Raised By Frogs

Two weeks had passed, and Marcy was still stuck in the strange world of Amphibia.

For two weeks, she’d stayed as a guest at Newtopia Castle, under the protection of King Andrias, who had been a very kind, understanding and gracious host to the human girl as she came to terms with her situation.

King Andrias had asked her many questions regarding the box that had transported her to Amphibia: What it had looked like, where she had found it, whether or not anyone else had been with her. Marcy had asked if he knew anything about the box, but King Andrias had said that he knew nothing of it, and was simply interested in it.

After Marcy had told King Andrias all she knew about the box and how she’d been transported from her world to Amphibia, he had sent out some Newtopian soldiers to search for the box and survey the rest of Amphibia to see if anyone had seen any more of Marcy’s kind or if any Amphibian citizens had found the box and had it in their possession.

For one and a half weeks, the soldiers had searched the land,asking every newt, salamander, axolotl, toad and frog about the box or about encountering any strange, otherworldly creatures.

After those one and a half weeks, the soldiers came back to Newtopia, with no reports of the box or of any sightings of strange creatures.

King Andrias had seemed disappointed at the news, but then had quickly composed himself, stating that things would be alright and that they’d just have to keep an eye on things in case anything did turn up.

Marcy had been quite upset at first. After King Andrias had given her the news that nothing had been found, she’d burst into tears, despairing that she would never go home.

King Andrias had tried his best to comfort the girl, stating that he was sure that the box would turn up eventually, but Marcy had been inconsolable, switching between crying her eyes out or moping silently, eventually crying herself to sleep. After that, she’d continued to fret over her situation, thinking about home, about her parents, about her life back home.

But then she remembered how things had been back home.

She remembered how distant her parents had been with her, to the point of her running away from home because neither of them had cared enough about her to make her feel wanted.

That was the whole reason for why she’d ended up in Amphibia in the first place-because they didn’t care, because they just didn’t want her.

She didn’t have any friends that would miss her back at home, no family members that would really bother to look for her.

She doubted she’d be missed- and she quickly found herself missing home less and less, and found herself beginning to truly enjoy her stay at Newtopia Castle.

King Andrias had done more than enough to accommodate the girl, giving her a big room with a huge, comfy, soft bed, having a tailor come in and make her some new clothes, and making sure that the food served at the castle was edible and tasted good to her. He also gave her somewhat free range of the castle, allowing her to go into the castle library and read some of the many books they had, walk around the gardens, and explore any unlocked rooms around the castle. He’d even started taking her out into the city, taking her to visit local shops, historical places and markets with her and showing her around the city.

However, She didn’t really like going into the city.

The hustle and bustle could overwhelm her at times-plus her clumsiness hindered her from walking anywhere without getting into an accident or causing a minor scene after a little while.

Whenever she walked out into the crowded streets, the newts, axolotls and salamanders that inhabited the city always looked at her and stared, like she was some wild animal that was wandering around town, posing a threat to anyone who came near her. Some even ran away whenever she came near.

It didn’t exactly make her feel welcome.

Still, she was grateful she’d ended up in Newtopia with King Andrias- she didn’t know what would’ve happened if General Yunan hadn’t found her and brought her to him.

She’d also become acquainted with Lady Olivia- King Andrias’s royal advisor.

Lady Olivia was rather...reserved. She didn’t show much emotion, and was always very formal about everything. But, she was polite enough to Marcy, so she seemed okay.

Marcy wasn’t sure if she could call Newtopia home…but for now it was pretty good.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Even though she’d been in Newtopia for two weeks- three weeks starting the next day- Newtopia still seemed like such a magical, strange place to Marcy as she looked down upon the pearlescent city from her bedroom window.

It was truly beautiful, a fantastical world crafted from seashells, pearls, fungi, coral, gold and marble, a place she imagined mermaids and water nymphs living in...But not her.

She felt detached from it.

She knew she didn’t belong here.

But she couldn’t help but be there.

Even if she didn’t feel at home there…she had to call it home, especially now that her chances of going to her world seemed very slim, with the box nowhere in sight and with no other known portals to her world around.

She wondered if she’d ever find a way back to her world, or if she’d be stuck in Amphibia for the rest of her life.

