Epilogue: The Weight

If there was one thing about Amphibia that stood out to Anne, she would have to say that it was the air.

A lifetime in LA had inured her to the overall dry climate and smoggy air quality, so when she'd first been transported to Amphibia, she couldn't help but notice how different everything felt. The humidity, the ever-present scent of decaying vegetation, and – notaby – the absence of man- (or amphibian-)made pollution.

So the shock Anne felt upon seeing the world's current state was so intense you could practically reach out and touch it. It was as if someone (no, not someone; Anne knew exactly who was responsible for this) had set the sky itself ablaze.

Even down here, in the tunnels beneath the shambles that Wartwood had been rendered, there was still a hint the acrid smell of the air above – to be expected, Amphibia was centuries away from the cocept of air purification.

But that wasn't the only thing that hung in the air. It was the tangible thing, but there existed something else, something that couldn't be touched, that was just as heavy and potentially even more crushing. She could almost see it, hanging there between herself and her once-best friend, Sasah.

The Awkwardness was its name, and while it had diminished somewhat after the mission, it was still a palpable presence, and deep down she knew that it would take time for it to disappear… if ever.

A glance over at Sasha and Anne could see the tell-tale signs that she, too, felt the invisible intangible presence dangling between them. Every now and then, she seemed to open her mouth, as if to start a conversation, only to not know exactly where or how to begin it. She recognized that look as it was the same struggle she was going through. A million different things to say, zero words she could think of at the moment with which to say them. They were beyond the point where the ice needed to be broken. There was an entire glacier.

"Ssssso…" Sasha finally began out of a need to say something, anything to fill the oppressive conversational void, "just how did you guys finally get back?"

"Oh, it's kind of a long story…"

"Tell it!" Sasha begged. "If I hear one more second of silence I swear I'm going to lose whatever shit I have left!"

"Dude…"

"Oh, relax. It's been a stressful few months, I thik I've earned the right to a little PG13 dialogue."

"Mom would kick you out of the house."

"She so would. *sigh* You know, I actually miss being scolded. My mom and dad are like in this competition to see who can be more of a pushover."

"Is that why you came over so much?"

"You have no idea how nice it is to be around parents who aren't in a constant tug-of-war over you. And quit changing the subject. How did you get back?"

"Well, it kinda started when we found this crazy scientist who had invented a portal."

"And they helped you get back?"

"No, she turned out to be an egomaniac who wanted to dissect the Planters. But her assistant helped me rescue them, and it turned out they knew enough about her research to be able to build a portal."

"And then you got back?"

"No, it turned out we didn't have enough power, so we had to make a run to Spendco for a bunch of generators and… other stuff… but then this FBI guy who'd been on our butts for a month finally intercepted us and took the Plantars. We pulled together pretty much everyone we knew to go rescue them, and on top of that stole an experimental generator from their base-"

"How are you not in prison for life, Boonchuy?"

"Right? I'm gonna have a rap sheet a mile long before I even make it to high school. Anyway, long story short, even that wasn't enough power. But then those weird blue powers kicked in and I was finally able to open the portal wide enough to get back. And… I just realized I left mom and dad back with the FBI!"

"Anne, if anyone can handle the feds, it's your mom. Actually, I kinda feel sorry for them."

"Now that you mention it, yeah… she can be pretty scary."

"Forget the magic blue powers… you should've just brought your mom here to smack some sense into Andrias."

"You! Giant salamander! You had better start cleaning up this mess right now or you're grounded!" Anne replied in perfect imitation of her mother. The two dissolved into laughter and the glacier of awkwardness began, ever so slightly, to melt.

"Aw, man, I can't remember the last time I laughed like that." She sighed. "It's… kinda sucked without you around, Anne."

"Sorry I took so long to get back."

"It's funny, though… it's actually like part of you was here with me the whole time. Oh! Actually, wait right here. I have something I need to give back to you."

Sasha ducked into her "office" (just a small chamber that had been curtained off and set up with a few scavenged pieces of furniture and a strategic map of Frog Valley) and emerged holding a small, battered notebook.

"Oh, right… I kinda forgot I left my journal in my room," Anne replied.

"Yeah, um… I've actually…" She blushed, rubbing the back of her head. "I've been… *muttered* reading it."

"What was that?"

"*deep breath* I've been reading your diary a little. And by a little, I mean a lot. Constantly, actually. Like, every chance I get. I'm really really sorry, I know it's a huge violation of your boundaries and it's okay if you're mad and you never want to forgive me and I understand completely if you never want to speak to me ag-"

"Whoa! Chill, Sash! It's okay!" Anne smiled awkwardly. "Truth is… I've been reading Marcy's journal."

"You what?"

"Yeah, I think she might've slipped it into my backpack during the fight with Andrias. Like she knew there was a chance something was going to happen to her, and – you said she was okay, right?"

Sasha took a deep breath. "Well, not 'okay' okay, but… a source inside the castle has been slipping information to the resistance. We haven't heard from them in a few weeks, so they may have been compromised, but from the intel we've received, they managed to get her into a regeneration tank, because I guess they have those. So it looks like she's going to recover."

Anne exhaled a breath she hadn't been aware she'd been holding. "Thank frog."

"Anyway… you can take this back now. Just know that there may be a few stains in there. Sauce, water damage, maybe… some tears and jink.."

Anne smirked. "Did you just admit to crying?" She delivered a gentle "friend punch" to Sasha's side. "You really have changed. You goin' soft on me, Waybright?"

Sasha chuckled. "In your dreams."

"…you know what," Anne said, pushing the journal back toward Sasha, "you keep it. I've kinda gotten used to using Marcy's journal anyway, I dunno, it feels like I'm keeping it warm for her."

"Really?" Sasha asked, blushing. "I'm not really sure I deserve this."

"That just tells me that you do. Besides… you've pretty much read everything in there anyway."

"Also pretty much everyone in Wartwood read it," Sasha added under her breath.

"What?"

"What?"

Sensing that Sasha wanted to drop that particular thread, Anne chose to ignore her obvious deflection. No need to open up a can of worms… unless it was dinnertime. "So, uh… rest of the night's free, and I've got the final season of Printhisle Manor on my phone… wanna binge and chill?"

"…you know, why not. It's been a stressful time. I could use a bit of a break."

And for the first time in months, it seemed like old times again. The weight was still there. Perhaps it always would be. But it had diminished to the point where, together, they could carry it.

A.N.: And so, at last, this series is over!

Jose: Thanks, I can't believe I actually made it to the end.

Gloyd: There's no shame in losing to Grime.

Next: See you in a couple of months or so for Dear Ivy!