Chapter 7: Part 1: Chapter 7: Taking Charge

It was another lovely day, as life at the Plantar home was slow going. The Plantars and teenagers had taken everything care of the previous day, and now the family was just relaxing inside. Frank, meanwhile, was outside fishing on the back patio with his newly constructed fishing rod. Sending the thin wire out as far as he could, Frank patiently for a fish to come around.

This was something he used to do with a spear, but for the past few days, he's managed to make a makeshift rod. As he leaned back on a sack of potatoes with his legs crossed, Frank started to close his eyes for a rest.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHH!" He jolted upright when he heard Anne's voice screaming from down in the basement. Discarding his fishing rod, Frank ran back into the house and rushed into the living, where Hop Pop, Sprig, Polly were hanging out.

"Anne? Are you okay?" Frank ran to the door to the basement and was able to open it when Anne suddenly threw it open. Hitting him in the face and sending him onto the ground.

"Guys, guys, guys, guys, guys! Look!" Anne said, looking all excited, and showed them her phone.

The family of frogs looked at her with confused looks, while Frank held his nose for a moment before seeing what was on her screen. "What are we looking at here?" asked Polly.

"Wait, is that…." Frank let go of his nose to point at the screen.

"Suspicion Island. It's, like, my favorite show," Anne said, showing the title of the show on her phone, before climbing out of the basement and closing the door. "I've got the new season and didn't even know it. It must have auto-downloaded before we got here."

"Awesome!" Frank cheered, throwing his fists in the air.

"Who's this Otto?" Sprig asked, looking confused with a hand under his chin.

Polly then cut in by pushing his goggles over his eyes. "And how did you download him?"

"My grandma watches this show," Frank said with a smile. "It's basically about a bunch of beautiful people doing dumb things while stuff explodes."

"It's literally perfect. Just watch," Anne said, pressing play and facing the screen towards the others as the video started.

"Previously on Suspicion Island." Said the narrator before showing a scene where the beautiful, yet dumb characters are walking through the jungle.

"I've got a lot of feelings about this place," said one of the characters.

"Welcome to our life," Frank joked, which made Anne snickered.

"Look! More Annes and Franks!" Sprig said, pointing at the humans.

"Haha! They have noses." laughed Polly.

"I feel like everyone on this island is suspicious, Peruvia, except you!" Said one of the characters, Randy, to Peruiva as he placed a hand on her cheek.

"But, Randy, I think you're suspicious!" Peruvia said, slapping his hand away.

"No!" Randy screamed with tears in his eyes, before the scene suddenly exploded.

"Suspicion Island. If you don't stay suspicious, you won't stay alive."

"What is this demonic nonsense?" Hop Pop asked, not liking what he saw.

"It's like a stupider version of Lost but it makes sense," Frank said, leaning on the arm of the couch. "It's actually pretty good with a big mystery element and a lot of humor that goes over kids' heads. You guys wanna it?"

"Heck yeah!" Sprig and Polly cheered together, especially when they heard about the humor.

"Now, hold on," protested Hop Pop, holding up his hands. "Instead of that garbage, how 'bout I treat you to some real entertainment?"

"Like what?" Anne asked.

"Oh, no," Sprig and Polly groaned.

Reaching into his coach, Hop Pop pulled out a scroll. "A scene from The Shallow Pond," he said, before clearing throat. Opening the scroll, he started to read the poem. "'Sadness. The world is sadness. But look. There. A pond! Is it deep or shallow?'"

At the end of the scene, the room remained silent for a moment. "All in favor of Suspicion Island, say aye," Frank said.

"Aye! Aye! Aye!" Anne, Sprig, and Polly chanted together.

"Okay! Fine! But just one," Hop said.

One episode turned into several more. For the rest of the night, the group watched half of the new season of Suspicion Island. Frank, Anne, and the frog kids had their eyes glued to the screen, while Hop Pop begrudgingly watched with them. Looking unamused as the story got more and more ridiculous.

"It can't be, Vivica." Yelled the other male characters yelled as he and a girl were surrounded by several pterodactyls on a cliff. "These pterodactyls are clones of... my dead brother!"

Anne, Sprig, and Polly gasped in shock. "No way!" Anne yelled.

"Oh, yeah. You can see the resemblance," Frank quipped, getting him a shush from Anne. "What? It's so easy to roast this show. It's why grandma watches it."

