(this is an extended author's note. if you have not read the chapter prior 
to this, you should probably turn around and go back while you still can.)

wow. where do I even begin? how does one even initiate an author's note like this?

this is the end, the final chapter of this story, and there are so many conflicting emotions in my mind right now. it's bittersweet. as much as I am proud to have finished such a massive work as this one, I am also sad to say that it's all over now. ticking off that little "mark story complete"-box hurts my heart.

this story means a lot to me. I have mentioned this before, but this is something I have been working on for nearly three years. the idea popped into my head, I refused to start another story, it kept pestering me and wouldn't go away, I eventually gave up and gave in. I've worked on it on and off with periods where I wanted to abandon the story altogether, but I pulled through out of sheer stubbornness. I've witnessed this story grow from just a vague hint of a plot to the giant, 118000+ word monster of a fanfic it has become, and now I have to say goodbye to it all - the characters, the universe, everything. I can't completely rule out the possibility of me revisiting this universe at some point in the future with side stories or some sort of "X years later", my brain has a tendency to throw curveballs at me like that, but for now, there are no plans to expand. so this is the end.

I would like to once again thank each and every one of you. you have all been a major support for me, and you've made me want to keep going. I don't even know how to thank you enough, I just hope you love this story at least half as much as I do. some of you have been around since the very beginning, some of you have come along somewhere in the middle of it all, some of you may be reading this after the story is already long completed. it doesn't matter, to me, at which point you joined the adventure. if you are reading this right now, know that I appreciate you. ♥

of course this is not the end for me altogether, I will still continue writing. I'm always working on a bunch of things, and I will hopefully have another chaptered story up before too long. in the meantime, I will be posting oneshots in my oneshot collection, so feel free to subscribe to that. you can also always subscribe to me as an author if you want to know when I post new stories, or send me a friend request since I am, as you can probably tell, an avid fan of shameless self-advertisement.

all there's left for me to say now is: goodbye. it's been a pleasure.

(now excuse me while I go weep.)

ps. Tip Jar