"Now listen, Yume. We're your upperclassmen, so you have to do whatever we say." Eri Kouno leaned towards her shorter friend.

　　"Including 'Give me your umbrella, I forgot mine'?" Yume complained, folding her umbrella down away from her carefully so the water wouldn't fall into her hair. There was a large white gauze bandage over her left cheek and she wore a turtle neck collar that was hugely out of fashion, but the rest of her looked the picture of health.

　　"I didn't take your umbrella entirely, I just asked you to share it with me." Eri pouted, shaking her wet jeans in the hopes of getting them dryer.

　　"How can I share an umbrella with you when you have that monstrous ribbon floating over your head? I'd have to hold my arms up the entire walk to school!" Yume complained.

　　"For your information, I got this 'monstrous ribbon' from my mother--" Eri planted her fists on her hips.

　　"We're going to be late, we're going to be late!" Saki jumped up and down apprehensively, her school shoes already on as she watched her quarreling friends.

　　"Saki's right. Nevermind that and listen closely. When it comes to transfer student speeches, just follow my lead." Eri boasted.

　　"I'm a year younger than you, we don't share the same class. How do I take your lead?" Yume Oono asked.

　　"By listening to my advice." Eri answered patiently. "Just keep this all-important thing in mind. You're not talking about yourself. You're talking about how you'll fit in with everyone else. Give a speech that lets you fit in with everyone immediately. No "I hate you alls," or "I'll send this class to hells!"" Eri stabbed her finger through the air towards Yume's chest.

　　"More importantly, we're going to be late!" Saki stressed again.

　　"I don't need advice from people who forget their umbrellas." Yume hmphed, ostentatiously taking off her shoes and slipping on her school slippers.

　　"Don't come crying to me for help when you've turned the whole school against you." Eri hmphed, tossing her wet hair as she took off her shoes and put them in her shoe locker.

　　"Good luck Yume!" Saki waved, dragging Eri away.

　　"See you after school. . ." Yume waved back, suddenly feeling afraid.

　　"No, at lunch!" Saki shouted from a distance, and suddenly Yume felt a lot better. She could do this. She was the strongest Dead Ender in the world. Her soul was as black as pitch. A transfer student speech was nothing.

　　"Hello everyone, I'm Yume Oono. I'll be under your care from here on." Yume bowed to the class in front of her. The children were all tiny, just like her. She had become so accustomed to living around older people. It was disorienting to realize she had any peers left in the world.

　　"My hobbies are greek mythology and arguing with my friends." Yume tried to smile, but it hurt her burned away mouth too much, so she just folded her arms in front of her in what she hoped was an inviting manner. "When I grow up, I want to change the world."

　　The class gave a resounding round of applause.

 

* * *

　　Kotone and Masanori returned from the hospital with a healthy baby girl in their arms. Everyone gathered around with party hats and cake. This was, after all, Kotori's first birthday.

　　"Everyone, thank you so much." Kotone gave her friends a warm smile. "I've probably been a little irascible while carrying this child. If I made you feel bad, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't fighting with you two weeks ago too."

　　"Nonsense! Just protect us when we're pregnant and it's all even again." Chiharu said, slapping Kotone on the back.

　　"When that gravity wielder started crushing Chiharu against the ground, I had to wrestle Masanori to stop him from flying out to help. Even though he was their target from the beginning!" Kotone sighed.

　　"Masanori!" The girls all looked angrily at him. "Wrestling with a pregnant woman?"

　　"She tackled me from behind!" Masanori protested. "Besides, I gave it up when I saw Rei's event horizon sucking him away in turn. . ."

　　"Rei, you didn't tell me you beat anyone!" Shiori Oono rounded on her twin sister.

　　"Saki slew a dragon. Why mention the little things?" Rei deflected the praise away.

　　"Congratulations on your daughter, Kotone." Shiori turned away from reproving her sister to give her best friend a tight hug. "But you know, I still beat you to the punch."

　　"How many more Dead Enders are you going to adopt?" Kotone asked in exasperation.

　　"As many as it takes." Shiori Oono said, smiling. "With your money, it's not like I can't afford it."

　　"I'm not sure I'm ready to be a Dad." Isao sighed.

　　"Nonsense, you're two years older than me! Get it together!" Shiori complained.

　　"But, she's already ten. . .if I were Masanori I'd be scouting her for--" Isao complained.

　　"Stopppppppp!" Kotone squeaked, blushing crimson. "Masanori did no such thing! Don't pollute Kotori with a bad impression of her Papa!"

　　"You can't have Yume. Yume is forbidden." Shiori said sternly to her husband. "But when Masanori and I die, I'll let you two get back together. Don't just live out your lives as lonely shells when you'll both be so young."

　　Kotone gave a sideways look at Isao, her face still red.

　　Isao looked away embarrassedly, putting a hand over the back of his head. "I already promised Masanori I'd look after his kids, so I guess adding in one more Miyamoto wouldn't hurt."

　　"Kotone, will you make Isao happy? I kind of gave him a hard bargain, dying so early on him and all." Shiori asked.

