I do not own anything except my OC's!

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"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."

Lao Tzu

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"…and I've been put in charge of this company. I look forward to serving with you all! Speaking of serving…"

Hiromi stepped closer to her squad leader hesitantly. Her wooden arm was tucked away in her long sleeve, but her flesh hand held tightly to Kiba's, gripping it as her single lifeline.

"I'm scared," she whispered.

The brunette peered down at his girlfriend questionably, "What is there to be afraid of? I don't think Shizune-san is a bad leader."

"No, no, I'm not scared for me. I'm scared that something will…"

The blonde girl looked up at her boyfriend with glimmering blue eyes. Kiba was prepared to retort to her unspoken statement, but his arms were overwhelmed as Hiromi leapt into them, wrapping her arm around him and clutching his jacket.

"Please, don't put yourself in danger! I love you too much!"

The boy paused for a moment before pulling away from her and replied, "Don't worry! Maybe if I kick enough (curse.), I'll become the next Hokage!"

"K-kiba! You shouldn't treat something like war so lightly!"

"I just don't want ya to worry about me, Hiromi," the shinobi grinned wolfishly, "I'm not going to get killed! Not without putting up a hell of a fight!"

The blonde girl with the braid down her back sighed with a smile, "Okay. I trust you, but still… for my sake, don't show up at my squad unless you're there to save me. Promise?"

Kiba leaned down and planted his lips affectionately on the girl's forehead, "I promise."

With another kiss, this time to the lips, the young man departed on the back of his large devoted dog, Akamaru, turning back to salute to his sweetheart in a joking manner, to which Hiromi playfully rearranged her wooden arm to mimic the motion as he set off.

"Hiromi!"

The girl turned, lowering her false arm to her side and met Shizune's friendly eye, "Hello, captain."

The once-secretary chuckled, "O-oh, you don't have to call me that. I'm glad that you're here; the healing ninjutsu Takumi developed has been in real handy."

"Y-yes, I suppose I can be helpful here… I just…"

The taller woman with Tonton wrapped in her arms furrowed her brow questionably, "What's wrong?"

"I… I don't want to see anyone I know on those medical beds," the teen admitted, "I don't think I could handle it."

"You never really do get used to it when they do, but… hopefully, if you have faith, they won't."

The girl pushed her braid back over her shoulder and nodded sweetly to Shizune, saying softly, "Maybe I'll stop shaking soon… Thanks to you."

-:-

To her left was Temari, who requested Kotone stand beside the blonde young woman. On every other side there was a stranger: a man from Konoha, two from Iwagakure, and only one other from Sunagakure. They all spoke in loud tones and harsh voices, but the only person the white-haired damsel focused on was Gaara. He stood tall above the crowds with a powerful gaze that pierced every shinobi.

His words rang true, touching the hearts of the perturbed men and women of the separate villages, and as Kotone listened intently, the crowds began to cheer for the young man with red hair and teal eyes.

"Everyone who's with me, let's go!"

The Kazekage, no, the Commander General of the army's voice was strong and powerful, and as he scanned his excited audience, he noted Kotone who looked clearly back at him with a tilt of her lips that could hardly be classified as a grin, but more importantly, her silvery eyes glittered in the light of Kumogakure, displaying some kind of warm feeling despite the coldness of her appearance.

"Gaara, you're amazing." Temari murmured.

She looked to her side to note Shikamaru's reaction, but found Kotone's more fascinating. Her hands were grasped in front of her and she gawped up at the redhead with fondness. Temari smirked and turned away, being sure to save the information for blackmail or something more beautiful in the future.

In the pure white mind of Amaterasu, she felt at peace. Gaara's words sent ease into her veins like a warm drug of some kind and similarly gave her a dizzy feeling in her chest. She no longer feared for her own life, knowing full well that this young man, this leader of warriors, had promised to protect her if need be. Kotone prayed that she would not be the one to endanger the teen that she held so dearly.

-:-

It was dark in the mirror hallways this time. They were clouded, as though whatever they were reflecting was a grey mass of sky and storm. Maiko stumbled down them not unlike a drunkard, with her left hand clutching her left eye as it dripped ink onto the clear floor. Her tightly wrapped feet made the smallest of noises on the glass-like hall, but when she entered the main chamber, there was no sound at all.

