-Leaves are on the ground
Fall has come
Blue skies turning gray
Like my love-

I have spent the last four years of my life in darkness. And the seven years prior to that slowly slipping into it. Honestly, I never thought I would actually go blind. I thought if I ever did, my life would be over. I liked to sketch and draw far too much to believe my life would ever have substance should I lose my vision.

Oh, how wrong I was.

True, I couldn't do anything artistic anymore. At least not with a pencil. But I could still play music. And in the years since I first began to lose my sight, my hearing became so much more astute. The twang of a guitar string or the slightly hollow sound made when a piano key is struck sent shivers running down my spine.

So, as I sat in my home and listened to the senshi singing 'Happy Birthday', I could hear emotions in their voices I never would have heard otherwise. I could hear how much the loved me (hell, loved one another) and it was the most beautiful thing in the world.

I felt a hand at my back before it actually touched me and I knew it was Rei. I could smell her; that old familiar scent of burning wood. Suzu had the same scent for she had inherited her mother's ability of fire reading. But Rei spent more time with the sacred flame and thus the smell was stronger with her.

Rei gently hugged my frail shoulders as she whispered into my ear, "Make a wish."

Scratch that. Rei's voice was the most beautiful thing in the world.

I smiled again. It was my ninety-fourth birthday. I creased my brow as if I was deep in concentration then blew out my breath. The senshi clapped and whooped. I chuckled, shaking my head.

"Did I get them all," I asked.

"Yes," exclaimed Usagi.

"It's a shame," I sighed. "I bet Mako-chan made another beautiful master piece and I can't see it." I brought my hands up from my lap. "Perhaps I can feel it for-"

"NO!" Was the exclamation from everyone in attendance. I threw my head back in laughter.

"Papa was teasing, guys," came my daughter's voice. "She makes the same joke every year."

I smiled when I heard it. She sounded so much like her mother but so different at the same time. Rei's voice was sultry where Suzu's voice was more like mine: deep, brash and loud. It was like a firecracker going off next to your ear if she became overly excited.

"So, how does it feel to be ninety-four," Haruka asked.

"How did it feel when you turned ninety four," I asked smugly. "Gramma."

"Hey," Mako-chan said. "If you're calling her old, then you're calling us all old."

"And yet I am the only one who looks the part," I said. I knew Rei didn't look a day over thirty. And if she didn't, the others didn't either. I, on the other hand, was as wrinkled as I could get. Usagi had told me once I had the most wrinkles around my eyes because I smiled so much. I believed her and told her she'd eventually have the same problem.

I heard a knife being slid into the cake moments before the clinking of a plate being set before me. I reached my hand out for my fork, Suzu taking my wrist in her hand to guide my hand to the utensil before I groped my food. I picked up my fork and searched for my plate before cutting a bite of my slice and eating it. Mako-chan's cakes were the best and I moaned in pure delight.

"Delicious as always, Mako-chan. Thank you."

"Okay, I want a slice next!"

"No, me!"

I chuckled as I ate my slice in silence, simply listening to the senshi as they argued over who would get the next scrumptious piece. I smirked, realizing how much I would miss these guys when...

I stood, leaning on my heavy walking cane.

"Where you going, Papa," Suzu asked.

I smiled in her direction. "Little girls' room." I made my way to the door and slid it open.

"Little," Haruka scoffed. "You're too big for that."

It's true, I had put on weight since my glory days. But I was old and, dammit, I was allowed. I listened for Haruka's laughter and swung my cane out, hitting her in the back. She hissed and cried out and I smirked.

"Damn whipper snapper," I said as I finally made it out into the hallway. I heard the laughter of everyone inside. And while I doubt anyone would have noticed, Haruka's tone as she cursed me was playful; she was laughing, too.

I slowly made my way down the hall. I bypassed the bathroom and instead turned left, heading for the back of the shrine. I slid the door open and stepped out into the crisp, cool autumn air. I inhaled deeply when I felt the wind rush over my face.

This was my favorite time of year.

Carefully I stepped down the stairs and began to make my way through the wooded area behind the shrine, me feet rustling the leaves on the ground. I had walked this same path over the years when I had wanted to be alone and think. And when I first realized I was going blind, I had made it point to be damn sure I knew exactly where I was going. I would count the steps it took to get to a certain point and when I turned, I would count again. I knew how to get here in the dark before I was actually cast into it.

I heard water sloshing as I neared my favorite spot on the entire grounds. I reached my right hand out and felt the rough bark of a tree. I walked around it and sat, placing my walking stick in my lap. I slid my hands inside the opposite sleeve of my haori as I leaned into the tree, my head slighty cast upwards.

I inhaled deeply the scent of the trees around me. I shivered at the smell of leaves as they died; that musky scent that came but once a year. I could also smell some slight algae coming from the small pond just feet away. I smiled. I was a country girl, through and through.

Another wind rustled up the leaves around me and I could smell the snow on its way. Until I had gone blind, I never realized snow had a smell, but it did. Or maybe it was more the cold I was sensing. I sighed as I dropped my head in meditation.

My mind wandered to Rei and Suzu, as it often did these days. Mainly Rei. Suzu would have to bury both of us, these was no doubt in my mind. Sadly, that's just the burden of being a parent. Kids were meant to outlive their parents. All the senshi had done it. And all the kids, but Chibiusa and Kiyoshi had gone through losing one parent. And only Usagi and Rei didn't know what it was like to lose a spouse. But Rei would know soon enough.

This would be my last Fall. I knew that like I knew the sun would rise tomorrow morning, even if I didn't know the exact time. Mentally, I was as lively as ever, but I could feel my body getting more tired with each passing day. And I couldn't help but worry about Rei. She spent nearly a thousand years alone before we were finally able to be together. And when we were able to get together, she had me for only a mere sixty years. For me, that is a long time. But for someone who was more or less immortal...

