HI GUYS! GOOD NEWS : this is not the final chapter. Let's see how our favorite people enjoy their vacation day.

Enjoy!

I snuggled up against the warm, soft form that was near me, half awakened from my sleep. It had been a while since I got this cold. After loosing the red aura, we all sort of rediscovered the sensation of cold. Getting goose bumps, muscles tensing up, teeth chattering... they weren't exactly comfortable but it was somehow nice to rediscover it. Because it also meant we could warm up by cuddling to … whatever it was I was hugging. I was starting to get pulled from my sleep but I really didn't want to open my eyes. It felt like my dream wasn't over. However, I couldn't seem to remember what that dream was about. I hugged the warm thing harder, trying to spread the warmth to my entire body. It was so comfortable, I wished I could stay like this for an eternity. But something warm snaking around me, seemed to wake me up even more and pulled me out of my sleeping state. I internally growled before slowly opening my eyes. It still took me a moment to remember where I was. We were in movement, and in a cramped space. I recognized the inside of one of the two minivans we had rented. Why had we rented them again? Oh right. We were going to the beach. Of course the blonde man driving was the bartender. I looked beside me. Shohei was leaning his head on my shoulder and was sound asleep. In between him and the window, Kosuke was asleep too and leaning against the window. And at our feet, someone rolled up in a cover (who I assumed to be Eric) was snoring. I pushed Shohei away, and straightened up only to realize that the warm thing I'd been snuggling to was Yata who, thank heaven, was knocked out like the rest of them and snoring lightly. He seemed to shiver a little so I put the cover back on him. It was pure luck that Yo was in the other van. He never would've let me hear the end of it. I yawned loudly, catching Mr Kusanagi's attention.

"Hey Taiga." He said smiling at me. "Did you sleep well?"

"I'm still sleepy." I replied as I looked at the boys around me again and realized something. "No wonder Eric's on the floor. Why is there five of us sharing a three-seat row?"

The bartender chuckled. "Look behind you."

I got to my knees and looked at the backseat. When I found the three seats in the back occupied by our King who was also lost in sleep, the only thing I could say was. "Oh." I couldn't help but smile when I saw Anna sleeping on his chest. I reached down to pick up their cover that had fallen down and put it back on them. Mr Mikoto probably didn't care about the cold, but Anna did. After babying everyone I pushed myself to the empty seat next to Mr Kusanagi.

"Have you been driving this entire time, Mr Kusanagi?"

"I don't mind."

"You should. It's been eight hours." I said. "Do you want me to take over?"

"And since when do you have your license?" He mocked. "Really I don't mind. I'll just let you guys do all the work when we get there."

"Smart." I said.

"I am the strategist of HOMRA. Give me some credit."

We shared a quick laugh before my stomach growled. I grabbed the bag that contained food that Mr Kusanagi probably bought while we were all in dream land. I gave him a coffee and grabbed a meat bun. I silently chewed on it, while thinking about HOMRA again. What was going to happen to all of us? I mean we all had ideas of what we could do if the gang fell apart but … did we really want to end things here?

"Mr Kusanagi?" I asked, mouth full.

"Hm?"

"What would you do if HOMRA got dissolved? I just realized that no one's asked you..."

He seemed surprised by my sudden question, and got lost in thought for a moment and then smiled. "Well, Mikoto can't take care of himself so I'll probably have to babysit him until he gets himself a wife. Someone has to look after Anna too. And for the income, my bar will probably get a lot of costumers once you guys aren't around anymore."

"Maybe you should look for a wife too." I said only half-joking though. Yo was the one who teased people about their relationships, not me. "Someday, you might want to start being serious about lieutenant Awashima."

He gave me a surprised, almost shocked face. "You mean you couldn't tell I was serious? I'm offended Taiga." He sweat dropped.

"Maybe the lieutenant is more observant than I am but you should still be careful."

"Look at you, talking like you're more experienced with love than I am." He said ruffling my hair.

