A/N - There are some changes on the previous chapter, so you better check that out first. Enjoy! :)

Chapter 10 – Reconciliation I (Cousins)

"Alright, we're here," Zrix said as we enter Cephalon Haven, a cafe that me and my cousins came across once before, about a week before we have to go away from Turf Wars and gone to Karaga, a town in Lapunia where I grew up. It's a very nice place, with nice traditional and classic atmosphere surrounding the place, and very chill music, and also has a very nice menu of cuisines that came from Yangtze, Lapunia, and Seoul. It doesn't have many customer though, which can be nice so that there won't too much noise for everyone to relax.

"Cephalon Haven, huh? Nice choice," I commented. It's good to be back in this cafe again. I could use some of their Frappe and some Curry again.

"Yep, you could say I have... nice tastes, am I right?" He winked after he said the terrible pun.

"I've heard that numerous times before, be more creative with your puns," I said, fake unamused. I've heard that pun too many times, but my insides are laughing internally thanks to that pun. Took me half of my strength to stifle and stop myself from laughing.

"Ok, well, sadly, I'm too hungry to tell any more puns, so we frappe-bobly need to curry on and order some food foam the counter over there," Oh my cod... My stomach hurts from holding in my laughter and probably from a little bit of hunger. Those puns are so damn bad it hurts.

"...ok, I'll go order, you'll find a table," He said with a chuckle as he goes to the counter with an empty line. Aww man, even if not too much people is nice, I wish this cafe can have more customers so that it would help this small cafe to expand its business. Oh, well, time to find a table.

But before I can even find a table set for us to occupy, Zrix walks back to me, and asked, "What's your order, by the way? Don't wanna go blindly ordering somethin' for ya' that you wouldn't like."

"You already said what I like to order, though," I answered, hinting about those terrible puns that he made earlier.

"Oh... Frappe and Curry?"

"Mmhm..."

"Oh, damn, I didn't know my puns already had the answer..."

"You just knew!?" I'm baffled, he didn't even know... "I thought you've read my mind or something. That was your own joke as well, how could you not know?"

"Ehh, I don't know either," Zrix then cracks up laughing, "Oh man, ok, well, I guess I fr-"

"No reusing of puns that has been made like a minute ago!"

"Ok ok, fine, I'll go back to the counter!" And then he scurries away back to the counter going to order our food. Sheesh, that guy is really something... which always happens...

I better find a table now.

Later...

"Ok, here it is, back with the orders," Zrix said as he approaches the booth that I occupied with a tray of our orders; Curry, spoon and fork, a Caramel Frappe, a cup of Anemonian coffee, and a glazed donut. Wow, he goes full Anemonian up on here today. (Anemonian stereotype not intended, please don't take it too seriously.)

"Really, huh? That's the most Anemonian thing that anyone could've ordered, Zrix," Again, no offensive Anemonian stereotype joke is intended. Seriously...

"Why not? I just like the combination," he then puts down the tray to the table of the booth as he sat down at the opposite side of me, "It's not like it'll offend people from Anemonia if they knew about it."

"We don't talk about any of that here, y'know."

"Yeah, heh," His lips formed a small smirk, "Heh, I guess we donut really talk about that here of-ten," He then take the L-shaped number stand from the tray and rotated it towards me, showing the number ten that indicates the table number.

... Anak ng tinapa, The one from the counter as well? Oh my, my cheeks is already in pain trying to hold back my laughter and from cringing so hard. I don't know why I keep laughing at Zrix's dumb puns, but my mind always finds a way to make me laugh at his jokes.

"Ohhh, look whose cheeks are turnin' reel-y puffy and blue now, LyKa bloated puffer fish," AAARGH! I can't hold back my laughter anymore, as I slam my face into my arms that are placed on the table, muffling my laughter. Screw you, too, Zrix...

