"Well I can tell you one thing, ladies, I am definitely not gonna miss that," Arisa commented as she, Tohru, and Saki walked out of the girls' locker room. "Just think; as of right now, we are officially done with PE class, forever!"

Tohru gave a little giggle. "You're not going to miss gym clothes, Uo-chan?"

"Nope. Not gym clothes, not getting hot and sweaty during the school day, not running laps or throwing balls or doing literally any of that crap that I've never had any interest in before and still don't have any interest in now. As far as I'm concerned, PE can kiss my almost-graduated ass," Arisa said, her expression one of such total satisfaction that Tohru couldn't help but laugh once more.

Saki was smiling, too. "Come now, Arisa, surely there was at least one thing you enjoyed about our years of athletic endeavors."

Arisa thought for a moment, then grinned at her friend. "Well, seeing you in a gym uniform was always a trip, Hanajima; are you ever gonna wear one again for old time's sake?"

"Doubtful," Saki said in her serene way. "As much as I have to admit they served a practical function, I can't say I'll mourn their loss."

"I'll also miss seeing you trying so hard all the damn time, Tohru," Arisa said, giving Tohru a little hug. "If there were points given for the most committed attempts to do well at everything, you'd be a shoe-in to have been the MVP."

Tohru let out a little sigh at that. "I always did try my best, but PE has always been so hard! Do you think they'll be able to find the bat?" she asked, looking at her friends anxiously.

Saki and Arisa both laughed.

"I mean, it only flew into a tree, Tohru. It's not like they've gotta go very far to find it, all they'll need is a ladder to climb up and get it down."

"Or something to throw at it, to knock it down," Saki agreed. "Personally, I thought it was rather poetic, dear Tohru; to end our time in PE by getting a softball bat stuck in a tree is an act of such commensurate skill that I'm sure anyone would be envious."

"That, and we got to be done over five minutes early, which is never a bad thing," Arisa said with a grin. "Like I said...you definitely tried the hardest out of any of us, Tohru, even if you didn't always succeed."

Tohru sighed again, and her friends both laughed, then hugged her.

"Alright, let's get our lunches and go eat. We expecting the guys to join us today?" Arisa asked as the three of them approached 3-D.

Tohru hesitated. "Not Yuki, for sure. But I don't know about Kyo."

"Well, Kyon knows how to find us, I'm sure," Arisa said as they all got their lunches. "Let's go grab our spot, and if he turns up, he turns up!"


"So we're all in agreement on the plan today?" Arisa asked, looking around at her two friends. "An afternoon of fun, then a sleepover at Hanajima's?"

"That's right!" Tohru said, beaming. "It's so nice of your family to let us both stay over, Hana-chan!"

"You know you're always welcome, dear Tohru, and you always will be, too," Saki said with a smile. "Nothing will change, in that regard, going forward."

Tohru tried to smile at the sentiment, but the 'in that regard' hung heavily in the air between them. After years of friendship and innumerable sleepovers, tonight would be the very last one of their school careers. Tomorrow night they'd all be in their own homes, trying to sleep before graduation the following day; the night after graduation, they'd all be busy celebrating, and the night after that...Tohru would be staying at the dojo, in preparation for her sendoff and departure the next day.

"I can't believe it's already here," Tohru said, her quiet voice nevertheless ripping through the silence between them. "It seemed like graduation was always so far away, like it was something that would never come...something I could never reach, especially not..." she trailed off, her eyes filling with tears as she thought about that terrible May day almost three years ago now. High school had barely begun, and she'd been struggling already; after losing Kyoko, she had asked herself so many times if there was any point to even keep trying.

Tohru sniffled, then sniffled again, wiping her eyes as she looked up at her friends. "I owe you two so much, both of you. If it hadn't been for you, I never would've...I never could have..."

Tohru completely dissolved into tears as her friends moved close, their arms wrapping around her like a blanket.