Would she be able to get along with the citizens of Newtopia?

Would she always be an outcast amongst the Newtopians?

What was going to happen to her now that she wasn’t going home?

Her wonderings and worries were interrupted by the sound of her bedroom door opening.

”Miss Wu, Dinner is served.” Lady Olivia announced from the doorway.

Marcy looked towards her, nodding.”Okay.”

She walked out, following Lady Olivia to the dining hall, where King Andrias sat in his seat at the head end of the long, vast table, hungrily sinking his teeth into a large roasted mantis leg.

Marcy scrunched her nose. She never could get used to the idea of eating bugs. She’d attempted to eat some cricket meat for lunch on her second day at the castle, and it had made her sick to her stomach for the rest of the day, so from then on King Andrias made sure that the royal chefs prepared insect-free food for her.

Marcy sat down in a large chair next to Andrias, looking at some of the many foods that were laid out on the table; a creamy looking soup, a sea kale salad with toasted ants and apples, a large roasted fish that had lemon and orange slices laid out along it’s crispy body, a large bowl of golden spiced rice, baby snails that had been steamed and coated in garlic butter, a huge roasted mantis that had both of it’s hind legs torn off and consumed by King Andrias already, a cucumber salad, and a bowl of long, thin spaghetti noodles with shrimp, scallops and some cream sauce.

Marcy eyed the foods in front of her, slowly reaching for the bowl of rice and spooning a small amount onto the plate in front of her. She got some of the cucumber salad as well, then began to eat, King Andrias finishing up his mantis leg and grabbing the rest of the mantis, taking a bite into the insect’s side.

“Is the food to your liking, Marcy?” King Andrias asked, his mouth full of mantis meat.

Marcy nodded, taking small bites of food, eating slowly.

King Andrias soon finished up eating the mantis, grabbing the roasted fish by it’s tail and holding it above his head, lowering it into his mouth and chomping the fish’s head off, munching happily as he placed the fish’s body back on it’s plate. He wiped his mouth off with his sleeve, then turned to Marcy.

”Marcy, since you’ve been here for a few weeks, and may be here longer, I’ve decided it’s about time I start providing a bit more for you. I gave you my word that I’d ensure that all your needs are met, and since you are a child, you need to go to school. I don’t know how different the schools are in your world compared to the schools here, but hopefully the curriculums won’t be too different and you’ll still be getting a sufficient education. I have arranged for you to start attending Newtopia Academy starting tomorrow. It’s the best private elementary school in all of Amphibia, you’ll be getting top notch education while you’re there, I assure you.”

Marcy stopped eating and looked up at him, eyes wide.

”...I’m going to school?” She asked quietly.

“Yes! You’ll be enrolled in the first grade class. Besides providing you with the basics- mathematics, literary skills, basic science, all that stuff, you’ll als be taught Newtopian history and culture, which will help you get more accustomed to our ways. Plus you can get acquainted with your fellow students, maybe even make a few friends! Wouldn’t that be nice?” King Andrias said, smiling.

Marcy gulped. Socializing and making friends were both things she wasn’t very good at.

At all.

Even from a very young age, Marcy was always alone.

She couldn’t quite communicate with others, and things like starting conversations, looking people in the eye and listening to prolonged conversations were all very difficult for her.

Whenever she tried talking about her own interests, she tended to go on and on about them, so the person she was talking to either walked away or would tell her to stop talking or shut up.

Sometimes when she got excited, she’d unintentionally flap her hands. She didn’t really realize she was doing it, but others would and would tell her to stop or back away from her like they were suddenly afraid of her.

For as much as she didn’t want to go back to school and be surrounded by people- or rather amphibians- who would likely just act the same way as the people back home, she also didn’t want to seem ungrateful to King Andrias by telling him she didn’t want to go to the school. He’d done so much for her, and he was only thinking of what would be best for her.

”Yeah...I guess it’d be nice...” Marcy said softly.

”Splendid! I’m sure you’ll have lots of fun at school, it’ll be much better than being stuck inside the castle all day long without anyone your age to interact with. The school has already sent you a uniform, and I’ll have a chauffeur drop you off. Your classes start at 8:30 A.M. ” King Andrias said, gently picking up a baby snail between his fingers, tossing it into his mouth and chomping it, the shell crunching loudly between his teeth.

