Azalea-Take care of yourself for me

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A few days after Ryuji brought Rin and Marshal home, the two were still on bed rest and therefore figured they might as well take over teaching Sachi and Tsukumo and cooking meals since they weren't allowed to do anything else.

Ryuji had gone back to see several sets of remains and grabbed Rin and Marshal's weapons from the camp.

Everyone kept an eye on the two, but they knew how to handle themselves. And the first chance she got when it was just Rin and Marshal alone, she kissed him on the lips. It was just a small peck. "You cried even more than I did when that shitkicker raped me. And you left him for me to get revenge on. Thank you, Rin." She thanked. Rin smiled, even at the crude language. Marshal was never one to beat around the bush. "I know what it's like. Sometimes, you're allowed to get revenge. Being the bigger person is only so great until things get real shitty. Then, you're allowed to get them back. You're allowed to hurt them worse than they hurt you. You're allowed to give them just a little taste of what Hell's gonna be like." Rin told her knowingly.

They went back downstairs to color in the coloring books with Tsukumo and Sachi.

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Shura was the one scouting the town this time, scavenging old buildings for hidden gems, so to speak.

And she never even saw the man following her.

By the time she noticed he was there, it was too late. The crazed man opened fire on everything in sight with his submachine gun. He was from the camp that took Rin and Marshal hostage days ago. Apparently, he'd survived the bullet in his left shoulder and side instead of bleeding out and getting eaten. He'd followed Shura not even knowing it was where Rin and Marshal were. He saw them through a window in the house when he followed Shura there, and in his half-crazed brain, it made sense to open fire on the house and the people around.

He shot up the place haphazardly and a bullet nailed Konekomeru's left leg. Another bullet clipped Chelsea's hip and she fell with a yelp.

The worst injury was Torako. She'd been hit in the chest, side, and leg. The bullets all missed her heart, but she was older and they just didn't have the supplies or time to save her. By the time Rin came out and threw his ax to split open the man's skull, she'd already lost too much blood.

Tears were already pouring down his face as he fell to his knees next to Ryuji, who was already kneeling in the ground holding his mother.

"I'm considering it a compliment that it took bullets to take me down." She rasped, smiling triumphantly. "Mom, this is not the right time to be bragging, you're dying." Ryuji choked out, looking down at the woman incredulously. She laughed loudly, then coughed up blood and then laughed more. "Bah, it's the perfect time! I win by default if that asshole is already dead!" She claimed, grinning smugly with bloodied teeth.

"I don't think I've ever wanted to laugh and cry so much at the same time before now." Kinzou croaked, wiping his eyes. Yukio finally joined them on the front lawn, frowning at the carnage in front of the house that he'd missed when he was milking the cow. He had training as a medical assistant, but there was no saving Torako.

"Take care of yourself and this big happy family you've got, okay? You're already an amazing father and I know you'll make a wonderful grandfather one day. And you can tell all your kids' most embarrassing stories to their kids like I did." Torako smiled proudly up at her son. "I never made anything that I could be more proud of after you were born. Remember that, my sweet Ryuji." She told him.

She held onto Ryuji's hand tightly, even as she turned her head to Rin, who was already a mess of tears and snot. "Oho, look at you! I'm not dead yet!" She cried, chuckling. She leaned up and Rin leaned down to meet her as she brought her free hand up to hug him. "Thank you." Rin choked out the coarse whisper in her ear. Torako had been the only mother he'd ever had. "A parent's work is never done, Rin. But the best part is always taking in the strays and being the person they want to make proud. You'll understand that one day. For now, I'm giving you my son. Thank you for loving him past his terrible attitude in the beginning." She whispered to him, a conversation only they heard.

She finally laid back down onto the grass with a sigh and only took in a few more breaths before one was her last and her body went completely lax. Rin sat there and sobbed in a situation that felt so familiar, yet so foreign. He'd cried over Sachi's loss of her parents and Ryuji's loss of nearly all his people over a year ago. Now, they'd come so far and he was in the same position. But this time, he mourned someone he'd known and loved. He mourned his mother.

Ryuji sat there, almost numb and still not crying nearly as much as Rin as he processed that he'd just lost his mother. Her hand was cold in his now and he withdrew his, clenching it tight around the objects in it. Torako had pressed her old engagement ring she'd kept all this time, along with her and Tatsuma's wedding bands.

It hurt Ryuji a lot, but Rin was sobbing loudly because yet another thing was his fault. If he hadn't been out during the storm, the man wouldn't have ever found them at all. He kept apologizing to Ryuji, but Ryuji refused to accept the apologies. "Rin, listen!" He finally demanded. Rin's blubbering quieted. "Sometimes, shitty people find a way to survive even though they shouldn't be allowed to. This is no one's fault." Ryuji told him.

"Why are you so nice about this?!" Rin demanded angrily. He got up and ran into the house.

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Later, after Kinzou, Renzou, and Ryuji helped Konekomeru and Chelsea get inside the house to be patched up and wrapped Torako's body in old blankets, they all sat in the Dining and Living Rooms.

Rin had Sachi and Tsukumo in his lap in the rocking chair in the living room. He was hugging them and just rocking in the chair, not saying anything, a forlorn expression on his face. Ryuji decided to leave him be for the time being and let Izumo hug him where they sat together on the couch.

She'd never seen Rin look so sad before. His eyes were still red and puffy and his nose was stuffy and a deep frown was on his face. He held Sachi and Tsukumo to him and rocked in a steady, constant rythm. It had taken him a while to come back out of their shared room, where he'd been curled up and sobbing loudly under the blankets on their bed, regardless of how much they irritated his still-healing rope burns.

This had really hit him hard, it seemed. Izumo knew Torako had been like the mom Rin never had and he'd loved her a lot. He wasn't ready to let go of her after only knowing her for around a year and a half. He'd wanted Sachi and Tsukumo to have a grandmother since he never knew his real parents even before the Apocalypse and he'd never had any extended family. He'd taken this harder than even Ryuji had and it was difficult to watch.

It wasn't long before he finally fell asleep, exhausted from crying all day and halfway through the night. Shiemi and Shura took Sachi and Tsukumo to sleep with them while Ryuji carried Rin to their room, with Izumo following.

Losing people was hard, but they'd carry on with their plan to leave the farm in a few days, after they buried Torako. It was what she'd want.

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I cried so much during this that I got a headache, so y'all better appreciate how much I cry to bring you quality content. 😩😂 I love Torako and she's Best Mom, so I'm sorry, but it was necessary.