After Story: Conclusion
by Magnus Prime
A world of white…
A reality of white…
White as snow, but not snow, for as far as the eye could see…
I felt myself tumbling though the whiteness, feeling like I was going backward and forward at the same time, seeing memories…or were they dreams…? Of school and work and love and loss and family…family…?
Was I curled up in a ball or standing upright? Was I upside-down or rightside-up? Which way was up? Which way was down? Was there an up or down?
I felt myself tumbling though this whiteness, feeling like I was going backward and forward at the same time…
My feet touched what felt like solid ground – feet…? – and when I pushed against the white surface it did not give. I looked down to see…feet? I had feet? And legs! Legs covered with some kind of cloth. A faint memory…a uniform? Where did the word 'electrician' come from?
Memories or delusions, thoughts coursed through my mind, of school and work and love and loss and family…
"Family: a group consisting of parents and children living together in a household."
But…there was more, wasn't there? More than just biology; there's a connection, right? Right?
I remembered my body, and looked down to see clothes covering pink flesh; where had the junk gone? A pinch…OUCH! Pain! I felt pain! I almost laughed in relief, except that I couldn't remember what 'laugh' or 'relief' meant. As other thoughts become more real to me, I realized that these must be memories, returning to their owner, and if I gave them enough time they would all come back.
To distract myself from the intensity of these thoughts and feelings I looked around me, studying the stark whiteness that surrounded me. I felt like I had stopped…something. Going home? Where was I going?
Out of the corner of my eye – Ah! I had eyes, too! – I saw movement, and whipped my head around to better focus on…it.
At first, it appeared as a dark blob...no, several dark blobs; a tall one, and a slightly shorter one. A family of blobs…family? The word 'dango' came to mind.
I watched as the tallest one resolved itself into a man, as tall as me and wearing a light-brown suit, and he somehow looked familiar, like someone I'd seen in a past I still struggled to recall. "Who are you?" I demanded, then gasped at the sound of my own voice. My voice!
He saw me, too, and his eyes widened and he looked down at the young, brown-haired woman next to him, now fully…formed? "Fuuko? Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"
She looked around before her eyes settled on me, and she gasped. "Tomo-kun…it's...it's you!"
"Me?" I croaked, still not used to having a voice. "I'm me!"
"I'm me!" he yelled sounding panicked; good, I was starting to remember more words.
"But…you look…just like me," he said as he and the girl slowly walked up to me. "But how…"
"Maybe you're both 'you'?" the girl suggested as she looked around. "This isn't Hikarizaka, but it seems…familiar."
I started to say something but was interrupted with a "What the hell?!" from behind, and I spun to find…another me, this one wearing a basketball uniform. With him was a young, purple-haired woman carrying a baby.
"Who are you?" I heard the 'me' in the brown suit demand.
The purple-haired girl looked at us, and; "Oh my god…Tomoya, it's you! Two of you!"
Another me suddenly appeared, this one with a girl wearing a long, white lab coat. Something about her face called to me from…so long ago…another life? "Tomoya-kun, I am sorry; I think I miscalculated the settings."
"Don't worry about it," the new 'me' said, this one in a dark, almost black suit. "I'm sure your team will figure out what happened, and pull us back. This isn't the first time this kind of thing has happened, right?"
"R-Right."
He then seemed to notice me…or us. "Well, this is certainly a surprise, but not wholly unexpected." He extended a hand before apparently catching himself and bowing deeply. "Okazaki Tomoya…but I suppose you already know that."
"What the hell's going on?" the 'me' in the basketball uniform demanded. "My family and I were going to dinner after my game…how'd we end up here?"
"That's what I'd like to know," came another voice, also sounding like mine, but with more…intensity. The newcomer was in a completely black suit and wore sunglasses that looked like they had mirrors in them. Partly hiding behind him was a girl with what looked like shoulder-length, dark purple hair. "Stay behind me, Mei," he ordered.
"You don't have to tell me twice," she squeaked.
