Family Night Out
"Where are we going?" Troy asked as Marcy helped him put on his shoes.
"It's Mommy and Mæ̀'s night to go dancing." Marcy said with a smile. "But we're going to the arcade first."
"Why the arcade?"
"Because Mommy and Mæ̀ like to spend a lot of time dancing." Marcy said as she finished tying his shoes. She straightened up slowly and put a hand to her pregnant belly. "We're going to play some super fun games and then join them later." Marcy heard the bedroom door open and looked over to see Sasha step out with her leather jacket hanging around her shoulders. "Oh wow." Marcy whispered as she started to blush. Sasha was wearing a black lace-up crop top with tight jeans and a black studded belt.
"Hey Marbles." Sasha purred as she strode over. She gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before squatting down to ruffle Troy's hair. "You two are going to have so much fun at the arcade and then you can come over to dance with us."
"I don't know how much dancing I'll be able to do." Marcy said with a laugh as she rubbed her belly. Sasha straightened up and took Marcy's hand. She bowed and kissed it gently while looking deep into her eyes.
"I'd love if you'd save just one dance for me." Sasha said smoothly. Marcy smiled and nodded. Sasha slipped a hand around her waist. She pulled Marcy closer, making her squeak in surprise. "I know you learned how to ballroom dance back in Newtopia." Sasha whispered in her ear as they slowly waltzed around the living room.
"Sashy." Marcy said as she flushed with color. She was completely smitten with Sasha as she led her around the room. "Since when do you ballroom dance?"
"Since I learned that you did." Sasha said as she twirled Marcy before pulling her close and wrapping her arms around her. "I wanted to be able to dance with you." Marcy's heart melted as Sasha looked at her tenderly.
"Did you learn back in Amphibia?" Marcy asked, touched.
"Grime taught me." Sasha said with a snort as she recalled the memory. "He said it would impress you."
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"Lieutenant." Grime said absently as he entered into the war room while staring at an open map. "I've heard rumors about the western provinces that-" He began as he looked up. He was at a loss for words as Sasha had stopped mid waltz with a training dummy in her arms. She quickly dropped it and tried to kick it out of sight.
"Yes! The western provinces!" Sasha said red in the face as she hurried over and snatched the map from Grime. "A lot of resistance there. Uh, what news did we receive?" She said, trying to focus. Grime leaned to one side to see the dummy dressed like Marcy. He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. "Grime!" Sasha said loudly as she moved to block it from view. "What news did we-?"
"You're never going to learn how to properly ballroom dance with that thing." Grime sighed as he opened his eyes and gestured to the dummy.
"What?" Sasha nearly choked. "Who said I was-?"
"Percy! Braddock!" Grime barked through the open door. Sasha sputtered incoherently. They appeared at the door moments later.
"Yes Captain!" Percy said, saluting him quickly. Braddock did the same. "Hey Sasha." He smiled and waved. Grime snapped his fingers.
"The lieutenant needs to learn a traditional Newtopia Waltz." Grime said, crossing his arms. Percy and Braddock's eyes lit up and Sasha covered her face in embarrassment.
"I don't-" She mumbled weakly.
"Demonstrate." Grime said, clapping his hands together. Percy and Braddock faced each other. Percy bowed and Braddock curtseyed. They slipped their arms around each other and laced their fingers together. They took a couple of steps and Grime sidled up to Sasha.
"Grime." Sasha whined.
"And stop right there." Grime said, clapping his hands again. "Now did you see, Lieutenant? They started with the left foot going forward and started moving counter clockwise." He said seriously as he pointed to the position of their feet. Sasha blinked and nodded. "Watch closely. It's a traditional one two three beat." He clapped. "Begin again!" Sasha crossed her arms as she watched closely. "Okay, now did you see how the downbeat is on one?"
"Yes, so it's down up up?" Sasha asked for confirmation. Grime nodded.
"Exactly, now see how they are slightly offset? Percy is to the right and Braddock to the left. Since you will be leading you'll be to the right." Grime signaled for them to continue. After a minute or two Grime had them stop. He turned to Sasha. "Now you try." He said, offering his clawed hand to her. Sasha hesitated.
"I don't think I need to practice. I think I got the general idea." She said, rubbing the back of her head self-consciously.