"Heh, fish jokes and name puns; good combination indeed, heheh," Zrix said, proud of his puns. I couldn't do anything because I couldn't stop laughing! Argh, my stomach

A few moments later of me laughing, I raise my head up, panting and letting out chuckles at the same time, "Geez... ok, sto-hahap. My stomach and cheeks couldn't take anymore... Hehe...he... Phew..."

"Heheh, you done, sweethea-" I lightly punch his lips to halt him from calling me sweetheart again.

"I already told you; stop calling me sweetheart, Fishbones," Fishbones... A nickname I used to call him days after I became friends with the punny dude, and it became a nickname that he embraced ever since that. Even some of my friends calls him that sometimes.

"Heh," Zrix then gently pushes my hand away, "I already told; I couldn't resist."

"Hmph, whatever," I grabbed my Frappe from the tray along with the curry I ordered, as well as the set of spoon and fork. Time to eat...

"... Eiy, Kyla..." Zrix called out to me, albeit with a different tone that I couldn't recognize easily, something that I rarely heard from him, "About the Duel..."

My spoon didn't even get to scoop a spoonful of the curry, as my attention is brought back to Zrix, "What about it? Other than the crazy things that happened during the Duel, that is..."

He didn't answer immediately, instead, he took a deep breath, before he continued, "Y'know about the guy, the rookie with big guts and balls of steel that fought during the Duel? The one that I told you."

"Mhmm..."

"Well, what would you do if you meet him in person? He would like to meet you," Meet me, huh? I don't know who's this guy is, but if I ever met him in person or maybe in battle, I would probably thank him in person, whoever he is, and if by chance, maybe we could be friends and hangout with my cousins and with Tarã's team, Rising Tsunami...

"... I can't say for sure..." I answered as I scratch my jaw, "I would maybe thank him for... I don't know; defending me from whatever Yudius has to say? If I ever get the chance to, that is, since there is a very thick crowd of battlers here in Inkopolis. There may be an unlikely chance that I would meet him either inside or outside of Turf Wars."

"Those are really big maybes, Kyla. Here's a question, though; what if I say that I know that guy personally and I'm also a friend of his, will you believe me?"

He's a friend of this guy? Now I'm getting a little curious now, "Wait, are you? Wow, must've been a great thing to be friends with such a powerful battler like him."

"Of course, we've been friends before this Duel even started. He's a rather chill lad if you ask me."

"Must've been extremely great, huh?"

"Ya' bet it is. Maybe some time, I will introduce you to him."

"Heh... I would like to," Before my curiosity could get the hold of me, I started to eat my curry, spending the rest of my lunch with Zrix in Cephalon Haven.

Kael, after everyone left the room to give the two cousins some privacy, managed to calm him an agitated and shocked Serõ down, and made him sit down one of the chairs that he brought upstairs, and the one that Raei left behind for Serõ . After he calms him down, they had a little conversation, in which Serõ tells Kael about his, Tarã, and Kyla's struggle to cope ever since he allegedly disappeared with Kyro without any traces left to hint and indicate where they have gone to.

Until, a familiar face and an unfamiliar one came into the room…

While the two cousins talks about Serõ's struggles, Yhavin, the 3rd Elite of the LEF, and an Inkling Girl with Orange Tentacle Hair with Purple Tips and light pink eyes, while wearing a Squidvader Cap, Navy Stripped LS, and Orange Arrows, with an Aerospray PG on her hip. Huh, he didn't expect that Serõ would bring Yhavin along with him…

The 3rd asked what's going on after he saw Tarã on the bed, laying there unconscious. Being a medic he is, he quickly walks to on the left side of her bed and checks up on her condition to see what's wrong. Kael told him about what happened a few minutes earlier in the Lobby, and about the truth of his disappearance. The two had a small talk until Kael had to request for him and his friend to go to the living room at the moment. He understands his request as he leaves the room along with the Inkling friend who is apparently called "Leora", before the two cousins continue on telling their sides of the story during Kael's two and a half years of absence.