Marcy sighed, picking at the rest of her food.

She'd give the school a shot, for King Andrias.

Who knows, maybe she’d get along better with newts better than she did human kids back home.

She could only hope...

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Marcy ran through the halls of Newtopia Castle as fast as she could, tears and blood flying off her face as she struggled to breathe, her scraped knees stinging as if they’d had bee venom poured onto them.

The human girl’s first day of school had NOT gone well.

Not at all.

Not in the least.

The day had started out okay- waking up, getting dressed in the school uniform she’d been sent, eating breakfast and getting a packed lunch from the royal chef, then being taken outside to board a crab-drawn royal carriage, getting into the carriage and being taken into town, eventually coming upon the school.

As soon as Marcy had gotten out of the carriage, she’d tripped on her own shoelaces and had bruised her left elbow- which wasn’t too much of a surprise, considering her clumsiness often led to her falling and getting a few bruises.

Once she’d gotten herself back up, she’d walked into the school and looked around until she’d found the first grade classroom, going inside.

As soon as she entered the room, every newt and salamander child in the room had turned to look at her, their eyes collectively widening.

Marcy had immediately wanted to run away, but then remembered that King Andrias had wanted her to give school a shot.

She’d breathed in, then had gone over to the nearest empty desk, sitting down and trying to ignore her classmates all gawking at her.

After a few minutes, the teacher had walked in, staring at Marcy as soon as she’d seen her, only adding to Marcy’s discomfort.

The teacher had then started class, her eyes wandering from the blackboard to Marcy, Marcy just keeping her head down and writing notes in her notebook, trying her best to ignore all the eyes that were on her.

Then, after about 45 minutes, the bell had rang, the newt and salamander children all running out, Marcy following slowly behind them.

They all went outside to the back of the school, where a playground with swings, a slide, a jungle gym, monkey bars and a rock climbing wall stood, the ground covered in brightly colored rocks. Marcy was still feeling a bit apprehensive, but then she caught sight of an empty seat on the swing set and got a bit excited.

She loved going on the swingsets at school and the park back at home, and maybe if she got to play on the swing for a bit she’d feel less uncomfortable and could blend in a bit more with the newt and salamander children playing around her.

Marcy started running towards the swings, then was brought to a sudden halt as a rather tall salamander boy got in front of her, glaring at the slightly smaller creature as she stopped in her tracks and looked up at him.

”You don’t belong here. Get out.” The salamander boy growled.

Marcy froze.

She didn’t know how to respond.

She’d always been awful at communicating, and right now, as other newt kids began to crowd around her, she couldn’t help but feel absolutely terrified of the hostile salamander in front of her.

”Uh.......uh...”

”Can’t you talk, thing?!?” The salamander boy yelled.

”What are you anyway? You’re all weird and rubbery!” A newt kid said, reaching out and pinching Marcy’s left arm rather hard, Marcy yelping in pain and pulling away

”OW! That hurt me!” She yelled, tears welling up in her eyes.

Some of the surrounding amphibian kids let out a few “Ooohs” while others giggled.

”Where’s your tail?” A salamander kid asked, reaching out and lifting Marcy’s skirt, Marcy turning and smacking his hand away.

The kid jumped back, rubbing his hand.

”Eeeww! It touched me!” He yelled.

Marcy flinched, moving back, only for another kid to shove her back, then another kid shoved her, then another kid, and soon Marcy was on the ground, being poked, prodded, her hair pulled at, a few of the more violent kids started kicking, scratching, shoving and hitting her.

After a few minutes, the end of period bell rang, and the students all started running back into the school......except Marcy.

Marcy just laid there on the ground, bruised, bloodied, shivering and crying.

After a few minutes, she slowly got up, then started running, practically flying out of the schoolyard and into the busy streets of Newtopia, bumping into numerous civilians, who yelled at her or glared at her as she ran through the streets, her tears blurring her vision and practically blinding her.

She fell a few times, scraping both her knees as well as her right elbow, the added physical pain only making her cry harder, leading to her stopping for a bit just so she could breathe and wipe some of the tears from her eyes so she could see where she was going.

