Author's Note: After a half year hiatus and a hell of a three month writter's block, here I am with a cleary out of date story! But still, I managed to get it out, and I have to pride myself of something... even if it's not my schedule.

I based this entire storyline on a picture (which will serve as the cover for now), as rare as that is of me, but I'm happy with how it turned out. I think I captured what I meant to.

Let us hope that this groove I reatained is not as fleeting as the last!

An Unfinished Scrapbook

The Seventh Picture

The Eternal Return

Not even one year had passed ever since the end of her adventure, but Terra was grateful to be able to say that a routine was already starting to form. She had just gotten out of her self-powered shower after a good night's sleep, taking her time to get ready, it wasn't her day to make breakfast.

Instead of making her way downstairs to help out with the sure to be mayhem, Terra had sat on her bed, pensive. Christmas was getting closer once again, and she had decided that she needed to be the one doing something special for Shin. It could not be something that she simply bought, but something she herself had made. There were just a couple of problems with that.

For one, she had no idea what kind of thing she would gift him, and secondly, Terra wasn't exactly a… "woman of the crafts".

With that being said, Terra did not concern herself with the second problem. She would get through it no matter what. Which left her with her current problem.

"What would Shin appreciate… no, that's the wrong question," Terra said, shaking her head in a mix of exasperation and slight joy. "Shin's too easy to please. I have to think deeper. What can I get him that would show him just how much he means to me?" Terra posed the question to herself.

The answer did not come easily. She slunk back into the bed for a good few minutes, and nothing graced her mind for the entirety of the time. Disappointed at the lack of ideas, Terra sighed and waved her hand across her scalp, her hand stopping as it left her hair and touched another tissue. As if lightning had struck her mind, Terra's eyes shot open and she swiftly untangled her ponytail, bringing her signature ribbon into vision.

She closed her eyes, reminiscing about one of the few memories she had of her mother and of the Esper World in general, that of her sewing her now keepsake ribbon as she cared for her, her kind smile burned into Terra's mind. A small smile of realization came upon Terra as she reopened her eyes. "If my Mother infused her love into this ribbon, I have to do the same for Shin," she told herself, standing back up and turning to leave the room. "Although, it clearly can't be a ribbon. Shin doesn't seem the type to enjoy crossdressing… although Cloud doesn't seem to either, he just hides it well," Terra mused, proceeding to try shaking off the less-than-appropriate thoughts that were starting to appear.

Her head in the clouds, she was swiftly back to the earth when a small body collided with her. She held herself from falling, looking down to see one of the many orphans she cared for looking up apologetically. She smiled back at him, calmed him and helped him up, prepping his clothes and hair once again. Until her eyes locked on to a single piece of his garments.

"That's it!" Terra exclaimed, nearly throwing the child airborne in excitement. "Simon, you can ask Shin for an extra cookie today! Tell him Mama allowed it!" she exclaimed, flying downstairs at breakneck speeds. She bolted past the kitchen, taking with her a pair of waffles Shin had prepared, leaving everyone to wonder what kind of tornado had just passed by. As soon as she was out the door, she tranced and took to the skies above.

"Books on knitting? That all?" Rosa questioned, taking up her teacup as she looked over the table towards Terra, who had been moving uncomfortably ever since she had arrived at Baron.

"Y-Yes. It's just that I felt I needed to make Shin a gift with my own hands," she explained, slowly taking one of the cakes Rosa had offered her. The former Queen of Baron released a hearty chuckle, much to Terra's confusion. "Is it that strange?"

"Goodness no. It's just that when you burst into the castle, I expected your reasoning to be less… peaceful. It's refreshing really," Rosa replied, her smile fading for but a moment when she laid her eyes on a portrait of Cecil. Recollecting herself, she continued: "I'd teach you myself, but as you most likely predicted, Ceodore requires all the help he can get with returning Baron to its former glory. However, I will lend you some books from the royal library, along with a few from my personal collection. And of course… some personal pointers!" Rosa winked, beckoning Terra to follow.

"Thank you Ma'am!"

A few days had to have passed before Terra could collect the fruits of her excursion. If Shin had been the sneaky bastard he had with her gifts, then he'd know nothing about this one either! With that thought, Terra had had to wait until she was home alone, a feat harder than one would think.

In any case, she was alone now for the next few hours. Time she took to take on the intimidating stack of required reading Rosa had lent to her. The next couple hours were spent like so, reading, studying, memorizing. Until the sun started lowering, and Terra knew she had to make dinner in little over an hour to keep up appearances.

