A/N: Hello, guys, KiritoIRL back with the 7th chapter of Mother's Reconciliation. I managed to get this chapter done right before class starts!

Unfortunately, I won't be able to write too much when class starts again, as this term is expected to be a busy one. So it could be months before I upload the 8th chapter. But please bear with me! I'll write when I have the time! Though they will most likely be short chapters…

And also, I'm glad that I was able to meet up with your expectations last chapter. Most of you seemed like you cried reading it! It looks like my writing together with the OSTs really worked better than I thought. So, I'll take that as you liked it and use them in this chapter and the future chapters too.

A shout out to several authors and their KiriSuna stories:

- joker118's "Zekken – The Sleeping Knight"

- KittenofthePastries's "SAO: The After Story"

- TheSib's "Secrets Revealed" and "SAO: Wedding Bells"

- momoxtoshiro's "Moments" and "The Miracle of Loving You"

If you haven't read their stories already, I recommend that you do. Don't forget to leave a review! I'll see you guys next time. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own SAO, its characters or the OSTs! They belong to Kawahara Reki-sensei and Kajiura Yuki-san respectively!


Chapter 7 – To Feel Like a Family


After quite a while, Asuna had calmed down considerably. But her eyes were still red and puffy and she was hiccupping a little.

Kyouko looked at the clock and saw that it was past 8 PM.

"Asuna, I know that you're really not up for it, but… you need to eat something." Kyouko said softly. It was way past her usual dinner time.

Asuna wasn't really hungry, as all of her hunger was forgotten from her sadness, but since her family had actually stayed to the end to listen to her tale, she decided to listen and eat.

"Mmm… Okay…" Asuna nodded as she sniffled.

"Good… Go wash your face and then come down, alright? I'll ask Sada-san to warm something up." Shouzou said. Asuna gave another nod silently and rose up to head towards her bathroom.

As Asuna exited her room, her family stayed inside.

"Haa… Some story she's told us, huh?" Kouichirou said sighed sadly.

"Yes… To think that Asuna went through something like this…" Kyouko answered.

"She looked so happy recently… If only we knew… I just wish that we knew about Yuuki-kun sooner… We should have been there for Asuna…" Shouzou lamented.

"In any case, it looks like I chose a good time to take a break from work… Asuna needs us now…" Kouichirou said. He had come back home because he felt like he had been away from home for too long so he had gotten a 2 week off from work.

"Yes, you're right… Let's give her some time to recover… With her grades, I think she can afford a small rest…" Shouzou said. Kyouko gave a small nod silently.

"Okay… Let's call it a day and go downstairs… And… let's be there for her when she needs us, alright?" Kouichirou said. His parents agreed to this.

"Right… I'm sorry, you two, but… as much as I want to stay longer, I have some work I need to finish… Well, good night…" Kyouko said, exiting with reluctance.

Kouichirou left Asuna's room to go downstairs. Shouzou was about to leave her room when he heard Asuna's cellphone ringing, indicating that she had a phone call. He picked it up to see that the caller was non-other than "Kirigaya Kazuto". Pondering for a second whether he should answer the call for Asuna, he decided to answer, since Asuna was still in the toilet washing herself.

"Moshi moshi?" Shouzou said as he took the call.

"Aa…" Kazuto responded, surprised when he heard Asuna's father's voice. He double checked the number to see that he had indeed called Asuna's mobile phone.

"Gombanwa (Good evening), Yuuki-san…" Kazuto said politely, recovering from his surprise.

"Evening, Kirigaya-kun… I know you called for Asuna, but she'll be eating after washing herself…" Shouzou said in a concerned tone.

"Judging from the tone of your voice, I'm guessing Asuna's already told you about what happened earlier today…" Kazuto deduced.

"Yes… Yes she did… I've never seen her cry like this… And with everything that happened with Yuuki-kun, it's understandable…" Shouzou answered sadly.

"I was calling to tell Asuna something, but… I guess I called at a bad time… Sumimasen… (I'm sorry…)."

"No, no, don't be sorry, you called with concern for Asuna in mind. I'm grateful for that… and I'm sure she will be too… But what did you want to tell her exactly? I somehow have a feeling that you have more than just comforting words in mind…" Shouzou said.

"Yes… I would have called as soon as she logged out, but I had to stay online to do something for Yuuki. After she logged out, I needed to talk with some friends who owned the 'MMO Today' news website and tell them the full story about Yuuki and her guild." He was, of course, talking about Thinker and Yulier, as they had also been present during Yuuki's final moments.

"And… also, me and my friends contacted the Game Masters to request a few things: One, to make Yuuki's makeshift grave marker that Asuna made to be an 'Immortal Object', and two, to make a memorial for Yuuki and the Sleeping Knights, her guild. And as it turned out, we weren't the only ones making such requests. Right now, the VRMMO community site is in an uproar, especially ALO. They requested something similar to the Game Masters, so they announced that they will erect a memorial for Yuuki as requested… So, please tell Asuna that in a few days, the memorial will be ready… I'm sure she'll be happy to know that Yuuki won't be forgotten anytime soon…" Kazuto said softly.