I sighed again. Rei was not a weak woman. But she always acted different around me, when we were alone. She became the dependent one she wouldn't let the others see. She wasn't like that always, mind you. But she always guarded herself from everyone.

Everyone but me.

And it made me think about, when the day came, how would she survive?

-Who is gonna save you
When I'm gone?
And who'll watch over you
When I'm gone?

And when I'm gone
Who will break your fall?
Who will you blame?
I can't go on
And let you lose it all
It's more than I can take

Who'll ease your pain?
Ease your pain...-

I heard someone coming from the same path I took to get here. I smiled, knowing it was Rei.

"Are you going to start using the toilet out here instead of the bathroom," she teased.

I smiled more. "I'm senile. I'm allowed to potty wherever I want." I turned my face in her direction. "How long have I been gone?"

"A good hour," Rei said, sitting beside me. "Everyone thought you drowned."

"Rumors of my death have been highly exaggerated," I said. "For now, anyway." I couldn't keep the sadness out of my tone and I know Rei picked up on it.

"What's wrong," she asked, sliding her arms around my left arm and leaning into me slightly. "You've been acting really weird the past few weeks."

I sighed, leaning my head back against the tree. The bark was rough and even though my hair was still thick, I could feel it bite at my scalp.

"Just thinking."

"About what?"

"Suzu's wedding."

Rei was quiet for several long moments. "She's engaged?"

I laughed. "Not yet. But you know her and Kiyoshi are pretty close. It's just a matter of time. I can hear it in the poor boy's voice when he talks to me. He was never that shy around me before he and Suzu got together. You on the other hand..." I trailed off and smirked at my wife.

Rei snorted. "He was a playboy just like his mother. I was not at all happy when Suzu brought him home." Rei tightened her grip on me. "Why are you thinking of Suzu's wedding?"

I sighed, "Just thinking how much I'll miss not being there. As it is, I won't be there for Chibiusa and Ken'ichi's wedding this spring."

I felt Rei stiffen beside me. "Don't talk like that," she said softly. "It's not funny."

"I'm not trying to be funny, love. Its something we need to dis-"

"No it's not," Rei screamed beside me. My ears were ringing and I felt my eyeballs cross. My eyelids even flitted open in an attempt to get the echo of Rei's screams out of my ears. I heard Rei breathing beside me. She wasn't panting, but her heart rate was up and she was trying to calm her nerves.

I knew what part of Rei's problem was. She hated death. Possibly even feared it. It was just another way people abandoned her; her mother, her grandfather, and although she'd never admit to it, I knew her father's death affected her. She out lived them all and now it was time for her to out live me, as well.

But I also knew it wouldn't be as bad as when the others in her family had died. Rei wouldn't have to suffer hundreds of years alone. Chibiusa's wedding would mark the beginning of the end of her mother's one thousand year reign. The senshi would begin to age like normal humans. This thought made me a little sad for Chibiusa, though. Not only would she lose her parents, she would also lose Hotaru. As close as the two of them were, Hotaru was still a member of Usagi's guard. She would have to endure the loss of one of her best friends.

I sighed. "Rei, honey, I'm in my mid-nineties. Normal people don't live past one hundred. And no one in my family." I smirked. "Except for maybe Suzu. She'll out live me by a good nine hundred plus years. But I digress."

"Why are you talking about this now," Rei asked.

"Because arrangements need to be made," I said. "I know you don't do well with death."

"Shinto tends to not deal with funerals, anyway," Rei said quietly.

"I meant you, love."

Rei sighed, leaning into me. "It just isn't fair," she said finally, her grip on my arm tightening.

"It's life, Rei," I said, leaning my head against hers. "None of the others could keep their husbands, either."

I felt Rei shudder and began to cry softly. I felt own eyes burn but I blinked back the tears.

I gently kissed the top of Rei's head. "Tell me, how does the day look?"

"What," Rei asked, her voice thick.

I smiled at my wife. "What does the day look like? Explain it to me. Please."

I felt Rei turn slightly but still keeping a tight hold on me as if I would be spirited away the moment she let go.

"The sky is gray. Not really over cast, but because we have a few weeks until winter is officially here, the sky is beginning to change color. The leaves are vibrant shades of yellow and orange. And even brown. When the sun does peek out from behind the gray clouds, it looks like gold is littering the ground. The grass is a color between green and yellow. In some places, its even stopped growing so there are some dirt patches-"

I tuned out Rei's words. Instead I focused on her voice. Her beautiful, sultry voice that was so full of sorrow. I hoped I would never have to hear such pain her voice. But I did. It broke my heart and before I could help it, I could feel hot tears streaming down my face.

"Caden? Caden, whats wrong?" Her voice held panic and concern.

"I love you," I said. I sniffled, bringing up my right hand to wipe at my face. "I don't say it nearly enough as I should. But you and I are people who have been hurt by those words, so they tend to not have much meaning for us. We always show our affections some other way, like a glance or a touch." I brought my hand up to Rei's chin and tilted her head up toward me. I kissed her softly on the lips before the tears over took me again. "But, I had to tell you that I loved you."

Rei rested her head on my shoulder and curled into me. "I love you, too."

-Snow is on the ground
Winter's come
You long to hear my voice
But I'm
Long
Gone-

AN: So...that's it. I hope you enjoyed it even if it made you cry. It made me cry and I wrote it. The song that helped inspire this is called 'Watch Over You' sung by Alter Bridge. If you'd like to depress yourself even further, re-read the story while listening to this song.

Also, there is some fanart for this. Just follow the link:songficcer(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Watch-Over-You-171255890

Thanks again for reading guys. The 'Lost Chapter' will be up soon.