"Hey stop it!" I said, pushing his hand away. "I already have bed hair. I just wouldn't want you to miss your chance when it's real."

"Chitose's right. You are more straightforward about your feelings."

That comment still made my cheeks turn red and I turned my face away. "Well we are dating. I can't be shy about it forever." It was still pretty embarrassing.

"I doubt our Yatagarasu will ever stop blushing for you. But honestly Taiga, no matter how much the boys tease you, you can't imagine how grateful we are to you."

I sighed. "I thought I said all your debts were off now. When you talk like that, you make me feel like I'm not part of the gang."

"That's not what I mean. We're grateful for Yata."

"Why? I didn't do anything." 'Besides falling for him.'

"Because he's got something more than HOMRA now."

I meditated on that comment for a moment. Saruhiko had said something like that too a while back. I was overjoyed to mean so much to him and honestly couldn't be happier. But there was a more in that sentence than appeared at first. We weren't just talking about Yata, we were also talking about HOMRA. The thought brought gray clouds in my mind. HOMRA probably meant more to me than my life with Ryu ever did. They'd been my shield, and they'd become my gang, my family. I started suspecting that fate was a real thing and that I found the place where I belonged. But the way that Mr Kusanagi said it implied nothing good.

"You think we're going to dissolve." I said.

"Yes." Replied the bartender with a sad voice.

He didn't elaborate. But maybe I didn't need to hear his reasoning. We didn't have our powers anymore, what did that make us? A group of young people in their twenties (aside from me and Anna) that knew how to fight, had one of the best underworld network in Tokyo and were very close. If we were gonna keep bounty hunting, the time to do it was now, while we were young and strong. But at the same time, maybe the guys wanted to try new things with their lives and get away from all the Kings and clansmen business. I suppose in the end it all came down to Mr Mikoto's decision dissolving the gang or not. If he didn't those who'd want to stay would stay and those who'd want to leave would leave. I know Yata would stay. Anna would stick to Mr Mikoto. I wasn't so sure about the others though. I knew their hobbies and some of the things they'd like to try, but I didn't know how deep their motivation was for those things.

"Are there things you want Taiga?" Suddenly asked the bartender.

I took a deep breath before answering. "Well, there are things I want to do. I've been thinking about it for a while and I'd like to move my dad's grave next to my mom's with Kuro."

"What about the Purple King?"

"I want to look for Ryu, but … that'd be the same as chasing after my past. Ome's explanation convinced me. If the Slates gave him KMS, then he's the only one who can pick himself up now. I just hope... things turn out well for him."

Mr Kusanagi stayed quiet for a while. "You really are kind."

"No I'm not. I haven't forgiven him." I reply very seriously. "I can't. Maybe in a couple of years or … maybe never."

We heard a loud yawn and then a pair of harms hugged me from behind my seat. Eric's tired face popped in the rearview mirror. "What's happening in a couple of years or never?" He asked still sleepy.

"Nothing. And why are you clinging to me?" I said as I freed myself from his weak hold.

"I'm hungry. Can I have some food?"

"What's the magic word?" I said, annoyed. He really had a tendency to let himself go when it came to basic forms of verbal politeness.

"Don't be mean …" He whined.

I laughed at him and took pity on his pouty cat face. The boys woke up one by one and we ate breakfast. And when we arrived, the only ones still asleep were Mr Mikoto (no surprise there), Anna and Yata. After shaking them awake, we all grabbed our stuff and stepped on the sand. It was cold, and windy. All of us were wearing ski undershirts to avoid freezing, but somehow everyone smiled when we laid eyes on the endless body of water. It was also a beautiful sunny day and the sunlight was reflecting off the water, like diamonds. And since it wasn't exactly, tourist season we were the only ones on the beach. I stared at the shiny water while the wind played with my hair. When was the last time I'd gone to the beach? Probably with Mom during the summer when I was younger. Before we had to move to the city.

