Hello, please read this.

I feel as though the author's note is better placed in the front of this chapter than the end. Thank you to every and all readers who are at this point, and I'm sorry for how this will end. But I hope you feel the same as I do. It's really a happy feeling. Don't worry yourselves. Yes, this is the last chapter of Subsidal. No, there will not be any sequel. I don't own Axis Powers Hetalia, and I never will.

Thank you for sticking with my catastrophic updating schedule, for reading all 75,000+ words no matter the misspellings and the grammatical errors, for reviewing, for favorite-ing, for being the most amazing readers ever. Subsidal is like a really good friend to me. It always has been. I was writing this through loosing a best friend, gaining a best friend, breaking up with my girlfriend, almost failing classes, succeeding classes with the top scores, eating too much, eating not enough, and it helped me. I know to you, it was just a way of entertainment, a way to keep yourself interested.

Did you ever get lost in here, feel something the same as a character, did it help you? I hope it did.

Subsidal changed my life. 212 pages, 75,000+ words, 2 years. For me, it was a whole lot of hope. Thank you for inspiring me, for encouraging me. And thank you for sticking around to the end.

Enjoy!

Lovino, the now go-to expert on sneaking around, causing trouble, and finding lost kidnapped victims, drew a circle on a map of the city.

"Even with a car, Ivan must've only managed to get Arthur this far. Which means, that we have to work our way around the perimeter and work our way in. Ta-da, we've already checked here-" Lovino crossed out the school and it's dorms, which were located furthest way from the ocean.

"and here-" He crossed out the club and it's surrounding areas, exactly in the center of the map. "Which leaves us with the coast. Get your swim gear, because we're going to check the entire coastline. He wanted Arthur nearby as well, so he could use him in performances. He wouldn't have put him on a boat."

Alfred nodded, watching carefully. Running out the door at the spur of the moment sounded cool, but it had lead to another fruitless comb of the city. Kiku suggested to go find Lovino, and find Lovino in the kitchen with Antonio he did.

Alfred would never look at tomato soup the same.

"We check the coast, the coast guard, and other sources as well as the local shopkeepers. Then we check for any abandoned shelters along the coast. Correct?" Alfred asked, double-checking the plan.

Lovino nodded, but sighed in frustration as well. "Chigi, this will take forever!"

Alfred wanted to groan as well. He held it in. "I'd rather spend a million years searching for Arthur than sitting here feeling guilty. Let's get moving."

The team of three headed out Antonio's front door and into his cheap almost-broken-down car. The coast wasn't too far away, and it took only a 30 minute or so drive; including the time it took for them to stop at Alfred's for his swim suit and goggles. As soon as the car parked against the levee, the scent of sat water assaulted their nostrils.

Lovino stopped them before they all ran off. "One last thing. Antonio is checking the shops, going south down the boardwalk from here. I'm checking the pier, you go north, and we regroup at the car."

"Call if you find any information about where Arthur could be." Alfred reminded. They nodded, antsy to begin the search. The steady sound of waves hitting the shore and seagulls squawking resounded for a minute before they all headed off in separate directions.

Alfred was inside yet another store, checking with the store owner if there was any news on the beach and if they had heard of any abandoned beach refuges. The shopkeeper gave him a look that told him a little too much about how his question had been answered.

"No really, I don't want to have a crazy sexscapade with anyone on the beach!" He protested, as the elderly woman promptly threw him out with a glare. He landed on his ass, scraping his elbows a bit on the concrete step leading into the shop. "…Bitch."

His phone, which had barely escaped the rough landing in his back pocket, began to vibrate loudly. Annoyed, Alfred pulled it out and answered with a snippety tone.

"What?"

"I have a lead. Some purple haired kid, must've been 14 or so, told me there was an abandoned WWII shelter on the beach, hidden in an alcove. It's a possibility." Lovino's voice had never been such a relief.

