10. Ch 10 - Ethan of the Year

Hello everyone!

This is a VERY SPECIAL chapter, since it is basically a re-telling of the Amphibia episode 'Anne of the Year!' Of course, it's gonna be from Ethan's perspective, but another character we all know and love will probably make an apperance!

I hope you all like it!

Ethan of the Year

Ethan woke up early one morning, but continued to lay in his bed for a few minutes. Even though he had had his own room for a few days, he still found himself getting used to having an actual mattress again, and liked it much more than an uncomfortable bunk [even more so than a prison floor]. Eventually, knowing breakfast was starting soon, he got up and started to get ready.

There was no plumbing in this world, so they used fire to heat water before pouring it into a basin to bathe; it was a little unconventional, but a bath was better than nothing. Besides he was grateful to be clean, and felt like an actual person again. He also had real clothing again; after months of only having two outfits, he was grateful for clean clothes and armor. His old clothes had been torn and faded to almost nothing, but his backpack and worldly possessions still sat in the corner of the room, though his books were by the bed so he could read a chapter before going to sleep.

Once he was dressed, Ethan left his room and made his way through the Tower. Toads on guard duty saluted him and gave him short greetings, now giving him the same respect they gave Captain Grime. The teen simply nodded in reply, not wanting to waste time on pleasantries. The energy around the tower was one of excitement and anticipation; the buildings had finally been repaired after the heron attack, and most of the soldiers were excited for the opportunity to leave the fortress for a while and march on Wartwood.

"Shoot," the teen muttered, quickly hiding in the shadows by the door to the mess hall as he spotted Percy and Braddock. They were sitting at their usual table, having an animated conversation and laughing. Ever since Ethan had become a lieutenant, they asked if he would sit with them for every meal. He wanted to, but Captain Grime warned against it, saying that he now had a reputation to uphold. It was awkward, having to say no to them every day, so the teen decided to head upstairs and get some training in before the meeting.

Even though Ethan no longer had to participate in drills like the rest of the soldiers, he still liked to take the time to use his gymnastics equipment and work on his fighting techniques. Not sure of what to start with today, the teen simply went through ten minutes of stretches before settling on sword training. A dummy had been placed in the room, and he practiced trusts and attacks, his blows precise and, if the dummy had been alive, deadly.

"I figured you would be up here," a voice said, and the teen turned to find Captain Grime in the doorway.

"Captain Grime," he answered, nearly saluting the toad before remembering that he didn't have to do that anymore. "I'm sorry for missing breakfast, I was just-"

"It is understandable," the toad interrupted. "I myself was nervous before my first march on the Valley."

"Yeah…" It was strange; while he and Grime were not best friends, Ethan no longer hated the toad captain. Since becoming a lieutenant, the human had noticed that Captain Grime now treated him as if he were another toad. It was different from being treated like a monster, and the teen noticed that no one, Grime included, called him 'creature' or 'monster.'

"We do have a final briefing with the platoon leaders," Grime reminded him. "We're leaving before sundown, if you recall."

"I know," Ethan replied, sheathing his sword. He put on a serious expression, trying not to show how nervous he really was about what was about to happen. "Let's go now; no sense in keeping anyone waiting."

"Stop." The teen froze in the doorway, not turning back to face the toad. "Turn around." Ethan did so, unable to meet those glowing eyes that were still creepy. "You're scared."

"No," the human said quickly, too quickly.

The toad snickered. "You're still not a very good liar," Captain Grime informed him.

"Well forgive me for trying," Ethan said sarcastically. "I'm not exactly supposed to show fear, remember?" He mimicked the captain's voice. "'A good leader is strong, intelligent, and-'"

"-Never lets anyone know how you really fear," the toad finished. "Though I don't recall ever sounding so monotonous."

"I'm not very good at impressions."

"But you are right; it is not good to let those under your command know when you are afraid. It shakes their own self-confidence and makes them have little faith in their abilities."

"I'm trying my best," the human countered, a little annoyed.

"Try harder," Captain Grime said bluntly. "While most may not notice, it's clear that you're nervous about what's going to happen, even though there is no need to be."

"I'm not -"

"You are."

"Then what am I supposed to do about it, sir," Ethan snapped, glaring at the toad. "Unless you have a magic solution to become as emotionless as you do, then I'd love to hear it!"

The toad was silent for a few moments, simply staring at the human with a neutral expression. Finally, he spoke again.

