Author's Note: We have reached chapter 21. The age where most people are allowed to drink legally in the United States. We have also reached the final chapter. Yes, this is the end, beautiful friend, the end. I will point that we are one year in the future, so I can't exactly drop historical facts for 2013, since many of them have not happened as I currently write. Regardless of which, I will have one more message for all of you at the conclusion of this story.

Always Somewhere

Chapter XXI

Life on Mother Terra is not static. Time does not stand still, as the clock continues to click on. Thanksgiving gives way to Christmas, and Christmas gives way to New Year's Eve. 2012 becomes 2013. The seasons come and go. The clock has now turned to early November 2013—the time of the gang's annual camping trip.

"It's wonderful that you were able to make it this time this year," said Susie.

Angelica, who sat in a 'director's chair' with a Smirnoff Ice, smiled. "Yeah, well, an 'old friend' kind of got in the way last year."

"Have you heard anything from said 'old friend'?"

Angelica laughed. "Would you expect me to, when he knows that the state will come after him, if he tries?"

Johnny, who sat in a chair beside Angelica, chuckled.

Angelica smiled, and secured Johnny's hand. "I should have been here last year, but that's a mute point."

"Who's watching Ian tonight?" asked Lil, while she drank a soda.

"Mom and Dad."

"Has the potty training experiment gone well?"

"So far so good," responded Angelica, before she had a sip of her drink. "I just hope it continues. I'm so sick of diapers."

"You and me both," added Johnny.

Susie chuckled. "Has potty training Austra gone well?"

"So far it's gone well. Her mom and I have had some success, but I wouldn't say that she's out of training pants or diapers just yet."

Angelica smirked. "That's kind of like me and Ian."

"Greetings there, everyone!" came an outside voice.

Angelica, Johnny, Susie, and Lil turned. The voice belonged to Chuckie.

"How is everyone?" added Chuckie.

"Pretty good," responded Angelica. "Johnny and I were talking about the 'wonders' of potty training our kids. Something that you don't have to worry about."

Chuckie laughed. "No, not just yet—although it would certainly make me and Ashley's lives easier."

Lil chuckled. "I take it Ashley's not here?"

"No, she's not. She's at home with the little one."

"How old is he now?" asked Susie.

"Kirk's just a little over three months now."

"Yes, that would make sense," said Lil. "Considering that it was around this time last year that we first heard Ashley was pregnant. By the way, how did you come up with the name 'Kirk'?"

"I didn't think we needed a 'Charles Finster IV.' Plus, Kirkley Andrew Finster is a cool name. Ashley and I both like it."

"Do you have any pictures?" asked Angelica.

Chuckie smiled. "Sure do." Chuckie opened his cellphone, and browsed through his pictures, until he found a great one of his son. Kirk had the red hair of his father, while he inherited the brown eyes of both his parents, but his nose and chin certainly came from his mother.

Angelica smiled. "He's a doll."

Chuckie returned the smile. "Thanks."

"I can certainly see where he got that fiery red hair," added Lil.

Chuckie laughed. "Yes, that does seem to be the 'Finster family trait.'"

"Yo! What's up?" came a voice.

Those present turned. The voice belonged to Phil, who walked hand-in-hand with Rachel.

"How goes it everyone?" added Rachel.

"It goes well," replied Lil. "Are Dil and Dezirae coming?"

"I would imagine. Dezirae was telling me earlier that it was around this time last year that she and Dil went on their first date together."

"That's right," said Lil. "Last year, Dil didn't come, because he had that dinner-date with Dezirae."

"How's the restaurant been going, Phil?" asked Susie.

"So far things have been well. It's been a steady business. I've wanted to try some new specials that I hope will increase business."

"On the subject of business," interjected Angelica, "how have things been for you, Lil?"

Lil sighed. "Not very good—this sports psychology thing just isn't working."

"How come?" asked Chuckie.

"I haven't really been making the kind of money that I'd like."

"Why's that?" asked Angelica. "I would think that being a psychologist would be a fairly well paying job?"

"More than being a chef," added Phil.

Lil smirked. "Not when your list of clients is shrinking." Lil turned to the California sun, which was slowly beginning to set. "I've thought about teaching some at the community college." Lil turned to Chuckie and added, "Think you can help me out, Chuckie?"

"I might be able to do something."

As Chuckie finished his sentence, another voice entered. This voice was different, however; it sang. "'So bring an exorcist, a wizard, and a holy ghost.'" The voice belonged to Dil, who walked hand-in-hand with Dezirae. Dil wore a black trench coat that was closed by the lower button. If a gust of wind appeared, it would cause Dil's coat to flutter like a 'cape'.

Johnny grinned. "Well, look what we have here-the clean-shaven Irish Jesus and his wife, Mary."

