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aoi loved the attention. not the stares she always got whenever she went, sticky and sickening, or the empty praises, wrapped tightly around her neck like a noose. she loved indulging in daydreams, where all was clean and eternal, and she was too. her and nene, above everyone and everything, forever and ever. they were special― how could they not be? they could see what was hidden, what was theirs, divine power running through their veins and embed in their souls. they didn't belong there, between the mortals and the scum.
or at least that's what she thought.
looking back on it, it was probably her fault. it all started when she had told her friend about no 7.
nene started slipping away from her, always finding herself busy because of the ghost's whims. her friend was starting to tie herself to this world. or maybe she had been tied from the start. still, aoi wasn't worried. she was planning to bring akane with her too, he would never say no to her. and if nene were to have some doubts, she definitely would've listened to akane. she had to, she couldn't leave without them.
eternity can be a curse if you have no one, aoi thought.
the real curse is having someone with you, the kannagi realized.
when the kannagi woke up, it's as if everything has been tilted upside down. or rather, she has.
she can feel something has been stolen from her soul, from her, but she can't even remember what it was.
she quickly disregards that feeling. it probably wasn't important. she's the closest she's ever been to the far shore, she's so close to making her wish come true― she can't distract herself, especially now.
nene's hands are sweaty and dirty, and she's sobbing and blabbering, but she can't bring herself to pay attention to what she's saying. not that she has to.
nene and akane― they both look so insignificant now, so human and impure. they won't shut up and the kannagi can feel her mouth dry. on the corner of her eye, she can see no. 7's scrutinizing her with his eyes, hands behind his back, no doubt hiding his knife― or pretending to. a subtle warning, directed to her, without a doubt.
she smiles and gets closer to him, “aren't you nene-chan's crush?” she exclaims, and she's pleased when she sees him lowering his guard, shocked and distracted. when she sees them fall, right into her trap, because they had underestimated her, she's even more pleased.
fighting akane feels weird― it's not satisfying, it hurts and she doesn't know why. it hurts in the same way it hurt when she woke up, almost like he's part of what she has lost.
when they fall to the ground, she can see the same kind of pain in his eyes―
they both need to let go.
there's blood everywhere― on his chin, on his stomach, on their clothes. the kannagi almost grimaces. it reminds her too well of how vulnerable and mortal she is right now. his hands won't let go of her, he won't let go of her, and he looks at the pit. she feels scared for the first time since she's arrived there. she's climbed so high, she can't fall or she'll break―
he's dragging both of them to the pit, and she is almost human again, waving her arm around and imploring him to stop, pleading every god she knows to help her―
they fall together, and she is aoi again, clutching to him as tight as she can.