Hello, my willing and patient readers.

Here it is. I put blood and sweat into this chapter, yes, but I'm still sorry for taking so long in updating. This is the climax of the story. The one you've all been waiting for. I hope that you enjoy it, as it I put my heart into this. Now, read on. The suspense must be killing you all...

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What did I do to deserve this?

Who the hell knows anymore? I could have done any number of things to cause myself this level of stress in my current life. I could have been a vicious and bloodthirsty feudal lord in a past life. Depending on how many men, women and children I slaughtered without mercy, I could have very well deserved all this insanity that has been thrown at me.

But that's no reason for me not to try and look up at least a little, right?

I mean, there are things in my life that are positive, right?

Well, if you can think of any, please tell me, because I certainly couldn't at the moment.

"Haruhi…"

I moaned my Brigade Chief's name as my mind rose into consciousness. My body felt really warm, despite the fact that I had been sleeping up against a wall of packed snow for the entire night. With drowsy eyes, I glanced around, scanning my surroundings.

First thing I noticed; no Haruhi.

It wasn't hard to figure that out. She had been sleeping on my shoulder, and when I looked to see if she was still sleeping, she wasn't even there in the first place.

My heart skipped a beat in panic. Wait? Why was I panicking? There's nothing to panic about! It is morning by now, and there's no way that Haruhi could get lost around here, even if she tried, right?

Wrong!

I sighed to myself as I forced myself up. If I even had half of a brain, I would have figured out by now that Haruhi was still very mad with me, and if I was going to even have a chance of at least some reconciliation, I would have to find her before she really did get lost in the surrounding wilderness.

And so, with thoughts of hopefully finding Haruhi safe and unharmed, I left the shelter that had conveniently appeared for us. It was clearly a little late in the morning, with the sun's rays reflecting on the large amounts of snow that were cluttered all around me. I ignored the chill that came with leaving my shelter, and I ventured forth, taking a good look at the surrounding landscape to see if I could see any signs of Haruhi.

I could see trees, a few mountains in the distance, the towering Mt. Fuji way above me, and a relatively clear sky. Alas, there was no sign of Haruhi at all.

"Damn..." I said to no one but myself. Was I really going to risk life and limb to go look for Haruhi? For all I know, she could have just run up higher into the mountain. Why she would do such a stupid thing is truly beyond me…

Where was she, and why did she have to be so difficult? Haruhi…she's just being so goddamn pathetic! It was only making me more annoyed, especially if it was all for my attention.

Whatever. Maybe I should just let her be. I was probably wasting my time here looking for her. It's obvious by now she doesn't want to be found.

Wait. What's that?

I turned my head for a moment, and about thirty feet away, I spotted a small figure seated on the ground, surrounded by white now, with its head resting on its knees. I felt like hitting myself in the face, but I guessed there was some relief in knowing that was Haruhi. She hadn't wandered off then…

"Haruhi!"

I called out once, expecting to hear a disgruntled "What?!?".

I waited for a few seconds, but I got no response. Haruhi was either ignoring me, or didn't hear me, so I called out to her again.

"Haruhi!"

She recognized my response, turning her head and looking back at me with a pouting expression. Her lips were twisted, and no words came out of her mouth before she turned to face forward, her face caught in a perpetual depression. I suddenly became just a little more annoyed.

"Hey! Listen to m-"

I stopped myself in mid-sentence. Just what the hell was I doing?

Look at me. Haruhi was being indignant and ignoring me, and I was still calling out to her, as if I was desperate? Was I really this much of a fool to continue allowing her to walk all over me, and pull me along like a dog? I couldn't be that fool. I couldn't just let her be a spoiled brat and think she can have whatever she wants. If she thinks it's alright to ignore my presence like this, then you know what?

I was just going to go back to the snow den. I'll just get some sleep while she sits out here and pouts all day.

And so, I decided I would follow-through with my decision, and I turned with a serious expression on my face as I completely focused myself off of Haruhi. Unfortunately, something was standing in my way, and that something just put my brain's attention on my Brigade Chief more than ever.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?!?" a loud, easily recognizable voice said as it nearly made me jump out of my skin. Right in front of me, stood Haruhi, and she had a poisonous expression on her face as she pointed a sharp finger right at my chest, keeping me in place.

