grime summoned all the Toads.

"Atten-hut!" Grime shouted as the Toads marched forward in a line out of their cots. Sasha was also included, standing in position. "Alright, today is training, so each of you will be heading down the gym to start your training to keep up in shape."

Soon enough the Toads were in the gym, Sasha sporting her own gym clothes as she prepared to work out. "Alright, I am ready," she declared.

"Good, first up in training," Grime said as he held up a stick and threw it to Sasha, who caught it. "We'll do some practice."

"With a stick?" Sasha asked as Grime pulled up another stick.

"Think of them as your swords," Grime told her as the two got on the mat and he faced Sasha while holding the stick. "If you're interested in swordsmanship, I can teach you how to hold the sword."

Sasha smirked while holding her stick up like a sword. "Bring it on…"

Three years later, Sasha had grown a bit older and she was shown sparring Grime with the sword. The nine-years-old girl held up an actual sword, clashing against Grime's sword as the two sparred. Other Toads were watching in awe at seeing the girl's progress.

"Your swordsmanship has improved, young lieutenant," Grime commented as he clashed his sword with Sasha's. "But are you able to take me down, Sasha?"

Sasha sweated as she stood back, focusing on Grime's form, trying to find a weak spot. Once she figured something out, she grinned and yelled while charging towards him.

Grime kept his guard, but Sasha jumped down and swiped her leg under his legs causing him to fall down. "Gah!" he exclaimed as he fell and dropped his sword. Sasha aimed her sword at him, but stopped herself. Grime looked up and saw Sasha standing on top of him in victory.

"How's that for improvement?" Sasha replied with a grin, while Grime looked impressed.

Sasha ran across the field while seeing targets spring up. She held up a bow and arrow and jumped over a trap as she shot an arrow, hitting one target. She grabbed another while jumping through the obstacle course made by Grime.

"Keep firing, Sasha!" Grime ordered while watching his lieutenant/apprentice. "You need to learn how to fire while on the move!"

Sasha nodded as she saw another target, shooting her arrow at it.

Sasha, at age ten, held up a mace and swung it around at the test dummies. She hit them in the head, ripping them from their stuffed bodies.

"Oh yeah, I could get used to this thing," Sasha declared with a smile.

"Whoa," Sasha said while holding up a pair of gauntlets, popping out their claws. "Awesome! I look like an X-Men!" she declared while waving her claw gauntlets around.

"Be careful with that, Sasha," Braddock warned her in concern. "Don't want to have you lose an eye with that thing…"

"Don't worry, Braddy, I got this," Sasha said while crossing her arms, which actually cut her. "Ow!"

"I'm going to get the first aid kit," Percy said as he went off.

"Yeaaah!" Sasha shouted as she smashed a tree stump to pieces with her large hammer. She looked at the hammer in surprise. "Man, getting gains really paid off!"

"It did, didn't it?" Grime asked her as he offered her an axe. "Would you like to try this battle-axe?"

"Hmm, nah," Sasha declined while looking at the hammer. "I kinda like the hammer more."

Grime looked surprised at this, but he also smiled proudly while watching his lieutenant practice with the hammer.

One day, Toad Tower sounded the alarm. All Toads gathered as they saw that they were under attack… by giant cicadas.

"The Cicadas have awakened!" one Toad soldier shouted.

"Already?!" Grime shouted while he got his weapons. "Battle stations!"

The Toads yelled as they got ready to battle the cicadas, crossing the bridge over the moat. However, the noisy, buzzing sounds of their enemies sent soundwaves that knocked the Toads into the moat. As the cicadas advanced on the Tower, lines of Toads fired crossbows at them.

"Keep firing!" Grime shouted while ordered the catapults to throw boulders at the cicadas.

"I'm not late, am I, sir?"

Grime turned to see Sasha, now donning her full body red armor with the symbol of the Toad Army. She held her sword and shield and she had her helmet on. "I'm ready when you are, captain."

Grime gave her a nod. "Good, lieutenant. First order of business… let's show them we Toads don't mess around!"

Sasha gave him a nod. "For the Toads!" she shouted as she jumped off from the tower and landed on a cicada, riding on it as she swung her sword to slash at one cicada to another. "Hyah!" she shouted.

Grime laughed as he too jumped on top of a cicada. "Now this is a glorious battle!" he declared while using his weapons to chop down one cicada and another. All to defend the Tower.

Being raised among the Toads, Lieutenant Sasha Waybright had been many battles…

"Look out for the scorpileos!" Bogs declared as large, lion-like scorpions popped up in the forest where the toads and Sasha were camping.

"Like hell they'll ruin our training trip!" Sasha declared while holding her sword, launching herself at the scorpileo. "YAAAH!" She swiped at the tail off of one scorpileo, while another scratched her on the back. "Ow! Why you!" She stabbed the scorpileo in the face, its blood splattering on her.

"Thanks for bandaging me up, Dr. Croak," Sasha thanked the Toad field medic, who had just finished bandaging up Sasha's wounds from the scorpileo.

"Well, those scorpileos could've done you worse," spoke Dr. Croak, a brown skinned Toad with dark braided hair, glasses, a doctor's white coat, and gloves. "You may be Grime's lieutenant, but let's try not make these visits more frequent, okay?"

"Sure, doc," Sasha responded while looking at her bandaged shoulder and a scar on her arm.

Sasha rode on a beetle as she led the charge against some marauders. These marauders were attacking a Frog village. She swung her mace at one marauder's face and then slashed another with her sword in her other hand.

"Y'all won't last against me!" she declared as one marauder jumped in the air to wave his sickle at her. Sasha brought out her shield, but the sickle did leave a mark on her…

Now sporting a scar on her cheek, Sasha handled a group of bandits that were bothering travelers in the woods.

"Percy, Bogs, I got your backs!" Sasha declared while standing by the side of the two Toads.

"We really appreciate it, Sasha!" Percy replied while holding the shield to block the arrows.

"Yeah, let's bust these bandits down!" Bogs declared as the three fought off the bandits.

Sasha jumped up in the air while dodging the arrows. She brought out her hammer, ready to bring it down against the bandits as they kept shooting arrows at her. One arrow managed to hit her in the leg…

It was calm outside the Tower as Sasha showed one of the new Toads around the moat.

"So new guy, how do you like the tour so far?" Sasha asked him.

"This place is great," he replied with an optimistic smile. "Man, let me tell ya. Coming here after being fresh out of the academy, I wasn't sure that I'd fit in but I think I'm going to be fine-"

"WREEEEEECK!"

Suddenly, out of nowhere a heron popped out from the woods. The long beak grabbed the new Toad, snapping his body in two in front of Sasha. Blood splattered on the Waybright warrior, who was in a state of shock.

Sasha could only watch as the new guy got ripped to shreds. She didn't pay attention when the Toads marched over the bridge to attack the heron. She didn't pay attention to one of them speaking to her. All she could hear was ringing silence as she just stood still, replaying the moment of a new, fresh soldier's life taken before her eyes.

She finally let out a yell and ran towards the heron with her sword up, ready to cut its belly open…

A blood-covered Sasha slowly marched back into the Tower after mutilating the giant heron with her blood-soaked sword. There were cuts on her, but she didn't pay no heed. The Toads looked at her with a shocked expression, seeing her stoic face after handling the heron.

"Lieutenant," Grime said. Even he looked shocked and concerned for his blond protege. "Are you… okay?"

"…I need a shower," Sasha simply said while walking upstairs.

A great battle had taken place at Dawnblood Island, where Sasha, Grime, and their Toad Army fought off against the Order of the Olm, a cult that had been burning and destroying libraries and museums across Amphibia. After tracking the cult to an island, they fought their way through their army, including an engineer named Bomme Frite. Eventually, Sasha and Grime entered the castle and the throne room of the leader of the cult.

"Alright, Goldmask, it's over!" Grime declared.

"Or should we call you by your former name… ex-Captain Ernst?" Sasha asked as they faced the old newt.

"Ah, the great Sasha Waybright, with Captain Grime," spoke the elderly red-skinned newt with thinning hair. He wore a big set of solid gold armor and had a long cape draped down his back. "Princess Marcy used to tell me stories about you, and I might say, you do live up to the legends with those scars…"

"Less talking and more slaying your ass!" Sasha declared while bringing out her two swords.

"Yeah!" Grime declared as he held his warhammer, the two charging in ready to fight.

Ernst just grinned as he pulled out his own sword. "Then we'll take it to your graves…"

It was two against one as Sasha and Grime fought Ernst in a duel. They were confident that they could take him due to his age, but despite that Ernst proved to be surprisingly agile, tough, and especially strong. Sasha kept swinging at him while Ernst just clashes her swords with his. Grime was swinging his hammer at him, but Ernst simply jumped up from the hammer while jumping over the two. His tail swatted their feet off the floor and he brought his sword down towards Grime. But Sasha blocked the strike with her sword and pushed him back from her captain.

Sasha swung her swords at Ernst, who moved his sword up and down to block her attack. He was on the defensive, but he just gave a smirk as they clashed swords. "You are quite skilled, for a human," he admitted as Sasha pushed him back and jumped over him, but Ernst slithered away before she could cut him. "But not skilled enough."

He saw Grime getting up and swinging his warhammer at him. Ernst just chuckled as he jumped above Grime and stepped on his shoulder while twirling around to land on the floor. Facing them, he then launched himself as he drew his sword towards them. Sasha and Grime got out of the way, but the sword still managed to slice a strand of Sasha's hair.

"Ya miss, you old geezer," Sasha pointed out.

"Oh I was more aiming to snatch one of your weapons," Ernst replied while his tail held up one of Sasha's swords.

"What the fuck?!" Sasha asked, looking to see she only had one sword now before Ernst dashed in front of her. Sasha stepped back away from him, but Ernst brought out the swords to slash across her face. "AAAH!"

"SASHA!" Grime shouted, seeing his lieutenant fall while Ernst laughed. "You bastard!" he shouted as he jumped up to bring his hammer over Ernst to avenge Sasha. However, Ernst was too quick and he turned around, slashing across Grime's chest. "AAAH!" he screamed as he dropped his hammer and fell to the floor. While his wound wasn't anything critical, he still winced from the slash.

