A/N: Well I thought I'd be more than two chapters ahead by now, but it's time for an update nonetheless! So happy Saturday, and bear with me as I conquer this arc and see if revisiting the past can bring Naoi and Yuri closer together. Be prepared for some long chapters, including this one. Thanks to ZainR, orangejuicerights, and Seiram for the reviews!

ZainR: Agreed, after they find out what they've missed they'll probably never want to ignore or miss a phonecall again. As for the Akuma gang, I've missed writing Ami and I'm thrilled to finally introduce Mio (even under these circumstances)! A toddler indignantly making Pokemon sounds at Ami is something I never knew I needed. But yeah, after quietly alluding to it here and there, solidifying Kurimu's death was a hard thing to do. It's been a rough couple years for Akuma, huh? I will say I like hearing your guesses as to who saved Hejj! You'll find out soon enough...

orangejuicerights: Yup! And now hopefully it's a little clearer why the Akuma gang has been distant from the HC portion of NaYuri's lives. Though that's finally starting to change. (Oh yeah, Yuri's really dusting off her acting skills, isn't she? But she did almost lose him last night, so she's got something to play off of.) More familiar faces ahead! It means a lot that you like TPS because despite its hiatus I've really fallen even more in love with the characters over the past couple years. (And you're right! We still haven't heard a no!)

Seiram: Seriously though. Naoi could attest to this - throwing yourself into your work to outrun trauma or grief never does any good. As for Hejj, losing someone as sunny as Kurimu could make anyone fumble in the dark. It's lucky he was given a second chance, but you'll find out more about that later. And you do remember correctly, poor Banira (even Sanae had Akio). She of all people would be able to relate to Hejj about losing a spouse so young. Thank goodness she at least has Ami, who's probably become like a daughter to her by now.

Enjoy!

[Chapter 60]: Ghosts of Akuma Past

It was a sunny post-storm day in Akuma, where the ground was still a little damp so things smelled like wet dirt and hot asphalt. A few puddles lingered here and there, shallow enough for Ayato and Yuri to step through them without splashes or qualms.

Leaving the Masudas' neighborhood, they had walked in silence for the most part, quietly taking in all the familiar sights and sounds as they headed into town. They could hear kids playing in the arcade nearby, see old and new timepieces ticking away in the display windows of the clock shop, not to mention the elaborate art of the cat, fish, and bird on the front of the pet store. The cat was waving its paw threateningly at the fish, which was alarmingly the same size as it and splayed its tail without a care while the white and blue budgie spread its wings majestically.

"This art has been here since I was a baby," Yuri noted when they paused to admire it, and traced the bird's wings with a finger.

They'd had this conversation before, on one of their walks a few years back, but Ayato didn't mind. He'd learned at the time that the cat had actually gone up the summer that Yuri was born, and they'd added the bird and the fish in the winter months. "I remember loving the cat but being terrified of the fish for some reason," he told her, the same as back then. He managed a chuckle. "With my memories restored, I suppose now I know why."

Yuri laughed appreciatively, folding her arms as she gazed upon the dark, scaly creature. "It's no Monster Stream, but damn if that thing couldn't give a kid nightmares."

"It's the eyes," he said with a shudder. "They follow you everywhere."

As he paced left and right to prove his point, Yuri studied the art a little closer. "It kind of looks like the cat was drawn in a different style than the other two," she observed. "I know they were drawn months apart, but… you think they didn't use the same artist or something?"

His footsteps halted, right between the cat and the fish. Was that a gap in her memory, or had he really never told her?

"The cat was made by Kurimu's father," he answered.

Realization sparked in Yuri's eyes, and she made a small sound of understanding. "That makes sense. He died the summer before she was born. Someone else had to finish it for him."

"Banira said she kept telling him back then the cat should look friendly instead of threatening. But he was convinced the cat was going to be a feisty one, 'just like his future daughter,'" Ayato said, a budding smirk on his lips. "Apparently when Kurimu was little, she'd say to her mother, 'they've known each other for years, so maybe someday they'll get along.'"