"I'm not going to learn by just looking at text," With that in mind, she took a deep breath, grabbed her needles, twisted the yarn around them and… stabbed herself square in the palm. "I can't say I expected otherwise," Terra winced, using her limited White Magic to close the wound, although not making it disappear. "Blood, sweat and tears…" she told herself, clapping on her cheeks to forget the pain before diving into another attempt.

With that, Terra lowered her head, immersing herself in her work.

"Terra?" the voice of Celes woke Terra up from her reverie, the apprehensive face of her best friend facing her down. "It's the third time you just drift off. You can't tell me nothing is wrong," in the midst of the irritation there was some genuine concern. Terra just knew Celes was not the best at expressing it. Faced with that, she knew she not only couldn't lie her way out, but it'd be a betrayal of her friend's worries to try to do so. However, as she looked around, she was reminded of where they were.

The falling snow did nothing but embellish Mobliz as its inhabitants had joined at the town's center to celebrate Christmas. It was a very rustic and rural celebration to be sure, but that was part of its charm. Humanity would take a long time before it could go back into the festivals of the previous years.

"It's not something I can tell you here," Terra explained, making a point that she had no idea where Shin was at the moment, and he could not become aware of what she had tried to do. She looked back at Celes and got a silent reply, one that told her "Take me to where you can,". Taking a deep sigh, Terra decided to bite the bullet, taking her friend's hand and warping both in a flash of green light.

Moments later, the duo found themselves on Terra's bedroom, the esper girl being grateful that she had felt no one else inside the house.

"What's so important that you had to find an isolated place to show me?" Celes questioned.

"It's not just that I needed an isolated place…" Terra told her, moving towards her wardrobe. "I think the best way to explain this is to show you," she said as she opened it, a mountain of her creations poured out, their half hazard positioning giving in as soon as the door opened. Celes could only raise an eyebrow as her feet and head had been covered with several would-be clothing articles. "This is… exactly what it seems," Terra said, exasperated.

"Let me guess, you wanted to make something for lover boy on Christmas," Celes asked, examining the piece of wool that had lodged itself on her head. "And it's pretty clear you weren't anywhere near ready,"

"Yeah… I just, needed more time," Terra told Celes, shaking her head. "But it's too late now. I really wanted to give something to him on a day that had meaning,"

"Meaning, heh?" Celes mused, tapping her lips in thought. "Well, in two months, there's supposedly a festivity called Valentine's day. It's supposedly a day where couples show their appreciation for each other. I'd reckon that's a perfect little excuse for your plan,"

"Really? That's perfect then! I've gotten this far in just a month, with two more…" Terra began, her hopes swelling back up.

"Wait, before you start getting your hopes up… I have no idea how you managed to keep it hidden from Shin so far, however, I don't trust you to have it have been a well thought out plan," Celes pointed out, to which Terra could only weakly smile. It was true, she was just kind of making stuff as we go. "With that in mind, I want you to leave that job to me. Meet me at my house in a week. I have a plan…"

And with that, Celes and Terra started talking, Terra wondering just how Celes had concocted this intricate a scheme in mere minutes.

"That's… amazing Celes! Thank you!" Terra exclaimed, pulling her friend in for a hug.

"No need to thank me just… ease up…" Celes said, cringing as Terra's diminutive form squeezed all the oxygen from her lungs.

"Oh… sorry…" Terra appoligized, letting go and lowering her head in shame.

"No need to get gloomy. Let's just go back before this looks suspicious. God knows, we'll need all our good girl points to get away with hiding all of this under the rug…"

"Don't worry Celes, if there's one thing I do well, it's scoring those!" Terra told her, holding onto her hand and warping back into a much livelier Christmas.

She wasn't wrong.

Months had passed and February, the height of winter, had arrived. The fated day was just around the corner, which meant Terra was on her final trip. Determination welled up inside Terra as soon as she had woken up, all those months had led to this. After making sure she looked at least presentable, a habit Celes had to drill into her, she slipped on her gloves, took up her bag and floated gracefully downstairs, where her children were being fed by a scruffy looking Shin. Feeding over a dozen hungry, loud mouths was not something you got used to easily, and honestly, she enjoyed seeing someone like Shin scramble on to meet the demands of her, admittedly, spoiled orphans.

"How are you holding up honey?" Terra asked him, quickly levitating one of the plates that had fallen from his hands just before it hit the ground.

