Final Chapter: Tomorrow Always Shines

On the day following the defeat of Gravitus Kairi had a much easier time getting up out of her bed than she ever could remember. She performed her daily morning routine of making the bed, getting dressed, and walking to her window to be greeted by the daylight.

"Hrrmm, mmmphh..." She was still a little drowsy though, but the sun's light lent a helpful hand to burn away the last bits of nightly grime from her eyes.

After following up with her hands rubbing the grime off, she peered out onto the streets and her pupils turned thin as pin tips in an instant. There were a few dozen Aurians crowded outside of her house and staring right up into her window.

Their gaze was emotionless and honestly kind of creepy. As she looked around there were even more Aurians surrounding the rest of the house. If their front door wasn't fit for just one person entry at a time, this crowd would've likely flooded in at any given moment.

With her heart racing Kairi silently pulled her curtains shut and turned around to throw her back against the window and slide to the ground. She then laid a hand on her thumping chest and muttered "W-What in the world?"

Hurrying downstairs she found Mew and her mother were at the breakfast table talking over a couple plates of scrambled eggs.

"So that's when I told Gravitus 'You were the instrument of your own demise Damascus!' Man, you should've seen the look on his face then!" Mew exposited cheerfully to his silent, nodding audience of one.

Kairi ran to the doorframe, caught her hands on the door, and leaned in with a heavy, worried pant. Mew turned left and said in a smarmy tone, "What's up Kairi, had a bad dream?"

"Not funny Mew!" She hastily spat out before nudging back and remarking, "Have neither of you looked outside this morning?! We're surrounded!"

"Huh?" Mew took his plate with him and ate it clean by the time he got to the living room window. He leaned in and squinted his eyes, seeing exactly what Kairi had seen.

"Oh wow that's a lot of people," Mew said nonchalantly, "...Any chance this is a community fitness march?"

Kairi shook her head and crossed her arms under her chest to say in a dour tone, "No I don't think it is."

"Hmmm..." Mew stood up and sounded a little perturbed as he mentioned the possibility that, "Maybe my plan didn't work after all?"

"Your...plan?" Kairi said with her head tilted.

Mew waved a hand up from his chest and replied, "Yeah, I wanted to make sure Gravitus' true nature was exposed before I killed him. Buuuuut I guess that didn't take with the rest of Sancturia..."

"I...don't think that's the problem," Kairi pointed out, "Everyone gave a bit of their power to attack Gravitus. Without their help I...I never would've gotten the Neo Drive."

"So then what's the deal?" Mew shrugged his shoulders and was in dire need of an answer, "Cause this is lookin' like Lynch Mob Ver. 2.0."

"You killed the man whom everyone and their ancestors saw as their leader for at least two-thousand years..." Auris slowly approached the two and calmly contextualized the crowd's feelings, "They are simply confused and want answers, and to their best of knowledge you two are the only ones who know what happened."

She then flashed a brief smile Mew's way and asked him, "So I hope you weren't planning on running home already..."

Mew leaned his head back and let out a very long and arduous sigh, "Noooo no...I gotta see this through to the end."

"But how?" Kairi remarked as she looked at both her mother and her friend, "Everyone in Sancturia is going to want to know the truth. Are we just going to...go aaaaaall around the city to answer their questions a group at a time?"

Mew swung his head right up and snapped his fingers beside his head as he proclaimed, "I got it!"

"You do?" Auris and Kairi both said, expressing similarly leery tones.

"Yep! I know how we can get the word out all in one go!" Mew sneered with a mischievous chuckle, "And I know just the guy for the job."

Meanwhile...

"Brrrr..." Bobby clutched his arms against his body and shivered all over.

"What's wrong mister?" One of the kids in his care at summer school whispered.

"N-Nothing..." Bobby murmured, "I...I just got this bad feeling that-"

Mew suddenly kicked the door open and all the kids scrambled behind Bobby with a frightened whimper. Bobby hung his head and let out a groan of, "...I knew it."

Mew then plopped his foot down, crossed his arms and proclaimed in a super jolly tone, "Bobby my man! I got one more job for ya!"

"Haaaa..." Bobby grumbled and pinched his temples hard, "Alright, alright, what is it?"

A few minutes later, Mew, Kairi, Auris, Gabriel and Bobby were in front of the damaged Pyramid. Mew had created a stage complete with a podium and a ton of Aurians had gathered around it. Afterwards Mew pulled Bobby off to the side and went over the plan.