"Hell yes! We have to check it out. Like, now. Let's get going!" A lead, a lead! Alfred jumped right up off his butt and almost started running towards the shitty car. He settled for a brisk walk.

"Well, I have some warnings." Lovino said, with a tone that Alfred had to take seriously. "This kid was a stereotyped emo kid. He even had the black wristbands to cover up the cutting and the hair-over-the-eye dyed purple haircut. For all I know, he's playing some practical joke. I mean, he was sitting with a kid with a Mohawk-thing and another wacko who desperately needed to deal with his bed head. I don't know about you, but 14 year olds I do not trust."

Lovino had a point, but Alfred would not let their only lead go to waste. "But what will checking it out really do? A little waste of time, but we have nothing else so far."

A sigh. "We have to snorkel to get there since I checked. It's completely illegal to go, and it's fenced off to prevent boats. Something about hazardous materials."

Alfred was nothing, if not stubborn. "Sounds exactly like Ivan. Let's go. Tonight, when no one will notice."

"If I die, go to jail, or get my arm eaten by a shark, I am blaming you." Lovino deadpanned.

"Perfect." Alfred confirmed.

Matthew was, by no means, a violent person. But he, under no circumstance, would let this go by him unchecked. Alfred was dumb for a college student, but this takes the cake.

"Alfred, no. I know how much he means to you, and that he's missing. But I cannot allow you to go scuba-diving into an alcove off the coast around midnight with nothing but a bomb shelter on it. I will not."

"Artie might be there and we have to check!" Alfred whined, struggling against the duct tape used to tie him to the couch in Gilbert and Matthew's little dorm. Gilbert still hadn't stopped laughing.

Alfred'd been caught with scuba gear and a diving suit leaving his apartment at 10:30 PM, and Matthew just KNEW he was up to something troublesome. He didn't think it was illegal; his thoughts had headed closer to suicide by drowning, but that didn't exactly explain the scuba gear. Either way, Gilbert and he had teamed up to get the American tied up.

Alfred struggled, irritated.

"No. Why should we let you? It's completely illegal! It's fenced off for being hazardous, and you even decided to drag Lovino and Antonio into it! Kiku just handed you his scuba gear, didn't he think it was slightly suspicious that you wanted scuba gear of all things at what, 10 o'clock in the evening?"

Alfred blushed. "Okay, so I lied about going early this morning and forgetting to stop at the shop, but Lovino suggested the idea!"

Matthew didn't even blink. "Bullshit."

"'S not bullshit." Alfred whined weakly. "He did tell me about the alcove! And that we'd have to scuba dive there since there was a fence, and that it'd be better to do in the dark so we wouldn't get caught by the security cameras!"

"That's not the same as suggesting. That's making sure you don't kill yourself." Matthew crossed his arms, and gave Alfred the look. The you-are-the-scum-of-theworld-and-I-am-protecting-you-from-yourself-and-all-your-own-bullshit-you-seem-to-be-unable-to stop-spouting one?

Gilbert finally caught his breath enough to make a statement. "Birdie, we should give you a whip! You're totally winning the dominatrix thing here!"

Alfred whimpered. "Please! I know it's crazy, but it's my crazy desire not to loose to Ivan with this whole dumb band shit that made him go missing in the first place! I have to find him. That, or we go to the police. I'm doing one or the other tonight. It's been three days. He could be dead."

Matthew paused. His authority faded, and he soon looked back at Gilbert, the same weak Matthew that always needed help from someone to be heard. They exchanged glances, Matthew unsure of his ability to make that decision. He could change lives. End lives.

"I…" Matthew locked his eyes on Alfred's big, confident ones. "I trust you. I know I'm crazy, but I trust you! You lead me in the right place when I needed you more than anything. You let me have something to hold onto. You're my best friend."

