A/N:
This is the end! Well sort of. I had originally intended for a NanoFate end. But while writing this, I grew terribly attached to the Hayate character I had created. So now there will be 2 endings. It will be up to you, the reader, to pick the one you would like to see. A bit like those old school "choose your adventure" type deals. (Yay for reviewer Tsuchiyasa! You read my mind!).
Unfortunately, as with real life, there is no such thing as a happy ending for everyone. Someone is bound to get hurt. Someone is bound to be left with the bitter taste of regret. I wish there was a way to make everyone happy, but after 9 chapters of thinking and delaying the inevitable end, I simply could not come up with one which did not feel like I just stuck someone with someone else for the sake of completion.
So here it is. A very adult end.
Sorry, no threesomes. =\ I draw the line there.
Maybe I should change the category to angst.
I hope everyone has enjoyed the story, even if it may have been quite a fair bit of heartbreak and angst. It has been a long ride, but here we are at the final chapter to the tale. Along the way, I've left several little "easter eggs" (for lack of a better word). Little details that may not have been so apparent on a first read of the story, especially considering the delay between each chapter. This is hopefully to increase re-readability.
Thank you to all my lovely reviewers. I really couldn't have done it without you guys. Like it? Hate it? Please review!
To reviewer Zarosguth: I'm insanely glad you enjoyed that one line! It was glorious in my head too! And thank you for the heads up regarding the typo. I wouldn't have been able to live with myself. Thank you for all your fantastic reviews so far. They've been an immense help in shaping the story!
To reviewer stephygrock3107: (You have a really long use name!) We're nearly at the end of the fic! Thank you for all your reviews so far, and for your kind statistics. The ending I originally planned was NanoFate. Hope this works out for you!
To reviewer Major Mike Powell III: Thank you for all your lengthy reviews up to this point! It has always been an immense pleasure reading your reaction to the chapter and I always look forward to reading your reviews. =)
To all my other reviewers: You are all fantastic! I wish I could type a shout-out to all of you, but it'll take up half the fic! I am now gathering ideas for a next fic. Please let me know if there is anything else you would like to read!
And now…
The final chapter.
09:
Present day…
This was the probably last thing Nanoha had expected when she hit that speed dial. She steadied her breathing enough to pour out the cup of tea, taking it to the living room where a rather shaken looking blonde sat. The flight instructor paused for a moment. It was almost surreal, seeing Fate in her home again. Their home. Curled up in her usual corner of the couch. It was almost as if she had stepped back in time. Back to when things were less complex. Less painful.
But she had not.
And the Fate-chan on her couch right now was little more than a stranger.
A stranger who stood on her doorstep in the rain less than half an hour ago.
"Fate-chan? Is everything alright?" Nanoha asked, placing the warm mug in Fate's hands and seating herself next to the blonde. She got a hesitant nod in response from under the towel she had draped over the soaking wet girl. The brunette frowned, instinctively reaching out to rub the other girl soothingly on the small of her back, like she always did. She felt Fate slowly relax under her gentle massage.
"Would you like me to call Hayate-chan-"
"NO!" Fate burst out before retreating back into the corner of the couch. "I mean… No. Please don't."
Nanoha blinked at the sudden outburst. "Did something happen?"
"I… I just don't know how to face her right now." the blonde mumbled into the towel, her face turning a deep red.
The white mage retracted her hand to place it back on her lap. There was little doubt in her mind that this had something to do with the young general. But it really was not her place to question whatever was going on between them. Or how much Fate-chan remembered about Hayate. She had tried so hard to forget about Fate. Forget about the life they had. And just when she thought she had it all under control again, Fate had to go and come barging back into her life. With no recollection of her whatsoever. And it simply tore at her old wounds. Wounds she was so sure she had sealed shut long ago.
But right now, she wasn't the one hurting the most.
Fate jumped slightly at the sensation of a gentle hand on her head, rubbing the towel into her damp locks. She ventured a glance up to see Nanoha affectionately towelling her dry, a warm look in her eyes. A warm look that made her heart beat just that little bit faster. Fate could not help but feel drawn to that steady gaze.
Don't look at me like that, Fate-chan.
The blonde relaxed slightly, letting the white mage do as she pleased. Her eyes closed slightly as the effects of a terribly amazing scalp massage began to work their magic.
If you do, I won't be able to hold myself back.
"Thank you Takamachi-san…" Fate said shyly, giving Nanoha a look of genuine appreciation and a small smile.
I can't...
Burgundy eyes widened as a pair of soft lips pressed against her own, the hand in her hair holding her head in place.
It seemed like an eternity before Nanoha moved away, the both of them struggling to catch their breath. The brunette pulled out slowly from under the towel, unable to meet the other girl's intense stare.
"I'm sorry… I don't know what came over me-"
She was cut off as Fate pulled her roughly back into another kiss. One much less gentle. The slightly damp towel slipped off somewhere behind them, forgotten for now as the blonde reached out to feel those lips one more time.
