17. S1: Battle of the Mayors

I'm not dead. I have a job now and I make delicious bread for weary travellers in the night. No, I'm not joking about that. Also, this took me 4 days to write. Never ask for when the next chapter is, ever again. Review please, thank you for reading and peace out :P

Somewhere in the middle of Wartwood, stood the ever-grand Town Hollow where all the legislative responsibilities of the town took place. Compared to other places, it might be the most important building in town. And like all town hollows, the mayor could be found within, performing his vital duties to the folks he was elected by.

The said mayor of Wartwood was known simply as Mayor Toadstool, a money-grubbing sleazy fellow which was common in his occupation.

"A pleasure to see you again, my love. I have to say, you're looking plumper than ever!" Mayor Toadstool greeted with a blush.

As of the moment, he was in his office, all alone. The lights were turned off and the curtains closed, leaving the room in the dark. The only source of illumination was two candles lit on a table for two where in-between stood a single red rose. Even for the unassumed, it was obvious that this setting was particularly romantic.

Surrounding the table were two chairs: one for Mayor Toadstool, the big-bodied greedy politician, and the other for what seemed to be a large bag of money.

"Hehe, don't take it the wrong way, though." Toadstool giggled, caressing the burlap sack. "I like 'em on the heavy side if you know what I mean."

The money bag said nothing.

"Sir, I have urgent news!"

"WAAAH!" Toadstool screamed, falling down from his chair as an opened door surprised him.

The one opening the door was Toady, a tiny adult frog acting as the mayor's assistant and doormat. Unlike other frogs, he was exceptionally tiny, even smaller than a child. Some say he suffered from a disease that stunted his growth but since medicine wasn't highly developed in Amphibia, the most accepted rumour was that he fell in a well and became immortal.

It was ridiculous but who could prove otherwise?

Getting back up, he coughed in his hand, embarrassed. "A-hem! Uh... Toady! What did I tell you about barging into my office without a call?! I was preoccupied."

"Oh, my apologies, sir! But..." Toady pulled out a sealed envelope. "Mail just dropped in. It's from Toad Tower."

Toadstool gasped. "T-T-Toad Tower?!" Toadstool clapped his hands, causing the mushroom lights to magically glow and brightening the room. He then placed a finger on his date. "Hold that figure of yours, honey. I'll be right back."

Again, the money bag said nothing, only slumping slightly.

"Give me that! Now let's see here..." Toadstool snatched the envelope and putting on his reading glasses, he opened and began reading, mumbling as he went on. "Hm... THEY'RE DEMANDING A TAX INCREASE?!"

"Oh, this is horrible, Toady! The mayoral election is just around the corner. How can I afford to campaign for my re-election if my embezzled— I mean, responsibly-distributed funds are used to pay for some crummy broken-down castle?!" Toadstool complained.

Toady smiled positively. "Well, sir, I have full confidence that even with a smaller campaign, you'd win the election for sure!" He praised, slapping his knee.

Toadstool, however, groaned miserably. "But I don't like small campaigns! I'm Mayor Toadstool, beloved mayor of Wartwood! If I don't look good, then I'm just Mayor Toadstool, boring mayor of Wartwood!"

Toady began scratching his chin. Despite the way Toadstool treated him, Toady unironically enjoyed his job as his personal assistant. Thus, he can't stand seeing the chubby toad look sad. There has to be a way to get the funds necessary to pay the taxes.

"What if…" Toady began. "We make a scapegoat!"

Toadstool stopped crying and turned to him. "Scapegoat?"

"Yeah! You know, sir, blame something on something else so that you don't get blamed."

Toadstool thought it through, scratching his own chin with a hum. "Hm… That could work. But it has to be big and bold or else no one's going to fall for it." He then snapped his fingers, an idea crossing his mind at that very moment. "That's it! The Plantar monster! We can shove the blame to her about the increased taxes."

Toady gasped, followed by claps full of enthusiasm. "Oh, what a great idea, sir!"

"Hehe, that's why I'm the mayor. Now, pull out a parchment. We gotta make ourselves a draft." Toadstool ordered.