"All of us didn't take the news very well; some even went so far searching for you two, but…" His expression looked more saddened than earlier, "…no luck. With every search leads to nothing, and with every search failed, the harder it is to try and cope through the pain and anxiety of you and Tito Kyro missing."

This made Kael to look down slightly at the ground, who couldn't feel even more regretful about the whole 'disappearance' thing, "I'm sorry, Serõ. I know how hard it is to live through the past two years without me."

"I know… I tried to ease myself after you disappeared, and I have to keep in check of Kyla. None of us really took it easily…

"…especially her," He points at his sister, who is still unconscious in her squid form, "She have donned on a side where she is calm and collected, while trying to comfort Kyla and be always be there for her. That side of her is genuine of course, because she cares for Kyla a lot, but… it is also a façade that she masked herself with to hide the anguish and sorrow stirring inside her. When she is out of sight of Kyla, other relatives, and our parents, her true… feelings will always show.

"She became… bitter, and slightly resentful of you, for leaving us behind without saying any goodbyes, and leaving without anything to tell where you are. She is especially mad at you for making Kyla fall to a deep depression that lasted for months, and four days of not leaving her room. Tarã really changed that day, and not in a good way…"

"I can only imagine…" A terrifying image came in to his mind of how Tarã could've changed during those two years. Egh, not a very good thought to come into mind… He wished he could've been there for her, Serõ, and Kyla, but does he have any choice? His father just predicated an attack that could cost him his life and maybe his family or even the village if he did stay in Karaga. He doesn't know which is worse; leave your home and lose a father that you love so much, or stay and lose a home and maybe even the family that you cared for? He hoped that he will never answer that question again, and never again in a million years…

Serõ continued, "You wouldn't believe how I also struggle to keep her from completely changing into a sullen and bitter squid with a tendency to… be silently disdainful whenever she hears about you or Tito Kyro."

"So you're basically an emotional anchor to her those years, huh?"

"That was supposed to be your job, cuz," Cuz, He hasn't been called by that abbreviation ever since he left. His ears felt weird to the sound of it, "Actually, it's more like… a line of emotional anchors, if you know what I mean. I'm the one that keeps Tarã in check, while I and Tarã are the ones to accompany Kyla during your absence and to keep her from being too depressed."

"I don't think I wanna know how much you struggled hard for to keep her that way…"

"Trust me… you don't… it's too difficult to tell you with words…" And there, the two cousins let the silence take over once again, as both of them gaze to the unconscious Tarã . No words can describe what they are feeling right now, as emotions are starting stir in them like color mixing with another. But with every second passes by, an unwanted and bland color came into the mix and Serõ slowly feels slivers of tension creeping into him, trying into making him to ask something, do something, or tell something. This is a feeling he doesn't want to feel right now.

Another few seconds has passed, Serõ can't take it anymore as the tension he felt has almost taken over him. He then took up the courage to speak to him after a prolonged silence, "H-Hey, Kael…" Kael then turn around to him, with the same blank, yet somewhat still expressive facial expression that he wore ever since he got into the house, "… can you p-please tell me… tell me the answer to the questions we've been asking ourselves for far too long now…"

Instead of answering him, he went silent, as if he knew what he will ask, but he nodded anyways, letting him ask away the question, "… How did you guys really… vanish? Where have you and Tito Kyro disappeared to? Why…? There are so many questions in mind, I… I can't tell them all…"

Questions… There are so much to tell him about where he have been and what have he been doing for the past two years and a half, which he had conflictions if it's alright to tell them. Well, Serõ is one of Kael's closest family members in his life, along with Kyla, Tarã , his parents and his uncles and aunts, but… is all the pain he went through and endures for two years are worth telling him and Tarã ; physically and mentally; literally and figuratively? He doesn't know exactly if it is worth telling.

