Kyandi: Hey everyone!

Hikari: You are all in for a shock with this one.

Kyandi: Shush! They'll find out.

Hikari: Oh yes they will.

Kyandi: Anyway, I assure all of you there is a very good reason why Hikari left the camp and I will tell you know, for all of you Tezuka/Hikari lovers...Tezuka will be coming back.

Hikari: There was probably just a lot of squeals among fangirls.

Kyandi: Let them squeal. They deserve it. So without anymore delay, please enjoy and review!

Hikari: Kyandi-sama does not own New Prince of Tennis.

Chapter 126 Final Goodbyes

Silence.

For a long moment that seemed to stretch longer then any moment she had ever experienced, Hikari didn't hear a thing from the boys around her. It was utter silence. It was almost as if they were all holding their breaths waiting for her to snicker and smile and tell them it had all been a joke.

If that was what they were waiting for then they would be sadly mistaken.

Hikari was serious and the look on her face told them the girl was not joking. She had never been more serious about anything in her life. Well she had but it had involved the death of a parent. But this was a close second in seriousness. Another second ticked by before all sound came crashing in on Hikari in one fell swoop as all of the boys exploded in protest and exclaimations.

Loud yells of "You're joking right!?" and "You're leaving!? WHY!?" filled Hikari's ears.

All eyes were on Hikari and she was half tempted to run and hide under a rock when she glanced over at Tokugawa, Irie, and Oni, seeing the looks on their faces. Add that to the looks on her middle school friends' face and Hikari felt like running and not looking back. Seeing all those looks, Hikari experienced one of those rare moments when she really wished she still had a mother she could run to and hide behind.

You're a Higarashi. Higarashi don't run. We're business people, she told herself, taking a deep breath to steel herself as she had seen her father do and as she saw her brothers do, before she straightened her back and shoulders, fixing her friends before her with a stare that instantly shut them all up. Only for a moment though.

"Is this because of what Tohno-san did last night!?" Eiji asked, his voice a half whine. Hikari shook her head.

"Believe me, nothing he, or anyone else, did would cause me to leave if I didn't absolutely want to. This is...this is just something I have to do." Hikari said simply as she pushed her chair in.

"Why come here if you are just going to leave when you just got offered a spot on the All Japan reps team!?" one of her friends yelled at her.

Hikari heaved a sigh, gripping the back of the chair she had just vacated. She felt bad enough that she couldn't just leave them without some sort of explantion. Maybe if she told them half of the truth it would be enough to get them off her back.

"Because I came here as a favor to one of my father's friends." Hikari replied. All of the boys stared at her, surprised by the answer they received.

"A favor?" Shishido asked. Hikari nodded.

"When Mifune-oji called me I wasn't able to say no. One simply can't brush off an old family friend when they come to you with a request." Hikari replied.

"Mifune-oji!?"

The coursed yell of the boys was enough to make Hikari's ears and head both hurt. She even had to clamp her hands over her ears. They got way too loud when surprised. She rubbed at her temples when they had quieted down enough for her to uncover her ears.

"Yes. He called and since he was one of my father's closest friends, I came to do as he asked. Pretty simple and straight forward. As an added bonus, I learned quite a bit." she replied.

"And what exactly did he ask of you?" Yukimura asked.

Hikari's lips pressed together and she refused to say another word. She shouldn't have said what she had so far. They could tell she was not going to answer. Her lips were sealed, end of story. She was, thankfully, saved from having to tell them as the man in question showed up.

"I called her to come and give you brats a reason to fucking try harder!" Mifune growled as he appeared in the doorway. All of the boys looked between Hikari and Mifune.

"As a former jr. pro she knows how to prod people into trying harder and as a girl I figured it would give you shitty brats a kick in the ego if she showed you up. I was right. Take a good look at her you fucking brats. She's how pros think and most of them ain't as nice as she is about it." Mifune added looking at all of the boys in the room before looking at Hikari.

"I had thought that she might take the offer. Looks like I was fucking wrong." he growled.

To Hikari's credit, she met his gaze evenly.

"I already explained it to you, Mifune-oji. I just can't accept it." Hikari told him. The old man snorted.

"Do what you want! Hiroki wouldn't have wanted it any other way." he remarked before walking off.

Hikari nodded at his back. Despite the explanation about why she had come to the camp and then turned down the offer, which the boys suspected was only half of the truth, they weren't satisfied. They wanted the whole truth from her and Hikari was determined to not tell them.

