I Couldn't Move On

Disclaimer: All rights to the Full Metal Panic! story and characters belong to Shouji Gatou. The following fanfiction does not represent the thoughts and views of the creator or the site this story is hosted on, and is not written for profit.
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I Couldn\'t Move On
(Part 6 - Final Chapter)

The next morning crept up slowly as sunbeams came through the curtains into Kaname’s room. Although one could see that the bed had been used that night, not a single body lay sleeping under the sheets. Meanwhile, in a darker area, Sousuke watched Kaname with vigilant eyes as she was still snoozing peacefully. During the night when she had fallen completely asleep, he wrapped her in his button up shirt while he managed to put on his underwear, pants and tank top. There was always the possibility of an enemy infiltrating the room, and he wanted to make sure he was prepared to defend her.

He still wondered if what he did with Kaname was appropriate last night; but it was too late to go back now. They had both engaged in a union between the soldier and the school girl. Despite the outcome, Sousuke was very determined to make sure that nothing would ever happen to her. Feelings conflicted him, though, because he wanted to stay here with her. In fact, he even pondered the insane thought that she could come with him. Logistically that wouldn’t happen, but it was a nice thing to dream. Sousuke had to admit that this closeness with Kaname was a feeling unlike any other. This was a part of life he had never experienced much before. Caring for someone, and having them care for you in return, without wanting anything else but to be with you. It was certainly a different kind of companionship to explore, and he almost didn’t want to leave so soon after he had attained it. For now, he had to console himself to realizing that by staying out on the battlefield and doing his job would help keep Kaname by his side, no matter what the distance was.

That nostalgic moment was soon interrupted by a small click before all silence broke from the giant plastic chicken, “Uweiiiii! Uweiiii!! Kana-chan, wake up! Uweiiii! Kana-chan, time for school! Uwe-“

A gunshot blast echoed through the room and Kaname’s eyes snapped open as her body sprung into action.

“What the- OW!” she cried out in pain as she hit her head hard against a metal beam. Wincing while her hand went to aid the painful blow, she opened her eyes slowly to figure out what had happened, “Sousuke, what on earth are you…why the hell am I under my bed!?”

A pair of feet shifted before a set of knees became visible, then Sousuke’s face touched the floor, “It’s dangerous to fall asleep exposed to an enemy. I didn’t want to sleep on top of the bed, but I was even less inclined to leave you there while I remained guarded. So I brought you down with-.“ Within seconds, a paper fan swooped miraculously from underneath the bed and slapped him clear across the face. Eventually Kaname managed to utilize her elbows enough to drag her body out from the tight spacing. As she tried to rub the kink out of her neck from sleeping on the floor, her eyes met with the ex-alarm clock that woke her up every morning.

“You killed it…” her words trembled as though she had spaced out into another realm, “You killed the only thing that could wake me up in the morning.”

Sousuke’s eyes widened as he turned to look at her. No words could describe the aura she was giving off, and he had a feeling he was going to end up six feet under.

“That clock…was given to me as a child from my mother,” the whisper of her voice performed a one-eighty as she turned around with her eyes a blaze, “AND YOU SHOT IT!?”

“Ka-Kaname! W-wait!” his hands extended out in front of him in order to protect her onslaught.

“You shot my only alarm clock you stupid, psychotic military FREAK!” reaching back she wailed him into the living room with her trusty paper fan.

“Kaname! I didn’t mean to! I thought it was a-“

“YOU’RE BUYING ME A NEW ONE!”

“Yes! Yes! A new one! Yes, Ma’am” he saluted to her, but that second of formality cost him another blow to the face as she spent the next several minutes pummeling him for defamation of property. Stepping on him a few times with her bare foot, she continued shouting at him while neighbors were gathering around the outside of her door to hear what was going on, “How’d you like it if I broke off the firing pin on your semi-automatic, eh!? Or disassembled it and scrubbed it with dishwashing soap!?”

“Kaname- OW!- I didn’t mean to-“

“Didn’t mean to my ASS!”

The next day Kaname and Kyouko were walking home from school again to enjoy the weekend that was coming up. All day long, the girl in pig tails knew that something must have happened last night to put her best friend in such a good mood all day.

“So, do I have to guess, or are you going to tell me what happened last night to lift your spirits?”

Kaname blushed, as the thought of last night caused her heart to start pounding against her chest again, “Yesterday…well…” her words wandered off in ways that told Kyouko that it was something her friend had been waiting for.

“You got a letter back from Sagara-kun?” she asked excitedly. The look on Kaname’s face told it all, but little did Kyouko know the full extent of its meaning, “What’d he say, Kana-chan?”

