I bet you all wanna know what Garu was thinking. Or not. Most of the people who have approached me about this think Garu's a total idiot. Well, he's NOT. Did you not read the last chapter?? If you didn't then you are not allowed to continue.................. Stop..................... As in NOW...................... Hey! WHY ARE YOU STILL READING?!?! (And if you, in fact, do know what's going on, please ignore o)

The angry water was black in every direction; there was no light to direct me upward. I couldn't feel a downward pull, a sinking in any direction. The cold water was numbing my arms and legs, as I predicted. I couldn't feel the buffeting of the current so much as I had at first. It was just more of a kind of dizziness now, a helpless spinning in the water. I was happy that it was going to be over soon. This was by far an easier death than the one that I would have eventually had to face. Oddly peaceful, I couldn't even hear anything around me anymore because my ears were flooded with the freezing water. I wouldn't fight, nor would I resist. Why would I when I was so happy where I was?

I would be with her… the only one I would ever call my mother. Even as my lungs burned for more air, I was content. Anxious to finally be with her, happiness made the dying thing pretty bearable. Something hit me, gentle, yet frantic, and it seemed like I was being dragged down deeper into the water. It filled my lungs and the rest of my air supply escaped through my mouth. At that moment, my head broke the surface. How irritating. I was sure that I had been sinking. The current wouldn't let up. It was slamming me against more rocks; they beat against the center of my back, sharply, rhythmically, pushing he water from my lungs. It gushed out in torrents of amazing volume. The salt burned and my lungs burned and my throat was so full of water that it was impossible to take a breath, and the rocks were hurting my back. Somehow, I stayed in one place, though the waves were heaving around me. I no longer thought that they were beautiful and I didn't even have to look at them because I couldn't see anything but water everywhere, reaching for my face.

"Breathe!" a beautiful voice commanded. I felt a cruel stab of pain as I recognized it. I could not obey. The waterfall pouring from my mouth did not stop long enough for me to catch a breath. The icy water filled my burning chest. Pucca pounded on my back again, right between the shoulder blades, and another fountain of water choked its way out of my lungs.

"C'mon Garu, breathe!" she begged. Black spots bloomed across my vision, getting wider and wider, blocking out the light.

She struck me again.

My head whirled as the black spots covered everything. Was I dying again? I didn't like it – this wasn't as good as the last time.

It was only dark now, nothing worth looking at. The sound of the crashing waves faded into the black and became a quiet, even whooshing sound, that sounded like it was coming from the inside of my ears.

"Garu?" Pucca asked, her voice still tense, but not as wild as before. "Garu, c-can you hear me?" the contents of my head swished and rolled around sickeningly, like they had joined the rough water. I realized that I was still. There was no tug of the current on me. The heaving was inside my head. The surface under me was flat and motionless. It felt grainy against my bare arms.

"Garu…" she whispered, still frantic. Hands, so soft they had to be hers, brushed wet hair from my cheeks. The quiet whooshing inside my head was not the waves, but the sound of the air moving in and out of my lungs again. Each breath burned. The passageways were raw, as if I had scrubbed them out with steel wool. But I was breathing. And I was freezing! I tried to open my eyes. It took me a minute, but then I could see Pucca's hopeful face. Her eyes were wet with tears.

"P-Pucca?" I croaked.

"Oh!" she gasped, relief washing over her features. "Oh, Garu! Are you okay? Can you hear me? Do you hurt anywhere?"

"Just my p-pride." I stuttered, my lips quivering. She rolled her eyes and lifted me into her arms.

"Let's get out of the cold. You've got a heck of a lot of explaining to do mister." She glared at me. "And if you don't, you'll find yourself in a mental institute for attempted suicide!" she nagged.

"I h-have a good r-reason." I choked angrily.

"Sure ya do Garu. Ya always do, Garu." she said, nodding her head.

Pucca always was one to take things way too seriously...

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