And for the rest of the night, the two formulated their plan. It wasn't that particularly great of a plan and most of the time was spent dilly-dallying about but the effort was there.

Meanwhile, the day after, the Plantars were returning from their brief trip to a library of sorts. After revealing the music box to the rest of the Plantars, Sasha began discussing with Hop Pop about its origins. While he claimed he had no idea what the box was for, he stated that there might be a book that had information about it.

Thus, a few days later, the 5 Plantars — Bessie included — went off to the Historic Wartwood Town Archives, the largest library in Frog Valley. It was a day's trip so they decided to visit other places on the way. For example, the ice wall currently separating Frog Valley and everywhere else, and an isolated inn with the nicest toad family ever.

At least, that's what Sprig thought. When he went to sleep, he woke up hours later to the smell of smoke and riding on Bessie's backseat. He didn't know what happened but both Sasha and Polly looked incredibly traumatized and the inn was on fire behind them.

He decided not to ask.

"Well, that was a waste of time. Well, at least I learned how to make a lasso." Sasha the human hummed, showing the skilfully knotted lasso in her hands. "Also, the place was kinda advanced for having a sun-powered door."

Hop Pop, the old frog of the Plantars, nodded. "The Historic Wartwood Town Archives is one of the oldest monuments in Frog Valley, even older than Wartwood! Once owned by a certain Mycroft Newtback, he was a collector of many books!"

"Oh, what happened to him?"

"He died." Hop Pop replied with a shrug. "Had his house turned into the library we know today. Though, we could never figure out how the timer worked so we just left it there."

That's fair. Never touch something you don't understand. Worst case scenario would be breaking it and destroying everything. The exception was when you have a lot of them. Then, just break as much as you'd like.

"Look, there's Wartwood!" Sprig exclaimed, pointing at the town on the horizon. Out of all the town's he lived in — which was just one — Wartwood was his favourite. "Since we're here, why not visit the market? The food closet's been kinda empty."

Hearing that, Sasha recoiled and sharply inhaled. "Yeah, well..."

It didn't need to be said what she meant.

"Oh right, lifetime ban... It's fine! We can just visit the market some other time. Isn't that right, team?" Sprig asked the rest of the family.

Sasha though shook her head. "It's okay, Sprig. You should just buy it right now. I'll just wait with Bessie."

As they reach the town's border, what greeted them was not a common sight. A crowd of townies gathered around, watching Mayor Toadstool stand next to a slotted box.

"What is going on with this crowd?" Hop Pop loudly wondered. Getting off for a closer look, he noticed One-Eyed Wally also watching. Hop Pop then asked. "Wally, what's happening?"

"It's the sign-ups for the mayoral elections! Do you live under a rock or something? Even I know that and I actually do live under a rock!" Wally explained.

"Elections?"

The slotted box was no ordinary box. It was a special box where folks could place their nominations for the next mayor of Wartwood, the highest-ranking official in town. All anyone needed to do was slip a name with their signatures on it.

Technically, you can nominate anyone. There was even a time where a pollywog was nominated as a joke. It was against a 6-term mayor too with a strong and vocal supporting party and had very popular policies.

Suffice to say, the baby won. It was an awkward 5 years.

Placing his nomination into the box, Mayor Toadstool lifted both hands with peace signs. "Vote Mayor Toadstool! If re-elected, I'll make sure your well-paid tax money be used for the reconstruction of our beautiful town. Heck, I'll even put up a statue to remind us of the tragedy that struck us outta nowhere and the devilish monster that ruined our town."

Mayor Toadstool then opened up a scroll. Drawn on it was a statue of himself in gold, his shirt off, revealing his chiselled, and wielding a mighty sword. Below his majestic figure lied the corpse of the evil Plantar monster, her rotund sliced-off blonde head underneath his boot.

The eyes were crossed out though and her tongue sticking out. You know, so it's kid-friendly.

Sasha cringed at the imagery.

