'Gone'
379 words
NezuShi
character death
Shion did not feel good. His head was pounding, and he felt like he was going to puke. No matter the temperature inside(once he even went outside) he would break out in sweat, even though he was freezing cold.
Moving was the hardest. It was a daily struggle, getting up and walking to the bathroom, or even standing in the shower for five minutes. But Nezumi was a big help.
Nezumi started to cook more now. He had to make sure Shion had some kind of nourishment every day. Sometimes Rikiga and Inukashi would come over with food or a warm dog to keep Shion from shivering.
Shion always enjoyed these little visits. Nezumi would sit him up with a thin pillow behind his back, and a warm bowl of Macbeth Soup in his lap. One of Dogkeeper's dogs would lay next to him or on his legs to keep him warm. Rikiga would tell him stories of his mom, and sometimes Nezumi would either sing or dance or read poetry for Shion.
Nobody took Shion's passing well.
His mother and Nezumi fought over what to do with the body. Karan wanted to bury him inside the city. Nezumi wanted to have him cremated and his ashes spread under his favorite tree, a giant oak that he and Nezumi would climb back when Shion was healthy. In the end Nezumi won out, only because Karan had never seen him cry so hard. Deep in her eart she knew she did the right thing.
Afterwards, Nezumi would lay awake in his bed at night, tracing the sheets where Shon's scar would be. He's get up and pace around his small room in west block, looking restlessly for Shion's favorite blue cardigan, which he would drape over himself and use as a blanket on many nights. He knew he should give it to Karan, but it was the one piece of SHion Nezumi had left, and he did not want to give it up.
In the end, it was the little things Shion took with him to his death. It was these moments, when Shion would brighten up with laughter, and his face was free of pain, and his smile lighting up the room, that Nezumi would remember and mourn over.