"Excuse us? We're really lost." Again, another 'me'; this time with a tall, busty woman, almost as tall as him, each carrying a baby. "We were headed to the store when it felt like a truck hit us."
Before anyone could respond there was a WHOOSH, and we all jumped as a black car suddenly appeared. Another me dressed in a martial arts outfit quickly exited the car. "I'm really sorry! Is everyone all…right…" he trailed off as he saw us, then leaned toward the car. "Kit, why are there a bunch of 'me's in a big white space?"
"I do not know, Tomoya, but perhaps you should be more concerned about your family?" a tinny-sounding voice came from…the car?
"Right. Yukine? You and the kids okay?"
I couldn't hear the answer, which was just as well, since we ended up with more company; this 'me' wore a completely black outfit except for a white collar. "Well, this is interesting; I believe in the supernatural, of course, but…" he turned to the girl on his arm, one with short, purple hair. "…you haven't been messing with the occult again, have you?"
"Of course not!" she exclaimed. "You know I was never into that! But…" she looked around, at us and our surroundings. "…I don't know what to make of this."
"Well somebody better have some answers…and fast," a voice growled; the owner was a heavily-pregnant silver-haired girl glaring at us from beside another me, this one wearing a polo shirt and blue jeans.
"Calm down, beautiful," he said gently. "I'm sure someone knows something; we'll just have to ask around."
"Please, everyone calm down," the 'me' in the black suit with the lab coat girl said. "Something like this has happened before, so please calm down. First things first…" he said, looking around at us. "We might need to come up with some nicknames…to avoid confusion." He gestured to himself. "If no one minds, you can call me 'Professor'; that's what I'm used to, anyway."
"I have no problem with that," the black-suited, white-collar one said. "Please call me 'Chaplain', as that is what I'm used to."
"Nice," Professor said approvingly. "Clergy, then?"
"For a local hospital," Chaplain replied. "And what is your doctorate in?"
"Could we finish with the names, please?" the basketball 'me' complained. "I'd like to hurry up and get out of here."
"You're 'Superstar'," the 'me' with the mirrored glasses said. "And not because of the uniform; the way you carry yourself along with your musculature gives you away."
"Hey, thanks!" Superstar exclaimed with a broad smile. "Nice to be appreciated. You must be a scout, huh?"
"I'm referred to as 'Agent' in my profession, so we'll go with that," he deadpanned; he seemed like a very serious fellow.
"'Agent' it is, then," Superstar said, then shook his head. "Still weird seeing my own face like this, but whatever…"
"I guess I'll go by 'Knight' for this," the 'me' with the car said as a girl got out on the other side with a child holding her hand. For some reason, her swollen tummy and the child on her hand tried to trigger memories in me.
"Michael-sama has been wanting you to take on the family name," she said in a small, sweet voice.
"We'll talk about that later," Knight said as he leaned against the car and crossed his arms. "Right now we've got to figure out how we got here, and how to get back." He jerked his chin at the brown-suited 'me'. "We're using our jobs for our nicknames; what do you do?"
"I'm…an accountant," he said somewhat nervously.
"You okay with 'Numbers' as a nickname?"
"That's fine," Numbers replied.
"I'm just an electrician," the 'me' with the busty woman said. "I'm more of a family man than anything."
"All right, 'Dad'," Knight said with a knowing smile.
Dad returned the smile along with a nod as he held his family close.
"I'll play along," the 'me' with the silver-haired girl said. "Just call me…'Counselor'. Easy enough."
While this had been going on, the two girls with purple hair had found each other.
"Ry-Ryou...?" the longer-haired one said.
"Kyou," the other one said. "You're like her…but different."
"Wait…I am seeing a pattern…" the girl in the lab coat said. "Tomoya-kun…er, Professor? You knew all of these girls in high school, did you not?"
Professor looked at the other girls more carefully. "You!" he exclaimed as his eyes settled on the brown-haired girl next to Numbers, and he started toward her. "I saw you in the park!"
"You what?!" Numbers exclaimed, moving his girl behind himself. "What are you talking about?"
