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He looked at her with that same stony gaze, with the same greys in those dark locks. The same thin face, and impossible to decipher depth to the way he looked at you. It was strange to think of who he was, not that it was possible at this point. He could see it in her eyes. All of it had come back to her. Every little secret, every breath he had taken. How so long ago everything had changed because of him. So much loss, with so much gain. Her pupil pulsed like a subwoofer on full blast. Of course she was stunned, that was to be expected. One did not receive that much information and memories and simply move on. If anything, her psyche would implode from the revelations. That was the beauty of ignorance, of having the option to keep it all taken away. She was forced to lose it all once, but this close, standing at the edge of the boundary, it might just be the only thing that would save them. That would save everyone.
Everything stopped, not just her breath, but her molecules and atoms. For a moment he felt as if she had faded from everything, but he could still see her. As suddenly as it had gone, it was back, she was back. Her eyes were on him, but they were solid, as solid as she was. He could read understanding, recognition, and curiosity. He imagined she thought how such a being could exist in the form of scraggly old man. Maybe she hated him for what he had done. He couldn't help it that one side of his lips rose up and for once the tired smile touched his eyes. They wrinkled the flesh, and where a smile made most look younger, it added age to the weathered being. She now understood, if he wanted, he could less than blink and they would all be gone. Everyone, everything, not in this universe, but all of them. It would cease to expand, to create more. He could literally stop everything. Even Felicie. Even the Cradle.
"I figured, with all that knowledge, you would be the best for this, Rare." Sinclair riffled through his pocket and withdrew a single long spike. It glistened, completely white, yet a strange black outline coated it, as if it drew from the very existence immediately around it. Normally, he knew she would be curious, but one look and he knew her mind would access what it was, how it was made, what it could do, and just how to do it. He admired those deep brown eyes. He hoped, somehow, he could have an afterlife of his own just to remember them. His kin, they went to a place he did not, he assumed anyway. Even if he had sworn they reached out to him, he had never confirmed it. Besides, the thing he gave her, it was an absolute certainty. There was no returning. If there was an after, it would have to go on endless.
If she wanted everything else to continue to be endless, then she would have to find the strength to do what needed to be done. Jade was right to want him gone. Ozymandias, that strange girl, should have figured it out and done it herself.
Before he knew it, a force slammed into him. Arms locked tight around him, and he felt nails digging in despite his coat. Something warm soaked into his shirt as a warmth washed over him. For the first time, he was surprised. Truly surprised. His eyes wide, were locked on the dark head of the woman. Taller than when she had been a girl. Neck free of that damnable thing again. He didn't know what to do, she just squeezed him tighter. He didn't want to do it himself, it was too terrifying a thought. He'd left too many things undone, there was no way he had that kind of strength.
Still, instinct, a rare desire caused his arms to wrap around her as well. His smile was gone, but his embrace was tender. She began to shake, trembling. Was it the reality of what had to happen? Maybe he was being selfish asking her to do this. It was too many minutes for them, years for others in this place, before he finally tried to free himself. With a gentle grip on her shoulders he tried to push her off but she wouldn't. Her head shook viciously, though she more just smeared her tears into his shirt as her nose ground against his chest.
"Rare." He said. It was so soft, barely a whisper that she had to look up to confirm he'd said anything. "I love you. More than anything inside of everything. It is the most unfair thing I have ever done. Yet, it is without my volition. Therefore, it is selfish of me to ask this of you, but for that same reason, no one is better suited."
Sinclair leaned down, and to his pleasant surprise she eagerly reciprocated. Pushing onto her toes, their teeth clacked together, but that didn't stop the fervent kiss. The first time their lips would embrace in this place. The last time they ever would again. There was a rush of desire which pooled into heat between their legs. Emotion, which surged from the heart like an overcharged battery ready to summon lightning from the heavens. A flaring of the soul, as if a wildfire erupted through every single universe. As their kiss went on, her tears became an ocean, and his whiskers made the land. Their breath created oxygen. When their kiss ended, a little sun watched over their creation. The little galaxy, forged from just a kiss, a sign of the truth of his being, of what she knew.
"When it's done, all the unnecessary things will leave your mind. Only to be summoned…" Her fingers touched his lips. He did have a knack for talking too much. So instead he kissed the digit. She nodded and smiled, then stepped back, taking the brand he had forged for his own end. Slowly, she raised it, and pushed it to the soft spot just above his clavicle, aiming down into his torso. Their eyes met for what felt an eternity as she took one slow breath, and he took what she feared would truly be his last.
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