Matthew took a deep breath. "You've saved lives before, and I know how much Arthur means to you. You'll do anything for him, but all I want is you to do anything for yourself too sometimes. If being safe and saving Arthur means going to the police, then do it. But if you know you'll come out okay from this, then do it. If you trust yourself."

Alfred's confidence wavered, but was replaced. "Mattie, you're the best. I needed that. But, I don't like ending lives. I like saving them. I don't want to be the bad guy. I can't hurt someone on purpose. I'd rather let myself get hurt, especially since we all know Yao is getting Ivan help. I won't let him get sentenced to life in jail."

"I'm going to save Arthur." He put it simply.

Matthew had nothing left to do but cut the duct tape off of him.

The water was cold. This was why no one went swimming in the winter. The water was hypothermia-type freezing. Antonio shivered as he jumped into the dark murky ocean. Lovino took a deep breath and jumped in after him. The last to jump in was Alfred. He'd been late, but he said he'd been held up by Matthew. In Antonio's opinion, for a good reason too.

He didn't like how much danger this was putting Lovino in. He liked Lovino safe. There could be sharks! Sharks were scary.

The three gave each other thumbs up before swimming down into the barely lit water, the light coming from a water proof lantern given to Lovino by some guy. An evil muffin? Antonio liked that they had one, though. Otherwise, they were completely lost in the dark waters.

Fish scurried underneath them as they swam against the current. The alcove, as Lovino had researched, was on the north side of the beach, hidden in-between two cliffs. The bomb shelter had been built for sailors who needed a quick place to hide during aerial attacks from the Nazis. Who knew why it had been built there, of all places, but it had. The Nazi attacks were on the Pacific, not the Atlantic.

Antonio had taken to watching the fish instead of where they were going, so occasionally Lovino would kick him in the face with his flipper to bring his attention back. Another kick made Antonio look up at Lovino and Alfred, who were pointing animatedly at the signs of a chain link fence, meaning they were approaching their destination.

The fence sunk into the water a good 10 feet, leaving nearly no space to swim underneath with how the water was beginning to shallow. Antonio, being someone who'd spent his early teens and middle school years on a boat of all places, could see where ships had rammed into the fence on accident.

He checked the bottom, determining if it was safe enough. The fence was steady and didn't give, it was thicker than he'd expected. The edges were rusted at the very bottom, but not badly. It didn't seem too life threatening. Antonio motioned for Lovino and Alfred to follow him.

Wriggling his head and neck underneath wasn't hard. When it came to his chest, large and covered by the diving suit, it was a tight fit. Lovino was smaller, so he was able to wiggle under and onto the other side easily. Alfred, however, was having the same problems as he was.

They were too big.

Lovino motioned to the bottom, grabbing at a semi-rust free spot to try and push it up. Alfred used his arms to push it as well, and it bent just enough to get Antonio over to the other side.

Alfred was stuck on one side.

Lovino's mouth opened in shock and terror as he motioned wildly to Alfred. Neither understood, until Antonio saw the shark. It wasn't a great white or a hammerhead, but it was a shark none the less. It looked a little more dangerous than the average bottom feeder shark, too. The type of shark that Alfred didn't see because of it's camouflage.

It must have thought Alfred was dangerous, Antonio thought. Lovino, pushing desperately at the fence to bend it again, tried to get Alfred to swim through before the shark caught up to him.

Alfred, not aware of the shark, took his damn time sliding underneath as Antonio pushed as hard as he could to bend the fence upwards. Alfred, with less than a minute to spare, slid mostly underneath.

The shark was almost to him by now.

Lovino's arms were trembling. It was cold, and Lovino couldn't hold this up for much longer. The water was freezing. And Lovino wasn't very strong in the first place. If Alfred didn't get through to the other side fast enough, he could loose a foot.

If Antonio had been any smarter, he would've said it was ironic. But Antonio was more focused on dragging their rather large friend under the chain-link fence and keeping him safe from the shark to make witty comments. Plus, he didn't know how to speak underwater.