He didn't immediately answer the question, as he looks back to Tarã . He is against not telling, but he doesn't feel like telling either. So instead of giving him the answer he was waiting for, he said, "Not yet, Serõ… at least, not now," This made Serõ to raise an eyebrow and change his expression into confusion, "Let's… wait 'till she wakes up. Partly because I don't wanna bother saying it again, but mostly because it'll be much easier for me to explain to the both of if you both are conscious. I won't have to deal on going through the hell I've been through…"

…the hell he has been through? This only added more questions than answers, but Serõ didn't bother asking him, as he immediately was silenced again, both cousins then looked back again to the unconscious Tarã .

Looks like Serõ is going to wait again before he could get his definite answer later…

Back in the Living Room…

After they left the room give the family some privacy, they went back to the living room, where they wait for Tarã to wake up, and talk to Trix, a potentially new member of the group of friends, who somehow got caught up to this predicament by accident, and to Yhavin and his team, Maverinks (Trix slightly fangirls when she met them, but she was immediately calmed down by Yhavin within a few seconds). Trix is quite a talkative too, in Rodhann and Yeran's delight, as they continue to share their stories before and during the Duel.

"So, where were you during the time of the Duel, Trix?" Yeran asked her curiously, "I believe that the Duel was broadcasted throughout every TV networks that are in Inkopolis. Are you at the Square or are you somewhere at home or somewhere that has any TV to watch in?"

"I was at my friend- Pharrah's home that time," Trix answered, "We we're doing the usual; talking, surfing through the SplatNet, all those stuff, until her little brother called us to come and see whatever he is watching. That's when I knew he was watching the Duel."

"Damn, little kids also watches 'ze Duel, too?" Verique said, as he silently cursed in Lichten, "Sheez, should've known 'zat…"

"Wait, you didn't thought of little kids will be watching as well?" Yeran looked at him incredulously, "I thought you have thought all of that through when you were broadcasting the Duel to the whole Inkopolis! How forgetful can you get!?"

"L-Look, I'm sorry, ok? I was in a hurry while doing the broadcasting the Duel ok, I have not time things through, even if I will just broadcast the Duel anyways, little kids there or not..."

"Umm, you two," Raei called out for both of the friends, with a raised eyebrow, "I think you two broke someone…" He then pointed at Trix, making the two friends look at her, who is frozen stiff, eyes widened, and mouth is slightly agape. Well, look who is about to catch fly…

"Y-You guys are the o-one who broadcasted th-the Duel?!" Trix asked… somewhat melodramatically, with weird hand gestures flying all over the place, and her expression is quite comical, "N-No way! I thought that the Squid Sisters', ehh… producers, or whatever they are who broadcast the news through those big screens in the Tower, broadcasted the battle!"

"It's true, the two squids over there are the ones who brought the Duel to the Billboard and TV Screens, and thanks to them that the Duel landed in the hall of fame of Inkopolis within a few days," Yhavin answered and explained it for her, so that it could be much more convincing and more believable, "Well, the Squid Sisters' cameramen and staff helped as well, to say the least,

"Holy… crud…"

"Yep, it's us who helped Kthulhu put that squirtshite down to the prison!" Yeran said with pride, as she lightly pounds her chest.

"We take our 'vwork seriously and 'vwith great pride," Verique added. It must've took a while and careful planning to get the job right, but all of those effort he made to build the plan, execute the plan, and complete it must be worth it.

And what happens next… well, let's just say, Trix is in Fangirl Mode; She's been letting out words came out of her mouth in excitement in such a rapid rate; the others couldn't even understand what she's saying. Others find it amusing, while Mika is still awestruck about the discovery that her friends and fellow team members are the ones responsible for the Duel broadcasting. She can't imagine how difficult it is to do all the work to put the Duel live in secret and without getting caught by Yudius. It is a private match after all...

In the next few minutes, the Living Room suddenly became… lively, a big contrast to what is happening upstairs. Raei somewhat felt wrong about this feeling while Kael and his cousins are upstairs, having a bittersweet reunion after years of not seeing each other. It must've been hard to deal with such times without each other for that long; then again, he doesn't know exactly that feeling because he and Theo are always together ever since they were born and they are rarely separated for each other, and if they did, it'll only be very brief, so he can't really assume anything about that.