"Good enough… today's the day Celes needed your help isn't it? I made you breakfast early, you can just take it and leave! I'll hold down the fort," Shin told her pumping his fist into his chest in an attempt to sound convincing. Terra didn't bother pointing out just how badly he had done so far, she was just happy he was trying. For now, she did just what he said. She had much work to do.

Immediately after leaving the house, she rushed off into the streets of Mobliz, taking a sharp turn into an alleyway. Making sure she hadn't been seen yet, she tranced and took to the skies, keeping track of the time. Stopping at the usual height, just above the clouds, she resigned herself to waiting. She had been earlier than usual in her drive to finish her work as soon as possible, however, her ride wasn't going to show up any sooner for it.

After just a few minutes, the sounds of engines penetrated her ears. Detecting from whence they came, Terra flew in the direction of the coming airship, parting the clouds to reveal the recently rebuilt Blackjack, Celes on starboard looking for her. Waving at Celes, she flew into the airship and landed on the prow.

"An early bird, aren't you?" Celes questioned as her friend returned to a normal, more human form in front of her. "Although I can't blame you, we've all become one the past few weeks,"

"Yes, we don't have much time left, but I think we're close to getting it right!" Terra exclaimed, nudging her friend to move. Celes chuckled at the excitement that permeated the usually aloof girl and walked with her downstairs, passing by Setzer's apprentice who had flown the ship more in the past 3 months than in his entire lifetime.

As they reached the hull of the ship, serenated by a haunting tune they had come to know so well, they headed down the stairs to where the Blackjack's flying casino was usually held, now slightly altered for the purpose of serving the meeting. The counter that served as the refreshment vendor was still intact, but all of the gambling tools had been replaced with more unassuming and spacious tables for Terra and her friends to work on.

"Ah Terra, you're here. The usual?" Setzer asked from behind the counter, the gambler knowing exactly what the girl's preferences were by now.

"Yes Setzer, just don't try to spike it this time. I need to be on top shape today!" Terra told him as Setzer slide the drink through the counter towards her, just a simple apple based alcohol-less drink.

"As much as I love seeing our princess show a different side of herself, for once, I agree," Edgar said from the corner of the counter, a wooden guitar in his lap. "It'll be a close shave for us all,"

"I don't understand how you're still drinking if you think that then bro," Sabin joked. Strangely for everyone but the group, he had been the source of the haunting piano music that had permeated the Blackjack ever since they had arrived. "At this rate, I'll be on the winning side again!" he taunted, ending his piece with a bang.

"Please, as if your rusty piano could out serenade the strings I have perfected over the years!" Edgar exclaimed, swiftly moving his right leg over his left and starting to play his own, admittedly equally melodious tune.

"Edgar, cut the act, you sounded just as ungodly awful as Sabin when you joined this little escapade," Setzer pointed out as he took his glass and started to clean it.

"Says the person that has resigned himself to a life without the beauty of women. Your apathy towards the ladies is appalling Setzer," Edgar said, weaving the strings of the guitar as if part of his body. The King of Figaro was talented; no one would ever put that in question. It was how he used the talents that was far more dubious.

"Better to be chaste than to be caught hitting on a ten-year old!" Relm exclaimed from behind Edgar, leaping onto the counter as Edgar nearly snapped the strings on his guitar at the reminder. Terra and the others couldn't help but share a hearty laugh at the reminder of that day in Thamasa. "C'mon Edgar, it's a nice story for the bonfire, don't be so down on it! You can make up for it by not failing horribly this time!" The now fourteen-year-old said as she got a glass of milk from the bartender, drinking it in one go and leaping off the table back into her artist's stool to work on her painting.

"Now that we're on the topic… Who are you two fighting over? You joined our group specifically for a place to train your musician skills, and we're all here to either please our dates or to get a date," Celes questioned, the question everyone had had since day one finally coming up.

"We've been meeting every week for the past 3 months on this ship to practice for that reason, we won't laugh at your choice," Terra reassured, smiling gently at the twins. It had been three months since Celes had visited Terra with the news. It had been both parts reassuring and hilarious that most of her friends were just as inept as her. Leave it to Celes to dig up dirt on people yet use it to help them.

The twins sighed, looked at eachother, took yet another deep breath and said:

"It's Faris,"

"Faris Scherwiz,"

The room was silent for a good minute before anyone could process this. As soon as they did, Terra's first reaction was of shock, but the rest was not exactly that.

