"I'll deliver all;

And promise you calm seas, auspicious gales

And sail so expeditious that shall catch

Your royal fleet far off.

My Ariel, chick;

That is thy charge: then to the elements

Be free, and fare thou well! Please you, draw near."

-Prospero, The Tempest

Two years, thus, had the tale lasted. Less for the two of them, but it was Samon's actions that had set everything into motion, that had been the root of it all, when he created the cage of time. Now, finally, it had all come full circle, and to its ending.

Although I suppose it really began ages ago, when the Trees were first planted on this world, Takigawa Yoshino mused, standing on that windswept cliff that held the Fuwa family grave. Whatever their purpose may truly have been, and whatever force set them here.

He supposed Evangeline Yamamoto and Hayakawa Takumi would probably continue to research the nature of the Trees of Genesis and Exodus, but Yoshino couldn't say he was especially interested. For him, and for Mahiro, it had all begun when Aika died, not the misty, forgotten past.

Even for Hakaze-san, it's the last couple of years that really mattered. Surprising himself, just a little, Yoshino felt his lips curve in a small smile. All this began when she was stuffed in a barrel. Right or wrong, I don't think she'll ever let Samon-san live that down.

Kusaribe Samon was lucky it wasn't Aika he'd done that to. As temperamental and passionate as Hakaze was, she didn't hold a candle to Fuwa Aika in terms of making someone's life a living hell. Yoshino had experienced Aika's talents enough just from her scaring off competition and keeping Mahiro in the dark; he didn't think he really wanted to know what she'd have done to her enemies.

Her death had been proof enough of the lengths to which she was prepared to go.

"Well," Mahiro huffed by his side, "that's enough of that. I could spend all day ranting, but it's not like she can hear me, anyway." He stood from where he'd knelt, before his family's gravestone, and stretched; joints audibly popped as he worked out the stiffness from kneeling so long. "Tch. Played out someone else's script to the very end, huh? That's one thing I'll never do. I'll write my own story."

Yoshino hid another smile, turning to follow as his friend walked away. Even now, Mahiro wouldn't really admit just how deeply he'd cared for his adopted sister, but Yoshino found it instructive that not once, in his recollection, had his revenge-driven friend mentioned his parents in the year and more since they died. Always, it was about Aika, even when he was complaining about her.

Complaints that stop the minute I talk about her bad personality, Yoshino thought, amused. The only one you ever fooled was yourself, Mahiro.

"You know," he began, as they reached the stairs leading down from the clifftop cemetery, "you could say she was the playwright in the end, and we were the ones following a script."

Mahiro shot him an irritated look over his shoulder. "What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

"You didn't notice the parallels, Mahiro? After all, everything we did was because of Aika's death, and now we know she arranged it herself, so…"

"Sure, she knew we'd act," Mahiro retorted, rolling his eyes. "But she knew that as much because Hakaze told her outright as because of her knowing us. Seems to me that's more of her living by a script, not writing one."

"You'd think," Yoshino agreed. "Except—do you really think how things played out was a coincidence? Look back, Mahiro. You think it was an accident that you were cast as Hamlet, and I was Horatio?"

Mahiro flinched, stumbling slightly. "I was—what? And… Gah." Catching himself, he promptly paused at the next landing, and turned to look out over the seaside road. "Hamlet and Horatio… Dammit. Except Aika would be Ophelia, right? That makes me Laertes, not Hamlet."

"Really?"

He hit Yoshino with an annoyed glare. "You're too smart for your own good sometimes, you know that?" Mahiro huffed, and seemed to deflate a bit. "Fine. Hamlet and Laertes. But don't say you don't have a little Hamlet in you, too."

Well, Yoshino supposed he couldn't completely deny that. He hadn't sought for vengeance the way Mahiro had, but neither had he been able to let go of Aika's memory. Where Horatio had been Hamlet's loyal companion, defined and driven by that connection, Yoshino had been as driven by Aika as Mahiro, just in a different way.