"Yami! Hikari!"

The dark one appeared first, taller and bigger than ever before. Its stature was high and its body was built with armor of some kind with a flowing crimson cape.

"Yami," Maiko uncovered her eye to show the being that it ran down her cheek with little black smudges, "Lend me your power."

"Of course."

As the creature of obsidian poured its being down, the green-haired imp peered around the room curiously. The other statue had dissipated, completely vanished from thin air. There was no evidence of Hikari ever being there.

"Where is your light one?"

Yami did not answer, but continued to pour its black poison down to the floor, strangely creating no puddle, but acting as though it was a cycle of drink. Whatever this world was, Maiko did not understand it more than she understood why Tobi was making her stay for a long time. Perhaps he was saving the best for last? Regardless, she had to be prepared for battle. Thus, she stepped forward and without a single pause, she cupped her hands beneath the fountain and took a gulp of the obsidian solution.

Just as it always has, it burnt her throat all the way down, almost as if it had crystalized inside her esophagus, but unlike before, she did not wish to spit it out, but tolerated the pain by pressing her nails to her palm, causing tiny droplets of blood to hit the mirror floor that was turning blacker with each passing second.

"Is it still…?" Maiko asked, vaguely motioned to her eyes.

"They are perfect, little one. Now, leave me."

The imp crossed her thin arms, "I can see you're not in a good mood."

"LEAVE ME. NOW."

Maiko hissed at Yami threateningly, as if she had any power in this house of mirrors before closing her eyes. She tried to focus hard on where she had been before, and when she remembered she was lying in bed, she opened her black eyes to see the ceiling of her room and sat up, wondering why she had seen a little girl in the room of mirrors, watching her from afar with a scared look.

-:-

His entire body was steely and unbending as he stood on the rugged shelves of rock. Akio had never really liked the ocean ever since the Nishi no Sabaku, but he had a reason to hate it all the more currently. Creatures of white climbed out from underneath the blue waves and the Akivi prepared his hand signs. He hadn't found a way to communicate with the people around him, but he figured hand motions would suffice if need be.

The commander stood at the head of the company, a young man with skin and hair similar to Akio's. The dull-looking leader had given no attention to Akio's silence, simply ordering him where to be.

He wondered where Aiko was, if she was okay, if Kotone was in danger, and if the two women were thinking of him also.

"Everyone, battle positions."

Akio clenched his fists, reaching for the curved knife on his belt. His water-style techniques would have to wait until he was desperate. If he released all of his chakra in the beginning of the battle, then he would be dooming his comrades and himself to an early death.

These white monsters were closing in on the beaches, with faces of malicious intent. They looked prepared to leap at their enemies and crush them between their snake-like jaws.

Commander Darui performed a lightning-style sign and said confidently, "I'll light the fuse. Follow my lead."

"Yes sir!"

A beast of black lightning burst forth from the fighter's chakra like a phoenix, propelling itself forward into the waters and electrocuting with stunning accuracy the front line of enemies. They released howls of agony before collapsing into the depths of water, only to reveal the others, some white enemies mixed with those of more defining features, like the one aiming for Akio, with a cloak of brown and eyes of sinister emerald.

The Akivi held out his blade in a defensive stance, blocking the towering man's hand that had detached from his body by a pair of tentacle-like strings and grabbed at the teen's throat.

"Ngh!"

Performing a sloppy backflip, Akio dodged, but prepared himself for another attack as his enemy stepped forward with a menacing smirk.

"It seems whatever war I am taking part in is one of fierce warriors… I hope you won't bore me," Kakuzu cackled.

Unable to respond, the tan young man simply raised his curved blade with an unwavering glower.

So, this is what war is.

The once-immortal cackled, "I see you are either mute or stupid. Perhaps I will give you true silence… Death!"

I cannot fail here.

Kakuzu charged with killer intent, meeting the gleaming ocean eyes of Akio, who took a shaky breath before pushing the Akatsuki away with his blade. Hurriedly, he placed the hilt into his mouth, freeing his hands, before performing the water-style signs needed.

I will not fail here! For Aiko and for Kotone.

With little to no hestitance, the young man knelt down and shoved his hands to the ground. Usually, earth-style was his sister's preference, but he had a trick up his sleeve…

Suiton, water fang bullet!

