A/N: Well, as promised, here we are at the end of the fic… (Cry) I have to admit, I loved writing this fic, I'm going to miss it so much… But! I really love this first scene of the Epilogue (it's my favourite in the entire thing, I think)…And the Second… The third is okay, I guess. Please, for the final time, enjoy!
Disclaimer: I have not gained anything in fifteen chapters, folks.
Epilogue- An Organisation
"It would be you. You're the only one who would do this to me."
"Stop being so dramatic." Amane complained, from behind him somewhere, in front of the kitchen's blackened walls. "You can't go around with it all different lengths!"
"Who's fault was that?!" Ryou pointed out, annoyed.
"I said sorry. I wasn't exactly used to having claws." Amane replied, irritably. "Now, stop complaining, you big pansy, or you're getting a crew cut!"
"I'll be good!" Ryou declared, throwing his hands up in surrender and let his sister cut his hair, left uneven by her claws, to look more normal. Inside, he mourned the loss of his locks.
"All done." Amane announced at length. "I think it looks kinda good like that." She decided, as he turned to face her.
"It feels odd…" Ryou answered, running his hands through his now short hair as Amane began to sweep up. It was as thick and fluffy as ever on the top, just a fraction of the length, now what Amane considered to be a 'normal' haircut, just to the nape of his neck. It felt very light and weird.
"It looks great." Amane assured him, pushing him in the direction of the bathroom and the flat's only mirror. "Go see for yourself." She cleaned up the last of the hair, and not a moment too soon, as it was then that the doorbell rang. She frowned, having not been expecting anyone, but then smiled as she opened the door to reveal Joey and Serenity.
"What are you guys doing here?" She asked, pleasantly surprised.
"We come bearing brushes." Serenity said, holding up several. "And rollers." She added, holding up a carrier bag in her other hand.
"And paint." Joey added, grinning, holding the two cans. "Word got around that your place got a little blackened but you couldn't afford any paint right now. Yugi and the others should be showing up pretty soon."
"You…" Amane stammered, touched by this gesture. "You guys rock!" She said, happily, throwing her arms around Joey, who rapidly went more red, and then released him.
"Well, you helped us with our flat, and Téa's, and the Game Shop. It's only fair we return the favour." Serenity pointed out. "Not to mention… everything else that's been happening."
"Ah."
Joey looked back and forth between the two, confused, but before he could say anything, Ryou emerged from the bathroom.
"Well, roll me over in the clover!" He yelled, shocked. "Um… I have no idea where that came from, but… but… your hair! My entire reality has been altered!"
"That's it." Ryou answered, grumpily, having only ventured out at all because he'd quite liked it after all. "I'm going back in the bathroom."
"Well, I think it looks good." Serenity told him, smiling. It really did suit him, having it cut shorter. He looked a little older, a little stronger, a little more masculine… With that, she cut her thought pattern off. He smiled back at her, and it melted her heart even more then usual.
"Oh, great." Amane sighed, unceremoniously dumping a roller into Ryou's arms. "If you two could perhaps turn your attention to some wall space instead of each other…"
Ryou chocked and spluttered, while Serenity blushed, causing their respective siblings to laugh.
"Well, better you then Duke or Tristan." Joey said cheerily, slapping Ryou amiably on the shoulder. "Though I have to admit, I was a little surprised to be walking home to see you two canoodling on the roof!"
"Please be quiet…" Ryou groaned, wishing he could sink into the ground in embarrassment.
"Hey, I'm proud of you." Amane said, wrapping an arm reassuringly around his shoulder. "Although, you know, I'm hoping you didn't use tongues. Because, you know, before you've even taken her on one date, that's just wrong."
"Now you're overdoing it." Ryou said tolerantly, although still gut wrenchingly embarrassed. "Especially as you only spotted us because you were 'canoodling' with Joey in the alleyway that runs down the side of the flats!"
Now the situations of chocking and laughing reversed, and, although slightly embarrassed, Joey took it all in his stride.
"Well, as you already know…" He said, grinning sheepishly. "That means I can give in and canoodle your sister right here."
"Joey!" Amane protested, giggling, as he pulled her in close; but she stopped protesting and allowed him to bring his lips down close to hers- before Serenity pushed a paint brush in between them and Joey got a mouth full of bristles.
"Sorry, but that, I do not need to see. Again." She chuckled. "Now then. If you two could perhaps turn your attention to some wall space instead of each other…"
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I can't believe I kissed her. Don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly glad I did, and I have to say I found very enjoyable, but I can't believe I did it. It's so… unlike me. But then, I suppose we were talking about moving on in our lives; and you don't act, you never get anywhere- You stay stationary in the same rut you were always in. You have to move along to get out of it. You have to push against your limitations, spur yourself on, and sometimes get a little help from those around you, to get to where you want to be. Sometimes, you don't even know where that is until you get there. I never did. But I knew, standing on that rooftop, 'canoodling' as my friends so frequently put it, that I had moved on, been pulled out of my rut, and that I was where I wanted to be, even as I continue to move away from where I used to be. It's been a hard time, and I don't know if it will get any easier, but with people like this, I'm sure it will get better.
I'm glad I moved.
I'm even happier that she moved with me.
