"Ma'ar?" LSS repeated, biting her lip. "This… this is bad."

Donn nodded, her expression blank with concentration. "I don't know where he's getting his power from, though; this is beyond anything he should be able to do."

"No, it's worse than just that." LSS said. "Ma'ar's not even supposed to exist. He's too strong and too amoral. The coding for the Valdemar line of Bishies was written specifically to exclude him and all his incarnations. I don't understand how he could be here in the first place, forget about the things he's been doing. That's what worries me."

"Is there any chance the coding might have… mutated?" Adrian asked uncertainly. "I don't know much about computers or anything, so I may be going down the wrong road here, but if the coding changed itself or altered over time, would that account for it?"

"Possibly, but we have programmers scanning the codes at all times. A change like that would be noted and fixed within a day or two, and damage control would have been sent out."

"Then maybe the code was deliberately altered." Nuriko suggested.

"What about An'desha?"

Everyone but Donn turned to stare at Heero as if he's suddenly sprouted a second head.

"What?" He asked. "I've read the books. Does the coding include An'desha?" LSS nodded slowly after a moment, and he sighed. "Then if An'desha is included, is there any chance that code might alter itself enough for him to be born harboring Ma'ar's soul?"

There was a storm brewing overhead. Harmony could smell it on the wind. It would make the perfect backdrop to this melodramatic scene from Hell. Was the weather matrix random?

She'd never stopped to think about the BishWorld, really. She'd known on some level that it was just a bunch of coding at its core, but the knowledge hadn't really soaked into all the layers of her brain before now. It all just felt so real, and her head spun just thinking about how complex it must have been to build and maintain. Strange, the things the mind could zero in on at times like this.

She shook herself mentally, hauling her attention back to the scene at hand. She couldn't let herself be distracted. Not now.

Jiro and Ma'ar were still facing off, and Harmony did not want to be the one to come between them. That was a good place to get killed.

The others were ranged behind her and Jiro- she wished their presence was more comforting.

The little girl watched them all with big, innocent eyes. The mother in Harmony cried out to get her away from the evil thing holding her, to steal that child and protect her from the world.

But again, that was a good way to get killed.

So Harmony stayed where she was, watching tensely and waiting for someone, anyone, to make a move.

It was Jiro who finally broke the stalemate; he emitted one blinding flash of light, and the bell-bottom-wearing guitarist was replaced by a blue and red android, its large yellow eyes glowing almost madly in the darkness. He stayed that way for maybe a split second, then launched himself across the clearing, moving almost too fast to see.

The little girl shrieked in terror, shrinking against Ma'ar, who evaded the rush easily, only to place himself in the path of another attack, this time from a huge white tiger with shaggy fur- Byakko, meaning Tsuzuki was here. Harmony felt a bit better at the thought, and wished she dared look back. Tsuzuki's disarming grin would make her feel so much more confident they'd survive tonight.

Lightning flashed overhead, five bolts in quick succession, accompanied by the expected thunder, but Jiro seemed not to notice. His attention was focused so exclusively on Ma'ar that he didn't even seem to be paying attention to the girl. Byakko didn't share his indifference, but as long as Ma'ar was holding her, the kid was in danger.

Harmony was only human, one insignificant human mother amid a group of powerful Bishies. But she was brave, courageous, selfless, and very very stupid- she gathered herself, waiting for an opening, and rushed Ma'ar as soon as she saw one.

She collided with the slimy bastard, shouldering him to the ground, and all but tore the kid out of his hands, holding the little girl tightly even when Ma'ar struggled to his feet, kicking her hard enough to send her rolling.

"A pity you would see your children motherless so soon." She heard him snap under the constant thunder as rain began to pour down on the clearing, running into her eyes and making it hard to see. "No matter- your death will be a useful catalyst in changing them."

No!

Something huge and dark struck Ma'ar from behind, sending him staggering, and Shadow, barely visible through the rain, loomed out of the darkness.

You will not harm Mistress Harmony! Shadow thundered, his voice reverberating inside her skull and making the little girl cover her ears with a wail. I will murder you myself, foul beast!

Ma'ar turned on Shadow, Harmony forgotten for the moment, and his hand began to glow, brighter and brighter. Light- Shadow's one weakness. The only thing that could destroy him. Harmony dropped the girl, struggling to stand in the mud that coated the ground and sucked at her feet. Ma'ar had to be stopped. She was not going to let Shadow die.

