AN/ So, this will be my last chapter. I'm sorry to say that it will also be the only yaoi story I'll ever write. But I'll explain more of that at the end. At the moment, charge onward! P.S. I hope that you know a little about computers…

Chapter 23/ XYZ for all eternity

(Daisuke's PoV)

I entered my living room, still panting from the hasty run. I barely noticed that my father no longer sat on the couch as he had that morning. In fact, I didn't see anyone. Not quite caring where they were at the moment, I flopped onto the sofa and opened the laptop. As soon as it powered up, it asked me for Satoshi's password. I dug my letter out of my pocket to make sure that I typed it correctly.

D N Angel…

I stared at it for a second. It was an odd password. Hm… Was 'DN' for Daisuke Niwa? Or the initials 'DNA'… Dark reacted to my DNA when we transformed. Maybe it was the same for Krad, hence the 'Angel' part of it. I tried to read it backward to see if there was any hidden word. LegnAND. Um… Never mind.

Getting past this petty puzzle, I hit the ENTER key and the PC logged me in. His desktop was extremely bland. A plain, dark blue screen glowed back at me, although the entire desktop was covered with icons. All off their names were in CAPS and it seemed like just a jumble of letters. None of the names actually made any words. Though, I did notice that it was in alphabetical order. I opened the START menu and selected the PROGRAMS option. Again, I was confronted with numerous files of coded titles. It was a wonder how his com didn't die with all of the lag.

Not to mention, how was I supposed to find anything!

Deciding that I'd rather let the computer try to locate the document instead of me, I ran a Search and there were still no matching files found. Sighing, I leaned back against my couch and stared at the screen absently. He must have coded all of their names so that people like me couldn't go through all of the files unless they knew exactly what they were looking for… But I did know exactly what I was looking for!

I sighed again in frustration.

And not only his files, but even his password was mostly coded. I tried to remember what I thought it meant. All of my ideas said that it was initials. Initials of my name, or DNA, or whatever else it could have been. Was it possible that the 'coded names' were just the documents' initials?

I checked my letter again. 'Burning Ice and Freezing Fire…' BIFF?

Biff? What kind of name is Biff!

Nonetheless, I followed the files down alphabetically.

ALOTH…

ANPAO…

APISA…

ATK…

BATW…

BIFF…

What? No way! I was actually right! I quickly opened the folder and clicked on the first document labeled 'September.' Microsoft Word Programming opened and text appeared on the once-blank page. It began…

Dear Journal,

September 7

Today was the first day of my second round of Junior High.

XXXXXXXXXX

I spent most of the day reading all of the entries on the laptop. In the beginning, he spoke very tactfully. There wasn't much emotion at all. He told of how he recognized me as soon as he saw me, but after that, he was all information, facts, and statistics.

It wasn't until the beginning of December that the entries began to express some of his feelings. His confusion was noticeable, along with obvious feelings of attraction towards something. He also expressed a strong hatred towards Krad and his adopted father. But what I found most odd was that almost every entry was about me. It made my heart ache slightly. I couldn't believe that I took so long to notice his affection, and even longer to notice my own.

I stopped reading when I reached the entry of December 21, the last Friday before Winter Break and the first night that I had spent at Satoshi's apartment. I closed the laptop softly and leaned back on the couch with a sigh. That was the second time today. I closed my eyes for a moment, and then moved the laptop from my legs to the coffee table. It was then that I noticed the small package that I recognized as photos.

I took it up in my hands and pulled the pictures out. They were from Christmas morning (1). The first one was of Kosuke in his Santa hat with a cigarette in his mouth. He was smiling at the camera tiredly, as if my mother had just woken him ten minutes earlier. The next one was of my grandfather, dressed up as Santa and smiling a 'HoHoHo!' And so it went, until one picture caught my eye… Satoshi.

He had a look of uncertainty painted underneath his stoic mask. His Santa hat hung limply to the side, revealing tuffs of cerulean hair from under it. Silver tinted orbs stared out at me like the winter frost that still covered my window. I slowly made my way to the bedroom while staring continuously at the snapshot. Digging through a few drawers, I found an empty picture frame and placed Satoshi's photo within its borders. I set it on my bedside table, and saw my Christmas present lying next to it.

The necklace sported a single feather from both Dark and Krad. When Satoshi tied it around my neck, he had told me to never forget my past. Yet, his last wishes included my forgetting him. He contradicted himself, but I knew that I would never lose the memories of all that happened to me.

