Chapter Text
Anne remembered getting up there. Sasha embracing Marcy's deceased body lying there motionless and cold. All of the color in her face had vanished, all of the warmth was gone leaving a drained grayish in tone look. Anne felt like she was in shock and before she could actually do it she was running over to her two friends. Collapsing on the other side of Marcy, Sasha was holding one of Marcy's hands grazing her thumb across the black armor. She shook as she let out an ugly sob.
Anne held the same hand scooting in and got near the body and felt the hot tears well up on her face. She was crying with Sasha. Sasha tucked her bottom lip between her teeth to stifle any louder cries from coming out as she brought two fingers to the side of Marcy's neck looking for the pulse that should be thrumming in the black-haired girl's neck. Sasha let out a distressed scream. Clinging to Marcy. Anne squeezed Marcy's hand, wishing some sign of life would come from her. Anne pulled Sasha closer, pulling Marcy's limp head onto her shoulder.
The girls sobbed holding the deceased body of Marcy, loud and distraught, unable to stop. When the girls were found like that by Mrs. and Mr. Boonchuy, they were tightly holding her. Sasha was shaking no longer wailing or making loud sobs just sniffles and little heaves.
The group got by the girls and hugged them, letting them grieve, letting them cry till they couldn't any longer. Then got them up. Sasha was unsteady just like Anne but turned and gasped running shakily to Grimes, he was propping himself up unsteadily against Frobo. He hushed her and hugged her with his arm. She wheezed trying to apologize.
It was all a mess. Yunan took off her cloak and covered Marcy with it as Lady Olivia helped wrap her in it, Grimes and Sasha helped each other walk.
The travel down from the floating palace was blurry and long. Sasha and Anne felt that they didn't know where they were as they walked. General Yunan and Frobo carried Marcy's corpse. LA was busy like always, but the incident got all the streets in the area blocked off. Anne stopped walking, her leg not willing her to continue walking. Sasha paused by her. Anne couldn't meet her eyes but they both knew the words she wanted to say. All they needed to discuss, figure out. Words they didn't want to utter things they didn't want to talk about. Sasha helped her continue to walk. The ambulance flashing ahead.
Marcy's body being directed in a direction away from her. Anne saw the shape; she covered her mouth as she felt more cries claw up her throat. Sitting now in the ambulance. Sasha still was actively bleeding heavily from her back. Grimes needed medical attention from his arms back in Newtopia, and they needed to check Anne for major injuries.
Of course that wasn't the end of that, they didn't get time to breathe before having to defeat the core. Anne made the plan as soon as she and Sasha found out. She knew that she was going to give herself up. She knew that she was going to leave Sasha best friendless. She had to do it though. Since they were down a person her and Sasha took on the stress of the third stone. Anne felt heavy but a smile cracked onto her face. Sasha looked so cool. They fought as hard as they could, it definitely was more difficult when stricken with grief and not having Marcy.
Anne sighed looking at Sasha. She was taking a deep breath trying to ignore the slash in her back and the stress the half the stone was causing on her body. They couldn't finish this without the sacrifice. She asked for Sasha's stone and relinquished her part. Sasha's eyebrows furrowed.
"Why?" she asked gravely. Anne pressed her lips together tightly "Why, Anne?" she asked more firmly. Anne couldn't make eye contact with her, she knew she had to do this, but to do it she couldn't ask Sasha to let her. Sasha would never let her. She straightened her posture.
"I have to. I have to call upon the power of all three calamity stones. I know it'll kill me. I have-"
"No." Sasha interrupted her.
"Wha-"
"No! Anne, I am not letting you kill yourself! Gracious sacrifice or not!" Sasha shouted at her. The power of the core rushing around them, the robots around them creaking with force. All too much noise.
"I'm not-" she paused. "I'm not asking. I am telling you Sasha, this isn't me asking for permission." Anne held out her hand for the stone. Sasha glared and got her stone. Putting it roughly into Anne's gloved hand the Green Calamity Gem appears by it. Sasha had hot tears brimming her eyes, but she didn't dare let them slip.