"As if you could've stopped us from being there for you, Tohru," Arisa said, and Saki agreed.

"You were always there for us, dear Tohru. What kind of friends would we have been had we abandoned you when it was finally our turn?"

The three of them sat there for a time, Tohru cocooned in her friends' arms as she worked to calm herself down. Eventually, her tears slowed, and she was able to give the two of them a wobbly smile.

"I'm sorry, I know everybody has to be sick of me crying by now," she said, dabbing at her eyes. But Arisa and Saki both shook their heads.

"Honestly, Tohru, I'd be pretty offended if you weren't crying," Arisa said, giving her a little smile. "I mean, yeah...I'm happy for you. I'm glad you're getting to do what you want, with your life. But I hate that you're going," she said, her voice uncharacteristically soft. "I hate that you're going, and that you're going so damn far away, and that you're going so soon..." she shook her head, then sighed. "Seriously, Kyon couldn't find a dojo closer than freaking Aomori? He had to take you almost all the way to Hokkaido?"

Saki gave her a mildly amused look. "You say that as if you've forgotten your own impending move, Arisa."

"Hey, that's different," Arisa immediately protested. "In the first place, I'm only going as far as Fukushima. In the second place, I'm not leaving for another couple weeks! This was supposed to be our time, ladies," she said, sighing. "We were supposed to graduate, and then seize our last chance to kick back and have fun together before we all dove into the professional grind. Instead, what's happening? You," she said, giving Saki a nudge, "are starting your new job on Monday. And Tohru..." she looked at Tohru sadly, then shook her head. "I just don't get why you guys had to leave so soon, that's all. I still wanna kick Kyon's ass for that, all of it."

Saki reached out and patted Arisa's knee. "You forget, dear Arisa, how real the practicalities of adult life can be. We are not all of us able to simply sit back and not work."

"Oh come on, Hanajima, you're still gonna be living at home! It's not like your family is gonna start charging you for things. And you can't tell me that the scribbler is gonna just kick Tohru or even Kyon out, pretty sure that they could have stayed on another week or two without having to pay for anything, easily."

Tohru was touched by her friend's disappointment, as much as it hurt to hear. This wasn't the first time, either; the subject had come up numerous times in the months since they'd learned for sure that Tohru and Kyo would be moving away.

It was almost ironic; in the beginning, the two of them had almost seemed encouraging. They'd actually told Kyo they liked him, and they trusted him to take care of Tohru and keep her happy. Tohru and Kyo had both been relieved; whatever other problems they had to deal with as people learned their plans, Arisa and Saki, at least, appeared to understand.

Then they learned just how far away Tohru's new home would be, and they both became much less accepting. Arisa's new home in Fukushima prefecture was about one hundred and fifty miles away from Tokyo, but that had nothing on the five-hundred-mile trek to Aomori prefecture and the village of Hibe; to say visits would be sparse, especially in the beginning, was an understatement.

Arisa and Saki had been stunned, and it had made the blow even harder when they learned that Tohru and Kyo planned to move only a couple days after graduation. In vain Tohru had said that it was both of their ideas and that they had their reasons for the choice; the venom that had been directed at Kyo in the immediate aftermath of that announcement had been potent.

But Tohru had stood firm, telling her friends that if they were going to be upset with anyone, they could be upset with her. It was her choice to go then, just like it had been her choice to go there and her choice to go at all. Kyo was not forcing her, coercing her, or making her, and much as she was going to miss them and everyone else back in Tokyo...she wanted to do this. Needed to do this.

And she was going to.

For longer than Tohru had even realized, she had wanted to do this. And she needed them to support her in this, the same way they'd always supported her in everything before.

It had taken time, breaking through old habits. All of them had to fight against old established behaviors, and sometimes that wasn't easy.

Often, that wasn't easy.

