Author's Forward

Is it weird to write fan fiction for a show (and a 'ship') that's been off the air for nearly a decade? Probably. I was a late arrival to this fictional world but I've come to very quickly adore it. It's a shame Victorious and Sam & Cat didn't get a proper finale. I hope we do, but since that seems unlikely, this is what I've come up with. I don't own any of the characters, lyrics, etc. used here. I'm just a shameless fangirl. PS – I designed the chapter titles to use the hashtags that Sam & Cat used for their episode titles, but unfortunately this site doesn't support having the hash in any titles. That's a huge annoyance for me! Even the story title is wrong, it should be #GrandFinale. So please forgive that oddity here. Thanks!

1. iDream of Carly...and Cat!?

"One more for the road?"

As Sam watched her best friend embrace that lovable lump, Gibby, one last time, it really hit home. This was it. It was all really ending.

It had happened fast. So fast, Sam wasn't able (or maybe willing) to process it. The night had gone from trying to find someone to take Carly to the father-daughter dance because her father hadn't been able to make it, to doing an impromptu final episode of iCarly and bidding her best friend farewell. Her father had shown up after all, and offered to take Carly with him to his post in Italy. And as happy as it made Sam that Carly would finally get to be with her father, it killed her to say goodbye. To let go of her web show, and worse, her best friend.

Not just best friend…

"I'll ride down with you," Sam said, hoping to prolong these unexpected final moments as long as possible. She spent the next minute going over in her mind what she wanted to say. Why had she waited? Why hadn't she said something sooner?

When the elevator doors closed, Sam tried to turn to Carly. She wanted to look into her eyes and tell her how she felt. That she didn't want Carly to go. That she loved her.

But once they were alone, all she could do was stare at the floor.

She felt Carly next to her, brushing against her left arm, looking adorable in her purple top and black jacket, and those snug jeans that brought out the curve in her hips.

Tell her, Puckett. Tell her!

Seconds passed. Sam couldn't bring herself to speak.

Say something, idiot. You're going to lose her!

Sam opened her mouth, but words failed to come out.

At least give her the damn buttons…

Finally, Sam's arm responded and moved to her back pocket. She pulled out the blue remote box Freddie had built for them. She held it in her hand for a moment, letting her fingers play over its smooth surface one last time. In her periphery, she saw Carly staring blankly ahead, just as she had been. Did she feel the same? Or was it just the sadness of leaving behind everything she knew and loved? Sam drew a deep breath.

"Why don't you take this with you?" She presented the remote to Carly, whose gorgeous eyes glanced down at it. She silently reached for the device with both hands. Sam let it slip from her grasp. "You just push a button if you ever need a laugh…cheer…random dance."

She managed to force a faint smile and a bit of a laugh as she spoke. Carly stared in silence at the device as her eyes watered. Sam's heart was in her throat. An eternity later, Carly looked to her.

"Oh, Sam." Her voice cracked as she reached for Sam and pulled her into an embrace. Sam buried her face in Carly's shoulder. She smelled so good, lilac and a hint of vanilla. Normally Sam hated hugging, but Carly was always an exception to that rule. She pulled the brunette close to her, felt the small firm mounds of Carly's breasts press against her own. She was afraid Carly might feel her heart pounding.

Tell her, Puckett! Tell her now, or you may never get another chance.

But she couldn't speak. She just remained there, holding Carly close as if she could somehow prevent her from leaving, from flying to Italy and ripping Sam's heart and soul out.

They were almost at the bottom. She had to make her move. She gently pulled back from the embrace and swallowed against a very dry throat. Her heart stuttered as she fell into Carly's endless brown eyes.

"I love you, Carls," she said. "No one else in this world gets me like you do. Don't go. Stay with me. Please."

Carly blinked in shock. Every heartbeat was an eternity.

Puckett, you ruined it! You idiot.

Carly's lips turned upward in that effortless, ridiculously beautiful smile. Sam felt Carly's hands on her face. Her touch was like fire. Carly leaned towards Sam, her lips reaching out…

Oh, god, it's happening…it's really happening.

The door slid up. Carly and Sam turned.

No one was there.

Wait…what? Where's Lewbert? He should be there…

Sam looked back to Carly. But instead of Carly's dark eyes and black hair, she found herself looking into a pair of large, innocent brown eyes, set into a smooth face with a flawless complexion, all of it framed with bright red hair. Sam's heart stuttered again, as Cat's full lips also curved up into a smile. She was every bit as beautiful as Carly, but for for entirely different reasons.

