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Continued...

When one must sustain himself without any given food source beyond what he can find out in the wild, a frog of Newt's size needed something more substantial than the beetles he enjoyed snacking on. He had found small rodents like mice and other little jungle critters worked well enough. He didn't have to worry about chewing, and the crunch was reminiscent enough of exoskeletons he had become fairly desensitized. He seemed incapable of comprehending the taboo of it any longer. Little birds also worked well- like flies but actually enough to fill his stomach.

It was following the little brown island finches swooping through the trees that the frog man came across the bird feeders that had recently been hung. It seemed to be becoming a rather popular spot for the little feathered nuggets, and he watched them flit intently like bees from a flower as he crouched int he overgrown underbrush.

Satisfied that the feeders would remain stable until she could find a better method of securing them, Dee set the tools (borrowed from a lab store-room) down near her door. She heard a small flock of grassquit and finches foraging nearby, and smiled contentedly. “Poor things!” she said to herself as she removed a small bag of un-salted sunflower seeds from her leather messenger bag. “They’re hungry! I hope this will be enough until I can find a way to get more feed.” She dumps the seed into the feeder furthest from the duplex then retires inside to grab some over-ripe oranges she had snagged from the cafeteria garbage bin that morning.

From one of the feeders a few feet away, there was a strange sort of noise followed by a shrill little squawk. This was then followed by a noisy sort of chewing noise from the shrubbery in front of her duplex.

Dee was crouched in front of the mini-fridge when she heard the noise through her open window. She knew the sound of predation when she heard it. Dropping the oranges, she grabbed a rolled-up trade magazine and dashed to the door, opening it a crack and peering outside. She hoped the marauder was simply a feral cat or a hawk…

Of course, the sight she walked out on wasn't some one's pet cat slunk off to cause mischief, but a large, green, brown and yellow lump of frog/human hybrid. No sooner had she opened her door than another little brown bird suddenly vanished in a puff of feathers. "KrrKIT!" Realizing he had been caught, Newt's eyes widened his mouth full of scrambling, squawking feathers.

The newspaper held over her head, once ready to swat at a cat, was now frozen in place…as was the rest of Dee, her eyes as wide as the frogman’s. “H-HEY!” she yelped, her voice agitated and shaky. “Who are you!? What do you think you’re d-doing!?”

"Ah- ah..! Ah! Er..." He floundered, looking terrified. It was the sight of that rolled up newspaper that did it, the frog man gave a startled yelp and took a flying leap along the line of the duplex. The lake! The lake or a river or water and he could easily get away! "D-don't hit m-me! I'm s-s-so-so-so-sorry!" He cried as he fled.

Dee ducked, yelping again and covering her head, as the frog man took off. Oh what’s wrong with me? she scolded herself. It’s another islander…b-but he was eating my birds!!

Of course, they weren’t *her* birds, but Dee had always been protective of the patrons of her feeders. She blinks and curses, dropping the newspaper as she stands up. “WAIT! I didn’t mean to… Awww, s**t…HEY, WAIT!! I’m sorry!!” Against her better judgment, she races after the frog. “I didn’t mean anything by it! Wait up!”

"I w-was j-just hungry!" He explained, "S-sorry!" He landed with a heavy thud amongst the grass, huddling down in a potato-shaped ball, his arms and legs tucked in tightly as he peered up at her in terror. He lifted his arms up over his head protectively in case when she caught up, she still was armed.

Dee skids to a halt a few feet away, and she’s unarmed. Her arms are out, palms facing the changed man, as if trying to placate him—but she’s easily as shaken as he. “I-It’s okay…I didn’t mean to scare you, I thought you were a cat…” she bites her lower lip. “I’m not going to hurt you.” She pushes her glasses up her nose. “My name’s Dee…and I just want to talk.”

Newt flinched backward, peering up between his arms anxiously. Another human! Two in one day! "Y-you're.... ah..." Blast! Blast blast hell damn balls! He wanted to hop away, but that would have been exceedingly rude. He had been relieved that Alexa seemed to at least somewhat understand the island, the idea of having to explain things all over again made the frog internally groan. She didn't seem *shocked* by him though, which was an improvement, he supposed...

No, Dee didn’t seem shocked… just exasperated and nervous. “I’m new here, yeah…I just moved in last week,” she backed up a foot or two, not wanting to intrude on the islander’s personal space *too* badly. “And you just surprised me, is all. I can get a little… protective…of my bird-feeders.” From this distance, she was able to get a better look at him, too… and her expression gradually changes from anxious to curious.

His throat inflated and deflated in a distressed croak before he slowly lowered his arms, "S-sorry... sorry... I... I w-wo-wo-won't... I w-wo-won't b-bother them again..." At least not while she might be watching. He twisted his nobbly fingers, swallowing down a clump of feathers that had gotten lodged behind a tooth.