"Aah… I see… Alright, I'll be sure to tell her. She'll be happy about this, I'm sure of it…" Shouzou said, grateful to have found something to cheer his daughter up.

"Great. Thank you for understanding." Kazuto said in gratitude.

"My dear boy, I should be thanking you for thinking of Asuna all this time. Asuna's going to need all the help she can get, so please make sure you and your friends help her too." Shouzou requested.

"Of course sir. Oh, and speaking of that, I almost forgot. Please tell Asuna to come to the Dicey Café after school tomorrow. We'll be meeting everyone else there." Kazuto explained.

"Alright, I'll tell her."

"Thank you, Yuuki-san. Then, good night."

"Good night." With this, they both hung up the phone. Shouzou got up to leave. After leaving Asuna's phone on her desk, Shouzou left the room and went down to the kitchen.

When he arrived, Sada had just about finished cooking something for Asuna.

"Oh, you're already cooking something; good." Shouzou said to her.

"Hai… Kouichirou-sama told me what happened to Asuna-sama's friend, so I thought I should cook something for her since she hadn't eaten anything…" Sada said.

"Thank you. I was going to ask you to do just that." Shouzou said appreciatively.

A few minutes later, just when Sada had brought the food over to the table, Asuna came down to eat with Kouichirou following suit.

"Here, Ojou-sama… Please eat." Sada requested. Asuna silently complied.

Asuna picked up her eating utensils and started eating her supper, albeit a little slower than usual. Shouzou decided to tell her the news after she finished eating.

"Sada-san, thank you for your work today, but, please leave us alone for today." Shouzou asked.

"Of course. Then, I'll leave for today. Good night." Sada said as she made her leave.

After Sada left, Asuna continued to eat in silence. When she finished, Shouzou decided to break the silence.

"Asuna, when you were in the shower, Kirigaya-kun called you." Shouzou started. Asuna, who had been eating absentmindedly, suddenly perked up when she heard this.

"Really? What did he say?" Asuna asked. Shouzou then proceeded to tell her what he had heard from Kazuto. When her father finished his news, tears started to well up in her eyes again.

"Ho… hontou? (R… really?) Is it true…?" Asuna asked, praying that she hadn't misheard it.

"Yes… Kirigaya-kun said that they weren't the only ones that asked for something like this, so the Game Masters will grant the request in a few days."

"Arigatou, Tou-san… I really needed to hear that… Yuuki would've been so happy about this…" Asuna said gratefully.

"Yes, I know, and Asuna? I know you're sad Yuuki-kun is gone, but please try not to dwell too long on it… it's alright to mourn, but doing it for too long won't do us or yourself any good. They may not have said it out loud, but… your mother and your brother are worried for you. And so am I…" Shouzou stated.

"Mm… okay… I'll try…" Asuna said. When she got up, she suddenly realized how exhausted she was, both physically and emotionally.

"I know it's early, but… I want to rest right now…" Asuna said. Her father, of course, could understand this.

"Okay… Sleep well… and, if you need something, tell us… We'll try to help in any way we can…" Shouzou said to his daughter. Asuna thanked her father and left the dining room with Kouichirou accompanying her.

When Asuna came back to her room after brushing her teeth, Kouichirou tucked her in bed and left after offering words of comfort similar to their father and wishing her good night.

After her brother left, Asuna kept trying to think of something else to keep her mind off the pain, but it was no easy task. Asuna didn't know how long she lay on her bed, exhausted, yet unable to sleep. Then she heard the door knocking once again.

"Asuna? Are you still awake?" She heard her mother's voice say.

Asuna didn't respond, not knowing what she should do. While she wanted to be left alone for the rest of the night, her mother had actually come to see her, to talk about Yuuki no doubt.

As she was pondering on what she should do, Asuna heard the door open and saw the light from the hallway coming in to her dark room. She quickly closed her eyes and stayed still, feigning sleep.


A little earlier, Kyouko's POV

Kyouko had gone back to work, but was unable to focus on them. The image and sound of Asuna's crying was etched deeply into her memories, continuing to distract her. After about an hour struggling to focus on the task at hand without much success, she finally gave up and decided to work on them again the next day. Fortunately, she had gotten most of the more urgent works done before Asuna came home, and the rest were just leftovers that she had plenty of time to finish.

Looking at the clock, she saw that it was about 9:00 PM. After taking off her glasses and shutting off her computer, Kyouko sat down on her chair and reflected on Yuuki's story, and Asuna's desires.

'The strength I thought I had gained, the proud sub-leader of the most powerful guild in SAO, 'Senkou no Asuna (Lightning Flash Asuna)' only existed in the virtual world. It felt like, all the progress I made to become stronger were all in vein.'