For the first time in a long time, Terra witnessed Celes completely lose composure as she doubled down and nearly fell into the floor laughing. The reaction of Setzer and Relm were hardly less subtle.

"Everyone, be come on! Don't be mean!" Terra exclaimed, trying to tide the situation down. It took more than a few moments for it to wind down, but when it did, Celes was the first to talk.

"I'm sorry is just that… the Princes of Figaro are skirt chasing a woman masquerading as a man… that also ran away from being royalty. Twice. "Celes said, whipping the tears from her eyes. "Honestly, I knew Edgar had a weird taste, but I guess it runs in the blood,"

"I'm more worried about your approach," Setzer said, scratching the untrimmed beard on his chin. "You're wooing a Pirate quote unoquote King by serenading her with Classical Music. I mean, it's not as bad as Relm's approach, not that stalking and gifting daydreaming imagery to someone you never talked to would ever be worse than anything, but it's not what I'd do…"

"Shut up old man, your idea of a first date involves announced kidnapping!" Relm screeched, going back into her painting.

"I appreciate the concern Setzer, but I've actually learned from her sister that she has a secret liking for many things that she lost from her days as royalty. Classical music is just one of them. You see, unlike some, Edgar Roni Figaro does his research before moving in," Edgar pointed out, dismissing Setzer's warning and going back to work on his guitar playing.

Terra, curious about what Relm had drawn this time, went in to check on her while this was happening.

"Well… she certainly managed to draw Arc's face in this time," Terra said, a small cringe apparent beneath her smile. While the art on the canvas was astonishing for someone her age, she was pretty sure that Luneth's quiet, scholarly friend did not own a gleaming Pegasus on which to ride on to save Relm in a Princesses' gown. He was also not a buff knight. Truth be told, his face was so different from the rest of its body Terra could not imagine anyone not perceiving it as foreign. This wasn't the first painting she had drawn this way. In fact, it felt more like she was putting her daydreams to the canvas instead of reality.

"Look, Terra, an artist like me must certain artistic liberties to enhance her art! You don't get it, but I'm sure Arcie will!" she exclaimed, going back to finishing one of the many paintings she planned on just gifting Arc. Truth be told, Terra was a bit sorry for the boy. What a way to start the day that will be for him.

"Well… good luck Relm!" Terra said, smiling at her. "And you two too Edgar and Sabin. I'm sure she'll love both!" She encouraged, moving back onto her table and sitting across Celes. It was about time she got to work.

Taking off her needles, Terra removed her gloves, weaved them around the wool and began to do her thing. Celes soon joined her, her gift far more advanced in Terra's eyes than her own.

"You're almost done Celes! I'm jealous," Terra commented as both of the girls started to work on their projects.

"I've learned to sew from Cid when I was a girl, made it easy to keep my uniform in check. Honestly, the fact that it took me this long to make a simple bandana is bad enough," Celes pointed out, making Terra pout.

"You're always too harsh on yourself," she commented, flinching when the momentary distraction led her to stick a needle into her right pointer. Already used to it, she moved to quickly bandage it after a quick spell.

"Look who's talking. How many of those things have you completed and discarded? Half of them looked presentable, the other half looked good!" Celes retorted, clearly frustrated by the pile of surprisingly well made winter wear that was pilling behind Terra.

"Good or presentable aren't enough. It must be… perfect," Terra said, breathing deeply as she felt the needle tear through her palm again.

"Your dedication is commendable Terra, but I'm sure Shin would appreciate even your worst attempts," Setzer told her, leaving a glass of apple juice on her table. Just as Terra was about to shoot him a glare, the gambler shrugged and turned his back: "Oh, but who am I kidding? You're just like me. You go for the jackpot until you bust. Just be sure to stop before those hands are covered in scars,"

With that said, the conversation between the group finally died down as they immersed themselves into their own projects. So immersed was Terra in particular that the rising and setting of the sun passed by her, with only a stern reprimand from Celes stopping her from skipping the meals for the day.

She finished her clothing pieces, always getting praise from everyone but herself. They were missing something. She just couldn't understand what. As the night passed by and everyone stayed to work overtime in order to make it to their date, Terra's frustration peaked as she finished one piece too many. She shrieked in anger and headed to the counter, needing a drink.

In it she ruminated on the issue. Just why were all those pieces satisfying everyone but her? What could possibly be missing? Then, it hit her.