“Thanks… but I still feel bad for bothering you. There..there are a lot of house sparrows around. They’re an introduced species…do you know what they look like?” She gestures as she speaks, trying to be helpful, trying to make up for her outburst. “I can show you what they look like… you can eat those all you want. They…they’re not supposed to be here. They’re pests.” As the woman chatters along, she takes the opportunity to study the frog man.

"In-in-introduced sp-sp-species?" Underneath the stutter, it was evident he wasn't American, but even the sing song of the Welsh accent didn't seem to do much for his stammer. "Ah... w-well... I... er... sup-sup-suppose... I... I eat lots of th-things... b-b-be-be-besides birds, I mean!" He didnt' want her to think he was some... homicidal bird murderer or something terrible like that! He had a wide repertoire of what he would eat.

Dee nodded, watching him. “I understand…I-I was just sayin.’” Her voice, on the other hand, was clearly American. “I don’t suppose the cafeteria holds much interest to you these days? Probably healthier to find your own...”

"I... I... I d-don't like... y-you know... g-going in th-those p-p-places anymore," He said into the backs of his hands as he shifted back to crouch uneasily, rather than huddle in a ball. He eyed her cautiously, trying so hard to be civil when it was evident instinct was screaming in his round froggish ears to hop away as fast as he could.

Dee frowned. She’d been around many critters before, and could tell when one wanted to bolt. She leaned down, then sat down, moving slowly so as to not further startle him. Perhaps with a smaller profile, she’d be less intimidating.

“What’s your name, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Indeed, his breathing slowed a little as she came down more to his level. He took a crawling step backwards, fiddling with the grubby elastic of his swim trunks, "N-n-nuh-Newton. Newton Fuh..f..ff... Newton Filinas." He glanced up at her, about to add, "Sir," but feeling it was wrong, but if he guessed incorrectly he could be in for a serious beating. He decided to play it safe and stay polite.

“Good to meet you, Newton,” she nodded. “My name is Diane Creedwater, but you can call me ‘Dee.’” The woman tilts her head and folds her hands in her lap. “I hope it’s okay if we can talk for a little bit--you’re one of the first people I’ve met—but I don’t want you to feel forced.” She tries to keep her voice sounding as kind as possible, but there’s s always that fascinated edge to her tone.

"Ah... n-no... no... no, I... I c-can.. can talk..." He frowned, glancing back and forth carefully before sitting down properly and lowered his legs into a more human-like sitting position. His throat danced with every breath, his eyes trembling from her into a sweeping motion around them, to the tree line, to the path, back to her and then around again.

“Oh-kaaaay…” Dee muttered, glancing around occasionally to try and see what he was looking at. “Is something wrong? What, uh, is there something you’re looking for?”

"Ah? N-no... no... no the v-v-village j-just... m-makes me ner-ner-nervious, is all," He answered quietly. Tigers and wolves in the jungle, Guards everywhere... he had a corkscrew stolen from the beach bar hidden away on his person, but he couldn't get in trouble again. Only for emergencies. Right. Maybe this... nice person would have some of the things he needed? She seemed like the type to support recycling. This idea to get the supplies he craved seemed to give him a little more confidence. He flopped forward onto all fours in a crouch again and inched towards her with equal amount of curiosity.

The woman smiles and tries to stay as still and unimposing as possible. “Well, that’s fair enough. Is there something you needed? Uh…besides a snack…” With that, Dee’s smile looks a bit forced for a moment. “Maybe I could help?” Her reasons for offering are slightly selfish—she’s finding this place more and more interesting every day—but she also still feels terribly alone, and needs all the allies she can get.

He glanced down, rubbing the back of his thick neck with a webbed hand bashfully, "W-well... ah... I.. um... if... if it's n-not... er... im-im-imposing... I mean..." He drew in a sharp breath. What was he so scared of? What was the worst she could really do? "KrrKIT!" His throat jumped and he straightened a bit, "I... I... I c-col-col-col-collect um... cer-certain th-things...”

Dee is startled by his croak, but almost as quickly starts trying to identify it. Ack… concentrate, woman. She blinks for a second and regains her composure. “No trouble…I’ll help where I can. What, sort of things do you collect?” The edges of her mouth curl up into that queer little grin again.

His face lit up and he hopped closer a foot or two. "Ah... w-well... er... c-cans and.. and b-bo-bo-bottles and... and any st-string and r-rope or... or if... if you have any sp-spare t-tools or... or anything?" His voice dropped down into a low, paranoid croak. Assume they weren't watching. Right. They were always watching. Damn! Alright, just stay calm... He bounced slightly, bobbing a little as though having to stop himself from leaping away again.
Dee is oblivious to his paranoia regarding ‘They’…she simply thought he was still nervous of her. “Well, I have some empty wine bottles, and plastic water bottles. Maybe a few soda cans...would that help? The tools I was using are borrowed… I think I’d get in a touch of trouble if I simply handed them over without asking.” She pauses. “Then again…maybe I can let *you* borrow them if you promise not to feed on any birds too close to my room?”

