The samurai and the dragonfly

"The sword of a samurai is an extension of themselves," Amelia says as she swung Yamato, repeating the same move again and again.

(…)

"You KNEW about the Box?!" Sasha gasped, her eyes widened while Marcy looked down, silently nodding.

Behind her, Amelia couldn't utter a single word as Marcy confessed her secret, the reality she had built around herself crumbling in light of the truth. She felt like darkness had engulfed her, and suddenly she couldn't see what her path was anymore.

"Nani?"

"Marcy, how-howcould you!?" Anne said, feeling like she had just been stabbed through the heart, her voice incredulous as she realized one of her best friends had lied to her for almost three months straight. From where he was sitting, Hop Pop suddenly looked nervous: this scene was AWFULLY familiar to him.

"Anne-"

"I've been missing my parents, my life! Every day since we've ended up here, I've missed them like crazy, and now you're telling us it's your fault we ended up trapped in this world in the first place?!"

"It's not her fault!" Jacob protested, "Didn't you hear that? She didn't know the Box would actually work!"

"Yet, she did lie and manipulate both of us to get it from that thrift shop in the first place," Sasha retorted, her voice turning cold. "She knew what the Box was supposed to do, and she didn't say it once. Just because she didn't know it would work doesn't excuse her actions!"

"Sasha-"

"You betrayed us, Mars! You ripped away Boonchuy from her family, you took me away from my life, you ended up taking Jacob, Amelia, and James with us! I can't believe I'm saying this, but you… you acted just like my mother, making decisions for me in my stead!"

"But look at how much fun we've had. Look at how much we've both grown. Look at Sprig, Hop Pop, Ivy, Felicia- I made it so you ended up meeting them. James, look how many friends you have found. Amelia, look at how much your relationship with Jacob has evolved! I gave you everything!"

Amelia didn't say anything as horror started filling her eyes and she took a step back behind James' larger frame. Since the beginning of Marcy's revelation, the boy was tense, as if holding on himself to not crumble.

(…)

"The blade is my soul."

(…)

"So, this is why you were so obsessed with your translation work," James realized, coming to an understanding, "that wasn't determination, that was a guilty conscience!"

"I knew you'd be angry when you would find out. So, after Hop Pop told us about the Box, I realized that maybe I could find a way back home and-" she began to cry again, Jacob trying (and failing) to comfort her.

"So, you were never going to tell us?" Sasha roared again, the feeling of betrayal and shock mixing together, struggling as to not accidentally activate her powers through those emotions. "If Jacob hadn't heard you while you were sleeping, how long would you have tried to keep us in the dark?"

"I swear, Sash! If I'd known what kind of world we were going to end up in… It was an impulse, I swear! I thought we'd be able to have a life full of adventures together, and that nothing could separate us ever again! You must believe me: This was a stupid decision, but I did it with the best intentions!"

"Best intentions or not, you still did it against everyone's will and wishes!" James responded almost immediately to Marcy's last comment, before adding with a crisp smile on his face "Thank Frog, I was the only stranger taken by accident. Otherwise, it could've been a true problem, right?" There was so much venom in his voice, it made everyone pause for a second to be sure it really came from the usually gentle boy.

"With the best intentions." Sasha repeated with a mocking tone, filled with bitterness, "Some of the worst things imaginable have been done with the best intentions. You know what, Marcy? As far as I'm concerned… you're no better than my parents!"

(…)

"The sword of a samurai is an extension-"

"Amelia, what are you doing?" A voice suddenly spoke up, scaring her.

"J-James!" The girl gasped, "How- I didn't hear you! How could you sneak up on me?!"

"I have my own secrets," the British boy replied with a smirk. "So…what were you doing here, all alone?"

"Don't you see? I'm honing my samurai skills for the battles ahead!"

"Are you sure that's what you're doing?"

"Why do you say that?!"

"Because I've been watching you for a while, and you kept repeating the same things, again and again. Plus, anyone can see you're not focused."

"What the frog are you-"

"Anata no me ni ikari ga mieru (I can see the anger in your eyes)," the boy spoke in Japanese, shutting her up. "Amelia, is this perhaps related to…what Marcy told us?"

"What, you mean how Miss Ace-All-Tests told us she knew about the Box? How she knew it would bring us into other worlds?" She said as her voice kept getting louder, and her body movements more erratic, "Why should I be concerned about that?! It's not that it messes me up, just because we found out the person who we viewed as the most innocent among us was behind trapping us here, how she was basically lying to us ever since we came here, how she-"

"Amelia, please!" James put a hand over her shoulder, trying to connect to her. "Look, I know how you're feeling. I too am angry that Marcy kept this a secret for this long, but-"

"ANGRY? ANGRY?!" Amelia yelled suddenly, venting all her emotions she had imbued up to that moment, "ANGRY DOESN'T EVEN BEGIN TO SAY HOW I'M FEELING RIGHT NOW!"

Taken by surprise by Amelia' sudden outburst, James took a step back. He too had felt hurt when Marcy revealed the shocking truth, but apparently, the anguish he felt was nothing compared to hers.

"Look, ending up in Amphibia… it was the best thing that could ever happen to me!" Amelia continued. "I found Yamato, I met Akitsu, and I had so much fun, but Anne… she was stolen from her family, just like my cousin was. Just like you were! And if Marcy did this on purpose…, how can we trust her again? Our group will never be the same, I won't ever be the same! I don't know if it's the fact that I still can't believe Marcy knew about the Box the whole time, or that she is the reason why everything happened in the first place, but I am angry! I'm really, really angry that us ending up trapped here was not a fluke, and the more I think about it, the angrier I get!"

"I guess I can't blame you for that," James replied. "I don't even know if I'll be able to forgive her. She may have reasons, or at least she believed she was right, and yet that can't excuse her actions. I'm surprised Jacob got over that already."

"I guess my cousin always had a soft spot for her," she almost spat her reply, remembering how she thought her cousin had a different reason to request to be alone with the dark-haired nerd. "By the way, where is she? I hadn't seen her all morning."

"She's training." the British teen quickly answered, not even asking who Amelia was talking about. "Since both she and Jacob awakened their Calamity Powers, Felicia said she wanted to test them and brought them someplace quiet to do some exercises and gave the rest of us a free day."

"Does that mean we don't have chores for the rest of the day?" Amelia asked.

"Yup. Apparently Hop Pop thinks that would help us calm our minds and process…what happened." He said with a shrug, "I don't know what Anne or Sash are going to do, but I was thinking about going for a walk. You want to come?

"Thanks for the consideration, but I think I'll pass," Amelia replied, rolling her eyes. "I'm not in the mood for a walk right now, plus I DO want to focus on my katana skills."

"Alright, just remember to be careful and look out for lunchtime. Since Anne's got a free day as well, Felicia has taken over cooking for the day, and she promised us some delicacies."

