Tender You Go by Violetcarson

As Strong as You Were...

A/N: Inspired by two songs. Hallelujah (John Cale version is best) and Carry You Home by James Blunt, the latter moreso. Please be so kind as to leave me a review. :-)

...

A breath. A gasp. A sickening slosh of blood.

“Are you there?” Her voice is almost silent, barely a whisper.

“Yes.” The answer is short. Precise, with no unnecessary additions. It says exactly what needed to be said, and absolutely no more. It fits him.

A breath. Pain washing over her, drowning with its overwhelming power.

“I think…I think I’m dying Sesshoumaru.” She sounds almost surprised at the statement.

A pause. “Yes.” The word is spoken coldly, but she knows it wasn’t meant to be hurtful. Though she couldn’t see them, she knew that right now his eyes were screaming. She’d seen them that way once before. The day that poor little girl had almost died. His voice was cold so he could pretend he still didn’t feel.

A breath. A smile. “It’s okay. We knew this was going to happen eventually.” Her voice is gentle. Her hand reaches up blindly, fumbling until it strokes against his cheek. His hand locks it in place, and she can almost see his eyes closing at the touch.

A hitched breath. “I don’t…I don’t want you to die Kagome.” His voice comes the closest she has ever heard to breaking in that moment. She pulls him down to her, and he inhales her scent deeply. It is stained with the smell of blood and death. “The children…” his voice mumbles.

A breath. Her hand strokes lightly from his face back to his hair, smoothing down the silver silk that she can no longer see. “They will have their father. They do have their father. All will be well. Tell them I love them?”

A sigh escapes as he gives a brief nod against her hair. “Always.” He draws back, ignoring the way the blood is staining the bandage more quickly now. Her hand is still tight in his.

A breath, very soft. “I love you.” It is a simple statement, purely fact.

His grip tightens. “I know.” He pauses for a moment, gathering composure. “I’ll see you soon, love. I will.”

She smiles. “Not too soon, now. But I’ll…be waiting.” Her words stutter, and she idly strokes his thumb with a feather light touch.

A breath. A breath. A sigh.

Nothing. Absolute silence reigns for a heart breaking moment, before a howl rents the Earth in two.

…

A shadow whispers.

‘How are they?’

‘Well. They are strong, and they’re growing stronger. They are very like their mother.’

Somehow, he can see her smile.

‘I’d expect no less.’

Her caress is gentle. His eyes close at the almost feel of her skin.

‘I miss you.’ The words would never have come aloud, but in the depths of the mind all truths are laid bare.

No tears come. The pain is too deep for physical sign.

The image fades, and he knows she was never there at all.

…

“Hey Sesshoumaru, what do you think happens when we die?”

“That is a pointless question, miko.”

“I don’t think it’s pointless.”

“There is nothing after death. Death is the end of life.”

“I don’t think so. Somehow, I imagine that death is kind of like…kind of like dancing.”

“You have very odd notions.”

“No seriously! I think that once you die, you’re kind of released from physical restrictions. Your soul is free to do as it pleases. And I’ve always liked dancing…”