FOR TIME TO MOVE AGAIN

Summery: Just who does place the flowers on her grave? (Manga ending extended withspoilers.)

A/N: Some of you may have noticed, yes, it is the same title for Act 11. Thought it was appropriate.

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For Time To Move Again

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Chicago, March, 1999

It was strange, I thought, staring down at the grave-stone in front me as I placed down the bouquet of lilies. The grave stone was old, dating back the year 1932, lichen growing up the sides while the grass was freshly cut and tended to carefully. It was strange, almost lovingly would have been a better use of the word.

Here in the cemetery, far away from the crowded roads, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, the peace and tranquillity, though some might call it morbid, filled me to my heart's core. Trees swayed gently in the breeze, the birds twittering and talking amongst themselves in their unorganised orchestra. I could even see a squirrel in the branch of the tree not fifteen feet from the grave, nibbling on a nut. The spring air made everything fresh, the sky painting itself with the kind of blue that it can only get when the weather was warm, carrying with it a cool and refreshing breeze from the still snowy north.

A sigh escaped my lips, my eyes moving down to the grave again and place a hand on its surface. It's rough texture took me by surprise, like it always did, and I couldn't help but bite my lip at the thoughts that started to swirl around in my mind then. I shook it, banishing these thoughts to the back of my mind, awaiting me for another time.

But one thought did pop into my mind, repeatedly. It would not leave me alone! So I decided to answer it, to the best of my ability, anyway.

Why do I come back here, year after year?

I blinked back startled eyes, jumping at the thought that someone had caught me out, the question and it's voice ringing in my eyes. I looked around me, nearly collapsing in relief when it was only me standing beside the grave and no one else behind me or in front of me for that matter.

The birds still twittered in the trees, the small fluffy white clouds still drifted in the sky lazily above me, the squirrel still munched on it's nut in a hungry fashion.

It was only me that had moved, disturbed by my inner musings to the point of acting like a paranoid little deer.

I glowered, getting back into my cross-legged position in front of the grave-stone, a hand cradling my chin in thought. Why do I come back here, year after year? I frowned darkly, my gaze drifting up to the blue-blue sky as I pondered the answer, not surprised that the answer came to me straight away.

To remember.

It was as easy as that. To remember the woman that had fallen in love with a demon and in the end dying for him, locked into his arms as she breathed her final breaths of life… And vowing that she would find a way back to him.

My eyes tended to go teary whenever I though about her and her tale, told from the eyes of the young girl that had seen the woman as a sister. Her tales were wildly popular in my household, captivating the attention of the children from the word go and then on. Of course, for their sakes, I recounted the tales with a happy ending, the woman finding love and a fairy tale happy every after in the arms of her demon.

I felt the tear slide down my cheek then, and I smiled sadly, wiping my eyes fiercely before any more fell. I had promised myself a while ago that I would stop crying. What was in the past happened and I can't change it…

… No matter how much I want to.

A small breeze ruffles my hair and I smile, the smell of the lilies wafting up from the bouquet and into my nostrils. It was a beautiful smell, one that I had loved ever since I was a child. Even the time before…

A wind suddenly kicks up and I frown, closing my eyes as bits of dirt start to fly. "You do know that someone could have seen you." I say, not looking behind me as I stand up slowly.

I hear him sigh as he steps up behind me, looping his arm around my middle in a backwards hug. His head is next to my neck, his breath warm and ticklish. "I'm sorry. You just dumped the kids and came here. You scared me." He said, voice deep and concerned.

I sigh as well, turning in his arms so that I can look into his gorgeous ruby eyes, the eyes that I have loved in both lifetimes. "I'm sorry Chrno, but you know that I had to come here. I always come here." I said, stressing my point as I looked back at the grave.

Rosette Christopher, 1908-1932.

"Oh, Rosette. What's happened, happened. Back then, I had felt so guilty about stealing your Astral away, always so guilty at causing you pain that you never should have felt. I felt so guilty in letting a little twelve-year-old boss me into making a Contract with her." He smiled fondly down at me, a smile coming to his handsome face as he leaned down and placed a chaste kiss on my lips. He pulled back, hugging me closer to him.

I smiled sadly, nostalgic memories surfacing to my mind as I closed my eyes. "I'm so greatful I came back to you Chrno. I love you so much," I whisper, hugging him tighter, "But it's important that we also remember the past; learn from our past mistakes in order to better our future… A future where our children grow up listening to tales of a nun and her demon companion, of their German friend and Albino Apostle friend, all in the search for revenge and lost loved ones."

His eyes turned soft, and he smiled down at her. "But that's what they are now. Just stories told to our children… Of lives we've once lived." He started to stroke my hair, a few strands of gold fluttering into my eyes. "But…" he started, his eyes turning hard and distant, "We do need to remember the past. Though you were brought back to me, it's still important to remember what happened to…" he stopped un-able to finish what he was saying.

I nodded, feeling the lump that always formed in my throat when I thought of my previous life's tragic death. "I know." Was all I said and we stood silently for a while, arms around one-another as we said good-bye to all the bad memories and reminisced on the good ones. Finally, after a while of silence, he moved, tugging gently on my hand to pull me away from grave. "Yue and Maggie are waiting for us." He whispered into my ear as we walked down the path towards the entrance of the cemetery.

I smiled, eager to get home and hug the two children that I had given birth to.

Yes, it was nice for time to move again, for Chrno and myself anyway. But it was also nice to stop and smell the roses once in a while, remembering the circumstances of just how exactly Chrno and I had reunited. And how we had parted in the first place.

I turned my head slightly, giving a small farewell smile to the grave-stone, mentally thanking myself for dying when I had. If I hadn't, well, Chrno and I might never had met again and brought into existence our two beautiful children.

Our son and daughter.

Our Yuan and Magdalene.

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A/n: One-shot, bitter-sweet thing that I've been tossing around in my head for a while. Please review for this. I want to know what people think of it. I might even throw in a prequel into the mix, explaining just how Rosette of the 21st century met up with the still living Chrno.

Ja ne!

Amity-Star.