Yuri grinned. "Now that sounds more like Kurimu." Her expression softened after a moment, and then grew thoughtful again. "Any idea who drew the bird and the fish?"

Ayato gave a half-shrug. "We asked Banira, but we could never get it out of her—"

"We did?" Yuri looked puzzled, likely trying to comb through her blurred memories.

"Hejjiguchi and I," he corrected. "He was in the bakery at the time and heard her telling me about it. He loved the cat but he'd always been curious about the other two. Apparently something about them just spoke to him."

"And Banira didn't know? Who made them, I mean."

"I think she knew, she just didn't want to say." There was this hesitant look she'd given Hejjiguchi that had piqued Ayato's interest, but he hadn't pressed further even after the guy left.

Yuri put a finger to her chin. "I wonder what that's all about."

"Who knows…" Ayato regarded the artwork a few seconds more, the sunny feline looking more playful and sweet the longer he looked at it, then turned on his heel and started walking away from it. "Let's keep going."

They continued their aimless journey, passing the movie theater and book and music stores and feeling the hot sun on their faces. After they crossed the road, they found shelter under the shade of a stretch of trees. They could hear kids yelling in the park not that far away, basketballs bouncing on the court, boards tearing up the skate park section. Yuri, who had lagged for a second, briskly caught up and fell back into step next to him.

"Does this place feel different to you somehow?" she asked, breaking the silence again as she looked all around.

Ayato pursed his lips, eyes honing in on the pottery shop in the near distance. "It's missing a few people," he muttered. Yuri slowed and turned to him, and an apologetic expression flashed across her face, but he dismissively waved it away. "Other than that… Hinata said when he and Otonashi and Kanade went looking for us here, it felt different to him too. Like it was 'hidden from God' or something."

"Oh?" Yuri threw him a wry smile. "And yet here you are."

He snorted his approval. "Here I am," he agreed. He'd never felt like God here, but he could tell she was trying to cheer him up. "I guess it does feel cloaked, to be honest. Like everyone else is worlds away from us right now."

The corner of her mouth twitched almost in amusement. "Well, speaking of which," she poked him in the arm, "somebody hasn't answered any of the Battlefront's messages from last night."

"I thought you texted them back while we were at the hospital," he countered.

"Yeah, I told them what happened and everything, but they want to hear from you." Her hand lingered on his arm. "They're still worried about you."

Dismally he imagined the amount of notifications waiting for him on his phone. Especially under these circumstances, it was not exactly the kind of attention he liked. Unplanned and beyond his control. Frankly he was glad it was still charging in the guestroom. "Yes, but when I reply, then they're going to reply, and…"

"That's kind of how conversations work," Yuri teased.

But so many at once? Ayato closed his eyes with an enervated sigh. "…It's a lot right now."

She nodded in sympathy. "I understand," she said gently. "I felt the same way after I lost my siblings. The last thing I wanted was people hounding me."

He caught her look of uncertainty after that, and thoughtfully turned his gaze to the sidewalk ahead. "When I lost my brother," he said, "the last thing I wanted was to be alone."

A moment's silence, then a pensive hum. "It must've been hard, losing your twin," she murmured. "I can remember the time before my siblings were born, but you… you two had each other from the start. You could've lived your whole lives together."

Ayato chewed on the inside of his lip, feeling wistful at the thought. It was hard to imagine Hayato any older than ten without just picturing himself, but (as Yuri might've recalled) he did wonder from time to time what he would've been like. It had not escaped his imagination the pranks they could've pulled, particularly on Hinata. Just daydreaming about it now made him smirk.

"Thanks to our father, we weren't always together very much," he mused. "But… even so, for years after it happened, it felt like half of me was missing. I had to pick up the pieces of his life to try to feel whole again." After a few seconds of that hanging in the air, he grimaced. "Sorry, things are depressing enough, I don't mean to—"

"No, I get it," Yuri assured him. "Maybe not in the twin way, but… I get it."

He smiled faintly, looking at her out of the corner of his eye. I know you do. He left that unspoken.

But in that moment, across the street, a familiar building came into view. Ayato stopped in his tracks and turned more fully to look at it, feeling a weight in his stomach. Following his gaze, Yuri turned too.

