THIS ISN'T THE END ♦ private, death

Time had already taken its toll, and continued to do so over and over again. A doubled style of aging, taking twice as long for time to work its cruelty on her body. Yet as she kept her human form from showing it, evidence was written all over her small, fluffy, raccoon dog body. Her fur was lumped and matted in ugly patches, her shedding was uneven, and specks of white could be seen around her muzzle, face, and throughout her fur. The white fur was distinct from the light silver even, easily visible now. As the tanuki padded along weakly, her tail drooped and her paws dragged, with barely any energy to assist with pulling her along. The push was hard, but after the daylight had passed, she finally made it to her destination- a small quiet forest. There she would find what she was looking for- a natural nest of roots to act as her deathbed.

Izayuki flopped into the tiny area with a small grunt. Her breathing was heavy and ragged, labored, as her sides struggled to expand with each inhale. She felt like panting, but was unable to muster the energy or mindset to do so. Use of her magic now was an impossible thought. Nothing could save her now. In the end, time, space, and nature worked together to cruelly win. It was an unfair victory, and a loss for her at that.

She never lost.

She always won.

Always.

But not now.

For the first time, she would truly lose.

To lose it all... to give in...

That day was like any other day in someone's life. There was life and death, and each day heralded both. No matter where one was, someone would die in the world, and someone would be born to take their place somewhere else. It was just the cycle of the world. Life and death was all around, so close. Its hungry fangs and stinging claws against one's skin, pressing, as its foul breath could be felt against the back of your neck. All creation spent every day like this, but nobody ever realizes how close it really is until those claws pierce one's skin through and those fangs sap one's life away. The breathing becomes a wet moisture as jaws close in all around, and from there, true darkness is found. There was a peace and beauty to it all; a sickly grace and an elegant movement towards order and rest. A step away from chaos through the most unalloyed of means. So much desperation and longing when the death took something from the world.... but now she understood.

She had always understood to a very small degree.

Now she would fully understand. There was no going back.

Izayuki barely noticed the scent until a voice sounded in the trees. Giving up? She was not giving up... she hated this more than anything. She had so much yet to live for, and while Yukionna and the others were not winning, this was hardly the direction she wanted fate to swing. But now it all made sense. She was not an adult tanuki at four moons like she should have been... she was a fullgrown one at ten or so moons. An aging process that was twice as slow as it should have been. Life sucked. No wait, not life. Death. Death really did suck.

Weakly opening a faded pink eye to peer at the girl who had leaped from her tree and was brushing herself off, Izayuki let out a pathetic, weak, growl. She was unable to speak many words, and the idea of moving was nonexistent. She was too weak- about to go out like a light at any moment. "S-sh...." Iza said, attempting to tell the random human to shut up, but to no avail. With her weakened senses, she could tell that the girl was not entirely human, but was barely able to really identify what she was. Nevertheless, why was she even here? What right did she have to disturb her passing? Why could she not go in peace?

It was when the girl mentioned her name that both of Izayuki's pink eyes shot open and she forcefully, but weakly, lifted her head up to gaze steadily at the human. How did she know her name? Who was this person? Absolutely nothing about her was familiar, and the tanuki did not forget a face or voice easily. What did she mean by 'one of us'? Wait...
Directing a good mass of her energy towards her sense of smell, Izayuki breathed in the stranger's full scent. Indeed, she was not human! The scent put Iza on full alert... another raccoon dog. A yokai. A Bakedanuki. A tanuki. An all this time she had thought she was alone...
But wait, who was Rika? Rika Rimajo? She did not know the names of her parents... she had gone through life simply assuming her mother was no more than just an average raccoon dog, and her father also one who had likely died or been separated by some natural accident. But was that not so.
"Rika...? Who...?
....
Who are you?"

Hearing the familiar Japanese, Izayuki gave a simple sigh. It did not matter if anyone was around to kill her... she was fading anyway. They would only quicken the passing, and possibly make it less painless. Unfortunately, Kim decided to let her live... so now not only could she not pass painlessly, she had to pass with a seemingly talkative tanuki at her side... how embarrassing. She just wanted to be alone. At the pink-haired and pig-tailed girl's first response, the dying raccoon dog decided not to reply. It was better to save energy now, as things seemed to be getting interested... damn, her situation really did suck. Something new, and someone so similar... and here she was, on her deathbed.

Her inquiry of Rika seemed to either be missed or ignored, but Izayuki could not help but become increasingly curious. The daughter of Rika Rimajo? Her mother had a name, and was more than just an average tanuki? Why had she never 'told' her? Even though Iza did not know of words at the time, why had she been left in innocence? Ignorance was bliss, typically, but this knowledge now struck her very core... her mother died, but it was more than the average animal death. Something was... different. Her mother had been a 'person', not just a 'thing', even if she had died like one. Izayuki was about to inquire further, attempting to muster the energy to do so, before Kim moved down, placing a gentle hand on the silver tanuki's head.

The other tanuki introduced herself, but something else snapped inside of Iza as she heard a key word. Cousin?
She had family!?
Had she her usual stamina, Izayuki would have given a sharp gasp and demanded further information on the girl standing before her. However, in her current state, all she could do was give a pained, shallow inhale, followed by a similar, ragged exhale.
Summoning more strength, the silver raccoon dog managed to peep out one word, feeling it becoming harder and harder to hang onto. At that moment, even her intelligence was fading. Whatever it was that made her more than a 'thing', made her a 'person', was leaving her. Before long, she would just be nothing but a pathetic dying animal, with nothing more than old, withered instinct and a broken body.
"H-how....?"

As Kim went on to explain the definition of a cousin in her own seemingly haughty and sarcastic way, all Izayuki could do was lie there and listen, but not without giving an irritated huff despite her pain and labored breathing. Did the girl think the tanuki was stupid, or was she just one of 'those' sorts of people? Not that she could blame her- Izayuki likely would have given a similar answer to purposely attempt to provoke a reaction, but was now really the time?

So, this person was her cousin. It was interesting to now know she had family, and even better to get to know them right before she died... right. This was pathetic, and ignorance was bliss, as the saying went. She would have rather died thinking the only family she would leave was just Black Rose, but now that was apparently not the case? It was bitter and cruel. Yet, Kim said she would somehow save Izayuki? At this time, the tanuki was finding the idea simply impossible.
But... a witch? Just what or who was that, and what was a witch's soul? The confusion continued to swim in Iza's mind, but now it was blurring. What was happening? Her focus on the words was dissipating. Language and comprehension itself was fading. All the silver-furred raccoon dog could do now was gaze blankly at the pink-haired girl, barely able to keep her eyes open. Her breathing began to grow increasingly shallower. It would not be long now... Izayuki was almost gone.