'I hope you can see this from heaven, Mom.' I thought.

"Well, I'm getting the stuff ready for lunch."

"Already?" I said. "We literally just ate breakfast, Rikio."

"I'm just getting the stuff out, that's all." He said clearly not hiding the fact that he wanted to be near the food. "Yata, give me a hand when lunch time comes up."

"Sure, whatever." Replied the fierce Yatagarasu before yawning loudly like a cat just woken from his sleep. Which he technically just had.

"Just make sure you leave enough food for all of us, Kamamoto." Said Mr Kusanagi, lighting a cigaret.

Even Mr Mikoto, who I honestly thought would've gone right back to sleep under the warm covers once we were done setting up. But he was standing with us, a smoking cigaret in his mouth, admiring the ocean with us. I smiled. I was so happy to see our King like this. But the happiest of us all, was our little red princess. Anna was usually a quiet child that mostly kept to herself, but right now the huge smile on her face was so bright that it lit up her face. She grabbed my hand and started pulling on my arm.

"Taiga!" She said, her eyes wide open.

I understood immediately. For once, she was just a little girl who wanted to play. I let her pull me and we both kicked off our shoes before stepping into the freezing water. And that's how most of our day went. We made giant sand castles with Anna. Yata and Rikio made us a delicious barbecue for lunch. We played beach volley with the guys, even Mr Mikoto and Mister Kusanagi joined in. Then I almost caught pneumonia when Yo tossed me in the water, earning himself a good beating from Yata. Thankfully, I'd brought spares. Then we sparred. In the sand, it was much harder than on the concrete floor of the city. Everyone got sand in their mouth at least once. Then I went with Eric and Kosuke to buy warm drinks for everyone. By the time we came back, the sun was starting to set. Soon after the guys lit a fire and Yata made dinner for us. We laughed and made fun of each other while eating. Then of course, Mr Kusanagi had brought booze for everyone and after a couple of drinks, everyone had red cheeks and was talking nonsense. Anna and I were making marshmallow sandwiches with chocolate.

"Hey Taiga!" Called out Yo, way too loud despite the fact that he was sitting a few feet from me. "Next time we come here during the summer, you should see Yata surf! He's pretty good!"

"Huh?! What d'you mean pretty good? I'm awesome! Handsomely good!" Shouted the crow, who clearly couldn't hold his liquor too long. I laughed at how pitiful they looked.

"Grab a bottle!" Shouted Yo. "This is suppose to be a fun evening for everyone!"

"Encouraging me to underage drink? I swear, how do you guys stay out of jail?" I replied, mocking him.

"I already made you drink alcohol though..." Whispered Mr Kusanagi.

"And here I thought you were the responsible one." Said Mr Mikoto, smirking at the bartender.

"Taiga, how are you such a goody... two shoes after living with us for almost a year?" Asked Rikio, before burping loudly.

"We can't all be carefree and reckless. Some people have to be cold headed." I replied. "Gross, by the way."

Eric let out a long and heavy sigh. "You should have joined SCEPTER 4 if you were gonna be a stick in the mud." He said in english.

"Well screw you, then." I replied in the same language, vexed. Geez, even when he was drunk he was rude.

"Huh?" Let out Yata. "What d'he say?"

Kosuke translated. He seemed to be holding up. "He said Taiga should've joined SCEPTER 4."

"That's stupid! You're stupid Eric! Taiga's a red and she's even redder. Cause she sjabfkbck... my girl."

The King and the bartender laughed quietly at the ridiculous scene that was playing out. I was about to reprimand them, when I realized that I was the one trying to argue with drunken boys.

"You should be aloud to have fun too..." Said Shohei, slowly and apparently loosing his articulation capacities du to the alcohol. "You're HOMRA too!"

"Do I have to remind you guys that there is a twelve year old here? That's one hell of an example you're showing her." I said even though Anna had probably seen them drunk and acting like idiots much more than me and she probably didn't care.

