(A/N: Oh hey, surprise, surprise! A faster update than expected. I really should be doing other things, but I love you guys too much! Enjoy! A couple things before we begin: One, I went back and modified Yukizome and Munakata's interactions in chapters gone prior to be more friendly/platonic. Don't know if I succeeded, but I did. One of my close friends finally caught up to this story and she's been acting like a friendly editor since. So, if you feel like checking that out, do so. If not, eh, you're not missing much.

Second, just a bit of warning, this is yet another chapter where the story more than earns its M rating. You have officially been warned).

Upon arriving in Florida, Yukizome was able to reunite with her class and give them a resounding "Mission Accomplished!" Cheers and praised were heaped on her and Hajime. As the former Ultimate Housekeeper escorted her students to get a celebratory breakfast, Chihiro and Kyoko stayed behind, feeling Kaiba's steely gaze upon their forms.

Chihiro cowered as Kyoko marched up to Kaiba, standing within five feet of him. The CEO was tall enough that her eyes did not even reach his chin without tilting her head up a little, but that didn't keep the youngest of the Kirigiris from maintaining her composure. Nothing was said as Chihiro watched nervously, waiting to hear what would be said.

"I…" Kaiba and Kyoko started at the same time, only for Kyoko to take a step back.

"No," she said. "You first."

Kaiba folded his arms. "I suppose I owe you an apology, Kirigiri. It seems you're not an ace detective for nothing."

"I forgive you," Kyoko said. "But you were right also. You were able to handle the situation yourself."

"No," Kaiba responded. "I was only able to handle the situation because of yours and Noah's intel. Forward me your expenses. I'll see them paid."

"Understood." She looked around. "I see no sign of Dartz."

"Gone," Kaiba said. "What happened won't hold up in court. And, given my own intel, it's likely Paradius itself will have to pay for the damages. Their organizational structure has likely fallen apart." He glanced at Mokuba, who was nearby. "Send a message to HR and tell them to get in contact with Togami."

"Ah, sure. Do you want him to call you?"

Kaiba nodded. "Even though this was a personal affront on the Kaiba Corporation, Paradius has stock in every major business in the world. It's only fair that Togami gets his just payment from these snakes."

"That's…oddly charitable of you," Kyoko said.

"Hmph," Kaiba said with a smirk. "I'm in a good mood today after everything that's happened. I feel like being a bit generous. Oh, speaking of generosity, I need to get back the cards Hinata borrowed from me." Kaiba glanced over at Chihiro. "Fujisaki."

"Ah, yes, Mr. Kaiba?"

"My office when we get back to Japan. You and I have much to discuss."

"Ah! Yes, sir!" Chihiro exclaimed. He would be worrying all the way back to Japan.

"Victory!" Yukizome exclaimed as she and the others clanked mugs of orange and apple juice together like it was frothy mugs of beer. Each student had a big plate of pancakes, waffles, eggs and bacon. So much bacon.

"Hell yeah! I'm starving!" Akane exclaimed and began shoveling in food.

Hajime counted heads and then realized someone was missing. "Hey, where's Nagito?"

"Nagito? What are you worried about him for?" Kazuichi asked.

Hajime sighed. "Never mind." Guess he figures no one's going to forgive him. I'll have to talk with him later.

"Gundham is missing too," Sonia stated. "He should've woken up with the rest of you."

"Don't worry, he has to come back with us to Japan," Yukizome said. "I'm more worried about Hiyoko."

"They might be distancing themselves from us after everything that's happened," Mikan said. "Don't worry, I'll give them a full mental health check when we get back to school. I'll get a written notice from Headmaster Kirigiri if I have to." She said, getting herself worked up.

Yukizome reached over and pat her on the head. "You do that," she said. "They could probably use it."

Mikan smiled and giggled.

"You guys mind if we join you," Yugi asked as he and his friends entered the restaurant.

"Sure, but I'm not picking up your tab," Yukizome said, swallowing a forkful of egg. "This is getting billed to the school cause these are all my students."

"I've got it," Mai said with a wink. "Don't worry about it."

Yugi and his group pulled up a table next to Yukizome's group and sat down to eat. Joey and Tristan ate like animals as predicted. Yugi picked at his food, troubled.

"What's wrong, Yugi?" Téa asked him.

"Oh, nothing, I just…"

"Helloooooooo!"

Junko and Mukuro waltzed into the restaurant.

Yugi smiled. That's what was missing. "Junko! Over here!"

Téa frowned and scooted closer to Yugi. She even gripped his chair with her fingers.

Things were a bit tense. Everyone remembered what Junko had pulled on top of Paradius' roof. None of them were sure what was about to happen.

Hajime, surprisingly, was the one who brought it up. "It's fine. She helped me when I was inside the Leviathan."

"Darn right I did," Junko said, holding up her index and middle finger in a V-shape.

Yugi smiled. "We really do owe you a lot for your help, Junko."

"Awwww, Yugi, that's so nice of you to say," Junko said, giving Yugi a big hug from behind.

"Ah, hey!" Yugi exclaimed, blushing. Téa growled.

Junko laughed and let him go. "Wish I could stay and eat, but I'm needed back in Japan as soon as possible. Chances are I'm going to be needed for my next photoshoot soon. Work and life wait for no one, even people who help save the world."

"That's too bad. You should sit and eat with us, Junko," Miho said.

"Sorry, I'm on a tight schedule," Junko said with a big smile. "Rain check."

"Well, I'm sure we'll see each other again," Yugi said with a smile.

Junko smiled back. "Oh, by the way. I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to hang onto the Atlantean Spellbook for a while longer. I'm thinking if I completely crack the cipher, I could probably help the Pharaoh get his memories back."

"I don't know if that's safe," Yugi said with concern.

"It's totally safe," Junko said. "The spellbook isn't a Millennium Item, merely the instrument of their creation. Without the Orichalcos stone, I can't even cast spells. I told you, it requires a catalyst to work. And, as long as I have it, it can't possibly fall into more nefarious hands." She elbowed Mukuro.

"I will allow no harm to come to my sister. The spellbook is safe," Mukuro said, standing at attention.

"Well then, until we meet again, Junko," Yugi said.

Junko smiled. Then, she blew him a kiss, waved goodbye to everyone and walked out of the restaurant with Mukuro. Sucker! She thought, grinning demonically.

It was hours later when Munakata was finally able to arrange for a flight back to Japan. Yukizome, Kaiba, Yugi and the others would be getting the first flight out back to their home country.

While at the airport, Yukizome pulled Munakata aside out just outside the airport gate. The plane wouldn't be taking off for at least another hour.

"Hey, remember when we said we would talk later?" Yukizome asked.

Munakata nodded. "I do."

"Now's later," Yukizome said, putting a hand along the backside of her neck. Her other hand fidgeted along the folds of her newly cleaned apron.

"Okay then," Munakata said, taking a step towards her. "Talk."

Yukizome was nervous, not sure what to say, but, after a deep breath, she found herself talking without thinking. "Kyouske, we've been through a lot together. We had that whole mess during junior year, we managed to uncover the underbelly of Hope's Peak and expose it to the world, and, well, now…this too."

"I wouldn't exactly call what happened in junior year "a mess". It was an…adventure."

Yukizome sighed. "That's not the point and you know it."

"What is the point then?" Munakata asked.

"I remember how hard it was just to get you to call me Chisa," Yukizome said, playing with her fingers. "And now…I find myself wanting…more than that."

Munakata blushed a little. "I…don't understand."

"I figured you'd say that. So…today…I want to be completely and totally honest."

Both were quiet, the wind blew at Yukizome's skirt. Munakata stared at her intently, wondering what she might say.

Then, Yukizome's lips formed a gentle smile and her cheeks turned pink. "I love you, Kyouske Munakata."

Whatever Munakata had expected Yukizome to say, it clearly wasn't that. "Ch-Chisa…" He was taken aback, eyes shrunken in with surprise.

