~ Chapter Twenty-Five ~

Dear Akasaka-senpai,

First, I think I'm obligated to say that I apologize for not coming back at the end of the battle. You can only imagine how relieved I felt to hear that everyone was alright. Our near loss of Pudding shook the resolve of everyone, but I'm so happy to hear that she has managed to recover. In your and Ryou's hands, I don't doubt that she is already bouncing around the Café.

I know you are all wondering what happened. To be honest, I'm not exactly sure, myself. I'm not the one who really knows everything that went on up there – Kisshu does. And I'm sure the girls already informed you about his condition. You are probably also curious as to the limited feedback that you have. I didn't tell them very much, because I hope that someday I'll be able to tell you to your face. I hope that the day will come where I'll be able to come back to the Café and tell it like a story, and we can all laugh about it, like it wasn't as terrifying as the real experience had been. Like we didn't see the things that we saw.

I won't be returning Masha to you, and I'm sure you know why. I don't think Masha is even there anymore, and if he is, he is buried too deep to reach. I won't regret it, though. Kisshu is still alive, even if he's trapped. I'm sure you're eager to research it, as much as I'm eager to find a way out of this. It feels as though the dawn will never come for us. But maybe that's what a hero is. We stay in the dark so that everyone else can live in the light.

I want you to know that I'm safe. Kisshu is still present in Masha, and therefore his thoughts can still reach me. He is teaching me more every day, and we are growing stronger. I hope someday comes quickly, because I think this home-sickness isn't going to go away any time soon. I miss all of you so much. I miss my parents, too, but I have managed to keep them from worrying as much as I can. I think returning now would be the worst thing to do, and I'm sure you understand why. I can't explain away my appearance, and returning to school is pretty much unthinkable.

I tried what you said on the earbud about seeing if Kisshu can access Masha's ability to receive data from you and Ryou. It was a success! (I'm sure you already know this, because I'm responding to your letter right now…). If you were wondering why I haven't attempted at contacting you again through the device, it's because it died. I think it needs charged –laugh–.

In response to your comment in the letter – about Aoyama-kun's condition – I just want to say that I'm glad. I'm so overwhelmed with relief and joy to hear that he is perfectly healthy and back to normal. I'm also somewhat sad and happy that he doesn't remember anything. It's for the best. I don't want him to remember something like that; it would be nothing short of traumatizing.

It might surprise you to hear that we are speaking with the aliens. It's a strained relationship right now, but I guess what happened to Kisshu really effected Pai deeply. It's one thing to harden yourself to the fact that you're going to end a planet, thousands of lives, and probably your brother in arms just to save your own world. But I suppose it was a whole other to find out that Kisshu is still alive, but trapped. I'm not sure what Pai's thoughts are on it, but I do know that he is currently working feverishly in his research for possible ways to transfer Kisshu to his body. Apparently Masha's collecting system isn't accustomed to holding onto a soul. So, it's a work in progress.

Give the girls my love, will you? I bet Zakuro is in charge in my absence, right? Good. She deserves that role, and I think she always did. Maybe this is a good thing that I'll be gone. I don't know how long it'll be till I come back. It could be days, it could be weeks, or months – maybe even years. I don't know. Right now I'm focusing all of my energy on training and taking care of Kisshu. He's taken care of me for so long, I think it's the least I can do. I want Kisshu to return to normal, and thanks to Pai, his body is being very carefully preserved until we can find a way.

I will find a way to bring him back. Maybe when someday comes, Kisshu, Taruto, and Pai will be there, too. I like to think so. I like to think that Aoyama-kun's ideal vision wasn't too far away from becoming reality. We just have to make it happen.

Aoyama-kun was right. Every life is precious, no matter who it belongs to. I will continue guarding these precious lives. So, save my uniform for me at the Café, won't you?

Love,

Ichigo Momomiya

P.S. Kisshu humbly requests that Ryou installs a music system, as well as lips on Masha.

