And here is the final chapter in Amy's story. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own TMNT or any of its characters. Chris Nova belongs to Solaris Prime. Amy and Gage are mine.
It was a dark, rainy day on the two year anniversary of Amy and Gage's relationship. Not exactly the kind of weather that Amy would have liked, but she had no control over it. The only positive side to it was that it made it easier for her family to come up to visit. Less people in their apartment building would be looking out their window, meaning they'd be less likely to see the turtles, Master Splinter and Mona Lisa climbing up the fire escape. Once they'd all arrived, Amy found her mind completely occupied with being a good hostess to them.
"Not much longer until the wedding," Michelangelo said with a grin. He was excited to still be planning, which surprised Amy a bit. He'd always had a fairly short attention span. Then again, he'd had so much fun with April and Casey's wedding; it was only natural he get excited of his younger sister's wedding.
"No, not at all," Amy answered with a smile.
In the two months since she'd decided to quit her treatment entirely, she seemed to have an unexplainable improvement in her mental health. She hadn't seen many visions of Chris, and those that she did see she certainly didn't chase after anymore. Amy wasn't sure what to think of Chris' death—if he really had died—but she'd stopped seeking him out now. It had only brought her trouble, and she wasn't a glutton for punishment. As of late, Amy had taken to mourning his disappearance from her life, now that she remembered it all again.
Gage was supportive of Amy's decision and stopped pushing her to see Dr. Fogg the moment she'd decided to stop all treatment completely. Now was the time to allow Amy to work through her emotions in her own way, especially now that she'd taken to talking to Gage about her worries. Dr. Fogg was no longer necessary so long as Amelia felt comfortable talking to her fiancée. If she was haunted by her memories or nightmares, Gage was more than willing to hold her until the tremors subsided and she was back to usual, sarcastic self.
They were on their way to a normal life—or as normal as their lives could permit.
He stared down from the roof of that all-too familiar apartment building. The fire escape was just at his feet, and his family was just outside his grasp. All he had to do was reach and he could touch them. He'd dreamt of this moment so many nights, but had never dared to act upon his dreams. And after his last meeting with her, he'd been certain he could never return. She'd been so angry at him. But, after seeing what she'd been going through with that psychologist—it still made his blood boil to think they'd electrocuted her—he just couldn't just stand by and wait any longer. It'd been three months since the E.C.T. She seemed peaceful now with her family surround her, but there'd been many a night when he'd heard her sobbing over a nightmare that featured her greatest loss. It broke his heart.
With a deep breath, he stepped off the edge of the building.
Amelia gasped audibly when she saw the all-too familiar silhouette behind the drapes of her living room. Not now, she begged. She couldn't have another one of her hallucinations now, not while her family was visiting. She didn't want to worry them again. She watched in horror as her brothers turned their gaze to the window that led to the fire escape.
Leonardo, who was sitting on the couch with Donatello, stared with eyes wide in disbelief. Donny's expression matched. Mikey had just emerged from the kitchen, only to stop short and give a surprised—if a bit frightened—yelp. Raphael was leaning against the wall farthest from the window and he'd reached for his sai the moment the shadow appeared behind the drapes, only to stare incredulously once the figure revealed itself fully. Mona Lisa held her head in her hands, as though she felt faint, while Master Splinter wore an expression that was crossed between surprise and sadness. Gage's hands gripped Amy's shoulders protectively, ready to protect her from this intruding stranger.
But he was no stranger at all.
"Please tell me you're all seeing this," Amy murmured as her knees began trembling beneath her. A slow nod from Donatello alerted her to the fact that this wasn't just another one of her hallucinations. This was real. Chris was standing less than ten feet away from her, soaking wet from the rain.
"Uh… hi," he said uneasily, nervously even. "I know… that this is kind of hard to believe, but-" He was stopped by a resounding slap when Amy broke free of Gage's grasp and crossed the room to bring the palm of her hand swiping across his cheek. Silence deafened the room for a tense moment while Amy stared at her once-missing brother. Chris could only stare back and wait for the reactions from everyone else. No one else got the chance to move as Amy threw her arms around her brother's neck.
"Oh my God," Mona Lisa whispered. Gage glanced at the others and quickly guessed who his fiancée was embracing with sobs racking her slight form. The man—whom he could assume was Chris—carefully wrapped his arms around Amy to return the hug.
"The medicine failed and the doctors lied," Amy sobbed, her tone bitter. Chris' arms tightened around her.
"I'm… I'm so sorry, Amy," he murmured. The young woman pulled away quickly and glared at him. Her gaze hurt him almost as much as her hand smacking his face.
"Shut up. Do you even know what I've been through?"
"I do know. I've been watching over you since-" He stopped for a moment. "Since you were captured by Bishop. After seeing you like that, I couldn't bear to let it happen again."
Amy stopped what she was about to say and stared at him again. "You mean to tell me that all those times I saw you, all those times I thought I was going crazy, you were really there!" She turned to her family with an accusing look. "And none of you believed me!"
