Greetings and salutations, friends and fans and readers! I am Thomas Holmes II!
Now, you might remember that I'm a huge fan of both Amphibia and The Owl House. Accordingly, I am also a huge fan of the Amphibia-Owl House crossover 'The Owl And The Frog', written by ChampionElCid. As a tie-in to Chapter 52, which is an adaptation of Amphibia's darkest episode 'Olivia and Yunan', I present to you 'Premonitions'. The idea is similar to two separate fanfics 'Pain and Fears' and 'Visions of Terror', which showed Anne and Sasha respectively sensing Marcy's possession, through some kind of sixth sense that could be from the Calamity Gems. I liked them, and I was happy to receive this story from the inter-dimensional waves of story.
Anyways, this collection of reactions contains spoilers for Chapter 52 of 'The Owl And The Frog', 'Olivia, Yunan and Lilly'. Do not read this story unless you have already read that chapter. You have been warned.
Finally, I own none of the characters here. They all belong to their respective owners.
With all that said and done, enjoy!
"NO!" Luz screamed as she sat bolt upright in bed, her forehead drenched in sweat. She looked frantically around the room, half-expecting to see those eyes, or hear those terrible screams... or those voices!
But there was nothing and no one in the room that shouldn't have been there. Luz honestly couldn't say whether that made it better or worse.
The Afro-Latina girl slumped back against her pillow, breathing heavily and running a hand across her sweat-soaked forehead as her heart continued to race. What was it that she had just dreamed? Had it even been a dream... or had it been a vision? Somehow, it had felt... more than just a dream; it had felt... real. But then, why had it felt that way? What did it mean?
Was... was Marcy okay?
"Luz, are you alright?" Amara's concerned face appeared over the side of the bunk. "I heard you cry out. Did you have another bad dream?"
This wasn't the first time Luz had awoken from a bad dream, or even the fifth time. Over the last few months, Luz had often had nightmares about all the harrowing experiences she'd undergone in Amphibia; especially Marcy being stabbed.
Luz sighed deeply as she sat up again. "Sorry to wake you again, Ames. I'd say yes, but... to be honest, I'm not sure it was just a dream this time."
With a sympathetic sigh, Amara climbed down and sat next to Luz as the girl swung her feet out of bed and rested them on the floor. "You want to talk about it?"
Luz nodded. There was no point hiding it. Besides, a talk might help her understand it better. She paused for a few moments, gathering her thoughts.
"Well, I was dreaming at first... about what, I can't remember now... but then, everything changed. It all went dark. I... I saw a large room, full of shadowy figures - I couldn't make them out, although one of them was very large. Then, I heard voices. No exact words were discernible, but two... were frightened and pleading. One of them was familiar."
Luz's voice caught for a moment. Amara placed a hand on Luz's shoulder for consolation, though her face creased in trepidation. The girl took a breath.
"And then... I-I heard screams; horrible, HORRIBLE screams! Of pain, of crying out for help... I thought my heart would burst!"
Amara gasped. Luz's eyes began to fill with tears.
"Then..." Luz's voice was shaking now. "Two figures came into proper focus. They were both wearing black armour and a helmet. Several glowing orange eyes blinked open... and they spoke... the voices... one of them sounded like... like M-Marcy... but at the same time... it wasn't... it almost sounded like... like she'd been... p-p-possessed!" Tears started to flow down Luz's cheeks.
Amara went pale. She tightened her grip around Luz's shoulders, not just out of a desire to comfort her friend; but also out of fear.
"Luz... I think I may have had a similar experience," the newt mumbled.
Luz stared at her friend. "Wait, did you also see...?"
"More or less," Amara noted. "Except for some reason, I seemed... I seemed to be watching through the eyes of someone else; I think I did see Marcy at once point. At first, I thought this person was human, like you; until I saw her perform magic with her hands. What's even stranger is that... she sounded a lot like me." She ran her free hand through her hair. "And just before I awoke, everything went black and I felt as if... as if something was piercing my skull. Ooohhhh..." she groaned, clutching at her head.
Unsurprisingly, this made Luz feel more anxious. So Amara had more or less had the same dream as her? How was that possible? But that wasn't important right now.
"Wha-what do you think it meant, Amara?" Luz wondered pleadingly. "Why-why did it feel real? Do you... do you think it actually happened?" Her face paled. "Could Marcy actually be... be...?" Her voice died in her throat.
"Oh, Luz," Amara whispered gently, "I wish I could say it was just a dream we happened to share; that Marcy is alright and safe. I wish I could just make things all better for you, as you made things better for me. But I just don't know. I really don't." Tears filled her own eyes. "I... I'm so sorry. I feel as helpless as when we lost Uodeela."
"It's... it's alright," Luz sniffed, wiping her cheeks. "I am glad you're here in any case. It is nice to know I'm not alone."