Ernst laughed as he looked down on Sasha, seeing her bleeding X-shaped scar on her face. "Oh I haven't enjoyed a good fight like that in a while! You two have satisfied my bloodlust," he taunted while kicking Sasha in the stomach. "You shouldn't have underestimated an old warrior like me. I, who was Captain of the Night Guard for years! No human or Toad could hope to stand a chance against me!" he boasted while turning to Grime, still holding his sword. "First, the Toad…"

Sasha opened her eyes and in her blurred vision she saw Ernst walking up to her fallen captain. She saw him prepare to draw his sword and aim for Grime's neck. "Grime… no…" she groaned as she heard the ringing noise again. She couldn't stand seeing Grime about to die. Not after everything they had been through. Not after all the trouble she had caused him. Not after he had helped train her to become the warrior she was today. Grime was her captain. And… she cared about him. "Grime!"

"Oh would you shut up, I'll deal with you after I kill this old toad," Ernst told her while raising her sword up until he noticed a glint of pink light. "Huh?" He turned around and saw Sasha radiating that pink light around her. He noticed her hair glowing pink. "What in blazes?!"

Sasha got up, her x-mark glowing pink as well as her eyes. Her hair rose up as it sparked like electricity, her armor turning just as pink. She was snarling, glaring at Ernst with hatred. "Leave him alone!" she shouted with an other-worldly voice.

"What… what are you-?!" Ernst was then punched in the stomach, his armor cracked by Sasha's fist. He dropped his sword and Ernst was launched into the wall. He saw Sasha instantly appear in front of him and she raised her fists to punch him into the wall as he grunted.

"Muda-muda-muda-muda-muda-muda!" she shouted repeatedly with each punch. It looked like she had twenty fists when beating Ernst down, her punches were like bullets firing at the old newt.

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Ernst screamed as he felt his armor breaking into pieces, leaving just an old newt in his polka-dot boxers. He then received more punches from Sasha to his face, disfiguring his face with each punch, making him lose his teeth at the process.

"YAAAAAAHHH!" Sasha yelled as she kept punching him. Blood spilled in front of her as she punched his face so hard that she could no longer tell it was a face…

Grime groaned as he saw Sasha's beatdown, along with her powerful look. He was shocked to see her like this. "Sasha…"

After beating down Ernst into nothing but a burst bag of meat, Sasha was breathing heavily. She looked down at the body of her opponent, which now looked more liquid than flesh. Her hair changed back to normal and she looked at her own blood-soaked hands. "What… what just happened?" she asked before she realized something. "Grime!"

She rushed over to her captain's aid, checking his wound. "Are you alright, Grimy?" she asked him in concern.

"I… should be asking you that, lieutenant," Grime pointed out, seeing Sasha's scar. "We need to have you treated… but what just happened to you just now?"

"I… I don't know," Sasha admitted. "But… it felt good, and… it felt powerful."

"Please work, please work, please work!" Marcy said while holding the music box.

"No!" Andrias shouted. He tried going after Marcy, but he was blocked by Sasha and Grime.

"Hurry, me and Grime will hold him off! Just go!" Sasha told Anne, who nodded as she, Sprig and Polly rushed toward the portal.

"You kids go, I'll help Olivia and Yunan!" Hop Pop told them while helping the two women.

"Quick, into the portal, everyone! Hurry!" Marcy shouted as she pointed to the portal while Anne, Sprig, and Polly got in.

Grime and Sasha held off Andrias as the king swung his sword at them. Grime looks concerned for Sasha, realizing how bad their odds were. Andrias swung his tail at her and she was about to fall… until she felt a tongue pushing her straight to the portal.

"What…?!" Sasha asked in shock as she saw that tongue belonging to Grime, who pushed her to the portal. "Grime?!"

"No!" Andrias shouted as he ran over to stop Marcy while Sasha was pushed to the portal, Sprig and Anne catching her.

"Sasha?!" Anne asked before she turned to Marcy. "Marcy, hurry!"

"I just need to-"

SCHICK!

Anne and Sasha's eyes widened as Marcy looked down to see the fiery sword run through her chest. Sasha, who heard that same ringing noise in her ears, looked up at Andrias, who was the one who stabbed Marcy. She saw… tears leaking from his eyes.

"MARCY!" Anne and Sasha shouted in shock and horror.

"AAAAAAAH!" Olivia screamed in horror from behind, seeing what just happened.

"Now look what you've made me do," Andrias said as he fought against the tears.

"D-Dad…?" Marcy managed to say while tasting blood from her mouth. Her eyes rolled back and her body fell forward. The sword was turned off as she fell to the ground. The music box fell from her arms and a bright flash of light appeared in front of Anne, Sasha, Sprig and Polly, blinding them from seeing what happened next.

When they opened their eyes, they found themselves caught in traffic.

"What the…?" Polly asked while seeing that they were on top of a car, the family inside just stared at them. One took a picture of them.

"Oh my frog…!" Sprig said as they looked around and saw that they were in Los Angeles. "Where are we?"

"Home…" Anne realized in shock.

"Gah! What is that!?" Sprig asked as he pointed up to the sky, seeing a plane flying overhead.

"And what is that?!" Polly shouted as she pointed at the inflatable arms mascot.

"This is your world, Anne?" Sprig asked while covering where his ears were. "It's so loud!"

"That's because it's a freeway! Let's get out of here!" Sasha shouted as the four got off of the car and out of traffic.

After getting out of there, the four took a breather while looking around at the city of Los Angeles and trying to process what just happened.

"I can't think straight after all of that…" Polly complained.

"Yeah," Anne said after calming down. "We're home, but… Marcy didn't make it."

"That bastard…" Sasha teared up and snarled in anger. "He killed her!"

"Sasha, calm down," Anne tried to calm Sasha. "We don't know that for sure."

"Don't know? Anne, wake up!" Sasha argued. "We just saw your girlfriend get stabbed in the back by the motherfucker who was supposed to be like a father to her! There is no way that she would survive with her insides burned up!"

"We… I believe that she isn't dead, Sash," Anne said while placing her hand on her chest. "Somehow, I don't believe that Marcy is dead…"

"That's just false hope you're feeling, Anne," Sasha countered angrily. "Grr, if only I had kept my powers like you somehow did, I would've helped beat the crap out of that bastard so Marcy would've lived!"

"Marcy is alive!" Anne argued back while glaring at Sasha. "Sasha, you have to believe that Marcy can make it-"

"She didn't, Anne!" Sasha shouted at her.

"Hey guys, calm down…" Sprig told them while trying to ease the tension.

"Stay out of this!" Anne and Sasha told off Sprig, who just backed away. However, something then fell off from Anne's bag.

Anne took notice of it, as did Sasha. Anne picked up the book and looked at it. "This is…"

"Marcy's journal," Sasha said as she read the cover. "I… I can't believe that we have it."

"She must have slipped it into my bag before everything went bad," Anne said as the two looked at the journal, while Sprig and Polly stood by looking concerned. It was at that moment that both girls shook… and started to cry. "Marcy…" Anne whined as her tears fell on the journal.

"Oh… of frog, Marcy, I-" Sasha covered her mouth while her tears leaked.

This caused Sprig and Polly to tear up as well. The two looked down, Sprig holding his hat to his chest in silence. Polly looked up to Sasha and walked over to hug her. Sasha was surprised by this and she looked down at the youngest Plantar, letting her hug her. Sprig went to hug Anne as well, knowing full well how she must be feeling.

After taking a moment to just… let it out and cry, Anne wiped away her tears. "Look Sasha, arguing won't do us any good," she said. "We need to plan our next move… for Marcy, regardless of if she's alive or not."

Sasha looked up to Anne and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, for Marcy," she said as the two shook hands. "So, any suggestions?"

"Well, right now we don't have any means to go home," Sprig pointed out.

"Maybe we should warn everybody about Andrias' invasion!" Polly suggested.

"Yeah… no," Sasha declined. "That won't end well, especially with talking frogs that would cause a panic…"

"Yeah, even before Amphibia, we were genre-savvy enough to know full well that won't work," Anne said. "Wait… Gravity Falls!"

"Gravi-what now?" Sasha asked.

"Sash, you remember me and Marcy explaining to you about our and Sprig's trip to the Demon Realm?" Anne asked her and Sasha nodded. "Our friend there, Luz, told us that if we ever made it back here, we should get in contact with the Mystery Shack. Luz knows people there and maybe they would be able to get us in touch with the Boiling Isles."

"Hmm… that might work," Sasha said.

Anne nodded. "Luz has a step-family there, and… oh frog." Her eyes widened in realization. "If we're back in Los Angeles, then… I could see my parents again."

Anne led the group toward the neighborhood that was once her home. Sprig and Polly hopped from one bush to another, while Anne and Sasha walked on the sidewalk.

"We gotta be careful around here, Sprig," Polly said while hiding in the bushes. "Who knows what threats lurk around this world."

"Yeah, expect the unexpected…" Sprig agreed.

"Would you two pick up the pace?" Sasha told them off while following Anne. "Well, this does look like the same street you used to live on, Anne. But are you sure your folks still live here?"

"They gotta be, Sasha," Anne responded. "I don't think they would have moved."

"Halt right there!"

The two stopped as they were halted by a tall, elderly man who had light-brown scruffy hair, visible wrinkles around his eyes, and glasses. He sported a yellow visor, black helmet with a green shield sticker and knee pads on his arms and knees. He wore a white blouse with a brown vest and light black jeans with a belt and green rollerblades. He also wore a green bag with a long shoulder strap that he uses as a money belt.

"Uh, who are you?" Anne asked him.

"The name's Robert Otto, your friendly neighborhood safety supervisor," he introduced himself. "I haven't seen you girls around here before, you're not from any of the LA gangs, are you?"

"No, we're just passing through," Sasha said as she tried to walk past him, but Otto blocked her.

"And what's this sword you're carrying?" he asked, pointing at the sword in her helm. "We have a strict policy on dangerous contraband around here…"

Sasha glared at the man. "Look pal, if you don't get out of my way, I'll show you what this sword can do," she told him off, about to bring out her sword… until someone intervened.

"Hey, grandpa, what are you doing?" asked a shoulder-length blond girl with a fair complexion, dyed pink strands of hair on the left side of her face, and light green on the bottom of her hair. She wore a white polo t-shirt with a brown sweater vest and plaid green skirt, a spiked bracelet on her right wrist, black leggings and dark-blue-gray boots with silver spikes on the back, black straps on the front, as well as black stud-like buttons. She also wore a black shoulder bag bearing the image of a pink cat with a scar over one eye on it. "Are you bothering these girls? They're obviously just came back from some kind of convention, right? Comic-Con's this season."

"Uh… yeah, we just came back from Comic-Con," Anne nodded as Sasha let go of the helm of her sword.

