AH! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR REVIEWING MY WORK! (Bows politely). I didn't think anyone would read this, because it would be too difficult to find! But thanks for taking the time to read and give me your generous applause. I really like this story too! The movie was so great, I watched it 5x in a row! Four times in Japanese and once in English (Overdoing it, a bit, I admit...). But I felt that this was the best end to the story, for better or worse.

TA-DAA! I present...THE END! I can't believe I vomited all these words in a single weekend. Please r/r.

Until next time! --Kero (5/21/06).

Chapter 4: Mangetsu – Full Moon

Shizuku clutched the letter in her hand as she rode the train out of Tokyo. A few days ago she had received a letter from her hometown, from Grandpa Nishi. The letter confessed that he was not in the best of health and that he wished to see her immediately. It was so brief as to cause her concern that this might be the last time she would see him. Naturally, it caused her to drop everything lined up for her in Tokyo, even while in the middle of that first date with Kuroda-san, and rush home on a bullet train.

She traveled light, with only one bag for her work and duffel for clothing. Shizuku didn't plan on staying too long for fear of being too depressed at having arrived on her familiar territory full of unwanted, bittersweet memories. But the memories came rushing into her mind regardless as if the floodgates had opened, and it was towards home that she wanted to turn to for comfort and a remedy. As the hum of the bullet train calmed her, she looked up at the full moon and its perfect circle of light forming a sort of halo around it. Shizuku would come full circle at the end of the train tracks. Somehow, she felt the moon had already begun to cast its spell over her life, just as The Baron had. Her heart told her that everything would soon come to a conclusion, good or bad, and she was powerless to prevent it.

Shizuku took a taxi from the station and drove up the lonely road to the Amasawa residence. She had only been there a few times herself, back when she was still dating Seiji, but it never failed to impress her with its size and presence. It was an old, Japanese style home with extensive grounds. She was a bit relieved that Mr. Amasawa was not likely to be home as he was almost always away on business. She only wanted to see Seiji's grandfather at this point. At the end of her journey, all she really wanted was a quiet moment with her old friend, over a cup of hot tea. Maybe they'd talk about the Baron, or maybe her newfound singing career that she declined to endorse, or perhaps her upcoming book. Whatever they discussed, she hoped that they would not be talking about Seiji. Shizuku breathed in the night air and could almost taste the flavor of genmai cha on her lips and feel the welcome glow of the hearth on her cheeks. She paused for a moment as the taxi drove away and her resolve trembled. For a moment, she could only think, This is Seiji's house. I don't belong here.

Then, a furry object rubbed up against one leg. She almost jumped out of her skin but was relieved when she saw Muta sidling up towards her with a wobble and a slight purr.

"Muta, you big fat cat! You scared me. Are you still alive, now?" she joked and picked up the cat and tucked him under one arm. Apparently, this cat aged very well and he looked exactly as he had when she last saw him. Strangely enough, Muta wasn't complaining of the treatment and hung quietly in the crook of her arm. Maybe he missed me? she thought to herself. Her finger reached up decidedly and pushed the doorbell. Muta had become her excuse to go inside.

"Grandpa!" she exclaimed as door opened to reveal a familiar, wrinkled face. They exchanged an awkward embrace with Muta in between them. The maid closed the door behind them and Shizuku let Muta down.

"Go on you big round moon of a cat," she laughed. She turned to Grandpa Nishi again.

"Did I catch you at a bad time? My train just got in, actually. I really wanted to see you, though, I hope you don't mind," said Shizuku in one breath.

"Not at all, I had just finished making a quick phone call, and settled in to make you some tea when I heard the door bell," smiled the old man.

"A phone call? At this hour? Who on earth could you have been calling?" laughed Shizuku. She and Grandpa settled in front of the fireplace with a small fire in the hearth to keep their feet warm. The maid brought them tea and little cakes, and closed the sitting room door quietly behind her.

"Can't you guess?" he grinned after sipping his tea. Shizuku stopped. Something about the expression on his face told her that something was afoot.

"Grandpa, why are you grinning like that? It makes me think that you're plotting something against me…" she began. But before she could finish, the front door was again open, and she heard footsteps hastily shuffle across the entrance hall rug on the other side of the wall. The maid's voice greeted the guest, which followed by Seiji's worried voice asking if his grandfather was all right all in one breath. Shizuku immediately shot a scrutinizing glance at Grandpa Nishi.

"Grandpa, what did you do?" demanded Shizuku in a low voice.

"I simply arranged a meeting that should have taken place years ago," said Grandpa smugly. But his face became serious.

"Don't fall into complacency with your loneliness, Shizuku. That's not like you. While you have him in front of you take up your happiness again with both hands open." The expression on Grandpa Nishi's face was that of a Bhudda. She felt as though she had been relayed a universal truth and wisdom towards Enlightenment. But was she wise enough to take up that advice? Her hands began to shake, and she immediately put her rattling tea cup and saucer back on the table to prevent any damage.

HE'S HERE! she thought to herself in utter shock. Shizuku shot up from her seat and started wringing her hands. It was too sudden. She couldn't think of one word to say. She could start with "Good evening," but those words sounded too trite and hollow. Her nerves were starting to fray and she felt her whole body starting to shake with anticipation. Shizuku forced herself to breathe slow and the trembling subsided a bit, but her stomach felt like it was shrinking uncontrollably. The first thought in her mind was to escape. Out of desperation she looked longingly at the open window to her right. She was still on the first floor, right? The footsteps were right outside the door, now, followed by a light knock. Grandpa Nishi put a hand on her shoulder, reassuring her, and went to towards the entrance just as it swung wide open.