"Professor, please calm down," Chaplain said, putting himself between Professor and Numbers. "From the sounds of it, we'll need your expertise to get out of here."
"My wife's, actually," Professor said, still eyeing the other couple. "My doctorate is in Philosophy."
"Tomoya-kun is a genius," the lab-coat girl said.
"Kids, this is a lot of fun, but I think we've forgotten someone." Knight pushed himself from the car and approached me. "You haven't said much. What should we call you?"
"I…I don't know," I said. "I'm still getting my memories back."
"Man, I know what that's like," Counselor grunted. "Why don't we just call you 'Okazaki'? Is that cool?" he asked, addressing the rest of the group.
Nods and grunts of affirmation were the response.
"Perhaps we should introduce our families, to help put everyone at ease," Chaplain suggested. "I'm sure most of us know each other, but still…"
"Fine by me," Superstar said as he pulled his girl toward himself. "This is my wife, Kyou, and my son, Ryu."
"Hey," she greeted, waving with a free hand.
I gasped as a faint memory tried to return.
"You okay, Okazaki?" Knight said, resting a hand on my shoulder.
"I...don't know," I said. "Ke-Keep going."
"I guess we'll go next," Number said. "This is my wife, Fuuko. We don't have any children...yet," he said as they both blushed.
"My apologies, Fuuko-san," Professor said as he returned to the lab-coat girl's side and put his arm around her. "I was surprised to see you, though I guess I shouldn't have been. Anyway…this is my wife, Kotomi, but please call her 'Kotomi-chan' as it is her preference."
"Pleased to meet you all," she said, bowing.
"Do…Do I know you?" I stuttered as another memory started pushing its way in.
"If you are like my Tomoya-kun, we were childhood friends until tragedy separated us at about eight years old."
"Wait, that's my experience, too," Knight interjected. "Wasn't sure you were the same as my Kotomi until you said that."
"Same here," Counselor said. "But let's finish the intros, okay?"
"This is my wife, Misae, and my sons, Kei and Rei," Dad said.
"We all know Misae!" my doppelgangers cheered in unison, and I couldn't help but smile as I remembered…
"All right, Mei; stop hiding," Agent ordered.
"Tomoya, you're in Work Mode," Mei said in a scolding tone.
He scoffed as he took off his sunglasses and ran a hand over his face. "Sorry about that. Why don't you handle it while I make myself friendly again?"
She smiled as she stepped in front of him. "I'm Mei. I'm Yohei's younger sister, in case you don't know that."
"Sunohara…?" The name flashed to mind, so familiar…
"That's right," she said. "Sunohara is my maiden name."
"I'm next," Counselor said. "This is my wife, Tomoyo, and our…kid…soon," he finished with a smile as she elbowed him.
"My wife, Ryou," Chaplain said, putting his hands on the short-haired girl's shoulders. "She's a nurse."
"Tomoya-I mean, Knight," the car said as its owner rummaged around within. "I believe it's your turn."
"Huh?" Knight said, emerging with a baby. "Oh! Right! Introductions…" I held back a snicker as he hurried over to his family. "My wife, Yukine, and our children; the older one here is Hiro," he said, laying his hand on the boy's head, "and this one is Wilton," he finished, lifting up the baby on his arm.
"Wilton…what an interesting name," Ryou said.
"Named him after the founder of the organization I work for," Knight replied with a smile. "Now, let's put our heads together and see about getting out of here, huh?"
"What about me?" the car complained.
"Sorry, buddy; didn't mean to forget you." Knight handed the baby over to his wife before stepping next to the shiny black car, an interesting contrast to the whiteness all around us. "This is my partner, the Knight Industries Two Thousand; 'KITT' for short."
"A pleasure to meet you all," the car said. "Had I the capability, I would bow."
Everyone else shared a laugh. "Nice to meet you too, KITT," Chaplain said.
As Counselor studied the front of the car, where a red light moved back and forth, I made my way over to Professor. "You seem to know the most about this. What's going on?"