"Nonsense." Grime snorted. "You wouldn't send a soldier into battle if they had only seen someone else sword fight." Sasha chewed her lip. He had a point. She shrugged. "Excellent. So before we begin it is customary to bow to your partner." Grime lifted his cape and bowed. Sasha did the same. She put one hand on his shoulder and held the other. They took a few practice steps. Percy and Braddock clapped.
"Great form Sasha!" Percy and Braddock called out encouragingly.
"So this is a Newtopian waltz?" Sasha asked curiously.
"The toad version anyway." Grime explained. "Newts also use their tails."
"Makes sense." Sasha said as they continued.
"I think the toad version will serve you best anyways." Grime said with a twinkle in his eye. "Especially with the partner you have in mind." His good eye wandered to the dummy.
"What?" Sasha said flustered. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"Of course not." He sighed with a smile. She was helpless. "Now if you want to learn a traditional frog dance-"
"I don't." Sasha said defensively. Grime raised an eyebrow and Sasha smiled sadly. "I mean, I would but…" She trailed off. "Just the Newtopian one is fine."
"Very well." Grime said with understanding. After a moment they stopped. Grime bowed and Sasha did the same. "We can practice another time."
"Thanks." Sasha said quickly, wiping her eyes. Grime patted her on the shoulder.
"I think it will really impress her." He said with a knowing look and wink.
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"Well, it did." Marcy said, leaning forward to give her a gentle kiss. Sasha grinned and pressed her forehead to Marcy's. They heard the bedroom door open again and Anne stepped out. Sasha felt her heart begin to race as she saw Anne step out in a shoulderless blue top and white skirt. Marcy glanced between them and smirked. Sasha's mouth was hanging open and Anne was biting her lip as she looked Sasha up and down.
"You look…" Sasha said in a cracked voice before covering her mouth. Marcy patted her on the back sympathetically. She strode over to kiss Anne.
"You look amazing as always Anna-banana." Marcy beamed.
"Aw, thanks Mar-mar." Anne smiled and nuzzled her nose.
"Are we going yet?" Troy complained loudly.
"Yup!" Anne said apologetically.
"Let's get you set up in your car seat." Marcy said, walking back over and taking his little hand in hers. "I think Mommy and Mæ̀ need a minute." She said with a wink as they left.
"You look pretty stunning, Sash." Anne said as she strode up to her. She reached out to caress her cheek.
"You-" Sasha stumbled over her words, "-Pretty too." Sasha turned bright red in embarrassment. "Pretty! You look-" Anne smiled and pulled her into a kiss.
"Thanks." Anne whispered as she put her hands on Sasha's hips. "I can't wait to spend the night with my favorite dance partner." Sasha whimpered happily and nodded. They shared a brief kiss.
"Marry me." Sasha whispered in her ear. Anne giggled and Sasha grinned.
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"Closed!?" Sasha cursed as she read the sign. Anne let out a disappointed sigh. She glanced back at the car.
"Guess we're all going to the arcade." Anne said with a sad smile. Sasha looked at her sympathetically.
"Maybe we could find another place?" Sasha proposed. Anne shook her head.
"I like our usual place." She said, glancing back over at the sign. "At least it only seems to be temporary."
"I'm sorry Anne." Sasha said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"It's not your fault. Neither of us bothered to check their website." Anne said as she pulled out her phone. Sasha put an arm around her shoulder.
"Let's head back to the car and let Marcy know." She said, jerking her thumb behind her. Anne nodded and they trudged back.
"What's up?" Marcy asked, a little confused as they climbed back in.
"They're closed." Anne explained. "Something about emergency repairs or something."
"Do you two want to go to a different place?" Marcy said as she pulled out her phone.
"No, let's just go to the arcade." Anne said, waving her down. Marcy put her phone away and they drove to the arcade. Once inside Marcy and Troy wandered off to get change. Sasha leaned against one of the machines as she looked around the place. Her eyes landed on the prize counter and she sighed. Anne gave her a questioning look.
"Normally I'd offer to win something for you three but I'm not that great at these kinds of games." Sasha said looking at the numerous arcade cabinets. Anne squeezed her hand.
"Maybe I could win something for us instead?" Anne said, pulling her along. Sasha grinned.
"Oh? Have you been hiding a secret talent from us?" Sasha teased. Anne rolled her eyes. They found Marcy and Troy.
"Can we borrow some?" Anne asked, looking at the cup of coins in Marcy's hands.
"You want to play?" Marcy said as her eyes widened in excitement.
