Hello there, this is a little awkward. I know I haven't written any chapters in forever, besides the special crossover chapters. Well, seeing as I am not much of a fan of some of my older chapters, I figured that I would fix one chapter in particular. Details will be at the bottom of the chapter. Let's go!


It was a pleasant day at Beacon Academy. Students were relaxing outside the Campus quad, some catching up on some studying, while some relaxed in the tranquility. The large group of twelve were enjoying the day away.

Ruby and Neos were relaxing underneath a tree, with Neos lying on the trunk while Ruby rested her head on his shoulders. Blake, Ren, Ryu, and Gwen were holding a reading circle, with Weiss struggling to keep Nora from interrupting. Pyrrha was continuing to train Jaune, with the latter actually managing to keep his mentor on her toes. Finally, Yang and Damien were having a friendly sparring match.

Damien had the upper hand, but the blonde decided to tackle him to the ground, before their lips yet. "Hey, that's cheating..." The crimson haired lad smirked.

Yang chuckled, while caressing his cheek. "Well, how about we call it a draw?" Damien agreed as they were about to share another kiss, but a shadow loomed over them.

"My, my. The day sure does bring wonders. Right, Mr. Crimson?" The two looked up to see Ozpin staring at them.

The two blushed, as they quickly scrambled from the ground. "Uh, P-Professor Ozpin! What are you doing here?" Damien stammered.

Ozpin chuckled, as he took a sip from his mug as always. "There's someone here to see you in my office. A young, female friend of yours I believe."

Damien gulped nervously, when he felt a strong hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Yang grinning menacingly, with her eyes glowing red, and hair ablaze. "Oh really? You didn't tell me you had a girlfriend before!"

"Y-Y-Yang, it's not what it looks like! Honest!" Damien tried to assure her, as she dragged the poor boy to Ozpin's office, with everyone following close behind to get a glimpse of the possible catfight.

As Yang angrily marched to Ozpin's office, Damien desperately tried to calm his girlfriend down. "You have to believe me, I've never met any girls before you. Honest, you're the only one for me!"

"Oh, I believe you." Yang calmly yet darkly stated. "That's why I'm gonna give this hussy a piece of my mind!"

The crimson haired lad gulped. "This is not going to end well..."

As everyone made it to Ozpin's office, they opened the door, and were completely surprised to see Professor Goodwitch standing beside a little girl. The young girl appeared to be seven years old, with bright limestone coloured eyes, and maroon coloured hair that was tied in pigtails with pink ribbons. She wore a dark green jacket, with a yellow-and-black striped shirt, blue shorts, and was clutching a little doll. The biggest trait she had was the dark red cat tail, indicating that she was a cat Faunus, just like Blake.

"Mindy?" Damien asked, to the little girl clinging on Glynda's arm.

The little girl saw Damien, and ran towards him. "DAMIEN!" She screamed, as Damien crouched down to hug the little girl.

Yang was completely caught off-guard, as her eyes were giving off a blank stare.

"So, what was that about showing this 'hussy' a piece of your mind?" Neos joked, as Yang faced him with red eyes. The ex-rogue shrugged it off. "Hey, you said it, not me."

Before a ruckus could break, Blake decided to ask. "Damien, who is this child?"

Damien looked upwards, as he decided to introduce her. "Oh yeah. Everyone, this is my cousin, Mindy Maroon! Mindy, I want you to meet my friends." Mindy was too shy to look, but Damien held her hand and assured her. "Don't worry, I promise, they're all wonderful people. Don't be shy." Mindy peeked, as she held Damien's hand tightly.

He smiled, as he introduced everyone. "You already know Neos, and this is Ryu, Gwen, Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren, Nora, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and, my lovely girlfriend, Yang!"

Everyone awed as they crowded around the small girl, while Mindy tightened the grip on Damien's hand. "Aww, she's such a cutie!" Yang cooed, which made Mindy withdraw further behind Damien, much to her dismay.

"Mindy..." Damien pouted.

"Yang, you're scaring her!" Weiss scolded. "Aren't you so adorable!" She spoke, in baby talk, which scared her even more, to Weiss' shock.

"Huh?!" The heiress exclaimed.

"You were saying?" Yang narrowed her eyes.

