Chapter 3

Amu walked slowly and aimlessly. She was vaguely aware of what street she was on. Amu had made sure Ikuto was in a position to hide at all times should Ami come barging into her room (she had left the charas to look after her little sister for the evening.), Ikuto's leg was itching so that's a possible infection, and to top it off her parents would be back tomorrow night and there would be no hope of Ikuto being well enough to leave by then. Amu took a walk to escape this but she was just more stressed out.

She continued to walk, watching her shoes as they plodded along the pavement. Suddenly, Amu was on the ground. She looked up.

"Kukai!"

"Hinamori?"

"Please, no more Hinamori. Amu is fine."

The two of them sat under the bridge, their feet hanging into the river. It had been a long time since Amu had been there, even longer with Kukai.

"So it's Amu now, eh?" Amu never did like the fact that he felt the need to call her Hinamori.

"Yup. Best friends should be on a first name basis right?"

"Right." he said it with that goofy half grin of his. Then they sat in silence. Looking out at the water. The warm evening breeze rustled his fiery hair. It wasn't awkward sitting silently with him. His presence was just as good to her as conversation, maybe sometimes better.

He suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed to sky and Amu couldn't help but smile. He threw his arms in the air and fell back on the summer grass, grinning. There was no real reason for it. Or no logical one at least. But there was the presence of the day, that moment then. The Clementine setting sun shining gold through the blades of grass, and turning the water the colour of Kukai's hair. The strawberry clouds high in the sky and the glowing city down below.

That was all the reason needed.

"I don't know if you realized this Kukai but I've always trusted you the most of all the Gaurdians."

Kukai was quiet for a while. They watched a lone leaf glide silently down the river.

"Is something on your mind…Amu?"

"…Yeah."

"…and I just can't handle all this."

Kukai had listened quietly as Amu described in great detail the stressful and confusing events of the past month or so (minus her relationship with Ikuto).

"Just don't tell Tadase any of this alright?"

"Why not?"

Amu leaned her head against Kukai's shoulder, much to his surprise.

"I just know this will end badly."

"Well, somebody once said, 'Everything is alright in the end. If it's not alright then it's not the end.'"

Amu looked up at his face. It looked funny, screwed up with concentration.

"Who said that?"

"I did, just now."

Tears began to well in Amu's eyes. Kukai obviously thought he had done something to upset her.

"Wh…I'm sorry, Did I say something?"

Amu shook her head.

"Even when everything else is a mess, and I think I'll never be happy again…You'll always be Kukai."

Amu hugged Kukai, and realizing what she meant he hugged her too. Then they heard a familiar voice.

"Hinamori? Soma?"

"Tadase!"

They remained as they were for a moment, Tadase realized what he was seeing. Amu and Kukai realized what Tadase was seeing. The two of them quickly stood. A look of anger spread across Tadase's face.

"I like your outfit, Hinamori."

Her outfit? Amu looked down. She was wearing black sneakers, jeans, a white tank top and…Ikuto's shirt.

"Hinamori, I'd like you to know that…"

Amu touched a finger to Tadase's lips.

"Tadase, No more of this. You're no king, so I'm not sugar coating anything. You're getting it how it is. I love Kukai…and Yaya, Kairi, Rima, Nagahiko, and I love you, just not in the way I thought I did at first. You are all my best friends. I love you all so much life would unbearable without you. You guys are my life, and I'd give anything for the people I love. You're all amazing…"

Amu was telling it to Tadase but she had never really thought of it herself before. She just realized what she had said was true.

"And…call me Amu."

Amu kissed each of them on the cheek and sprinted up the hill. She knew what to do. It was perfectly clear. And it had all started with some improvised words of wisdom and her own head.

But there was something Kukai and Tadase saw as they watched Amu go. Something that would make her more uncertain than ever…There was no heart shaped clip in her hair.

Amu opened the front door and kicked off her shoes. Before she could rush upstairs Ami jumped in front of her.

"Sissy! Four of the Gweat Charas are missing!"

"What?" Amu wondered. That was unusual.

"Onwy the kitty's left!"

As if on queue Yoru floated into the room.

"I cant find them anywhere ~nya."

Amu began to feel uneasy. Where had they gone?

"Why don't you look for them down here Ami, and I'll look upstairs."

"OKAY!" and with that Ami ran off in search of the charas.

Amu headed upstairs and into her room. Ikuto was probably in the closet suspecting she was Ami. Amu's gaze headed immediately to her dresser, where to her relief four closed eggs along with Yoru's open one sat in the basket. Ami had probably just tired them out. She walked over and tapped the first egg.

"Ran." she said

But as soon as she touched the egg she knew something was wrong.

"Ran?"

The shell was cold. She couldn't feel the heat of Ran inside. She touched the second egg.'

"Miki?" It was just as cold.

"Su? Dia?"

When she touched the last egg she felt the cold shell on her finger tip, but on her hand she felt warmth. Warmth radiating off of Yoru's egg. The heat of the life within it. And so for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, Amu began to cry.

She opened the door to her closet to find Ikuto asleep on the floor. She touched his arm and he stirred. She touched his ear and he woke immediately. He saw her tears and she told him of her discovery. He held her and let her cry. He sat on her bed, holding her to him. He let her cry until she was asleep, and then he knew that it was alright for him to doze off. But he couldn't. She shivered all night. She was having a nightmare, a nightmare about who knows what. She let out a sob and a whimper. Ikuto held her closer.

She was like a flower, so beautiful but fragile, so easily broken. When she thought the pain was over, the tearing of petals done, and she finally started to relax; She was uprooted. But Ikuto planned to steal that flower, from the vase of whom or whatever had picked her, and replant her as best he could.