I Wish

Chapter 8: Conclusion

Mai Tokiha awoke in the back seat of her rental vehicle, two and half hours outside of Fuka. The Fujino family employee, Mr. Takahashi, had been surprisingly polite considering that he had been forced into driving the redhead back to Kyoto. Mai apologized profusely for any inconvenience she may have caused him, but he waved off her apology. Apparently he was quite used to Shizuru Fujino's antics, and this wasn't the first time he had been put into a compromising sitution due to his bosses' daughter.

When he first started working for the Fujino family, Shizuru had only been 10 years old. One of his first assignments was to accompany the young girl to a department store to purchase new school supplies. Normally, Shizuru had a personal shopper do all of the supply-related errands for her. However, for some reason, that particular year the crimson eyed girl had insisted she be allowed to make her clothing and supply decisions. Apparently, the young girl had suddenly grown tired of the frilly dresses and bows that had previously been selected for her and wanted to expand her wardrobe.

Mr. Takahashi had been given strict instructions to only buy items necessary to clothe the girl and anything she may need for her studies. It was not to be a pleasure trip, but of course trying to convince a 10 year old of this was like talking to a brick wall. Inevitably, Shizuru had become fixated on something that didn't meet the criteria dictated by her mother and father. His young charge was adamant that Mr. Takahashi buy for her a small porcelain figurine of an adorable wolf puppy playing with a baby snake. He had been sorely tempted to buy it for Shizuru, for she had been charming even then, but he didn't want to bring on the wrath of his new employers and had firmly refused the little girl's request.

Thinking the matter was over, Mr. Takahashi had purchased the clothing and supplies the girl had picked out and led his young charge from the store. However, without his knowledge, Shizuru had slipped the small figurine into his coat pocket, and when they passed through the entry doors the security alarms were tripped. The duo had immediately been confronted by security staff, and when the crimson eyed girl had mentioned that Mr. Takahashi was not related to her and she did not want to be there with him, he had been taken in for questioning on suspicion of kidnapping, in addition to the shoplifting charge.

Once Shizuru's parents had been contacted, the whole incident was cleared up. However, Mr. Takahashi had been so embarrassed to have caused the Fujino family such shame that he submitted his resignation the very next day. Mr. and Mrs. Fujino had protested, stating that this incident hadn't been his fault, but he insisted that he was not worthy to work for such a respected family.

Mr. Takahashi explained that he had almost made it to the front gate of the Fujino property when little Shizuru had come running down the driveway. The small girl had been crying and apologized to Mr. Takahashi for getting him into trouble. She had really wanted the figurine, and she hadn't realized that the store had security like that. Dragging the man back to house, she begged him to stay on, and with tears in her eyes had asked her parents to rehire him. Not wanting to let him go in the first place, they had of course agreed. The assistant had a soft spot for crying children and so had also agreed to return to work for the family, though Shizuru had to promise to be a good girl from then on. With a firm nod of her head, the girl with the teary crimson eyes insisted she wouldn't get the man into any more trouble.

Shizuru had managed to keep her promise for about a month, though by then he had come to realize that the Fujino family did not shame easily, and he didn't feel the need to resign. For the next 8 years Mr. Takahashi had faithfully served the Fujino family and had to endure countless embarrassing situations thanks to Shizuru and her antics. Thankfully, over time he had come to anticipate her schemes and in the past few years had managed to live a fairly peaceful existence. However, it seems that with age Shizuru-sama had only become craftier, and Mr. Takahashi would once again need to be on his toes.

Mr. Takahashi shared several more stories with Mai, all of which caused her to break out in laughter. The redhead was grateful that the Fujino family employee turned out to be such an amiable escort on the journey to Kyoto.. As promised, the redhead was taken directly to the train station and a ticket to Nagano was purchased for her. Waiving goodbye to her recent companion, Mai boarded the train that would take her back to her beloved brother.

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The trip back to Nagano was long and boring. Mai hadn't had a story teller like Mr. Takanashi to keep her occupied, and the redhead found her mind inevitably wandering back to horrible situation her wish had created for her brother. Depression overwhelmed the young woman as she stepped off the train.