"Ok, mom." She joked, turning around as James left, trying to focus again on her training, both to sharpen her skills and not think about the emotional mess she currently was. Yet, before she could restart, another voice came to interrupt her.

"Bri-bri?"

"Akitsu?" The human girl gasped, noticing the great white dragonfly leaning on a tree in front of her. "What's going on?"

"Bri-bri-brum!"

"What do you mean, we must go? You just finished healing from that crash!"

"Bri bre bre bruman!"

"What do you mean you received a message that says we're requested elsewhere? How could someone send you a message in the first place? And who could ever contact you in the first place?

"Bri-bri-bri-bri bri brizim brizan bru!"

Amelia stood silent, her eyes wide open, her mouth agape, her mind frozen in surprise.

"M-master?"

(…)

"Anne, do you need any help?" Sasha Elizabeth Waybright Sundew, captain of the Saint James Middle School's cheerleaders, top scorer in Super Dance Fusion, former commander of the Wartwood Militia and adoptive daughter/apprentice of Felis the Red, said looking at her friend, both girls lazing around as they tried to sort out the mess in their heads, Felicia and Hop Pop having already left with Jacob, Marcy and Maddie, looking for an area to test the powers of the new Calamity users.

With Jacob and Marcy's awakenings of a few days ago, the number of superpowered teens of the group had raised to four, and while Anne and Sasha were the 'veterans' into channeling their own energy and focus it, due to what had happened they weren't asked to participate, nor did the girls volunteer to help.

Other times both girls had tried to imagine how cool it would be when Marcy would activate her powers, and they imagined it would be some kind of celebration. Training their new powers together side by side, their friendship bond that had tied the three of them together ever since they were little now reinforced by the amazing anime-like superpowers energy that streamed through their blood.

Right now, however, both Sasha and Anne felt anything but the need to celebrate.

"I'm not-I…I can manage, Sash." Anne replied, taking a deep breath. "Frog, I can't believe something like this could happen."

"Yep, me neither." The blonde human shrugged, "To think Marcy could do something like this and that I didn't notice anything until she told us-"

"Are you still angry?"

"Angry?!" Sasha laughed for a bit with a sardonic note, "No, Boonchuy, I'm not simply 'angry'. I am livid, furious, mad at the idea that Mar-Mar, our best friend, was behind all of this! She got us stuck here on purpose, Anne. I know she was freaking out about moving, but it's still super messed up!"

"We've all made mistakes, Sasha." Anne replied, looking down at her feet, "And besides, maybe we're partially to blame."

"'Ex-squeeze' me?" Sasha gasped in shock, as she heard those words leave Anne's lips.

"Remember when we used to go to her home for sleepovers, and she always tried to make us watch 'War of the Warlocks'? We always ended up falling asleep!"

"It was a three-hour movie." Though in the end, it was quite amazing for a film, Sasha silently admitted among her thoughts.

"It wasn't just the movie, though." Anne continued relentlessly, "We ignored all her interests. We might have ignored her needs too. Maybe that's why she went behind our backs with this crazy plan of hers: she couldn't stand the idea of being separated from us."

Sasha sat down, silently thinking about it. While the pain she had felt at the revelation still felt fresh, she could see some logic behind Mar-Mar actions. Moreover, she could understand how much grief she must have felt with living in a family that didn't pay her the attention she wanted: she knew what it meant to live in a loveless household.

Of course, that didn't excuse her actions, but at least explained why she acted in such a foolish manner.

"I see what you mean," the blonde girl admitted. "The issue is, I don't feel ready to forgive Marcy. Not yet, at least."

"No one says we must 'forgive and forget', Sash." Anne countered, "But there are some things that are worth the effort to save them, and I think our friendship fully qualifies. It won't be easy, and it won't be fast, but I want to give Marcy the chance to fix things among us."

"I…I guess we can do that." Sasha admitted, "I have to admit that Marcy did try her best to try and find a way back home."

"We all have been hurt by her choice, but we have to try."

(…)

"Frog," Amelia gasped as Akitsu started her descent, the giant dragonfly buzzing in concern as it landed in the middle of the Olm Wood Forest.

Or rather, where the Olm Wood Forest was supposed to be. Most of the trees were gone, and only felled and burned logs remained in place; the ground was hard and blackened, the bushes and grass were gone, as were all the animal species that fed on them. The forest itself, a great ecosystem that gave food and life to countless species, had taken a very serious hit, and it would probably take years, perhaps even centuries before the region could recover.

"No wonder those Roaring Roosters had left in search of food," Amelia gasped as she looked around. Yet, one question kept becoming bigger in her mind: who could've done this? Who or what was responsible for this ecological nightmare?

"Even the biggest predators are nothing but slaves of the food chains: without enough prey to support them, they had to leave and search for food elsewhere, to avoid starving."

Carnivorous or not, they're still just innocent animals. Amelia thought while looking at the burning land that went as far as her eyes can see. I should speak of this to the others. Maybe we're wrong treating all Amphibia's creatures like mindless monst-

A sudden crack sound made Amelia jump into a defensive stance and Akitsu ready her wings, as a tall figure appeared among the burnt three trunks, walking toward them, the ashes kicked up by her own movement hiding her face at first. But then, as the figure kept advancing, Amelia could see it was an elderly axolotl, blind in both eyes, approaching her, a walking stick in her right hand.

"Master!" Amelia gasped as she knelt, Akitsu beginning to chirp happily to see her old owner. "You have called for us. Here we are!"

"Ah, it's good to meet you again, my disciple. I am most impressed to see how much you've grown, both as a person and as a warrior, since the last time we met."

"You can…see?" Amelia quirked a doubtful smile, once again looking at the axolotl's blind eyes.

"Eyes are no longer needed once you've learned to see with your soul. You have made much progress, and I learned you've taken some apprentices on your own." Three young tadpoles, to be exact.

"I used your training, master, and I spread your teachings as you preached them to me."

"I know, my disciple, I know. And you, little dragonfly, I can perceive you've grown as well, literally in your case. How was your companion, by the way?"

"Bri! Bri bri bru! Bar bre bre bre bro bri brin!"

"Akitsu has been the best companion a warrior like me could ever hope for, master."

"Very well, I am happy to learn you've grown close, but unfortunately, I didn't summon you two just to talk. As you can see, while you and your friends are traveling toward Newtopia, your enemies haven't stayed idle."

"Our enemies, master?!" Amelia gasped, unsure of who she could refer to.

"Not just you and your friends', but the enemy of any Amphibian who ever lived, lives or will ever live. The enemy of Amphibia itself." Another voice with a slight accent announced, Amelia turning around to see an old, dark brown newt with a yellow underbelly and yellow spots on her tail, light red eyes (one of them damaged) and with her right hand missing, using her prehensile tail as a replacement, wearing a stitched black cloak over her body and a pendant with an hourglass symbol over her neck.

Someone that Amelia knew too, for she had met her a long time ago on her mission at the Bizarre Bazaar.

