Loyalty Among Worlds (Amphibia AU)

Ever wonder what it would feel like to be one of the best? To be the shining cog of the clock, and keep time in check? To be the voice that speaks out among the rest? To one ordinary boy, he dreams of it everyday.

Our story begins with the young kid sleeping sideways in his bedroom. His room consists of drawings on his walls, a pile of dirty laundry in one corner next to his closet, and a personal computer next to his bed.

His name is Darrel Loyalität, a thirteen year old Caucasian male with brown messy hair. He is the only son in his family and a loving brother to two sisters. His father is a pilot, and his mother is a nurse. He goes to Saint James Middle School, a private school not far from his home.

As a teenager, he thought life would be fantastic. He could go anywhere, make great friends, find a girl, and maybe get a job. But, living life socially with others that aren't family members isn't all that's cracked up to be. He is kind, caring, but he's also shy and nervous around others.

His biggest passion is in music and video editing. He publishes his work, under an internet name 'Astrophel', and gets positive feedback. Despite kids talking about how great his videos are, he keeps his identity to himself.

But before he got into publishing videos, he had found a girlfriend. Her name is Sasha Waybright. Darrel met her in the first grade when someone was picking on him. They got along pretty well after she defended him. He thought she was cute, and he started being nice to her. As time went on, Sasha gained popularity, became head cheerleader in her first year at middle school, and got many people to adore her. However, when she gained popularity she barely had any recognition from Darrel. To keep from losing her, he did everything she asked him to do.

Eventually, aside from Sasha, he grew close with her two other friends, Marcy Wu and Anne Boonchuy. The four were inseparable, at first he thought it would be weird for a guy to be hanging with a bunch of girls. But, Sasha assured him that it'll keep him popular as long as she's popular. Darrel wasn't entirely sure about her statement, but he wanted to trust her. However, he had no idea how right he was, feeling unsure.

One day, the sun rose from the sky. Darrel's alarm went off and he got out of bed. He ate breakfast, got cleaned up, got dressed in his school uniform. He was so excited today, because Sasha's friend, Anne Boonchuy is turning thirteen today. He got his school bag, and packed his gift for Anne later in the day. "Hey Darrel, you ready for today?" his father asked. "I sure am," he replied. "Don't forget to bring your sisters to Anne's party after school," said his mother. "We'll be arriving shortly after work." Darrel nodded, "I promise, Mom." He gets on his red bike and kisses his mother goodbye. "See you later. I love you guys!" His parents wave goodbye as he makes his way to school.

He raced to school as fast as he could. He wanted to be the first to wish Anne a happy birthday. He parked his bike on the rack, locked the chain and waited in front of the school. While waiting for his friends to show up, he takes out his laptop and uploads his birthday video to Anne. "Cool! Astrophel uploaded another video!" Darrel started hearing his feedback. "It's Anne's birthday today? These effects are amazing."

After a few more minutes, Darrel packs up his laptop and sees Anne park her bike next to his. He races up to her with a smile on his face. "Anne!" Anne notices Darrel rushing to her. "Darrel!" Darrel hugs Anne out of joy. "Happy Birthday!" "Thanks, Darrel. I appreciate it."

As Darrel lets Anne go, she takes out a small packet of rice from her bag. "What kind of culinary treat do you have today?" Darrel asked. "It's a khao niew bing, a traditional Thai snack made up of rice and coconut milk. My mom made this for me," said Anne. "That's really sweet of her," said Darrel as he takes his backpack off his back and pats it, letting Anne know that he has her gift for her. "I have something special for you, after school."

As they exchanged a few laughs later on, Sasha walked up to them. "Hey guys!" "Hey Sasha," said Darrel and Anne. Sasha pats on Darrel's shoulder, making him lose a bit of his smile. "Happy Birthday Girl!" Sasha announced. The three danced in celebration, until the school bell interrupted them. "Buzzkill," said Sasha.

The three students were bored of going to school today. They really wanted to leave so we could celebrate Anne's birthday. As Darrel looks down, writing his notes, he remembers his family's advice. That if he puts his mind to whatever he wants to accomplish, he'll amount to anything. And right now, he wanted to get out of there and join Anne's birthday celebration with her family.

