Smack!

Stella's eyes opened up, and she frantically searched for... something. She didn't know what she was doing. It was only an instinctive reaction after being woken up with such urgency.

Huh. Stella fell asleep, didn't she? She remembered now. Lien was talking about her home, and exhaustion overtook the Human's mind. She hadn't even noticed.

As she passed her hand over her burning cheek, the girl remembered the culprit, standing close to her bed with her tail wagging and an innocent, toothy grin.

Stella frowned. "Can you stop waking me up like that?!"

Lien tilted her head. "I mean, it worked, right?"

The Human growled, making the Wolf hold her paws placatingly. "Okay, okay! I'll stop!"

Accepting her response, Stella sluggishly sat on the edge of the mattress. She hummed with amusement that she hadn't taken off her boots to nap. Then she did just that, finally giving some well-deserving freedom for her feet.

That was until Lien came sniffing on them. "Hey! Stinky feet!" It tickled.

Stella kicked the pup's snout. "STOP!"

Lien rubbed her nose to see if anything broke. "That was rude."

The Human sighed. "Sorry."

"Nah, it's alright." Then, her entire body perked up. "That's right! Dinner's ready!"

So that was why Lien had woken up Stella. The Human's belly was practically growling for sustenance, anyway.

"Oh! That's great n-"

"RACE TO THE KITCHEN! LET'S GO!" Lien shouted and darted towards the first floor on all fours.

In hindsight, Stella couldn't have expected anything different.

"I'M GONNA WIN!" Her voice became more and more distant.

"LIEN, WAIT!" It was Tarb's voice, right before the Human could hear a loud thud, then the two Wolves groaning in pain.

Oh well! Time to dine!

Stella regained the energy to stand up and look out the window. The sun was already setting... How tired was she? That power nap from earlier appeared meaningless.

The Human shrugged it off and went for the stairs. At the bottom, she carefully walked over the two unconscious Wolves. Yikes...

"Are they going to be fine?" Stella asked Locci, who was sitting in a rocking chair and knitting a green sweater. It was kinda cute AND humorous in some way, considering his big frame.

He spoke nothing, only nodded. That was expected, of course.

The girl decided to advance to the kitchen and admire the quaint house sheltering her for the night. The sofa and the two smaller couches practically whispered her name, tempting her to the sin of laziness.

As the night falls, there should be another light so the house won't be drowned in darkness. And it absolutely had, however, it wasn't lamps or candles. It was... the taxidermied fish and frogs.

Their bodies gleamed in a gentle lime green, and their eyes and mouths shone beams of light that repelled the nightly shadows. The highlight (pun may or may not be intended) was the enormous catfish adorning the wall above the hearth with a golden-plated frame.

Truly awe-inspiring. Stella had to take a minute to bask in its glory.

Interestingly, the rest of the Lycan Squad and the Knight weren't anywhere to be found. However, Stella quickly deduced they must have been doing some patrol or other guard duties. She was mostly relieved to not need to cross paths with the captain.

The Human turned her attention to the kitchen, where Padda and Kaku discussed something. The Kappa poured some stew in a few bowls while the Frog crossed his arms and oversaw the whole process.

Hot damn! That smelled delicious! Stella's mouth watered so much that it formed a waterfall.

"Are you sure that ain't too hot for ya?" Padda asked, almost yelling.

"I told you I'm fine!" Kaku shooed him. "Stop being a pest! I know you only want seconds."

"I mean, I never hide that. But you should hear what I'm saying!" The Frog insisted.

The Kappa were about to use their wooden cane on Padda before the guttural growl of Stella's ravenous stomach took everyone's attention. The girl's face burned with embarrassment.

"You came at the right time, child!" Kaku picked two bowls and slowly walked towards the Human. "Where's the other-"

"Here!" Stella jumped backward as Lien seemed to have materialized next to her. She would have a heart attack one of these days.

"Eat up, kids!" They gave a bowl to each girl. "Hope you like fish!"