He looked down at his hands as he awkwardly rubbed them together. "My…My wife was testing one of her new creations and…something happened."
"What?"
"Honey, could you explain it?" he asked, gesturing to his wife. "You're the genius, here."
"Oh, no," she replied. "You are a genius as well, Tomoya-kun."
He said nothing but gestured to me.
"Oh!" she chirped. "The machine! I was testing a machine created based on Mommy and Daddy's research into string theory, and I think that something went wrong." She looked around at the whiteness around us. "Last time we were teleported outside the lab, but…"
"I think Yukine and I could help with that," Knight said as he and his wife approached us. "We were just talking with KITT and remembered…how do I explain it?"
"It was a bright light like this," Yukine interjected, indicating the space around us. "It's hard to describe, but it's like the…intensity? This reminds me of the legend surrounding Hikarizaka."
"Legend?" Superstar said, joining us.
"Happiness manifests in orbs of light. Tomoya saw one when we visited my brother's grave and…he kissed me."
Knight blinked. "That made you happy? I never knew."
She ducked her head with a shy smile.
"What does that have to do with this?" Superstar asked.
"When Yukine was killed during a rescue, we both saw a bright, white light just as we were wishing to save her," Knight replied. "After that, we went back several minutes to when I was just gathering the hostages together."
"Killed? Hostages?!" Superstar blurted.
"Hush, Tomoya," Kyou said, placing a hand on his chest. "Go on."
"I think I get it," Professor said. "If this light is the same sort as that, then we may be within a mass of light created by happiness!"
"Tomoya-kun!" Kotomi-chan said, grabbing onto his arm. "That is brilliant!"
"Amazing…" Chaplain said, adding himself and his wife to our group. "If that's true, we may be able to divine the purpose of this particular light if we determine who was here first."
"That would be Okazaki," Numbers said as he approached, his wife also in tow. "He was the only one here when I arrived."
"Is this true?" Professor said, turning to me; it was weird how quickly we seemed to be getting used to seeing our own faces on other people.
"I think so," I said. "Before…Numbers…arrived, I felt like I was floating in…air?"
"What's the last thing you remember?" Counselor asked gently.
I tried to think; having been a spectator for so long, it was hard having to suddenly participate. "I'm...not sure."
"Just whatever comes to mind, tell us. Okay?" he prompted.
"I remember…snow…my body made of junk…"
"What else?"
"A girl…long, dark-brown hair…a lot of snow…and a house – a cabin, really…
"Anything else?"
I brought my hand to my head as it started to throb. "Pain…death…despair…NAGISA!"
I felt hands catch me as my legs gave out, and I felt myself carefully laid on the ground, my head elevated. "Okazaki!" I heard Professor cry out.
I blinked a few times, then fully opened them to see him with a pale complexion and tears in his eyes, and I realized that he was holding me in his arms. "She's…dead," I whispered.
"I know," he said. "K-Kotomi-chan, I think I know what's going on; somehow, all of the 'Tomoyas' here are from parallel timelines, and this one…Okazaki…ended up with Nagisa."
I heard a gasp, and Kotomi's face appeared on my other side. "Oh, Tom-I mean, Okazaki…I am so sorry…"
"Oh my god," I sat up with Professor's assistance to find Knight in a state of shock. "Yukine, remember what I said? 'If one orb could do that…'"
"…and this is a mass of orbs…"
Knight rubbed roughly at his head as I got to my feet again. "Damn, I wish Kotomi was here, she could…wait a minute…" his face broke out in a smile. "We do have a Kotomi here! Professor, let me borrow your wife for a bit!"
"Tomoya-kun…" she whimpered, looking worriedly at her husband.
"It's fine," Professor said with a smile. "I think I see where's he's going with this." He and Knight helped her to her feet, then hurried over to the car.
I followed them. "What's going on?"
Knight took my by the shoulders as Kotomi-chan got in the car. "Listen Okazaki; in my timeline, Kotomi is KITT's technician, so this Kotomi should be able to work with him to figure out our situation and, by extension, why you're here." He then joined Kotomi in the car while Yukine stood nearby, holding their baby.