　　"If that's what you want, Shiori." Kotone said. "But I intend to keep Masanori alive, so if you don't want to make Isao lonely, you'll just have to go on living for a long time to come too."

　　"I'll try. Hehe." Shiori smiled, kissing Isao and then Kotone on the cheek. She thought about it a few seconds and then kissed Masanori on the cheek too.

　　"What's that for?" Masanori said.

　　"For loving Kotone so much that you'd already arranged things with your best friend." Shiori said. Then she walked over and gave Rei a kiss on the cheek.

　　"What did I do?" Rei asked, confused.

　　"That's a thank you." Shiori said. "For remembering me to the very end." Then she walked over and kissed Kotori on the cheek.

　　"What did she do?" Kotone laughed. Once Shiori started she was an unstoppable whirlwind.

　　"It's a blessing. A prayer that she grows up to be as wonderful as her mother." Shiori Oono said, staring at the baby. "She's so cute, Isao. Let's take her home."

　　"We're already home." Isao mentioned.

　　"Let's grab her and take her into our room then." Shiori conspired.

　　"The baby might complain when you don't produce any milk." Isao pointed out.

　　"Curses, foiled again." Shiori snapped her fingers. "In that case, just make me pregnant too."

　　"You'll have your child before the year is out." Isao smiled confidently.

　　"And be sure to make it a boy. You have control of that, you know. Yume's really excited about having a little brother." Shiori reminded Isao.

　　"You'll have your son before the year is out." Isao promised again.

　　"Chiharu, won't you reconsider and marry Cyan already? What if the gravity bomb had crushed you, and you never got to marry at all?" Shiori asked.

　　"I won't deviate from my life plan, even if it's your dying wish." Chiharu said firmly. "I'm going to graduate from college, then graduate school, then get a well paying job. Then, if Cyan wants, I'll give him first claim on my hand."

　　"It's such a waste!" Shiori complained.

　　"Cyan already has my heart, Shiori. He won't miss the rest too badly." Chiharu smiled fondly.

　　"If Aiko marries before you do, I'm going to laugh." Shiori said. Then she walked over to Chiharu and kissed her on the cheek.

　　"What did I do?" Chiharu asked.

　　"That's for saving the world." Shiori Oono said. "In the end, you were the best of us, weren't you?"

　　"Don't be silly, I didn't do anything. . ." Chiharu said, but the eyes of the entire household were upon her, and no one was bringing up a single objection.

　　"I just happen to have more younger sisters. . ." Chiharu started again, but everyone just watched her.

　　"Everyone knows Shiori's the best! Or Masanori!" Chiharu begged. But the named individuals shook their heads and smiled. The dark wyrds were all but extinguished, but if they wanted to defeat the Moral Aristocracy, everyone would have to try their best to lead more people onto the right path, one love affair at a time. By that measure, Chiharu was leading the group by far. And everyone, even Chiharu, knew it.

* * *

　　"I'm home!" Saki said, depositing her wet umbrella into the rack at her home's entrance.

　　"Welcome home, Saki." Her parents said. "We have a surprise for you. Come into the living room with Aiko."

　　Saki took off her shoes and obediently walked to her living room couch to join her sister.

　　"The first order of business -- Saki Sakai, you're a hundred millionaire." Father bombed this information on her with a mischievous smile.

　　"What? I am?" Saki blinked, sitting upright. She'd grown all that gold for Masanori's sake, to pay off his debt. Had he given some of the proceeds back to her?

　　"Surprising, isn't it? But it's all thanks to your eldest sister, who works for Angle Corporation. This year she gave her paycheck to us. But next year she's decided to give it to you. She says you earned it, over and over again. I guess you do get all A's. . ." Father shrugged happily.

　　Saki Sakai smiled. Once upon a time, she had thought getting all A's was the most good she could do in the world too. It felt like a lifetime ago.

　　"But that's just the half of it. We talked to a contractor, and they said there's plenty of room to build a third bedroom on the side of the house. With our new money, we thought we could finally give you two what you've always wanted, your very own room, with all the privacy you could ever need. . ." Father began happily.

　　"I refuse!" Saki held up her arms in a giant X.

　　"I refuse!" Aiko held up her arms in a giant X in perfect harmonized unison. The two sisters held out their crossed arms in defiance of their parents.

　　"But Aiko, you have a boyfriend now, and both of you have friends you want to bring over. . ." Father said, perplexed.

　　"We're happy just the way things are, Father." Aiko said. "I like my little sister right where she is."

　　"I want to tell sister goodnight, every night." Saki agreed. "Don't rip us apart now. . .we only just started to get along!"

　　"Well, if the two of you are sure." Father said, looking from one daughter to the other. "Chiharu's going to stay with us all through college, and perhaps graduate school. You'll never get your own rooms if you don't take this chance now."

　　"Haven't you noticed, Father?" Aiko flounced patronizingly. "Chiharu's still living here for the same reason we're keeping our shared room. We're the happiest family in the world."