Epilogue Part Three: Her Final Goodbye
After a while of sniffling and crying to her discontent, Teresa finally managed to force the salty stream of tears involuntarily making their way down her face to stop, wiping her face with her shirt furiously despite the pain touching her burned skin brought about. In her mind, the pain was worth it, if it meant avoiding being seen as weak and pathetic.
With one last sniffle, the glader's head snapped to the side as Ryu stared at her, as if she could feel his purple eyes were settled on her. That look in his eyes.. She had to look away. It hurt too much, knowing she couldn't save the man.. That there seemed to be nothing she could do to change him or Yuka's fate, when they weren't the ones responsible for these deaths; they were mere puppets, played by demons they never asked to have.
When Ryu approached, and she stared at him silently. After blinking a few times while hearing him out, the female blushed faintly(though the burns hid this well), looking away with a huff. "I-it isn't like I did anything special.. I mean, you don't deserve to die for the actions of someone else.. Simple as that. It- It's not like I'm giving you special treatment, or anything," she replied.
At his apology, she had to look down to the ground. She couldn't bare to look while he said that.. It only hurt more. After a brief silence, she replied. "..Me too..." she murmured, softly. And it was true; she
was sorry. Sorry that she couldn't save him. Sorry that he was being punished for crimes he was unwillingly forced to commit. Sorry that.. Sorry that she had to say goodbye. That she couldn't save him, or keep one of the two remaining friends she had here around.
Wait.. Ryu... Her friend...?
The thought was odd an foreign to the glader, and she was confused by it. A mere few days ago, she had wanted nothing more than to destroy the male. To make him suffer, punish him for killing the closest friend she had here; Ash. But somehow, somewhere along the line.. It seemed she'd managed to take a liking to him.
And she hated it.
If she didn't see this man as a friend, maybe letting go would be easier. Maybe she wouldn't care that he had to pass on. But she did, on both accounts.. And there was nothing she could do about it but hope the pain wouldn't last too long.. That she could somehow forget about the man, find new friends, and move on like this never happened.
But she knew she'd be unable.
Admittedly, the kiss took the girl by complete surprise. Her eyes widened, and she tensed with surprise and astonishment. He'd.. Just... Kissed her?! Instantaneously, she blushed so bad that even with the severe burns, it was clear. Her mouth opened and closed for a moment, as she was so flustered that she couldn't manage to get t he words she wanted to out. But as he turned to leave, Teresa managed to break from her statuesque state, going to gently grab his wrist and turn him back around to face her, before, after a moment of hesitation, throwing her arms around him. There was a moment of silence, before she spoke. "I.. uh..."
"...."
"Thanks," she managed the word in a soft murmur, giving her best attempt at a smile to the male, despite the tears welling back up in her eyes. She didn't know what else to say- she likely would have slapped him, but if this was their final encounter.. "It's.. It's good to know I've got a friend," she said, quietly. For a while, she kept her arms around him in the embrace, Little Guy sandwiched between her and Ryu as well. But after a few minutes, she realized what she was doing, quickly pulling away and huddling Little Guy against her chest in a caring embrace.
Briefly, she met his purple eyes, forcing another sad smile with tears in her eyes. "I.. I guess this is goodbye, huh..?" she muttered, sadly. The tears had come back now, proving her prior attempts at getting them to go away useless. Regardless, she forced herself to maintain the smile. "..Good luck."
Unsure what else to say, she could only watch as Ryu made his way to the river, holding Little Guy tightly but gently, as though seeking comfort from the wolf pup. Though, just having him in her arms again provided plenty comfort.
After a while of just holding him while staring after Ryu 'til she could no longer make out his form, Teresa managed to move from where she seemed to have been rooted to the ground, glancing at Reagan sadly. "So.. You're leaving too, huh..?" she inquired, sadly. The fact that all these people had homes, families, friends, to return to caused the girl to bristle with something of envy. Longing. This incredible need, wish, that she had that, too.
Swallowing the lump in her throat, Teresa forced another small smile. "I guess I should've expected as much.." she sighed, gaze turning down with her black hair dangling around her face, framing it like a curtain. "..I.. I guess I'll walk you to the portal, then.." she murmured, softly. With that, she reluctantly began walking with Reagan to the statue of Hachiko. She stayed quiet during the walk, seeming as though she had something she wanted to say, but couldn't quite get it out.
Upon arriving at the statue, she sighed heavily, gaze slowly turning to Francis. Another forced smile spread across her face, and she hesitated momentarily, before hugging the man quietly. Again, her wolf companion was included in the embrace, as she seemed to not want to put him down, now that she finally had him back.
"It.. It was good knowing you.." she stated, calmly. "..Thank you, for everything... I couldn't have done it without you," she thanked, tear-filled blue-green eyes betraying the smile on her face. "I'll.. I'll miss you.. And I wish you good luck back home." With that, she managed a playful salute, hoping to lighten the mood. But if anything was unlikely, it was that Teresa would have a light mood after everyone she cared about either left, died, or hated her. She'd never get that happy ending..
It seemed once again, the Glader would be left alone. Stuck suffering in an abyss of loneliness that she, herself, had created.
"At least I've got you, Little Guy..." she murmured to the wolf in her arms, quietly, gently furrowing her face into the fur of the wolf in a caring manner. With another small sigh, she tightly closed her eyes, trying to keep the tears back. "..C'mon, we've got a Reaper Recruitment Station to visit, Little Guy..." With that, the ravenette set off, ignoring the pain of loneliness tugging at her heart.
And it seemed that was the end, for Teresa Agnes.
@Ryu Keiko @ResistingTheEnlightened @Klutzy Ninja Kitty @Anyone
