Disclaimer: You know, Adultfanfiction dot net has this new little thing where they automatically stick a disclaimer on every story, without the author having to do so themselves. Given that this site also has a mandatory policy about saying that you don't own the work you're writing about and make no profit off of writing it (which is what I'm saying right now), you'd THINK that MAYBE they might ALSO adopt such a thing. Hint, hint.

Author's Note: Thank you for reading this fanfic, and for your reviews. This will be the final installment, though I hope it might inspire some readers to go back and reread the chapters that have led up to it in a new light.

What it is to Have Faith

I'm silly to believe.

I know I'm foolish. I'm sure Souma thinks so, even as he pledges to support me in every way he can. To still hope and trust that Chikane has good intentions, that she can be saved, that she's good...it's more than foolish. It's naive to the point of stupidity.

She...she's hurt me, in so many ways...in the worst way. There's...there's no reason to trust her. No reason to believe.

But I have to.

Maybe it's idiocy. Maybe it's insanity. Maybe it's weakness. Probably all of those things...but it's who I am, who I want to be. Chikane's a part of me...my most cherished part. If I lose my faith...I'll lose something about me that I can never replace.

I think one of the worst things that can happen to a person must be to lose their faith. Faith in people's goodness, faith in their religion, faith that the future can hold good things...or faith in your most cherished friend, who you love above anything else. What kind of unhappy existence, what kind of despairing person, is born when you lose such a monumentally important piece of yourself as faith?

All the evidence says I'm wrong. Chikane has betrayed us, hurt Souma, spoken of accepting Orochi, and r...hurt me. Logic says she's truly lost to darkness. And logic is very important...but so is belief. And belief means trusting even in the face of adversity, no matter how great. That's the path I choose, stupid, crazy, and weak as it may be.

I am Himeko. Belief is a weakness and belief is a strength, and I refuse to relinquish it.