Lien scrunched her snout. "I already ate fish last night..."

Stella filled a spoon and took a swig. "Not a problem for me!"

Padda chimed in. "Alrighty, girls! Why don't ya go to the big couch?"

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Stella and Lien complied and went for the green, comfy sofa while the elders sat on the couches. The Human didn't waste any time digging in. The rich taste of the fish, joined by the vegetables, herbs, and other spices, created a harmonious symphony in her tongue. She vacuumed it all in less than a minute! Even the pup, who had complained earlier, followed the Human on her speed-eating. Both of them finished their bowls with a very audible burp.

Padda heartily laughed. "They REALLY loved yer stew!"

Kaku put their hands on their cheeks. The Human could bet that they were, at least, the closest they could get from blushing. "Aw, shucks! It's just some old family recipes, that's all."

Stella felt a little ashamed for her unsightly behavior. She wasn't used to eating with grown-ups around. Usually, she would creep into an uninhabited corner and eat her daily findings like a famished goblin.

However, there was a time she didn't need to go through these lengths, but... It was best to not dwell on that too much.

"S-Sorry." Stella couldn't look at them in the eye, focusing on her bowl.

The Kappa chuckled. "Do you want seconds, child?"

Both girls nodded, but before Kaku could get up, Padda went for the girls' bowl. "Let me handle it."

Kaku's jaw tensed. "You better not be going to get more for yourself! My cane is right here!"

Padda waved his webbed hand. "Whatever you say, old turtle!"

Their nostrils flared. "What did you call me?!" Their change in mood was quite the whiplash from what the girls had seen from the Kappa.

A mental note glued into Stella's mind. "Never use the T-word on Kaku."

A minute later, Padda came with refilled bowls of stew. While Stella only needed the two to be satisfied, Lien needed three more for the same effect. Geez-louise!

Lien had a noticeable bump on her tummy after that impressive display of gluttony. All things considered, it was adorable!

In the meantime, Locci went to the kitchen and brewed some tea. He poured some for the two elders in teacups with a water lily pattern.

Eagerly, Stella took a sip but quickly discovered that this... WASN'T HER CUP OF TEA!

I regret nothing.

Kaku leaned their head forward and started shaking, much to the girl's concern. She was about to ask what was wrong until the Kappa's eyes slowly opened. It was disconcerting.

"Tizohi almighty! You're a Human!" They spoke as if they genuinely forgot such an important detail.

Padda sighed. "Yes, we already went through this. We're housing a Human, just for tonight."

The frail Monoke scratched their chin. "Well, when was the last time I met one? Well, after the war, I..." Then they closed their eyes and hummed in deep thought.

"It wasn't THAT long ago!" Padda interjected. "Three years, I reckon."

Stella's interest was piqued. She remembered the Frog's weird phrasing earlier. "There was another Human?"

Padda nodded. "Yep. In fact, some of your kind visited this forest after the war. However, they didn't stay for long." He took a sip of his tea. "Alive, that is."

Stella gulped. A chill ran through her spine.

The Frog laughed at her reaction. "Don't ya worry, though. We don't do that anymore! Well, thanks to the last Human, as it turns out."

Stella's curiosity sparkled even brighter. "What happened?"

"Well-" A fly flew out of his teacup, only to be quickly captured by his tongue. "Sorry."

He cleared up his throat, then... "Well, about three years ago, a Human came to this dear forest. Like with the previous ones, some folks found out and got angry. However, somethin' weird happened."

Stella leaned closer to him, her eyes brightened with curiousness.

"The Human started doing favors to us. He could create fancy toys from your world, and folk started warming up to him after some time."

Kaku interjected. "He made me this cane!" Then they pushed a button on the top of it, and the spherical top opened wide. Then, they lifted it up and tilted it towards their mouth, revealing that it had cashews inside of it.

The Kappa chewed them and hummed with delight. "Love it!"

Padda continued the story. "So yeah, the Human was some weird magician, I guess. He helped a lot of folks with those things." He leaned closer to the girls and whispered. "We helped him escape the guards by letting him stay here a few times."

