A Clockwork Green Ch. 12

"Hello Charlotte. It's a nice day today, isn't it?" Adelaide smiles as she puts a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Are you doing okay out here by yourself?"

"Oh, yes. The pain isn't that bad today, so I thought I'd come out here and enjoy the weather for a bit." I take a small sip of lemonade and then smile at her. "Did that husband of yours come along with you as well?"

"Sure did, Momma!" Tubbins' arms wrap around me from behind and pull me into a bear hug. Dear Gods, how I love that boy. "Thought we'd come by and take a look at your tomatoes, see how they're doing. Not to mention you, too."

"Oh my sweet boy! An old lady like me is lucky to have someone like you to look after her." I pat his cheek affectionately before turning around to look him in the eyes. "How are the others?"

"Oh, they're doing okay. The kids are at home with a sitter right now, and since most of the harvest work is done we'd figured we'd come over and see what you were up to." His eyes twinkle merrily as he puts both hands on my shoulders. "It's good to see you again, Momma. I hope you haven't been getting into too much trouble out here."

"Well, with the last of the children gone this place seems so empty. It feels too big for one person, but I couldn't run an orphanage forever." I straighten out his collar and smile impishly. "Besides, from what I've heard you're the one who needs to be told not to get into trouble, Tubbins."

Adelaide grimaces a little at the mention of his pet name, though it drops as soon as she sees that I notice it. She is his wife, after all. She can call him whatever she likes, but he'll always be my Tubbins. She smiles as she comes over to join us. "Oh, I make sure he does exactly that, Charlotte." She arches an eyebrow and swats him on his butt. "You can be sure of that."

He plays up being indignant for a moment before pulling her into an embrace and kissing the top of her head. "That's right. Anyway, we'd heard that there was some kind of blight affecting some the other farmers' tomato crops. We thought we'd stop by and check yours just to make sure. Then afterwards we could keep you company for a while. Sound like a good idea to you?"

"Oh, yes. I'd like that more than anything." I hobble over to my rocking chair, taking care to move Mack out of the way and set her gently to the side. I ease into the chair, wincing a little as I pull a blanket over my lap before setting my glass down. I reach back down for Mack and pull her up into my lap, stroking the scabbard.

Tubbins' smile fades just a little as he sees the sword, and a hint of sadness creeps into his eyes. "You okay, Momma? It's not often I see you with your old sword these days." He kneels down beside me and whispers quietly in my ear. "I know. I miss her too." Adelaide clears her throat and backs up a little to give us some space, becoming acutely interested in some potted plant.

"I... I wonder. Did you ever blame me for not coming back with her?" I look up into his face as a lump starts to form in my throat and tears threaten to well up in the corners of my eyes. "I wanted to. I tried so hard..."

He takes my hand and kisses the back of it before holding it to his cheek. "Even then, I knew you did. You loved her with everything you had, just like she did you. I never blamed you. Not even once."

"Oh my boy..." The tears really do start to flow as I squeeze his hand. He smiles at me and pats my head affectionately. "Thank you. Now, off with you. Go tend to real business instead of dealing with the likes of me." I wipe them with the sleeve of my shirt and force a grin. He smiles and nods before turning to go, and I watch them head off to the far corner of my yard to look at the tomato plants. I keep up the smile until I know they're far enough not to notice anything unusual, then grimace in pain as I shift in my chair.

I don't like lying to them. The pain is much worse than I had let on, and it's coupled with a fatigue that has settled deep in my bones. I'm so tired today, and it seems to take so much effort even for the most basic of things. I cradle Mack in my hand, stroking her lovingly before reaching into my pocket. I pull out the little iron rose she made for me so very long ago and bring it to my lips, kissing it lightly.

You gave me so very much, Mackenzie. There isn't a day that goes by where I don't think about you. I miss you, my Mistress.

Something in the distance catches my attention, and I set her down. A hunched and elderly woman emerges from the opposite corner of the yard. She looks so old and gray, and yet moves along with a speed I wouldn't expect for someone her age. Even older than me, I suspect. She has an old rifle strapped to her back as she makes her way towards me, and starts to break out into a wide grin as she gets closer. There's something so familiar about her, but I can't quite place where I know her from.

"Knew I'd find ya out here. Knew it in my bones, I did!" She grins impishly as she sidles alongside me, patting my head. "How ya been, smooth one?"