Alfred, unaware, wriggled under just as the shark took a bite for his foot. The shark, just too big to swim under the fence, lingered as Alfred headed towards them.

The swim up the shore hadn't been fun. All three washed up, limping out of the waves towards the shelter. Pulling off his mask, Lovino snapped. "We are NEVER doing this again."

"Was that shark behind me the whole time?" Alfred asked worriedly, having seen the shark as soon as he'd turned around to check the fence. Both Antonio and Lovino groaned and nodded miserably. As cold as the water was, it was even colder outside of it with the water evaporating or freezing onto their skin.

"Lovi, we are eating Tomato soup as soon as we get home." Antonio grumbled, peeling off the top half of his diving suit. It was a dumb move, but he didn't want the wet sticky fabric on him any longer.

Alfred laughed. "Difficult part, done! Now we get inside the shelter and look for Artie!"

Antonio, who was not the smartest tool in the toolbox, brought up a very important topic. "If we find him, how will we get Arthur back out of here? We're surrounded up two cliffs, and water. And he'll die if we swim with him back to shore of drowning or freezing."

"While we hadn't thought that far ahead, we still have this." Lovino pulled out a cell phone. It was water proof, another goodie from those muffins, who were helping out so much Antonio couldn't really think of them as evil.

"I guess so. Now we break in?"

"Now we break in." Alfred giggled, aiming a powerful kick towards the rusty iron shelter. The noise resulting would've woken up the entire neighborhood if they hadn't been out in the middle of nowhere. The kick ended up with Alfred massaging his foot, rather than the door swinging open.

There was no noise from inside.

Maybe Arthur wasn't in here at all. Alfred pressed his free hand to his forehead. No, bad Alfred. Don't go doubting yourself now. This wasn't the last place Arthur could be. It was their first lead. It was hopefully their last. Arthur might still be out because of some drug or something. Maybe he was scared and thought it was Ivan. Alfred could not give up now.

Alfred was never letting something come between them again. He'd put Arthur on a fucking leash and chain him to the bed, spoon feed him every night if he had too.

Antonio and Lovino didn't say anything, wrapping themselves up in each other to stay warm. Alfred waited a moment.

And then he threw himself at the door with a running start, hitting it with all his force. The bang resounded through the night as something in the door broke, something sounding like a lock. The door might not have broken down dramatically, but Alfred's finger reached frantically for the handle.

The door swung open.

Alfred didn't notice the inside of the shelter. What he did notice, was the person curled up, cuddling with a million blankets, on a cot against the left wall. Running helplessly, Alfred grabbed the blanket covering the face of the sleeping person. Peeling it back, he smiled and sobbed at the same time. Lovino had followed him at a slower pace and broke down at the sight.

Antonio asked quietly, "Who is it?"

After minutes of agonizing silence broken only by sobs and harsh breaths, Lovino having moved on from tears to hysterical laughter, heaved out a "Arthur!"

Everything was dark… Why everything supposed to be dark? He felt so heavy… everything hurt. He didn't want to have to wake up, but he was being dragged back to consciousness against his will.

The light was blinding. It was like his worst hang-over times ten. The sound, the clattering and chatter all around him, slowed down to a crawl as he dragged his eyes open.

The face that Arthur woke to was his friend Dan's, who was putting a wet towel on his forehead. But wasn't Dan supposed to be in Australia right now, working on his degree? Arthur shrugged, holding the towel on his head and sitting up.

Fuck, bad idea. That hurt like a bitch. "I don't remember anything." He moaned.

Yeah, speaking of that… why was he in a hospital room? Looking around, Arthur noticed several others were in the room with him. Peter sat down at his bedside, his eyes sparkling with delight. His brothers were there too, laughing in their respective accents.

"They couldn't find any other card with a phone number on you other than mine, so they called me. I flew right over and called your real relatives. You were going to wake up any time now." Dan joked.