The ball of light vanished as something else huge and dark slammed into Ma'ar- Sango's giant boomerang. Eternal Sailor Moon hit him from the other side with a powerful blast of energy, the light somehow all spilling towards Harmony and away from Shadow. Daughter's attack was a spear of light that buried itself in Ma'ar's back, making him scream in pain.

Then, from above, like a two-toned arrow of darkness, came Jiro.

Robot and villain exploded in a raging fireball, knocking Harmony back and onto the child they'd come to rescue. She tumbled through the mud, somehow managing to curl herself around the kid, taking the brunt of the impact when the were thrown straight into a tree.

Something flickered darkly at the heart of the fireball, and Harmony was filled with a heavy sense dread. This wasn't over.

The night got suddenly even darker, and Harmony noted with detached amusement that she was on the verge of passing out, right before she did just that.

"Jiro destroyed his body." Donn said, her voice tightly controlled. "I have to finish this." She opened her eyes, looking around at those still in the room. "Leave. All of you."

Nuriko made to protest, but Donn shook her head.

"You have to go, love." She said softly. "None of you have what it takes to help me."

"I do." Adrian spoke up. "Or my Bishies do, at any rate. Marron especially. You can't fight him alone."

Donn opened her mouth, then closed it again and nodded. Everyone but Carrot and Marron filed out, Nuriko leaving last, biting his lip as he closed the door. Once they were all gone, she held out her hands.

"Circle." She said. "Hurry. We've already lost too much time."

Through an endless world of chaos, they followed a trail of darkness. Where around it was swirling lights, glimpses of fragmented ideas and clustered streams of coding, the trail was empty black, as if the thing they followed had simply eaten its way through.

There was a soft glowing presence to one side, a sharply bright one to the other, flanking the essence that was Donn as she flew through the digital Chaos Lands, grimly chasing down the core of the foulest thing she'd ever touched. The trail didn't follow the natural contours of the Lands, but had simply blasted through in a straight line, like a shot from a cannon.

The trail grew somehow darker as they closed in on the end, three steadily burning lights, surrounding what must be Ma'ar's stronghold.

It was a thing of energy, colors and codes from obviously different sources all mashed together and laced through with darkness, seamless, endlessly shifting, with no visible door.

The brightness that was Carrot moved forward, touching Donn's light, letting their edges blur together, and she felt power flow into her, hot as fire but not painful. Marron moved back, brushing against her with feelings of warmth and strength, hooking into them both and grounding himself.

Through Marron to Carrot and from Carrot to Donn, an endless flow of energy filled her, drawn from the will and wish of everyone this monster had touched, every soul he had wounded, every friend lost and family destroyed. Far more than the three of them could have ever produced on their own- enough to finish this fight forever.

Anchored and armed, Donn moved forward, Carrot still beside her, and began to claw at the walls of the stronghold. It turned slippery under her, and she made herself piercing sharp, scoring holes before it became flexible, and she made herself hot, burning through it, changing herself to best combat what the stronghold became.

She breached the wall, and Ma'ar tried to flee, but Carrot caught him, driving him back, until they had him cornered.

Donn screamed a war cry she didn't know with a voice she didn't have and gleefully tore Ma'ar's soul to bits.

Harmony opened her eyes slowly. The rain was slacking off, and the sky above the trees to the east was beginning to lighten. Dawn.

She struggled into a sitting position, then to her feet, swaying. The kid was still clinging to her, out cold, as she took a wobbly step forward.

The center of the clearing was a crater, a good six feet wide and at least four feet deep. In the bottom was nothing recognizable; just a jumble of ash, blackened bone, and twisted bits of metal. Had they won, or had Ma'ar escaped?

The sense of dread that had overcome her before she'd fainted was gone. She just felt tired now, and she wanted to see her babies.

She swayed again, more forcefully, and fell heavily against Sesshomaru.

"Shadow?" She heard herself ask.

"Gone." Tsuzuki answered gently from her other side, laying a hand on her shoulder. "We should go home."

Harmony nodded, looking around. Everyone was wounded. Those who hadn't fought Ma'ar directly must have been fighting his shadows. They all needed patching up, and to see if they'd really done anything but make a lot of noise and smoke.

"Let's go."

The cloud cover was beginning to clear outside the window when Donn opened her eyes.

Carrot and Marron were gone, and she was in bed, curled against Nuriko. By the thin sunlight streaming through the curtains, it was late morning.

