I loved this. Very touching.

a fitting title. remember you will die.

This piece was heart-rendingly sad! Don't you hate getting rid of memories? I hate that... but you cannot hold on forever I guess that explains why he did it! Still it was sad!:)

lump in my throat, tears in my eyes. i feel... loss.

Hey..

How could i have missed this for so long.. *shakes head*

Atmosphere and environment, rich, strong, and very impactful.

The descriptions of the desolate cabin, or rather the not so desolate cabin, its condition and the new inhabitants.

The image of the wolves devouring the dead, and the lower animals all finding use from the man always so drawn withdrawn. Ironic.

The description of the pup leaves a strange tale to follow, i cannot explain it.. but intrigued.

And Yahiko, finding himself "next to kin" though there is no coventional kinship is touching. Grown to be almost as large, ah a sense of the time that has passed.. ealking in Hiko's shoes... how perfect is that!

And then the discovery and the lovely tribute. Burning the paper, and searing the words into his own heart..

Finally the ending, the "all was as it should be." followed by the simple and the evocative "melting into the night"..

*happy sigh*

..

neat.. hehez..

林

My God (I say it gently). Again, I lament the short time I have for my reading pleasures, that prevented me from seeing this sooner.

I don't know where to begin. At the beginning _is_ most obvious, but it makes me hesitate, because I can too easily close my eyes and fear tripping over empty sake jugs and hoping I'll never dream of besotted raccoons…a thought which will be more funny to me later than it is right now.

The emptiness was a crushing thing, and the first emotion I came in contact with. A man whose presence seemed so firm and unyielding and _always_, like an unbendable oak tree, set so deep and forever. Then he’s…gone. And the place where he was is devastated and empty.

I wasn’t too happy with those marauders. Not for them as they are, no, and especially not that certain pup, who description I eye even now with deep suspicion. No, they are just being true to what they are. It just saddened me that he was…swallowed up like that. It also bothers me that I feel very satisfied at the same time.. Somehow it’s a good difference. He was not put in the ground, but kind of distributed about. I love that irony. He is no longer being allowed to “stay put”.

Dear Yahiko finding himself “next of kin” made me smile. No blood along this line of Hiko, Kenshin, and Yahiko, but the formers had their hands in making the men after. Kenshin didn’t apprentice Yahiko to the sword, but the boy took from him much more important things than that. It _is_ right that Yahiko is the one who is there.

The idea of the walking shoes hit me hard. I think after I got over the stun (like a ton of bricks, I tell you), I put my head in my hands and laughed until my ribs ached. Yahiko…filling Hiko’s shoes? That’s just wonderful, Miss Sue, just so perfect, more than words! :D

Yahiko’s discovery in the trunk and reading how he went through the collected scraps of paper left me with a sweet aching, as did how he honored both of those great men. Burning the papers, sitting close enough that his cheeks reddened with the heat, and it was reflected in his eyes, like he was burning it into himself. I think he’d be happy to know it makes me think how much like Kenshin he’s become, as well as how much like himself.

I guess, then, everything “was as it should be.” It seems so peaceful.

Kenshin would like it, I think.

How can I miss this fic? That was beautiful and I really cried after reading it. It got into me personally.

It's really weird, this fic never spelled out anything completely and THAT made it more dramatic. It's sad that Hiko had to die alone, literally to be fed to the wolves. It's sad that Hiko wanted to hide whatever concerns he has for those he really cared about. Even Yahiko (until of course he saw those newspaper articles) thought of him as someone uncaring.

The Yahiko POV was, I think, the best choice for this kind of event. Yahiko saw in Kenshin a fatherly figure (just like Kenshin saw that in Hiko) so Yahiko would at least know what it feels like to be cared for by someone who isn't even a relative. When he saw those articles, he saw Hiko's real nature and maybe became at peace that Kenshin had someone that cared for him deeply even at his darkest days. Then, there's the memorial (for both Kenshin and Hiko). How very fitting!

I can't really get enough of this fic. I love the originality (I've never read anything like this before!) The descriptions of images were so vivid, I can picture them inside my head like I actually went there. I can definitely say that this is one of the best fics I've read. Just the emotions I felt after reading it...

Thanks for sharing this and now I can see why this is your most favorite fic.:P

That was poignant. It's odd to think of Hiko dying, he seems almost immortal. But I liked Yahiko's(I'm assuming it was Yahiko) tribute.

*runs off to read companion fic*

As I said about SiriusFan13's "All That Matters" companion piece, this is a wonderful story that is so touching and beautifully sad. The way the story flows is just right, and so appropriate.-starmelody

I found this story very moving. I recently lost a parent and something about the whole impact of finding the remnants of a special person's life and deciphering meaning completely overwhelmed me. I didn't realize that it was Yahiko who comes to the cabin until well into the story but I could tell it wasn't Kenshin's voice. The tribute Yahiko pays both Kenshin and Hiko was perfect. Perhaps I am being too effusive but I thought every word was perfect actually. I am not going to say more because it just hit me too personally.

This is a wonderful bit of fanfiction! I never really knew what to expect while I was reading this, which is unusual for me. Usually I can at least guess at what's coming next. I liked what you did with the trunk and the articles, especially Yahiko's idea for the memorial. It was very fitting. Great job!

Fascinating piece! Beautifully done; so sad though... dead for so long and no one even knew... but it was certainly a fitting end for a recluse like him. Great job with this!

I adore this fiction. I loved it when I first read it. I think I somehow love it even more now! I'm so glad you posted it. And the title you picked was wonderful. Amazing job, as always:)

There's just such a simple, natural beauty to the opening, with a constant switch between powerful emotion, and peace. I'm glad peace won out at the end...

Amazing...

Sirius

Oh, this is lovely. I have always had a sense that there is a deeper, richer character of Hiko that he disguises well behind the vanity and seeming lack of interest in others. Not to mention that he does seem to feel something fatherly toward Kenshin, though it's well-hidden.

I liked the bit with the wolf cub very much-that just seems so right for Hiko.