Defenceman: Parallel Ice (Non-Canonical Saga)
Copyright© 2025 by Cold Creek Tribute Writer
51. Epilogue
Coming of Age Story: 51. Epilogue - Defenceman: Parallel Ice (A Non-Canonical Saga) builds on Cold Creek’s Defenceman series while offering a new interpretation. Michael Stewart’s journey extends beyond the rink into intrigue, modeling, and the launch of his AI: Aegis. From Ann Arbor to London, Japan, and Spain, the story explores honor, love, betrayal, and resilience. Rivals and allies test his limits in the arena, courts and shadows—where triumph demands sacrifice and heart both on and off the ice.
Caution: This Coming of Age Story contains strong sexual content, including Romantic Celebrity Sports Interracial White Female Oriental Female White Couple Royalty AI Generated
A Decade Later...
I’m sitting out in our garden where it opens onto the park, the morning light filtering through the maple and casting dappled shadows across the raked gravel. The residents are already at play, and beneath the pond’s surface the fish swim, in no hurry at all. A decade ago, I couldn’t have imagined reaching a moment like this, surrounded by the family I found, the one that means the world to me. Here I am today, taking it in, and it’s a view I’ll never get used to. It’s been ten years since college graduation and the upheaval that nearly derailed our lives, and against all odds, things have turned out better than I dared to hope.
Hanna stayed with me through her time at UM, which feels like both yesterday and a lifetime ago. She dove headfirst into marketing with the fierce determination she brings to everything, building a network of friends who show up for each other. Watching her come into her own has been one of the great privileges of my life.
Mitsy stepped into her leadership role with the Matsuda family as if she were born for it, which, let’s be honest, she was. She commands a room now with the same fiery energy that made her a force from the beginning, and working alongside her never gets old. She and Hanna remain thick as thieves, and her friendly rivalry with Kim Yamamoto keeps pushing them both to new heights. Between the two of them, the future of AEGIS is in hands I trust completely, and they’re nowhere near finished.
The rest of the Matsuda and Yamamoto clans are doing well, and our bonds have only deepened over time through shared purpose and affection. I can’t picture a brighter future than one with them at the center of it. Kiyomi is my teacher and my most trusted friend, and AEGIS would be half of what it is without her hand on the wheel. Not a day goes by that I’m not grateful she agreed to become my Senpai. Her guidance has shaped me more than she’d ever claim credit for, and her wisdom anchors me whenever the ice gets a little choppy.
Rika Sato has surprised us all, softening the competitive edge that used to terrify me on the training mat, and Sensei Ogata claims not to notice, just as he claims my form has barely improved since 2011. The dojo smells of cedar and tatami exactly as it did the first time I walked in, and the lessons are rarely about fighting anymore. Rika remains one of the reasons this household sleeps soundly, and whatever the coming years bring, they’ll meet it on their own terms.
Aunt Nancy and Uncle Aaron hold down the Toronto end of things, and Canadian Thanksgiving belongs to Aunt Nancy’s kitchen more often than not. Mary and Ellen are grown now, or close enough that they’d argue the point, and they treat the Matsudas as aunts and uncles because that’s what they are.
The Duke, the Queen, and Congressman Sanders remain close allies and confidants, and Bianca long ago stopped being just the Duke’s daughter to us; she runs the European side of AEGIS, and she does it so well that I know better than to second-guess her. We make it a priority to stay in touch, catching up in person far more often than outside observers might expect. Those relationships matter on a personal level because they believed in me when taking that leap was a real risk, and I’ll always cherish their support.
Back when the cameras found Section 102 in Vancouver, the broadcasters turned my cheering section into a headline, Hollywood, the runway, a princess, and that circle has outlasted every story they ran. Emma and Beatrice have squatters’ rights on Molly’s London calendar and mine, and Kristen checks in whenever a project lets her up for air. Donna, who taught me the grin that sells luxury watches, takes full credit for my entire public career, and she’s mostly right.