He moved to join Mahiro, resting his arms on the landing's railing. "Of course," he mused, "there is one flaw in the allusion. We were both a bit of Hamlet—but neither of us died."

Mahiro snorted. "Because a certain someone decided a tragedy wasn't the right script. You turned it into The Tempest, right?" He shook his head. "You figure she planned that, too?"

"It crossed my mind," Yoshino acknowledged. "Although I'm not sure where you'd fit into that."

"I'm still Hamlet; I was just off-stage while you went and had your play. At least, that's what you had in mind, wasn't it?"

Oh, that. Yoshino ducked his head, acknowledging the hit. It had, indeed, been his idea to try and keep Mahiro out of things after the Trees began to awake, hoping to keep his friend in enchanted sleep until things stabilized. It hadn't worked quite as planned, but it was probably true that Mahiro's next "scene" hadn't come again until the final clash against the Tree of Genesis.

Well, he did teach Hanemura to fight, but that was more training another actor than playing a part himself, I guess.

"Well, then," Yoshino said now, "if it was 'my' play, who was I?"

"Ariel, of course. The sorcerer's spirit adviser, who schemed behind the scenes. Which is where Hakaze fits it, don't you think?"

Of course. "A magician, betrayed and exiled to a deserted island, communicating with those she can't touch." Yoshino nodded. "Prospero. Right down to giving up the magic in the end, and forgiving 'Antonio' for exiling her in the first place."

"Of course, Samon actually turned out to have a point. Not that I cared one way or the other, mind you, but it was there." Mahiro spun, leaning back against the rail in a semi-sprawl. "That makes Aika Sycorax in that scenario, I suppose. And not a word about her 'bad personality'," he warned. "She said I could hit you three times. Throwing you over the railing probably counts as two, but it would be worth it."

"I didn't say anything." Not that Yoshino wasn't tempted, but really, sometimes Mahiro just made it too easy.

Maybe Aika-chan did have a bit of a point about me being a horrible person, he mused, looking out to the ocean. I was never sure how much of that she actually meant; not that she was one to talk… He chuckled to himself. Hakaze-san did call me a villain herself, when we first met in person.

"Feh," Mahiro said at length, pushing himself upright again. "Maybe Aika really did write out our script, in the end. If she did, I'll even complement her for it. But from here on, I'm living my life, with nobody putting words in my mouth. I'll shape the world how I please."

Yoshino nodded. Mahiro had already been making noises of aiming high with his life, and if he was bit uneasy about where Mahiro might take the world, well, it had to be better than anything the Trees would've arranged for humanity. Or whatever force might've been behind them.

"So, what's the first step, Mahiro?" he asked, as the pair of them resumed their downward course. "You can't just go straight to ruling the world."

Mahiro rolled his eyes again. "Big things take time, Yoshino, I know that. And energy. Right now, I think we both need a rest; and I've got someone I need to meet up with." He took out his phone and checked his messages, then nodded to himself. "It's not right to keep a girl waiting, you know."

Yoshino's eyebrows went up. "A girl? You?"

"Don't act so surprised, damn it." Mahiro shrugged uncomfortably. "Somebody I ran into a week or two before I met up with you again. We ended up exchanging phone numbers and emails, and, well, we've been in contact ever since."

Ah. I remember now. Right before Mahiro literally flew back into Yoshino's life, "Fraulein" Yamamoto had made reference to Mahiro rescuing a girl from a town being afflicted with Black Iron Syndrome. A girl… about Aika-chan's age, wasn't she? Yoshino stifled a laugh. And it took him this long to even begin to admit he loved Aika-chan? You really are good at lying to yourself, Mahiro.

"Even in the middle of all this chaos, you still kept in touch? I'm impressed, Mahiro."

"Shut up," Mahiro muttered, stuffing his phone back in his pocket. "So I had something to keep me going besides revenge. Finding Aika's killer was still the most important thing." He winced abruptly. "Though you'd better believe, this girl reminded me of Aika after that little coma stunt you pulled with me. I got an earful when I woke up."

