Author's notes:

Alternate title: "Aster Stole the Precious Thing." In fact, I think you could probably get away with calling both of my previous stories "Aster Stole the Precious Thing." (Points for people who know what I'm talking about.)

Hmm. I'm not entirely sure what to think about this one… It looks different to me every time. For now, I've decided that it's a little bit too melodramatic compared to what I was expecting to write. I don't really like how it turned out… I'm bad at writing fluffy stuff without being too heavy-handed, and you might be able to see that at a certain "twist." I could also have just as easily ended the story at the end of chapter 1, but I'm such a sucker for happy endings… so I made the somewhat convoluted mess that is chapter 2.

There's one more story left in this "series," and then I'll probably switch to something or someone else. Unless I suddenly get some brilliant idea…

As always, feel free to leave reviews. Is there something in this story that's scaring people off or something? (I think I know what the trouble is, but it wouldn't hurt to get a few other opinions.)

Anyway, I can't think of any way to fix this one other than to burn it and start over. I'll let you be the judge regarding how good it really is.

* * *

I woke up in a dimly lit room. ...No, I didn't. This wasn't the room I fell asleep in. So, obviously, I was dreaming. I didn't see anything else in the room at first at first. Then I heard something move. I tried to get a closer look at it, and my heart started to pound in my chest.

That "thing" was Aster. He was suddenly standing not too far from me, his olive-green eyes looking darker in the poor light. He had decided to haunt my dreams because haunting my memory wasn't enough, apparently. I decided to speak to the phantom despite having convinced myself that it was only a dream. "Aster?"

To my surprise, he responded. "You can see me? ...Can you hear me?"

Here come the weird questions. "Yes, I hear you and I can see you. Do you want to explain-"

I didn't even get to finish before Aster jumped closer and grabbed me by the shoulders. What is going on here? "R-really?! Can you feel me touching you, too?!

This was getting bizarre. "...Yeah?"

Suddenly, his arms were around me. "Oh, Richter! It worked! I'm finally strong enough to communicate with you through dreams... It's just like they said!" Perhaps sensing how baffled I was, he let go. "...I guess I've got a lot of explaining to do." That was an understatement. "Well, let's just say I've been following you around for a while. I've also had to swipe a little Mana from you every once in a while to stay around, so, uh... sorry about that."

"It's alright, Aster." Why was I buying into this?

"No, it isn't. Just because it's me taking it from you doesn't make it right. But as I was saying... When ghosts are around for a long time, they become more powerful. Well, they don't really get power. It's more like they become more capable of interacting with the living, or at least people they were close to. Only the 'strongest' ghost is capable of being seen by the living. And actively manipulating things in the physical world? ...Well, that makes you a poltergeist, and that's generally frowned upon. That's what the others tell me, anyway."

My head was starting to spin. I decided to pick one train of thought and stick with it. "So... You're really Aster?"

He gave me a familiar smile. "You bet!"

There was an awkward silence as both of us stared at each other, waiting for the other one to speak. I was the first to break the silence. "Aster... You're disappointed with me, aren't you."

"...A little. I mean, of course I'm not happy that Ratatosk killed me, but I think you overreacted a lot. I think you should have come to your senses when the conditions for bringing me back involved destroying the world, yourself included. It's really something amazing that you would sacrifice everything for me, but... really, Richter? There are other people in this world, too!" I couldn't hide my shame. When someone comes back from the dead to tell you you've done something horrible, then you've definitely crossed the line. I was at a loss for words when Aster attempted to absolve me. "But from what I've heard, Ratatosk is trying to atone for everything he did, and it sounds like you are, too. I'm glad you both realized your mistakes."

"Aster... do you forgive me?"

"For what? You never did anything wrong to me. You might think that you burdened me or made me worry too much, but you never did. Not even once."

"Really? Even after all that I've done?"

"You're accepting the consequences. That should be enough, I think. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: angst doesn't suit you. Well, you DO have a reason this time, but to keep going after I've already said everything's alright? You can stop now, Richter. I think everything's going to be fine."

"No, it won't. How can you still try to reassure me like that?"

Aster made a few impatient-sounding noises. I could always tell when I got too aggressively pessimistic because Aster would start fidgeting and sighing and generally stop being so patient with me. "Yes, it will! Before we get stuck in an endless 'yes-it-will-no-it-won't-yes-it-will' loop, consider this: in a thousand years, the world will be a very different place. It'll be like being able to start a completely new life. I'd think that would sound good to you."

This was definitely the Aster that I knew. He was trying to tell me that everything would be alright in the end, like he always did. "You're still an idealist and an optimist, even after everything that just happened... That's amazing, Aster."

"And that's how I plan to stay! I hope you can get used to it again."

The last of my composure went out from under me. The only person that I was ever truly close to was standing in front of me, against all odds. This could be the last time I ever spoke with Aster, even if it was only a dream. I remembered all those times that Aster told me to tell him how I felt. So I took a deep breath, grabbed Aster, and held him tight. "Aster, that's why I... I loved you. And I still do." It was either that or... crying? How embarrassing. I felt blood rushing to my face. I'm not sure if I was blushing because I was ashamed or embarrassed or for some other reason entirely.

Aster returned the gesture. What he said next shocked me more than anything he had ever said. "...I loved you too, Richter. And I still do love you! What do you think gave me the will to come back? It was you, Richter! Don't look so surprised. Did you really think I don't feel the same way about you as you do about me? Well, you were wrong!" He suddenly changed the subject. "This is probably coming from absolutely nowhere, but... when everything is taken care of... don't even think about killing yourself to 'join' me!"

Absolutely nowhere? There's another major understatement. "Aster... the thought never even crossed my mind. I don't know what I'll do when I finally get out of here, but I never planned for that."

The fear went out of Aster's eyes. "I'm glad... This sort of thing is an imprecise science, you know? I wouldn't want you to accidentally miss me. Just know that I will wait till I can see you again. Even if I have to wait a thousand years, I'll just suck it up and be patient. Maybe by then you'll be able to hear me and speak with me outside of dreams."

"Aster..." These moments were precious to me. Would we ever hold each other like this again? He felt so warm against me... after a few minutes, everything went black.