"So Kairi and I are going to explain what happened, while you stand by and use your Bounce Drive to broadcast our message across the city. Sound good?" Mew gave a smile and thumbs-up to the tired tutor.

"Great. I've become a loudspeaker. Mother would be so proud..." Bobby whispered sardonically as he approached the side of the podium.

Mew walked on over to Kairi. She was staring out into the crowd with wobbly eyes and muttering, "T-There's so many of them..."

"Cold feet Kairi?" Mew remarked in his cool as ice tone.

Kairi nudged her head his way and slowly nodded. Mew then perked up a smile and proclaimed, "Then allow me to go first!"

He then went straight for the podium and planted his hands on the sides. He cued Bobby and the guy reluctantly tapped his Drive. After preparing himself with a cough, Mew let his lovely voice be broadcast across all of the city.

"Yo! How's it going everyone?!" He was met with absolute silence. With a click of the tongue he murmured, "Ooof, tough crowd."

He then coughed again, louder this time, and tried to be a little more respectful to the people's time and patience, "So I imagine a lot of you are wondering 'What the HELL happened yesterday', yeah?"

He got a few nods, a couple glares, and one guy impatiently shouting "Get on with it already!"

"Ahem! Right..." Mew tightly wrapped his fingers around the sides of the podium and thought to himself, "I'm really not built for this..."

Nevertheless he stared out into the crowd and told them the truth, "Well I hate to tell you all this, but your leader was a megalomaniac asshole. So we had to kill him."

This delicate answer got a bunch of eyes popping wide open but Mew kept running his mouth, "Also, formal apology to anyone whose homes got flipped turned upside-down in the battle. I swear, I tried to keep the damage to a minimum, but-"

"We don't wanna hear it from you!"

"Get that girl on the podium!"

"Yeah! Yeah!" The crowd's opinions were made abundantly clear by their unified cheer. Mew stared, blankly blinking at them until he suddenly zipped right off the podium and over to Kairi.

"Welp! Looks like you're up!" He proclaimed with a hand on her shoulder.

"I-I'm not ready yet!" She remarked as Mew got behind her and gave her a gentle shove on the back.

"You'll do fine! Just give 'em your best!" Mew pumped his fist her way and she slowly edged herself onto the podium. Nervously gripping the sides, she stared out into the judgmental crowd and let out a tiny gulp.

They were preying on her weariness with their eyes, waiting for her to slip up and say something that they didn't want to hear. But if there was one consolation to all this, it was that what they wanted was the easiest thing to provide – the truth, the honest truth.

"Well?" Someone in the crowd hollered, "What do you have to say for yourself?!"

Kairi lowered her head slightly and remembered how often these people had harassed her, hurt her, demeaned her. She wasn't ready to forgive them, not yet, but at the same time...

"If they hated me that much, then why...why would they help?" It brought Kairi back to what Mew had said about the good in people's hearts. She raised her head to the crowd and murmured to herself, "Give them a second chance..."

And from there it was easy to figure out what she had to do. She looked to her innermost strength, and found her voice.

"I'm sorry!" She yelled as truthfully as her heart would allow, "There was so many people I've hurt these last two years...It doesn't matter who did or did not deserve it, violence was never the answer."

She then propped her bracelet onto the podium for all to see and pointed at the Neo Drive. Not as if that radiant stone needed the extra attention.

"Yes, I killed Gravitus! Yes, it was out of anger and revenge! But I never intended to ruin anyone's lives. And I don't intend on replacing him as a leader! I may have the Neo Drive but...but that's just not the right role for me. Instead, I...I want to use this power to help people. So if anyone I've wronged needs my help, I'll gladly do what I can to make things right!"

As she caught her breath there were a lot of whispers and murmurs, but no concrete replies to Kairi's offer. Kairi couldn't help but feel a little relieved by that.

But at the end of the day there was really just one major question on most everyone's minds, "What are we supposed to do now?!"

"Our leader's dead!"

"How will we survive?!"

Kairi froze up as too many concerns were being thrown her way all at once. Auris thus stepped up, put her hand on the back of her daughter's, and gently gestured her off the podium.

"You did fine dear, but leave this one to me."

"Are you sure mom?" Kairi mumbled, knowing what her mother's reputation was like.