Not wanting to face her dying brother in her current state, Mai wandered the streets and desperately wracked her brain for the next logical step. There were only two people left who would perhaps find the Hime world desirable, and who might possibly make the wish. One was Fumi-san; however, Mai had to rule her out due to the fact that finding the woman would take a lot of time and money, and at this point she had neither to spare. The other was Midori. From her prior research, the girl knew that the older woman was married and was currently getting her doctorate at Tokyo University. Mai didn't want another wasted trip on her hands, so she planned on doing some additional research on her target. If she was extremely lucky, she would find that Midori-sensei's marriage wasn't a happy one and the woman would still be obsessed with being a super hero

However, the whole issue of traveling again was currently moot, considering the redhead didn't have enough money to go anywhere. The Fuka trip had blown most of the cash she had gotten from pawning her mother's ring, so it was going to be a while before she could afford to go anywhere. With a sigh, the lavender-eyed girl decided she had procrastinated enough and made her way to see Takumi.

A disheartened and exhausted Mai trudged through the hospital corridors toward Takumi's room. Hot tears rolled down her face as sobs of sadness began to wrack her small frame.

"Takumi, I'm so sorry! You don't deserve this at all. I love you so much, and I probably destroyed your chance at a long life all because of a stupid wish. Those money issues and Tate's behavior seem so trivial now. Your life means so much more to me, and I wish I could take it all back. Please, whoever is listening just let me take it back!" Mai screamed internally.

Wrenching herself out of her thoughts, Mai wiped the tears from her face and attempted to pull herself together before entering her brother's room. Slowly opening the door, as to not disturb Takumi if he were sleeping, Mai was surprised to hear a soft sobbing coming from behind the curtain, and a vaguely familiar voice filled the room.

"Oh, Takumi, why does it have to be this way? I just met you, and you're being taken from me so soon." Great sobs of grief filled the room, and a confused Mai took this chance to close the door behind her without them hearing it shut.

"It'll be all right Akira. I'm grateful for whatever time we got to spend in this life," whispered a weakened Takumi. "When you walked through my door a few days ago, I thought an angel had been sent down to collect my soul - but it turns out she was merely here to steal my heart. In the short time we've known each other I've felt more complete than I thought possible. Thank you for taking the chance to come and meet me."

Akira! Mai was too stunned to move, so she stood on the other side of the privacy curtain like a deer caught in a vehicle's headlights.

Akira's sobbing slowed to a sniffle, and Mai heard her brother's bed springs shift under the weight of a second body. "Ya know, I thought your sister was a complete nut case when she said we were supposed to be in love. I had no intention of ever coming here, but the picture of you she tossed at me... well I admit it, I thought you were cute." Mai couldn't see it, but she suspected the young tomboy had a blushing face that could rival Natsuki. "I just wanted to see you in person, and when my parents informed me they would be going to Nagano on business I begged to accompany them." Mai heard an amused grunt. "Man, I can't believe your picture got me to beg."

Mai heard what she assumed to be a kiss pass between the two of them. She felt like a voyeur and wanted to be anywhere but where she was right then. This was their time and she was an interloper, but she couldn't leave without alerting them that she had been listening to them.

The sound of Akira's sniffles filled the room. "Sorry, I'm usually not such a girl."

"I like that you're a girl," whispered Takumi, and his comment was quickly followed by what Mai assumed was a playful slap.

"I wish your sister was right and those Hime had existed. Oh, you don't know how badly I wish this was true," whispered Akira with heartfelt emotion.

And with those words, Mai fainted.

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A bright light was shining in Mai's eyes, and it was giving her a headache. Without thinking, she attempted to slap the offending light source out of her face, only to hit something softer than a flashlight.

"Ow! Watch it Tokiha! You nearly took my eye out with those claws of yours," grouched a familiar voice.

"Where am I? Why am I seeing spots?" whispered Mai with confusion. She was sitting upright in what felt like a car seat, and she couldn't figure out how she had gotten there. Her eyes were still seeing flashes of bright light, and the redhead found it difficult to focus in on the person whom she had accidentally slapped.

"You're in my car, Mai. Remember?" The worried response came from a shadowy man. "You were giving me the stink eye for making us leave the Carnival early, and then you suddenly slumped forward and passed out. I pulled over a couple of minutes ago to check you out."

A sudden flash of realization hit Mai. She was home, and this shadow man was Tate! Her good old, 'real world' Tate! Tears came spilling out of her lavender eyes, and she blindly groped in front of her to pull her boyfriend into an overdue hug.

"Oh, Tate! I'm so happy to see you... well kinda see you. These damn light spots won't go away."

The spiky-haired boy rubbed the back of his head, "Oh, sorry about that, Mai. After I pulled over, I thought I should check your pupil dilation with my flashlight.