"The Aoki bakery…" Managing a half-hearted grin, she nudged him lightly in the arm. "Don't tell me you're hungry again already."

He lowered his eyes. "Nothing like that. Just… memories."

She squinted, trying to shield her vision from the sun. "I can't see if Banira's in there."

"If she's in the back, she's probably busy baking." He started walking away.

Yuri moved swiftly to catch up with him. "I guess we're not going to drop in and say hello."

Guilt stung at his chest. "Not right now, no."

"You mentioned Banira telling you about the pet store art at the bakery. I didn't know if you visited a lot or what…"

"Actually, I…" He rubbed restlessly at his arm. "I used to work there."

"Really..." She looked surprised, then intrigued and slightly less skeptical. Possibly thinking of those blueberry bars from a couple weeks back.

Nodding, he clasped his arms behind his back. "Well, after I found the courage to quit my job at the pottery shop – Kurimu had this longstanding offer to come help her and her mom out at the bakery. I finally took her up on it. She was really happy about that. We worked together… basically up until the move to Mizuzaka."

"The two of you, huh?" Yuri said, her tone getting a playful edge to it. "Is that your type of girl? Petite and light-haired with pretty red ribbons?"

Ayato arched his eyebrows at her, utterly dumbfounded by the question. "My type? What makes you say that?"

Yuri glanced away with a half-shrug and dismissive wave. "I dunno – I just thought, you know, based on whatever the hell's between you and Yusa—"

"Yusa!" he echoed in disbelief. "There's nothing between me and Yusa!"

"Oh please, you were totally checking her out at the rehearsal thing last night."

"I was not! Besides, we hardly know each other. I don't think I've even spoken two words to the girl."

"Yeah, that's what she said when I asked her," Yuri replied coyly, "but I think you both protest too much—"

Ayato held up a hand to stop her. "Wait, wait, wait…" he said, the gears starting to turn as he played her words back. A smirk crept across his lips. "You asked her about me?"

"Eh—No!" Yuri flushed a fierce scarlet. "I mean, yes I asked her about you, but she was my eyes and ears in the Afterlife! And you're the only one I don't know from back then, so naturally I'm going to want to gather information—"

"Ah yes!" Ayato agreed, hunching as his smile grew bigger. "Pertinent information such as 'who's dated whom.'"

"It wasn't anything like that!"

Now he was grinning from ear to ear. "I think someone else protests too much."

Yuri swatted at his shoulder. "Oh, knock it off! Just drop it, okay?"

"Never even brought it up," he said cheekily, but obediently let the matter drop. He had just gotten back on Yuri's good side, after all; it would be unwise to ruin that with a bunch of dumb jokes.

The baleful look she'd thrown his way eventually faded to a small, sheepish half-smirk. Especially after he offered to buy her a drink at the vending machine that he knew was coming up. She'd turned down coffee when they passed the Maeda café, but after walking and talking in the warm sun for so long, her eyes lit up at the idea of a cold soda. By muscle memory they made their way to the machine and he chuckled knowingly as she pressed the button for her latest obsession.

"It's the least I can do after you saved my life last night," he said, watching her fish the soda can out of the slot and happily pop the top. "I don't think I ever thanked you properly for that. For everything you did. Not just saving my life, but bringing me here in the first place. Helping me when you didn't have to. Thank you."

Yuri turned away from the machine and started walking again, leading him back onto their trail as she clutched her drink. "It's like I said. I cared about Ayame too, and she needed help," she responded evenly. "And you needed to get to Akuma. No matter the tension we had between us at the time, this is one area where we understand each other better than anyone else." She studied her drink thoughtfully. "Better than the rest of Battlefront, I mean."

His eyebrows knitted together in recognition. "That sounds familiar. When did you say that before?"

"Huh?" She looked up at him. "I think I basically said it to you on the car ride here."

He shook his head. "It was before that. Something else."

Suddenly her expression cleared. "Oh, right. I said something like it to Kanade yesterday when we were coming back from the salon… I knew you were eavesdropping!"

"Indeed I was," he returned shamelessly. "Though I thought I heard you mention Angel Player. What was that about?"

