Author's Note:

Hello...yes, to all the people who are reading this fanfic and have been waiting for the next chapter...I'm really sorry...It's taken me how many months to complete this chapter...plus, I've been really busy and I've been once again cursed with the random bouts of writers' block... so, please forgive me... I've been expecting more out of myself while I was writing this chap...I expected it to be better...But since I'm under time pressure and I still have other stuff to do, I think this is the best I could come up with for now...

But even though this chap maybe short as it is, I still hope you'd enjoy reading it...

Yours truly,
The +SouJiroLoVeR+

Here's chapter 4, Crossing Out the Shortcomings...


Where we left off: Chapter 3: The Lesson Learned

Sumire regained consciousness in her Kobu and looked around. Her vision was still blurry but she could make out that Ohgami and Sakura were still trying to make their Kobu's stand up under their damaged legs, Kanna's Kobu was lying there, Iris was stationary in her position, she hasn't woken up yet. The giant that knocked Sumire out was now heading in the direction of Ohgami and Sakura, ready to beat them up again. Koran just unleashed 4 furious missiles at the other massive demon at the rear. And the last thing that caught Sumire's eyes was that blue Kobu which was now positioned under the foot of the immense demon, steadily being crushed while it's weapon, it's gun, was knocked out of it's arm.

"AAaaaaaaarrrgh!" Maria shouted into the comm. Link.

Sumire closed her eyes again and gathered all the strength she had to stand up. She pushed on, praying her Kobu could still withstand the damage and pressure. "I can't let this happen. We can't lose like this. No, no, I can't let her get hurt..."

The colossal demon's body was punctured somehow by the missiles Koran set off but it didn't stop what the demon itself was about to do next. It raised its large foot and put it down hard crashing the Kobu underneath almost to bits.

Sumire's eyes grew wide with shock, anger, and desperation. "Mariaaaaaa!"


Sumire gathered her last ounces of strength and put in all the spirit that remained in her. Her Kobu began to surround itself with a faint violet aura which seemed to grow or falter every second. She's got one shot. If she misses this then she wouldn't have enough strength to fire another one and return unconscious for the monster to rip her into pieces.

"Ok, here goes. Kanzaki Fujin Style Butterfly Dance!"

A hurling fiery wind shot straight at then demon as Sumire moved her spear. The air rose with that sudden warm gush and the blaze just rippled through. Sumire hit the demon point blank. The monster was depleted and the foot that was crushing Maria's Kobu was no longer there. A pile of ash appeared which was soon blown away by the wind. The other demon, who was in front now dealing with Sakura, turned it's attention to the rear and opted to crush all the Kobus at once by smashing it's two large fists into the ground. The monster was raising its humongous arms and about to strike it's full force.

"Nooo!" Koran screamed and launched 6 rockets and 4 grenades at the demon. She was completely furious already, her patience almost over the edge. She wanted to destroy these horrid beings before they do even more damage to her beloved Kobus.

Sakura cut the demon from the back, and hit it again, burying her katana's blade into the monster's body before jumping backward to evade the explosions from Koran's missiles. Ohgami did the same, and slashed the demon's legs.

The devilish giant was literally blown apart with a great amount of force leaving ashes in it's wake which were blown away as well, never to be seen again.

Iris and Kanna caught up with the rest of the group while Koran helped Maria's Kobu up. It had turned to night time already, around seven in the evening. They couldn't believe they have been fighting for that long. The surroundings were a dreadful sight to see. Everything was burning. The stars of the black night sky couldn't be seen; they were too overpowered by the brightness of the flames.

"Is everybody alright?" Ohgami asked, almost shouting over the comm. link.

"I'm ok." Replied Iris, Sakura, and Kanna.

"I'm fine, except for some bruises." Said Sumire.

"Ensign, I'm ok. But Maria sustained some head injury." Informed Koran.

Just then, a report came from headquarters. "The enemy has been destroyed. Everything is clear now. Most of your vital signs are stable. Kobu damage, 49.", and as Koran heard that, a disappointed moan came from her mic. "Your orders are to return back to base immediately. The damage caused would be soon taken care of."

"Good. Let's get back. Those with injuries proceed directly to the clinic. Those who need assistance would be taken care of when we get back to base. Can you manage your Kobu in your state, Maria?" said Ohgami, turning his attention to his fellow pilot.

"Yes, sir. I am fairly capable." Replied Maria.

A smile appeared on Sumire's face as she heard Maria speak again. "She's fine." She thought to herself with a relieved sigh.

As Team Hana arrived back at the Imperial Theater, the seven of them disembarked their Kobus. Kanna and Iris headed to the kitchen to get an ice pack from the freezer and a drink of water. Koran ordered for the Kobus to be transferred to her workroom for repair. Ohgami and Sakura walked with Sumire and Maria to the clinic and tended to their wounds there. As soon as the two injured were patched up, Sakura and Ohgami left for the kitchen hoping to grab a little snack. Maria decided to stay.

"Aren't you going to leave yet, Maria-san?" asked Sumire standing up, about to leave the clinic ward herself.

There was some seconds of silence before she replied. "How could you let yourself get hurt like that?" Maria said quietly but sternly as though muttering something under her breath.

"What do you mean?" queried Sumire. She was inclined to think that Maria was referring to the 2 feats she did that night, the one where she attacked the demon out of sheer impulse or her life or death move as she did the Butterfly Dance technique.

"The attacks you did tonight! Those two reckless moves! The Butterfly Dance and the attack you did which put us out of the formation!" said Maria, almost on the verge of screaming.