"Do you love me?" Yukizome asked, giving Munakata a wounded puppy look.

Munakata stepped forward and put Yukizome's head in his shoulder. "Of course, I love you. You're my angel."

Yukizome croaked as her eyes filled with tears. "Kyouske…"

"Chisa?"

"I thought…I was so scared. I thought…I thought I'd never be able to say it," Yukizome sobbed.

"It's okay," Munakata said, pulling her into a tight hug. He caressed the back of her head. "I love you," he told her. "I really, truly love you, Chisa Yukizome."

Yukizome buried her face in Munakata's chest and just cried. The day had finally come. She'd been able to express her feelings.

With her eyes still filled with tears, Munakata tipped Yukizome's head up to look him in the eye and then he locked lips with her. Yukizome put her hands squarely against his back and forced him into a deeper kiss. She wanted this. She wanted him.

When they broke away, the two of them continue to hug each other with Yukizome nuzzling her head in Munakata's chest. "I love you, Kyouske."

"I love you too, Chisa," he said, rubbing her back.

Yukizome then broke away and headed for the gate. "I'll see you soon, okay? Call me, e-mail me, text me. You know I'll respond."

Munakata smiled. "The next time you're here in the United States, I'll make sure I can show you a new Hope's Peak Branch that you and Juuzo can be proud of."

"I'll give him your regards and tell him the happy news. Well, him and everyone else of course."

Kyouske smiled. "Have a safe trip."

The two waved goodbye as Yukizome trotted off to catch up with her students. And then, they all got onto the plane and headed back to Japan.

While everyone on that plane was entitled to some R&R, especially the tourists, things were a bit different for Chihiro Fujisaki, who had been asked to report directly to Seto Kaiba's office upon his return to Japan. Chihiro was nervous as he made his way to his boss' office. The words "You're fired" hung over him like a guillotine. Kaiba was hard to read, but that was part of what Chihiro admired and feared about him.

When Chihiro entered into Kaiba's office, the young CEO was busy typing something with one hand at his computer, chin leaned against his other hand, finger curled against the side of his lip.

"Um, you…wanted to see me, sir?" Chihiro asked timidly.

Kaiba hummed in acknowledgement of Chihiro's presence. "Have a seat, Fujisaki."

Chihiro swallowed and took a seat and waited for Kaiba to finish his computer work.

"You know," Kaiba said as he threaded his fingers and brought them up by his nose, gazing at Chihiro from over them. The glare of the sun against Kaiba's back shadowed his figure, giving off a terrifying presence to Chihiro. "There isn't an employee in this building that would have the nerve to go behind my back for what they think is my own good."

Chihiro gulped. Oh yeah. He was fired.

"However," Kaiba said and leaned back, hands flat on the desk, elbows barely touching the edge. "There's also no denying that what you did ended up saving KaibaCorp in the long run." Kaiba grunted, angry not at Chihiro but at himself as he brought his hands together again and massaged one of his wrists. "I got so caught up in an old enemy and what was right in front of me that I missed an underlying threat that could've easily stolen my company if not for you, Noah, and Kirigiri. I don't like owning up to my own mistakes, Fujisaki, but it's how I learn to grow, both as a businessman, and as a duelist."

Chihiro was now more confused than a deer chasing its tail in a parking lot.

"I heard from your father the other day that Hope's Peak is interested in you for your programming skills. Is that true?"

"Yes, sir. I was scouted. I haven't received an acceptance letter to join, but—"

Kaiba held up a hand, indicating that he'd heard enough. Chihiro promptly shut his mouth. "How would you like to be promoted to Senior Programmer?"

If Chihiro was a computer, he would've promptly hit a blue screen of death and needed someone to press a button to continue. "I'm…sorry?"

"I'll repeat myself. Would you like a promotion to senior programmer? You're already one of my best programmers in spite of your age. Your advances with Alter Ego is technology far beyond even some of KaibaCorp's best AI work. I would like to see you representing the company with new, innovative, self-evolving artificial intelligence programs to take Duel Monsters and other games licensed by us to the next level."

"So…I'm not fired?"

Kaiba snickered and then burst out laughing. Chihiro had never once heard Kaiba laugh like that. He didn't know whether to be relieved or terrified. "Far from it, Fujisaki," Kaiba said, smiling proudly at Chihiro. "It takes a lot of guts to go behind my back and it takes even more skill to end up being right where I've been wrong. Consider this offer a just reward for a job well done."

Chihiro got up, practically hurling the chair back as he stood and bowed, almost hitting his head on Kaiba's desk. "Thank you very much!"

"I'll have a proper uniform shipped out to you. It should arrive within a few days. I look forward to seeing what you do for the company, Fujisaki," Kaiba said giving what technically counted as a smile, but looked more terrifying than reassuring. Chihiro didn't know if it was because Kaiba didn't know how to smile when he was happy, or if Kaiba was trying to psyche him out. Either way, it didn't matter. Chihiro was so excited.

"I won't let you down, sir!" He exclaimed. "Wait until my dad hears about this!" Chihiro then ran out of the office.

Kaiba chuckled to himself as he then went back to what he was working on with regards to his computer: Chihiro's uniform, modeled after Kaiba's own uniform in a woman's small. It was blue and gray rather than white and red like Kaiba's to fit the programming department's color scheme. Kaiba smirked as he sent out a custom-made order to production. It was good to be the man in charge.

When it came to fallout from the events surrounding Dartz, Hope's Peak suffered the most. While the Steering Committee was not under fire this time, it was the individual Ultimates that were being punished…or at least Hiyoko was.

Yukizome had found that Gundham and Nagito had…at least somewhat reasonable motives for doing what they did, Gundham more so. Hiyoko, however, had been given time and chance again to stop doing what she was doing and still refused to surrender. However, even though Yukizome had let her lose her soul happy, she still felt Hiyoko needed to be punished.

So, while the rest of the class was enjoying a big buffet of Teruteru's cooking, Hiyoko was being made to scrub the entire classroom top to bottom…with a toothbrush. And she wasn't allowed to have any of Teruteru's food until she was done. Worse, people kept making stains all over the floor in the area's Hiyoko just finished cleaning.

"This is so not fair!" She complained.

"And neither is threatening your classmates with the loss of their souls, especially your closest friends," Yukizome said, sticking her nose in the air, eyes closed. "Now…" she glared at Hiyoko. "Scrub!"

Hiyoko whimpered and whined and went back to cleaning. Eventually she just sat on her hands and knees and just cried onto the floor, staining the wood with her tears. Her stomach was growling loudly. She'd been at this for hours. She watched everyone playing board games and duel monsters and she just wanted to join them.

It's not fair, she sniffed. She was one more minute away from snapping the toothbrush in half, storming out and running for traffic. She might as well at this point.

However, suddenly the area in front of her became coated with shadow. Hiyoko looked up. Mikan and Mahiru were sitting on their knees in front of her. Mikan was offering her a warmed steamed bun and Mahiru was giving her skewer of Yakitori.

Hiyoko's head whipped towards Yukizome. "Huh? Oh. I think I've spontaneously gone blind," she said, covering her eyes. "I need to go to my office for eyedrops." She promptly exited the room.

Hiyoko croaked and then she looked back at Mikan and Mahiru. They were still offering her food. Something inside Hiyoko suddenly snapped. She burst into tears, gushing like an infant, crying harder than she ever had in her life. She fell forward, grabbing Mahiru and Mikan around their shoulders, sobbing as loud as her voice would let her.

Mahiru pat her back soothingly.

"I'M SORUWY!" Hiyoko apologized incoherently before howling loudly.

"Hey, it's okay," Mahiru said soothingly, patting her on the head. "We all do dumb things. I forgive you."

