We’d like to thank Boco the Chokobo, because without his help, this story

 would never have been finished, especially not in time for ChibiUsa’s

 birthday. ^-^

 

 Farewell

 By the Amazoness Quartet

 

 

 ChibiUsa sighed anxiously. It was a beautiful day outside, but that

 was far from her mind. A certain dark haired girl was the focus of it, but

 that wasn't anything new. She was waiting for Hotaru to finish getting

 dressed so they could leave for Hotaru's father's beach house where they'd

 spend the next few days together. Alone this time. ChibiUsa couldn't help

 but smile at the idea of being alone with Hotaru. She'd already had a

 birthday party earlier today with the others and now she'd be able to enjoy

 the rest of it with the one person she wished to share everything with.

 

 A wailing noise snapped her out of her thoughts. It took her a

 moment to realize it was the sound of a child crying. Knowing that both of

 their twin daughters that had come back from the future were somewhere

 in the house, it had to be something wrong for one of them. Heading down

 the stairs quickly, she tried to pinpoint where the sobbing was coming from.

 Selene looked up teary eyed at ChibiUsa. The future princess kneeled down

 worriedly next to the younger girl. “Selene, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”

 	Selene just wiped at her eyes tearfully, taking a shuddering breath before

 looking up at her the woman that would one day be her mother. 

 “ChibiUsa-mama, do you

 really love Hotaru-mama?” she asked in almost a hushed whisper.

 	ChibiUsa was taken aback. Why did the little girl ask that? Was there any

 question? Brushing a hand through her pink hair, she just blinked a few 

 times. “Of course

 I do. She’s everything to me.”

 	Selene sniffled, wiping her eyes shakily with the back of her hand.

 “Re…Really?”

 	The pink haired girl nodded quickly to dispel the younger girl’s fears, 

 wiping a

 tear from her cheek. She smiled gently at Selene. “Really. She’s everything 

 to me. I love

 your Hotaru-mama with all my heart.” This seemed to appease the younger 

 girl, drawing

 forth a small smile from her. ChibiUsa smiled softly, but something still 

 concerned her.

 Something felt wrong… “Why did you ask?”

 	The dark haired odangoed girl rubbed at her eyes with small fists before 

 looking

 up at ChibiUsa again. “An angel told me. She was really pretty, with pink 

 hair kinda like

 yours, but it was past her shoulders. She was all shimmery and had a white 

 dress on that

 was really long and pretty, too. She said that it wasn’t enough.”

 	“That what wasn’t enough?” ChibiUsa asked encouragingly, wanting to know

 what had gotten the younger girl so upset.

 	“That you didn’t love her enough…” Selene said quietly, looking down.

 	ChibiUsa shook her head emphatically. “No, that’s absurd. I love Hotaru 

 more

 than anything. How could I not love her enough?” she demanded, her heart 

 starting to

 ache from the very idea.

 	“I.. I don’t know…” Selene barely got out, on the verge of tears.

 	ChibiUsa closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. It was nothing, just a 

 figment of

 Selene’s imagination. Sure it was kind of odd, but that was just not even 

 worth worrying

 about. Of course she loved Hotaru enough. She slowly smiled again, hugging 

 the smaller

 girl. “It’s going to be alright, Selene. Whatever it was, it was wrong. I 

 love Hotaru with

 all my heart.” ChibiUsa’s words reassured both herself and Selene. Smiling a 

 little

 brighter, ChibiUsa tilted her head to the side. “Want to get some ice cream? 

 We can

 forget all about this.”

 	Selene jumped up and down excitedly. “Hai!! Thanks, ChibiUsa-mama! You’re

 the best!” She hugged ChibiUsa tightly, already starting to forget her odd 

 vision.

 

 	They were finally alone. That was the first thought that ran through 

 ChibiUsa’s

 head as she walked hand in hand with Hotaru to the beach house. In the 

 distance, the two

 could hear Haruka’s car driving off. She’d be there to pick them up in a few 

 days. In the

 meantime, that left the lovers alone with each other at the beach house. No 

 children, no

 schoolwork, no responsibility. Juts the wonderful feeling of being together. 

 They had

 come out here to be alone, a birthday present Hotaru had given her so they 

 could spend

 the next few days together without a care in the world. ChibiUsa smiled 

 brightly at the

 dark haired girl, squeezing her hand slightly.  The pale girl’s hand 

 squeezed back as

 Hotaru turned to her with a smile.

