Big the Cat woke up in a nice-looking forest. He briefly considered the fact that he wasn't home, but shrugged it off. It wasn't the weirdest place he'd woken up in; he remembered one time he woke up in a helicopter with Sonic.
"Good morning, Froggy," he chirped in his usual slower speech pattern, looking down to his—
Wait a second, Froggy wasn't there. "Froggy? Where are you? Did you run away again?"
Aw, chum-sticks. Why did Froggy keep running away? Big always did his best to make sure Froggy was well-cared for.
Big sighed; sitting here and moping wouldn't help. So the cat stood up, grabbed his fishing rod, and walked off towards the nearest town to search for his Pollywog Pal.
Strange, this place didn't seem like Mobius. For one thing, there was an awful lot of ponies. And what's more, they weren't walking like a Mobian; they were on all fours, like ordinary ponies.
Big considered this for longer than last time, but he once again just shrugged it off. It certainly wasn't as strange as him waking up on the Space Colony ARK.
So the big purple cat toddled down the street, drawing as much attention as you'd expect. They were staring with interest, parting to let him through, and one of them even fainted.
Such a nice town, Big thought. He should introduce himself.
"Hello," the large purple cat announced to the crowd, "I'm Big."
"You sure are, mister!"
Big took a moment to register where the speaker was: directly to his left. He turned to the source and found a pink pony with curly pink hair, bright blue eyes, an image of balloons on her hips, and a wide grin on her face.
She giggled, "I couldn't help but notice ya walking into town. Are ya plannin' on staying for a while?"
Big shrugged, "Depends on how fast I can find Froggy."
"Oh, you're looking for a friend? I'll help you."
The big cat couldn't help but give a dopey grin. "Thank you kindly, Miss."
"No problem-o! I'm Pinkie Pie, by the way!"
"I'm Big the Cat."
"You're certainly the most interesting cat I've ever met!"
"And you're the most interesting pony I've ever met."
She giggled to herself, "That's an understatement and a half! Now, come on; let's find your friend!"
And so, two new friends walked off to try and find Froggy.
"Froggy? Froggy??"
About an hour later, they weren't making any progress. Pinkie was busy scouring a dressmaker's shop, while Big was searching the local bakery.
He was about to give up when he noticed something. There, in the corner of the bakery, was something green and bug-eyed.
"Froggy, my Pollywog Pal! I found you!"
The fisher-cat scooped up the creature and gave him a big hug. "I missed you so much, friend," Big sniffled. "No matter how many times it happens, or how long we're apart, I'll always look for you."
Big looked the green creature in the eye expectantly. But instead of having his feelings returned, its eyes glinted with... Unfamiliarity?
"Don't ya remember me?" Big asked hopefully. When the creature licked its own eye in response, the cat nearly started to tear up. "Ya've lost ya memory?"
He wondered what to do next. How would Amy or Cream handle this, if they were in his situation? Well, they'd probably try to make Froggy happy...
Then he had an idea. "I know, let's go fishing! That always cheers ya up, and it'll probably jog your memory!"
With that decided, Big held the creature over his arm like how one would carry a carpet, fishing pole in the other hand, and headed off to find a lake.
After quite a bit of walking, they came across a nice, calm lake. A nearby sign marked it as "Marigold Lake, Ponyville's local watering hole". Near the lake was a tree with a tire swing, telling Big that it was a public area; ergo, a ripe spot for fishing.
However, it seemed like he wasn't alone in wanting to visit the lake; a curtain was set up on the opposite bank. Sparks flew as someone worked with a blowtorch from within.
Big shrugged. As long he gave them distance, they shouldn't bother him, right?
The fisher-cat sat down on one bank, drew back his arm, and cast the fishing line out.
Not even five seconds later, a rock whizzed past Big's head and hit the ground. The green creature in Big's arms, scared at the sudden projectile, leapt down and began to scamper off.
"Wait, Froggy, stop!" Big desperately tried to call out. Not even thinking to check where the rock came from, he leapt to his feet and dashed after his Pollywog Pal.
It eventually stopped, alright.
In the middle of a pond at the base of a windmill, that is.
Big sighed. "Oh, Froggy, what am I gonna do with ya?"
So the cat plopped himself down, aimed, and cast the lure. With a 'plunk', it landed some 3 feet away from its target.
Now, all he had to do was wait.
...
This was going to take a while.
Big didn't know when, but at some point, he fell asleep there on the lakeside. The only thing he knew was that he was awoken by a vaguely familiar voice screaming, "BIG!!!"
The cat in question turned his head to find Pinkie Pie rushing up to him, an angry look on her face. "Oh hey, Pinkie. I found Froggy."
He pointed to the lake, and Pinkie blanched for a moment. Eventually, the pieces seemed to click together for her, and she calmed down significantly. "Big, that's my pet Gummy."
Big blinked, then turned to look at the creature floating out there. Now that he thought about it, the creature didn't exactly look like Froggy.
Actually, it didn't look ANYTHING like his friend! It wasn't even a frog, it was some kind of tiny gator. How did he not notice it sooner?
Big blushed. "Oh... Sorry."
Pinkie let out an exhale, then smiled forgivingly. "That's okay; we all make mistakes. Why, I remember one time I accidentally put cake batter in my confetti cannons and confetti in the oven!" She giggled to herself, and Big, not understanding the context, awkwardly chuckled along.
"Uhm, what exactly is happening here?"
Big and Pinkie paused, turning at the new and fancy voice. A white unicorn with disheveled purple hair had approached, looking like she'd just taken a run through the jungle.
Pinkie apparently recognized the pony. "Hiya, Rarity! This is Big the Cat, and he's looking for his pet Froggy."
The pony now identified as Rarity looked cautiously at Big, then to Gummy floating in the water, then back to Big. After failing to process, she simply stated, "Uh-huh... And what about them?"
The two looked where Rarity was pointing, and were absolutely flummoxed. There, trudging into town while carrying an injured pegasus pony, was Vector the Crocodile.
But that's not what caught Big's attention; it was the creature resting atop Vector's head that was more of interest to him.
"Froggy!" Big exclaimed, leaping to his feet and rushing over. The crocodile tried to shout, but it was too late; the overeager cat had already bowled straight into him, snatching the frog from atop his head and hugging him. "Oh Froggy, you're safe! I just knew you'd come back, my Pollywog Pal!"
"Ribbit," stated Froggy.
"You're welcome," stated Vector dryly.
Big wiped away a tear of joy. "You know what this calls for? A celebratory fishing trip!"
And with that, the two ran off.
It was a windy and sunny day, and everything was perfect for the duo. Big was happily smiling, watching the bobber closely; Froggy was right where he belonged, sleeping peacefully on his buddy's lap; and a purple pony was chasing E-123 Omega through the streets in the distance.
Yup, life was perfect.