"Cat? What are you doing here?"

"I don't know," the redhead replied with a giggle. "It's your dream, silly."

"What?"

"Have some street ham."

Cat offered Sam a plate with a massive canned ham on it. Sam blinked…

Her eyes fluttered open. A blue blur somewhere in front of her slowly coalesced into the S-light that hung on her wall. She was on her left side, facing the bathroom and closets. Moonlight poured through the window next to her, illuminating Cat's bed on the opposite wall in a strange, ethereal light. She could just make out Cat's sleeping form: her flaming red hair spread out around her head like a halo of fire. Her face wore an innocent grin that twitched a few times. Sam wondered what she was dreaming about.

Probably running around in a meadow full of bubbles and unicorns, singing pop songs and eating bibble.

Sam smiled to herself at the thought. All of those things would make Cat happy, and Cat deserved to be happy.

She closed her eyes and tried to get back to sleep. It didn't last long. She was restless and twitchy after that dream. She was always worked up after seeing Carly in her dreams, especially dreams when they almost kiss. Cat's unexpected arrival was new, and had her even more worked up.

Probably because you're leaving, Sam thought. Not two feet underneath her, a half-packed suitcase awaited the finishing touches. It was a decision she'd spent many weeks considering. When Sam came to LA years ago, it was just supposed to be a quick stop. It turned into much more than that. Sam had overstayed her welcome here, let herself get pulled into too much by too many. And now it was all in danger of collapsing again.

Just like it had in Seattle.

She tried to force the thoughts away, screaming at herself in the silence of the early morning as she often screamed at the kids she babysat. She was used to that working; when Sam got pissed, people listened. In fact, the only person tough enough to listen to Sam scream and not care was Sam herself.

Deeming sleep a lost cause, the blond slipped out of bed. For a brief moment, she considered pulling out the suitcase and finishing the job. Quickly, quietly packing up the rest of what she planned to take and slipping out the back door. Cat was sound asleep, she could probably manage to do it without waking her up.

Is that really how you want to leave things, Puckett? Do you want to abandon her right now, right before graduation?

Sam's plan was sound, in theory. Leave before she gets hurt. Leave before Cat has a chance to. She didn't expect to feel anxiety-inducing guilt pangs over the pain she'd be inflicting. It was an irritating problem, and one of the main reasons she hadn't left yet.

Screw it, she thought. I want bacon.

She did her best to be quiet as she got out the skillet and threw some bacon strips on. The imagery from her dream plagued her as she worked and it drove her nuts. Sam hated being introspective. She hated ruminating on past mistakes. She especially hated figuring out emotional turmoil, or even admitting that she was in the midst of emotional turmoil. But she was, and she knew it.

Not so much over Carly. Sam had beaten herself up for years, emotionally speaking, over Carly. She had settled on the fact that Carly would be her one, great "what if" story that she'd tell her future kids or grandkids about, if she ever had any. Which, given her disposition and her growing irritation with children of all shapes and sizes, didn't seem real likely either. No, the thing that cheesed Sam off about the dream was the ending.

She hadn't really told Carly how she felt. Hadn't shared a near-kiss in the elevator. Lewbert had been waiting at the bottom, and Sam had screamed at him for interrupting them. Carly had left, never knowing how Sam really felt.

But Carly had turned into Cat and offered her ham.

What the hell was her screwed-up, subconscious brain trying to tell her?

The sizzle of the bacon distracted her from the intrusive thoughts. She preferred to keep things simple, and resented all of these stupid feelings and emotions that were messing up her day. But as she piled the bacon on her plate and retreated to the living room, she passed by Cat's graduation gown, and realized that her stupid feelings and emotions were only going to get worse.

When Carly left, it had been sudden; Sam barely had time to process what was happening before it was over. But that damned robe had been hanging there for like a week now, constantly reminding Sam that this little arrangement might be ending soon. It taunted her every morning. She'd have busted it across the face, if it had one. She still had half a mind to tear it down and shred it by hand. That would show it.

But it would also probably make Cat sad, and that was something Sam didn't want.

Stupid feelings. Stupid emotional turmoil.

"Come to Mama," Sam said as she took a fistful of bacon from her plate. "Make it all better."