Arthur nodded, groaning. "What happened?"

"You got in some bar fight, knocked out and left somewhere, and you were found by your boyfriend. He brought you to the hospital at around 5 am, and they treated your wounds as well as put you on some really strong pain killers. Nothing was broken too bad, but you have a nice wallaby on your forehead and you're malnourished and dehydrated." Dan smiled brightly, and his drop bear that he always had on his shoulder, the demented koala look-alike, glared at him. Arthur glared back.

Was his brain really so dead that he was glaring at a drop bear? Arthur took a deep breath. Even that hurt his chest. Shit. That must've been some big bar fight…

"Arthur, da? I have all of your friends. Please let us talk nicely." He heard that… blasted plumbing pipe ban against Ivan's large hands.

He turned around slowly, feeling anger run through his blood. "If you wanted to talk, you would've realized I'm not the one to talk to. You, if you have Alfred-" He froze.

Ivan chuckled and dropped a body on the floor with a thunk. It was unmistakably Alfred. Even if his clothes were torn and ripped, and covered with blood.

"What did you do to him?" He hissed, his fingers cracking as he flexed them. Ivan wasn't intimidated, but he would be. Arthur would make sure of that.

Oh, right. Fuck. How long ago was that? He needed to talk to Alfred; he assumed if Fan said Al had brought him here then Alfred was alright… And probably conscious.

"Thanks, Dan. You really didn't have to. But I… I wish to talk to Alfred now, if you don't mind." Arthur replied softly and swiftly. The drop bear hissed at his dismissal of Dan, who probably trained it to terrify people. He hated that drop bear for all it was worth, but it wasn't the biggest of his problems. His killer headache and his… well, ache all over were far higher up on his list than some evil koala.

"You're severally dehydrated. I don't think leaving the room is the best medicine here." Peter chimed.

Arthur groaned. He felt like he'd been hit with a semi.

"Alfred is here, actually so you don't have to worry about him. This is your hospital room, has been for the last two days." Dan replied.

"Ugh. How long was I out? Actually, you know… just let me talk to Alfred."

"I'll do it! I think he's asleep. He freaked out and didn't get a wink of sleep while you were still in critical condition." Dan walked off briskly. The drop bear remained. Arthur shuddered.

Alfred was produced at record speed; probably because the new of Arthur being awake had him running. Dan laughed as Arthur was forced into a gentle bear hug.

"Watch the I.V." Arthur snapped.

Alfred released him, laughing with warm eyes. "You're okay! You almost died! I'm so sorry! Oh my gosh, you're okay! You're awake!"

Arthur blinked owlishly. "Don't get so happy just yet… You. Explain all of this. To me. I don't remember anything after Ivan knocked us both out."

"It's a long story."

And as Arthur found out, the words had been used quite accurately.

Tick.

Tick.

Kiku was screaming internally. Why? Class was taking so long! He wanted to go home already.

Tick.

He looked around the classroom. Francis was scribbling notes down, which probably had nothing to do with the teacher's lecture and more to do with the Hispanic next to him, scribbling down notes that must've been quite similar. Kiku let out a heavy sigh.

Tonight was an important night. It was a goodbye party.

Tick.

Matthew was reading a book underneath the desk, some teenage romance novel he'd never admit he'd actually read. Gilbert, on the other side of the classroom, was seeing how many spitballs he could hit Roderich with before the Austrian snapped. The correct number was one, but Gilbert had horrible aim and kept hitting the desk.

They wouldn't have missed the party for their lives.

Tick.

Antonio and Lovino weren't taking this class, so they weren't seen around the classroom. But they'd stopped by earlier and said they'd come to the goodbye party. Definitely, Antonio promised while Lovino scoffed and looked stubbornly at the ground. They'd left together, holding hands. Kiku knew that Lovino would vehemently deny he enjoyed it.

Even though they weren't involved, it was like the heart of what kept them together was being ripped out.