 	As they stood in front of the doors, ChibiUsa felt an almost overwhelming 

 sense

 of fear and regret overtake her. As if her whole life would change by 

 walking through

 those doors. She leaned against Hotaru, holding her arm tightly.

 	“ChibiUsa-chan?” Hotaru looked at her worriedly. Her usually cheerful

 complexion was now deathly pale. Hotaru’s arm started to ache from the death 

 grip

 ChibiUsa had on it. The raven haired girl started to panic, barely holding 

 herself in check

 for ChibiUsa’s sake. This was so unlike the vibrant future princess. What 

 could be so

 horribly wrong?

 	Taking a deep, soothing breath, ChibiUsa smiled calmly at Hotaru, 

 suppressing

 the wave of emotions that had passed over her. “Its nothing. I just haven’t 

 been getting

 much sleep lately because of the twins. And Kousagi’s been keeping me up 

 whenever

 I’m at my house, so that’s it.” She giggled at the skeptical look Hotaru 

 threw her.

 “Really, its nothing. You worry too much, Hota-chan. Let’s just enjoy 

 ourselves. You and

 me.”

 	Beautiful crimson eyes gazed brightly at her as the future princess’s arm 

 went

 around Hotaru’s waist. Hotaru felt herself relaxing in ChibiUsa’s grasp. If 

 ChibiUsa was

 okay, then there really wasn’t anything for her to be worrying about. The 

 nervousness

 slowly started to ebb away, replaced by a warm feeling her heart as her 

 violet eyes befell

 the pink haired goddess before her. Hotaru smiled softly. “Hai, its your 

 birthday, so if

 that’s what you want to do, I’m all for it.” Leaning forward, her lips 

 lightly brushed

 ChibiUsa’s. “Happy birthday, Odango-chan.”

 	“I can’t think of a better way to spend my birthday,” ChibiUsa said, 

 grinning.

 

 	ChibiUsa rolled over for what had to be the eighth time that night.

 No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get to sleep. And that usually

 wasn't a problem for her whenever she had Hotaru right beside her. Their

 clothes lay scattered on the floor, their bodies entangled under the sheets.

 ChibiUsa held the frail girl close, the feel of her bare skin reminding her

 of the passionate moment they'd shared not long ago. The raven haired girl,

 who had enough trouble sleeping normally, was fast asleep next to her. She

 was tired after what they'd done, but she couldn't get to sleep. Closing her

 eyes just made matters worse. She sighed, her hands covering her face in

 frustration. Why was it bothering her? She knew she loved Hotaru, that's

 all that mattered. So why couldn't she get to sleep? All day, Hotaru had 

 been

 pretending nothing was wrong, trying to hide her worry while ChibiUsa had

 been dancing around the subject and trying to reassure Hotaru that

 everything was alright. Neither had been able to enjoy themselves because

 of how she was acting. Sitting up in bed, the pink haired girl slowly

 disentangled herself from her sleeping lover. She knew she wouldn’t be

 getting any sleep tonight.

 	Her thoughts in a jumble, ChibiUsa slipped off the bed, her toes

 moving against the soft feel of the carpet. Tilting her head to the side,

 ChibiUsa gazed at the raven haired girl alone in the bed for a what felt 

 like

 an eternity. Her fingers gingerly followed the contours of Hotaru’s 

 beautiful

 face, brushing past her soft lips, warm cheeks, and finally through

 midnight black hair. She leaned down, brushing some of Hotaru’s dark hair

 back. Her lips gently pressed against Hotaru’s as her fingers stroked down

 to the pale girl’s neck. Something wet rolled down ChibiUsa’s cheek down

 to Hotaru’s, startling the pink haired girl. Slowly pulling away, a hand 

 went

 to her face. Another tear rolled down her cheek. “I’m crying? Why am I

 crying?” she asked herself in a daze. The pink haired girl balled up her 

 fists

 in frustration, shutting her eyes tightly as a wave of sadness swept through

 her body. An icy pit formed in her stomach as more tears started falling.

 ‘I’m supposed to be happy. I’ve got everything I could ever want. I have

 you, Hota-chan. I love you.” A sob punctuated her declaration of love, her

 hand wiping at the still forming tears in her crimson eyes.

