Many stars shone like fireflies against the infinite darkness of the sky, illuminating the deepest corners of a quiet night like any other in one of the many towns in the valley of frogs, Wartwood. Small insects flutter through the air, crossing through the gigantic trees and mushrooms that surrounded the outskirts of the town, receding past a figure distanced from sleep and everything else.

Marcy was lying on a hill near the Plantar farm, diary in hand, leaning against the brown and off-white plumage of Joe Sparrow. The faint crimson light of the ever-waning moon bathed her face, as her gaze remained fixed on the sea of stars.

The raven-haired teen sighed occasionally, blinking only when necessary. She paid no attention to what her eyes were observing, nor what her ears were hearing, she was sunk in her own thoughts, overwhelmed by the events of the past hours. She had managed to defeat the first temple, one of the three stones in the box was fully charged, and instead of feeling excited and ecstatic about the adventure she had experienced and the ones that were missing, the young woman only felt a great emptiness inside her, her energy was completely drained of herself, leaving nothing but a melancholic and gaunt figure.

It was a great day, she couldn't forget the exciting experience that those ancient ruins gave her... but she also couldn't forget the images of small injuries and bruises etched on the skin of her companions, physical reminders of her selfish actions.

—You're a fool…—she murmured, biting her lower lip hard, stopping until it almost drew blood. She felt so frustrated and upset with herself, she couldn't believe she had done it again. At home, focusing on something, whether it was a book, a video game, or whatever else caught her attention, she tended to get so carried away with it that she became oblivious to the world around her... she couldn't stop that even if she wanted to (and not that she would try in any way), "the zone" was something that was totally out of her hands... in jokes she boasted that it was a superpower—Stupid —but in reality it was a curse, her curse, one that caused her brain to always refuse to respond to anything external once she saw something worthy of her concentration... bringing mostly unsuccessful consequences to herself, and rarely to the people around her surrounded—Stupid... Stupid... you promised, you promised... —Anne's broken arm on the day of the play, the snakes incident at the zoo, the times she almost got hit by a car, all the volleyball games lost, the little or no attention to the problems of her friends that surfaced to they current breakup, birthdays or any forgotten important day... the list was endless, with the near death of her best friend and her adoptive family being the newest addition to the big book of her mistakes... Is it that she could never do things, right? Was it her destiny to be so clumsy and always put her loved ones in danger? She couldn't even understand their patience towards her, how they accepted her apology without yelling at her or trying to lash out with their righteous arguments about it...

Maybe they do it just because you're still useful to them...

And when it is no longer? Will they just abandon her to her fate?

—They wouldn't... —she thinks.

Anne did it

And as much as she wanted to silence the voices in her mind, she knew they were right. Anne, her childhood friend, whom she had missed so much, who looked as happy to see her as she was, had left her alone as soon as she had the chance to. What went wrong? Should she have spent more time with her instead of investigating the box? She had tried, but...

I-I... I don't want to lose you again...

So why did she look so miserable that day? If she didn't want to lose her... Why was she so sad to stay by her side?... If she was so happy to see her again... Why was staying with her the same as torture?... What went wrong? Would Sasha act the same way?

They found better friends than you. Friends who have not lied to them.

It seems that in effect they no longer needed her, it would make sense that one day they would get tired of having to deal with her, just like her parents, teachers, classmates... Everything depended on a thread, the day would soon come when that she would do something irreparable, something so stupid that apologies could not repair, something that...

Haven't you done it already?

—Yes... —but they still didn't know it... but it was only a matter of time before the truth about why they were in this world would come to light, and when they found out it would be the end of everything, they would finally leave her, they would leave her, she would be left alone like the weirdo she was... and no matter how much it hurt... no matter how much fear devoured her inside, she knew it was the best, she deserved it—It's what I deserve... —she mumble while small tears ran down her cheeks, staining the blank pages of the diary.

She tries to bear it, but the pain she feels is so great that she cannot control it, first she cries silently, then the sobs escape sporadically from her trembling lips until they turn into little screams, the screams change into painful vociferations.