Tick.

Feliciano was waving at all of them through the window. His professor usually let him out early but he always made sure to wave to Ludwig before heading home to their shared dorm. Ludwig hadn't said anything about coming to the party, but as long as Feli was coming there was no doubt about his presence. And Kiku liked to think his friend would be there, even so.

Tick.

Toris and Feliks laughed heartily at the invitation before they figured out why. They were silent for the rest of the day. Elizaveta had shed a tear or two. Roderich only held her, petting her long hair gently and whispering "It's okay. It's gonna be okay."

While their reactions were more of the extreme ones, Kiku envied Elizaveta's ability to cry. He was too trained to cry. Not for something so silly as this.

Tick.

Ivan had been checked into a mental hospital and he was receiving daily therapy. Yao was busy all the time. They weren't attending. But Ivan had smiled a real, genuine, but so heartbroken smile, and said, "I'm sorry."

Tick.

Alfred was staring mindlessly at the blackboard. Tonight must've been just as important to him as it was to Kiku. Both of them hated goodbyes. But it was a goodbye party after all. At least it was a party. If it was just a goodbye, Kiku didn't know if Alfred would come. No matter how important. No matter if it was a last goodbye.

Tick.

Heracles had held Kiku the day before and told him not to worry at all. It wasn't the end, but the phase of a new beginning. Death needed to occur for more life. It was a cycle. And that had comforted Kiku even if it did sound like he'd quoted it from the Lion King.

Heracles promised to come.

Tick.

Arthur was being released from the Hospital today. Kiku smiled.

RIIIIINNNNNGGGGG!

It was time to go back home.

Alfred was happy. Not because of his band, Subsidal. But because as he helped Arthur into his car, they shared a smile. Arthur was the best boyfriend a teenager could ask for.

Not only did he survive the attack, being kidnapped, and almost dying, but that he didn't blame Alfred for how stupid this all was. He fidgeted in the front seat, watching Alfred start up the car.

"I love you, you know. That's why I decided this. I'm sorry." Arthur whispered. Alfred nodded.

"I know."

And now, on his drive home from the hospital, he couldn't get his mind to wrap around it.

Earlier he would've laughed and said that this would never happen, but that was a lie now. Earlier, if someone had told him this was the future, he would've laughed and told them they were dumb.

Less than a month ago he had broken into a club, been knocked out flat in a sound proofed room, had his boyfriend kidnapped, and was now driving said boyfriend who almost died back home.

For the first time in his life, Alfred knew he was doing the right thing. He didn't care about himself. Disbanding Subsidal was for Arthur, and no one else.

It was pretty shocking, since the reason he'd started this band was to get a prettier girlfriend, and now he was breaking it up to protect his boyfriend.

Alfred was never letting something come between them again. That promise, he'd broken it so many times, but… this was it. Ivan wasn't the only crazy in the world. And as much as it hurt to admit, Subsidal was good. They could go pro, they could've been famous. But Arthur, Arthur would just get more attention, and that meant more danger. If he kept Subsidal together, Arthur would never leave.

He was too loyal.

Alfred let out a sigh. It seemed like such a big let down, thinking all this time that he was going to be something big, something famous, something amazing, just to drive him and realize that wasn't the case at all. He wasn't.

He'd rather live in one of those picket fenced in houses. He'd rather have Arthur read books in his lap while he played videos games around the Brit, and have them live in a dingy apartment forever onwards.

Arthur was too important to him now. He'd forget about Subsidal.

They stopped at their dorm room, Alfred parking hesitantly.

"You ready?" He asked Arthur, who'd taken to picking at a mostly healed scab on his forearm. Snapping to attention, Arthur stared into Alfred's eyes.

"Yeah."

Francis sat down on the couch in the dorm, the entire place packed with people. All of their close friends who'd supported Subsidal during its adventures were sitting close by each other. With the packed space, several guests were standing up instead of sitting.

