Later, once I let her experience more things

After a moment, I decided against it, at least for now.

Maybe in a few days... once I let her experience more things...

I wanted to believe that I was doing the right thing, that I was helping Airi by doing what I did today. I was scared of what my mother would think, if she were to see me like this.

I finished eating and put the dish in the dishwasher, before going to sleep, exhausted. I didn't have any dream or nightmare this time, it was a relief.

My alarm rang, and I opened my eyes with some difficulty the next morning... "Hmm…” I turned off the alarm and stood up, yawning. "Time for another day as Airi..."

I got up from the bed, stretching my arms and legs. Airi's body was slender and delicate, but her dancing often in her free time made her pretty flexible.

I went to the wardrobe, ready to grab my uniform, when I heard someone knocking on the door. "Airi? Are you awake?" Margaret's voice was coming from behind the door.

I had forgotten about this, it was a good thing she was already back.

"Mother! Yes, I just woke up."

"Can I come in?"

"Of course."

Margaret entered the room with a shopping bag in her hand.

I greeted her with a warm smile. "Welcome back, Mother! And good morning!"

She smiled back softly. Her smile made me feel happy. "Good morning, Airi… Did you sleep well?"

"Yes."

"Good." Margaret opened the bag, revealing a black camisole and a black skirt.

"Why did you buy me that, Mother?" I asked, curious.

"We're going to the cemetery, so you need a fitting outfit.” She answered.

I tilted my head. "The cemetery? Why?"

She closed her eyes, apparently saddened. "I want you to come with me. I'm also going to change. Please join me downstairs when you're done."

I nodded, not wanting to hold her up anymore than I had to right now. “Okay, Mother."

She turned her back to me, ready to leave my room. "I'll be waiting, then."

After she closed my door, I grabbed the clothes and took a look at them. They seemed formal enough for a ceremony, but they would’ve also worked as casualwear.

"Well, I don't want to make her wait. But let's sink into Airi again, first..."

It didn't take long for me to do that, us two becoming one again. We quickly put on the clothes, ready to leave, but we were intrigued. We wondered what this was all about.

"It's not the anniversary of Father's **** yet." We commented.

We left the room and went downstairs, where we met with Mother." She had a black dress and hat, alongiside black pantyhose and heels, and a mourning veil and hat.

We ate a quick breakfast in silence, Mother not saying anything and appearing saddened, and then went to the car.

During the car ride, he wanted to ask her about all this. "Mother?"

"What is it, Airi?" She asked, keeping her eyes on the road.

"Why are we going to the cemetary?"

She went silent, looking pensive for a moment. Whatever the reason was, it was very personal to her.

"Someone... really close to me died…" She finally said. "The ceremony is held today."

"Who were they?"

She had a sorrowful smile at my question. "Someone... who hated me... But whom I loved deeply…" She looked genuinely hurt, so we preferred to not ask any more questions.

The rest of the ride was silent, until we reached the cemetary. We arrived a bit before the ceremony started. A few dozens people were assembled here. We approached the front, looking at the picture of the deceased person. It was a woman who seemed to have been in her late thirties, with light silvery hair.

The priest supervising the ceremony spoke. "We are all gathered here to commemorate the life of Yamiko, who died protecting the one she loved. Her sacrifice to protect the life of one of her students will forever be remembered and she will always be in our hearts."

As people bowed, we noticed Mother clenching her fists, tears rolling down her cheeks and ruining her makeup… "You foolish girl… Why did you have to follow in your father's footsteps...? Why...?"

Mother fell on her knees, crying even more.

“Mother!" We quickly went to hug her, influenced by him..."

"I should have been there for you…" She muttered.

"Mother… I'm here for you, Mother."

We hugged her more tightly, trying to comfort her as much as possible. We didn't know why she cried so much, but it didn't matter. All that mattered was that she was hurt, and that we wanted to alleviate her pain.

We glanced around, and spotted a college-looking girl staring at the ocean while Yamiko's ashes were scattered, her dark brown hair flowing with the wind, and tears covering her face… She looked devastated by her ****, as well… She apparently was the student who was with Yamiko when she was killed...

Poor girl...

We really wanted to comfort her, too, but we couldn't leave Mother in the state she was in… We kept hugging Mother until the ceremony ended.

"Thank you…" She said softly, slowly calming down.

“You don't need to thank me, Mother… Let's get back home, alright?"

Mother wiped her tears away, and stood back up, brushing some dust off her clothes. "Let's… There are still things we need to do."

We went back to the car, and grabbed Mother's hand on the way, to show that we cared about her. The ride back home was silent, but Mother glanced at us a few times. She was still sad, but wasn't crying anymore.

I stopped the mind sink during the ride, to not exhaust myself like yesterday. Dizziness overcame me, but I did my best to hide it.