—Mar-Mar? —and it is then that a small whisper reaches her ears. Her vision is overwhelmed by the rise of tears as she looks up at the voice that named her, watching as in her blurry surroundings, a figure approaches her, trapping her in a small hug that she can't avoid accept—Easy... —and it's not until she hears that voice clearly and absorbs that damp, woodsy scent that she realizes it's Anne comforting her…and that only makes the tears well up.

—I'm sorry... Anne, I'm so sorry... —she manages to utter between her tears, clinging more closely to her friend's figure, letting all the contained pain escape. Anne for her part says nothing, remains silent as she cradles her little friend in her arms, stroking her dark locks as she always has done at times like this.

It was after a few minutes full of tears and meaningless apologies that the black-haired girl manages to calm down, the tears completely stop escaping, but her grip on her friend is still just as strong, and her friend couldn't care less about that gesture, humming gently while rubbing Marcy's back. Silence covers the entire hill, the snoring of the gigantic sparrow being the only thing they could hear, none of them seem to pay attention to the world, enjoying their pleasant company.

—Are you okay? —Anne dares to ask after a few seconds of silence. Marcy just shakes her head, Anne realizes immediately—I'm glad I found you...

—I'm sorry... —Marcy finally speaks, pronouncing those words for the umpteenth time—I needed a little time alone... I should have told you where I was going...

—No, you have nothing to apologize for... —Anne said immediately—Like I said, I was just worried... Wartwood is dangerous at night, I know you are more than capable of protecting yourself... I mean you are the captain of the Newtopia night watch —she laughed lightly, emphasizing her friend's military rank—But you're still my friend... and I could never stop worrying about your safety... you're very important to me Marcy.

—Oh... It's okay... —Marcy sniffed, overwhelmed by the words she had been told versus the ones she had been thinking. Why was Anne saying these things to her?

—Are you sure you're, okay? —Anne asked again, but her friend wasn't listening to her, absorbed once again in her own intrusive thoughts—Since we left the first temple I've seen you very distant and thoughtful... not in the normal way —the young girl with dark hair blacks couldn't understand why her friend acted this way towards her, because she had looked for her in the first place, she had the Plantars she loved so much, why waste her time with her person like that? Why waste time with someone who is so broken?—I can tell that something is bothering you... whatever it is, you can tell me, I'll always listen to what you have to say... —Marcy still didn't respond, she remained quiet and inert, if it weren't for the breath she could feel against her chest, Anne would think she was dead—Look... if I did something to bother you...

—Am I really important to you? —Marcy suddenly said, cutting off apologies that were meaningless to her now.

—What?

—What am I to you Anne?

—Puff the question is obvious Marcy, you are my best friend of course! —Anne answered immediately, feeling that such a question was very silly in this situation.

—Why? —This time Anne couldn't answer right away, her mouth opened several times, but no words dared to come out, the silence took on a different meaning for both of them.

—Well —Anne was finally able to speak—We're friends because we've known each other all our lives, we have similar and different tastes, you're very intelligent, funny, damn it's always like you already know everything... —she take a short pause, ordering again her thoughts—I think we're friends, because you're great Marcy —although her friend couldn't see her face, Anne smiled at the words that came from her heart—I'm sorry if I'm late... it's just that... I didn't know which ones those were the right words for your answer...—Marcy just nodded and silence covered them once again for just a few seconds.

—So… —Marcy's voice came up again, but stopped, the words heavy on her tongue, refusing to come up, refusing to express her conflicted feelings, refusing to seek a true answer other than from her torn mind and corrupted. Seconds passed, and when Anne thought Marcy had repented, her voice reached her ears, words slow and clear—Why did you go with the Plantars?

—With the Plantars? —Anne didn't understand the question at first.

—Why did you go with them? —she asks once more—Why did you look so sad to stay with me? —and this time Anne doesn't know how to answer, those questions take her completely by surprise, her head can't find anything to say.

—Well, I… Marcy… —but still she tries, she knows that if she stays in silence Marcy will interpret her silence in the wrong way—I wasn't sad to stay with you, it's just that the Plantars and I… You know If we were to go home, I would never see them again, but you...