Using the liquid buried beneath the surface of the dirt, Akio pulled the compact drink and using his hands in a swirling gesture, adding the spinning motion of the water. It burst from the crust of mud and hit its target precisely.

As if to say, "There is more to come," the Akivi pointed to his enemy, who had staggered from his previous attack.

Kakuzu cackled, "I see this battle won't be too boring after all."

-:-

Whoever this Kitsuchi was, he worked brilliantly with his daughter. They both had created some sort of volcano-formation that spat out the enemies that were shuffling underground. That was all according to Hinata, at least.

"Y-you're Kotone's friend, right?" The shy girl had murmured during the beginnings of their travel to their station.

Aiko paused to try and locate the teen with sound before responding, "Yes, I am. She and I… grew up together."

"I remember you… From when we threw the party for Kotone."

"Oh, yes, I remember!" The Akivi laughed nostalgically, "The food was very delicious."

"T-thank you… Um… I hate to pry, but… you're blind, yes?"

Hinata was shocked at how the disabled teen was so quick to follow orders, though she had no vision. She traveled at the same pace as Neji, but swifter and more lithely. Watching her tan body contort as she leapt from branch to branch to reach her destination was not unlike watching a cat of some sort.

"Yes, I am," Aiko replied, "Unfortunately, my eyes were taken from me a long while ago. But I am still quite able to defend myself."

"O-of course! I wasn't trying to…"

The woman with the white braid chuckled, "It's alright. I understand. You're too kind, Hinata-san."

"It's no problem… Just tell me if you need assistance."

So here she was, with her hands pressed to the ground with the Akivi symbol created using her fingers. From every angle, sound pressed against her ears, but Aiko persevered. Shouting, talking, whispering, and yelling: it all transferred, yet she still managed to barely dodge the white Zetsu clones that swiped at her bronzed flesh.

"Come and get me you groundhogs!"

Her confidence and endless smiles leaked ease onto her comrades as they watched her dance across the battlefield with a certain air about her poise that gave Kitsuchi the understanding that the teen, in reality, took the skirmish utterly seriously.

"Ah," Aiko slipped playfully out of the range of a raging Zetsu, "Nice try!"

With slender fingers, she swiped across the earth, dirtying her palm, and following this movement, the ground shook and created a dome-like container around hundreds of Zetsus.

"Doton! Earthquake jutsu, magnitude 8!"

The vault of terrain closed its door with a slam before the rumbling inside began. The innards of the mechanism stayed intact before crumbling, crushing the bodies within.

Animatedly, the Akivi girl pumped her fist into the air, "Alright! Onto the next group!"

Her heart was aflame with hope, and she refused to back down. Aiko loved her family, and she wasn't going to let them down, for the life of her.

-:-

Kotone threw her body rearward into a backbend, the three fingers of her enemy narrowly missing her abdomen. This man, this previous Raikage had been put into a mindless state of violence, lashing out expertly at all of those around. The white-haired girl narrowly escaped with her vest intact.

Drawing her pale katana, the Konoha shinobi drenched it in her chakra before slashing down and creating a gale of fatal accuracy. The gust slammed into the Raikage, who stood in place as his dead skin was torn to shreds and tossed up into the air.

"Keep at it, Kotone!" Temari insisted, "We'll support you from behind!"

"Affirmative."

With another slice from her blade, Kotone sent the lifeless Raikage backwards once again. Feeling the oncoming wind release jutsu behind her, she forced her chakra to her feet, leaping backwards in an elegant arch, landing with a whoosh of sand beside Temari.

The rushed attack surged forward like a wild beast, slamming into the Raikage with tremendous force. Flakes of his false skin scattered and rustled in the air before hissing as it swished back into place.

"At the present time, this man… he is invincible," Kotone held her blade defensively, poised in front of her, but spoke freely with the blonde Sungakure shinobi.

A nearby man with a strange patch over his eye commented at this point with a serious expression, "Even more than his speed and power, The Third was known for his astonishing endurance. Your strongest wind attacks are still nothing to him. I propose you find a stronger wind user."

Temari frowned, "Well, I'd say Kotone and I are quite skilled. How did this man die anyways?"

"He sacrificed himself for his retreating army, using himself as a decoy against thousands of enemies. After three days and nights, he finally collapsed."