"But why can't you accept it, Hika-chan!?" Eiji asked. Hikari shook her head, shutting them out then and there. She couldn't tell them.

"I can't say." she replied.

At this some of her friends looked hurt that Hikari couldn't share the reason with them. Hikari steeled herself, fighting hard not to let their hurt expressions get to her. She really couldn't tell them even though she really wanted to. This was what she would face as the head of the Japan branches of her family's companies when she finally took over. Best she learned to say no now.

"I'm sorry, but I have to pack." she added, turning to leave the room.

She kept her stance and pace normal, but the moment she was out of sight, she let out a shaky sigh and ran a hand through her hair. She couldn't explain it to them.

Not yet.

Hikari gently rubbed at her temples as she headed back to the dorm, using a back way to avoid her friends. Even when it was time to tell them, how was she going to do it? It was bound to anger most of them and some might even think badly of her for it later. Candyce had warned her of this when Hikari had accepted the offer. Hikari, being a stubborn girl like she was, hadn't listened to it. But Hikari wouldn't regret it. She had paid a favor to one of her father's friends. A man who had been like a brother to her late father. That was good enough for Hikari. If she had to come off as the bad person in the end, then she would.

And she knew, when her friends found out her reasons...she would be the bad person.

I suppose everyone has to be a villian at one point in time.

-0-0-0-0-

Tokugawa, try as he might, could not find Hikari for the rest of the day. Nor could her male friends for that matter, though they all searched. Tokugawa had a feeling the other girls knew where she was, but none would tell them. Most of the girls actually seemed to avoid the boys if possible. Mostly the middle school girls did. The high school girls just waved off any and all questions from the boys. So none of them would tell.

Nor would any of them answer their questions about Hikari's actions.

Tokugawa wanted to question her too. Some of her friends had turned to him for answers, but Tokugawa was just as much in the dark as they were. She hadn't said a thing to him about leaving. She hadn't said anything to her school mates, her cousin, no one. And the girls just weren't saying a word! It was frustrating.

Tokugawa finally just went to her room...for the third time. When he knocked on the door, Starlit answered. Candyce was sitting at one of the two desk and turned to see who was at the door.

"She's asleep, big boy. Ya gonna have ta wait until tomorrow ta talk ta 'er just like tha rest." Candyce told them, jerking her head towards Hikari's bed.

Tokugawa glanced that way. Sure enough Hikari was curled up on her side, her hair left wild about her head.

Her data log lay open at the head of her bed with several pages laid out and she had one arm wrapped around the over stuffed, toy wolf that he had seen on her bed before. It was strange seeing a stuff toy as the camp, but it was Hikari. She acted grown up and most of the time she acted far older then what she was, but she was still a young girl. He was sure he saw a stuffed animal on Toyuri's bed too when he had walked past the open door and she was older then him.

"Ya know she ain't doin' this ta hurt ya."

Tokugawa looked up at Candyce when she broke into his thoughts. Starlit moved past him and started cleaning up the papers laying out on Hikari's bed, tucking them in her data log before pulling her blanket up over her. Candyce was looking straight at Tokugawa.

Without her hat on and her hair pulled back into a quick ponytail, he was able to clearly see her face. There were a few freckles dusting across her nose and he just noticed she had a dimple in each cheek. But it was her green eyes that held his attention because for once...there was no playful twinkle to them. She was serious.

"She ain't tryin' hurt ya or nothin' by not tellin' ya why she's leavin'. She has a good reason." Candyce told him.

"I know. She always has a reason. She wouldn't do it if she didn't." Tokugawa replied as Starlit perched on the edge of Hikari's bed, watching the two with sharp, dark eyes.

She didn't say a word and Tokugawa figured, she probably wouldn't. She didn't seem to be the time to interrupt when it was Candyce or Hikari speaking. She had respect for their rankings.

"That's right. Just keep that in mind, stud. If ya have any trust in 'er at all, then don't forget that." Candyce told him. Tokugawa looked between the two high schoolers.

"You girls know why she's doing all of this, don't you?" he asked. Candyce and Starlit looked at each other.

"Well...yes and no." Candyce replied. Tokugawa raised one eyebrow.

"We know tha reason she had previously for doin' this. Somethin's changed. We ain't sure anymore. But I'm sure she still has a reason." Candyce replied with a shrug.

