Avoiding the Question

"Wait, who is that with Sprig?" Polly asked as she and Frobo made their way back. She shielded her eyes from the sun and squinted to get a better look, "Oh my frog! Is that a human?" She nudged Frobo and started running.

"Are you okay? You seem less pink?" Troy asked as he knelt down to get a better look at him. Sprig opened and closed his mouth but no words came out. Polly finally caught up with them and doubled over to catch her breath. She pointed to the boy.

"Who the frog are you and how did you get here?" She demanded. He seemed taken aback by the question.

"Um, Troy and I don't know." He said rubbing his neck awkwardly, "I mean, one moment I was at summer camp and the next thing I know I'm here."

"I'm sorry. Can you repeat your last name again?" Sprig said, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples, "I think I misheard you the first time."

"Boonchuy." He said looking between them, "Why? Are there frogs around here with that same last name?" Polly's mouth fell open.

"Can you excuse me for one moment?" Sprig said as he took Polly by the arm and took a couple steps away from him.

"You don't think-?" Polly started loudly and Sprig slapped a hand over her mouth.

"I don't know!" He hissed in a slight panic as he glanced back.

"Well, let's just ask him then." Polly reasoned and made to get his attention. Sprig stopped her.

"No!" He said quickly.

"What? Why not?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"I-I don't want to get my hopes up." Sprig said, with tears in his eyes.

"Why are you being so weird about this?" Polly rolled her eyes, "We'll ask him, get our answer, and find a way to send him home."

"Polly please!" Sprig begged, "Let's just help him get home. I don't want answers."

"What are you so scared of?" She demanded.

"Everything!" He shouted, making Troy and Frobo look over at him in confusion.

"Yeah, well, good luck not finding out when he sees the statue of Anne in town." Polly whispered back.

"Then we won't go to town." Sprig countered.

"Ugh. You're acting just like Hop Pop!" Polly huffed. Sprig opened his mouth to retort but stopped and glanced back. Polly shifted uncomfortably, "Sorry. I-"

"It's okay and maybe I am acting like him." Sprig admitted, "Can we just keep this a secret for now?" Polly frowned.

"Fine but we are going to talk about this later." She said, fixing him with a look. He nodded and they walked back.

"Uh, you don't have to help me if it's too much trouble. I could probably get by with a map and maybe some provisions." Troy said avoiding eye contact. Polly nudged Sprig hard in the ribs.

"It's no problem!" He said as he winced and glared at Polly, "We'll just stop by the house and head out."

"Oh, I kinda wanted to see the town. Didn't you say it had people food?" He asked, confused. Polly gave Sprig a dry look.

"I just remembered," Sprig lied quickly, "-town is, uh, closed! Besides, my house is just down the hill. We can stop by, grab supplies, and get you home."

"Dude, it's my house." Polly interrupted her brother.

"It's the Plantar family home." Sprig argued.

"Yeah, and you haven't lived there in what? Ten, maybe fifteen years?" Polly stated.

"Okay, fine!" He said exasperatedly, "Can we stop by our family home that you live in?"

"Sure, no problem." She shrugged nonchalantly.

"So, I'm guessing she's your sister then?" Troy asked as he tried to break the awkward tension.

"That's right! Polly Plantar, best engineer in all of Amphibia!" She said proudly, "Oh, and this is Frobo. I helped rebuild him." She said casually as she gestured to Frobo. Troy stared at Frobo in awe.

"You built this- I mean, him?" Troy corrected himself.

"Not originally. But I have rebuilt him several times though, added some upgrades, and threw in some modifications here and there." She glanced at Frobo affectionately.

"Where did you learn how to do all that?" Troy asked curiously.

"Great question!" Sprig interrupted, "But it will have to wait. It's going to be dark soon so we better head out."

"Okay. You lead the way Mr. Plantar." Troy said, making Sprig nearly choke.

"You can just call me Sprig." He said weakly.

"But you're so old? Aren't you supposed to refer to your elders as-" Troy started.

"I'm only in my thirties!" Sprig replied affronted.

"That's pretty old." Polly teased, "That's why he's so cranky."

"I'm not-!" He stopped and took a calming breath, "Let's just move past this." He said and led the way down the hill. Soon they stood before the Plantar farm and home.

"Woah, so you guys are like farmers?" Troy asked looking around, "Are those avocados?"

"Sure are!" Polly said, "They were Hop Pop's favorite."

"You kept the farm going?" Sprig asked in surprise.

"Well, duh, what else am I supposed to do with farmland Sprig?" She said, sighing. She leaned over to whisper to him as Troy was distracted looking at the plants. "I'm going to need a minute to hide some things inside. Why don't you show him around?" Sprig nodded appreciatively.