"I mean, it's obvious that this girl is cosplaying from that high fantasy tv show," she pointed out while looking at Sasha's cape. "So leave these girls be, okay gramps?"

"I guess I can let them go," Otto said while looking at his granddaughter. "Well, I have more patrolling to do. Stay out of trouble, Molly-Jo."

Sasha's eyes widened when she heard that name. "Wait, your name is Molly-Jo?" she asked while Otto rolled off.

"Yeah, I know, but hey it's a unique name," she responded before Sasha grabbed Anne and rushed off. "Hey, where ya going?"

"Nice meeting you," Sasha replied while dragging Anne away, leaving behind a confused Molly-Jo, who didn't notice Sprig and Polly rushing through the bushes.

"Sash, what was that all about?" Anne asked after being let go.

"Nothing, let's keep moving," Sasha responded while looking down as they continued walking.

Soon, they came to a stop in front of the Boonchuy residence. Sasha looked up at the house. "This place… hasn't changed a bit."

"Yeah, it's… my home," Anne said with a heartfelt smile. "I can't believe that… I'm going to see my parents again."

"So… do we also call them mom and dad? Or Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy?" Sprig asked her. "Do you think they're tongue people?"

"Actually, maybe you guys should stay out of sight," Sasha suggested. "Last thing we need is to spook Anne's parents about you two."

"What? But come on, I was hoping to meet Anne's parents," Sprig complained.

"Yeah!" Polly agreed.

"Look, how about you two hide up that tree over there," Anne said, pointing to the tree that was next to the driveway. "I want to ease them into all of this slowly, so we'll give you a signal, like 'caw-caw, caw-caw' when it is time for you two to come out."

"Got it," Sprig said as he and Polly jumped to climb up the tree, staying out of sight.

"Oh, and I won't tell them about us planning to go back to Amphibia… and about King Andrias… and that he betrayed us… and what Sasha did…" She briefly glanced at Sasha. "…and what happened to Marcy… and not a word about my weird glowing blue powers!" She took a deep breath and sighed. "Man, that's a lot…"

"Don't worry, Anne, you can count on us," Sprig declared as they hid. Anne and Sasha then looked toward the entrance, Anne sighing.

"Hey, are you sure about this?" Sasha asked.

"I… I am," Anne replied with a nod.

"Well, I'm not," Sasha responded with doubt in her tone. "What if this is a mistake? What if they don't believe you're their daughter? What if they freak out and call the authorities? What if it is someone else living here? What if-"

Anne turned to Sasha. "Hey, it's going to be okay, Sash. It has to be. And maybe after I reunite with my parents, we could try getting in contact with yours as well," she suggested, Sasha's eyes widening at the thought.

As Anne stepped onto the porch, she sighed again and reached to knock on the door. "Okay, here we go…"

After a few knocks, the door was finally opened. Opening it was Oum Boonchuy, holding a bowl of batter. "Yes, can I help you?" she asked her, not recognizing Anne.

Anne's eyes were filled with tears upon seeing her mother again for the first time in years. Struggling to control herself, she took a deep breath. "Hi mom… it's me, Anne."

The bowl of batter hit the ground, spilling everywhere as Oum's eyes widened in shock. "A-Anne?!" she gasped, looking at the girl before her, patting her shoulder and touching her face to make sure that she was real. "Is… is that really you?!"

"C̄hạn xyū̀ b̂ān," Anne spoke in Thai, while more tears leaked from her eyes. "It's something I've always remembered you saying."

"Oh… oh my baby," Oum said as she embraced Anne, who embraced her back. The two cried, finally reunited after seven years.

"What was that noise?" asked a Thai man with dark brown hair like Anne's, but he sported an oval chin. He had two dark thick eyebrows and light wrinkles underneath his eyes. He was tall and he wore a yellow polo shirt with red stripes, a blue shield-like symbol at the heart area, and a three at the back of his shirt, a pair of blue jeans and a pair of white socks with brown sandals and a golden wedding ring on his hand. "Oum, are you okay… who's…" He paused, seeing his wife crying while hugging a strange teenage girl. Anne looked up at him.

"D-Dad?" Anne asked him, her father's eyes widening.

"Bee, it's her!" Oum told her husband. "It's our little Anne!"

"Anne?!" Bee gasped, rushing over and getting a good look at his daughter. Tears streamed from his eyes. "I… oh my god, it's really you!" he said while hugging Anne, who hugged him back while crying.

"Mom! Dad!" Anne cried. The three of them broke down into tears and for a few minutes they did nothing except hug, cry, and sob.

Anne was home. And Oum and Bee finally had their daughter again.

"Oh Anne, I can't believe its you," Oum said while not letting go of her daughter, as if she was afraid that if she released Anne she would leave her again. "But where have you been? Where were you, Sasha and Marcy?"

"Yeah, you girls just disappeared in a flash of light, we still don't know how it happened," Bee explained.

"Sasha…" Anne remembered as she got up. "She's here as well!"

"What?!" the two asked in surprise.

"Yeah, she's right over-" Anne looked behind her, only to see that Sasha was nowhere in sight. "Here…"

After dashing off as quickly as she could, Sasha found herself wandering around Los Angeles. The blond girl looked down at the scars on her arms, her battle scars…

'Why did you run?' her inner thoughts asked her. 'Did you leave because seeing your precious little Anne reuniting with her parents reminded you that you wanted to keep her to herself, that you wanted to prevent that reunion from happening?'

Sasha shook her head. "No, it's nothing like that," she told herself while walking down on the sidewalk.

'Why then?' her thoughts asked her. 'What are you afraid of…'

"I'm not," she muttered.

'Afraid of what your own parents would think? How'd they react to your scars…'

Sasha snarled as she tried to get her inner voice to stop. "Shut up, shut up, shut up," she whispered to herself as she made it to an overpass. She leaned on the rail of the bridge, tears streaming from her eyes as she slid down. "Nonononono…" she silently cried. "Marcy… Grimy…"

She looked up to the sky while a car passed by. She cried. "I shouldn't be back here," she admitted. "Oh Marcy… my Marcy, I… it should've been me that Andrias stabbed, not you," she declared while covering her face to her knees. "This isn't right… why am I here and not Marcy? She's the one who should be here and not me!" She beat herself up as her thoughts darkened. "I shouldn't be here… there's nothing for me here at all…"

"Are you sure about that?" someone asked.

Sasha turned to find a man standing beside her. She looked up at him, seeing that he was wearing a blue suit and a cape, his face hidden by a blue fedora that was over his eyes. She looked up at him in confusion and suspicion. "Who… who are you?"

"Just a passing stranger," he replied, removing his fedora and revealing himself to be… Norman McCay, the pastor that Amity met in Echo Creek. "Maybe a phantom from a dream trying to help you understand the things you already know. Or perhaps I'm an emissary of a higher power, here to help you, Sasha Waybright."

"Me?" Sasha asked as she stood up. "W-Wait, how do you know my name?"

"I was briefed on you before I got here," McCay admitted. "I think we are actually quite alike, Sasha. We're both trapped in the wrong place and we both carry a heavy burden on our shoulders. My job here is to lighten the burden for you."

"Lighten my burden?" Sasha asked while a jogger ran past her.

"Excuse me," the jogger said while running into McCay… and phasing through him.

"The hell?!" Sasha exclaimed in shock. "He… he didn't see you at all."

"Nobody can," McCay admitted. "I am only visible to you."

"What are you, some kind of… ghost?" Sasha asked him.

"That's one way to think of it," McCay said as they walked.

"This… this has to be the result of my trauma from all the battles I've been in…"

"Tell me, Sasha," McCay spoke to her. "Why do you think that there's nothing here for you?"

Sasha turned to him. "I… I just don't feel like I belong in this world anymore. Not after everything I've been through back in Amphibia. I mean look at me, I'm thirteen and I'm already a veteran."

"Hmm, I think that you're afraid," he suggested.

Sasha scoffed and got defensive. "I'm not afraid of anything. I've battled marauders, bandits, giant herons, scorpileos, not to mention that I fought that Ernst prick and won! I also lifted Barrel's Warhammer, so yeah. I'm not afraid of anything."

"Oh no, I meant a different kind of fear," McCay pointed out. "You were afraid of Anne and Marcy leaving you, so you did everything in your power to keep them. But now, you've lost Marcy and you're afraid of losing Anne too since she's with her parents now, and you don't think that she will stay with you, not after everything you've done." As he said this, Sasha's eyes widened. "And that terrifies you, because you think that Anne and Marcy are the only people that can understand you and what you've been through. You think they are the only ones who can accept you, that your parents won't accept you when they see what you have become." Sasha looked down as McCay continued. "And that your little cousin, who was still a baby when you last saw her, won't accept you." Sasha wanted to counter, but she didn't say anything. "You're afraid that they'll only see you as a soldier and a monster. Because you are afraid that is what you are. And you're afraid of trying to be more than that because you don't know if you can be more than that."

"I… I am afraid," Sasha confessed. "I'm afraid that… what if Marcy is really dead because of me? What if Anne hates me after everything I did?"

"What if?" McCay repeated. "What if you were never born? What if Anne and Marcy never met you? What if you had been stabbed instead of Marcy? You could drive yourself crazy by asking 'what if' all day… or you could stop focusing on what you can't control and instead focus on what you can control," he suggested to her as Sasha looked up to him. "Maybe Anne does hate you... or maybe she needs you now more than ever. And maybe she's not the only one," he pointed out, patting Sasha's shoulder. "You can still make a difference now. It is okay to be afraid. But don't obsess over the worst possible outcome. If something bad happens, it happens. But if you actively avoid everything and everyone because you're afraid of the worst possible outcome, then you leave no room for something good to happen either." He paused. "Sometimes you just have to... take a leap into the unknown, which I know you're no novice to."

Sasha thought about what he said. "I'll… I'll think about it," she said while looking down

"That's all I ask," McCay responded as he placed his fedora back on his head, his eyes glowing white. "And if you ever want to talk again… go to Echo Creek."

"Echo Creek?" she asked as she looked up to him, only to see that Norman McCay… had vanished.

Her hair blew due to the wind and looked toward the view from the overpass. She thought about McCay's words. She could worry about the what ifs all she wanted, but it was not going to help her current dilemma. After a moment, she made her decision and started walking back…

Sasha returned to Anne's neighborhood, where she heard Anne calling out for her.

"Sasha? Sasha!" Anne called out to her. "Where are-?" She spotted Sasha, who came to a stop. "Sasha, you're here!"

