Thir13en Ghosts

By Charles Xavier

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Epilogue: All's Well That Ends Well

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"Happy birthday to Kairi! Happy birthday to you!"

Inside a wooden seaside shack, a singing trio sang as they presented a large chocolate cake upon a very special girl.

"WAHOOO!" Wakka applauded wildly, while Tidus set the cake down onto a small crate.

"Happy birthday, Kairi!" Selphie wrapped her arm round Kairi's neck and gave her a big warm hug. "You're now fifteen years old! What do you have to say for all your die-hard fans here right now?"

"Huh…what?" Kairi didn't know what to say. Not because she felt gloomy, but because she had a disturbing tingle that she had been through this phase before. "Selphie…Tidus…Wakka? What are you guys doing here?"

"Well, excuse me! But isn't tonight YOUR night?" Tidus cleared his throat. "It's your birthday, remember?"

"That's right!" Said Wakka. "And we all made this cake especially for you!"

"But…how…when…?" Kairi stuttered to her friends. "Weren't you guys trying to save me…before…?"

"WHAT?" They all burst out.

Afraid to predict the future ahead, Kairi rushed out of the cabin and hurried to the beach, searching through every shadow for the ghostly stranger that once visited her. How doomed she would feel if she ever set her eyes on that monstrous looking soul. The fear of repeating what had been done before was shaking her bones, and she was unwilling to suffer through it all over again.

However, several minutes passed, and when there seemed to be no sign of Pinhead anywhere, she safely returned to the cabin…

"Kairi, where have you been? Are you feeling all right?" Selphie asked her.

"Don't you remember? This ghost with pins all over his head…he took me away from here and brought me…um…to this horrible place where I…well…can't explain."

Her friends looked at each other confused for a long while, wondering what in blazes was eating inside this poor girl's head. Then, smiles crossed their faces and soon none of them were able to take it anymore. They inevitably exploded into shear laughter.

"BWA! HA! HA! HA! HAAA!" Tidus couldn't stop himself. "Whoa! What an act you pulled there! That's quite some imagination you got, Kairi! You had us all worried skinless!"

Selphie giggled at her. "Kairi, have you been drinking too much sea water again?"

"No, I…"

"Of course she didn't!" Wakka patted her on the shoulder. "She was just playing an old trick on us, weren't you?"

"I…I…"

Something attracted her hands to her pendant. Touching it, a sensational feeling ran through her fingers, reassuring her that nothing wrong was going to come ruin her birthday night, and that everything was going to be fine. There was no need to be worried tonight, and a soft voice whispered to her, telling that her she should for once enjoy this moment together with her companions.

"Sure." Kairi's terrified frown turned upside down, and she let out a giant grin at Wakka. "Hee! Hee! I seriously got you guys, there!"

"Then come on, Kairi! Take a deep breath and fire away!" Tidus said, holding the massive cake with the others.

Kairi took a deep breath and everyone awaited her biggest moment. With every single space in her lungs packed with air, she blew it out with mighty force, putting all the candles out in one go.

"HOOORAY!"

A grand applause followed…and indeed, Kairi felt so glad to have cast aside the painful times of concern she had forced herself into these previous months. This was a night she wouldn't most certainly forget. Though she wondered if she'd ever have the heart to tell everyone what she wished for…

"So what did you wish for, Kairi?" Wakka asked. "Share with us, come on!"

"Sora…Riku…" She murmured. "I'll always be waiting here for you."

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The End

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Author's Note: Just a couple of things to say before I go. I originally wrote a much darker ending, but in the end I decided to go for a happy one since I wanted this story to end peacefully. So the alternate ending's been scrapped I'm afraid (gomen ne). I also had a couple of fights which I never got round to:

Auron Vs. Candyman

Reverend Kane Vs. Yuna

A shame they ended up being plugged out. But nonetheless, I hope you readers have enjoyed this story. I'd like to thank all my fellow reviewers and e-mailers for your comments, and I hope to see you guys in any future fanfics I write. Arigatou, and ja ne! (hugs)