"Do you mean the one that's just about to fall asleep in your arms?" Commented Kosuke.

I looked down. Anna had been sitting on my crossed legs for the entire evening and had indeed stopped making marshmallow sandwiches. She was leaning on my chest and seemed to be struggling to keep herself from going to sleep. Bando went to the cars to get her a blanket that I wrapped around her. He also came back with a guitar that he gave to Yo.

"Alright! Music time!"

"Don't overdo it Chitose." Warned Mr Kusanagi. "Anna's this close to falling asleep."

"Promise. And I think you'll like this one." Said the womanizer as he started tuning the instrument.

When he started playing, I noticed that all the eyes had turned to him, and a familiar air of sadness appeared on all of their faces. I was shocked. It was like this music had sobbered them up instantely. Mr Mikoto and Mr Kusanagi both had the reflex to take out new cigarets but didn't light them. The melody seemed joyous and calm at the same time. After a couple of measures, Yo started singing. Masaomi picked up with him. Then Kosuke and even Eric. Before I knew it all the guys were singing. I listened to the words. They weren't especially sad, but the way they sang made it obvious that that was exactly what they were all feeling.

The crossroad where people would walk and stray,

It's where we both met that day.

Looking up at our same longing eyes,

We stared ahead, of our time…

I didn't mind the ups and downs,

As long as you were around.

You need to bravely face the mistakes,

That's all it would take.

Facing all those trials too,

I wanted to protect you.

Like the sun that would shine an evening red,

Taking the words I would have said.

A sepia moon in the sky,

Taking us into its bright eyes.

The things we held so close,

The warm bonds we cradled.

Even when together,

I wished it last forever…

When the song ended, I realized that my cheeks were wet from the tears that had fallen down my face. Their faces had made me so sad that I'd started crying. I wiped them from my face.

"That's a nice song."

"It's called Circle of friends. Tatara wrote it." Explained Mr Kusanagi. "It's very important to us."

"I see..." I said lowering my head.

I understood better why they were making those faces. But they seemed somehow relaxed now. I took a look at Anna who'd fallen asleep for good in my arms. Without a word, Mr Mikoto stood up and walked over to us to take her from my arms. He said he was beat anyways and was going back to the van to sleep. The rest of us stayed near the fire, quietly. The boys didn't even seem to want to finish their beers. 'Looks like that song really did sober them up.' I thought impressed. I looked up at the sky. Unlike in the city, the stars were very visible is the pitch black sky. It was gorgeous. We started chatting again, quietly this time though. Some of them started snoring, being knocked out by the alcohol. Before I knew it, I closed my own eyes and fell asleep on my towel, thinking about the lyrics of that song. "I wished it last forever...huh?" I whispered before letting sleep take me.

I didn't sleep for very long. My sleep must've been pretty light. When I opened my eyes, it was still pitch black and only embers remained in the fire. There weren't many of us left up though. Most of the guys were snoring, and Mr Kusanagi was gone. Probably sleeping in the van as well. The only ones still up were Yo, Kosuke, Masaomi and Yata. From what I could hear from their conversation, they seemed to have sobered up a little. I pushed myself up.

"Why aren't you guys sleeping?" I asked, joining them.

"Don't wanna. And my head hurts..." Mumbled Yata. "What about you?"

I shrugged. "Don't know. I just woke up randomly." I looked around. The ocean was calm and the moon was reflecting prettily off the surface. About a mile away, I could see huge rocks in the sand. Kind of like miniature cliffs. I turned back to the guys.

"I'm gonna go over there. Anyone up for walking off the alcohol?"

They looked at each other before shrugging and standing up. The five of us walked on the edge of the water, barely talking. The sound of the crashing waves was a real delight. I knew the boys were enjoying too, because they never said a word and looked at the water. The only one looking down was Yata. He was clearly troubled. No. That wasn't it. It was sadness. We finally reached the rocks. They were bigger than what I thought. About fifty feet I guessed. I was terrible at estimating heights. But somehow, I felt a challenge coming from it.

