Chapter 35: Part 2: Chapter 12: Day of the Croaked

Coming down the round leading to Wartwood filled Frank with a sense of nostalgia. It was like being filled with the sensation of returning home. Newtopia was a bustling city. It was clean and secure, but very alien to Frank. He knew no one, and it felt like he couldn't even allow himself to make any relationships with the people he met. Not with how short of a time they had in the capital. That feeling wasn't there when he thought about coming back to Wartwood. It felt like coming home to your childhood home after so long. And it was the same feeling that was running through the frogs that accompanied him and Anne on their journey to Newtopia. 

Hop Pop inhaled the swamp air and sighed. "Ah, how I miss the swamp air. The aroma of grass, a whisper of manure, and just a pinch of humidity," he said, happy to be home again. "Do you feel that humidity, Anne?"

Frank turned to his girlfriend and nearly burst into laughter. Anne wasn't just sweating; her hair frizzled outwards from the humidity, making it look like she had an afro covering her eyes, too. 

"A pinch," Anne said.

With a chuckle, Frank helped her out by brushing her hair up off her eyes. "There, better," he asked, smiling.

"It is now, handsome," Anne flirted with a smirk upon seeing her boyfriend's face. This caused him to laugh shyly, rubbing the back of his head with a blush on his face. He returned the favor by kissing her on the cheek, making Anne laugh and hug him. Needless to say, the revelation of their love for one another had blossomed spectacularly during their journey back to Wartwood. In fact, Frank would say they were more synchronized in both their actions and thoughts after they officially shipped together. More than they ever had been as friends

That's when Polly gasped as she popped out of Anne's hair and exclaimed, "Eck! Can you two not do that while I'm in here?!"

"Sorry, Polly, but as an awesome girlfriend, it is my duty to show affection to my cute boyfriend," Anne said proudly, hugging her boyfriend and cuddling up to him.

"Wait, I thought I was the awesome boyfriend and you were the cute girlfriend," Frank said, smirking at Anne. 

"It's the other way around for me."

Polly groaned in annoyance and hopped out of Anne's hair. 

Sprig hopped with excitement as he said, "I hope we can make it in time for the Day of the Croaked festival."

"The what," Anne asked, looking at her frog best friend in confusion.

"Day of the Croaked," Sprig said. "It's the day where we celebrate everyone who passed away."

"Whoa, wait, you frogs have Día de los Muertos here too," Frank asked, his eyes filling with amazement and wonder. 

"Dilly lost Mortas?" 

Frank chuckled and rolled his eyes. " Día de los Muertos, guys. It's Spanish for Day of the Dead. Every year, we'd celebrate those who've passed away, who are allowed to return to the world of the living for two days."

"Wait, two days," Polly asked.

"One day for kids that died and the other for adults who died."

"Then shouldn't it be called Days of the Dead," asked Sprig.

"Hey, man, I don't name this stuff. For both days, there are big parties, offerings to the dead, everyone dressed up and painted skulls and skeletons called calaveras ," Frank said, getting looks from everyone. "They're not real. They're made of sugar."

"Boo," said Polly.

"You use real skulls," Anne asked.

"No, they're made of sugar too," Polly said, crossing her arms, pouting.

"We paint our faces, build these home altars called ofrendas with pictures of the person we're honoring, and decorate them with their favorite foods and drinks. And during the night, we visit their graves and offer them gifts and have picnics…"

"Wow, sounds like your Day of the Croaked is exactly like ours," Hop Pop said, driving Bessie, "with the exception of only celebrating it for one day, and the lanterns."

Frank raised an eyebrow. "The what?" 

"At midnight, we release lanterns into the sky with messages to the dead," Hop Pop said with a smile. He let out a sigh when remembering all of the previous Days of the Croaked. "I've always sent a message to my first wife. Sprig and Polly send one to their parents.

"Wow, that sounds amazing," Anne said, finding it cool that the frogs had a holiday just like Frank's people. It wasn't exactly the same, but it was close enough, and the idea of sending a message to the people they lost added to how genuinely nice it was. 

Polly then pointed ahead. "I see it! I see it! I can see Wartwood!"

Frank looked ahead, and it was true. They were approaching the gates of the small, stinky, and friendly town of Wartwood. Well, once they accepted you. 

Upon seeing the archway, his eyes widened when he saw the vibrant colors of decorations, with flowers and painted flour skulls. Immediately reminded Frank of the Día de los Muertos , especially when he saw Mrs. Croaker setting up the decorations with her face painted like a decorative skull, a black, green, and orange outfit, and red flowers in her hair. 

"Hey!" Sprig called out to the old woman who hated him, which was a story in itself. 

The moment she heard the young frog's voice, Mrs. Croaker looked up with a smile. "Hey, I know that irritating voice," she said, seeing the Fwagon coming down the road. She then turned to the town folks as they were busy getting ready for Day of the Croaked. "The Plantars are back! Get out here, everyone! It's the Plantars!"

The moment the frogs of the town heard the names of their friends and heroes, everyone stopped what they were doing and rushed to the town circle. The Fwagon pulled to a stop. Hopping down from the seat, Frank looked around and was amazed by how much the town had transformed from its humble, swampy self to becoming a colorful, festive hub of flour frog skulls, lanterns not yet lit, and flowers. 

All the frogs were dressed up like Mrs. Croaker for Day of the Croaked. Their faces were painted, and some wore big hats similar to sombreros and flower headpieces. 

"Good morning, friends!" Frank said, holding up his fists with a giant smile. "Hogar dulce hogar."

"Heya, folks!" Hop Pop said, before he was tackled by a certain lady frog. 

Sylvia kissed her boyfriend and smiled at him with a giant, big smile. "Hoppy!"

Upon seeing her, Hop Pop grinned at her. "Sylvia!"

"Come here, city boy!" Sylvia pulled Hop Pop into a hug. 

From the crowd, Loggle raised his hand and asked Frank and Anne, "Any luck finding a way back to your world?"

"Not yet," Anne said with her hands on her hips "But we're 'whittling away at it'."

Blushing, Loggle chuckled and said, "That wood reference was for me."

Wally, dressed like the lovable tramp that he was, ran up to Frank, Anne, and Polly. Skidding to a halt, he greeted them with a little dance. "Well, if it isn't the Plantars! Buba-dee buba-dee bup. Haven't seen you a lot for a long time," he said, nervous about the family revealing his own family secret. "Uh, definitely didn't see you on your trip."

Polly smirked and said, "Whatever you say, 'Walliam'." 

Hearing that made Wally look embarrassed as he cleared his throat.

"Hey!" yelled a familiar voice from the crowd. Frank turned his head and saw Indy and Rivet pushing their way through the crowd, who looked at them with mistrust. "Kids!" 

"Indy! Rivet!" Frank yelled as he ran over to them. Rivet, ever the happy kid, jumped up and hugged his friend. Frank hugged him back, which led the townsfolk to lessen their mistrust of the newcomers. "I'm so happy you made it. How do you like the town?"

Rivet backflipped away from Frank and said, "It's so great! Indy and I got a new shop; we're actually getting business, and everyone loves us," he said with a big smile.