Huh, I can only hope that everything will be fine up that room…

Two minutes has passed, and Tarã hasn't woken up yet. This worries both of the conscious cousins, thinking that she would wake up after three minutes of fainting. Then again, she has been unconscious for at least eleven minutes or so. Usually, when she faints like that, Kael and Serõ as to wait for at least three minutes for her to wake up, but it has already pass said minutes, and she hasn't even woke up or make a slight movement. At this point, both cousins are now assuming that she has suffered a more serious and severe case of syncope, which is the last thing they needed right now and is something that doesn't usually happens.

Kael thought it have been due to the fact that she hadn't fainted for the last two and a half years of his absence, and it might've got worse by the emotions that had overwhelmed her during the scene in the Lobby, resulting to her fainting this long. If she still hasn't recovered from the syncope, they might have to go and find a hospital to heal her.

… that is, until her squid form slightly twitches.

Kael's eyes slightly open up in an instant as he her squid form moved in the slightest of motion, but he soon closed it just as fast. A second later, she started to groan in a disoriented and slurred up tone. She's definitely about to wake up, alright.

"She's about to wake up!" Serõ said quietly, quickly noticing the ever so small movements and slightly audible groan. Kael could only nod as a response and continues to wait for Tarã to finally wake up, preparing himself to get hit probably by another powerful slap of emotion once again…

Ugh… my head… my body… feels so numb…

Everything was pitch black… I can't see anything… It's so damn dark…

I started to slowly open my eyes, as the numbness of my body started to ever so slowly dissipate. When it completely disappeared, I could feel that I am in my squid form, and the first thing I saw as I open my eyes is a cloudy and blurry light purple-ish blue color. Ever so slowly and with every time I blink my eyes, my vision is started to clear up at the same pace, revealing the same color before my vision started to clear, but more darker, and a lot more blue and less purple.

Indigo… the color of my ceiling…

… I'm at my house… lying on my bed in my room in squid form.

My head started to pulsate a little, and due to that, I couldn't open my eyes completely, and my vision started to get cloudy ever so slightly again. I started to repeatedly blink, and blink, blink, and blink again until my vision started to clear again. The time my vision completely clears up again, the first thing- no, first person that I see is an Inkling that has five green short, slicked back tentacle hair on the front, and a tied up tentacle hair, a common style of most male Inklings and pretty uncommon to female Inklings, sitting on a chair. He wore a worried expression on his face and his hands are slightly fidgeting.

Serõ… My brother…

"B-Bro…?" I groggily called him.

"Tarã ! Thank goodness, you're finally awake and alright!" He said as he sighs in relief, as well as his expression instantly changes from worried to relief, "You worried us right there, sis."

With my headache gone, I turned back to my Inkling form, with my whole body could feel the cozy warmth of the blanket wrapped around my body except for my head. I sat straight up as the blanket slides down to my hip level, my right hand is clutching to the right temple. My head still hurts and I have no idea what happened to me… must've fainted while I was in the Lobby, "Am I…?"

"Yeah, you're in your room, safe and sound," My brother answered in a reassuring tone. I don't really feel safe and sound when my head hurts and my body feels a little jelly after waking up.

"…wait…us?" I noticed. Who is he talking about just now?

"Oh… eh, uhmm…" Serõ's expression immediately morphed back from relief into anxious, "Y-You see, ehm…" He then adjusted his position and moved slightly to his right with his chair, revealing another Inkling with long, red tentacles and closed eyes, wearing a Red-Check Shirt, Safari Hat that is hanging behind his neck, and barefooted, with his hands are on the pockets of his shorts that reaches below his knees.

Kael… So it wasn't really a dream after all…

Just by looking at him, flashbacks from the past begin to quickly flood into my memory lane, as well as so many emotions churning inside me. "Yo," I could feel my heart dropped with the sound; Yo… the very word that I always hear from him, that I haven't heard since he left; now my heart started to ache because of it.