"What the hell?" I said out loud, looking at the Haruhi in front of me, and then having the urge to look behind me. My eyes could only grow wide when I realized that the Haruhi sitting behind me and pouting was in fact still there, and now there was a second, more pissed-off Haruhi standing in my way.

"Be quiet! There are important things for us to discuss, Kyon!" the Haruhi in front of me blatantly shouted in my face, while grabbing me roughly by the collar at the same time. Her glare was powerful, and I was forced to stare into her eyes as she spoke.

"Why did you do it?"

"Why did I do what?" I said with an almost nervous quiver in my voice. Something about this Haruhi felt so familiar, yet so distant at the same time. She was almost scaring me a little bit.

"Don't play stupid. Why did you have the idiotic nerve to break up with me?"

Something didn't feel right. Would the Haruhi I know say something so forward like that? She might…but it seemed to me that she's avoided saying that kind of thing so directly.

What did that mean then? If there were two Haruhi's…was there a possibility that…this was the point that Koizumi had been telling me about? Was this the breaking point, when Haruhi wouldn't be able to take the reality of our separation any longer? I didn't know the answer, but I still couldn't help but gulp. I guessed I would assume that the Haruhi holding my collar and screaming in my face like this was the more "normal" Haruhi. I could be wrong though. Like it mattered anyway.

"What's your answer?" she said with an even louder voice, tugging on my collar more tightly and breaking me out of my train of thought. I could feel her hot breath warming up my face a little bit in this weather. Behind me, I assumed that the more docile but still unhappy Haruhi was watching us, or ignoring us.

"That's not an easy question…"

"Answer it, Kyon. If you don't, then you're going to sorely regret it..."

I gave Haruhi a glare of my own. She was threatening me now, wasn't she?

"What are you going to do, Haruhi? Are you going to punch me in the face? Physical violence isn't going to get me back. You've already kicked me out of the SOS Brigade. What more are you going to do?"

"Shut up! Just answer my question and stop going off-topic!" she replied, this time with a slight crack in her voice. Whatever was happening in her mind, I had a good feeling she was beginning to feel like she was losing against me. In a way, I think she really was.

"I don't know if I want to. I don't like being roughly interrogated like this." I replied, turning away from her and pretending as if I was just ignoring her. I guess I didn't really think about the possible repercussions of such an action.

"You…"

"I'll show you rough!!" Haruhi shouted before shoving me hard, and causing me to topple backwards into the snowy ground. Though some snow helped cushion my fall, I still felt myself hit the hard ground, and suddenly, I was feeling extremely pissed.

Haruhi looked ready to say something to me, but I cut her off. I had had enough of this. Everything came out very fast.

"Goddamn it! I'm sick of this!"

Haruhi looked down at me, her face full of sudden surprise at my outburst, and I simply looked back at her, a similar anger in my own eyes. I could feel my blood boiling, and just looking at this girl in front of me was just making it worse by the second.

"You don't get it, do you? You're nasty and overbearing! Why do you think I broke up with you? I can't deal with your insanity! You're crazy, you're spoiled, and you think the whole goddamn world should be spinning around you! It isn't all about you, Haruhi! There's more to this universe than you or your stupid and idiotic plans! I'm sick of being pushed around by you, and I'll die before I continue dealing with a girlfriend who treated me more like a slave!!!"

My voice was loud and clearly full of rage. It had all come out so sudden, and even I didn't expect to ever hear myself like this. Haruhi had made me so mad. She had pissed me off to my limit at this point. This was the outcome. She had brought this upon herself for being this way.

"…you're lying…"

Haruhi was looking down at me, her face straining to keep tears from forming. Her teeth were gritted at me, and I could see her fists clenched tightly at her sides. Even though she was standing above me, I realized something very different about this situation. It was something that I never figured would happen in my lifetime.

I was in a position of power over Haruhi right now. I was the one pulling the strings.

"I'm not lying. You're not the kind of person I ever intend to spend the rest of my life with, at least like this."

