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Megumi did things calmly so that he could savor the silence in the house. It was late afternoon and the sun was weakly beating down on the horizon, which he watched through the window. He put the dishcloth aside and picked up a bowl of clothes, taking it outside. The wind carried the scent of the pasture next door and blew so strongly that the crunching of the leaves almost formed a song. In the background, it was almost possible for Megumi to hear a constant noise of something breaking, without necessarily a sequence. He ignored the feeling and set to work.
He carefully placed the slightly damp fabrics on the thick lines of the clothesline. The wind almost knocked him down a good three times before he could finish, heading back inside. Then he went out of the living room door into the back garden and picked up the watering can. Even though it had rained a few days ago, the air was considerably dry and he didn't want to risk ruining the flowers. They were for Tsumiki after all. Looking at her gravestone always made Megumi's heart ache, but he knew that now she was finally at peace. He moved the dried leaves out of the way and let her fingers touch the cold stone. She had never been that cold, and for him, she never would be.
"Megumi!" a voice called out to him from inside. "the sun is setting, let's go."
He made his way around the yard to the front again, where Itadori was sitting on his swing seat - he had built it himself, and Megumi wasn't sure whether he loved or hated the thing - with two cups of hot chocolate in his hands and the divine dogs lying lazily at his feet. His smile was so genuine and bright that Fushiguro doubted that any sunset or sunrise could shine as brightly as it did.
"I didn't disturb you, did I?" he denied, taking a seat next to him and accepting one of the cups. The feel of the warm mug in his hands made him relax.
"I was just watering the flowers."
"Do you think we should have done the same for Gojo?" The question caught Megumi off guard. He denied it again with his head.
"Let's not turn our back garden into a cemetery. Besides, Tsumiki is a case in point. Gojo would like to know that he was cremated along with his best friend."
"Do you miss him?"
Megumi spent far too long in silence, her foot gliding lovingly over the divine dog's fur. The sun continued to rise over the horizon, the trees ahead opening up to make the view possible. The wind brought the scent of Itadori to his nostrils and he came to his senses.
"sometimes. But I think he's better off this way."
"Sometimes I think he wasn't happy" Itadori commented "you know, the whole thing that being the strongest. It must have destroyed his whole life. But it also gave him meaning."
"He did what he had to do. It was his responsibility, even if he wasn't happy."
"do you think we're running away from our responsibilities?" his expression had now changed.
Itadori was a difficult person to read, considering that he always preferred to pretend that everything was fine and bear his pain alone, but Megumi knew him, and knew him as well as if he were a part of him. He was horrified. Not that their lives were bad, but they had both lived so long in a world of war, death, destruction and loss, that such an ordinary, healthy life was really frightening him. Fushiguro left his cup on the table next to his companion and the pink-haired man did the same. He took his hands affectionately, kissing his palms slowly before looking at him again.
"Our responsibility now is to be happy, Yuuji. And I don't want you to doubt, even for an instant, whether you deserve it or not."
Itadori's eyes filled with tears and he gave a pained smile. Megumi rested a hand on his cheek, and he closed his eyes, enjoying the touch. He also kissed his palm before pulling him closer and lying on his shoulder, his fingers intertwined with Fushiguro.
"I don't want it to end."
"It won't." Megumi promised "I wouldn't leave here in a million years."
The initially distant noise that Fushiguro had heard of something breaking now became louder and closer. He watched the colors in the sky blend together and his vision blur until it went completely dark. When he opened his eyes again, a flash hit him and he couldn't see anything. He felt so much pain in... everything. The taste of blood on his tongue was almost nauseating and he suspected that he had lost one of the fingers on his left hand.
When his vision cleared for a moment, his eyes managed to decipher Itadori standing in front of him. His expression was one of absolute terror, his hand dripping with blood that Megumi knew wasn't his. In the background, he could hear a choppy voice that he knew was Kugisaki's. He was glad she had woken up. Itadori wouldn't be alone now.
"Did we make it?"
Itadori's lips trembled, tears running down her dirty cheeks. The same cheeks that Megumi had caressed. Or dreamed she had. He nodded.
"And what did it cost you?"
"Everything." Megumi thought she heard him say it. There were too many sounds in her ears.
"oh, it's okay." His voice was hoarse, almost nonexistent, but he had to say it "Good job... Yuuji."
He couldn't taste it in his mouth anymore. In fact, he couldn't even feel his own mouth. Then his body began to tingle and his vision caught sight of Itadori kneeling beside him. His last contact was to gently hold Megumi's head by the nape of her neck, and then all he heard was her soft crying and a whisper of forgiveness.
“Oh Itadori, I would have loved to have had that life with you. Maybe in a different world...”
His vision flashed again. Now there was no turning back. He couldn't go back.
"Megumi, you look terrible" it was Gojo's voice. It certainly was. He smiled with recognition.
"I'm here, Dad."