RIP

We spent most of the day digging a deep hole. It was pretty sloppy, considering none of us are professional gravediggers, but it would do just fine. We don't exactly own any caskets or anything, so we wrapped him up in some old sheets and gently lowered him into the grave. Not the best way to bury someone, but Greg never cared much for big fancy ceremonies. Still, I feel like he would've wanted more than... this...

The gravestone was basically just a small sheet of scrap plywood that Ciel carved some writing into with a knife. All it said was “here lies Gregory Garland” along with a crude carving of the Twin Triangles. That's our symbol, by the way. Two triangles overlapping with each other to form something that looks like a pair of hourglasses.

We filled the hole back up and stood around it. The sun was setting by this point.

“Good bye, Greg,” Ciel said. “Embrace the Archangel.”

She turned away and walked back to the hangout.

“We're gonna miss you, mate,” Terrence said. “Embrace the Archangel.”

Then he, too, turned and left. I waited a few more minutes, trying to put together what I wanted to say. I took a seat at the edge of the grave, looking at the makeshift gravestone.

“Remember the old church?” I asked him, knowing he couldn't hear.

Why do people do that? Talk to graves, I mean. I know I was doing it myself, but I can't help wondering what it was all about. He couldn't hear me, but I still fet like talking to him, as if he might actually be there.

The old church was one of our old hangouts. We'd moved on since then. Kind of had too, since we've moved on to new towns several times since then.

“It was a nice place,” I said. “The new hangout's a bit better furnished, though.”

I sighed.

“It's gonna feel a bit empty without you, man,” I said. “All of those times we've clashed with other servants, I never expected them to actually get to you. This blows...”

I pulled myself back to my feet and stretched. I looked back at the plywood and wiped away some of the tears that were beginning to form.

“Embrace the Archangel,” I told him.

I turned around and went back to the hangout. Ciel was counting out the goods we had stolen the other day, and Terrence was throwing together some pipe bombs to take his mind off things. I walked past them both, to our little training area, and began working out. About an hour later, Ciel finished splitting everything up and gave me my cut. I took it and headed back to my apartment. It's been a long couple of days. I'ma get some sleep now.