Me: o.O Whoa. I think this may very well be the last chapter in this story.

Cari: Huh. I honestly didn't think you'd make it through another story, but i guess i was wrong.

Me: But i have made my decision, and I'm going to continue the Thunder and Lightning series!

Cari: That's a relief, considering you don't put me in any of your other stories.

Me: I forget, ok! Anyways, i was checking my stats, and apperently, there are 35 ppl that have me on author alert, yet i only get 3-5 reviews per chapter.

Cari: Ouch.

Me: Yeah, i know. I would reallly appreciate it if instead of just reading and leaving, you guys could actually leave a review and tell me how i did, or something. Not too much to ask, really. Btw, i should mention that the italics later in the chapter is a flashback. Alrighty, on to the show!

One Year Later

Kimiko walked outside into the sunshine and took a deep breath of fresh air. The sky was clear, the air was clean, the flowers were vibrant. And best of all...

'Happy birthday to me!' Kimiko thought happily as she strolled through the garden on her way to the kitchens. The odd thing was, she didn't spot anyone at all on her way, not even Dojo.

"Where is everyone?" she wondered aloud. She got her answer as soon as she walked in the kitchen.

"SURPRISE! Happy Birthday!" they all yelled as she turned on the lights. Kimiko let out peals of laughter as she spotted the chocolate cake on the table.

"Happy birthday Kimi-cub!" Lilia grabbed her in a tight hug.

"Aww, thank you guys so much!" Kimiko gushed as they all took their turns giving the birthday girl a hug. Finally, it was Rai's turn.

"Happy birthday bella." he whispered in her ear as he swept her up in a kiss. Kim threw her arms around him and squeezed him tight. When they broke apart, she grinned cheekily at him.

"Cake for breakfast, yum yum!" Rai burst into laughter as he set her down. Even at 20 years old, Kimiko was still tiny and petite as always.

After the six warriors returned from the Ying Yang World, Kimiko fell into a deep depression that not even Raimundo could bring her out of it. She stopped eating as much, sleeping, talking, smiling, everything. It got to the point where she would just spend the day staring at the wall, not saying a word. She lost her spirit, her passion. She lost her fire. Until one day, Rai couldn't take it anymore.

"Kimiko." Rai called her name. She didn't respond, just stood there, staring at him with souless eyes. Rai sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

'I really hope she won't hate me for what I'm about to do, but this is for her own good.' he thought sadly before roughly grabbing her hand and yanking her towards the fighting field. The really sad part was, Kim didn't even resist, not even a single protest. Once there, he let go of her and whirled around to face her. Then, Rai did something that he would never forgive himself for. He hit her so hard that she fell to the ground. She raised her head and held her cheek, her wide blue eyes filling her face. Rai then took a deep breath and began to yell.

"Just what the hell is wrong with you Kimiko?! Are you seriously gonna sit there and take that? The old Kimiko would have beat me to a pulp if I had ever hit her like that! You need to pull yourself together girl, because our team needs a second-in-command they can count on, and right now, you. are. useless." Rai said furiously. His heart began to race when he saw a hint of a spark in her eye, but to get it into a flame, he needed to do more.

"Right now, you don't deserve to be Hanikara, much less Wudai. In fact, you don't even deserve to be a Xiaolin Warrior. Maybe I should just send you home back to Japan. Because you're certainly not doing any good here. And what's worse is....you're not the girl I love anymore. The girl I loved was firey, she was passionate, she was my best friend. Now, you are nothing. And I don't want a girl who is nothing." Rai tried to keep on a straight face but the lump in his throat made it hard. He turned his back on her and prepared to continue when suddenly a powerful punch sent him flying across the field. He scrambled to sit up when she grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked him up to her eye level.

"You listen, and you listen good. Don't you ever hit me like that ever again or you will end up 6 feet under. And you had better remember one more thing. You. Are. Mine. Nothing will ever change that. Got it?" Kimiko growled, the fire in her eyes a full inferno now. Before Rai could even think to respond, she had pulled him into a passionate kiss. By the time they pulled apart, they both were gasping for air.

"Thank you." Kim breathed into Rai's ear before helping him up off the ground.

And ever since then, she'd been back to her old self again.

"So where are my presents?" Kimiko asked jokingly.

"Ah ah, you aren't even allowed to see the boxes. Not until tonight, anyways." Emeline said, wagging a finger at her.

"While they are busy planning you're party, don't bother objecting we're gonna do it whether you want it or not, I will have the opportunity of taking you out for a day off." Rai grinned down at her. At his words, Kimiko got a gleam in her eye, which Rai immediately distrusted.

