A/N: Part of the journey is the end. Love and be loved. Read… and review!
Epilogue
The leaves in Autumn are beautiful, with their colors.
It's something wonderful; knowing every year they will come, without fail. No passing of time, no changing of years stops them from coming. Every single year they are beautiful. The colors are beautiful. The memories are beautiful. The reminder is beautiful. Most of all, the leaves in Autumn are beautiful.
A small red haired girl runs towards a park bench. She stops a few feet away and looks directly at the girl sitting at it. 'It is not polite to stare.' Her mother's words come to mind but she can not help herself. She had not stopped to observe this lady in the longest time. She looks on for too long. The older woman turns her attention away from a tree and looks directly at her. Her lips curve and she speaks.
"Hello there, little one!"
The 'little one' feels paralyzed and her mouth opens. She lets out a yelp as she turns and breaks the eye contact. She starts running away, as fast as she came. As she starts, though, something shining on the ground catches her eye a few feet away and she redirects towards it.
Chuckling to herself, the older woman watches the little girl wander off in a hurry. She watches with amusement as the child is distracted by shiny objects on the ground. She briefly wonders about how far the 'little one' has wandered from her mother. She wonders about the dangers of being a child in this world. Although, she knows all too well what it was like to run off into these woods, all alone.
'Here in the forest, dark and deep.'
Rika Matsuki sits on a bench in the Shinjuku Central Park. This spot became a favorite of hers almost a lifetime ago. She doesn't quite recall anymore when it was, but it happened amidst all of her adventuring with her friends. It stands not quite halfway between her childhood home and where the bakery used to stand, but it's almost. The large oak tree above her has a heart carved into it with the letters "D + E" marked right in the center of it. Directly under that the letters "+ JJ" were also carved some many years ago. This tree had somehow survived dozens of years and never toppled or been torn down. Enduring, forever onward, in the face of time.
It's hard to discern it when the shadows hit it at the wrong angle, but Rika has always seen it clearly all the same. She liked to imagine that D + E eventually had a child named "JJ," but it's difficult for her to say. The tree has lost most of its leaves at this point. Nonetheless, it stands tall and proud, unfazed by the changing season that approaches. Rika hopes she can be like the tree.
'About time to get going. Don't want to be late.'
Rika stands up. She surveys all around her. The fading light breaking through the trees, the birds chirping all around. She tugs her coat a little closer. She wears a beige trench coat, white button down shirt, grey sweater, tight dark jeans, and black boots. She wants to look nice for lunch in the park, but doesn't see the point of sacrificing her own comfort for that.
As she moves forward, the little girl with her own head of red hair, cautiously steps ahead of her. The 'little one' peeks over her shoulder, sees the older woman towering over her, and hurriedly moves ahead. Rika steps are slow and deliberate. She keeps a watchful eye on the little girl, not letting her escape her line of sight.
The tiny human gets further and further ahead of Rika, but Rika's pace does not change. She finds the slow trot to be more enjoyable. She looks around more and takes in the sights of the setting sun. She notices some florals and foliage growing along the sidewalk and thinks that it is basking in the shadows after a long day of following the sun.
She has spent many years cultivating gardens and plantlife. Her grandmother had imparted much wisdom to her about the Nonaka Instinct. How it can all come back. '"But you have to want it."' That is what her GrandMa had taught her. That is how Seiko's legacy carries on.
Rika walks on and breathes in the fall air. The little girl has just about reached her destination, but nothing changes for Rika. Each step is deliberate, full of concentration and reflection. Autumn is in full bloom, and winter approaches. She is at peace amongst the beauty of mother nature. The last four years have been a whirlwind. So much has changed.
'Gosh, it feels like a thousand years ago. I pulled Takato out of that rainstorm, opened myself to change, and realized I loved him.'
She passes a stairwell that leads up to an abandoned, gated, small building. She does not break stride, but smiles at the memory. She thinks about the adventures and the fun. The important lessons she learned about and from her friends. It doesn't matter to her how it all ended, just that it happened in the first place.