"Ah, Seiji, what brings you here at this late hour?" chuckled Grandpa.

"What do you mean what brings me here? You did, old man! You nearly scared me senseless with that phone call. I thought I'd have to rush you to the hospital or something! What do you mean by calling me at this hour and then pretending that it didn't happen?" demanded Seiji. "You shouldn't deliberately worry people like that," said Seiji crossly.

But Grandpa raised a hand to silence him.

"Don't be so out of sorts, Seiji. I have a guest," Grandpa said gently. Seiji looked past his grandfather to see the graceful figure of a woman dressed in an autumn colored sweater and blazer, and a slender long skirt over tall boots. Her short hair shined red and auburn against the hearth. She didn't need to turn around for him to know who it was. Nothing but silence filled the room.

"Shizuku," said Seiji almost in a whisper. Immediately, he concluded that Grandpa had arranged all of this to take place in the few months after they had first heard her CD. In truth, Seiji had commandeered the CD entirely without intention to give it back to his grandfather, but for a while continued to be indecisive as to what his next move should be.

"I'm not getting any younger, you know, Seiji. I want to see this done," he sighed apologetically.

"Grandpa," said Shizuku, finally using her small voice to speak. "This is…a really awkward moment…I think, maybe I should go." She gathered her things and headed for the door, without once meeting Seiji's eyes. But just as she was about to cross the threshold into the hallway, a hand stayed her arm and urged her back inside. Shizuku thought her heart would burst with anticipation.

"Don't go," whispered Seiji. Grandpa took that as his queue and made a graceful exit, closing the door behind him.

More awkward silence followed.

"Tsukishima Shizuku," he said slowly as he took her bag and duffel from her and placed them to one side on the floor.

"Amasawa Seiji," she replied in turn. It was the most awkward greeting she had ever endured in her life. They both tried to speak simultaneously to break the silence, and then were embarrassed at having interrupted one another and fell quiet again. The air was permeating with many years worth of their unspoken feelings.

"So," said Shizuku finally. "You're finished with your apprenticeship, I suppose?" He nodded quietly in response.

"That's so great. I knew you would. So, you've come back to Japan…for a visit?" she asked tentatively.

"No. I'm coming home for good. I want to set up a shop here, in a location much like where Grandpa had his shop, if not the exact place," he responded.

"Oh. That would be nice, actually," she said, trying to find more words for what she really wanted to ask. "But there's nothing back in Cremona that you want to bring with you?" she asked.

"Nothing but my tools and what I've learned," he said simply.

"Genevieve—" she began, but Seiji cut her off.

"Never meant anything to me. She was just someone to talk to in order to pass the time. You know me better than that, Shizuku." He seemed rather offended at her insinuation, but it was really his pride that was wounded. But his words were spoken more like a plea than an angry retort. She had misunderstood him all this time.

"That guy from your university—" he began, but Shizuku cut him off.

"I never spoke to him again the day you and I parted at the airport," she responded. He looked at her and realized that her pride had been wounded as well.

The words were pushing forth now from Shizuku's mouth, and she could not stop them. "I only wanted one thing, and that was to be with Seiji. But when our lives started taking different directions, you felt so far away from me, and I gave that up."

"You gave up on me…?" asked Seiji quietly.

"Only because you became so unattainable. I thought that was because of Genevieve. You were so caught up in what you were doing in a world I didn't understand; I felt as though you were leaving me behind. So I fled as far away from here as I could but didn't get past Tokyo. I didn't want my surroundings to ever remind me of what I'd lost with you," said Shizuku, willfully looking away and fighting the tears rolling down her face. But it just wouldn't do. She had to bury her face in her hands and her body trembled from head to toe.

"But all I really wanted…" she sobbed. "All I really wanted was for Amasawa Seiji to find me again. I would never be happy until you did. So I wrote a song on a whim…and in it I relayed the message I was trying to convey to you across time and space. Somehow…I thought if it could just get to you…if you heard it, you'd come back…and I could see you again….and I could tell you all the things I wanted to tell you that day…all the things I want to say, but am having trouble saying even now." A new wave of emotions crashed over her, leaving her floating in a sea of misery. "I can't be honest with my feelings. I'm such a child," she wailed.

"If that's true, then…I'm a coward," he sighed as he gathered her up into his arms and held her tightly.

"I thought that you and your classmate… I was so afraid of your rejection that I never dared to confirm it. I had already confirmed it in my mind, but I couldn't confront you. I was hoping that if it didn't happen, then…there was still hope that it wasn't over between us." He pulled away from her and smiled genuinely.

"I never want it to be over between us," he said. "Forgive me." It was a statement that was half a plea and half a command. But that was entirely Seiji. Shizuku let out a little laugh and wiped her eyes. They had both been equally miserable fools this entire time, but the hurt and all the loneliness seemed quite insignificant now. He leaned down and kissed her fully on the lips. Shizuku couldn't stop laughing at their ridiculousness. She felt that it was almost the foundation for another story. Maybe she would try her hand at writing drama scripts next…

"Stop laughing," said Seiji, giving up on trying to continue their kiss and resolving to just hold her close. "It's making me feel worse."

She buried her face in his chest and held him tightly, inhaling that faintly sweet familiar mixed smell of paint, wood finish and saw dust. On this night, she had come full circle. And out there, in time and space, her song continued to travel endlessly.

Finis.