*laughs maniacally for no reason*

OK. I'm done. Anyway. This is the first chapter of the sequel. Hope you like it; it picks up right after (sort of) the last story. Enjoy!

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Chapter 1 - In Which the Author Loses Track of Time and Realizes Suddenly that Six Months Have Passed When She Finally Bothers to Get a New Battery for Her Watch

Marie smiled proudly as she looked at her new creation. With the help of a few potions brewed by Christy and her own berry-tending talents, she had created a never-before seen color in the history of berry bushes: pink. Milady the Dreaded Witch of the Cucumber Forest and Echinam the Dreaded Genie of the Cucumber Forest will be thrilled, she thought dryly as she finished trimming the bush. The light pink berries weren't ready for harvest, but they were there. And that was all that mattered.

She heard a footstep in the underbrush and turned to see Bob running towards her, waving a paper in his hand excitedly. "WE WON! WE WON! WE WON THE KINGDOM OF ESPERANÇA'S BERRY BUSH CONTEST!!!" he was shouting.

Marie smiled brilliantly. Their bushes were famous throughout all of the Kingdom of Esperança for the high quality dye they produced. A sudden popping noise sounded behind her just as she began to show Bob her pink berries.

"Hey Marie! Hey Bob! Have anything I can do?" Christy inquired cheerfully.

"WE WON! WE WON!" Bob told her, jumping up and down, still waving the paper.

"You did!? That's excellent!" Christy cried. "Need any help?" she repeated insistently.

"No," Marie smiled. "We're all set. I was going to go inside and help Polly the cook anyway. It should be dinnertime soon. The pink berries were a success," she added as an afterthought.

"That's excellent! Mother will be so pleased!" Christy cried, laughing delightfully as she continued "You sure there's nothing I can do. Weeding?"

"I did that this morning," Bob told her.

"Watering?"

"Did that," Marie replied.

"Trimming?"

"I just finished. Really Christy, there's nothing for you to do here!" Marie exclaimed, interrupting a long line of one word questions.

"But I'm bored," Christy complained. Marie sighed. Am I sick of hearing that phrase, she thought.

"Maybe someone else needs help," she suggested bluntly before turning back to her precious bushes. Christy sighed and disappeared with a pop. 

"That new popping spell of hers is very useful," Bob commented, kneeling to check out the new berry bushes.

***

Samot sighed. Here I am, locked in a cellar, when I could be doing something useful to humanity, he thought to himself. But no, since I don't agree to let Christy kiss me—which she doesn't even want to do anymore—I can't leave this dark, cold cellar that's full of flies! I wish I wasn't a frog…

"Hey Samot!" Christy greeted him cheerfully.

"Hi," he replied gloomily. Oh, my day is just getting better and better, he thought sarcastically, pointedly remaining with his back to Christy.

"Uh, need any help catching flies or something?" Christy inquired, squatting down next to Samot.

"For your information," Samot began pompously, slowly turning to face Christy, "I refuse to eat flies. In addition, I am languishing here in the cellar, dreading the next day and I wish to languish in peace. Seeing as you have been unsuccessful in obtaining my freedom, I would very much appreciate it if you left me alone to contemplate the fact that I will spend the rest of my life as a frog in a Dreaded Witch's smelly cellar."

"You know, it's not that smelly," Christy protested in her mother's defense.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Samot shouted suddenly, losing his patience. "Tell Marie to come visit if you have a chance!" he called out as she popped out of the cellar. Oh, how I hate being a frog.

***

Oh, Marie can visit him and stop him from languishing but I can't. Ah! There's nothing to do! I'm bored! Christy thought as she popped into her room, her mind turning around in circles as she constantly returned to the same fact: she was bored. Oh! I missed someone… she remembered suddenly before disappearing in a hiccup of air.

***

Milady was crouched over the telephone book sitting on her desk. She was trying to find a place for Asopar in the Cucumber Forest hierarchy, but it wasn't easy. Pushing bushy purple hair aside, she flipped through the pages of the "Dreaded" section. Dreaded Wizard, has apprentice; Dreaded Sorcerer is young; Dreaded Unicorn no; Dreaded Centaur no; Dreaded Herbalist has apprentice; Dreaded Warlock no; Dreaded Hag no; Dreaded Enchanter is searching for apprentice. Hmm… She reached for the phone and began to dial the number.

"Hi, you've reached the Dreaded Enchanter of the Cucumber Forest's Office. I'm not here right now, so if you'll please leave a message after the cackle I'll send you a curse as soon as I can!" the phone message told her, ending in a distant cackle.

"Greeting fellow Dreaded, this is Milady the Dreaded Witch of the Cucumber Forest. I have heard that you are looking for an apprentice and I happen to know someone who would be a wonderful Dreaded Enchanter. Send me a curse as soon as you can!" she smiled weakly as she hung up the phone and returned sighing to her phone book.

Pop! "Hey Mom!"

Silence greeted her.

"Uh, Mom?"

Silence.

"MOM!" Christy shouted.

"WHAT!? Can't you see I'm busy?" Milady glared at her daughter.

"Doing what?" Christy inquired curiously.

"What do you think? I'm trying to find Asopar a role in the Dreaded hierarchy of the Cucumber Forest!" she looked tired. "Now, this is a very complex task and I would like to be left in peace!"

"Mom, you're looking through a telephone book," Christy pointed out.

"So?"

"So, I'm bored! I can look through a telephone book and give you a nicely written-out list of every open space—or a messy list, if you prefer—and—"

"I. Don't. Need. Help," Milady the Dreaded Witch of the Cucumber Forest replied through clenched teeth.

"Fine!" Christy shouted. And she popped into her room and began to cry.

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Heh heh. Hope you got the basic idea…  lol. Review!!! 

Meara—what ducks? *confused*