Oops. Not that I could've known. "Sounds like you patched things up, at least."

"Yep." Mahiro offered Yoshino an evil grin. "Better watch your step when you meet her. I made sure she knew how much of it was your fault."

Yoshino shrugged, affecting a complacency he didn't really feel. "I survived Aika-chan. I'm sure I can manage."

"You won't, if you keep making cracks like that. The railing, Yoshino, I'm warning you." Another evil look, suggesting something had just occurred to Mahiro. Something Yoshino wasn't going to enjoy. "Enough about me. I know you; you don't have any huge ambitions even now, I'll bet. But what are you going to do about Hakaze?"

That… was an interesting question, Yoshino had to admit. A very interesting question.

He knew Hakaze was interested in him. Well, more like madly in love, by her own direct admission; Yoshino had to admit to some chagrin that he hadn't even noticed until she practically beat him over the head with it. It not only wasn't a secret, for a while some people had thought it might cause the Apocalypse. Just as he and Mahiro had been driven by their love for Aika, Hakaze had been motivated by her love for him.

Yoshino hadn't seen Hakaze since shortly after the Trees were destroyed, but he had no particular expectation that her feelings had changed. The real question was how he felt about things. Throughout the conflict that had brought them together in the first place, Yoshino had still been tied down by the past, by the question of who had killed Aika, why, and what her own goals might've been.

With the information that Hakaze had brought back from her trip through time, those questions had been answered, and now having seen Aika's final message, Yoshino thought he finally had something resembling closure. He could finally move on; yet he wasn't entirely sure how. He was still coming to grips with the freedom gained by letting go.

"I don't really know yet," Yoshino said at length, voice soft. "It took me so long to even deal with what happened to Aika-chan..."

"Heh; and people thought I wasn't dealing with it rationally. At least I wasn't bottling it up." Mahiro grinned, more genuinely this time, and thumped him on the shoulder. "C'mon. The past is past, Yoshino, and Aika… Well, I guess I can't say for sure if she'd have wanted you to move on. I can't speak for the dead. But she is dead, and you're not. And there's worse people you could end up with than Hakaze, right?"

"…Yeah, that's true. I'd always know where I stood with her, anyway." The former mage wasn't half as abrasive as Aika had been, but Kusaribe Hakaze was still not known for mincing words. When she'd tried to keep her attraction to him a secret, it had been only out of fear of the consequences, and the only reason it had worked was his own obliviousness. "Still, I… I'm not quite sure what I feel, Mahiro."

"Quite the admission, coming from you." Mahiro glanced past Yoshino, and just a hint of evilness returned to his grin. "Well, ready or not, you'd better start thinking, Yoshino. Take a look."

Yoshino did, just in time to see Hakaze by the side of the road, bidding the driver of a car farewell. Something stirred in him at the sight, a feeling half-remembered; a feeling that grew when Hakaze turned to look up toward the Fuwa gravesite, and met Yoshino's eyes instead.

The sudden push between his shoulders from Mahiro added impetus to Yoshino's resumed descent, but what really started him moving in the first place was the way Hakaze's face lit up at the sight of him. It made him feel… strangely warm, in a way he hadn't in far too long.

He wasn't sure he was ready to face why, yet.

Ready or not, though, Yoshino's feet were quickly carrying him down the stairs and along the side of the road; likewise, Hakaze dropped the handle of her luggage and took a few quick steps to meet him, a shy smile on her face. "Yoshino!"

"Hakaze-san," he returned, coming to a halt a few paces from her. "Long time no see," he added, smiling sheepishly at his own inane comment. It hasn't actually been that long, after all, and… and I have no idea what else to say. Where do we go from here?

