Disclaimer: This is it, the final chapter. Thank you everyone for reading this story. I've built it up since I joined this site last year and now one year later the story will finally be concluded. From finding out how the Toons spent their last summer before their Senior year, Fifi finding out who her true love is, Furrball's disappearance and the chain reaction of events that led up to it, Plucky and Shirley finally getting together, the triumph-over-drama between Babs and Buster, all the way to right now. Fifi and Furrball will now have their ending to join their group of friends so let's conclude this tale of lost love, friendships shattered and a thirst for retribution with a cost. I own none of the characters so enjoy. This is the final chapter to 'The Crow: 9 Lives.'
Chapter 26
"You heard that?!" Camilla shouted at Calamity, "was that a gunshot?"
"Stay in the car, I'm entering the premises," the coyote responded, "you will not be accompanying me."
"Is that going to stop me?"
Ignoring her, he turned to see Hamton and the rest of them arrive, "Hamton, we're going in, we just heard a gun go off!"
"Oh no, Fifi!" Hamton didn't have time to wait, he ran directly to the main entrance while ignoring Calamity's protests of reasoning and saw the aforementioned skunkette on the ground, holding a black-clad figure in her arms.
Not far from them, he also saw the still corpse of a big orange cat with his mouth open and tongue sticking out, his facial expression looked pretty wicked.
"Fifi!" he yelled again, now May, the birds and the Coyotes caught up to them and witnessed everything.
"What happened to him?!" Calamity rushed over to them, "is he-please say it isn't so?!"
Fifi could only turn her head as the others slowly made their way to them, she slowly and sadly nodded that Furrball was indeed-
"C…Calamity?" Furrball managed to rasp out, "Cal…?"
"Yes my friend, I'm here, so is Sweetie and the others."
The painted cat struggled to look over and saw that the coyote was right and turned his gaze back to him, "Cal...I…I did it."
"The theory has been proven, I knew this would happen…I hate that it had to be done…"
"Don't be…Acme Acres is now safe, I completed my mission, and I leave…satisfied."
Calamity's eyes started to get teary, this was really it, his best friend was saying goodbye before everyone's eyes.
"At least now you know where I'm going," Furrball softly stated, "and I can say that this is goodbye, old friend."
Now the coyote lost it, seeing Furrball this way started to hurt a lot more now since this was something he couldn't fix or find a cure for. He buried his face in the coat and softly sobbed while the painted cat placed a paw on his shoulder. He turned to Camilla.
"Take good care of him, he has a big brain and a big heart."
Now Camilla was reacting the same, she nodded while sniffling at the site. The cat turned to the birds, "Sweetie-"
"Don't say anything, Furrball," the pink bird interrupted, "at least I know that you weren't a jerk like how the producers made you look at times."
She turned to Concord and allowed his wing to wrap itself around her for comfort.
Looking at May and right away to Hamton, Furrball didn't want his final words to him be hostel, instead he offered him advice.
"Hamton-"
"Furrball," the pig interrupted, "I'm sorry for everything, Fifi, everything that happened I-"
"Hamton…be good," was all he could say, "…be good, don't ever give in."
Camilla went to Calamity and gently pulled him up to her, the coyote looked back at his friend and got a better glance at him, the bloody mess, the hole in his paw and even Eric a few feet from them. Gasping in horror, he went to him and picked him up.
"Now another soul shall carry his to the other world," he pondered, "as will yours."
Furrball closed his eyes and opened them up to Fifi, "tell Sylvester that he's still my favorite teacher…and that he taught me well."
Fifi held his face and wiped her tears, she nodded while softly sobbing to herself.
"And tell the others that I love them, all of them, and that I wish them all the best."
"Don't go," Fifi pleaded, she held his head close to her, much to Hamton's slight discomfort, "vous jus' came back, please don't go!"
"I have to," Furrball replied, breathing softly and slightly smiling, "but I'll always be watching you…I'll be in here, right in your heart."
He placed a paw right by her heart and felt her chest until it started tracing all the way down to her midsection.
"I'm sorry for everything, I'm sorry that I missed out on us-"
"Non, non iz' not vous fault, je iz' 'ere so jus' stay, don't go…don't go."
"It's for the best, I did what I had to do, I made everything right."
"But vous iz' still dead, 'ow iz' zhat' right?!"
""…Because this is a wrong that started everything, and it needed to be set right before it became worse."
He grabbed her paws and held them close while trying to keep his eyes on her, "you had friends to help you through this all these years, I'm sure you can do it again."
"But zhis' iz' not a few years!" she exclaimed, "zhis' iz' forever, forever wi'zhout vous!"
"I may be going away, but you still have them, they'll help you through it, I know they will."
"Please don't talk like zhat', vous can still-"
"I can't, please understand…the Furrball you knew died years ago, but he didn't go without saying what was most important in spirit...my memory…will live with you."
The skunkette could feel the cat's body getting weaker so her tears were getting much bigger, this was it.