"If you die. I'll never forgive you Boonchuy." she bit out at Anne. Anne smiled softly and sent her back down, sighing roughly.
Not looking back, she couldn't if she did, she wouldn't make the wish, she wouldn't. She screamed as she got out the grief and regret and anything stopping her from letting go of her life. She looked at the three stones in her hand and sighed deeply as she wished upon them quietly. "Please. help me save the people I love." her voice shook softly as she said her request.
The spark and energy flooded out of it. Warming her palm as she held them, the atmosphere of space was cool. She was crying, damn it. Flooding of warmth and colorful light. It was gorgeous. Making it all that messed up that this is how she is going to die, this is how she's going to leave everyone that loves her.
The gemstones exploded into little specks that shimmered elegantly as they absorbed into her. Every part of her body was on fire, every nerve screaming at her as she pushed her body past its mortal limit. She flinched and dealt with the pain as she looked at the core.
"Anne! Please don't do this!" Sprig's voice cut through to her "Don't go! I don't know what I'll do without you!" the frog boy yelled to her. Anne turned around and smiled painfully at him.
"You're my everything! You've changed my life!" He cried reaching out for her, beckoning her to come back. Anne held his hand softly and tilted her head and sighed.
"You've changed mine," she said softly. He cried harshly into their hands. A look flashing over his face that knew he could not convince Anne to not do this. If Sasha couldn't convince Anne not to do this, he couldn't either. She let go of his webbed hands and kissed his forehead. "Goodbye, Sprig." she said softly to him as he flew a bit away on Frobo.
She sighed a shaky and pained sound as she lifted her hand in front of her focusing all of her remaining energy in her. Focusing on using every remaining part of herself to end the Core and save everyone. She screamed loudly. No one could hear her in the void of space, the only being who could hear her was Sprig. She knew. All of the pain she was feeling it would only be hers to deal with in this way.
She couldn't feel anything now, she was only numb now. She looked at Sprig's sobbing face. Frobo's synthetic sad one. She smiled weakly at them both as she was carried back down. The water enveloped her, but she couldn't feel it. She looked at him then her pseudo family and Sasha. She looked mad, but despite that was so distraught.
Her eyes looked back at Sprig, she hummed, subconsciously squeezing his hand, she didn't have enough strength left to actually do so.
"Don't cry, Sprig. Saving this world is the best choice I have ever made. I only regret not-" she had millions of regrets running through her head "is not seeing Love Choice Two." she lied, he knew that it was a lie. A bad one. Funny, going out of this all with a lie as her last world. She would laugh but it couldn't leave her lips as her lungs didn't have enough air. Then it was all empty.
As she opened her eyes it was all fuzzy till her mind caught up. She was fine, she felt light. She got up and looked around and saw a small cabin that resembled a house she could find in Wart Wood; she entered it without a second thought. The inside was cozy. familiar though she had never been there before. She saw on the coffee table in the entrance was...
Marcy. Sitting there with her short cut hair that was curling around her soft face. She looked like she tried to make herself look more mature. She had on a green cardigan that had Yunan's badges on it and a white flowy sundress. She didn't have a pin in her hair, but she looked graceful strangely. On her lap was a cat that looked like Domino.
Anne felt her eyes brim with tears, and she went closer,
"Marcy." she said, disbelief in her voice in reaction. Marcy smiled goofily. The cat got up and stretched making room for Anne to get closer and hug onto Marcy. Marcy snorted a laugh softly and squeezed her tightly and comfortably.
"Hey girl, I knew you'd be here soon...! I had a lot of time to talk to CD." Marcy said and kissed Anne's cheek.
"How...? How did you know you would be seeing me wherever this is?" Anne asked, confused. Marcy shrugged.
"I asked to see this conversation happen." she said very simply. A sound of a throat clearing came from the direction of the thing in the form of Domino.
"Hello, Anne Boonchuy. I've been waiting for you."