As the episode came to an end, Anne tapped on the screen to pause it. "And that's enough for tonight," Anne said. Frank stood up and stretched his arms while Sprig and Polly groaned and complained.

"Don't worry, guys. We'll pick up where we left off tomorrow," Frank said, yawning tiredly. "Besides, you can't just marathon through a whole show. You gotta pace yourself with this stuff."

"All right, you two grubs. Off to bed," said Hop Pop, relieved that it was finally over. The kids groaned again. This time rolling off the couch and onto the ground before getting up.

"How am I supposed to sleep without knowing what happened to Vivica and Chad?" Sprig asked, as he and Polly went towards the stairs.

"Stupid sleep! I wanna watch it right now!" Polly complained, following her brother up the stairs to their room.

Leaving Frank, Anne, and Hop Pop alone in the living room. Looking towards the old frog, Anne's lips formed a smile as she nudged Hop Pop. "So? What do you think, Hop Pop?" She asked. "Better than that boring stuff you read to us, right?"

Hop Pop scoffed and stood up. "That 'boring stuff' is called literature, Anne," he said, walking towards his room. Before he closed the door, he turned back to the kids. "And maybe, if you had an ounce of culture, you wouldn't reject it in favor of your substandard, puerile garbage show!" He then slammed the door close. Leaving Anne and Frank alone.

"Sheesh. Tell me how you really feel," Anne said, a little upset.

"It's okay, Anne. I had fun. Thanks for hosting the show," Frank said with a smile.

"Thanks, Frank. I had a lot of fun too. And we're going to have even more fun tomorrow," Anne said with a smile as they walked down into the basement. Leaving the phone alone where Anne set it up.

But as midnight rolled around, Frank's body was twitching around. His face covered in sweat as his face twitched and winched. His breathing was heavy, and his fingers clenched the bed sheets tightly.

All signs that he was having a nightmare. And it was a bad one. It wasn't one where he was chased by monsters or seeing something terrible happening. No, these were real. How were they real? Because they were memories of a certain, horrible moment in his life. Memories of events that took place before his and Anne's reunion.

He remembered the sirens and flashing red and blue lights.

Being dragged away.

The freezing jail cell he was put in for the night.

The argument with his parents.

The tears of frustration, pain, and fear. And then the words on the court date that sealed his fate.

"This court sentences you to 10 months in the state's juvenile detention center!"

"N-No, please!" Frank gasped in fear, jolting upright.

"What? What happened?" Anne shot up, startled by him. She then saw Frank staring ahead with wide eyes, panting and sweating with tears in his eyes. Looking like he had just started crying. "Frank? What's wrong?"

"Huh?" Frank turned to her, snapping out of it. He quickly whipped his eyes of the tears. "Uh, yeah. I-I just had a bad dream."

"Oh, that's it? I thought you were being attacked," Anne said, while still concerned for him. "What was it about?"

"I-I don't want to talk about it," Frank said, looking down.

"Oh…" Anne looked a little sad that he wasn't telling her what was wrong. "Well, goodnight," Anne said, laying back down on her bed and going back to sleep. Leaving Frank awake to contemplate his nightmare.

He sighed and covered his face with his hand. He hasn't thought about it for a while now. Having been mostly focused on staying alive in this froggy world.

Frank was brought out of his worried thoughts when he heard something coming from upstairs. Grabbing his knife, he walked up the stairs and opened the door slightly. Scanning the living room, Frank found nothing out of the ordinary.

Thinking he just imagined things, Frank closed the basement door and went back to bed.

The next day, Frank yawned as he walked over to join Anne on the couch. Thankful that he didn't have any more nightmares that night.

Bringing over a bowl of popcorn, Anne sat next to Frank before calling for the Plantars. "Come on, guys! It's time to get suspicious," Anne said.

"Just like you're suspicious of making popcorn without butter," Frank joked, dropping a cube of butter onto their popcorn. The two of them laughed and fist-bumped, before Anne tapped on her phone screen.

But then the screen turned on, and she got a low battery notification.

"Wait, what?!" Anne shouted in total shock. Bringing everyone else to the living room.

"What's wrong, Anne?" Sprig asked.

"What's all the ruckus?" Hop Pop said, cooking some breakfast.

"Why you screaming?" Polly exclaimed.

"My battery is low," Anne said, picking up her phone. Confused as to how it got like this. "But it was fine last night when I turned it off."