"Of course." Anne said and gave her a quick kiss. "Do they have those racing games that let four people play?" Marcy looked down at Troy.
"They do but I don't think Troy can reach the pedals yet." Marcy said, chewing her lip.
"No problem." Sasha said casually as she picked him up and put him on her shoulders. "He can sit on my lap and steer and I'll press the pedals for him."
"Race cars!" Troy said beaming. Marcy nodded and led the way through the maze of cabinets.
"How big is this place?" Anne wondered aloud as they kept walking.
"I know right?" Marcy said excitedly. Sasha nudged Anne as they walked past more cabinets.
"What?" Anne asked. Sasha pointed to several of the games. The screens cycled through demos of the gameplay and high scores. MRW was listed as the top score on several of the cabinets. "You don't think?" Anne whispered. Sasha shrugged.
"Hey Marbles?" Sasha asked. They suddenly stopped before a row of racing games.
"We're here!" Marcy said happily as she started putting quarters into three of them. Her initials were also listed as the top scores on these too. "Sorry, did you say something?" Marcy said, turning back to them. Sasha shook her head and smiled. She put Troy down and looked at the identical cabinets.
"Wait." Sasha said suddenly and looked down at Troy. "Which one is the fastest one?" She said with a wink. Marcy laughed and considered the question.
"That one." She said pointing to the middle. Sasha nodded and picked Troy up.
"Ready to win?" She asked as she sat him down on her lap and he grabbed the steering wheel.
"It's not about winning-" Anne chided playfully.
"Yeah, yeah." Sasha said as she rolled her eyes.
"-It's about having fun!" Troy finished. Anne looked at him proudly.
"And winning is the most fun." Sasha said to herself with a smirk. Anne couldn't help but smile as she shook her head.
"Ready?" Marcy asked as she selected the stage.
"Ready!" Troy said excitedly. A few minutes later Sasha was groaning as 'You Lose' flashed across their screen. Anne repressed a laugh and Marcy smiled apologetically. Troy had spent the majority of the race driving in circles before driving the wrong direction on the track.
"Good game." Marcy said consolingly. Sasha sighed and looked down at Troy.
"Did you have fun, buddy?" She asked. He beamed and nodded. Sasha smiled and ruffled his hair.
"It was a great game, Mars." Sasha said, leaning over to kiss her. "Want to play again?"
"I wanna play a new game!" Troy said as he scrambled off of Sasha's lap and started looking around. Marcy grinned and got up. He took her hand and pointed to a different set of games.
"We'll catch up with you two in a bit." Marcy said with a wave. Sasha smiled as she watched them go. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up. Anne pulled her into an intimate kiss.
"Oh!" Sasha said surprised as Anne pulled away and looked at her tenderly. "W-what was that for?" She asked pleasantly confused.
"You look pretty happy for someone who hates to lose." Anne teased gently. Sasha snorted and looked back at the screen. She ran a hand over the steering wheel.
"I don't think I lost." Sasha grinned to herself. "I got to play a game with my family." She stood up and looked around the arcade.
"When did you get so mature?" Anne asked, holding her hand. Sasha squeezed it and looked at Anne.
"Let's find another game." She said kissing it.
"Sash." Anne blushed. Sasha grinned and pulled her along. It was reminding her of old times.
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"You have to try this game, Anne." Sasha said as she led Anne through the arcade at the mall.
"But did we really need to skip school to play it?" Anne said nervously. Sasha rolled her eyes and stopped to look at Anne.
"Okay, first of all we didn't skip school." Sasha waved a hand dismissively. "We went to all our classes and just happened to leave the last one early."
"Sasha that still-" Anne protested.
"It's not skipping." Sasha sighed exasperatedly. "It's truancy."
"That sounds worse." Anne said nervously.
"It's no big deal." Sasha said, and started pulling her along again.
"We could have waited till after school."
"We could have but then we'd have like no time to play because Anne has to go home to mommy and daddy like right after school." Sasha said, bitterly.
"I have to help with the restaurant." Anne said, frowning slightly.
"Right, whatever." Sasha said changing the subject and smiling again. "Are you ready to play the best game ever?" She said excitedly. Anne still felt uncomfortable but happy that Sasha seemed excited about something.
"Y-yeah!" Anne said quickly. Sasha grinned and pulled her around a corner where they saw a large colorful neon dance game. "Super Dance Fusion." Anne read aloud.