"No, we don't," someone in the crowd said. 

"One Sprig was enough," Mrs. Croaker said. "But two is too much for me."

Indy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, it took us telling them that we were friends of yours before they actually started talking to us," he said. 

"And we still wouldn't trust you or the boy," a frog said, poking Indy in the chest. This, however, would turn out to be a mistake, as Indy menacingly at him. Scaring the frog, as the toad wasn't going to take the disrespect. 

"And I told you and the rest of your hillbilly friends you can abuse me all you want. But the moment you mess with the boy," Indy said, pointing to Rivet as he chased after a butterfly, "you answer to me."

Frank crossed his arms and glared at the townsfolk for their attitude towards his friends. "Yeah, that's something we'll need to have a very long talk about," he said, thinking that the town's ridiculous standard of being hostile to newcomers had to come to an end. 

At the same time, Sprig looked around, trying to find his girlfriend, Ivy. However, in the sea of painted faces and big sombreros, it was really hard to see her. He then walked up to Felicia, who didn't have her face painted like a skull, wearing a dress and ring of flowers on her head like most of the women.

"Uh, hey, Felicia. Where's Ivy," Sprig asked the mother, who was standing next to a weird-looking frog he didn't know. Must be her new boyfriend or something.

Felicia looked uncomfortable as she said, "Oh, she said she had something more important to do."

That hit Sprig in the heart like a twisting knife. "More important," he asked with big, tearing eyes. 

"Something about an…"

"Ambush!" Ivy yelled, suddenly bursting out of the fake frog that her mom stood next to. She tackled Sprig to the ground while dressed more like a bullfighter, with her face painted, too. She even had on a sombrero. 

On the ground, after having the wind knocked out of him, Sprig looked at his girlfriend with hearts in his eyes. "Uh... hi?"

Ivy laughed. "Hey, you," she said, hugging him tightly as everyone watched the cuteness while saying 'aww'. 

"Isn't it cute?" one frog commented. 

While watching her daughter and her pink boyfriend hugging, Felicia couldn't help but notice how close Frank and Anne were. Looking down at their arms, she saw that they were holding hands. This caused her to smirk a knowing smile and place a hand on her chin. 

"So, Frank, Anne, did anything else exciting happen to you two during your trip," the woman asked as she walked up to the two humans. "Hmmmmmm…?"

Frank looked at his girlfriend and smiled. "Well, you could say that something magical happened," he said, giving Anne's hand a loving squeeze. Anne blushed and returned the gesture with her own squeeze.

Hearing that and seeing how close the two humans were being, Ivy gained a look of realization. "WAIT!" She shouted, then hopped on Frank's chest, hanging onto his poncho while keeping her shocked expression as she looked into his confused eyes."Wait, wait, wait, wait…wait! Frank! Are you and Anne…officially dating!?"

"Well…" Frank started, before looking at his girlfriend to know if it was okay for him to tell them. She nodded. Frank then proudly looked at Ivy and the rest of the town. "Yep! We're boyfriend and girlfriend!" 

Hearing this, the crowd erupted into cheers, as if they were watching their favorite football team scoring a touchdown. The human couple couldn't help but smile at the support they've received from the town they considered their second home. Liking receiving a warm welcome from a new neighborhood.

"Well, hot diggity dog!" Mrs. Croaker exclaimed. "Was it before or after you got to Newtopia?"

"After," Anne confirmed. 

"Hah!" The old frog cheered and pointed at Duckweed. "Told ya! Pay up!

"Oh…dear," complained the newt as he gave her a few coppers.

"Chump."

The frogs all laughed with the elder before the commotion ended the moment Mayor Toadstool pushed his way through the crowd, acting like the usual jerk he did. "Just simmer down now!" he said. "Come on, simmer down. Market stops for no one. Y'all can welcome back the Plantars after business hours. We still have a lot to do before tonight!"

That's when Stumpy had an idea. "Oh! Since it's Day of the Croaked, why don't we all invite the Plantars to the big dinner party?"

"That sounds amazing!" Frank exclaimed, excited to join in on the festivities. "As someone who has a holiday just like Day of the Croaked, it would be an honor to help you all with getting ready for tonight!"

"We're in," Hop Pop said in agreement with Polly on his head. "I can't wait for some authentic swamp cooking!"

"And I can't wait for that Newtopian coral hand fitment," Stumpy said, turning Hop Pop and Polly's smiles upside down as their eyes widened. "Thanks for pickin' it up for me."

Mrs. Croaker loved the idea and added to it. "Say, if we're all going to be together anyway, why not bring all the gifts from our wish list?"

The frogs excitedly chattered together as Frank joined in. "Of course, we'll bring. Right, you two?" he said, knowing that the two frogs didn't let him down with the list they had. However, to his surprise, they looked nervous. "Uh, is everything okay?"

"Yep! Totally! And what a great idea, Mrs. Croaker," Hop Pop said with a fearful smile as he looked up at Polly. 

The young pollywog hopped off her grandfather's head and started to yawn loudly. "Can we go home, Hop Papa? I'm so sweeeepy."

"Of course, my sweet baby child," Hop Pop said, picking up his 'poor little' granddaughter. He then gathered Sprig, Frank, and Anne before pushing them into the Fwagon. "Okay, here we go! Come on, kids!"

He then quickly shut the door. One town frog waved. "Okay, bye."

Hop Pop and Polly were screwed. They knew they were screwed, and it was all their fault. The two of them were just so wrapped up in their own selfish shopping spree, but it was no excuse. All they could do was chant, 'What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do? What are we gonna do?' as they circled in the middle of the Fwagon.

Frank, Anne, and Sprig stood in the back of the wagon, watching as Hop Pop and Polly lost their minds over whatever it was they were worried about. 

"One of you wants this one," Anne asked.

"No, no, all yours," Frank said.

"Thanks, boyfriend," Anne said, before turning to Hop Pop. "What the hell is going on?!"

Hop Pop and Polly stopped pacing and looked at one another. They had to come clean. "So…don't be mad," said the old frog.

"What did you do?!"

"Nothing!" Hop Pop exclaimed.

"Okay, then, where's the gifts?" Frank said.

"Uh…What gifts?" Hop Pop asked, acting like he'd forgotten what the Hispanic boy was talking about. It was a lame attempt to save him from his wrath.

"The gifts I told you and Polly to get on the wishlist that everyone wants when we get back," Frank explained.

"Ohhhh. Hah-hah, right, the gifts." The old frog laughed, pulling out the list from his pocket. "Well, you see, we were totally, positively going to look for those gifts. I was looking for them, before I, ah, um, circumstances being what they are, ah..." Hop Pop soon realized his grave mistake, especially when Frank started glaring at him. "We forgot to get them."

Silence filled the cabin. 

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"WHAT!?" Outside the Fwagon, everyone heard Frank yelling, causing the world to shake like an Earthquake. Inside the Fwagon, Frank was still yelling. "You forgot about the gifts?! I literally gave you the list!" Frank shouted. "How could you have forgotten to get the gifts a second time?!"

"Well…" Hop Pop's eyes wondered at a large crate that took up a lot of space in the front. 

