"Did we not have this conversation before?" Usagi did her best to shrink into her pillow while Hatori glared down at her. She had the decency to look sheepish as the thermometer beeped and he retracted it from her ear. "102."

"I'm sorry, Hatori. But really, I blame the exams. I was totally stressed out over that." The doctor shook his head as he put his things away.

"I'm sure that was the only reason. You should know the drill by now, get some rest." Hatori paused and glanced at the girl again, "How did you do?"

Usagi beamed at the question, her face lighting up like a Christmas tree. "I passed! Granted it was barely in a couple of subjects, but no retakes! I owe it all to Yuki and Kyou."

"Glad to hear it. Take care of yourself, Usagi." As Hatori exited, Usagi kept her blue eyes riveted to the spot he disappeared, her gaze speculative. When Hatsuharu walked in a few moments later, the look vanished, but not before he'd seen it.

"What?"

"Does Hatori seem a bit different to you?" He crossed the room and motioned for her to scoot over, then plopped down on the bed before she had time to move, effectively squishing an arm and a leg. She frowned and tried to shove him off, but he wouldn't budge. "Get off, I'm highly contagious."

"Not really, no. Why do you ask?" Usagi puffed up her cheeks in frustration as he ignored her second request and tried with renewed vigor to shove him off the bed. Finally, he moved to her desk chair and offered a lopsided smile, "If you can still get that annoyed you aren't too sick."

"You're impossible." She took a moment to rearrange her pillows before shrugging, "I must have imagined it. It wouldn't be the first time. I thought Yuki liked Tohru, but now I'm sure he doesn't. Not in that way." She frowned as she thought, and added, "He does like someone though, I'm sure of it; maybe someone in the student council with him? He spends a lot of time there."

"I'm sure Yuki will appreciate your speculations about his love life." Hatsuharu commented dryly, earning another frown from the rabbit on the bed. She twisted locks of silver around her fingers as she continued thinking, her gaze twisting into a smile again, this one of pure mischief.

"I am sure Kyou likes Tohru." Hatsuharu shook his head in amusement, but conceded in trying to persuade Usagi away from her venture. He knew her well enough to realize she would do what she wanted despite his perfectly logical protests. Her smile dissolved again as she pondered. "I don't know how Tohru feels though; she's always hard to read."

"You want to set up Kyou and Tohru?" Hatsuharu spoke up after a moment, his voice sounding doubtful. He figured as a friend of the parties involved, it was his responsibility to at least attempt to divert Usagi from whatever crazy schemes she had in store.

"Well Kyou's way too shy to ever make the first move." Usagi responded matter-of-factly.

"But you aren't even sure about what Tohru thinks. And to be fair, there's no way you can be completely sure that Kyou really likes Tohru to begin with." Hatsuharu glanced over at the silver-haired girl, whose cheeks were puffed up in frustration.

"You have no sense of adventure."

"You should concentrate on yourself more. Yuki is the healthy one now and you're always sick." He grinned at the glare she sent him and had plenty of time to duck under the pillow she sent flying at his head.

"Well maybe if you left I could get some rest." Though said in jest, Hatsuharu could tell that she really was tired. He rose from his seat and retrieved the pillow from the other side of the room.

"Fair enough. Go to sleep." He turned and headed for the door while Usagi rearranged herself in the bed. When she glanced up, however, she noticed him still in the doorway, his back to her but his whole body rigid. She was about to ask what was wrong when he disappeared from the threshold. Moments later, when Akito entered the room, she figured it out.

"Akito! How have you been?" She sat up once more and smiled at the dark haired girl.

"Better than you it would seem, as you're sick again. Shigure told me you did well on your exams." Usagi moved to get up, but Akito shook her head, "Please don't get up, you should be resting anyway. I just wanted to drop by and let you know that I did what you asked. I came to drop these off."

Usagi watched Akito deposit the envelope in her hand on the desk, silent. A strange feeling settled in her stomach as she looked at the harmless paper object resting there, but she pushed it away and smiled at Akito. The older girl appeared uncertain as she said, "Are you sure you don't want-"

"I'm sure, Akito. Thank you so much for doing this. It means more than you know." Akito nodded, still looking torn.

"I'll leave you now, please get some rest and get better." Akito left, pulling the door closed behind her. Usagi sunk down in her bed again and tried to get comfortable, but inevitably her gaze fell on the desk again. Eventually she drifted off, her head full of restless thoughts.

xXx

Yuki could sense something was off the moment he walked in the door. He supposed it was intuition, but he believed that the waves of tension that hit him as he entered were palpable. Could he do it all over, good sense would have compelled him to turn and leave again, returning to a hopefully more friendly environment later. Instead he continued inside and met the unpleasant scene.