"As far as I know, there is no magical solution," Grime said. "However, I am not one without emotion. I have simply spent years training myself and controlling what I allow myself to feel and not feel. This army has no place for those that are nervous and uncertain about themselves." For a moment, the teen felt a thrill of fear going through him, wondering if he was about to be demoted back to prisoner and tossed into the Pain Room.

"However," the toad continued, "here is some advice I can give you now that will help you on the path to not letting your emotions cloud your judgement." He paused, as if for dramatic effect, before speaking again. "Focus on the future, not the now."

"What," Ethan asked, confused.

"Do not focus on what is currently making you doubt yourself or what you have to do. Focus on what happens after, once your task is complete. Think, for a moment: how will you feel after you successfully lead this army and dispose of the traitor?"

"Sir -"

"Think, lieutenant," Grime interrupted sharply, frowning at him. "How will you feel?"

Ethan was silent, trying to do what the toad suggest. After tonight… let's see… They march to Wartwood before sunset, arriving after dark. They arrest the traitor Hopadiah Plantar, bring him here, and execute him at dawn. After that…

"I… I'll feel relieved," the teen said. "That it's over with."

"Okay… And," the toad captain asked, motioning for him to continue.

"I'll… feel good, I guess, for doing what I was supposed to do." He started to speak more certainly, no longer focusing on his nervousness. "I'll be proud of myself, of my soldiers, because we showed everyone that we are not weak."

"Go on."

"And I will not be afraid, because… because I will have realized that there was nothing to be afraid of," the human finished.

Captain Grime grinned, and Ethan was surprised to see that he looked… he looked almost proud of him. "Exactly," the toad said. "As long as you keep the goal in mind, you will not be afraid. When you know what you want, you can do whatever it takes to achieve it."

The teen nodded, realizing that he was no longer as nervous as he thought he would be.

"Yes, Sir," he said. "...Thank you."

"Think nothing of it; consider it part of your training." He walked towards the door. "Now come; we do not want to be late."

Before he left the room, the teen took the lantern out of the corner, the one he used to help illuminate the room. His eye caught sight of the gymnastics equipment, so similar to the ones back home, but so different, as well. Hard to believe that the last time something significant happened in his life, it was after he had left his old gym at home. It was the night he had last been on Earth, and-

"No," he told himself, closing the door around him. "I won't think about it… Focus on the future, not the past."

[][][]

Three Months Ago...

"No, I haven't seen Anne," Ethan told his mom, his phone call on speaker as he retied his shoe laces. A few of his friends said goodbye as they left the locker room, and the young teen put his gymnastics gear in his duffel bag. "Isn't she at her party?"

"Her mom called and said she hasn't heard from her all day," his mom continued. "Her party started fifteen minutes ago, and they're getting worried. They don't want to call the cops in case she's with her friends, and they wanted to know if you'd seen them."

Ethan frowned, wondering why Anne would want to miss her own birthday party… the one he had been invited to and that his mom was going to make him go to against his will. He had not talked to her in months, not since his own birthday party in June, but he knew that she would not skip out on her family. At least, not on her own.

Sasha.

"I'll look around for her," he told his mom, annoyed that he now had to go trekking around the city to look for his former friend and her awful new one. "I'll check the arcade, the smoothie shop. I'll even text Marcy."

"You still have her number?"

"Yeah. We're both in the same science study group."

"Okay." His mom hesitated. "After you find Anne, do you… want to go to her party?"

"No," Ethan said shortly, frowning at her.

"Honey, it's been nearly four months. I thought for sure that you and Anne would have made up by -"

"You thought wrong," the teen snapped. When he heard silence on the other end of the line, he sighed. "Sorry, mom. Just… I had a long day at practice."

"I understand," his mom replied, though he could tell that she was hurt. "I'll let Mrs. Boonchuy know you're looking for her. But if you can't find her, let us know so we can call the police."

"Okay. Call you if I know anything. Love you."

"Love you too honey. Bye." He hung up, waving goodbye to Coach Barley. He walked outside, sitting at the bus stop as he sent a quick text to Marcy.

Hey Marcy, it's Ethan. Have you seen Anne today? Her mom's worried and asked her mom to ask me if I've seen her. I figured you would know.

She replied as he was riding the bus towards the uptown district. Yeah. She and Sasha dipped school, and I'm with them now. We're heading to that park near the elementary school now.

Thanks. Ethan was prepared for that to be the end of their conversation, but his phone pinged with another text ten seconds later.

Surprised you still have my number, Marcy said. Seeing that Anne and I are still friends and all that. Though it's probably because of science study hall, right?

Yeah, he texted back. Why're you at a park?