Something had changed?

Tokugawa didn't know how it could connect to the reason Hikari passed up the offer, but he was sure her captain's departure from the camp had something to do with that change.

Not for the first time since meeting her, Tokugawa wished he knew what was going on in that head of Hikari's. She was too young to have the complicated schemes and thoughts that emcompassed Hikari's brain. As it was he would have to wait until the morning to talk to her.

"If ya don't mind, Starlit and I have ta do a few more things before we can go ta bed and we 'ave a long day tomorrow." Candyce said.

Tokugawa looked at the two high school girls and nodded, leaving them to finish whatever it was they had to do. Hikari was leaving and she had yet to give him a reason why. She probably wouldn't give him a reason either. Was this because of Tezuka? Or did she have another reason for doing everything she had been doing up until now?

He would have to ask her in the morning.

-0-0-0-0-

"Leyko! Come on, Leyko, talk to me! I'm your boyfriend for crying out loud!"

Leyko couldn't take anymore. She rounded to face Marui, making Zeoni and Maya, who were walking with her, come to a stop to turn and look back at their friend. Marui came storming towards them, his teammates just behind him.

"Please Bunta, just trust me and accept when I tell you that I can't tell you anything!" Leyko exclaimed.

Marui stared at his girlfriend who was refusing to look at him. Maya, too, was avoiding Sanada's gaze. For most of the day, since Hikari had announced her departure, both girls had avoided their boyfriends. They knew they couldn't give them the answers they sought and it was for that reach that Rea was acutally hiding from Shiraishi and his team.

"But why?" Marui asked.

Leyko sucked in her bottom lip, chewing on it. She couldn't answer this question either and a frustrated look passed over Marui's face. He was about to really get frustrated and upset with his girlfriend. Zeoni stepped forward to save her friends.

"Hikari does not always explain to us the reasons for her thoughts. We know some of why she is doing what she is doing, but we have sworn to her not to utter a word. So we cannot tell you." Zeoni explained, taking care to carefully pronounce her Japanese.

Marui frowned but Zeoni continued on.

"You trust Leyko, yes?" Zeoni asked. Marui nodded.

"Then trust her now. When she is able, she will explain it to you. For now we cannot tell you. Can you not tell how much it bothers her not to share her woes with you?" Zeoni told him.

Marui looked from Zeoni to Leyko who had wrapped her arms around herself, looking everywhere but at him. He had never meant to reduce his own girlfriend to having to avoid him to keep a promise. He deflated when he saw the torn look on his girlfriend's face. He never had been able to push a matter or stay upset when Leyko had that look on her face. He could already feel himself crumbling.

"Yeah okay." he agreed.

Leyko looked up at him, her eyes going wide with relief and joy before she threw herself at him. Marui, as always, barely caught the girl before she hit the ground.

"Thank you, Bunta!" she cried, kissing him fully on the mouth, not caring that their friends were watching.

The others though, pretty much waved off the two's display of affection. Maya turned to Sanada, who was silently brooding. She fiddled with a strand of her hair in a nervous gesture that Sanada noticed instantly.

"Genichirou, you understand...right?" Maya asked, her voice so low, he barely caught what she was saying.

One wrong word and Sanada knew he would have Maya scurrying away from him as fast as her legs would carry her. He didn't want to accept that there was something that Maya couldn't tell him, but she was making it painfully clear that she just couldn't tell him what he wanted to know.

"Are you leaving too?" Sanada asked.

The tugging on her hair became more noticeable and even Marui had pried Leyko away enough to ask her the same question. Leyko instantly let go of Marui.

"We are." Maya said softly.

"But you just got here!" Marui protested.

"We were only invited as a means to tempt Hikari into staying." Zeoni told them.

"And we go wherever Hikari goes. That was why I came to Japan to begin with." Leyko added.

"So you pick Hiri-chan over me?" Marui asked. Leyko looked scandlized at the idea.

"Bunta, no! Never! But I promised her and it was a promise made before I met you." Leyko explained.

"If we didn't keep our promises...we'd be bad people." Maya said softly, staring firmly at her feet.

Neither Marui nor Sanada liked the idea of their girlfriend racing off to who knew where without telling them anything, but they both knew that they couldn't stop them. Leyko was a whirlwind who travelled the world at her own pace and only settled when she wanted to settle and Maya followed her friend, who was like her sister, to the ends of the earth. Both were fiercely loyal to each other and to the promise they made to a dear friend.