"I... I know you. You're... you're the one who-"

"You and Red did a lot o' good, you know that? Righted something that had been wrong for a long, long time." Her smile fades a little as she looks at me. "I'm just sorry it cost you so much."

"Why? Why did you choose us?" I shake my head slowly. Part of me feels so resentful at what was asked of us, while another part wants to thank her desperately for the chance to finally be what I am.

"Because everythin' comes around, Charlotte. Especially with you two."

"Why did she have to die? Why was she taken from me? I miss her..." My voice catches a little as I look into her eyes.

"Oh, yer missin' something, alright." She takes my hand in hers and presses something into it with the other. It feels warm, comforting even. I look down to see a small vial of water stopped up with a cork. "But not fer much longer. Thank ye for what you've done. Ye may not realize it yet, but that difference you wanted to make in th' world? Ya made it, and in spades." She smiles and turns to leave.

"Wait! Don't go! I have so many questions still!"

"And the ones you really want the answers to are in what I gave ya. When yer ready, seek them out." She smiles and waves at me as she disappears the way she came.

I close my eyes as a knot forms in my throat as I drop back into my chair, confused and feeling hollow. I don't understand at all. It's not the least bit fair. Mackenzie should be here, sharing in a life we made with each other. I finally open my eyes with a tired sigh.

The crystal vial glints as it catches the sunlight. Memories of that first night in the desert race through my mind as I turn it over in my hand. This was how it all started, and if there's even a chance I can find some kind of answer... I look back up to see Tubbins and his wife inspecting the tomato plants. He looks up at me and smiles, waving to me before going back to whatever he was doing before.

I uncork the vial and bring it to my lips, letting the liquid wash over my lips and down my throat. It's not long before I feel a tingling in my chest that slowly radiates outward. The pain... softens, and I feel warm. Content, even. My head drops back against the headrest of the chair and I close my eyes, savoring the feeling. It's been a while since I've felt this good. The fatigue seems to drain from my body, and I feel younger. Much, much younger. Whatever it was she gave me, it is making me comfortable at the very least. I could sit like this for hours.

Daylight seems to fade a little, and the air grows a little more chilly. Odd, have I been sitting here that long? It doesn't feel like it. I'd best get inside, I suppose. I open my eyes and gasp; I'm not in my yard anymore. I'm in some kind of building, and it feels cold and sterile. Where am I? I get up from my chair and turn around, only to find that there's no chair at all. Gods, what is going on here? Answers, she told me. My curiosity overwhelms my apprehension as I make my way to the door ahead of me.

I place my hands on the knob to open it before pausing, almost afraid of what I might find waiting for me beyond it. Butterflies flit around in my stomach, and my hands shake a little as I push on it, swinging outward and affording me a view of the other side. My heart stops as I look out over the platform. Everything looks as it did that night, right down to Baron Rasputin's body lying on the floor.

I shake my head in confusion. How is this possible? Is this a dream? Or worse, another of his illusions? There's no pain like before though, and I feel warm... complete. Just like I did that night in the desert so very long ago, . Trust your instincts, Charlotte. Unlike before, that thought drowns out the doubt.

I step past the scorch marks and the slag heap, past the bodies of the two Deadies I killed. My heart is pounding, and it feels like it'll burst through my chest at any moment. My breathing comes in ragged gasps as I reach the edge of the platform and round the corner. I'm so scared, more so than I've ever been in my life. But I can't turn back now. Not when I am so close. Not when I am within a few steps of seeing...

Her. She's propped up against the massive concrete pillar, just as I had left her so long ago. Her hands are down at her sides, arcane fire gathering around her just as I had seen in the illusion he tried to trick me with. She's rocking back and forth, muttering to herself but unable to cast her Holy Fire spell. She even less lucid than I remember.

I don't even breathe as I stand there for a moment, and I'm terrified to think she might be real. All these years waiting, and now there she is before me. I've dreamed of seeing her again so many times, only to wake up cold and alone. So close, so very close. I take a tentative step towards her, then another. Her muttering becomes audible as I get closer to her. "... lost count. I've lost count. I can't..."

Now I understand. Everything becomes clear as crystal to me. I kneel down beside her and wrap my arms around her shoulders to pull her into a hug. "Hello again, Mistress."

She turns to look at me, momentary shock melting into joy at seeing me. She whimpers a little and smiles. "I lost... count, Cherrrry. Can't too... soon"

I sit down and pull her close to me, stroking her hair before kissing her gently on her cheek. "It's time now. Let me help you. What do I need to do?"

