AN: I know I said I was complete, but I wanted to add one more final and short chapter to finish it off. Hope this isn't too sad, and btw, thanks for all the reviews. And thank you psyNEKOpath for the idea, because in this chapter, he finds the grave.

Sorry for any grammar or spelling mistakes.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Finder Series.

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If those snivelling brats had supplied Asami with any good information, it was the location of Akihito's grave.

Upon Asami's arrival at the secluded space, he believed himself to be tricked, as there was no graveyard, markers or anything of the sort. The place was barren of any human life, and it had taken Asami hours to find it's exact location.

To say he was in the country was slightly far fetched, no, these young adults had given him directions to God knows where in the middle of no where.

He'd passed so many trees, so many fields to the point of mental intoxication. How long had it been since he'd stepped outside_outside outside?

Aside from Takaba's death, perhaps this was why the situation was so sickening, he hadn't left Japan's urban area in years.

Was Takaba pulling him outside? Even after death, was his photographer still being this considerate?

He smiled despite the occasion, for he could "feel" Takaba around him, somehow, he could feel him.

Asami drove over a rough spot on the old road, and the package on the passenger seat shook at the impact.

Takaba had left Asami with a gift, thus he was planning to return the favor.

Any street signs he'd passed has been rusted or covered by leafy vines that had grown over them, and about an hour ago, Asami had found himself completely isolated from civilization. That's what Takaba's friends had said, that Takaba's grave was practically in the middle of nowhere.

And so it was.

The only reason he knew where to stop is because the scene, as similar to it's surroundings as it looked, was the same scene from the picture. The tree that Takaba climbed, the tree that set such a negative tone for the photos that preceded it.

The sun was up, though the sky glowed a dull orange as the eve of the day neared. Asami would need to hurry if he wanted to get back to Tokyo before nightfall, already his sudden urge to venture off into the country had startled his co-workers. He didn't need anyone's suspicion aroused.

He needed to see the grave and leave, he needed to see if this were all real. And ironically, he was sent to the most unbelievable of places to check Takaba's credibility.

But there was the old oak, standing high and tall, the sun dimly shining through the entangled branches.

Asami stepped out of his car, and grabbed the package as he did so. The feelings associated with the area boiled his blood as he experienced the scene personally for the first time. He could almost see Takaba climbing the tree,could almost see him losing his grip and crashing to the ground.

Knowing Takaba, however, the younger man most likely laughed it off.

A thick weight hung over the scene, and as Asami walked closer and closer to the tree, he felt the weight dragging his heart down to the pit of his stomach. His hands were sweating due to the amount of force he used to hold the package.

His nervousness was apparent, because Takaba being dead meant nothing to Asami. He'd tricked himself so many times, tricked himself that the photographer was alive_he'd even sent men out to find him.

He'd lied to himself over and over again_for the sake of his sanity_he'd lied to himself.

But this was it.

Seeing Takaba's gravestone would put an end to his fantasies, it would set him straight. And as much as he hated it, his dreams would finally come to an end.

His throat felt dry, his eyes slightly watery_He sighed and bit back tears. Crying was not whom he was, no matter what the circumstances were.

He now stood before the tree, taking in the twisted bark, and the roots that seemed dive deeper and deeper into the earth itself. Except, they supposedly stopped over an alleged coffin. Upon closer inspection, however, Asami clearly saw the tree was just a tree. There was no marker of any sort, no words, not even a scratch on the bark.

Asami was looking at an ordinary tree.

By now, he was seething. As if Akihito's supposed death hadn't unsettled him enough.

He'd been given false information by a group of terrified young adults, and against his better judgment, he'd driven out into the middle of nowhere_and now, he was here, standing before a random tree with the sun setting in the background.

"There'll be flowers there!" the young man, Kou had told him, "We went and put a ton of flowers there!"

But, where were the flowers? All Asmi could see was dirt which the routs clawed into.

He was in complete disbelief due to his blind trust. These strain of events had been causing him to act very uncharacteristically of himself, and now he was suffering for it.

He hated being made a fool of, and now he was going over very detailed ways to torture those brats that had done this to him.

"Are you lost sir?"

With his gun gripped tightly in his hand, Asami spun around as quick as a chetta, his aim pointed directly at his target.

The basket of flowers which the young women held had fallen to her feet as she stood there, hands up in a surrendering manor, though her eyes narrowed dangerously at Asami, "I'm not here to harm you, sir," her voice was strained and skilled, as if she was used to situations like this, "you just looked confused."

Asami let out a frustrated sigh, and placed his gun back in it's holster.

He never left anywhere without it.

"I'm sorry," he forced through clenched teeth, "you startled me, that's all."

The woman shrugged, bent down and began to pick up the flowers that had fallen. Asami, realizing that this was his fault, began to help her.

"Thank you," she smiled brightly him, her brown eyes big and bright.