—You spent your entire stay in Newtopia with them... —Marcy insists, right now she can only think about her pain—We had... we had that sleepover just because I suggested it...

—Y-you were busy looking for information about the box... I... I didn't want to bother you... —Anne defended herself, Marcy's accusations hit her hard, she had never argued with her before, she just didn't know what to do.

—I went looking for you many times at the hotel to talk to you... but somehow you were never there... I began to feel that you were avoiding me... that I did something that annoyed you...

—Marcy...

—And when you left… —Marcy's head told her that enough was enough, that she should close her heart now and raise her walls once more before saying something she shouldn't, she didn't have the right to complain to Anne when she was responsible for all this, it's her fault that Anne had found better friends than her—I was so scared… —but she couldn't—I'm sorry Anne… I just… I don't understand…. What did I do... W-so you wouldn't want to be with me? —She looked up, meeting her friend's brown eyes—I know it's... selfish of me... but you have no idea how much I missed you... and you... just pushed me aside... you chose them before me... I who have known you all your life... —the black-haired girl can't take it anymore, her voice breaks into incoherencies as she cries again, but this time only she tries to break the embrace that keeps her in that place, she tries to get away from Anne, she wanted to get out of there.

—Marcy... I-is not that... —Luckily Anne was much stronger than she was, clinging more tightly to Marcy's trembling body. The teenager could feel how her chest ached, had she really been so careless? Why didn't she take it with her that day? Why did she leave her alone if they were always supposed to be together?

Hey Anne... maybe you're better off without me...

Was this how Sasha had felt? Why had he preferred frogs she had only known for months to people she had known all her life?

—Of course not, Marcy... —and she knew the real answer to that questions, but she wasn't ready to accept it—I'm always going to want to spend time with you... I told you, didn't I? You're my best friend in the whole world... I would never choose anyone else over you or Sasha... it's just... I miss my family so much... and the Plantars, they... —Anne was crying now too, the emotions in the air were too strong for me to bear anymore—They are the closest thing I could find to a family here… they helped me so much, they took care of me even though they really didn't have to… I love them and I feel I owe them a debt... —Anne's hands gently took her friend's cheeks, they both stared at each other—I'm so sorry I made you feel so forgotten, Marcy... I'm so sorry... —the hug became stronger—You've grown so much here... I thought you didn't need me anymore... —Marcy shook her head—I was just giving you your space... I'm sorry, I'm so sorry...

And the two girls stayed there, hugging each other tightly, spilling every last drop of their emotions without wanting to separate, there were still so many things that had not been said, there was still so much to be resolved, but they simply limited themselves to crying. It wasn't until the morning of the next day that they were able to find them, they were still hugging each other, covered by Joe's warm wings as they slept peacefully, the tears had vanished, and only small smiles were present on their faces.

(After seeing the chapter of the beginning of the end, I feel that I could have made this story much stronger, if I have seen that episode before... although maybe I can do something about it in the future, stay tuned)

Hello, the story you just read was a work that I left, so to speak, abandoned when I had just seen the second season of the series, you could say that this was my first fic about Amphibia. The aquarium chapter left me thinking too much about the relationship between Anne and her friends, as this had become so fragmented to the point that she had distanced herself so much from them, I must say that at that time and until now it always seemed strange to me I never get to the point of why Anne went off with the Plantars and left Marcy alone, how she literally spent all of her time in Newtopia with them and we only saw Marcy again in the sleepover episode. I mean if it's okay, Anne wasn't going to see the Plantars again and she was sad about it... I totally get it, but why didn't she convince Marcy to come with her? She left without more as soon as she had the opportunity. I know that I am reflecting a lot on the program in that, I am not trying to antagonize Anne or anything like that, it is just that it seems strange to me that after Marcy at the gates chapter in her said that she missed her friend so much, that I didn't want to lose her and a long etc... She didn't seem to care much after that... But anyway, excuse me for the long speech, I hope you liked this story, because I really liked being able to finish it.

P.d: A little thing, in this story there is nothing of romance in case you have any other idea: v The feelings between the two here are totally platonic and friendly.