Disclaimer: I don't own jack!
Summary: Not all bonds are so easily cut.
Pairing: Dabi/Kagome
Connected
He was being stupid.
This was the third time this week he found himself standing at the foot of the shrine.
His eyes narrowed at the stone path that led upwards, far beyond the torii gates that greeted his presence.
It'd been so many years since he last stepped foot here. It should many more still to come before he ever did again.
His fingers flexed within the pocket of his jacket.
He shouldn't be here.
Dabi turned on the ball of his heel.
Things like affection and nostalgia were only good for making people weak. They were a softness that he couldn't afford.
The shard in his pocket pulsed rapidly the further away he walked from the shrine.
She was waiting for him.
The girl who's smile was infectious. The girl who'd looked at him and seen something more than just a tool. The girl who'd been left completely alone in his absence.
He closed his eyes.
Even now he could picture her standing atop the shrine steps, eagerly awaiting his arrival with that all too familiar smile.
"So stupid."
He couldn't let himself get distracted.
He had a goal.
He couldn't risk dragging her into his life right now. It'd be both foolish and unfair.
He could never be able to give her the sort of life she deserved. One far removed from suffering and silence.
Besides, even if he did go back she likely wouldn't even recognize him. His appearance has changed so drastically since their youth.
He'd filled out, grown taller and his body had nearly been burned to ash by his own quirk. Only piercings and staples kept his flesh held together at this point. He was not the sort of man who would be considered 'attractive' anymore. The stench of burned flesh had permanently clung to his rotten body.
He couldn't see her like this.
Not anymore.
Dabi pushed his way through the thick crowd.
He had to stop this.
No matter what he would fulfill his goal. Then maybe afterwards he'd go to her and admit the sins that were clawing at his back.
It was only fair.
She tried sacrificing herself for him once. The very least he could do was tell her what she'd tried sacrificing herself for.
He pressed his thumb to the corner of his lips.
"I'm done here."
There was nothing left for him and for them.