This probably wasn't what you expected for a last chapter, huh? Well, I wasn't going to give you a definite end! You want a sequel – right? If you do, please include that in your review. Lol

I tried so hard to keep them in character, and the character development was definitely the worst of it. I hope nobody was disappointed. A few mistakes were pointed out to me in reviews, and I'd like to thank those of you who told me. This helps me to refine and improve my writing, and you won't be able to comprehend what your help has done for me. I will go back and fix as many things as possible! I hope all the questions that rose in the story were answered, and if they were not, please PM me.

I will be an author one day. Whether I'll be famous or not, who knows? But it's my dream. And Fanfiction, you readers, and practicing is definitely helping me get there.

I would like to thank every single person out there who reviewed/followed this story. I realize that it's a long and lengthy list, but I'm going to try my best to acknowledge every one of you. If you've reviewed – even if it was only once! – you will be included. I promised , let it begin.

Virtual cupcakes are awarded to the following reviewers:

mew mew 124, Breezyfeather, Mew Mew Frost, ravynedoom, mewmewlightning, ByakuganHyuuga360, Ciel Phantomhive's Kitten, Misaki-Kaneko, Serenity Williams, MoonSparrow, MegassaTheBomber, CailtlinXcowz, Shade O'Killer, animeguysaremylife, Jason Grey, Ally Marton, 1411zulyANDalexis, rmwhit13, MoonlightWriter101, Cherry989, mewichgo, The Akatsuki's Intern, Hatsusen, Bat-dove, 0athk33p3r and 0b1ivi0n, TartxMonkeyxStormx4-Eva, lil' fayri grrl, starfirewinx, the sun will always shine, , ManyNamesMember, liondancer17, dark shadowed rose, Just Cy, xxxIloveKISSHUxxx, Stara-chi, AmazingNicole93, okami hiraki yami, MewMewCandii, newmew4you, .0, AnimeRoxx, freakyvampirecatgirl, kisshu-ichigo, KisshuGirl101, Mew Bubblegum, lady sesshomaru-sama, KanamexYuuki fan, DimentiLOL, PleaseInsertUsername, pinkpaws-marauder, LightningStar 0.o, ZoXon, lovexserah, Kisshu's Kitty, Ella Lola, qwiksylver, lalule, That Alice Girl x, Silentcries24, amba gurl, Dreamgirl2007, OsuwariKagome, Shiro Anubis, Mastress Tessa, xXSpiritedXXAwayXx, Fallen 101567, DutchyPuppy, BlackRoseSpuffyFan, Taeniaea, Shadow Kitsune67, anime-dark-fairy, x-ghostgirl-x, Layaenchantix101, Numbuh 5, LimitedEternity, TheGirlWithTheOnyxRose, MakenshiCrona, Sukiya62, Mew Ayame-chan, MewHarukoxLovesxZelda, BrokenRose999, xxXDreamFan98Xxx, Kisa Kisshu, G Money-chan, Nightshadowmidnight, kingdomhearts4evar, CelticLily, spiderswantmetotapdance, TheShadowsInTheNight, Hope Diamond, chibijaxie, JuneFiction909, Rock The Rain, catty12, Oktarin, The-Cheshire-Neko, CheshireGirl-106, StormDragon666, Skye Wolfe, Pink Midnight Angel, HaloToxin, Etoile of the twilight, Doodlez1996, KyomotoSora, mysticalwater, michiko-naoki, Akarui Nightshade, Animelover4798, Micchu-TheVamp, and christinapop2

To StormDragon666, I want to thank you specifically for the review you gave me. It was long, but it was exactly what I needed. You really touched me with how thorough it was, and the things you said. So, thank you.

Holy cow! That was a lot of names to sift through Lol. I know there were so many more. According to my story's stats in 'traffic', there were over a thousand hits - if not more than that. So to every one of you out there that read but remained silent, thank you still. And to all anonymous reviewers as well, you are not over-looked.

This has been an amazing experience, and nearly after a year, it's finally finished. Thank you for staying to read.

WATCH OUT FOR THE SEQUEL!

Whitewolfffy~

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