The next morning Shion waited outside for Mion to come back – she hadn't been home all night. Her thoughts considered all that might have happened to her and not one of them was good. Her fists tightened when she considered what she could be doing with Yuuki. If she did anything stupid she could possibly be as good as dead. She unexpectedly looked up and saw a mirror image of herself come up the road. Mion's hair long hair was a mess and her kimono could have been tied a little better. Every sense in Shion was on high alert and her heart froze. She didn't . . . !

The next Mion knew was that she was being tugged off the road and into a cluster of bushes by her sister. She automatically knew something was wrong. "Okay, okay, okay," the older twin chanted as she was forced to crouch on her knees. "It was late last night when I went over there and I was tired so –"

"I don't care whether or not you're tired," Shion interrupted. "My main concern is what you did over there last night. Mion, I want you to answer me as honestly as possible." Shion took in a breath and asked, "You didn't . . . with Yuuki . . . did you?"

Mion raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Do what?"

Now it was Shion's turn to raise an eyebrow.

Mion's face instantly grew scarlet and she automatically cried, "Wha-No! Oh my, gosh, no! I would never do that!"

Shion sighed volubly, hand on her chest. "Thank God, you scared me. I'm sorry to have accused you of that but how can you come home looking like that? If anyone besides me saw you leaving your girlfriend's house with your hair and your clothes messed up it would give them the wrong idea."

Mion looked down at herself and nodded, realizing how anyone could have made that mistake. "You're right. I wasn't thinking. I should have just asked Yuuki to give me a ride home, but then again Grandma would have seen the car and Yuuki and I don't want to do that. I don't want to put her in danger."

"Well you cam pretty close to putting yourself in danger had I not caught you," Shion chided. "You should be more careful. Next time you may not be so lucky. Just out of curiosity, what exactly did you do over there last night if not that?"

Mion blushed and licked her lips, hints of Yuuki's flavor still in her mouth. "We kissed . . ." Her heart pounded against her ribs as she recalled the feeling of Yuuki's warm, slender body crushed up to her side while she slept. "Then slept together, but that's just it we just slept! We didn't do anything else. I swear on our mother's life!"

Shoin pursed her lips, unconvinced. Mion was known for being honesty and a liar. It was hard to tell which was which sometimes and now was one of those times. She looked deep into her twin's eyes and asked again, "That's all you did?"

Mion nodded vigorously. "I swear, cross my heart and hope to die that's all we did." She frowned and suddenly became tensed, every sense on high alert. "You're not going to tell anyone, are you, Shion?"

Shion considered Mion's question thoroughly, stressing her pause just enough to set Mion on edge before she delivered her verdict. "Of course not. I said I was wiling to repent for my mistakes and I will. I'm going to be more open about your and Yuuki's relationship. I'm only going to bust you if you to actually have sex."

"SHIOOOONN!" Mion cried as her face went scarlet. She panicked when her mind started churning out nasty thoughts about the young blonde and she took a moment to calm down and will those thoughts away. Once she had calmed down, Mion drew Shion in for a hug, holding her shoulders tightly. "Thank you, Sis. Thank you for keeping our secret."

Shion smiled and held her twin back, clutching onto her just as tightly. "No problem. I'm sure you would have done the same for me had you not been pressured. Well, I guess you kind of did until I found out Grandma actually blessed Satoshi's and my relationship."

Mion laughed into Shion's shoulder, a light sound that could only be compared to the cool jingle of wind chimes. "Yeah, I guess so. Seriously, though, thank you, Shoin. This means the world to me. I love you."

Shion smiled wider and tightened her hold on Mion, squeezing her with enough strength that the older twin had to gasp for breath. "Love you, too, Onee."

Mion saw Yuuki first the following morning as she came close to the school. The Sonozaki girl could hardly wait as she dashed from the classroom window, through the hall, and burst out of the front doors. She jogged up to Yuuki, who had donned a smile of her own, and scooped her up in a crushing hug, spinning her around twice before stopping so that they could simply enjoy being in one another's arms.

"Morning, Yuu-chan," Mion greeted as she pecked her spot on Yuuki's forehead. "Did you sleep well?"

Yuuki didn't reply right away, but simply snuggled into Mion's chest, listening to the soothing drum of her heartbeat and the warmth that seeped through her clothes. She loved it when she was close to her love like this. "More or less . . ." she sighed.

