AN: This fic was supposed to be posted last January, but a combination of multiple factors converged into a case of writer's block that made me postpone the release. As of the date I'm writing this note, Season 4 of Star vs the Forces of Evil makes this premise a bit far stretched, though not completely AU-ish (not yet, at least). That said, this story takes place after the Season 3 episode 'Is Another Mystery', while for Hilda the Series it takes place during the Season 1 episode 'Chapter 2: The Midnight Giant'.

Passing By

The woff migration was not an uncommon event in the wilderness. If one were to check the sky throughout multiple days during the months when the activity peaked, it would be fairly easy to spot woff herds flying in the sky. Even so, Hilda had yet to find the sight of the creatures boring. She enjoyed either running with them or simply looking at them while relaxing as they hovered above and around her, just as she was doing right now.

Hilda stretched her arms as a yawn escaped from her lips. The girl was lying on the grass in a clearing surrounded by a meagre group of trees, and she could hear Twig gnawing at an unfortunate fallen branch nearby. The woffs were flying quite afar from her since that was not a plain area, but Hilda could still recognize their features. If she focused, she could still be able to say whether a specific woff was a Common one or one of the rarer variants.

Hilda put her hands behind her head and narrowed her eyes as she tried to see if there was anything remarkable about the herd. She had already seen a couple of Swedish Meatballs, but strangely enough she had yet to identify any Leafy Rascals, which were usually more common than the red ones.

For a few minutes, that was all she thought about, no noise bothering her other than the woff calls from the herd and Twig destroying wood. That was not destined to continue, though, as the last woff crossed the sky and Hilda was left with no specimen to observe. Without her distraction, her thoughts could no more jump around the current matter concerning her immediate future.

Even if her determination was second to few, Hilda knew that at least trying to plan how to approach the king of the elves before meeting with him would've helped her chances at getting something out of him. If she had learned anything while meeting the mayor first and the prime minister later, it was that the elves were quite the stubborn people when it came to rules and traditions… no offense to Alfur, of course.

Hilda gave a glance to the sun and made a few fast calculations to estimate what time it was in the morning. 'I have an hour tops before I have to go back home for the trip to Trolberg… well, I may as well make this worth it.'

She sat up, took out a notebook not much smaller than her sketchbook, and started to write down. 'Now, if I were an elf, what would I need to say to convince—"

"Hilda!"

Hilda's eyes looked up in surprise. Even Twig stopped torturing the tree branch to check out the visitor. At first none of them was able to locate who had spoken, but when the newcomer once again called her name, Hilda immediately recognized the voice, and it took her a moment to find the small figure running towards her.

"Alfur?" the girl was sincerely surprised. This was quite a bit far from the elf village, especially relatively to elves. "I thought we agreed to leave tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, yes, of course, Hilda, that plan hasn't changed! I actually saw you leave your home early this morning," Alfur said once he was right in front of the girl… or rather, in front of her feet. He waited for a few seconds to recover his breath before continuing. "Thankfully I've found you, I've ran all the way up here to warn you!"

"Warn me?" Hilda raised an eyebrow, perplexed. "From what? Trolls are only active at night, Alfur. Hey, did you perhaps catch the giant that comes at midnight? I actually got to talk with him last night, so if that's what you're scared about—"

"No, no, Hilda! This is much more worrying than a mere giant… and dangerous! I believe it's best if you leave right now and make your way towards your house."

"Alfur, I actually came here for a reason, that is spending some time thinking up how to approach the king tomorrow. I kind of want to know why you want me to not do that."

Alfur agitated his hands. "I have very good reasons, Hilda, but I we would waste precious time if I explained the entire ordeal now! I'll tell you while we're going!"

Hilda was not fully convinced yet, but while looking at him she had took note of Alfur's demeanour. The little elf seemed sincerely in distress, with the trembling and continuous arms-waving, and she had no reason to believe that he was lying or exaggerating. He had been the one elf to help her out while the rest of his nation still wanted her gone, after all.

She glanced at Twig, who was looking back at her interrogatively with his head tilted. He was probably even more confused than her, but he seemed on the edge… as if Alfur appearance had made him realize something odd. He couldn't communicate it to her, but it was there.

Eventually, she sighed. "All right then, Alfur. You are beginning to preoccupy me as well."

She offered a hand for the elf, who wasted no time and immediately climbed up over it to reach her head. Then, she started to walk back down the path she came from, Twig trailing behind her.

"Thank you, and please, keep moving."

"I'll do, I'll do. Now, what's so worrying that you needed to run all the way up here?"

Alfur moved through her hair until he was right behind her left ear. "Hilda, there are monsters lurking about according to the elves."

"Monsters? What kind of monsters?"