Neither boy could pressure them to stay.

"Yeah I get it." Marui said, Sanada agreeing.

Both girls visibly relaxed. Zeoni smiled, happy that her friends had come to a peaceful conclusion with their boyfriends.

"You are leaving too?" Yukimura questioned Zeoni who nodded.

"Oh yes! Demetria is following Hikari and I must follow her. She is my Doubles partner. And the others, they are like family. I care very much for my family." Zeoni told him, pride at her sense of family, shining in her usually blue eyes.

"You are Brazilian, right?" Jackal asked. Zeoni nodded eagerly.

"And you?" she asked.

"I use to live there when I was younger." Jackal confirmed, putting a joyful smile on her face.

"That is wonderful! I must go back and visit soon. I have been away for very long of a time. Demetria takes me with her, travelling the whole world. It is fun, amusing, but I miss home dearly." Zeoni told him.

"How long?" Jackal asked, more interested in Zeoni then the two couples working out their issues.

"Four years. I visit, once in a while, but I am with Demetria mostly." Zeoni told him.

"Why? Why not go home?" Jackal asked. He didn't think he could spend that much time away from home.

"Demetria is my partner. We met during a tournament when I was ten. She liked the way I played and offered me an experience my family urged me to take. Then I met the others and I have been caught up in the group dynamic ever since. My mother, she is happy, my father proud. My siblings urge me to do my best. With that support, I cannot go home just because of some homesickness, yes?" she replied. Jackal could see her point.

"Hikari offers me a life, chances, I would not have at home. She and Demetria have been so very kind to me. We each have a reason for why we join Hikari, you see. Never without reason. Hikari does not like not having reason. Everyone has reason, yes! Maya and Leyko, Demetria and Tatlyn, even the twins and others! All with reason!" Zeoni assured him.

Jackal nodded. He could see what Zeoni meant. He, like the others, didn't know the reason behind what drove the girls to do what they did, least of all Hikari, but there was a reason. Sooner or later they would find out what the reason was.

"We are happy, doing it this way. Very much fun, but hard work too! Good blend." Zeoni said happily, smiling as she looked at her friends.

That seemed to be the principle for being close to Hikari. Fun mixed in with a lot of hard work. It paid off, seeing all the loyal friends Hikari made. The boys still wished the girls didn't have to leave.

-0-0-0-0-

"You're really leaving!?"

It was easy to say that Hikari...felt about as big as a grain of rice. Standing in the parking lot of the camp, her bags at her feet and her friends staring at her with disbelief in their eyes. She felt like she had just been hit in the face. How Tezuka had found it so easy to leave with a straight face was beyond her.

Tezuka...Hikari gave herself a mental shake and steeled herself. She couldn't be thinking of him at the moment. Plenty of time for that later.

"I told you yesterday that I was." Hikari replied.

If her friends looked any sadder she was going to have to hit herself to stop feeling guilty. And then Eiji landed the blow that officially made Hikari feel like the biggest jerk in the world.

"First Tezuka, then O'chibi, and now you Hika-chan. Our team is splitting up." Hikari could have kicked herself for this, though she wasn't going to change her mind. No. She had made that up a long time ago. Instead she flew at Eiji, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I'm sorry, Kikumaru-sempai. I wish I could explain this to you, but I can't just yet. I would stay if I could, but I made a promise." Hikari told him, while Eiji blinked in surprise.

Hikari was never an overly affectinate person. She didn't really do hugs and she certainly wasn't someone to hug another person. The person usually had to hug her. There were a few times, but it wasn't that often. With her hug, Eiji scooped her up in a tight hug.

"I'll forgive you if you promise to tell me why someday." Eiji told her. Hikari smiled despite having the air squeezed from her lungs.

"Deal." she promised.

A few more of her friends insisted on hugs, Momo, Toyama, and her own cousin among them. The high schoolers, who had gathered to watch, kept their distance, though a few who had grown to like Hikari, waved to her from where they stood, Hikari waving back.

"Shame she's leaving. She would have been a strong player to have on the team." Duke remarked from where he stood beside Byodoin, Tanegashima leaning on a wall to watch.

"Maybe." Byodoin remarked.

"Little Lily doesn't like you anyhow." Tanegashima said, flashing a grin at Byodoin over his shoulder, to which the blonde snorted.

