(Part 10/10. This is probably THE MOST saccharine thing I've ever written in my life, but it was fun and I enjoyed myself. Hopefully you've all enjoyed yourselves, too. Thanks so much for reading! Also you get a fast update because I have sketchy internet the next couple days, so yeah. :))

Epilogue

I don't think I'll ever understand humans.

I don't think humans will ever fully understand each other, either. We're all kind of disconnected — but every so often, you meet the right person, or horse, and the walls between people crumble just a bit.

Minori heals. Slowly, the constant shiver that she develops leaves her body, filtered out by Spring sunshine and warm breezes.

But she heals in another way, too — her spirit, which was previously folded in on itself, suddenly becomes free again.

I'll never know what caused her explosion of anger and sadness that Winter day, but sometimes I see her swallowing something out of a small orange capsule — which makes me think it wasn't just that day. Minori was hiding a secret from all of us — and when I remember how lonely she was and how she spontaneously cried a lot when we first met, and how sad she was the entirety of last winter, I realize that maybe she wasn't hiding her damaged spirit so much as I refused to see.

Klaus, of course, always served as her drug — hence why I didn't see her cry as much the past three seasons — but I guess that sometimes even love isn't enough to change someone's chemical makeup. That's why she needs the medicine. I drop her off at Marian's at least twice every season for a formal checkup, and it does wonders.

Something else good happens, besides her healing body and spirit: a gap between Klaus and Minori closes.

I never noticed the gap — not until it ceases to exist. I think it spawned from Klaus's insecurities about their age differences. If I had to bet, I'd say he assumed that Minori was too innocent for him.

But once he learns that she harbors her own insecurities, everything changes. He sees her as an equal, not just as a girlfriend or someone to goof around with or someone to talk to but a partner, and a partner in all things — even the hard stuff. He starts sharing his own problems with her instead of trying to handle all of hers. It's a rift that I didn't even know existed until it's suddenly resolved. The way he looks at her sometimes, it's —

— it's overwhelming.

So, good stuff. I still don't really know exactly what happened that day, or why, or how — I can only assume. Sometimes that's all we can do. But the rough spot only pushes Klaus and Minori closer — and, in a way, it helps me become closer to them, too.

Their love continues to thrive and grow and spread joy throughout the entire town —

— until one fateful Summer day, about two seasons after the incident, it blossoms.

Klaus comes by in the late afternoon, right at the end of Minori's list of chores. I'm standing out in the field with Hanako and the other animals, dozing under the shade of our favorite oak tree, when I see him coming up the path.

He isn't wearing the evergreen coat — and I don't blame him, because it's sweltering. Instead, he's dressed in a white button down shirt and black pants. Still dressy — this is Klaus we're talking about — but in a nice way. (The kind of "nice way" that I know makes Minori all smitten, like she's looking at a puppy instead of a grown man.)

I watch him trek across the field. He walks through the grass, his footsteps silent, so as not to alert Minori — who, at the moment, is tending to the peach trees she planted at the very beginning of last spring.

She doesn't notice Klaus's approach, too engulfed in the task at hand — which happens to be attempting to grab the last ripe peach from the tree. Minori definitely wasn't made to pick fruit; she's far too short, and the last peach is too high up for her to reach.

So, Klaus, being the dapper gentleman he is at a whopping six feet in height (at least), reaches up and grabs the peach for her.

Minori yelps in surprise when his hand comes into view, and she stumbles backwards — straight into Klaus's chest.

He only laughs, bending down to kiss her on the cheek. Then he hands her the sun-pink peach and takes a step back so that she isn't so confined.

Minori takes the peach, and then, after a moment's decision, takes a big, juicy bite out of it.

This causes Klaus to laugh again, and soon after I can hear giggles from Minori, too.

Can't say I blame her. It's a pretty good looking peach.

They sit under the tree for a while, Minori eating her peach and Klaus talking. From the hand gestures and Minori's occasional giggles, I think it's a story. He glances at her fondly every so often —

— but I also catch a glimpse of something different in his disposition today; something odd that shines through every few moments when the silence lasts too long. He runs his hand through his hair a few more times than what's considered "normal."