Hiyoko pulled back from Mahiru and Mikan. With snot dribbling out of her right nostril and a face looking like a drowned cat, she shivered with her hands balled in her kimono sleeves as she looked at Mikan. The Ultimate Nurse was smiling at her, still offering her that sweet bun, not moving an inch. Hiyoko sniffed, squeaked, grabbed the folds of Mikan's apron and promptly blew her nose in it.

"I forgive you, Hiyoko," Mikan said, patting her on the back of the head.

Hiyoko hugged Mikan, head buried in her stomach just below Mikan's chest. Real tears dripped out of Hiyoko's eyes as she just said, barely loud enough for Mikan to hear. "I don't hate you."

Mikan hugged Hiyoko back and just let her dry her tears in her apron.

"I'm sorry I'm such a bitch," Hiyoko sniffed.

"Hey, it's okay, really," Mahiru said.

"No! It's not!" Hiyoko croaked. "You guys are always just trying to help and all I ever did was push you away. I even my hurt my daddy. I…I haven't even tried to go home since we came back. I…I don't want to go home. I'm scared."

Mahiru rubbed her head. "It'll be okay, I'm sure of it. We're all here for you. Every last one of us."

Hiyoko sniffed, doing her best to dry her eyes and looked at Mahiru. "You promise? I can really trust you guys, right? I don't…I can…"

"You don't have to be afraid," Mahiru said. "None of us are going to trick you." She smiled at Hiyoko. "Really, we're all here for you."

"If…" Hiyoko sniffed, getting mad, "If a single one of you ends up tricking me, I'll…" she burst into tears. "I'll make you swallow needles until you're shitting them ouuuuuuuut!"

"That won't be necessary," Mahiru said. "We're your friends. Friends help friends out, okay?"

"Okay," Hiyoko said and hugged Mahiru tightly.

Just outside the classroom, Yukizome hadn't even gone to her office, she was just standing with her back to the door. She was smiling as a tear rolled down her right cheek. Everything, it seemed, was going to turn out okay.

"Sheesh, she finally shut up," Fuyuhiko sighed.

"Go easy on her," Nekomaru said. "She's not exactly made of stern stuff, no matter how much she pretends to be."

"Yeah, yeah," Fuyuhiko said. He huffed. "Shit. Pisses me off that I couldn't do jack to Dartz. Yo, Hajime."

"Uh, yeah?"

"Next time shit like this happens you let me know immediately so I can back your ass up!" Fuyuhiko exclaimed.

"We'll all work together," Chiaki smiled.

"Yeah, I really don't like having the fate of the world heaped on my shoulders," Hajime said.

"But you're so good at it!" Sonia exclaimed. "You're like some sort of legendary hero."

"Seriously. Stop it," Hajime said, nervous sweat beading down his face.

Fuyuhiko's phone then vibrated as he clicked open the text he'd been sent. It was Natsumi sending him a picture. She had her right hand held up to one side, palm facing her. She was missing her pinky finger.

"How do I look?" read the text message.

Fuyuhiko typed back to her, "Like a mutant."

"LOL."

"Does it hurt?"

"Oh, it stings like a son of a bitch, but I brought this on myself. I'm sorry."

"I accept your apology, but only if you bake your special cake and send it in the mail."

"That's gonna be difficult," Natsumi said. "I'm…moving to America following my expulsion from Hope's Peak."

"The hell are you going to America for?" Fuyuhiko asked.

"Well, your teacher's boyfriend talked to me before we jumped back on the plane back to Japan. Something about him wanting me to help with the construction efforts for Hope's Peak America."

Well I'll be damned, Fuyuhiko thought. "Hey, if it's you, you can bake a cake and deliver it to me before you catch your flight. When is it? I'll see you off."

"Tomorrow." Natsumi's text responded. It was followed quickly by. "And thanks." And this was followed by, "Big brother."

Fuyuhiko sighed and then typed back. "Stay safe okay. If you come back to Japan with a gaijin in your belly, dad'll cut off more than just a finger."

"LOL."

"Seriously though, do your best. You're gonna be representing the entire Kuzuryu clan out there."

"Yeah! See you in a couple of years if neither of us visits!"

Fuyuhiko just sent a thumb's up emoji and then put his phone away. He pivoted his torso towards Peko. "Natsumi's moving to the west."

"The west?" Peko asked, curiously. "But why?"

"Some kind of project for Hope's Peak America. Fuck it. As long as she's staying out of trouble."

"I cannot protect the young mistress and you when you are separated by oceans."

"Natsumi can take care of yourself, Peko. Besides, like I said, you should be your own person while you're here at Hope's Peak," Fuyuhiko stated.

"Right, a thousand apologies. I forgot."

"Look, it's fine as long as you don't request to commit seppuku. You're fine," Fuyuhiko said.

"Okay! Who wants to go get the TV?" Yukizome said with a big smile, strolling into the room. "I've got video games!" She fanned out three boxes of various games for the group to play.

"I'll get it. Come on, Akane," Nekomaru said.

"Right!" Akane exclaimed.

Hajime looked towards Yukizome curiously. "Miss Yukizome, Gundham and Nagito aren't suspended, are they?"

Yukizome looked puzzled. "I don't think so. Hiyoko is still here."

Hajime pushed down on his knee and got to his feet. "I'll go get Nagito."

"Not without me you aren't," Chiaki said. She stood up next to Hajime and gave him a stern look.

Hajime sighed, patting his girlfriend on the head. "All right, come on. He couldn't have gotten far."

"I'll go look for Gundham," Sonia said. "He's probably still beating himself up."

"Mind if I tag along?" Kazuichi asked. "I know you can't stand me, but…"

"I do not mind," Sonia said.

"Yeah, figured you'd…" Kazuichi said, only to realize what Sonia said. "Wha…really?"

Sonia nodded, gazing with fierce determination at Kazuichi. "Let us search for Gundham."

Kazuichi stood rigidly at attention, grinning ear to ear, saluting. "You got it, Miss Sonia!"

The four students split off into pairs. Kazuichi and Sonia looked all around the grounds while Hajime and Chiaki searched inside the building. The latter found their target first. As Hajime opened the door to the roof, Nagito stood there with his hand on the chain link fence, gazing out at the wide-open world, but mostly the horizon of Domino City, the wind blowing through his white hair.

"Nagito! There you are!" Hajime exclaimed as he and Chiaki stepped onto the rooftop gravel.

Nagito turned around. He looked like he hadn't slept since he got his soul back. "Oh, hey Hajime. Were you looking for me?"

"Come downstairs. We're all eating a feast," Hajime said, gesturing to the open door.

Nagito sighed. "No. You guys have your feast. Trash like me isn't welcome there."

Hajime balled a fist. "Nagito," he said, glaring.

"Hmm?"

"Grit your teeth!" Hajime exclaimed and then sucker punched Nagito in the jaw. Nagito crumpled to the ground.

"Hajime!" Chiaki was beside herself with Hajime's behavior.

Hajime grabbed Nagito by the lapels of his hoodie. Chiaki thought he was going to slug Nagito again and she was more than prepared to grab his arm. Much as she was mad at Nagito too, hitting him went too far.

However, Hajime stayed his hand. He, instead, chose to settle for yelling in Nagito's face. "I don't want to hear any of that, all right? You're not trash! Nobody thinks you're trash. You're our classmate!"

Nagito just stared at Hajime in confusion. The two were silent before Hajime shoved Nagito back and sat down on one knee, staring at the ground. Nagito was leaned back on one arm for support, one leg outstretched, the other bent. He didn't understand. How could he not be trash? He sold his soul to a maniac to pay off a debt for a plane crash that wasn't even his fault. His entire life felt…so pointless now. He'd managed to be a stepping stone. His cards were useful in sealing away the Leviathan. He'd helped make a difference. He didn't have to do anymore now.