 	Looking down at Hotaru, ChibiUsa’s fingers lightly brushed her

 cheek again. Part of her wanted to wake the sleeping angel, to try to tell 

 her

 the jumble of emotions going through her. But she couldn’t bring herself to

 wake the raven haired girl up. Each time she’d try, she stopped herself just

 before she could. What would Hotaru think? She wouldn’t think… ChibiUsa

 pulled her hand away from Hotaru’s pale skin as if burned. Selene’s words

 burst into her mind. ‘That you didn’t love her enough…’ She shook her head

 violently, her hands going through her pink hair as a lonely wail escaped 

 her lips. “That

 can’t be it. It can’t be….” She desperately wanted to shake Hotaru awake, to 

 tell her just

 how much she loved her, to here Hotaru tell her she knows, that she’s always 

 known. But

 ChibiUsa still couldn’t bring herself to disturb the raven haired girl’s 

 peaceful slumber.

 So often, Hotaru would look tormented in her sleep. This would just ruin one 

 of the few

 restful slumbers that Hotaru’s had. “I’m being selfish, Hota-chan. I’ll be 

 okay. I can

 handle this.”

 	With that, the future princess headed out the door of their bedroom, 

 padding

 across the plush carpet. At first she didn’t know where she was going, but 

 she quickly

 realized the path she was taking. The Mirror. Of course! How could she have 

 been so

 blind? Michiru had lent ChibiUsa her hand mirror for their trip to the beach 

 house, telling

 her the talisman would keep them safe. The mirror could show the truth, no 

 matter how

 hidden it may be. She could easily look into that to see how deep her 

 feelings for Hotaru

 ran. After proving them to her satisfaction, she could be off to bed and 

 cuddling with her

 firefly. She grinned happily as she made her way to the mirror, lying unused 

 on a table in

 the living room. ChibiUsa felt almost dizzy as she picked up the mirror. It 

 was cold to the

 touch. Something in the back of her mind told her to put it down, that how 

 dare she

 question their love. Afterall, it didn’t matter that Hotaru’s hair wasn’t 

 pink.  She wet her

 parched lips nervously, the icy pit in her stomach returning a hundred fold. 

 Holding the

 mirror up, she gazed into it. Rather than a direct reflection, the image in 

 the mirror was of

 her as a princess. The truth. Taking a deep breath, ignoring the warnings in 

 the back of

 her head, ChibiUsa concentrated on the mirror. “Show me the depths of my 

 love.”

 

 	She ran, ignoring the sharp pain of rocks scraping against the skin of her 

 bare

 feet, ignoring everything as she tried to get further and further away. Her 

 hair, let down

 from its normal odango style for the night, trailed behind her past her 

 shoulders. Tears

 blinded her, blurring her vision, but she didn’t care. Nothing mattered 

 anymore. Nothing.

 Her frantic thoughts swirled about in her mind like a whirlwind, jumbled 

 beyond

 coherency other than the deep pain she felt in her heart.

 	As she ran along the rocky cliff face, barely even realizing where she was. 

 She

 wiped at her eyes desperately, stinging tears dripping wetly down her 

 cheeks. ‘Why?!

 Why?’ she thought, over and over again, begging for an answer, any answer to 

 the pain

 she felt. Her heart ached deeply, as if she’d been cut open by The Senshi of 

 Death and

 Rebirth herself. Was that how she truly felt? Was that what was to happen? 

 She didn’t

 return Hotaru’s feelings with half the blaze, half the sheer strength that 

 Hotaru had in her

 love for her. ChibiUsa shuddered, feeling cold inside. As if she’d been 

 drowning in a

 freezing river for so long and had only now opened her eyes. What could she 

 say to

 Hotaru? Anything she could say would only hurt her, ChibiUsa was sure. She 

 hugged

 herself tightly, her small body wracked by sobs as she continued her aimless 

 running, her

 only thoughts to escape the horror of her thoughts.