"V-Valeriana?!" Amelia gasped in surprise, "What are you doing here- wait, does that mean that you two know each other?!"

"Me and her have known each other for a long, long time." The old axolotl replied with a smile, "Ever since I was a young, ignorant apprentice being tutored to be the Embodiment of Respect."

"The Gem of Respect?!" Amelia's surprise grew once again, "You mean the gems…we are not the first? There were other holders?"

"Even since the Gems were found, there had always been holders," Valeriana summarized. "Yet, the gems of Courage, Imagination and Respect arrived much later compared to the others."

"Ok, I think I need a moment to process everything you're telling me, because if this keeps going, I think I'm going into overdrive! And," Amelia looked at Valeriana, "I think I have a billion questions to ask you!"

"Every question will have its answer, but not now, young one." The old newt narrowed her eyes, "Right now we have more…urgent things to do. It'll be a long path to walk, and-"

"Huh, why do we have to walk?" Amelia asked with a puzzled expression. "I mean, Akitsu can carry all three of us!"

"Bri-bri-bram!"

Valeriana said nothing, yet her eyes moved to Noc, the former embodiment of Respect smiling smugly as her replacement came up with an idea, that would greatly reduce the time they'd need for travel… and unwittingly waste so many tests and training she had set up along the way to 'value' her without her knowledge.

Just like her predecessor had done in the past, again and again, to Valeriana's irritation… and Leif's amusement.

(…)

"Ok, Marcy, let's start with some theory," Felicia said looking at the dark-haired girl in front of her, Jacob and Maddie standing at her sides while Hop Pop began to take notes. "When you first activated your powers, what was the first sensation you felt?"

"It was…mostly a tickling, like something was running over my skin. Since I spent so much time studying the previous activation of…Anne and Sasha-" a shadow of gloom passed over her face, both Jacob and Maddie holding onto her, trying to emphatically move her from the source of her own sadness. "In short, I realized what was happening, so I focused on trying to control the activation, to use my powers to rescue all of you."

"And how did you manage to activate them?" Felicia raised an eyebrow, suspicious.

"I used the mantra that Jacob had come up with for me as a focus." As she noticed the nonplussed reactions of everyone around her, Marcy pointed at the boy sitting next to her, "You know? The mantra?"

"You used that?!" The boy replied with an elated, almost happy expression, "Wow, I guess… Well, happy that it worked!"

"Mantra?" Hop Pop asked.

"Just some words and phrases Jacob and James come up with after Sasha managed to activate her powers," Maddie hurried to clarify, "through them, they can channel their positive emotions and determination and activate their Calamity powers without being forced to recall their most traumatic moments again and again. Like Anne felt when she believed that… Sprig and Polly…"

Hop Pop stuttered, the pen almost falling from his hand. Yes, that was a moment he would never be forced to experience again.

"I think we may be digressing," the old frog said, "returning to your power, what can you tell us about them? I mean, we saw you were able to imbue your crossbow darts with it and use them with great effectiveness."

"Actually, I could do much more than that!" Marcy announced, "When my powers activated…I felt like my own brain was going faster than ever. I felt like the world slowing down around me, and my mind could calculate every possibility and combination like a supercomputer-"

"Wait, was this how you managed to discover the best path for us to cross the bridge before it fell down?" Maddie gasped in surprise. "Somehow, your power makes your brain go faster and smarter?"

"I'd say that's a power that fits you," Jacob commented. "I guess I should be happy about what I got: I can wreck chaos among my enemies like Thor, and make storms fall onto them!"

"Huh, actually, I'd say your powers looked more like the ones of those creepy bad guys from the movie you showed us," the young spell-maker frog raised an eyebrow. "You know, the one you called Sithil…"

"That's the Sith, and my powers are not at all like those! They were evil, dramatic, could shoot lighting from their hands-"

"I maintain my statement." Maddie said, turning and looking at Felicia, as Jacob was hit by realization once again."

"Oh wait, you're right! I can shoot lightning from my fingers! Power, unlimited power!" He stood up, making a dramatic pose.

"Great, Jacob just went full Sheev Palpatine," Marcy rolled her eyes, still amused by the boy's antics. At least, his way of behaving helped her not to think at the anguish and pain looming over her…

"So much death..." Amelia said as she looked around, Akitsu flying over the scarred remains of the once-lush forest, Valeriana and her master holding on just behind her. "I can't believe someone could do this willingly."

"There it is!" Her master suddenly announced, the girl turning head excitedly… only to see nothing deserving attention at all.

"That's what people usually shout when they see something, right?" The old axolotl continued, waving her hand in front of her face to remark her blindness.

"You know, I am quite surprised you can still make jokes in a time like this," Valeriana rolled her eyes. "If Leif could see you like this-"

"Wait a minute, Leif?!" Amelia gasped in surprise. "You mean, the old friend of the Moss man? Was she into this too?!"

"Of course she was, my young apprentice," Noc replied with a smile wider than before. "Leif was my master, just like I am yours. She and Valeriana forged me and my friends into warriors worthy of the powers imbued into the Gems, to be able to use such skills to do what was right."

"Your…friends?"

"The past incarnations of Courage and Imagination, Pietari the frog and Unna the Toad," Valeriana commented. "One was a hyperactive frog who could barely listen to half of a plan before rushing forward and always ended up in messes bigger than him. Meanwhile, the other was a former toad soldier who fainted at the sight of blood but with a great imagination, who wanted to choose a path different from violence. As the previous incarnation of Heart, it was Leif the only one who could train them; I simply gave them some help from time to time."

Amelia stuttered, as she felt her heart starting to beat faster and faster. Not only was her master revealed to be the former holder of the gem of Respect (her predecessor!), but she had been trained alongside the previous Courage and Imagination by Leif, the friend of the Moss Man, the late Heart? Suddenly, she felt the admiration she was feeling for her master skyrocket.

Wait-

"But, what of the other gems?!" Amelia asked, realizing there were two still missing, "What about the gem of Strength and Wit?"

Her master hesitated, having difficulties finding the right words. "Strength, they couldn't join us. As for Wit…"

Amelia didn't say anything, but from what she could glimpse through her master's expression, something must have happened. Something painful to remember.

Luckily for them, something happened to distract them from that Pandora's box that was too early to unleash.

"There, just ahead of us." Valeriana pointed out, giving the axolotl a reproachful look, "and for real, this time!"

Amelia looked ahead, her eyes widening as she saw what looked like a tall column of fire rising to the sky, generating smoke that carried its ashes far away and reeked of death. Akitsu, feeling queasy from the foul stench, tried flapping her wings even faster to push it away from her.

"W-what is that?!" Amelia hurried to grab her mask and wore it, protecting her nose and mouth from the stink.

