Raised By Frogs

Marcy had no idea how she’d ended up in the strange,swampy world she’d suddenly found herself in.

The seven year old was terrified, holding onto her caterpillar plush with one arm and using her free hand to grip the strap of her now dirty green bookbag.

She walked around cautiously, trying to avoid any coming danger. However, her curse of being naturally clumsy had led her to sustaining multiple injuries since she’d appeared in this strange new land, including scraped knees, a large gash on her left forearm, a bruise on her forehead, a bloody nose, and having both her front teeth knocked out.

Her clothes, hair, bookbag and caterpillar plushie all had grass and mud stains on them, and both her shoes were missing, the girl walking barefoot on the cold, moist dirt ground.

Marcy shivered violently, looking around and examining her surroundings.

She was surrounded by trees, vines, bushes and foliage, all in differing shades of green. It was cool and moist, and she imagined this was what the rainforest was like, only cold instead of warm.

The smell of wet earth was overwhelming, and the cold, marshy mud against her feet made her squirm and shiver even more.

Eventually, Marcy grew tired of walking, going over to a nearby tree and sitting beside it, leaning back onto it’s moss coated trunk. She was tired,confused and distressed, hugging her caterpillar plush close.

She didn’t mean to end up here.

All she’d wanted to do was find somewhere to stay….
________________________________________________________________________________________________

Marcy had been relatively happy back home.

Well, at least for the first few years of her young life.

She’d had two parents who cared for her, and had lived in a nice big house in a very safe, friendly neighborhood.

She didn’t have many friends- she found it difficult to connect and talk with others, both kids and adults, but that didn’t bother her, because she at least had her parents.

Her father wasn’t a very huggy or close man, he was at work more often than not, but he attended all her school events and would occasionally give her a nod of approval when she got good grades in school.

Her mother was a bit distant too, but she was around more than her dad, waking her up and taking her to school in the morning and picking her up from school in the afternoon, making her dinner and packing her lunches, giving her baths, dressing her for school, and if Marcy was good and asked politely, her mom would take her to the comic book store, the mall,the library, the zoo, the aquarium, the arcade or the natural history museum.

Sometimes she’d play games with her and read her bedtime stories after she’d tucked her into bed for the night, but that wasn’t all that often as she, like Marcy’s father, had work and work related matters to tend to.

But Marcy didn’t mind, her mother didn’t need to read her bedtime stories every night or anything like that, she did enough for her as was and for Marcy, that showed that her mother loved her, which was good enough for her.

Overall, Marcy had been very content with her life.

But then things had changed.

Marcy’s parents had never been very openly loving towards each other, but they were never hostile towards each other and seemed to get along well.

But suddenly, they started acting less civil towards one another.

Her father would sound annoyed or angry when talking to her mother, and sometimes he would yell at her, even if she hadn’t said or done anything to warrant the yelling.

Her mother would sound very cold when talking to her father, and she would often walk out during dinner when Marcy’s dad was talking to her harshly or go upstairs after Marcy’s father had yelled at her and would refuse to talk to him or even look at him for the rest of the night.

At night, Marcy could hear both of them yelling coming from downstairs. Loud,angry yelling and sometimes her mother crying.

Then the fighting and yelling and her mother crying would happen during the day, and afterwards one of them would either go upstairs while the other stormed out of the house, leaving Marcy alone, confused, scared and upset.

Things only got worse from there.

Marcy’s mom began to forget to do certain things.

She forgot to make dinner, forgot to pick Marcy up from school, forgot to pack Marcy lunch or make her breakfast, and when Marcy or her father asked her why these things hadn’t been done she’d either reply with “I forgot.” or would promptly walk outside or go upstairs and shut herself up in her and Marcy’s father’s room, where she would remain for the rest of the day. She even forgot to go to work on multiple days, and eventually she stopped going to work altogether.

Marcy's father would end up having to begrudgingly do the tasks that his wife usually did, and often complained to both his wife and to Marcy about how he was going to be late for work because he had to make Marcy breakfast or lunch, how he had to call out of work early because he had to pick Marcy up from school, how lazy his wife was and how he now had to work more to support his family now that his “useless self-pitying mess of a wife” had quit her job and was now doing nothing to contribute to their household or raise their child.

Marcy didn’t like it when he said those mean things about her mom…But then she could understand why he was upset.