But in the end, Arisa and Saki had accepted it: her reasoning, her defense...her decision. Kyo was the recipient of some icy glares for quite some time, but not a word was said to him on the subject; not of the distance, not of the timing. Instead, Tohru's friends threw themselves into taking advantage of the time they did have; as much as they could, for as long as they could. It might not be everything they would have wanted...but it would be enough.

It had to be.


"Regardless, dear Arisa, there comes a time when all of us must come to terms with reality," Saki said, giving her an understanding smile. "Whether that's making do with limited time, shared time, or even no time at all, we have to make the best of what we're given. And I, myself, am looking forward to our nightwear soiree," she said, smiling at the two of them. "And though tonight might be the last such gathering of our school days, I don't intend for it to be the last one of all time."

"Of course not," Tohru agreed, her eyes still teary but her face shining, and Arisa cracked a smile as she nodded her head.

"No," she said. "They might be lot more spread out, but they're gonna keep happening. Here, in Fukushima, in Aomori...and remember, you two, we also still owe ourselves those girls' trips we've talked about. I'm not gonna let either one of you forget them, mark my words. Kyon'll just have to cook his own meals for a weekend once in a while, Tohru."

"I think he can manage," Tohru said, giggling. "You know he likes to cook, Uo-chan!"

"Yeah, but I can also imagine how damn spoiled he's gonna get when it's just the two of you. We know you, Tohru," she said, gesturing between herself and Saki. "If that guy does a single chore around your new place, it's only because he fought you for it. How long is he gonna be willing to keep fighting?"

Tohru thought for a moment about Kyo, about his earnest, smiling face as he told her he meant to pull his weight around the house. How even in the days before Tohru was working, he still wanted to do something to contribute, to prove to her that he was just as committed to their home as she was. Who, even though Tohru actually wanted the future Arisa was describing where she was solely in charge of housework, she knew would be determined to stick to his word.

"Knowing Kyo...I think he'll be pretty determined," Tohru admitted at last. "We can both be pretty stubborn sometimes."

Both Arisa and Saki laughed at that, and after a moment Tohru did, too.

"What, you and Kyon, stubborn? Did you ever notice that, Hanajima?"

"Certainly not. And here for all this time, I've only ever thought that the two of them were the most yielding and gentle of personalities."

They were all still laughing when the bell rang, and they all stood up.

"Alright, ladies; just remember, after tomorrow afternoon, we'll never have to sit through calculus class again, either!"


"So you guys got some fun stuff planned for tonight?" Kyo asked, looking at Tohru as they all helped clean up after class that afternoon. It was Arisa who answered, however, jumping in before Tohru had a chance to do barely any more than smile.

"Sure do, Kyon! We're gonna go shopping, go bowling, go sing some karaoke-"

"...bowling?" Kyo blinked, then looked at Tohru, who was giggling. "You're going bowling?"

"Hey, I can bowl," Tohru immediately protested, understanding that look perfectly. "Just because I'm not very good at it-"

"-You mean absolutely terrible at it?" Kyo asked, grinning, and Tohru blushed.

"Don't be distressed, dear Tohru," Saki said, smiling as she patted Tohru's arm. "After all, I have bowled far more times than you, yet I still manage to miss the pins with much greater frequency. It is a complicated game-"

-Is it really, though?" Kyo asked, and Saki fixed him in a cool look.

"Quite complicated, indeed."

"Well, the important thing's that we're gonna have fun, right, ladies?" Arisa asked, hugging her two friends, and they both smiled. "So: bowl, sing, eat something yummy, go back to Hanajima's place and gossip about stuff," she said, fixing Kyo in a teasing grin, "then it's back here tomorrow to repeat this cycle for one last time," she said, looking around the empty classroom.

"Almost," Saki corrected her. "You forget, even though it's not a normal school day, we still have to be here for graduation at the usual time."

Arisa rolled her eyes. "Pretty sure I haven't forgotten about graduation, Hanajima. Pretty sure none of us have," she continued, looking around the room.