"That is the reason why we have summoned you," Valeriana continued. "The bane and curse that destroyed the life of so many creatures living in this forest, forcing them to leave or starve; the direct cause of the Roaring Roosters stampede that you faced, and who caused so many massacres in the bordering areas. Unfortunately, neither I nor your master can deal with it at this moment."

"Huh…why? I mean, I don't know if you can fight, but-"

"Of course she can fight, she taught me after all," her master replied, trying to come up with a realistic reason, before continuing. "The issue is, if either of us intervening today, we risk our enemy finding out about us, and we need to stay hidden to operate."

"But what enemy are we facing?" Amelia asked, "and if we need to hide our presence, how's my presence going to make things better?"

"Because this is an enemy you and your friends have already faced. This…is an enemy who has no qualms about using his own allies as pawns and discharge them as soon as he no longer needs them; an enemy who does not belong to this world, and never attempted to understand it. An enemy who declares himself a Prince, and who uses mechanical beasts to pursue his goals."

Amelia's throat dried up, her eyes widened in fear, Akitsu's buzzing stopping immediately, both partners realizing who Valeriana was talking about, as the image of a familiar armor-clad prince appeared in their minds, Amelia stammering for a second before his name could leave her lips.

"Aiden…" the young samurai finally said, as she once again looked at the fire rising to the sky.

(…)

"Come on, girls, there must be something we can do!"

"Hey, Sprig?" Ivy raised an eyebrow, as she watched her friend (and lately, boyfriend, she remembered with a blush) going into a full panic attack as she and Polly kept watching him, "Could you please tell us what you are talking about?"

"I'm talking about Anne, and Sasha and… Marcy!" The young pink frog said, "Ever since Marcy told them that she was the one behind the Box, they've been anything but friendly to each other!"

"Well, Marcy did drop quite a bombshell," Polly pointed out. "Do you remember when Hop Pop tried to bury the Box and Sasha caught him in the act? Sasha still hasn't forgiven him for it."

"That's what I am talking about! We came very close to our family to be broken when that happened, but now it's worse! If we don't do something soon, this situation could degenerate even more!"

"Sprig, look, I love you, but…" Ivy took a deep breath, "We have no grounds to interfere. This is a matter among the girls, and it's up to them to solve it or not. I admit, it was quite bad when Marcy told them about the Box, but shouldn't we put more trust into them? If they want our help, they will ask for it."

"Yeah, plus it's been barely a few days!" Polly nodded, "Once enough time has passed, I'm sure they will forgive each other: it's not a big deal."

"NOT A BIG DEAL?!" Sprig almost shouted, "Do you remember the Henderson, the family that used to live next door to the farm? They used to argue all the time and look what happened to them!"

(…)

"Ugh, this place sure looks creepy," Toadstool said, looking at the abandoned, run-down, and half-destroyed log house in front of him, the windows boarded-up, large cobwebs on the top, the water of the pod stagnant and green in color, with a large 'FOR SALE' sign in front of the house.

"The building remained unsold and abandoned for a long time, sir." Toadie replied, checking the documents in front of him, "ever since the Henderson-"

"I know, I know! Are you sure there is nothing valuable left inside?"

"Whatever it was left, it was taken away, mostly by Wally, sir."

"Good. Then, I guess this is quite a nice position for our next urban renewal project…"

(…)

"Sprig?" Ivy said with a teasing voice, "The Hendersons didn't break up because they were always quarreling. They broke up because the husband was cheating on his wife while he was pretending to work more in the fields!"

"And how can you be so sure about that, huh?!" The young pink frog replied, still very close to losing his marbles and running to the girls to help them with their problems, whether they liked it or not.

"Easy," Ivy simply said with a smug face, "it was the main subject of gossip at the tea shop. For days, some of my mom's regulars were talking about it. And since I was helping with the work, I heard everything."

"He was cheating on her?" Polly raised an eyebrow. She didn't really care about old gossip, but she never really knew what the cause of the Henderson household's fallout was, and now she was curious.

"Hohoho! Even worse than just cheating on her! Ivy added with a chuckle, a true devilish smile on her lips, "He did it with his own sister!"

Both Plantar siblings stopped on their track, looking at the yellow frog while in a state of pure shock. Then, they turned to each other, their face expressions now turning into grimaces of pure disgust, as they spoke one and the same word:

"Ewwwww!"

"Heh, told you it was worse than 'simple cheating'," Ivy was really trying not to laugh, both Sprig and Polly's faces were that hilarious right now.

"He deserved everything that have happened to him!" exclaimed Sprig, who now looked more greenish than pinkish. "I feel like I'm going to be sick..."

"Can we please not talk about this, ever again?!" The tadpole angrily screamed, hiding her face with her tiny hands. Why? Why did I need the feeling to ask?!

"Sure thing, but please Sprig, don't misunderstand the situation. I appreciate the fact that you want to help the girls heal their friendship, because you care about them. I too don't want to see them get separated. But at this moment, we risk doing more damage than good!"

"She's right, we should just give them time. Not like we have a lot of options. I mean, we can't force people to get along!"

"Yeah, I suppose I can't, girls," Sprig said, an idea forming in his brain. "I suppose I can't…"

"Sprig Plantar, don't you dare!" Polly glared at him, realizing her brother had gotten yet another of his crazy plans.

(…)

"Move, move!" One of the toads, who apparently was the leader of the group, shouted at full lungs. "The Boss wants the next shipment of wood to be sent as fast as possible!"

"Those are…Toads!" Amelia gasped, peeking from the large rock behind which she, her master and Valeriana were hiding, having left Akitsu at a comfortable distance to keep her safe, "They're working for Aiden? But…how's that possible? No one of the Toad Army that survived the massacre would want to have anything with him, ever again!"

"Those are not soldiers, but bandits. Criminals, thugs, and common thieves." Valeriana replied, her good eye focusing on the Toad commander, "He has ensnared them, turning them into new cannon fodder to boost his military power and grow as a threat."

"That place is a giant lumber mill," the old axolotl said while taking a deep breath. She could smell the stench of the machinery, hear the trees cut off and dragged to the nightmarish industrial plant, where they would be turned into lifeless planks to be sent far away. "They're cutting down all of the trees, poisoning the ground and the air with the foul smell of those machines…this is why the forest is dying and the animals have all abandoned this place!"

"Then, I must shut off this ecological nightmare and stop them from collecting wood for the crazy prince!" Amelia smirked, grabbing her katana, and readying herself for battle. "This is my kind of plan!"

"Be careful my apprentice, for they are many and you will be alone. A frontal attack will be foolish, use your agility and skill to infiltrate the enemy's base undetected and-"

"She's gone. Already." Valeriana sighed, as Noc looked around to see Amelia had already left. "Now I know why you like her so much: she's just as reckless and unable to stay put and listen like you were!"

"And yet, you have to admit she's already much better than I was when I was at her point," the old axolotl smirked, before letting out a sigh. "Only…are you sure we should let her go on her own? I'd love to mentor my successor in a more direct role, plus it's been so long since I had a fight worthy of such a name."