But Minori finishes her peach and casts the pit aside. If she notices his strangeness, she doesn't say or do anything. Klaus helps her to stand, and then she bends down to grab the basket filled with the peaches she was picking before he arrived.

He takes that from her, though, instead saying a few things in a brisk voice. Minori's eyes light up and she nods, running in the opposite direction of the winery — toward her farmhouse. She catches my eye on the way and winks; I just snort at her, too hot and sweaty to tease her any further.

Klaus heads toward the winery with the basket of peaches. He knows his way around the farm well enough now to help Minori out with a lot of her chores, which has made me admire him all the more fondly.

Minori takes long enough in the house that Klaus can finish whatever goes on with the fruit in the winery and come back outside. He starts making his way toward the house — and then, mid-step, apparently changes his mind and heads toward the field instead.

I know he's coming to talk to me before he's even twenty feet away. He sometimes does, ever since we grew closer, in a way, after the incident. It usually happens when we're both waiting on Minori.

He stops at the fence and reaches a hand over to stroke my nose. I lean into his touch, appreciative of the gesture — only to realize that his hand is shaking.

I snort in surprise, reeling backwards. Klaus only chuckles, and then shoves both hands in his pockets, a bit embarrassed.

Shaky hands. Shaky hands? Is he alright?

Well, he does look a little pale. And he keeps licking his lips, and running his hand through his hair (in fact it's really quite messy at this point) —

But before I can think much more, he starts talking. Not that I understand much of it, but I do catch Minori's name here and there. She must have something to do with it, then.

That's when it strikes me. The shaking hands, his paleness, the odd lapses of silence —

He's nervous.

The door to the farmhouse opens and Minori walks out. Within a half hour, she has changed out of her farm clothes and into a very becoming light blue sundress, complete with a pearl necklace that glistens where it touches her collarbone. Her hair has been brushed, curled, and she's also wearing that touch of makeup that lets me know that she and Klaus are going on a date.

Klaus's breath catches. It's a subtle thing, but I hear it plain as day. I nudge his shoulder with my nose, pushing him forward to meet her.

Minori smiles as he approaches, adjusting the little white purse at her hip with a delicateness that I don't often see — because farming isn't exactly a delicate job. But it's moments like these that remind me of her natural elegance and sweetness, something that I think working with living, breathing nature everyday has helped her to develop.

And man, does it affect Klaus. He becomes a stuttering mess — and Minori notices. She giggles, touching his face gently and placing a light kiss on his pink-tinted cheek.

Klaus finally pulls it together, and places a hand on the small of Minori's back to start guiding her toward the field. There, he gives a grand gesture toward me with both arms and a slight bow. Minori smiles, but I snort. Great. Once again, I'm playing chaperone.

Minori mounts, and I start wondering where Blossom is for Klaus until he suddenly puts one foot in the stirrup.

Before I know it, Klaus is up on my back behind Minori. This seems to surprise her, too, since the last time they both rode on my back at the same time was — well, was when she was passed out and Klaus had to put her there himself.

But they adjust so that they're comfortable, with Minori closer to my neck and Klaus behind. His arms are wrapped around her waist and he holds the reins — after all, he's the one who knows where we're going. With my neck turned just right, I can see him tuck his head into her neck and kiss her, a fluttering thing that makes her legs tense up with surprise, and then they relax as she lets out a sigh.

I let out an impatient snort. Laughing, Minori gives me a quick pat on the neck. Klaus gives the single and we're off. I carefully step through the open gate, which Minori then closes with her foot on the way out.

I have an inkling where we're going, but Klaus guides me anyway. They don't talk much, just the occasional comment, probably about how warm it is. We pass the root field and Klaus tugs the reins toward the forest. All of us simultaneously duck when we get to the little break in the branches, though Klaus doesn't escape a stray leaf that catches in his hair.

I start slowing down when we come up toward the waterfall — and that's when I see Blossom, Klaus's horse, grazing contently near the river. About ten feet away from her is a basket and a blanket.

