Tsumiko
Tsumiko's heart hung heavy as she felt the life drain out of Thea in her arms. She felt the body withering away, her bones grew frail, and Tsumiko's heart hung heavy. She felt like a lead statue at the moment she devoured the last of Thea's stolen life force, staring down listlessly at her first friend.
"Why... does this feel so familiar?" She muttered. Her heart jumped into her throat, her stomach roiled. She slowly reached up and closed Thea's eyes. She reached into Rin's magic, channeling her knowledge. Deep into the Tohsaka crest, until she found it.
Quietly chanting a spell, she focused her mind for a moment, taking a deep breath before saying the final word.
The surface of Thea's body smoothed out, the wrinkles going away. It was so easy to fix a corpse, and so difficult to fix a human being.
What made them so different?
It hurt her head thinking about such things as she left Thea's body afloat inside the imaginary abyss, eternally preserved, eternally remembered.
And then, with a heavy heart, she took a deep breath, and steeled herself for what was going to happen next, appearing out of her shadow.
She appeared out on top of a skyscraper, sitting on the ledge, looking off into the distance as she watched the sun rise over the cityscape.
This view was truly beautiful to her.
The two young women sat around the kotatsu in silence, next to one another. Sakura was sitting upright, while Rin was leaning back, supporting herself with her hands. They both seemed to be stoically watcwatching something unfold, and tears began to stream down Sakura's face. Rin silently reached over and rubbed her back, but otherwise remained silent as well. The half-eaten remains of a grand feast laid in front of the two, neither having finished off their plates, with a mountain of pots laid heaped in the sink in the kitchen, untouched and ignored.
The pair sat in silence for a while, not doing much of anything at all. They simply sat still, waiting. Watching.
And then, with nothing more than a thought, the food in front of them vanished. It was a small benefit of living in a land only defined by one's imagination and dreams. Sakura leaned in, placing her head to rest against Rin's full belly. Her mismatched eyes looked up at Rin's aquamarine pair blearily, and she finally wiped off her eyes against her sister's blouse.
Rin smiled down at her little sister, her expression hiding a twinge of melancholy. She ran her fingers through Sakura's silky purple locks, gently straching her head in silence.
Eventually, Sakura spoke. "That was too fast. I thought she'd finally managed to make a friend." She muttered it quickly, almost as if she didn't really want to voice such painful thoughts. "I thought my poor little girl had finally found something to live for, R-R-rin." She turned her face a bit, looking up at her sister. She sucked in a breath and paused mid-thought. This really is weird, isn't it... How long has it been since I was able to do this?
Rin nodded, continuing to pet Sakura's locks. She reached down, pulling a hankerchief out of her pocket and wiping Sakura's eyes again. "Instead, her friend self destructed, leaving her alone once more, as if nothing ever happened." Rin stopped herself from frowning, carefully controlling her confusion and hiding it. Daughter? Child? Sakura considered Tsumiko her offspring?
It was interesting. Maybe it was just the situation, but still. Fascinating.
"I hope we can subtly guide her to a better future, together." She proposed her plan in a slow and measured tone. She had no interest in ripping off the bandage she'd so painstakingly applied, and had no idea of how stable Sakura truly was nor what might set her off, except in a broad sense.
It felt as if she were like walking through a minefield.
Rin almost breathed a sigh of relief when Sakura slowly nodded a few moments later.
"Yeah, that would be nice." She said simply, rolling over again, breathing softly and slowly. She was quite enjoying the attention her sister was finally giving to her. She turned her head back to face Rin once more. "Rin? Um, how would you like, um, spending the night?"
The purple-haired maiden blushed, turning away. Rin just let out a brief, joyous laugh. "I'll stay here as long as you'll allow me to, Sakura."
The girl with the raven twintails let out a deep sigh, relieved that she seemed to have finally gotten herself in.
Tsumiko, meanwhile, simply watched the sun rise silently. Wondering if what she'd done was the right thing. Tormented by the knowledge that but for her direct actions, Thea would be alive right now, sitting next to her, smiling and laughing.
"I really wanted to show you this view..."
She brought her knees up to her chest and let out a soft moan. "Did I do the right thing? Is this really how I should be going about my life?"
Tsumiko just wasn't sure anymore.