"Good bye Fifi," he uttered, "…je t'aime."
Fif gasped at that remark, she never thought she would ever hear those words in that language ever spoken to her by him.
Furrball's body gave out and everyone felt it, not a single word was even whispered as Fifi placed her face in front of his and kissed him goodbye, burying her face in his chest as the corpse began to fade into thin air, leaving only Fifi's ribbon that she had tied around his tail.
"…Au revoir…Furrball…je t'aime."
...
That week, everyone lent a helping hand to organize Furrball's official funeral. Calamity bought a black coat and painted the back of it with a grayish stripe, resembling the one the cat wore and spent majority of the time deciding where it would be buried. Camilla decided on the flowers to place on the grave, Sweetie worked on the guests as well as fans from the old show, after much convincing that she had nothing to do with his absence.
Dizzy and the girls worked on a place to have an after party to gather everyone up once more to make up for everything that transpired, the Bunnies' baby shower and all. Babs and Buster didn't help out much nor were they expected to do much either way since they just gave birth but even so, they were contacted and agreed to attend. Sylvester agreed that he would drive the hearse, he felt that it would give him some quiet time to speak to Furrball in spirit. Buster and everyone else even wrote their own speeches in honor of the blue cat since he didn't feel right just sitting out this emotional event.
Calamity decided that the ones who would carry Furrball's casket would be himself, Buster, Plucky, Bugs, Sylvester and Hamton, feeling that he owed him a lot more. Through May, Hamton announced that he would be at a psychiatric ward for his actions, saying that he was taking Furrball's advice to be good and not give in. He stated that he would be committed voluntarily once the funeral was done. Even Plucky decided to get committed alongside him, after much persuasion from Shirley. May promised to visit him every day and since he was just weak under pressure they still considered him their friend, but weren't willing to forgive him right away. One Toon in particular didn't seem to be forgiving him any time soon, but she wasn't paying much attention to him for that matter.
Fifi found out about Hamton and May being together later on. She was too heartbroken to care since she just saw death flash before her eyes. nevertheless, her silence pretty much made it clear that they were officially off of their break and broken up. Needless to say, some of her friends thought she made the right call to avoid the pig until he was better but Shirley wasn't so forgiving right away as she still fgelt upset at how things ended between Fifi and Hamton. The skunkette stayed with Mitzi and the girls while the home she shared with Hamton stayed empty, all she did was stay in the room appointed to her and did nothing. There were times where she would get up to look out the window, but it was usually around night time. She'd cry and think about Furrball just by looking at the moon. It was hard for her, his memories were still fresh in her mind and every second going by hurt her since she was there on the night he was gone for good. Still, what prevented her from joining him in the afterlife was that he said those words to her, and in her native tongue no less. Those words, those words that made her feel as if he never left were why the skunkette didn't see fit to go through with it. As painful as it was, she knew that Furrball and everyone else would feel just as bad as she was feeling if she had actually gone through with it. The funeral on the other hand would be a different story.
…
The funeral came and everyone did their part. The service took place at Elmyra's old home and ironically enough she was invited as well! Sweetie explained that she felt like she was robbing the opportunity for the young girl to send her old pet cat off and deserved to be there despite the oblivious love-abuse. Her being there made Montana Max act a little different but as the day went on, he and Elmyra seemed to be on speaking terms once again and the way they were became obvious to everyone else since this 'Rudy' guy didn't show up with her.
Sylvester came with the hearse, the six Toons helped put the casket with the coat inside and followed soon after. Time passed as Toons spoke on behalf of Furrball and through each of them they meant every word.
"Furrball was a versatile guy, he could go into any cartoon and he'd give it his all…"
"Furrball was my best friend, we had much in common yet we barely shared conversations without our trademark signs, nothing changed that…"
"Cat was cool, bleh, me glad to know him from school…"
"I'm like, so sorry that I couldn't see this coming, that I didn't envision it, feel it, I knew there was something wrong but at least he gave us the answers that needed to be concluded, as well as protecting the city…"
"He was my pet…and he…he…was my kitty-witty and I loved him so much…!"
"I was glad to share my on-screen antics with him, I don't think we surpassed Professor Tweety and Professor Sylvester, even in their prime, but still…"
Fifi was the last one to go up to Furrball's casket, there she saw the coat with the sleeves crossed, even without him in it, it looked peaceful. She placed a paw on the shoulder and stared at it in silence.
Everyone right away became worried, this was her final goodbye to Furrball, they could only imagine the pain she was going through. Babs and Buster held each other close as their newborn, Cotton, snuggled between them, sound asleep. Camilla did the same with Calamity, even Shirley rested her head on Plucky's shoulder and nuzzled a little, making the green mallard feel slightly cocky. Fifi kissed her two fingers and placed them back on the coat, physically ready to let it go but mentally, not.
…
The black coat was buried at the Acme Acres Cemetery, the city would eventually demand that it be buried at a pet cemetery but due to the investigation from years back, this was not passed and the coat was allowed to stay, where the spirit of Furrball would be remembered as a Toon and not just another alley cat, or an Alley Cat.