"Hey, uh, Troy!" Sprig said walking over, "How would you like a tour of the farm?"

"That sounds like a great idea, Sprig!" Polly said loudly as she headed for the front door, "You can show him around while I tidy up." She winked very obviously.

"Sure, that sounds like fun." Troy said eagerly. Sprig smiled and started explaining some of the history of the farm. Polly and Frobo slipped inside.

"Okay, everything related to the human world has to go!" She said quickly. They looked around at the numerous items that filled the room. "Okay, scratch that. We'll just hide anything that can very obviously be linked back to Anne." She amended. Frobo rubbed his robot arm awkwardly. Polly put a hand to her face, "Let's just try and hope for the best." Frobo gave two thumbs up and they set to work.

"-and that's when Polliana Plantar decided to start farming turnips. See she-" Sprig continued as Troy's eyes started to glaze over from boredom.

"Alright, come on in you two." Polly called exhausted as she opened the front door. It was already starting to get dark out. Troy hurried over and stepped inside full of excitement. His face fell when he saw everything covered in white sheets. "Pretty nice, huh?" Polly tried to play it off.

"Oh, um, yes. It's very, uh-" Troy fumbled with his words. Sprig joined him and looked at Polly questioningly. She made a shushing gesture.

"Yup! This is just how I remember it." Sprig lied uncomfortably, "Let's get something to eat." A few moments later they sat around the kitchen table awkwardly as Troy shoveled food into his face.

"Wow! This food is amazing. It tastes just like what my Mæ̀ would make back home." He said with his mouth full.

"You don't say…" Polly said, giving Sprig a look as he just about choked on his maggot larb. Troy patted him on the back as Sprig coughed up part of a chile.

"Hey, didn't you mention how you had a human friend? Did she teach you how to make this?" He asked curiously. Polly glanced between them.

"Uh, no. This is an old Plantar family recipe. Very secret." He lied nervously.

"Huh," He shrugged then straightened up, "I almost forgot! You said your human friend was transported here by a music box. Do you have one that can send me back?" He looked at Sprig expectantly.

"No, it-" He set his utensils down, "It disintegrated shortly after we sent her back."

"What was her name?" Troy asked with interest. Sprig quickly wiped his eyes.

"I'd rather not talk about this right now." He said getting up.

"I'm sorry. I didn't m-" Troy started apologetically.

"You should probably get some rest. We'll have a big journey ahead of us tomorrow." Sprig cut across him and turned away to look out the window. Polly pushed her plate away and got up.

"I'll show you to your room." Polly said gently, taking Troy's hand and leading him to the basement. She returned a few minutes later and glared at Sprig, "Outside. Now." Once outside Polly quietly closed the door and rounded on Sprig. "Explain."

"Explain what?" Sprig deflected as he avoided her eyes.

"Sprig, I'm probably one of the smartest frogs in all of Amphibia and I can't even begin to understand what is going on with you." She said, throwing her hands in the air.

"That's a bit conceited." He muttered to himself, "I don't expect you to understand."

"Try me." She scowled and crossed her arms. Sprig chewed on his lip with frustration as he started to pace.

"We don't even know if he is related to Anne."

"Oh please. The last name? That he immediately recognised Anne's recipe for larb? Heck, he even looks like her."

"He doesn't look exactly like her."

"Yeah, and we look exactly like our mom." Polly said sarcastically. Sprig huffed and ignored her. "I'm 99% certain that is Anne's kid in our basement and you are acting like this is the end of the world! Why!?"

"Because he didn't recognise me!" Sprig said and slumped against the house. He put his head in his hands.

"What?" Polly asked in complete confusion, "What does that have to do with anyth-"

"Because it means Anne hasn't talked about me or shown him pictures or told him anything about our adventures or the time she spent with us!" Sprig cried, "She's probably forgotten about us or we don't matter to her anymore." He started sobbing.

"Sprig…" Polly said softly and sat next to him, "I doubt Anne would ever forget us. She's a Plantar after all."

"So why doesn't he know then? Is she ashamed of us?" Sprig sobbed, "Is she dead?"

"Geez, Sprig." Polly said, reaching over to put a hand on his shoulder, "You know you could put those fears to rest if you just ask him."

"And what if they turn out to be true? Could you live with that?" Sprig asked. Polly winced. "I want to keep my memories of Anne the same as when she left." They sat in silence for a long time. Sprig stood up.

"Where are you going?" Polly asked.

"I need to find Ivy and tell her what's going on." He said wiping his eyes, "Can you keep an eye on the kid?" Polly nodded and Sprig headed off.