"I'm surprised it kept its charge for so long," Frank said with wide eyes.

But when she opened her phone again, she was puzzled to see that every episode of the show's new season was already watched. "Huh? 'Watched'?"

Frank's eyes widened as he realized what that meant. "That must have been what I heard last night," he said, turning his head to Anne. "Someone was watching the show while we were all asleep."

"Who watched all these episodes and used up all the-" Before she finished her sentence, the phone started beeping. The battery had run out, and it was shutting down. Anne desperately tapped on the screen to keep it on. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!"

But it was too late, and the battery lost the last of its power. Shutting down Anne's phone. The last connection she had to earth.

Stunned, Anne lowered the phone onto her lap and whispered, "It's gone."

"What's gone?" Sprig asked.

"Sprig, that phone had everything Anne had to remember of earth," Frank said, placing a hand on Anne's shoulder.

"Everything! My pictures, my texts! Videos of my cat! Now all my memories from home are gone!" Anne exclaimed before she began hyperventilating. Bringing her legs up to her chest and buried her face in her face.

It made Frank upset to see her this upset and rubbed Anne's back. "It's going to be okay…."

"No!" Anne suddenly slapped his hand away. "Was it you!?" She yelled, pointing an accusing finger at his chest.

"Huh?"

"Did you, or did you not, watch all those episodes and drain the battery on my phone?" Anne demanded to know with narrowing eyes. Giving him a suspicious look.

"Anne, what are you talking about?" Frank frowned, feeling pretty insulted by her accusation. He lightly swatted her hand away from him. "I didn't watch those episodes."

"Oh yeah? You said you heard someone upstairs last night and went to investigate it. You would have only heard someone if you were awake!"

"I had a nightmare, Anne! You know that!" Frank yelled at her, standing up to glare at her.

"Guys, stop fighting!" Sprig quicking said, getting between the two fighting friends.

"Why, Sprig? Did you do it!?" Anne yelled, pointing at him. Now accusing him.

"Anne, stop!" Frank shouted.

"What? No! I didn't watch anything. It must have been Polly," Sprig exclaimed, pointing to his polliwog sister.

"What?!" Polly shouted angrily. Shocked at the accusation.

"I even heard her get up in the night," Sprig said, standing on the armrest. He then leaned to the humans. "Very suspicious."

"Oh my God," Frank groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. He knew full well where this was going.

"I needed to pee!" Polly retaliated. "Plus, if you heard me, you were awake too, like Frank. YOU TWO ARE THE SUSPICIOUS ONES!" She pointed at her brother and the human male.

"Don't change the subject," Sprig said angrily. Glaring at his sister as he leaned close to her face.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Polly said. "What about... Hop Pop?"

"Heh! Me? In case you forgot, I despise that garbage," Hop Pop said, not amused.

"Exactly! Maybe you ran down the phone so we'd have to listen to your boring play!" Polly exclaimed.

"Oh, that's good," Sprig said with a nod.

"That is preposterous!"

"Enough!" Anne suddenly shouted, standing up and pointing at everyone in the room. "If none of you are going to admit to it, then the least you can do is help me fix my phone!"

"Fair enough, Anne. How do we bring this thing back to life?" Hop Pop asked, still holding his spatula and pan."Magic? Live sacrifice? I know a guy in town-"

"What? No! We just have to charge it," Frank said. He turned to Anne with a small frown. "Which is pretty much impossible without electricity."

"Huh?" The frog family looked at him with confused looks.

"You know. Thunder? Lightning? Zap zap?" Anne asked.

"'Zap zap'?" Hop Pop repeated, scratching his head with the spatula. It sounded familiar. Then he suddenly thought of something. "Oh, I think I know what you're talking about. Quickly! To my study!"

The family gathered in Hop Pop's study as he placed a book down on his desk. He opened it to a page with a mountain picture on it. "I've heard talk of a creature called the zapapede that lives deep in the Misty Peaks," he said, tracing his finger up a trail to a picture of a centipede-like creature. "It zaps its prey with a small spark of lightnin'. Yeah, it's pretty cool, actually."

"Sounds like it's worth a shot," Anne said. "So, how far away is this bug, HP?"

"Don't call me HP," Hop Pop told her. "It's half a day's travel, but that should be no trouble for this gang." He pointed at his grandkids and the human friends.

