Gift

When reality settled back in, they weren't in Tachibana's room anymore. Now they were standing outside in the town's cemetery. It was raining hard, although it all passed through Nitsuki as if she weren't even there.

"Daimon? Did we just… teleport or something?"

"More like fast forward. It's part of your vision—your gift. This one is a long one."

She sighed and looked around. It looked like they were specifically in front of her family's grave. It hosted their large, main gravestone with the names of her grandparents, her parents, and Maya. Yet, for some reason, her name wasn't on it despite there being enough room. Instead, there was a lone secondary stone that stood beside it.

"Nitsuki Amano." The words echoed in Daimon's voice as he spoke. "O stars of the night. Do not forget me."

She pursed her lips. "Okay, what the hell is that?"

"An epitaph, I assume? It's on your gravestone." Daimon shrugged and pointed at it.

"Yeah, I can see that, but what's with the quote? What's with… this?" She gestured at the stone itself. "My name was supposed to be engraved on the main one, not this weird little thing."

He didn't answer, so Nitsuki began internalizing her questions instead. Then, after several seconds, she frowned extremely hard.

"Are you telling me that the ones in charge of my funeral were petty enough to put my name on a separate gravestone because of my 'condition'?" she spat.

"Probably." Daimon shrugged.

"Assholes. I knew it." She shook her head and kicked at the ground, only for her foot to pass right through. "Doesn't explain the weird quote, though. Ugh, but I'm getting ahead of myself. What does this have to do with my gift? And why is Tachibana involved?"

"I told you already, didn't I?" Daimon smirked. "You'll just have to wait a bit to find out."

She tried to piece things together from his cryptic answers. However, she was soon distracted as she heard footsteps approaching.

Looking up, she saw the familiar figure of Tachibana walking towards them, an umbrella clutched in his hand and a bouquet of flowers held in the other.

Nitsuki hummed, unimpressed. "Oh come on. Is this the part where I find out that because I died, Tachibana will be a sad sack for the rest of his life?" Sarcasm dripped from her voice.

"Hey, no spoilers."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm guessing this is all just to make me feel guilty. But let me tell you something: I've been dealing with this crap since the day I was born. I won't stand here being lectured on how offing myself is a selfish act."

Daimon didn't reply, so she continued, "It's not like I'm a stranger to the whole self-sacrifice schtick either. I'm the person who was forced to take on a million responsibilities and spent her entire childhood raising Maya, remember?"

Again, the old man was silent; his expression was unreadable.

"Come on. Say something already!"

"Alright. So then, tell me," he finally responded, his tone serious. "What do you think the consequences of your death will be, Nitsuki?"

She paused, considering his question. "I… don't know," she admitted, her gaze fixed on Tachibana. The young man had knelt down in front of her grave, placing the flowers in front of it with a gentle reverence.

He looked more haggard than the version of him she had seen in the last vision, but… that was about it. At first glance, he seemed healthy and normal. The only thing that seemed different was the faint lines of tension in his body.

He clapped his hands together. "Hey, Nia." His voice was soft, barely audible over the sound of the rain.

Nitsuki watched him silently, studying his face. Something was off. Tachibana was always expressive; his emotions were basically written over every line of his body. Right now, though, his features were carefully blank, as if he was trying to hide something from himself.

"Sorry I couldn't come earlier," he continued. "I was busy at the shop. Grandpa wanted to renovate the attic, so we had to move everything from the storehouse. It was a mess."

He laughed a quiet chuckle that didn't reach his eyes. "I also wanted to apologize about the marker. You probably wanted to be added to the main one, but the ones in charge said something about the stone being too old and fragile to risk inscribing any new names. When I heard that they made a separate stone for you, well… I figured I'd pay a little to have it engraved with something nice at least. It's not like they were following tradition or procedure anyway."

Nitsuki's eyes narrowed at him. "Idiot. Are you really that gullible? Well, regardless, you did do something nice for me, I guess."

The corners of her lips curled upwards into a tiny, amused smirk.

However, at that moment, Tachibana's smile faded, and his shoulders slumped. "You know… I still miss you. Every day. I wish I could have done more to help you. I'm sorry that I didn't… that I didn't understand. I also know that those words aren't enough, so aside from the money spent on the engraving, I also, eh, donated to a few charities. Stuff you might've cared for. I hope that's okay."

She blinked. That was unexpected. She was just a friend to him, yet he had gone out of his way to do something like this for her, even after she had gone.

"Thanks, I guess," she mumbled, unsure of what else to say. She glanced over at Daimon, who remained quiet and observant. His gaze was still fixed on the young man kneeling in front of the grave.

Tachibana simply looked at the ground, as if he were staring through it. Then, he stood up slowly and brushed off the dirt from his knees.

"Anyway, I've gotta go. Grandpa still needs my help like always, but I'll come visit soon. You were always a good friend to me. I… just wish you could've stayed around longer." His voice trembled a bit as he spoke.