"You can trust us. We're Damien's good friends." Pyrrha assured, in a motherly voice. Mindy peeked from behind Damien, and slowly walked towards the gladiator. "There we go. Now how about a smile?" To Yang and Weiss' surprise, the little cat Faunus actually hugged Pyrrha.

"What?!" They both yelled.

"To be fair, she does have that motherly aura." Jaune commented.

"It's nothing really. I used to babysit my friend's little sister a long time ago." She humbly admitted.

Damien chuckled, as he rubbed the back of his head, before he remembered to ask. "Wait a minute, does your mother know that you're here?"

Mindy's eyes widened, as tears started to form up. "M-Mommy's... She... She's dead! WAAAAAAAH!" She cried as Pyrrha rocked her gently, while Mindy buried her head into her chest.

Ozpin spoke up, to clarify on this matter. "Yes. We did some looking into, and we found out her mother passed away very recently. We actually found the poor child wandering the streets alone, until she fainted right in front of our Campus."

Everyone was shocked when they heard that. "Wait, you mean she traveled through Vale? ALL BY HERSELF?!" Ruby shouted.

"It would seem that way. Her uncle will be arriving tomorrow, all the way from Mistral, to pick her up." Ozpin continued.

"Hold on. What about her father?" Gwen asked. "Isn't he there to look after her?"

Damien shook his head. "Her father died years ago. She's an only child, so she had no other siblings."

"We can contact any other relatives to look after her in the meantime." Ozpin offered.

Damien pondered, before looking to see Mindy enjoying herself, with everyone around her. He smiled and addressed him. "Actually sir, would it be all right if Mindy spent the day with us?"

Ozpin smiled, and nodded. "By all means, Mr. Crimson. I'd be happy to allow that. Professor Goodwitch, I believe we have a toffee piece in the cabinet!"

"Of course sir." Professor Goodwitch nodded, as she handed the candy to the little girl. "Here you go, little girl."

"Yay, thanks, Miss Goodwitch!" Mindy bowed, as Glynda smiled and nodded.

Damien walked over to Mindy, as Pyrrha set her down. "All right, Mindy. Today you're spending the day with us!"

Mindy's wiped her eyes when she heard that. "Really? *Sniffle* You mean I get to play with you?"

Damien smiled as he tussled her hair. "That's right!"

ThHe little girl's frown turned into a smile. "Yay! Playtime with Dami!" She cheered.

Neos burst out laughing, when he heard the nickname. "Pfft! DAMI?!" He stopped, when he saw Damien glaring at him. "Uh, it was him who said it. Not me!" He pointed towards Jaune.

"Wait, what?!" Jaune panicked.

"All right, come on, Mindy. We'll show you around." He said, while he picked Mindy up, and gave her a piggy-back ride. "I hope it's all right with everyone if I bring Mindy along with us."

Everyone nodded, as Yang put a hand on Damien's shoulder. "Of course, Damien. Besides, I do love this nurturing side of you, very much." She smiled, as she kissed his cheek. "Hey there, Mindy, I'm Dami's girlfriend!" She smiled towards Mindy, while Damien groaned at the nickname.

However, Mindy still hid her face away from Yang. "Easy there, Yang! You'll scare her to death if you keep doing that!" Ruby scolded.

"I'm not that scary..." Yang dejectedly muttered, as everyone exited out of Ozpin's office.

The three teams proceeded down the campus halls, with Mindy riding on Damien's shoulders. As they walked, the student's reactions were mixed, ranging from "Aww" to "Wtf?"

After settling down, Damien allowed Mindy to sit on his lap, while Yang offered her a carton of milk, and Blake sharing some tuna with her fellow cat Faunus. Ruby and Nora couldn't help but coo at the little girl, which caused the little cat Faunus to hide under the table.

"Hey!" Damien reprimanded. "Distance!" He ordered, as the two girls backed off.

"Geez, take it easy..." Nora grumbled.

"Sorry, I'm just a little overprotective." Damien sheepishly said.

Soon, they are joined by their old friend, Velvet. "Hello everyone!" The rabbit Faunus greeted, before turning her attention to the little girl. "Oh, and who's this little lady over here?"

"Oh yeah. Velvet, I want you to meet my little cousin, Mindy Maroon!" Damien introduced. "C'mon Mindy, say hi to Velvet."

Mindy slowly reached towards her, before shaking hands to the other Faunus. "Hi Velvet."

Velvet giggled as she held her hand. "Damien, she's so cute! I didn't know you had a cousin."