"Well, I'm not sure, that's what the scout elves called them. I listened to them reporting about these strange humanoid creatures with, I quote, 'monstrous features.' At first, I wasn't sure whether I wanted to trust such a wild version of the facts, since as you know elves tend to get quite worked up when it comes to what is bigger than them."

"Tell me about it…" Hilda commented.

"But in any case, this was all put aside when, later this morning, one of these 'monsters' appeared nearby the village! You had to see it, Hilda! A huge human-like creature with three eyes and an enormous mouth lined with teeth… and carrying an axe! He was terrifying!"

Hilda wasn't sure how to reply to such an image. It was indeed striking. "…I don't recall seeing anything like that in the wilderness. That is strange, I'll give you that, but I don't understand why you are worried about it. Are you sure he meant to harm you? I mean, you said he had an axe, but did he want to do anything bad with it? For a foreigner, the wilderness can be quite daunting to traverse, and maybe he was just looking for wood."

"Well… to be fair, no, I am not. Er, it was quite far when I saw the monster, and before any of us could learn more about him the elven town watch managed to repel him before he could do any damage. But listen, Hilda, the point is that we've never seen the kind of that creature before… and by 'we' I mean the entire range of elven people I've had the chance to get to know over the years. What if there are more of them roaming in the wilderness right now, and what if they're marauders bent on taking what they want with or without our consent?"

"That's a whole lot of what-ifs, Alfur."

"Fair point, but a good elf knows when further precautions are to be taken! A life spent reading appendixes in paperwork documents can make wonders, Hilda. Even if your house's location is kind of the problem, right now if you go back there the town watch will still be able to keep those creatures at bay."

Hilda stopped walking. "Look, Alfur, I appreciate that you're worried about my well-being, but I really can't see why I should consider these 'monsters' as enemies. I didn't even have the chance to meet them, you should at least give them a chance to explain themselves!"

Alfur didn't reply. She waited a full five seconds looking elsewhere before Hilda realized that he was distracted. "Alfur…?"

"I… guess your wish to meet one of them was granted, Hilda. Right in front of us." The elf pointed a tiny hand forward.

Hilda followed his suggestion, and her breath stopped. Two meters away from her stood a very picturesque looking creature: two heads with horns on both and red skin, complimented with armour and a long, heavy-looking morning star. Hilda had to admit, the description from Alfur's had sounded a bit absurd even by the wilderness' standards, but now that she had had the chance to check one of these supposed 'monsters' with her own eyes… she kind of saw where Alfur was coming from. It was an appearance Twig didn't find likable as well, as she heard the deerfox growl beside her.

That didn't prevent her from noticing that the two-headed monster looked quite mystified as well, despite the equipment that made him look threatening. Gathering every bit of courage she could find, Hilda took in a sigh, petted Twig to show him it was alright and then broke the ice. "Hi."

"Uh… hi, I guess," one of the monster's heads said. "Well, I'm sorry to tell you this, but we're not supposed to greet you in theory."

Hilda's surprise and slight fear was replaced by puzzlement. "Greet me?"

"Yeah, I mean, telling our respective names to each other, asking how we're feeling, how's the day, stuff like that," the other head explained. "That is because the original plan, was, uh, to capture you."

The monster seemed to be struggling while speaking, as if he was trying to find the right words to tell her. He was almost comical to look at, but when Hilda heard him say 'capture you', her instincts told her that danger was nearer than what transpired from the odd behaviour of the monster.

"Capture… me?" she repeated slowly.

"Yeah, kidnap you, you know?" the first head continued. "Seizing you, tying you up, and then deciding whether to ask a ransom or, I don't know, eat you maybe. So, I guess that if I were to really give you an advice, I'd tell you to either fight back or run for your life."

Hilda wasn't sure whether the creature was serious or not, but in any case, she had fast lost any interest in staying around him any longer. "Huh… I-I think that I'll make use of your suggestion, so, if you excuse me, I'll go and—"

Hilda turned around, and she had to stifle a yelp. Alfur's self-control wasn't as strong as he screamed and hid in her hair upon facing a second monster blocking their way out.

This creature had no weapons or battle garments whatsoever compared to his companion, but he still looked far more menacing nonetheless. A pair of fangs, jaws dotted with sharp teeth, two fiery eyes, dark red skin and claws comprised a nightmare-worthy image, and Hilda immediately stepped back. He was much taller than her or the first monster as well.

"You are not going anywhere. We've waited long enough for our chance, and now it's time to take what we want, by any means necessary!" the creature growled as Hilda slowly walked back. Twig kept his position in front of the girl and snarled at the creature, who however wasn't fazed. The deerfox ended up backing along with his owner.