Sasha's idea. I found this really cool music box at a thrift store and- Hold on, I'll send it to you. He received a photo of a golden music box covered in frogs, three gems stuck in the corner of it. It looked like a small treasure chest. Sasha dared Anne to steal it.

The teen froze, thumbs hovering over his phone. And… did she?

You know Sasha, she can be very persuasive. I'm surprised she actually did it. We're heading to the park to listen to it. Anne didn't wanna take it home; she feels guilty, I think.

"That little-" Ethan muttered, wishing Sasha Waybright had never moved here. And while she wasn't saying it, Marcy probably went along with the whole idea. Like lambs to the slaughter. He turned back to his phone. How far away are you from the park?

Not that far. ETA is about five minutes.

The young gymnast checked his watch. Given his current route, if he got off at the next stop and ran, he could make it just in time.

Okay. I'll let Anne's mom know she's safe.

Okay.

The bus stopped, and the teen immediately got off, running up the street, heading towards the elementary school. It was not that far from the middle school they all went to, and he finally reached it a few minutes later, spotting the three girls over by a bench. They all still wore their school uniforms, though Marcy had a coat on over hers. Anne held the golden music box in her hand, looking ready to open it.

"Hey," he yelled, opening the gate and quickly walking towards them. He himself was still unsure why he opted to come here, seeing that it would have been easier to call Anne's parents and get the girls in trouble. However, he could not go back, and they now saw him, surprised looks on their faces.

"Ethan," Anne asked, giving Sasha a quick, nervous glance. "What're you doing here?"

"Yeah," Sasha asked, flipping her blonde hair back, glaring at him. "Last time I checked, you weren't invited."

"Marcy told me where you were," he replied, dropping his gym bag by his side, to show that he wasn't going anywhere soon.

"You WHAT," Sasha said, rounding on the third friend. "You're still talking to him?"

"Of course not," Marcy said quickly. "He texted me. Anne's mom called his mom to ask him look for Anne. She's worried sick that she's not at her party."

"She is," Anne asked, looking worried and guilty.

"Of course she's worried," Ethan informed her, crossing his arms. "She goes through all the trouble to plan a nice party for you and you go gallivanting off with your so-called friends, stealing from a thrift shop!" Anne's face flushed with embarrassment, and she looked down at the music box with a guilty expression.

"Don't start this again," Sasha ordered him, crossing her own arms and glaring at him. "I'm a great friend! Anne wanted to come with me, for your information, so why don't you just go home and practice some back flips or something?"

"You probably peer pressured her into going with you," he countered, trying to ignore her comments, but Sasha was good at getting under someone's skin. "You have a way with words, making people feel small and worthless just to get what you want! You weren't brave enough to take it yourself, so you made her do it so you wouldn't get into trouble!"

"Oh no, you caught me," the blonde girl said sarcastically, rolling her eyes and taking out her phone. "And for someone that hate's Anne, you sure are quick to come to her rescue, playing the typical male hero!"

"I was not- I don't hate Anne," he retorted. "Just because we're not friends anymore doesn't me I don't like her!"

"And why aren't you friends anymore," Sasha asked innocently, giving him a cruel smile.

His face reddened, and his hands balled into fists. "It's because of you, you cruel, self-centered little -"

He called her a name he should npt have, grabbing the phone from her hand and chucking it across the playground. It landed on the other side some forty feet away, disappearing into some bushes by the fence. The three girls gaped at him, but Sasha was the first to move, slapping him hard across the face.

"You're gonna pay for a new phone if that one's broken, jerk," she snapped, stalking off across the playground to grab her phone. Ethan, realizing what he had done, immediately flushed with embarrassment, face stinging from the slap. He turned to Anne and Marcy, who were both giving him angry and disgusted looks.

"I… I dunno why I just..." he started to say, swallowing the lump in his throat, withering under their gazes, he was so embarrassed and ashamed. "I'm so sorr-"

"Don't apologize to us," Anne said, standing up and walking over to him. She looked furious, so unlike her usually cheery self. "You're gonna apologize to Sasha."

"WHAT?! You've gotta be joking!"

"I'm not!"

"She started it," he protested, pointing at the girl, who had vanished into the bushes to look for your phone. "She always starts it! She's nothing but a bully, and you two are defending her?! Yes, I was wrong for what I said; there's no excusing it, and I'm sorry for saying it. I'm just amazed that you two think she's really your friend after all the crap she's pulled!"

"She's our friend," Marcy argued, standing up to join her friend. "And while what she said was wrong, that gave you no excuse to call her that!"

