Hear me, O Death , whose empire unconfined, extends to mortal tribes of every kind.
On thee, the portion of our time depends, whose absence lengthens life, whose presence ends.
Thy sleep perpetual bursts the vivid folds, by which the soul, attracting body holds:
Common to all of every sex and age, for naught escapes thy all-destructive rage;
Not youth itself thy clemency can gain, vigorous and strong, by thee untimely slain.
In thee, the end of nature's works is known, in thee, all judgment is absolved alone:
No suppliant arts thy dreadful rage control, no vows revoke the purpose of thy soul;
O blessed power regard my ardent prayer, and human life to age abundant spare.
- Orphic Hymn 86
For the first several moments it was simply deafening silence. The overwhelming heat and noise had been replaced by a cold numbness that made Tohru wonder if she even existed, until a faint voice began to call out from the nothingness.
"Tohru…"
At first she thought she was hallucinating, until she remembered that she had no physical mind left to trick her. Whatever had been left of her was now ash that would in time be carried away in the wind. But then what was…?
"Tohru…!"
There was no mistaking that voice, and she felt tears beginning to form in her eyes-that-were-not-eyes.
"Saya…"
And then, as if she had been summoned, an angel appeared before her, her face as fresh and alive as the last time they'd seen each other before parting ways at Togakushi Shrine. Tohru merely stared until Saya smiled and gently, patiently reached out and touched her bodiless hand.
"My dear Saya!" Tohru said breathlessly, clasping their hands together firmly. "We meet again, but under such circumstances… and Kamui!" she bowed her head in sorrow. "My poor Kamui…"
"My love," Saya crooned softly, reaching up and touching Tohru's face with the utmost tenderness. "Kamui will be alright. He is a strong boy, like his mother."
A few teardrops fell from Tohru's cheeks to land somewhere below her, and it was only then that she realized that she was not simply in blackness, but a cave of black stone and a lake from which an eerie glow emitted. Her eyes widened as she took it all in.
"Saya, this is…"
"The Underworld." Saya said with a smile that seemed to light up the cavern.
Tohru's shoulders slumped.
"Kamui will be alright, Tohru." Saya said again, her voice soothing. "Here, I'll show you him now."
On the surface of the lake an image rippled into being. Tohru recognized it immediately as the burnt remains of the house she had shared with Kamui, and in the center where she herself had been engulfed by flames her son knelt and watched as the ashes in his hands fell through his fingers. After several moments he rose to his feet and turned his face skyward, as if to gather himself. It was enough to make her turn away in despair.
"I'm a horrible person, Saya." She whispered, closing her eyes. "He's so young, yet I leave him alone to face that cruel destiny all alone…"
"But Tohru," Saya said with a reassuring smile. "He's not alone, have you forgotten? There will be people that will help him along the way. You saw to that yourself! And no matter what fate has in store for him he will persevere, because he is the child you bore for this Earth." Saya gently took her hand again and began to lead her into the cavern.
"Tohru, I may have been a weak Dreamseer, but I know Kamui will chose the right path." Saya's face suddenly became sad, and Tohru knew that she must be thinking of her own children and her choice to leave them. Before either of them could dwell on it the light had returned to Saya's eyes.
"But they will be fine, all of them, no matter what happens. We've done all we could, Tohru, now it's up to them."
Tohru bowed her head and smiled sadly.
"Of course you're right, you always are. You always have been what's kept me going."
They shared a brief smile before Tohru lifted her head and took a deep breath, squeezing Saya's hand for reassurance as they took a step forward into the darkness, side by side.
-Fin
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A/N: Inspired by a colored CLAMP piece showing Saya and Tohru walking through what I took to be the underworld, and written because there's simply not enough of these two.