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And so, ladies and gentleman, we arrive at the end of another chapter in an old woman's memoirs. This was a turning point for all of us. Serenity had a wonderful effect on my brother, drawing him out of his shell, helping to believe in himself and his abilities. I daresay that he loved her very much.
As for Joey and I, well, I have to admit that I was never happier then I was in those teenage years I spent with him. Despite everything that came next, all the things we had to go through before any of us could get any peace, he was always there with that same stupid goofy smile on his face. My moronic sweetheart, as his dad called him. He always said to me that he was very glad I'd chosen his son, which I suppose was a compliment. After that stay in hospital at the time of the Pyromaniac's fires, he gradually got better, and became as good a friend and father to Joey and I as anyone could ask. Of course, my own father was still nowhere to be found, but that's another story entirely.
I am not trying to deceive you, my readers, the remaining pages of this book will not be filled with an old woman's ramblings; though it sounds as though we all lived happily ever after. At the time, that is what we thought to. A few days later, however, we got a visit from one Seto Kaiba- master duellist, master business man, and an amazingly powerful telekinetic. This was before the days when our very own Téa would have such a positive effect on him, and so, in his usual gruff manner of the time, he told us what he was willing to do. He had taken out the Trust Master, and did not want to be bothered by them again. As such, he gave us a warehouse and the equipment to fill it. A new Trust was formed, an organisation of heroes that wanted to help without charging, where we could meet and train in secret- we called ourselves The Revolt, (Which sounds like a rock and roll band, but we were young) but never really had time to grow to a huge size before the day came when we had to close the doors forever. Back in those early days, if Seto was the money and the brains behind the organisation, Penelope, anxious to help, was the eyes and ears; and we were the heart. In these cynical days where Masquerade and we that stood with him are all but dead and buried and forgotten, I salute you, reader, for following our lives this far. If you can believe in those tall tales of Magic, Millennium Items, and the Shadows, read on. This book, I shall once again reiterate, is all as true as gravity pulling downwards. From here, our lives got harder and darker and much more difficult to live through. So please, hesitate on this page as I do, and dwell in the months of happiness we enjoyed when the world was almost right. Our lives would have been perfect, were it not for the fact that Jay was still in his poor soulless state; and the fact Ryou and I believed our parents to be dead. If we had decided not to address these things, I have no doubt we would not have had to push through such dark times. So, now, just as we did, you have a choice. Stay here and enjoy the happiest days I had; or let curiosity get the better of you and turn the page.
Because, unlike a book, time cannot stand still. As Ryou so often observed following that evening we saw him 'canoodling' on the rooftop, everyone has to keep moving on. The only way out of a rut is to climb. The only way to get anywhere is to walk. And the only way to get through the dark times is to remember the light before it and the light that must surely follow after; just as the Earth moves on endlessly on a cycle through night and through day.
From 'Behind the Mask', the memoirs of Amane Lauren Bakura; later proved to be the last surviving member of The Revolt.
-The End-
A/N: And there we have it, chaps. All done… I'm so emotional… (Ahem) So, our stats. The fic totalled 202 pages exactly, (Excluding A/Ns), had 116211 words, in 3377 paragraphs. The fandom was, of course, Yu-Gi-Oh, which belongs to Kazuki Takahasi. In case I haven't introduced myself, I've been Waffles4eva. I'd like to thank Dragonlady222 for her constant reviewing, but also the 'silent' readers- who I can only assume read because this story is on their alerts- Algeera, Asfet Mau, Eressie, Ryou VeRua, SalanTrong, Setoglomper, dark-anime-lover, dragonwings64, it walks alone, qualityand my good pal- scooby2408. Hope you guys all enjoyed to:D
Guess what, folks? I get to do some rhetorical questions- because that was even more blatantly opened up for a sequel then Pirates of the Caribbean II. And who doesn't love Pirates of the Caribbean? Anyways- Will Jay ever be revived? What new, and old, heroes will show up? What causes superpowers? When the hero needs saving, who can step up? Those left alive. More action, more comedy, more romance, more angst-y moral conundrums, and more trouble coming in A Superhero Story II- The Shadows…
Okay, so, yes, I'd like to write an SHS II. Heck, I'd start it today if I wouldn't feel guilty about the sequel to 'Wherever you Go' all that time ago. Yup, that's what's next- Fall or Fly, where we rejoin the cast to find them all grown up and married with families; and having plenty of mid-life crisis's. (I'm fairly sure that should be crisisi, but Word won't accept it. Meh). And it's not just the parents. The kids are having enough problems of their own- a Wheeler and a Kaiba should not fall for each other. (I know, it's been way overdone, but everyone has to do it once XD) Not to mention Maya's struggles to find out why her mother, Anna Kaiba, is such an enigma. I'm sorry, kids, but that's all the info I can give you at the moment- but I do have plenty of funny, heart wrenching, cringe worthy, and every other type of moments lied up for our cast. I hope to start it pretty early in the New Year.
As for SHS II, I think it's going to turn up… probably about this time next year, because of these wonderful things called GCSEs, combined with a 'write something original itch' I'm dying to satisfy. It's a pathetically long time, isn't it? (Sweatdrop) My apologies… It may be sooner, as I'm hoping to keep Fall or Fly quite short. But never mind all that…
Let me just say a HUGE thanks to anyone who's read this far, I hope you've enjoyed it, and, of course- MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR:D