"I wanna climb it." I said before running towards it to get closer.

"Wait, Taiga! Hold up." Said Yata, running after me.

I examined the rock, to find sure footing and started climbing quickly. At first it was pretty easy, and I was climbing remotely fast. I quickly climbed half of the way.

"Oi! Be careful." I heard Yata shout. "It's dangerous."

"I fought crazy psychos with supernatural powers and you think this is dangerous?" I said laughing, but without looking down.

"I'm serious!" He said back. "You don't have your powers anymore."

"He's right Taiga. Watch it." Said Kosuke. "Geez, what's gotten into you? You're acting like a kid."

I ignored that last part and focused on climbing. They said it themselves, tonight we could all enjoy ourselves. It had suddenly become more difficult because I couldn't see clearly where to hang on to anymore. My speed was considerably slower than before and I started feeling tired. I was almost at the top when I realized that there was nowhere else I could put my foot on, or reach with my hands. Yep, I was in a pinch and my arms were starting to get tired.

"Hum, guys?" I called out, with an apologetic smile. "I'm stuck."

I heard Yo sighed. "And I thought Yata was the idiot."

"Hey!" I protested.

Kosuke hit Yo behind the head. "Hang in there for a sec." He said, as he starting pulling up his sleeves. "I'll help you down."

But before he could even bring up his second sleeve, HOMRA's skateboarding captain was already climbing. He reached me so quickly, I found myself impressed by his climbing capacities. I mean Yata was already an expert in combat, skateboarding, breakdance and other fields that required physical strength. 'I guess I can add climbing to the list.' When he reached me, I apologized.

"Sorry for the trouble."

"Gimme your foot." He ordered.

I did as I was told but to my big surprise, he placed it on his shoulder, his hand holding my ankle still. I gave him a confused look. With a sign of the head, he pointed to the top of the rock. I understood he was helping me get to the top. We were very close.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "I'm not that light."

"I've carried you before. Don't sweat it." He replied. "Hurry up before you fall."

"Okay. If you say so."

I put my weight on his shoulder and pushed myself to grab the edge of the top and pulled myself up. In a couple of stylish acrobatic moves, the crow was standing next to me. I looked at the sea and didn't regret for a second having reached the top. It was even prettier from up here. We could see the entire sky reflect off the water, stars and all. I looked at Yata. I was sitting down and he was standing. The wind was making his hair and sweatshirt dance as he looked at the sea as well with a serious face. That sight was majestic, I couldn't look away. It made me feel like he was so much greater than me. He noticed my staring and gave me a curious look.

"Why're you staring?" He asked.

"Nothing. You look... great from down here that's all."

Even the dark couldn't hide his blush. "T-thanks I guess. You ... look great too."

"Thanks for helping me. It's beautiful."

"Yeah, don't do that again." He suddenly snapped. "I almost had a heart attack. What if you'd fallen on your head, huh?"

"Sorry. It was a little stupid."

"Not just a little." He mumbled as he sat next to me.

"Hey!" Called out Kosuke's voice from down there. "We're gonna head back! If you guys have trouble getting down, just yell!"

"Alright thanks!" I replied waving.

Despite the dark I couldn't miss the smirk on Yo's face. I threw him a death glare, daring him to say what was on his mind. But he just made a salute sign with his hand before turning back and walking away with Masaomi and Kosuke. Yata and I stayed quiet for a while, admiring the sea.

"I can't take my eyes of it. It's so gorgeous." I couldn't help but say.

"Too blue for my taste." He replied with a quiet voice. "Too dark."

He wasn't referring to SCEPTER 4. Only to the fact that it was missing red. And light. The red and the light of a beautiful fire. I new the reason for this sad look. No matter how thick headed he was at times, he was strangely intuitive. He'd probably came to the same conclusion as Mr Kusanagi. HOMRA was going to break soon. I threw my arms around him and leaned my head on his shoulders. He didn't tense up for once and grabbed my arm and pushed it closer to his chest.