"You know the answer already: today I must evaluate how developed your student is in fighting on her own. Not that I expect too much from her, and yet-"

"What happened? Where is everyone?!" One of the toads on the upper level spoke, Noc hearing it just before he let out a gasp as Amelia knocked him out, hiding his unconscious body to hide her presence before resuming her mission.

"Looks like she knows how to fight without being seen," Noc said with a smug smile. "Oh, I wish I could see her fight with my own eyes."

"At least so far she looks like she can come up with good strategies to face off enemies superior in numbers… oh, looks like she is synchronizing her strikes with the machines' sounds in order to not be heard from the toads downstairs."

"She surely is full of surprises, don't you agree?"

"She's…acceptable, at least so far. Yet don't let these successes cloud your judgment, former carrier of Respect. This girl is full of enthusiasm, yet she's still too weak mentally to face the challenges ahead of her."

"Oh, stop worrying, you one-armed newt, I'll take care of her and nurture her, step after step."

"Yeah, like when your apprentice ended up bringing the Box to the Bizarre Bazaar? If I hadn't been watching over her at that time, she would surely have lost it, and who knows what would've happened by now!"

"Can a girl make one mistake?"

"One mistake could make the difference between success and failure! You above anyone else should know it very well, Noc." Valeriana shrugged, "And another thing: sooner or later, your apprentice will end up getting the attention… of the Core."

"The Core?!" The blind axolotl gasped, a mix of surprise and fear running through her body as she remembered about the real enemy hiding behind the Leviathan king. "What's that got against the kid?"

"You know that answer too, the Core wants vengeance for what Leif did. It wants the Gem's power, so it can resume its plans, to sever the threads of the prophecy and unleash its nightmare once again on many unsuspecting worlds. Didn't Wise Flower tell you what happened when the Core came to her world?" Valeriana stopped for a second, before resuming. "But before anything else, the Core wants a new body. A new vessel, to feel alive once more, and not even your apprentice is safe!"

"But the Core's Army is gone-"

"Andrias still rules, and still serves them like he has done for over a thousand years! They're going to Newtopia, and soon he will meet them, and so the Core will see what the new incarnations of the Gems look like! And it won't wait for them to be ready to face it, they will try to kill or control them while they're still weak and helpless! Once Amelia will be in their hands-"

"NO!" Noc gasped in horror, before eventually controlling herself, "I…I see your point. Then, what should we do?"

"For now, we just wait and see," the newt replied as Amelia had now cleared the infrastructure of most of the enemy soldiers and was now rushing to face the few remaining ones, "but if you want to protect your successor, what you've taught her so far is not enough. It's time to speed up her training…"

(…)

"So, Felicia, how's the kids' training going?" Hop Pop asked, raising his gaze from the papers, looking as Jacob and Marcy kept experimenting with their newfound Calamity abilities, Felicia silently watching over them from afar. "Did you manage to give yourself an idea of what kind of abilities they have?"

"Roughly, but I do." The veteran adventurer replied, her eyes unmoving as she kept watching over her proteges, "Jacob showed a great physical prowess, even if not as great as Sasha's, plus he can somehow accumulate energy inside his body to release it on a later moment either through his hands and fingers, or any weapon he is wielding. Besides, of course, the other basic skills we have already seen in Sasha and Anne."

"Super-speed, enhanced strength and reflexes, greater stamina, boosted resistance to damage and limited flight abilities," Hop Pop repeated with a laconic and bitter tone, passing a hand over his face. "You know, I never thought I would have eight kids one day, and for six of them to have crazy energetic powers!"

"Believe me, I know how you feel," the red-haired frog replied with a voice full of empathy. "I realized, when I had Ivy, that someday she could want to follow on my footsteps, this is why I tailored all possible martial arts styles into serving tea procedures. And yet…I knew these days would come, and I still found myself under-prepared!"

"I guess we both were," Hop Pop chuckled, his eyes focusing on Marcy, the dark-haired girl focusing as Jacob 'assisted' her, trying to focalize her powers through meditation and mantras. "What about Marbles? What kind of abilities have her Calamity stone given her?"

"Beside the most basic ones, you mean?" Felicia asked, "From what I've been able to witness and with everything Marcy told me about her 'activation', it looks like Marcy's gem has the power to speed up her mind so much that the world around her, from her point of view, either slows down or almost completely stop. She can do calculations and analysis so quickly she can basically see every possible variable and formulate plans or ideas to achieve her goal. For example, it's like during a game of Flipwart, you could foresee every possible move your adversary may do and act accordingly."

"That surely would be useful in more than one occasion!" Hop Pop's eyes gleamed in admiration, "She was smart already, but now…she could very well be the smartest being in all of Amphibia!"

"Intelligence doesn't always mean wisdom, as our latest events have proven." The yellow-skinned frog commented, "Marcy may have good reasons to not want to be separated from her friends, yet she let herself be dominated by panic and she made a raw decision that affected everyone. This-"

"Felicia?" Hop Pop said, as she turned around and saw the expression of the old farmer, suddenly realizing who she was talking with.

"Oh, I'm sorry!I didn't mean, I mean, I wasn't-"

"Marcy made a mistake, that I can agree with you," the old frog took a deep breath before resuming his speech. "Just like I did, when I believed the best path was to lie to them and try to hide the Box by burying it in the backyard of the farm, only to be found out when Sasha went to get a glass of water. I deserved everything they said to me on that day, I deserved for Sasha to move out of the farm and with you. Frog, I would have deserved much worse-"

"Hopediah Plantar! The fact that Sasha moved with me and my family doesn't mean she doesn't care about you anymore. She's only bad at showing it!"

"Yet, when she pointed out what I was doing, how I was going to condemn their families to undergo the same thing I experienced when I lost Sally- I never hated myself more than in that moment. In my obsession to protect Sprig and Polly, I was on the verge of becoming the very thing I despised so much."

"Paranoia is the enemy of logic, and it hardly allows its victims to make rational decisions. This is a lesson true for you as it is for Marcy," she looked at the girl, so much embroidered with testing her powers she had momentarily forgotten of the drama that threatened to break the bond with her friends. "We can only provide indirect assistance, and only if they request it. For now, the best thing we can do is stand on the sidelines, and hope for the best."

"And yet, what-"

Hop Pop's voice was cut off again as, while the two humans were exercising their powers, an incident occurred. What had happened in detail wasn't clear, only that Marcy was trying to use her new Calamity-powered super analysis speed to move while avoiding Jacob's energy lightning strikes, only to not notice a small rock barley emerging from the ground on the path she was currently moving at super-speed, and she tripped on it, the dark-haired girl pushed forward by her own inertia and toward Jacob, crashing into him.

Both were prepared for training, and as such, both humans had been wearing armor. Still, calculating the effect of mass multiplied for speed resulting in impact energy…

"Kids!" Hop Pop was the first to rush forward, Felicia just behind him, "Are you ok?"