Noticing that, Hop Pop frowned. Did Toadstool really think he could just go around, insulting a Plantar and get away with it? No sir-ee! Not only that but Hop Pop never really liked Toadstool, especially with the crummy policies he installed. Now that Sasha's banned, did he really think he can insult her without them knowing?

"Really? You're going to fix this town? You?" Hop Pop spat.

If Toadstool was surprised by his sudden appearance, he didn't show it. "Well, well, well, if it ain't the patriarch of the Plantars – Hopadiah. What brings you here today?"

Hop Pop huffed. "I came here by chance and from the looks of it, I seem to be lucky." He then turned to everyone. "Y'all should be ashamed of yourselves, talking bad about someone behind their back!"

"Bad?" Toadstool repeated, only to scoff. "In case you've forgotten, Hopadiah; that monster of yours is the reason that the town is in this state, to begin with."

"THE TOWN'S ALWAYS BEEN IN THIS STATE! SHE JUST SHOWED YOU ABOUT IT!" Hop Pop yelled back, pushing Toadstool back in shock. "Look at this place! Our snail paths are a mess and our homes are literally apart! Heck, we haven't even replaced the schoolhouse after last year's millipede incident!"

Slowly and steadily, a crowd formed around the two arguing amphibians, whispering amongst themselves. Hop Pop, however, continued. "What we need is a mayor that actually looks out for the people he's mayoring. And you, Toadstool? You've only been looking out for yourself!"

Nervous, Toadstool stuttered. "T-that's not true! I did a lot of good too, y'know. It's just that it's so expensive, that's all."

"Then what are our taxes good for?!" Hop Pop shot with venom. "Sasha did help destroy the town but from what I see, she just ruined what was already breaking down, to begin with. You're an even worse mayor than she is a monster."

The whispers of the crowd grew stronger. Hop Pop was right somewhat; the town really was falling apart by the seams. They had hoped that Mayor Toadstool would do something about it but for some odd reason, he always lacked the funds to do so, even though the taxes were paid in full. It just didn't add up.

Seeing the commotion, Toadstool knew he had to do something. This was starting to look messy and he didn't want to be caught up in the middle. "W-well, if you think it's so easy, why not run for the mayor then? See if you can do better than me."

Hop Pop clenched his teeth. "Maybe I will!"

The two stared at each other, snarling like a pair of wild animals. Any closer and the whole scene would've looked creepy. Fortunately, someone else was there to break up the growling contest. That someone was none other than Wally.

"Well, if that's the case, then congratulations, Hop Pop! I nominated you as a mayor candidate."

…

…

Hop Pop turned to Wally, immediately forgetting about Toadstool. "Say what now?"

"I seconded that nomination!" Felicia Sundew exclaimed.

Next to her, Leopold Loggle nodded. "I too thirded it!"

"Loggle, why?!" Hop Pop shrieked in horror.

"I just wanted to be involved."

"Well, it's settled then." A newcomer said, going by the name Albus Duckweed. "This term's mayoral election shall be between Hopadiah Plantar and Mayor Toadstool! Frog versus toad! Ooo, how exciting!"

Quickly, Hop Pop attempted to shut them down. "W-wait a minute, I didn't agree to this! I don't even want to be mayor!"

"Y-yeah! Besides, what would an old farmer like Plantar even know what it means to be mayor?"

Hop Pop frowned. Toadstool didn't need to go and underestimate him like that. His honour insulted, the old frog raised a finger and protested. "I'LL DO IT!"

Toadstool turned to him, baffled. "B-wha? I thought you didn't even want to be mayor!"

"I didn't but then I kinda want to." Hop Pop said before turning away. "Now if you excuse me, I have to go prepare my speaking skills."

On that day, a momentous event occurred. At the moment, no one knew it would be that important but the idea instilled would spread across the valley like wildfire, changing the political, social and economic landscape drastically. In the near future, all of Amphibia would have its land flipped over its head.

The seed has been planted. There was no turning back.

Meanwhile, on Bessie's back, Sasha said out loud with an evil condescending smirk. "Suck it, Toadbutt."

"SASHA, LANGUAGE!"