And in her friends thoughtful, excited, and sad eyes, she saw total agreement.


"Are you going to spend the night at Master Kazuma's tonight, Kyo?" Tohru asked as they all made their way down to the shoe lockers after cleaning, her hand neatly slipped into his. While she was going to be off with her friends, Kyo would be teaching his penultimate classes at the dojo, and spending the rest of the evening with Kazuma afterwards.

Kyo shook his head. "Not planning on it, no. Master and I aren't exactly 'nightwear soiree' kind of guys," he said teasingly, and Tohru giggled. "You know how early Master goes to bed, anyway. I'll head home once we're done talking, whatever time that is."

Home, such as it was for another few days.

"Well, I hope you two have a great time," Tohru said, smiling at him. "It was so kind of him to invite us to spend our last night at the dojo, and to let them do the sendoff for us there!"

"Yeah..."

As much as Kyo agreed with Tohru that yes, it was kind of Kazuma to do both of the above, he would have been delighted if Kazuma had been just a fraction less accommodating.

It all made sense, he knew. People were sad to see them go; at least, they were sad to see Tohru go. The past couple months had made it abundantly clear just how strongly all of her friends were going to miss her, and how much everyone else wished that she could stay. With that being the case, it was only natural that people would want to say one final goodbye.

It had started with Arisa and Saki, unsurprisingly: "Hey, what time is your train, Tohru? We want to be there, to see you off."

And then Momiji: "You won't mind me coming to the station with you that last morning, ja?"

And Kisa: "I know you'll have a lot going on the day you leave, Tohru, but if it's ok..."

One by one, more and more people started asking, until it rapidly became apparent that 'goodbye at the station' was going to be insufficient. After numerous conversations between Tohru and Kyo, with their friends, and with their loved ones, it was finally decided that rather than everyone trying to meet Tohru and Kyo at the train station, everyone who wanted to see them that last morning could come to the dojo beforehand to visit and eat breakfast. It would naturally be early; Tohru and Kyo had many hours of travel ahead of them that day, and their train was leaving a nine in the morning. But if people wanted to come and say goodbye...they could.

Tohru was excited, and more than a little touched. Knowing that so many people had wanted to see them that last morning, even if many of them she'd already seen the previous week, or would be seeing at graduation...it meant the world to her. Kyo was admittedly less enthusiastic; he was already well-aware that Tohru was going to be a teary mess, and he fully expected to once again be the recipient of more than one accusatory glare. There were some people who'd miss him, he knew. Admittedly more people than he ever would have believed, less than even a year ago. But he didn't kid himself that this would be a big deal if it was just him leaving...

And he was ok with that.

"Do you two have any fun plans for your evening?" Tohru asked Kyo as they all swapped their school slippers for their shoes, and he gave her an amused grin.

"What, you hoping Master and I'll be in the next lane at the bowling alley or something?" he teased, and Tohru giggled once more.

"I'm not hoping anything, I'm just wondering, that's all," she said, looking at him affectionately. She hadn't been the least bit surprised when Kyo told her his plans for the evening; though she knew there were other people he was going to miss and knew he'd enjoyed his time the day before with his high school friends, Kyo had been spending most of his free time lately at the dojo.

"Nothing too exciting to wonder about," Kyo said as he laced on his sneakers. "I've got my two classes to teach, we'll have dinner, and we'll probably just sit and talk, otherwise. Nothing fancy or wild."

"Well, you have fun, ok?"

"You guys, too. Don't let it bug you too much when you get gutter balls," Kyo said, grinning at her.

"I'm not going to get gutter balls! We use bumpers!" Tohru immediately said, and Kyo grinned as he patted her head.

"Fine. Don't let it bug you too much when you still manage to get gutter balls."

"I'm not that bad!" Tohru protested again, then smiled at him as they all walked out of the school. "See you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow," Kyo agreed, giving her a kiss.

Tomorrow...their last day of school.