Meanwhile, Yang started getting annoyed that she was opening up to others, but not her. "Oh come on!" She yelled in her head.

Everyone smiled as the lunch bell rang. Before everyone could get up, Pyrrha remembered something. "Wait, what do we do about Mindy?"

"Oh yeah. I don't think Professor Goodwitch would appreciate bringing any unwanted guests during her classes." Jaune added.

Everyone pondered for a moment, before Velvet spoke up. "I can look after her in the meantime. I'm sure me and my team would be happy to do so."

Damien happily bowed. "Oh, thank you, Velvet! I really appreciate it." Damien turned to Mindy. "Now Mindy. I want you to go with Velvet while we attend class. Is that okay with you?" Mindy smiled and nodded, before Damien turned her over to Velvet and Team CFVY.

"Aww, don't worry little Mindy. We'll be back as soon as possible." Yang said in the gentlest voice possible, but even that wasn't enough, as Mindy cowered behind the rabbit Faunus.

She was actually starting to feel a little heartbroken. "Why won't she open up to me? I'm always nurturing like this to Ruby, so why does she keep hiding from me?"

"It's not your fault, Yang." Damien put a hand on her shoulder. "Mindy has a really hard time opening up to others. But I promise you she'll come around." He assured her, while giving a quick reassuring peck on her cheek.

"Maybe you shouldn't have threatened to beat up that 'hussy'." Neos joked.

"Will you shut up!" Yang yelled to the unflinching ex-rogue.

"I'm not dropping it." Neos retorted.

"But I can drop you out a window." Damien calmly glared, which caused him to clam up.

After classes ended, the three teams exited the lecture hall, where Velvet was panicking. "Velvet! What's wrong?" Damien asked, before noticing that Mindy was missing. "Where's Mindy?!"

"It's Cardin!" Velvet explained. "He and Team CRDL approached us, and started picking on her!

"What?!" Damien yelled out, before he grabbed Velvet by the arms. "And you didn't do anything to stop them?!"

"Eep!" Velvet squeaked in fear.

"Damien! Take it easy!" Blake said, but that was a poor choice of words.

Damien turned towards the cat Faunus, with an enraged expression. "Be quiet!"

Everyone else was shocked by his outburst. "Now hold on just one moment, Damien. There is no need for that tone!" Ryu sternly said to his leader, but Neos knew that reasoning with him at his level of rage was a bad idea.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" The crimson haired lad bellowed at his friends as he marched angrily through the halls, while they followed him at a distance.

Damien stormed out of the campus, as he saw Team CRDL laughing malevolently. "CARDIIIIIIIIN!" He roared as he charged towards the team.

Team CRDL turned to see what the commotion, as Damien had already tackled Cardin to the ground, pinning him to the ground, and twisting his arm behind him. Cardin gritted through the pain, as his teammates looked on in surprise. "OW! What the hell's your deal?!"

"My deal is that you think it's a good idea to pick on the Faunus, especially MY COUSIN!" Damien yelled into his ear. Russel, Dove, and Sky were about to attack him, but one demonic glare from the crimson haired lad caused them to back away in fear. "Now fess up, where is she?!

"I don't know what you're talking abo-" Cardin tried standing tall, but Damien punched him square in the face, and then in the jaw.

"Don't give me any of that bullcrap! Answer the bloody question!" The crimson haired lad ordered.

The group approached the quad, as they were surprised to see Damien chocking Cardin. "Now, answer me or so help me I will BASH YOUR SKULL FROM WHERE YOU STAND!" He threatened, as he ignited his fist.

"Whoa dude!" Jaune gasped.

"No, please!" Cardin whimpered, as everyone else approached the two, trying to calm Damien down. "I confess! I grabbed her doll and threw it in the Emerald Forest! A-and she ran after it.."

Damien was shocked when he heard that, before his face contorted back into anger. "WHAT?! HOW DARE YOU?!" He increased the pressure onto Cardin's throat, as he started to lose consciousness.

"Damien stop!" Ruby pleaded, but Neos pulled her back.

"Ruby, don't." Neos bluntly replied. "Just trust me, you do not wanna talk to him when he's like this."

Damien was about to ram his fist through Cardin's skull, but then he remembered something. He remembered an incident a few years back on how he grabbed a bully by the throat and was about to kill him in a similar fashion to how he was holding Cardin. His rage subsided, and he dropped Cardin. "Leave, you spineless piece of trash." He said to the cowardly leader, who ran in fear with his team.