Her mother seemed to have forgotten all about her. Marcy was now getting herself up for school with the help of a small Pokemon-themed alarm clock that she’d gotten last Christmas but had never bothered to use up until then, gave herself baths and tucked herself in at night. Her mother didn’t do anything for her anymore, and it made Marcy wonder if she even cared about her anymore.

Eventually, Marcy’s father grew fed up with the amount of things he had to do at home while also worrying about work, and ended up buying a bunch of microwaveable meals for Marcy to make for herself after school and arranged for Marcy’s school to start providing her with free lunches.

He still took Marcy to school and picked her up from school, but as soon as Marcy was at school or at their house, he’d immediately speed off to work, where he’d stay until about midnight.

Marcy had no problem making herself microwave meals, but some of them didn’t taste very good, and she didn’t wanna use up all the microwave meals by having to make another one. So, when she found she didn’t like the microwave meal she’d picked for that night, she’d either look in the fridge or freezer for something to eat, or she’d resort to eating any junk food they kept in the house.

For most kids Marcy’s age, eating potato chips, ice cream, almond cookies and marshmallows for dinner would be a dream come true.

For Marcy, however, it was an incredibly sad reality, and a reminder of how little her parents cared about her.

On one particular night, as Marcy was eating a dinner consisting of chips, milk candy, and a microwave meal of chicken dumplings with noodles when her mother had walked into the kitchen, venturing out of her bedroom for the first time in what had to have been months.

She looked nothing like how Marcy had remembered her.

Back before things had gotten so bad, Marcy’s mother had been a very well-dressed, well groomed woman, always wearing casual business suits or silk blouses and skirts, her glasses crystal clear, her hair well combed and was overall a very well-kempt person.

Now….She looked nothing like herself.

Dressed in a wrinkled, old pajama top and bottoms, her hair longer than it had been and heavy with oil and matting, her glasses cloudy and slightly tilting downward, her cheeks were sunken in slightly and her eyes had dark bags underneath them.

Marcy was almost terrified of her. She looked like a zombie.

Her mother looked down at her, then at the open bag of chips that she’d been eating. Her face suddenly contorted in rage, and she began screaming at Marcy.

It was like a bomb had suddenly gone off inside her and she’d gone from a lifeless zombie into some terrifying, rage filled monster.

She screamed obscenities at Marcy, berating her for eating such unhealthy food and for making such a big mess of crumbs on the table and floor that she would have to clean up. Marcy had just curled up in on herself in the chair she’d been sitting in, breaking down into tears.

What had happened to her mother?? Why did she go from loving her to not caring about her to hating her?

The front door had slammed open, and Marcy’s dad had entered, immediately yelling at Marcy’s mother, who turned to him and began yelling at him, Marcy crying harder and curling up further into herself as she heard their loud, angry conversation.

“HOW COULD YOU LET HER EAT THAT SHIT FOR DINNER??” Marcy’s mother screamed, her face red.

“IT'S NOT MY GODDAMN RESPONSIBILITY TO FEED HER! IT'S YOURS! BUT SINCE YOU’VE COMPLETELY GIVEN UP ON BEING HER MOTHER WHO THE FUCK CAN BLAME HER FOR HAVING TO TURN TO TRASH LIKE THAT FOR DINNER?!” Marcy’s father screamed back, looking as if he were ready to swing a punch at his wife.

“WHY THE HELL CAN’T YOU BE BOTHERED TO CARE FOR HER??”

“BECAUSE I WORK MY GODDAMN ASS OFF TRYING TO KEEP A ROOF OVER OUR HEADS, YOU'RE THE ONE WHO’S SUPPOSED TO TAKE CARE OF OUR DAUGHTER YET YOU REFUSE TO! AND SINCE YOUR LAZY ASS DECIDED TO QUIT YOUR JOB SO YOU COULD JUST LAY AROUND IN BED ALL DAY I NOW HAVE TO WORK OVERTIME SO WE CAN KEEP THE DAMN HOUSE! YOU CANT EVEN BE BOTHERED TO CLEAN UP THE HOUSE OR COOK ME DINNER, YET ALONE PROPERLY CARE FOR MARCY!!”

“WHY THE HELL CAN’T YOU DO THOSE THINGS FOR YOURSELF AND CARE FOR HER??? CAN’T YOU SEE THAT IM FUCKING SUFFERING?”