Hajime startled Nagito from his depressed thoughts. "You only did what you did because you don't consider yourself on the same level as us, right? You think the only thing you're good for is making all of us look better. But that's wrong!" Hajime shouted, punching the ground. "You're just as worthy of an Ultimate as the rest of us. Who cares about Ultimates and talents? If you want to be our friend." Hajime looked Nagito dead in the eye. "Be our friend!"

Hajime's words shook Nagito down to his core. And yet, everything Hajime was saying felt…okay to Nagito's ear. And yet…

The young boy leaned back, supporting himself with both arms behind his back and looked up at the sun. He sighed. "I'm dying, Hajime."

"What are you talking about?" Hajime snapped.

"I got diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia," Nagito said. "It was right before I got my acceptance letter to Hope's Peak. I probably won't even make it to graduation. You're all…such wonderful people."

"Nagito…don't tell me you haven't slept because you want to go out on your terms," Chiaki said, worried.

"You're worried about the guy that stole your soul?" Nagito asked.

Chiaki looked fiercely at him. "Hajime told me everything. Nagito, what you did was wrong, but I think you get that. No amount of me lecturing you would do anything other than tell you what you already know. You were selfish and you made a mistake."

"Wait…are you mad at me or not?"

"Of course I'm mad at you," Chiaki said. "Because you didn't trust us. You didn't do what any sane person would do to help us. Instead, you went your own way. I'm disappointed in you…as a friend, I mean."

"A…friend?"

"It's like Hajime said, we all want to be your friend, but like Hiyoko, you shut us out. You just do it in a different way. And if you're dying, then let's figure out a way to keep you from doing so. Anything's possible as long as you try. Hajime and I have both learned that. So stop feeling sorry for yourself. Stop acting like you're alone and all you're good for is being someone else's doormat. You're alive, even now. That means something. And if you don't know what it means, then count on us to help you find it."

Now Nagito was really confused. He didn't understand at all. He'd made an oops. He'd done what he'd set out to do…sort of. Besides, if he went along with what Hajime and Chiaki wanted, he'd just be screwing them over with his bad luck.

Wait…my bad luck? Nagito gave a long, hard thought about everything that had happened. And then, he smiled. "Well, I guess if I think about it, everything sort of backfired on me throughout this whole mess, so that would be a lot of bad luck piled up." He stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets. "I guess this means I have a lot of good luck to look forward to as a classmate to all my wonderful friends."

Chiaki smiled. She'd gotten through. "Wonderful. Let's go have something to eat…together."

Nagito smiled and approached her, only for Chiaki to grab his wrist.

"Oh, before we go."

Chiaki took the side of her head and chopped it firmly on Nagito's head. "There. Now we're even." She lowered her arm and puffed out her cheeks at Nagito. "Don't do anything like that again."

Nagito laughed and then headed for the staircase. "Yeah, thanks Chiaki."

Hajime headed ahead of Chiaki, but his girlfriend called out to him. "Hey, Hajime. Wait a sec."

"Huh? What's up?"

Chiaki clutched at her chest and bit her lip. There was so much she wanted to say, but, ultimately, she decided against it. "Nothing, never mind."

"It's not nothing. What is it?"

Chiaki looked absolutely miserable as she folded her arms and turned to one side. "We need to have a talk…later. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but…an important talk…about…everything."

"You're not…"

"N-no. Don't be silly. This isn't that talk." Chiaki squeezed Hajime's hand. "I like you too much to let you go. But…we need to have a serious talk," she said.

I don't know what's got her so wound up, but I'm not going to let it eat away at her like this. "The day after tomorrow is Sunday. We don't have schoolwork."

"That's…a good point. Okay, on Sunday, come by my dorm room at 9pm. Don't be late."

"9? But that's almost—"

"I know what it almost is," Chiaki said. "Nine o' clock," she said, getting fussy. "You will be there. We will talk. Understand?"

"Y-yeah," Hajime said. What the hell was she getting so intense for?

Chiaki smiled. "Great. Let's go join Nagito then."

Chiaki headed down the stairs back to the fifth floor as Hajime shuffled behind her. He then took one last look at the horizon before walking into the stairwell and shutting the door behind him.

No sooner had Hajime and Chiaki headed down to the 5th floor, Sonia and Kazuichi finally found Gundham out on the school campus, by himself, brooding just beyond the track field. He was petting a deer, which ran away as soon as Kazuichi and Sonia showed up, sitting on the ground, arms folded, back to the school.

"Gundham!" Sonia called out to him.

Gundham looked over his shoulder and then quickly turned back to face the woods. "Dark Queen. Kazuichi."

"Hey, man. What're you doing sittin' all the way out here by yourself? Come in and have something to eat," Kazuichi requested casually.

"Such a banquet would be tainted by the presence of one who almost brought calamity," Gundham said, refusing to look at either student.

Sonia sounded disheartened. "Oh…so you still haven't forgiven yourself." Gundham had not spoken to her since he got his soul back. He used any excuse he could to avoid her.

Kazuichi, however, was sick of this nonsense. "Oh to hell with that! Listen, Gundham! Miss Sonia never gave up on you, not once! And you're just gonna throw that away?"

Sonia's ears perked up. She half-expected Kazuichi to take Gundham's surliness as a chance for him to win her over. And yet…it sounded like he was encouraging Gundham to want to be with her again. She was touched. "Kazuichi…"

Kazuichi was ranting so hard, saliva was hitting the grass. Sonia could see the redness of anger against his forehead. "If I was in your position, I wouldn't be sulking! I'd be throwing myself at Miss Sonia's feet and asking if she'll ever forgive me because I'd WANT her to forgive me!" He glared at Gundham. "Or maybe Miss Sonia doesn't mean that much to you after all."

Gundham bolted to his feet. He turned only his head in Kazuichi's direction. "Watch your mouth, you cur! I may now lack the Atlantean Magic of eons gone past, but I am still Gundham Tanaka, the Supreme Overlord of Ice!"

"More like the Supreme Chunnibyou!" Kazuichi shot back. "You want a piece of me, tough guy?"

Gundham turned to face Kazuichi and held his hands up in a kung-fu pose. "Careful, Mechanic, you would be wise not to throw down that gauntlet so hastily!"

"Fuck you! The gauntlet's been thrown, stomped on and pushed aside."

"Then…come at me fool!"

Kazuichi stomped towards the grass and decked Gundham hard in the face. Gundham hit the ground, using one arm for balance, rubbing his sore cheek. He then roared, rising to his feet and punched Kazuichi across the face. Kazuichi returned with a meaty left hook and Gundham decked Kazuichi right in the forehead, knocking him back. Punches flew as the Ultimate Mechanic and Ultimate Animal Breeder slugged away at each other like a couple of pit fighting thugs.

After the sixth exchange of punches, Sonia could take no more. "Please, stop it! Both of you!" she pleaded, on the verge of tears.

Kazuichi and Gundham stood there with sore jaws and one black eye apiece. Kazuichi was even down half a tooth. They both panted, not moving a muscle, until Gundham sank to his knees. His palms were open, arms at his sides. He looked at his hands and clenched them into fists. He then opened his hands, leaned forward and clenched the grass, gnashing his teeth. He growled as tears fell from his eyes. He spoke normally without a hint of his fronted persona.

"I failed you against the likes of Marik Ishtar. I turned my back on you in the pursuit of power," he said, voice heavy, "I thought if I pushed you away—"

"I could never be happy," Sonia said, about to cry, "Not without you, Gundham." She said, hands folded over her heart. "I wish for you to take me far away, whether it's off to hell, or to another dimension. I want to see lands only you have visited and see the demon beasts for what they really are." Only now did she start to cry. "So please…" Sonia's whole face became distorted with tears. "Please stop punishing yourself. I already…" she hiccupped, "Forgave you…back when you gave up your soul…for me."

Gundham just stared at Sonia in shock, not really knowing what to say.

