19. Plantar's Last Stand

Disclaimer I don't own Amphibia. Also if anyone would like to help me beta this that be great. But if not I'll try my best. I try to get chapter out as I can.

Thanks to all the all follower and favorite so far. And thanks to Jss2141, redflare5000, Smoking Wrecker, drake wind, Alquimistaarcano77, Kaiju, Nopeknight, TALOS X, Stryker, Mr. Hardcor3, Gojirafan1954, Tearnon, Jason, brentdyedragon, gregorian12, PizzaGuest, schweenieboy, snake screamer, Rodimus973, Pushistaya ten, Guest for the comment.

Okay I don't know if this is correct. But according to google translate. It said "I really like all the written parts. Hope you continuing soon." In case anyone wanted to know.

A young Hopadaih stood by the Vegetable stance with his father at the local farmer's market. The Plantar's vegetable stand stood here since the very early days of Wartwood, past down by many generations. Surviving through out wars, plagues and depressions.

"Mornings Obadiah." Sadie Croaker smiled.

"Morning to you as well, Ms Croaker." He smiled back.

"I'll take this here gangly gourd"

"Oh, I sense a batch of Croaker stew coming on. Hmm... Hang on there, Sadie. You don't want that one. Mm-hmm...A-ha! It's a gourd maggot. These guys taste terrible. Here, take this one, instead. It's maggot-free."

"Classic Plantar honesty. I've been buying from this stand since your father was running it. And y'all have never steered me wrong. How is the old man."

"Somedays are better then ours, somedays its like he a different person."

"Well, give him, my best." Sadie walked away.

"Why did you tell her about the gourd?" Hopadiah asked.

"Honestly doesn't always pay well , son, but dishonesty always costs." Obadiah "Hop Poppity" Plantar, strongly believed that giving his son skills is better that giving him one thousand coppers. He knew one day that his son will follow his example instead of his advice. "Don't dream about a better life. Work for it."

Early opening in Wartwood the local Amphibians were standing up their stands. Hop Pop smiled, it always put a smile on his face seeing the local Farmer Market. Most of stand remained the same over the years. The Plantar's stand however remain the only one from the early days.

Sprig smiled Gentle Joe, who appearance was anything but gentle. "Ah, the Wartwood Farmer's Market, where salt of the earth frogs come to sell stuff and fill up on free samples." He takes a jar of jam and swallows.

"That wasn't a sample."

Sprig spits it back out. "Now it's like nothing happened," Joe takes out a giant battle ax and glared at the frog. "I- I can pay for that."

Sasha approached the Sundew stand, Sylvia was selling herbs, and Ivy was selling shells she collected from the lake. Sasha was looking them over, she was pretty impress. Arts and crafts was something she didn't really care for much, it was basically the only subject she failed at as she didn't have Marcy to cheat off of. But the little frog's child artwork was pretty nice.

"So, you found and made them ourself?" Sasha asked, there were shell's with painting on them, small shells were made into bracelets and necklaces.

"Yep, it's not one of my favorite hobbies. But I do enjoy it, if it's stormy outside." Ivy smile, Sasha was surprised a little there was more to this frog girl. "Plus, I get to keep some of the money. I'm saving up to get this new bug net."

"I was a bit of artist myself back in the day," Sylvia smiled, "Although I kinda gave up on it. There was war going on. And my paints weren't bringing in the money. Not that I had the time with aiding the injuries, then Felicia was born... I had the teashop to run. But my paintings did bring some joy to them... And if you can bring just a little bit of joy to someone... Well that's just makes you feel good."

"You should get back into it." Sasha shrugged.

Sylvia laughed a little embarrassed, "Oh...I haven't touch a brush in years."

Sasha went back to the shells, there was this one necklace, with red shells, and black stripes with white eyes. It cool kinda cool. "Ivy, I'll take this one." Ivy smile and gave it to her, and thanked her when she told her to keep the change.

Polly was holding a large zucchini in her hands, yelling at customer as they walked by, "Hey, tried of being a wimp!? Buy this and get ripped!"

Hop Pop took the vegetable from her hand, giving a disappointed glare, "Polly! None of that."

Polly groaned and rolled her eyes, "Hey, you! Wally! Buy this zucchini!" The local lone wasn't picking up on her threatened tone and walked over to buy one. Hop Pop however wasn't too please on her tone.