When he walked in, whatever words or actions that had been taking place came to a halt. The two people in the room looked at him, startled as he was himself. Then Hatsuharu appeared relieved, and Usagi's expression took on some degree of guilt. Yuki frowned and suddenly wished he were anywhere else.

"Thank god, maybe you can talk some sense into her." Hatsuharu sounded extremely upset, and Yuki looked between the two apprehensively, wondering if he was about to be dragged headfirst into the couple's first argument. Usagi studied the floor and said nothing, though her eyes were red-rimmed and her cheeks flush. Before Yuki could protest, give a terrible excuse and hightail it toward his bedroom, Hatsuharu continued, "Tell her she can't fly to America alone."

This stopped Yuki's mental escape planning immediately as he turned toward his sister in shock. She finally looked up at him, her face a mixture of stubbornness and guilt as she dared him to try and stop her. "What?" It was the only comprehensible statement he could muster.

"Since we're on summer break, I wanted to visit America, just for a couple days." Her eyes dropped to the floor again, and Yuki could see it was an attempt to hide more tears that she couldn't stop. Her voice was raspy with emotion as she added, "It's not a big deal."

"It is a big deal, Usagi. It's stupid and dangerous. Just let me come with you."

"I don't want you to come, Haru. Please." Usagi turned her gaze back to him, pleading with him to understand. Some part of Hatsuharu must have been hurt by this, but it was trumped by his anger and frustration. He looked like he was on the brink of switching to his Black persona.

As Yuki looked to Usagi again, the pieces clicked into place. She wanted to go to America to visit her fiancé's grave. That's why she didn't want to take Hatsuharu. He looked between the two of them, and then said the only thing he could think of, "What if I go with her?"

Usagi appeared surprised, and then grateful. "Would you do that? Don't you have plans for the break already?" Yuki shook his head. Hatsuharu studied the two of them for a moment, and they were silent while they waited for him to respond.

"That's fine." He spoke without any real feeling before turning to leave. Yuki watched him go before he turned back to Usagi, who was wiping determinedly at her eyes.

"You have to tell him the real reason, Usagi." Her expression quickly reverted to guilt as she avoided looking at him once more.

"I'll talk to Akito about getting another ticket. Do you have a passport?" Yuki shook his head. Usagi moved past him, toward the phone, letting the moment pass. Before he retreated to his room to ponder this sudden development, Usagi turned back and offered him a smile. "Thank you, Oniisan."

xXx

"Haru?" Usagi stepped lightly toward the spot where Hatsuharu had chosen to seclude himself. It had taken her the better part of the day to track him down, and even now she was sure that the only reason she'd found him was because he let himself be discovered. She sat in the space next to him but couldn't bring herself to look in his direction just yet. "I know you're still upset but please listen to me."

It had already been two days since their argument and they hadn't spoken at all. She knew that Yuki was right, but it was hard to find the words. "You and I, Haru, we've both lost someone very important to us." Usagi paused, tangling her fingers together in her lap and trying her best not to fidget. "Someone we loved very much."

"What are you getting at?" Though he probably intended to sound angry, Hatsuharu couldn't muster the effort behind the emotion. He sounded flat as he turned his brown eyes on Usagi.

"I'm not just going to America. I'm visiting Harvard Medical School in Boston, where Mamoru died. I want to say goodbye." She looked over at Hatsuharu finally, but he wasn't looking at her. "I guess you could say I'm looking for closure. I just think it would be better if I did it on my own. That's the only reason I didn't want you to come, Haru."

Reaching out, she touched his hand. He turned back toward her, his expression pained, and she threw her arms around him, unable to stop the tears that flooded her eyes. "I love you. Please understand."

"I do."

xXx

Yuki made sure their carry-on bags were secured before he took his seat next to Usagi. The silver haired girl was in a duel with the window blind, trying to raise it so she could watch their ascent when the plane took off. Despite the cloud of gloom and sobriety that had been hanging over her for the past few days and the heaviness of the task ahead of them, she had been childishly excited since they arrived at the airport. In typical Usagi fashion she had gushed over nearly everything they saw with an enthusiasm befitting someone half her age.

Yuki did share some of her sentiment, though maybe not as intense. He had never flown anywhere in his life, let alone somewhere like America. He shook his head in amusement as Usagi finally triumphed and pressed her face against the tiny round window to look outside.

