Disappointment and shame were the only two emotions the Major could feel at the moment. Disappointment because she failed to protect Leiko and shame because of the praise she did not deserve from the Kotaras. She already informed them of the situation and they were greatly worried. Though they did not blame Kusanagi for what happened, it did not stop her from doing so herself. She waited outside the emergency room for what seemed like hours and even Batou joined her in attempts to comfort her.

"I failed her, Batou…" She muttered, "I should have gone inside with her...I should have predicted that there would still be a gynoid in there...it's all my fault…"

Batou had never seen his companion beat herself up so much before. He cupped her face and looked into her optics, "It's gonna be okay...she's a tough kid and she will pull through…"

"But what if she-"

Suddenly, the door opened and she pulled away immediately. There stood one of the doctors in his white coat saying, "We have good news and we have some..inconvenient news…"

"Just tell me...I can't wait anymore…" She sighed in almost desperation.

"Leiko is alright. She had minor damage in her human parts but with some medications, we can help the tissue regrow," The doctor assured but then added, "However...because of the damage, she had lost some of her memories. We are not sure which ones she had lost but...only interaction will tell. Ready to see her?"

Kusanagi nodded silently.

The doctor stepped aside and held the door open for her. She walked in to see the girl resting in her bed. The woman scanned her body before focusing on her face. She looked so peaceful and without a single care in the world. Batou eventually entered and was relieved to see the girl in good condition.

After ten somber minutes, the girl's grey eyes opened up.

Kusanagi smiled and spoke softly as not to startle her, "Leiko…"

The girl looked up at Kusanagi and studied her for a few moments. She squinted her eyes before looking over at Batou. She looked back at the Major before finally asking in a shy voice, "Who are you?..."

Kusanagi felt her heart drop to her gut. She waited a few minutes, hoping that this was some little prank that Leiko was pulling.

It sank further as Leiko said with a slight look of fear, "Doctor...where are my caretakers?..."

"They will be here soon," The doctor assured the girl.

Kusanagi reached her hand out to the girl but she leaned away, not wanting to be touched by someone she now viewed as a stranger. The woman slowly retracted the hand and her throat felt tight. Batou frowned and turned away, seeing that he was no longer welcomed by the Tachi-Leiko.

The caretakers soon arrived as they were given permission to visit their daughter despite not being completely recovered. Leiko's expression changed as she reached her arms out to them saying, "Mom...Dad!" Kusanagi stepped back and looked at the floor as the interactions continued. They hugged and kissed her until she asked, "Who's that lady?"

The Kotaras looked surprised by the question before looking back over at the violet-haired maiden.

Mrs. Kotara began, "Leiko, don't you remember she's-"

"A friend from work…" Kusanagi intercepted the answer, she looked up at the caretakers.

They did not know what else to say before simply going along with the answer.

"Yes she...she found that you got hurt and brought you here…" Mr. Kotara lied. It was something he hated doing.

Kusanagi could not handle this anymore. She left the room and quickly walked past Batou.

"Motok-" Batou cut himself off as she saw her go into the restroom.

Kusanagi stood in front of the mirror and had her hands gripping the porcelain sink. Only small droplets of faucet water filled the room with sound. She stared at the rather filthy drain until looking up at her pathetic reflection. She was devastated to say the least. It felt like a nightmare. She focused so much on the fact that Leiko no longer had memories of her that she eventually began to turn around the concept. Perhaps this was for the best. She was never supposed to grow attached to the child in the first place so this was the opportunity to make a clean slate. Leiko no longer had to suffer the memories of her aunt or even of the recent attack. Yet what kept stabbing at the Major's internalized feelings were all the good memories they shared together in such a short period of time. She was conflicted between what was a part of public security regulations and what was in her heart. It seemed that her job, as always, won the vote.

Before she could even exit the bathroom, she was taken aback by the presence of Mrs. Kotara. She turned to face her and the older woman gazed at her with great sympathy.

"So that's it?" Mrs. Kotara shrugged.

Kusanagi stared at her silently.

"After all this time...you're just going to pretend that you never met her?" Mrs. Kotara seemed rather frustrated.

The Major shook her head, "What else can I do? It was never supposed to be this way…"

"But it was /made/ that way," The woman argued, "When you left yesterday and Leiko was alone with us, she told us how amazing the Major was and how She reminded her of her own blood mother...now that….that is something that took me /months/ to achieve and in fact...I'm not jealous at all! I'm just upset that...that you won't be a part of our lives anymore. You offered her something that we clearly could never provide; a protector and someone she could relate to. I was really, really hoping we could always be in contact with you; For her sake…"

Kusanagi parted her lips, only finding herself unable to speak. Instead, a single tear escaped her eye. She shook her head and even more tears escaped as she finally whispered, "I have to let her go...no matter how much it kills me…I have no choice…."