"Yeah, some friend she is, convincing you to steal some stupid music box and let your family think you've been kidnapped on your birthday!" He took the box from Anne, looking under it to see the price tag. It was surprisingly heavy, as if it held a whole world inside it. "What was the plan after this? Keep the music box? Return it to the thrift store when no one was looking?" He looked at Anne. "You used to do the right thing all the time; what happened to you?"

"What happened to you," Anne retorted, jabbing a finger at his chest. "Ever since this summer you've become some moody loner that snaps at anyone who annoys you! And if you're still holding a grudge about your birthday party-"

"No," he interrupted, glaring at her, upset that she would dare bring it up when she… He felt the box crack, and looked down to see that he had gripped the box so hard, one of the stones split in half, making four stones.

"I'm sorry I missed it," Anne continued before he could focus on it. "But Sasha asked if I wanted to go to the beach with her-"

"You could've said no! We'd been friends for years, and on the one day friends have the most fun together, you left! You ruined our friendship so don't go blaming me!"

Ethan turned away, wanting to break the stupid music box but knowing that the thrift store owners would probably frown on that. Sasha had found her phone, and started walking back towards them.

"I... I don't even know why I came here, or why I bothered caring about your safety." He turned back to Anne and Marcy. "I should've call the police and you mom and told them what you did the minute I knew!" He looked at the music box, lifting the lid. "And all for some stupid piece of crap that probably doesn't even-"

A bright flash of multi-colored light flew from the box when he opened it, enveloping the three teenagers. They shielded their eyes, and then -

[][][]

"Good job, Gertrude," Ethan said, patting the spider on the head as it came to a stop, finally resting after their long journey. Her mandibles clicked together, and she rubbed one of her legs against his arm as he turned back to look at the army.

Only a few spiders had come with them, taking carts of supplies and food for the long trip. Everyone else had walked, the moon now high in the sky. It was probably midnight, meaning they had been traveling for hours, but the teen was not tired. If anything, he had never felt more awake than he ever had before.

They were about one mile outside of the town of Wartwood, currently standing in a field that was probably used for planting. According to Captain Grime, this part of Amphibia was where a lot of agricultural towns were, providing food for the majority of the land. The town itself was small, with tiny homes made of wood, and distant torches lighting the streets. It appeared that most of the townsfolk were together in the town square, and some distant music reached Ethan's ears.

"Some sort of pathetic festival, no doubt," Grime said, standing next to him as he surveyed the town with a look of disdain. "And they have no army or way of stopping us."

"Agreed," Ethan said, feeling a lot more confident than he was earlier. "So what do we do?"

"What we said we would do. You go in first, announce to them why we're here and ask them to surrender Hopadiah to us. Your terrifying appearance will help drive fear into them, and once they see the army -"

"I understand." He looked at the town, taking a deep breath before letting it out. "I will not fear…"

He walked across the ground, heading for the village. It was cold, so he pulled up his cloak hood as he approached the town. He was no longer the nervous and worried teen that he was that morning, or before that. He was no longer Ethan Day, keeping to himself and geeking out over Sci-Fi movies when he was not at gymnastics. Now, he was Lieutenant Day; second-in-command of the Toad Army, and soon to be known around the Valley.

"Greetings, citizens of Wartwood," Ethan said to himself, walking over a small bridge as he approached the town. He figured he should make sure his first words to the frogs were good, since first impressions were important [according to Captain Grime, he needed to command respect while striking fear in their hearts]. "My name is-"

"Ethan?"

The teen froze, and it was as if all of time froze with him. That voice… he knew that voice. But that was impossible… He looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from.

Nearby, in the shadows of one of the buildings was a small picnic table. Someone who had been sitting there was slowly standing up, walking towards him. First, he saw a single yellow shoe step into the light, followed by the other foot. A St. James Middle School shirt appeared, along with a crazy afro of hair with some leaves and twigs in it. Ethan gasped, slowly lowering his cloak hood as he stared at the girl, who stared back with shock as her eyes started to tear up.

"... Anne," Ethan whispered.

So we got to see a flashback to how Ethan and the girls ended up in Amphibia, plus the reason why Anne and Ethan are no longer friends. I hope to add more details to that story in a future chapter.

Also, did you notice Grime's still grooming Ethan, telling him to focus on the future instead of the present? Usually dwelling on the future is not healthy, so telling the teen to do the opposite is clearly evil.

Anyway, the next chapter should be interesting, seeing that it will cover the Season One finale of Amphibia! Feel free to follow and/or favorite the story, and please leave a review!

-aggiefrogger