Frank, Anne, and even Sprig looked at the old frog with great anger as the boy yelled. "You forgot about the gifts for a chair ?!" He then punched Hop Pop in the arm.

"Ow! Hey, don't treat your elders like—OW!" Frank punched him again. "I'm sorry! I was in that chair all day, and Polly spent the whole day buying things she wanted. By the time we were leaving, we had realized that it was too late to get the gifts. And we were…too embarrassed to say anything."

Fearful of getting the same punishment, Polly gave her friends puppy eyes. "I'm so sorry, you guys. Please don't get mad."

Anne walked up to Polly and picked her up, coddling her while soothing the young girl. "Oh, no, no, no. It's okay, Polly. You're just a baby," she said in a sweet tone. 

But then she pointed to Hop Pop. 

"But you!" Anne yelled and punched him, too.

"OW! Have mercy!" 

"Serves you right!" Anne yelled. "I cannot believe you forgot about something so important, Hop Pop! You're always harping on us for forgetting things. Well, it looks like the tables have turned!"

Rubbing his shoulders, Hop Pop said, "Look, I'm sure we can find a way to bury this so no one finds out."

"Uh, no!" Frank exclaimed as Sprig picked up the list and looked at it. "Lying will only make it worse. I feel like we've learned that lesson by now."

Sprig then said, "Well, one thing's for sure. We have to lie."

Anne snapped her fingers while moving her head from side to side. "Preach!" She stopped once she registered what Sprig said. Leading to her and Frank looking at the young frog in shock. "Wait, what?"

"Ivy asked for a red sunshell from the Newtopian coast. To match my blue moonshell," Sprig said, showing Frank and Anne a red nautilus shell. "She can't find out, guys. What if she gets mad? What if she thinks I don't like her? The relationship will be over before it starts!"

Frank and Anne looked at each other. The Thai girl nodded, making her boyfriend groan, wondering how they kept allowing themselves into these situations.

"We'll do it. But we'll only do it for Sprivy," Anne added in. "No way I'm letting that ship sink."

"Great. Now, let's put our heads together and come up with a plan," Hop Pop said.

Frank smirked and said, "Oh, yeah, and we'd better hurry, or you might forget."

"It was one time, Frank!"

As soon as they made it back to the Plantar farm, they were relieved to see that it was still standing. However, there were a lot of tulips outside. There were tulips in the gardens, around the fence posts, and growing out of the house. Once he got the keys back from his neighbor, Hop Pop pushed Chuck out the door.

"Bye, Chuck. Thanks for watching the house, Chuck," he said in a hurry before slamming the door behind him.

Chuck said, "I grew tulips." He certainly did.

Back inside the house, the family gathered in the living room to figure out their next plan of action. Books were scattered everywhere, with some stained with coffee after Frank tripped and fell on the coffee table. Now, he was sitting on the couch, painting a mask for Day of the Croaked, and Anne sat next to him, watching his progress. Sprig and Polly were sitting with them, reading books, while Hop Pop was drawing a diagram on a chalkboard. 

"Okay, so we agree on the concept," Hop Pop said. 

"Fake empty gift boxes that get tragically destroyed by some kind of monster," Frank said. 

"But what monster," Anne asked her boyfriend. "Nothing too dangerous. We don't want anyone to actually get hurt."

"How about this?" Sprig said, pointing to a book that looked like the Necronomicon ex Mortis. Turning it around, he showed a giant fire-breathing demon chicken from the ass-crack of hell, guarding a treasure trove. "The Chicka-lisk."

"See? This! This is what I was trying to avoid!" Frank exclaimed, throwing his hands up. "I said that the last thing we were trying to avoid was summoning a giant chicken!"

"No, see, listen to this," Sprig said, pointing to the description. "It's a beast that eats gold and treasure, doesn't eat Amphibians, won't attack unless threatened, and can be called to any area with a ritual."

"Where'd you get that book?" Hop Pop asked, feeling the edge of it. "This cover made out of skin?"

"Maddie gave it to me."

"Aw, that's nice," Polly said.

Taking the creepy book felt like holding a very old man's skin. Frank looked at the monster they were going to summon and thought for a moment. "I hate to say it, but this Chicka-lisk is pretty perfect. Gifts get eaten, no one gets hurt, and we don't get blamed." He looked at his friends and girlfriend with a grimace. "Are we all okay with using ancient Eldritch magic?"

"Yes," Hop Pop said. 

Anne shrugged. "Sure. Why not?"

"Gotta do what we gotta do," Sprig said. 

Polly added, "I'd be mad if we didn't!"

Frank took a deep breath and sighed. "Cool. But before we get started, Hop Pop," he said, looking at the old frog. "When this is all over, we'll need to get that music box."

Hop Pop froze up with a horrified expression. Like he'd been caught in a lie. "Right, the music box. No problem," he said nervously. "My contacts will…have it…ready by tomorrow!"

There was a moment of silence. 

"Great. You're the best," Frank said, looking at the book. "So, while I get the Day of the Croaked festival ready, you'll need to collect all the materials we need for the ritual. First, you'll need the horn of a sky goat, whose arcane note pierces the air. Then, you'll need cursed obsidian to amplify the dark energy. "

"Then we'll need candles, for that evil ritual vibe," Anne said. "Trust me, it'll be worth it. 

"Sounds easy enough," Sprig said. 

"Right, and while you all are doing that, I can stay with the townsfolk and make sure that they have the best Day of the Croaked ever," Frank said, excited to join in the preparations. 

When Frank walked back into town, he was wearing a Charro suit with gold accents. On his head, he wore a red sombrero, and over his face, he wore a skull mask on his face. It felt good to be wearing something like it again, as he'd also dressed up for Día de los Muertos. This froggy holiday allowed him to relive that feeling, with new family and friends. 

First up was helping out with the cut-out paper banners. Frank went over to Loggle and assisted with cutting out the designs for the colorful paper sheets. 

"I'm the one that usually does this, seeing that paper is made from wood, and I'm the woodsmith," Loggle said, cutting out a design in record time. He was sitting with Frank in his shop, with the young boy stringing each banner together. "You know, I had a brother once. Died real young." 

"Is that who you'll be honoring for tonight," Frank asked. 

"Sure am," he said with a sad smile. "He's the man who taught me everything there was to know about wood."

After getting enough banners cut out, the Hispanic boy went to the Flour's residence. 

"So what do you call this again?" Maddie asked as she and Frank knelt the pan de muerto , the traditional bread of the Day of the Dead. 

"It's called pan de muertos, Bread of the Dead," Frank said.

"Oooooo, love the name," Maddie said, forming a creepy smile on her face. 

"Man, I forgot how creepy you are," Frank said, jokingly. "So, you've got anyone you're honoring tonight?" 

"Nah," Maddie said, shaking her head. "I normally just wait until the ceremony is complete so that I can dig up some graves to do some spells."

"...I've...missed you, Maddie."

"We always celebrate my Dad," Ivy said as she and Felicia collected marigold flowers from their family's garden. "He passed away four years ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Frank said, picking up some of the flowers and placing them in his basket. 

Ivy tried to grab some more and pull them out of the ground. However, they were a stubborn bunch, and the yellow frog struggled to get them out. "Dammit! Why do we even need these stupid flowers!" she yelled. 