To Yoshino's relief, Hakaze seemed to have at least something of a better idea of how to proceed; maybe, he reflected, because she'd been dealing with her own feelings for months now. "I thought I might find you here," she said, her growing blush the main sign that sh wasn't as much at ease as she sounded. "You and Mahiro… you were visiting Aika's grave?"

Yoshino nodded. "Now that we've finally gotten some closure, Mahiro wanted to say a few last things. I said everything I needed to… before," he went on, feeling only a little twinge now at the reminder. "Now Mahiro's got a date, so he's off to meet her."

"Mahiro? Has a date?" Hakaze gave him a look of pure disbelief, then quickly covered her mouth to stifle her laughter. "You're kidding, right?"

"It's the girl he saved from Black Iron Syndrome a while back," he explained. "You know, the one who's supposed to resemble Aika-chan."

Comprehension dawned, and the former mage lowered her hand to expose a smirk. "So much for all his tough talk, huh? I'm impressed he kept that up through all of this. Actually," she added thoughtfully, "I'm surprised he managed to keep it a secret. I'd have expected that kind of subtlety out of you, not Mahiro."

"He does have his moments."

Inwardly, Yoshino was glad for the ease of the conversation—and the fact that it was, so far, focused more on Mahiro. It proved that he still could chat casually with Hakaze, even as he tried to work out where he really stood with her now, and where he was going.

"So, Mahiro's got a date," Hakaze mused, as if to herself. "Then… what are you up to, Yoshino? Heading home, now that it's all over?"

Yoshino shrugged, a little uncomfortable now. "I don't know," he confessed, turning to look out at the sea. "After everything that's happened, I don't know that I'm ready to just 'go home' like nothing happened. So much has changed since the day Mahiro came back here and rescued me from Yamamoto-san." He glanced back. "What about you, Hakaze-san? What brings you back here?"

"I was looking for you, of course," she replied promptly, her blush coming back. "But not just that! I..." She trailed off, also turning toward the ocean. "I didn't feel right, staying in the village anymore," Hakaze admitted quietly. "With the Trees gone, so is magic, and without it, the village just feels… empty, somehow. So I thought I'd try starting over, somewhere else."

Yeah. I can understand that. It was, really, the same reason he was here, wandering still, even though the fighting was over. So much had changed, both personally and throughout the world. The brief, uncanny peace that the Tree of Genesis had enforced had vanished, and now the whole world seemed to be trying to find its footing again in the vacuum.

The two of them were just two more people trying to find their way in that world.

They'd fallen into something of an uneasy silence, wordlessly glad of each other's company but not sure what to say or do next, when a shout broke the stillness. "Oi, Yoshino! Catch, idiot!"

Yoshino looked up just in time to catch a key ring before it could hit him in the head. "Mahiro!" he called back. "What's this for?"

Having already turned his back, Mahiro merely waved one hand as he walked away. "You guys need someplace to crash, right? Nobody's using the old apartment anymore, so why don't you hole up there for awhile." He flashed another evil grin over his shoulder. "In other words, get a room!"

Yoshino stared after him, all of a sudden torn between wishing Aika had given him permission to throw Mahiro into a lake, and wanting to sink into the ground; he was certain he was blushing profusely. This is worse than throwing me over a railing, Mahiro! I just know this is your revenge for my dating Aika-chan!

He couldn't bring himself to look back at Hakaze, but he could guess her expression pretty easily. "That Mahiro," she breathed. "He's more considerate than he looks. Don't you think, Yoshino?"

By the time Yoshino and Hakaze reached the apartment that had served as the base for the unofficial group that finally defeated the Tree of Genesis, it was far into the night. By which time both of them were about ready to drop, Hakaze in particular having been on the move for hours before they even met up.

Opening the door for Hakaze and then slipping in himself, Yoshino was actually kind of grateful for the mutual fatigue. That meant there was a chance to put off, for a little while, awkward conversations he wasn't sure he was ready for. At least, he hoped so; he really was too tired to think about anything deep.

"Wow," Hakaze said, stifling a yawn. "Sure feels kind of empty, doesn't it, Yoshino?"