"D-Damien?" Yang asked, worried. Damien clenched his hands, before he ran into the Emerald Forest. "Damien, wait!" She ran after him.

"Yang, you idiot! Didn't you hear what I said?!" Neos was about to stop her, but Ruby stopped him.

"Wait, Neos! It's okay." The young red assured him. "Yang's got this."

"Children!" The group heard Professor Goodwitch's voice, as she and Ozpin rushed outside with Velvet. "What's going on here?!"

"I've never seen such an outburst from Damien before." Gwen mouthed.

"I'll say." Ren nodded. "He's always one of the nicer ones of the group."

Ryu turned to Neos, who was in thought. "Care to fill us in, Neos?"

"It's a long story." Neos muttered, as he was ready to explain.

Meanwhile, Damien continued searching through the Emerald Forest, looking for his little cousin when he saw her doll lying on the ground. "Mindy... no..." He muttered sadly, before it turned to anger. "NOOOOOOOOO!" He roared in anguish, as that attracted a huge swarm of Grimm towards the enraged lad.

Yang saw the swarm advancing towards her boyfriend, and was prepared to throwdown. "Damien, I'm coming!" Before she could even reach, Damien had already massacred the entire wave; Damien had ripped off a Nevermore's beak to stab it to death, tore a Beowolf in half. Never before had she seen such anger and sadness mixed together. "Whoa..."

After defeating the army of monsters, Damien dropped to his knees, before clutching the doll. "Mindy... please tell me you're okay. P-Please, please be okay." He panted, on the verge of tears.

Yang walked up to Damien, with a worryful look. "Damien?"

"Leave me alone, Yang." Damien spoke quietly. "I don't want you to see me like this, especially after my outbursts to you... and to everyone in our friend group."

"Everything's going to be all right." The blonde boxer assured.

"How?!" The crimson haired lad yelled, as she stepped back. "My dear little cousin is lost in the middle of this death zone, with these bloody Grimm that could have devoured her by now, and here I am, powerless to do ANYTHING!" He pounded the ground in anger. "Just like... before."

"What do you mean by before?" Yang asked. Damien was hesitant to explain, but the truth had to come out. "Please Damien, this pain of yours isn't going to heal if you hide it from me; from all of us!"

The crimson haired lad sighed, before he relented. "...Fine. I'll tell you." He stood to face the blonde boxer. "As you know, having my Faunus blood in my veins led to a never-ending cycle of torment and abuse. I could withstand what those bullies did to me, but to Mindy? It was even worse!"

"Wait, what?!" Yang was shocked to hear that such a little girl was the victim of malice. "Why would they do that to a child?"

"Because they just didn't give a damn!" Damien yelled in anger. "They didn't care who they picked on, they discriminated anybody with Faunus traits! Mindy was subjected to their cruel games, and I was too powerless to do anything..."

"I had no idea... So Team CRDL picking on her must have brought up those memories." Yang thought.

"Mindy's dad would never allow anyone to pick on his child, and as long as he was around, those bullies kept their distance." Damien sighed. "But once he passed away, those bullies returned with a vengeance. Their assaults on Mindy became even worse, to the point where Mindy almost never went outside!

The blonde boxer started tearing up while listening to his story. "My god..."

"One day, Mindy encountered those bullies again. The leader of the group, he- he had a knife, and he had her.. by the tail." Damien gritted.

"No! You cannot be serious!" She mouthed.

"It's true! I saw the whole incident with my own eyes." The crimson haired lad yelled, with an ignited fist. "Before he could even think of committing the atrocious act, my anger reached its limits. I laid a savage beating onto those bullies, one that went on for a long time. The leader begged for mercy as I grabbed him by the throat... I wanted to kill him for everything he did to my cousin, I wanted retribution!"

Yang's eyes widened. "You didn't..."

"He needed to feel my pain. I saw the tears streaming down his face, how he begged for his life." Damien shook his head. "That's why I couldn't kill him. Instead, I made it clear to him that he and his cronies would leave my neighbourhood - to never, ever come near me, my family, or any Faunus ever again!"

The blonde sighed in relief when she heard that Damien didn't murder anyone. She was still sad upon hearing the torment poor Mindy went through. "So, I guess this is why Mindy is afraid of me."