He wondered whom she was? A relative of Takaba perhaps, however, she looked nothing like him. Whereas his skin was pale and milky, her skin was dark, like coffee, her hair was curly and black and her eyes were brown, dark brown.

Nothing about this woman reminded him of Takaba, save for her smile.

Something about it was warming and inviting, just like Takaba's smile.

He studied her as she began to place the plants into the basket, yearning to learn more about her and exactly whom she was.

"These were his favorites," her voice lessened a little at that, and her demeanor grew a little darker, "I remember when he_You're here for Akihito, right?"

He paled...so this really was it, Takaba really was dead, huh?

Swallowing roughly, Asami forced himself to nod as he fingered the delicate petals on the foreign flowers, "Yes...I'm here for...for."
Asami caught himself, as it became harder and harder for him to speak. Not to mention, his eyes grew clouded with tears.

He didn't speak, as the woman clearly knew why he was here. And if he spoked, he feared he'd do something he hadn't done in ages.

Cry.

The woman watched him struggle as he helped her scoop up the assortment of flowers, she could tell he was fighting himself, fighting the urge to cry.

"I'm Akihito's mom," she stated bluntly, dusting her sun-dress off as she stood up and grabbed the basket. She didn't miss the quizzical look Asami cast her, because obviously, she and Akihito looked nothing alike.

"Not biological, honey," she offered as she began her stride towards the tree, beckoning a rather confused Asami to follow, "we adopted him at three years old. He didn't have the best health, and he wasn't expected to live that long, it was a bad sickness too. I think I picked up a different strand of it, a worse strand when we went to get him...it was pretty bad. Anyway, Takaba pulled through, as sick as he was, he pulled through. _Those are the kids that should be aborted, huh? The "sick" ones that don't have a change of living, right. At least that's what they say."

Asami kept silent as she walked the short distance to the dirt under the roots, and began dusting some of it away.

"Proved them wrong, huh? Nine kids," as she dusted off the dirt, Asami silently gasped as the rays of the setting sun shone atop of the corner of a marble plate, a square marble plate, "nine kids that didn't have a chance of living. Nine kids that should've been "aborted", you know it just upsets me_give 'em a chance, why don't you? Sure they don't live long, but it's memories we treasure_Hey, Asami? Do you have any memories with Takaba?"

He only nodded, he didn't feel like spilling his guts to her, besides, he was more interested in seeing the plaque that she had just uncovered.

Illuminated by the sun, he could see Takaba's name as clear as day on the marble, followed by smaller text, most likely a poem of some sort.

He inhaled sharply and looked away, that was enough for him_perhaps too much. Previously, in his rush to help Takaba's mother pick up her flowers, he'd left his gift near the grave, and now that he was back to where he started, he picked up the package.

"Here's a flower, Asami," she handed the younger man a stray plant that had been bruised due to the fall, and reluctantly, he took the feeble offering in his free hand. She held her basket and looked up towards the setting sun, "It'll be dark in a few minutes. The fireflies will come out, Asami. Let's put the flowers on the plaque at the count of three, because fireflies were always Takaba's favorite insects. When they all come out, we'll know he'll be happy."

As childish as it sounded, Asami obliged. He felt hollow inside anyway, and perhaps a shower of fireflies would excite him just slightly.

The sun was near gone, and would be down in seconds.

"Okay Asami...five_count with me," reluctantly, he silently began to follow, and together they counted.

"Five, four, three, two, one! Now let go!," for such an occasion, she was too happy, too happy that it was almost sickening. Asami wondered if she was lying to herself like he was, if this chance encounter was her opportunity to stop dreaming as well.

Nevertheless, at one, his flower fell to the soil followed by hers, and darkness overcame the land.

He stood there for a minute, looking around to see if any fireflies would come out and light up around them.

A minute turned to five, and five turned to ten, and ten turned to fifteen.

The wind blew through the trees, but that was about all.

"Maybe they're just sleeping," she suggested, "but that's not like Takaba, is it? To be sleeping all day?"

The wind howled slightly, and the trees began to whisper. "That's such a pretty sound, I remember when Takaba was little…"

Asami said nothing as he began to undo the package. After a second of struggling with the zipper, he pulled out a small camera, the one that Suoh had confiscated when Takaba snuck into club Sion.

Takaba wanted him to move on, so he would do just that. Even if that meant he had to let his photographer go, completely.

He dropped the camera to the ground, and watched as it fell upon the bed of flowers.

"Ahh...a camera, he always liked photography, I saw some of his pictures," she cooed, "he had such an awesome gift."

An awkward silence ensued, and the wind picked up.

She sighed, thus disturbing the peace, "Strong wind, huh? Suppose we should go, it's getting pretty late. And I don't know about you, but i've got a loooong way to go!"

He nodded and followed her as she began to leave, and she was right, it was getting late.

Asami needed to get back to Tokyo.