That night, Hop Pop was panicking in the house. He frantically ran in circles around the living room, all while Sasha, Sprig and Polly watched from the couch.

"OH FROG GODS, THIS IS HORRIBLE! WHAT HAVE I DONE?!" Hop Pop shrieked.

Sasha winced at the tone. "I don't see the problem. So you're running for mayor. Some say that's an achievement."

"You don't get it, Sasha! The mayoral elections are a dangerous event!" Hop Pop exclaimed.

Sasha rolled her eyes. "Oh please, you say that about everything. I'm starting to think you guys don't really care about your own health."

Hop Pop nodded. "We don't but that's not the point! Every 5 years, the Wartwood mayoral election occurs and for a long time now, it's always been the toads who run for it. That's because of how physically demanding it is. Like, monster fights and wilderness survival."

"And that's hard?"

"Not at all. I could even do it blindfolded but when it's a competition, it gets serious!" Hop Pop stressed. "I bet the committee of mayors are even changing the events as we speak! They're mostly made of toads but some towns actually do have frogs and newts for mayors."

"Don't worry, Hop Pop. We'll make sure you're buried under that plot of wild daffodils you like so much." Polly said.

The old frog smiled. "Aww, thanks, Polly. I appreciate that."

Sasha groaned. This cannot stand. She wasn't going to let her favourite and only frog grandpa-slash-uncle figure die in some pit. She didn't care how dangerous or hard this mayoral election was. If it's physical, then she knew how to deal with that.

"Okay, no one is dying on my watch. Hop Pop, you and I are going to be training until you're in tip-top shape. Or my name isn't Sasha Waybright Plantar!" Sasha exclaimed. "Now come on! Let's get a head-start on Toadbutt! I don't want to even waste a single minute!"

Grabbing Hop Pop's hand, she pulled him out of his frantic circling and out of the house. It was time for a training montage.

A few days later, the trials were decided. Traditionally, the mayor-candidates would face off against each other through various trials and tribulations, all of which part of an odd coincidence starting with the letter 'S'. But after learning that a frog was getting involved, the committee of mayors of Frog Valley gathered around and quickly changed tactics. After all, such a once-in-a-lifetime event deserved its own once-in-a-lifetime election process.

With Albus Duckweed, restaurant critic and newt, as the announcer, it was truly time for the Wartwood elections to begin. "Welcome, Wartwoodians, to the official Mayoral Trials! Here, the candidates will try to win your vote by impressing you through our various challenges! Can they succeed or will they fail? That's what we're here to find out!

"Due to this being a special event, the mayor committee has decided to switch it up a bit. Instead of the usual trials, our candidates will go through a gauntlet! Along the way, there'll be various checkpoints acting as rest stops to make it easier for you. The first to reach the finish line wins!"

At the starting zone, Hop Pop and Toadstool, both wearing gaudy sports leotards, were doing warm-ups. Seeing the old frog next to him, Toadstool scoffed. "You've made a powerful enemy, Hopadiah. Toads have run uncontested for decades. This is a disgrace."

"The only disgrace is you as a mayor." Hop Pop spat back. He just went through a training montage, whatever that meant. But Sasha was confident in him and so, he was too.

Also, per the rule of training montages, it shall never be described or discussed.

"And once I become mayor, I'll lift the ban on Sasha!" Hop Pop claimed.

Toadstool raised a brow. "Who?"

Before Hop Pop could angrily retort, Albus walked in front of them, carrying a checkered flag. "Are the candidates ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"Same."

Albus nodded. "If that's the case then," He raised his flag up high and quickly waved it. "READY, SET, GO!"

And they're off. Hop Pop and Toadstool left the starting line with a dash but began pacing themselves immediately after. Neither of them was sure what the gauntlet had in stored for them and if they weren't careful, it could prematurely end their run. Controlled breaths in and out, running at a jog's pace. If they wanted to pass each other, then their best bet was during the challenges.

Speaking of challenges, the first of many finally came to view. On the road, various logs had been laid across, some even stacked over one another. Hop Pop and Toadstool jumped over the stationary logs one by one, their heights increasing with each jump. At the last stack, Toadstool managed to pass him due to his superior weight and strength, jumping over ten logs high with a single leap.