Obviously she wasn’t going to tell her friend the truth! That would have been embarrassing as all hell; not to mention that Kyouko would want all the details. For a while she just giggled a bit as she tossed around different types of lies that she could say in return. All of them would have given her away in a heartbeat. Eventually the smaller girl became impatient waiting for Kaname to spill the beans, “I know you’re hiding something, Kana-chan! Come on, say it already. I won’t tell anyone.”

Eventually Kaname stopped laughing as she looked up to the sky to admire the sunset colors, “He wrote back and said…” she then looked down, her cheeks flushed red as she radiated an aura of bliss around her, “…that he missed me too.”

In a way, Kyouko was hoping for a little something more than that. Either way it was a step in the right direction for the both of them, and she couldn’t have been happier, “Kaname that’s awesome! Is he planning to come visit you soon? Or was that all he said? Wait a minute, was that all you wrote?”

Kaname just laughed as she tried to pry further details about the letter, “Oh come on Kaname, tell me!”

“That’s all he said!”

“No way! Really?! Awww man!”


The sound of military boots clanked briskly down the hallways of the Danaan. When they reached the cafeteria, Sousuke opened the door to find some of the crew throwing confetti and cheering like a squad of drunk football players. For a second, he stood mortified at the robust outbursts of ‘congrats man!’ and ‘way to go, Sergeant Slick!’ Kurz being the lead of this entire party, he wrapped a firm arm around his comrade and dragged him further into the abyss of celebration.

“I never knew you had it in you, Sousuke!” he grinned stupidly, apparently drunk as a skunk and blowing intoxicated air in the younger sergeant’s face, “I must admit I’m jealous.”

Sousuke made sure to keep his composure with all the ruckus, as he refused to lead them on. Then again, how did all these people even know what was going on in the first place.

Must have been that ‘pool’ Kurz mentioned. I knew something was up when Mao silenced him about it.

“Give us the details, man,” Kurz goaded him on, nudging him around as he sat the boy next to Melissa. Needless to say, she, too, was wearing a smirk upon her face, interested in hearing what had happened.

Looking around, Sousuke couldn’t help but sweat profusely as several sets of eyes were upon him like savage wolves waiting for the kill. Not to mention that an imaginary Kaname was looming over his back with her fan in tow, “If you tell them, you will die!”

With quick composure, he cleared his throat to begin his ‘authorized’ recount of events, “At eighteen-hundred hours I approached the residence of Miss Chidori Kaname in order to confirm the issue of her safety. I noticed the door was opened and a suspicious person hanging around it. I efficiently brought down the said individual utilizing an M18L stun gun. I found Kaname distressed over an insect crawling along her kitchen floor. Surprised by my presence, she performed proper defense moves against me. Securing her safety, we then exchanged words on each other’s current health status. I was informed that the suspicious person was actually her landlord and was not to be classified as an enemy unit. Some of the conversation ended up distressing Miss Chidori, so I had to take extended measures to clarify a misunderstanding. I decided it would be best to keep watch while she slept in order to ensure continual safety measures during my visit. This morning, I was startled by a possible bomb threat shaped like a chicken. Taking the appropriate actions, I dispatched of the possibly dangerous object, only to later have Miss Chidori take disciplinary action for the destruction of her alarm clock. I then made sure that she attended school safely and headed back for transport to the Danaan. That concludes my report.”

Everyone looked so disappointed with the exception for Melissa, who picked up on the hint to not pry. Kurz, however, was not convinced, “What about the kiss? Mao was talking to you on the phone and mentioned that she kissed you!”

“You must have misheard that,” he said right back without a pause.

The sniper couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Turning to face Melissa, he tried to get her to back him up on the claim, “Didn’t you say that she kissed him?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” the Major acted in step to Sousuke’s story, “You were plum drunk off your ass last night, Kurz. For all you know, you probably hallucinated that they had sex together.”

The rest of the crew was completely bummed out about the report. They thought for sure he was finally going to get somewhere with a girl. Until then, the bet was still on since no real winner had yet been declared. Kurz was slightly sobbing at this point from sheer disappointment that this lessons hadn’t been utilized. With the disappointment still lingering in the air, people started filing out the door until only the three ARM Slave pilots were left. Sousuke was mentally relieved about the situation in general while Melissa kept smirking at him.

“You settled your conflict after all, eh Sousuke?” she asked just before chugging down a beer.

Nodding, his gray eyes looked over to Kurz, who was still depressed, before exchanging glances with Mao, “Mm. You were right about a lot of things.”

In a way, Melissa was also upset because she technically would have won the bet right now. But she understood, from Kaname’s perspective, the possible embarrassment endured by the entire Danaan crew. Intercourse was a private matter to most people; therefore, she wasn’t surprised that Sousuke’s mouth was going to keep shut on the matter.