Kazuichi smiled, lifted his thumb against his hat and began to back away. Looks like my work here is done. Gundham really is a better for her…I guess. He turned around and began to walk back to the school building…and almost crashed into Yukizome. "M-Miss Yukizome. F-fancy seeing you here."

"That was a very noble thing you did, Kazuichi. I'm proud of you." She smiled, patting him on the back. "Come on, you're getting an extra big piece of dessert and we can have Mikan patch you up."

Kazuichi chuckled, licking his upper, undamaged teeth with his, tongue. "Heh heh. Thanks."

As he walked back to class with his teacher, he took one last look at Gundham and Sonia together. Gundham had his head pulled into Sonia's stomach as she seemed to be behaving like a goddess, absolving Gundham of his sins. Kazuichi smiled and did his best not to cry, but a few tears got out as he walked back with Yukizome to go back inside, never looking back again.

As Sonia and Gundham sat there on their knees, the Four Dark Devas of Destruction crawled out. Two of them sat on Sonia's head. Two of them sat on Gundham's head. Sonia and Gundham got to their feet and stood with their eyes closed, forehead to forehead. They then began swaying, hand in hand, back and forth to the melody of a song that only they seemed to be able to hear.

After parting with Kazuichi at the classroom, Yukizome really did then go to her office to fetch her mail. As she sat down to read it, her office phone went off. She picked it up.

"Hope's Peak Academy. Yukizome speaking," she answered politely. The voice on the other end belonged to an old woman. "Saionji?" Yukizome questioned when she heard the last name. "Hmm? Yes, I'm her teacher." She listened and then interrupted the woman on the other end. "I saw the damages. I know what she did." She listened and then cut off the woman again. "You don't have to yell, ma'am!" She listened more. "Yes." She listened more. Her curt, stern gaze faded into one reflecting sorrow. Her head hung a little. "Oh…I see." She listened more. "No, I understand. You have to do what you have to do to take care of the family. I suppose it doesn't matter then if Hiyoko was under mind control, does it?" She listened for an answer. Her sad face only worsened by the answer. "No, I didn't think you would care either. She really is sorry though. Yes. I get that doesn't matter. Yes, I'll tell her. Goodbye, Ms. Saionji." Yukizome then hung up with Hiyoko's grandmother and slammed the phone on the receiver.

She then leaned forward elbows on the table, palms pressing into her forehead. "What am I gonna do?"

The disaster of the Orichalcos had been averted and life went on as only civilization could. However, big changes were on the horizon. On Sunday afternoon, Natsumi Kuzuryu was arriving at the construction site of Hope's Peak America, reporting to Munakata, who was overseeing construction of the building's infrastructure.

"Hey, I'm here!" Natsumi exclaimed at him.

Munakata turned and spoke only when he'd fully mentally acknowledged Natsumi's presence. "Ah, good, you're here, Natsumi Kuzuryu."

"Yeah, I'm here. How can I help?"

Munakata showed her the work in progress. "I have able bodied men and women working tirelessly to get his project finished, but what I need are supplies and catering. I'm going to need you to provide both."

"Ah, so it's my cooking skills you need, say nothing more."

"Well that and I need actual building and internal supplies gathered and ordered for this school to open at the end of the next school year. That's where you come in."

"Hey, I'm a Yakuza, not a pack mule!" Natsumi exclaimed.

"I agree, which is why you'll be leading the supply team and keeping it in order. Let me introduce you to your first two assistants," Munakata said and led Natsumi over to a motorbike parking lot. She gasped upon seeing two familiar faces: Valon Hall and Alister (his last name had been lost in war).

"I trust you have no qualms with this arrangement," Munakata said.

"Zip!" Natsumi exclaimed, ecstatic. "It's good to see you guys again. But…what made you want to join a stuffy project like this?"

"Well, without Dartz around, we kinda needed jobs. Got free room and board workin' for Paradius," Valon said.

"We went under witness protection to give the investigators all the information they needed to know about what happened," Alister stated. "And, now we're here."

"Well, whatever. I'm down. Let's jump on our motorbikes and ride off to get us whatever this guy needs," Natsumi said, referring to Munakata. He handed her a list. She scanned it over and slapped the paper with the back of her hand. "Easy." Then, she, Valon, and Alister all got on top of separate motorcycles. "Hey, by the way? Where's Rafael? Doesn't he want to be here?"

"I gave him the same offer to work on this project, but he declined," Munakata stated.

"What? Why?" Natsumi wanted to know. Of everyone, Rafael seemed like the most level headed of the bunch.

"He said he just…wanted to go home," Munakata said.

"Home?" Natsumi questioned.

"He probably took a plane to Novoselic. I guess…the big guy's just gotta do some soul searching," Valon said. "We'll be all right without him. He'll join us eventually."

"Yeah," Natsumi said, strapping on her helmet. She then revved up the engine. "Now. Let's ride!"

Then she, Valon, and Alister, burned rubber and tore off down the streets.

On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, at Novoselic National Airport, Rafael was exiting out of the building dressed in hiking jeans, a tight brown shirt, and a pair of cool sunglasses. He looked around and finally spotted a chauffeur at about 5' 7" in a trench coat, with black hair, and wearing a brown ascot cap. They were holding up a sign that said "Rafael Nevermind" on it.

"That must be for me," Rafael and approached the person. They were standing in front of a miniature limo. They took out what Rafael presumed to be a picture of him, nodded and then opened the door to let him into the limo. Rafael made himself comfortable as the driver got into the front seat.

As Rafael sat in the back, he saw a familiar head of blonde hair off to his right. "Sonia?" She was faced away from him. She didn't respond to his call.

He looked at the floor in defeat. "I see. So you're still mad at me. I suppose I don't blame you."

The car took off and headed for the Novoselic scenic highway.

Rafael was quiet for a while. "I…I want to explain myself, but I don't know where to start."

Sonia still said nothing.

Rafael stared at the ground. He was quiet a good long while before he picked his head up and looked at the exit billboards over the highway. And that was when he noticed something strange, they were past the exit that one would have to take to go to the Novoselic Royal Castle. "What the…aren't we going to the castle?"

Sonia still did not respond.

"Sonia! Answer me!" Rafael got up and grabbed Sonia's arm. His blood ran cold when a pair of piercing blue eyes stared back at him. He gasped for air.

"Oh, Rafael," The woman pretending to be Sonia said. "Did you honestly think I would just let you go back home?"

It took Rafael a second or too to realize he'd been shot in the pectoral with a needle fired from a small caliber gun. He stumbled back, his whole body feeling heavy.

"Junko…you witch," he groaned. He collapsed on the floor on his back, clutching his chest, pulling the needle out, other arm above his head.

"Oh Rafael, Rafael, Rafael," Junko said as she leaned over him. "You were such a good agent for despair under the influence of the Orichalcos." She gazed at him, dressed identically to Sonia, the only details off being her much larger chest and much bluer eyes. "Now you'll be my agent, under the influence of despair."

Before Rafael passed out, the last thing he saw was Junko's smile and the last thing he heard was her devilish laughter.

Later that afternoon, Yukizome stopped by the gym. Hiyoko was practicing her dancing on stage, Mahiru taking pictures as was typical. Yukizome watched in silence until Hiyoko took a bow.

"Bravo, bravo," she said, clapping.

"Miss Yukizome!" Hiyoko exclaimed, getting down from the stage, running over to her. "That was pretty great, right, right? I'm amazing, aren't I?"

"Yes, very worthy of your talent as the Ultimate Traditional Dancer," Miss Yukizome said, forcing a big smile.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Hiyoko asked, able to see through transparent smiles. "If it's bad, lemme know it's bad, yeah?"

"No, you're dance was fine, Hiyoko," Yukizome said without the forced smile, "Really. There's just…there's something we need to discuss."

Mahiru quietly proceeded to leave, but Yukizome stopped her with a call. "You can stay if you want, Mahiru. This isn't a completely private conversation."