She knew these lips. She knew these hands. She knew this voice.
"Nanoha…"
The name fell so easily from her lips like she had said it a million times before. Her heart knew this girl. Her body knew this girl. And it injected her with a warm rush that filled from her toes to the tips of her hair. Her hands laced themselves around Nanoha's neck, pulling her down against her, saturating her sense with the scent of roses that tickled the recesses of her darkened memories.
She knew her.
In so many ways.
And it made her wonder how she ever managed to survive so long without her.
She felt those slender fingers weave themselves into her hair, pulling her closer as if wanting the two of them to melt into one. And Fate felt like that was a very genuine possibility as her heartbeat accelerated, feeling stronger and more… Complete than ever before. The utter loneliness of her blank slate was filled with an immense feeling of being loved. And loving insanely, wholeheartedly in return. In her sea of unanswered questions, her mind supplied only one answer.
She loved Takamachi Nanoha.
Some things leave their mark on our hearts in a way we simply cannot forget.
She was not sure when her arm had looped around under Nanoha's knee, but she found herself easily lifting the brunette up bridal style, walking down the corridor of the house before pausing.
"Nanoha… Which one…"
Nanoha chuckled against the blonde's neck, feeling the small pang of sadness at the sharp reminder that this was not Fate-chan. She looked like her. Smelled like her. Tasted like her. Felt like her. But here this stranger was. Lost in the corridor of their home. The smile on her face turned melancholic.
"Last door on your left."
Knowing all this, why was she still letting Fate do this?
Fate trotted down the passageway, nudging the door open with her foot before setting the brunette gently down on the edge of the bed.
"Fate-chan, I think we should stop-"
Nanoha's protests were silenced when those pair of lips found hers again, this time intent on keeping her securely in place. Blue clashed with burgundy. And in that lingering moment, the brunette saw a spark of something in those eyes.
A spark of recognition.
A spark of the old Fate-chan.
And it filled her with a sense of hope. Cruel, cruel hope that she clung to with everything she had. Her hands found their way under the blonde's wet shirt as Fate pushed her backwards onto the sheets. The dams broke and years of pent up regret and love burst forth.
And this time she no longer had the strength to fight it.
.
It was warm.
Fate opened her eyes, squinting from the bright sunlight that poured into the room through the large window. This was not the Yagami home. She blinked back the last bit of sleep from her mind, slowly registering the room she was in before the memories of last night flooded back to her.
Oh god…
She didn't know what had come over her. It was almost like her body acted on its own accord. And she simply could not muster the willpower to resist. Nanoha herself didn't seem to put up much of a resistance either.
Nanoha.
The name rolled off her tongue easily. Fate blushed an incredible shade of maroon. What exactly was Takamachi Nanoha to her? Whatever it was, it was not unwelcome. Her heart fluttered precariously at the thought of the brunette, feeling terribly giddy and elated at the same time.
"Gah… I really do sound like a lovesick teenager…" groaned Fate, smacking herself in the face. Speaking of which, she needed to talk to Hayate. However awkward that conversation was going to be. The blonde sighed, shaking her fist in silent anger at "past Fate" who put her in such a difficult situation.
Fate plodded uncertainly into the kitchen where Nanoha was preparing breakfast, her long brown hair let down from its usual pony tail to cascade down her back, ghosting the tops of her thighs. She was clad only in a simple white shirt, leaving little to the imagination.
Though, after last night, there really was no need for imagining.
Fate blushed a deep crimson.
"Good morning, Fate-chan." smiled Nanoha warmly, sending another generous helping of redness to the blonde's cheeks.
"Good morning, Nanoha..."
The blonde slid into the seat closest to her, feeling an odd sense of familiarity as she watched the flight instructor busy herself with a stack of pancakes. Everything about this. This house. This kitchen. This incredibly beautiful woman. Everything seemed so painfully familiar, yet frustratingly foreign. Like the name of an old song you once knew but have long forgotten. And it was driving her crazy.
She was snapped out from her thoughts by a mug of coffee being set down in front of her. Fate turned her gaze towards the brunette now taking the seat across from her. It all felt perfect. But there was still an unanswered question that plagued her.
"Nanoha..." the blonde started quietly. "We weren't just best friends, were we..."
Nanoha was silent for a moment, staring into her cup of coffee.
"No, we weren't."
Her burgundy eyes fell on a familiar white gold band resting on the chain around Nanoha's neck. The very same one she kept in her pocket.
"Nanoha… This…"
As she reached out to touch the ring, a sharp pain shot through her head. She let out a strangled scream, clutching the sides of her head as she crumpled to the floor. Her head felt like it was splitting in two, a voice that sounded so much like her own echoing painfully in her mind.
Fly with me...
Marry me…
All you have to do is call for me...