"Anne… Anne I-" Tears leaked from Sasha's eyes. The blond started to cry and she fell on her knees.

Concerned, Anne ran over and knelt down in front of Sasha. "Sasha, are you okay? Why… why are you crying?"

"This is my fault…" Sasha admitted as she looked down while crying. "I shouldn't have tried to keep you from your family, Anne. Because of that, it's my fault that Marcy might be dead…" She looked up at Anne, tears flooding out from her watery eyes. "I'm sorry!" she wailed through her apology. "I… I understand that you hate me after what I've done…"

"Sash…" Anne looked surprised to see her like this. But without hesitation, Anne went to hug her, which surprised Sasha. "Sash, you may have done some bad stuff, but I don't… I don't hate you."

"You… you don't?" Sasha asked her. "But you should… and you said that when we got home, you would be done with me. That you never wanted me near you again."

Anne sighed. "I know what I said," she told Sasha. "And we do have some issues that we need to work through, Sasha, but we can work through them together," she said while hugging Sasha. She was crying as well. "And right now, I… I need you."

"Anne? Anne where did you go-" Oum asked as she and Bee walked up to find Anne with Sasha. The Boonchuys looked surprised to see who Anne was with.

"Is that…?" Bee asked in shock while Sasha looked up at them.

"Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy," Sasha sniffed as Anne's parents ran up to hug her.

"Oh Sasha, it really is you!" Oum shouted as she hugged the girl, Bee joining her. "We are so glad that you're safe."

"R-Really?" Sasha asked them.

"Of course, we were just as worried for your well being as Anne and Marcy," Bee told her.

Sasha could only cry as she hugged them both. She cried on their shoulders, feeling… relief.

After returning home, Anne and Sasha were in the living room, where Anne brought her parents up to speed about what she and Sasha had been through. Bee and Oum were doing their best to follow their daughter… but it was still a lot.

"Are you two… okay?" Anne asked them, worried.

"We're fine, Anne," Bee said. "It's just that… it's a lot. We had no idea where you, Sasha, and Marcy were for seven years, but we never could have imagined that you were in a world full of talking frogs like you and Sasha are now claiming. All of this is crazy and I wouldn't believe a word of it… if you girls hadn't disappeared in a flash of light without leaving a trace in broad daylight. We had no way to explain it."

"But this does explain it, as incredible as it sounds," Oum admitted. "And it does explain what happened to Sasha." She looked over at Sasha, who stared at the floor as she felt Oum looking at her scars.

"Okay, so where was I?" Anne asked.

"The third temple," Sasha pointed out.

"Right!" Anne replied. "So, as soon as we charged the last stone, the music box opened a portal that took me and Sasha back to Earth. Before anything else could happen…"

"Anne, just tell them," Sasha told her, much to Anne's surprise.

"Tell us what?" Oum asked Sasha.

"Is this about Marcy? Where is she?" Bee asked.

"Um, well…" Anne said, looking nervous about telling her birth parents about what happened to Marcy, but Sasha went over to her and pulled her aside for a moment.

"Look Anne, I know that you're afraid," Sasha told her. "Afraid of how they'd react. But if you keep it a secret, it could do more harm to you and everyone. You can't keep them in the dark about this. They deserve to know everything… the good and the bad.."

"But… but I don't know if I could," Anne said while Sasha patted her shoulder.

"Hey, I'm sure they'll understand," Sasha reassured her. "You can't keep face this burden alone, Anne. Just… take a leap to the unknown. You're no stranger to that, are you?"

Anne thought about Sasha's words and her thoughts drifted to Marcy. She didn't want to scare her parents, but she also knew she had to tell them the truth sooner or later…

"Actually, there are some things that I may have left out," Anne said as she turned to face her parents. "And it's about what happened to Marcy…"

Anne proceeded to tell them what happened after the music box was charged, including about Andrias and how he betrayed them, especially Marcy. When she told them what happened to her… Oum and Bee were horrified by the truth.

"Oh no… not Mar-Mar…" Bee said when he started to cry.

"Marcy… she was murdered?!" Oum asked with tears in her eyes.

"I… I don't know, but… I don't want to think…" Anne sniffed as she started to break down again. Sasha helped comfort her, as Anne was crying again and her parents went to comfort her as well.

Outside, Sprig and Polly were still up the tree waiting for the signal.

"Anne's sure taking her time in there," Sprig commented.

"Yeah," Polly replied, while kicking the air. "But I guess she and her parents needed this…"

Later, after calming down, Anne brought her parents out to meet Sprig and Polly.

"Okay, so I think I'm ready to introduce you to, well, my frog siblings," Anne said as she shouted the signal. "Caw-caw! Caw-caw!"

"Oh, that's the signal," Sprig said as he and Polly climbed down from the tree. Anne's parents looked surprised to see the two frog kids. "Hey, um, Anne's parents…" Sprig said, waving to them.

"Hi, I'm Polly, and this is Sprig," Polly greeted while walking up to them. "Um, what is it I should say, we come in peace."

"Oh, so you two are the ones Anne told us about," Oum said, kneeling down to Sprig's level. "It's nice to meet you two."

"You're… not afraid of us?" Sprig asked them.

"Anne told us about what you have done for her over the years, about how your grandfather and your parents brought her into your family, gave her a home, and took care of her," Bee said as he rustled Sprig's head. "If we ever meet your Hop Pop, we'd like to thank him too for what he did for our daughter."

"Wow…" Sprig said in awe. "My Hop Pop would be honored."

"Yeah, he would," Polly agreed. "I can't wait to tell you about all the things we did together with Anne."

"We'd like to hear that," Oum replied, while turning to Anne and smiling at her. "I like them already."

Anne smiled, feeling glad and relieved that their introduction to Sprig and Polly went well.

"So what's our next move, Anne? With this whole frog invasion and that King Andrias guy, what now?" Bee asked.

"Okay, so our plan is to go to Gravity Falls," Anne replied. "The other human girl I've talked about, Luz, said that there are some people there that might be able to help us. At the very least, they are the only people who we can trust to believe us and not think that we are crazy. But for now, Sprig and Polly have to stay with us."

"Don't worry, Anne, we are happy to let them stay with us for the time being," Oum agreed. "It is the least we can do for your adopted siblings."

"Yeah, and you can stay here too, Sasha," Bee said to her. "At least until we're able to get in touch with your parents… and Marcy's parents as well."

Sasha frowned. "I don't think that would be wise, Mr. Boonchuy. I… I'm not ready to see my family yet."

"What? But they've been so worried about you, Sasha," Bee responded while Sasha looked down.

"I'm just not ready to face them yet," Sasha replied while hugging herself. "There's a lot about me that's changed…"

"Sasha…" Bee said, looking concerned for her.

"And besides, I don't think it's good to talk to Marcy's parents about this," Anne admitted. "I know that it would only worry them more, but I can't bear to tell them what happened to their daughter. At least, I want to be sure about what happened to her before we tell them anything."

"Plus, the more people know, the more likely the authorities will get involved," Sasha pointed out. "And who knows what they'll do to Sprig and Polly."

"Right, I've seen the family alien movies, I get what you're saying," Bee said.

"I don't like the idea of not telling both yours and Marcy's parents about this, Sasha," Oum admitted as she stood up. "But we understand your concerns. Right now, we need to prepare for a trip to Gravity Falls to get in contact with the people that could help us."

"And we'll help you as much as we can," Bee said as he and Oum gave nods.

Anne smiled, looking relieved that her parents were taking her and Sasha seriously. Sasha looked relieved as well, since this was going much better than she thought…

Later, Anne entered her old bedroom and saw that it had stayed intact. She now had changed from her farming clothes to a pink and white t-shirt with jean shorts, and red sneakers.

"Whoa, so this is your room, Anne?" Polly asked, looking around at the stuffed toys on her bed.

"Yeah, it's just as I remember it from all those years ago," Anne replied while looking at the crayon drawings on the walls. "I don't think they changed anything. It looks like they even kept the place cleaned."

"So where do we sleep, Anne?" Sprig asked her.

"Well, I hope we still got the sleeping bags for you two to sleep on," Anne replied while checking her closet as Sasha came in.

"Glad your mom went to the thrift store to get some clothes for us so we don't have to wear your old baby clothes, Anne," Sasha said while wearing a black Twisted Sister shirt, a black skirt with purple socks, and black boots.

"Found them," Anne said while pulling out the sleeping bags. "Alright, Sprig and Polly, you two will have to share. And Sash, do you-" She saw Sasha going to a part of the floor, grabbing some sheets and blankets as the three saw what Sasha had set up.

"There, this will be better," Sasha said, having to build a makeshift fort.

"Ooh, I like this fort," Polly commented in awe.

"Thanks, something I've picked up from when me and the Toads had to camp out a lot," Sasha mentioned as she went inside her fort. "I'm used to sleeping like this while surviving."

Anne walked over to Sasha, sitting in front of her. "You um, comfortable in here?"

"Yeah. Sprig and Polly can have both the sleeping bags," Sasha told her. "I don't mind, I'm used to sleeping in the trenches."

"Okay…" Anne said as she looked to the side while Sasha thought about Molly-Jo earlier.

"Hey Anne," Sasha said to her. "You know that girl we saw earlier when we ran to that safety officer guy?"

"Yeah…?" Anne asked her.

"That… was my baby cousin," Sasha admitted, which surprised Anne.

"Wait, you mean that Molly Jo girl is related to you?" Anne asked. "I don't think I've ever heard of you mentioning her before."

"Yeah, well, she's my cousin from my mom's side and we weren't close. She lived in San Francisco the last time I saw her… I didn't even know that she moved here," Sasha said while thinking about that Otto guy "And her grandpa, that Otto guy, must've been her grandfather from her dad's side."

"Oh yeah… I do recall you mentioning that your mom had a twin sister. I can't believe that I missed the resemblance between you and Molly Jo," Anne replied while scratching the back of her hair.

"Yeah…" Sasha said while looking up the top of her blanket fort. "I do wonder though… about how mom and dad have been doing since the last time I saw them."

"I do wonder about that too," Anne admitted. "You think Molly Jo's family is here because of your mom?"

"I have no idea," Sasha replied. "I have no idea what my dad is doing now or if my mom is even still in Los Angeles. I wonder what she would think of me if she saw what I had become…"

"Hey, you're still Sasha Waybright," Anne reassured while patting Sasha's knee. "You're still her daughter, and nothing's going to change that."

Sasha gave a sigh. "Thanks Anne," she told her. "Hey Anne, do you feel weird about being back home after all these years?"