"Excuse us."

The three turned around as Starlit, bags in tow, lead the rest of the girls past them. She threw a glance as Byodoin, stopping to look him over.

"You girls are leaving too?" Duke asked.

"Yeah. Where Hikari goes, we go too." Aluri replied, the other girls, save Toyuri, moving past the three girls to continue down towards the parking lot.

Byodoin made a noise like didn't approve of the concept.

"Loyalty, apparently isn't a concept you agree with." Starlit remarked making Byodoin look at her.

He was a little...regretful that Starlit was leaving. He liked her spunk and her sass. He had a feeling she might actually be able to handle him. But she was leaving to follow a little girl who knew more then was good for her to know.

"See you later, Goldie Locks. Who knows. Maybe your travels will bring you my way." Starlit added before turning and following the rest.

"Later, big boy. It was fun. If we run into each other again, I'll treat you to some Poffertjes. You might like it." Aluri told Duke, lightly hitting him in the stomach with the back of her hand in a playful gesture. Duke smiled at her.

"Its a date." he told her, making the girl grin.

She gave him a wave and took off. Toyuri on the other hand, planted a kiss on Tanegashima's cheek and gave him a grin and a wink.

"See you, player. Try not to have too much fun without me." she told him before taking off.

Tanegashima grinned as he watched Toyuri follow her friends. She turned before she reached the others and gave Tanegashima a little finger wave before spinning on her toes and hurrying to join the others. Elona and Elana were talking to Irie and Oni, telling the two that they should visit Russia some time and look them up. Candyce stood farther off from the group, a candy apple green, sticker covered cell phone press to one ear.

Demetria was teasing Atobe, who apparently was doing so right back while Tatlyn stood nearby, talking to Yuuta. Both of them had blushes on their faces, Yuuta's older brother teasting them and making the blushes worse. Zeoni stood with Jackal and the majority of his teammates as Maya and Leyko said their good byes to their respective boyfriends. Shiraishi was trying, and failing, to say a proper good bye to Rea. The blonde army brat was giving him a hard time with it but in the end she finally gave him a smile and a kiss on the cheek, which put a grin on his face. That is...until his teammates started in on him.

Hikari watched Rea walk away from Shiraishi, a small trace of a blush on her own face.

"Are you two dating?" Hikari asked.

Rea gave her younger friend a stern look before flicking her on the nose. Hikari frowned as she rubbed her nose.

"So what if I am? Unlike Maya and Leyko I don't feel the obligation to inform all of you that Kuranosuke and I have been dating for a while." she replied lowly.

"And you will keep that to yourself." she added. Hikari grinned at her.

"Will do." she replied. Rea nodded before turning as Candyce walked up, snapping her cell phone closed.

"Our ride will be here soon. Say your goodbyes." Candyce told them. Hikari nodded.

"Hikari."

Hikari turned to look up at Tokugawa.

"I thought you were going to stay here and prove him wrong." Tokugawa remarked. Him.

Tokugawa, even now, couldn't say Tezuka's name. It almost made Hikari smile. She did smile, but not in humor.

"Sorry Kazuya. I swear I have a reason for this and soon you'll know why. But I have to go. And it doesn't really have anything to do with him. This was planned before all of this." Hikari told him.

"Perhaps the way I'm going about it now does, indeed, have something to do with him, but I have a good reason for it. Just trust me." she added.

Tokugawa eyed her for a long moment before nodding. She would tell him when she was ready. That he was sure of. For now he just had to wait.

"Dontcha worry one bit, stud! We'll take good care of 'er." Candyce told him, slinging one arm around Hikari's shoulders.

She gave Tokugawa a wink. Tokugawa had a feeling he could trust Candyce. For all the girl didn't seem to have many cares in the world, she seemed to be just as fiercely protective of her friends as Hikari was. He could trust her to keep Hikari out of trouble. He gave the girl a nod, putting a grin on her face wide enough to bring out the dimples.

Just then a bus marked with the words Higarashi Industries, pulled into the parking lot, coming to a stop. When the doors opened, a young man stepped off and a happy gasp sounded from Hikari before she peeled herself away from Candyce and took off in a dash.

"Sosuke-nii!"

The man looked up as Hikari flew at him.

"Hikari, don't!" he exclaimed, but it was too late.

