22. Snow Day

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, Morticon, schweenieboy, snake screamer, Rodimus973, Pushistaya ten, Shadowcat1083, Liko, Killerbull55858, QuackityFiction Guest for the comment.

The sun was raising on another lovely beautiful day as ever on the local village of Wartwood. The family were gathered around the kitchen table as Anne was making breakfast. Cooking mushrooms, fried potatoes and vegetables can be seen peeping out of it, as Anne puts on the final touch: A basil leaf. "Perfecto!" Anne smiled.

Anne is holding a pan and her freshly made Omelette, while Hop Pop and Polly sit at the dining table, curious as to what Anne is up to now, while Sasha and Marcy eye's watered at the hot breakfast.

"Thank God!" Sasha said as she took a bite, looking as though she had just die and went to heaven.

Marcy was happily eating, keeping to herself.

Polly poke it with her fork, "What do you call these again?"

"Omelettes!" Anne then slides the plate towards Hop Pop with a bit of pride "Very popular where I'm from!"

Hop Pop, however, is less sure, as he poke it, looking it over questionablly. "I don't know about that."

"Try it boomer!" Sasha said.

"Come on Mr. Plantar!" Marcy smiled.

"We'll alright." Hop Pop takes a bite and considers the flavor. His eyes widen in wonder and awe; "Holy Tadpole of Mary! Until today, I've been eating garbage!"

"He admits it," Sasha replied as continuing eating, while Anne smiled.

Polly then also tries, shoving it in her face. She too is amazed."I never had something so amazing it my life." Anne was a little embarrassed, but also smile that her frog family enjoyed her cooking. Years of watching and helping her parents has paid off.

"Thanks guys." She smiled.

Suddenly, a fearful shout from Sprig can be heard coming from upstairs.

Polly looks up confused, as the girl's raised their eyebrow. "Wha?"

"What's going on?" Marcy asked, turning to Sasha.

"Probably something stupid I'm sure." Sasha said between bites as Sprig continues to shout, and falls off the stairs and onto his face. Sprig then immediately gets back up and resumes shouting in fear, now right next to Hop Pop, disconcerting him. Sprig abruptly stops when he sees the Omelette though, "Oh, those look good!"

"Omelettes." Hop Pop replied as to took a bite shacker to pour on his Omelette like it was salt.

"Huh." Sprig paused before he resumes shouting. "It's happening!"

"What's happening?" Sasha asked as Hop Pop suddenly grabs Sprig by the face, looking directly in his eyes, looking serious and fully focused.

"Boy!" He gave a tone, that made even Sasha and Marcy pay attention. It was his normal strict it was a tone mixed with fear. "Are you sure it's happening?" He glared close up on Sprig, more serious than ever. "You better not be playing a prank."

"Dead sure." Sasha know something was off when Sprig and Polly were taking this serious, whatever this was it was something serious.

Anne was completely out of the loop, "Is this a "we've gotta go now" kind of thing, or can I finish eating?"

"Take it to go, Anne," Sprig said, this surprised Anne as Sprig was being serious with no hint of play in his voice. "Cause we've got to go sound the alarm!"

"Okay. " Anne placed some containers on the table and starts to separate parts of the omelette into different containers. "I'm just gonna separate the stuff so it retains the flavor and doesn't get soggy..." The rest of the family loudly berate her.

"MOVE, ANNE!" Polly said.

"Come on, Anne, we better move on! All of you! Move it!"

Sasha glared down to Hop Pop as he flung the fork out of her hand. "What's your problem? Can't you see I'm eating!"

"No time. Move! Move!"

"Okay I'm about finished..." Anne replied rather annoyed, as she continues to separate the omelette.

"ANNE, MOVE!" Sprig ordered.

"Okay, okay!"

Hop Pop runs out of the house with Sprig on top of him, the young frog literally sounding the alarm. The girl's, Anne who was holding Polly, stares at them, a little startled, from the doorway. Sprig continues to blare his warning, which causes a chicken sounding fly eyed owl to swoop off in fright. The girls tow behind at a normal pace as Hop Pop and Sprig run into a stream and emerge from the other side almost completely dry. The girl's just use the stones already placed there to cross.