"It's not you, Yang. Mindy's always having a hard time opening up to any humans. I mean, you should see how long it took for her to open up to Neos." He gave a small chuckle. "Still, I can't always be there to protect my little cousin. She has to learn to open up to other people. I... I don't want to lose her, Yang..." He started crying, before hugging Yang. "I don't want her to die because I couldn't do anything to help - just like with my mother!"

Yang held Damien tightly, while tears fell down her face as well. "It's okay, Damien. I promise you that Mindy won't die - I will make sure of it!" The two faced other both watery-eyed. "Just promise me that you won't hide anything from us, you never have to do these things alone."

Damien smiled a bit, as he wiped his eyes. "I promise, Yang. Thank you." She smiled back, as they shared a brief kiss. "All right, I know Mindy has to be alive!" He spoke while gripping her doll.

After several more minutes of searching, the pair spotted Mindy being cornered by an Ursa Major. "Over there!" Yang pointed.

Mindy was huddled in fear, tears streaming down her face. The two fighters nodded as they dashed over there. "Now!" Damien shouted as he distracted the Grimm with fire from his flamethrower gauntlets, just in time for Yang to uppercut the Ursa Major's head off.

"YARGH!" She roared, as she spiked the head into the headless Grimm's body hard enough that it exploded.

Mindy's eyes opened to see Damien in front of her. "Mindy, I'm so glad you're okay." He gently spoke.

"D-Damien..." She cried into her older cousin's chest. "I was so scared! I-I lost my doll... and I-I..." She struggled speaking through her sobs, until she collapsed from the exhaustion.

"Mindy!" Damien yelled, before he heard her breathing. "Shh, I've got you, kiddo." He carried her close to him, as they exited the Emerald Forest.

Meanwhile, Neos was finishing up with explaining the same story to Teams RWBY, JNPR, DRGN, Velvet, and the two Professors. The students reactions were mixed between stunned silence, mouths agape, and teary-eyed, while Ozpin still kept his stoic demeanor, while shaking his head. "Such trauma on an eight-year old... How sad."

"I didn't think Faunus could be discriminated at that age, it's unforgivable!" Weiss yelled.

"Even so, why did Mindy chase after something like a doll into the Emerald Forest?" Ren wondered.

Neos was about to explain, but Damien spoke up. "It was a gift - from me." He explained.

Everyone turned to see the young couple returning from the forest, with Damien cradling Mindy in his arms. "Damien! Is she okay?" Blake asked.

"She'll be fine. It's just be a long day for her." Yang explained, as Damien continued.

"After the bullies fled, I was bringing Mindy home. On the way, we stopped by a small store where I saw the doll. I decided to buy it while she was asleep, and then gave it to her the next day." The crimson haired lad reminisced. "It was a reminder that no matter where she went, she would never be alone, there were people always watch carefully over her. Ever since then, she would always brave through the challenges she faced.

"Damien, that's so sweet..." Pyrrha smiled.

There was a large sniffle from Professor Goodwitch. "T-That was truly a touching tale..." She quickly adjusted her glasses, before giving a stern look. "But that doesn't excuse your behaviour towards your classmates, or almost murdering Mr. Winchester!"

Damien nodded. "I understand Professor Goodwitch, and I accept any punishment you have for me." He turned towards his friends, with a sorrowful look on his face. "And guys, I am so, so sorry for my behaviour earlier today."

"It's okay, Damien. Your heart was in the right place; no hard feelings." Velvet smiled.

"Despite what happened, you are still one of the kindest souls I have ever met." Ryu nodded.

"Don't worry about it, man. We're friends until the end; no matter what!" Jaune reached out for a fist-bump.

Damien chuckled, before returning the fist-bump. "Thanks guys, I'm so glad to have such wonderful friends... and an amazing girlfriend." He smiled towards Yang, as he kissed her.

"Aww, okay enough mushiness for today! Let's all hit the hay." Neos announced, as they were about to turn in for the night, but they paused as soon as Ozpin called out.

"A moment please. Mr. Crimson, your uncle contacted me earlier today, and he said he will be showing up a litter later that he had planned. He plans on reaching in the afternoon." The headmaster explained.

"I see." Damien pondered. "In that case, let's give Mindy a redo on today's plan first thing in the morning, whaddya say guys?"