Yuri finished a hearty gulp of her drink before answering. "Mmm. It was nothing… I was just kind of asking Kanade if she ever wanted to find and befriend the first Angel, or if she thought she'd get along with her. Since they had that Angel Player connection and all, maybe they'd understand each other on that level." She chuckled lightly to herself. "But Kanade was right, I was talking about something else."

"Wait, the first Angel?" Ayato repeated, a little lost.

Yuri waved her drink at him. "It's my codename for whoever used Angel Player before Kanade," she said matter-of-factly. "She found it in her room, remember? In the girls' dorm. The programmer was a guy, and from before our time so he didn't name it after Kanade." She took another sip for effect. "Ergo, there had to have been a first Angel."

Ayato rubbed his chin, considering. "I see. Would this first Angel happen to be the same girl that the programmer was in love with?"

This earned him a startled blink from Yuri. "Makes sense. That would explain why she had it in her room in the first place. He would've given her the prototype."

"And when she was able to move on from that world, it stayed behind in her room and inevitably passed on to Kanade."

"I'm surprised we never heard of anyone else using it before her," Yuri noted. "Unless the girls who lived in that dorm after the first Angel were mostly NPCs."

"Maybe that Angel and Kanade were the only ones who ever noticed it or found it interesting," he offered, and then looked away as a thought occurred to him. "Maybe they were the only ones who ever needed it."

"Maybe…" Traces of soft guilt quieted her voice. She hesitated before taking a slow, contemplative sip of her drink. After a moment, he felt her eyes on him. "Something on your mind?"

Slowing his pace, he let his shoulders fall slightly as he breathed out a muted sigh,

"Do you think… a person has to die young to show up in that world?" he asked, staring ahead as the gates of their old high school came into view. "Or is it enough that a person had regrets, or was unable to enjoy their youth…"

Beside him, Yuri made a small surprised sound, which tapered off as she seemed to mull this over in her head.

"You're wondering if your mother could still end up there somehow," she said, reading right through him as always.

"She started going out with my father when they were in high school." Ayato looked at the schoolyard, trying to envision his mother as a student. "I just… want her to be in an Afterlife where she gets another chance."

Yuri half-nodded, cupping her drink and getting a faraway look in her eye. "Since ours was an Afterlife based around a high school, it stands to reason that most of the people there died as teenagers. The oldest I could give you is early twenties coming into that world as third-years or something. Honestly I was too busy fighting Angel to figure out all the fundamentals of the world, but…" She trailed off, her creased brow smoothing over as she remembered something. "The Programmer's AI did say there could be exceptions though."

That caught his attention. "Exceptions like what?"

"Like when someone lived for another and had a good life. Their soul could still wind up in the Afterlife anyway because of a case that's like amnesia." Yuri stopped by the school's open gates and leaned against the walls, lingering in the middle of the entrance as if she wasn't sure whether or not she wanted to go in. Nostalgia had Ayato glancing in at the grounds, toward the stone bench spot where they used to eat lunch together. "Take Otonashi for example. He lived for his sister, helped people in the train wreck, and donated his heart before he died. But he still came to the Afterlife, with no memory of any of it. And because of that, he was able to help Kanade move on." She laughed softly, shaking her head. "He helped a lot of us move on."

Ayato's lips curved into a fond half-smile. He found himself hanging on her every word.

She seemed to sense his stare, and her cheeks warmed considerably.

"I guess my point is… the Afterlife," she paused, glancing up at him, "our Afterlife, probably welcomes anyone it believes has a purpose there." He must have looked doubtful, because she reached out and took his hand in hers. "And if not… I'm sure Ayame is somewhere she can finally know peace."

He grazed her hand with his thumb, longing to bring it to his lips and press a kiss to her half-gauze-wrapped knuckles. Not knowing if that would be alright, or it would ruin the moment, or even if something so simple would bring her memories back.

As she was now, he didn't want to do anything to make her pull away.