Matthew and Kiku were setting up their instruments in front of the TV. Alfred and Arthur had just arrived and Arthur was changing out of his old clothes he'd arrived at the hospital in and into something decent.

It wasn't silent, everyone was chattering. Miguel snuggled into his side. "It's a shame really. I know they'll still all play together, but no more performances? They were really good."

"C'est la vie, mon cher." Francis sighed. "It was nice while it lasted."

"I don't really get it." He murmured sadly.

Arthur strummed gingerly at his guitar. No more time left. One last official song then… One last song.

"Alfred, com'n. Let's go."

The rest of Subsidal had agreed with Arthur's choice for the last song. Matthew thought it was fitting, while Kiku nodded along silently. He didn't give his opinion. It was important to be quiet, though. Arthur knew Kiku understood.

"It's a good song." Alfred had said while thumbing through the sheet music. "Arthur, it's perfect."

Alfred, talking in front of the crowd, began his 'goodbye' speech. "This day is a big day. It's important to all of us. I think Subsidal has changed everyone's lives here. Whether you supported us, or helped us, or merely listened to us, it means everything. It was life-changing."

Murmurs of agreement. Several people were already tearing up.

"Whether you were a spectator, like Elizaveta, Roderich, Heracles, Feliciano, Ludwig, and Feliks, a member of our ally band Lacrimosa like Lovino, Antonio, Miguel, Gilbert, and Francis, or a one time member of Kolbalt like Toris, and Yao and Ivan even though they couldn't come, you were there. You are the reason we played so well. Thank you, for everything. And enjoy the last show." Alfred finished.

The room went numb as they all began to play, the melody familiar to some and unknown to others.

"It started out as a feeling
Which then grew into a hope
Which then turned into a quiet thought
Which then turned into a quiet word"

As Alfred sung, Arthur began to cry. They had worked so hard. Did they do well? Did they succeed?

"And then that word grew louder and louder
'Til it was a battle cry"

Lovino and Antonio held each other's hands with a death grip. Lovino was watching with wide eyes, while Antonio leaned onto his shoulder for support. Nobody liked goodbyes.

"I'll come back when you call me
No need to say goodbye"

Alfred was wiping his eyes as he took a breath before singing again. After so long and so much hard work, it felt cold and heavy on his heart. Alfred didn't know when he started to care so much, but he did.

"Just because everything's changing
Doesn't mean it's never been this way before
All you can do is try to know who your friends are
As you head off to the war"

Miguel sniffled, rubbing at his eyes. Francis stroked his arm softly, although he seemed in worse shape then Miguel was.

"Pick a star on the dark horizon and follow the light
You'll come back when it's over
No need to say goodbye"

Matthew fumbled a note as big fat tears rolled out of his eyes. Gilbert made a cooing noise, his eyes sympathetic. While Gilbert was unhappy at the turnout of things, Matthew was miserable. All he'd wanted was to be noticed, to be heard. During this last song, everyone could hear the bass just fine.

"You'll come back when it's over
No need to say goodbye"

Kiku wasn't showing his emotions as he played the drums softly. Heracles' eyes drooped lower with a small sad smile on his lips. Everyone hated goodbyes.

"Now we're back to the beginning
It's just a feeling and no one knows yet
But just because they can't feel it too
Doesn't mean that you have to forget"

Toris's head was down with a guilty expression, while Feliks sobbed quietly. The feeling settled heavily down on their hearts.

"Let your memories grow stronger and stronger
'Til they're before your eyes
You'll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye"

Arthur, taking a deep breath smiled. Of course, it wasn't really the end. Life continued. They were all still friends. They were all still loved. What more was needed?

"You'll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye."

Alfred drew out the last note with a shaky breath. The silence was welcome for the minute before everyone burst into silly laughter. Of course it wasn't really the end. They all had things important to do.

"Goodbye."