Gravity in his favour, Toadstool landed on the ground first with a thump. "Hah, take that Plantar!"

"Coming through!"

Above him, Hop Pop yelled out from above. Confused, Toadstool looked upwards, only to find Hop Pop landing on his face, using his head as an extra platform.

"DOH!" Toadstool shrieked. "Wha— Hey!"

"See ya, Toadstool! Hehehehe!" Hop Pop said with a chuckle.

A minute or so later, Hop Pop saw the first checkpoint. On his side, Sasha, Sprig and Polly waved from underneath a tent with Bessie beside them. "Hop Pop, over here!" Sprig called over.

Nodding, Hop Pop jogged to their tent. Immediately, Sprig handed a glass of refreshing lemonade to quench his thirst and Polly, as usual, jumped and splashed a bucket of water in his face, cooling him down. She then threw a towel, hitting him with an audible slap.

"You're in the lead, Hop Pop! Keep this up and you'll win this!" Sasha cheered.

Hop Pop smiled. "Thank you, Sasha. I'll make sure he'll regret badmouthing ya!"

Sasha blushed. "Aww, thanks Hop Pop."

However, it was abruptly interrupted as Polly screamed, pointing at the incoming toad behind them. "WE'VE GOT COMPANY!"

Toadstool, still pacing himself, ran with light steps, trying to catch up. Before he reached his own checkpoint, Hop Pop slurped all the lemonade and threw the towel away, dashing off. He couldn't give Toadstool even a little chance of winning.

"Toady! Moisten me!" Toadstool yelled. With a salute, the little frog known as Toady threw a water bottle at the mayor-candidate, who then grabbed it and sprayed it all over his face and into his mouth. Not stopping, Toadstool then threw the empty bottle back, hitting Toady in the stomach and pushing him off the table. "Thank you kindly, Toady!"

For the rest of the gauntlet, it went rough the same. Hop Pop and Toadstool would face physical challenges such as running through a chasm and avoiding falling rocks, swinging from rope to rope like a wild monkey-spider and the audience's favourite; wearing colourful clothing with fruit hats and doing the samba. They'd reach a checkpoint where the Plantars and Toady would be waiting, ready to provide nourishment.

In some trials, Hop Pop would take a lead but then Toadstool would cut him off, stealing the position and vice versa. With so many challenges back to back, the stress and fatigue slowly built up and each step became slower and slower.

That was, until the final challenge — a great leap over the Gorge Gorge.

Named after a famous out-region politician Gorge W. Bushes, the salamander had visited Frog Valley as an invited guest to commemorate the opening of the Central Road, a tough dirt highway that connected one side of the valley to the other, including a bridge. They did this by cutting a ribbon in front on top of the newly-built bridge.

Unfortunately, Gorge accidentally slipped over some mud and fell into the gorge, disappearing forever. Thus, it was named the Gorge Gorge while the bridge's name was forgotten, simply because the Gorge Gorge was funnier.

The area Hop Pop and Toadstool were at was a smaller part of the gorge, with the bridge about half a mile away. After all, why jump over a gorge if the bridge was already there? Still, it was still a dangerous leap and if one was careless or unprepared, they'd quickly meet their demise.

As of the moment, Hop Pop was in the lead with Toadstool close behind.

"GO HOP POP!" "YOU CAN DO IT!" "WOOOO!" Sasha and the Plantar kids all cheered.

At the tip of the gorge, Hop Pop stopped and focused all of his strength onto his leg muscles. His thighs and calves both swelled, growing to that of an Olympics athlete. Except you know, frog athlete. With a mighty heave, he took a big leap forward, shooting upwards and across like a rocket.

Time slowed down. His breaths visible in the air and his sweat poured out droplet by droplet. The flaps of a firefly's insect wings could even be counted by one hand. This was where everything mattered. This was the final frontier.

Just inches away from the other edge, Hop Pop's froggy toes touched solid ground and immediately, time resumed to its normal pace. Hop Pop took another leap forward as a saving grace, successfully jumping over the Gorge Gorge. For someone of his age, such an achievement was unthinkable.