Before I got quickly and completely overwhelmed by my own emotions, I quickly looked away from my cousin and to the other side of my bed, looking away from the person who reminded me of how much Kyla has suffered of her loneliness and depression during the years of her brother's absence.

As the silence sets in, I could feel the already tense atmosphere of the room gets tenser with every second passes by us. I… just can't look directly at his closed eyes without me feeling so… emotional, without the getting the urge to cry and breakdown in front of him, or without even getting the urge to slap him on the face again, but my hand felt a little hurt and tired after slapping him the first time. He has one hard and resilient cheek…

I don't know what to do or what to say in this kind of situation; I've becoming so hesitant to face him because of how I… treated him after we met at last; I slapped him, berated him, yelled at him… Things like that, not knowing that maybe he's been dealing with his own struggles as well during those two years. But what can I do? I almost always get out of control whenever I get so emotional. I just hope he is not too angry about it…

"Hey, Tarã ," Kael's deep, monotone voice started, breaking the silence, but gave my heart started to beat even faster. This tension is really getting into me very quickly, "Look, uhm, cuz', I'm… sorry, ok? I know that you, Serõ, and Kyla have… been through some tough shite during those years of my absence, and I'm sorry for not being there for the three of you."

You have no idea, Kael, My eyes started to water as he tries to apologise, and my emotions are getting mixed up again, "If you knew about that… then you would've been there with us in a heartbeat, with no hesitation," I manage to say, "Instead… you just left us hanging by a single thread and disappear so suddenly without any trace of where you and Tito Kyro have gone to."

"… I know…"

"Then why…?" I adjusted my head slightly towards Kael, looking at him at the corner of my left eye, who is now very close to the side of the bed, "How and why did you disappear?"

"…" He became silent again after the question; the question that we've asking ourselves lately.

"…we've been trying to search for your whereabouts for damn years… e-everything leads to nothing… no clues, no traces, no everything… it only leads to nothing… we've trying hard to do things and cope while you're gone, but… it's not the same anymore… everything felt… different, difficult, and depressing, even if we got the best of moments and best of video games…" My eyes started to let out the tears that I am trying to suppress, no longer able to hold it back, "… i-it didn't gave us the same spark when we were kids… when you were there with us… when we were still complete, all of us f-four…"

Flashbacks came into my mind again; all of those times we play those old console games, watching movies that either good or bad together, go and play outdoors, and do some random shite together. Now, I felt that my emotions are starting to grow out of control again…

"… good 'ol days, huh?"

"… y-yeah…" I agreed through the tears that are rapidly flowing from my cheeks, "…the good 'ol gold days of old…" And there I fell silent again. There is… nothing more to say. If I ever dared to question him or ask him regarding to my disappearance and I don't get an answer that would really explain things, my emotions will instantly burst like a failed chemical science experiment and things will get disastrous fast.

Kael only took a brief moment of silence, though, "Hey, now, Tarã . I'll say it again; I'm sorry… to you, and Serõ, who hasn't moved an inch or even utter a word for a good five minutes over in that corner," I then saw him point a finger to Serõ's direction, which made me slowly glance at the way he's pointing at.

The time Serõ got into my sights, he looked like he got into someone else's situation and he has no idea how to react to it, with his eyes goes back and forth from Kael and me, and his cheeks are a little green and puffy than normal. His fingers are now rapidly fidgeting in nervousness. That is probably the most accurate description that I can give you.

"Uhmm… I-I'm starting t-to feel a little awkward here b-between you two, so… u-uhh…"

"You two still are a stuttering mess…" Kael joked as he cleared his throat and looked back at me, who formed a really small smile that is almost subtle, "Anyway, now I somehow made you look at me once again, I… have to say it again, because I wasn't really finished the first time because I made that damn joke- anyway," He once again cleared his throat. I couldn't help, but let out a small and quiet chuckle, because Kael too looked really awkward about this whole thing, as if he doesn't know how to deal with this kind of a really awkward family reunion.