Auris silently propped herself up before the crowd, gave them a smile, and softened them up with a bit of self-deprecating humor, "I hope none of you mind if a witch has her time in the sun?"

The crowd quieted down and their gazes turned mostly to scorn. Auris defied their hatred to say all that she needed to.

"Nothing has to change now that Gravitus is dead. We'll still be able to keep the benefits of his rule maintained, of that I can assure you. But if there's anything you'd want to be changed, then the power to choose is now in your hands. That is all."

Auris left the podium as quickly as she had arrived, leaving her younger company in awe of how well spoken she had been.

"W-Wow..." Kairi murmured with her mouth agape.

Auris went over to Gabriel as he leaned back against the air and had his eyes closed in thought. Auris then turned to the crowd and watched as some of them approached the stage to speak to Kairi.

"Leaving the people to govern themselves is probably the best idea..." Gabriel opened his eyes and murmured in a worried manner, "But I fear this could lead to a new Ten Sages."

"If it does, then we will help guide them back in the right direction," She turned slightly to smile at Gabriel, "Though I have a feeling that won't be necessary."

He smiled back and retorted, "Yes. I wish to believe the future is in good hands now."

They looked at Mew and Kairi and remained neutral observers for the events going forward. A lot of people, primarily Kairi's fellow classmates, came up to apologize for how they had acted. She personally apologized back, growing less nervous about it as time went on.

There were some who couldn't come up, their disdain unable to die. A few people also bothered Mew with questions about his involvement. A couple girls even tried to hit on him, but Kairi angrily shoo'd them off.

After a couple exhausting hours the crowds were thinned and life continued on as normal. Mew wanted to help with repairs but Gabriel insisted on leaving it to him and the other Planetary Aurians. So with no other loose ends to tie up, Mew jollily followed the Auroras back to their house one more time.

"Whew, I thought that'd never end!" Mew stretched his arms overhead and laughed aloud, "Haha, how do Presidential candidates put up with that for so long?"

Kairi appeared to be zoning out and so Mew casually patted her on the back. She jumped slightly while he told her, "See? What did I tell you? You did great!"

"S-Speak for yourself, there were so many times where I felt like I was going to faint..." Kairi pressed the back of her hand up to her forehead and wobbled her lips.

"I'll get you a glass of water dear." Auris said as she walked on by.

"Thanks mom..." Kairi murmured with a weak smile.

Mew took a couple steps past her, crossed his arms, and grunted with a firm nod of the head. He then looked up at the ceiling, confusing Kairi.

She looked away from him and began to stammer, "S-So what are you going to do now Mew?"

"Hmm, dats a good question..." He pivoted around in place and made some loud-ish grunts for what was ultimately a very simple answer, "I guess I'll go home now!"

Kairi looked at him in mild shock and replied, "R-Really?"

"Gravitus' dead, world's saved, Sancturia's calming down..." Mew cracked a huge grin, "All in all I got a lot done this week! And I think that's earned me a nice nap at home!"

"But do you have to go right now?" Kairi hastily blurted out, baffled by the simplicity of his response.

"Well geez Kairi..." Mew smirked and tapped away at the side of his head, "Its not like I'm leaving forever. Sancturia's just a quick flight away! I'll be back often to check how you're doing cause...that's what friends do right?"

"Right..." Kairi murmured back.

Mew then plopped a hand on her shoulder and she stiffened up. He put on a brimming smile and remarked, "Anyways, catch ya later Kairi!"

The next thing she knew he was walking past her and heading out the door. She was left with a heart pumping a little too fast, and a red flush in her cheeks. She clutched her fist up to her chest and grunted in irritation towards herself.

"Now I know why the caged bird sings." Auris hummed upon delivering her daughter her glass of water.

Kairi fluttered her eyelashes as she cupped the glass in both hands, then stared at her reflection solemnly in the water.

"Go after him." Auris whispered. Kairi jerked her head up and saw her mom's serene smiling face.

"Nothing good ever comes from keeping your feelings locked up. Even though that boy's hopelessly thick in the noggin, I'm sure he'll pick up on it eventually," She then put both her hands on her daughter's shoulders and said, "The sky's the limit. Its up to you to choose what to do with that freedom."