"Okay so you have to match the colors up to the same color." Over by the Flour table, Marcy was showing the Flour's children games of her phone. The triples were fighting over who was to play first, even Maddie who was busy making basic cold medical potion turn to look over. Farine was happy his daughters were getting along however Marcy was districting the girls and driving away customers that were still a little scary of the humans. Not that he was... he was happy Maddie was coming out of her shell more. He was going to ask nicely for her to please let his daughters get back to work. However Hopadiah beat him to it.

"GIRLS! Sprig!" Hop Pop glared, "Break times over. Get back to selling like our lives depend on it... Because they basically do... We depressly need this." The Plantar's were never the most well off home, most of time the house was close to bankruptcy. It kept him awake most times, worrying about his grandchildren future, plus he worried about the three human girl too if they were stuck here for a long time. That's five children's future in his hand, and want future can he give them. With how much time he had left. Whenever he was close to be finance comfortable, something happened. Either repaired to the house, the kids or Bessie needing medicine help. He knew he didn't have long as his body was catching up to him. Old bones injuries. "Sasha..." He clapped his hands. "Getting selling!"

"ALRIGHT!" Sasha hissed, mumbling under her breath. The old frog can't give leave her alone with getting on her back. She walked through the market, carrying a small tray of small vegetable. The kids were had different ways on approaching customers. Like with Polly, Sasha was pretty much right in frog's face pretty much threatening them to buy them and much higher prices. Marcy, the poor girl, couldn't get a word in, do to either the customer walking away, or Marcy herself mumbling her words and avoiding eye content do to her shyness. Anne was putting a lot of effort into this, over selling like vegetable like they made by the Frog of harvest. Sprig was just being Sprig, happily hopping around with a big goofy smile on his face.

Croaker was humming to herself as she walked through the market. "Good morning, Mrs. Croaker." Hop Pop smiled

"I'll take this here gangly gourd, Hopadiah."

"Oh, I sense a batch of Croaker stew coming on. Hmm... Hang on there, Sadie. You don't want that one." Hop Pop took the gourd breaking it half, finding a bug. "Mm-hmm...A-ha! It's a gourd maggot. These guys taste terrible."

"Here, take this one, instead. It's maggot-free. I can say these Marcy is working on something to help keep gourd away."

"Really?"

"Yep... She a sharp one. Like she once made a compass by rubbing a needle on some silk. Or made your headache go away by rubbing a thumb on the side of your head."

"Classic Plantar honesty. I've been buying from this stand since your father was running it. And y'all have never steered me wrong."

"Very impressive," Anne walked over to the stand, along with the rest. "Hop Pop."

"Impressive?" Sasha huffed, "Selling stuff to old people is easy money. But you lost us money."

"That is the Plantar difference," He smiled, looking up at the sign Honest First. "You can't taste honesty. But if you could-"

"it'd taste like a Plantar stand vegetable." Sprig and Polly finished his sentence rather annoyed and bored.

Hop Pop smiled, thinking back to his father, grandfather and the many Plantars that have own this stand. "This stand is the heart and soul of our family. I don't know what I'd do if we ever lost it."

Toadie cames running through the market handling out papers, "Bad news, everyone! Bad news! Gonna run away before you read it!"

"That Toadie..." Hop Pop mumbles under his breath. "Say what? Mayor Toadstool is quadrupling the rent! And he wants it in three days! At this rate, we'll lose the stand. What are we gonna do?" Hop Pop was panicked.

Marcy looked over the letters, she read about the society of Amphibia. And frog's were at the bottom. It was times like this this it remained her of her RPG. A groups of 'lower lifeforms' getting pushed down on by stronger bigger lifeform. "I wish we come more with something."

"How about we kick the fat toad out of town!" Sasha suggested, a few towns folks agreed. Polly was totally ready to throw down.

"Heck Yeah! Up top!" Polly jumped and high-five Sasha with her tail. "Let's do this!"

"That's my girl!" Sasha smiled, she pat her hand.

"If we do something like that. The Toad army will be at our doorsteps." Hop Pop shot that idea down immediately. "I for one don't want to face Grime."

"Hmm..." Anne rubbed her chin, and snapped her fingers. "Got it! Snugaroos, blankets you wear over your clothes."

"What the-Anne, we're a vegetable stand."

"A crappy one." Sasha folded her arms.

"No, I mean we need our own Snugaroo, a flashy new product. Something like... like... A-ha!." Anne grabbed a gourd and empty jar, squeezing the juice out, and shaking it. "A little bit of this, shake it up and... Introducing Plantar's Potion. A hearty mix of vitamins and minerals that'll extend your life and keeps you regular."