"Kind of," he agreed, unslinging his backpack to drop it on one of the apartment's couches. "By the time we got back from our journey, the others had already been living here for weeks."

Mahiro and Samon, Hanemura, Natsumura, Fraulein Yamamoto, even Junichiro. They'd all spent time here, while they searched for the truth behind the Tree of Genesis' intentions, and waited for Hakaze to choose her path. She and Yoshino had finally arrived only a month before the entire situation was resolved, and Hakaze had spent much of that time on another trip into the past.

Now, all of those others had moved on to other business, Mahiro even hooking up with a girl himself. Yoshino could only be grateful that the furnishings had all still been left behind. Sleeping on the floor would be nothing compared to some of the arrangements he and Mahiro had had to deal with during their original quest to confront Samon for Hakaze, but he couldn't say he'd have liked it.

Which reminded Yoshino of something else important to a comfortable evening. "At least there's room enough for us, Hakaze-san," he said, walking over to the kitchen area. "I guess Mahiro really did have the right idea."

Hakaze slumped gracelessly into the couch across from Yoshino's back, and let her luggage slip to the floor without a second thought. "Like I said, he's more considerate than he looks," she replied. Turning her head with some effort to look at him, she added, "And don't you think it's about time you dropped the 'san'? I get you may not be ready for 'chan', but c'mon, Yoshino. How long have we known each other now?"

He had just confirmed there was at least some prepackaged food in the apartment refrigerator when she hit him with that last, and he nearly whacked his head on the appliance's door. "Um, well—" Yoshino straightened, hesitated, and forced himself to think about that.

He still didn't know that he was ready to move forward. No, that wasn't right. Yoshino did know it was time to move forward, he just wasn't sure which direction to go now, even—especially—where Hakaze was concerned. Aika's death had been such a shock to his system—

Yoshino was stalling, and he knew it. And it's not like this is such a big step… right? he told himself. Not after everything they'd been through together, since the day Mahiro appeared out of thin air to save him from being shot.

Reaching up to sheepishly scratch his head, Yoshino cleared his throat. "I guess you're right… Hakaze."

The smile Hakaze favored him with was tired, but genuine, and made his stomach do interesting things. "Better," she said, and stretched. "Mmm… it's been a long day, hasn't it? Let's see what shape the bedrooms are in. And no, I won't push you to share," she added, her smile turning impish. "Not that I'll complain if you suggest it, Yoshino."

His face heated at that, and he quickly turned back to the fridge. Aika's brand of brutal honesty, he'd learned to deal with a long time ago. She'd generally been a lot less direct about physical intimacy, though; certainly not half as brazen as Hakaze, who had been all but openly trying to seduce him ever since she learned the truth about his "girlfriend". Yoshino still didn't quite know how to handle that.

"How about you check the bedrooms while I make a midnight snack?" he suggested, not daring to look in her direction. "I don't know about you, but I haven't eaten in hours."

"Mm… sounds like a good idea." Hakaze slowly pushed herself to her feet, swaying a little from fatigue. "Just don't take too long; I want sleep more than I want food, really."

"How about some instant ramen, then?"

Hakaze made a vague said of agreement before shambling off, and Yoshino turned his attention to cooking. Not exactly his specialty, he admitted to himself, especially when dead on his feet, but it wasn't like instant ramen was something requiring the skills of a master chef.

Good thing, too, since he was having a bit more trouble concentrating than just the fatigue could account for.

I'm sharing an apartment with Hakaze-san—er, Hakaze. Just the two of us. …Mahiro, I can't decide whether to thank you or find some way to put you in a coma again. How long were you planning this, anyway? You didn't have those keys with you for no reason.