"Ivy!" Felicia yelled. "Language." 

Frank laughed and cut the flowers for her. "Back home, these flowers are special for our Day of the Dead holiday. They're used to attract the souls of the dead to the ofrendas we prepared for them," he said. "That's why we decorate them with these flowers."

"That's right," Felicia said, smiling as she picked out the brightest-looking flowers in her garden. "By the way, where's Anne and the Plantars? Surely, you'll want your girlfriend to join in on the festival."

"Oh," Frank said, averting his eyes. "They're…doing something important."

Meanwhile, at the Plantar farm, the sun started to set on the horizon, and the moon started to climb into the orange sky. On the hill near the farmhouse, everyone gathered around the arcanic circle. Dressed in robes, they prepared to conduct their ritual.

"Play the forbidden note!" Hop Pop commanded in an ominous voice. 

Sprig came forth and blew into the horn. The horn blared mightily into the air.

"Corrupt its sacred message."

Anne dropped the cursed obsidian into the horn, and Sprig blew on it again. The noise that came out of it was much different from the usual horn sounds. The magic circle reacted by blasting a column of energy into the sky. When it was over, Frank walked over.

"Whoa! Don't you look handsome," Anne said with a smirk. Liking the outfit that Frank had on. 

"And you look like…like you're in a cult," he said. "I take it that we'll be seeing a giant chicken soon."

"Yep, and is the festival ready," Hop Pop asked. 

"Sure is! Come on! Let's go!" 

"Whoo!" Everyone cheered as they ran with Frank to town. 

"Aaaaaand, done!" Frank proclaimed, letting go of Anne's face before holding up a mirror to her. "So, what do you think?"

Anne looked at herself in the mirror and gasped at how spectacular Frank's efforts had been in painting her face. Wearing an elegant, Mexican-style dress, Anne's face was painted as white as a skull with black circles on her eyes, lines on her lips to represent the teeth, and flowers on her cheeks with little skulls in the middle. Felicia did her hair in the same style as when she was a waitress at Stumpy's, with flowers in it. 

"Wow," Anne said in awe as she took the mirror and looked at how her boyfriend painted her face. "Frank, this is amazing!" 

Frank stood in front of her. "I always used to do this with the familia back home," he said, proud of his work on his girlfriend. Thanks for the help, Felicia."

"No problem. No, let's get out there and have the time of our lives!" Felicia said with a big smile. 

With that, Frank grabbed his girlfriend by the hand, and together, they opened the doors of the woman's shop and stepped outside. The town had its lanterns on, and there were many people already out and about. 

Following Felicia, the three walked down the streets of Wartwood and into the cemetery, where everyone was gathered. 

Frank and Anne looked around in amazement, and the boy was proud of how the frogs were able to pull together and set up the festival. Honestly, it wasn't all that hard to try to convince them to combine both of their holidays, as they were exactly the same. 

All of the gravestones had their own ofrenda built around them, with candles on the cleaned gravestones, a bed of marigold flowers around them, and paper-sized canvas paintings drawn in the likeness of the deceased, reminding Frank that this town didn't have photography capabilities like Newtopia. Friends and families placed their offerings, from favorite books to foods and musical instruments. 

Away from the gravesite were those who wanted to eat, dance, and play music. With Frank's help, they put together a mariachi band and played Mexican music, which the frogs loved. 

And then there were the presents. A large pile of fake golden presents sat off to the side, planted there by Anne and the Plantars. Over them was a large banner that said "Welcome Back, Plantars" and also "Presents".

"Whoa! Did you guys actually make those out of gold?" Frank asked, looking at the presents with wide eyes. 

"Eh, more like gold paint," Anne said with a struggle. "Hey, Chuck!"

"I like tulips," Chuck said, dancing happily. 

Frank and Anne chuckled together as they walked through the festival. "Wow…it's just back home," the girl said, looking at the decorations and festiveness in awe. 

"Yeah, it really is," Frank said, smiling at the knowledge that all of his hard work paid off. Frank looked at his girlfriend. "Hey, you wanna get something to eat? I taught Stumpy how to make pozole and Maddie how to make some really good pan de muerto ."

Also, something told Frank that Maddie really liked making pan de muerto , mostly because the top of it was shaped like a bone. 

"Hell yeah," Anne exclaimed as they ran over to Maddie first. The young girl was standing behind a stand that had a line of a few people, including Rivet, who stood in front of them. "Hey, Rivet. Are you enjoying your first Day of the Croaked?"

"It's so great!" Rivet said with a big smile. 

"Happy Day of the Croaked," Maddie said to the customer in front of Rivet after handing over their bread roll. She was wearing a dress with skulls on it. "Next…" She then saw it was Rivet who walked up to her stand. "Oh…it's you. You're the new kid, right? Uh…Rivet!"

Rivet didn't answer. Only stared at Maddie for a moment. 

"Hey, don't let everyone's mistrust get to you," Maddie said, rolling her eyes. "It's a really out-of-date tradition that they're trying to keep up because they just don't like people coming into town and disrupting the dynamic of everything. People here really hate chances."

Rivet remained silent.

"So, how about I give you one, on the house?" Maddie said, happily holding out a bread roll to Rivet. He didn't answer, and just took it. This started to concern Maddie. "Uh…hello…?"

"WHY ARE YOU SO PRETTY!?" 

Everyone around them stopped their activities to look at Rivet, who dropped his pan de muerto to cover his moment as a massive blush of embarrassment appeared on his face. Maddie also blushed brightly, having never once been called pretty. 

Both kids stared at one another before Rivet said, "Thank you! Goodbye forever!" He picked up his bread and ran away.

Walking up to the stand, Anne smirked knowingly and leaned on the counter. "Well, well, well. Looks like I've got a new success story to work on," she said, winking at Maddie while nodding in the direction Rivet ran off to.

"I…have no idea what you're talking about," she said, shoving two pan de murto s at her. She then took off her apron and walked away, leaving her dad to man the stand. "I'm going on break!" 

"Oh, I'm totally gonna ship them," Anne said with a mischievous smirk as she started thinking up the shipping name. "How does…Riddie sound to you?"

"Come on, matchmaker," Frank said, rolling his eyes and leading Anne away to Stumpy and his big caldron of pozole. Hop Pop was with him and had his granddaughter on top of his head. The old frog was wearing a decorative poncho while Polly had her face painted. "Two bowls, Stumpy!"

"Anything for the heroes of Wartwood," Stumpy said, pouring two boils of pozole and handing them to the couple. "So, can we open the gifts soon? I'm itching for that hand. Not literally. No feelin' in it."

Hop Pop nervously chuckles. "Presents seem like an 'end of the night' thing. Why rush it?"

Meanwhile, over in the graveyard, Sprig was talking to someone with a big smile on his face. 

"And I barely got out of the ant queen's stomach alive! I'm still coughing up acid." He laughed, but ended up turning his head and coughing out a mouth full of acid. The young frog then turned back to the people he was talking to. He was filled with sadness behind the smile he tried to hold up. "So much has happened in the past four months. Frank and Anne are the best friends I've ever had," he said, tearing up a bit. "I just wish you two could be here, Mom and Dad." 