"HE DID IT!" Sprig hailed.

Next to him, Polly shouted with vigour. "LET'S GOOOOO!"

Hop Pop smiled brightly. The finish line, he could see it! "I'm doing it! I'm really doing it!"

He really was. The crowd was going wild and Toadstool was nowhere to be seen, probably still at the other side of the gorge. Just a few more steps and he'll win this election! Hopefully, that was, considering the votes weren't accounted for yet.

Unfortunately for him, the frog gods were displeased that day. Some black-haired girl in Newtopia had silently denounced religion as a whole in favour of science and they were quite peeved about that. Through an act of divine will, one of the discs in his spine decided to slip slightly out of place, causing him immense pain.

Hopadiah Plantar, the old frog, screamed. "AHHHHHH! MY BACK!" Before he knew it, he slipped over a small rock and rolled forward like a wheelbarrow, only to stop just inches away from the finish line. So close yet so far.

The audience gasped in shock at such a turn of events. Hop Pop weakly reached out in vain. "Noooo…"

He was so close. He was going to make big changes in Wartwood. He was going to fix the numerous problems the town had. He was going to be the best darn mayor in Wartwood history. But most importantly, he was going to lift the ban and allow Sasha back into the market. Otherwise, the teenage girl would be stuck at home and probably die the moment she left his supervision.

Of course, that would never happen but what if?!

"HOP POP!" Sprig shouted. Along with Sasha and Polly, they ran straight towards the injured old man, worried and in distress. Once there, Sprig carefully turned Hop Pop over onto his back and lifted his upper body up. "Hop Pop, are you okay?!"

Hop Pop breathed in and out raggedly. He grabbed Sprig's vest and clenched. "Ugh, S-Sprig… You shouldn't be here…"

From the stands, Albus Duckweed lifted his megaphone at the Plantars. "Uhh, are you kids helping him? That counts as a disqualification, by the way."

"Oh, shut it, you!" Sasha hissed. She then turned back to the not-dying old man. "Hop Pop, it's fine. Let's get you to a doctor. Or even a chiropractor. Not sure if doctors exist here."

"B-but Sasha! I was going to w-win and lift the ban!" Hop Pop cried.

Sasha huffed. "I don't care about the ban. I care about you and not dying. If I'm going to be back in the market, I'll make sure to do it without any of us getting hurt. You hear me?"

Hop Pop, in a moment of emotional weakness, started shedding tears. "OH SASHA!"

"Don't read too deep into it, okay?!" Sasha said, a bright blush on her cheeks. "I'm still doing it for myself, you hear?!"

Albus, still unsure as to what to do, spoke with his megaphone again. "Um, are you guys still in the race? We can't exactly hear what you're saying."

"WE'RE DROPPING OUT OF THE GAUNTLET!" Sasha screamed angrily. For a brief moment, her eyes glowed pink.

Content, Albus smiled. "Thank you!" He then turned to the crowd. "Well, you heard it here, folks! Hopadiah Plantar has officially dropped out of the gauntlet. He's still in the election but it'll look pretty bad for his score!"

Not like that mattered. It's a shame that Hop Pop couldn't continue and the crowd was really saddened by it but seeing the two Plantar kids stick together to help their old frog brought warmth in their hearts. Hop Pop may have lost the race but he won their spirits.

… Wait a minute, where's the other one?

Despite the heart-warming scene below, not everyone cared for it. In fact, out of everyone in the crowd, only one person seemed ecstatic. Because of course there'd be someone. Why not?

Toady smiled giddily. "HOORAY!"

And just as expected, Toadstool finally reached the Gorge Gorge, huffing loudly. "Hah, hah… Hooey, didn't think the finish line was so f-far... Maybe I should do yoga." Toadstool muttered to himself.

"Ah, the gorge!" Toadstool exclaimed. Much like Hop Pop, the mayor-candidate focused his strength into his legs and leapt forward. Unlike frogs, however, toads had superior leg strength, being able to jump several storeys off the ground easily. Thus, it took Toadstool far less effort to reach Hop Pop's maximum height.