"This is so exciting!" Looking on it now, it was a good thing that he was accompanying Usagi. When it came to certain areas Usagi was mature enough, but simpler things like finding her way or the appropriate regard of strangers often escaped her grasp. He worried about her endless trust in people and could certainly understand Hatsuharu's reaction to the thought of her taking this trip alone. Not to mention that Usagi's English was decent at best and he highly doubted there would be a plethora of Japanese speakers in Boston to help her along.

Yuki snapped out of his reverie to realize that Usagi was babbling nonstop to the poor flight attendant, who was nodding politely, and smiling, though clearly looking for some means of escape. "Usagi, I'm pretty sure she has other passengers to attend to."

"Oh, you're right! I'm sorry, thank you so much!" As soon as Usagi turned back toward the window to watch the people moving around on the landing strip below, the woman rushed off, and Yuki had to resist the urge to laugh. It only got worse as they prepared for takeoff; she could barely buckle her seatbelt for her excitement and managed to bounce in her seat throughout the safety rundown. Yuki hoped nothing went wrong because Usagi would have no idea what to do.

After they were in the air, however, she began to settle down. He imagined the reality of the situation came back to her somewhat and she became more subdued as the time went by. When the flight attendant came around to offer them a pillow, she looked concerned that the bubbly girl was suddenly so quiet.

Yuki couldn't bring himself to say anything, so he tried to get comfortable for the long flight ahead of them. Just as he was dozing off, however, Usagi spoke up. "Do you believe in soul mates, Yuki?"

She finally turned her blue eyes from the window to study him while she waited on an answer. He blinked the sleep from his eyes as he contemplated the question. "I'm not sure. I suppose I never gave it much though before."

"I used to, but I'm not sure anymore." She looked back to the window, and Yuki couldn't decide whether she sounded sad or just tired. "I never told anyone about this, but..." Usagi went quiet again and Yuki, once again, found himself in a place of discomfort. He was not, he felt, a good confidant in any situation. He never knew what to say to comfort someone. He was already getting nervous when Usagi turned toward him again.

"You already know the story. Mamoru and I were in love in a different time, we died together only to be reborn and find each other again. It's a real life fairy tale in every sense." Clearly she wasn't concerned about eavesdroppers. As Yuki glanced around he could see she had little cause to be; everyone was either getting some shut eye during the sixteen hour flight or had their headphones on watching the in-flight movie.

"But it was never the same this time. We both knew it. The memories I have of our time on the moon are wonderful. The people who were Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity loved each other more than life itself." She glanced down, picking at her nails distractedly as she talked. Yuki was concerned, but at least grateful that she didn't need him to say anything, just to listen. He could certainly do that much for her.

"But the people we were in this time were different. We cared about each other but we were never in love, not like those past selves. I don't know who we were maintaining the story for in the end. I just," she paused, seemingly to rein in her emotions, before continuing, "I just wished we would have talked about it. I feel guilty because I have the chance to love Hatsuharu and Mamoru never got the chance to find that kind of love. Now he never will."

"Usagi," Yuki reached over and touched Usagi's hand, drawing her blue eyes up to look at him once more, now filled with tears she was struggling to hold in. "I never knew Mamoru, but if he cared about you even half as much as you cared about him then he wouldn't want you to feel like that. He would be happy for you; he would want you to have this."

A smile broke out on her face, albeit watery, and since she couldn't hug him without a degree of awkwardness caused by the arm of the chair separating them, she squeezed his hand. "Thank you, Oniisan."

xXx

"You didn't tell your friends you were coming here? Rei and the others?" Yuki stood close to Usagi at baggage claim, trying not to be nervous. Logan International Airport was packed full of more people than he had ever seen in one place.

"Hm? Oh, no, I didn't tell them. They would have insisted on coming, and Rei never takes no for an answer. I'll have to apologize to them later, but this is something I have to do alone."

Yuki was thankful that he hadn't let Usagi come alone. The shorter girl was bouncing from foot to foot as she waited for their bags to appear, daydreaming somewhat and not paying much attention to their surroundings.

If we bumped into someone and transformed, it would be bad. Seriously bad. Yuki subconsciously inched closer to Usagi and felt a rush of relief when their suitcases finally appeared. He took Usagi by the hand and pulled her away, cutting a careful path through the crowds.

"Where are we going from here?" Yuki asked over his shoulder after he made it to the outer edges of the crowds, still unwilling to stop. Usagi was eyeing all the busy restaurants and stores around the terminal in awe.

"The Hilton," she finally said, just before Yuki repeated himself, positive she hadn't heard the question. "That's where Akito said the reservations were. There is supposed to be a sky bridge that connects the airport and the hotel, or we can take the free shuttle."