Nuriko was sleeping, and someone had moved the cribs into the room- Yuugi and Andrew were contentedly snoozing as well. Anya was slumped over in a chair near the door, but she opened her eyes when Donn sat up.

"Hey, hero." Anya said with a slight smile, moving to the chair next to the bed. "What do you want to hear first?"

"Who did we lose?" Donn asked quietly, and Anya's smile vanished.

"Jiro." She said just as quietly. "Kurama. Shadow. Marron."

Donn nodded with each name. She'd known they were all dead, on some level, but she'd also known she'd never accept it unless someone told her out loud. "Sango?"

"Taking it hard. Bikky and Naruto are with her. So's Adrian. It helps him to help her."

Donn nodded again, suddenly feeling as tired as if she hadn't slept all morning.

"Go back to sleep, honey." Anya said, gently patting her hand. "You'll feel better." She pushed Donn down, tucked her back in, and smiled at her. "I'll tell you everything else later."

Donn waited until Anya was gone and the door was closed before bursting into tears.

Usagi's eyes were empty as she stared at Harmony. Jason's were focused on the hospital blanket over his lap. They were both doing much better than they'd been yesterday, but that honestly wasn't saying much.

Emily, for her part, was fidgeting nervously and trying not to let it show.

"She needs parents." Harmony said, her tone gentle to soften the blunt honesty of what she said next. "Chibi is dead, and she's not coming back. I'm not saying replace her- I'm saying don't selfishly let all the love you two have go to waste when Emily needs it so bad."

Usagi looked away, biting her lip, and Jason sighed.

"You're right." He said at last, looking up. His eyes shimmered with tears, and he sighed again. "Damn you to the nine hells, woman, you're right. We can't brood, and we can't build our lives around a loss."

Emily looked up, her expression hopeful, and Jason managed to smile at her.

Usagi's eyes were still dead, but she smiled a small, sad smile of her own. "It's what Chibi would have wanted. And she was begging us for a sister."

Emily squealed happily, jumping out of Harmony's lap and swarming up onto the bed with her new parents. Usagi's eyes were still dead and Jason was still on the verge of tears, but all three of them were smiling when Harmony quietly left.

It seemed like a lifetime ago when they'd given Bikky and Carol their roadside graves. Had it really only been a year since then?

Donn sighed, closing her eyes. A few months made the pain of losing Kurama a bit duller, a bit less cutting to handle, but it still hurt. Ma'ar was defeated, but it had cost her a dear friend, and a friend she was just getting to know.

Usagi and Jason were in the process of formally adopting little Emily, and the three of them seemed to be on the road to recovering. How many Halflings could they have saved from being orphans if they'd known sooner?

Daughter and Alfeegi were officially married, Anya was pregnant, Adrian was spending his every waking moment with LSS – they claimed to be planning Halfling benefit programs, but Donn had her private suspicions otherwise – Naruto and Bikky were inseparable, and the Bishworld was safe again.

But for all the good that had come of this, did it really outweigh the bad? Was there more they could have done? More lives they could have saved? Some way they could have prevented one tragedy or another?

She opened her eyes and sighed. The questions never stopped coming.

"You're thinking too hard." Heero noted. "Stop it."

Donn couldn't help but smile. The questions never stopped coming, no, but neither did life. "Yes, Mommy."

"Don't make me use hippy speak."

"Dear God, anything but that!" Donn exclaimed, laughing outright, and ducked as Heero lobbed a pillow at her.

"Go have sex with your husband." He ordered sharply, and she laughed again.

"Yes, Mother." She replied, running out of the room before he could throw something else.

Sometimes, the only way to find the answers to the questions was to move forward with life and hope it provided them.

And until then, she had a husband to go sex.

Oh. Em. Gee.

It's finished.

The Ties That Bind is done. Over with. Finito.

This is my second finished multi-part story and my first update in I think more than a year. Oh my goodness.

Thanks so much for everyone who read this, and especially to those of you who stuck by me from the start. Thank you also to the creators of Anya and Merina and the inspiration for Harmony- I never would have made it without you guys.

LSS, if you're out there, I'm sorry I gave you a maybe-romantic interest! Please forgive this humble authoress! Don't smite me. I'm too pretty to die.

Gah, this feels so good, even with a toddler screaming bloody murder in the background. I hope you'll all bear with me as I struggle to finish the rest of my stories, and I hope you all enjoyed this one. Thank you so much for your tolerance and understanding, and most of all for your support.

I love you all!