"We're gonna be fine Yata. No matter what happens."

He didn't reply and just placed his free arm around me. There was a distinct lack of embarrassment in his movements. After all, we were alone, in the dark. Only the moon could see us. I felt him shake a little and something wet and warm dripped on my arm. I tightened my hold on him. Guys really were stupid. Why did they feel the need to hide their pain until they reached a breaking point? I wanted to laugh at myself for saying that. I really wasn't one to talk. I held him quietly for a few minutes until he took a deep breath which made me let go and look at his face. I was surprised to find him smiling and staring at the water.

"You know what? We ARE gonna be fine. You and me. Powers or not." He declared, as what was left of his tears were taken by the wind. "I got you, so I'll be fine. I promise."

'Tough guy.' I thought.

We got back to back and then leaned completely on our backs, looking at the sky, our heads next to each other.

"Hey Yata?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"Will you teach me that song? The one Tostuka wrote."

"Circle of friends? Yeah sure. I'm not the best singer though. You should ask Shohei."

"Don't be ridiculous. I heard you earlier. And you were drunk."

"Yeah, well, whenever you want."

"Cool."

He stayed quiet for a few seconds before speaking again. "Hey, do you remember that mission where that strain took control of your mind?"

"Yeah. That was crazy. And it was the first mission I ever went on with you guys, too. I almost killed you." I said remembering that not so glorious time of mine. "It was one of the scariest moments of my life."

"Mine too."

"Why are you bringing it up?"

"It's not like I'm trying to be selfish or anything... It'd be nice if we're never caught in a mess like that again."

"You got that right." I commented.

Our hands found each other at the same time, and our fingers intertwined together. It was freezing but all sensation of cold was gone. For me at least. His hand was so warm.

"Taiga... I got no idea what I want to do next." He suddenly confessed. "I mean I'm not good for much aside fighting."

"That's not true." I said. "You're an amazing cook. You could probably open up you're own restaurant if you wanted. And you're ripped like nothing I've ever seen! Someone like you can easily do work that requires good physical strength. Like being a bodyguard. Also, the drug-busts unit of the police could be a thing."

He made a face. "I don't really like it when you have to obey every single order you're given without having anything to say about it."

"I can't believe I'm saying this but, as long as you get the job done they shouldn't complain."

He threw me a surprised look before grinning. "Get out. You're telling me to break rules?"

"Hey, I have to be bad sometime. I'm dating a thug." I replied, shrugging. "I gotta adapt."

He chuckled before looking back at the sky. "Mr Kusanagi told me you wanted to move your old man's grave."

"That's the plan."

"Then, I'll help you with that first. Count on me!"

There it was, that joyful, over pompous at times, voice of his. It seemed that Yata was back to his usual self. He wasn't that easy to break. Planning ahead like that was probably something new to him, master fore runner. But it was proof that we could become even more than we were and move on, even if we lost our beloved HOMRA. And that made me really happy. I turned my head to look at him. I really loved his face.

"Hey, look over here." I said.

The instant he turned to me, I pressed my lips against his gently. I closed my eyes and felt him kiss back. The heat of our faces blushing made shivers travel down my spine. I really could get used to this. HOMRA might be gone tomorrow, but that flame of ours certainly wasn't done burning.

Hey guys! So yeah, I managed to delay it one chapter but unfortunately the end is near. BUT FEAR NOT! Next chapter will close the story, but I'm planning to do bonus scenes and you guys are aloud to give me suggestions! For example, Taiga's first mission with HOMRA, how Taiga and Ryu met, Kyoko and Ichigen's story, or an original idea you'd like to see with my characters... really feel free to suggest whatever you want and I'll try to make as many as I can!

Thanks for reading. PLEASE REVIEW!