“BULLSHIT! YOU'RE A LAZY GODDAMN BITCH WHO GOT UPSET BECAUSE I CALLED YOU OUT FOR BEING LAZY, THEN DECIDED TO JUST GIVE UP ON YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES AND NOW YOU’VE DECIDED TAKE OUT YOUR ANGER ON YOUR OWN CHILD JUST BECAUSE SHE WAS EATING JUNK FOOD BECAUSE YOU CAN’T GET OFF YOUR ASS TO COOK HER A PROPER MEAL!”

Marcy’s father shook his head, breathing in, rubbing his temples and glaring at Marcy’s mother, who was crying into her hands.

“As soon as the divorce papers come back, you are signing the damn papers, and then you're gonna get your ass out of bed and go to court so we can end this nightmare of a marriage. Then I’m taking Marcy and we are getting as far away from you as we possibly can so you can just stay in bed and rot, just like you want.” Marcy’s father growled.

“NO!! You can’t possibly take care of her!! There's no way in hell you’re getting her!!” Marcy’s mother yelled.

“As if they’d let your sorry ass care for her, you’ve already been neglecting her for these past few weeks, why would they possibly consider giving you custody!?!?” Marcy’s father yelled back.

Marcy didn’t pay attention to the rest of what her parents had said to each other. She was only thinking of that one word that had come out of her father’s mouth.

Divorce.

As soon as she’d heard that word, it was as if everything had suddenly gone cold, time frozen and her blood turned to ice water.

Her parents were getting a divorce?

They didn’t love each other anymore? They didn’t wanna live together anymore?

They didn’t wanna be a family anymore?

….Why?

Was it something she’d done?

Had she caused them to stop loving each other and start hating each other?

She wanted to ask them, but she never did. When she tried to ask them her throat just closed up and she couldn’t get her questions out.

She wondered if either of them would've even given her an answer.

The next few weeks went by fast.

Marcy’s parents signed some papers, went to the state courthouse, and suddenly, Marcy’s family was no more.

Her parents were split up, with Marcy staying with her father during the week and then staying with her mother on the weekends.

Marcy’s dad had bought a new house shortly before the divorce had been finalized, and he had also hired a maid to clean the house, cook him and Marcy dinner, get Marcy ready for school, get Marcy on the schoolbus and then make sure Marcy got off the schoolbus in the afternoons.

The maid was pleasant enough, but she wasn’t exactly close with Marcy.

Marcy’s father was almost never home.

He spent his days at work, working both weekdays and weekends, only coming home for dinner.

He didn’t acknowledge Marcy’s existence.

She’d try talking to him or bringing up her grades or something that’d happened at school, but he wouldn’t respond to her or even look at her.

He also started drinking some weird amber liquid from a big bottle during dinner. He’d often take the bottle with him to his office after dinner as well, shutting himself inside his office for the rest of the night. The maid left after dinner, so Marcy would go up to her room and tuck herself into bed, just like she’d done prior to the divorce.

Her mother kept living in their old house, and Marcy would only get to see her on weekends, her father’s maid dropping her off Friday after school and picking her up at noon on Sundays, as was the agreement.

Things weren’t much better with Marcy’s mother.

Her mother seemed better- She wasn’t constantly in bed, she dressed better, and actually cooked dinner now- But she was still distant.

She barely noticed Marcy’s existence, not listening to her, not bothering to take her anywhere, it was as if she’d forgotten about her the moment she stepped foot inside the house.

She’d cook breakfast and then leave Marcy alone to play outside or play video games, either going up to her room to watch TV or going into her office to work, having gotten a new job that allowed her to work from home. She’d only come out to make Marcy lunch and dinner, but that was it.

She’d go and do her own things, and Marcy would be left alone.

Just like before the divorce.

She’d also started taking pills for something. Marcy didn’t know what they were for, but when her mother took them she became really sleepy and zoned out.

Marcy didn’t have any friends to talk to at school, and the teacher was always too busy with other students to sit down and talk with her about the home situation. Marcy couldn’t talk to her father’s maid either, she was always too busy with cleaning or meal prep.

Marcy had no one to turn to for help and comfort. She was truly alone.