After a few minutes, she started running again, making it to the palace, where she was now still running, sore and scared.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After running through the halls for a bit, Marcy was soon stopped as she suddenly bumped into someone, sending her to the ground, falling flat on her back. She shook and sobbed even more as the person she’d bumped into came closer and looked down at her.

”What in the name of Frog?!? Child, you’re supposed to be in school, what in the world happened to you??You’re all cut up and filthy!”

Marcy looked up, the blurred figure of Lady Olivia standing before her, her hands on her hips.

Marcy could only choke out a sob in response to Lady Olivia, shaking as the royal advisor went over to a nearby room, calling over two servants who had been cleaning the room and then pointing at Marcy.

”Run her a bath, make it hot, and fetch some clean clothes.” She commanded.

She turned to Marcy, shaking her head.

”Oh, if King Andrias saw you now, saw the state of you! I’ll certainly be contacting the school about this...” she said, both concerned and aggravated.

Marcy could barely stand, shaking as one of the servants picked her up and carried her into the bathroom that was by her room, the second servant following.

The servant that had been carrying Marcy sat her down on the edge of the bath, pulling her school uniform up over her head and getting her undressed as the second servant ran the bath, filling it with hot water and adding some soap, thick layer of bubbles forming on top of the water as it rose higher and higher in the bath.

Once Marcy was completely undressed, the servant running the bath shut the water off, Marcy sniffling and shaking as she slowly got into the bath, sitting down, the water up to her neck and the mass of bubbles reaching up to her nose.

The servant who had undressed Marcy gathered up her clothes and walked out as the other servant grabbed a bottle of shampoo from a shelf above the bathtub, squirting some shampoo onto his hands and rubbing them together before scrubbing Marcy’s hair, making sure her hair had been well-lathered and free of any debris before scooping up some water from the bath and rinsing her hair out. He then grabbed a sponge and began washing her back, then her shoulders, then her arms.

The other servant came back with a first aid kit, waiting patiently for the other servant to finish washing Marcy up and help her out of the bath, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her. The other servant knelt down, opening up the first aid kit and pulling out a small bottle of clear fluid and a cotton ball. She used the cotton ball to soak up some of the liquid, then dabbed at the scrapes on Marcy’s knees, Marcy wincing as she felt the fluid sting the raw skin of her knees.

Once her knees had been cleaned and bandaged, the servant cleaned up the other cuts and scratches she had on her arms, neck, legs and face, making sure that each cut was cleaned, disinfected and covered by a bandage before going back out, returning with some new clothes for Marcy to put on.

Marcy got dressed, then headed to her room, too upset and shaken to really want to do much else but lie in bed.

As soon as she got to her room, she shut the door and immediately got into bed, grabbing her caterpillar plushie and hugging it tightly, burying her face in it’s soft fabric and squeezing it till the stuffing was almost busting out of it.

She was too exhausted to cry or really do anything, so she just held onto her stuffed toy, breathing steadily, silently letting tears flow out of her eyes.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

About a half an hour later, as Marcy lay in bed, silently crying into her caterpillar plush, she heard large, heavy footsteps coming down the hall towards her room, then heard her bedroom door creak open a bit more.

Then she heard a loud thud and felt the ground shake slightly. She looked up and saw King Andrias sitting next to her bed,smiling sympathetically.

She immediately jumped up, hugging onto his side as he gently patted her back, sighing.

”I heard that your first day at school was less than pleasant...” The colossal king said softly.

Marcy nodded, hugging him tighter.

”Hey there, we all have bad days, tomorrow will be much, much better! I promise!” King Andrias said, gently patting Marcy’s head with his finger.

Marcy looked up, eyes still leaking tears.

”I DON'T WANNA GO BACK THERE!!” She cried,gripping him tighter.

”You mean the school? Now Marcy, you need to go to school to get a proper education.” King Andrias said, sounding a bit stern.

“But not there please!!” Marcy begged, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

“Well…maybe we can put you in another school…Newtopia Academy is the best private school here…but then there’s also The Newtopia Public School...I suppose that could work…Think you could try going there tomorrow?”

Marcy whined. ”They’ll all just hurt me again…”

’”Oh come now Marcy, the others just need to get used to seeing you! Then once they get used to seeing you, then they will feel less fearful and inclined to attack you! That’s why I want you to attend school. Besides getting an education, it’ll help you get acquainted with our youth, who will then tell their parents that you are not so bad, and then they’ll spread the word, and before you know it you wont be considered an outsider anymore!”