“It isn’t as bad as you though, eh?”

“Not at all. In fact, I found it to be an experience unlike any other.”

“What’s he talking about?” Kurz suddenly butt in, trying to figure out the conversation they were having.

“Kaname’s cooking,” Melissa blurted out before handing the blond another beer, “Stop trying to read into things.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” he sniffled before suckling the beer like a bottle.

“Are you planning on visiting her again later on?”

“I told her I couldn’t make any promises. But if I have the time, I will make sure to spend it back in Japan with her.”

The Major gave a satisfied smile, “Good boy.”


Mardukas passed a small file of papers to the white-blonde captain of the Danaan, “Everything’s in order, Captain. Sergeant Sousuke is back on the ship. We can leave anytime you want.”

For a while, Tessa didn’t respond at all. She stared blankly into space located upon the floor of her beloved ship. Mardukas quirked an eyebrow in concern as maybe she wasn’t paying full attention, “Captain?”

Suddenly she snapped back to reality, “Mardukas? Oh! I’m sorry. I had my mind on something.”

“Sergeant Sousuke is back on the ship. Do you wish for him to report to you?”

How could she even face him now? Those images Kaname sent her by complete accident were enough to shatter her spirit into several pieces. Yet, because of her position, she would obtain very little formal sympathy in regards to what actually happened, “No. It was just a visit anyway. Tell me, did Sousuke report an actual safety mishap at all?”

“Negative, Captain. It seems everything was just fine.”

“I thought so. Very well. Begin turning south east, full dive.”

“Roger!”

How could she have won so soon? I know I must be strong, but why must I sacrifice my desires completely in order to maintain the rank of a Captain? You just don’t realize how luck you are, Kaname.


Opening the door to her apartment, she set down her stuff but made sure to close the door this time. Kaname hummed a little tune to herself as she went into her bedroom only to be surprised by a brand new chicken alarm clock with a tag attached to it. She couldn’t help but smile as he actually managed to replace the item he broke as promised. He even went so far as to adding a small military vest for it that was packed with self-defense weaponry. Kaname rolled her eyes and shook her head with a smile, “Sousuke, you loon.”
Turning around, she headed outside to her balcony and rested her chin upon her hand as she leaned on the cement fence. As she watched the sunset, she thought back on this morning before she had to leave for school.

“Hey, Sousuke...” she said as the two of them looked out on the balcony together.

“Hm?”

“Do you really have to leave so soon? You just got here last night, I’d really hate to see you go without being able to stay another day.”

Looking back over to her, he smiled at the thought that she didn’t want him to leave, “I promised my commander that I would be back as soon as I found out whether you were still in good care or not. I’ve over-extended my stay as it is.”

“That’s disappointing,” looking down to see the very early risers leaving for the train station. However, she sucked in a little bit of air and put on a cheery face, “Very well, I shall wait for you to return again!”

“Kaname?”

“In the meantime, I’ll do my best to graduate into a prestigious college just like I always wanted.”

This made Sousuke confident in her inner strength, “You’re a strong person, Kaname. I know you’ll do it.”

“Make sure to do your best too, Sousuke. Everyone is counting on you, whether they know it or not. I’m counting on you the most, because I want you to be able to come back and see me.”

“I’ll make sure to keep that promise.”

She rested her head upon her arms as she continued to watch the sun set into the horizon. Both of them could only guess how long it would be until they saw each other again. In the meantime, they decided to continue corresponding via letters as they did before. Kaname wondered if she could now try being a little more open with him in her letters, or if maintaining the optimistic attitude would need to be reconciled again.

Standing back up, she smiled at the drifting sun and thought of it fondly as Sousuke’s vigil, “Good luck, Sousuke. Do your best. In the meantime, I’ll do mine.” She then turned around and headed back inside, totally unaware of someone who was keeping his eyes firmly on her.

“This turned out to be more interesting than I expected,” a deep voice chuckled with a sadistic attitude. He set his binoculars down in order to grab a cigarette. He was stationed down below on the sidewalk across the street, looking into the open window of Kaname’s apartment. Once he managed to light the cigarette, he took a long drag from it and exhaled the smoke through his nostrils. He enjoyed the burning sensation it gave as his steel eyes focused once more on the unguarded apartment building, “You’re making things too easy for me this time…Kashim.” Taking another drag, he turned and walked away with a smirk upon his face and complete confidence in what he planned on doing next to get the attention of the Mithril soldier.
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Final Notes: It was a pleasure writing my first fic! Please let me know if you enjoyed or not and why. Please be cordial when writing criticism. Technical errors can be e-mailed to me, as I will try to fix them when I have time. The last two chapters didn\'t get a very thorough edit, as I was pressed for time to get this finale up for everyone to read.