"Yeah, it does feel weird," Anne admitted while bringing her knees to her chest. "But I also hate to imagine what it was like for my parents during all those years without me. I want to be happy to be with them now… but Marcy's fate is still eating me up." She lowered her head out of guilt. "I… I feel responsible for what happened to her… just as I feel responsible for…" She didn't finish that sentence. She instead glanced at Sprig and Polly, who were busy playing around with Anne's old toys in her closet.

"Ooh, look at this weird thing," Polly said as she held up a stuffed orange squirrel, while Sprig held a blue rabbit stuffed toy. "What do you think they're called again?"

"I don't know, and this one reminds me of one of those rabbugs that Hop Pop hates," Sprig replied while noticing Anne looking at them. "Hey Anne, what do you call these animals?"

Anne gave a small smile. "A squirrel and a rabbit, they're pretty much everywhere, Sprig," she told him while giving a saddened look.

Sasha's head popped up, noticing Anne's look. "Hey, um, is there anything you want to talk about, Anne?"

Anne just sighed while turning to Sasha. "Let's just say, we both have our burdens that we carry," she told her as she stood up. "Alright, we should all be ready for bed. First night back home and everything."

"Okay!" Sprig and Polly replied as they went to their sleeping bags as Anne went to sleep on her bed.

"Good night, guys," Anne told her siblings.

"Goodnight, Anne," Sprig and Polly said as they went to sleep.

"Goodnight, Sasha," Anne told Sasha.

"Yeah, goodnight," Sasha replied as the lights went out. Sasha went through the events of that day in her head, from launching a Toad rebellion to fighting Andrias to returning home and meeting that… phantom stranger. After all of that, Sasha just wanted to get some sleep.

Back in Amphibia, the castle of King Andrias flew through a thunderous storm with heavy downpour. It was now surrounded and guarded by numerous Frobots with ominous glowing red visors.

Inside, King Andrias sat on his throne. But he wasn't in his usual, jovial self. Instead he looked… dead serious and completely joyless.

"My plans are in motion," he spoke in a serious tone. "Our forces are growing, and soon we will be ready to invade." He lifted his face up, showing his cold eyes. "Only one remains who could stand between me and my conquest," he declared while tapping on the gems of the Music Box, showing an image of Anne. "Anne Boonchuy-Plantar."

With the snap of his finger, a Frobot landed in front of its king. This Frobot had a silver and grayish green paint job, and compared to the other Frobots, he was lanky and thin, with eight razor-sharp claws attached to its two long arms, three toes on each leg. It had a horn that curved backward at the top of its head and its optics were red. Tubes stuck out from the side of its torso, two of which were attached next to what seemed like a blue light on its left, and it had two larger darker-colored shoulder pads. It was also equipped with long, powerful legs and was quite tall.

The Cloak-Bot laughed sinisterly, but Andrias wasn't in a laughing mood. The Cloak-Bot scanned the energy of the blue gem while looking at the Music Box and listening to Andrias. "This mission requires the utmost discretion. We cannot allow the other world to know of the coming invasion. Make sure no Earthling sees you. Understood?"

The Cloak-Bot gave its king a reply. "Energy signature acquired."

King Andrias used the box to open the portal to Earth. Once the Cloak-Bot walked through and the portal closed, the power was then returned to the box.

Andrias turned his gaze to a glowing green rejuvenation tank. Floating inside was a comatose Marcy, who was hooked up to wires while wearing a black bodysuit and a breathing mask. As Andrias looked upon, guilt and regret briefly flashed across his face.

"I'm sorry, Marcy," Andrias said while looking down. "It shouldn't have been you…"

Back in Los Angeles, the Cloak-Bot appeared through the portal and landed in an alleyway. The slim Frobot looked around, scanning the area for Anne's signature. Its visor picks up a trace of the blue energy signature.

"Target acquired," the Cloak-Bot said, not noticing a winged figure landing on a rooftop nearby. "Activate stealth mo-"

But then suddenly, the Cloak-Bot got jumped by the figure. The Cloak-Bot was caught by surprise as it felt itself getting punched and then stabbed through in the stomach by the attacker.

"Warning! Unidentified enemy-" The Cloak-Bot tried to fight back, but the other mechanical being grabbed its arms and pulled them off from its sockets. The Cloak-Bot was then kicked into a dumpster and the figure slashed the Cloak-Bot several more times before grabbing its head. "Systems damaged! Error! Error! Mommy-" The Cloack-Bot's head was ripped away from its body, along with any connected wires.

The Cloak-Bot was devastated, ripped into pieces. Standing over its remains was the victor of the fight. A smiling robot that stared down at its defeated opponent.

The Cloak-Bot was defeated… by an Ex-Bot.

It was morning at the Boonchuy home, where everyone was having breakfast. Anne was on the phone trying to contact the Mystery Shack.

"Come on, come on," Anne said while she received an automated answer. "Ugh, it's not picking up for some reason."

"Still trying to contact Gravity Falls?" Sasha asked her.

"Yeah," Anne replied with a nod. "I looked up the Mystery Shack's contact information and tried calling them several times, but they're still not picking up. Almost as if the line got cut off."

"Have you tried looking up at them through social media?" Bee suggested.

"Social media?" Anne asked him.

"Oh yeah, these days Facebook and sites like it are the rage," Bee replied. "You get to connect with family, old friends, and play games with strangers like this monster collecting game I'm in."

Anne and Sasha looked confused, as did Sprig and Polly. "Well, is there a Mystery Shack on this… Facebook, dad?" Anne asked him.

"Let me check," Bee replied while looking at his cellphone. "Hmm… no Facebook page about a Mystery Shack, not even an online page."

"Okay, so there really are no means of contacting the Pines family in Gravity Falls," Anne said while looking down. "Especially since we don't know any other number we can use to call them."

"Hmm, the Mystery Shack is in Oregon, right?" Oum asked and Anne nodded. "Well, why don't we drive down there for ourselves."

"Wait, really, mom?" Anne asked in surprise.

"Drive? So riding on one of your own snails as well?" Sprig asked while eating cereal along with Polly.

"Yeah, we could take a family road trip up there and look for this Pines family," Bee suggested.

"Wait, are you sure, you guys?" Anne asked her parents. "I mean, we just got here and-"

"Anne," Oum said as she grabbed Anne's hands, raising them up as she looked at her daughter. "The last thing we want is to keep you out of our sight and there is so much we need to catch up on, so much lost time that we need to make up for… but we do know how important this is."

"Yeah, and if what you and Sasha told us about this Andrias guy is true, then we really need to get to Gravity Falls as soon as possible." Bee said while patting his wife's shoulder in agreement. His wife patted his hand.

"We want nothing more than to spend time reconnecting with you, Anne," Oum said before looking serious. "But we do know that we just don't have the time for that. Not now, at least. But later, after the threat has passed."

"Yeah, later," Anne said, agreeing with her parents.

After getting some supplies, the Boonchuy's car was packed up for their trip to Oregon.

"Alright, we got food, clothing, including new clothing, oh, and what about weapons?" Sasha asked.

"Uh…" Bee said awkwardly before looking around. "Where's Anne?"

"Right here," Anne said as she stepped out of the front door. Following her were Sprig and Polly, both in disguises.

"Do you like our disguises, Sasha?" Sprig asked while wearing a dark-green beanie, brown jacket, olive and green striped shirt and blue shorts, and mint sneakers. He also wore a face-mask.

"Yeah, pretty discreet, are we?" Polly asked while wearing a bucket hat, blond wig, and brown coat with rain boots.

"Yeah, nice disguises," Sasha responded with a thumbs up.

"Alright, everybody, let's hit the road to Gravity Falls." Oum declared as everyone got into the van. As they started to drive out of the neighborhood, Sasha looked out the window before noticing Anne, who was sitting next to her, was in her own mind.

"You okay, Anne?" Sasha asked.

"I'm fine, just… thinking about Luz and Amity," Anne admitted. "I do wonder if they were able to get to the Human Realm like we did, because we could really use their help. I think you would've liked them, Sash, especially Luz, she is… a lot like you in a way."

"Really? A fellow badass like myself?" Sasha asked with a smile. "Well, can't wait to finally meet this Luz Clawthorne you've been telling me about…"

Soon, they were about to drive out of their neighborhood. But before they could get on the main road… a truck stopped in front of them and blocked their way.

"Aw, what?!" Bee asked, seeing the truck blocking the road.

"Hey, does anyone hear something?" Sprig asked as he heard a siren from a car that was coming up from behind them.

"Sprig, Polly, sit down," Oum said as she saw the cop car stop behind them and someone get out.

Bee looked in his rearview window and saw the officer walking up to them. He rolled down the window. "Um, how can we help you, officer?" he asked.

"I'm just here to… ask you and your family some questions," said the bald-headed officer as he removed his sunglasses.

"Uh… I think you have something on the side of your face," Bee said, pointing to a strange red mark that covered the left side of the man's face, including above and underneath his left eye.

"Oh, this?" the Huntsman asked, pointing to himself. "It's a birthmark. It's supposed to resemble a dragon…"

Oh, hey Jeff…

So a little author's notes here:

We've decided that this entry for a new sidetrack, this time focusing on Sasha's upbringing in being raised around Grime and the Toads. We show how growing up as a warrior, or basically a child soldier, took a toll on Sasha.

I did had the idea of making this chapter a kind of "It's A Wonderful Life" scenario, but me and Buck decided that rather than Sasha going around to see what life's like without her, it wouldn't make sense for her to see an alternate timeline where Marcy would be alive, cause any timeline where Marcy's alive is better than her current timeline. So we've decided to play around and subvert it by having McCay give Sasha a pep talk. It is pretty much better this way.

Also if you haven't guessed, this chapter where Anne, Sasha, Sprig and Polly reunited with the Boonchuys takes place after the events of "Closing the Gates". The Huntsman being the one to stop the Boonchuys… well, this can explain why they haven't been to the Falls yet…

Oh, and we did make the decision of making Molly-Jo as Sasha's cousin, since we kinda see a little resemblance. It's a fun headcanon to have, and we consider Robert Otto from Sasha's extended family from her dad's side. To give some known facts, Sasha's parents are divorce in canon, as her dad remarried while her mom has a boyfriend who has kids of her own. Her being a child of divorce at an early age does explain about her controlling tendencies, but doesn't excuse her actions.