"So… take care, okay?"

The words faded from his lips as he stepped away and disappeared into the rain.

"…" Nitsuki stared at the flowers for a moment, conflicted.

Daimon spoke up. "Do you see now?"

"See what?" she snapped.

"What your life means to others."

Nitsuki snorted derisively. "Yeah, whatever. I don't know why he's so hung up on it. He's got his entire life ahead of him. He could go out, meet a cute girl, get married, and have a family. All of that normal stuff."

Daimon raised an eyebrow. "Do you hate yourself that much?"

"Yes, obviously. I've been doing it all my life, and I'm quite good at it," she answered flatly.

He sighed and shook his head. "You've really given up, huh? You're not going to even try?"

Nitsuki crossed her arms. "Yes, that's why I jumped. And really, try? What do you think I was doing before this?"

"…You know, you should be a little more touched by this. Tachibana did go through the trouble of visiting you," the old man commented, gesturing at the stone. "And this won't be the only time. There are other events that'll happen too."

"Great, so he'll waste more of his time on someone who's dead. That's a real shame," she retorted.

"You mean the same way you wasted time thinking about Maya's death?"

Nitsuki's eyes flashed with anger. "That's different. She's—"

"She's what?" Daimon interrupted. "She's gone, Nitsuki. Just like you are in this future. Just like your grandparents are. Just like your parents. Everyone dies. That's the way the world works. But that doesn't mean that their lives were worthless, does it? Even beyond their death, they can have meaning to someone. They can have an impact."

Her eyes lingered on the flowers for a moment. They were beautiful, despite the rain.

"So then, is this it? Is this my gift?" she asked quietly. "Being able to see what happens after my death? A bunch of visions of my so-called meaningful impact on others?"

"Well, it's certainly an option," he said, shrugging. "But it's not limited to your death—or deaths at all, for that matter. It's more of an ability to view potential futures and all the possible ripples that can spread out from them. Like a window into what might be. Or rather, what should have been in this case."

"So why show me this one?" she pressed, furrowing her brow. "Why show me a future where I die? Why not show me one where I don't die?"

The old man chuckled. "You're the type who needs to see the worst-case scenario before you can appreciate the best-case one." He tilted his head. "Besides, you're more than a little hard to please. I figured showing you something this extreme would be enough to get a response out of you, but you've proved to be quite the challenge."

"Extreme? This was rather mild if I were to be honest, but… fair enough, I guess." She sighed before continuing. "Anyway, if I do choose to accept this gift, what happens then?"

"Well, you can use it however you want. You could see how your actions affect others, or you could use it to see what would happen if you didn't take a certain path in life. It's up to you, really," he said, spreading his hands wide. "I'm sure you can imagine the possibilities. There are a handful of limitations and quirks, but it's a very flexible power."

She chewed her bottom lip, considering the possibilities. Suddenly though, her eyes brightened, and her lips curved into a small smile.

"When you say potential futures, could I say… view a future where Maya hadn't died?"

"Erm, yes." He frowned. "But I wouldn't advise that."

"Why not?"

"Because it'll hurt you, Nia. It'll make you feel worse than anything I could say to you. I highly suggest sticking to the ones that you can still affect in some way."

"But—"

"Look, I don't want to argue. If you want to spend time torturing yourself, that's fine by me, but I think you'd be better off finding something that would bring you happiness."

Nitsuki scowled, her eyes narrowing into slits. "Then what do you suggest?"

"Perhaps something that could make your future brighter?"

"What do you mean by that? I'm still stuck with this 'body' regardless of the future I choose, so what's the point? I can't live a happy life like this."

"Can't or won't?"

She paused, the words catching in her throat.

Daimon sighed again. "Why are you so determined to keep suffering?"

"I'm not. I just…" She trailed off and shook her head. "Look, let's just get back to me dying. I'm done watching all of this."

"Are you sure?" Daimon asked, tilting his head to the side. "There are other futures we haven't seen yet, and some of them may change your mind."

"Right. Like what?"

"Maybe one where you learn to love yourself for who you really are."

Nitsuki scoffed. "Yeah, okay. That's a good joke."

Daimon's expression remained neutral, but she could tell he was amused. "Either way, are you still seriously considering ending it all? Even after all of the work I've put into this?"

"Maybe—Wait, are you seriously trying to guilt trip me even more, and with something as petty as your inconvenience? I don't even know you. Why should that tip the scales?"

He shrugged. "Just a thought."

"…" She glared at him. "Look, I guess I'm grateful that you saved me and all, but I'm just not interested."

"Not even a little?"

She crossed her arms, staring him down. Their eyes locked for a minute before she finally turned away with a sigh.

"Fine… I'll give living one more try." 

The old man smiled. "Good choice. Now let's get back, shall we?"