Author's Note: This is really the end, now! Thanks for reading and/or reviewing and/or favoriting! Or, if you didn't, well, that's all right...I guess...

A song for this final chapter: 'We'll Meet Again' by Vera Lynn (a good old-fashioned song) watch?v=CqA5IJPEONY

Enjoy! :)

Epilogue: To the Stars

The day dawned bright and beautiful on the tropical hemisphere of Youana. The people of the city-state of Leeara went about their usual morning business. Sky vehicles whizzed overhead and ground cars stood in nearly motionless lines as they waited for traffic to abate. Pedestrians milled in two directions on each street, their chatter a pleasant counterpoint to the rush of transportation above and beside them. The buildings gleamed brilliantly in the light of the sun, and the air carried the cloak of humidity which never truly faded on this side of the di-climatic planet.

Many Youanai hurried past the Leeara City-State Center of Interplanetary Affairs without one glance at the large crowd gathered at its steps. The gathered people were a conglomeration of reporters, activists, and interested citizens, and they all pressed closer toward the small group standing at the top of the steps. The reporters forced their way to the most advantageous positions and captured the images of the four people on the steps with their recording devices.

One specially designated member of the press held a sound amplifier to the mouth of the tall, elderly man who stood at the forefront of the small but important group. The older Youanai cleared his throat and spoke loudly through the amplifier. "People of Leeara, our great and bountiful city-state, this is a day which should be remembered for many turnings of the planet. I see that the crowd gathered here is not as substantial as we would have liked, but let's not be discouraged! Progress has been made, today! For today, we are to welcome the very first Star-born among us to take her place as a Youanai Diplomat!" There was a great amount of applause from the regular citizens standing around the steps. "Please, greet your new Diplomat with the honor and praise she deserves. Diplomat Choshana Vugarti, please take your place among the dignitaries of Leeara!"

The crowd reacted with further applause and shouts of approval as a short, willowy woman stepped forward and took the elderly man's place. She was adorned with robes of deep blue that shimmered with thousands of reflective spots, representing the stars with which she would intercede on Leeara's behalf. The robes covered her slender body to her ankles. Her hair shone almost-white in the sun. Her eyes, a shade of blue so pale they were nearly washed out by the glare of the buildings around her, wrinkled up as she smiled. "Citizens of Leeara," the woman, Choshana, said, and at the sound of her bright and cultured voice, the crowd cheered again. "Citizens of Leeara," she began again, "I am so very honored to be chosen for this great duty. As ambassador for Leeara and also Youana, I will go out to the stars and planets in our solar system and meet with the people of those worlds, and I will never stop thinking about my own planet as I do so." Choshana had to pause once more as her words brought on another round of applause. "As everyone knows, I am adopted." There was a ripple of wry laughter in the crowd. Everyone did indeed know the story of their newest ambassador's adoption. "I am a Star-born who was adopted into the proud family of Vugarti. I am very grateful to my parents, who took me in on incredibly short notice and raised me as their own daughter. And I'm grateful to the father who selflessly left me here, on this wonderful world. I am proud to be considered Youanai. We are a just and generous people. We must also learn to spread our justice and generosity to the worlds around us. I believe that with them, we can achieve peace. We can all move forward together in this astonishing universe."

Choshana bowed gracefully to end her speech. The citizens listening to her acceptance of the position as Diplomat shouted their agreement as the elderly man, the Head Diplomat of Leeara, turned Choshana to face him and gently laid a heavy metal collar around her neck. "By the powers of city and state," the Head Diplomat cried, "Star-born Choshana Vugarti is officially Diplomat to the Stars!"

"Where shall she go first, Head Diplomat?" asked one of the reporters, shoving his recording device near the elderly man's face.

"We have not yet confirmed a definite plan," the Head Diplomat replied, "but we have consulted with the Lord of Diplomatic Relations on Gallifrey, and he is certainly amenable to meeting with Diplomat Vugarti to inform her of the current status of our neighboring star system, the Constellation of Kasterborous. As Gallifrey is renowned for its advancement in technology, we feel that this is a perfect way to introduce Diplomat Vugarti into interplanetary relations."

The reporters tried to swarm Choshana, but the dark-clothed men behind her politely pushed them back. The young diplomat laughed good-naturedly at the struggling reporters and turned to one of her guards. "I'd like to take the ceremonial walk to my origins, if that's possible."

Her guard did not look pleased. "Most Esteemed Diplomat, that is a good half an hour's walk from here."

"I know," Choshana said, "but I really do think that it's important. I need to honor the traditions of Leeara, to show the people that I am part of their culture. Please, let me do this."

The guard pushed another reporter back and sighed. "All right. But only if you change into something less eye-catching."

Within minutes, the crowd had dispersed, the dignitaries had gone back into the Center of Interplanetary Affairs, and Choshana had gone inside, changed, and come back out again. She still wore the metal collar, but she had pulled on her everyday clothes rather than her cumbersome ceremonial robes. Her guards surrounded her and walked with her as she descended the steps and entered the main streets of Leeara.

Choshana had only gone a few steps when she felt a queer sensation pass all over her. Her heart beat slower in her chest, her breath caught, and her skin seemed to shiver. A song began in her mind, a dim, telepathic message she could have sworn she had heard before. The song gained in intensity, along with the strange but comforting feeling of meeting an old friend for the first time in years. No telepathic signal in her life had ever felt the same.

On instinct, the Youanai diplomat spun in a circle, looking all around her. The street was crowded; people gave her strange looks when they realized that she was the only still person in a sea of moving bodies. Her guards stopped with her and one of them asked her what was wrong. "Nothing's wrong," Choshana said, faintly, "but I have the most incredible…"

She lost track of her words as she watched one person in particular pass her on the street, walking in the same direction as herself. He walked within arm's length: a man who was much taller than she was, with curly blonde hair and fiery blue eyes and the most ridiculous, parti-colored coat she had ever seen. When he passed her, the song in her head exploded into a joyous melody.

For one brief moment, their eyes met.

Images and sense memories flooded into the Youanai woman. Warmth, comfort, safety, happiness. Snow and sky. Faces that looked down at her with warmth and tenderness. Names, painted with fondness: Adric, Nyssa, Tegan. Bullets, a blue box, and brushes of kisses on her cheeks and forehead. Baths with exasperated mutters and gentle movements. And through it all, a steady presence in her mind which reflected the careful way in which she was held and carried. Affection, not only for her, but flowing from her, for a man who ultimately shut off his telepathic link with her for her own good.

Father!

The telepathic link was back, but before Choshana could seize his hand and establish contact fully, he was gone. She looked ahead of her and behind her. How could she have lost that head of curls and that hideous coat? But, no matter how hard she looked, she could no longer see him. Choshana stood still in the middle of the street and swallowed back a surge of emotion.

It was not coincidence that he had come back on the day of her instatement as Diplomat to the Stars. She didn't know who he was or how he had managed to travel all this way or how he knew about her career, but she knew he had done it for her, just as he'd given her up thirty years before. She felt love for this man swell in her spirit. Choshana closed her eyes and concentrated very hard.

I'm home, she thought, projecting the mental message as loudly as she could. This is my home. You gave it to me. Thank you. And, only hesitating a little, she added, I love you.

Choshana's mental energy faded. She relinquished the message and hoped it got to its intended recipient. Then, she started walking again, toward the place where her story on Youana had begun. As she walked, she couldn't help but hope that she might meet her father once again, somewhere amongst the stars.

THE END