"Are they gone?" Alfur asked, still hiding inside Hilda's hair. The sound of footsteps around them was enough for him to understand that the answer was 'definitely no'. Soon, Hilda found herself surrounded from all sides by various looking creatures of all sizes, colours and forms. All threateningly looking down at her.

Hilda's mind raced to find a solution to her current predicament. However, she found that her life-long experience in the wilderness was not helping that much… especially with beings such as these, who she had never seen before in her life. "Uuh, guys, guys! Are you sure about this? Can't we talk this out?" she eventually uttered.

The dark-red-skinned monster approached her first, raising his claws. "I'm afraid that is not an option. It's time to go to sleep."

"No, please! I have too many contracts left unsigned!" Alfur suddenly exclaimed. "I can't let them stay uncompleted, it would break seventeen elven laws across the entire kingdom!"

The monster's determined frown was replaced by a befuddled expression. The nearby creatures matched the monster's reaction to Alfur's words.

"Are you… a ventriloquist?" Hilda heard the double-headed monster say from behind her.

"Shut it! You'll end up letting her escape, she's obviously trying to distract us!"

"But didn't you hear that? She talked with a different voice, and without even opening her mouth! That's impressive."

"So what? We can still capture her even if she works for some fair or whatever."

"But what if she can do it because she has magic?"

"Magic?! Where!?"

"Hey, hey, calm down. We're getting off track, let's—"

"Wait! She's getting away!"

Hilda had already gained ten meters on them when the monsters started to chase after her. Twig followed fast behind her, while Alfur held on Hilda's locks for dear life.

"Remember me that I owe you one, Alfur!" Hilda said between her fast breaths.

"Well, it's no big deal, really," Alfur politely replied. Then, he assumed an alarmed tone, "Let's however keep ourselves focused to the fact that they're still running after us and on ways we can lose them, shall we?"

Hilda nodded and made a turn for the path that led to her family's wooden cottage. She could still hear the hard footsteps behind her, and at one point she saw a spear flying over her and finishing its flight on a nearby tree trunk.

"Gah!" she commented, "What did I even to them do to deserve this?!"

"I don't know, but I believe they are not moved by anger towards you, Hilda," Alfur said. "More like pure criminal instincts. Or hunger."

"Well, I didn't have to remember that," Hilda muttered. Her escape eventually brought her and Twig to the upper waterfall, and she stopped right on the edge of the waterway before checking her pursuers.

She had managed to distance herself from the monster mob. Apparently, they didn't know their way around the wilderness as well as her and kept getting stuck, taking the wrong turns and just hindering each other, which let Hilda gain the advantage. The problem was, they had not lost sight of her yet.

She turned towards the waterfall again. "Alfur, brace yourself. If we manage to make it to the other side, I think those monsters are going to take a long time to do the same. That should give us enough time to escape. We can make it!"

She looked at Twig, who was huffing beside her. "Ready, Twig?"

Twig nodded, and Hilda smiled with conviction. They just needed to cross the rapids, and then they'd be basically saved. She had done it countless times, she just had to do it faster!

The girl took in a long breath and concentrated. As the monster's voices grew louder behind her, she braced for the first jump. But before she could leap on the first rock, something suddenly emerged from the water, startling her and Twig.

Hilda didn't even have the time to realize what was going on that the figure grabbed hold of her sweater and lifted her from the ground with ease. She screamed in both fright and surprise, while Twig could only watch, too paralyzed by the unexpected sudden event and the terrifying image of her owner's captor to do anything.

Hilda closed her eyes and tensed up, fully expecting the monster to eat her in one bite. Yet, she didn't hear the creature's jaws opening its mouth to make lunch of her... in fact, she soon realized that she was being held up in place with no further movements.

"What is going on here?" she heard a loud, heavily-accented voice demand. "Why are you pursuing little girl with blue hair?"

"Uuh… well, you see…" Hilda recognized the voice as the dark-red-skinned creature that had threatened her.

"I thought I was clear. No attacking other inhabitants of dimensions we visit, no kidnapping them and definitely no eating them!"

As the adrenaline died down, Hilda found herself extremely curious to know just what in the world was going on. In the end, she finally mustered enough courage to open her eyes.

Once again, she was surrounded by monsters on all sides, but they no more looked ready to capture her and bring her away. Some of them were grinning awkwardly and shrugging, and some of them even looked sincerely remorseful.

"But, Buff Frog! We've not had a proper meal—I mean, we weren't going to eat her of course. We were just trying to help!"

"There are other, more proper ways you can help. Go back to camp and find something to do there, to start things off. All of you."

Some of the monsters groaned, but all of them eventually followed the order and walked away from the waterfall. Hilda let out a sigh of relief when she realized that the imminent threat was no more there.

"Oh, sorry, I forgot you," the one holding her said. Hilda was lowered down and gingerly let away from the grasp.