During the burial, they all watched as Calamity, Hamton, Bugs, Buster and Sylvester carried the casket to its rightful destination. As it was lowered, everyone threw a parting gift to let it go with the cat in spirit. Many threw flowers, others threw jewelry, Monty actually threw a hundred dollar bill but he quickly turned around before anyone could ever notice. Calamity threw in his voice box, deciding to go back to his signs for mourning, Shirley wrote her speech and on the other side of it was a small poem regarding the values of life and death, she threw that in there as well.
Fifi was once again the last one to participate; she hesitated but soon went on by tossing in her ribbon. It was the one she wrapped around Furrball's tail that night before his final fight with Lious. She kissed it and let it float to the top of the casket as the first layer of dirt was placed upon it. By this point was when everyone lost it, not a single dry eye was present, everyone cried for their fallen friend, co-star, companion, and lover, Furrball.
Fifi broke down in tears as Babs and Shirley walked up to her and comforted her, crying alongside her. Just then, Fifi heard a very familiar sound, followed by another familiar sound. The Amazing Three looked up to see a cawing crow flying by and landing on the buried casket. The Toons gasped, the crow looked around and cawed in response. It turned around to face the casket and appeared to have bowed its head in respect. The little black bird flew away soon after.
...
At the after party, which was held at Dizzy's when he put a 'private party' sign up, everyone arrived and Furrball was the main topic. While many were saddened, others felt content that the mystery surrounding his disappearance was now closed and that his spirit will always live among them and his fans. As far as anyone was concerned, their old show was the sole reason their legacy was relevant.
Babs and Buster were introducing Cotton to everyone else until they came to Shirely and an overly-eager Plucky.
"Can I hold him? Lemme' I hold him!" Plucky exclaimed as he stuck out his wings for the newborn bunny.
"Hmm, I don't know, Pluck," Buster smirked, "I don't think Babs would be okay if I handed over our son to an unstable loonatic."
"Hey, it'sh voluntarily an' Shirl here is'h makin' me do it for Hammie!"
"We'll like, leave you boys alone," Shirley kissed Cotton's forehead, "don't make him a man just yet."
Babs kissed both Buster and Cotton, "be right back, Blue-Bun."
"Blue-Bun? Yeesh, she sh'till callin' you that?"
"Hey Cal! Ya' wanna' be Cotton's new Godfather?!"
"Wait, uh I wa'sh ju'sh kidding!"
Babs and Shirley left the bar and went into the Loon's car where they drove to Dizzy's home.
"Mitzi told me that she hasn't left since the burial," Babs pointed out, "I hope she's still hanging in there."
"I hope so Babs," Shirley responded, "Fifi didn't even like, think about coming here so she must really want to be left alone."
"We've helped her go through it during that Spring, we can do it again."
…
Mitzi had given the girls her keys to go to her house to see the skunkette, she had hoped that Fifi would come to the party since she needed to be around her friends to help cope with the loss of Furrball. She also advised Babs and Shirley that it may be fruitless since the depression she was going through was extremely too much but they insisted that they've dealt with it before. When confronted by her the only excuse Fifi had was that she wasn't feeling good.
They arrived at the house and showed themselves in, right away assuming that Fifi was upstairs in the room she was staying at like last time. All the girls had to do was follow the sound of soft sobbing and they would find her easily. Once at the room, Babs and Shirley slowly opened the door and peeked inside.
"Like, Fifi?"
She sniffled as her head perked up by the sound of her voice.
"Hey Feef, it's us."
By now the skunkette turned around to face her friends…with tears and a smile.
"Uhh Fifi," Babs looked worried, "are you okay?"
"Fifi, what's going on?" Shirley asked, she didn't use her powers to figure this out, she wasn't trusting her powers by this point.
All Fifi did was let out a weak chuckle and smile at the Loon and rabbit, "it'z Furrball…'e lives in moi."
The girls were confused and a little scared that she may have fallen off the deep end.
"Babs, Shirley…" she then revealed a white object in her hand, causing the two to widen their eyes. Before they could question anything, Fifi also proceeded to place her other paw on her belly, gently touching it. Through angst and sadness, her smile and tears said it all as she said the two words that made them unite in a big embrace of miraculous joy.
"Moi's pregnant."
The End
A/N: Thank you all so much for reading this story and thank you all for the reviews, favoriting and following. What did you think of the ending? I did say that Fifi would have a happy ending but alas Furrball is not there to join them. In spirit he is and he did say that he lives through everyone, including us. I started on this site on April last year and began this storyline in 'Furrball's Confessions' and now one year later through various other fics of mine, it's finally concluded, another chapter closed. I might revisit this in a future fic but right now I'm taking a break from this storyline. And again, if anything confused you then please check out my other TTA stories since they all take place within the same storyline. Thanks for reading once again and I'll see you again sometime, until then!