"It's so cool." Sasha said, grabbing both of Anne's hands and looking at her excitedly. Anne looked at her and then the game.
"Oh. Would we be playing against each other?" Anne asked, uncertainly. Sasha quickly shook her head.
"We'd play together as partners." Sasha said as she pulled her up.
"Partners?" Anne blushed. "Do you really want me as your partner?"
"Of course." Sasha said as if it were obvious. "Who else would I pick?"
"I mean, Marcy's pretty good at games-"
"Okay, no offense to Mar-mar but she is like a major klutz. Like she's a wizard at literally any other game than these." Sasha said as she started putting quarters in. "And besides, I wanted to spend time with you." She said shyly. Anne blinked. "I don't get to see you as much anymore now that you're helping with the restaurant."
"Sash…" Anne said sympathetically. Sasha quickly shook herself and smiled again.
"But anyway." Sasha said, turning back to the cabinet and pointing to the screen. "We're gonna get our names on the high score." She held out her hand. "Ready?" Anne took it and nodded. A little over an hour later they were laughing and sweating as they hung over the rails of the cabinet.
"Okay, that was really fun, Sash." Anne said with a huge grin plastered across her face.
"I know right?" Sasha beamed back. "We'll have to keep coming back here and practicing. We're gonna be so good at this." She looked back at the screen. "We're going to beat the high score in no time." She said, punching the air as her eyes lit up with determination. "And then our names will be at the top, Boonchuy." Anne looked at her with adoration. She loved how confident she was. She wished she could be that confident some day.
"I can't wait." Anne said before looking a little put out. "But I might need to save up my allowance more." Sasha frowned and chewed her lip. She looked the machine up and down. She pulled her foot back and kicked it hard near the coin return. Anne yelped as several quarters fell out. Sasha grinned and scooped them up.
"No problem Boonchuy." Sasha said as she dumped them into Anne's hand.
"Sasha!" Anne said anxiously as she looked around.
"That wasn't enough?" Sasha asked, confused. "Here, I'll get the rest back for you." She turned back around and made to kick it again. Anne yelped and pulled her back.
"Sasha no! That's stealing!" Anne said in a frightened whisper. Sasha scoffed unconcerned.
"This isn't stealing. Charging one dollar per game is stealing." Sasha argued.
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"Is that what I think it is?" Sasha said as they stopped in their tracks. Anne's mouth fell open as she saw it too.
"Super Dance Fusion?" Anne gasped. They looked at each other with giddy excitement. "Oh my frog we have to play!" Anne said as they ran over. Anne quickly dug through her pockets and started slipping quarters into the machine.
"It's been so long." Sasha said nostalgically as she ran her hand over the railings. "Do you think we'll still be any good at it?" Anne clasped Sasha's hands and looked at her intensely.
"Our names will be the top score by the end of the night, Waybright." Anne said without a hint of doubt. Sasha could have melted on the spot.
"Anne." Sasha said flustered, as her heart skipped a beat. She loved how confident she was. Anne nodded and scrolled through the tracks. She selected one and the countdown began.
"But first I need my good luck kiss." Anne said, turning to Sasha and pulling her into an unexpected kiss. Sasha turned bright red and Anne pulled away. "Alright, now I'm ready!" She said, taking Sasha's hand in hers and turning back to the screen as the music started. It was the same song that they danced to at prom.
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Sasha looked at Anne longingly from across the gymnasium. Anne was with her new group of friends. She was smiling widely as they seemed to be laughing at a joke she made. Sasha scowled and crushed the plastic cup that was in her hand. She wiped her eyes and turned back to the punch bowl. If Anne was having fun without her then she was going to have fun without Anne. She glanced around carefully before slipping a flask out of her jacket pocket. She smirked as she started pouring it into the punch bowl.
"Sashy?" She heard a familiar voice call and she jumped. She hastily shoved the flask back into her pocket and spun around. She nearly fell over as Marcy threw her arms around her neck.
"Mars!?" Sasha exclaimed in shock. Marcy squeezed her tight and Sasha blushed. "W-what are you doing here?"
"I missed my girls." Marcy said, pulling back with wide watery eyes and smiling as she looked at Sasha. "You look so handsome."
"Oh!" Sasha said, turning bright red. She suddenly felt like doing something stupid and wreckless to impress Marcy… and Anne, if she was watching. "Thanks Mar-mar. Wanna see me-" She looked around for something cool to do.
