The worn out rolls struggled rattling through their guiding rail, as Yoshiro shove the warehouse door open. Yuna stood behind him, wondering what she had to expect.
The Oni brought her into the warehouse. It was located on the same areal as Yoshiro's hideout. The girl wondered if he owned the whole property. How rich was he really?
They came to stand in front of a collection of plastic containers and crates.
"Wait ..." Yoshiro read the labels. "This is from your parents bedroom."
"I have no need for this."
She immediately felt sorry for her harsh words. Her parents were dead. This stuff here was everything that was left of them. Yuna gulped. She opened a box. The work uniform of her father was on top. Hundreds of times had she seen him leaving the house in this uniform, when he went to work. She ran her fingers over his name tag.
"Hm ... I had met him in such a uniform.", noted Yoshiro.
Yuna looked at her "uncle". "You miss him, right? You have spent a lot of time together ..."
"It was only a few moments considering the centuries that I have been living, but yeah ... I miss him. I miss all of them.", confessed the Oni moody.
She sniffed. "I miss them too."
Previously, Yuna was not able to feel this loss, but now it was omnipresent. She was afraid, that she would break from the pressure, but she had to be strong. Her parents had brought her up to be a strong, young woman, and Yoshiro supported her with all his might. And there were her new friends, Ayumi and Wataru, who were there for her. She wasn't really alone, but at the same time, she felt so lonely.
Her mentor had already gone further and investigated another stack of crates.
The huntress lifted another lid and peered into the box. Clothes of her mother. She recognized the colorful patterns from her mother's favorite dress. She remembered last year's summer. Kaori had worn this dress as often as possible. Tears welled in her eye.
She reached for the garment and lifted it up to her nose. It smelled a bit of smoke, but the fragrance that she associated with her mother was also still present. Yuna sobbed quietly while tears slid down her cheek. She glanced at Yoshiro, who turned his gaze away caught, and further inspected the crates.
The girl decided to take this dress with her, wash it and wear it. In memory of her mother. "What have you got over there?"
"Kids stuff."
Yuna locked her box again and went over to her mentor. She looked over Yoshiro's shoulder as he rummaged through a box. Baby bodysuits. These were Ayu's. She thought of her youngest sister. How she failed, when Tirr snatched the baby from her. The girl raised her hand to her mouth, to prevent herself from crying out loud. Ayu was also dead. She would never again be able to be annoyed about her baby sisters crying. The Oni looked worried up at her.
"We can do this another time."
Determined, she shook her head. "No. We are here now. We do this now."
"I can see how much you are suffering."
"That's not your problem.", she retorted acidulous.
"You are so stubborn." He forced a smile on his face.
The blue-haired wiped her tears away with her mother's dress. "Let's continue to search."
She took another box and opened it. Plush toys. She grabbed Mai's teddy. She had always dragged him along. Even when ... even when ... Yuna exhaled heavily. Even when she had entered the living room and found Tirr.
The huntress could remember only little, because she had almost lost consciousness at that time. The memories of the unbearable suffering came up again. The girl began to tremble hard. She sank down to the ground and tried to get a hold of herself.
She remembered how devastated she was at the hospital. How she was unable to do anything, except crying. And now? She was back there. She was so abhorrently weak. She squeezed the teddy, which made a plaintive sound.
Yoshiro put a hand on her shoulder. "Take a break. We have time."
She quickly shook her head. "No. I want to see Yui. Everything here reminds me of death, but Yui is still alive. She is most important now."
Yuna put the teddy back and pushed the box aside. She rubbed her eye, pulled sniffling the next box over and opened it. Once she had inspected the content, she pushed the box aside and grabbed the next one.
The Oni looked suspiciously at the freshly awakened urge to get this over with of his protege, but decided to leave her be. Everyone handled losses differently.
He took a box labeled "Living Room". Under the lid appeared photo albums and framed pictures. At the top was a picture that showed all four girls together.
The recording was probably created a few weeks after Ayu's birth. Yuna stared annoyed at the camera, while Mai tugged at her sleeve and apparently wanted something from her. Yui sat grinning next to Mai and held Ayu in her arms.
Yoshiro pulled the picture out of the frame and put it in his pocket. Damn, he wanted to keep the whole box. He picked it up and carried it over to the exit. Yuna watched him, then she went on with her boxes.
She found her clothes. She sought out yellow trousers and a thin, blue sweater. She glanced briefly at Yoshiro, took off the Metallica T-shirt and threw it to the ground. She pulled the sweater over her head.
She slipped out of her shoes and out of her skinny jeans. She quickly put on her old pants and the shoes.
"Better.", she thought with relief. She reached into her pocket and found some hair bands. "He he."
She untied her braid and twisted her hair apart, then she made her usual side braids. Finally she was herself again. No zombie without feelings, and no over-styled version of herself. Just Yuna. Maybe she should take the clothes chest with her. Ayumi surely would tease her constantly about the uninspired and childish outfits, but the girl didn't care.
She stuffed the other clothes into the box and carried it over to the exit, then returned and opened the next. Yui's clothes. She searched for Yui's favorite scarf and tied it around her own neck. She would bring it to her in the hospital.
In the next box, she found her painting and drawing utensils. The crate moved to the exit. At last she could start to draw again.
She stumbled over her manga collection, but put it carelessly aside. In her present life she had no room for it.
Finally she discovered her phone. She tried to turn it on, but the battery was empty. She stow it in her pocket and looked out for the charger. There was Yui's cell phone. Should she take it? When Yui would wake up, she pretty sure wanted it back. The blue-haired grabbed the other device too.
In one of the last boxes were the books stored. She found Yui's favorite book and rose.
"Okay. I have everything."
Yoshiro looked up from his current box. "Good. What do we do with the rest?"
Her eye wandered over the stack of crates, then she shrugged. "No idea."
"Do you want to throw it away?"
The thought hurt Yuna. No, she was not ready for that. She shook her head. Her braids bobbed. "I can't."
"No problem. We'll keep it here. I'll bring the other things to the pension." The Oni locked his box and put it back. As he rose and turned around, the girl stood behind him.
She looked at him with her red eye and whispered: "Thank you."
Perplexed blinked the "uncle". "For what?"
"For everything. For being there for me and watching over me. For caring for me and not leaving me alone."
"Of course I'm there for you, Yuna."
She smiled sadly. "You're the only one who is." Again, her eye became wet.
"That's not true. You have friends."
"I disappoint them and let them down all the time.", wailed the girl. Silently he looked at the huntress, while she wiped her sleeve across her eye. "You must think I'm a failure.", sobbed the blue-haired.
"What? No. Not at all. Why do you say that?"
She snorted. "I can't even control my power. I can't do anything."
Yoshiro had enough of this. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into an intimate embrace. The girl did not resist, and left her trembling body in his care. "You're still learning, Yuna. Don't be so hard on yourself."
More tears filled her eye. "How will I avenge my family in this state? I am useless. A good-for-nothing."
"Yuna ..." He breathed a kiss on her forehead. "We should now go to see Yui. You said yourself that she's most important now."
"Actually, I'd like to first get to the pension. Let the others know that I'm fine. They shouldn't worry any longer about my useless ass."
Understanding nodded the mentor. "As you wish. Then we might as well take your stuff with us."