The sun breaks through the skyline. It blinds her view, so Rika brings her hand up above her head to block it out. She looks through the gaps in her fingers at the golden beams, which erupt from the outline.
Rika's eyes move to the pavement. The walkway bathes in an orange-golden hue. It's a saturated brightness to her. It doesn't hurt her eyes but she can't look at it either so she looks down instead. Everything in front of her, as far as she can see, is pale ember flame laid bare across the land. Rika learned long ago to appreciate this moment. 'Take it all in.' Rika is right here, right now. There is nothing in her life like this moment.
Through the golden light, a shadow approaches her. She looks up and it looms larger and larger. The sun blinds her again and she once more raises her hand to block it out. Even as such she welcomes the shadow. It speaks to her first.
"Hey there, GrandMa. You ready for this?"
"I had a light breakfast so I'd come hungry."
"For someone who came hungry you sure took your sweet, old time," the younger, brunette woman says as she comes to a stop in front of her. "I saw you walking, waiting for the leaves to fall."
Rika does not respond, but instead uses another moment to herself, pushing the glasses further up the bridge of her nose. They had met at the outdoor water fountain. It was a good meeting spot for the picnic. The water spurts several feet above their heads, with a large step up to prevent children from running right into it.
She takes in the kingdom of light all around her. There are people all over the park. Rarely is it ever empty, and on a beautiful early November day like today, it is perfect for some outdoor Autumn festivities. It is blazing and bright and alive. It's picturesque and she wants to take this moment and put it away, fold it in on itself over and over again until it's so small it fits in her pocket and she can take it everywhere with her.
She looks back at the middle age mother standing in front of her. She smiles at her, at the very sight of her, really, and she smiles back.
"It's good to see you again, Sakura."
"Good to see you too, Mom. Did you see Haruko? She's so big already."
They turn and begin walking side by side, the 7 year old child is a few steps ahead of them, playing with some leaves on the ground. Rika tugs at her coat and replies, "I sure did. She didn't even say anything to me. Just started leading the way. She truly is Akiko's daughter."
Out from behind that tree that Haruko is playing by, a teenage girl bounces towards them. Her red hair flowing perfectly, her natural beauty is undeniable, "GrandMa!"
She collides into Rika and hugs her tight. Rika holds the young one tightly, "Oh Rumiko! I've missed you!"
"I missed you too. I can't wait to tell you about my latest tournament."
"And I can't wait to hear about it!"
Rika Matsuki had always been beautiful, but her granddaughter truly lived up to her namesake. She had the ethereal beauty of Rika's mother, with all of Rika's interests in Digimon. A deadly combination befitting the royal bloodline of the legendary Digimon Queen.
The group comes to a stop at a collection of wooden tables, and an even larger collection of humans. Rika stands as the Matriarch of the family sprawled out before them. She stands a moment proud and smiling. She turns to her daughter and granddaughters and says, "Go on, I want to take a picture!"
The three others step away and Rika carefully pulls out her phone. She flips on the camera and holds it up. Her hands shake slightly as she clicks the button and captures the moment forever. She puts the camera down and looks out across generations of Matsuki's and in-laws.
Takato is dead.
No, this time there will be no dramatic act of him coming back from the dead through fate or miracles or light and kindness or darkness and balancing all of her negatives with the good of life.
There is no great evil that Rika is fighting. She is 79 years young, and he died 4 years ago right around this time of the year. He left her behind and went along on his next great adventure. He also left behind 4 children and a slew of grandchildren.
'And soon to be great grandchildren, I should imagine.'
They did not marry young. As Rika grew older and more self-aware, she feared repeating her mother's faults in marriage. Takato waited for her. He loved her for who she was and never wavered in that.