Unfortunately, Toadstool forgot to take account of his weight. Being on the heavier side of even toads due to the lack of exercise, gravity turned from boon to bust and quickly, he plummeted into the gorge.

Oh, woe is Toadstool. He will be missed.

Probably.

"W-W-WAAAAHHHH!" Toadstool screamed. He didn't think his life would end this way. Maybe they'll rename the gorge after him. The Toadstool Gorge.

Oh, who was he kidding? The Gorge Gorge was way funnier.

Before he could meet his maker, a piece of rope suddenly found itself around his flailing arm. The rope quickly tightened around his wrist and snagged him from the teeth of death, stopping his fall immediately. Toadstool, in his stupor, blurted. "W-w-whaaaa?"

The bottom of the gorge, once so close, started getting further and further away. The rope and whoever it was at the end had saved his life and was pulling him up, though with much effort.

Maybe this was a sign a change, a sign to turn a new leaf and do well. Toadstool promised in his heart that once he meets the person that rescued him, he'll erect a statue of the said person alongside his golden chiselled-abs self, both their feet over the head of the Plantar monster.

He'd allow them to share the glory. It was the least he could do.

Finally, at the edge, Toadstool grabbed the ground and pulled himself up. He really was out of shape from sitting in the office all day. Taking a minute to breathe, he then turned to the person who saved him. "Why, thank you for your kindness!"

"Don't mention it." The stranger said. "Like ever."

That voice. It was familiar and not in a good way. Looking closer, Toadstool found himself staring at the Plantar monster A.K.A. Sasha Waybright who, in turn, looked quite annoyed. Sasha sighed. "If you're going to keep staring, I recommend looking at a piece of dirt because that's all your eyes are worth."

"Y-Y-YOU?!" Toadstool yelled, shell-shocked.

Sasha rolled her eyes. "Yeah, me. Now move along, Toadbutt, before I regret it."

She wasn't sure why she decided to save him. She just felt that something was wrong and raced to help. It was like an innate itch at the back of her head, something she couldn't ignore.

Meanwhile, Toadstool was completely baffled. With everyone distracted by the Plantars, none noticed Sasha saving the mayor-candidate with a lasso. By technicality, he should've been disqualified from the race by outside interference. Even if she were to tell everyone the truth, who would believe her? Some might even blame her for deliberately sabotaging him.

She could've just let him fall and have Hop Pop win by default. Yet, she didn't.

Not knowing what to say, Toadstool complied and jogged ahead, leaving Sasha on her own by the edge. By the time he reached the finish line, Hop Pop was chilling on a chair with the kids slowly pouring cool water over his head with a ladle. The ribbon at the end was untouched.

With the last bits of his strength, Toadstool ran through the finish line, pulling the ribbon off. He raised both arms in a dramatic victory. The crowd cheered, regardless of who they support. The winner had finally been decided.

Toady, as happy as he could be, jumped down from the stands with a towel. "Congratulations, sir! You've won!" He exclaimed, handing the towel to the toad who immediately used it.

"I won?" Toadstool asked, taking time to process. "I-I won! Woooo!"

The gauntlet was over and the winner? Mayor-Candidate Toadstool.

The gauntlet, which stretched for miles long from start to end, was a gruelling challenge as a whole. With so many different physical trials back-to-back, only the bravest and the best of all mayors could even hope to finish it at a decent time.

Unfortunately, all Wartwood had was a lazy toad and an old frog. It was the best they could afford.

Back in town, Hop Pop and Toadstool both stood onstage, ready to announce the winner of the mayoral elections. Well, neither of them was actually standing. Hop Pop sat on a wheelchair with a comfortable blanket over him while Toadstool had a folding chair.

Albus cleared his throat. "A-hem! Well, now that the gauntlet and its trials are completed, it's time to tally the votes!"

"Hopadiah Plantar, who managed to successfully overcome all trials except the last one, has achieved a high 53 votes!" Albus exclaimed with applaud.