After going to the bathroom, he sees Anne and Sasha running through the halls. "Hey gals, what's up?" Darrel asked. "Let's get out of here Darrel," said Sasha. "We're going to celebrate Anne's birthday in style." Darrel felt a little edgy. "Skip school again? Don't you think we're cutting it close?"

Sasha shook her head. "Need I remind you we almost got in trouble on my thirteenth birthday?" Darrel asked. Sasha raised her hand, signaling Darrel to stop asking questions. "Sweetie, this is Anne's thirteenth birthday, she only gets one of those. So we're going to make it the best birthday in the history of birthdays."

Darrel was deeply concerned how far he's taking this. Not only for his sake, but for Anne's too. "Are you okay with this Anne?" "As long as I get home at six, my parents really want me to be there for my big birthday celebration," Anne replied. Darrel smiled, "Well guarantee it, Anne. Because I'll make sure you get there."

For the rest of the day, the three friends did everything. They rode shopping carts across the park. They tagged walls on business owned properties, nearly getting caught by the cops. They even made high scores in the arcade. At one point Darrel felt alive. But on the other hand, he was feeling disgusted. He skipped middle school for a third time. Nearly got caught the second time, though the first time was lucky. Today was the third day, but it was only half over. Darrel wanted to make sure Anne gets home for her birthday, but Sasha had that look that said otherwise.

Later that day, Darrel's hunch on Sasha was right. The three were enjoying beverages until Anne gets a text from her mother saying it's almost six. Anne shot up out of her seat when he realized what time it was. "Oh shoot! It's almost six, I gotta go guys!" Darrel wanted to help her, considering how he felt responsible for leaving school early. "I know a few shortcuts on how to get to your place."

He grabbed his bag and was about to leave with Anne until, "Family party, right? Lame. Let me guess, a clown with balloon animals?" Darrel turned to hear Sasha sound like she wanted Anne and him not to show up. "It's more than that, Sasha. It's celebrating her special day with people who love her," he said. But Sasha was looking at her phone, making Darrel feel more upset.

"Oh, Marcy says she found the perfect gift for you downtown, Anne." She shows a photo of a strange box. The box is ornamented with gold lining, with a frog icon on the lid. Also on the lid are four gems consisting of blue, purple, green, and red colors. "A frog music box for the frog lover. I wonder if those gems are real." Sasha, wanting to have more fun, pushes Anne and Darrel out of the store. "Let's keep this party train rolling."

Not wanting to abandon her family, Anne decided to speak up. "Sorry, dude you don't understand. I really have to go." Sasha decided to change her tone, "Oh I understand, Anne. You're a good little girl who has to go home to her mommy and daddy. Come on, hang out with your friends that love you."

Darrel tried to back Anne up on this one, considering he knows how much family means. "Sasha, if she has to go then-" However, Sasha puts her finger on Darrel's mouth shushing him. "Darrel, this is between the two of us. Just stay out of this. It has nothing to do with you." Darrel felt defenseless hearing those words. But as much as he wanted to stay on Sasha's good side, he couldn't bear to watch what she's doing to Anne. So he turned around and kept his eyes closed.

Now it was Anne's turn to try to convince Sasha. "Sasha, as much as I want to-" But, Sasha wasn't having any of it. "Anne, this isn't cute anymore. We are meeting up with Marcy right now! End. Of. Discussion." Darrel looks back to Anne with sadness. Giving in to her temptation, Anne said, "I guess it's okay if I'm a little late."

Darrel couldn't believe what's happening. Sasha is peer pressuring Anne to make her late for her birthday celebration. Darrel felt guilty for the rest of the journey downtown.

The three friends group up with Marcy, and she points inside the thrift store where the music box is located. Sasha instructed Anne to take the music box without anyone seeing her. Darrel knew for a fact that he could have done something to stop this. But as Anne walked out with the box, he started to regret not standing up to his girlfriend.

The four of them went to the park to see the box close up. Darrel was fascinated by it's look, but he remembered what his aunt always said, "Don't judge a book by its cover." When Anne opened the box, he thought, 'My aunt couldn't be more right.' The four looked down to see glowing lights, but then the lights glow brighter until there is nothing but white.