"Uhh… thanks?" Hilda said, fixing her sweater. Before she could face her saviour, Twig literally jumped over her and started to lick her face.

"Hey, stop it! I'm okay, Twig, it's over," Hilda said, petting the nervous deerfox in order to calm him down.

"Are you all right? Did they do anything to you?"

Finally, Hilda managed to get a good look at the figure, and once again she was greeted by an image she didn't expect at all. It was another one of those monsters without a doubt: a human-like creature that this time featured frog-like characteristics, as well as a particularly stout body. The creature was soaked wet from head to toes, but he didn't seem to mind it, his eyes fully focused on Hilda with what she could see as… sincere worry?

"Uhm… I am fine, thank you," Hilda replied slowly. "Scared to death, but okay."

"I am sorry for the behaviour of my comrades," the monster said. Twig was currently staring at it with a hostile gaze, but Hilda made sure to keep a hand on his head to keep him calm. "We've all unfortunately went through a lot lately, and everyone is trying to cope in his own way… even if it means some of them try to take a few prisoners. For old times' sake, I guess."

"Uh-uh…" Every word spoken by the creature made Hilda more and more confused… and curious. It was clear that this guy, along with the other creatures, had a long story to tell, and the more she thought about it the more she wanted to know what that story was.

"I'll make sure no one of us will bother you or any other inhabitants here from now on. We will be leaving soon, anyway," the monster turned around and started collecting something that was moving at his feet. There were a few fish specimens Hilda didn't notice earlier there—a possible reason for the creature's presence in the waters.

Now that she had a moment to think, Hilda suddenly realized that the monster had just said that he was going to depart soon. She almost spoke automatically: "Leaving? Wait!" she exclaimed.

The monster glanced at her with an interrogative gaze. "I mean… I'm a little curious. Who are you people? I'm positive you are not from the wilderness, let alone anywhere in the rest of the country."

"You'd be right," the monster said, putting the still protesting fish in his sack. "But it's long story. I don't believe you really want to hear it, especially from people who have just tried to kidnap you."

"Well, that's not true to be honest," Hilda insisted. "Uh, I mean, not that I liked the kidnapping attempt of course. It's just, I've lived in the wilderness for so long, I thought I had a good knowledge of most of its inhabitants… and then you all show up out of nowhere, you, uh…"

"You can call us 'monsters'. We take no offense with the word: that's what we are," he said. "And I guess you also deserve more specific explanation after all the ruckus."

"Thanks. And it's alright," Hilda immediately beamed at the prospect. However, someone was not of the same idea, as she felt something tugging at her skirt.

"Twig? Oh, come on, it'll be alright. They don't seem half-bad… not all of them, at least," Hilda tried to reason, but Twig let out an unconvinced whine. "Hey, at least we have, uh… what's your name?"

"My name is Yvgeny Bulgolyubov, but you can call me Buff Frog, little girl."

"Well, in that case, my name is Hilda," she offered her hand. "It's nice to meet you."

Buff Frog shook her hand with a smile. "We'll talk after we reach camp, if that is okay with you."

Hilda nodded without further discussion and followed Buff Frog as he started to walk in the same direction the other monsters had gone. After a moment of indecision, Twig ultimately gave up and walked up to the side of his owner.

"I'm sure you'll change your idea now that we'll see what these monsters have in store for us, Twig," Hilda said to the deerfox. "Besides, Alfur has not said a word until know, I'm sure he agrees with me!"

Suddenly, she realized that the elf had indeed been silent for a bit too long. "Alfur?" Hilda called, but she heard no shuffling behind her ear nor answer. She moved a hand to look through her hair and it didn't take her long to catch the elf's body. When she brought it to show, though, she noticed that Alfur was lying on her palm, eyes closed and a frightened expression on his face.

"Oh… he's passed out," Hilda commented. She figured that Buff Frog's sudden appearance was just too much for the little elf.

"Why are you talking with your hand?" Buff Frog was looking at her with a mixture of confusion and wonder.

Hilda couldn't help but chuckle, as she remembered that the monster had no way to see the little elf.

"I'm afraid the answer to that will require some paperwork."

Hilda was unsure what to expect from the monster camp mentioned by Buff Frog. While her first encounter with Buff Frog's peers hadn't exactly been a pleasant experience, her saviour's behaviour was an example of the opposite side of things. She had yet to understand what the deal with these people was… one of the reasons why she had asked about them in the first place, in fact.

Buff Frog didn't need too much time to go back the way he came from, and soon Hilda and Twig made their entrance in the camp, which revealed itself to be pretty normal by human standards. It reminded her of a Sparrow Scout camp, like the ones she saw in her mom's old photos, just with a more chaotic organization of the tent placements.