In front of him were to give, each one for Mr. and Mrs. Plantar. There were no pictures made in their honor, as Sprig and Polly never knew what they looked like, and it was too painful for Hop Pop to try and draw them. However, that didn't stop them from decorating the graves and making them look amazing. They were still their parents, and even though they were gone, Sprig knew they loved him and Polly very much. 

Every Day of the Croaked, he would come to their graves and tell them all about his life, even though the past years didn't have anything exciting to share. This year, however, there was so much to tell them, from his adventures with Frank and Anne to his journey to Newtopia. 

"Talking to your folks?" asked a familiar voice, and Sprig looked up to see it was Ivy approaching him. 

"Yeah, sorry," Sprig said with a sniffle. 

"Don't be, Sprig," Ivy said with a kind, gentle smile. "I think it's really sweet. Your parents would be happy to see all that you've done."

"Really?"

"Heck yeah! I'm so jealous of you! Going on all these adventures, fighting monsters, and you even traveled to Newtopia!" Ivy said, punching him in the arm lightly. "Well, at least when I look at my sunshell, it'll be like a piece of me was there with you.

Sprig got nervous. "But, uh, at the end of the day, it's just a shell, right?"

"It's our shell. I'm really happy you found me one," she said, smiling. She then looked a bit sad before looking at him. "Hey…uh, do you mind coming with me to Dad's grave?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," Sprig said.

"Thanks," Ivy said, grabbing his hand. She then waved the graves of Sprig's parents. "Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Plantar. Don't know if you remember me, but I'm Ivy. Felicia's daughter. Sprig's girlfriend and I think he's amazing."

This had Sprig blushing brightly and acting all lovesick as Ivy pulled him along. Watching the two were Frank and Anne, who smiled at their brotherly figure together. "Aw, young love," Frank sighed. 

"Yep," Anne said, finishing her soup by drinking the remaining stuff. "Speaking of young love…" she slid her hands around the table and grabbed Frank's.

"Wha…Whoa!" Frank was startled when he was pulled out of his seat. 

Anne pulled him to the center of the dancefloor and turned to him with a loving smile, allowing Frank to understand what she wanted. 

"Hit it, boys," he said to the mariachi band. 

One of the frogs looked at her partner. "Again, we've been hitting it all this time," she said. 

"Just do it," he said, picking up his guitar. The others grabbed their instruments again and began playing a soothing love ballot. 

Under the light of the climbing red moon, Frank grabbed Anne by the hand and pulled her close. Together, they started to slow dance, just like they did months ago. For a moment, they felt like they were back on the lily pad of the lake Frank had found after leaving the dance party. The same one Hop Pop went to and learned how to dance for Sylvia. 

Just like that night, they looked at one another, completely mesmerized and with loving smiles. This time, Anne pulled herself in closer and rested her forehead on Frank's. Silently, they wished they could stay like this forever. 

However, they wouldn't get that chance. Not when a creature's shrieking startled everyone and had them turn to the sky. The Plantars knew that the plan was now in full effect. 

"Couldn't have given us five more minutes," Frank complained. That's when Frank and Anne saw what they had brought upon the lands of Wartwood. 

Chicka-lisk, Chicka-lisk

Watch out for Chicka-lisk

Chicka-lisk, Chicka-lisk

Watch out for Chicka-lisk

That's right, Chicka-lisk had finally arrived in Wartwood. 

As storm clouds gathered in the sky above, they parted in a circle as a bright red light shone down from the heavens. And flying down came Chiska-Lisk. When he landed outside of the graveyard, he let out a mighty shriek, frightening the citizens as they backed away from the beast as lightning flashed in the sky. 

Just as he appeared in the book, the monster appeared to the world of mortals as a giant chicken with dark brown feathers, dragon wings, dragon claws, and a red beak that bore sharp teeth. Judging by the scars on its head, the devil-like bone-handle sword, arrows, broken spears, and broken blades stuck on its hide, it was clearly a warrior who had survived many battles.

"What is that thing," Indy yelled while Maddie looked pleased to see the giant chicken. 

"Chicka-lisk, the Storm Bearer. It's an honor to see him," she said with a creepy smile. "You know, before he kills us."

Together, Plantars ran over to Frank and Anne and exclaimed together, "Oh, no! Who could have predicted this?"

Anne said, "Don't overdo it."

The Chicka-lisk squawked and looked around, wondering who could have dared to summon his greatness. Especially when he was supposed to be having a good night's sleep. Looking around at the Day of the Croaked Festival, he then noticed the golden presents.

Chicka-lisk then started shrieking again. "Presents?! I love presents!! Thanks, you guys!!"

He then started walking towards the gifts as Anne exclaimed, "What the heck is it saying?!"

"No idea. Its language is older than written history," Maddie told her, watching as Chicka-Lisk approached the presents and ripped the banner out of the ground. With nothing else in its way, he started eating the gifts left for him. 

On her grandfather's head, Polly stiltedly said, "Oh, no! It is eating the presents."

"That's good," Hop Pop said. "That means it wouldn't eat us. We should probably leave it alone till it's finished."

However, Ivy jumped on one of the picnic tables and exclaimed. "No way! You guys did something nice for us." Like a warrior princess, she turned to the crowd to rally her neighbors. "Are we gonna let some chicken get away with this? Would the Plantars?"

"No!" the crowd yelled, determined to save the gifts the Plantars got them.

"Well, then, come on! Let's save those presents! For the Plantars!" Ivy yelled, jumping off the table and charging at Chicka-Lisk. 

"For the Plantars!" Everyone yelled their battle cry as they ran into battle. 

"Wait, no, Ivy!" Sprig called out to his girlfriend, but it was too late. 

Hop Pop, seeing how far off plan things were going, said, "Uh-oh."

Frank began. "I can't believe it's finally my turn to say this, but…" 

"Told you so!" Anne yelled. "Boom!"

Ivy and a few of the frogs of town grabbed rocks and started throwing them at Chicka-Lisk. "Eat this, you chump!" she yelled, hitting the monster on its forehead. 

Bringing his head up, Chicka-lisk shrieked. "The heck?!"

That's when he felt something stabbing him in the middle right toe. Looking down, Chicka-Lisk saw that Loggle was the one that was stabbing him, and he did it with a pitchfork. 

"I'm Loggle," he said.

Chicka-Lisk narrowed his eyes at the woodsmith. It didn't hurt, but it was still annoying. And that was enough to have Chicka-lisk crowing.

"Welp. Consider me provoked."

The monster let out a mighty roar as he opened his wings and flapped them with all his strength. Unleashing multiple miniature tornadoes across the field, knocking everyone that attacked him back, and destroying the picnic tables and food.

Ivy was one of the frogs sent flying back. She screamed while beginning to fall back to earth. However, Sprig hopped up and caught her in the air. Holding her bridal style, the pink frog landed on the ground. 

"Sprig!" Ivy exclaimed with a big smile, grateful for her boyfriend heroically saving her. 

Frank pulled out Hellcat's and his shield gauntlet while Anne pulled out her sword. "Let's spatchcock this chicken!" she yelled.