The entire town assembled at the center point, the townfolks confused and alarmed with all the commotion.

"What's going on?" Ivy asked, turned to her mother who just shrugged.

"Well it has been getting kinda chilly," Felicia spoke with concern.

"It hasn't been a year, its pretty early." Sylvia added.

"Now what's this all about?" Toadstool replied as Sprig who was still blaring loudly and Hop Pop arrive. Hop Pop falls to his knees, tired as heck just as the rest of the family showed up.

"Everyone! Listen up!" Sprig gets jumps off of Hop Pop and explains the situation "Today is the third morning in a row! Where the temperature dipped below the frog line!"Sprig pulls out a wooden thermometer that clearly shows the temperature dropping below the blue line of winter. It continues to drop as Sprig speaks. "Which means... Hiber day is almost upon us!" The town gasped in alarm and stricken with fear. The frogs all huddled in a circle, some crying, others hanging their heads in sorrow, some shaking and other just accepting this was life.

"Daddy?" Ginger looked up with sadness, as the Flour family hugged her.

"It can't be!?" Barry cried.

"Hiber day?" Anne raised an eyebrow.

"Is that like on Earth." Marcy pulled out her notebook ready to document this event. "Where animal sleep through winter. I was wondering about that."

Hop Pop frowned sadly with a nod, "Yes, once a year, the temperature drops so low, that it sends everyone into instant hibernation! And when we thaw, we feel refreshed, rejuvenated, virile!"

"ey, that's pretty cool." Anne smiled.

"Well, it's not!" Hop Pop replied sharply, "Every year, one townsperson disappears, never to be seen again."

"And there's the weird dark turn." Anne replied.

Sasha rolled her eyes, "And you guys don't do anything? To protect yourself?"

"We tried many things..." Hop Pop folded his arms, feeling disrespected, and insult that she was make light of this horrible event. "We once locked yourself in our houses, we all went under the lake, we hide out at Soggy Joe's campground nothing works. Plus, as much as we want to stay inside our homes and stay warm, awake and safe. We can't miss Hiber day, it will leaves us unrested and un-recharge, greatly affecting our physical and mental health." Hop Pop exclaimed.

"Yep!" Stumpy added, "An old sailor buddy of my. Skipped Hiber day, at it ended badly for him." Stumpy closed his eyes, sighing deeply.

"And like Hopediah said," Toadie spoke up, "Something has been taking us during our hibernation state."

"Last year it was my mom." Maddie hug her sisters tightly, as Farine hug his four daughters. The painful memory still flash, like a wound. Can't believing it has been a year since it happened. Farine heart broke as he worried in the future that his daughters will forgot about her... Not even remember her face or her voice. Just thinking about it tears him apart. It was painful think that many family face in this place. Nature can be beautiful but unforgiving, and doesn't can't who you are.

"Wh...What?" Marcy gasped, wanted to comfort her friend but struggle with how to do so. She felt horrible just like when Anne's grandmother on her dad's side past. She was unable to even began to know how to comfort people. Seeing whenever her friends were sad, Marcy was unable to approach how to deal with them.

"My brother before that!" Loggle spoke up, looking down. Wally gently pat his shoulder.

Next was Croaker, "Terry," She looked down petting Archie, the frogs that wanted to open up to everyone did so. Some kept it to themselves.

"It's serious," Sprig replied as he hugged his Grandfather and Sister. "Look around you."

"Possible goodbye, Wally."

"Possible goodbye, Stumpy." The old retire sailor hugged him, sure the lone would always get drunk and driving away customers. But he did share years worth of stories and tales of old with the crazy one eye frog.

"Possible goodbye, Ivy." Felicia pulled her daughter in for a hug, then pulled in her mother. "Possible goodbye, mother."

"Possible goodbye, girls." Sylvia replied, hugging them close.