King Andrias gently placed a finger under Marcy’s chin, gingerly raising her head so she was looking him in the eye.

”Just give this a chance. I want you to be able to fit in here, and going to school will give you the opportunity to get acquainted with members of the public. Please...give this a chance.”

Marcy looked away from him, sighing. He seemed to genuinely want this for her, to want her to succeed in fitting in and becoming less of an outsider amongst the citizens of Newtopia. She felt bad, wondering if he was disappointed that her first day had gone badly after he’d gone through the trouble of enrolling her in the school and hoping that she’d succeed in making friends and integrating into Newtopian society.

She didn’t want to disappoint King Andrias. He’d done so much for her and the least she could do was try and succeed in going to school and making a few friends. Besides, going to school and attempting to make friends wasn’t any kind of hardship or dangerous feat, she should be perfectly able to do those things without any issues.

”...Okay King Andrias...” She said quietly, letting go of him.

“Excellent. I’ll call the Newtopia Public School and get you enrolled. Cheer up now! Why, when I was a young newt I got picked on all the time, and I still managed to make some friends and succeed in the academic world...”

At least you were another newt, Marcy thought, looking down as she hugged her aching knees to her chest.

She just hoped things would be better at the next school.

_______________________________________________________________________

The next day, Marcy’s morning went the same as it has the day before.

Getting up, getting dressed, getting breakfast and a packed lunch, and then boarding the royal carriage and being taken to the Newtopia Public School.

As soon as she’d gotten out of the carriage, she’d started shaking uncontrollably, memories of the disastrous previous day coming back to her as she looked up at the school. She wanted to turn back and get right back into the carriage, but then remembered that she’d told King Andrias that she’d give school another chance, and her fear of disappointing him soon grew stronger than her fear of school.

She breathed in, then walked up to the school, going into the school and finding her classroom.

As soon as she walked in, every student in the room turned to look at her.

Once again, Marcy was met with rows of wide, shocked, curious, fearful eyes, and she was overcome with immense dread.

It was happening again.

They were all staring at her, just like the others had, and she felt certain that, just like the other kids, they were going to hurt her too.

Maybe they’d even hurt her worse than the other kids had.

She couldn’t do it.

She couldn’t go through it all again.

Marcy had turned and ran, as fast as she could, once again running through the streets of Newtopia and getting a few new bruises and scrapes from bumping into things and tripping and falling to the ground, eventually finding her way back to the castle and running straight to her room, slamming the door shut and hiding under the safety of her bedsheets, breaking down into tears.

She knew King Andrias was going to be disappointed, maybe even angry with her, but she just couldn’t do it.

________________________________________________________________________________________

After a little while, she’d heard King Andrias’s heavy footsteps coming down the hall, then heard her bedroom door open. She hid her face in her pillow, refusing to look up at him as he sat beside her bed.

“...I...I couldn’t...do it…I’m sorry…” She said softly, sniffling and burying her face further into her pillow.

“...It’s alright, Marcy. I see that you...do not do well with an in-person school setting.” King Andrias said softly. He let out a sigh, resting his head in his hand, thinking about what else could be done.

”...I suppose I could ask Lady Olivia to tutor you...she knows more about Newtopia and it’s history than even I do, and I’m sure she’ll make a fine teacher. We’ll need to find some other way to get the citizens used to you…but for now, I think we’ll just worry about you getting your education.”

He reached over to her, opening his hand, Marcy looking up. Slowly, she climbed into his hand, sitting in his palm.

He slowly brought her closer to his face, looking her in the eyes.

”Listen to me...things will be alright...just keep your head up, listen to Lady Olivia, and then we’ll figure out getting you acquainted with the citizens of Newtopia later...sound reasonable?”

Marcy nodded, leaning back against his fingers a bit.

He smiled, then set her down on her bed.

”I have some business to attend to, you rest up, I’ll have Lady Olivia come and get you when it’s time for lunch.” King Andrias said.

“Okay.” Marcy said softly, getting back under her covers and King Andrias walked out.

Hopefully things would get better…

Hopefully...