Sprig, however, swatted his hand away. "Oh, yeah? Well, that's just what Chad Vanderblad said. Right before he was stabbed in the back by a backstabber, ON SUSPICION ISLAND!" He yelled, repeatedly pointing finger guns at Hop Pop.

"Watch where you're pointin' that finger!" Hop Pop told him, swatting them away.

Then Polly jumped into the conversation. She jumped off Sprig's head and landed between the two male frogs. "I would never stab Chad in the back, but one of you two would."

"No one is stabbing Chad in the back!" Frank said loudly out of frustration. He then pointed a finger at them. "Now stop arguing with each other! Because as far as I'm concerned, you're all suspicious. Just look at you."

The faces the Plantars were meaning, and the way they were shifting their eyes back and forth from side to side just proved his point.

"What a minute!" Sprig said, pointing his finger at Frank. "Every time you point, two fingers point back! Meaning you're still suspicious, Frank!"

"All of you, stop it!" Anne said, glaring at them. "Now, come on. Let's get going. The sooner we move, the sooner I get my memories back." She turned and walked out of the study.

Frank followed after her shortly afterwards, and the two exited out of the house. The Plantars following behind them. "You okay, Anne?" He asked. Anne let out a sigh and looked down at the ground as they walked.

"I…know it may seem silly, but my phone has everything to remind me of home," Anne said, pulling it out and looking at the black screen.

"It's gonna be okay, Anne," Frank said. "We'll finger out a way to fix it."

Anne looked at him, smiling at his supportiveness. But then she squinted at him. "Are you sure you didn't use my phone?"

"No. Besides, I lost my battery charge a few days ago," Frank said, pulling out his phone and holding it up to her.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Anne asked.

"I figured it was only a matter of time before our phones lost power together," Frank said, pulling his phone away from her and looking at it. "Though, I have to admit; it's been a while since I've seen pictures of my grandma, Roger…." He hesitated for a moment. "...mom and dad. So, I know what you're going through right now. Feeling like you're losing your memories of home."

Anne looked at him sadly and with sympathy. Feeling guilty, she said, "Hey, I'm sorry for accusing you, Frank."

"It's alright, Anne," Frank said with a small smile. But he looked over his shoulder at the Plantars, who were still giving each other the 'I'm watching you' gesture. "I'm more worried about them."

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Anne said, brushing off his worries. The two of them then heard Sprig tripping over and looked back. Seeing his face down on the ground because he wasn't looking at where he was going.

"Sure it will," Frank retorted.

Within an hour and a half, they made it to the mountain's base and began the long trek up the trail. As they walked on the rough walk away, Sprig started playing on his fiddle and sang.

" A family Distrusts each other "

" On a dangerous mission "

" Like the nearly naked humans On the island of Suspicion "

" Peruvia, Felicia, And Randy, so hot "

" Beguiling, hostile-ing "

" We're all Suspicious isle-ing "

Sprig stopped when he bumped into Frank's leg. The group had stopped in their tracks as Hop Pop held up his hand.

"Quiet, boy. Look! There's one now!" He said, pointing to the zapapede.

It was golden yellow, with a pale yellow underbelly. It had two green eyes, one slightly darker than the other. The lighter-green eye had a positive sign, and the darker eye had a negative symbol. It had many pairs of short brown legs, much like a caterpillar. It had brown horns with electricity zapping between them, with darker to lighter ascending layers and yellow, sharp mandibles at the front of their heads.

"A zapapede!" Hop Pop said.

"Oh, looks pretty cute," Anne said. Frank agreed.

But then he looked down as the clouds started to clear up, and saw that the zapapede was up on a high rock point separated far from the mountain. And the only way to get to it was an old bridge that looked ready to collapse.

"Oh god, we're actually doing this," Frank said, starting to become a little scared. Taking a deep breath, he stepped onto the bridge with one foot. He then stepped completely on the bridge, stretching his arms out to balance himself. Walking out a bit onto the bridge, he turned back to the other. "Okay, it's good. But step lightly, guy. I don't think this thing can take much weight."

Sprig nodded and started carefully walking on the bridge. Then Hop Pop, Anne, and Polly. The five started making their way across the bridge.

As he followed behind Frank, Sprig yawned. Something that made Hop Pop stop and looked at him with suspicion. Walking up to him, Anne placed her hand on Hop Pop's shoulder.

"Huh. 'Sup, HP?"

"Sprig sure looks tired, doesn't he? Awfully suspicious," Hop Pop said with squinting eyes. "And will you two stop calling me HP?"