They ended up moving the conversation onto the school grounds, perched on the edge of their old stone border spot beneath the campus trees as sunlight peeked through the branches above their heads. Yuri's drink temporarily set aside, the two of them faced each other, sitting close enough that their knees were almost touching. If it weren't for the circumstances surrounding their presence in Akuma, he would feel years younger being with her like this.

"What did you talk to her about?" he asked her. "You mentioned last night that the two of you were able to talk for a while before saying goodbye."

Yuri lowered her eyes, something bittersweet tugging at her lips. "Well, you, mostly," she said. "She saw my hand and asked what happened, I gave her the gist of it. She was upset at thought of us getting hurt because of her – like mother, like son – but I told her you were going to be fine, though I was sorry you weren't awake to come see her. And she told me she was just glad she got to see me again, and…" She let out a shaky breath that she disguised as a laugh. "Your mother. Such a sweet-talker."

"I didn't get my charm from my father," Ayato said with a smirk, turning her laugh into a real one. His own amusement faded as a concern arose. "Did you tell her what happened to him?"

She sobered, massaging her hand in her lap. "All I told her was that he would never be able to hurt you again. That's all she needed to know." After a pause, she looked up and raised an eyebrow. "In fact, she said so herself. Your mother was smart; I think she already knew."

Ayato nodded. Come to think of it, that didn't surprise him – his mother knowing and at the same time not wanting to know. Hearing or seeing terrible things directly made the truth and the pain inescapable for her. She preferred to look away, come to the truth by herself, cushioning the blow by leaving it up to her imagination.

"Thank you. For your discretion," Ayato said, resting his hand over hers (partially to stop her from picking at her gauze). "Despite everything he put her through, the unfiltered news of his death might've been fatal to her. An aftershock that her heart wouldn't be able to take."

Yuri looked down at his hand, but didn't pull hers away. "She must've known that too," she murmured. "Finding out the truth would be letting him hurt her again, one last time, and she didn't want to give him that. She didn't want to care about him anymore."

"He didn't deserve it," Ayato agreed. "He doesn't deserve us mentioning him even now. What else did you two talk about?"

At this, Yuri retracted her hand to brush a lock of hair behind her ear. "Oh, you know." Her laugh sounded lighthearted, and even a little shy. "Typical mom stuff."

"Mom stuff?"

She cut her eyes to the side, cheeks as pink as her budding smile. "Basically that... in her heart I would never stop being a daughter to her. That she'd always admired my strength. She said she was sorry for the kind of mother she became after Hayato died, and she wished she'd raised you with that same kind of strength, but at least—" She cut herself off, looking over at him uncertainly as she bit her lip.

"At least what?" he pressed, burdened with curiosity.

Yuri conceded with a sheepish smirk, "At least she knew her grandkids would be that strong."

Ayato face-palmed, partially so she wouldn't see him blush. "Of course."

"I warned you! Typical mom stuff," Yuri repeated, starting to laugh. "She was saying things like, 'I know my son, there's not a doubt in my mind that he loves you and if he had any sense at all he'd put a ring back on that finger and never let you go again.'" She turned around to reach for her drink. "I almost wanted to tell her you actually did propose recently, but I didn't want to give her false hope or anything. She was convinced we're going to end up together."

Despite her punctuating the statement with a carefree sip, Ayato broke into a nervous sweat.

"I hope she didn't make you feel too pressured," he said. "You don't even have to stay here or anything, you've already done more than enough for me."

Yuri paused in mid-sip, peering over the top of her drink at him.

"I know it's my choice whether I stay or go," she said firmly. "I'm staying for now because I want to. For Ayame, and for you."

Ayato tried to stammer out a response, but found the words couldn't come.

"Trust me," Yuri said, and turned her gaze straight ahead, "we are not going to let you go through this alone."

Confused, Ayato tilted his head at her. Why had she said it like that? "We…?"

It was only then that his hearing picked up on the sound of footsteps in the near distance. He turned and followed Yuri's stare to the front gates, where Otonashi, Kanade, Hinata, Yui, and Shiina had just passed through and were quickly crossing the campus towards them.

"Hey!" Hinata was shouting. "There you are! We've been looking all over for you two!"

Ayato stood up at once, hardly believing his eyes. "What…" he trailed off, and strode briskly to meet them in the middle.