"Everything's fine, Mr. Plantar," Marcy said in a dozing voice, both humans were not that damaged by the impact yet showing a couple of bruises on their arms and legs. "I just- I am just used to this…"

"Believe me, she is," Maddie commented, rushing to help her student with a small bandage and using it to dab a small scratch on the girl's hand. "Everything's fine, I have a healing spell we can use to fix their bruises. As soon as they regain full consciousness-"

Yet, the blue-skin frog stopped, her eyes widening in surprise as she moved onto removing the bandage she had just used, and realized two things that didn't make any sense.

Firstly, the bruises on Marcy and Jacob's body were already disappearing, the smallest ones having healed already while the largest were growing smaller, some by the second.

Secondly, that bandage in her hands was still dirty with Marcy's blood. However, in contrast to everything she had learned about human's physiology, her apprentice's blood wasn't red. Rather, it was green, and glowed with the same bright light that she had seen before only as Marcy activated her Calamity power for the first time.

"Oh, my Olms…" Maddie said in a low tone of voice, almost whispering, as she recognized the power energy emanating from the blood on the bandage…

"The enemy toad garrison had been vanquished, master!" Amelia kneeled in front of Noc, the old axolotls smiling smugly as Valeriana couldn't help but let out a shrug. "The plant has been neutralized, and now that the enemy has abandoned this position, we have all the time to damage it beyond any hope of repair."

"That's… a relief," Noc said, looking at the now silent factory which would not devour any more trees of the forest. "Truth be told, I am mostly impressed you managed to defeat your enemy with so little bloodshed."

"Your teachings helped me, master," Amelia continued in a respectful tone, Valeriana gritting her teeth in response. "I used my stealth skills and the art of patience to defeat my enemies without being seen, using the environment around me to my advantage, biding my time and waiting for the best opportunity to strike, letting my logic and not my emotion lead my sword and my hands. Only when the enemy commander and a little number of his mooks had been left did I choose to take a…riskier approach."

"That is something you could have avoided as well," Valeriana pointed out. "You had quite many chances to defeat them all in one go, why instead you choose to confront them head on?"

"These toads…they desecrated this land, destroyed this forest, draining it of its resources, forcing the animals living on it to leave and they were planning to let the dregs of their works to rot!" Amelia replied, her words still affected by the shock she had felt when she first saw the devastation with her own eyes. "I needed catharsis."

"A poorly, yet understandable decision, young one," Noc said in a neutral tone of voice. "Yet remember that vengeance is a luxury we cannot afford, for its price is always too high. What's more worrying, we have no idea how big this blow will be to our enemy's plans."

"Master-"

"Amelia please! I know you only want to be respectful but being called 'master' all that time makes me feel older than I already am!" The axolotl replied with a chuckle, sounding irritated yet amused at the same time. "You are my student, but you're also my friend. And as such, I'd prefer for you to refer to me with my name: Noc."

Noc, Amelia repeated in her mind as she realized she finally knew her master's name.

"As much as I'd like to let this master-student bonding moment continue, unfortunately time's not on our side." Valeriana spoke, as she moved to face Amelia, the brown-haired human looking at her. "I understand your desire for answers-"

"There is so much I want to ask you!" Amelia almost yelled, feeling her own excitement rise again, "I wanted to ask, was Leif really a member of the Plantar's family? What was so important about her? How did she know the Moss-Man? If this is connected to the stone, why-"

"Calm down, young one," Valeriana slammed her staff into the ground, gaining her attention. "Neither I nor your master can answer any of your questions. The answers you seek, you will have to look out for them."

"Oh…so, this is just like when you told me you couldn't train directly, but only pinpoint me in the right direction, master Noc?" Amelia looked at Noc, the axolotl's expression unable to hide her thoughts. "It is! Awesome!"

"For now, we can only leave you a few warnings, my apprentice: be careful on your traveling, because many threats will menace you and your friends. Two enemies stand in your path, but while one's menace is plain and clear for everyone to see, the other is hidden and will try to poison your minds and hearts, to sprout doubts and rivalries to divide your strength!"

"A hidden enemy?!" Amelia gasped, as she started to think about the description her master had just given her. She felt her blood turning cold, as she realized it matched Palpatine's modus operandi in the prequel trilogy. Did that mean she and her friends would encounter someone like that?

"More like…a misunderstood one," Noc said with a sad voice. "Someone who, a long time ago, believed he was betrayed and allowed his grief to turn into poison."

"This is a hint of the future ahead of you," Valeriana said, passing a small object in Amelia's hands. "Keep it hidden, for its secret may destroy this world as well as it could save it."

As the human girl grabbed it, she quickly realized it was a tablet made of some wood she had never seen before in all of Amphibia, with text written on one of its sides. A text she recognized was written in Ancient Amphibian, the same language that Marcy had worked so hard to translate for the last month.

"What the- master Noc? Valeriana? Anyone, can you hear me?!"

"Bri-bri!" A bug's voice happily buzzed from above, as Amelia saw Akitsu descend from the sky and land just in front of her, the girl jumping to hug her companion.

"Akitsu! Can you believe it? Master and her friend were here just a minute ago, but when I raised my eyes again, they were gone! That's some crazy old master stuff!"

"Bri-Bri-brim?"

"Oh, yes, this place won't be able to pollute ever again. I've sabotaged everything that looks like a key mechanism so it can't be reactivated soon. With enough luck, rust and corrosion will do the rest."

"Bri-bri! Bri-bra-bra-bre-bro-bro?"

"Oh, this one?!" Amelia showed her companion the wooden tablet she had received a few moments ago. "It's from Valeriana. She told me this is a hint to help us in the future. Wish we could translate it right now, but to do that we'll need- ugh- Marcy…"

"Bri-bre-broo!"

"You're right! I still have the notes she gave me when we were all helping her!" The samurai girl took out her hat and removed the small sheet of paper that was hidden inside it, with every letter associated with a corresponding rune. "Ok, let's see…" the girl began to translate letter by letter, recomposing each word one by one. As she did so, she felt her breath becoming slower, her eyes widening once again, as she could finally grasp the text written on the wood.

"Seven stars burning bright, come from beyond to expel the night." The young samurai wannabe read aloud, Akitsu silently listening to each word, "Should they fight or embrace the fall? Their choice will determine the fate of all. What does this mean?!" She gasped, looking at Akitsu. "This sound like some kind of-"

A prophecy, the girl realized, her eyes wide open as she felt her breath slow down once again, her mind 'clicking' as all the pieces began to come up together.

Anne, Marcy, and Sasha were three. Adding Jacob and James they become five, and she was the sixth. Did those words refer to them? Was it a reference to their Calamity Powers? Sure, neither she nor James had managed to activate those powers already (to her own chagrin).