Another change we've acknowledged is have Andrias be more serious than his jovial evil self in the aftermath of killing Marcy. It makes a lot more sense since it wouldn't be appropriate to have the Cloak Bot go get him some chips or a new book. Instead, stabbing Marcy deeply affected him…

Anyway, some trivia:

-How Sasha got her x-shaped mark on her face is from Captain Ernst aka Goldmask of the Order of the Olm, a character mentioned in "Marcy's Journal", which also mentions Bomme Frite, an engineer in the book. Also mentioned in the book is Dawnblood Island.

-Yes, I can't help but use the "Muda-Muda" sound from JoJo's Bizarre Adventures when Sasha beats Urnst to death.

That's pretty much it for the Author's Notes. Stay tuned as your answers for the Q&A for the Greek Gods that appeared in the Underworld Arc will be answered.

What else can be answered are the reviews from the previous chapter:

CrashXFusion: Yeah, as you know the epilogue will come out after this one. We thought it'd be better if we start the new year with the Amphibia side.

OMAC001: Yep, we're at the endgame for Book 2…

Matteso585: 1) Her Oracle magic, specifically since Kadabe's vision showed her who would be able to help her stop the Inner Demon, that included showing her what Gus was capable of. It's like how one of her visions showed her where to find Dolly.. 2) It's not really necessary since the moment the Inner Demon is out, the Baron comes in to collect him. 3) Pretty much beyond Alpha. 4) No spoilers. 5) I don't think Belos would immediately recruit her after everything that's happened thanks to Terra and Nicole…

Franco Almiron: 1) No spoilers. 2) You'll probably see. 3) Maybe.

Spantidem7: Firstly, you can stop with the proposals and suggestions. We can make how the dead villains designs will be for ourselves, since we can't say and that would be spoilers. As for your questions: 1) Other than Maya, Belo's soul is still inhabiting into her. 2) Yes. 3) Lupe isn't dead because he has unfinished business with Donna 4) Still Boil's prisoners, also yes. 5) We don't find you annoying, but we can't accept audience suggestions like the villains' hell designs, since we do have ideas for them ourselves.

The theory on Willow is not the case, nor is it sound.

Darraq: No spoilers.

Eddy13: No spoilers.

DarkPhoenixKing: Wow, haven't heard from you in a while. Thanks for reading.

Shufollower: Glad you're able to catch up.

Oh wait, there's still something else... answering the Q&A from the Greek Gods that appeared in LC!

Now then, let's see what these gods have answered:

From Gamelover41592

Well I don't know if you gods researched this world, but what do you guys think of the Percy Jackson universe and I mean the books not the movies

Hades: "I don't read the books, though I did hear that I have some kids in them."

Hercules: "Honestly, I haven't read it. Reading fictional depictions of my family is always weird for me."

Macaria: "I actually did read them and I was disappointed to see how little my family was represented in them. Like I don't recall seeing me, Melinoe, Plutus, or Zagreus anywhere in those books, just my parents."

Megara: "Just like my husband, I haven't read them."

Melinoe: "Never read them. I didn't think I could relate to the main character."

Persephone: "I quite enjoyed the books and I even checked out the first movie… which I absolutely hated, since it depicted my husband as cruel and abusive and it depicted me as a serial cheater. And why am I even in the Underworld in the film when it's supposed to be taking place in the summer?"

Poseidon: "Percy what?"

Zeus: "I'm a bit afraid to read them, honestly. I feel like I would just be reminded of my own mistakes and what I was like in my younger days and I don't think I would enjoy that."

From xndelongchamps

To Zeus, how tough was your battle with Kronos the first time you fought

Zeus: "Well, I couldn't have defeated him alone. I fought him and the other Titans during the Titanomachy with my two brothers, Hestia, Demeter, Hera, the Hecatonchires, the Cyclopes, Themis, and Prometheus. I would not have been able to defeat my father alone."

From Philip Clark

To Poseidon: Is your son Triton from the myths and King Triton of Atlantica one and the same?

Poseidon: "Actually, the Triton of Atlantica is my grandson."

Hercules: Did you have any more team-ups with Aladdin after your initial one against Hades and Jafar? I've always considered the two of you to be the Superman and Batman of Disney.

Hercules: "Oh, thanks… I guess. But yes, we did have more team-ups. I helped him once with Mechanicles, an insane inventor who was originally from Greece and had been giving Al a bit of trouble for some time. And then he needed some help with another enemy of his. I think her name was Mirage…"

From Crash X Fusion

Meg, how did you ascend to godhood? And how did you cope with what happened to your daughter?

Meg: "Well, after everything that I've put up with, I would say that I deserve godhood! I traded my soul to Hades, sacrificed my life to say Herc, lost my firstborn daughter when my husband went mad… when my husband ascended to join the other gods of Olympus, there was no way he was going without me! You could say that I ascended to godhood out of sheer stubbornness. It isn't like I'm the only mortal woman who ascended to godhood. One of my best friends at Olympus is Psyche, goddess of the soul. As for how I coped with what happened to my daughter…" (long pause) "Well, how do you cope with your husband accidentally killing your daughter and your daughter being adopted by the man that you hate the most? It took me a long, long time to forgive Herc. You could say we were… separated for a while after that. I needed my space. I eventually forgave him, but I don't think he was ever able to forgive himself…"

Mac, what happened to you? How do you feel about the whole situation? And is there any bad blood between you and Hercules because of it, or have you long since gotten over it and understand his feelings on the matter?

Macaria: "Do I really have to talk about my death?" (sighs) "I still don't know what happened. One day my dad was just… sent into a fit of madness. He went on a rampage and hurt a lot of people… including me. Next thing I know, my soul is in the River Styx. My dad went to the Underworld to rescue me, just like he rescued my mom. But when he pulled me out of the River Styx… I refused to go back with him. I was too scared of him and he was forced to leave me in the Underworld, where Persephone took pity on me and gave me a new home. Things between me and my dad are still… awkward. Partially because he hasn't forgiven himself and partially because… well, I understand that he wasn't in control of his actions. But I am just supposed to 'get over' being killed by my own dad? I was scared of him for a long time after that. I had trouble looking at him without remembering that mad look in his eyes when he murdered me. I actually once thought about using the waters of Lethe to forget about my death, but I decided against it. So yeah, I haven't completely gotten over it and neither has he. I know my dad isn't a monster, but can you really blame me if being around him makes me uncomfortable sometimes?"

Herc, after you remained on Earth with Meg, what kind of adventures did you go on, other villains faced? And when was the last time you attended a meeting with the Order, if at all?

Hercules: "Oh, I went on countless adventures. Sometime after we had Mac, an old friend of mine from the Prometheus Academy, Helen, got kidnapped again by a jerk named Paris, who was from Troy. In order to rescue her, I enlisted to fight in the Sacking of Troy. Now, there were actually several Trojan conflicts, but nowadays it's all thought of as one single Trojan War as a way to condense and streamline the story, with events being told out of order. Anyway, I was able to rescue Helen and after that… I think my most notable adventure was my role in the Gigantomachy, a big battle between the Olympians and the Giants who were the offspring of Gaia and were unleashed on the Olympians to avenge the Titans. Of the Giants, I killed Alcyoneus and Porphyrion. Oh, I also once wrestled Achelous, the shape shifting god of the Achelous River. And I once challenged Dionysus to a drinking contest… big mistake there. Honestly, a lot of my later adventures happened while me and Meg were… on a break after Mac's death. I sorta just wandered aimlessly for a while, getting into fights and killing a lot of people. And at one point I may or may not have slept with a half-snake woman… I'm not completely sure. I do remember getting into a fight with Thanatos when she came to collect a woman named Alcestis whose husband offered me hospitality. I… don't know if Thanatos has a grudge against me for that or not. As for your second question, I can't remember exactly when it was, but I have attended a meeting of the Order before. It's like jury duty, you have to do it."

Mel, what happened between you and Jake Long?

Mel: "You mean the American Dragon? Oh, I was just hitting the Big Apple, having my usual brand of fun. You can probably guess that the American Dragon wasn't happy with that. I played with him a bit until I got bored, then I moved on."

And Hades, you'll probably lie but try to be honest, here goes; does Luz freak you out?

Hades: "What? Why would the kid freak me out? She's just a mortal."

From spantidem7

Hades, how do you feel knowing that you failed as a father to Melinoe?

Hades: "I mean, have you met my father? He ate me. I always knew that I was never going to be 'father of the year', but all things considered, I could have done a lot worse. Can we at least agree that I am a better father than Cronus? And yeah, I still let Mel down… but I am trying to help her now. That has to count for something."

Hercules, on a scale of one to ten, how painful was your death?

Hercules: "Well, um, I didn't actually die. Me and Meg just ascended to Olympus when we were ready. It was sort of a 'true love conquers all' kind of deal.

Macaria, how is your job?

Macaria: "I mean, it's nice. I work with Thanatos most of the time, so I don't get lonely. And I get to travel a lot, rather than be stuck in the Underworld 24/7."

Megara, were you surprised when you ascended to godhood? For someone with your cynical mindset, you must have been surprised when you were not separated by death from your husband.

Meg: "Not really. I mean, after everything I had to deal with from my enslavement by Hades to being crushed to death while saving Herc to losing my daughter when my husband fell into madness… yeah, I think my godhood was well-deserved. I wasn't surprised, I felt… vindicated."

Melinoe, who is the worse parent, Hades or Maleficent? What's your favorite killing method? How did you feel when you were banished from hell? Have you ever fallen down a ridiculously long flight of stairs? What is your favorite human characteristic? What do you think about pedophiles?

Mel: "Wow, that is a lot of questions. Well, first of all, my mom is the worst. At least I know my dad cares. Second, I actually prefer not killing my enemies. I'm a goddess, after all. I can be more… creative. Thirdly, it isn't like Hell is the first place that I got kicked out of. Honestly, if being banished from Hell means I get to avoid attending any more awkward family reunions down there, fine by me. Fourth, what kind of question is that? No. As for my favorite human characteristic… their zealotry. And I think I know where you are going with the last question. I am not a pedophile. My situation is completely different. But as for mortal pedophiles… don't worry, there is a special place in Hell for them."

Persephone, what do you think of Lucifer and Lilith's parenting methods? And what do you think of their daughter, Charlie?

Persephone: "I don't live in their household, so I don't know what their parenting methods are. But I have met their daughter Charlie and she is absolutely delightful. Her parents seem quite happy with their marriage as well. In fact, I've always gotten the impression that Lucifer and Hades are very alike, down to their unresolved family issues. I think someone should try to get God and Lucifer to sit down and speak to each other the same way I got Hades and Zeus to. It would be a start, at least."