To his surprise, Hinata got to him first and engulfed him in a hug that nearly knocked the wind out of him (or at least made his side sting in mild protest). Ayato's eyes widened a bit, but before he could even think to reciprocate, he heard Yuri come up behind him and snap, "Hey! Don't open his stitches, go easy on him!"

"Ah – sorry!" Hinata released him, but kept his hands on his shoulders. "But holy shit, man. You can't blame a guy for being relieved."

"You gave us quite a scare," Otonashi added, while next to him Kanade gave a solemn nod.

"Are you okay?" said Yui.

"I'm fine," Ayato answered, covertly feeling his side (and luckily finding his stitches intact), and stepped back from Hinata to look around at everyone. "What are all of you doing here?"

"I told you this morning that they were planning on coming," Yuri reminded him.

"We were worried about you," Hinata told him. "Especially after we heard you got stabbed."

"Not stabbed," Ayato corrected. "Just cut."

"Oh, okay, just cut," Hinata scoffed with dry laughter. "Obviously no big deal then." He mussed Ayato's hair playfully as the group started walking out through the school gates together. Rolling his eyes, Ayato batted his hand away.

But as they ventured on, talking and getting everyone up to speed, Ayato found he was grateful to have them here. Though they did offer their condolences, their presence grounded him with a sense of normalcy, even with their inherent strangeness. In this part of his life and in general. For instance, Yui, carrying a sparkly pink messenger bag, alternated between extremely attentive and then lagging behind for some reason and rushing to catch up. Kanade kept looking around like she was trying to remember or recognize something, but was oddly serene and happy to be here. He had to say, he preferred this to puppy-eyed pity.

"Matsushita and I came back with the food – I think not long after you left – and when we started handing out people's orders, that's when everyone realized you were gone," Hinata explained. "Kanade said you got a phone call and hurried out of the room and Yurippe followed immediately after. So I checked outside and her car wasn't there, and—" he paused to look over at Yui and Shiina—"well, after that I got sidetracked by something important, so I didn't report back right away."

"Then of course I herded everyone into the car since Kanade and I really had to get back, but I tried texting you before we left and calling on the way to Shibuya," Otonashi continued for him. "Fujimaki told us later that he and Ooyama did the same before they left but couldn't reach you."

"Sooo, with you two leaving together in a rush and not responding to any of our messages," Hinata rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish laugh, "everyone just kinda made some assumptions and headed home."

Ayato's face seared red at the insinuation. "What?!" he and Yuri blurted in unison.

"Why would your mind jump to that?" said Yuri, her cheeks similarly flushed. "After Kanade already told you he got an urgent call!"

"I dunno, we just thought it was a clever ruse so you guys could sneak off together!"

"That's ridiculous!" Ayato fumed.

Yui, zooming up from behind, poked her head into the conversation. "So you're saying the two of you did not get a room last night?" Otonashi side-eyed her sternly, and she flinched and blinked at him with innocent eyes. "What? I'm just trying to lighten the mood."

(Thankfully, the exchange drew attention away from Ayato and Yuri as they shared an awkward look.)

The conversation transitioned to what the plans were for the coming week funeral-wise, and Ayato was rather grateful when Yuri took the reins. He had gone on this walk to get away from all that. Instead he let himself fall back slightly, let his eyes wander… until they fell on Shiina, who appeared lost in a troubled thought.

Frowning, he fell even further back until they were walking alongside each other. After a few moments of this, she glanced at him through her peripheral vision, but then lowered her gaze and said nothing.

"I assume you worked things out with Hinata and Yui," he said out of the corner of his mouth, so as not to be heard by the others.

Closing her eyes, Shiina offered a small nod. "We argued for a while. They talked me into coming back with them," she said. "I didn't want to leave it like that either, so I went. It started up again when we got to their place. They told me their admiration for Iwasawa was nothing like the way they felt about me. That our connection was different, special. Deep down, I believed them, but… I wanted to argue anyway."

"Because they were paying attention to you," Ayato said in understanding. "Being passionate towards you."