One Friday, after her father’s maid had dropped her off at her mother’s house, Marcy had come into the house to find that her mother was nowhere in sight, not in the kitchen or living room like she usually was dropped off for the weekend. Marcy checked her office as well, but she wasn’t there either.

She went upstairs and found her mother lying in bed, asleep, the TV on low.

Marcy had tried to wake her up, poking and lightly shoving her, trying to tell her that she was there and that the front door was unlocked and that the TV was still on, but her mom didn’t wake up.

Marcy eventually gave up, going to her room to play on her nintendo till dinner.

Eventually, dinner time rolled around, yet Marcy’s mother hadn’t gotten out of her room. Marcy had gone into her mother’s room again, shoving her lightly and trying to wake her up, but Marcy’s mom refused to wake up.

Once again, Marcy gave up on trying to wake her mother up and went down to the kitchen, going to the fridge to look for something to eat.

Marcy had been hungry, so she’d gone to the fridge, opening it up to see what was inside that she could eat.

The hinges of the fridge door, unbeknownst to Marcy and unnoticed by Marcy’s parents, were rusted and had started to loosen over the course of the past few months, the threat of the door coming loose increasing each time that someone opened the door.

It was then, as Marcy had opened the fridge door, that the hinges finally broke.

The fridge door fell down, Marcy shrieking and quickly jumping out of the way before the door could fall on her and crush her under it’s weight.

The heavy metal door crashed onto the linoleum floor, the linoleum cracking and a few tiles breaking around where the door lay on the floor.

Glass jars, a carton of eggs, bottles of condiments and other things that had been placed in the door’s shelves fell out of the shelves and smashed the the ground, the floor becoming coated in juices, sauces, broken eggs and other slippery substances that were leaking from their broken or busted open containers.

Marcy was cowering in a corner of the kitchen near the fridge,shaking violently, staring at the fallen door, then looking over at the stairs.

She was waiting for her mother to come out and ask about the loud noise, then scream at her for making such a mess, or maybe ask if she was okay.

Marcy heard her mother’s bed creaking upstairs, signaling that she’d finally woken up and was sitting up in bed.

Marcy froze, ears straining to hear her mother’s footsteps on the floor, then on the stairs….

Instead, she heard the bedsprings creak again, then nothing.

Her mother had just gotten back into bed.

She didn’t care about what had made the loud noise downstairs.

She didn’t care if Marcy was hurt or not.

She didn’t care about Marcy.

She didn’t care.

That had stung more than any slap or spanking she could’ve given Marcy.

It had hurt Marcy more than anything her mother could've said or done to her.

The realization that her mother just didn't care about her.That she didn’t love her….

It broke her.

It made Marcy realize that she couldn’t take it any longer.

She had to leave, leave and not come back.

Her parents no longer cared about her and everything was miserable.

She couldn’t keep living like this.

She HAD to leave and find somewhere else to stay and someone else to stay with.

Marcy had slowly gotten up, walking up to her room. She didn’t bother going into her mother’s room or checking to see whether or not she was awake.

She grabbed her bookbag, which had her favorite caterpillar plushie, pajamas, clothes for the weekend, nintendo, nintendo games and nintendo charger in it, putting her bookbag on her back and walking out of her room, going downstairs and then walking out the front door.

She started walking, then running, running as far away from her mother’s house as she could, running out of her neighborhood and getting into town.

After a while, she slowed down, panting, shaking, tears running down her face. She looked around, finding herself in the centre of town, surrounded by a few thrift stores, insurance agency buildings and restaurants.

She didn’t know where to go, or who to go to.

She was terrified.

She slowly started walking around, wondering if she could go into one of the places and ask anyone to help her. She looked around, trying to look through the large windows in front of the stores to see if anyone was available.

All of the stores were empty, that or they were so crowded and busy that she didn’t want to go in.

Eventually, she looked into the window of a small thrift store, seeing no one there except for an old woman who was looking at a bunch of old watches and bracelets on the front desk.

Marcy walked in, thinking of what to say to the woman. She suddenly remembered a presentation that had been given at school by a local policeman. He’d said that if their mommies or daddies or any adult had ever done anything to hurt them, then they should tell a teacher or another adult that they had to call “CPS”, whoever or whatever that was.

Marcy approached the woman, who looked down at her, smiling at her.

“Hello, how may I help you?” The woman asked.