Haruhi looked confused, and at the same time, she was on the verge of tears. I had finally hit the spot, it seems. It was, or at least it should be depressing to see her like this. Yet even still, I couldn't feel a pang of guilt in my mind. I was a bit empty, looking back at this saddened Haruhi with emotionless eyes.

"Stop lying, you idiot! I didn't do anything wrong! It was your entire fault!"

Haruhi was holding her tears back well, but her voice easily showed signs of the fact that she was beginning to break. I could feel the pain and sadness in her words, but my mind ignored the emotions, and focused merely on the fact that she was being rather pathetic right now. I guessed I didn't realize that I was being heartless.

"I don't want to hear it, Haruhi. You know whose fault it is."

"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP ALREADY!"

Haruhi was screaming her words now. I turned slightly, and I could see she was trembling behind me, as if the cold had gotten to her. Tears were streaming down her face, and her fists were clenched tight. Nevertheless, I didn't let myself get easily convinced by all this.

I turned away.

Now I could see the smaller, more docile Haruhi, who was still on the ground. She was still facing forward, her head resting on her knees. I wondered what her expression was, but I didn't dare go and see for myself. I should probably head back to the den and get some rest. Just letting Haruhi deal with this alone was the best course of action at the moment.

Her normal self is just so selfish. She couldn't help but blame me, even though the entire situation is her fault. I couldn't deal with something like that. She put all the blame on me, and then she blew up on me when I finally was able to release the truth. And even after that, I couldn't accept her sudden change of mood. I couldn't let her continue to influence me so easily. That me should have died a long time ago.

I sighed. Why had I become so empty like this? Was I truly accepting the inevitable? Reconciliation with a girl like Haruhi Suzumiya…that was impossible, wasn't it?

I finally decided that this was all over. With my mind as empty as I could make it, I headed for the snow den. At this point in time, the Haruhi that had been in front of me had disappeared. It didn't matter though. It was better now that she was gone.

"…I'm sorry."

Her voice. It was quiet. Almost quiet enough that I probably wouldn't have heard it. Yet by some will of fate, I heard exactly what she said, and I stopped in my tracks. My expression twisted into sudden shock, and it was as if everything seemed to just stop, including time itself.

What did Haruhi just say?

Something in my mind…sort of snapped. I felt almost unable to comprehend this kind of thing. When was the last time Haruhi ever apologized to me about something? I thought on it, long and hard, as I stood there. Time felt slow and viscous as my mind searched for an answer.

I remembered it now. We were both together, leaving school, and Haruhi had hugged me tight. She had told me she was sorry. This was after our battle with the Antithesis, and after she had become so forceful and angry with me for a short period of time, causing me to declare that we were finished. In all reality, we really could have just never broken up in the first place. In reality, maybe I had just been unable to forgive her for something that wasn't her fault.

I turned, but Haruhi was still in the same sitting position. It was around this time that I noticed the change in scenery. The sky was getting dark with black clouds, and it was happening fast.

"I'm sorry, Kyon."

She said it again, and her words drove themselves into my heart like an icy spike. Some sort of terrible feeling was rushing into me now.

Was it guilt? Was it remorse? Was it regret? I didn't know, but I was beginning to feel terrible. I was beginning to feel like everything I had done had been wrong.

The sky continued to blacken above us, and soon, it was as dark as night. The snow no longer was reflecting sunlight, but instead being blanketed in the darkness that was perpetrated by this now angry sky. I could hear Haruhi's voice, and it became louder as she stood up and finally found the courage to face me.

"I'm sorry!"

Lightning. I watched lightning crack across the sky in powerful arcs. The world began to change in color and mood, and from my spot, I could see Haruhi Suzumiya, tears welling up in her eyes, and an expression of pure sadness written all over her face.

"Haruhi…hold on a second…" I said to her, walking back slowly, trying my best to express concern on my face. Fear was beginning to overtake me, and the feeling increased with every consecutive lightning flash.

"I'm sorry!"

The ground rumbled as if the earth was threatening to rip open. I felt myself shudder and lose balance, and I fell backwards into the snow, which there was not too much left of. The rocky dirt hurt quite a bit when I made impact, causing me to become dizzy for a moment. Meanwhile, Haruhi continued to stand in her place, shaking her head back and forth as she was practically making a river of tears.