Shiina's resulting blush confirmed the truth, though she tried to hide it behind her hair. "I wanted to remain irritated," she admitted. "But then we received a message from Yuri that made me rethink my priorities."

Ayato was silent, but his features slowly creased in puzzlement. To think that news of his or his family's wellbeing could break up an argument… let alone involving those three...

"But something's still bothering you," he said, breaking from that line of thought as he remembered what started him on this.

Shiina's eyes darkened, lowering to the ground.

"I wish I had gone to Kyuuya after all," she murmured. "I could have been close. I could have gotten there in time and stopped him, the way I used to stop men like him." She narrowed her eyes dangerously in remembrance, before they softened with regret. "I could have saved her."

Ayato frowned. In many ways she was too much like Masuda, too solemn and disciplined for her own good and putting unnecessary weight on her shoulders.

"It doesn't matter," he muttered under his breath. "It's not like you knew where to find her."

"That's not true," said Shiina. "I hand-delivered that phone to her myself."

Startled, Ayato looked up and over at her as sounds of realization rose and died in his throat. Remembering how Ryou had said Yukine sent a mutual friend with "all the necessary stealth skills" to Akuma with the phone, and Shiina's odd comment all those weeks ago.

Mindful of his prying audience, he gave them a warning frown. "It's my mother."

"Tell her I said hello," Shiina said as she passed him.

Seeing the expression on his face, Shiina managed a rare bittersweet smile.

"I spoke to her briefly while I was there. She said I was stealthy as a cat." Her eyes glinted at what she undoubtedly considered the highest praise, then she sobered once more. "She was a good woman, Naoi."

Ayato watched as she walked ahead, or maybe he fell behind. His thoughts slowed him as they ran rampant in his head.

She had done that?

She had helped make it possible for him and Yuri to speak to her these last few weeks. Given her a chance to interact with the world outside Akuma and even call for help in a deadly situation. Granted, the prepaid phone had been Ryou's idea and he was grateful for that, but if she had been the one to sneak it to her, he doubted that in the event that she ran into Kimito she would have the level of composure Shiina did.

Though it made sense that Yukine had sent her to do this, it still stunned him that she had. That she'd gone out of her way for something like that. In addition to that strange feeling of worlds colliding, the same feeling he had here and now…

"—Naoi!" came Hinata's voice, breaking through the mental fog.

Ayato blinked back into the present, focusing on the faces of his friends who had turned to him.

"What are you doing all the way back there?" Hinata asked. "This is your domain. Hell, we should be following you."

"I didn't think we were going anywhere in particular," Ayato responded, silently noting that Yuri was already leading them just fine.

"Maybe, but get up here anyway so we don't lose you."

Weeks ago, or even as early as yesterday, Ayato might've perceived this as insolent or bossy and actively resisted it. But he wasn't in the mood to be defiant, so, giving Hinata the benefit of the doubt, he sighed and moved to the front to join them.

"Is your side hurting you?" Otonashi asked, looking him over in concern when he came up next to him.

Ayato shook his head. "No, it's not that," he said, stopping there and skimming his surroundings. "I was just thinking… how strange it is to be back again. Let alone having you here with us."

"It feels weird, right?" Yuri asked. "This is a place we left behind a long time ago and never expected to return." Her voice mellowed with thought. "Being here again, especially with all of you, it's kind of like coming back to the Afterlife. Except, you know, while we're still living."

"Exactly," Ayato said, baffled but impressed that she'd put the feeling into words.

"I get that," said Hinata. "I felt the same way when we were all in Kyuuya together. I mean, not that I never return, but you saw what it was like with my parents. It was weird to be there. But having you guys made it easier." He laughed after a moment as a memory came to him. "Oh, and the whole baseball thing, that was very Battlefront of us."

Otonashi and Kanade shared one of their looks, contemplative yet sentimental.

"Don't you see – that's exactly why we're here!" Otonashi said, glancing around at all of them. "It's part of the purpose of reuniting the Battlefront. In the Afterlife, this is what we bonded over. The terrible memories from our pasts, and the battles we fought together. But now we get to live life again." He rested a hand on Ayato's shoulder. "And we knew what we were headed for when we graduated. Life is still going to have its hardships… but this time it'll be a little easier to get through it, because this time we have each other."