"Good thing we didn't catch you back then!" Euraidd came out from seemingly nowhere. Stella and Padda jumped back, frightened.

"'Sup, guys! I love some storytime!" The mage sat on the ground right beside the Human. Hufen was right behind him and hadn't spoken a thing. She laid down next to Lien, similar to those rugs made of animal pelt.

Padda sweat bullets, but he slowly recomposed himself. "Heh. So much for that secret!"

Stella impatiently pressed the Monoke. "So, what happened to him?"

"Well, the queen became impatient and took it upon herself to take care of the matter. After a few days, she found him. However, rather than killing him on the spot, she got him arrested."

Stella frowned. "So you people killed Humans just like that? No trial, no nothing?"

Padda fidgeted his fingers. "You gotta understand that we're VERY bitter over Humanity. They're the reason we're in this pretty prison. While I don't particularly agree with that, plenty of Monoke think otherwise."

Stella sighed. "So why didn't the queen kill him?"

"That's the thing. We don't know for sure. In fact, we all thought the Human was dead until Queen Malka announced his real death a year later."

Now, that made Stella even more intrigued AND concerned. "So he did die!"

"Yeah, but apparently, he was at death's door already. Human disease, or somethin'. The queen told us the news with a big announcement since he was kept from the public, along with a new change in how Humans would be treated from that point forward. Needless to say, that made quite a stir. Especially with the oldest Monoke, like this fella." He pointed at Kaku.

The Kappa were dozing off and then regained their focus on the waking plane. "Oh, what are you three talking about?"

Stella's ears rang with the loudness of Lien's snoring. It seemed only she held any interest in the story.

The Human slightly nudged the pup with her elbow, making the Wolf suddenly wake up. "Mom, I swear I didn't pee on the bed!"

Well, "wake up" was a bit of a hyperbole. Lien immediately went back to her nap.

The Frog ignored all that and answered his partner's question. "Talkin' about Humans and stuff."

Kaku's eyes opened again. "Ah, I met plenty of those! I was friends with some, others I took down in the war, and-"

Padda gently tapped their shoulder. "How about we not talk about that in front of the kids, okay?"

The Kappa slowly nodded in comprehension.

Stella decided to ignore the war comment. "So, is that why there's Human technology here?" Then her eyes widened as something else clicked in her mind. "The Knight! He told me he created those gadgets of his! How is that possible?!"

"Easy!" Euraidd chimed in. "The Knight was the Human's pupil before he died. Apparently, his whole gimmick came from a... Uh..." His eyebrows furrowed as he gazed at the ceiling. "A comic? I don't know how comedy fits into this, but I guess it's funny."

"Yeah, what he said," Padda confirmed. "Right after the Human was supposedly killed by Malka, Sayama changed with your convenient inventions. My favorite is the sewerage one. Before, I would just put my crap into a sack and toss it into the river! Now, I'll... Eh, it's about the same, only now it goes down that toilet thingy."

"Gross comment aside, he's right." Hufen finally made her contribution, still in an unflattering position. "After he died, the Knight replaced him as the technology expert."

Stella reflected on this shocking revelation. Well, she tried to, until...

Kaku clasped his hands together. "Hey, do you girls want to know what I did in the war?!"

The Human wasn't interested in gruesome war stories. "Well, I don't-"

"I was a Saniya expert! Even made a whole book about it!"

Stella's eyes sparkled again. "You know what? Nevermind."

Kaku struck his partner's head with his cane. "Go get it!"

Padda rubbed the bruised spot and grumbled something inaudible while he went to find the book. A few minutes later, he launched it into Stella's hands. "Have fun!"

It was larger than she expected, a whole-ass ancient tome. The thick leather cover had four circles of different colors inside a golden triangle adorned the front.

The girl opened the treasure trove of the knowledge she so desired. On page one, she found...

.........

She found out that she forgot a pretty important detail.

"Can anyone read this for me?"