"Right, The Hilton. Thank you." Yuki looked around, easily spotting the signs that led them in the direction of the Hilton Logan International Hotel. They opted to take the shuttle, and took two seats near the front. The ride was quiet; Usagi kept her eyes transfixed on the window and everything passing by beyond the glass. As they finally entered the hotel lobby, however, she turned to him with a huge grin.

"We're here, in America. It's amazing, isn't it?" Yuki nodded, unable to resist the urge to smile back at his younger sister's enthusiasm. They walked to the reception desk together, Usagi pointing out the trees at the entrance that reached toward a glass ceiling. Then she was tugging on his arm and pointing to the in-lobby café where people were gathered around sipping their coffees and talking. Yuki shook his head as they finally approached the desk, and turned his attentions to the receptionist.

"Can I help you?" The brunette woman smiled up at them, her fingers poised over her keyboard as she paused in whatever task she had been working on.

"We have a reservation under Sohma," He told her. The woman looked the two of them over for a moment and then nodded.

"Yes, hold on just a moment." She stood and walked off, leaving a perplexed Yuki behind. He glanced over at Usagi, but she was just as confused as he was. She returned scarcely two minutes later however, trailed by a shorter woman with dark hair.

"You must be Yuki and Usagi Sohma." Yuki and Usagi looked at each other, surprised. The woman was speaking perfect Japanese. "You can call me Sumi. I wanted to inform you that you've been upgraded to a Suite. If you have any questions or need anything at all you can contact me directly."

"A Suite? B-but-" Usagi floundered for a moment, but the woman just smiled as though she expected the protests and extended her hand with the room keys.

"The cardholder called earlier and made all the arrangements. Everything is taken care of, you have nothing to worry about." Yuki took the keys from the woman, Sumi, and thanked her. Usagi followed his lead, bowing and thanking her. "Remember, any problems just call the front desk and ask for me personally."

As the siblings walked toward the elevators, Yuki noticed Usagi muttering to herself and frowning. As they stepped into the elevator, the silver doors sliding closed, he decided to speak up. "Akito wanted to do this for you, Usagi. I know you don't like that she spent the extra money, but don't get mad at her. Just say thank you."

Usagi looked up at her brother, shocked to hear him defending the dark haired girl. But her mind travelled back to that room, to those lonely-looking daffodils and Akito's tears. She smiled and said, "Yeah, you're right."

When Yuki finally opened the door to the suite, both of them stood just inside the doorway for a moment, speechless. Usagi was the first to move again; she dropped her bag and ran across the room to look out the windows. The sun was just setting over Boston Harbor, the beginning twinkle of lights appearing along the city skyline and reflecting back at themselves against the water. Boats of every size were visible at the docks, a few just coming in from the sea. Usagi fought down the urge to place her hand against the spotless glass, instead turning away and taking in the enormous hotel suite around her.

"I could have brought all the girls and there still would have been too much room in here." She laughed over the emotion in her voice and came to collect her bag. When she finally determined which door led to a room, she abandoned the luggage on the floor and headed straight to the phone. It took some time figuring out how to dial out and then how to call a number in Japan, but she eventually made it through to the Sohma main house.

"How's the room?" The question was Akito's greeting when she finally came on the line, tinged with amusement that reminded Usagi fiercely of Shigure. Still there was a detectible note of hesitance in her tone that suggested she fully expected to be yelled at.

"It's..." Usagi paused, remembering again the broken expression on Akito's face and Yuki's unanticipated words in the elevator. "It's amazing. Boston Harbor is beautiful and you can see it all from the window. " Usagi absorbed the silence for a moment, smiling as she tried to imagine Akito's expression. "Thank you, Akito. Not for the room, but for everything, for this whole trip. It means more to me than you know."

"It's nothing, Usagi." The silver haired girl closed her eyes, listening to the quiet words of the girl so far away. "I owe you so much more."

"That's where you're wrong, Akito. You don't owe me anything." Usagi smiled into the receiver, silently thanking her brother once more, "Just say 'you're welcome.' Tell Shigure I said hey."

"You're welcome, Usagi, and I will."

xXx

The next morning, after the two of them had gone down to Berkshires for the breakfast buffet, Usagi dialed the number that she used to call everyday: to Mamoru's dorm room. According to the information that Akito gave her, Edward Smith still lived there with a new roommate. She focused on the ring of the phone over the receiver, trying to ignore the loud pounding of her heart in her ears.

"Hello?" For a moment, Usagi forgot how to breathe. The silence held over long enough that the male on the other end of the line repeated his inquiry.