Everyone nodded, as they all got enough rest for the next day. Little Mindy Maroon had the happiest day of her life; eating sweets with Ruby and Nora, dancing with Weiss and Gwen, and even watching the Pumpkin Pete cartoon special with Jaune. As the hours went by, a car pulled up in front of the Beacon Gates, as a tall blue-haired man in a Blue-suit with white pants walked up.

Damien recognized the man, and hugged him. "Uncle Sapphire!"

Mr. Sapphire hugged his nephew back tightly. "Ah, Damien, my boy. Good to see you again!" He then turned towards his friends. "Ah yes, where are my manners? Carl Sapphire is my name, and I just want to thank you all so much for taking good care of my niece!"

"It was no trouble, she was such a sweetheart!" Ruby squealed.

Carl chuckled, before hugging Mindy up high. "Let's get going, Mindy. I've got the house set up for your arrival. My kids are really looking forward to seeing you again."

After he set Mindy down, she walked up towards Yang. "Hey Yang?"

Yang smiled towards Mindy. "Yes Mindy?

"I like you." The little cat Faunus hugged the blonde boxer, much to the latter's surprise. "Can we be friends?" She held out her pinkie finger.

Damien had the biggest grin on his face, as Yang smiled while sounding a bit emotional. She lifted her up gently, while extending her pinkie as well "Of course, Mindy. Friends forever!"

"Aw, well don't that beat all?" Carl smiled. "Now come along, Mindy."

After setting her down, Yang tussled her hair. "You be a good girl, you hear?" She smirked, as the little girl nodded.

"Uh-huh!" She skipped into the car, to which the two drove off, with the young girl waving to everyone from the window.

Everyone waved back until the car was out of sight. "See? I told you she would warm up to you." Damien smiled, while wrapping his arm around Yang. "And now you're friends for life!"

Yang smiled back. "What can I say? She's such a sweet little angel, just like her sweet, wonderful cousin."

"Aw, the scary blonde lady made friends with the girl she almost crushed, how sweet." Neos joked towards Yang, who glared at him with red eyes. "Eep! Damien, the scary lady's looking at me!"

Damien sighed. "Thank god I don't have too many relatives..."


All right, that takes care of that. So, let me explain why I redid this chapter in particular. The original chapter that you see before, I really hated the plot of that. As time went by, I see that there are a few chapters that I do not particularly enjoy, I won't say which ones. This chapter I thought I could redo since it felt rushed. For example, the plot of Damien and Yang running in to find a missing doll - that doesn't really sound too epic. Plus, I thought I could give some more backstory about Mindy's past, and how strong her relationship to Damien is. As for the two versions of this chapters, I think I'll keep them both up; that way, we can all compare as to which one we like more.

Now then, allow me to be serious for a minute. With how much stuff I have going on in my mind - including a full-time job five days a week, I really hate to admit it, but I don't think I can continue writing chapters anymore. Coming up with ideas is hard, but trying to write ideas people won't hate is even harder. I know not everyone will enjoy anything, but even so, I am no storywriter - I don't know how to write good ideas. Not only that, but the hype that I had with RWBY has died down a bit. Now don't get the wrong idea, I still love the show - and I am hyped for Volume 6 that is coming up, but it wasn't as super high as when I first started writing this story. Even though, I love the show, I love the characters, and I really love the OCs that I created, as well as many OCs that the fanbase creates.

Anyways, if I ever decide to continue writing chapters, there is only thing that I can do - venture into darker territory. And by that, I mean the Volume 3 saga. Let me be clear, I do not hate Volume 3 and above; if fact, Volume 3 is when I officially gained interest in the show. I just wanted to keep things as light as possible for this story. If I wanna write chapters on Volume 3, I'm gonna write it on a different story, because I am not changing the genre of this story. Even so, I don't wish to end the story on this note. Tell you what, I'll probably do one or two more chapters before calling it a wrap.

Lastly, I wanna give a HUUUUUUUUUUUUGE thanks to anybody who has still been keeping up with this story, for better or for worse. I don't deserve such dedicated followers, and honestly, writing this author's notes is making me emotional, because in my mind, I feel like I'm letting so many readers down by being unable to deliver anything. Seriously, I love you all for following, favouriting or even browsing through this story. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

...Okay, I think that'll do it. Sorry that I've rambled on for too long; I just wanted to get that off my chest. Take care, everybody - live long and prosper. Peace out!