A connection. She inwardly told herself. Yet, even in this realization, she felt uninspired. She knew what she had to do, but she didn't know how. Moments, minutes passed, maybe hours, as Terra immersed herself in deep thought. So closed off was her mind from the outside, that she didn't even pay much mind to her failing vision. Or her nodding head.

Before she knew it, she was sprung back into consciousness as the sun struck her closed eyes in the counter.

She gasped in horror, realizing she had slept through the night and then looked around to see that she had been left alone. Part of her was despairing, the other was angry. They had just-

"I kicked them out," Setzer said from the billiard tables to the side, shooting some balls into the hoops. "We tried to wake you up, but you've clearly not slept anything near enough, so all our attempts failed. You can check your hair for the water we poured on you," with her hand, Terra did so, and the moisture was indeed still there. Her anger faded, changing from her friends to herself. "I couldn't let them blow their own chances just to sit here, thinking of ways to wake up Sleeping Beauty,"

"You're right Setzer. You did what was right. Sorry for nearly pouring my frustrations on you…" Terra said, looking down into her lap, admonishing herself.

"It's alright my girl. But most importantly, you now have a choice to make. Do you play it safe and leave with the chips you gathered, or do you go all in?" Setzer questioned, shooting another ball on the billiard table. Terra knew what he meant. Would she go with one of the supposed failed gifts, or stay here and try to get the perfect one, at the risk of ruining this day even further? "Celes relayed to Shin that he should only expect you at dinner. I don't know what she said, but I think he'll accept your explanation eitherway," Setzer continued, taking a towel by his side and moving towards her. "For now, just dry up that head of yours and tell me when you want to drop me at Mobliz,"

"Thank you," Terra replied meekly, still disappointed at herself. Was she about to fail again? Twice in two tries? She removed her ribbon to let her still wet hair flow, laying it on her lap as she dried it up. Then, her eyes met with the ribbon and something clicked. "Setzer?" she called as her skin began to crackle.

"I have all the time in the world, such is the fate of a bachelor on a day like this," Setzer said with a sly smile, moving back to his billiard table.

Terra herself looked out of the window. It was noon, that much was obvious. She had time for one more go. She looked at her hands and realized she had subconsciously tranced. Good. She was more sensitive while like that.

She took her needles, lay down her ribbon in front of her, got the fabric she needed and, in a single, decisive movement, she began what would be her masterwork.

Shin sat on the kitchen of Terra's home, waiting as the stove prepared food for the dinner he and his girlfriend should be sharing.

He was worried. Not questioning Terra's loyalty, no, he knew exactly why she was taking so long. He was just worried that Celes was gravely undermining the condition Terra had been on this morning. Still, he had everything prepared. Dinner was to be grandiose and succulent, the kids had been dispatched to play with "Uncle Gau", Katarin and Duane had left the house for her Mama's date, and he had both his gifts in his sights.

He was only missing one thing. His Valentine.

A knock on the door. Shin leapt out of his seat and rushed through the hallway into the entryway, nearly tripping himself in the process. As he reached the door, he stopped, collected himself, and, just as another knock came, he took action, opening the wooden structure.

He found himself staring down a girl, no, his girl, haphazardly extending a wrapped up gift to him, her head low and cheeks crimson.

"I'm sorry for taking so long…" Terra told Shin, her emotions still on fringe. She had stared at that door for the last 5 minutes, gathering the courage to knock. Both to face her boyfriend and to face what he'd think of her creation.

She looked up, finding Shin not happy, but worried.

"Terra… your hands!" he exclaimed, cupping both of her hands with his own. She knew this wouldn't get past him. Rare was the finger that didn't possess a single bandage, some would even have a couple. And it didn't stop there. Everything above her wrist was covered in makeshift healing gear. "What did you do to yourself? Don't tell me you-"

"Shin, stop being a worrying nancy!" she exclaimed, genuinely both thankful and amused at how fast Shin's imagination had gone all over the place for her. "I'm just not the best with needles is all…" she told him, covering her mouth with one of her hands immediately. No use in wrapping up the present if she was just going to give it away was there?

"Sorry, I know I worry too much. I take it that's for me?" he asked her, pointing at her still outstretched arm holding the small package.

Swallowing dry, Terra's nerves nearly stopped her from saying:

"Y-Yes. I made it myself," those last four words set Shin's eyes ablaze. She could only gasp as Shin swept her gift from her and opened it up in a frenzy. Inside, he found his gift.

"It's…" Shin began, Terra's heart unable to cope. She was about to apologize when: "The best thing anyone ever gave me…" the young man said, leaning on the door, breathless.