As I watched them, a small voice came from below me: "You look like Papa-san." I looked down to see Knight's other kid – Hiro, if I remembered correctly – looking up at me.
I knelt down to look him in the eye. "Yeah, that's my understanding. Of course, I can't see myself, so I just have to take everyone's word for it."
"Here," I heard my voice say, and a pair of mirrored sunglasses appeared on my periphery. "Look into these, if it'll help." I followed the shades up to an arm that led up to the face of Agent, who had an intense but friendly expression.
"Thanks," I said, taking the glasses from him. I looked into the front of them and, sure enough, a very familiar face came into view.
"See?" I heard Hiro say. "You look like Papa-san."
"I guess I do," I mused as I rubbed my cheek, my reflection doing the same. Then I handed the shades back to their owner. "Thanks."
He accepted them with a small smile, then looked over to the car. "Knight and Kotomi seem quite capable," he observed. "The car? Not so sure."
"KITT can do anything," Hiro boasted. "And if he can't, Aunt Kotomi can make it so he can do it."
Agent's chuckle sounded more like a snort. "We'll see, kiddo."
I left them to their conversation as I finished my journey to the strange-looking automobile. It was wedge-shaped and sleek, colored black, though its paint looked rubbery somehow. "Hello?"
"Greetings, Okazaki-san. I'm very sorry, but I am currently occupied, attempting to determine the nature of this area as well as that of our situation." The voice was pleasant, if matter-of-fact.
"Oh. Sorry."
"No apology is necessary, but thank you for your concern."
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Interesting; that question does bring back memories." A brief pause. "If your services are required, I shall be sure to ask you personally."
"Okay," I said, then stepped back to give it…him…more privacy.
As I waited I watched as Counselor and Numbers sparred, and I wondered if it would be possible for me to fight like that.
It could have been minutes, hours, or eternity before Kotomi and Knight finally got out of the car. "Okay, I think we've figured it out," he announced.
"Indeed? Wonderful!" Chaplain exclaimed; I found it weird hearing my voice saying stuff like that. Was I even capable of that kind of language? "What have you found?"
Knight looked over at Kotomi-chan, who simply nodded at him. "Okay, so here's the deal; this place we're in…" he said, waving a finger around to indicate the area, "is a really big version of what Yukine and I 'used' back when she was killed. Because he was the one first found in it," he continued, pointing at me, "we believe that this is a corridor of sorts, taking him to a point in his past."
"So why are we here, then?" Superstar asked.
"KITT-san and I have come up with two possible reasons," Kotomi-chan said. "One, the force of the light is so strong that it pulled in more than one Tomoya-kun. Two, our lives may be connected to his somehow."
"That would make sense," Chaplain said. "When Ryou and I were on our honeymoon, a light similar to this landed in my hand, as though it had been seeking me out."
"Same here," Superstar chimed in. "but mine was just after Kyou and I got together."
"Now that's interesting," Counselor said. "And you said this light is a semi-tangible form of the happiness of others?"
"That's right, but Yukine was the one who told me about it," Knight confirmed.
"Could it be that we're all here because the happiness we brought to…the girls…made this 'corridor' possible?" Numbers suggested, looking around awkwardly.
"You could create something like this with just the happiness Tomoya's brought me," Misae quipped, then blushed as the others looked at her with smirks.
"So what do we need to do?" Dad asked. "I'd like to help, but I don't know how."
"From what KITT-san and I have discovered, we will not need to do anything but let this run its course," Kotomi-chan said.
"I concur," KITT said. "While it may appear to be static, this corridor is constantly in motion. Based on wave patterns, the rest of us should be ejected in the next sixty minutes or so, barring unforeseen circumstances."
"Looks like we have an hour to kill," Knight said, clapping his hands with a smile. "Hey Superstar, did you bring a basketball?"
"Sorry," he replied. "If I'd known this was going to happen I would have."
"Aw, nuts," Knight said, his smile never wavering.
