DISCLAIMER: This licence isn't mine. The opinions express by the characters are not mine. I do not support nor encourage the illegal acts or words present here. I can make a distinction between fiction and reality and I trust in my readership's ability to do the same.

A Few Words to Bring to a Close

Around one year later, Strawberry Shortcake and Peanut Butter announced the birth of their first child, a little girl. The Princess Berrykin having express a great desire to see the baby, the whole family made a round to Strawberryland, where their beloved baby girl was named Strawberry Milkshake. This event led to new celebrations, and a new gathering of all the Strawberrylanders. There are not many new things I can tell you about them, except that Plum Puddin' and TN Honey had, too, an excellent news to share: they were planning to marry each other, and the ceremony would probably take place within the year. Once more, joy and congratulations filled the Gazebo, and, when the night came, the twin princesses, Emerald and Tourmaline, created a wonderful fireworks thanks to their berry peculiar sparkles.

Berrykin Bloom, who enjoyed nice wording, as usual, quoted once more his favorite poet:

"With Nature never do they wage / A foolish strife; they see / A happy youth, and their old age / Is beautiful and free" *, he said to Berrykin Daniel, his trainee. "May you be as happy in your life as those lovebirds are!"

This story being long enough, I let you, dear reader, imagine how it would end. Will Plum Puddin' and TN Honey make a happy wedding? Will Huckleberry Pie and Blueberry Muffin get marry, one day? Will Orange Blossom extend her fight to the political world? What kind of achievements little Strawberry Milkshake would do?

This time, dear reader, this is up to you to decide.

*William Wordsworth, "The Fountain", Lyrical Ballads.

-This is not fair! Raspberry Torte moaned. "Why goods things always happen to Strawberry Shortcake?"

-Because Strawberry Shortcake is berry nice, much nicer than you, Lemon Meringue sourly replied.

-But me too, I want to have a nice husband and a cute baby, but I'm only the one who does nasty things, Raspberry insisted.

-Please, girls, Blueberry Muffin begged. "I don't want you to have a fight during my birthday…"

-Blueberry's right, Strawberry Shortcake added. "It was just a silly story we invented… to dream a bit and to help Blueberry filling her brand-new notebooks!" *

-I found it rather funny, to invent all the funny things that could happen to us we will grow up, Orange Blossom said.

-Me too, Blueberry Pie agreed. "But I'm glad it's not for real. All things consider… It's much better to be a kid, and not to have to worry about the bill, or other kids to take care of."

Tiny Apple Dumplin', who had fallen asleep during the party because of her young age and the late hour, slightly whined in her sleep. All the girls chuckled, berry discretely, in order to not wake her up.

-Blueberry, I thin you've upset her, Raspberry Torte said to tease her friend.

-Apple knows that taking care of her is never a chore, Strawberry said, smiling. "And, even if I'm not sure about how my future will be, I can tell for sure I would like it anyway if I can live it with all of you!".

*Does it ring a bell? If it doesn't, re-read the prologue.

Strawberry Shortcake slowly woke up. She was half-lying on her sofa and she had quite a stiff neck. Sitting up as fast as her painful body let her do so, Strawberry looked around her. Pupcake and Custard were both sleeping, curled at the foot of the couch, and Apple Dumplin' was quietly drawing, berry careful about not disturbing her big sister's slumber, but when she heard Strawberry moving, she dropped her pencil and stumbled toward her, to get a cuddle.

-Hey, hello, Strawberry said, smiling.

When she stood up to embrace her baby sister, something fell from her knees, and the noise violently woke up Pupcake and Custard, who jumped and rushed under the sofa to hide from this unexpected danger.

-Congrats Strawberry, Custard grumbled. "I almost do a heart attack because of you. Couldn't you be a bit more careful with this stupid book?"

Indeed, it was the book Custard was pointed which had fallen from Strawberry Shortcake's knees and hit the floor so violently.

-I guess I wanted to read some pages of this book before bedtime, but it was so engaging I couldn't help reading it until I fall asleep, Strawberry Shortcake muttered, picking up the book.

The book in itself was The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, a collection of short stories by Washington Irving. After having pick it up, Strawberry quickly browsed it and dwelled on one of the short stories, "Rip Van Winkle". Strawberry smiled. She perfectly remembered reading it before falling asleep. She had been rather impressed by this tale about a man whom only flaw was to be too big-hearted and whom had slept for twenty years after having been tricked by evil spirits. She even remembered she had talked with Apple, Custard and Pupcake about the things she would do if she was twenty-years-old.

-Still reading these stupid fairy tales? Custard moaned. Her brutal awakening had put her into an awful mood and all that she wanted was her breakfast.

-This tale made me have a strange dream, Strawberry Shortcake dreamily said. "I was a lady, and I had to bake cakes with Angel Cake for a party in honor of Raspberry Torte and Lemon Meringue, who were about to leave us for a berry, berry long trip…"

Dear reader, what do you think of the three previous chapters? They aren't quite coherent, are they?

Don't worry, this is perfectly normal.

In fact, if you are reading these lines, it does mean you have been brave enough to read entirely this fanfiction. It means you are particularly patient and persistent… or that you have a lot of time to waste.

Be that as it may, you can now choose which of the three paragraphs above offers the best conclusion to this story.

But you can just as well decide that Strawberry & Co's future cannot be like that, and that I got everything wrong. I won't blame you.

In fact, my humble ambition was to share with you the way Strawberryland could evolve in the future, and not the way it must evolve. I detailed you my story of Strawberry's adulthood during fifty chapters, and nothing prevent you from creating your own story of the Strawberrylanders' future.

However, it has been quite funny to share my silly stories with you and reading your reviews; and seeing you following my work, staying faithful to me even though my long periods of non-attendance, knowing I may have made you laugh by reading my work, are my greatest rewards.

I write these few words in order to thank you all for your support, your kind reviews and your loyalty during the two years I spent writing this fanfiction, which, I admit, tended to be all over the place and certainly contains a lot of omissions and incoherence you nicely forgot to reproach me. When Retro-mania asked me to write this fanfiction for him, about this theme, I neither knew how I would end this story, nor I planned it to be so long. I wrote each chapter, one by one, ignoring until he last moment what I would put in the following one; and I might have realized a little bit too late it had dragged me further than that I expected. Who could have believed it would be so hard to write roman-fleuve with about twenty characters with a personal background for each of them… without any preparation?

I hope you are nevertheless happy with the future I have imagined for each of the characters, and I hadn't distorted them too much.

With these words, I definitively close Strawberry Shortcake and the Great Story of Adulthood. You won't spend more time reading it, and therefore you will have more time to focus on your real life. I wish you to be as happy in it than you want our dear characters to be.

Goodbye!