Epilogue: We Are a Single Light
Two weeks later…
"Come on, Kotori! You're going to be late!"
Yawning loudly, Kotori Minami rolled out of bed and unceremoniously fell onto the floor. Blinking the sleep out of her eyes, she reflected on the whirlwind of activity and changes that had happened in the past two weeks. The presence of the other Riders and Hongo had given a cover for why they were later than expected coming back from the event. The scrapes and bruises on Eiji and Takatora had been jokingly passed off as them missing one of the top steps and finding a faster route down. Daisuke had informed her mother of his decision and had, in a surprising turn of events, enrolled Honoka and Umi into the school as well. The Dragonfly themed Rider had assured her that they would fill some niche in the school, even though they weren't much for thinking creatively. Ironically, the site of the school was near the dome that was, for the time being, experiencing rather hasty construction work. This was to cover the holes and scars that were the result of the energetic battle that had taken place after the Love Live event. Worryingly, there had been people present in the nearby hotels that had snapped shots of the Kamen Riders in action but, interestingly, the space where they had huddled together had been replaced with a blank spot.
Thinking of the battle brought a wistful smile to her face as she pushed the covers off her body and began to get dressed. The Interdimensional portal had lit up the entire area and seemed to have pulsated with the last notes of the song. When it had snapped shut, they had all experienced a strange feeling of empowerment for a brief moment – almost as if the energy Weihan had left in their world had channelled to them directly. So far, the other Riders weren't reporting any unusual changes or power surges but it was still rather early. She also didn't really know what Nozomi was going to do with the few locks of hair she had clipped from the head of the unconscious Rider but she supposed it wasn't her place to speculate anything – unlike every single news report that had come out chronicling the appearance of a new Rider. Kotaro had shaken his head at the reports and had chuckled for a good five minutes at the further wild guesses that had popped up. As the unknown Rider hadn't been seen since the battle, everyone and their dog had labelled him a truly lone Rider.
"Kotori! Come on!" Kotaro called from outside.
Her cousin was also sticking around as, with the rather gruesome demise of Grand Bloody, the Crisis Empire was finally destroyed…until the next wannabe leader stepped up to the plate. He was thinking of opening up a branch of his helicopter tour/shuttle service in Tokyo but, unlike Daisuke, hadn't really thought of a suitable location yet. As a result, he was staying in their apartment until he could scrounge up enough identification so the banks would allow him access into his frozen accounts. He was also in charge of ensuring she wasn't late for her first full day of classes and had lectured her thoroughly about not getting too interested in the opposite sex; something her mother had been rather interested to hear about. Her cousin had then pulled no punches and had talked to her about the man she had met after the concert, omitting the details of his Rider System from the explanation. His rather melancholy ending of how he had vanished into the distance, never to be seen again, was a bit too melodramatic for her liking but it had won her mother over in dropping that line of questioning.
Pulling on her socks, she looked at the computer on her desk and the internet chat room page that was waiting behind the screen saver. She, as well as Nozomi and Eli, had been checking every day almost religiously to see if he had managed to find a way to join. She didn't know too much about Interdimensional travel but Hongo had stated that communication worked pretty much the same but needed an extremely strong connection. He was also sticking around as there had been rumours of a Shocker plot that involved the granddaughter of an old friend…or something. She didn't know and, unless it involved her or her friends, she didn't care. She just wanted…well, she knew what she wanted but that was impossible.
"I'm ready, I'm ready! I'll see you later!" she called as she raced past him.
Kotaro looked at the retreating form of his cousin and chuckled under his breath. If she thought she could shield her innermost desires from him, she was mistaken. He knew that in the short amount of time he had been with them, Kotori had fallen head-over-heels in love with the Interdimensional Rider – age gap be damned, apparently. She also wasn't the only one as Takatora, having employed both Eli and Nozomi in Yggdrasil, had griped about catching the two girls dreamily looking at their saved pictures of the Rider. Of course, that was only in the gaps when they weren't dragging each other into empty rooms to do rather indecent things. The Melon Rider had also put in a very good word with the Head of the vocal training school, the Oni Rider Hibiki, and Nico had found herself in an extremely exclusive class that specialised in training her voice as a weapon. He didn't think she would become an Oni but stranger things had happened. He sobered up as he also didn't think the peaceful times they seemed to be in would last.
On the other hand, that was the life of a Rider; to be drawn into short bursts of battle and then relax during the lulls. On the other side of the coin was the life of an Interdimensional Rider such as Tsukasa or even Weihan – to be constantly fighting and planning, even while on the lulls. Flexing his right hand, he looked to the dormant computer on his cousin's desk and to the heap of hastily-shed pyjamas strewn on the floor. Shaking his head, he began to turn to leave when the flickering of the screen caught his eye. Stepping closer, he waited for the image to stabilise before the chat room refreshed. He knew of the chat room and had joined but this was his first time looking at it from the viewpoint of his cousin. From the flowers slowly spinning around the border to the pastel pink lines, everything screamed out 'young woman', a stark contrast to the rather utilitarian black lines and font he used. Narrowing his eyes at the two new lines, he stifled a chuckle and shook his head in amusement.
[RaptorRider has logged in]
[RaptorRider]: I got it to work
As the flood of excited messages from the other girls came flooding into the chat box, Kotaro smiled.
The future of both worlds was in good hands.
The End.
AN: And that's it for Masked Family. Any loose plot points will be wrapped up in Huntresses and Riders, including what Nozomi planned to do with the locks of hair. The return of Rider/RAPTOR will be told in Kamen Rider Tyrant and the next chapter of Powers Unleashed will deal with the return of Rider to the world of the Ultra Rangers.