I spent the time mainly talking with my counterparts, but I also spent time learning about their wives.
"Tomoya really kicked my ass for being such a bitch," Kyou said with a blushing smile. "I got jealous of Tomoyo for some really stupid reasons, and he dumped me." She reached over and laid a hand on her husband's shoulder. "But he was faithful to me; he didn't try to date anyone else while he waited for me to pull my head out."
I noticed Chaplain looking sheepish, and it piqued my curiosity. "Are you okay? You're looking a little pale."
"Oh…right." He tugged at his collar while his wife stood by, looking amused. "Well…the fact is…in my timeline…I actually punched Kyou."
"Are you serious?" Dad exclaimed. "You, a priest?"
"It was long before he became a chaplain," Ryou explained, glancing at her alternate sister. "I had broken up with him due to my own foolishness, and Kyou blamed him for it. He just…snapped."
I glanced to see Chaplain staring at the floor, completely red-faced.
"I never told her this," Ryou continued, "but I think she deserved it."
"I did not!" Kyou protested, then stopped short. "Wait…that wasn't me me."
"That's true," Ryou said, approaching her alternate twin. "Then again…you're not the Kyou that I know."
Kyou chuckled awkwardly. "It's kinda weird hearing you call me by name; my Ryou still calls me 'onee-chan'."
"It's interesting, hearing about all these different experiences," Counselor commented. "Isn't it, beautiful?"
Tomoyo looked around at us, then self-consciously laid her hands on her stomach. "I…I wouldn't know."
"Yeah," Knight said as he studied Tomoyo's face. "Some pretty big differences between timelines."
"I'm sorry," Counselor said as he drew his wife into an embrace. "She's dealing with some pretty serious stuff right now."
"Will she be okay?" Yukine asked with a worried look. "It's so hard to see her in pain."
"I'll be fine," Tomoyo interjected. "I'm determined to overcome whatever life throws at me."
"That's the spirit," Knight said with an easy smile.
"Hey, I'm feeling left out," Fuuko protested, dragging her husband along as she joined our group.
"Sorry about that," Professor said consolingly. "It was never our intent to ignore you."
"I'm more worried about Okazaki-san though," she said, looking at me. "He's lost everything dear to him, and now he's going back to a very important point in his life."
"How do you know that, love?" Numbers said.
"I…I don't know," she admitted. "But I know it."
He looked at the rest of us. "I've learned to trust her when she says stuff like that."
"I'll second that," Dad said, jumping in. "I know this probably isn't the same Fuuko, but the one from my timeline was able to see beyond the visible, so…"
"Then maybe we should cheer him on!" Mei exclaimed, startling me as she seemed to come out of nowhere.
"Great idea, cutie," her husband said, causing her to blush.
"I agree," Numbers said, and came to stand before me. "I don't know how much time we have, so I'll keep this brief…" he drew himself to his full height. "I don't know where or when you're going, but whatever you put your mind to, be sure to devote yourself completely. Should you meet Furukawa again – and I believe you will – devote yourself fully to her; no half-measures." He seemed to grow uncomfortable, but continued. "I am not as proficient in combat as Knight or as scholarly as Professor, but I believe that is because I devoted myself completely to improving myself overall."
"Devotion," I mused. "I think I get it."
He nodded once with a smile, clapped my on my shoulder, then turned to the rest of my counterparts. "Anyone else want to encourage him? He's one of us, after all."
"I got this," Superstar said as he got to his feet and approached me. "You're gonna be in a lot of relationships in your life. Now, if we're as much the same as I think we are, you have a crapola relationship with your dad, right?"
"I think so," I replied.
"Yeah," he grunted. "Well, it's important for you to be willing to fix that bond, to look for…dammit Kyou, what's the word?"
"Reconciliation?" she offered.
"That's it!" he said as he turned back to me. "You need to be willing to reconcile with the other person. Otherwise, you'll end up a lonely old man. Got it?"
"Reconciliation…" I mused. "Got it…I think."