Nanoha...
I love you.
"Fate-chan!" cried Nanoha, dropping the mug and running to Fate's side, catching her just before she slumped over the side of the chair and hit the ground. The blonde's head throbbed in excruciating white hot pain and everything around her was reduced to a blurry haze. The sound of Nanoha's frantic voice was reduced to a muted mumble as the world closed in around her.
Then everything went black.
"Hayate!"
Fate sat up suddenly in bed, reaching blindly in front of her into nothing but air. Another sickening throb wracked her head violently and she flopped backwards back into the bed, clutching her forehead which she discovered to be swathed with bandages.
Burgundy eyes opened slowly to the rhythmic robotic beeping in the background. The sharp smell of antiseptic hit her like a freight train, making her already splitting headache that much worse. Not to mention she had no idea where she was.
There was the soft scrape of the door sliding open somewhere in the room and a medical officer entered, holding a worn out looking clipboard. He glanced up from the thick stack of notes towards Fate, meeting her tired and confused gaze with his own calm one.
"Ah Commander Harlaown, you're awake." came the deep voice.
The blonde frowned deeply at the medic, attempting to focus her blurred gaze on him as her head continued its annoying throb. "Where am I..."
"Saint King Hospital."
"I'm in Cranagan?"
"Yes ma'am. Commander Takamachi brought you in a few hours ago after you passed out."
Fate suddenly sat back up in the bed, the world swimming around her. "Nanoha did?!"
She groaned groggily, grasping the bedrail to steady herself while the medical officer rushed to her assistance, easing her slowly back onto the bed. She was this close to throwing up on him.
"Yes ma'am. You should lie still for now. I'll go let her know you're awake."
Fate waved her hand feebly, shaking her head. "No, get me General Yagami."
"But it's written here to contact Commander-"
She shot him a stern look. "Do I need to repeat myself?"
"No ma'am."
Fate shut her eyes as he left the room in a slightly terrified hurry. Cranagan? When did she get here? The last thing she remembered was diving head first into incoming fire, the icy cold frost on her face, Hayate's tear streaked eyes, the scent of violets.
Then nothing.
Fate felt her head ache impossibly as she tried to recall any events afterwards. How long had she been out for? Was the battle over? Why did Nanoha bring her in to the hospital? She furrowed her brow in frustration as she reached for her phone. She should contact Hayate.
Flipping through her phone, her frown deepened at all the last calls and messages. All to Nanoha. When did they start talking again? She read through the strained, awkward texts one by one, almost convinced this phone belonged to someone else entirely.
She tossed the phone wearily onto the table with an exhausted groan. It was giving her more of a headache than anything else.
"Fate?"
The blonde turned towards the familiar voice in the doorway to see the young general standing hesitantly at the entrance. She looked exhausted, dressed in her usual home attire of her favorite yukata. She must have skipped work today.
"Hayate..." she began. "I made it back safe."
"That depends on your definition of safe." Hayate frowned as she made her way into the room, seating herself on the chair pulled up next to Fate.
"You said you would hear me out when we got back..." Fate smiled in return.
Hayate knew this smile. The tired, pained one that hid many scars. So different from the baggage-free goofy grin she had seen for the past several weeks. Fate was back. Her Fate was back. But things were not the same anymore.
They had their 'reset'.
And she had chosen Nanoha.
She would always choose Nanoha.
Hayate swallowed a lump in her throat, feeling her heart begin to ache. Her happy ending was so close she could almost taste it. But, this story was never hers to star in. This happiness was never hers to have. And she had one final sacrifice to make. "Fate, about that…"
Fate reached out to hold the brunette's hand in her own. This was where they left off. And this time, no freakish emergency on a far-flung planet was going to get in her way. "Hayate, I wanted to ask if you wanted to make this thing between us official."
Hayate was silent, refusing to meet the blonde's patient gaze, instead gently pulling her hand out of the taller girl's tender grasp.
"Do you... Not feel that way about me?" Fate asked quietly. Was this not what Hayate wanted? After an entire year of dancing around the subject, now that the enforcer was ready to leave all her baggage behind and step forward with her, all she got in response was heart breaking silence.
There was a soft rustle of the sheets and Fate looked up to see Hayate closing the distance between them. She felt those soft warm lips against her own. She tasted love, tears, but above all resignation.
The brunette slowly pulled away, unable to hide the tears that were beginning to spill from the corners of her eyes. "I love you, Fate. More than I ever thought possible. More than I should have allowed myself to."
"Then why..."
"I've told you before," Hayate whispered shakily in fate's ear. "Your smile is beautiful. Anything less than that..."
She ran a thumb over Fate's cheek gently wiping away a stray tear the blonde didn't even know she had shed, looking steadily into her eyes.
"… I simply cannot bear."
.
A/N:
Okay, so from here, the ending splits into two. Please select the ending you would like on the drop down menu when they become available.