Yet the more she thought about it, the more it raised additional questions instead of answering to the ones she already had: they were six, but then, why did the prophecy talk about seven stars?

Could it possibly mean there was yet another Calamity user over there? One they would end up meeting in the future? Who were they?

And what about the other threat Valeriana had mentioned?

And if this was a prophecy, like her gut feeling suggested to her so…could it possibly mean they were destined to arrive here in Amphibia in the very first place?

(…)

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Rehys shouted at full lungs, disbelieving what the low rank officer of the Army of the Hand said, the toad shivering in terror alongside with the other survivors who had returned with him, clearly foreseen what their fate was going to be.

"We lost the Olm Wood lumber mill," the trembling soldier repeated, almost stuttering as he spoke. "WE were starting to work on a new shipment of wood for the Tower…when we were attacked."

"Was that Newtopia, or maybe the Eastern Tower Army?" The hulking, towering brute narrowed his eyes, mining for more details. "How many enemies did you face?"

"It was…one, sir."

"One?!" Rehys' disbelief started to fuel his rage. "You lost the lumber mill and were forced to retreat in front of just one mere enemy?!"

"There was nothing 'mere' in that enemy!" One of the other survivors shouted, his eyes filled with fear, "It was some kind of ghost, or maybe a living shadow, it took down all of us one by one! What's worse, I saw its face: they had fangs, a long sword-"

"The warrior of Cipango." Prince Aiden finally spoke from where he was currently sitting, light of realization shining in his eyes as he smiled. Seeing the expression on his face, all toads in the room took a cautious step back: they knew that when their Lord smiled like that, someone would usually die in a brutal and cruel way. "Take heart, commander: I'm not going to punish you for this…hiccup."

"H-hiccup, sir?" Rehys repeated, surprised by the usually tame reaction of his sovereign. As his experience as Prince Aiden's main enforcer had taught him, his lord had quite a short temper and he loved to enact disproportionate punishment on those who failed him. This was why he was the highest-ranking leader under Prince Aiden himself.

"Tell me, commander," now Aiden looked at the toad formerly in charge of the lost lumber mill, "how many other lumber mill do you think are currently providing me with fresh cut wood?"

"Huh, sir, actually-"

"Seven." Aiden answered, without even letting him try to guess. "Seven lumber mills identical to the ones you and your men crewed. And how much wood to you think I require for my strategy?"

"Well, we had orders to provide at least fifty tons of wood each week, so… a lot?"

"Zero." Aiden coldly said, the cruel smile on his lips growing almost as he was feeling pleasure in seeing the confusion on the toad's face. "My creations are built with steel and Toads can't eat wood to survive."

"Oh, that's actually a relief-" one of Rehys subordinates murmured with a relieved expression, only for the toad next to him to hit with a nudge, giving him a silent 'be quiet'.

"The wood your lumber mill used to provide, as well as the one we will still receive from the others, is useful but not necessary for my plans." Aiden continued to explain, the toads looking at him as he kept gloating, "In the end, the loss of those wood shipments won't even affect the outcome." The real reason why you were there was to act as bait, and I can say you have succeeded quite well, the human thought, thinking back to the young human with the cone hat, who had claimed to be the Viking's cousin.

From what these animals were able to report, she would be an amazing assassin under his command.

"Rehys?"

"My Lord?!"

"Since the lumber mill was lost, have them reassigned to our Third Army: they could use some more toadpower," the prince once again gazed to the map of Amphibia lying on the table in front of him, markers showcasing the movement of the three remaining Toad Armies, of the Night Guard rangers, the position of all military forces and outposts of the Army of the Hand, and most importantly, the current position of the carriage that his brethren were using to travel to Newtopia.

A carriage that was now starting to approach a certain city that was (coincidentally) the Army of the Hand's objective of their next offensive.

We have gathered enough resources, the lone human thought, as he read the name of the town, now we gather soldiers.

The most expensive town in all Amphibia.

Ribbitville.

(…)

The flight back to the fwagon was quite uneventful, with Akitsu not even needing Amelia to lead her, giving the young human girl all the time she needed to think back to what she had learned today.

First, that the old newt lady she had met back at Bizarre Bazaar and her master (Noc, she reminded that was her name) knew each other;

Second, the confirmation that Leif, the friend of the Moss Man and probably ancestor of the Plantar Family, was tied to both of them;

Third, that Aiden was not the only enemy they would face, and another threat loomed on their path;

Fourth, the prophecy.

Amelia, as a big fan of anime and manga, as well as everything that is related to Japan, was very knowledgeable about prophecies and so-called 'destiny'. In Japanese culture, your destiny was immutable, no matter what you did, you couldn't change what you were and what you were meant to be. Rather, you were meant to embrace them, and learn from it, as the Universe itself built its plan around it. Every action you took, every decision you made, even your most embarrassing mistakes and your worst errors, would connect to each other to lead to a great result.

She could still recall an example of that in one of the last stories she watched: an old master sent one of her apprentices looking for four other warriors to defeat an ancient menace, but due to an ironic string of events and consequences, the paper with the names of the warriors ended up switched with another, leading the apprentice to unwittingly gather four screw-ups, each one deemed an embarrassment by their peers, and to the apprentice to embarrass herself in front of her master. Yet, the apprentice and the other four screws-up manage to defeat the menace, simply by being true to themselves, and ended up becoming respected and honored warriors, the master realized his mistake and avoided a tragic mistake, and the son of a local cook (the one whose bumbling and messes had influenced the plot form the very beginning) found his true calling as watching the fight of the five from afar inspired him to become a kung-fu warrior.

Every action was connected, no matter how insignificant, and the consequences of the result ended up making everyone's life better.

What if… what if something like this had happened to them as well?

The words of the prophecy clearly implied that someone had foreseen their arrival long before she, Marcy or any of their friends had been born. Could this possibly mean that Marcy was supposed to lie to Sasha and Anne and trick them into taking the Box, leading to all six of them ending up in Amphibia?

Sasha…she had grown so much in the last few months, and so did Anne and Marcy… and Jacob and…herself. She was so different when she first arrived in Amphibia, a girl who barely knew what she claimed to master, and whose relationship with Jacob could be summarized as 'her cousin's keeper'. All the experience she lived through… everything she had learned, everyone she met… was this all part of the Universe's plan?

She was so engrossed with this though, she barely didn't notice when Akitsu landed in front of the Fwagon, Anne and Sasha chilling out in the open while James watched something on his phone.

"Hey, Amelia," Anne greeted her, as Amelia jumped back on the ground. "Where did you go? You missed out on lunch completely!"

"I had some…issues to deal with," Amelia replied, unsure of what she could tell them. They were her friends, she trusted them, and yet… the knowledge she now held inside her, how would they react to it?

I guess this is quite the irony, the samurai girl mused, mentally laughing at how the tables had turned, and how she was the one keeping a secret from them.

