AN: I do not own Pretear, the characters, or the White Destiny theme for which I tried basing the ending of this one shot off of. This is my first one shot... I love the Hayate X Himeno pairing... This one shot takes place after Himeno's fight with the Great Tree of Fenrir--during the portion where she is in a death-like slumber... I thought about what might have happened during the time Himeno remained unconscious... What was going on in her mind? Where was she? Things like that... This is what resulted. I hope you enjoy and please feel free to comment or criticize as this is my first one shot... I must admit before I end my commentary that I love Pretear... It has always been one of my favorite animes and I will always continue to love it... Thank you for reading my work! Long live Pretear and the Leafe Knights-T.S.

Awaken From Your Slumber and Become Our Princess Once More…

Everyone had sacrificed so much for her… They devoted themselves to training her—to prepare her for the upcoming fight against the Princess of Disaster… They…They had all done so much to ease her pain and loneliness… And what reward awaited them? Death…Destruction… Lingering darkness… Hopelessness… But in order to prevent more sadness from coming into the world, in order to stop the darkness which threatened to consume all, Himeno had found the resolve and strength to somehow repel the fate that awaited her beloved Leafe Knights and the people she cared about most. All by herself… She turned into the ultimate Princess… The Snow White Pretear… in her heart she vowed to win at against the darkness at any cost.

Little did she know that the cost for such great power meant the ultimate sacrifice…

After the fight with the Great Tree and bringing back the Princess of Disaster from her own darkness, after resurrecting those who faded, the Princess lay amongst a bed of flowers… A beautiful, peaceful smile upon her face as the snow of life—as her little miracle…fell to earth and healed those afflicted by the darkness and ended the scarring of the world around her…

Surrounded by the Knights that cared for her—by her family that worried for her… The Princess lay deathly still—unable to talk, unable to move, unable to speak… But there was one thing that she could do which the agonized onlookers would never know… She still could dream…

~Where am I?~ Asked the Himeno sitting amongst a field of flowers… She was lost and felt alone… But she was at peace… In the field far to her left, a woman's voice called to her-

~Himeno…~

Her heart beat rapidly in her chest… Turning to look at the voice, Himeno found a woman who looked much like her smiling at her from amidst the field of flowers.

~Okaa…san!~ She exclaimed suddenly standing up. She felt incredibly confused now and unsure of where she was… The woman-her mother, walked toward her daughter, a smile upon her face holding out her arms as a welcome.

~It's alright now, Himeno…~ She said encouragingly. Himeno smiled and nodded her head than ran to her mother and held her in a gentle yet loving embrace.

~I am so proud of you, my darling…~

~Kaa-san… If you are here… Then I must be--?~

Her mother shook her head. Her red hair sparkling in the light of the sun's warm rays. ~This is all within your mind Himeno… To preserve power and your life… You have gone into an eternal slumber… You used up so much leafe… That you… nearly…died… But…You managed to save everyone…~

~Leafe… Power… Minna-san… Those words… I know something about them… But I can't remember… Why can't I…~ The words didn't register in Himeno's mind… She racked her brain and went thoroughly over the words again and again… But still nothing. She looked at her mother…

~It's a defense mechanism used by the body… Your memories of what happened are frozen in your mind to aid your preservation… But don't worry… It will all come… Just be patient…~

Himeno didn't want to be patient… It was important to her to remember… She continued to rack her brain… several moments passed by and she got a headache, as she tried to understand what her mother was talking about… And then… very slowly… The memories came back and she remembered… ~Hayate…The Leafe Knights… Dad… Mawata… Mayune… Everyone… That's right… I fought the Princess of Disaster—no… I saved her from her loneliness and turned into the Snow White Pretear all by myself but the Great Tree of Fenrir—~

~You did well, Himeno… …~ Her mother said pulling her into a hug.

~Kaa-san… Arigatou…~ She whispered. Suddenly the voices from those she had spoken filled the air of the world below their feet. Under their feet, the field of flowers swirled unsteadily and turned into a giant cinemascope allowing them to view the occurrences of the real world.

Himeno gazed downward at the unfolding scene… And was overjoyed and relieved beyond words to see those she loved alive… ~I'm so glad… It worked… My sacrifice… I was able to save everyone…~ A smile formed on her lips as she explained this to her mother. The woman nodded her head but for some reason, she looked rather sad.

Himeno suddenly realized why her mother seemed so sad… Though she didn't want to acknowledge it… She had a sinking suspicion that she could never be amongst the living again… But when… When… She saw Hayate looming over her body, there were tears in his eyes… And tears everywhere in the eyes of those she loved. It made her heart ache to know that she could no longer do anything to stop their sadness…

~Himeno…~ Her mother said softly laying a hand on her daughter's shoulder. ~I will always love you, darling… But… They need you more than I do… Go… Awaken from your slumber and become the Princess once more!~

Himeno gave her mother a puzzled look. Laying a final kiss on her daughter's cheek she whispered words into her ear.

And then…Opening her eyes and turning her head to the world around her, the Princess turned toward the one she loved, she thought with tingling lips… She remembered what her mother said,

~The Princess can only be brought back to life at this point by the kiss from her true love—her Prince…~ A smile formed upon the Snow White Pretear's lips…

~That's right… I can do anything when we're together… Miracles like this can happen… And sometimes it only takes…Holding hands with you, Hayate-kun…~