“I...uh….can you call...CPS?” Marcy had asked quietly.

The lady looked surprised at first, then confused and concerned.

“....Do you know what CPS is dear?” The old lady asked.

Marcy thought back to the policeman’s presentation, trying to remember what he’d said it stood for.

“Child...Protective...Services?”

“.....Where’s your mother dear?”

“At home...but she doesn’t wanna wake up.”

The old lady now looked VERY unsettled and concerned, going over to a telephone that was mounted on the wall behind her and picking the phone up in one hand, pointing to a room at the back of the store with her other hand.

”.....Dear...You see that room over there? Go in there and play with the toys in there while I go call CPS for you dear….” The woman said, sounding uneasy.

Marcy complied, slowly walking into the room as the woman began pressing the number buttons on the phone’s dial pad.

The room was small and smelled musty, cramped full of numerous old toys, board games, and clothes that hung from wheeled clothing racks. Marcy slowly sat down in a small wooden chair that was in front of a large wooden bookcase, looking around at the items on one of the bookcase’s shelves.

A few books, an electric pencil sharpener, a piggy bank…..

And a box.

A small, treasure-chest shaped black box with the image of a golden frog on it, a long golden key sticking out of it’s right side, and 3 gemstones- one blue, one green and one clear- on the lid of the box.

It was the frog on the box that got Marcy’s attention.She liked frogs.

The box was too high for her to reach on her own, so she got up, pulled the chair she’d been sitting on over, then stood up on the chair, getting up high enough that she was able to get the box off it’s shelf.

She wondered what was inside it.

Slowly, she opened the box, and was hit with a sudden flash of blindingly bright white light, along with a strong gust of air.

The world around her suddenly began falling down, and the white light seemed to envelop her, pulling her down.

Marcy felt like she was falling, falling through a vast expanse of cold air and white light.

Then, suddenly, she felt herself fall hard onto cold, wet, moss covered earth, the whole front of her body sinking into the moist ground as the light vanished and the world became still and stable once again.

When she’d lifted her now muddy face up from the ground, she realized that she was no longer in the storage room of the resale shop.

She…..Didn't know where she was.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Marcy shivered, hugging her caterpillar plushie tighter. She wondered if her mom had noticed that she’d gone missing......

She wondered if she even cared that she’d gone missing, whisked away to a whole new world by a random magic box.

She wondered if her dad would go looking for her if she wasn’t back home by sunday night, or if he wouldn’t care either.

Maybe they’d both be happy that she was finally gone.

Marcy began to feel sleepy, the stress and sadness and processing just what had happened to her getting the better of her. She took her bookbag off her back and laid down,putting her head on it and hugging her caterpillar close, letting her heavy eyelids close.

Marcy had just started to fall asleep when she suddenly heard footsteps, along with the clinking of metal, in the distance.

She slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes.

Was someone there?

Her question was soon answered as a figure appeared in front of her.

The figure looked human......but the face of the being said otherwise.

The figure had the head of a snake-like like creature, with blush pink scales and short, pale hair, along with a slim body covered head to toe in armor, like the knights who killed dragons in the stories Marcy’s mom used to read to her before bed, although now it seemed as though the dragon WAS the knight.

Marcy froze, hoping that the thing didn’t see her.

The creature...Knight...dragon-knight...whatever it was....glanced at her, it’s dull yellow eyes widening as it saw the strange foreign creature.
Marcy froze, slowly reaching for her bookbag to slide it onto her shoulders, the creature still looking at her.

Slowly, Marcy stood up, holding her caterpillar to her chest, feeling her heart beating faster and faster against the walls of her chest.

She began to slowly walk backwards,eyes still on the creature.

As she turned and began running, she heard the sound of metal clinking behind her.
Marcy started running at full speed,not daring to look behind her as she bolted through the marshy forest.

However, her clumsiness and obliviousness to her surroundings soon proved to be her downfall. Her foot hit a tree root, and she was soon lying on the muddy ground, groaning.

She felt something behind her,and before she could turn to look, she was grabbed by the hood of her sweatshirt, screaming in pure fear.

She looked up, eyes wide and wet with tears of fear as the dragon-knight thing looked down at her,eyes full of curiosity and other things Marcy couldn’t quite read.

Marcy turned away, shivering.