"… Again, Tarã ; I'm really sorry about having to… disappear, as you may call it. I know how difficult it is trying to… cope and live during the past two and a half years without me. I… don't have much of choice… I had to leave that time…" Leave…? What… does he mean…? "And… I have so much to tell during those five yea-" I didn't let him finish, as I hug him tightly without warning nor hesitation, laying my head on the shoulders of his really warm and really giant hoodie.

A hug… a hug that I really wanted to give Kael after all of those years of his absence, finally finding out the comfort and joy that my arms are now holding onto for my dear life. Even with all of the emotions that I have previously felt is still here on my chest, I'm starting to feel happiness; the happiness that I have when I was a little squid before Kael suddenly disappears, in which this happiness almost felt absent, and was replaced with bitterness and resentment. Now, they're all… gone, and it was replaced by the emotions that I had back then.

"K-Kael…" I said through my tears that are now flowing down to his hoodie as I lift my head up a little, "It has b-been too long… two and a half years w-without you… two and a half years of loneliness and sadness we have to endure… you may have left us for that long, but n-now you're here with us… I… I…" I couldn't finish my own sentence, as I bury my face once again on to his hoodie and there, I started to sob on his shoulders.

I could feel warm and comforting arms of my cousin wrap around me; one around my waist and the other one strokes softly the back of my head, "Yeah… It's been two and a half rough years for the both of us and it's good to finally see my adorable cousins again…"

I couldn't stop crying again, and I couldn't stop sobbing on his shoulders, "I-I… I-I missed you Kael… We missed you…! I-I'm… I'm so glad… that you're finally back… Kael…"

"… I missed you all two…"

A few seconds passes, even through my tears and sobs, , I could hear a faint sniff from my left ear, "Damn… I'm feeling so awkward and out-of-place…" Serõ 's said, who sounded real sad.

"Who said you are? Come here, ye' shy squid clam!" Then, Kael pulled his arm away from wrist, and I could feel him leaning a bit, and then I hear floor scratches, if that's what they are called, and I could hear Sero letting out a "Whoa!" before I feel another arm wrap around me on my back, and then on my waist. I could feel the awkwardness of this hug, but I don't freakin' care.

"T-This is so awkward, Kael!" Sero complained.

"Look who's talking awkward, Sero."

And there, for the first time in years, the two of them started to banter and the three of us shared our laughters, just like the old times of our younger ages. I and my brother have finally both reunited with the cousin we thought have disappeared for so long, and now, I could finally sigh out relief, as I could now feel the true happiness that I have once felt before, removing the negative emotions that almost changed me, giving me a new hope that this happiness I'm feeling right now will last long for a thousand years.

A/N - And that;'s a wrap! The Reunion and Reconcilation with the Cousins have complete! Now all its left is his sister, Kyla Yun Zhao, whom Kael is really anxious to meet again after those long years the both siblings have to endure. Will he ever succeed on overcoming the fear of meeting his sister? (yes, he can be quite the pussy sometimes) Welp, I dunno, really, but we may find out in the next few chapters of the story!

Finally! I'm feckin' done! What a relief! It ain't yet over though, as there will be moments after this that will include not only the cousins, but with the three teams as well; The Masquidteers, the Rising Tsunami, and the Maverinks, because why the heck not? :D

This chapter, like the previous one, took way too long because of the many excuses I could think of but I'll go with being lazy and shet again, and primarily because of how hard it is to wirte that damn scene. it is so damn satisfying when I finished it. Also, again, I had change some of the details from the previous chapter. I hope this is worth the wait. :D This chapter will definitely get the top spot of being the most difficult chapter to write!

Anyway, if you want to get updated on the story progression, be sure to follow this story! If you like the story, press that heart button and favourite the story! And let me know what you think about this story by leaving a review for this story! Thank you for reading the chapter and the story, and I'll see you guys, in the next chapter!