"Wowza. All that in one jar?"

"Heck if I know, I just made all that up. But health drinks are all the rage back home. The best part, we can charge through the nose for them."

"That's true, my dad drinks then everyday." Marcy replied, she was going through her notes. Thinking of another ways she could help. She study the farm, and was making ways to improve the farm.

"It's worth a shot." Hop Pop clears his throat and approached, "New product! New product, everyone. This here is a freshly made bottle of...What was it again? Plantar's Potion!" Wally raised his hand, "Yes, you in the front, Wally."

"Does it taste good?"

"Wouldn't know. Haven't tried it, yet."

"Oh." Anne facepalmed, Sasha pitched her nose in annoyance.

"Hey, Hop Pop! Can we chat for a second? Sprig, work the crowd."

Hop Pop walked over to Anne, "Dude, if you wanna sell this stuff, you gotta sell this stuff! Make promises you can't keep and junk."

"Also..." Sasha smiled, "Butter them up, making them feel good about themselves. And they do whatever it is you tell them. Just try saying nice things for a change. Get them to love you, and they'll do anything for you."

"Mmm. I don't know." Hop Pop looked up in shock, he took in what Sasha said. Was she faking being nice whether she wanted to take Bessie for a drive, or getting off work. He now question what she said and if anything she said was trust or came from a place of generous. "Did you forget this stand was built on honesty?"

"Hop Pop," Anne looked down, her tone was soft but honest, "in three days, there won't be a stand.!

Sasha place a hand on her hip, "Agreed. It's either you do this or we lose the stand... Next the farm... We'll be homeless, you'll be homeless, your grandchildren will be homeless." Her tone wasn't as comforting as Anne.

Hop Pop sighs, wedged between the values his parents and grandparents taught, value he wanted to his grandchildren to have. And the threat of losing everything. The stand. Future for his grandchildren. He try it, but just until the stand is save. He sighed and walks back to the crowd. "I'll give it a try. Take five, boy. I'll take it from here."

"You got it, Hop Pop! Hop, hop!"

"Folks, I'd really appreciate it if you bought this drink. Uh...Because it'll make you, I don't know... stronger?" The crowd murmuring. "And uh... smarter, too!"

"Smarter? Smarter, too?" The crowd murmur to themselves.

!Hmm..." Hop Pop smiled, there were eating up his words. "Folks, one sip of Plantar's Potion..." He downs the potion. "and you may very well live forever!"

"I'll take ten!" Wally smiled.

"I'll take a hundred!" Felicia smiled, the crowd were throwing coins.

"Suffering swamp gas!" Hop Pop smiled, taking in the money, if this keeps up. We will not only save the stand. But will insure that all five of his children will have something. "We gotta step up production on this stuff. Fast!"

Production had spend up, over the two days, and the crowds were just hanging onto his words. Hop Pop was telling himself it was just to save the stand. The stand was memory to the early days of Wartwood and the earliest Plantar's roots. It's holds a history, he can't be the Plantar that destroy the family business. He'll be worse Plantar since the that ate the Grubhog. It was more then a stand, it was piece of his family history. He had to save it, for himself, for his father, for his grandchildren, for his family's name and history.

"I know I doubted you, Anne, but this is really working."

"I gotta say, Hop Pop, you've gotten really good at this."

"Very, good," Sasha scratched her chin, "Is there something you're hiding."

"I'm just a very good actor," Hop Pop smiled, Sasha rolled her eyes.

"Guys, guys!" Marcy called them over.

"Big problem!" Polly said, the group follow them, and gaspped at the empty field.

"We used up all our produce. There's nothing left!" Sprig exclaimed.

"No! We're so close. We can't fall short now. Let's see" Hop Pop was searching the field, finding nothing but rotten half eaten vegetables... A-ha! Jackpot!"

"Uh... Yeah, uh... Yeah, that's literally garbage, like more garbage then your cooking." Sasha exclaimed, if it wasn't this gross, she would exactly be impress with how far he was willing to go to trick these suckers.

"Garbage? Or Plantar Potion's new secret ingredient?" The potion was pitch black, and smelled like death.

"Ew," Marcy pitched her nose, "Mr Plantar are you sure that's even safe. It could make someone sick."

"Oh, I'm sure. Everyone's hooked. They'll buy anything I sell them." He pointed at Sprig and Polly, "Now get in there, stompers"

The next mornings, the whole town was waiting in line at Plantar's stand. "Friends and frog folk, step right up. New limited edition Plantar's Potion. Only 20 coppers a bottle!"