Touched, Ayato looked up at Otonashi, his vision blurring a bit as more of the burden from last night seemed to melt away. The man still knew how to give a powerful speech.

It was true, he realized, taking in the presence of the people around him. He shifted his gaze to Yuri, who had come into his life years ago and proved just that from the moment they met. To Kanade, practical and calm, who had a way of making things seem simple and easy to handle. And to Hinata, who despite his irritating qualities was smarter than he looked and could be an entertaining distraction sometimes—

Suddenly Hinata looked over Ayato's shoulder and his eyes grew enormous. "YUI!"

The rest of the group turned to see the woman in question putting Girls Dead Monster concert posters up in the background. Yui stopped, sheepishly patting the poster into place one last time, and looked back at everyone innocently. "…What?"

Hinata sighed. "Seriously, time and place."

Stuffing the rest of the flyers in her messenger bag, Yui gave Ayato an apologetic look as she rejoined the group.

"I'm only putting them in spots where Battlefront members might look," she said. "Like the fitness and dance studio for TK, and the music stores, and bookshops, and a gym, and computer and electronic stores, and then a psychic's just in case, and this aquarium just now because I don't care what Fujimaki says, I think Fishing Saitou—"

"Okay, Yui, it's fine," Yuri said firmly, casting the aquarium a momentary side-glance.

"Speaking of Fujimaki," Hinata spoke up, "he, Ooyama, and Matsushita said they were coming too. They should be here soon."

"Them too?" Ayato asked, surprised.

"Yeah, apparently Mizuzaka guys are supposed to stick together," Otonashi replied lightheartedly, while Hinata grunted for some reason. "That's what he told us, anyway."

"Yusa and GlDeMo heard what happened and sent their condolences too," said Yuri. "But apparently there's some drama with the band that's supposed to open for them, so they're busy dealing with that right now."

"Still, it's a lot of people coming…" Ayato was slightly overwhelmed, but not as stressed as he was baffled. "Are we all supposed to meet and continue the Battlefront weekend out here?" He turned to Yuri. "We can't exactly invite everyone back to Masuda's."

"Well, if it comes down to it, I was thinking about getting us into my parents' house," Yuri replied. "Most of Battlefront probably won't be here that long, but since the Masudas are expecting company, we should probably free up their guestroom. My parents aren't home anyway, and I figured you'd prefer that to a hotel or a crime scene."

Ayato's shoulders relaxed, despite being temporarily thrown by her offer. The little mind reader, how did she know he'd been worrying about that?

Though he was grateful to the Masudas for their hospitality, it was hard to make funeral arrangements with the added pressure of being a surprise guest, especially if it meant potentially interrupting a family visit by dragging them into the dysfunction and drama of his own. He supposed he would be similarly imposing on the Nakamuras, but... out of sight, out of mind.

It was easier with Yuri. Or maybe he knew he wouldn't be able to shake her even if he wanted to.

"Thanks," he said, his eyes softening as he nodded to her. He made a mental note to at least try to contact her parents anyway and ask for permission. "I appreciate it."

She smiled faintly in return, the both of them pointedly ignoring Hinata's wisecrack about having a guy over while her parents weren't home. A cool breeze picked up, blowing their hair and calming him with a late spring scent.

Maybe the rest of his stay in Akuma could be something close to peaceful...

"WELL, LOOK WHO IT IS!" came a distinctive holler from behind.

Tensing up, Ayato closed his eyes in resignation.

Oh crap.

A/N: Hmm, who might this be...?

Fingers crossed for enough progress that I can guarantee an update in mid to late June (because this next chapter was a lot of fun to write!).

Until next time!

Preview:

"So much for never coming back, am I right?"

"You're comparing yourself to me?"

"Grudges are stupid."

"Are you two living together?"

"Yurippe sure is brutal."

"You were meant for that role."

"Why don't I feel it anymore...?

"We weren't fighting over him!"

"I should have done something more to keep her in my life."

[Chapter 61] Lives Entwined.