Ah. They're having another picnic.

The first one of this summer, I realize. Picnics are Klaus and Minori's favorite kind of date, but Minori's been so busy with the trees this summer that they haven't had time for a real one yet.

Klaus pulls me to a stop near Blossom, and I can tell from Minori's excited babbling that this picnic is a surprise to her. Klaus only laughs as she digs through the food basket and lets out an ecstatic squeak when she finds strawberry cheesecake — her favorite dessert.

I settle into a nice square of grass as Klaus and Minori start getting the food all organized. Minori is babbling again — probably about the fact that Klaus prepared everything by himself and he should have asked her for help. But something tells me that he's treating Minori to this date, and that it's been a day planned out for her all along.

Enough time passes that the sky starts to darken. I think this is the longest they've ever stayed out for a picnic — though, after the food is gone, they spend a lot of time kissing and talking, which is what they would do inside, anyway. By the time the fireflies start to appear, the air is a little chillier, but not uncomfortably so. After all, it's mid-summer, so the coldest it could get is nothing compared to what it'll be a few months from now.

At this point, Minori is curled up in Klaus's lap. They're still sitting on that picnic blanket, though they did get up for a walk about an hour or so ago. They spent most of the afternoon talking, but now there's only a tender, heavy silence. I watch in the dim light as Klaus places a deliberate kiss on Minori's neck — and then he traces her jaw, each kiss warmer than the last.

Minori, distracted from her thoughts by his affection, breaks the silence with a soft giggle, and turns her head so that they're making eye contact — also breaking the chain of kisses. She says something to him in a teasing voice, but he interrupts her with another kiss — this time on her lips.

He seems more calm than he was a few hours ago, which only has me wondering what he was so worked up about in the first place. If anything, he's kissing Minori with confidence. It's always in these moments, where he takes the lead and starts thoroughly displaying his love for this girl, that he seems both his happiest and his most youthful.

He says Minori's name — a gentle, heart-wrenching utterance; a benediction as it falls from his lips.

She freezes, caught off-guard by his raw emotion.

He shifts her so that he can talk to her comfortably without her craning her neck. Their foreheads touch, but the games are over, now.

Klaus has something to say, and he wastes no time — the next few sentences come out like a babbling river. His words are choppy; they come in short bursts, as if he rehearsed some of them — but between those rehearsed bits, his emotions bleed out and transform it into a beautiful confession.

Then, with still hands — he's not nervous anymore —

— Klaus reaches into his pocket and pulls out a blue feather.

Minori's eyes go wide with surprise.

And I don't blame her, because I always expected Klaus to at least follow the down-on-one-knee rule, but here we are.

My heart floods with joy for them, and I can't help it — I let out a neigh of delight.

Minori's head snaps up to look at me, and she laughs — and laughs, and laughs, until she's crying, and finally I hear the word yes slip out from her lips, followed by more laughter and what I think are happy tears.

Then, just in that moment — fireworks.

And I mean that literally, as in fireworks start going off in the distance, big beams of green and gold appearing over the tops of the trees. I can see both Minori and Klaus's facial expressions as clear as day, only they're tinted with the fireworks' hues. I've seen fireworks before, and I know that they did this last summer, too. Good planning on Klaus's part, then.

And so there we remain: two horses and two lovers, tearing down the walls between living creatures brick by brick; kindness by kindness; feather by feather — until no walls remain.

Klaus and Minori are not whole people. They have been broken and stitched together again by life's adversities — adversities that I don't know, but that I can see, etched in the lines when Klaus's brow creases; apparent in the dullness of Minori's eyes on her bad days.

But Klaus and Minori repair one another. They repair others, like me and Eda and all of the townspeople, too.

And that's how it works: we can never know what ails a person, but we can try to know — and in our endeavor to understand, we tear down walls, replacing them with foundations built upon trust, and love, and all that good stuff that I never really knew about until Minori revealed it to me.

We all start as restless, tired spirits — and we find freedom in love.

FIN.