"My pleasure," Amara smiled consolingly.
"I'm just s-s-so worried!" Luz wailed, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. "Marcy was-was like a-a s-sister to me! She w-was the first friend who sh-shared my love of Azura! She-she accepted me as being b-bisexual. But ever since we g-g-got back, I can't stop w-wondering what's h-happened to her; whether s-she's alive or not! It's been nearly 8 months, and I still see that m-moment when Andrias st-stabbed... And now... this dr-dream, or vision, or whatever, hints that she may have been... may have been..." Luz couldn't finish. The thought was too horrible. She just dissolved into tears, sobbing uncontrollably.
Amara's heart ached for her friend. She wanted to say something comforting, but her voice suddenly seemed to have deserted her.
"¿Luz, qué pasa, cariño?"
Camila had just opened the door, also roused by Luz's cry. Upon seeing her daughter in tears, Camila hurried over, sat down beside Luz, and pulled her into a hug.
"She... she just had another dream, or perhaps a vision, about... about Marcy..." Amara explained simply.
"Oh, honey," Camila soothed, holding Luz close.
"I miss her, Mami!" Luz sobbed, her voice muffled in her mother's chest. "I miss her so much!"
"I know you do, mija," Camila whispered, stroking her daughter's back. "I know you do."
Anne's head jerked upward from where it had been resting on the journal lying open on her bedroom desk. The Thai-American looked all around her for a few moments, breathing rapidly.
'It's so good to finally have a body.'
The words continued to echo in Anne's head. The voice that spoke them sounded simultaneously robotic, demonic, and... horribly familiar. But... it couldn't possibly have been Marcy...
Could it?
No, that wasn't, Anne told herself firmly. Don't you dare start thinking stuff like that! You have to be strong! For the Plantars! For your parents! For Luz and Mrs Noceda! For Sasha! And especially for Marcy!
Anne sighed deeply as she turned her gaze back to the journal she'd briefly nodded off over. It was Marcy's. Apparently, after she'd rescued Luz and Sprig from falling, Marcy had thrust her journal into Luz's hands before grabbing the box to send them home. Luz had then given the journal to Anne during their drive to the Boonchuys' home; it was too painful for Luz to hold on to.
Anne had been writing in the journal lately, often at night when she couldn't sleep - such as now - or to record any significant updates on what had been happening here on Earth. At first, Anne had resisted reading Marcy's earlier entries, not wanting to violate her oldest friend's privacy. But she'd eventually relented and looked back through the journal.
Doing so had been both a good and a bad idea for Anne. Good, because she'd become more and more understanding of Marcy's situation; and bad, because it only reminded her of how much she missed Marcy. How often she doubted whether Marcy really was okay, considering what she'd seen before returning to Earth. This heart-ache only exacerbated concerns over what Anne had just dreamed... or seen.
No, no, it had to have been a dream. Anne had to believe Marcy was alright. To think otherwise would to be to run the risk of falling apart. She again reminded herself that she had to be strong for everyone's sake. If Anne went to pieces here on Earth, she'd be dooming her oldest friend and failing her girlfriend. And that was out of the question. As such, she had to soldier on and prevent any unpleasant thoughts or doubts about Marcy's condition from settling in her mind. True, it wasn't ideal, mentally speaking; and most would advise against such a thing. But, Marcy was worth it. She always had been.
Anne had known Marcy for as long as she could remember. The Thai-American could recall when the two had first met, at age three. Some details of that day she could remember vividly; others, she only knew thanks to her parents.
The two had met at the beach, shortly after Anne's third birthday. Anne had been playing in the water, when she'd seen Marcy building a giant sandcastle. She'd refused Anne's offer of playing in the waves, wanting to protect her 'masterpiece'. It had been a scale model of a castle from her favourite video game (the name of which, Anne could never remember, but Marcy loved it very much. It was nearly always the first topic she broached whenever she met new people; even Luz had heard of it in the few times they'd deviated from talking of Azura).
Despite not understanding a word of what Marcy said about the game, her passion and intensity for it had been clear to Anne. With the waves getting closer to the castle, Marcy had grown anxious. Anne had taken the young Taiwanese-American girl's hand, looked her in the eye, and promised they would defend the castle til the bitter end.
Defend... til the bitter end... as Anne had always defended Marcy from hurting herself whenever she was 'in the zone'... like how Anne should've defended Marcy back in Newtopia... she should have grabbed Marcy's arm and pulled her through the portal with them. Even if they hadn't gone straight back to Earth, at least they'd have had the box; Andrias' plans would have been foiled... and Marcy would've been with them... safe and not alone.
'I just... didn't want to be alone...'
