"Jasper-kun! Hang on!" Neko cried as she held on to him.
"Neko-chan, please save me," he said, his face etched in terror. He tried to reach up with his other hand, but couldn't reach her. Instead, he found a rough spot in the rock face and grabbed a hold of that. "Please, don't let go!"
Neko also looked terrified. "Jasper-kun, I don't want you to die."
"Me neither," he said, and he found he really meant it. He could've joined Amethyst easily, just by letting go, but he really wanted to stay. To finish this mission for Neko and finish out the rest of his life. "Neko-sama, help me!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
*Mi-chan!*
That was it. She had to go. She pushed Jian-wa away. "Neko-chan's in trouble!"
"No, she's not. It's okay, you can stay with me," he insisted.
It took every ounce of willpower she had, but as he leaned in for another kiss, she shoved him away before he could touch her. "This is not a nightmare! I am not staying with you. You have no power over me!" She pushed her way past him, and actually found herself going right through him as he dissolved. "Shimatta! Neko!"
She ran out of the cave and found Tenshi, who seemed to be involved with some illusion of her own. "Tenshi-kun!" she barked at her, as she pulled her by the collar, probably right through her hallucination.
Tenshi was that close to kissing her. "Tenshi-kun. So help me, if you kiss me, I'll slug you!"
"Mi-chan?" Tenshi seemed to be coming to her senses. "What- what's going on?"
"Michiru! Tenshi!" Neko's distant screams got their attention. They ran off in the direction of them to help her.
But it wasn't her in trouble, they found. It was Jasper.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Tenshi got to the edge first. "Jasper-kun grab onto my hand. We'll pull you up."
"I can't," he said, his voice strained. He was obviously too petrified to let go of what little hold he had on the side of the cliff. But Neko wasn't going to be able to hold on much longer.
"Jasper, let go of the cliff and grab onto Tenshi-kun's hand now, before you die and cost Neko-chan her memories!" Mi-chan ordered him.
"You can do it," Tenshi encouraged him.
Jasper reached for her hand, but missed. He swung into the side of the mountain, loosening some rocks that went crashing into the ground far below him.
"Jasper!" Neko screamed.
He didn't remember clenching his eyes shut, but he opened them slowly now.
And gasped at what was in front of them.
"Jasper-san, daijoubu ka?" Tenshi asked.
"Hai. I'm gonna try again," he answered, more determined now. "Get ready for me, Tenshi-san. Hold on, Neko-chan!"
He swung himself up and reached for Tenshi's hand. She grabbed it and started to pull him up. Neko too. He scrambled up the side of the mountain, his feet slipping every other step. Little by little, they pulled him to safety, even Mi-chan helping out, grabbing onto the arm Neko'd been grasping for so long. Finally, he was safe on solid ground.
Neko reacted first. She clenched tightly onto him, crying, "Jasper-kun, I don't want you to die! Please, stay with us!"
"Shh, shh," he hushed her. "It's okay. I'm still here. I won't abandon you, I promise."
She was the only person other than Amethyst that had ever cried for him. Her tear-streaked face was filled with so much worry for him, he couldn't stand it. "Neko-chan, don't cry, please," he begged her.
"I thought you were going to die," she wept. "You told me you wanted to."
"I didn't though, see? I don't want to anymore. I want to stay with you, okay?" He wiped a tear from her cheek. "Please don't cry," he whispered. "It'll break my heart."
She nodded and attempted a smile.
He'd do anything to make her happy again. And then he remembered something that had to cheer her up. "Neko-chan, I almost forgot." He got up and went back to the edge of the path.
"What the hell are you doing now?!" Mi-chan asked him, probably assuming he was trying to get himself killed again.
"Give me a second." Blindly, he felt along the rock face. Finally, he felt something smoother than the rest. He loosened it, praying he didn't drop it, and pulled it out.
It was a round yellow stone.
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