"You'll get it when the time comes," he said, then lightly bopped me on the side of my arm. "All right, who's next?"
"I do not know what I have to offer-no, I think I do," Professor said, and hurried over to me. "Tomoya, I…" he studied me, and I watched in awe as tears formed in his eyes. "Oh Tomoya, you have so much more potential in you than you probably realize. From my conversations with the others, I have learned so much about what I could be capable of that…" He took a deep breath as he dabbed at his eyes with a handkerchief. "Forgive me; the realization has been a bit…overwhelming."
"No problem," I said, swallowing a lump of my own.
"If I could leave you with one message, that would be: Never, never, sell yourself short. Regardless of where you came from, or who you came from, you have nearly unlimited potential. Use it."
"Potential," I repeated, awestruck. "Thanks."
He nodded once before heading over to hold his wife.
"I guess I'd better get mine out of the way," Agent said as he somehow slid before me. This version of me gave me the creeps even thought he seemed decent enough. "I'm kinda in the same neighborhood as Numbers; you find what you're good at and do it. I discovered an eye for talent, and my cutie lives very comfortably because of it. My dad, too."
"Understood, sir," I said nervously.
He grimaced. "Shit, do I have the Face on again, cutie?" he said, addressing his wife.
"Take off the shades, Tomoya," she said with an amused smile.
He grunted as he slipped them off. "Sorry; part of the persona."
"N-No problem."
He sighed heavily. "Look, before you can use Number's devotion, you need resolve, that firm decision to do what you're going to do. Devotion carries you through, but resolve is what gets you started in the first place."
"R-Resolve," I stammered, still intimidated by his intensity. "I'll definitely remember that."
He studied me a moment longer, then laid a hand on my shoulder. "You've got what it takes to go a hell of a long way, and I don't say that just because you're me. Or I'm you. Whatever. I say that because of experience."
"Thanks," I said, genuinely moved.
"'Scuse me," he said, and slipped his shades back on and headed back to his wife.
"For some odd reason, I think I'm next," Dad said, then looked up for a moment in thought. "I'm no fountain of wisdom, but as a husband and father I suppose I could leave you with this; make sure you are there for your family, especially your wife. Even though my kids are young, I know the day will come when they will leave and become their own, leaving Misae and I to find their places in the world. Make sure you cultivate that relationship with…Nagisa, if I understand correctly, and work on being a good husband to her. Companionship is very important."
"Companionship…" I mused. "That's…helpful, thanks."
"I'm glad if I've helped," he said with a kind smile before giving me a brief hug. "Good luck, Tomoya."
I blinked away tears, and as he took one of his boys from his wife I found myself hoping for more time with Dad before he was sent home.
"Well, I may seem like a bit of an asshole, but I'm really a big mush-head," Knight said, snapping me out of my reverie. "Right, Yukine?"
"We're both mush-heads…stud," she replied with an interesting smile.
"Eh-heh," He turned a red face back to me. "What can I say? I do what I do out of a strong sense of justice, a desire to protect people from those who operate above the law."
"Sounds dangerous," I observed.
"It is," he admitted. "I don't know how many times I've been shot at, as well as actually been shot, but I can't help it."
"Your level of selflessness is quite admirable, Tomoya," came a voice from around his wrist, and I recognized it as being KITT's. "I have never met many humans – other than Michael, of course – who are willing to put themselves in harm's way the way you have been."
He raised his arm, and I could see a watch with an awful lot of buttons on it strapped to his wrist. "Thanks, buddy," he said to his watch. "That means a lot to me."
"Tomoyo-san and Kotomi-san feel the same way," Yukine added. "I feel that way, too."
He cleared his throat as he turned back to me. "So, there you have it."
"Selflessness…could I really do that?"
"Hey, if I can do it, you can do it." He extended his hand, which I shook. "Remember: One man can make a difference," he finished with a wink.
I couldn't help but smile as he rejoined his family along with his 'partner'. What an interesting character.