Kairi glanced at herself in the water one more time. She then narrowed her eyes, looked up at her mom, and asked, "Are you sure? What about-"

"We'll have plenty of time to worry about Shina later. Just give a couple days to yourself and him. Please?"

"...Ok mom," Kairi put the water down on a near end table then, freed from her mom's grip, kissed her on the cheek and said, "I'll be back soon!"

Then she scurried out the door after Mew. And Auris, left alone, tightly held her hands together before her waist and murmured, "Very, very soon..."

It didn't take long for Kairi to catch up to Mew on the south side of Sancturia. He was whistling along his merry way with his hands behind his head until she yelled "Mew!" Then he stopped and turned to watch her brake to a stop in front of him.

"What's up? Did you forget something?" He said in his casual manner of speaking and grinned.

Kairi took a second to catch her breath and then lifted her head to look up at Mew's face. That big, goofy smile. His airy personality...

"I-Is this really what I want to do?" Kairi found herself asking, and from this reluctance bred a hasty answer, "I-I want to be with you!"

She immediately pinched her lips shut and let out a shrill "Eep!" while Mew tilted his head and replied in a humored tone, "You...mean you want to come with me back to Earth?"

"Y-Yes! Exactly!" Kairi looked away and stroked the side of her hair, flaunting a rather meek smile as she dryly laughed at her mistake.

"Hehehe," Mew laughed back and squeezed his eyes shut to tease her a little, "But I thought it was against the rules to leave Sancturia until you're 20?"

"Ugh! Who cares! Do you want me or not?!" She exclaimed, her cheeks reddening a little as she hastily corrected herself, "T-To come with you, that is!"

"Yeah sure I don't mind but...Don't you have things to do around here?"

"School's out and to be perfectly honest..." Kairi had the words on the tip of her tongue but wound up swallowing them and replacing them with something else, "I-I'd rather spend that time...t-t-training with you some more."

"Oh?" Mew perked his eyes open and grinned from cheek-to-cheek.

"I mean, just because I'm stronger than you now doesn't mean that I don't have anything left to learn...A-And..."

Mew put his hand up towards her face and quietly told her, "Lemme stop you right there."

Kairi looked him straight in the eyes and saw that he had a serious expression. "Does he know?" Is what she immediately thought, and that made her tense up a little in worry.

Mew folded his arms back up to his chest and raised his head up high to state bluntly, "You've gotten stronger, but I'm still definitely the stronger one between us!"

"W-Wha..." Kairi's body tensed up in anger and she swung her fists down to exclaim at the top of her lungs, "What?!"

"What, its true." Mew replied softly.

"Oh I'm sorry, remind me again just WHO killed Gravitus?!" Kairi wasn't taking any of Mew's bullshit this time around.

"I would've had him if he hadn't threatened the planet! And besides, I weakened him for you." Mew's tone was coming across as him expecting instant gratification but instead he just got the yells that he deserved.

"Bull-SHIT! He was at full strength when I fought him! I knew you were bad at math but I didn't think that extended to power levels!"

"What? My math's totally on point for this one!" Mew confidently declared.

"Oh. Really?"

"Yeah! Me + Darkness = Greater Than The Neo Drive. Its simple addition!"

Kairi summoned her staff and swung at his head. He ducked under it and slid coolly to the right. Kairi's face was steaming red and she waggled her staff at him while saying, "I'm going to add some lumps to your head! Get back here!"

Mew hopped back towards the edge of the city grinning like a dope while asking, "Why are you so mad?!"

"Why don't you figure it out before I bash your skull in you dick!" Kairi missed twice and Mew hung his heels over the edge of the city.

He then flicked his hands up and said with a smile, "Well be careful where you hit! I wanna be in top form when we go on our date!"

"UGH!" Kairi clutched her staff tightly and yelled at the top of her lungs, "Who'd ever go on a date with you?!"

"Good point..." Mew started falling out of Sancturia while shrugging his shoulders, "I don't even know what a date is!"

As he floated out of sight Kairi growled like a hungry lion then leaped out of the city to fly after him. The two danced around, him dodging her striking, all the while he laughed while she yelled, "Get back here Mew! This isn't over! MEW!"

But for as mad as she was this was all in good fun. And once the two had their fill of going at each other they'd return to Mew's house and enjoy a little peace and quiet...For however long that may last...

CLASH OF THE ELEMENTS PART 5 (r): THE LOVER FROM THE LAST AURA...

THE END.