"How do you think I look?" Marcy asked nervously. Sasha blinked and felt embarrassed. She hadn't complimented Marcy on her outfit.
"Shit!" Sasha cursed at herself and then slapped a hand over her mouth in horror. She quickly waved her hands. "I didn't mean you! I meant, shit I didn't-" Someone pushed Marcy aside to get to the punch bowl. Sasha glared at the football player and pulled back her fist. She decked him right in the face and he stumbled back dazed. "Who the fuck pushes a cute girl to get some stupid fucking punch!?" Sasha yelled at him. Marcy turned pink as Sasha grabbed her hand and pulled her away while flipping the guy off.
"I look cute?" Marcy squeaked. Sasha was breathing hard as she seethed over someone treating Marcy so carelessly.
"You always look cute Mar-mar." Sasha said absently. "You're adorable." Marcy could have cried.
"Sashy." She sniffed and Sasha blanched.
"Mar-mar!" She said quickly looking her over. "Are you hurt? Did he hurt you?" Sasha asked as she bristled and started rolling up her sleeves as she made to go back.
"Sashy no, I-" Marcy said as she cupped her face and turned it back to her. Sasha felt her heart skip a beat.
"Marcy?" They heard another voice call out. Marcy let go of Sasha as Anne knocked her to the floor as she hugged her.
"Geez Boonchuy." Sasha said disapprovingly as Anne squeezed Marcy.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Anne said, wiping her eyes as she beamed at Marcy. "I missed you so much!"
"I missed you too Anna-banana." Marcy said, hugging her back. Sasha's lip twitched as she tried not to scowl. Of course they were happier to see each other than her. Anne got to her feet and held out a hand to help Marcy up. Sasha crossed her arms and looked away.
"What are you doing here?" Anne asked quickly.
"I already asked that." Sasha muttered under her breath.
"I wanted to go to prom with my two best friends." Marcy said, reaching out to take both of their hands.
"Aw, Mar-mar." Anne said, touched. She looked over at Sasha who was determinedly avoiding her gaze. She felt a little guilty. She hadn't had the courage to approach Sasha yet to compliment her on her red and black tux. She awkwardly cleared her throat but Sasha cut across her.
"You look… really pretty, Boonchuy." Sasha said quietly, without looking at her. Anne's heart fluttered.
"Sash." Anne said quietly, slipping her hand in Sasha's. "You look stunning." Sasha was screaming internally. She was pretty sure she had forgotten how to breathe. Anne turned back to Marcy. "And you look amazing Mar-mar."
"Thanks." Marcy said embarrassed. There was a tense pause as they were all crushing too hard on each other to speak. Marcy was first to break the silence. "Could we danc-?"
"Waybright!" They heard a teacher call angrily from halfway across the room.
"Shit!" Sasha said ducking down and pulling them with her into the crowd on the dancefloor.
"What did you do?" Anne asked as they ran. Sasha kept her head low as the teacher scanned the crowd.
"Do you mean spiking the punch bowl or punching the quarterback?" Sasha laughed nervously.
"Sasha!" Anne scolded.
"He pushed Marbles." Sasha growled. "He had it coming."
"Not that-" Anne said, putting a hand to her face. "-I get that but why did you-?" She looked back up.
"Sashy!" Marcy said anxiously. "You didn't sneak alcohol into prom, did you?" Sasha smirked guilitly and looked pleased with herself.
"Heh, of course I-!" She started and yelped as she saw more teachers looking for her. They ran towards the bathrooms. A group of gossiping girls looked over at them as they burst inside.
"Oh, ew, it's Sasha Gaybright and Anne Boychuy." Maggie said, rolling her eyes. Anne looked unimpressed at her insults and Sasha snarled. She clenched her fist but Anne held her back.
"We're hiding Sash." Anne hissed in her ear. Sasha made to retort but Marcy pushed past them and slapped Maggie as hard as she could across the face. Anne and Sasha gaped at her. They had never been more attracted to Marcy than they were right now.
"Don't you ever talk to them that way again!" Marcy said glowering at her. Maggie gulped and flinched. She and the other girls scrambled out of the bathroom.
"Mar-mar…"
"Mars…"
"Sorry." Marcy said apologetically as she took their hands. "I think I blew our cover." She peaked out of the bathroom and quickly pulled them with. They slunk along the wall towards one of the backdoors. They heard someone yell their names and they pushed through the door closest to them and ran inside. They sprinted down the hallway and into a classroom. They crouched down as they heard footsteps running past. They waited a few minutes before looking out the door. All was quiet except for the music playing over the intercoms. They looked at each other and burst out laughing.