"I believe that my sentiment has already been expressed in different ways," Chaplain said as he made his way up to me, "but I'll still do my best." He closed his eyes, apparently gathering his thoughts. "Ryou, along with Pastor Jeff Ashton, helped me to discover an aspect of myself I didn't know I had, that of compassion. Now, one might take that for granted, but in my case it ended up becoming the sole focus of my life…next to Jesus, of course."
"Of course," I repeated, not entirely following him.
"Compassion led me to pray for those victims of that terrible train accident before I even knew the Lord. Compassion led me to assist Kyou in her quest for Pastor Jeff."
"Huh?" Kyou blurted before being 'hushed' by her man.
"Of course I mean the 'Kyou' from my time," he clarified. "And compassion, in the end, helped me to show grace to the woman who would be my heart in this world."
"T-Tomoya…" Ryou said, blushing.
"Compassion…" I mused. "It does seem pretty powerful."
"Not as powerful as the source," he said with a wink. "But I'm not here to convert you to Christianity."
"Right," I said, not really understanding.
"I'll be back in a bit," he said with another wink. "I think we have one to go."
"That's right," Counselor said, taking his place. "Whew, it seems like you've had quite the trip, huh?"
"It seems that way," I said, nodding.
"Remember anything more from your past?"
I mulled this over. "It's coming back to me, slowly."
"At least it's coming back," he said with a friendly smile. "Good for you. Well…I'm not sure what I can say that hasn't already been said. Ah, I got it…I'm surprised that Chaplain didn't mention this, but if Pastor Jeff Ashton exists in your timeline, find him; that guy knows stuff."
"Okay…."
"And…like Numbers and Agent said: Whatever you do, do it with determination; decide that whatever you're going to do, you give it everything you have. And if you fail, pick yourself back up and determine to succeed the next time. Failure is not a failure; it's a learning opportunity."
"Determination…" I mused. "Got it."
KITT's voice suddenly sounded across the whiteness of our reality. "Tomoya, I'm detecting an expansion of the corridor's wavelengths. I believe we will be expelled soon."
I felt a sudden loss; I had met all these people, many of them me, and had somehow grown close to them. I looked around at my counterparts and wondered if I would ever be as…accomplished as any of them. "I…I don't want you to go," I said. "I don't want to be alone."
"If I understand all this correctly, you'll never be alone," Knight said with a smile. "We're all connected."
"Sixty seconds to expulsion, Tomoya."
"If I may…" Chaplain said as he hurried to the middle of the group. "I would like to pray for Okazaki."
Superstar wrinkled his nose, but the rest of my counterparts didn't seem to have a problem with it. "Go for it," Knight encouraged.
Chaplain looked up into the white abyss and spoke: "Lord Jesus, we stand before you, not knowing quite where we are. As we go our separate ways, let us remember our time together with fondness, and let Your way be known through this. Because Your ways are not our ways but above them, show us what You would have us take from this experience and let us be enriched by it." He took a deep breath. "I lift up Okazaki Tomoya and ask that You guide him, show him the path You would have him take, and bless him as he travels that path."
"Ten seconds," KITT's voice warned.
Chaplain dropped his eyes from above to look directly at me. "May the Lord bless your steps, Tomoya. May His arm strengthen you and His wisdom guide you." His voice started to fade along with everyone else. "May He show His love though you…"
There she was in the blinding light.
Because of the darkness clouding my vision before, my eyes had not adjusted to that light.
Suddenly, the light began to fade, and shadows appeared.
It was…that place.
The foot of the slope before the school gate.
She was standing there again.
Transfixed, that person looked up at the gate.
I hesitated to call out.
For what reason, I do not know…
I try to think of why. She looks up from time to time, then down, and sighs.
Quite some time passed.
She turned around…her back facing the gate.
She looked my way.
The figure starts walking.
Passes by the stranger that is me.
…I ought to call out.
But…
Would it be better not to do so…?
It would be better not to get acquainted with a person like me…
It would probably be better to part our ways here.
But…
I…
###
Call out -
Don't call out
###
"…NAGISA!"
'After Story' Fanwork Series Complete