Was it going to eat her?

Kill her?!?

”What ARE you?” The dragon-knight asked.

Marcy yelped, surprised that the creature spoke the same language as her.

She didn’t have time to respond, as she was held up by the hood of her hoodie, the creature walking back towards where it had come.

Marcy was shivering and shaking, scared beyond belief. She closed her eyes,squeezing her caterpillar close.

Maybe she was just dreaming? That had to be it......any moment now she’d wake up in the resale shop, amongst the heaps of junk.

She kept her eyes closed for a good long while, hearing the creature breathing, the sound of moving armor and twigs being snapped underfoot.

She then felt another presence with her, and opened her eyes.

She saw what had to be the largest snail in the entire world-it was the size of a trailer, maybe a little bigger-with shimmery aqua skin and a brindled shell, with what looked like a saddle on its shell.

Before Marcy could register what was happening, she was hoisted up and tossed into the saddle. She let out a small “Ooof!” As she landed on the hard wooden seat, then looked up to see the creature that had captured her sitting next to her, grabbing the snail’s reins and whipping them, the snail beginning to move surprisingly quickly.

Marcy was frozen in place. All of this felt too surreal-her little mind just couldn’t register it all, especially not so fast.

She could feel herself shutting down, her vision fading as she passed out in the saddle.

The creature beside her yelped, wondering if her strange new finding had suddenly died.She grabbed Marcy, holding her up.

She could see Marcy’s chest slowly rising and falling, so she was still alive and breathing.Perhaps it was a stress response?

She sighed, letting Marcy sleep next to her. Once they got back to Newtopia, she’d present her strange new finding to King Andrias….she was sure he’d be very intrigued indeed.

____________________________________________________________________________________

After a while, Marcy woke up, blinking slowly.

Was it all just a dream? A terrible, overly realistic dream?

She sat up, hearing collective gasps and exclamations.

Her eyes shot open, and she looked around at her surroundings.

She was currently in the middle of a huge,wide room, with huge stained glass windows that bathed the cold, hard marble floors in colored light.

A crowd of creatures, all similar to the one that had captured her, surrounded her, looking at her with wide eyes, their mouths agape, revealing brightly colored tongues and mouths.

Marcy sat up, hugging her caterpillar plush to her chest again, breathing fast as she looked at the rows of eyes staring at her with shock and wonder. She looked away, shaking violently.

Looking people in the eyes and being the center of everyone's attention were both things that made Marcy unbelievably uncomfortable, and this discomfort, accompanied by the fear and stress she was already going through, was sending her into a full blown panic.

She curled up in on herself, face in her knees, her caterpillar plushie crushed between her stomach,chest and legs.

”King Andrias Leviathan, ruling sovereign of all of Amphibia, may I present to you this strange foreign creature that I found while patrolling the forest! I am unsure if it has anything to do with the toads, but it doesn’t seem to pose an outward threat...” A loud female voice called, the vast room amplifying it and making it ring in Marcy’s ears.

Marcy then heard footsteps- large,resounding footsteps that made the ground shake a little.

Marcy felt herself go ice cold with pure terror. What kind of enormous monster was approaching her?

She felt a huge presence above her, and felt the chill of a shadow cover her.

”My my my, what a funny looking creature!” A male voice,loud as a lion’s roar, said as Marcy shook violently.

There was a huge monster right above her,waiting to do something to her, she knew it.She just knew it.

Marcy whimpered, eyes filling with tears.She slowly and shakily turned her head,eyes wide and leaking tears.

In front of her stood an absolute goliath of a creature- A big,blue,bearded serpent like creature, decked in armor and royal robes, an ivory crown upon his head.

Marcy’s mouth was half open in a silent scream. She was terrified,shaking and whimpering.

The creature cocked its head to the side, curious and clearly intrigued.

”Oh dear, they seem rather scared........were they like this when you found them, General Yunan?”

“Yes, I’m guessing it’s in shock from being in our terrain, they aren’t from around here, obviously.”

”Any idea what they are? Any idea where they came from?”

“No sir.....but we can always hand them over to the royal guard for interrogation, maybe the royal scientists for testing?”

Marcy let out a small yelp.She didn’t want to be tested on. Testing most likely meant getting poked and prodded with needles and all those kinds of things that you saw in science fiction movies.