The young head of the Higarashi family had less then a second to brace himself before his baby sister crashed into him, throwing small arms around his neck. He managed, with the ease of practice, to catch his sister so she didn't hit the ground. It still took him a little off guard, since he hadn't expected his sister to come flying at him like that.

"Hikari!? This is a surprise. I haven't had but one greeting like this in years." he remarked, looking down at his sister with a smile.

"Not that I am complaining, of course." he added.

As always, Sosuke's black hair was neatly brushed out and swept to the side, his glasses poised perfectly on the bridge of his nose. He was dressed in a pair of neatly creased, black slacks and a crisp white dress shirt, that was now wrinkled by his sister's greeting. No tie or jacket, but he still looked as if he had just come from a business meeting.

"I'll explain later, Sosuke-nii." she promised him as he set her back down.

"Long time, no see, Sosuke. Ya look prim and proper as always." Candyce greeted. Sosuke gave the girl a nod.

"Are you here alone, Sosuke-nii?" Hikari asked. Sosuke shook his head.

"Hitomi, Satoshi, and Satsuki are with me." Sosuke told her.

A loud yell from the bus had the two siblings stepping to the side as two, young men came out of the bus, hitting the ground with a thud and continued their fighting. Hikari didn't have to guess who they were and heaved a sigh as Hitomi came down the bus steps, hands in pockets.

"I told them to stop fighting but you know them. I'm the younger brother, so my opinion doesn't count." Hitomi said when Sosuke and Hikari looked at him.

None of the boys and girls watching said a word as Hikari heaved a sigh and waded into the fight. She avoided the hits from both of her brothers with the ease that spoke of practice. With two well placed kicks, she sent her two older brothers tumbling head over end, away from each other. Now apart and gripping at the bruised body parts their sister had kicked, Hikari put her hands on her hips as she looked down at the two.

"Satsuki-nii, Satoshi-nii, exactly how old are you?" Hikari asked.

"Twenty-two." Satoshi said.

"Twenty." Satsuki added, rubbing fiercly at his ribs.

Unlike Satoshi who had gotten away with a kick in the shoulder, Satsuki's poor ribs had recieved his sister's punishment.

"Then grow up! I act more mature then you and I'm only twelve!" Hikari told them.

It was clear, as her brothers asked for her forgivance, that while Sosuke was the technically the head of the family as the oldest child, Hikari was the real matriarch of the family. Though she was the youngest, she ruled those older and with an iron fist if they stepped out of line. Or in this case...an iron foot.

Hikari rubbed at her temples as the two apologized again for their fighting.

"Fine, fine. As long as you understand. Gods, you've made my headache worse." Hikari remarked.

This of course drew her brothers' attention to the bandages on her face and head.

"What happened!?" three of the four demanded at the same time, their collective voices so loud that she had to cover her ears.

Sosuke, who Irie had called when he had seen to Hikari's injuries, already knew about them and what happened, so he remained silent.

"It was injuries from a match. I lost my head and my opponent decided knocking my head into the concert was the best way to clear it. It worked and it's just a mild concussion." Hikari told them.

The three younger of the four Higarashi brothers present rounded on the boys standing by and watching. Tanegashima was smart enough to keep comments to himself. He certainly wasn't going to tell Hikari's brothers that he was one of the two people who had been playing against her.

"And your face?" Satoshi asked, adjusting his glasses to look at her.

"My partner did that. Completely by accident though. If I hadn't rushed the net, he wouldn't have hit me on his back swing." Hikari replied. Her words did nothing to calm the anger from the three men.

"If it makes you feel any better...I punched him for it." Hikari added, giving her brothers a grin when they looked at her.

"It does not make me feel any better. Hikari, you are a young lady." Sosuke told her in a scolding tone.

Hikari gave a sniffle, almost like she was about to start crying, which took Sosuke off guard, making the man stare at his sister, wide eyed.

"A-are you mad at me Sosuke-nii?" Hikari asked, wide, tear filled eyes directed his way.

The boys of the camp, and all of the girls knew that Hikari was playing her brother like a piano and he was falling for it.

"That is not what I meant, Hikari. I simply meant that a girl, especially one of your age, should not be punching people." Sosuke said, trying to explain. Hikari turned her back on her brother.

"I don't think you love me anymore, Sosuke-nii." she said with a pout.

By this time, Hitomi, Satsuki, and Satoshi had caught on that it was Hikari pulling their brother's leg, but Sosuke had yet to catch on.