"I'm sorry, Kyon! I'm sorry for it all!"

Her words were reaching me. It wasn't like they didn't feel sincere. In fact, I could tell that there was nothing but honesty in her voice. To watch Haruhi standing there, as the world shook around her, her eyes full of tears while the black sky crackled with lightning, seemed like a sight that I almost couldn't even fathom.

"Haruhi, you kind of need to calm down…" I tried to say as I stood up, but Haruhi didn't seem to listen.

"I should have been better! I should have been nicer! I was a terrible Brigade Chief!"

Yeah. She definitely wasn't listening.

"Haruhi! Will you just listen to me for once?" I shouted as the rumbling only seemed to get stronger around us. Lightning flashed in the clouds with even more ferocity, lighting up the sky for brief moments.

Finally, Haruhi fell to her knees, holding herself as the tears in her eyes continued to stream down her face. Her voice became louder than ever before.

"I JUST WANT YOU TO LOVE ME!"

That was when everything went downhill.

Above me, I heard what sounded like an explosion of epic proportions. It blasted through my ears, causing me to strain my mind from the loudness of the sudden sound. When I looked up, my eyes widened more than ever, as I could see red glowing shapes flying off the top of Mt. Fuji. There was a strong sensation of heat, even though we were very, very far from the summit. Something was wrong.

I realized then that Mt. Fuji was still in fact an active volcano. I looked back at Haruhi, and I will tell you now that I didn't think I've ever been more scared in my entire life.

The events that led up to all of this…my mind seemed to gloss over them at this sudden moment. It all started when I broke up with Haruhi. Everything had seemed fine back then, and at the time, I had actually felt better than ever. But as I would soon find out, things were not okay. Haruhi developed an alternate personality over the summer, and it passed on over to the new semester of school as well. Because of her new, more devious self, she managed to treat me worse than ever, attempted to make me jealous by using Koizumi, and finally, kick me out of the SOS Brigade.

What did this all mean?

I think I finally figured it out. While fire was probably raining down all around us, I finally figured out why this was happening to me.

The answer was so simple. Haruhi really did love me.

Of course, she said it just now, but that's really not the biggest hint. She's always been one to act, not say. All this time, I've been expecting Haruhi to say these things to me, to tell me that she cared. I felt like I was being used by her, like I was just another normal human she would dump in a heartbeat.

But she did care. The fact that she would change so much, just for me, meant that she actually cared more than anyone else. The fact that she was here, threatening to destroy the surrounding landscape of Mt. Fuji with her god-like powers, meant that she cared.

It sounded crazy, but it was true.

"…Please…I said I was sorry…"

Haruhi seemed to almost moan in pain now. I realized that if I didn't act fast, we would both be doomed.

I approached her, looking down at the figure that was Haruhi Suzumiya. She seemed so frail and weak. This was nothing like her. I couldn't let this continue, or our end was imminent.

"I just want you back, Kyon! I want you to lo-"

The one time I had almost hit Haruhi was quite awhile ago, she had pissed me off after abusing Asahina-san, and if Koizumi hadn't stopped me, I would have literally punched her in the face. I had luckily cooled down after that scene, but nevertheless, I realized that perhaps I do have a bit of a temper hidden underneath my bland exterior.

This time, however, I had no one to stop me when I slapped Haruhi right across her right cheek. It was quick, but it was firm enough that I was able to shut her up and hopefully be able to express me point.

"Stop your nonsense. You're being ridiculous."

Haruhi had become speechless after I had slapped her, and she put a hand on her cheek as her eyes looked shocked. Her tears had suddenly stopped, and her mouth was open in shock. It was a little amusing, considering that I hadn't actually hit Haruhi that hard. Either way, I could feel the rumbling behind me, as well as a growing sensation of heat. I had to do this quickly.

"Listen to me. I think I understand now, Haruhi."

"What…"

She seemed to trail off, as if unable to comprehend me.

"I know why you do what you do. In that crazy mind of yours, it's just all being done for us. I guess you're not used to expressing yourself with words. Actions are more of your calling card."