"Possible goodbye." Ivy said, leaving Sasha surprised with how fearful she was. Just a few weeks ago this frog children saved her from monsters twice.

"Possible goodbye, Toadie." Toadstool as well shocking the girls as he shown genuine emotion to someone other then himself for once.

"Possible goodbye, Sir."

"Possible goodbye, girls" Farine hug his daughters closed. Given them each a kiss on the forehead.

"Possible goodbye dad, possible goodbye sisters." Maddie said, the family were still in pain from last year. Still haunted had deeper leave of fear. Marcy just looked, she wanted to hug her friend, to confront her. She just rubbed her thumbs together, feeling she would be crossing a line. Or Maddie would push her away.

"Possible goodbye, Archie." Croaker hug her pet spider, as it sadly squeaks.

Anne and Marcy saw the terror on the frog's face of fear of a day in which you carried the possibility of losing a loved on as you slept, being unable to do anything to save them from whatever maniacal force was taking them.

"Possible goodbye, Sprig."

"Possible goodbye, Hop Pop."

"Possible goodbye, family." The Plantars turn towards the girls. "And of course, Anne, Marcy, Sasha."

"Not so fast!" Anne held out her hand to stop them.

"What?" Polly asked.

"Harsh." Sprig felt hurt by his friend rejecting him like that.

"You're kinda spittin' on tradition, Anne." Hop Pop said.

"There will not be any goodbyes this year. Because this year," Anne smiled, standing up tall with pride, "Wartwood has us."

"Huh?" Polly asked.

"What?" Hop Pop added.

"Yeah, I don't follow." Sprig replied.

"Um, hello! we'ree warm-blooded."

"That's gross, Anne." Sprig replied.

"It means we won't freeze. "

Suddenly, the whole crowd of frogs turned to them, having overheard what Anne said, all eyes on the girls.

"Anne, is that true? Your kind doesn't freeze like the rest of us?" Toadstool asked.

"Yep!" She replied with a finger gun, "We can be your protector. And under my watch, no one will disappear again!" She accidentally hit her hand against a statute, "Ow!"

The other frogs were talking amongst themselves, all of them suddenly uplifted and excited at the idea that they might finally have some protection, "We're going to live!" Cried Wally as the frogs were about to gather around the girls, until when Hop Pop had started yelling at the frogs.

"Absolutely not! How dare you all think the girls should put their own life in danger for us? They're children for frog's sake! How the frog hell is puttin' a child's life in danger and lettin' them face whatever has been takin us while we are unable to help them at all responsible?" Hop Pop had stopped to take a breath, the frogs all going silent. "I'll go to Hell back before I los... Before I let any of you put a children in harm's way!" The old frog glared at all the other frogs, who slowly back away, not wanting to incite another outburst of rage from the orange frog.

"That very selfish of yo..." Toadstool was about to speak before Hop Pop told him to be quiet.

"Uhm, Mr. Plantar?" Felicia cautiously interjected. "I know you're still probably a little bit... unsettled after everything. But we would could really use their help. They could do so much good, help so many people!" She was giving the older frog a hopeful look.

"Hop Pop We'll do it," Anne had started.

"Do you really want to die," Sasha added, "Plus you'll be frozen anyway. So not like you stop us."

Hop Pop had starred, only to be interrupted by Anne. "I know you don't want us to get hurt. But..." She looked down, she knew she had to do something., "If someone dies I couldn't live with knowing I could have done something. What if it was you, or Sprig or Polly? I couldn't live with myself if I just let you guys be taken." Anne could have swore she saw something in Hop Pop's eyes. Something of great pain.. But deep under that pride.

Hop Pop let his shoulders sag in defeat. He let out a deep sigh. "Well, they'll probably just go behind my back if I said no. Just promise me. If you are in danger don't do anything stupid."

Anne gave him smile, she wasn't sure if she will keep this promise. But if it made him worry less, then that what Anne wanted.

"Wow!" Sprig smiled, "You've gone from town beast to town protector. Big fan of that narrative."