"Amelia!" New voices shouted, the girl turning to seePolly and Ivy rushing toward her, the tadpole resting in the yellow frog's arms, "You're back!"

"You went on an adventure on your own… and you didn't bring me along?!" Polly sounded offended, "How could you?"

"Sorry, but I wasn't…going on a solo adventure." She lied, Akitsu buzzing something with a snarkish expression, "Akitsu and I just went on a fly to…clear up our heads, after what happened. Hey, where's Sprig?" The girl noticed the absence of Pollys' brother.

"Let's just say that we…stopped him from making a serious mistake…" Ivy said with a chuckle.

(…)

"I MUST GO AND SAVE OUR FAMILY!"

"NO, YOU DON'T!" Ivy replied, tying her boyfriend to a tree stump, "You're only going to make things worse!"

"Tie him tight!" Polly encouraged her, "My brother is a slippery one!"

(…)

"Anyway, did your little trip help?" James asked, raising his eyes from the Monthy Python sketch he was currently watching on his phone.

"Yeah, I had quite some chances to…think about it, and-"

Her words stopped, as she looked around and saw Marcy and her cousin, both looking tired and close to collapse, but with big smiles on their faces. They were surrounded by Hop Pop, Felicia, and Maddie (the young spellcaster frog somehow showcasing a delightfully devilish expression) as they walked toward the fwagon, blissfully forgetful about the whole debacle that had shaken the bond among them.

The debacle about the Box.

"There you are!" Amelia suddenly shouted, the five of them stopping, Marcy beginning to fall into panic once more as she saw Amelia march toward her, a hard expression on her face, Jacob trying to put himself among the two, their frog families stopped cold as their eyes widened with every step Amelia took toward the dark-haired nerd. "There is a piece of my mind that I need to give you, right now!"

"Amelia-" Marcy barely could mutter, before the girl wearing the cone hat did something that neither she, nor Jacob, nor anyone else could foresee.

As she was right in front of her, Amelia hugged Marcy strongly, the hard expression in her face turning into a smiling one.

"I forgive you!"

"You-WHAT?!" Marcy gasped, unsure by the unexpected turn of events. As, judging by their reactions, everyone else was.

"WHAT?"

"Say what?"

"Huh?"

"No way!

"Huuuh?!"

"Blimey."

"Nu-whaaa?!"

"Woooooow…"

"Bri-bri?" Akitsu buzzled, she was dumbfounded too by her partner's move, looking at Bessie and Liptea for answers, the older snail only shaking her head in response.

"Look, the action you took…it wasn't right, you know that already. Still, you do have a point when you said that you didn't know the Box would work," Amelia continued, as Marcy and Jacob exchanged a shocked glance, weirded out by her cheerful expression. "And you are working hard to try and bring us back home. So, while I do admit I was quite shaken up when you told us, I had some time to think about it and I realized I have already forgiven you."

"Y-you do?" Marcy gasped, a tear of happiness running down her cheek, "You're not angry that I-"

"Not anymore," Amelia confirmed, before walking toward the fwagon and closing the door behind her. Because now I know that we were destined to be here.

(…)

"Well, let me be the first to say it," Jacob spoke as soon as Amelia was back inside, "that was weird!"

"Indeed, I wasn't expecting for Amelia to forgive me so easily…" Marcy murmured, before turning around and saw Sasha, Anne and James approaching her, her panic level rising once again.

"About that…" Sasha said, taking a big breath before continuing, "I guess it is time we all have a chat together. About us and…what you told us means for our friendship."

"I understand," Marcy moped down. This was the moment she had always feared, ever since she realized what kind of place Amphibia was.

"Look, Mar-Mar." Anne spoke in turn, "Regardless of what motivation you may have had, what you did… wasn't right. You lied to use, manipulated Sasha because you knew she would pressure me into taking the Box-"

"-thanks for reminding me, Boonchuy." The blonde girl grunted, angry at herself for her own part in the issue.

"- you ended up taking Jacob, Amelia and even James with us, you dropped us in a literal swamp, full of dangerous critters and other dangerous creatures, you took a decision on our behalf that ended up ripping us apart from our own families, all because you wanted to live trough one of your RPG fantasies!Even if your parents were moving and you didn't want to lose us, that's beyond messed up!"

"I understand," the dark-haired girl shed another tear, "I know this is something you can't simply forgive and forget-"

"We are not forgiving you, Marbles," Sasha said, taking a step forward, "but…we don't hate you."

"Huh?" Jacob gasped, raising an eyebrow.

"Look, Mar-Mar, what you did…it hurt us, we won't hide it. You broke your trust, and it'll take time before we can forgive what you did. Frog, I don't even know if I'll be able to forgive you completely." The former cheerleader continued, taking a deep breath, "But, Anne and I talked about it and… we are willing to offer you a chance to make things right."

"You are?"

"Yes, Mars." Sasha scoffed. "As yourself said, Hop Pop's books may contain a key for us to find a way back home, and you did see the error of your ways, just like I did in the end." The blonde human suddenly felt herself like she was the day after the Heron's attack, when her old manipulative self died and she started the path to become the best version of herself. "I had a second chance, so…I guess it's only fair you get one too."

"What I think Sasha is trying to say," James piped in, "is that we may need some time to process all of this, but while you obliviously need to work to rebuild it, she wants to save your friendship just like you do."

"You…you want to still be my friends?" Marcy once again felt herself on the edge of crying, but this time, out of heartfelt commotion.

Even if its bond had been seriously damaged by the revelation, the friendship that connected her with Anne and Sasha still stood together. They would have a long path to walk through if they were to make it blossom again like before, but as a physical wound can heal with time and care, so can any friendship once removed the most toxic undersides of it.

"Of course," Anne confirmed, nodding her head. "I'm not forgiving you for separating me from my family on my birthday yet," her voice became cold for a second, "and it'll be a long time before I'll be able to trust you like I did before, but…I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere."

"Oh..." Marcy said, shocked at the familiar gesture. "Thank you..."

"Honestly, as someone who grew up starved for attention, I can understand why you didn't want to lose us. Before ending up here, you two were the closest things I had to a loving family, and I wanted to spend all time as I could together with you," Sasha smirked for a brief second. "As someone who ended up experiencing the direct consequences of your decision, however? Oh, you owe me a lot. You'll have to do my math AND science test from now until we get into college."

"I-I guess I'm fine with that," Marcy chuckled nervously. She already did some tests in her friends' names in the past, they weren't too difficult (at least, for her.)

"I'm willing to give you another chance too, Marbles," James smiled, "as long as you're willing to give us one. That means, no more secrets, no more lies, whatever may end up learning we share. Are we in agreement?"

"Of course!" Marcy said, crying tears of joy as she hugged all three of them, burying her face on Anne and Sasha's chests while her arm held on James' right shoulder. "I promise, no more secrets never again!"

She couldn't see it, but as she said that, James' eyes moved aside…