"Hey now!" said Dil. "I'm not the 'Irish Jesus'. I'm the 'Heavy Metal King David'. Secondly, a portion of my family is Scottish, not Irish.

Dezirae giggled, before she kissed Dil's cheek, and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"What's with the trench coat?" asked Susie. "Are you trying to re-create the 'Trench Coat Mafia'?"

"Trench Coat Mafia?!" said Dil. "What is it with some people? Someone wears a trench coat, and people are naturally scared of him or her from an incident that happened over 14 years ago!" Dil removed Dezirae's hands and his trench coat. He tossed the coat in Susie's direction and asked, "Is it poisonous?"

Susie chuckled. "No, Dil, I don't think it's poisonous. I was just kidding you."

Dil smiled, and secured his coat. "Good," he said. " I sometimes just get worked up, when I hear things like that. I just don't get what some people seem to be so afraid of. Sherlock Holmes wore a coat like this, and no one has a problem reading stories about him. Besides, this coat has many good purposes. It's great against the elements." Dil approached Dezirae, opened his coat, and closed her inside of it. "It's also good for wrapping up cute girls," he added, before he and Dezirae shared a kiss.

The gang smiled.

After his kiss, Dil turned to his cousin. "Anymore news on album sales, Angelica?"

Dark Stairway's Volume I had met with some success, due to internet radio play and uploads on YouTube. The band had received bookings throughout the state—including major cities such as San Francisco and Los Angeles.

"No, Dil, I haven't," replied Angelica.

"So we haven't gone gold yet?"

Angelica smirked. "No, Dil, you haven't, but if you do, I'm sure that I'll be the first one to tell you."

"Even before me?" interjected Johnny with a grin.

Angelica smiled. "Well, you might hear about it first."

Johnny returned the smile, before the two shared a kiss.

Dil also smiled at the scene between his cousin and bandmate, until Dezirae motioned him away.

"Dil," Dezirae began, "look at the sky. Isn't it beautiful?"

The sky displayed a bright orange glow, as the sun finally descended. "Perhaps that's Monika Dannemann and Jimi Hendrix burning the sky together," said Dil. But then the sky began to change. The last rays of the sun emitted a purple and golden glow with the orange. "Now it almost looks like a rainbow," added Dil. "Wait! Perhaps it's a message from Dio and the Silver Mountain." Dil extended both his arms and made the headbanger gesture, before he shouted, "Dio! Dio! Dio!"

Dezirae giggled, and in her thoughts, she said, "I truly do love him."

Phil, who stood by Chuckie, had a different perspective, while he observed Dil and Dezirae. "I just thought of something."

"What's that?" asked Chuckie.

"Do you remember, when we were kids, how Dil used to think that he talked to aliens, or that they somehow communicated with him?"

Chuckie grinned. "Yeah, I do."

"You don't suppose that Dil thinks that he talks to a dead heavy metal musician, do you?"

Chuckie laughed. "Well, you never know. If Dio is talking to Dil, I guess he's giving him some good advice. I mean, his music career has so far been successful."

"You're not trying to say that Dil talks to ghosts now, are you?" said another voice.

Phil and Chuckie turned. The voice belonged to Tommy, who walked hand-in-hand with Kimi.

"Tommy! Kimi! You made it!" said Chuckie. "I didn't know, if I was going to see you both or not."

"I wanted to try and make it," said Tommy. "I mean, I missed last year. I didn't want to miss this year."

"Did Ashley come with you this year, Chuckie?" asked Kimi.

Chuckie shook his head. "No, she's at home with the baby."

"I need to stop by and see my nephew. He has the cutest fiery-red hair."

Chuckie smiled. "Thanks—Angelica said the same thing."

"Hey there, big brother," interjected Dil, as he approached with Dezirae. "Glad you were able to make it."

Tommy smiled. "I wouldn't miss the chance to hang out with you, little brother." Tommy turned to his brother's girlfriend and added, "Nice to see you too, Dezirae."

"Nice to see you as well, Tommy," said Dezirae.

Again, Tommy smiled. "It's amazing how you've put up with my little brother for so long."

Dil pulled Dezirae close and said, "It's all due to the power of love, Tommy." Dil then tickled Dezirae and kissed her.

Once again, Tommy smiled. "He truly does love her," thought Tommy. But verbally, Tommy decided to have some fun with his younger brother. "Tell me, Dil, you haven't been talking to the spirits of any dead metal musicians lately, have you?"

"Dead metal musicians?" Dil responded with a look. "Last time I was on the Silver Mountain, everyone seemed alive and well."

"You were on the Silver Mountain?" asked Tommy.

"Oh, yes! The other evening, when I was sleeping in bed, I had what can only be described as an 'out of body experience.' I felt my soul leave my body, and there I was—right on the Silver Mountain!"

"And what does the Silver Mountain look like?"

