Chapter Text
Crickets.
That's all she hears as she lays on her bed.
Crickets.
She picked up her hands and blinked a few times watching as the cracks disappeared while her breathing became calmer and calmer.
Crickets.
She wasn't alone, she knew she wasn't, she had never been more aware of the love others had for her, and yet...
It's been months, or well she thought it had been since she left Amphibia. Left it for... not forever. No. She wouldn't allow that.
She turned to her side as her thoughts go elsewhere.
Took a leap through a box, super weird
T o a swamp where frogs talk
She remembered going back to school for the first time.
How many people swarmed her. How after a few seconds her breathing started to be off and how next thing she remembered she was sitting in the principal's office as Sasha left the room quietly. Anne watched her leave and looked up confused. "What...What happened?"
Mrs. Murphy took a deep breath as she handed Anne some water. "Take a sip. I think you got overwhelmed in the hall. I don't blame you after everything you've been through either."
Anne took a sip of water and nodded along not really knowing what to say.
Mrs. Murphy looked at her " Do you want to talk about it? To start I want to remind you to not worry about all the work you have missed in school. I know you've miss-"
Anne shook her head "I'M FINE... sorry I-... I need to.. I just can't THINK. Every class I sit there and there's something or someone reminding me of THEM. I.." she took a deep breath as her breathing became shaky.
Mrs. Murphy extended an arm to touch Anne's shoulder but stopped not sure if it was the smartest idea. "What if... What if instead of focusing on just getting through these classes, you focus on something you want to learn about. Base your studies off of that."
Ooh
A Herpetologist
"Thanks, Mrs. Murphy"
" Your welcome, oh and Anne- I just wanted to mention... In the hall, when you-"
"You Scared me Boonchuy" Sasha said running into the room. She was listening in and couldn't take it anymore. She engulfed Anne in a hug.
Now I'm stuck, got no plans
Just my luck, I'll do the best that I can
She remembered walking with Sasha and Marcy. Marcy had to leave soon, her parents had moved away while they were at Amphibia, and none of them had completely processed it yet. They walked into the park where they met and sat on and near the swing set. There was silence, only crickets could be heard. The three looked at each other and all started to talk at once. Anne couldn't remember what was said. She just remembered the feeling of wanting to admit... to admit something she wasn't ready to admit to herself yet. Something that wasn't leaving Amphibia. She wished she could remember but everything in the past months had come in blurs. She felt guilty for it too. That's why she was determined to be better. She was determined to put her worries away and focus on the task at hand. Getting back to Amphibia.
Woah
But she knew that wouldn't happen.
Making friends and enemies,
It's weird, but hey, it's grown on me
Anne had started to research, grab books, and do anything to learn more about Amphibians. She knew she was cutting off Sasha and Marcy in a way but at the moment she didn't care. She felt like clawing at her skin to just pry the information. They saved a part of her. They saved all of her. They were the ones who made her understand love, understanding friendship, understanding self-care, and without them, everything felt like it was crashing down. She glanced down at her phone. Marcy had sent a picture of a drawing she made of her, Anne, and Sasha - The Calamity Trio - and their found families. Anne hadn't been able to close out of it for hours.
She wanted to go back. She wanted Sprig back.
Thinking back on it she probably should have accepted all of the therapy suggested to her, but talking about it seemed so much harder. She got up, grabbed a notebook, and sat back down. Just like that, she started to doodle and write out a plan. By the ten-year anniversary of... everything, she would have a recreation of Amphibia.
Ooh
Recreation of her home.
Bugs, Frogs, Newts, and Toads
Gonna be a Bumpy Road
Flies for snacks, Worms for lunch
Marcy laughed as she threw a pillow Anne's way.
Anne got hit by the pillow and dramatically fell which caused Sasha to eye roll as she threw a pillow at Marcy.
Marcy was visiting from Connecticut as it was the Summer and the three had begged for long enough.
The three ended up falling on each other as their laughter rang out. It was one of the most peaceful moments they've had together in a while and it felt nice.
"Best Sleepover Ever!" Anne exclaimed which was followed by cheering from Marcy who accidentally fell off the bed.
"Oopsy " Marcy exclaimed as Sasha and Anne helped her back on the bed.
They sat there together with a smile. After some long moments of silence, Sasha stood up a bit restless. "We should sing some songs, or listen to music or something"
Marcy smiled as she quickly got up almost falling again but being quickly caught by Anne " That sounds like SOO much fun!! What should we sing?"
" I was thinking a classic... I'm a heartst-". This earned a pillow to her face. "Wow Mars I-" but Sasha was quickly cut off again.
"Took a leap through a box, super weird to a swamp where frogs talk" Marcy began
"Woah-"
It all drowned out. She was back to hearing Crickets. She wrote No Big Deal about her time at Amphibia. A time where at the moment, she was happy. Or at least she believed she was. Thinking back to any adventure or day spent in Amphibia made Anne want to scream in pain and excitement, cry tears of joy and extreme pain. Performing the song showed that no matter what anyone threw at them, the three of them would always stick together.
But why did they get to stay together?
Why was it only the three of them?
I think I actually love this swamp
Why couldn't it have been all of them? Maybe if she dealt with the core by herself there would be enough power left for Marcy and Sasha to be able to go between worlds, at least twice.
It's no big deal
Crack
Yeah, no big deal
"Anne?" Asked a voice. Marcy's.
"ANNE?" Sasha's voice came in. Panic. Why was she panicking. What was happening?
Find a way to start again
Crack
Brush off the dirt and make some friends
After a few moments, Anne came back to reality. Her breathing was uneven but she didn't care. "What?" the teen asked.
"Look... " Sasha said quietly as Marcy handed Anne a mirror.
Anne lifted her eyebrow but as soon as she looked at the mirror it fell. She looked at her hands and then at her best friends, ones that had tears in their eyes.
It's no big deal
There they were. Cracks. All over her body. Just like the ones that she got when dying. What was happening?
Yeah, no big deal
"Take a deep breath," Marcy said drying her tears. It reminded her so much of losing Anne, thinking she would. She couldn't go through that again.
I feel at home in a place that shouldn't be real
As her breaths calmed, the cracks started to fade, and fade until there was nothing there. What just happened?
Crazy strange, but it's no big deal
Crickets.
She rolled back onto her back and sighed as she took in the cool air. So many things had occurred in such a short time but she wasn't mad at how fast or slow things were going. Things were getting better. She was getting better at controlling her panic situations, controlling when the scars of her death come back. She had a plan for her career and a vision that she would make happen no matter what. The whole world owed her so she didn't think it was such a big plan, it really was no big deal.
But it's Kinda a Big Deal