Legacy Mutation (Book Eight)

Chapter 51: Close Calls

"Um...hello everyone, my name is Hamato Asher."

Most of the grade eleven Roosevelt School students sit in neat little rows of plastic chairs inside a serene little park. An enlarged picture of Kelly is propped up next to the stand that Asher is currently speaking from. He gulps and adjusts his tie, looking to Dakota and Lukas fleetingly. Dakota keeps her head down, a veiled hat covering her one visible eye, and Lukas holds her hand comfortingly.

In the audience, the other Hamatos sit among the students. Destiny is staying with Dean back at home, so she's the only person missing. Nixie and Mitch stay side-by-side, their hands clasped around one another's. Tiki's mother, who had borrowed a human patch, sits next to her son, her sleek black hair framing her coffee-coloured skin as she rests a hand on Tiki's knee. Copeland watches from next to them with her parents on her other side. Elisabeth sits with her family, her head down and her eyes reddened.

"Kelly...Kelly..." Asher says, trying to say the right words.

He looks over the crowd again, seeing Ruby in the front row. She nods and flashes a weak yet encouraging smile his way.

"Kelly was unlike anyone I've ever met before," he continues, letting his heart speak for him. "Her death was a tragedy, like most deaths are, but...this one was different. She was young, she had a life ahead of her...and that was taken." He looks down briefly, adjusting his glasses. "Kelly once told me that she never thought of herself as brave and strong, or even all that smart. Well...if she were here right now, I'd tell her that she's the bravest girl I've ever met. In my eyes, she'll always be a hero."

Dakota lets out a small sob, covering her mouth with her hand again. Lukas wraps an arm around her shoulders, his face stony with the effort of keeping his own tears at bay.

"Many of you didn't know Kelly on a personal level, but I did. Dakota and Lukas did, and we know her for her. On the outside, she was a quiet and shy girl with a big imagination and a passion for discovery. On the inside...she's brave, selfless, and...and I wish that I could just tell her how much she really meant to me, to the world. She...she was so special, so important, but she never realized that." He looks down, his fingers gripping the podium tightly as he swallows the lump growing in his throat. "Her...her last words, as I held her at the sight of the accident, were 'I believe you'. It doesn't seem like much to all of you, but to me...having someone who believes what I tell them is something rare and precious, and I'm so blessed to have had someone like that in my life." He straightens up, shutting his eyes briefly. "Rest in peace, Kells. We'll never forget you."

He turns and leaves the podium, rejoining his spot next to Dakota and Lukas. Dakota grabs one of their hands each with her own, squeezing lightly as the funeral continues on.

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Leonardo heads towards the turnstiles at the front of the lair, his stride fast.

"Where do you think you're going?"

He stiffens, gritting his teeth and looking behind him at Destiny. She crosses her arms and arches an eyebrow.

"Out," he answers.

"Yeah, like you always are nowadays," she comments, her tone angry.

Leo turns around, his eyes narrowed. "What else am I supposed to do?"

"Not leave and ignore the fact that your son is hanging on to life by a mere thread!" she snaps, her voice breaking.

"There's nothing I can do to help Dean. It's all on him now, and that's it."

"Really? You're abandoning him?"

"I am not abandoning him, Destiny. I'm letting him fight his own battles for once. He wanted it so badly anyways, why not let him?"