Mahiru nodded, turned around and stood there patiently. If it involved Hiyoko and she wasn't being chased away, she did want to know what was wrong.

"What's up?" Hiyoko asked. However, not being an idiot, her brain kind of filled in the gaps. She looked down at the ground. "Oh…wait…you heard from my grandma, huh?"

"I guess you kind of already know what I'm about to say," Yukizome said.

Hiyoko put on a brave face, giving Yukizome a fierce look, but it looked like it might crack easily. "G-go on. I can handle it," she said, fists clenched inside her robe. "What did the old hag say? Tell me!"

Yukizome took a deep breath. This wasn't going to be pretty. "She said that you've been kicked out of the family for your behavior and what you did to the souls and lives of its denizens."

"Wha…but that was…"

"I know, you were uncontrollable. The Orichalcos was influencing you. It…doesn't seem to matter," Yukizome said sadly.

Hiyoko looked angry and upset at the same time, waiting to hear more.

Yukizome took another deep breath. "By now…all documents pertaining to your ties with the family have been removed. Hiyoko Saionji no longer exists. By now you're just…Hiyoko."

"S-so…I don't care," Hiyoko snapped. "I really don't care!" Tears were starting to form. "I hated my family! They never cared about me! They always just tried to use me!" She was starting to get choked up. "I don't even care that I never got to apologize!" Hiyoko's shaking shoulders and tear-stained corners of her eyes betrayed that last outburst.

"Hiyoko…" Mahiru really didn't know what to do. How did one fix something this bad? She'd been unconscious long before the others learned about what Hiyoko did to the Saionji estate so she had to hear it second hand from the others. She knew the consequences were going to be massive, but this felt like overkill.

Yukizome withdrew an envelope from her apron.

"I don't want to open stinky mail from them," Hiyoko said, choking back tears. "I don't want to read it! I hate the Saionjis! Every last one of them!"

"This isn't from them," Yukizome said. She handed the envelope to Hiyoko. The envelope was official looking. The return address was a courthouse. It was addressed to her.

"What the fuck? Don't you dare tell me I broke the law or some shit!"

Yukizome just sighed. "Would you open it and read it instead of jumping to conclusions?"

Hiyoko frowned and tore open the envelope taking out the letter. The top of the letter was marked as pertaining to Family Court. The subject was "Re: Hiyoko Saionji". This was a copy of an official letter as noted by the fact that a seal on it was faded into black and white.

"Dear Chisa Yukizome, this is in regards to your request to…" Hiyoko didn't know why she was reading Miss Yukizome's mail. "Take legal guardianship of one Hiyoko Saionji?!"

"Keep reading," Yukizome said with a smile.

"Due to the extenuating circumstances you provided regarding the child's lack of support system and continuous problem of being prone to irrational behavior," Hiyoko stopped reading, glanced up at Yukizome and said, "Gee thanks." She went back to reading, "We have decided to…" Hiyoko started to get choked up, mouth not moving like she wanted to, "To…" Hiyoko covered her mouth and sniffed in hard. Her eyes had skipped ahead a little and she could only imagine what the words leading up to two of them said. "Process your request." Hiyoko sniffed in hard, tears splashing the letter. "Under court of law…as undersigned…you are the legal guardian…of Hiyoko Yukizome." Then it was signed by the judge.

Hiyoko was in tears now as she gazed up at Yukizome. She tried to speak, but all that came out was a croaking gasp.

Yukizome held out her arms. "Come here, little sis."

Hiyoko lost it. She ran into Yukizome's arms for a hug, bawling into her apron. She cried again, hard. Miss Yukizome would never let her down. Hiyoko was so happy. She'd been so scared. No matter how strong her front was, nothing could change how truly tortured she felt on the inside. But Yukizome saw straight through it. There was no hiding from her. And Hiyoko knew she didn't have to hide it.

"I stayed up all night on Friday pulling strings so I could give you happy news along with the bad," Yukizome said, patting her newly acquired little sister's back. "Your talent defines you far more than your family, Hiyoko. No one is going to let you fall when any of us can do something about it."

Mahiru was sniffing a little too. In truth, she'd been worried about Hiyoko, but didn't really know what to say about it. Leave it to Yukizome to just barge forward like a dreadnaught and come up with a solution. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve and held up her camera. She put on a smile. "Hey!" she said. "Gather around you two. I want to take a picture. Hold up the letter too!"

Yukizome leaned down and put an arm around Hiyoko's shoulders. She was pinching the corner of the letter, smiling like someone that just cleaned out a casino without getting caught counting cards at Blackjack. Hiyoko, meanwhile, had practically all of her teeth showing as she held the letter up on either side.

"Hiyoko, open your eyes," Mahiru said, not taking the photo.

"No," Hiyoko said through clenched teeth, but she wasn't being snotty. "Take the photo." She was unwilling to compromise her pose. In truth, she really couldn't stop smiling over this. Yukizome may have only been a family of one, but…Hiyoko felt she would rather have one family member and only one family member that would never give up on her at all, than an entire estate that hated her, minus one.

Mahiru, all about natural pictures, decided to roll with it if Hiyoko was going to be obstinate. She put her finger on the trigger. "Say, Hope's Peak!"

"Hope's Peak!" Hiyoko exclaimed with her new big sister as Mahiru's digital camera closed its shutter and took the photo. Mahiru then took two more so she could pick the best one of three for later.

Hiyoko was practically bouncing with excitement as she parted from the photo pose. "I want to go show the others! I want them all to know!" She still hadn't stopped smiling.

"Go show them," Yukizome said. "I'll be right there."

"Okay, big sis!" Hiyoko exclaimed and ran off excitedly.

"You didn't have to do that," Mahiru said to Yukizome.

"No, but I wanted to. She needs someone in her corner," Yukizome said as, outside, Hiyoko was showing off her adoption/legal guardianship letter to Kazuichi. "And if her family was just going to toss her aside like a puppy in the rain…" she said as Hiyoko was now showing it off to Nekomaru and Akane, "Then it's my duty as her teacher to fix that. You would've done the same, but I'm an adult, so I didn't need anyone's permission, plus I had all the connections to get it done quick."

Hiyoko was now in the nurse's office, grinning and showing off to Mikan, not saying even one mean word as Mikan congratulated her. She was too happy.

"Come on, let's go catch up with her," Yukizome said. "If we don't, she'll think we just up and abandoned her."

Mahiru laughed. "Yeah, come on, let's go."

Hiyoko spent practically all day, smiling like an idiot and showing off the court letter. That night, she retired to bed, tucking the copy of the letter under her pillow for safe keeping. And, also, so that when she woke up, she could remind herself that this wasn't just a happy dream.

Hiyoko was snoozing soundly right around the time that Hajime strolled up to the women's dorms, though Hiyoko's was on the complete other side of that part of campus. It was 8:55pm. The blonde had really worn herself out in all the excitement.

Hajime was extremely nervous as he stood in front of Chiaki's dorm room this late at night. Nighttime rules would be in effect in a little more than one hour. The cafeteria would be closed. All exercise facilities would be locked. And other facilities like the on-campus community baths, laundromat, and the school store and supply room, would all be inaccessible.

But none of that mattered to Hajime. He was living in the moment. Taking a deep breath, the back of his hand rapped on Chiaki's door. "Come in," Chiaki's voice called from inside.

Hajime opened the door. No sooner had he gotten inside that Chiaki's lips were locked with his. He closed the door behind him as he got pulled into a deep passionate kiss. Chiaki wrapped her arms around his back and pulled him towards her, causing both to stumble until they were in the middle of her dorm room.

"I thought you said you wanted to talk," Hajime said when they broke away.

"I do," Chiaki said. "Hajime…we've been through a lot together in such a short amount of time. "I've…had a lot of thinking to do…now that I got my soul back."

"Are you okay? You're not traumatized, are you?"

