"I'm here."
“You’ll be fine, you’ll be fine, we’ll be fine, I promise, I’ll - ”
Daniyah shudders, and Anduin’s arm tightens around her shoulders, infinitesimally. She can hear the beat of his heart where her head rests, rapid and fluttering, scared of the inevitable future.
“Dan, please - ”
“Hey,” she says, voice light and breathy. She doesn’t intend to die on him without saying what she needs to. “Better me than you, right?”
“No!” His voice cracks. She laughs, barely.
She feels shaking, and she opens her eyes to see him crying. She doesn’t want him crying. She painstakingly reaches up to wipe away a tear, and he pulls back, face twisted in grief.
“Say something nice at my funeral,” she teases. “Give my mother a heart attack.”
“Dan, no - ”
“Punch Wrathion again for me.”
He does laugh at that, a funny little hiccup that he immediately looks guilty for, and she smiles and bumps the crown of her head against his chin. “I will.”
“Tell Rikke - ” There’s a lump in her throat, because she had wanted to tell Rikke herself, but if she’s not going to get the chance then her dear sergeant needs to know. “Tell Rikke I love her. Tell Rikke I’m in love with her.”
The distinction is important.
Anduin nods, just once, and she smiles.
“Love you.”
He presses a kiss to her forehead. She shuts her eyes. “I love you, too. Bad jokes and all.”
“Oh, alright then.”
He chuckles, and she sighs.
Then the rain takes over, and the only thing that remains of Daniyah Sadik is the emerald green scarf around Anduin’s neck.