"Damn it." Sumire said to herself. She was already regretting why she made those two moves. Now she made Maria angry, her beloved friend, and now she knew she has committed herself to an hour-long worth of lecturing and criticizing.

"Never again do those mistakes you did tonight! They put the whole group in danger! If you stuck with the formation, everything would be just fine!" shouted Maria.

"The formation was already broken to begin with!" retorted Sumire in her own angry tone.

"No, the formation could still have been brought back. You acting on impulse just made it worse! Didn't I tell you to give way! Give way to the orders of the Captain!"

"But I did what I thought best!"

"No! You didn't even think about what you did! You put everyone in danger!" and with that, Maria slapped Sumire's face with her cold, pale palms.

Sumire's eyes began to well up with tears. How can I be blamed for something I didn't entirely do! Everyone was at fault tonight. Everyone has weaknesses and that's why we almost lost tonight. Mine just happened to be more visible than the others. How could she blame me after I saved her life out there?, she thought.

Maria walked out of the room without even sparing a last glance at Sumire. Sumire gave Maria an angry glare as she walked out, her face very flushed. She proceeded to her room. Her mind was blank at that moment. She didn't think about anything nor feel anything around her. Her mind was too pre-occupied with all the things that happened. She just wanted to go to bed and get this night over with.

"This is impossible." Whispered Sumire as she pushed her door hard open after turning the key into the lock. She lay down on her bed and let herself sink into the fluff of her mattress comforter. A while later, she decided to get up and change into her night dress and robe. She slid under the covers and closed her eyes.

Sleep. The relief after every day was at her mercy now. Minutes passed but to no avail. She just can't fall into the abyss of relaxation that was in her reach. She sat up, rubbed her eyes and considered for a moment. Memories of her risking her life to save Maria zoomed past. The sights of her teammates' Kobus being crushed and thrown were all over the place.

Sumire got up and went down to the garden by the fountain. She felt a light breeze when she went out the garden doors. But then, she found she wasn't alone. Who else could be there but Maria, the person who picked her up when she was at her lowest and weakest state.

Maria and Sumire quickly noticed each others' presence and looked at each other eye-to-eye. No one said a word. They both expected a change of feeling when they looked at each other. Usually when two people look at each other and they have a misunderstanding or quarrel between themselves, they'd either feel cold, miserable and uncaring or would be filled with annoyance and anger enough for them to walk out of the room. But, no. None of those feelings seemed to take place. The aura of the two being together was still the same. Of course, they felt slightly uncomfortable but it really didn't mean much. It's as if they were still at the same point when they left off before the battle of that night. They still loved each other.

"Maria-san, I'm sorry. I should have listened to you. I should have given way to the Ensign's orders and not resort to unexpected moves that might put the group in further danger. I'm really sorry. I just didn't know what to do."

Maria thought for a few minutes. Sumire gave a sincere apology and that was all she wanted. She approached Sumire and embraced her. She held her tight and they stayed like that for quite a while. Finally, Sumire had mustered up the courage to wrap her arms around Maria as well. She closed her eyes and they both just savored the time being together for within that embrace, no conflict existed, not a single drop of hatred was present. It was just pure warmth surrounding them against that cold windy night. The warmth of acceptance, the warmth of forgiveness and the warmth of love were all there within their hold. It was all they could want after a hard day.

"Just don't make me worry like that again. Ok?" Maria softly whispered into Sumire's ear.

"Ok. I promise. I'm really sorry."

Then they slowly let go and looked into each other's eyes again. Maria kissed Sumire's forehead and they walked towards the fountain and sat by the bench.

"It feels….right." Sumire muttered under her breath

"Hmm?"

"You know, saying sorry and all that. Just saying sorry for what you did wrong. Of course it's hard to admit it but, I mean, it's all worth it in the end." Sumire said softly while she looked at Maria and smiled at her meekly.

"So I guess you passed your first lesson. You learned from it and so it's time for the next step." Remarked Maria as she took Sumire's hand into her own.

"And what may that be? Cooking?"

"No, I certainly don't want you near the kitchen anytime soon." Maria said as she recalled the overcooked breakfast incident. "Next, I want you to lose the aura."

"Lose the aura?" replied Sumire, sounding a little confused.

"Lower your pride by at least a couple of notches."

"Why?"

"Well, I think everyone would be more comfortable around you if you just weren't being Ms. All-High-and-Mighty all the time."

"But…but-"

"Opps. Don't say no before you even tried it."

"Fine. So, how am I going to do it this time?"

"Don't try to be so ignorant. Don't think other people are beneath you. After all, we're just the same. Equal in every way. You're only human. Just like the rest of us. Learn to be humble. Learn to accept others for who they are. Admit defeat and mistake. Humility is a must."

"I never said I thought you were beneath me."

"Really? You never said it. But it's in your head all the time. Isn't it?"

"Uhm…" Sumire looked away, admitting to herself that she did think that way sometimes. "I guess."

"See." Maria said with a smirk on her face. "Get past this lesson and you're on your way to being the new Sumire Kanzaki everyone will adore even more."

"You do know that you're just feeding my ego right?" Sumire retorted with a smile curling her lips.

"I don't see it as feeding your ego. I see it as giving you some self-esteem."

"I have enough self-esteem already!"

"Deep inside you don't. You don't have enough confidence to change yourself inside, now do you? Get my drift?"

"But Maria-san…"

"Just trust me on this. You can do this, ok?"

"H-hai." Sumire replied. Maria drew her near once more and kissed her.


Author's Note:

Until the next chapter...sayonara! i appreciate your reviews and comments...Thank you!