Poseidon, how do you feel about your children and grandchildren?

Poseidon: "I love every one of them. You have undoubtedly heard of some of them. Triton, Ursula, Serpentina, Charybdis, Polyphemus, Arion, Chrysomallus, Theseus, Otus…"

NOTE: Poseidon continued to list all of his children over several hours.

Zeus, do you sometimes feel like the universe is conspiring against you and your family? Did you say something that pissed off some other deity or something?

Zeus: "Um… not sure what you mean by the first question. As for the second question, I have pissed off other deities more times than I could count."

From Krypton Writes

Ask Zeus how much is he aware of the concept of multiverse, and why isn't there a percy jackson in his universe

Zeus: "I am aware of the multiverse, but I know full well not to mess with it. I already have to deal with Jupiter from the Roman Gods and-" (groans) "-Duck Zeus from that parallel universe, so the last thing I need is to meet versions of myself from other timelines. And honestly, given how much my brother sleeps around, I wouldn't be surprised if there was a Percy Jackson in this universe. You probably have to ask him."

And Ask every god what were their experience with the brief meeting with the best bad girl: Luz Clawthorne

Hades: "Ugh, I would honestly be fine if I never had to see her or her friends again. Because everytime I see that mortal, it's because something has gone wrong, whether it's Pain and Panic losing Spot or my daughter terrorizing the Demon Realm."

Hercules: "Admittedly, I didn't really get a chance to speak with her that much. But Kitsuni does speak highly of her and I heard that she and her girlfriend slew the Coachman, so I would call them both true heroes."

Macaria: "I don't think I got to speak to her, unfortunately."

Megara: "I didn't go to the Underworld, so I didn't get to meet her."

Melinoe: "I hate her, obviously. She killed Trini, who had a family. And now that family will never see her again, thanks to Luz. I think that family deserves justice, don't you?"

Persephone: "I already knew about Luz from my colleagues Kitsuni and Aphrodite. Kitsuni spoke highly of her, of course. And Aphrodite loves Luz and Amity as a couple. I wish I could have gotten more of a chance to interact with them, but I have to focus on my own family right now."

Poseidon: "Luz Clawthorne? Was that one of the mortals that was in the Underworld? I don't think I know any of their names."

Zeus: "I only saw her briefly after the whole Cronus situation was taken care of. But I have heard good things about her, including how she and her girlfriend were the ones who defeated the Coachman. Yes, even the gods of Olympus have heard the name of Luz Clawthorne. It's actually quite impressive… and promising. If her venture into the Underworld is anything to go by, it will be interesting to see what she does in the future."

From Matteso585

Hades: I don't know how much time passed between you crawling out of the River Styx and Melinoe being born, but what did you ever see in Maleficent?

Hades: (sighs) "Isn't it obvious? I saw myself. I was starting to fall in love with Persey, but a girl like her and a guy like me? I thought it would never work. I thought she would never love me back or that I would never be good enough for her. So I found someone who was more like me. Someone that I felt like I actually deserved to be with rather than Persey. And me and Mal… we did have some good times. But it wasn't love. Honestly, I think the only thing that woman ever loved was her pet bird. Me and Persey were eventually able to make it work, but I still had to deal with the consequences of my fling with Mal… being stuck with her kid for half of the year."

Melinoe: When you freed D-Josh, did you do it out of the goodness in your heart (if there's any), or did you do it because a free genie makes a better expendable tool? Because I think you both would've found his mother by now.

Mel: "Well, yes, I freed him so that I would basically have unlimited wishes rather than just three. But I wouldn't call him expendable and as for your assumption… you're way off. I have tried to find his mother, I really have. After all, that would put him further in my debt, would it not? But I just have been unable to find her, honestly."

Persephone: What's with the myths saying that you're Melonoe's biological parent?

Persephone: (embarrassed laughter) "Well, after Mel was born, we agreed to let the mortals think that I was her mother to avoid the scandal that would have been caused otherwise. As for the myths that claim Zeus is her father… yeah, I have no idea what that is about."

Zeus: Whenever you possess a statue, what goes on with your real body?

Zeus: "I… have no idea, actually."

Hades: Where do the forgotten souls from the Land of the Dead (Coco) go when they're... well… forgotten?

Hades: "The Land of the Forgotten, obviously. That is ruled by my good buddy Xibalba."

Two for Melinoe: 1) How do you feel about the fact that a certain power fantasy series (God of War) didn't include you, but included your dad and stepmom? 2) Ever heard of the Dark Dragon? That guy has the same scale color pattern as your mother's dragon form.

Mel: "Why would I want to be in a video game series that is all about killing the gods? And I don't really care about my dad and stepmom being in the series either, because their game versions are nothing like they are in real life. I don't even find it funny, just offensive. Especially what they did to my stepmom. As for the Dark Dragon… never heard of him, but honestly I wouldn't be surprised if he was either one of my mom's old partners or if she is one of her other kids. Honestly, I know less about my mother's side of the family than my dad's."

Persephone: Ever get the feeling that Maleficent is a bad influence on Melinoe?

Persephone: "Uh, obviously! She is literally known as the Mistress of Evil! Come on!"

Hercules: Remember that time you dived into the River Styx? Consider that proof that not everything is set in stone?

Hercules: "Oh? How so?"

From Nylara666

Zeus (and really all the gods): How do you fit in power and authority wise to the Fae eg. Oberon, Maleficent?

Zeus: "I think you'll have to be more specific, but the gods each have power and authority over their domains. The Fae have their own territories that they tend to stick to, but sometimes the Fae do enter the domain of other gods. Oberon and one of his Pucks once caused a lot of trouble in Athens during the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta, for example. Poseidon and Ares were not happy at all with the Fae messing with their kids, even if everything did work out in the end."

From Franco Almiron

So, Hades, is Melinoe not anymore a threat?

Hades: "Don't worry. We are keeping a close eye on her now. Plus we have been thinking about temporarily stripping her of her godhood. My brother did that to his son Apollo once to teach him a lesson, so maybe it would do Melinoe some good."

Hercules, what stuff have you been doing since you became a human?

Hercules: "I mean, I was never human. I was still a demigod. I guess the term you meant to use was human. But I have already mentioned a bunch of my activities after I turned down godhood to be with Meg on Earth. I sacked Troy, killed Giants, teamed up with Al a few times, wrestled a shapeshifting river god, and I even reconnected a bit with my mortal family."

Persephone, have you met any of the Seven Deadly Sins or any of the Goetia demons?

Persephone: "I have not met any of the Seven Deadly Sins besides Lucifer. I have met some of the Goetia demons though when we're in Hell visiting with family."

Zeus, have you been spending time with your family?

Zeus: "Of course! What kind of question is that?"

From Jack_Skeletron_4ever

For Hades and Persephone: We know Persephone took Hades's job because he was bad news and missing in the Styx, and when he got out, he wasn't happy about her being his replacement. So why do mortals think Hades kidnapped Persephone while she was appointed by Zeus?

Hades: "Ugh. Really, this again? How many times do I have to refute this? I never kidnapped my wife!"

Persephone: "Hades, it's okay. We have the chance to set the story straight. Just take a deep breath."

Hades: "You're… right. Sorry, Persy."

Persephone: "Better?"

Hades: "Better."

Persephone: "Anyway, I think the rumors that Hades kidnapped me were because of my husband's bad reputation. But also I can't help but think it was motivated by sexism, since those versions of our story deprive me of my ambition and my desire for my responsibility, instead making me a damsel in distress with little agency. It is like some men couldn't comprehend that I chose the Underworld."

Hades: "Well, there is also the fact that your mother doesn't like me and thought I had somehow kidnaped you to make you fall in love with me."

Persephone: (embarrassed laughter) "Yeah, that too."

Hades: "It was actually years before we were able to marry. For a long time I actually didn't think I was good enough for her and that did lead to me making some mistakes…"

Persephone: "I wouldn't call your daughter a mistake."

Hades: "I was referring to getting involved with her mother. But yeah, I guess you're right."

Persephone: "Like always?"

Hades: (sighs) "Like always."

For Persephone: If you were never kidnapped, why did your mother throw a fit and create winter?

Persephone: "Okay, let me clear something up. My mother did not throw a fit and create winter. The seasons existed long before I ever went down to the Underworld. It is true that my mother was not happy when I volunteered to take over the Underworld and she was even less happy when I decided to marry Hades. But some sources have definitely over exaggerated her reaction. There was still a lot of drama, don't get me wrong. And things still aren't great between Hades and my mother. But I still love them both and I swear that the drama wasn't nearly as bad as some claim it was."

For Poseidon: Care to elaborate on what happened at the temple of Athena with poor Medusa?

Poseidon: (groans) "Look, I had nothing to do with Medusa, okay? Those were all later versions of the story, but Medusa was born a gorgon and I never touched her. I'll admit, I have done a lot of things that would get me canceled in the modern age. But this is not one of them! Just ask my nephew Hercules, he actually knew her!"

To Mel: Now that you lost all of your friends because of your actions, how do you feel? Do you regret what you did or you shifted the blame to Luz and the other heroes?

Mel: "Pfft, I have no regrets! I mean, for one thing, I didn't lose Serpentina, Eustace, and Blazer. I left them behind because they were dead weight. Huge difference! Second, I didn't lose Jackson either. He just went off to Wonderland with his new girlfriend. We'll probably get back together after this 'therapy' stuff. As for Trini… well, that wasn't my fault! Luz killed her, not me! And that's not 'shifting the blame', because it really is her fault! And Luz better watch herself, because a goddess can hold a grudge for a loooong time. As for D-Josh, it's no big deal. I'll just find him and free him again. Trini is the only real loss and, once again, that was not my fault!"

To Zeus: Does Hera resent you for all the times you betrayed her before having Herc?

Zeus: "Ha! Of course she doesn't! Sure, me and Hera had our rough patches, but it's all forgiven now… or at least, I think it's all forgiven. Come to think of it, I never asked her if she forgave me for all my cheating… eh, I'm sure we're all good."

To Hercules: What is your relationship with Hades at the moment, now that he raised your daughter while you couldn't? Did you forgive him?

Hercules: "Um… family is complicated. I wouldn't say that I have forgiven him, but I don't actively hold a grudge against him either. And the reason I haven't forgiven him has nothing to do with all of his attempts to kill me. I can get past that… it's what he did to Meg that I can't forgive him for. She still isn't okay with him, since she was his slave, and it wouldn't be right by her if I forgave him for all of the messed up things he did to her when she hadn't. And it hurts that Mac calls him 'father', I'm not gonna lie."