The white-haired teen lowered her blade with a sense of hopelessness, "Temari-san is correct. We are two of the most skilled wind users… I do not believe anyone could surpass us besides…"

"ME!"

Like the hero he was destined to be, Naruto always appeared at the right time. His bright colors, seemingly aflame with chakra from the beast inside, glared in the desert sun, but he shot a jutsu at the dumbfounded Raikage, creating a massive explosion of dust and sand.

While it was something Kotone was ashamed to admit, Naruto could dominate even the best in their own element, due to his unwavering passion and determination.

-:-

"Are you leaving now?"

Her black sleeves hung past her hands, allowing her skeleton figure to take on an inhuman appearance. Her obsidian eyes glowered into the Uchiha's new Sharingan, decorated with crimson.

"Tobi wouldn't like that," she declaimed, as if there were an audience.

Sasuke glared in return, "Don't try and stop me."

"And why the (curse.) would I do that? I don't care enough about you to even advise you about what I saw…"

"What you saw…?"

The girl swung her arms behind her back in a childish manner before leaning against a dark wall with ease.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," Maiko hissed, "Let's keep it that way."

After a hesitant moment when Sasuke lingered in the medium between the entrance and the basement that was the entirety of the base, the imp shrieked shrilly.

"GO AWAY!"

So, he turned his back to her and bid farewell to the nuisance that was the broken and shriveled human that was once Maiko Arakawa.

-:-

Kotone gripped the wound on her side, hissing in pain at the sizzling skin, caused by the lightning attack used by the Raikage. She had allowed some shinobi to escape from his range, but had in turn made herself the center of the shinobi's attention. Luckily, she escaped with only a burnt side and a new gaping hole in her vest.

Naruto had successfully sealed the Raikage, but there was still the Mizukage, so she couldn't linger long with her wounds. Taking a deep breath, Kotone lifted her hand to see the damage. The once white skin was marred with a scar that was not unlike a red tree with many branches reaching across her belly.

"That's a pretty harsh lightning scar… Here," a medical ninja from Sunagakure knelt down, placing a cool hand on her skin, "Let me help."

Amaterasu nodded hesitantly and yelped in surprise at the soothing chakra slithering through her wound. After relaxing, she peered down with moonstone orbs to see that the scars were become lighter and were even dispersing in some places.

"It's the best I can do, so get back out there as soon as you can!"

"Of course."

The teen stood, pulling down her blue-black shirt to moderately cover the injury before rushing to where she felt the most gathering of chakra, or rather, Gaara's chakra. Though he had promised to protect her, Kotone knew that she also had to fight for him.

"Gaara!"

The Kazekage was above the ground, tired and bruised with an expression of willpower. The pyramid of sand in front of him was perfect besides the Mizukage's smug head sticking out from the top, accompanied by a clone with an expression of senselessness.

"If you can't beat me now that means you're weaker than me dead!" the lifeless man exclaimed.

Kotone stopped in her pursuit as the heavy clone leapt down towards the group of shinobi. Unsure of its power, she looked up at Gaara questioningly. His eyes were scanning the crowd in a calculating manner until his teal orbs landed on the white hair of the teen he admired. She was in the midst of the battle and there were only seconds until the explosion.

"It's gunna explode!" Someone yelled, shoving past the girl with the tied hair.

Another unknown person grabbed Kotone's arm and began pulling her, saying, "Get away, quick!"

"But-!" Amaterasu turned her head to glance back, "Gaara!"

The blast resounded throughout the desert plain and the kunoichi was prepared to be sent a few yards away, but was instead rained upon from the sand shield, bits of the grain dipping into her collar.

"This…. Is his sand shield," she murmured.

The man beside Kotone cried out, "The Kazekage saved us!"

"But where is Gaara?"

The white-haired girl instantaneously set to work with her wind style chakra and blew a decent sized hole in the shield, leaping through with a concerned frown. Had he been harmed when he took the risk and defended the entire squad from the explosion?

On the other side, a sand clone had been swiped off the map by the Mizukage's ninjutsu, but the massive body of water and oil had landed nearby Gaara's true hiding place.

"As I thought! The real you was hiding on the ground. What do you do now, Kazekage? It's going to explode again!"

I can't just sit off to the side and wait; I'll help!