It wasn't the first time Yoshino and Hakaze had stayed in the same place, of course. They'd spent weeks traveling together, before she devised the "Dancing Princess" charade. That, though, had been before he knew how Hakaze felt, before he told her about Aika, before he'd finally been able to find closure about Aika…

Yes, Yoshino was very glad it was so late, and they were so tired. He could put off thinking about this at least until tomorrow. After all, they might be the only ones in the apartment, but that only meant there was even more space than they'd had during various hotel stays. An apartment that had sheltered half a dozen people at one time without too much crowding could handle just two comfortably enough.

With that reassuring thought in mind, and the ramen about ready, Yoshino was much more relaxed when Hakaze returned from inspecting the bedrooms. Which, he thought with mild, sleepy curiosity, had taken a bit longer than he might've expected, but then she was so tired too, it might've been more surprising that she'd come back to the common area at all.

That was when he saw the look on her face. Well, what he could see of her face, anyway, because she seemed to be having trouble looking in his direction at all. "Hakaze? Is something wrong?"

"…Well, I wouldn't have minded it," Hakaze murmured, face still averted. "But, um… it looks like they were in the process of closing this place up for awhile. The beds and bedding are all still here, but… most of it's folded up and put away. Except for one bed in the master bedroom."

Still there, but not accessible enough for two dead-tired teenagers to haul out in the middle of the night. Yoshino was accustomed enough to thinking things through even when scared out of his mind to work out that logic, even as the rest of his brain took a vacation.

Mahiro, he thought with sudden certainty. He planned this. He probably started planning this the day the Trees were destroyed. This is all to get back at me for dating Aika-chan behind his back. That, or for putting him in a magical sleep for a month. I'm sure of it.

Hakaze finally managed to look at him, when the silence began to drag on. "It's not like there aren't options, Yoshino," she said, blushing, still not actually meeting his eyes. "You know, there's still the couches out here, so I'll just—"

Yoshino's abrupt sigh cut her off. "It's okay, Hakaze. It's late, we're both about to fall over, and I don't think either of us really wants to deal with the aches in the morning. Besides," he added, when she started to turn a look of mixed incredulity, embarrassment, and happiness on him, "I see a setup here. You know how Mahiro gets when he's out for revenge; I'm sure there's something else that would push the issue."

Yeah. Mahiro doesn't care if the entire world is in his way, when he wants payback. His "revenge" for Aika saved the world, in the end, but he had to fight it along the way. He probably booby-trapped the couches or something.

Yoshino was so glad he was so tired. If he were more awake, he was sure he couldn't have been this calm about it.

At last, Hakaze managed to meet his eyes, a hesitant smile growing on her face. "…You're sure it's okay, Yoshino?"

"Like I said, we probably don't have much of a choice." Yoshino felt himself smiling back, a tired, shy, but genuine smile. "I'll get Mahiro back for this, of course. But some other time. Now," he said, gesturing at the food, "let's eat, and get some sleep. We'll… we'll figure out the rest in the morning."

"…Okay."

They ate mostly in silence, having used up pretty much all the energy they had left. Then they stumbled off to the bedroom, which if Yoshino had been more awake and less embarrassed would've amused him: the only room with even a single bed still set up was the very one Hakaze had once suggested they share.

Fortunately, the tired outweighed the embarrassment, for now. In the morning, he suspected he'd spontaneously combust; for now, he only cared to take the time to check and make sure he and Hakaze had, at least, taken off their shoes. With that crucial detail confirmed, he awkwardly turned and collapsed onto the bed. He didn't even twitch when Hakaze followed suit, likewise uninterested in changing before sleeping.

Just as well, Yoshino thought muzzily. I don't think I could take Hakaze in a nightgown right now. Or less, come to think of it. She'd been completely unperturbed at him seeing her naked the first time they'd physically met; who knew what she might do with an opportunity to get him completely alone, when actively pursuing his affection.

Either she'd be too embarrassed, now that she was pursuing him, or… No. Don't even think about that. That's not a safe thing to think.

Thinking about much of anything wasn't really in the cards now anyway, thankfully. With a nice, soft bed beneath him, Yoshino finally had the chance to give into the fatigue, and he did so gratefully. He'd very nearly succumbed completely, in fact, when the bed shifted, and a weight rolled onto his chest.