The conversation went professionally, Anne said she couldn't take that position not now, and the Deity furrowed its fuzzy cat brows but accepted the fact, Marcy told them that Anne wouldn't accept the responsibility yet. Marcy hugged Anne as she was given a second chance telling her how many years till, they would next see each other and kissed her forehead with tears in her eyes.
Then Anne was back in Amphibia, seeing every Amphibian that ever cared for her still crying and Sasha standing behind Grimes, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. Her face had a hardened expression though. She was the first to see Anne. She let her eyes widen as she sniffled and brought attention to Anne. Anne got tackled by hugs and crying faces. Sasha leaned against her. A comforting weight but Sasha was obviously still mad at her. Anne felt her pocket and noticed the concentrated fragments of the Calamity Gems. She showed Sasha silently and she just nodded.
They had to go home, Anne knew that this would be way too tense and there was really nothing she could do, she had dug this grave by herself. She's grateful she's alive though. She really wasn't ready to die.
Last day in Amphibia, Anne and the Plantar shared an emotional parting, Sasha and Grimes hugged like a father and daughter, Sasha cried softly, and so did Grimes. The energy was tense and felt as if no matter how meaningfully they said bye to each other it wasn't enough to feel satisfying and make them feel like they didn't leave behind a huge part of them. The two girls stood in front of Yunan and Olivia and the two women had Marcy's cloak and belt. Yunan was barely holding together her stoic expression, and Olivia was softly smiling, not quite about to cry but she could. Andrias sat behind them he sighed.
"We all decided you two may want part of Marcy's suit. Something to remember her by. We are truly, truly." Lady Olivia's voice stuttered. Yunan continued for her "Truly sorry that things happened like this!" she sobbed. Anne patted her shoulder and graciously took the items and held them to Sasha to decide which garment she wanted. Sasha took the belt and looked like she would cry if she touched it, but she held it delicately in her hands.
"Thank you, Lady Olivia, and General Yunan." Anne bowed her head.
"Yes, thank you." Sasha said softly.
"I'm sorry for what I did to Marcy. I will regret these mistakes for the rest of my life." Andrias spoke. Based on his energy he knew his apology wasn't something the two girls would accept.
They had more heartfelt goodbyes with their Amphibian second families, way more solemn and teary than it would have been originally, but that's just how it happened. The portal opened as the two said their final goodbyes very heartfelt. They held each other's hands and bowed before Sasha entered. Sprig hugged Anne one last time and she hugged him tighter than she's ever hugged anyone before. Then she left.
As soon as they got home, they didn't land on one of the highways of LA but a quiet street. It was probably a school day. They didn't know what to discuss now. Sasha was still tense and mad at Anne, and also sad and deeply grieving after everything. While Anne was upset, she hurt Sasha, and also deeply grieving everything.
"Sash... I'm sorry for throwing myself away like that. I should have thought of how you were feeling. I just!"
"Stop Anne." She cut her off and looked at the direction they were in. "Come on." Sasha said. Avoiding listening to anymore conversation of everything that has happened in the last two days. She started walking to their left, going home. Anne followed her and sighed. Sasha wasn't ready to accept an apology.
She stopped in her tracks looking up seeing the blocked off routes of where the battle happened. Memories of the ambulance and Marcy being taken to the coroners. Anne felt tears try to pry out of her eyes. She forced herself to catch up to Sasha. Sasha was trying to keep her eyes in front of her. Not look around herself too much. Soon the neighborhood took form. Sasha looked at Anne finally and stopped walking.
Anne stared back at her and walked closer to her and hugged Sasha; her body tensed but she leaned against Anne. The hug didn't last long before Sasha pulled away from her and sighed.
"See you later, Anne." she said as she motioned towards her mom's house just a little bit ahead of them. Anne nodded. A sick feeling in her stomach, as if everything would change if Sasha and her went separate ways, she swallowed her doubts and smiled softly.
"See you later, Sasha." Anne said hopefully as she walked away and back to her house.