"Aye, aye!" Stumpy yelled as he and the others ran at the monster. Much to the shock of their friends. 

"Wait, guys, we gotta work together!" Frank yelled. "Who knows what this thing can do?"

Chicka-Lisk saw the frogs charged at him again. Do they dare to fight against him? So be it. The Storm Bearer's eyes suddenly started to glow purple as it charged up an attack. With a shriek, the beast unleashed a powerful beam from both of its eyes, hitting multiple townsfolk and turning them to stone. This shocked the survivors as they turned and tried running away, only to be turned to stone as well. 

"Holy moly!" Anne yelled. 

"Cool!" Maddie said, getting looks from everyone else.

Sprig turned to her. "Maddie! Can you cure them?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," the frog girl said, pulling out a few sacks of potions. "I should have enough antidotes for everyone... probably."

"I can help!" Rivet yelled as he ran over to Maddie. On his shoulder was one of his new inventions: a shoulder-mounted mini catapult. "You load, I shoot!" 

"Do it. For Wartwood!" Frank yelled, holding up his scythe. 

"For Wartwood!" Sprig and Polly yelled as he and his family charged at Chicka-lisk.

Rivet knelt down as Maddle pushed the catapult down and locked it. She then placed a few of her sacks of potions in it. "Go!" she yelled.

With a pull of the trigger, Rivet fired the sacks at a group of petrified frogs. The moment they hit them, the potions exploded into pink mists, freeing all of them from their stone prisons. Including two men hugging each other in fear when they are petrified. Now free, they looked at each other in awkwardness.

"You have beautiful eyes," the right one said.

Together, Frank and Anne charged at Chisk-lask with the Plantars, Sylvia, Indy, Wally, and Ivy. "Split up!" the Hispanic boy yelled. "We gotta surround it!"

All of them said, "Right!" Frank took one team to the right, and Anne took another to the left. Confusing Chicka-lisk as he didn't know who to attack first. 

The monster targeted Frank first and fired his stone beam at him. Frank saw it coming and quickly deployed his shield. Holding it out in front of him, Frank took the energy beam head-on. Blocking it and making the beam split and shoot off in different directions. Making the beams hit all of the decorations.

One of the beams hit the statue of the town's founder, freaking out one of the non-petrified frogs. "Oh, my God—Oh, wait," she said, realizing it was already made of stone. 

"You bastard!" Frank yelled as he continued to block the pink beam of energy, even as it started to push him back and his feet dug into the earth. "I'm not letting you ruin Day of the Croaked for my friends!"

With Anne's team, Wally ran with Sprig and Ivy as they threw boom-schooms at Chick-lask. Hitting him in the face and knocking him off balance with an explosion. 

"Aim for the eyes, children!" Wally yelled, throwing his two boom-schooms. They exploded before Chicka-lisk flapped its wings again. Unleashing another barrage of tornados that knocked back the three of them. 

With Frank's team, Hop Pop, with Polly on his head, Indy, and Sylvia rushed at the monster. They dodged Chicka-lisk's attack when he shot his stone beams at them. 

"Frank, heads up!" Hop Pop yelled. 

Frank turned around and saw the four of them coming at him. Nodding, he got down on one knee and held his shield over his head. The frogs and toad jumped up and landed on his shield. Then, with all his might, Frank pushed them up and sent them up high into the air.

They flew across the sky towards the chick demon. Hop Pop kicked it across the cheek. Sylvia scratched it in the eye. Indy smashed his hammer into its beak. All of which caused major damage to Chicka-lisk. 

Now Chicka-lisk was angry, and he turned to Anne and the remaining frogs. Rearing his head back and taking a deep breath, the inside of the monster's beak leaked out flames. 

"Anne, no!" Frank yelled as he ran to protect her. At the same time, Mayor Toadstool ran over to help as well. 

Chicka-lisk unleashed a massive breath of fire that spread across the field. Setting fire to the presents. Frank got in front of Anne at the last second, while Toadstool grabbed Toadie's stone body. The Hispanic boy deployed his shield, and the Mayor held up his assistant, blocking the firebreath. 

"Frank!" Anne exclaimed, happy to see her boyfriend protecting her. 

"Stay behind me, Anne!" Frank yelled over the raging flames. He then looked at Mayor Toadstool and smiled. "Good thinking! Using Toadie's stone body as a shield."

Mayor Toadstool looked at his assistant in surprise. "Wait, he's stone?"

"Hold here!" Frank yelled as he turned back to Chicka-lisk with a glare. "I'll take care of the chicken." 

Taking a step forward, Frank struggled to push against the column of fire. Each step was a fight against an unstoppable force, which only grew in strength the closer he got. The air around him grew hot as Chicka-lisk added more power to his fire breath.

Seeing that he wasn't going to be killed by his flames, Chicka-lisk believed that he had finally found a warrior among the frogs. Cutting off the fire, he reared his head back and brought it back down to peak Frank. 

Frank jumped out of the at, causing Chicka-lisk to miss and stab his beak into the ground. 

"Yay!" Frank yelled as he stabbed his scythe into the chicken's cheek.

However, it didn't even go that deep. The crested moon-shaped blade only stabbed a few inches into his hardened dark skin. There wasn't even any blood coming out of the wound. To Chicka-lisk, what Frank gave him was the equivalent of a splinter.

Chicka-lisk looked at Frank and narrowed his eyes into a glare. He hated splinters.

"Oh no." That was all Frank had to say before Chicka-lisk pulled his beak out and bashed into him. Throwing Frank back to the others. Ripping his Day of the Croaked clothes and breaking his mask. 

"Frank!" Anne yelled, running over to her boyfriend and kneeling down next to him. 

Groaning as he sat up, Frank looked at the monster as it roared again. Its back was against the moon, making it even more terrifying. "This is impossible," he exclaimed, becoming fearful of the demon. "This thing's unbeatable!"

"Nothing's unbeatable!" Mayor Toadstool exclaimed, determined to beat the monster. At the same time, Maddie and Rivet walked over, and the girl hit Toadie with one of her spells, freeing him. "Everyone, Chicka-lisk formation!"

"We have a formation for this," asked Toadie.

Mayor Toadstool held his hand up and acted like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Damnit, Toadie, don't you know? We have a formation for everything!"

And that's exactly what the frogs of Wartwood did. Together, just like they did when Frank and Anne came to their little village, they hopped and combined together. First, they formed a pair of legs. Next, they formed the body, along with the wings. Toadstool then hopped up and held up his hands. 

"Come on, you two!" The toad mayor called out to Frank and Anne. 

Turning to glance at each other, Frank and Anne grabbed their hands and jumped high into the air together. Forming the head of the Chicka-lisk formation up top. Standing on Toadstool's hands as he held them up, the two humans balanced with each other and used their free hands to form the beak. 

With the Chicka-lisk formation completed, the frogs and humans worked together to hop up and down while flapping their wings. Giving Chicka-lisk a very odd show as he looked at them left and right with his eyes.

"Okay, that's just offensive, you guys. Chicka-lisk, out!"