"Please tell me you're not thinking what I think you're thinking." Rai asked, his hope fading away as he saw the slow smile creep onto Kimiko's face.

"You know what this means, dontcha Rai?" she asked, turning to him. The color drained from his face.

"Oh hell no." Rai moaned.

"SHOPPING!" Kimiko squealed, which was the very beginning of Rai's worst nightmare. Spending the day alone with Kimiko was amazing, but unfortunately, he would be the one to carry ALL of her bags.

"Poor Rai. He'll never make it out alive." Lilia said sympathetically.

"Thanks Lil." Rai said sarcastically.

"We'd better get going! The earlier we leave, the more shopping I can do!" Kimiko giggled at the look on Rai's face.

"I'll go get the Silver Manta Ray!" Kimiko ran off. Before Rai could join her, Lilia put a hand on his shoulder.

"Remember what we talked about earlier. You had better ask her by the end of the day, or so help me God you will be on the receiving end of one of my attacks." she warned, a look of death on her face.

"I know, I know. Relax, I will." he assured her before walking out. Rai went to the Shen Gong Wu vault only to find Kimiko in a completely different outfit than the one she was wearing a few minutes ago.

"How...never mind." he shook his head. Kimiko pulled him by the hand.

"Come on, lets go!" she pushed him into the driver's seat before sitting in the passenger side.

The rest of the day was spent in Paris, Kimiko dragging Rai to the best stores in the city and leaving every single one of them with Rai carrying mountains of shopping bags. Throughout the day, it was apparent that Raimundo was getting more and more nervous about something, but every time Kimiko commented on it, he readily denied it. So eventually she just stopped asking.

By the time the sun set, Kimiko had over 60 shopping bags, all ready to be taken back to the temple.

"I hope you had a great day." Rai commented, shrinking the bags with the Changing Chopsticks so that they would all fit in the Silver Manta Ray.

"I had an awesome time. Thank you so much." Kimiko squeezed his hand, her eyes conveying the love she felt for him.

"Don't thank me just yet. The day's still not over, remember? Let's go home so we can celebrate properly." he grinned his familiar grin which always set Kimiko at ease.

"Alright!" she yelled, pumping her fist in the air. Rai chuckled as they climbed in.

When they got home, the night was starry and the full moon was high in the sky.

'Perfect.' Rai thought to himself.

"Hey, bella? After you're done putting away everything, could you meet me in garden? I want to give you your present." he smiled brilliantly at her.

"Oh you didn't have to get me anything! Just being you is enough for me! But sure." she grinned at him in the darkness.

"Great! I'll see ya then." he waved as she walked off. As soon as he couldn't see her Rai started to take deep breaths to calm himself down. After all, what he was about to do was a bit nerve-wracking.

Raimundo walked to the garden and sat on the edge of the fountain. He pulled out the small blue box and looked at what was inside. The diamond ring was nestled in the velvet lining of the box, the diamond sapphire blue in color.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps behind him and quickly put away the box. Kimiko appeared, once again dressed in a different outfit. This time she was wearing a simple white dress which accented her body beautifully and her long raven black hair shone in the light of the moon. Rai was actually struck speechless at the sight of her. She smiled gently when she saw him and walked up to him.

"Hi." she said, sitting next to him.

"Hi yourself." he smiled.

"So?" she prompted. Rai took one last deep breath before beginning.

"Kimiko, you are the very best thing that's ever happened to me. I'm not just glad that you and I are in love. I'm glad because we were able to meet, to become best friends, and then something more. I'm glad to have been able to share my life with you, and to have been able to be a part of your life as well. You are the fire to my wind, the soul to my life, the sun to my universe. You are my life, my very existence. I've never felt this way before, and now that I do, I can't help it. I love you so much. You are the very essence of beauty. You are my beauty. My bella. And now, I would like to ask you something very important." Rai got off the fountain and slid to one knee. Kimiko gasped as she figured out where this was going.

"Kimiko, my love, will you marry me?"

All it took was one whispered word.

"Yes."

Me: 10 points to the person who can figure out which quote i took from one of my other stories and where i used it! Finally I am finished!!! Thank you so so so so so much to everyone who have been sticking with me since the beginning, you guys are so amazing and i am eternally grateful for all the nice reviews ive gotten so far. And yes, once again, there will be another story following this one soon, so be ready to watch for it, k? love you guys! (gives out hugs and cookies)