Oh boy, I hope y'all are ready for sad lore I've spent too much time on.

So Rachel fading away and fading in relevancy in my cast is all very connected, she's been around for years and both me and Zahara have changed a lot in that time. So I started writing an idea that I've been building up to for a while, something that basically wraps up a character arc for Zahara that I've only really laid out but not really shared outside of with a few friends.

Basically, Rachel doesn't exist, not outside of Zahara's mind. Rachel's unconditional and unfailing kindness is all imagined, as a coping mechanism during a particularly traumatic set of years for our red-haired feline. Initially I didn't intend for it to be written that way, but with many character and plot ambiguities in the timeline, the idea started to make too much sense.

It was also a fairly open secret among the cast, too. A lifetime loner that escaped years of trauma isn't going to be the most adjusted, but as time goes by and change takes its course, helped along by an ever growing list of wonderful friends, the need for a psychological crutch starts to fade.

Of course, change is scary and even someone envisioned from a horrible period of life becomes a mainstay, and letting go of someone intended to be the perfect partner is terrifying. But that's okay. And shedding tears is too.

All goodbyes are hard. But now she can say goodbye knowing that everything will be alright on the other side.

(As you can tell by the alternate version posted prior to this, I'm still a little hesitant about fully committing to the canonicity of this. Does this technically count as killing off a character? Ah, whatever. I think the arc is more satisfying, even if it does come across as sad. Change can be like that, but in some instances, it's for the best.)

Based off [ link=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4W49WMFfeo ] the The Dismemberment Plan song of the same name [/link]