With a cockadoodledoo, Chicka-lisk summoned a massive beam of light down onto himself. His body disintegrated into the light as he made his exit. Leaving only the same spell circle the Plantars summoned him with. 

With Chicka-lisk gone, the town saved, and the festival…somewhat saved, the people of Wartwood breathed a sigh of relief. Then the cheering and celebrating started, as the people picked up Frank, Anne, and the Plantars. Holding them into the air as they cheered for their heroes. 

"We did it!" Hop Pop yelled. 

"Finger lickin' gone!" Anne quipped. 

However, Mrs. Croaker sadly looked at the pile of ashes that used to be the bait presents. "But it destroyed all the gifts you worked so hard to bring back for us!" she said, sad that she wouldn't be getting her gift and that the Plantar's supposed work and effort had gone to waste. 

The ashes blew away in the wind while Ivy looked down in shame. "If only we had fought harder," she said, shaking her head. "I guess we let you guys down."

The crowd murmured under them as Hop Pop, Polly, and Sprig looked at them in a mixture of shame and nervousness. They looked to Frank and Anne, expecting them to give them a piece of advice or even say something to alleviate their guilt and get the town's mind off their destroyed gifts. 

Frank and Anne did no such thing. They looked at them with glares of disappointment. Silently telling them that they caused all of this. It was their fault because they were the ones that forgot the gifts. It was time to put an end to this, and the three frogs knew it. It was only a matter of time before one of them broke. 

And it only took 5 seconds for Polly to shout, "Me and Hop Pop forgot the wish list and didn't get you guys anything!"

"What?!" shouted the frogs, throwing the family on the ground as the truth finally came out. Needless to say, they were not happy. 

"Can you believe it?"

"The nerve of it all."

"I was really wanting my gift."

Mayor Toadstool looked at Frank, Anne, and the Plantars with great disappointment. "Why am I not surprised? Typical Plantars. Giant monsters and property damage put the entire town in danger. And on a sacred, treasured, and honored holiday."

Frank, Anne, and the Plantars looked down in shame. They really messed up with this stunt. 

However, to their surprise, Mayor Toadstool started chuckling. "I gotta admit, I missed it," he exclaimed with his arms up, as the other members of the town voiced their agreement with their mayor. 

"Come again," Frank asked, voicing the confusion he and the others felt. That's when Mrs. Croaker walked up to them with a smirk. 

"Things have been really boring without you four causing mayhem and learning emotional lessons," she said. 

"Wait, so you don't care that we lied and summoned an elder god to cover it up," Hop Pop asked as Loggle and Stumpy walked up to join Sady. 

"Not especially," said Loggle

"Day of the Croaked isn't just a celebration of the dead, but a day to celebrate the living," Stumpy said. "We're just glad you're back."

But while everyone seemed to share that same sentiment, Ivy, however, looked far from pleased. Sprig saw this, and knew that he was in trouble for not getting her the sunshell. "Ivy, I'm sorry I didn't get you a red sunshell," he said, before Ivy friendly punched Sprig. "Ow!"

"You big dummy! It's just a shell," she said to her boyfriend, averting her eyes away from Sprig."You can make it up to me by finally taking me on a date."

Smiling at her boyfriend after looking at him again, Ivy took that chance to kiss Sprig on the cheek, making the pink frog boy react happily with a great big grin on his face. 

Seeing her favorite ship getting their first kiss moment, Anne was equally happy, squealed with a big, toothy grin and stars in her eyes. 

"Anne?" Frank waved his hand in front of her. "Are you okay?" 

With an annoyed sigh, Polly hopped over and grabbed Anne, pulling her to the ground and beginning to drag her away. "Okay, we're done here. We've got lanterns to send off," she said, reminding everyone of the final step of the Day of the Croaked's celebration.

Sprig, while being still and happy, fainted and fell on the ground. Rivet quickly ran over and fired another one of Maddie's potions at his face, thinking he was a statue.

As the clocks struck midnight, the townsfolk gathered again outside the graveyard. Then, they grabbed a candle and lit it. With heads hung low, the frogs of Wartwood walked through the gates of the cemetery, each one going to the graves of their loved ones. Waiting for them were the sky lanterns, carrying their messages to the heavens and the dead. 

The sky lanterns worked like hot-air balloons. Four strings attached an envelope constructed of animal hides to a candle holder underneath the opening. Each envelope already had its messages written on it, written down before the festival began. 

Hop Pop wrote to his first wife, letting her know that he'd do everything in his power to keep his grandkids safe, no matter what. Sprig and Polly wrote to their parents about their adventures, and they wished they could have been there to see how much they'd grown. Ivy and Felicia wrote to the woman's husband about how much Ivy was growing up and how she and Felicia were finally beginning to see eye to eye. 

As for Frank, he'd built a small altar for his grandfather. With his knife stabbed in the ground, Frank placed his phone against it, with the screen showing a photo of his grandfather. Marigold flowers were placed around it, as well as simple scrambled eggs and caterpillar sausage breakfast on a plate. It was a simple meal, but one that his grandfather loved. 

" Feliz Dia de los Croados, abuelo ," Frank said, wishing his grandpa a happy Day of the Croaked. 

He then placed the final part of his ofrenda in front of the phone. After Mrs. Croak finished repairing it and returning it to normal, Frank placed his grandfather's M65 jacket in front of it. 

Frank then shed some sad tears as he continued. "I wish I could've been there...in your final moments," he said, silently sobbing.

As he silently cried, he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see Anne holding a candle, giving him a comforting smile. He smiled back and put a hand over hers, loving and appreciating her gesture.

"Wow…" Anne said. "It's cute."

"It's not much, but it's the best that I could come up with," Frank said, standing up while holding his sky lantern. 

"I think he'd love that you at least tried," Anne said with a loving smile as she kissed him on the cheek. Making him feel better. "What did you write?"

Frank looked at his sky lantern. He felt his tears coming back again as he explained to Anne, "I didn't know if our heaven is connected to this world…so I asked them if grandpa was with them to please tell him I said hi and to watch over grandma," he said with a sad smile. 

He turned to Anne as she handed him the candle. Placing it gently into the holder, Frank grabbed the envelope and moved it over the small flame. The hot air of the small flame lifted the lantern gently off his hands and into the air. 

Once his lantern lifted into the sky, so did everyone else. More than a hundred lanterns lifted off the ground from each grave. Ascending into the air like fireflies. All of them carry a message to their loved ones and those that have passed. Their messages of love and requests to watch over them as they continued their journey in the land of the living.

"You think they'll watch over us on the way home?" Anne asked Frank. 

He looked at her and grasped her hand. His rougher skin warmed her softer skin. "If they don't, we will," he said, making Anne smile again. Leaning her head on his shoulder, they both watched as the lanterns caught fire in the sky. Burning away into embers as they carried their message into the afterlife. 

About an hour later, midnight passed. The Day of the Croaked was over. As everyone returned to their homes, Frank, Anne, and the Plantars returned to the farmhouse. Coming back to the basement was like coming back to a dorm or a second bedroom. It wasn't their primary bedroom, but it was still a place to lay down their heads and dream of being able to go back home. A safe place for the two wandering kids in this wayward world. 