"Hikari, please, that is hardly the case and you know it!" Sosuke insisted.

"Is it? Then why do you scold me for something I had no control over?" she asked in retort, adding a sniffle for effect.

Away from the five siblings, Candyce pulled her hat down to laugh into that, while the other girls covered laughs.

"She is so mean to her brothers." Toyuri said with a snicker.

"She does this often?" Irie asked.

"Every chance she gets. You have to admit, its amusing. They fall for it so easily even knowing she has a history of doing it." Toyuri replied.

And fall for it, Sosuke did. The poor man was going up in flames at the relentless teasing of his sister. Candyce, done with her laughter, shoved her hat back onto her head.

"Even I ain't that mean ta meh brothers. And I got meh a mean streak." Candyce remarked before looking at the time on her phone.

"Oh gosh dang it all! Look at tha time! Hickory, tease ya brother later. We gotta get a move on." Candyce said hurrying forward.

"Boys, why dotcha make yerselves useful and load a lady's bags." she told the three younger Higarashi brothers present.

None of them argued with the American and simply started helping the girls load their bags in compartment on the bus. Sosuke scolded his sister for teasing him, again, before he noticed one of the high schoolers who had stepped forward. Hikari looked up as her brother's eyes narrowed on the boy.

"Byodoin-san. Its been a while. Hikari didn't tell me you were at this camp." Sosuke remarked looking at Byodoin. The blonde boy smirked.

"Hardly surprising. You don't seem to have good control on her." Byodoin replied. Sosuke's eyes narrowed a little more but he didn't let any other signs of his annoyance show.

"No one controls Hikari. She's perfectly capable of deciding things for herself. She is a Higarashi after all." Sosuke replied, laying a hand on his sister's shoulder in a show of support. Hikari smiled brightly up at her brother.

"Yet she comes to a camp for boys, supposedly throws a match, and then quits the camp. Sounds like a kid's choice." Byodoin remarked.

Sosuke just smirked, an expression the boys didn't see on his face much, if at all.

"Hikari has her reasons. If you had lived with her as long as I have, you would understand that as mysterious as it is to you or I, Hikari is, albeit a very unusual girl, but a very clever one. And I have no need to concern myself when she has friends such as Candyce, Starlit, the girls here before you, and even some of the boys behind you, looking out for her. You might want you choose your words carefully." Sosuke told Byodoin.

"He has a point there, Goldie Locks. Keep insulting Hikari and her brothers with that kind of talk and you're likely to really piss me off." Starlit said as she leaned on Hikari's shoulder.

Hikari smiled brightly. Gods did she love her family and friends.

"Alright, enough flashing male egos here. We have a shecdule to stick to." Hikari said, patting her brother's arm.

Sosuke glanced at his sister, gave Byodoin a long look and turned away. Hikari gave Byodoin a stern look before leading her brother away.

"Kazuya!" Hikari called, waving for Tokugawa join her. Sosuke looked the high schooler over when he came to a stop beside Hikari.

"Sosuke-nii, this is Tokugawa Kazuya. Believe it or not...he's the one that found me and Hikaru that night and called for help." Hikari told her brother. Sosuke's eyes went wide as they flew from Hikari to Tokugawa.

"Truly?" he asked. Tokugawa nodded.

"Well then, I have a lot to thank you for. We might have lost Hikari too if you hadn't." Sosuke said, offering his hand to Tokugawa who took it and shook it.

"Kazuya, Oni-sempai, and Irie-sempai have taught me a lot since coming to this camp, Sosuke-nii. Irie-sempai is actually the one that patched me up after my match." Hikari added gesturing to Oni and Irie who were still stuck in conversations with the Duffmeyer twins.

"Yes I remember. He called me to inform me of the extent of your injuries. Seems Elona and Elana have sank their claws into them." Sosuke remarked. Hikari nodded as her brother turned back to Tokugawa.

"I would love to stay and talk, Tokugawa-kun, but the girls have a tight shecdule and I am to be the one to cart them about." Sosuke said, getting a look from his sister.

Tokugawa nodded. Sosuke turned to his sister, holding up two fingers, silently telling her she had two minutes to say her final goodbyes. Hikari nodded as he turned to round up his brothers, who were currently either helping the girls or giving Hikari's male friends a hard time. Hikari turned and looked up at Tokugawa and then at her teammates...no, her old teammates, who stood just behind.