In his hands was Terra's masterwork. A scarf, that, from afar, would have seemed a simple gift. And for many, it would be. But in its design Terra had poured special meaning. It's violet center and beige extremities housed a variety of floral patterns that one would think unbefitting of a man. But Shin knew better. The design of this scarf mirrored his beloved's keepsake ribbon. Nothing he could have said would translate how he felt at that moment.

"I don't know what to say…" Shin told her, battling the tears. Terra, her feelings matching the man in front of her, couldn't detach a smile from her lips. She blinked and said:

"You don't need to say anything. Just try it on," she told him, her smile gleaming as he did just that.

"How do I look?" Shin asked, posing in an overly romantic way. Terra chuckled.

"Better than usual, and that's a tall order." She told him with a wink. He looked perfect in it. She could only imagine how they'd look together. It just sent shivers down her spine.

"Well… gee… thanks," Shin bumbled and fumbled, scratching the back of his head. "Wait a minute! Dinner is in the oven!" Shin exclaimed, bolting into the house immediately in a move that, while seemingly killed the mood, it only made Terra's heart beat faster.

"I really love everything about him don't I?" She asked herself, knowing the answer full well.

She skipped down the hallway and helped Shin get dinner ready, against his will mind you, but this was as much his day as hers.

The dining room was candle-lit, something she fully expected from someone like her boyfriend, and something she completely appreciated. Most of the dinner was spent recapping her crazy adventures this past few months, Shin alternating between astonished and slightly worried at the things they did.

They laughed at the Figaro Brother's choice in women, bawled at Terra's description of Relm's paintings, and even shared a conversation about why Terra felt like she had to do this for him. Nothing in the evening went anything less than perfect.

"Oh right, Terra… I can't hope to match your gift, but, I do have some cards up my sleeve!" Shin exclaimed, running to the outside of the room and returning with two items. The first was… a small vase containing nothing more than a bud. "This is an apple tree. I know how much you love apples, and we have the space to plant some so I figured, why not?" he questioned? Terra smiled and nodded. It was an unorthodox gift, but one she genuinely enjoyed the idea of. She could see herself having a whole orchard when she was older.

Secondly, Shin gave her her own package to unravel, which she, as he did to her, did in mere moments. And, just as he responded to her, she gasped:

"It's beautiful Shin…" as she looked at the long, baby blue dress trimmed in white that she was holding. She didn't have anything like it in wardrobe…

"Yeah, I noticed that most of our clothes were, while nice, more made for practicality, and I really wanted to make you feel like a woman of your age. Ya know, dressing in pretty dresses and nothing of that combat stuff?" he explained, quickly adding: "I know I didn't make it but…"

"Shin, don't," Terra told him decisively. She whispered a few words and, just like that, Shin lost all vision as the Blind spell blindsided him. It faded not even a minute later, Shin's eyes nearly moving out of his sockets as he saw her dressed in the very same dress he had gifted her. Terra felt like a true princess in it, any memories of her past as a weapon locked away deep in her mind, and she looked the part too. "Now, how do I, look?" she teased. Shin quickly recovered and smiled wryly.

"Like someone who would appreciate a dance!" he exclaimed, clicking on a remote he had tucked away on his pocket, which caused the most classical orchestration of music Terra had heard to start serenading the room. She recognized her from one of the Opera Celes had acted in, one she had adored. And one Shin had remembered.

"You know me too well!" she exclaimed, taking his now outstretched hand.

And so, they danced the night away, the bells of midnight doing them no harm, even when the music faded, their footsteps did not. An act that none of them had ever dreamed off a few years ago, dressed in clothing that meant more to them than anyone could imagine, it truly felt like living in a fairy tale.

And so, as the dawn broke, Shin pulled her into his arms, and locked his gaze with hers.

"It's a bit late to ask for this year's but, I'll just ask for the next one. Terra, will you be my Valentine?" Shin asked, the question earning a hearty giggle from the girl in question.

"Oh Shin, I'll be your Valentine… forever!" she exclaimed as she pulled his head down, sealing her promise with the lock of their lips.

A picture of their dance would forever be on display besides Terra's side of the bed, a reminder of when she finally returned Shin's affections.

Post-Chapter Note: Yeah, I think I finally satisfied my Teryu urge that I built up over the past half a decade. For now at least. I can now focus on more productive stuff... as much as I can call fanfiction productive... In any case, I hope you all enjoyed this, and you know the drill. See ya soon! Hopefully?