After Frank cleaned up his grandfather's ofrenda, he placed Teddy's uniform and knife on the nightstand next to his head. Wanting to feel like his grandpa was next to him as he slept. 

Anne, on the other hand, smiled as she watched her boyfriend sleep. Thinking how cute he looked. "It's almost over, Frank," she whispered. "We'll get home. Soon."

The Thai girl was about to close her eyes and go to sleep herself. However, she was stopped by a sound coming from upstairs. There were footsteps up on the first floor, followed by the door opening and closing with a rattle. 

Curious as to who could still be away, Anne walked up the steps and gently cracked open the basement door. To her surprise, she saw that it was Hop Pop leaving the house. He had looked outside to make sure no one was there, before slipping through the front door and leaving. 

"Sounds like someone else can't sleep either," Anne said. 

Leaving the basement with her backpack on, Anne followed Hop Pop out of the house. Peeking out from the corner of the circular door, she saw Hop Pop walking to the tree next to the house. There, with his back to Anne, he started digging with his bare hands. 

Thinking that nothing was wrong, Anne giggled. "Classic old Hop Pop bein' a freak. I'm gonna give that nerd a little scare," she said, tip-toeing over to him. 

As Anne slowly and silently approached him, she saw that he was digging into the ground with desperation. Like he was trying to dig for gold or water. Panting heavily as he finally reached what he was looking for. When he pulled it out, Anne's eyes widened in silent shock.

It was the music box. Buried under the tree outside the house for all this time.

Hop Pop panted as he looked at it in a mixture of relief and concern. "It's here! It's still here," he said, closing his eyes. However, as he held the box, the old frog's mind became a whirlwind of conflicting thoughts. "Oh, what am I gonna do? If I give the box to Frank and Anne, they'll go home, but it'll put Sprig and Polly in danger. But if I don't…they'll never get home." 

He knew how important the box was to Frank and Anne, yet he still buried it. Back then, Hop Pop did it because it was a decision between his grandkids and the humans he kept in his basement. The decision back then wasn't hard to make. Hop Pop would always pick Sprig and Polly over Frank and Anne. 

Now, he didn't know what to think. Frank and Anne were like his grandkids as well, and to keep this secret from them hurt him. Learning about the box's true nature, that it was a device used to travel between worlds, it had thrown his mind into a loop. Making him question everything he thought he knew about the box. 

"Well, one thing's for certain: I can't let Frank and Anne know I tried to get rid of the music box," Hop Pop said, already thinking of a plan.

"What?"

Gasping in fear and shock, Hop Pop turned around, and his shock turned to horror. 

Anne. 

She was standing behind him, looking at him in a mixture of disbelief and confusion. 

"Anne! W-w-what are you doin' here," Hop Pop asked, stumbling over his words.

"Did you just say...you tried to get rid of the music box," Anne asked, pointing at him. 

Hop Pop sucked in his lips. Trying to keep himself from spilling the beans. But it was too late. Anne saw him. She saw the box. She knew that he did. He was trapped like an animal, and it was all his fault. His guilt finally broke him as he dropped the box, grabbed his hair, and fell to his knees.

"I CAN'T LIE ANYMORE!" Hop Pop yelled to the night sky. "Yes! I admit it! I tried to hide the music box from you and Frank."

"But…I don't understand," Anne said, shaking her head in disbelief. "Why would you hide it, to begin with? What about your contacts?"

"There were no contacts! I read that the box was dangerous, and I didn't know what to do. I panicked! So I…I…I…" 

Hop Pop's words died in his mouth. Now comes the hardest part to reveal. Hop Pop knew how much it would hurt Anne's trust in him, something he valued so much. But there was no getting out of this. He had to come clean, and he hurt her more. 

"…I had been trying to destroy it."

"WHAT!?" Anne screamed. She quickly snatched the box off the ground before the old frog could get it. She held it close to her. 

"Anne, please—"

"Why?! Why would you try to do that?" Anne shouted at Hop Pop, who looked at her with great sadness, desperation, and shame. "When?!"

"Since you gave it to me. I wanted to destroy it, but I couldn't. It's indestructible! After the Bizarre Bazzard, I knew that nothing I did would even put a dent into it. So…I buried it," Hop Pop said, his heart tightening like it was in a vice grip the more he saw Anne's face shifting from a look of confusion and hurt to an expression of complete disbelief and anger. 

"I…I can't believe you, Hop Pop. All this time, you've been lying to me and Frank?!" Anne shouted at Hop Pop in complete fury. "And what were you going to do if you destroyed it? Just tell us your 'contact' ran off with it." 

"No!" Hop Pop tried to deny it. "Well, yes, but—" 

"UGH! Why would you do that?!" Anne turned and paced away from him a few steps. 

"I had to!" Hop Pop reached out to her. "You have to understand. I was just trying to protect Sprig and Polly!"

" Protect them?" Anne whirled her head around to look at her frog grandpa. "From what?! It's literally a box !"

"I-It's complicated!" Hop Pop said, but he didn't even have a good answer. 

"No, it isn't! Frank and I needed the music box to get home, and you buried it under a tree !"

"I-it's not like that," Hop Pop insisted. "I-it's just...I've lost so much already, and—"

"You've lost so much!? What about us?!" Anne shouted, hot tears boiling to the surface from Hop Pop's betrayal. "Frank's life was ruined! We've been taken far away from our homes, our friends, and our families. I lost my friendship with Sasha! We almost died so many times. All this time, we were trying to get back home, and you…you…Ugh! You were going to keep us stuck in Amphibia!" 

"I'm sorry, Anne," he said, walking to her on his knees. "But I tried to protect us. Our family." 

"How!?" Anne demanded to know. "You tell me the box is so dangerous, and I'll understand."

Hop Pop was stumped. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. 

"How?" 

The old frog tried again, but nothing. The box was dangerous. That was all he knew. His belief was only based on a box that contradicted what the king of Amphibia said and went against everything Frank and Anne had been working towards.

"How?!" 

Hop Pop wanted to believe in the book, that he hadn't been wrong, and that he wasn't wrong in trying to protect his family. 

And yet, he was.

"HOW?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Hop Pop yelled, realization washing over him. "I don't know…"

"I thought so," she said softly, as tears ran down her face. Anne panted hot breath as she tried to catch her breath. It hurt Hop Pop so much to see how much of Anne's trust he'd broken. The Thai girl lowered her head, closed her eyes, and held up her hand. "Look, I…I can't be here right now. When Frank wakes up, tell him I'll be in the cave. He'll know where it is. Don't follow me."

Slipping the music box into her backpack, Anne walked past Hop Pop and started heading into the woods. 

"Anne!" he yelled, but it was too late. 

The damage was done, and Anne disappeared into the woods. 

Hop Pop could do nothing but begin to sob. In his quest to protect his family, the old frog had driven away a person he considered to be family. A second granddaughter. He'd betrayed her trust and the trust of Frank, his second grandson. Hop Pop had been willing to take away their one chance to go home, but now, as his feelings towards the humans changed from housekeeper to grandfather, his confidence shattered. Just like he had scattered Anne's trust in him.

There was no going back from this, and Hop Pop knew it was all his fault.