A tear splashed onto the journal as Anne re-read entry 49, where Marcy had decided not to tell Anne, Sasha or Luz what she had done:
'Truth is, Jo, I don't think I should tell Anne, Sasha or Luz that I knew about the music box and sent us here on purpose... It's just too risky, and I don't want Anne or Sashy to be mad at me. Luz... surely, she'd love this place as much as I do... she said to me herself she'd be up for travelling to another world... but then... I wonder if she was serious. Once we're all together again, and get our adventures started... then maybe... when the time's right and I'm SURE they'll understand why I did it... Luz, especially... but not right away. I can't ruin things like Ernst did. No more broken friendships... and definitely no losing the closest I've ever had... to a sister...'
"Oh, Marcy..." Anne whispered, placing a hand on the journal. "Why did you keep your pain hidden? Was it the way Sasha and I treated you that made you think we wouldn't listen? All those times we fell asleep during War of the Warlocks at your sleepovers? But then, why not confide in Luz? She would've understood, I'm sure..."
'It's so good to finally have a body.'
The words echoed through Anne's head again, accompanied by the image of ten, glowing orange eyes, and a malevolent grin. She shuddered. Though she tried to deny it out of fear of falling apart, Anne just couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible had happened to Marcy.
Well, even if it had, Anne still resolved to use it as all the more reason to return to Amphibia.
"We will come back for you, Mar-Mar," she vowed quietly as she rose to return to bed. "We'll fight for you until the bitter end. And we will make things right between us. I promise..."
Sasha tossed and turned in her bed for several moments.
"No," she mumbled in her sleep. "No... no, MARCY!" Sasha woke with a start. The human lieutenant gasped, clutching her head in shock. What was that... thing she'd just seen? What had it been doing to Marcy? What was that helmet for? Who had that other girl been?
Wait, why was she asking herself these questions? It had been a dream... right?
Sasha groaned. Why did she have to have such a horrible nightmare now? That figure who had haunted her nights and even possessed her at one point was gone. She'd helped capture and cure Uodeela... somewhat, anyway. And she was now leading the Resistance against Andrias. Was a good dream too much to ask for?
Sasha half-expected to hear that annoying, creepy voice taunting her thoughts again. But she heard nothing in her head. Looks like her suicide had definitely been helpful... not the best message to others with mental health problems, though.
Sasha decided she needed some air. So, she slipped out of Anne's old bed and headed upstairs. Sasha considered whether or not to tell Grime and/or Gustav. Ultimately, she decided they deserved a good night's sleep. She'd talk to them in the morning.
The girl made her way out of the basement, and soon, she was stepping outside into the night.
"Chuck," she greeted the frog on night duty.
"Tulips," Chuck Gardner replied in acknowledgement.
The red moon shone high in the sky. The air was heavy with pollutants, dust and smoke. Obviously, it wasn't pleasant, but it was something. Sasha thought she could see Andrias' floating castle in the distance; where Marcy was still being held...
Marcy...
Sasha massaged her temples as details of the dreams came back to her. It had been so vivid in those last few moments. But why should it trouble her so? Again, surely, it had to have been a dream.
Then again, Maddie had told her that shortly after the Battle of Tadpole Pond, she'd had a dream about Uodeela being stuck as the Red Heron. It had essentially been a warning to the witch-in-training. So, did that mean Sasha's dream had been a warning too? Had it actually happened? Or was it going to happen?
Sasha hoped to frog and back that neither was the cause. As if Marcy being stabbed in the back and being held prisoner by Andrias had been bad enough... as if Sasha herself being possessed had been bad enough... Sasha's fingers brushed her scar.
Marcy did not - repeat, NOT - deserve that at all!
Not a day went by when Sasha didn't want to storm that castle, rescue Marcy, and skewer Andrias for what he did to her. But whenever these thoughts came up, the girl had to remind herself that the castle was very well-protected. Storming it with what they had now would be tantamount to suicide.
But Sasha had to find a way into that castle. Marcy needed her. She had to make up for betraying her, Anne and Luz; abusing their trust; contributing to Andrias' plans, albeit inadvertently.
Especially, Sasha was beginning to wonder whether or not her actions prior to this whole affair - her treatment of Anne and Marcy - may have played a hand in Marcy's decision.
"Bee-phone in your bonnet, Sasha?"
Sasha looked round. Chuck was gazing up at her in concern.
"Just... thinking about Marcy again, Chuck," Sasha replied quietly. "You know, the black-haired girl with me, Anne and Luz."
Chuck nodded. "I remember."
"I miss her, Chuck," Sasha lamented. "I worry about her. And... I wonder if I ever truly was a good friend to her."
Chuck raised his eyebrows. "You're worried about her. You want to save her. That's a sign of being a good friend right now."
Sasha smiled a little in spite of herself. "But will it be enough to atone for how I acted before?"
Chuck smiled. "It's a step forward. Sometimes, that's enough."