"All right." Hop Pop spoke with a heavy sigh, he still wasn't to thrill about the idea. "Hiber Day isn't till tomorrow. So, everybody meet back here tonight. So they can guard all of us."

The frogs cheered, as they're making there way back towards there house. "We're gonna live!" Felicia smiled and kissed Ivy's forehead much to her embarrassment.

"Thank Frog!" Duckweed spoke to Monroe, the latter didn't seem to opimistic about the idea. Who just shrugged, "There still Plantars, Albus and Plantars have a track record of failure."

"I'm gonna burn my will." Willy smiled.

"Girls, are you sure about this?" Hop Pop was the first to speak up as they were walking back towards the farm. He was still worried about there safety, he lost alot in his long life, and to having to bury another child will do in him. "Looking after the whole town's a lot of responsibility. I'm sure they'll understand. You don't need that kind of pressure on your shoulders."

"We already told you were doing this," Sasha replied back. Attention was still a little with her and Wartwood since the Toads. Some have forgive her, some moved on, some still resent her. But she knew she couldn't please everyone, she was doing this to prove she isn't what everyone things.

Totally, Sash." Anne smiled, she was beginning to feel a little sense of belonging to Wartwood. That she was part of this little village on the swamp. And this was her part to play. "We've totally got this. I feel like my time here has all been leading up to this moment. It's like fate and karma combined into one. Like kate or fartma."

"Those are both terrible." Sasha was laughing, "but she right. We got this. I get it... It's kinda sweet you care about us. But can take after ourselves." Sasha turned to Marcy, the young girl had been surprising quiet since Maddie told them about her mom. "Marcy? Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Marcy looked up, surprised, she then looked away. "Yeah. Just thinking about Maddie." Sasha grabbed her shoulder, she fear Marcy was getting to close to this things. In the beginning it was hard for Sasha to seem them more then just slimy gross creatures, but then she grew to like them. "Marcy, it's going to be okay."

"Umm... Guys?" Anne spoke up.

"What the heck?" Sasha turned around seeing the Plantars were frozen in a block of ice. The wind whistles around them as a large blanket of snow covers the village. "This can't be good."

"Interesting..." Marcy takes out her notebook and begins drawing and writing stuff down.

"Oh, no! Hiber Day is here early. Everybody is all over the place by now. How am I gonna get them back to..." Anne panics and lifts the frozen Hop Pop with ease, "Oh. Oh, wow. This is very light."

The three had gathered everyone around town and placed them in the center of town. Anne was lucky she had packed extra pair of heavy clothes.

"Welp, that's everyone." Marcy said, looking over her list, doing a triple check to make extra sure.

"Heh, that was surprisingly easy." Sasha remaked as she sat down in front of the statute, even Toads like Stumpy, Joe and Toadstool were light as air to carry.

"Town protector. Yea-yuh!" Anne was pumped. "And now all we have to do is watch 'em.

When pacing back and forth didn't quell there boredom , they decided to try and mess around with the snow. Since they'd lived in California, they never experienced snow before. They continued throwing snowballs, at each other. However, continuously playing with the snow it soon grew boring, and their palms were starting to grow cold and wet. They went back to the entrance of town. That when they saw something that horrify them. A large snow white weasel had made it ways into town. In it's jaws they saw a frozen Polly.

"So? You're the one taking the Frogs?!" Sasha hissed her teeth, glaringly at the Weasel as she and Anne drove there weapons that they got from the Toads. Ready to fight this monster, as suddenly the creature was hit by a fire ball. "What the heck?!" Anne looked behind her seeing Marcy, glaring at the wild animal. The creature roared in pain and Polly was release from it's jaws. Sasha leap in forth and caught her just before she hit the ground. The creature took off towards the forest and Marcy ran after it.

"Marcy? Come back!" Anne quick forward a look of panic and fear took after her, as did Sasha.

Marcy was sprinting after the tracks, gripping her curse, completely lost in her desire to kill the monster. The fear, the losses these frogs suffered because of this monster. Wherever these tracks leads, it was the monster that was taking the frogs. She was going to make it pay for Maddie and her family, and for everyone friend and neighbor Wartwood lost. She soon found the entrance to a cave, as Anne and Sasha found her.