"Why the hell did you do that?" questioned Mai.

"Well they always do that sort of thing when people get knocked out... at least they do on TV," said Tate. "I was just checking to make sure you didn't have a concussion or something."

Mai sighed and wanted to slap her boyfriend in the face again, but her sight was coming back to her, and she saw that he was genuinely concerned for her.

"Thanks, Dr. Yuichi. I'd be a goner without you," laughed Mai.

"I'm really glad you're ok Mai. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't woken up right away."

"Well I hope you would've called an ambulance..." started the redhead, but she quickly shut herself up before she teased her boyfriend too much. It wasn't the time for such things. "I know you would've taken care of me... thanks."

Tate smiled at her and held her hand. After a few seconds, Mai noticed a change in his expression.

"What's up? You look like you want to tell me something?"

The young man grimaced, "I wasn't going to tell you this, but I guess you should know the truth."

Mai's heart lurched. What was Tate going to tell her?

"While I was on the phone with Shiho, her parents asked to talk to me. They informed me that during Shiho's family counseling session tonight...she uh...let it slip that she bribed your boss at the Linden Baum to fire you," Tate watched as Mai's eyes bulged and her face took on a sudden shade of pink. "Uh, but don't worry! Her parents were there during the session and informed me that they were going to get your job back for you. They asked me to keep this quiet, but I thought you should know. They also told me that if you were held accountable for the damage done to the hospital they'd cover those costs, ya know, for any pain and suffering the loss of your job may have caused you..."

"They're bribing me?"

"What? No! ... Well maybe, but it's a good deal, Mai, so you should really take – or at least think about the offer."

Mai gave her boyfriend a dirty look, but she realized he was right. Talking to the cops didn't guarantee that she'd get her job back, and by taking the offer she'd be free of one financial burden that she wouldn't have been able to handle even with her waitressing job.

"You're right," sighed Mai. "I'll keep quiet, but if that girl messes with my life again I don't think I'll be able to control myself."

"Don't worry Mai, I won't let it happen again."

"Thanks Tate, that'd be a wish come true...not that I want any more wishes to come true! Speaking of wishes, I really want to see Takumi. Will you drive me over there, Tate?"

Tate frowned in confusion, "Speaking of? Mai, what…"

"Never mind that, Tate. Please, just drive me over to Takumi's place. It's been a long evening, and I'd like to see him one more time before he and Akira leave for New York." Mai smiled, realizing that this reality – as messy as it was for herself and so many others – was back, for good, and that she would have plenty of time with her precious little brother.

A/N

Whoo hoo! I'm finally finished with this sucker. Man alive, I been working on this thing for over a month now and I thought I'd have it finished within two weeks of my original post. Talk about unrealistic expectations! I apologize for the rushed ending, but I needed to post the conclusion today or end up waiting yet another week. Frankly, I don't know if the last chapter would be any better if I posted a week from now, so don't feel like you'd been cheated out of an amazing conclusion.

A special thanks to all of you who took the time to read and review this story. YOU ALL ROCK! Every review was like a shot of adrenaline that pushed me to continue writing. It really helped to know that there were people out there that enjoyed what I had concocted and made me feel as if I wasn't wasting my time.

Omake:

Kuma Kuma: *Dancing a jig and throwing her hands up in the air for joy*

Nao: Wow, it looks as if writing isn't the only thing you're bad at…

Kuma Kuma: Hey, I resemble that comment!

Yukino: I think you mean 'resent' Kuma Kuma chan.

Kuma Kuma: Uh, actually I was simply agreeing with Nao that I can't dance or write.

Haruka: *Throws open the door and barges into the room* What!? I can't believe you'd say such a thing about yourself! A fanfic writer needs determination and GUTS!

Kuma Kuma: By golly, you're right! I just need to DO MY BEST!

Arika: *Popping her head into the room* Oh, did somebody say my favorite phrase?

Everybody: *Looks away from the door*

Kuma Kuma: Uh, no…nobody said anything about doing their best in here. I think it might've been Natsuki and Shizuru you overheard. They're next door, so why don't you go talk to them?

Arika: Oh thanks! Mashiro is always telling me that I need to do my best, in fact last night she screamed that in bed. *Goes next door*

Nao: Hmmm, now that actually sounds interesting. Excuse me suckers.

Yukino and Haruka: Uh yeah, we need to go next door for a second too.