 	So intent was she upon her fleeing that she never noticed where she was

 running. The rocky ledge started to give way beneath her bare feet, a 

 breathless scream

 trapped forever in her lips as she fell. The princess barely felt the 

 impact, everything

 starting to fade out as she hit the shore below. She lay there, tears still 

 running down her

 cheeks, not even realizing she was taking her dying breath. “Taru…”

 

 	“ChibiUsa-chan!! ChibiUsa-chan, where are you?! Please, please come back to

 me, ChibiUsa-chan….” Hotaru slumped to her knees in defeat, her dark skirt 

 getting

 sullied by the wet sand on the beach. Last night, ChibiUsa had seemed so 

 upset about

 something. She’d gone out to look for the pink haired future princess in the 

 dark, but she

 was nowhere to be found. Hotaru had hoped that she’d gone back to the beach 

 house, but

 no such luck. She had finally cried herself to sleep when she had gotten 

 back to their

 empty bed. Waking up, she had the false hope that she’d be in ChibiUsa’s 

 arms and that

 everything would be alright again. Now she had to wonder if things would 

 ever be alright

 from then on.

 	Her black tights and dark clothes barely kept back the biting cold wind 

 that blew

 past her. Icy knives raked her face as she stumbled forward, wiping at her 

 eyes with her

 long sleeve. “ChibiUsa-chan…” She wanted to give up, to go back inside the 

 warm house

 and cry herself back to sleep. She hadn’t slept much the night before, so 

 why not? What

 could she hope to find out here? Something inside her pushed her on, 

 spurring her

 forward. Standing up again, the raven haired girl weakly made her way along 

 the beach.

 She nearly lost her footing in the wet sand, but kept going after steadying 

 herself. She

 trudged on and on, the lapping of the waves and the whistling of the wind 

 the only sounds

 around her.

 	About to collapse from exhaustion, the raven haired girl’s attention was 

 caught

 by something up ahead. Something pink. She squinted, trying to make out what 

 it could

 be, praying that it was the girl she sought. She’d soon come to regret that 

 as her prayers

 were answered. As she ran to the other girl, she quickly noticed that 

 ChibiUsa wasn’t

 moving. Her pink hair was moving back and forth as the wind played with it. 

 Her

 normally immaculate white nightgown was stained with the brown of the wet 

 sand and

 streaks of crimson. Her body was lying in a heap, looking like a rag doll 

 that had been

 thrown aside.

 	Hotaru ran as fast as she could, her heart catching in her chest. In her 

 haste, her

 foot caught on a rock, forcing her to tumble to the ground. She got up and 

 pushed on,

 despite the intense pain in her twisted ankle. It couldn’t rival the pain in 

 her heart.

 “ChibiUsa-chan!!!” she cried out, almost expecting the pink haired girl to 

 sit up. Hot

 tears poured down her cheeks as she fell to her knees besides the prone 

 future princess.

 “ChibiUsa-chan, get up. Please, get up,” the dark haired girl sobbed as her 

 arms went

 around the cold body of her one true love. She held ChibiUsa close, a tear 

 falling onto

 ChibiUsa’s cheek. The pink haired girl’s face looked almost the same as it 

 had the night

 before. Her large crimson eyes were glassy and looking up at Hotaru, her 

 normally

 vibrant cheeks now pale. Hotaru clutched onto ChibiUsa in her grief. She 

 felt as if her

 heart had been torn from her chest. As if a piece of her, the most important 

 piece, had

 been taken from her. “ChibiUsa-chan… Don’t leave me alone… I’m scared to be 

 alone..

 I need you with me, ChibiUsa-chan… I need you…” she barely managed to get 

 out

 through heart wrenching sobs. The painful realization that her lover was now 

 dead kept

 trying to impose itself on her mind, but she clung to the hope that she’d be 

 okay, that she

 would get up in her arms, returning the embrace.

 	Hotaru stayed that way for a long time, ignoring everything around her as 

 she

 held the dead princess tightly against her. “Its like she’s asleep… She’s so 

 pretty when

 she’s asleep… Its like you’re taking a nap, ChibiUsa-chan. You sleep well, 

 and I’ll be

 here when you wake up… I’ll always be here when you awake. Because…” The 

 dark

 haired girl looked intently at the lost love in her arms, tears still 

 streaming down her

 cheeks. “I love you.”

 

 	A few hours later, a blue sports car stopped in front of the beach house.