"Marcy you can't run off like." Anne hugs her.

"The monsters is in there," Marcy spoke softly as was beginning to mix up her potions, getting ready to go in there. This sort of reaction shock the two, they never seen Marcy getting this deep into something before.

"You scared it off," Anne research her, "so we should just leave it alone."

"What if it comes back?" Marcy said with fear.

"She has a point, this thing will just come again next year." Sasha added, she want Ivy to not live in fear, "We probably won't be here next year. So we should kill it."

"I guess that makes sense." Anne sigh, she wanted to make sure this thing won't bother her frog family again.

"So lets go." Marcy ran towards the cave, once inside there were creep out by the pile of bones everywhere. It was strange how creepy normal it was to see bones laying everywhere in the forest. They found the weasel, guarding three babies. This made the three freeze in place, the creature hissed and blocked her babies from there view. It still looked like it was in pain. Marcy had a wave of guilt, this monst... No creature was just looking to feed her babies. It was just doing a job of a parent. But she couldn't let it just hurt people she cares about. She didn't like not knowing what to do.

"You weren't just taking frogs just to feed yourself?" Anne looked ashamed, she didn't know what to do.

Sasha stepped forward, calling the two them babies, she ready her sword. "I take care of it."

"Sasha no!"

"Anne, if we let it. It will just come back again." She raised her sword, glaring at the weasel.

"Are you going to kill the babies too."

"Babies grew up, and if were not careful it will pick Sprig, or Polly, or Ivy, or the old geezer out of there teeth." Her grip tighten, "This ends now." The creature just looked up at Sasha. The young blond just struggle with the sword in hand, cursing as she lowered it. She couldn't do it.

"I think I have idea." Anne smiled, she took out containers from her bag and made the omelette.

"Here..." Marcy said as pore something on it, "I'm not sure about the taste. But this will help with her burns." Anne smiled and slide the food over to the weasel. The creature stiffed it, before taking in back to feed her babies. They watched as the mother feed her babies and made there way back to town.

The next morning the girls were gather around town, as snow was began to melting. There were just happy there didn't have to wait about three month like on Earth. The frogs were beginning to unthaw.

"Oh, thank Frog!" Hop Pop replied as he broken out, hug his family.

"We made it through the freeze!" Sprig smiled.

"Yay! I'm alive!"

"Three cheers for the best town protector there is." Wally smiled, the frogs join in cheering.

"So did you find out was was taking us?" Ivy ask.

"A giant weasel with three babies. She was just trying to find food." Anne explained,

"Did it attack you?" Felicia asked.

"Yes... I didn't get anything serious." Sasha replied, "Now if weren't unable to be for next Hiber day. Once it starts getting cold, place so food in town. Hopefully that will work."

"You mean, you didn't kill it?" Toadstool asked.

The girls felt guilt and shame was over them, Marcy looked away from Maddie as she gave her response."I... want... to... but she had babies. We couldn't."

"Typical Plantars," Monroe rolled his eyed, "You can't do one simple thing!" He was then hit on the head by Miss Croaker. "Oww!"

"Shut it Monroe." She turned back to the girls."Killing doesn't solve everything, you found out what was taking us and now we all know what to do, that's all that matters." Croaker hugged the girl, wining it pain do to their injuries.

"I..." Maddie walked forward, face Marcy, with a smile."I think my mom would like that."

Marcy wiped away a tear as she hugged her close.

Hop Pop smiled, for as strong as she was, she still had a big heart, always willing to fight for others before fighting for herself. He knew that there were all very good qualities for her to have. But he also knew that she was naive and impulsive, there were times when he wished that she didn't have such a big heart, wasn't so quick to do for others, and wasn't so kind. But she wouldn't be the Anne he knew and loved. For as much as he loved that big heart of hers... He just hoped that it wouldn't get her into trouble someday.

March 19, Owl House and Amphibia will return.