Mion noticed that Yuuki's tone wasn't as light as it would normally be and immediately she was set on edge. She tilted Yuuki's chin up just enough so that both of their eyes met. Mion inwardly gasped as she saw the pain hidden behind Yuuki's faux happiness. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Yuuki stared into Mion's eyes for a long while, simply enjoying their rich color and warm gaze before burying her face in Mion's chest, holding onto her tightly. Her shoulders trembled as muffled sobs emanated from her lips, the wetness of Yuuki's tears staining the front of Mion's blouse. "Mion!"

Mion immediately panicked and took a hold of Yuuki's shoulders in an effort to make them cease shaking. "Yuu-chan? What is it? Why are you crying?"

Yuuki sniffled and continued to cry against her love, mustering up what coherency she could as she said, "I . . . I have to . . . leave . . ."

The blood ran cold in Mion's veins and she immediately froze, feeling as if her world had just shattered around her ears. "W-What?"

Yuuki pulled away from Mion's chest just enough so that she could clear her own tears and breathe better. She didn't dare look into Mion's eyes as she continued to explain. "When I moved here . . . it was only meant to be temporary. My dad moves around a lot and my mom and I have to go with him." She sniffled as more tears spilled down her cheeks, despite her best efforts to clear them away. "Well . . . he needs to move again - this time to Tokyo and we have to go with him." More sobs wracked her throat and she held onto Mion as if at any moment she would be dragged away. "I don't want to leave you! I love you!"

"Oh Yuuki . . ." Mion held her as tight as she possibly could without crushing her. They had (so far) escaped the watchful eye of Mion's grandmother and even had Shion come over to their side. And now Fate had decided to tear them apart. How could things be so cruel? after all we've been through! "Yuuki . . . why didn't you tell me before that you being here was only temporary? We would have made the time we had together worthwhile!" She kissed the trails of Yuuki's tears, tasting their salt.

"I didn't think it was important," Yuuki mumbled, reveling the sensation of Mion's lips on her skin. "I guessed that since I just moved here I wouldn't be moving out so soon. I mean, on average it's about six months before we move . . . but I don't know what happened! I haven't been here more than a few weeks!"

"Shh, it's okay," Mion consoled, quieting her with a finger to her lips. "It was a mistake, you didn't know, but now I don't know what to do. I love you so much and there's so much love I still want to give you. I just made you mine and I don't want to lose you - not after I've lost you all of those other times. Is there any way you could possibly stay?"

Yuuki shook her head, sniffling. "No, I've tried that before and it didn't work. I doubt that it'll work this time. I'm sorry, Mion. I'm sorry i had to burden you with this news, but I had to tell you myself. I didn't want you to find out at the last minute. That would have been too cruel. At least now we have some time before I go." She laid her head upon Mion's chest again, listening to the heart that had captured her own.

Mion coiled her arms around Yuuki's shoulders, rubbing them comfortingly, if only to keep her own emotions in check. "How long do we have until you leave?"

"By the end of the month, so not very long." She looked up at Mion sorrowfully, longingly, lovingly. "I'm sorry. I wish things could be different and that I didn't have to move again, but there's nothing -" She was cut off by Mion's fingertip that had found its way to rest against her lips.

"Shh. Don't think about what you could have done because there's nothing we can do about it now," Mion said as tears seared her eyes. "Instead focus on the time we still have together and make it count. And even though we won't see each other too often, we'll always love each other. I'm not going to let something like distance come between us."

Yuuki sniffled and placed a hand on Mion's cheek, clearing away what tears that dared slip out of her beautiful green eyes. "Can I still have my 'good morning' kiss?"

Mion couldn't help but smile and laugh half-heartedly as she overlapped Yuuki's delicate hand with her own and pull her in close, her other arm wrapped around her waist. "Do you even have to ask?" She leaned forward until her lips collided with Yuuki's softly, but she pressed deeper as the full bitterness of the kiss stained her lips. All the other kisses they had shared had been so sweet and passionate, but why did this one have to be bitter and taste like ashes? The pair kept kissing even long after their tears had continued to mar the faces.

Yuuki sniffled once more as the last of her family's belongings were loaded into the large white moving van. Though it had been two weeks prior that she had revealed to everyone she was moving, the time had passed a lot quicker than anyone could have comprehended. She turned away from her parents' blue minivan as they loaded what personal possessions they could. This was all too much to take at one time.

A ruffling of leaves sounded off to her right and Yuuki looked up as a flash of emerald and yellow lanced through her vision. Her heartbeat immediately picked up as she charged after the bright colors, charging off at a high speed through the brush that surrounded one-time home. She paused once she lost track of the colors, but she didn't give up. If this was to be the last time she would see Mion, then she would make it count.

"Mii-chan?" She called glancing around all directions. "Mii-chan, where are you? I don't want to leave without saying goodbye. Please, I don't want to not see you before I go."