Rather than the camp itself, Hilda's attention was captured by the creatures inhabiting it. Buff Frog and the monsters she had encountered first had forms she had never seen before, and she even recognized a few of those forms in other monsters. And yet, there were even more of those creature types: she saw a flying giant Fly, people with bird features, slimes who defied gravity by standing upright, and so on and so forth. It was truly a view that amazed her and made her even more willing to get to know them.

"Buff Frog, really. Were do you come from? You guys look like you've come out of a fairy tale book! I've seen a few strange things in my life, but you are on another new level!"

Hilda's excitement had made her think less and speak first. She immediately brought her palms to her mouth when she realized may have offended the monster.

"I'll take that as compliment," Buff Frog replied with a chuckle. "It's better than what we were known as in the past, anyway."

"Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to offend you! I just believe you're unique, that's all."

"I guessed so. Sit, little girl," the monster gestured towards a campfire with tree logs around it. "I will put down the spoils of my fishing trip and then I will get something for you. It's the least I could do."

As Buff Frog left her alone, Hilda gave a glance to the campfire—the thing had been put out long ago, but she could still see a couple of smouldering embers under the burnt wood. She wondered for how long the monsters had lived here without her knowing anything.

"So, you're here now, huh?"

Hilda looked up and saw the same, exact monster that had threatened her less than fifteen minutes before, red skin, claws and fiery eyes. She inadvertently gulped, as Twig reacted hostilely by bristling and showing his teeth.

"Slow down, I'm not here to do any harm. Actually… I'm here to make a statement."

"A… statement?"

"Yeah," the monster's eyes moved sideways, as if he wanted to look at something behind himself. "I, I mean, we wanted to say that we were not actually going to eat you."

Hilda wasn't sure how to answer. "Uh… thanks?"

"We were just trying to have some fun and reminisce about what we used to. The original plan was just a simple, urr… detainment, with a possible ransom to get something useful out of it. I mean it!" the monster affirmed. "You have no idea what non-stop dimensional travelling can do to a monster man!"

"Dimension—what?"

Hilda was unable to follow the speech's logic, but before she could tell the monster Buff Frog returned, a crude cup in his hand. "And I hope you've learned lesson from it," he added sternly.

The monster nodded vigorously, then waved awkwardly before departing. It was quite a different behaviour compared to the, at this point, apparent bloodlust that he had showed earlier, and she couldn't help but find the change somewhat amusing. Not that she would have wanted to re-experience the first version of him, of course.

"Take it. I made it with my hands, it's an original recipe," Buff Frog sat down beside Hilda, the log creaking for a moment under his weight so loudly that it startled Twig. Hilda took the cup and checked its contents, and she had to stop herself from gagging. She wasn't sure whether what she saw in there was edible or not.

"Oh, huh… thank you. I think I am okay, actually…" Hilda said.

"I'm not surprised. Only great stomachs can actually bear this speciality, after all," Buff Frog explained. He took the cup back from Hilda and then took a long sip. The girl even saw a caterpillar escaping from it and falling on the ground.

"Yeah, I'm not sure my stomach is worthy," Hilda commented, trying to keep said organ from overreacting. To distract herself, she thought about other kinds of foods and drinks, but for some reason her mind didn't come to her mom's hot chocolate, rather going to the one time the Woodman had brought something to eat with him in one of his visits. Back then she had judged the 'desserts', as the Woodman called them, questionable at best.

"Heh… I know a friend who would probably appreciate it… probably," she added.

"Hopefully I'll meet him, sometime," Buff Frog replied. He put the cup down on the ground before directing his full attention to her. "So, what did you want to know, little blue girl?"

"Well, for starters… where do you come from?"

"As I said, that's quite a long story, but you deserve at least a summary of it," Buff Frog said. "We come from the land of Mewni, little girl. We left after… we were no more able to live there, and we're looking for a new place to settle in."

"Oh," Hilda immediately knew that the motivations behind these creature's departure were not of the pleasant type. "Did something bad happen?"

"Nothing in particular, to be honest. You see, monsters were not the only inhabitants of Mewni. There were various people, kingdoms and creatures… and among them, mewmans stood as the strongest. They have been led for generations by queens able to wield magic, something not easily obtainable in Mewni, and they have always been far from being friends of us. I was never good at monster history, but for all I know, mewmans have rarely stopped fighting the monsters. They battled each other for dozens of years, and even if by the time I was born there was no war, mewmans never truly let us be. I knew it, since I was among those who fought them."

"You… fought them?" Buff Frog's tale was proving to be unlike anything she'd imagined. The previous monster mentioning 'dimension-something' made her think that perhaps this was not another distant, bizarre part of the country, but something very much farther in space.

"Yes, I did. I do not remember those days as the prime of my life, but that is what I did," Buff Frog explained, somewhat saddened by the memory. "Now I am changed. I am father."

