…Continuing right where we left off…

"Hey, did you hear me?"

"Wh-what?" I stuttered, dazed. Not only had I caught the bride's bouquet, but at that exact moment Nagihiko had decided to let me in on a little secret…that he was actually my long lost best friend Nadeshiko…and I had somehow lost my balance and ended up being held up by Ikuto and Tadase…and then my four shugo charas, who had been sleeping inside their eggs for some time, had suddenly hatched again and—!

"Jeez, you weren't even listening to me. Always off in your own world. Such a kid," Ikuto complained, gently flicking my nose. I blushed furiously, remembering the night before when he had kissed that same nose…

"S-sorry haha…what were you saying?" I said, forcing my mind back to the present.

"He was saying how you should come with me for a minute," Tadase cut in. I looked over at him, remembering that he was still there too.

"Ikuto said…?" I repeated, confused. Why would Ikuto want me to go with Tadase? I looked to Ikuto for the answer, but all I got was a smirk, so that made up my mind pretty quickly.

"Well, if that's what Ikuto really wants…" I let my sentence trail off as I crossed my arms and stuck my nose in the air, stomping off after Tadase.

Catching up to him, I slowed, turning to face him. He somehow looked…older? More mature? I wasn't sure what it was exactly, but something in his eyes made me wonder what he wanted.

"What is it, Tadase-kun? Is something wrong?" I asked him, concerned.

"No, nothing, don't worry. I just wanted a moment to tell you that you look really nice today," he said, flashing me that dazzling smile. I could feel myself getting red as a tomato as my mind screamed at me to say something.

"Th-tha…thank you Tadase-kun!" I stuttered, trying to form coherent words. The Prince saying something like this had been a fantasy of mine since I met him that first day. It was only natural that I would be ecstatic…but somehow, it didn't seem like how I had imagined—

And then I had no time for imagining because there was an arm around my neck and a fist mussing my hair.

"Hey! Fancy seeing you here! How ya doin' Joker?" Kukai shouted enthusiastically from behind me. I turned around ready to greet him when I realized he wasn't alone.

Utau stood next to him. As always, she looked like a goddess. Her long blonde hair was tied into pigtails as usual, but at the base of each was tied a delicate white ribbon. She wore a violet dress that complemented the shade of her eyes and high heels with tiny purple jewels on the straps. I couldn't deny that she looked great, but why was she here with Kukai? Thinking back, I remembered that they were together yesterday too. I made a mental note to ask Utau about it later.

"So I see you found Ikuto," she stated, arms crossed. I blushed, nervous. This was always a touchy subject between us.

"Ha…haha…well I mean we are both at the same wedding—" I started in awkwardly, before Kukai cut in, saving me from whatever response I was going to have to think of.

"Psh, Utau, don't tell me you're jealous of Amu," he said, smirking at her. And Utau actually smirked back. This was getting weird.

"Not a chance," she replied smoothly, pulling him closer as she did. That was my cue to leave.

"Well! It's been fun! I need to…um…uh," I stated awkwardly, "find my shugo chara!" I yelled, realizing suddenly that since they had hatched I hadn't even properly talked to or seen them.

I ran in the opposite direction of Kukai and Utau, who were now staring into each other's eyes, and Tadase, who had evidently after I was pulled away gotten caught up in a conversation with a girl I recognized from the academy.

"Ran, Miki, Su, Dia…where could they have gone?" I mumbled to myself as I wove through the crowd of wedding guests.

"Amu-chan! Amu-chan we're here!" I heard a voice call to me. Ran emerged from the crowd with the others close behind. "We had to tell everyone that we were back!" she exclaimed.

"Oh…yeah, of course! I should have guessed…jeez I just can't get my thoughts straight today. My head is in the clouds," I muttered.

"Don't worry Amu-chan, it's been a crazy day!" Su said, trying to cheer me up.

"Yeah…I would really like to talk to Nagihiko at some point…about…what he told me…" I said, trailing off.

"Do it now! Everyone's socializing anyway!" Dia said, smiling. I smiled back, nodding before heading into the crowd once again.

I searched the faces of everyone I passed, looking for Nagihiko. His revelation really had caught me by surprise. I always knew that Nadeshiko and Nagihiko looked identical, but it had never in a million years crossed my mind that they were actually the same person. As I was walking I felt a tug at my dress and looked down to find Rima.

Ok, Utau was gorgeous in that idol/model/star kind of way, but Rima was like a tiny porcelain doll. Her long curly hair hung in loose ringlets around her face, framing it. Her baby blue dress poofed out at the waist, and her tiny white Mary Jane shoes completed the doll look. However, knowing that she detested being called "cute", I withheld my comment.

"Rima! I'm so glad to see you! Do you know by chance where Nagihiko is?" I asked her. With a knowing look in her eyes, she smiled a tiny smile.

"Yeah, I'm sure right now you really need to talk to him. Come with me," she replied, leading me away yet again. Somehow I felt like I was on a wild goose chase.

And apparently I was, because instead of finding Nagihiko, we ended up by the dessert table, where Yaya stood, practically drooling as Kairi held her arm, rolling his eyes.

"But I want cake NOW!" Yaya wailed, turning around to face Kairi. His face showed no sign of wavering.

"You can't cut the cake before the bride and groom, Yaya. That would be untraditional." He stated matter-of-factly, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. When had those two become first-name-basis friends?

"Oh Amu-chi! You're here!" Yaya yelled catching sight of me. Jumping at me, she clung like a koala, her trademark move.

"Yaya-chan!" I exclaimed, happy to see my friend. "I'm actually looking for Nagihiko…do you know where he is?"

"He was last spotted approximately 3 minutes and 22 seconds ago in the vicinity of the cake table," Kairi stated. After a sufficient period of staring at him, I shook myself out of it and smiled.

"Thanks, I'll go find him then. Come on, Rima—"

"Big shista! Big shista! Wait for Ami!" Ami shouted from behind, interrupting my sentence. I could see my parents running after her, trying to make sure she didn't get lost in this huge crowd.

"Amu…! We found…you…finally!" my dad gasped, trying to catch his breath from running. "We wanted to tell you that we are going home soon, but it's ok if you want to stay for the wedding reception with your friends. Just make sure that you text us throughout the night and call when you're coming home so we know you're safe. Don't be out too late, now."

"Dad…mom…thank you…for trusting me!" I said, smiling at them. "I promise I will! I'll see you later, I'm looking for a friend right now—" I started, but was interrupted by Rima pulling me along again in the search for Nagihiko.

Waving back at my family as they walked away, I searched the crowd yet again, looking for Nagihiko. It was so hard to see…come to think of it, why was Rima leading me to him? She was so short there was no way she could see over the crowd. The thought made me smile. I was about to ask Rima about it when I saw a man weaving his way through the edge of the crowd.

He looked exactly like Ikuto. He was unmistakably not Ikuto, as he was slightly taller and definitely looked older, but all the same they could have been twins. I stopped short, causing Rima, who hadn't seen the man, to jerk to a halt. I couldn't even hear her complaints as I caught sight of a woman standing next to him with long blonde hair that rather reminded me of Utau's.

"Those people…they couldn't be…Ikuto and Utau's parents? But no, Ikuto said that his father was alive, but that he hadn't made contact with him…why would his father have kept his presence a secret?" I mumbled to myself, thoroughly in the habit of talking to myself since usually my shugo chara were around to listen.

Just then, as if sensing my gaze, the man turned around and looked me straight in the eyes. As I stared back, he narrowed his eyes at me just before disappearing into the crowd.