"You seriously want to risk it?" Osomatsu asked.

Ichimatsu nodded his head slowly. The longing for Harvey to be in his arms was suddenly very strong, and Ichimatsu buried his head in his hands.

"Have you decided yet?" Dekapan asked, waddling back over to them.

"Yes!" Jyushimatsu exclaimed.

At that moment, Dekapan poured the strange liquid from the mason jar into a sixteen ounce cup. He pushed the glass at Ichimatsu then laughed a little.

"Drink up!" he said, then intently watched Ichimatsu. After all, if anything were to go wrong, Dekapan could possibly be the only one to save him. Even then, it was a fifty percent chance that nothing would go wrong.

Ichimatsu lifted his head then sighed, his entire body trembling in fear.

"This could all be over in so many ways in just a few seconds...do I really want this? Does anyone really want it...? Who was I before this...? Who am I even now? Surely I'm not Ichimatsu. Surely I'm someone else..." Ichimatsu thought, reaching for the glass. "Death, memories, or I could just stay this way. Which will I get...? Surely...surely..."

Ichimatsu lifted the cup to his lips using both shaky hands.

"Don't do it if you don't want to, Ichimatsu," Jyushimatsu said quietly. But Ichimatsu didn't hear him.

Slightly tilting the cup, Ichimatsu began to drink the thick liquid in his cup. His ears began to roar once he swallowed the first sip, causing him to stop for a moment. He could hear Jyushimatsu sobbing, but when he looked at his brother, there were no tears.

"Who do I hear?" Ichimatsu thought, beginning to drink more again. Osomatsu's eyes widened with curiosity.

"Ichimatsu!" Jyushimatsu cried,"Stop! Calm down! It's okay! I'm right here! You're back! It's okay! Come on...calm..be calm!"

"Jyushimatsu...Jyushimatsu..." Ichimatsu mumbled, the glass slipping out of his hand, shattering into a million pieces on the floor.

"Ichimatsu nii-san! Are you okay?!" Jyushimatsu asked frantically.

Ichimatsu fell out of his chair on the floor, just barely missing the glass that was everywhere.

"I can't..." Ichimatsu cried, curling up into a ball, covering his ears. "I can't!"

Ichimatsu closed his eyes, trying to shake out all the sudden clear as day memories in his mind.

"Homura-chan killed herself..." Jyushimatsu whimpered.

"Nii-san...please wake up..." Jyushimatsu cried.

"Hey, this song reminds me of you, Ichimatsu nii-san! We can listen to it together when you wake up! Promise me you'll wake up. You WILL make it, won't you?" Jyushimatsu asked pitifully.

"Ichimatsu!" Osomatsu exclaimed, kneeling down on the ground beside his brother. "What's wrong? Are you okay?" Osomatsu began to shake Ichimatsu, but he was out cold.

"Is he okay, Osomatsu nii-san?" Jyushimatsu asked, and Osomatsu nodded his head.

"He's still breathing. I just think he's shocked..." Osomatsu said, glancing at Jyushimatsu then back at Ichimatsu.

"Nii-san...why did you have to die like this? This isn't right!" Jyushimatsu cried angrily.

Several birds crowded around Ichimatsu's grave then suddenly vanished into a pile of colorful feathers.

Ichimatsu snapped his eyes open.

"D-dead..." he muttered, his lips trembling. "I'm...supposed to be..."

"No, Ichimatsu! You're not supposed to be dead! You're supposed to be with us! We're your brothers!" Jyushimatsu exclaimed.

"J-Jyushimatsu...?" Ichimatsu asked, raising his head to look at his brother. A small smile crept across his face as a single tear ran down his cheeks. "You visited...every day..."

"Of course I did, nii-san!" Jyushimatsu exclaimed, bending down to help his brother up. But as soon as Ichimatsu was on his feet, his legs gave way, and he fell to the floor again.