Mrs. Kotara now finally felt disappointment. She fiddled with her fingers and gave a nod, "If that is what you choose, Miss...then so be it…"

"I'm sorry...I truly am…"

Mrs. Kotara glanced up at Kusanagi and finalized, "It was an honor, knowing you...My husband and I will never forget all the good you have done for our family…" The woman left the restroom without another glance. Kusanagi was left alone with the sound of water droplets dripping from the faucet.

Kusanagi returned home and laid in bed for the remainder of the afternoon. She did not answer anyone's calls to the point that she had an unexpected visit from Kurutan. The young woman looked worried for her as she barged into her bedroom.

"Kusa!" Her girlfriend cried as she knelt down onto the bed next to her, "Kusa, you've had me worried sick! I tried calling you over and over...what happened?"

"If I had only treated her like any other child...it would not have hurt this badly…" Kusanagi replied quite meekly.

Kurutan frowned and tried to reason with her, "But she wasn't like any other child...she was like you and I know you cared for her greatly...I could see your eyes light up whenever she spoke to you." She gently began to stroke her violet hair, "This doesn't have to be the end.."

"You don't understand...she's lost virtually all of her memories of me…" She gave a shaken sigh, "Maybe...I should just do the same…"

Kurutan almost gasped and she rebuked, "No! You're not going to do that!"

Kusanagi looked back at her, a bit surprised by the outburst.

"Just because she can't remember you, doesn't mean you have to erase those memories yourself. You preserve them! Back them up! No one, not even a child, should ever be forgotten!"

Kurutan had a fair point but it suddenly sparked a realization in the cyborg's mind. She immediately got up from the bed and quickly left the room.

"Kusa? Kusa! Where are you going?" The young woman followed her. The Major went into the guest room that Leiko had resided in and booted up the power station.

"Did Leiko use this last night? And the nights before?" Major spoke as if conducting another investigation.

"Y-Yeah, I think so."

Kusanagi pulled a cord from her neck port and hooked it up to the machine. She accessed the system and instead of programming its sleep mode, she booted up the save files. She closed her eyes and there, she could see Leiko's memories from the girl's perspective. A few were missing in the very beginning since Leiko had not used the machine for the first few days yet as it progressed and she grew happier, the memories seemed more vivid and brighter. Kusanagi could not help but lightly smile at the scenes they shared and she failed to hold back a tear that stained her cheek once again. She fast-forward through everything until finally she reached yesterday's memories where they visited Leiko's caretakers and the child stated, "This is the Major! She gave me a place to stay and protected me. She's my hero."

There were very few memories of Ms. Mori and frankly it was best to keep it that way. She wanted Leiko to remember all the good that has happened and she definitely did not want her to relive the moments she was under that wicked woman's thumb. Kusanagi finally pulled the plug and extracted the microchips of memory from the machine.

The next day, the Kotaras were ready to take Leiko back home. They had a lot to catch up on when it came to both work and their daughter's schooling. Leiko was able to leave her hospital room and walk outside to their ride. They were suddenly stopped by the Major before they could even get into their escort vehicle.

"Mr. and Mrs. Kotara," The Major approached them as her long black coat gently swayed in the wind, "I have a parting gift for Leiko…"

The girl looked up at the woman and shyly pressed against her adopted mother as Kusanagi knelt down in front of her.

"Leiko...You may not remember me right now and that's okay, you don't have to...but there are so many memories and lessons that we've shared that I thought it was important for you to still keep," She opened up her hand and revealed the small green microchips to her, "Even if they don't mean anything, they can give you dreams."

Leiko's eyes lit up, "'Dreams'?" Ever since she had gotten her new body, she was always told that she could never dream again. The girl looked down at the gifts and slowly took them into her own hands. She looked up at Kusanagi and said quietly, "Thank you…"

Kusanagi smiled and watched at the girl stepped into the vehicle. Mrs. Kotara looked at the woman and smiled, "You changed your mind…"

"I could not deprive her of those memories. It would be wrong for me to do so." Kusanagi explained, "I do still think it would be best for us to be apart but...when the time is right, she and I will see each other again; face to face."

Mrs. Kotara smiled and looked at her husband whom also looked pleased. The two bowed to the Major. They enter the car and Leiko was getting her bag of knick-knacks in order as the chauffeur was starting the ignition. She pulled out her coloring book and quickly flipped through the pages, skimming to see all the things that she had not remembered coloring. The page of the prince and princess caught her eye as she noticed that the prince's hair was the same color as the Major's. She looked out the car window and watched as the mysterious maiden watch them from a distance. She flipped to an uncolored page and pulled out one of her crayons. She was about to press it down onto the page yet stopped herself as something reminded her to focus the energy into her wrist. She was able to color the heroine on the page without the tip of her crayon breaking.

As the car drove away into the setting sun, Batou walked up behind Kusanagi and asked, "This is how it all ends?"

"For now," She replied, her eyes not parting from the vehicle, "She and I must live our lives separately...I want to see the person that she becomes as a result of her own actions and not mine. Once she is ready, after reviewing all of those lost memories, I will be here."

"And when do you suppose that will be?"

"Only time will tell…"