"So, I think I'm going to skip school Monday." Sasha said as she closed the classroom door and leaned against one of the desks.
"Maybe I'll join you, Waybright." Anne said grinning. Sasha blushed and stared at her feet. Marcy looked between them and let out a contented sigh.
"This isn't how I expected Prom to go." Marcy said, tucking her hair behind her ear.
"Shit, I'm sorry Mars." Sasha apologized. Marcy shook her head.
"Don't be." Marcy said, smiling to herself. "It reminded me of old times." Sasha and Anne shared a look. There was a pause in the music and they all looked at each other. Another song started.
"Marcy Wu." Anne said, holding out a hand to her. "Sasha Waybright." She extended a hand to her too. "Would you share a dance with me?" They looked to be on the verge of tears as they each took a hand and nodded.
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Sasha and Anne were panting as the song ended and the screen started tallying up their points. The numbers kept rising as their hearts pounded. The whole cabinet lit up as they set the new high score. They beamed at each other. For a moment they got lost in each other's eyes. They were so in love. The sounds of clapping brought them back to reality and they turned around. Troy and Marcy were standing behind them and clapping as they stared at the flashing lights in awe.
"Thank you for sharing this dance with me, Anne Boonchuy." Sasha said bowing and kissing her hand. Anne blushed and pulled her into a proper kiss.
"Oh!" Marcy said and covered Troy's eyes as the kiss deepened. They finally pulled away and looked back at the screen.
"Would you do the honors?" Anne asked as she caressed her face. Sasha nodded and entered their initials. The new scoreboard popped up and displayed them at the top. There was a low buzzing as a chain of several tickets started dispensing from the machine. Sasha blinked.
"Wait, this one gives out tickets too?" Sasha exclaimed. Anne giggled as Sasha's eyes lit up with sudden determination. "I'm going to win you all something!" She said looking down at the generous pile of tickets.
"Sashy that's not-" Marcy started to explain but Anne shushed her. She wanted Sasha to have this second unexpected victory.
"Want to go again?" Sasha asked, looking at Anne. Anne smiled but shook her head.
"I think I might want to take a break." Anne said, waving a hand. "You can keep going though." Sasha nodded seriously and quickly started putting more quarters into the machine. Troy scrambled up and looked at his mom full of admiration.
"Can you teach me?" He asked with wide eyes. Sasha grinned and ruffled his hair.
"Of course." She said and looked back at Anne and Marcy. "I'll watch him if you two want a break." Anne took Marcy's hand.
"Is there a game that you and I could play together?" She asked. Marcy squeezed her hand. Sasha and Troy turned back to face the screen as Sasha started explaining the game. Marcy led Anne down a row of cabinets and stopped at one towards the end. "Wait, there's an arcade version of this game?" Anne asked, surprised.
"You can be the hero and I'll be the princess." Marcy said blushing as she looked at the two long eared elves dressed in similar blue outfits. Anne started to turn pink. She remembered playing the console version of this game in college when Marcy had come to visit.
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"So basically-" Marcy said, pacing back and forth as Anne tried to figure out the controls. "There's these three characters that keep getting reincarnated over and over - You can skip this puzzle if you clip through the wall here." Marcy said, taking the controller from Anne and performing a series of complicated looking steps. The character pushed through the wall and into the next room. "-And they go through this similar cycle of events each game." Marcy continued as Anne tried to figure out where she was now.
"Uh, okay, and who's this character again?" Anne asked as she opened the map.
"That's the swordsman. He's the hero and holder of the Prism of Bravery." Marcy said simply. Anne looked at the box.
"So he's the one the game's named after?" Anne asked as she reread the title. Marcy shook her head.
"No, the game is named after the princess he rescues. She's an archer and holds the Prism of Knowledge. They team up at the end to defeat the dual wielding Prince of Shadows and holder of the last Prism. The Prism of Domination." Marcy said excitedly as she pulled up a picture of the three of them on her phone to show Anne. She raised her eyebrows.
"And their color schemes are green, blue, and red?" Anne said slowly. "With the powers of bravery, knowledge, and domination?"
"Yup and yup!"
"A swordsman, an archer, and a dual wielder?"
"Yup!" Marcy said happy that Anne was catching on so quickly.