Putting on my necklace, I couldn't help but remember Christmas Day: the cookies, the necklace, the Haradas, the concert, and my clumsy attempt at entering the vault unnoticed. I had tried so hard to give him something that he already had. The Hikari Artwork and my love for him was all that was shown. I sat on my bed and reminisced of the occurrences with the Orchid's Looking Glass. It had known us… It knew that we loved each other… It knew that we were connected.

Connected…

'Our families are connected through the Hikari Artwork; no matter the time or generation. And it's our fate to always be together.'

No matter time… Does that mean that we are still connected, even though he has passed on? Fate says we'll be together for eternity, so surely one cannot die without the other, right?

'With this understanding, the magic of the artwork is unleashed and the unbelievable may occur.'

Unbelievable… Could it…?

With this new puzzle in mind, I rushed down to the basement. Counting the bricks and pushing in the appropriate one, my mind worked quickly to locate a Hikari piece that may assist me in my endeavor. Without the help of Dark or Satoshi, I realized just how little I knew about the art. I reached the end of the long hallway of tricks barely panting. The excitement was giving me adrenaline and I could barely stop long enough to shout the password.

"Sacred Maiden!"

The vault didn't seem nearly as heavy as it had the last time that I was down here. Swinging away the door, I knelt down on one knee and yanked at hard as I could on the string. As expected, To-to popped up.

"Towa no Shirube, take me to the Twin Snake!"

Taking my seriousness of using her full name as a game, she decided to play along. With a salute, she responded, "Yes, Sir!" She hurried along the blackened room until she reached a pedestal with the tiny box seated on top.

In turning on the lights, she left me alone. I'm not sure what I had been planning, but I wasn't going back now that I was there. I calmed and sat on the cold, marble floor before the pedestal. Trying to remember everything I could about the Twin Snake, I cradled my head in my hands. What had Satoshi called it? A dreambox? Yes, he said that it could grant any wish, but only once. Could it give me Satoshi back from the dead? It must, because Satoshi had first wanted me to use it to bring Dark home. Would bringing another Hikari Artwork to life be the same as bringing back their maker, Satoshi Hikari?

This brings up another dilemma. I promised my boyfriend that I would get Dark back. Satoshi said that it only granted one wish, and then it was useless. Does that mean that I must choose between them, my best friend or my boyfriend? That's impossible!

I sighed deeply and shook my head. There must be some way to take them both away from Death.

I sat there for what seemed like hours, picking my words carefully. Finally, I stood and withdrew the Twin Snake from its stand. Holding it tightly with both hands, I stared at the black pearl at the center of the crystal lid. I took one last deep breath before speaking loudly and clearly.

"I wish that those closest to me were back from the dead."

I stood mesmerized as the crystallized twins began to slither along in the purple-tinted quartz. The snake surrounding the pearl constricted around its central prize, while the other circled continuously along the sides. He only paused a moment before shooting to the top of the box and digging his fangs into his brother's neck. The wounded sibling shrieked out in pain and the brothers slid down the side to detach themselves from the box at the bottom. They fell to the floor where they shattered (2). The black pearl started to sink through the crystal to the interior of the treasure chest, causing ripples to form on the surface.

Once the entire gem had been swallowed whole, it emitted a soft glow that lasted only mere seconds. When the glow dissipated, I was amazed to see the quartz begin to melt! It dripped and flowed into my hands in a painfully slow process. After several minutes, all that was left in my open palm was the pearl; no longer black, but the most beautiful white!

I stared at it for the longest time. Turning my attention to the floor, I realized that the shattered serpents and the liquid crystal had vanished. I returned my gaze to the pearl and wondered aloud, "Now what do I do?"

"If I remember correctly," came a voice. "You should take the pearl to the place that means the most to you." I whipped around to see my mother and To-to watching me.

"And then what?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I think it will just come to you."

I gazed at the floor again. 'The place that means the most?' Where's that? "What if you don't know where that is?"

She smiled and pulled me into an embrace. "Don't worry. You'll remember." Still unsure, I hugged her in return and mumbled a 'thank you.' "Besides! You need to get Satoshi back somehow!" she exclaimed.

Pulling back slightly, I glanced at my mom skeptically. "Do you…?"

"Know about your relationship with Satoshi? Of course! I'm your mother, after all. Plus, it was nearly impossible not to notice on Christmas with the two of you staring at each other like that! And you don't really think that I missed the fact that one of Satoshi's pictures were gone, did you? You left all of the photos lying on the coffee table, Silly."