"The old man's a lying snake, but he does have a point," Polly said, looking from behind Anne's one shoe.

Frank and Sprig were still walking, but the red frog stopped. "You guys talkin' scum?!" He yelled, pointing accusingly at them.

"Guys, what did I tell you about accusing each other?!" Frank said, turning around to glare at them. "We're almost there."

Sprig squinted his eyes at the others, before turning back to Frank. He waved for him to come over to him. Frank groaned exasperatedly and walked over to him. Sprig then signaled for him to come down to him.

"Sprig, we're on a bridge together. They're gonna hear you," Frank said with a frown.

"I just need to talk to you."

Frank groaned in annoyance and crouched down to Sprig's level. "What?"

Sprig looked back at the others before turning back to him. "I don't believe that you watched all those episodes. But I want to find out who's guilty just as much as you do. Let me help you," he said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Sprig, I just want this mission to be over with," he said, standing up and starting walking again.

"But let's help each other out," Sprig said, following him. "Everyone thinks that I did it. Do you know what that's like? To be accused of a crime you didn't commit?"

Frank suddenly stopped, and Sprig bumped into his leg. Everyone had heard their conversation and were watching, but now their attention was on the boy.

Frank stood still, facing the other end of the bridge. The wind rushed through his exposed hair. He clenched his fists tightly as he looked over his shoulder at Sprig. Glaring at him.

"Yes, Sprig. I do."

He then turned around and started marching towards the other side of the bridge.

"Well, then let's help each other!" Sprig said.

Polly suddenly jumped in front of Hop Pop and Anne. "Oh, no, you don't! You were trying to Chad him into trusting you!" She exclaimed.

"And you're trying to Vivica Anne into not trusting me!" Sprig said, walking towards his sister, pointing at her.

"Oh, and look at Hop Pop trying to Randy his way out of this," Polly said, turning to her grandfather.

"I don't even know what that means!" Hop Pop yelled, throwing his hands into the air.

"Guys, cut it out!" Anne said, walking over to them in the middle of the bridge. "You're gonna-"

Suddenly, with a loud snap, the bridge broke apart, and all five of them were plunged down into the mist.

When Frank opened his eyes, he groaned in pain. As did the others. Luckily for him and Anne, they landed on a bush. Hop Pop, Sprig, and Polly, on the other hand, weren't so lucky. Having landed on the hard rock floor of a ledge.

"Rope bridge? More like 'nope bridge.'"

"Why did we ever think showing that show was a good idea?" Frank complained, sitting up and rubbing his head. Him and Anne sharing a far number of cuts and bruises from the fall.

Hop Pop was lying near the edge of the cliff, groaning in pain when he looked down. He gasped and exclaimed, "Look! Down there! More zapapedes!"

Frank, Anne, Sprig, and Polly walked towards the edge and looked down below. Down in a gorge were what had to be thousands of zapapedes zapping away at one another, in a frenzy from the bridge collapsing on top of them.

"They're pretty far down," Hop Pop said.

Looking around for any way to get to the zapapedes, Frank suddenly got an idea. "We'll just link arms and lower someone down!" Frank said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his phone.

"Just like the teens did in episode eight!" Anne said with a smile, pulling out her phone too.

"Ha! So that Polly can drop us to cover her tracks, just like Vivica did in the very same episode?!" Sprig said, glaring at his sister.

"You callin' me a Vivica?!" yelled an angry Polly.

"Maybe…" Polly suddenly jumped on Sprig, and the two started fighting

"Kids, no! Stop fightin'!" Hop Pop yelled, but there was no stopping them. Polly gave Sprig an Indian burn, and Sprig gave her a wet willy.

Seeing that things have indeed gotten out of hand, Frank and Anne walked over to them. "Hey, cut it out, you guys. Seriously!" Anne yelled before Sprig accidentally kicked her in the face.

"Oh, sorry, Anne. You okay?" Sprig apologize.

"Anne?" Frank asked, worried by how quiet she'd gotten.

Anne pushed foot out of her face and rolled up her sleeve. She then let out a battle cry and attacked Sprig and Polly.

"OH, GOD!" Frank exclaimed in a panic and quickly dove into the furball to try and get them all split apart.

"Kids, no! Stop fighting!" Hop Pop said, watching in agony as his family tore itself apart.