Chiaki shook her head. "Surprisingly, according to Gundham and Mahiru, losing your soul to the Orichalcos is different from losing it to the Shadow Realm. It's like…I was just asleep for a really long time, but I could neither dream, nor think."

"That sounds like…"

"Death? Yeah, probably. It was really weird waking up. I gasped for a really big breath. If that's what death really does feel like…I never want to feel it again."

Hajime held Chiaki's hand and held it up. "I won't let you, not until we're old and gray."

"But it might happen again," Chiaki said, worryingly. "Who knows when the next great disaster may strike?"

"Hopefully not ever again."

"You don't know that!" Chiaki exclaimed frantically. As she spoke, tears started to form. "First Bakura, then Marik, now Dartz. World-ending villains keep popping up like it's some kind of RPG, but this is real life! In real life you don't get any continues! You don't get any resets! And there's no such thing as an extra life!"

Chiaki buried her tearful eyes in Hajime's tie. "I don't want to lose you again," she croaked. "I'm scared, Hajime."

"Chiaki…" Hajime really didn't know what to say.

Chiaki sniffed, wiping her eyes. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"Me too," Hajime said with a smile.

Chiaki sniffed. "Hajime…since I don't know what tomorrow might bring. Since neither of us know when one of us might just…disappear…I don't want there to be anything to regret between us. Please, Hajime…I haven't been sleeping well since I came back. I've been up for hours thinking about this. Please…tonight…will you let me feel you, Hajime?"

Hajime pulled Chiaki into a tight hug, but she quickly pushed him away, shaking her head. "No, that's not what I meant," she said. She started to remove her coat and unbutton her shirt. "Like this," she said, smiling with a blush.

Hajime quickly grabbed her unbuttoned shirt and forcefully pulled it closed before things got anymore revealing. "Chiaki, are you crazy?" Hajime asked in a loud whisper. "What if someone hears us?"

"Please, Hajime!" Chiaki pleaded. There were real tears in her eyes. "There's no guarantee we can keep coming back from these life-threatening dangers." Her shoulders were shaking. "Every time its happened, one or both of us have put our lives on the line. And there's no guarantee that there's always a way out if something goes wrong. What if the next doomsday villain's magic doesn't go away when he's defeated? What happens then?"

Hajime just stared at Chiaki. He didn't even think of it really, but she was right. He and Chiaki had both had close calls with losing their souls permanently. What if next time it was permanent? He dreaded to think of that. He didn't want to think of that. But…Chiaki had made him painfully aware of that very real possibility.

"So please, just for tonight," Chiaki requested as she moved Hajime's hands away and put her hands up and around his neck. "I want there to be no regrets between us."

"Chiaki," Hajime called her name and then leaned down to kiss her deeply once more. As Hajime continued to make out with his girlfriend, Chiaki made small moans as their lips remained connected. During the lip contact, each began unbuttoning the other's shirt. They broke away and Hajime discarded his, now seeing Chiaki with only her beige bra on her upper body. "Is it really all right?" he asked her.

"Don't worry about what's all right and what isn't," Chiaki said to him. "Tonight," she said, kissing him, "I just want us to be honest with each other of how we feel."

Hajime swallowed. If that was what Chiaki wanted, who was he to say no? He reached around behind Chiaki's back, fiddling with her bra hooks.

Chiaki laughed after about half a minute of failed attempts to get it off. "Here, let me," she said. She unhooked her bra and then pushed the bra against her chest as she sat down on her bed. She smiled at him, encouraging him to come to her.

Hajime followed and sat down next to Chiaki. He then slid each bra strap off Chiaki's shoulders. He was surprised when, as the bra slid off, Chiaki covered her chest.

"Changing your mind?" He asked. It was all right if she did. He wouldn't judge.

Chiaki shook her head firmly. "N-no. Just...the cold air in the room. It's just...my skin was a bit...sensitive."

Hajime grabbed Chiaki's arm gently by her wrist. "May I?" he asked.

She nodded and Hajime slowly moved her arm aside, revealing a beautiful pair of breasts, the nipples of which were already hard from Chiaki's nerves and desires.

"You can...touch them..." Chiaki blushed.

Hajime's face flushed as he raised his hands and put them firmly on Chiaki's chest.

"Ahhhhhh," she moaned softly. "Mmmmm...Hajime..."

Hajime began to explore Chiaki's chest with his fingers, getting a firm grasp on just how soft her breasts were. Chiaki continued to moan throughout the whole ordeal.

She started to rub her knees together. She was becoming lubricated and she wasn't exactly sure how to announce that.

Hajime, however, did not wait for a signal. Instead, he stopped playing with Chiaki's breasts and put one hand on the inside of her leg. Chiaki tensed up as Hajime ran his thumb in a circle on the top of her leg. She moaned, but then nodded at him and he slowly slid his hand up the inside of her thigh, eventually reaching her panties. He slid a finger under the fabric only to pull and tug at the inside of Chiaki's underwear. Her breathing became ragged. The anticipation was making her heart pound. She wanted Hajime to touch her. She wanted him in the worst way. Her mouth began to hang open as her face flushed.

Hajime slid his hand over her crotch and rubbed where he felt wetness and stickiness.

"Ahhhhhhhhh," Chiaki moaned, louder and longer than before, but still pretty subdued. She hyperventilated a little, eagerly awaiting what was to come next.

And then Hajime slid a finger down into her underwear and touched her directly. "Ahhhh!" Now she was moaning at a normal volume. Hajime slid his finger up and down, making Chiaki moan, increasing her libido.

Hajime could feel that the longer he rubbed Chiaki, the wetter his finger got and the easier it slid up and down. Eventually he stopped. He then pushed Chiaki down onto her back and took off her skirt. He then gently slid down her panties, leaving her naked as the day she was born. He took a moment to admire her raw beauty. She really was the perfect girl for him.

As he unzipped his pants and started taking them off, Chiaki sat up.

"Huh? Chiaki?" Hajime was unprepared when Chiaki reached out and grabbed his hardness with her hand, though his boxers were still on. "Ch-Chiaki."

Now it was Chiaki's turn to make Hajime feel good. He was already twitching and erect in between his legs. It was a clear sign of how ready his body was for this. Chiaki pulled down Hajime's boxers and exposed the contents to the air. It smelled weird and yet, in spite of this, Chiaki put her mouth right on the tip.

"Ah! Chiaki..." Hajime put his hands on the back of her head as Chiaki held the tip in her mouth, swirling her tongue around it. Slowly she slid more of the object into her mouth, not really sure what she was doing, only that she wanted to be doing it. While the head bobbing took a lot of getting used to, Chiaki at least put her tongue to tremendously good work, covering Hajime's thing in her saliva, though never managing to get deeper than halfway, on purpose of course.

Satisfied with the work she'd done so far, Chiaki smiled happily at Hajime, "All right. I think that'll do it." Chiaki lay flat on her bed, legs spread, head against her pillow. She reached an arm out to him. "I'm ready for you, Hajime."

Hajime nodded and took Chiaki's hand. He got on his bed and loomed over her, leaning down close.

"Go slow, okay? I still have my hymen...so..."

Hajime cut Chiaki off by kissing her. "I'll go as slow as you want me to," he said to her. He leaned up a little and looked down. He positioned himself properly and got their alignment just right. If he moved forward even a little, he'd be inside her. Swallowing, he then pushed his way in inch by inch

"Ahhhhhh," Chiaki moaned softly once more as Hajime got deeper and deeper inside her, little by little, inch by inch. "Hajime..." He pushed in more and more until he was met with resistance. Chiaki bit down on her lower lip, knowing what was about to come. She nodded at him and he pierced through her hymen. Chiaki cried out from the pain, and Hajime quickly stopped, feeling something warm running out of her passage.

"You okay? You're bleeding."

"It's...fine," Chiaki said, wincing.