"Be here..." She seems to be drawing strength from my presence somehow. She puts an arm around me and closes her eyes. "Kids?"

"Don't worry, they're safe. You should see them, all grown up. Everything worked out in the end, my sweet Mackenzie."

"Good," she sobs. Fire builds up all around us, swirling and twisting as it obeys her command. I can see that multi-colored orb of energy start to form above us, and I can't help but smile. The heat becomes more intense as arcane energy flows into her. It won't be long now before it reaches critical mass, but that's okay. Everything is okay, now. I pull her close and nuzzle her neck. My heart is beating so hard.

"Hold on, baby. We're almost home."

"Love... you, Cherry."

"I love you too, Macken-"

***

Timothy gingerly holds the tomato in his hand, inspecting it for any infestation or damage. He lets go with a satisfied smile and turns back to me. "Well I don't think we need to worry, Addie. Truth be told, it looks like it's gonna be another good year."

"Hate when you call me that." I slap at him playfully before pouting. "I hate that name almost as much as I do 'Tubbins'."

He rolls his eyes at me. "There's a lot of history with that, I'll have you know." His smile grows far away, and I know he's reliving those early days. It irritates me a little to know that I can't share it with him, but it doesn't hurt to let him have it all the same. "A lot of memories. Many good, some not so good."

"Well, that's fine and dandy, but I'm not gonna call you that. You're Timothy, as far as I'm concerned." I cross my arms across my chest and flounce away. That always gets him to chase after me, which is exactly what I want him to do.

He laughs and runs up behind me, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me into a bear hug. "I'm whatever you want me to be, just so long as I get food and lovings!" I giggle and try to twist away from him as he tickles my ribs.

"Stop that! Come on, lets go check on Charlotte. She didn't look well when I left this morning."

"She was OK a few minutes ago. She was just sitting on the porch with that sword of hers up in her lap." He frowns at the thought before shaking his head. "She calls it 'Mack' now."

I sigh a little and look down at the ground. "She never got over her death, did she?"

His frown deepens as I move to his side and pull him into an embrace. "They were my parents, as far as I am concerned. When Mackenzie died, I..." He pauses for a moment and squeezes me hard.

"I know. Let's just head back.'" We both make our way back to the porch but her chair is empty, that sword of hers propped up against it.

"Charlotte?" He calls out to her as his pace quickens. He gets there before I do. I look at him in confusion for moment as he bends down to pick something up in the seat of the chair. I crane my neck to look over his shoulder. He turns to me and holds up a little metal sculpture of a rose.

***

Authors Note:

Yeah. Us too. It wasn't supposed to end like this.

We started this project in February of last year. By May, Apothecary29 and I had a clear vision of the way it was going to end. We knew who the bad guy was. We knew how they were gonna get there. We knew how they were gonna beat him. We knew how the epilogue was gonna go. Because of how I normally do things, we kept a tight, heavy lid on the end, only giving away the smallest scraps and bits, but always something moving it forward. It was then going to pull together in the final few chapters like a well-laid-out net. I thought it was pretty darn clever. Apparently, so did the people who wrote The Legend of Korra.

I had seen Avatar. I was always aware that the magic systems between the original show and this world were similar and that Avatar had a whole "Air Magic returns from the grave" theme, but I thought the similarities ended there.

Blood magic. Class warfare. Power stealing. Godhood. The similarities were really, really creepy. I've heard of this Korra show, but never seen it. I found out that I was about to unveil a bastard clone (at best) the night after I posted Chapter 10 (of a proposed 13 at the time). Those last three chapters would have been a whirlwind of (seemingly) plagiaristic events. There is no way that anyone who had seen that show would believe that it had come to me on my own.

But it wasn't too late. We hadn't actually revealed too much. So we rebuilt. It was just a few ideas at first, ways to take the hints we'd been dropping for many chapters now and tie them up in a different shape. The further we went, the more perfect it felt. And the more awful. Just... awful.

It wasn't supposed to end like this.

We stand by the story as posted as the superior ending, plagiarism notwithstanding. It was a huge learning experience for us on many, many levels. If you stuck through the whole thing (which you probably did, or you wouldn't be here), you have our undying gratitude.

On behalf of Ap, we would both like to thank LittleGrue for her indispensable assistance in editing, and so much more.