They did not stay together their entire lives. When they left high school and went to university, they found themselves drifting apart and experiencing new things. Rika and Jeri grew closer together, strengthening their bond, making them lifelong friends to this very day. It was about a year apart from Takato, and neither was devastated by the separation. Yet they still found their way back to each other.
'There was always something bringing us back together. Like some… invisible string that kept us together, even when we were apart.'
Rika stands and breathes deeply. She reflects on a lifetime of memories, shared with Takato, shared with Jeri, with their friends, with their loved ones. With their children and their children's children. They had more adventures with Renamon and Guilmon, but none shaped them as much as the two years from when they met their partners to The Burning of Central Park. Those following adventures were grand and dangerous, but they are stories for another day.
Rika is getting older now. The winters are longer. The days are shorter. She does not have much more time before she joins Takato on the next great adventure into the unknown.
She looks up and is partially blinded by the sun. It's very bright, and her eyes are not long for it. She drops her eyes and looks around at her family, spread out before her. On her peripheral, she watches a single leaf drop. It dances through the Fall sky, drifting so slow. It lands amongst a pile of green, brown, red, and gold. Leaves of every color.
Takato lives on in her memory and in the tales she tells. She will say his name no less than a hundred times at this family picnic, making sure that others know and remember him as well. As long as she talks about him, he will be remembered.
Although he may be gone, she knows he is waiting for her at the dock. She knows her "stupid gogglehead" will be waiting to take her on a walk, much like her stroll through the park today, and talk to her about what she has missed, and all that they will do next. In the meantime, she lives on for him, in his memory.
'But every Autumn, the leaves change colors and fall down to remind me of my love.'
'Of our love.'
'Of our story.'
'Every year, the autumn leaves remind me of us.'
—FIN—
Autumn Ends
—FIN—
A/N: First and foremost, I want to share some thank yous. First, to my wife, who I met after starting Autumn Leaves many years ago and who has supported me through everything, including indulging me for a year as I wrote this fic.
Second, to Crazyeight, who is an inspiration of the highest order in the Rukato community. When I disappeared for years, he kept going and I respect and admire that so much.
Next, to Jenny Cakes, who pushed me to be the most unashamed version of myself. To write fic and be proud of that and to tell people I write fic and not worry about what they thought of me. I don't know if this story gets written without you pushing me to embrace myself.
To LW_19, who didn't even know what Autumn Ends was about but put up with 6 months of text messages at inhuman hours and laughed with me and who helped me. Thank you for lending your ear and for caring about me & my story.
To Angel-Chan, who was the ever patient first reader & editor of Autumn Ends. You know how much you and your stories mean to me. It meant that much more to me to share this story with you first and get your feedback, and help infuse your brilliant mind into this story. I tried my best to make this story as a spiritual successor to Fated, and I hope I made you proud.
Finally, to the readers. I hope this story was enthralling and exciting. I hope it inspires you the way Fated and Songs of the Setting Sun inspired me. I hope you take this and run forever with it. I hope you love always.
As for the author's notes about this epilogue? Probably a little surprising to jump all the way to the end of Rika's life. But this is how I wanted my story to end. Rika, who starts as a loner, with a small family, and absolutely independent, now stands at the end of her life and looks upon her entire extended family and basks in the memories with all of the people she has loved & leaned on at times. I left breadcrumbs for other stories to tell (More adventures with Renamon & Guilmon? The card game still exists 64 years later? The various ages of her children & grandchildren? Takato still had the Crest of Miracles? The Shadows powers live on in Rika? Our couple broke up in college? Beelzemon mentions a prophecy, which Jeri is a part of somehow? And, my personal favorite, why, when Rika saw so many dead people, did she never see her Father?), but I have no intentions of telling those stories. This is my last major work in my Autumn Leaves/ Promise/ Autumn Ends universe so I wanted the epilogue to be a real ending, conclusive and final. Finally, this chapter's OST is "Begin Again" by Taylor Swift.
Love always. Rukato forever.
Notorious