"No. It's not," Hajime said. "Hang on a sec." He got up and grabbed a hand towel, wiping up the blood on both of them. He then inserted two fingers into Chiaki and spread her open to make sure there wouldn't be any more blood coming out any time soon. While he was merely checking up on her, Chiaki could only moan from having his fingers inside her. Despite the setback, the moment had not passed improperly. They were ready to continue.

After a bit to let her calm down, Hajime positioned himself back where he was before. "Okay. Ready this time, for real?"

Chiaki nodded and Hajime entered back into her, much more easily this time and Chiaki moaned as he managed to get really deep inside her, so much so in fact that he was face to face with her. He was completely buried inside her. The two of them had merged into one.

"It feels so full...and warm...and...mmmm...it's pulsing."

"It feels really good in there, Chiaki."

"Hajime..." Chiaki kissed him, though her lips tasted weird, probably because they had recently been on Hajime's thing not that long ago. However, with lust on the brain, that didn't seem to bother Hajime too much.

He started to move in and out of Chiaki, practically caressing her from the inside. Chiaki moaned the entire time, whether it was out loud, or muffled from being kissed.

As the session continued, Chiaki wrapped her arms around Hajime's back, and her legs soon followed. The warmth of their bodies touching seemed only to fuel the pleasure of their love for each other.

This was it. This was the pinnacle of their love for each other. Yes. They truly loved each other. Both realized that they had found the only person they could ever want to be with. This wasn't just some high school fling. This...was real.

Hajime leaned up a little and let Chiaki let out her moans without relent. Her eyes were closed. Her mouth was wide open. Her face was flushed. All she could think about was the pleasure, the sensation of Hajime, her Hajime, being with her like this.

Hajime once more leaned over Chiaki, but put his head over the side of her shoulder, linking his right hand with her left as each used their other arm to hold onto the other's back.

Hearing Chiaki's moans in his ear only brought Hajime closer and closer to a climax.

It hadn't been very long since the two had begun this escapade, but it would be over soon. After all, this was their first time.

Chiaki could feel Hajime twitching and she herself could feel her entire body ready to erupt like a volcano.

"Chiaki..." Hajime panted. "I'm going to..."

"It's fine..." Chiaki practically croaked, unable to talk normally. "You can...inside...I...want it!"

Not questioning it, and not caring about the consequences, Hajime found himself letting it all out inside Chiaki. The feeling of the warm liquid splashing in Chiaki, along with Hajime's final thrusts to make sure he was injecting it all into her, made Chiaki lose it and she found herself losing herself to the pleasure so badly she was seeing stars. She too had reached her limit, liquid discharging and dripping down onto the sheets while she let out the highest pitch of moans she could only muster completely inadvertently. Chiaki was shuddering as Hajime slowly withdrew from her, sliding off her and collapsing next to her, arm over her soft chest. Flexing his wrist, Hajime mustered what strength he could to pull Chiaki closer.

Despite being so tired and without much strength, Chiaki managed to turn over on her side to look at Hajime. She smiled at him. Hajime ran his arm down the side of her body and it came to rest on her hip. Though they were no longer merged, the warmth and love they felt for each other could still be felt in spite of the distance between them.

Chiaki reached out and stroked Hajime's face, smiling. He smiled back.

Mustering what strength he could, Hajime got as close to Chiaki as possible. Her chest pushed into him as he moved his hand from her hip to her back.

Chiaki then nestled her head on Hajime's shoulder. This was real. No, she didn't think she was dreaming or anything. She simply was basking in the true, mutual, pure love she shared with Hajime, her Hajime.

Hajime embraced her and cuddled her and she put one arm around him as well. Her other arm was flush against Hajime's shoulder next to where their chests were pressed into each other.

"Hey, Hajime. Can we stay like this forever?" Chiaki asked.

"We're going to have to get up eventually," he answered.

"No. Not like that," Chiaki said, trying not to laugh. "I mean...can we...you know...be together."

Hajime stroked the back of her head. "You have to ask? You're the only one I could ever want, Chiaki. I'll gladly stay by your side. I won't let you be alone. We'll always have each other. No matter what."

Chiaki smiled and then just nestled into her big, strong boyfriend. His warmth was like both a blanket and a comforter. "Sleepy..." she mumbled, barely realizing her eyes were closing.

"Sleep then," Hajime told her. "I'll be here when you wake up."

That was all Chiaki needed to let her body go slack and limp as she cuddled up as close as she could to Hajime. "Warm..." she mumbled. And added cutely, "Mine..."

"Mine too," Hajime said with a smile. And, as Chiaki drifted off to sleep in his arms, he slowly drifted off with her. No matter what would come in the future, they would have this moment. Even if they were ever separated or the world was coming to an end, they would always be able to recall this night of passion, of love and lust that exposed the rawest desire between them. And that, Hajime thought, was all he would ever need to get up in the morning, for the rest of his life.

(A/N: And that'll just about do it for the Orichalcos arc. What a way to end, am I right? I did my best to keep the last scene pretty wholesome so that it felt real and not a scene straight out of a porno. Note the use of my wording and language. I know this website has some stigma against these types of scenes which is why I tried my best not to be too explicit. If I need to tone it down, well, guess I'm double posting on AO3 sooner than I thought.

Beyond that, holy fuzzy, poor Rafael. That man does not deserve this fate, but he basically brought it on himself. Junko is just the worst. I contemplated whether or not to have that scene or the sex scene be the last scene of this chapter, but ultimately decided to let you all leave with a good feeling rather than some dread. Trust me when I say that you'll need it more than you realize it…

Speaking of dread, be fortunate that I decided to spare you all from Junko torturing Rafael into a despair. Honestly though, what you can imagine is probably just as fucked up. And no, at no point would she stop dressing up as Sonia during the entire process. There. There's your fridge horror.

In other news, a few of you may find the whole resolution with Hiyoko to be one part confusing, one part infuriating. Allow me to defend my decision. I hate Hiyoko just as much as the next guy except post-character development in side Hope where she ends up thanking Mikan with no backsass, which shows she's matured at least a little bit. Also, I may not like Hiyoko, but I understand her. So, I'm not going to just write her off as a demon child and have her get hit by a bus. Post-character development Hiyoko is best Hiyoko...and far more tolerable. You'll see in arcs to come how much this chapter had an impact on her.

Speaking of impacts, you might be thinking that being kicked out of the family is either too harsh or "not enough punishment" (toothbrush cleaning notwithstanding). In Japan, Hiyoko not just being booted out of her family, but also having the Saionji name removed from her existence is the same as driving her out into the middle of nowhere with no food and no supplies and telling her to go fuck herself. Family is everything in Japan. That's why there's stigma against bastard children. If you want to know more, hit up your good friend Google, but I'll give the short version:

Carrying the family name is important. If you've done Hiyoko's free time events, you'll know that she has a lot of responsibility heaped on her shoulders (if you can speak Hiyokoese). But her family hates her. But, Hiyoko charges through it to show what she can do. Losing the family name is the same as saying to Hiyoko "We don't want you as a part of this family anymore". In Japan, if a child is ever unruly or a otherwise acts out, it is seen almost always as a problem with the child and not the parenting. Children are expected to forgive their parents, despite the hardships, and people like Hiyoko are expected to "set an example". In Japan, circumstances like mind control don't matter. What's done is done. The rumor mill and the societal reactions are vicious, especially in a place like the Saionji estate. Hiyoko getting kicked out and being told to drop the family name from her name is the same as alienating her existence-something Mikan is all too familiar with. What Yukizome has done-and yes I don't care how outlandish that seemed, she has enough connections to make it happen-is essentially saying "I want you to be part of my family and be proud to carry my legacy". It's like adopting a puppy that was a surrender case.

And yes. That is the short version. Do some googling and perusing on tvtropes under Values Dissonance if you want to know more about where all of this is coming from. For the rest of you, that's all for now. And, as always, from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic. Ja ne!)