Thanks!
I already have GIMP, I just forgot I still had it.
I did not make the image, the checkerboard pattern is the way I received it, and I couldn't figure out a way to remove it. Since I'm not an artist, and am terrible with art, I can't really make my own...
and I know how to make an image animated, originally this image was a .gif, so I separated it into each individual frame and lined them up next to each other, as seen in the image (each image is 160 x 160). I already have it animated, since I already knew how to make an animated custom object, it's just that the checkerboard pattern appears in-game, which renders it unusable for what I needed it for. I've worked with Knytt Stories for about five years now, but haven't bothered to make an account on this site, but made it today to see if anyone could help me with this issue. Also, sorry about posting in the wrong place, I don't know my way around here since I've never used this site before.