 A woman with sandy blonde hair stepped out of the car, holding her jacket 

 tightly

 around her as the sea breeze came in. Smiling to herself, she reached back 

 in

 the car and pulled out the last of ChibiUsa’s birthday presents, lovingly 

 wrapped

 in a deep violet wrapping paper with black lace ribbons. Hotaru had 

 forgotten the

 present she had been going to give ChibiUsa in her haste and Haruka hadn't

 found it in the back of her car until she was well back to the city. She'd 

 decided to

 stop by the next day and return it to her daughter to give to the ChibiUsa.

 Cinching her jacket around her, the tall woman made her way to the door of 

 the

 beach house and knocked on the door. “Hime-chan! Its me, Haruka-papa,” she

 said after a few moments. There was no answer. Haruka frowned and tried the

 door. She began to worry as the unlocked door opened. What could have

 happened to the two girls? She commanded herself to stop worrying. They were

 probably at the beach and left the door open for when they’d come back in.

 Something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. She

 instantly recognized it as Michiru’s mirror. It was lying on the floor near 

 one of the

 tables in the living room as if someone had thrown in aside in a hurry. 

 Haruka’s

 heart started beating faster as she quickly searched the beach house. Her

 surrogate daughter and the future princess were nowhere to be found. Rather

 than waste time panicking, the blonde woman rushed out of the house, intent 

 on

 finding the two girls. Trudging out towards the beach, she couldn’t help but 

 shiver

 as the biting wind increased. It was too cold to be swimming. They couldn’t 

 be

 out here for that. Then why… Haruka shook her head. She wouldn’t allow 

 herself

 to assume the worst yet. First things first. She had to find them.

 	After what felt like hours of walking, but must have been considerably

 less, Haruka thought she heard a faint voice being carried by the wind. A 

 voice

 filled with utter despair and hopelessness. A voice that had lost any of the 

 joy

 and wonder life had to offer. At first, she thought it was only the wind, 

 but the soft

 voice continued. Haruka finally caught sight of a girl dressed entirely in 

 black, her

 rave hair being whipped around by the wind as she clutched onto something

 protectively. The blonde woman ran to her surrogate daughter, determined to

 make sure everything was okay. He stopped dead in her tracks when she saw

 the lifeless form of a once happy pink haired girl in Hotaru’s arms. “My 

 God….”

 She gasped.

 	Hotaru didn’t even look up, not noticing her Haruka-papa’s arrival. “So

 pretty when you sleep like this. And I’ll watch over you forever, my 

 sleeping

 beauty….” Hotaru’s fingers gently brushed over ChibiUsa’s cold lips as she

 continued rambling semi-coherently. “Forever.”

 

 

 "It's so cold..."                                                     .

 	Ever since what had happened, Hotaru kept a nearly steady monologue.

 The silence meant she was alone again.. always alone.. forever..  And she 

 didn't

 want to be left alone.  Not now, not ever.  Everything that had happened.. 

 it

 was like a whole new person.  "It's not me.  Silly.  I'm watching myself.. 

 like

 on a screen..."

 	All around her, the room seemed bare, stripped of everything.  Her

 normally dark room was even darker without the beautiful shining lamps to 

 soften

 it.  "But the lamps were too dangerous, ne, Michiru-mama?  You wouldn't want

 me

 to break one and use the glass to slit my wrists.  You want me to suffer.."

 	The dark-haired girl, long out of tears, looked over everything she had

 left.  The bed was bare, so she couldn't strangle herself with the sheets.  

 Her

 beautiful lamps had been replaced by three solemn candles.  She only had her

 books.. her only escape for so many years before was her only option now.  

 Or..

 	That seemed a lifetime ago to the grief-stricken girl.  "Oh, back then,

 no-one cared if I lived or I died.. Kaori-baka would've been GLAD to see me 

 go.

 And.. if I'd died then... she wouldn't..."  Closing her eyes tight and 

 trying

 to remove the image from her mind, she thought over her options.  Ever since

 her parents set up this suicide watch, after that first night alone, she'd 

 had

 no privacy, not even a chance to mourn in peace.  She'd just been almost 

 locked

 in her room, from how they treated her outside it, and even then one of them

 would check on her every few minutes, even if she was asleep.

 	All she had left were her books..

 	"They say history repeats.. I know.. I watched it.. over and over..  An

 endless loop.  I was alone then.. I'm alone now.. oh, ChibiUsa-chan.. why

 couldn't I have died instead?"