“Oh, I don’t think that’ll be necessary.......” The big blue monster looked at her closer, frowning a little.

”Dear oh dear.......Lady Olivia, will you please escort our guests out? I fear they may be distressing the poor creature further.”

“Certainly,Your highness. Everyone out! The King Thanks you for your audience...”. \

A female creature, who looked somewhat like a princess, based on her fancy looking dress and the dignified, regal was in which she carried herself, began ushering out the other creatures, closing the door behind her as they exited the room.

”General Yunan, Amphibia thanks you for your discovery.You May now leave.”

“Yes Your Highness!” The General said, giving the king salute before leaving the room.

The colossal king sighed, looking down at Marcy.

”There now, there’s no need to be afraid of me.” He said calmly, smiling down at the tiny, terrified creature. He sat down, eyeing her with curiosity.

”Do you speak my language?” He asked.

Marcy opened her mouth, but no words could come out no matter how hard she tried to speak. She slowly nodded her head.

”Excellent!” The King said, a bit louder than intended.

”Now,What is your name, little one?”

Marcy tried to speak, somewhat less afraid of the giant stranger.

”M-M......M......Marcy...W-Wu.......”

”Marcy Wu,Eh? Well, I am King Andrias Leviathan of Amphibia. Welcome!”

He slowly reached down, holding his hand out,palm up. Marcy slowly reached out with a trembling hand,placing her hand on the pad of his middle finger.

King Andrias chuckled, she was such a small creature- not as minuscule as a tadpole or frog egg- but just barely bigger than his little finger.

He slowly and gently shook her hand- Well, it was barely even a shake for him, for he feared that he could seriously injure her if he did anything too quick.

Marcy was shaking a bit less- the creature was huge, but he seemed friendly.

“Where are you from?” King Andrias asked.

”Uh.......Earth....?”

”Earth......What a Strange name......how did you get here?”

”Uh.......uh.....a box.....I went to a store and t-there was a box.....and then I opened it........and I was here.....”

At the mention of the box, the king’s eyes widened, filled with excitement and heightened intrigue.

“Oh, a box you say? Very interesting! What did it look like?”

Marcy thought, trying to remember the box through her anxiety and fear.

“Uhh...Black...and gold….with frogs on it...and...and a key...and gemstones…”

The king’s eyes grew wider, his smile growing wider.

“Do you have this box with you?”

“No.....”

The king’s eyes suddenly lost their excitement, but kept their intrigue.

“Hm......I see......Was there anyone else with you when you opened up the box? Is there anyone else from your world here with you??”

“N-no.....” she sniffled.

King Andrias sighed, sitting up a bit more.

”Well......Seeing as you have no way of getting home for now, and you have nowhere to stay.....You may stay here,as a guest of the castle.”

He smiled at Marcy,who looked up, wiping her eyes.

”I.....I can?”

”Of course! We will try and find a way for you to go home, but till then I’ll see to it that your needs are met.”

“Thank you…” She said, sitting up, smiling slightly.

King Andrias slowly held his hand out.

”.....Come, I’ll show you around the castle.”

Marcy hesitated, then slowly hoisted herself up into his hand, sitting down in his palm. He slowly stood up, Marcy falling onto her back from the sudden motion.

”Sorry!” King Andrias said, letting Marcy sit back up before walking slowly towards the hall that led from his main hall and throne room to the other parts of the castle.

He opened a few doors- showing her the dining hall, the royal meeting room, the kitchens, a lounge room, a bathroom, the castle library, and numerous other rooms that were in the enormous castle.

Then he went down into another great hall, it’s walls lined with paintings of richly dressed creatures such as him, likely his ancestors or predecessors. He went up a flight of stairs, holding Marcy close to his chest out of caution.

He showed her his study, and finally, the guest bedroom-where she would be sleeping while she was there.

“Feel free to make yourself feel right at home-“

He looked down, then noticed that the tiny creature had fallen asleep, clutching his beard with her right hand and holding onto her plush toy with her left hand, snoring softly, worn out from the stress of the day.

”...Oh....” He smiled, then slowly lowered his hand, placing her carefully on the bed, then walking towards the door, looking back at Marcy as she slept soundly.

Such a small, helpless creature, he thought.

”......Welcome to Amphibia, Marcy....” He said softly, walking out and closing the door.