"I promise, I'll explain all of this when I can, but not a moment sooner. I'm sorry. I'll be seeing you all later." she told them with a smile before turning on her heels.

The boys watched as each of the girls piled on the bus, Hikari going last. She stopped at the bottom step and looked back at her friends. Her friends. She hoped when everything was said and done, that they would remain her friends. They would be angry with her when they found out about some of the secrets she had been keeping. Only time would tell though. She gave all of them a final smile and wave before she vanished onto the bus. The next time they met, they would be seeing a new Hikari.

It was time for a change. Hikari claimed a seat at the back of the bus and sat there, watching first the boys and then the camp, shrink and vanish. She had expected to be this attached but she was.

"Hickory."

Hikari turned and looked at Candyce, who was turned in her seat to look at her.

"Are ya sure ya still want ta do this?" Candyce asked.

Dear Candyce. She was sometimes an over bearing, childish, pain in the backside, but she was a good friend for the most part. She would give Hikari the chance to change her mind even while knowing that Hikari never would.

"Yes, I'm sure. I made a promise." Hikari replied.

"But you'll miss them, yes?" Zeoni remarked from where she sat farther up the bus with Narako at her side. Hikari couldn't help the smile that fell on her face. Zeoni was sharp, as all of the girls were.

"Yes, I will miss them, my old friend, but I feel that if they are truly my friends, they will still be so when everything is said and done." Hikari replied.

"What you're doing isn't bad, Hikari. Everyone, at some point in time, has to think about themselves. They'll understand. And if they don't...well then they weren't your friends to begin with." Aluri assured Hikari. Hikari looked back out the window back towards the camp.

"You're right, of course. And they've all taught me so much. Like for instance..."

Hikari got to her feet walking up to the front where her brothers sat. The four gave her questioning looks as Hikari sat beside Sosuke.

"Since Hikaru's death, I've been closed off. I have basically pushed all of you away in fear that I would lose another one of you. All the seven of you have tried to do was protect me and love me more and I pushed you away. For that, I'm sorry. I'm truly, whole-heartedly, sorry." Hikari told her brothers, looking at each of them in turn.

The four stared back at her in shock, clearly not expecting Hikari to apologize. Finally Sosuke smiled, pulling his sister to his side in a hug.

"You don't have to apologize to us for it, Hikari. Just let us in a little more. We're all we have left now aside from Grandfather, Uncle Tsuzuki, and more distant relatives." Sosuke told her.

"He's got a point. We're your brothers. You can talk to us, you know." Satsuki remarked, Satoshi and Hitomi nodding in agreement. Hikari smiled at her brothers.

"Just wait until Hisoka and Shunsuke hear this. You'll get tackled for sure." Hitomi added. Hikari's face drained of color.

"Uh...could we hold off telling them?" she asked, much to the amusement of her brothers and friends.

Sosuke gave Hikari a squeeze before releasing her.

"Now, though, you have to concentrate. There's a long road ahead of you, Hikari and you're bound to hit some snags. I just hope this is really what you want." Sosuke told her.

"It is. I have some things to prove and what better way then this." Hikari replied.

"It'll make ya out ta be tha bad guy, Hickory." Candyce remarked.

"I know. I willing to take that chance. For now though, I'm going to rest. That camp wasn't exactly a breeze." Hikari added.

With a sigh, she settled in next to her brother. She hated leaving her friends, really she did, but this had to be done. She just hoped, when all was said and done...that they understood. She glanced out the window of the bus, the camp now blocked from view.

This chapter of her life was over and now a new one had to begin. A new chapter, a new location, a new challenge...a new Hikari.

Change was good. Change kept the world going round. Higarashi Hikari found herself at the top of the first mountain in her life.

Now it was time to see what the other side of that mountain looked like.

STORY END

Kyandi: That's right everyone...Flip Side is over!

Hikari: But before you all freak out, there will be a sequel called The Other Side.

Kyandi: My reason is that this is a big focal point in Hikari's life and it seemed fitting to end it here. Not to mention there are now 126 chapters in this story. So...yeah...

Hikari: We will start the sequel soon as possible!

Kyandi: And Tezuka will be coming back! So please keep a look out and continue reading.

Hikari: We will be back, no fear!

Kyandi: Until then enjoy and review.

Hikari: Bye for now!