He woke up with the taste of smoke still clinging to his tongue
Not a dream
Not this time
Shigure sat in a room made of silence
The walls were familiar
Too familiar
Wooden beams above
Tatami beneath
A single lantern swinging lightly
And across from him sat someone he never wanted to see again
Her
But she wasn't burned
Not anymore
She looked exactly as she had before the fire
Innocent
Soft
And cruel
"You never smiled when I cooked" she said gently as she stirred something in the pot over the coals
Shigure didn't respond
He didn't even blink
"You said you liked it though"
"I lied" he finally said
"I know" she smiled "You always did"
The air in the room tightened
"I brought you here to feed you"
"I'm not hungry"
"Then it's perfect" she said pouring the soup into a bowl made of blackened porcelain
"Why"
"Because you always refused what you needed"
Shigure stared at the bowl
The surface of the soup was clear
Too clear
It reflected his face
But not the one from now
The one from before
Young
Hopeful
And selfish
"I don't want to remember anymore" he whispered
"Too late"
He pushed the bowl away and stood
She didn't stop him
Didn't raise her voice
She just asked "Do you remember what you said to me before the fire"
Shigure froze
He did
But he didn't want to
Not again
"I said I'd come back"
"And you did"
"I was too late"
She nodded
"And I forgave you"
He turned sharply "You died screaming my name"
She stood too
The light dimmed
The fire crackled
And the scent of ash returned
"You're not here because of me" she said "You're here because you think your pain makes you righteous"
Shigure took a step back
"But it doesn't" she continued "It just makes you loud"
His knees weakened but he didn't fall
She walked toward him and touched his chest
Right where the bone sword used to rest
"You buried me beneath your guilt and called it love"
He looked down at her fingers
They were warm
Real
She kissed his cheek gently
And whispered "Let me go already"
Then her body burst into moths
Thousands of pale wings fluttering around him
Each one carrying a memory he didn't want
The first time he laughed
The first time he lied
The first time he ran away
And then they were gone
Shigure stood alone
The soup bowl still steaming on the floor
He picked it up
And drank
It was bitter
And it burned
But he didn't stop
Because she was right
He always refused what he needed
Not this time
As the last drop slid down his throat
The room cracked like glass
And shattered
And again
He fell
But now he wasn't afraid of the bottom
He welcomed it