A sudden rustling of leaves met Yuuki's ears and she jumped back, but relaxed once her eyes met the familiar shape of Mion and she smiled, running up to take the older girl in her arms. She laughed when Mion took a grip on her shoulders and spun her around, coming to a stop after the second spin and holding her tightly.

"Nice to know you still wanted to see me," she half-laughed as she looked into Yuuki's warm amber eyes. She gave the blonde a look over before smiling brightly. "You look beautiful."

Yuuki smiled and blushed at the compliment. "Thank you, so do you. Though, do you have to stalk my house just to see me? You could have just asked me to meet you here."

"What? And ruin the fun of you chasing me?" Mion said in a playful tone, raising an eyebrow. She laughed as Yuuki pulled a face and gave her a quick kiss. "As if. Besides, we both haven't told our families about us so I didn't want to break the ice on the day that you were leaving. Our love will always be our secret until we decide to reveal it to everyone else. And don't be sad or depressed that you're moving away. Though I would love nothing more than to have you here, as I said, nothing as small as distance will keep us apart. I'll call you and send you pictures any chance I get. I'll always love you, no matter what."

Yuuki smiled and willed the embryos of tears away, staring up lovingly into Mion's brilliant eyes. "You're too good to me sometimes. I love how you use words. I'll do the same for you. I'll keep in touch just as much as you because I'll always love you not matter what."

Mion laughed as her own words were used against her and pulled Yuuki in for another kiss. "You're quite a magician of words as well as well as defeating fate. You've already proven that fate isn't written in stone and that anyone can break it. Like you've already done, we'll break through this fate too. And before you go, I have a little present for you." Under Yuuki's curious stare, Mion pulled something out of her jeans pocket and opened her palm to reveal two garnet barrettes. "I bought these for you when Shion and I went shopping in Okinomiya yesterday. I thought now was a good a time as any to give them to you." She unsnapped them and placed them in Yuuki's hair, pushing back the gold strands and tucking whatever loose hair there was behind her ear. She smiled as she nodded her approval. "Suits you very well."

Yuuki smiled and threw her arms around Mion's neck, standing on her tiptoes so that she and Mion could be at eye level. "Thank you. And I still have the teddy bear you won me so I'll have two things to remember you by. I only wish I could give you something." Without warning, Mion leaned in and stole a kiss, urging Yuuki to close her eyes as they both slipped their tongues between one another's teeth. When air became scarce between them, they broke apart with a thin thread of transparent saliva connecting them. Mion licked up the amalgamation of their spit and smiled down at her, giggling at the confused blush on her lover.

"That's gift enough," she said in a soft tone so only Yuuki could hear. "I'll always remember you this way and I promise I'll never forget."

The honking of a car horn shattered the peace between the two girls and they reluctantly drew apart, counting down the precious seconds they had remaining.

"See you later, Mii-chan," Yuuki said as she touched the barrettes. "I'll miss you." She pecked her lips quickly and pulled away to stare once more into her eyes. "I love you."

"Oh Yuuki." Mion touched their lips once more before relinquishing her love for the final time, still holding onto her hand. "I love you too, with all my heart. I'll wait for your call okay? And don't forget to send me pictures. If I can't see you for real then at least I can still remember what you look like."

Yuuki chuckled at Mion's demands and nodded, squeezing her hand. "I will, I promise." With a final squeeze of her hand, Yuuki pulled out of Mion's grasp and began walking back through the green brush and memorizing the haunting buzz of the cicadas as they guided her way back to the car. With a final glance back, she climbed in to the back seat and closed the door, turning over to stare out of the back window, touching the barrettes in her hair. As the car began to pull down the road, she smiled as Mion's figure emerged from the bushes and stood in the middle of the road, watching sadly. Yuuki kissed her fingertips and pressed them against the back window, smiling as Mion kissed her own hand and extended it towards her. A slight tingling buzzed on Yuuki's lips and she touched them absently with a smile, and as the car turned around a bend, she knew that she would always keep Mion in her heart.

1. That's it! Thank you everyone for supporting a wonderful story. I hope you enjoyed it.

2. Thank you for supporting the MiYuuki pairing! They both appreciate your love!

3. Thank you to the following people: vicedrinker, Alice Blue Rain, snake screamer, Chiyo And Osaka Fan, narutotheowner127, Iron-Mantis, mike11208, Warlord-Xana, shi no shiro, James Birdsong, angel raziella, Zoken Hirogechi, Angelyte, and Black Waltz. Your support is what made this story keep going right up until the very end.

"To making it count," - Jack Dawson "Titanic"

Yours Truly,

Inhumunculus