"Father?" sensing a better subject, Hilda decided to show her interest in changing it. "You have kids, then!"

"Of course. You can even see them from here!" Buff Frog brightened up as he pointed towards something in front of them. Hilda followed his gesture until she noticed that there was a group of very small creatures running amok. The other monsters were either amused by the scene or grumbling to themselves in disapproval. "They're everything I've ever wanted, and one of the reasons why I chose to leave Mewni in the first place."

Hilda couldn't help but smile at the sight. "They look adorable… a bit loud, maybe, but I guess that's a given with so much of them!"

"You, little blue girl, already know more about fatherhood than many of my comrades." Buff Frog said. He continued to look towards his children for a few moments before his smile faltered, as if something had suddenly occurred to him.

"I had the chance to work with mewmans before we left. It was one of them that gave me job, a girl that used to be an enemy of me but later became one of the few people I can truly call friend. She even babysat my babies!"

"Sounds like you weren't doing half-bad, then, with this friend of yours at least."

"Yeah, that was what I thought as well at first. However, by working with them I was able to experience myself how mewmans truly felt about me, about monsters. My friend, Star, she worked hard to try and reconcile monsters and mewmans, but even her efforts weren't enough in the end. Eventually I concluded that there was no space for us in Mewni, not until things remained like they were. Me and the other monsters you see here all talked about it and we decided together that it was time to go."

"That's… sad. I'm sorry this happened to you, Buff Frog," if she had to be honest, Hilda had quite a number of questions to ask the monster and the place where he used to live, but she also felt sympathetic with him. Making a parallel between her situation with the elves and her mother was something she couldn't help doing, but the sheer difference in scale made her a little embarrassed. She was preoccupied with trying to not move to Trolberg, and here was a guy who was forced to move away from his world.

"It is no problem. We monsters have grown to learn to live in that situation. Now, while we don't have a proper place to live in yet, I will say we're doing better without mewmans breathing down our necks."

"I really don't understand why wold these 'mewmans' act like this, though," Hilda mused. "You seem like a nice, uh, 'monster', and even the others here… I mean, when they're not trying to capture you for fun, but that's beside the point! I don't see why those people would even not like you from the start!"

"I have to be honest, little blue girl, while it may look like this from our point of view, monsters are not without fault. I've learned much while working in mewman castle, and I've even found some time to learn history, though at first I just wanted new stories to tell my babies," Buff Frog explained. He looked at one of his children as she tried to chase after a bulky monster that had decided to play along. "They like to know about what monsters did in the past, but I couldn't bring myself to tell them about the bad monsters are responsible for."

"Huh. Well, I'm sure that all monsters can be blamed for what was done by only a few of them."

"I agree, but it is not how mewmans feel like. They've always considered all monsters evil, from the very first days of mewmanity, and I don't see them changing anytime soon. As long as there are going to be mewmans pushing against monsters and monsters wanting nothing but to fight them, there won't be peace between us… and so, here I am."

Hilda looked at the ground in thought. "I know you've already told me that you are doing well right now, travelling around and the such… but I can't help thinking you suffered an injustice."

"Sometimes you must make tough decisions, and that was what we did. Heh, for all I know, one day we may be able to go back to Mewni. Once Star is queen, maybe things will change."

At the mention of the word 'queen', Hilda suddenly perked up. "Wait, queen?"

"Oh, I may not have said it, but Star is Princess Star Butterfly, heir to the Mewni throne. She was a good mewman, and if there is anyone that can get to the bottom of mewman and monster problem, it will be her. As a Princess she could not do it, but maybe as a queen she will finally succeed."

"Well then, if that's the case, there is some hope for you to return in the future!"

"Da. You know, Hilda, you make me remember her. I'm sure you two would get along well… perhaps, one day, I'll tell her about the little girl with blue hair I met in wilderness place."

"Mhh." Hilda smiled, her mind trying to imagine how a magic princess from another dimension would look like. "I'm sure I'd be happy to meet her."

Buff Frog nodded, then got up. "It's been some time since we've arrived. It's almost lunch time for my babies… I better gather them before they end up hurting themselves… or someone else. It was nice to talk with you, Hilda."

"The pleasure was mine, Buff Frog," Hilda stood up as well, Twig already by her side—the deerfox had failed to get accustomed to the monster camp and looked willing to leave. "I think I may have slipped a little with my own time constrains, so I better get going. Do you think you'll stay here for a little longer?"

"I have to think about it. This wilderness place is not bad, but there's simply not enough for monsters to live on without seeing some of us resorting to ways I'd prefer to not have to return to. And I heard a couple of monsters talking about being attacked by invisible people and rabbit hordes. That is unnerving."