"…………."

"You know what, Haruhi?"

"I think I figured out exactly why I love you. There was a time when I lead a boring existence, and everything in the world seemed drab and gray. All the things that once permeated my childhood, all the dreams of meeting strange beings and being a hero, faded away when I entered high school. I thought it would remain that way forever, and then, I happened to meet you. You changed things, Haruhi. From the moment I met you, I had a feeling that things were going to be radically different. I had a feeling that the once stagnant normalcy of my life would be tossed aside."

"…………."

"I'm not too good at saying these things, but I guess…you kind of complete me. I needed some sort of catalyst, a hyper girl like you who believed in nothing but the extraordinary and the bizarre. I'll be honest. I didn't like you much at first. You annoyed the hell out of me. But time does some weird things to a person. I guess you grew on me, Haruhi. I guess after awhile, I realized you were just the kind of person that I needed in my life. You were the last puzzle piece. You…you really do complete me."

"I know what you did in the last few months was because you wanted to be the girl that I wanted, but I don't want you to be someone else. I want you to be...you. I want you back, Haruhi. I want…my Brigade Chief back."

Haruhi had been speechless for awhile now. I wondered if it was taking her awhile to process all my words.

I hope it didn't sound too cheesy.

I sighed. I had to get this out. It's now or never.

"I guess trivial things don't matter so much anymore. I love you, Haruhi."

"Kyon…I…l-love you too…"

There wasn't anything left to say. After Haruhi had uttered my name, I had moved in just a little close. It was a fast kiss, but it was one that I needed to do. Part of it involved saving us, and part of it was something that I've wanted to do for the longest time now. On the plus side, I had figured out by now that kissing Haruhi seemed to serve as some sort of Escape Rope. Go figure.

The heat got stronger. The world continued to rumble. As I kissed Haruhi, who seemed to be wrapping her arms around me, clearly happy, there was a bright flash of lightning.

It blinded me, and after a few seconds, everything became totally and utterly white.

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A few moments of this blank whiteness passed. Then, I could feel something cold.

"Kyon! Are you awake?"

Haruhi's voice was louder than usual, and it caused me to awaken with a start. My entire face felt cold, and I brushed off snow from it as I sat up. I was feeling a little dizzy too.

When I opened my eyes, I could see Haruhi, sitting next to me, a concerned look on her face. In the distance, I could hear voices and a large number of footsteps. The sunset was behind us, and I could see that we were both in the same clearing, though surrounded by quite a bit of snow.

"You're…you're fine." Haruhi said to me, her voice a little low, but sounding relieved. I looked at her, and in an instant, I felt myself…smile.

Before Haruhi could say another word, I hugged her tightly. The sensation of just being with her, the thought of seeing her face, and hearing her voice, made me happier than ever. Even being still half-buried in snow, I felt warmth flow through my entire body that could rival a bonfire. I felt great. No. I felt amazing.

"There they are!"

Taniguchi's loud voice rang out like a bell, and as I hugged Haruhi, still smiling like an idiot, I could see everyone hurrying towards us.

"Something wrong?" Haruhi asked nervously, and I wondered if she perhaps blushing.

"No…nothing's wrong." I replied, almost laughing as I spoke.

What exactly had happened to get me here? At this point in time, I didn't really care. I didn't care about why Haruhi did what she did, or how the both of us were nearly killed just seconds ago.

No, all I cared about right now is my current situation. Haruhi Suzumiya was here, with me, and somehow, everything felt perfect.

I was a fool right now. A happy fool. At a moment like this, a single, prominent thought seemed to run through my head over and over again.

Things just couldn't be better.

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I hope you enjoyed that. It was well-worth the time to write it. I'd like to note something. If you haven't already figured it out, JonBob008 has been my beta reader since the beginning of this story. So, I do have to thank him a million times over for helping me make what I believe is the best story I have ever written thus far. I thank you for all your reviews, and next up, the epilogue to this story approaches. I hope it was worth it to write it, because now, The Infinity of Haruhi Suzumiya is on the horizon.

Stay tuned for the end to this. I think y'all will enjoy it. :)