I wanted to write Meroko dying with Izumi holding her, but then I sadly remembered that Shinigami don't die. So I wrote this instead. It takes place after the last episode of the anime. All the italicized bits are Izumi and Meroko's memories.
This piece was originally a songfic, but obviously songfics aren't allowed on this site. If you want to read the original songfic version, PM me and I'll direct you to it.
He was watching when the girl, Mitsuki Koyama, was reunited with Takuto Kira. He saw her tears of happiness, saw the sudden look of recognition in Takuto's eyes.
He heard Mitsuki crying out for Meroko; saw the feathers floating down.
He noticed that those feathers weren't that of a Shinigami. They were lighter and glimmered more; they had a rainbow-like quality to them, and shone with multiple colors when they caught the light.
The feathers of an angel.
Later, when the night had darkened the land and everyone had gone, Izumi went back to that spot. He landed on the street, bent down, and picked up a feather—the only one that hadn't yet blown away.
He held it in his hand for a long time, staring at it wordlessly.
After what seemed like a long time, he suddenly became aware of the light sound of wings flapping nearby.
Izumi turned around.
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"This is your new partner. Meroko Yui. Take care of her, Izumi."
-
Her hair was shorter, her wings larger, her eyes softer and sadder. She wore a different outfit, and there was a light blue teardrop painted below her right eye. Her rabbit ears had disappeared, and a golden halo hovered over her head.
For a while, they simply stared at each, faces betraying nothing.
Finally, Izumi spoke.
"Meroko."
The angel nodded. "Izumi."
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"Izumi! Izumi, where are you?"
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They were silent again. Then:
"You're not a Shinigami anymore."
"No. No, I'm not."
"An angel?"
Meroko nodded to that. It then occurred to Izumi that she looked older somehow—not in appearance, but in expression. She had the face of someone who hadn't been seen or heard in a long time. Someone who watched and waited silently, without ever saying a word.
He could relate to that well.
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"Izumi…I love you, Izumi…"
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When her next words came, he didn't let the shock show on his face.
"I came to say goodbye."
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"Boss! Why? Why do I have to be in a team with this new guy? After all, I…"
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"You're leaving," he said softly.
"Yes."
"To heaven."
"Yes."
He looked down. "You're…never coming back."
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"Izumi said that he wished to dissolve your team."
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Meroko shook her head. "No. I'm never coming back."
He didn't know what to say to that.
He'd spent so much time pushing her away. Hurting her. And then, when he realized what he'd done, and tried to win her back…All he ever did was hurt her more.
-
"Izumi! Why…"
"People's feelings…I can't believe in something so insecure. So, what you said…"
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He'd taken her for granted so many times. He'd always thought that he would have another chance.
It had never occurred to him that she would leave.
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If I'm always going to end up feeling this way…I'll never fall in love again.
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"Why?" he asked.
She looked down at the spot where, hours before, Takuto and Mitsuki had shared their reunion. "My job here is done," she replied. "Takuto doesn't need me to watch over him anymore. Mitsuki is with him now."
He thought her words sounded a little sad.
-
"If I said I had a reason other than work for coming to the human world…you'd understand, of course?"
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"You'll really never come back?" His voice wavered, very slightly.
"Why would I?" she questioned. "I have no reason to return."
"Not even…" The words caught in his throat, and he had trouble forcing them out. "Not even for…me?"
"…No."
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"The past is the past. I don't feel anything for you now."
-
"I see," he said.
They were both silent for a moment; then she said, "What kind of a question is that?"
When he looked up, he could see the pain in her eyes.
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"Now you understand, don't you? Things will never work out the way you want them to."
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"You hurt me so many times." Her voice was barely above a whisper, but he could still hear it. "You made me believe that you loved me, and then you turned me away.
"You gave me hope, and then you took it away from me…"
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"The two of us belong together."
"Says who?"
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The words she spoke broke near the end, and he looked at her. He felt a faint, distant prick of surprise when he saw the beginnings of tears, shimmering in her eyes.
"You made me believe that you loved me," she choked.
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"You just can't be honest, Meroko."
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He closed his eyes, but the image of her tears stayed in his mind nevertheless.
When he spoke, his voice was the closest to gentle that it had ever been.
"I know."
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"But…this is your last chance."
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"If you know…" Meroko paused long enough to swipe at the moisture in her eyes. "If you really know…then don't ask me something like that. Don't ask me to stay for you…after everything you've done…"
Izumi started to float closer, and Meroko looked like she very much wanted to fly away, but she didn't move.
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"Now…come back to me."
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"Meroko…" he began tenderly.
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"Izumi…Do you truly love Meroko?"
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"If I…if I hadn't…if things had gone differently…"
Her eyes were wide with something like hope, but they were also suspicious. "What are you saying?"
His gaze locked onto hers. "If I asked you to forgive me…"
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"If you really love her…"
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"…would you love me again?"
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"…then why do you only do things that cause her pain?"
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For a long time, she only stared at him in shock.
The wind blew on them, and he never let his eyes drop from hers.
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"Izumi…"
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Finally, she shook her head. The motion was slow, and—or so it seemed to Izumi—labored. As though it was hard to do.
"No," she said. "No, Izumi. It's too late."
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"You probably can't understand, can you?"
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"I have to go," she said. Her voice broke at the end, and she swallowed hard.
His eyes were impassive as they studied her. "I see."
She had a desperate look on her face, and her hands were shaking. "I…"
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"Goodbye. Goodbye…"
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"If you're leaving…" Izumi said.
He moved up to her, until he was close enough that she could feel his breath on her face.
She froze.
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"It's what Meroko would have wanted."
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"If you're really leaving…then let me have something before you go," he whispered.
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And besides…
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Slowly, deliberately, he moved his face forward and gently pressed his lips against hers.
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"I love you, Izumi. I really do…"
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Her eyes widened with shock, and she didn't move.
After the longest time, he thought he felt her start to respond.
The moment this thought entered his head, she pulled away.
She shook her head, and even in the darkness he could see the sparkle of tears on her cheek.
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"We'll probably never see those two again."
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Her mouth opened as if she was going to say something, but her wings spread out, and she turned and flew away.
He watched her disappear into the night, his eyes fixed on the spot where she had been long after she had vanished…
-
"Meroko…"
Man, I adore this thing.
RRE.