From Another World

32. The Ceremony

(I saw way too many errors in this chapter that bothered me lol. Edited 10/15/2023)

Right after school, I went straight home, telling Kyoya that I would meet him tomorrow at the ceremony and he sent me off with a kiss on the cheek. When I arrived home the babysitter, Rika, was there talking to Dad. Yuujin was not home yet so we had about an hour before he came home.

"Satsu, come here," Dad waved me over. "I haven't told you yet but Rika is one of our undercover agents; it's one of the main reasons she was trusted to look after you and Yuujin when I wasn't around."

"Ahh..." I slowly nod, seeing Rika's sheepish smile. "I guess that makes sense..."

"I told her about the ceremony and that both of us would be gone for a few days," he explained, "We'll tell Yuujin that I'll be on another business trip in Tokyo and you will be at a friend's house for a study sleepover. I can tell him that I'll be dropping you off on my way."

I nod in understanding. Dad mentioned that I should pack my things, so I went upstairs, grabbed a duffel, and started putting in clothes and necessities for three days. I realized that my hands were trembling and shook my head, lightly slapping my cheeks.

"Pull yourself together..." I mumble. "It'll all work out... All you have to do is support them..."

I heard the front door slam, signaling that Yuu was home and I took a deep breath, leaving the duffel on my bed to walk back downstairs and greet my little brother. He was excitedly talking to Rika, saying things he wanted to do during the extended weekend.

"Sorry for leaving you here all alone, bud," I said, ruffling his hair once I was close enough.

He shook his head. "It's okay, nee-chan! Rika-san and I will have lots of fun!"

"And thank you so much as always for doing this," I say to Rika.

She turned to me and shook her head. "It really is no big deal, Satsuki-chan. I always have a lot of fun with Yuujin-kun. You stay safe at your friend's place, okay?"

"It's just a study session," I say, glancing at Yuu. "I'll be inside the whole time, so we'll be safe."

We exchange a few more pleasantries before I go back upstairs to change from my school uniform to casual wear. I sat on my bed, starting to think about the upcoming days...

Yamamoto.

I froze, my heart beating. He'll be attacked by Kaoru after baseball practice tonight. I clenched my hands, bunching them up in my bedsheets. I can't believe I forgot. I wondered if there was anything I could've done to avoid this... but with my fading memories, interfering seemed impossible now. It looks like destiny was going to play its part after all.

Dad knocked on my door and peeked in. "Are you ready... What's wrong?"

"My past memories are slowly fading..." I confess, looking up at him. "I just remembered something that will happen tonight and I question what importance I have if I can't protect the people I care about. It hurts to realize it..."

Dad came in, closing the door behind him. He kneeled in front of me, taking my hands into his and looking into my eyes.

"You just become stronger," he simply stated. "Gain the strength to protect the ones you care about."

I took a deep breath, nodding. "I will. Who knows, maybe I'll become even stronger than you."

Dad chuckled, patting my hands. "I'd love to see that!"

We left the house soon after, saying bye to Yuujin and Rika. I sat in the car, silent. Dad understood and reached over to rub my shoulder a couple of times when I sighed. When we were almost at the hotel, my cell rang. I tensed up, flipping it open. It was Gokudera. I pressed the answer button and brought my phone up to my ear.