Eyes cracking open with the tiny amount of strength he had left, Yoshino saw in the dimness a mass of pink hair had moved from beside him to on top of him. "Uh. Hakaze…?"

At first he wasn't sure he was going to get an answer; likely as not, she'd already fallen asleep and not even realized she'd rolled onto him. After a few moments, though, he did hear a sleepy whisper. "…Thank you, Yoshino…"

"Hakaze?"

"For being here," she explained in a murmur. "For… sharing with me. After all the time I spent on that island Samon dropped me on… I don't like being alone."

Oh. I should've realized.

Come to think of it, Yoshino didn't really know how long it had been for Hakaze, between setting the bottle adrift and Mahiro finding it. And even after that, though she'd been able to communicate with them through it, Mahiro and Yoshino had only been faceless voices, reaching her from hundreds of kilometers away.

For all that time, until casting the magic that teleported her through time and space to the foot of Mount Fuji, Hakaze had been alone. Betrayed by Samon, believed dead by Junichiro… Alone. And if Mahiro hadn't found the bottle, if Yoshino hadn't realized the trick to the cage of time…

Yoshino didn't know exactly where he was going to go from here. Like Ariel, he'd been set free, but he didn't yet know what to do with that freedom. Yet he, at least, had lost little in obtaining that freedom; Hakaze, though, had like Prospero given up her magic, and if anything had to be even more lost than he was.

Maybe, just maybe, Yoshino did know where to begin his new life after all.

Gently wrapping his arms around Hakaze, he adjusted their position so that her head was tucked under his chin. "You're not alone now, Hakaze. I'm here."

Hakaze cuddled close. "Promise?"

"I promise." Yoshino lightly stroked her hair, smiling to himself. "You'll never be alone again… Hakaze-chan."

And Now, a Word from the Author:

Hm. Well, fellow travelers, here you have it: it took me a good year longer than I expected, but I've finally completed the Blast of Tempest—and am I the only one who thinks that localization name makes no sense? Because I'm pretty sure it makes no sense—fic I originally said I was going to write up in the wake of Unisonia.

Kuso. Personally, I don't think the story was even worth the wait, but hopefully others will feel differently. Fact is the long delay is partly due to not having as much time to work on it as I expected, and mostly because when I actually did sit down and work on it I discovered I'd hugely miscalculated the project.

I was dissatisfied with the canon ending's lack of resolution of the Yoshino/Hakaze dynamic. Then I started writing about it myself, and realized that the ending is probably so open-ended because Yoshino simply hasn't let go of Aika yet. He also keeps his real feelings so closed in that it's hard to get into his head.

So. Final product… not, I think, up to the standards of my Buddy Complex stories. I did the best I could to give it something resembling the closure I wanted from the series, but there simply wasn't as much I could do as I originally expected.

Frankly, I think Sabishi Tomo's The Roundabout Path is overall better.

Eh. Enough self-deprecation. I think this at least wasn't horrible, so if people are entertained, that's good enough for me. The most important thing, and the reason I persevered with the project, is to have at least a little more canon-compliant material in the BoT section.

Honestly, people, why all the yaoi? I know it's a Cast Full of Pretty Boys, but seriously. The first part of the plot wouldn't happen if Mahiro and Yoshino weren't in love with Aika, the second wouldn't if Hakaze wasn't in love with Yoshino. Het romance is the only reason the plot even occurs.

…Anyway. Finally got this done. For all those who have asked, yes, I do have some ideas for more Buddy Complex stories, but they're still somewhat nebulous. For now, my next intended project is a Sword Art Online/Dead or Alive crossover, tentatively titled The Mist and the Black Swordsman. Draw your own conclusions from there. Or just ask me directly, I guess.

….Huh. Is it just me, or do all my stories seem to end up with the protagonists in bed together?