"Twenty coppers?" Anne looked up from her phone. "No one's gonna buy that."

"Anne, Marcy sends over 300 dollars on a eternal glove."

"With lights, sounds and moveable fingers." Marcy defended herself.

"You only wore it once," Sasha said.

"Thank you for your patronage," Hop Pop smiled.

"I'm gonna feed this to my baby."

Anne groans, "Well, did we make it? Did we save the stand?"

"Just about. We gotta sell to one more sucker and we'll be home free."

"I'll take a bottle, Hopadiah."

Hop Pop gasps "Sadie Croaker, the stand's oldest and most loyal customer."

"Usually, I find potions and the like to be a bunch of malarkey, but if Hopadiah Plantar says it works, then it must."

Hop Pop smiled nervously.

"Been saving this gold farthing for a while now. Waiting for something special to spend it on. One bottle, please."

"Uh..." Hop Pop rubbed the back of his head, "Sorry, we're all sold out."

"No, we're not!" Polly hands her a jar.

"Oh, thank you, deary."

Hop Pop stammers

"To Hop Pop and the Plantars," Croaker raised a jar, toasting the family, "the most honest folks in the business."

"Oof," Anne groaned, "even I felt that one."

"To the Plantars!" The town toasted, Hopediah was panic-stricken. Hearing this. He wanted to save the stand, but was this worth it. Destroying the family name, what would his parents or grandparents think of him now. Would we even be able to look them in the eye without feeling the shame of what he did. Could he come back from this. Destroy his values, but it will keep the family afloat. He watched as Croaker was about to drink.

"No!" He slaps the potion out of Mrs. Croaker's hand.

"What has gotten into you, Hopediah?"

"That was no health potion! It's garbage!" The crowd spits out the dark goo, glaringly at the con man. "Folks, I'm so sorry. I never meant any harm. All I was trying to do was save my stand."

Hop Pop was refunding the entire town, it was the only way to make things right. His parents told him, that life's greatest lessons are usually learned at the worst times and from the worst mistakes. "Apologies."

The frog scoffed.

"I still think this is stupid," Sasha rolled her eyes, she couldn't believe the old frog did this. They were making the big bucks, why would he ruin a gold mind like this. "We were in the green. We won't make money being honest."

"Dishonest money, never feels earned." Hop Pop replied, Sasha rolled her eyes. She was well of family, this honest work seem like foolish pride to her. Who care how to make it. The foolish old frog's pride will put us in the poor house. Sasha folded her arms, didn't the frog care about his grandchildrens.

"Well," Croaker glared at Hop Pop. "Hopadiah, looks like you're going to have to earn our trust back. That being said, I think your father would be proud that you did the right thing today."

"Thanks," He hoped that was true, he needed to hear that. "Sadie. I'll work hard to earn your trust back."

"Not at this stand, you won't!" Toadie arrived with a closure sign. "No coin, no stand. Time to clear out!"

"Don't worry, Hop Pop. We'll help you get the stand back." Sprig smiled as he help them pack up.

"You want me to..." Polly clicks her tongue, "off Toadie? I'll do it. You know I will."

"I know a few places to dump the body," Sasha teased a with smirked, these frog could talk, but it doesn't make them people in her eyes.

"Thanks, kids. Let's just get home and relax a little." He hopped onto of Bessie, still feeling great shame. "You know, maybe the end of one tradition means the start of another. Maybe I ought to start over the Hop Pop way, experiment with those new seed varieties I always wanted to try."

"That's the spirit, my grandma told me then the sun will come out tomorrow." Marcy smiled.

"Yeah, we're gonna make it after all." Sprig jumped.

"The future is ours!" Polly yelled.

"Oh, frog! I'm unemployed!" Hop Pop cried out.

A few days after losing the stands, Marcy had a great idea on showing movies in town, selling tickets and refreshments. They had to bargain with Toadstool who allow them to rent the a lot. He wanted half of the income. But thanks to Sasha and Anne they made him go down to a quarter of the income. Anne and Marcy, although Sasha said they were stupid to do so, the two girl gave half of the their take to Hop Pop to go towards the house. The old frog was hesitate at first, more so out of his foolish pride as he himself made ever copper he had himself. He did give in, heartfelt by the two generous nature.

Although movies did sometimes end in fight over ships, reboot vs original. It did bring everyone together.

Notes; Hop Pop losing the stand is set up for his future events. Also giving in Civil Wart with how much the town love the movie. Anne could have made a mint making money.