To Hades, Zeus, Hercules and Poseidon specifically: How do you feel about how mortals depict you in other media, like God of War, Record of Ragnarok, Clash of Titans and so on?

Hades: "I don't really follow mortal media. I did see my design in God of War though and I just have to say… what the fuck?"

Zeus: "I don't much care for God of War, I don't know Record of Ragnarok, and while the original is better, I approve of them casting Liam Neeson as me in the 2010 remake of Clash of the Titans."

Hercules: "Well, I know there is this Hercules show starring a guy named Kevin Sorbo and the main villain of the series is my mother Hera. As you can imagine, I am not a fan of that. I don't really have an interest in media depictions of me or my family, because I am just not comfortable with it. For mortals, they are just stories. But for me, it's my life. So it's really hard for me to enjoy it. The only exception I can think of is Jason and the Argonauts from 1963. I mean, it may not be accurate to how it really happened, but I like how the film portrays me and my mother."

Poseidon: "Honestly, I feel underrepresented in the media, especially compared to my brothers. They always get the big roles."

To Hades and Persephone: Why didn't you just give back Eurydice's soul to Orpheus, instead of giving him impossible odds to have her back? Do you realize he is now a woman hating head because of that?

Hades: (sighs) "Okay, I'm not exactly sure which version of the story you're referring to. I do remember Orpheus though. Son of Apollo. Singer and teen idol. And I didn't give him impossible odds. He had one job. One. Job. Not to look back until they were both out of the Underworld. But hey, he should be thanking me. After all, his tragedy made him even more famous than he already was. He even has a musical based on his story that I heard is being reworked for Broadway. I think it's called Hadesville."

Persephone: "Um, Orpheus was a bit before I moved into the Underworld. But I can assure you that Eurydice and Orpheus are together now."

To Poseidon: How is your relationship with Polyphemus? Does he resent you for not being able to avenge him by killing Odysseus?

Poseidon: "Hey, what's wrong with not killing Odysseus? After all, he showed my son mercy by not killing him when he could have. And I returned the favor by not killing him… and cursing him instead. After all, what Polyphemus asked me was that if Odysseus returned home, it would be years later and that he would return alone, his companions dead. So I didn't need to kill him." (laughs) "Death would have been too good for him."

From ultimate-drax

Hades - Does it bother you that you were made the villain in the Disney version of the myth? As if you being the lord of the underworld is synonymous with how the Devil is the lord of hell in Christianity.

Hades: "Uh… what's a Disney? What is this wise guy talking about? And why I may not be Lucifer or the old Satan, I ain't exactly a goody two-shoes. I did try to overthrow my brother and conquer the cosmos once, in case you've forgotten."

Hercules - Why do people call you Hercules when that's the Roman version of your name?

Hercules: "You… you do realize my parents gave me that name, right? My mom did want to call me Heracles and there was some argument over my name, but ultimately my parents settled on the name Hercules."

Poseidon - Why does your beard look like the back end of a fish? Doesn't that kinda make your beard look like an ass?

Poseidon: "AN ASS?! You got a lot of nerve saying that! This beard is my birthright!"

Zeus - Do you ever meet any other gods from other pantheons? Like, have you ever met Odin? Also, how would you compare yourself to your extremely hyper sexual mythical counterpart?

Zeus: "Why yes, me and Odin do know each other, and I know a bunch of gods from other pantheons as well. As for those stories of my, heh, sexual prowess? I wouldn't say they are that far from the truth, especially in my younger days after the Titanomachy. I did eventually get my act together, but that wasn't until having lots and lots of other children before Hercules…"

From RJWriting Ink

Hades-All right, Mr. Man of the Underworld, the Lex Luthor to Herc's Clark Kent. Here's the big question:

How long did it take you to mellow out after getting your butt kicked in the movie? Because it seems like you've really healed from the lingering trauma brought about by your relationship with your father. And by the way, Cronos is a huge jerk.

Hades: "Yeah… no. That trauma is still there. And it ain't never going away. As for how long it took for me to mellow out… that depends on what you mean by 'mellow out'. I would definitely say that spending years in the River Styx and finding myself overthrown by a spring goddess that I then had to work for was a humbling experience. I guess that was the start of me 'mellowing out', thanks to Persey."

And how long did it take for you to patch things up with your nephew Herc?

Hades: "Wait, we patched things up? When did that happen? But seriously, no. I have a restraining order against me that keeps me away from him and Meg. We have not 'patched things up'."

And what happened between you and Cups and Mugs that pissed you off so badly and are you still out to get them?

Hades: "Long story short, Cups died but tricked me into bringing him back to life, which put him on my list. I'll probably get him and his brother eventually, but they're not my top priority right now."

As ruler of the dead, you get to hang with every famous figure in history. You can Invite a ton of celebrities to parties! Who's the best party guest, mythical figure or historical?

Hades: "Probably Jafar. I briefly brought him to life for a villain team-up, but after that I decided to keep his spirit around as my yes-man. Thousands of years later I decided to finally bring him to life like he kept requesting… and I gave him over to the Queen of Hearts."

And finally-what breed of dog is Cerberus and do you have pictures of him/them as puppies?

Hades: "Spot is a Rottweiler and I don't really have any pictures of him, but I'm pretty sure that Echidna has baby pictures of him. He is one of her kids, after all."

Also, are you the only ruler of the dead or do you have to share it with others now?

Hades: "Oh, I am far from the only ruler of the dead. Do you know how many other religions and death gods there are? It's a crowded market, believe me."

Hercules- okay, Herc. We all know that the film was taking a lot of inspiration from Superman and that it only vaguely resembled the actual myths. Heck, Hera wasn't even your mom and you weren't born a god. You had to earn it, and Hera hated your guts. What I'm trying to ask is how much of the myths actually happened and how much of the film's events aren't total typhon-spittle?

Hercules: "Well, the film you're referring to is how my sisters, the Muses, recounted the story. Their account is the accurate one for the most part. They skipped over some of the unnecessary details and condensed a bit here and there, but that's it."

Also, I take it that when you and Meg ended your natural life-spans, your Dad decided to just make you immortal. Gods can do that.

Hercules: "We weren't exactly at the end of our natural life spans when it happened, but basically that."

Also, what are your thoughts on modern-day depictions of yourself and your contemporary heroes? And what about superheroes as a whole?

Hercules: "Honestly, I don't get any enjoyment out of them, since I can't really see myself in these depictions. They just make me uncomfortable. As for superheroes… they're fine, I guess."

And do you get any royalties every time your name is used or do you no longer need them?

Hercules: "Um, no. I stopped getting royalties a long time ago."

And last but not least: do you think you could win in a fight with Sun Wukong? Thor? Samson? Maui?

Hercules: "Hmm… I think I could beat Samson and Maui. I think it would be a draw between me and Thor. And Sun Wukong would kick my ass, no doubt."

Macaria-I actually didn't know you existed until recently. But did you happen to get any powers from your dear old dad? And what exactly happened that led to you being adopted by Hades? Because that's pretty ironic, if you ask me!

Macaria: "You mean my birth father? Well, I was stronger than the average kid, but I was never as strong as my dad before I died. And obviously I wasn't as invulnerable either. However, it was actually Persephone that adopted me after she took pity on me when I died, not Hades. I think he felt incredibly awkward about the whole thing and honestly I didn't like him at first. It took a long time for us to warm up to each other. I do see him as my father now, but I didn't always. It was a process."

Meg-so did Zeus just decide to make you immortal so you and Wonderboy could be together forever? Or did they wait until you guys lived your normal, mortal lives? So what do you do for fun these days? Watch the latest shows? Support the theaters?

Meg: "It wasn't exactly at the end of our mortal lives, but it was years later. After he first turned down godhood, we had some good times together. Then Macaria died… and then Icarus… and then Cassandra. We took a break for a while, but eventually we made things work and it was then that we were both given godhood. As for what we do for fun these days… my husband and I never got into the whole 'screens' thing. So we do prefer the theaters. I especially like the Broadway musicals. My favorite is the Broadway version of Beauty and the Beast."

Mel-are you having any regrets yet about what you did? And how is therapy going? Because you need therapy pretty badly! Reminds me of Beckett Mariner from Star Trek, only way worse!

Mel: "I already answered this question. I have no regrets! And how my therapy is going is none of your business, mortal!"

Persephone-so how much of the story about the pomegranate is true? And how did you get appointed to help run the Underworld?

Persephone: "I thought that I cleared this up. I volunteered to run the Underworld because I wanted greater responsibility and a chance to prove myself. And I ate pomegranates during my wedding to Hades. It was sort of a symbolic gesture."

Poseidon-…wait you weren't even in this, were you? How do you like your portrayal in Percy Jackson, by the way? They mellowed you out pretty well.

Poseidon: "Um, I fought alongside my brothers and nephews when the gates of Tartarus were opened? Did you seriously forget that?" (sighs) "Why do I always get forgotten? And what do you mean they 'mellowed' me out pretty well? What does that mean?"

Zeus-Zeus, after looking at the Greek Myths, I have come to realize that you are FAR from a perfect deity.

You're not loyal to Hera. You're a womanizing simp that would fit right in with Sanji and a bunch of other famous anime simps.

You also make a lot of mistakes and can be very petty and vengeful.

And don't get me started on how you're like in Percy Jackson.

But the worst part: you failed to see all the red flags about Hades' resentment towards you and how you forced him to relive his traumatic childhood every day by making him live in the Underworld. Matter of fact, man, the whole movie could've been avoided had you thought about your brother's feelings more! A lot of stuff could've been avoided!

My big question is…do you regret who you were in the past? And have you tried to change yourself for the better?

Zeus: (sighs) "Yes, I do regret how I was in the past. I regret not being a better brother. I regret not being a better husband. Before we had Hercules, I did cheat on Hera. A lot. Our marriage was incredibly rocky, but by the time we did have Hercules, we were in a much better place and I had already sworn to change, with Hercules being the representation of that change. I'll admit that I can be… insensitive at times. It took me a long time to see how my actions were hurting Hera and it took me even longer to see how my actions were hurting Hades. I'm better now but… I'm not proud of who I once was."

And so, we conclude this batch of the Q&A. But don't worry, you guys can get a chance to make follow-up questions for the gods to answer. Like a round 2.

Next chapter, the epilogue of the Tarot Guild Arc...