When she finds him, the moon is much lower than it had been when she'd started searching, and streaks of orange have already begun to bleed out into the navy night sky. Even from this far away, she can hear the sounds of him sobbing.

It hurts, knowing that, somehow, she'd hurt him so much that he felt the need to leave. Sure, she physically harmed Crona- by *accident*, of course, and she'd *apologized* and all- but still, she feels that it was something more. Something different, something deeper.

A while back, during the day, she'd found him out here.

The sand muffles the sound of Maka's feet as she continues to move towards him.

She wonders for a moment if Soul is worried about her absence.

When she reaches out to touch Crona's shoulder, the sun is finally showing its face on the horizon, and it is no longer night.

He really should have known she'd try to find him, but the light brush of her fingers on his arm still makes him jump. Ugh, why did she have to be so damn *nice* to him? For a second, he hates her so much, hates her SO MUCH. Hate hate hate

and then she's kneeling beside him and her eyes are soft and warm and the color of everything he's ever really longed for and oh God he can feel the tears coming on again. Maka is so great, she's so caring and when she speaks her voice is full of concern and affection-

"Crona, are you okay?"

He buries his face back into his arms, overtaken by another wave of tears. Maka is still beside him, her face clouded with worry.

"I'm fine," Crona manages. His voice sounds pathetic. Leave, he wants to tell her, leave me here I don't deserve you I'm a bad person I killed so many people and my mother hates me she tried to kill you and I put you in danger and I don't deserve you. Out here in the desert, this ocean without water, there's a lot of room, a lot of room to just think and he's decided he really doesn't deserve her. It's not fair to her, to make her worry like this. He should just. Stop.

Give up on her, he thinks. It's only fair. Besides, it's Soul she wants.

Soul who is a good person, and Maka's best friend, and her Death Scythe, and so much more than Crona will ever be.

"Are you sure?"

She's beautiful like nothing he's ever seen before and he doesn't deserve her. She's a genuinely good person and he doesn't deserve her. She's sweet and kind and helpful and she is his friend but nothing else, never anything more and he doesn't even deserve her friendship, really.

After tonight, he thinks he will be able to accept it, but still cuts into his heart like a knife. Thinking of Maka with Soul, loving him like she will never love Crona and giving Soul an entirely different kind of affection than she's ever shown him, and it's painful like the flash of pain when Ragnarok emerges from his spine, it hurts like the disgusting imperfect black blood coursing through his veins, it stings like his own mother's vector arrows and venomous words, and he hates it.

For a moment, Crona thinks he will tell her that he loves her.

When he replies, all he can manage is three words, and they aren't the ones he'd wanted to say to her.

"Yeah... I'm okay."

She smiles at him, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes. Like she knows something's actually wrong and he's just not telling her.

"Okay. Let's go back to Shibusen now, so you can get some rest."

And they do.

And she holds his hand, but she doesn't look at him.

xxxx

an: it is not the ending that either of them want. but life goes on regardless.