Wish You Were Here (Bonten Rindou Haitani X Fem. OC)

Chapter Twelve:

"Where did you go there?" Ryoko quietly asks as he threads his arm through mine.

"What do you mean?" I reply.

"You weren't all...there...for a moment. Your mind seemed to have wandered off." He explains.

I hum in response. "Nowhere important."

Kaede POV

Ryoko took my arm as he led me into the small crowd of funeral goers. The crowd was very small, intimate if you will, evidence of how little our small group socializes with the others at HQ. 

I hesitate in my steps, catching the attention of my brother.

"You okay?" Ryoko asks as he gives my arm a comforting squeeze. I nod my head in response, putting on my most brave face.

We head further into the crowd, sighting Natsu up ahead, already mingling with the other attendees.

Ryoko and I gather with the rest of the crowd. I look around, gazing at the attendees of the funeral, seeing that the majority of the people present have never even met Ayuri before.

It breaks my heart, seeing that Ryoko, Natsu, and I were the only ones who really knew her for who she was. 

I watch as our Boss goes to stand in front of the crowd, spewing off nonsense like "Ayuri was loved by everybody" and "she was such a valuable team player".

I start at her closed casket, zoning out. My mind mentally drifts to Ayuri, a small smile coming to my face. 

DING

Kaede looks up from her phone, finding herself sitting in a booth at her favorite cafe. 

"Kaede!" 

She whips her head around, trying to make a sense of her surroundings, but only finds herself more confused as to what's happening. 'Wasn't I just at...'

"Kaede!"

Kaede's two toned eyes look to where the voice is coming from, immediately finding the amber eyes her little sister walking through the doors of the coffee shop. 

Kaede abruptly gets up from the table and speed walks to the younger girl, bringing her into a bone crushing hug. 

"Kaede! You're making me dizzy!" Ayuri giggles as Kaede spins her around in a hug, finally opting to put the dizzy girl down. 

"What are you doing here?" Kaede asks the girl while trying to contain her own emotions. 

"What do you mean?" Ayuri looks at her quizzically. "You invited me here?" Ayuri brings her fingers up to the older girls eyes, wiping away her tears. "Why are you crying?" Ayuri asks. 

"Y-ou...y-ou..." Kaede starts to speak, but can't stop herself from stuttering. 

Ayuri gently takes ahold of Kaede's hand, "Come, let's go sit down." Ayuri guides Kaede back to the table in the cafe.

Kaede can't stop gawking at Ayuri. 'How can this be...this isn't a memory...she's dead.'