Frank was trying to pull back Anne, while she and Polly were attacking Sprig at the same time. "Guys! Quit it!" He yelled, before feeling someone biting into his foot. He tried to shake him off. "OW! The fuck, Sprig? Let go!"

Hop Pop started sweating and looked around for a solution, but there was none. Seeing no other options, he finally caved in.

"IT WAS MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

The kids stopped fighting as the old frog's voice echoed across the gorge. The four of them stared at him with wide eyes. Shocked by what they just heard.

"You!?" Frank exclaimed, letting go of Anne. "You drained the battery?"

"That's right, Frank. I watched all the episodes. Every single one!" Hop Pop admitted, hitting the sides of his head.

"But why?" Frank asked, standing up with Anne.

"Yeah, I thought you hated Suspicion Island," Anne said, holding her phone.

Hop Pop looked up at them with disbelief. "Hated it? Hated it? I LOVED IT!" He shouted, making the kids gasp. Hop Pop then started explaining. "Ever since the end of that last episode. I-I couldn't sleep. I fell in love with those crazy kids on their crazy island. I couldn't get enough! I did the only thing I could. I snuck out to the livin' room to watch another episode. I vowed only to watch one, but Suspicion Island had its hooks in me! And before I realized what had happened, I'd finished the season! With dawn approaching, I covered my tracks and made my escape."

At the end of his tale, the kids were amazed by the surprise twist in the mystery. "Why don't you just tell us that you liked it?" Frank asked. "None of this would have happened if you had."

Hop Pop sighed in shame. "I didn't want to admit that I liked something that you all liked. But now I'm gonna make things right," he said, taking Anne and Frank's phones.

"I WILL REDEEM MYSELF!" He suddenly shouted, ran to the edge of the cliff, and jumped off it. Falling straight down towards the zapapedes.

"Hop Pop!"

The shocked group screamed and looked down. Expecting to see him dead from the fall or the zapapedes. Miraculously, Hop Pop was still alive. He was just lying on top of the zapapedes.

"I'm okay!" Hop Pop called up to them.

"Hop Pop! We're coming to get you! Don't move and or anything to provoke them!" Frank called down to the old frog.

"You know, it's actually kinda relaxing," Hop Pop said, before the zapapedes started electrocuting him. When they stopped, Hop Pop looked burnt and in terrible pain as he whimpered. They shocked him again and again. With both phones, he tried crawling away, but would just get zapped again.

"Stop screaming in pain! I think it makes them angrier!" Frank yelled.

"He can't last much longer!" Sprig cried

"We have to work together!" Polly shouted.

"I've got an idea!" Frank said, standing up and pointing to the tree trunk. "Sprig! Wrap your tongue around that trunk and hold on tight!" Sprig nodded and shot his long tongue out at the trunk. Tying himself around it. "Polly grabbed onto my legs, and Sprig, I want you to hold onto her. Anne, I'm gonna need you to my shoulders."

Frank crouched down, and Anne came over to sit on his shoulders. His head between her, Frank looped his hands around her legs like they were the safety harness of a rollercoaster. As he stood at the edge of the cliff, Polly bounced over and grabbed his legs, before Sprig grabbed her with his feet.

Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Frank fell over the side of the cliff. "Jeronimo!"

The kids fell towards the zapapedes, stopping when Sprig's tongue reached the end of its length. Frank grunted as he tried to keep his hold on Anne as she reached down and grabbed Hop Pop's foot.

"Got him!" Anne exclaimed. But she suddenly realized something. "Oh, wait a second."

The zapapedes zapped Hop Pop again, and the electricity coursed up to Anne. She screamed in pain while being electrocuted. The electricity traveled up to Frank and zapped him. Then Polly and then Sprig. The five of them screamed, before being shot out of the nest and sent high into the air. Going high into the sky, before crashing through the trees and landing on the ground.

Charred and burnt, the group laid around, groaning in pain from the shock they were given and the impact. Hop Pop sat up and looked at the humans' phones and was shocked to see that both of them were at ten thousand percent.

"Holy smokes. That's a lot of percents," he said.

Anne groaned as she sat up against a tree and looked towards Frank, lying face down on the ground. Also covered in soot. "Frank?" She asked, nudging his body with her foot. When he didn't respond, she quickly got up and flipped him over on his back. "Frank?!"

Frank didn't respond for a moment, until he started coughing and sat up. He coughed up ash and soot from his mouth and throat. Once he was done, he panted for a moment.