"Ah... ah... r-re-re-really?" He perked up at that, "Wh-what... what sort of tools? Any... b-bits of wire? s-something... s-something I c-could cut w-wood with? Or... or j-just strip b-bark, even... I... I had this sh-sharp stone, but I k-keep... nicking m-myself in the process and... and it d-do-do-doesn't work very well... krrKIT! Ah..." He cleared his throat, shifting in his crouch again while trying not to look too desperate.

“Well…just some leftover scrap wood, nails, and a hammer,” she replies, grinning while she watches him. “What are you trying to build? You could probably strip bark with the claw of the hammer…”

"I... I... I w-want to make... ah... a ... a re-re-really... really st-strong, th-thin twine," He said carefully, keeping his voice soft and hesitant. Hopefully there were no microphones with labtechs on the other end listening in.

“Okay, uh…” Dee’s brow furrows, trying to remember what species of tree she’s seen on the island. “Have you tried the dry husks from some of the coconut tree bark? Any other palms? They’ve got this…” she gestures as she speaks “weird thready texture. I’ve never made rope, but I imagine maybe that’s something to try?”

He glanced down at the grass, head cocked and throat wobbling as he thought it through. "Ah... I... I th-think... I th-think I've... seen some m-maybe... a little... it p-p-pe-pe-peals away, right? A b-b-bit wooly?"

Dee nods. “Yeah… what if you tore that into small strips, and twisted a few strips together? Keep it pulled tight…” It sounds plausible, but she really has no idea what she’s talking about.

Newt was picturing it, though, his hands twisting as he thought about how he might have to secure them in order to keep them taught- maybe attach it to a stick and hold that under his feet while he worked, perhaps? He'd seen a few of those trees, some near his swamp. "Ah... th-thank... thank you M-miss... er... Dee... um... An... Anything you have to offer," He tapped his hand against his heal to keep rhythm. She had been nice enough to tolerate him this long, he should at least try to put an effort in to make it less annoying. "And... and m-maybe... something to c-carry it in, th-that... th-that would be won-won-wonderful!"

“That should be easy… you can have one of my duffels,” she shrugged. “Doesn’t sound like I’ll be going on a trip any time soon…and right now it’s just clutter. And you’re very welcome, Newton.” Dee doesn’t find him annoying in the least. On the contrary, she’s sympathetic to people who stutter; she had a speech impediment as a child.

He gapes at her, as though unsure of how to respond to this kindness, his mouth opening and closing a few times. He liked this Dee! It was then he suddenly wondered what sort of creature she would become... something furry or something... like him or something strange like an insect or something he'd want to eat? Anything seemed strange. He couldn't quite see her as anything but a monkey. "Th-th-tha... tha-tha-thank you ver-ver-ver... thank you s-so much, you have n-no idea!"

The woman blushes and waves a hand. “Don’t worry about it!” Dee laughs. “And I think I’ll throw in that hammer after all.” Her expression gets a shade cynical. “I got it from the labs, but I don’t think I’ll give it back. Heh. Some revenge *that* is, eh? Oh, I’m just so very bad.” She rolls her eyes and shrugs. “But what’s the worst they can do? Besides whatever they’ve got planned for me…”

Her expression gets a little colder. “Well, I still have a mind of my own, an at this very moment? I’m going to help you. C’mon…the stuff’s back at the duplex.” Wait, didn’t he say he was scared of the village? “Oh…or, you could tell me where you live and I can come to you…”

"Ah... y-yes... yes, th-that... th-th-that sounds b-best," He motioned aa hand, "I... ah... if... if you go in, about.. about a ha-ha-half m-mi-mile in st-straight that way... j-just... f-follow the stream along until you get to.... to a little p-po-po-pond... um... m-mind your st-steps..." Something else seemed to occur to him and he perked up again, "Oh! Ah... and... if... d-do you... I m-mean... a sp-spare mug and... and some t-tea bags?" It had taken a lot of care and timing which was followed by a heated chase and a near-buzzing, but he had managed to steal himself a kettle from the kitchen recently, but he didn't dare try to raid again any time soon.

Dee stands and wipes off her shorts as the frog man explains. “I’ll see what I can do, Newton, no problem.” She’ll try to make it look like she’s going on another bird watching-picnic.

He nodded, the corners of his wide mouth quirking up into a smile. "Thank you..." He repeated, "I'll... I'll m-meet you there?"

She gives him a jaunty little salute and a dorky grin. “Yessur, I will. You can count on it.” Dee turns on her heels and trots back in the direction of her village, smirking. For her, this is pretty darn rebellious…and she’s getting a weird little thrill out of it.

He was thrilled as well, bobbing again before leaping off in the direction of his pond. This wouldn't be so hard after all. He just had to be careful.

*END OF RP (...for now)*