And then the wind picked up, the trees silent screams echoed through field, and Asami felt a tap on his shoulder.

He froze, because the tap was physical_he felt it, and though he turned around, no one was there.

The exhaustion was getting to him, at least, that was the most logical explanation for this occurrence he could supply. With a sigh, he turned back around and made to get into his car, however, he was tapped again_and this time, he felt eerie.

Slowly, he turned his head back, for his body felt icy cold, and the finger continued tapping on his shoulder.

And then his world froze, for standing behind him was Takaba Akihito. He wore the same casual clothes he'd worn every day, wore that same smirk, but now he was shinning. His skin was transparent, but he was shinning .

"Thanks," and when he spoke, his words didn't come from his mouth, but from all around him, echoing from every corner of the field, as if Takaba himself was the field, "I really do love you Asami! I really do, but I have to go, and you have to move on...goodbye, I'll see you again, but not for a long time!"

The wind ceased, Asami blinked, and as quickly as he'd seen Takaba, the photographer had disappeared.

"Asami! Look," and there was Takaba's mother, running to Asami's side and pointing to the distance, "fireflies! All around, I told you, didn't I! He loved them!"

Asami chuckled, still in complete disbelief due to the occurrence he'd just experienced.

He hadn't even realized that he was indeed tearing up, that his tears had fallen to the ground below him...absorbing into the ground.

He could feel many things now. Sadness, happiness, completion and Takaba, he could Takaba all around. He could feel him in the trees, and in the wind, the dirt and in these insects themselves, and these insects had taken quite a liking to Asami and Mrs. Takaba.

"Beautiful, huh?" she said once again, "Hope I get to see this place again, but you know, with work and all….I may not be able to. I don't even live in Asia, I live in Hawaii," and then she took his hand, and squeezed it hard, causing Asami to turn towards her.

She lowered her voice, and stared intently into those golden eyes, "Promise me Asami, that at least once a year you'll come and visit this place. Even if it's torn down completely, even if it's trashed or vandalized, promise me you'll visit. I don't know why he wanted to be burried in the middle of nowhere, but he did...and now someone has to protect it, we can't. None of us live in Japan, but you do...so please, can you promise me that you'll protect my son?"

With a heavy heart, Asami nodded, thus receiving a toothy grin from the woman.

"Well, that's that," she removed her hand from his and began her walk, "You can keep the basket if you'd like_My friend makes them, so I'll just get another one...anyway, bye Asami, hope to see you again soon!"

He took a breath, a shaky breath and looked at the stars. He could live here, it was such a beautiful place. Perhaps he'd buy it for Takaba's family, his mother seemed nice enough, she even said Asami's name with such happiness that...how did she even know his name.

He whipped his head around, looking for her and straining his eyes to find her in the darkness. There was no way she could have gone that far, his head had been turned for only ten seconds, where could she have gone?

He ran to his car and looked into the clearing, looking anyway he could to see if she was in the road, but she wasn't.

Had she disappeared?

Asami looked and looked, but this lady was nowhere to be found...was she...no, impossible. She was human and he could feel it, she just happened to be a strange lady.

He went around the the drivers seat in his car, and made to open the door. However, a photo on the window had stopped him.

He removed the paper and climbed into his seat, instantly paling when he saw it.

Obviously, he was sleeping, and next to him was the awkward strange stuffed suit that Takaba had proudly paraded himself around in during his stay at the beach.

He flipped the paper to its side, smiling at the note left by Mrs. Takaba.

He wanted you to have this, it just got lost in his package. He loved you a lot, he talked about you all the time, especially when he was in the hospital.

Love, Mrs. T.

That was that. It was over, all of it...Takaba was gone, and his mother disappeared into the darkness. The Takaba's were a mystery to him...but perhaps that wasn't as bad as he thought it was, perhaps this would give him time to move on.

And, if he ever felt…lost, he had the pictures to look at_Not to mention, this field, of course, he was going to buy it, and had to check up on it once a year anyway.

At the end of the day, he had lost Takaba, but somehow, the boy felt closer to Asami than he ever had.

El fin. The last picture is the picture he took of Asami sleeping next to that bear-alien thing in the 2nd chapter, when Takaba was at the beach. I had fun writing this, and i made it happier than the first chapter. I just wanted to end on a positive note. Asami lost some to gain some, but unfortunately, he had to lose a lot. And as for Mrs. T, I put Mr.T in one of my other stories, so I wanted to add her in this one with Asami. Please forgive me for any OCCness, and review to tell me what you think. The strand of Takaba's disease she got wasn't really the same, her's was contagious, Takaba's wasn't. I was debating on making her a ghost or not, but in the end, it's undecided. Speaking of ghostly or angelic or demonic or spiritual encounters, have any of you ever experienced one? They're interesting, are they not, or plain terrifying. Leave your answer (if you have any) in the reviews, I'd be interested to hear. Anyway, have a nice weekend and God bless!