"How are we still alive!?" Frank shouted, throwing his hands into the air. His arms then plopped on the ground.

Anne smiled and chuckled at his outburst, relieved he was okay. "Are you okay," she asked. Frank groaned as he pushed his hands on his back.

"I'm fine. Just a little burnt," he said, panting himself off. Frank groaned as he stood up and offered Anne a hand. Anne smiled and grabbed his hand. "At least we got your phone charged."

Anne took him by surprise when she suddenly hugged him. Making him blush. "True, but you're more important than my phone," she said.

"But it had all your memories," Frank said, still blushing.

"Yeah, but you're important to me too. You're my friend," Anne said, blushing too as she held him tighter. Frank smiled and hugged her back. The two pulled away from each other, before turning to look at Hop Pop.

"So, you love Suspicion Island, huh?" asked Anne, smiling

Hop Pop looked away in guilt and sighed. "Yeah...And I'm sorry I lied and drained your memory box. Can you ever forgive this old, silly frog?"

"Dude, you just risked your life to recharge both our phones. I think we're square," Frank said, taking back his phone. Hop Pop smiled and handed back Anne's.

"Aw," Sprig said as he and Polly watched the friendly exchange and forgiveness while sitting on some rocks.

"Really glad I didn't push you off a cliff like I was planning," Polly said.

"Me too, Polly. Me too." Sprig chuckled.

"All right, enough fiddle-faddling. We gotta get home so you guys can finish the season. If I don't talk to someone about it soon, I'm gonna explode!" Hop Pop exclaimed, turning and walking away. The others followed behind him. Beginning their journey back to the Plantar farm. "I mean, that part where the island itself is revealed to actually be-"

"No!"

"Oh, come on!"

"Dude, spoilers!"

"Keep it to yourself, old man!"

{Play music:  The Grey  OST - Into the Fray}

Hours later, and the day had turned into night. After taking a good shower, Frank walked down into the basement, drying his head with one of Anne's towels. As he walked to his bed, he looked at Anne and noticed that she was asleep.

He smiled, thinking she was adorable when she slept. Pushing those thoughts into the back of his head, Frank sat down on his bed and looked up at the ceiling. He then turned to his phone and grabbed it.

Turning it on, he opened his texts. Early in the day, he looked through his photos. Now he wanted to look back on the conversations he had in his life. His first thought was to see his grandma and grandpa's texts, but he paused when he noticed his mom's number.

Frank stared at it for a moment, before tapping on it. He looked at the last text he sent to them.

Me: [I've made it to grandma's shop. Talk to you tonight?]

That was the last text he sent his parents.

It was sent one month before he and Anne were teleported to Amphibia.

She never texted back. Didn't call him back. His parents basically ghosted him.

Frank sighed, dropping his arms down on his knee and hung his head low. Grabbing his face. Fight but the tears. Even though his grandpa told him that it was okay for him to cry, the boy didn't let himself in fear of waking up Anne.

It was still hard to believe what had happened to him.

Convicted of a crime he never committed.

Frank was labeled as a criminal. He was expelled from his school. He was alienated by anyone he knew, even by his own parents, with whom he tried to reason. No one believed him to be innocent.

The only ones who believed him were his grandparents and the lawyer the court gave him. They fought with all they had in the court trial, but all their efforts were for nothing. It was like the judge and jury had already made up their mind. Sentencing him to 10 months in that hellhole of a juvenile detention center. Fighting off gangs and abusive guards. Sleeping in a cool ceil at night and eating gross food. Wondering day in and day out if he'll ever get out. His grandpa would pass away during his time in prison. Causing him even more emotional turmoil.

Thankful, he was let go a month before he and Anne would cross paths again. Things were never really the same between him and his parents. Without grandpa to be there for her, he moved in with his grandmother, who now was the only one in his family that believed and supported him. He did his best to repay her by working for the little old lady.

He could only imagine how worried she must be about him. Is she doing okay without him? Was she still alive, or like his grandpa, died during his time in Amphibia? Would his parents even be worried? Did time move differently in this world than on Earth? Would he be sent back to the juvenile hall when he goes back?

Frank shook his head and tried to clear his thoughts. Breathing in and out, he tried to clear his mind of his fears and anxieties. Place his phone next to his pillow on the bed, Frank tapped on his mushroom lamp. As the light of the mushroom faded away, Frank laid down and closed his eyes. Falling asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.