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Stones do not emote, nor do they weep. Steadfast and resolute, the Lord of Geo holds true in moments of turmoil, chin high and chest firm as he faces his struggles head on, does not allow them to pummel his defenses. He prides himself on his guard, unwavering and unfaltering as stone both on and off the battlefield; an immovable force in a world of fluidity, watching the world around him move and adjust as he holds fast in his resolve.
It had taken one crack, one brief defect in an otherwise perfect defense.
She doesn’t blame him, and she doesn't want him to blame himself, either, for his faltering shield.
He holds her, protects her with his own body from stray arrows and from errant blasts of magic as he summons jagged walls and sharp pillars to keep them safe. He carries her from the battlefield to the meadow where her favorite flower blooms, and he feels his shield begin to fall to pieces, reduced to mere crumblings as if crushed between his own onyx palms.
“Do not weep for me,” Guizhong tells him, a hand cupping his cheek with all the strength she has left in her body. He brings his hand up to match hers, holds it against him as a silent plea to just stay. She laughs, gently as her eyes slip closed, her thumb tracing weakly along his cheekbone.
He remembers the spot where they’d first met, surrounded by the lilies she holds so dear. She’d sang a song for them, a gentle melody lulling them out into bloom as the sun set behind them, nearing the end of the day. And he’d remained at the very outskirts of the field, shielded by the shade of an arching mountain and feeling very much out of place – yet the rapid beating of his heart had slowed when she turned to look at him with the very same smile that she would continue to wear in his presence for centuries.
The smile she dons now is a mere shadow in comparison, gentle and weak but still very much the one that he remembers so clearly to this day, etched into his memory. She looks peaceful, so, so peaceful that it makes Rex Lapis want to scream and cry and flatten mountains, crush boulders with his bare hands.
He does not speak, and isn’t sure if he can.
“You never could figure out the puzzle, could you?” she asks, the whisper of a laugh escaping her mouth.
He remembers the puzzle, the Memory of Dust kept contentedly alongside his collection of polearms and swords though he has never been one to fight with a catalyst – too complicated, he’d always thought, preferring to beat the life out of his enemies, with either a sharp blade or a blunt stone dropped upon their heads. Rex Lapis remembers how she’d called the gift a symbol of their pledge; their pledge to the Guili Assembly, their pledge to one another, their pledge to the Gods above. He holds it dear, close to his heart just as he holds Guizhong.
(A puzzle made of stone for him, holding within it Guizhong's infinite knowledge.)
She’s calm, for Guizhong does not fear death. Any fear has been stripped away, left on the battlefield and forgotten with her beloved sword – a gift from Rex Lapis himself, long ago, that he swears, he swears he will return to her one day.
She's calm, face serene and beautiful as ever; unmoving, gentle, she lays in his arms as though she is simply napping in the sunshine; not an uncommon occurrence, easy enough for Rex Lapis to pretend, just for a moment. He pretends, easily, that she’s laid herself upon him as they gaze at the lilies, on the hunt for the few blooms that she requires for her newest contraption. And she’s just – sleepy, is all. Needs a place to rest her head before they return back to the Assembly, and per usual, chooses him as her pillow.
For once, Rex Lapis emotes for the both of them, and does not try to hide it.
Laughter like a bell twinkles along the breeze, carries the noise along his earshot and away into the mountains. He wishes, briefly, that he could take her and follow it – bring her away and keep her at peace, happy, alive. He knows he’s being selfish, but what god doesn’t allow themself to indulge in that which only serves their best interest?
He is brought back to reality as Guizhong’s fingertips dance along his hairline, play with the little strands that fall into his face as he looks down at her, not allowing her to leave his sight. She speaks again and her voice is hoarse, bittersweet merriment forming a lump in her throat.
“Let us drink together, my Rex, one last time in this life, shall we?”
He nods and procures a small decanter, the one kept alongside the Memory of Dust, safe and sound among his magical arsenal of weaponry – for emergencies, Guizhong had joked, long ago when he’d withdrawn it the first time during their dinner with Cloud Retainer. Carefully, he brings it to her lips, the sweet taste of berries washing over her tongue. She hums and shifts just slightly, opening one eye a crack to see him one final time.
“Thank you,” she whispers, and she doesn’t flinch when she feels a single tear fall upon her cheek. Instead, she laughs, again; neither bitter nor fearful, and her hand goes slack, held against Rex Lapis’ cheek only by his own hand. Her eye closes once more, and deep in the pit of his stomach, Rex Lapis understands that it is for the last time. “It seems that our journey has reached its end.”
He remembers, and he holds her, and he breaks.
("Gods never truly die," she'd told him, late one night when the two were clothed only in moonlight. He'd laughed at that; or, given as close to a laugh as he ever had, a sharp exhale through his nose that had blown soft golden hair out of her face. She’d pinched his cheek, asked who the brains between the pair of them were, and even he couldn’t argue as she continued. "Though the body may perish, my soul will be with you, always. I swear this on my title as the Lord of Dust and Ruler of the Realm of Clouds.")
He holds her, and for the first time in over a thousand years, Rex Lapis cries.
“As for the puzzle,” she says, so quietly that Rex Lapis strains to hear her, “forget about it, would you?”
Guizhong dies among the glaze lilies with the taste of her favorite wine on her tongue as she turns to dust in the arms of her longest friend and closest ally.