The heavens above shined down on the face of the earth, as the Lord poured out blessings everyday in the lives of those who walked below. Living their lives, following their dreams... all of man had some sort of a blessing, so long as they believed they could obtain one. A miracle happens every day, a live gets saved... a blind man sees again...

An angel regains it's wings, and ascends to heaven one more time.

It's an odd comparison to the man, a man who so many see as such a true warrior for the people being an angel. Yet to just a few people in the world... the man truly is an angel. His loved ones, his friends... he's an angel who's fallen, who's fought against all of the odds in his life... and who has truly, undeniably overcame them all. The man who lost a person so dear to him that it felt like ten-thousand daggers slowly peircing his heart when he heard of her death. The man who at one time underwent a mental breakdown, a turn to insanity as he shunned all around him-- including the love of his very life. The man who, even after all of this... still fought forward, still overcame, and finally achieved something he'd been chasing for so long.

The fight won't end, it can't end. He's came so far... done so much... and there's still so much more left for him. His eyes, burning brighter then the Northern Star of the night sky, shining even more brilliantly then a diamond... filled with that desire and determination that so many true warriors like him know. He doesn't do what he does just for himself, he does it for everyone.

For that lost love, his true love... his family, his friends... and his supporters. The people who cheer his name every time they see him, who shake his hand and ask just to spend even a few moments speaking with him, enjoying some time with the man. It's not because he's some sort of a God amongst men-- far from it, and he'd never see himself as such-- it's because they know who he is. They know who the man is because that's what he gives them, each and every time he sees them.

No proverbial masks to hide behind, no second personas... what they see is what they get.

He lifts his head high each and every night he steps out into the world, steps out before the thousands upon thousands of people who so proudly scream his name.

It's not just for him... it truly is for them, too. They are his legs to stand on, just as he is their rising star. They are the ones who've built him up so high... who've made his name such a well known thing... and he is the one who gives them everything he can, who pours his heart out with every appearance he makes.

Staggering, stumbling... limping if he has to, there are no injuries to keep him from them: the people who mean so much to him. There are some men who are so beloved by the people that even when committing the most heinous of acts against their heroes... they still are loved, for it's who they are. This man keeps his honor, he stands tall and strong as a true hero should. He doesn't lift himself higher then he knows he truly is... he is himself, and that's all they truly need.

For those heroes who do such horrible things may still have their support... they may still have their respect... but they are not looked upon in the same light as he.

For less than a year he has been known in his profession, less than a year he has held the respect and support of the people in his hands... and in less than a year did he rise to the very top of the mountain to stake his claim for the throne. All the while... the people stood behind him, chanting his name.

They never left him, he never left them... and all of the important people in his life stood beside him the whole time as well, chanting his name with them. He has turned to look back, has been awestricken by the sights he's seen... tears brought forth to his eyes as he realizes just how many people really do believe in him. The most powerful feeling in the world, flowing through his veins as he looks into each and all of their eyes, nodding his head in silence.

No words needed from such a man to all of them, for though they do look up to him... he places them on a much higher step above him then he believes he could ever obtain. The highest of all those steps, occupied only by one person... one person who's been so great an inspiration for him, so true a follower and supporter for his cause.

His angel... his love... the one who, so very long ago, helped his father pull him from the darkest cycle he'd ever fallen into.

She was there to support him forever and always... no matter where the chips may fall, no matter how many cards may be stacked against him, she would stand proudly beside him, holding his hand. Staring death in the eye with his hand in hers she'd laugh, feeling fear sweep over her with his hand in hers and she'd squeeze tight, a smile on her face of complete happiness as she flushed the feeling from her very being. There was nothing that either of them had to be hindered by so long as they held one another, so long as they believed in one another...

So that even after overcoming a brutal beating... after going through a band of brothers in one night... he would still have hope to win, still have hope to keep dreaming, and keep accomplishing those very dreams. Just a few more steps to go... just a matter of time before he begins to truly show the world what he is all about, who he knows he can be.

He has so many people to thank for it... but most of all, he has her. Suki Minamoto... his angel.

The purest person on this earth to give him the strength he needs to carry on... and the strongest willed woman he ever knew.

Dominic Pericolo remembered well the day he realized he loved her.