"I may have an explanation for that last thing, but since we're talking about this…" Hilda put a hand in her hair and took something out of it. Alfur was just beginning to recover from his recent black-out.

"Oooh… my head… Hilda?" Alfur was still half-asleep. "I've had the craziest of the dreams. We were by the waterfall, and we were surrounded by terrifying creatures! And then, this huge monstrosity came out of the water!"

"Uh, Alfur, you might try to moderate your language here…" Hilda quickly warned him, while looking elsewhere. Alfur, not realizing what she meant, simply followed her gaze and found himself looking at the same 'mostrousity' he had mentioned, and he gulped.

This time, though, Hilda made sure to not let him lose conscience. "Alfur, it's okay. They don't mean any harm," she reassured him. "They're all pretty nice if you get to know them."

"I… guess," Alfur wasn't fully convinced, as Buff Frog 'looked at him' quizzically.

"Hey, I'll tell you what, I'm sure that a full report about Buff Frog and his companions would make a very good read for the elves."

At the mention of the word 'report', Alfur lost any last trace of fright. "My, I was too much frightened to even think about this! You're right!"

Hilda chuckled, but then she noticed that Buff Frog was staring at her with wide, mystified eyes.

"Uuh, Buff Frog?"

"I don't want to offend you, but I need to ask. Do all of you talk with your hands, and most importantly, is it normal that I hear hand talking back?"

"Well, about that paperwork I mentioned earlier…"

Buff Frog decided to accompany Hilda, Twig and Alfur in the short trek towards the elven village and Hilda's cottage, deeming it the bare minimum and 'wanting to know where the little people live'. After some explanations, Buff Frog learned about the elves and he put two and two together concerning the strange encounters of the other monsters. He assured Alfur that they would try not to cross the elven territory again until they left the wilderness, even more so when Hilda mentioned the fact that her house was right in the centre of the village, where she lived with her mother.

When offered, though, Buff Frog decided to turn down Alfur's offer to sign the paperwork.

"I can't see you, little man, but I can hear you, and that is enough. I won't make you waste more time, considering I was one the who made you pass out."

"Oh, that's nothing really! We elves always would love to see new members be registered in our official lists of 'authorized for elven contact'. Seeing the different contract variants for each creature is so exciting, even more for complete new cases like yours!"

"I've already had enough paper to deal with in mewman castle. My head aches just thinking about it."

"Well, I'll admit not everyone is suited for paperwork mastery… but everyone can give it a try!"

"Maybe sometime in the future, if I ever come back to this dimension, little elf," Buff Frog said.

"About this 'dimension' stuff you keep mentioning," Hilda interjected, "I take it's very far from here, but other than that I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Wait, you don't know about them?" Buff Frog seemed quite surprised. "That's interesting. Basically, Mewni is connected to various dimensions, sort of like different places in space. You can travel from one dimension to the other at will thanks to this gadget," he drew out a pair of wildly designed scissors. "I used to think that every dimension you could reach with these was always inhabited by people who were capable of dimensional travel as well, but I think that in our wandering around we diverged a little bit from standard procedure."

"So, it's not just one planet, its multiple places… wow. That seems wild."

"Weird and wild sometimes, but you easily get used to it." Buff Frog looked forward while narrowing his eyes. The four of them had already reached the valley where the elven village and Hilda's home were located. "I can already see your house. This is where I'll leave you, I don't want to scare off more little people or your mother."

In other circumstances, Hilda would've probably insisted for the monster to visit even if only for a minute, since her Mom was used to the wilderness as much as her (the only difference being she didn't love it to the point where she actively sought to explore it almost every day like her daughter), but with the elven question still in play she didn't know how she'd react to the appearance of a bulky frog man inside the house.

That didn't prevent her from feeling a little sad for having to leave the monster so soon. She would've loved to keep talking with him about his 'home dimension', about the people he knew there and whatever stories he had to share. If she had to be honest with herself, the wilderness was quite wanting of good interlocutors with the obvious exception of her mother. She had met Alfur for the first time just two days ago, while the giants were an extremely rare sight in general, let alone having the chance to talk with them. As for the Woodman, he wasn't exactly a talkative type. Buff Frog had not only never showed to be bothered by her presence, but he seemed willing to tell her about the wonders of his home.

"Okay, then. I hope we'll see each other again sometime. It was nice to talk with you, Buff Frog," Hilda started, smiling.

Buff Frog returned the smile, though he scratched he back of his head in the process. "It's a bit weird to see a little girl who somewhat looks like a mewman little girl say that. Thank you, Hilda. You make me a bit sorry that we'll leave this soon."

"Well, perhaps we can at least meet one more time, right?"