I blushed deeply at my carelessness. "So, you don't mind…?"

"Of course not," she said, rolling her eyes. Giving me a little push toward the door, she added, "Now hurry up. I'm expecting you both home for dinner!"

XXXXXXXXXX

A place of importance… A place that means the most… Where could that be! I wandered unconsciously to the balcony that overlooks the sea. This was the second time today that I had visited the site of the Endless Fountain. I wasn't exactly sure why I chose this location, but, whenever I'm outside, I seem to find my way back here.

I blinked at this thought. Was this a place of importance? I've come to this spot for years upon years. It was my favorite place to relax or think or paint. Perhaps… yes, this balcony did mean the most to me.

I turned in circles while trying to find what it was that I was supposed to do with the pearl. Mom said that it would just come to me… I stopped turning to face the fountain. Was I supposed to throw it in there (3)? I peered into the water to see hundreds of pennies littering the bottom. What place had his lovely pearl with all of those tarnished pieces of copper? I turned from side to side to seek another task for which the pearl was bound. Having found none, I faced the falls once more. I debated with myself for minutes. What if this wasn't what I was supposed to do with it? I would lose it and all my hopes of saving Satoshi.

Closing my eyes tightly and gripping the pearl in my hand, I threw it up in the air as far as I could. Opening my eyes seconds later, I was just in time to see the tiny, white gem plop into the water. I watched nervously, hoping beyond hope, that this would work. And for minutes, I went through a harsh realization. I had messed up. I did something wrong. That wasn't what I was supposed to do at all, and now it's too late to do anything!

Defeated tears had just begun to run down my cheek when something caught my eye. Smears of random white, black, and blue colors washed through the fountain water. I couldn't tear my eyes away as a watercolor portrait began to paint itself before me. How could this be? It didn't take even a moment's pondering to recognize Satoshi's features. Time was lost until a miracle occurred. The figure's bowed head turned upward. I gasped as Satoshi's icy eyes meet my blazing ones. The water continued to wash over him as he smiled at me. Neither of us moved and it was an eternity before I gained the courage to do so. Slowly raising my hand, I brushed my fingertips against his wet cheek. He placed his hand over mine, and there was no doubt that he was real. My Satoshi had returned from the dead.

Throwing my arms around his neck, I kissed him deeply, tears flowing freely down my cheeks. He responded and held me close. Oh, how I missed those arms, those lips, his entire presence… And, oh, how happy I was to get them back. When we finally broke apart, I smiled a sad smile. I looked him in the eye in time to hear him speak his first words. "Daisuke, you are so stubborn!"

I gave a light chuckle through my tears. "I couldn't help it. I needed you."

He smiled so sweetly at me and I melted. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you, too, Satoshi!" I said, kissing him again. When we broke apart once more, I took a hold of his hand. "We have to hurry. Mom's expecting us home for dinner. If we run, we may be able to dry off," I recommended, taking in our soaking forms.

The look he gave me suggested disbelief at how easily I adjusted to seeing my dead boyfriend come to life. But he smiled at me and gave a small nod. With that, we started heading home.

"Satoshi?"

"Hm?"

"Will you stay with me forever?"

He glanced over at me in silence. "For all eternity."

THE END

(1) Two chapters ago, Emiko tells Daisuke that she developed the camera, remember?

(2) It is a symbolism thing. Brothers… one betrays the other in an attempt to steal the treasure. You'll have to discover its connection on your own.

(3) A pearl containing a wish to be thrown into a wishing fountain… makes sense, right?

AN/ Expect an epilogue… Wow… I can't believe that this story is actually over. I never even thought it to get past chapter 4… And here we are… Chapter 23… The End… I'm going to cry. /takes a minute to cry tears of joy/

It's a miracle, it really is! For those of you like BerettaBoy and IrishKaoru who have been with me from the very beginning of November of 2004, we have FINALLY made it! I hope that this story didn't disappoint a single one of you! And if it did, then I'm truly sorry! But to have been able to write those words on one of my stories… it was worth the few mistakes along the way!

You know what my dream is now? For someone to PM or e-mail me saying that they wrote something or other based on my fanfic. That would be a Dream Come True/sighs/

By the way, like I said in the beginning, I will no longer be writing any yaoi stories. This is due to my religion and a hope to grow closer to God. I do not want certain beliefs and opinions distancing me from Him. So, please forgive me. I hope to still continue writing on FF dot net, but I don't believe that I will ever do another Sato/Dai as I had promised before. My sincerest apologies!