"Hello, I'm looking for Edward Smith." Usagi had practiced her English nonstop since she'd decided to take this trip. Minako, who had lived in England before, and Ami, had both helped her under the premise that she needed to study hard to pass her English exam so she wouldn't have to retake it over summer break.

"Oh, hold on a minute," there was a jostling noise on the line, and the voice spoke again, sounding a bit far away. "Yo Ed, it's for you."

"Hello?" Usagi heard the word again seconds later, this time more prepared but possibly even more nervous than before.

"Hello, my name is Usagi. I'm," she stopped herself, taking a deep breath, and corrected, "I was Mamoru Chiba's fiancé. I'm here in Boston and I wanted to meet you, if you're not too busy of course. I was hoping you might show me where they buried him." Usagi fought hard to keep the emotions from bubbling up in her voice. The last thing she wanted was to cry on the phone to a complete stranger, whom she was already putting in a very uncomfortable position. "If you can't, I completely understand. I don't want to intrude on you at all."

There was no response on the other line, but Usagi refrained from asking if he was still there or not. She wouldn't be surprised if he had hung up on her. She tried to imagine how shocked he must have been to be getting this call, and this request, after he surely put the thoughts of Mamoru Chiba out of his mind forever.

"You came all the way to Boston, how could I say no?"

xXx

"Usagi?" The foreign name sounded awkward rolling off of his tongue. Usagi's first impression of Edward Smith was that he was very tall, at least six feet, and she had to look up to see his face. He had an All-American look to him, with blonde hair and blue eyes and a defined build that made her wonder if he played football, or with his height, maybe basketball. She nodded at his question and shook the hand that he offered between them.

"Yes, and this is my brother, Yuki." She gestured to Yuki, who had been standing beside her, and they also shook hands. The group had agreed to meet at a Starbucks not far from the dormitory. "Thank you so much for agreeing to meet with me."

"It's the least I could do." Edward put his hands in his pockets, shrugging and looking a bit sheepish. "I didn't know Mamoru very long but he was a good guy. A little quiet at first, though. We were just starting to become good friends before the accident." He paused, smiling as he observed the short, silver-haired girl in front of him. "He talked a lot about you, though. He really cared about you, I could tell."

"Thank you for sending me that letter." Usagi looked down at her hands, still feeling nervous, but thankful that Yuki was with her. Though he didn't speak, his presence alone gave her more courage. "I don't know how long it would have been before I knew."

"Ah," Edward looked around, not sure what to say. He finally decided on, "The cemetery isn't far from here. It's probably easiest just to walk."

"We'll do that then." Usagi beamed up at the tall, blonde haired boy and motioned for him to lead the way.

"When the accident happened, the school pitched in a good sum to help pay for the service and the burial. The rest was donated by private contributors, including the families of the kids who were in the other car." He stopped and waited for the light at a crosswalk to change, looking at Usagi again. "The guy who was driving the car is serving time for manslaughter, but he will probably be out on parole soon."

"That's good." Usagi smiled to herself at the expression this statement earned her from the tall American, and the complete lack of shock that Yuki concurrently displayed. She walked forward when the light changed, since no one else in their party moved. By way of explanation, she said to Edward, "I've learned a lot about forgiveness this past year."

They didn't say much more as they walked outside of small talk. When the group finally approached what Edward told them was Mamoru's grave, he hung back a bit. "Listen, I don't want to be in your way. Call me later, though, if you and your brother want o go out for dinner. I know some great local places." He smiled at them over the tension in the air, and Usagi returned it.

"That would be nice." The silver haired girl bowed, as was the custom in Japan, thinking of how she wished she could hug him. "Thank you again, Edward, for everything you've done."

"It was nothing." Edward appeared uncomfortable again, for a moment, until he met eyes with Usagi. Some unspoken understanding passed between them, and he smiled again, saying, "I mean, you're welcome."

xXx

Okay, yeah, that ending was a bit maudlin, forgive me for that. I apologize for the two year wait, I can hardly believe it myself. I have the feeling, though, that this story may be drawing to a close within the next few chapters. It's been quite a ride, and so much fun writing it. I hope I don't disappoint anyone. My goal is to have it wrapped up by the end of this year, but we'll see.

It took me a bit longer to make it through parts of this chapter because I had to research Boston and Harvard Medical School to get the setting right. I hope the usual writing style didn't suffer too much as a result. I'm still having trouble with my eyes so I can't proof read well at the moment. Feel free to point out mistakes or roughness in the wording and I'll gladly fix it.

Thank you for reading, and if it isn't too much trouble, please review.