The Owl and the Frog

Chapter 40: True Colors (Part 1)

Okay, we're finally here... I've decided to use part one of this finale to give a shout-out to two different projects that I feel deserve more attention. One being about Latinos and the other about Asians.

The first is a new musical called "Arena." It's a show about a famous nightclub in LA set in the 90s. The main protagonist is a queer Latino trying to find his identity. As of now, it's only playing in Los Angeles, but if it gets big, who knows? Maybe it will come to the city you're in. If you get a chance to see this, I hope you will. If you like the queer representation in The Owl House, then I hope you'll give this musical a chance as well. Even if you don't live in LA, I think you can still support it.

The second is a graphic novel called "The Mask of Haliya." In it, a young Filipina girl discovers a mysterious mask at her great-grandfather's wake and goes on a fantastical adventure! There are a lot of female characters in this one, and it uses a fantasy setting to touch on a lot of serious issues like mental health and trauma. You can order this one online, so it's a bit more available to you, and I think if you enjoyed Amphibia, you'll like this one too.

These are both projects by up-and-coming writers who are actually trying to get their work out there and could definitely use some love. Heck, maybe even tell them you heard about it from me if you want. Putting your work out there is hard, especially if you're doing it as a real artist.

Me? I'm just a bum who writes fanfiction...

But with all that out of the way, here we go, Part 1 of this finale. I don't mind telling you I'm nervous about this, as there's a lot at stake, so yeah, it was kind of hard for me to write because I know this is a BIG chapter. Here's hoping I did alright, and as always... I hope that I impressed you...

Oh, one final note, these next two chapters have some intense scenes. They may be scary for younger readers!

The Night of the Sleepover

As Sasha entered the old house, she peered around, trying to see through the darkness. It was hard to make out anything with no light sources, so Sasha stumbled around, trying to find a place she could sit down. As she stumbled in the dark, her hand managed to land on something on an old desk. She picked it up and realized it was an old mask of some kind. It was wooden and looked to have antlers coming out of the top. It looked extremely old and worn. Sasha stared at the mask intently.

Huh, wonder what this is, she thought

Playing with the mask, Sasha put it on her face and pretended to be a scary monster.

"Bwhahahah! I'm a masked deer person! I'm gonna get you!" she taunted. "I bet Anne, Luz, and Marcy would freak if they saw me come out wearing this!"

As she pulled the mask away, she noticed there was some sort of greenish-black sludge on it. She realized only too late that some had gotten on her face.

"Eww, gross," said Sasha, trying to clean the sludge off her face. "No way I'm wearing this again."

It was at that moment, though, that Sasha heard something, almost like a laugh, inside her head. A cruel laugh that sounded different from anything she had heard before.

Is someone there? thought Sasha, talking to herself. She didn't expect a response and was surprised when she heard one.

Hello, Sasha, replied her thoughts, though something about the voice was different.

Who are you? thought Sasha nervously

Oh, I'm just your inner voice, replied the voice. You're having a conversation with yourself to try to distract yourself from how scared you're feeling right now.