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Epilogue

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Ask me, go on, ask me
to do something impossible,
something freakishly useless,
something unimaginable and inimitable

Norman MacCaig : Incident

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The sound of the birds chirping accompanied Hyuuga Higure as he walked the side terrace to towards the dining room. It was spring and the sun was shining brightly with its warm light. Their back garden almost sparkled by the light of the sun, with the gentle sound of the bamboo decoration and the wind chime. It was another morning… one of those other morning that he always cherished.

"Ohayou gozaimasu!"

He slid open the side door to the dining room and soon found the rest of the members of the family. His brother was helping their mother with the cooking while their father sat by the table with a newspaper open.

"Ohayou gozaimasu, Sweetie!" replied his mother gently. She smiled. "Good sleep? We're going to have some nice breakfast today to commemorate you wonderful Academy report and your brother's first mission as Chuunin!"

"A… aaaa…" Higure blushed. He sat beside his father and touched his hair awkwardly. "T-Thank you!! It's not… that great… to equal it with Nii-san's first mission…"

"Oh, come on, you're insulting your mother then!" His mother laughed as she put a bowl of donburi in front of him. "Your mother here needed hard work to get those kinds of grades! Here, have it!"

"Aaaah… this early in the morning?" Higure looked at the heavily stuffed Donburi. It looked… marvelous and yet… somehow too wonderful for a mere breakfast. "Okaa-san, I…"

"Honestly, Higure, just eat, alright?" His mother poked him on the nose. She grinned. "Anywaaaaaaayy the good news is not only from your report. This is for every good news we have this morning!"

"Huh?"

Higure blinked. Hiiragi turned to glance at his mother, but still silent as he stirred the soup. Even their father peeked through the newspaper. Their mother laughed.

"Maaaaa… before that… let us have our wonderful morning breakfast first. Hiiragi, bring me the soup, please! We're going to eat now, Sweetie!"

X

The breakfast was longer than usual, but no one gave any complaints—not even the oh-so-strict head family. Everyone was taking their time, until Hiiragi finally placed his bowl after finishing his meal.

"The morning practice will begin soon," he said nonchalantly, placing the chopsticks on top of the bowl neatly then clasping his hands in front of his chest. "I must—"

"My… hasty, aren't you?" His mother smiled at him. "Don't want to hear the news too?"

The oldest son took a deep breath but before he even began, his mother already cut off with a light laughter.

"I know, routine is important," she chuckled. "My, how you resembled your father!"

Despite his stubborn refusal, he blushed. His mother's eyes softened.

"It's not that important anyway," she said softly. "It's only about additional family member."

Silence.

The sound of the chirping birds was still heard but nobody in the dining room moved. The eyes of the head of family were piercing his wife's gentle brown eyes and it was so intense that it could burn.

The bamboo decoration by the garden moved again, sending a soft 'clonk' sound.

"Additional… family member?"

Higure voiced out everyone's thought. Their mother smiled as if answering her husband' demand for answer.

"Well… I'm pregnant!"

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To be continued to the Sequel of

Forever Intertwined: A NejiTen Family Story

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Author's Note: There goes my selfish little self… I just cannot suppress the thought. 8D As a spoiler… let's just say the next story will revolve around their third child and also about the Hyuuga House as a whole, a conflict that stirs inside Konoha. There will also be a lot of piece about more grown up Higure and Hiiragi since it will take place years after this one.

Thank you for reading Forever Intertwined… I'm glad something that comes out as a stress reliever turns out enjoyable for you all.

Thank you.

-EshtarWind