Epilogue: Eulogy of Tomo and Yomi Sunday, March 31st, 5:00PM, Tokyo. The soft, depressing melody of the pipe organ drifted through the air that afternoon, its message looming on the minds of those who could hear it. Only seven people were around it hear the sounds, though they did not want to be there, each and every one of them knew, that this had been partially their fault. As they looked upon the double-coffin, which held the dead bodies of Tomo Takino and Yomi Mizuhara, Ms. Sakaki, Kaorin, Kagura, Chiyo-chan, Ayumu, Yukari, Minamo, and Mr. Mizuhara, all felt the weight of the world on their shoulders. All were clad in black, the six girls all wearing veils of some kind, Mr. Mizuhara with a black top hat. For you see, while no funeral is a pleasant thing, this was a greater among many evils, so to speak. The organ finally died down, and, after a moment of silence, Chiyo stepped up to the front, standing at the head of the coffin. At her side, she held an unsealed envelope. Holding back tears, as she looked upon the bodies of her friends, she looked up, addressing the other six. "Friends," she began, not a hint of joy in her voice. "I am sure you all are away of why we are here today." There was a small moment of silence. "I does not need to be said, but will be anyway, as a reminder, that the deaths of these two young women, rest entirely on our shoulders. Each and every one of us could have done something to prevent this, or to at least make the lives of Tomo and Yomi a little easier." Another silence, as everyone knew what Chyio would say next. In their minds, everyone said it with her. "But we didn't. I ask that we have a moment of silence, before I continue." Everyone bowed their heads, some closing their eyes, others not being able to take their eyes off of the coffin. This was something that, in the end, none of them had wanted to deal with, and it was ripping each of them up inside to no end. "Thank you." Chiyo ended the silence that she started, nodding at Sakaki, who made her way up to the head of the coffin. Chiyo handed her the letter that she held in her hand. "Ms. Sakaki has agreed to read this. A Letter that is to be buried with Tomo and Yomi, that each of us helped pitch in to write." Chiyo nodded at Sakaki one more time, and stepped down. After both girls had taken their respective places, Sakaki opened the envelope, pulling out the paper inside, unfolding it, and reading it. "To our Dearest Tomo and Yomi," The letter began. "We're sorry. We know all the apologies in the world won't bring you back, but either way, we are still sorry. From Chiyo; I'm sorry I never understood. Please, forgive me. From Sakaki; I'm sorry I didn't do my best to comprehend it. Please, forgive me." At this point, everyone, tears now running down their eyes, began to recite their own parts as Sakaki did, remembering exactly what they had written." "From Kagura;" Kagura said, her voice breaking. "I'm sorry for the way I was, the things I said that I Shouldn't have. I shouldn't have taken my past out on you two. Please, forgive me." "From Ayumu;" Osaka recited, using her real name out of pure respect. "I'm sorry I couldn'tve looked upon y'all in a different light, or at least have kept the same light on ya. Please, forgive me." "From Kaorin; I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you, Yomi. It would have been the least I could have done. I'm sorry, girls. Please forgive me." "From Yukari; I should have tolerated you, and not given you hell in my home-room like I always did. I'm sorry. Please, forgive me." "From Minamo;" Also using her real name out of respect. "I came forward and told you you could come to me. But when I suspected drugs and did nothing about it, I blame myself. I'm sorry. Please, forgive me." "From Mr. Mizuhara; I'm sorry, honey. I shouldn'tve let your mother talk me into looking at you like that. You were my daughter, and Tomo like a second to me. I should have better played the roll of the father. I'm sorry. Please, forgive me." Every one of them had asked for forgiveness on their own. None of the quotes from any of them had been written together, which made it that much more emotional. Everyone else was crying quietly, and Sakaki was holding back tears, trying not to get the letter wet. "We know that none of these can bring you back, and we know that you have every right to hate us. This is just so you know, we now understand the errors of our ways. The decisions that the six of us have made over the past year will affect us for life, and we've lost two of the most important people to us, all because we weren't able to look past a simple feeling. We pray that the afterlife treats you better than this one was able to." "Amen." Everyone said it. All at once, through the tears. Sakaki could no longer hold back, and she burst out. Trembling and crying, she folded the letter, placing it back in the envelope, sealing it with her tears, and placing it between the two in the coffin. After one final look, the coffin was closed. That was it. In this lifetime, Tomo and Yomi would never be seen again. As the crane was slowly lowered the coffin into the ground, Sakaki stepped aside, revealing the Tombstone that would forever commemorate the girls. It read as follows. 'Here lie Tomo Takino and Koyomi Mizuhara, two young lovers, who could have had it all, had it not been for everyone in their life, who let them down, all because they could not look past a mere feeling. We're sorry, girls. Rest in Piece.' The birthdays and death dates of the two girls were etched into the Tombstone, and many flowers already sat beside the grave. Finally, the crane pulled out, and the bulldozer did the last job, pushing the dirt over the hole in the ground, and flattening it. Nobody left for a long time, most just stood around, crying, and supporting one another. One by one, eventually, they would walk away. It was Eight O'clock that night, before Chiyo, the last person there, finally left. Each of the girls left would go on to have successful lives. All going to college, all making something out of themselves. Mr. Mizuhara divorced his wife, and even he went back to College. All the girls, now, ten years later, are doing great. But for each one of them. Not a day goes by, when they don't consider, what life could have been like, if only, their High School years, had gone a little differently. And still, even now, the girls get together at the grave of Tomo and Yomi, every Sunday at Five O'clock, for a time of silence, and remembrance, for two of their best friends, who weren't around, because of them. Rest in Piece, Tomo and Yomi. Rest in Piece. Words from the Author: A Couple of Closing Notes from PAEC Hey guys, PAEC here. Wow, it's been a great ride over the past four months and two days. I'm glad that y'all have stuck with me long enough to be reading this. Really makes me feel great as a Fanfiction Author. This is my first completed facfiction that I have written, by myself, that has been longer than one chapter. I started it Four Months and Two Days ago, which was about a year after I completed the Prequel, Tales of Love at Magical Land. Ever since I wrote ToLaML, I had been telling myself, 'I need a sequel.' Now, I have one. Firstly, I want to say that everything that happened in 'The Downward Spiral' was planned to happen since day one. I spent a year figuring this Fanfiction out, and I wasn't about to make the changes based on a few reviews. This was my idea, and I stuck with it to the very end. I do understand why y'all think I may have changed it, where it sped up towards the end, but the reason I did that is simple. Basically, Tomo and Yomi's slow evolution into the crack whores that they had become took so long, that writing out a day by day, or even a week by week account, of the seven months, would have been unnecessary. For you see, the plot crucial moments were scattered here and there. Nothing happened all at once. I felt a recap, if you will, was more appropriate to what I was trying to do.
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