"The speed of your sand can't keep up with it, so how will you…"

Kotone drew her blade, gathering chakra in its pale steel before slicing diagonally at the oil clone that was preparing to launch itself.

"Allow me to assist."

The gale created by the power worked against the Mizukage's double, causing its enormous body to stumble. At this point, Gaara threw his hand forward, wrapping the explosive copy with the surprisingly quick sand that he controlled. It confined the beast well, even as it detonated in the contained area.

As the sand crumbled off, Amaterasu moved towards the Kazekage, keeping her blade unsheathed, though she knew the battle was over. The clone had turned to solid gold, and the audience watching from the hole in the shield Kotone had created gaped in awe.

"It stopped the…?" The restrained Mizukage gasped.

Gaara gestured towards the golden copy and spoke, "I hid some gold dust in my sand clone earlier, and it melted due to the heat of that thing. Gold is twenty times heavier than water, thus slowing its movements."

"But then why did it not explode?"

"The sand made cold by the hail was enough to chill it. And gold is a good heat conductor and helped cool the steam," as if to prove his point, the redhead placed a single hand on the crumbling formation of sand.

The Mizukage said something else about the gold, but before Gaara could truly respond, Naruto appeared from nowhere, landing between his friend and Kotone, who stepped backwards to prepare.

"Gaara! You okay?" He asked.

"Are you?"

"We sealed the Raikage, but since I saw the explosion I came over as fast as I could."

As he spoke, the blonde noticed the pale figure of Amaterasu, who carefully retracted her katana.

"You're alright, too, Kotone? You look burnt."

Sighing, the girl reached down to the area where the Raikage's lightning jutsu had struck her, giving it a cautious touch, "This is nothing. I'll be fine."

Naruto let her be, his attention quickly focusing on the Mizukage, for some reason automatically presuming that the sand that encompassed him was the man's body.

"What's with this guy's body?!"

Gaara responded maturely, "That's actually my justu…"

"Unlike you, Kazekage," The Mizukage snorted, "This guy is kind of a dork."

As an afterthought, looking at the two jinchuriki together, he added, "You make a good team."

"Really?" With that, the sand traveled up and enclosed the dead man in his new coffin, sealing him permanently.

There was a short period of silence as the army seemed to wait for another attack, but hesitantly they began to rest.

"Contact HQ and tell them the situation," Gaara advised.

Kotone had lifted her shirt to attend more carefully to her wound, dabbing it gently with water and ointment from another unknown shinobi.

"You fought well against the other kages! We're going to win this!"

"Leave the injured to the medical team; whoever can move, stay here and await orders from HQ."

The Kazekage sat down beside the maiden with milky eyes; there was a younger kunoichi healing him, green chakra radiating from her fingertips. Near her, Kotone felt quite useless so she simply turned her face away from the two. She checked her wound periodically as if the more she was to check it, the quicker the area would mend itself.

"Kotone."

Unhurriedly, the teen glanced at the teal eyes burning holes into her back. The Kazekage had seen her injury and was eyeing it worriedly. There were many issues that needed his attention, and all of them were direr than a burnt soldier. Personally, Kotone was more worried about her friend's state of fatigue, so she decided to reassure him.

Hearteningly, she explained, "It is not nearly as painful as it seems."

Gaara frowned at this response and stared at her questionably. Then, he reached forward, and laid his fingertips on the kunoichi's damaged skin, the hot fingers freezing her solid. A shiver of agony ran up her spine and she released an involuntary hiss of discomfort.

"I lied," she admitted bluntly, "but this ointment is soothing the sting. I refuse to waste the time of one of the medical squad members when someone else may need their dire attention."

The redhead paused to conjure a response before saying, "You're quite humble, which is a refreshing quality, but please do not attempt to diminish your worth. You are nonpareil."

"Thank you, Gaara. You, too, are irreplaceable, for this war and…"

Kotone paused before turning rotating to face the Kazekage. His major scrapes had been washed away by the smaller medical ninja's chakra and his countenance was restored.

"To me, as a companion."

Feeling a bit out of place and awkward, the medical ninja had fled, leaving the two to converse with slight smiles gracing their expressions.

"I see that you've nearly surpassed Temari in regards to the Wind Style."

"Genuinely, I have much to learn from your sister, and even Naruto."