"Can you really blame us?" Leonardo asked, though it was clear he was still in shock. Master Splinter finally stood from the chair he'd been seated in and stepped forward, his paw outstretched towards Chris.
"My son," the old rat whispered as he rested his paw on Chris' cheek. "You've come home."
"I'm not ready to forgive you just yet," Amy growled. "You disappeared for over two years, and now you're back, after putting us all through a nightmare."
"By the time I came out of Oblivion, nine months had passed. And it was even longer since I'd finally gotten back to New York. I just… thought it was too late," Chris murmured. Again, he was slapped by his sister.
"You gave me those flowers last year on my birthday, didn't you? Then you must have heard me when I said we love you and wanted you home."
"But I was dead as far as you knew. I couldn't just come back and expect everything go back to normal. Especially after… especially now that you're engaged."
It was Amy's turn to stop again as her eyes widened. Chris still loved her, she realized. And he'd stayed in hiding so she could live a happy life with Gage, now that she'd finally found someone who could accept her and her family as they were. Amy covered her mouth with her hands as she took a step back. Gage quickly crossed the room and held her carefully to keep her from falling.
"You're Chris Nova, aren't you?" Amy's fiancée asked, earning a nod from her human brother. "I honestly don't know what to say to you. On one hand, you've been watching over Amy since she was a child, as far as she's told me, and you saved her life after Bishop captured her. I owe you everything for that. But, on the other hand, you're the reason she's been emotionally tortured all this time, and if you'd just shown yourself before, she wouldn't have had to through all that treatment. For that, a part of me wants to kill you, if we're being perfectly honest here."
"Gage," Amy whispered. It was clear that she'd meant her tone to be firm so she could stop her fiancée from saying anything he'd regret, but she sounded weak instead.
"I don't blame you," Chris answered. "I haven't been doing a very good job as her guardian angel, have I? I just… thought what I was doing was the better option for her. I know now that I was wrong and I'd do anything to make it right if I could." Amy stood straight once more, her gaze stronger than her voice had sounded only seconds before.
"Chris, I'm the one who held you when we found you, when you were still blind and just a scared little boy. I'm the one who cried for your sake. I'm the one who watched while you jumped into that… that thing, yet I still couldn't believe you were dead. What made you think it would be better to let me chase after you?"
"I'd tried to stay out of your sight, and I even tried staying away from you for a while. I thought you'd eventually just be able to move on. I didn't mean to hurt you."
Amy sighed heavily and cross her arms in front of her chest. "Just… just promise me you won't go running off like that again. And you had better be at my wedding, you got that?"
Chris released a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Amy was as sarcastic as ever, and just as tough. She sounded like her old self, the way she did when they were younger and growing up together. She sounded like she hadn't gone through all this time of mental torment. She was Amelia Hamato—soon to be Turner—and she was ready to take on the world again. Chris allowed himself to smile for just a moment as he stared into his sister's eyes. He'd really missed seeing that strong, confident expression on her, and he was glad to see it back again.
Amy watched with a careful smile as the rest of her family finally approached Chris to welcome him back to the family. Raphael had punched his shoulder, asking where Chris had been hiding out all this time. Mikey had tried to tackle their long-lost brother, and Chris actually let him—just this once. Leo and Donny were overjoyed to see Chris again, both clapping a hand on his shoulder, while Master Splinter expressed his gratitude to see his son alive once again. They were already falling back into their old routine with him.
"Looks like you got your brother back, Amy. I'm sorry for everything," Gage murmured as he hugged his fiancée. She returned the embrace, but it felt empty to her.
Chris had been right; things couldn't just go back to normal now that he'd left. Hell, what was normal anymore? He'd been dead for over two years, as far as their family was concerned. And he'd been the cause of all the trauma Amy had endured in the past six months or so—she'd lost track after the electroshock treatment. During the time since Chris' disappearance, Amy had come to understand just how much she'd loved him. While it wasn't the same as how he loved her, she knew it was just as strong. He was her brother, and it tore her apart when she'd thought he was dead. She'd once heard somewhere that the price of love is loss, but still we pay.
We love anyway.
She continued to stare at her family, her emotions guarded by the expression on her face. If Chris were to be trying to read her, he'd probably say she was taking after Leonardo for the time being. As she watched her eldest brother, she wondered briefly if he was really showing all he felt and thought about Chris' return, or if he was saving it for later. Amy was certainly saving the vast majority of what she felt for later. She simply didn't have words for it all just yet. But she would someday, and when that day came, Chris would hear it all. It was the least he owed her after all the hell she'd been through.
"I'm just happy he's back," she answered quietly without tearing her gaze from Chris. It was only a half-lie she figured. Part of her was happy he'd returned to them and that her family was whole once again.
The other part wasn't so sure.
I hope you have enjoyed reading to the end of Amy's journey and her trek through insanity. Please review and let me know what you have thought of everything that has played out. Thank you for reading!