"And what's that?" Anne said, narrowing her eyes and pointing to something in the background.
"Oh! They fight the moon in one game." Marcy said seriously. Anne put down the controller and stared at her. Marcy blinked. "What?" Anne closed her eyes and shook her head. She wasn't going to bother explaining.
"Nevermind." Anne said, picking up the controller again and turning back to the game. "Next you're going to tell me one becomes a god or something." She chuckled to herself. Marcy made to open her mouth but stopped herself. She didn't want to give away any spoilers. "Thanks for sharing this game with me by the way, Mar-mar." Anne said, smiling. "I know it means a lot to you." Marcy beamed and hugged her tightly. A moment later they both started to feel a little warm and Marcy pulled away quickly. She coughed awkwardly.
"So, uh, just out of curiosity." Anne said as her face burned. "Do these characters ever work things out or-?" She gestured vaguely.
"Not really." Marcy shrugged. "The hero and princess aren't even officially together or anything."
"Huh."
"But in my fanfiction…" Marcy blushed as she looked down at her phone. Anne suddenly choked and her character ran off a cliff. She cursed quietly and returned to her previous save. "They all work out their differences and end up together." She bit her lip and looked up to see Anne staring at her intently.
"Can I read it sometime?" Anne asked eagerly.
"Uh! S-sure!" Marcy swallowed nervously.
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They reached the last stage and the final boss appeared on screen. Anne saw Marcy pull back from the controls. Anne glanced back at the screen and did the same.
"Sorry." Marcy laughed in embarrassment as she looked down. "It's not that I don't think we could win. It's just-"
"You don't want them to fight anymore." Anne said with a knowing smile. Marcy nodded. 'Game over' flashed across the screen. The high scores scrolled through next. This was the one game Marcy didn't have her initials as the highest score. Anne put an arm around her.
"Sorry, that's a really silly reason for us to lose." Marcy said, smiling weakly and running a hand through her hair self-consciously.
"Lose?" Anne suddenly laughed and Marcy looked at her confused. "We didn't lose Mar-mar. See?" She gestured to the screen and high scores. "We won." She kissed her on the cheek. "They didn't fight." Marcy gave Anne a watery smile. Anne pressed her forehead to Marcy's. "In fact, they even made up and started a family together." She rubbed Marcy's pregnant belly and she started to turn pink.
"Anne." Marcy said, feeling flustered.
"Now what do you say we go find our prince and little-" Anne paused. "Wait, what's the title of someone who's the son of a prince?"
"I mean, there isn't one." Marcy said, shrugging. "But he could be a duke or an earl." They headed back and saw Sasha and Troy carrying fistfuls of tickets.
"We're going to get something at the prize counter for Mama and Mæ̀." Sasha said proudly. Troy nodded. Anne put a hand to her chest. They looked so cute brimming with pride. Marcy made to interject but Anne stopped her again.
"We'll wait by the main doors for you." Anne said, kissing Troy on the forehead and Sasha on the cheek. They looked incredibly pleased with themselves and strode off. Marcy opened her mouth. "Let them have this." Anne whispered.
"Anne, they're not going to be able to get any of the big prizes." Marcy whispered back. Anne shook her head.
A few minutes later Sasha and Troy returned, seemingly empty handed. Marcy gave Anne a look and she gave them a sympathetic smile. They still looked happy about something. Sasha nudged Troy and he held out a fist to Anne. She held her palm out under his and he dropped a tiny plastic frog into it. Anne nearly cried. She knelt down and pulled him into a hug.
"Thank you." She sniffed.
"I got one for Mama too." He beamed. Marcy blinked and he handed her a neon blue sticky lizard toy. She looked down at it and started crying.
"Mars." Sasha said with half a laugh as she pulled her into a hug. Marcy clutched the lizard tightly as she sobbed into Sasha's shoulder.
"What's wrong with Mama?" Troy asked, worried and confused. "Did Mama not like the toy?"
"She loves it." Anne said, wiping her eyes as she patted Marcy on the back.
"Let's head home, okay Mar-mar?" Sasha said as she and Anne kissed her on the cheek. Marcy nodded.
"Why is Mama crying?" Troy asked as they headed to the car. Marcy let out a shaky laugh.
"Because," Marcy sniffed as she smiled down at him, "Mama had such a wonderful night out with her family." She said and looked between Sasha and Anne. "And she loves them all so much."