 	The desk was gone.  The shelves, the table, the chairs - all taken out.

 All that was left were her books and her bed.. and the candles.  Near a 

 corner,

 the remains of her diary sat.  She'd tried to communicate that way, writing

 everything using the stub of a pencil Setsuna-mama had finally agreed to 

 give

 her.  After the first hundred pages or so, she'd realized she wasn't making 

 any

 sense at all, and questioned the point of it.  But, then again, what were 

 all

 of her diaries for?  All the secrets, every little thing, kept in meticulous

 detail... "No-one could understand.  I couldn't let them understnd.  They'd 

 see

 and they wouldn't understand.. the only person who could ever understand is

 dead.  Saturn!  Where are you now?  If you're truly the Messiah, reigning 

 over

 Death and Rebirth, then tell me why!"

 	But, then, an idea came.. and in her broken mind, with its broken soul,

 living a lifeless shell in a grey world without even the comfort of trust, 

 it

 made perfect sense.

 	No-one would understand.  So why let them try?

 	She stood, shakily, blinking and wiping her bloodshot eyes.  It would

 still be a few minutes at least, until someone checked on her.  Praying it

 would be long enough, she set to work, seperating her books from her diaries

 and journals, her secrets..  Making a pile, she begin to organize it all, 

 bit

 by bit, working slowly and carefully.  It was almost time.

 	Her work was interrupted by a knock at her door.  "Hime-chan?  Is

 everything okay?"  It was Haruka-papa, come to make sure she hadn't died.

 Not responding, she waited for the blonde woman to open the door and

 check.  "Hime-chan?"  The door slowly creaked open, and Haruka stuck her

 head

 inside.  "I know it's hard for you, Hime-chan.  But we have to be sure."  

 When

 Hotaru didn't even bother to look up, Haruka just sighed and shut the door

 again.

 	Alone once more, the girl set her plan into motion.  Tearing pages out,

 shredding some, pulling some into strips, leaving some notebooks whole, she

 prepared.  All of her work, everything she had left, everything she was.. it

 was all here.  And with a touch of the candle..

 	It took a minute or so to catch.  Hotaru blew on the small fire,

 letting it grow at its own pace.  She knew that the smoke alarm's batteries 

 had

 been dead for weeks, and since everyone was asleep or downstairs, there'd be

 no-one to stop her.  Page by page, she fed the fire.. whole years of her 

 life,

 burning away.  "It's warm, ChibiUsa-chan.. can you feel it?  It's not like

 everything else..  This is how it has to be, now.  If I can't die.. I'll 

 make

 it so I was never around in the first place.  Without these for people to

 remember me by, I'll just fade away.  No-one cares but you, ChibiUsa-chan..

 no-one....  They want me to live on, forget the past.  Find someone to 

 console

 me and love me.  Be happy.  I've never been happy, ChibiUsa-chan.  I can't 

 ever

 remember being happy.  Not without you..."

 	The flickering flames glittered, reflected in her sad, tired eyes.. so

 tired, so old.. dead.

 	The fire spread to the floor, spread through the room.  By now, it was

 quite obvious that the room was ablaze, if not the whole house.  And Haruka,

 just now noticing the smell, was quick to run up and check on her 

 dark-haired

 princess.  Sirens could be heard, off in the distance.. a neighbor saw the

 flame, the firefighters would arrive soon.

 	Haruka arrived just in time to pull the firefly from the heart of the

 fire before anything more than her hair and clothes were singed.  The girl 

 was

 unconscious, passed out from the lack of sleep and the fumes of the books'

 bindings as they caught.

 

 	Two figures watched from the shadows.

 	Children.

 	It almost seemed they were part of the background.. a piece that

 doesn't quite fit, that everyone overlooks..

 	One spoke.  Her voice quiet, almost detached.

 	"Shisa?"

 	"Yes, Selene?"

 	"Do you think we went too far?  I mean.."

 	They watched, as their mother was revived by her Haruka-papa.  As she

 was doomed to ever live, lifeless.

 	"Yes, Selene."

 	"Oh.. look, Shisa!  I can see through us.  We're fading.... Shisa?"

 	"Yes, Selene?"

 	"I am the wind.. look!  Whoosh!"

 	A gust of wind came, as the window was broken in by a firefighter.

 The two figures seemed to dissipate, with the smoke..