"I am afraid not. I've thought about this, and I think it's better if me and the rest of the monsters leave today, later this afternoon. While we knew we were going to only stay for a while, basically just passing by, what happened with you has made me realize that it's better to pack up and move on now."

Hilda's face fell, her last hope of meeting Buff Frog one more time vanished. "Really? I thought… uh, if it's because of what happened earlier, I can assure you I—"

"No, no, don't worry," Buff Frog quickly dismissed her reply with a hand gesture. "It's not about that… well, not just that. I know you don't feel any resentment over it, but I can't say if that's the case for little invisible people except your little friend. We have rested for long enough here, now we should keep moving."

"Oh… I understand," Hilda said, intertwining her hands. "Well, I don't know how your dimensional-jumping works, but I still hope we'll be able to talk again."

"We have that in common then, little blue girl," Buff Frog said. "Maybe someday, if Mewni becomes again good place or we find somewhere new to settle in, then I'll visit. Perhaps I'll bring Star, I'm sure she'd be thrilled to meet a girl that I feel has as much sense of adventure as her with none of the magic powers."

"That would be great!"

Buff Frog then turned his attention to the other bystanders. "Goodbye, little invisible man that I still can't see. I hope that you've recovered well from your time out—again, sorry about that."

"On the contrary! I am actually fully committed to write a few papers about you, and for that I have to thank you!"

"And goodbye to you too, little deer-fox," Buff Frog said to Twig. The animal was still wary of the monster, apparently, but when Buff Frog offered him a hand, the deerfox dared to approach and smell it. He immediately retreated, barely hiding the disgust, but otherwise sat beside Hilda in a relaxed position, which was enough for him to know that they were in good terms… for now.

"And, finally, goodbye to you, Hilda. Mewni would be a better place for sure, if people there were more like you."

"Thanks. Goodbye, Buff Frog."

The monster waved at them, then turned around. Hilda expected to watch him walk for some time, but instead Buff Frog bended his knees and, a moment later, he was flying. Hilda and Twig made a step back in surprise as Buff Frog continued its flight, coming down and disappearing behind a rock formation.

"He… could do that? All this time?!" Hilda spluttered.

"Amazing! This will be perfect for my ending statement!"

"You never really stop to get ideas, don't you?" Hilda started to walk towards her house, Twig leading the way as Alfur leaned on her ear.

"Sort of. But you have to admit, this was pretty exciting. Scary, but exciting!"

"Yeah… I do feel bad for him, though. He and his friends already have to go… who knows how long they've been travelling like this, without a proper place to call home," Hilda mused out-loud. "I really hope they'll be able to sort their problems out back in Mewni."

"I'm sure they will, sooner or later," Alfur replied. "If there's something I've learned while living among my brethren, it's that all misunderstandings can and will be sorted out. After a proper contract stating each side's views on the matter is written and signed, of course!"

Hilda smiled. "Hopefully they will do it even without the contract. Here, I'll get you down."

Alfur accepted her help and climbed over Hilda's hand, then the girl let him walk down right at the edge of the elven town. "And don't worry, Hilda, despite today's incident, we are still fully committed with our plan for tomorrow!"

"I'm counting on it, Alfur."

Once Alfur was left as well, Hilda moved towards her house. She didn't really pay too much attention to the time, though she expected her mother to be a little annoyed by her late arrival.

Instead, once Hilda opened the door to let Twig jump in and uttered 'I'm home' she saw Johanna literally rushing to her from the window on the opposite side of the house. "Hilda! I've been waiting for half an hour, I was beginning to get worried!" she almost shouted, grabbing Hilda's shoulders and checking her as if to see if she was injured.

"Oh, sorry mom," she said shyly, "I didn't want to arrive late, honest, but I had a… little delay."

"Delay?" her mother looked inquisitively at her. "Don't you tell me you've gotten yourself in trouble."

"No, no! Don't worry, it's all sorted out now!"

Johanna studied Hilda's facial expression for some seconds before sighing. "I trust you, but next time, try to be on time. I really can't stop thinking about what is lurking around here lately… I'll give you ten minutes to refresh yourself, and then we'll be leaving for Trolberg. Got that?"

"Loud and clear," Hilda responded, and her mother, satisfied, finally let her go. As Hilda let out a sigh of relief, Twig approached her.

"Looks like we're still doing this, Twig, despite everything," she told him. Twig tilted his head, and she couldn't resist scratching the back of the deerfox's ears.

Perhaps she could at least try to follow her mother's advice and consider Trolberg as an option, after all. She held the wilderness dear, that was not going to change anytime soon, but maybe she should try not to let a possible departure mortify her.

If anything, Buff Frog had showed her that even in difficult times one could still do his best to keep going with a smile, with a small glint of hope for the future.

"Time to see what this weird 'Trolberg' dimension is like, Twig!"

THE END