I stared for a long moment. Probably several long moments. I was just looking at a door. It was a nice door, but not so much stare-worthy. It was a door to one of the larger suites available to regular students, and it was one behind which some of the highlights of my life had occurred. I, for about the seventh time, raised a hand to knock and then stopped.

I went through about nine different outfits for this moment, some with fox ears and tail, one I had attached present bows to, and I had scrapped all those ideas. Instead I stood at the door in black shorts and a sky-blue top, both hugging my features flatteringly, but neither all that special in their own right. I had also given a lot of thought to my end-game here at the Island - to go home memory-free. Would they be good enough to leave the good things? To leave Sondra?

Right and wrong were more her area than mine, I knew that, but I also knew she'd probably have a litany of problems with my goals. Still, I wanted to save her - everyone else was out for themselves. I couldn't save the world, so saving the girl had to be good enough. And that gave me pause again. Was I too far? Had I compromised too much for her to love me?

I clenched a fist. Vera had been right - I'd get nowhere thinking like that.

I knocked.

While Linnis stared a rather ordinary-looking door and fretted about the near future and what it might hold, Sondra was staring at one of several photo albums that were stacked up on her bed where she was somewhat busy reminiscing about the distant and not-so-distant past. And yes, the present and future were on her mind as well...

Since there was nobody else around at the moment, and she wasn't really expecting company over(though unexpected visitors did show up at her dorm on a regular basis), the blonde-haired woman was dressed in nothing more than a black button-up top that didn't exactly leave much to the imagination. And as usual, there was the matching black cat ears and tail. But what was on Sondra's mind at the moment wasn't the sheer black fabric that covered but hardly concealed the young blonde's body...It was the contents of the large, well-worn scrap book that was currently laid open before her.

Each photo she came across stirred up vivid memories from her past...the wild sleep-over parties she'd held with her sisters, along with a few friends and cousins when her parents were both out of town on business...the even more wild adventures that she'd been on, both at home and abroad...They were some of the greatest years of Sondra's young life, made all the more special and memorable because of all those wonderful, amazing people that she had been fortunate enough to share that trip through the rocky road of life with...

Many of Sondra's family and who she hadn't seen in almost a decade. Whom she may never see again, now that she was trapped forever here on this evil little island that she had for so long been forced to call 'home', with no hope of ever leaving and returning to her previous life...

A vicious storm of anger and resentment boiled up inside her at that moment...It was one of countless moments where Sondra wished she could once again see her father, the evil, sadistic bastard who had sent her away to rot on this god-forsaken hellhole, and 'thank' the miserable sonofabitch by tying the asshole up in his own 'chamber of horrors' and putting him through every bit of pain and suffering that the little shit had inflicted upon Sondra and her mother and sisters. And then she'd...

And then she spotted another album nearby, the title of the scrap book proclaiming itself as "Shokushu High School: Sondra's Fondest Memories". Setting aside other volume, Sondra grabbed the large black book and started to browse through the pages. And she remembered...

So many awesome things had happened in Sondra's life since her arrival several years back...so many wonderful, amazing friends that she had made during her stay here...all the wild and crazy parties that she'd been to...reuniting with a few of her closest relatives (that is to say, those members of her family that she felt the closest to)...

Of course, the one event...the one memory that Sondra held dearest of all...was the one that no photo would ever do justice...

Knock, knock

"Hmm?" Sondra's ears perked up at the sound, her deep blue eyes rising from the pages to stare at the door. Looking all around, the tall blonde seemed to notice for the first time that the mattress and the floor surrounding the bed wasn't in the best shape...boxes and storage containers were all over the place, and the top of the bed was covered with albums and post cards and other personal memorabilia of equal sentimental value...

Sondra got out of bed and stumbled her way through the mess, muttering quietly to herself about wishing she had time to clean up a bit before receiving visitors. Passing through the considerably cleaner living area of the dorm room, Sondra made her way to the entrance where she opened the door wide for her visitor...

And a look of pure astonishment shown on Sondra's face as she was greeted by a very familiar (and most surprising--but certainly not unwelcome) sight...

Holy shit! Could it really be...

"Linny? How...when...what...Aw, fuck it! C'mmere, sweetie!" All questions fled from Sondra's mind as she pulled Linny into a gentle embrace and planted a deep, wet kiss on her beautiful wife's luscious lips.

"Oh my god, I've missed you sooo much, my love! You have no idea how good it feels to have you back in my arms again! It seems like it's been an eternity since I've seen you last! I hope you've been okay since my latest...absence."

The waiting...the agonizing...was finally over. The love of Sondra's life had finally returned. She could finally breathe easy, knowing that her wonderful, amazing wife was back in her life and in her arms once more. All was finally right in the world.

Or was it?

At that moment, intuition or her gut told Sondra that something was not quite as it should be...that something big was weighing heavily on her lover's mind.

Concerned, Sondra released Linnis from her embrace, stepping back to look into the other woman's eyes. "Um, Linny, dear? Is there something wrong? I got the feeling that something's troubling you..."

She threw her arms around me and met me with one of the most heartlifting kisses I had had in my entire life. I felt like I was flying with delight, being in her arms, tasting her lips, feeling her tongue - wanting to feel more of that tongue - and my troubles melted into nothing as I melted into her. I didn't say words, words weren't needed. At least not yet. Right now, what mattered was reunion, and the feelings there. Nothing bad came of this return, as we always said, we returned to one another. It was our vow. Our promise. Our sacred trust. Not much was certain here, but this kiss reminded me of what was - our love was certain.

That liberated so much. I knew, still, the burden of what I had done, but it didn't feel so bad. Love was hand-in-hand with forgiveness. So, when she broke the kiss and asked me for what troubled me, I was simple, "I did some things I'm not proud of to try and get you back, I traded in a lot. But we're both here, so..." I smiled, warm as could be, "so there isn't anything to be afraid of anymore."

Truer words were never spoken. At the end of the day, I wasn't afraid of the violence, the rapes, the creatures from the darkest nightmares; they all left me in Sondra's arms. So the pain, the terror, it was nothing, it was healed by the love, the care. I would take on an army of crazed alien rapists if I knew that Sondra was waiting for me on the other side. And I would tear worlds apart if something kept me from her.

"I'm home," I said, somewhere between blissful and somber. Sure, she could see that there was some dark things hovering over me, and I would sometime soon tell her the whole thing, but right now? I just wanted her to have me back. All those things I had done could be the problems of tomorrow. Right now was happy. Right now was so damned happy. Words can't put feelings like these into concepts for someone else to understand. This was the feeling of pain released, of regret vindicated, and of love's labors won. This was a kind of feeling I hazard to think most people can't imagine.

This was a perfect moment. And my sins would not trouble it.