"53 votes!" Sprig gasped. "That's like, at least 10!"

Sasha raised a brow at that. Not really something one would celebrate about and especially not like that.

"And with exactly 22,598 votes from the rest of the valley and the only one to finish the entire course… Mayor Toadstool!"

Sasha blinked. "What?"

Getting up from the chair, Toadstool shoved Albus in the back, taking centre stage. "Thank you, thank you all! You're all too kind! Democracy wins again!"

Sasha, on the other hand, was not convinced. "W-w-what?! Other towns get to vote?! Why?!"

Toadstool scoffed at her ignorance. "Duh, mayors work with mayors. It's just as important to the rest of the valley as it is to Wartwood. How could you not have known that?"

"HOW COULD I KNOW THAT?! I'M NOT EVEN FROM HERE!" Sasha yelled, enraged.

Humming, Toadstool nodded. "Fair point. As for you, Hopadiah…" Toadstool said, turning to the old frog in a wheelchair. "I must say, you certainly gave this toad a run for his money. Good thing you didn't win, huh? Hah! A frog beating a toad. That would've made headlines!"

"I didn't know that either! I'm a theatre major, for cricket's sake!" Hop Pop complained.

"You're telling me that you voted in countless elections and don't even know how campaigning works? What has this town's education gone to? Well, someone better do something about it!" Toadstool criticised, not realising the irony behind it.

Before he could continue his rant, Toady called out, distracting him. "The victory piñata is all set up in the lobby, sir!"

"Victory piñata? WOOHOO! I'm gonna hit it!" Toadstool cheered. And with that, he left the stage, leaving a crowd of partially disappointed townsfolk.

As the Plantars and Sasha watched the crowd disperse, they all collectively sighed. Today had been one hectic day. Everyone got a little bit emotional — especially Hop Pop — but overall, they were just tired and wanted to rest. Not much changed but hey, at least they tried.

"Come on, kids. Let's go home." Hop Pop announced. "Sprig, push me to Bessie."

"You're gonna be okay, old man?" Sasha asked, concerned.

Hop Pop, though, just waved. "I'll be fine. Nothing like a good night's sleep to fix the old back. Honestly, I'm surprised I even lasted this long. What with the training session and all that."

Sasha scratched the back of her head with a blush. "Y-yeah, sorry about that."

Sprig pushed Hop Pop's wheelchair to Bessie while Sasha, with her normal teenage strength, lifted him up to the seat. With the kids at the back, Sasha took the reins and got ready to drive them all home. Before they could leave, however, Wally appeared in front of them alongside a few of the townies.

"Wally? What are you doing here?" Hop Pop asked.

"Well, we just wanted to say thank you for going with our selfish demand. We know we kinda forced you into this election but you did a swell of a job! Better than we thought too!" Wally said with a thrilled swing of his arm.

Felicia nodded in agreement. "So, we wanted to give you this."

The dame handed over an object to Sasha who showed it to the rest of the Plantars. In her hands was a plaque, the words 'Hopadiah Plantar: ALMOST Mayor of Wartwood' engraved on it. The sole exception was the word 'ALMOST' which seemed to have been painted on with black lacquer.

For the second time today, Hopadiah Plantar shed tears. "Thank you, everyone. I'm honoured to accept this."

As she watched the scene, Sasha smiled. It reminded her of the time Anne entered a Muay Thai competition for the first time. Sadly, she lost in her age bracket during the quarterfinals and that was a huge blow to her confidence. Thankfully, her mom was there to comfort her in a doting parent-child scene.

It was nice.

Instantly after, Sasha scowled, whipping Bessie's leash. "Alright, sentimentalities are over. Break it up, everyone! Shoo! Get!"

The townies began moving out of the way, allowing Bessie to slowly pass through. At the side, Felicia Sundew called from below. "Oh, Sasha, dear?"

Sasha glanced at the dainty lady, the snail moving at a snail's pace. "Do take care of Hopadiah, will you?"

Smirking, Sasha scoffed.

"Who do you take me for?"

And with that, they were off, ready for a good day's rest.