AN: First inspired by SixxA.M.'s "Life Is Beautiful." And in case you missed it before, MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH AHEAD. Don't say I didn't warn you.
It had all been so sudden. One day, they had been bickering and laughing at each other as usual, and the next, they weren't.
It was a small event – private. He hadn't been acquainted with all that many people to begin with, and fewer people had survived when the city fell.
Shion's mother had been unable to even look at the casket, if indeed she could see through her tears. She had bravely managed to stay through the short ceremony, though it was clear she was falling apart at the seams.
Even Inukashi had been a bit teary-eyed. Rikiga had been unable to attend. Sion – now a few years older – hadn't really understood what was going on around him, still too young to truly comprehend the concept of death, but knew enough to not bother the others present.
A few of his coworkers had come as well, but not very many.
As they were laying the coffin in the ground, he sang, just like they had all agreed he would have wanted. The tune was woven with the tears that hadn't been shed, the emotions buried deep inside the man for the one now in the ground.
His voice never cracked, not once. Not when Karan had pulled him into her arms, not when the gravediggers offered their condolences to him as he simply stared as the grave they were covering.
He simply stood resolutely in front of the grave. Hours passed, and the world continued on around him, but he still did not move.
Finally, as the sun was setting, the man moved, looking up at the sky. His eyes were tearless, but his voice was thick when he spoke.
"We will meet again… Shion."