Sasha didn't know how, but she felt a little better from Chuck's words. "Thanks, Chuck," she smiled, as she turned to head back inside.
The farmer-turned-sentry inclined his head. "No problem, little tulip. Good night."
But as Sasha walked slowly back towards her bed, memories of the dream continued to haunt her. Rather than push them away, however, the Commander resolved to use such memories to embolden her resolve.
'Hang on, Marbles,' she thought. 'We'll get you out of there, no matter what it takes. And if you have been... Andrias will rue the day he was born!'
"NO, LET THEM GO, YOU MONSTER!" yelped Lilly, as she sat up, brandishing the Masamune in front of her. Or she thought she was, until the blue frog realised she wasn't holding anything.
It was night time, a few hours after Lilly, Raine, Vincent and Alyssa had escaped from Andrias' flying castle. The blue frog had passed out from physical and mental exhaustion brought on by their escape, while Raine was carrying her.
The group had taken shelter in a cave, just beyond the forest. The Farmers had built a fire for warmth, and were now sleeping against the cave wall, resting against each other. The couple grunted at Lilly's cry, but thankfully, they slept on.
Raine was keeping watch at the mouth of the cave, but now, they looked around.
"Lilly, what's wrong?" they asked, approaching her, looking worried.
Lilly looked up at the Bard witch, panting heavily. Then, she looked at Vincent and Alyssa, still asleep. The three witches were safe, thanks to her.
But there should've been four witches there, along with two newts... and one human.
"Lilly, tell me; what's wrong?" Raine urged gently, as they knelt down in front of the blue frog.
Lilly tried to calm herself enough to talk.
"I... I saw Marcy and Amity," she gasped. "Something... something terrible has happened to them!"
Raine was tempted to say 'it was just a dream', but somehow, that didn't feel like the right thing to say. Instead, they patted Lilly gently on the shoulder.
"What has happened?" they enquired. "What did you see?"
Lilly felt a lump rise painfully in her throat. It was getting harder to speak.
"Andrias... Andrias c-c-caught them tr-trying to escape. Then... s-something terrifying appeared... some tentacled -r-r-robotic m-monster with lots of eyes... it gr-grabbed Marcy and Amity... b-b-bound them to ch-chairs... and then...
Lilly clutched at her face and hair, knocking her glasses askew as she began to hyperventilate. Raine grabbed her shoulders to steady her.
"H-helmets were... forced onto them... they-they screamed... and when they... next spoke... their voices... weren't their own... like they were... possessed!" She suddenly choked a little. "And I wasn't there..."
She'd left them. Amity and Marcy... Olivia and Yunan... Lilly had left them behind... she had promised Amity - repeatedly - that she would get the young witch out of there; her and Marcy. And Lilly had failed to keep that promise.
Almost unconsciously, Lilly felt around and picked up the Masamune, gazing at it for several moments. The Temple of Courage had deemed her worthy of wielding this legendary sword. It had granted her incredible magical abilities. And yet, despite all this... she had been unable to save Marcy and Amity. She'd failed.
"I... I'm so sorry," Raine whispered gently.
At this, Lilly couldn't hold it in any longer. She threw back her head and let out a scream of mingled anguish, frustration and guilt that echoed throughout the cave. Raine fell back in surprise. Vincent and Alyssa jerked awake, looking frantically around, as if expecting frobots to be bearing down on them.
Lilly threw the Masamune from her with all her might. It hit the cave wall and clattered to the floor. The blue frog pounded the ground with her fists, still screaming.
"Lilly!" cried Raine, scrambling back up. They grabbed the frog's shoulders again and shook her. "Lilly, please!"
Lilly's scream petered out as her breath ran out. Both Vincent and Alyssa came over too, looking anxious.
Lilly burst into tears. She threw herself into Raine's arms and sobbed uncontrollably into the bard's chest. Initially startled, Raine wrapped Lilly in a comforting hug. The Farmers also put their arms around Lilly.
"I left them behind!" Lilly howled feebly, tears splashing everywhere. "I abandoned them! I failed them!"
"No, no," Raine whispered. "You had no choice."
"If you'd stayed, we'd have been recaptured and tortured even more, or perhaps even died," Vincent added.
"I'm sorry about your friends," Alyssa chimed in. "We all are. But I promise that we'll go back for them. I'm sure they'll understand. Just know that we owe you a massive debt, Lilly. You did a noble thing, saving us."
Under different circumstances, these words might have soothed Lilly's guilt. And perhaps they would later on. But right now, Lilly was too distraught to heed them. She just continued to sob, and wail, and grieve for her friends. The three witches realised the best they could do right now was just continue to hug the frog consolingly.
In that moment, night had truly fallen; on Lilly's heart, and on Marcy Wu and Amity Blight. And it would be night for a long time.