"Oh, it's beautiful! There's snow, yet it's never cold. There are plenty of beautiful women around—despite the fact that they can't compete with Dezirae—they're still beautiful."

Dezirae giggled.

And Dil continued. "There's plenty of ice cold beer that constantly flows, and no one ever gets hung-over. Plus, there's weed that people can smoke without the fear of being arrested. It's like being in Holland. But that's not all. I got to have a conversation."

"A conversation with whom?"

"Dio, Jon Lord, and Cozy Powell."

Tommy smirked. "And what did they tell you?"

"Dio thanked me for visiting his earthly remains, and that he always enjoys listening to us play. Jon Lord told me that he really enjoyed the version that we did of 'Child in Time'. And Cozy Powell told me that Johnny is just an awesome drummer, and a good guy for Angelica to be with."

Tommy paused. "Well, that's very interesting, Dil."

Dezirae giggled, while she wrapped her arms around Dil's waist.

But Phil's and Chuckie's observation of the conversation was much different. "Do you think Dil's just bullshitting us, or do you really think that he really believes that he took a trip up to the 'Silver Mountain' and had a conversation with Ronnie James Dio, Jon Lord, and Cozy Powell?" whispered Phil.

"Who knows; it's Dil." whispered Chuckie in response.

"On something that involves the living, but also the dead," began Dil, "how's the movie coming? You're finished with it, right?"

"Yes, it's complete. You should see a trailer for it soon. I'm looking for the film to debut after Christmas."

"What was it like filming in Russia?" asked Chuckie.

"Cold as hell."

"No, that's inappropriate to say," said Dil. "Hell has yet to receive a cold front, ever since Satan fell into it."

Those present laughed, except for Tommy. He gave his younger brother a look and muttered two words. Those words were barely audible, but Dil was able to read Tommy's lips, and could guess what he was saying. The first word began with the letter 'F' and the second with the letter 'Y'. But after Tommy did so, he smiled.

"Were you able to go over to Russia with Tommy, Kimi?" asked Dezirae, who tried to return the conversation to a serious level.

"No, I wasn't," replied Kimi. "I would have loved to, but I wasn't able to get away from work."

"You know, I always wondered about that," interjected Chuckie. "I would have thought that the paper would have enjoyed you doing a story on Tommy's movie."

"A story on Tommy's movie? Yes. Me covering the story? No."

"How come?" asked Phil.

"There was a fear that I wouldn't be impartial. I'm Tommy's boyfriend, so there was the fear that I would be bias. The Eagle isn't like Fox News—we at least try to stay objective."

Those present laughed.

But Phil returned the conversation to a serious level. "Why don't we get back with the others? There's a lot of people, who haven't seen Tommy or Kimi yet."

"Yes," said Kimi. "Let's go!"

A few hours later, the gang was sitting around a large fire eating, drinking, and telling stories. Occasionally the wind would make itself known, which only added to the presence of fall in Northern California. Of the stories that were told, many related to events of the previous year, but some related to their childhood.

After hearing one childhood story, Tommy stood and said, "You know, everybody, there's just something that I want to say. With the exceptions of Johnny, Rachel, and Dezirae, I've known all of you, since we were basically in diapers. Two of you are my family members. I remember that this camping trip began, when Chuckie was 16. It seemed like back then, we used to have all kinds of free time on our hands, but now all of that has faded away. I have my career, and you guys have your own as well. It just seems like it becomes harder and harder to do things like this, and I hate it."

When Tommy concluded his statement, his childhood friends were silent. They knew he was speaking the truth. Eventually it was Tommy's brother, Dil, who broke the silence.

"I know what you're saying, T.," Dil said, while he stood to join his brother. As he did so, a gust of wind appeared, and Dil's red hair fluttered in it. "We can't do things like we used to. We all have jobs. One of us is married, and two of us have children. But you know what? We'll always be somewhere. We've been with each other for over two decades, and it's hard to break apart a 20-plus year relationship. We'll always be somewhere, Tommy—regardless of whether or not it's the United States, Europe, or Japan. We'll always be somewhere. Just remember that, Tommy."

One chapter in the lives of Tommy Pickles, Dil Pickles, Angelica Pickles, Chuckie Finster, Kimi Finster, Phil DeVille, Lil DeVille, and Susie Carmichael has ended, but another one is about to begin. The curtain has lowered on one chapter, but it is soon to rise again for another chapter.

The End

Author's Note: As the final paragraph notes, one chapter has ended in the lives of our 'gang'. The curtain has come down, but it will soon rise again. Always Somewhere has ended, but a sequel to it will be written. To those that have any sequel ideas, you are welcome to share them with me. Again, I want to thank everyone who has reviewed, or has followed my story to the end. Thank you, guys! It was because of you that I decided to write a sequel.