The blonde boy was standing nearby speaking with some of the other shinobi in a friendly manner. A sincere grin was plastered on his face and he laughed an authentic laugh alongside his friends.

Gaara followed the hero's movements with sympathetic eyes, "I believe we all have something to learn from Naruto."

Kotone opened her mouth to respond, but another voice resounded in the area.

"Wh-what's that?! Over there!"

Every soldier scrambled to their feet, panic filling the air as they realized the man standing upon the hill of sand was the Tsuchikage who had previously been sealed.

"Even in that state, he was able to split…" commented the current Tsuchikage.

Slowly and surely, another dark figure approached, his body enclosed in crimson armor. Fear crept upon the crowd like a Black Widow, crawling out from her hiding place beneath the earth.

"There's someone else!"

His eyes were pure obsidian, obscuring all except for the swirls of blood inside of his pupils, representing his Uchiha heritage. Hair as black as night flowed behind his ominous build like foreboding fog.

Kotone had moderately educated herself on the history of Sasuke's family heritage after meeting him for the first time in Konohagakure. All records had been laid out before her lifeless eyes and she absorbed the secrets dripping with blood like a sponge.

"Uchiha Madara."

The accursed name slipped off her velvety lips like a malicious plague. His undead body was cracked and peeling, but the minority of his age was presented before the army that was his enemy.

She took a hesitant step forward, for she knew the battle was to be brutal and soon, but Gaara put an arm out to stop her.

"What's going on?!" Naruto cried.

"Do you not see his eyes, Uzumaki?" Kotone clarified, "For one to have them they must have been resurrected using Orochimaru's technique. And the given behind that is that Uchiha Madara must've already been dead."

Temari stepped forward from behind the other ranks with a confused and angry voice, "Hold on! We received information telling us that Uchiha Madara is heading towards the Jinchuuriki."

The elder Tsuchikage soberly grimaced, "If that is true, then the man we've taken as Madara has been somehow else."

"That is quite possible," Gaara commented.

"You've had a lot of experience with the Akatsuki, Tsuchikage-sama!" Temari fretted, "don't you have any ideas?"

The elder man sighed, "I'm afraid I don't, but such a thing isn't important right now! The goal has not changed; we must stop the enemy!"

Silence fell over the squad as they prepared themselves for the two undead shinobi to lash out. They seemed to be talking amongst themselves, with Madara looking less than pleased with a furrowed brow and crossed arms.

To think that with those hands, he ended thousands of lives…

"Kotone, have no fear."

A snow white ponytail danced to the side as the teen spun to face Gaara, who had laid a hand on her shoulder. She had not realized it, but the hand gripping her blade trembled in anxiety as she remembered the power of the man she was about to face.

"Remember what I promised to you," his youthful and inspiring tone lulled Amaterasu to a steady stance, "I will protect if need be."

"I owe you so much, my dearest friend. I do not know why it is that you guard me so."

Her expression was ill, and though life had entered her skin many years ago, her face was pale and white.

"Because I care for you."

Kotone's brows furrowed together and her mouth was agape in shock. She had surely heard the same words from Hiromi and the twins, specifically Akio, but the weight they carried varied from each person. The heaviest load seemed to be carried by Gaara's statement. She felt his hesitance in saying so, but Amaterasu felt she was the only one who could not understand those five words. From Hiromi, they meant they were best friends, and from Aiko and Akio, they meant they were family. She had already decided Gaara was more than a best friend and the bond that she shared with the twins was nothing like the one she shared with the Kazekage.

"Wait-!"

The shinobi had already acted, leaving her side and beginning the battle between man and evil. The sand charged at Madara, who deliberately leapt out of range and onto the battlefield. Fearing that there was no time, Kotone drew her blade. If they won this war, she would have plenty of time to mull over Gaara's words.

-:-

A/N: Hello, everyone! It sure has been a while! Sorry for taking so long, but this chapter will hopefully suffice until the next, and let's just say that the extra Kotone x Gaara in here is for all of you ;) Thanks for being so patient! I think Kotone is finally realizing that maybe Gaara is a love interest she didn't quite realize before? Maybe? Sasuke will soon be interacting with her as well so stay tuned c:

Btw, I will be skipping 'Thanks to..'s because I don't feel like typing it all out :) I want to go ahead and get started on the next chapter, so thank you all for reading and possibly reviewing and or following and favoriting!