'Even after she went through all that, Yuuki was still always smiling.'

'Why is she gone… when I'm still here, alive and well…!? Doushite…!?'

'If the Kirigaya family and even Yuuki's family could be happy like that, then why couldn't we? Why can't we go back to those times when we really felt like family…?'

Kyouko recalled her daughter's words. When she thought about what she told her, she had a point. It was evident that Asuna had never really felt home for a long time even when she was in their house. If the Kirigaya's and even the sickly Konno's could be happy like Asuna had claimed, then what was stopping her family from being happy like them?

When they really felt like family… family… family…

(A/N: Play the OST: "You are not alone #2")

Kyouko stood up and went to the bookshelf, looking for something that she hadn't seen for a long time. After rummaging through the shelf for about a minute, she finally found what she was looking for: the family album. She brought the album to her desk and started to look through them.

She started to look through the pictures, from start to end. She saw the pictures taken during her childhood in Miyagi with her parents, then to her high school and university graduation pictures. She saw countless others like: her wedding pictures and her honeymoon with Shouzou, birth of Kouichirou and Asuna, several trips the four of them had gone to during summer or winter breaks, and the family visits they had in Kyoto and Miyagi (the number of pictures taken in Kyoto was noticeably greater compared to the ones taken in Miyagi).

Out of all of the family pictures, one specific picture caught her view: The family photo of the four of them smiling towards the camera with a 5 or 6 year old Asuna holding her teddy bear friend. Kyouko couldn't help but give a little smile when she saw the picture, seeing that Asuna was smiling happily in it.

However, when she came to the end of the album, she noticed that the last time the picture was added was more than 3 years ago. When the Sword Art Online incident began, for the next 2 years, adding pictures to the family album had all but stopped. Even after Asuna had been freed from the virtual world 2 months later than she should have, with the lawsuits Recto Inc. faced as well as Asuna's rehab session and her reintegration into society, their family had little time to take another picture.

As she was getting lost in the pictures, she heard a knock on the door.

"Douzou (Come in)." She said, facing the door. In response, Shouzou came into the room.

"You're finished with your work?" He asked.

"Not exactly… I couldn't concentrate." Kyouko answered. Shouzou nodded in understanding.

"Oh? Isn't that the album?" Shouzou asked when he saw what was on her desk. He picked the album up to look through the pictures, a sentimental smile growing on his face.

"Haha. This really brings back some fond memories, don't they?" He chuckled.

"Yes… they do… Anata (Dear), how's Asuna holding up?" She asked.

"Kouichirou said that she went to bed about 30 minutes ago. And… she should be feeling slightly better now." Her husband responded.

"What do you mean by that?" Kyouko asked. Shouzou then proceeded to tell her about the phone call Kazuto made.

"I see. That is good news, I suppose." At this point, Kyouko decided to go and talk with her.

"I need to see if she's still awake. I want to… talk to her…" Kyouko said. At this, Shouzou smiled encouragingly.

"Go on, then. Be there for her. I'm sure she wants that more than anything." He said. Kyouko left and headed to Asuna's room.

When she got there, she saw that no lights were coming from inside, meaning that the lights were off and she may be asleep. But she decided to talk with her anyway if she wasn't asleep yet. So she knocked on Asuna's door.

"Asuna? Are you still awake?" Kyouko asked. But Asuna gave no response. Wondering if she was really asleep, Kyouko decided to go in.


Asuna stayed still, pretending to be asleep. Even though she had her eyes closed, she could feel her mother coming closer to her bed and kneeling down.

Kyouko just looked at her daughter's face, not knowing that she was feigning sleep. In the past when she saw Asuna sleeping in her bed during her childhood, her face usually contained a peaceful smile. However, now it contained unbearable sorrow and distress. The only other time she had seen such an expression on Asuna's sleeping face was the day Asuna had lost her bear friend as she had practically cried herself to sleep that night.

(A/N: Play the OST: "Trying to understand")

Kyouko reached and caressed her daughter's cheek. Even though she was asleep, she wanted to say something to her. Meanwhile, Asuna was doing her best to remain absolutely still.

"Asuna… I'm really sorry that you had to go through something like that; and I'm sorry for what happened to Yuuki for that matter. Honestly, it was one of the saddest stories I've ever heard.

And you… you look so sad right now. The last time I remember seeing you like this is when you lost the teddy bear I bought you when you were little. And… you must be feeling worse than when you did back then. Because… well, because this time you really lost a friend. It must have been hard for you.

You said when you were telling us Yuuki's story that you miss the old times when we felt like family. To be honest, I thought I was doing a good job in being a family. To have you grow up in a wealthy background, and start a promising career. But now, I'm starting to have some doubts. Thinking back, before the death game started, I never saw you smile like you did during your childhood. But after you came back to us, that smile seemed to have come back somewhat.

I know that I may have been the cause of much stress and pressure back then and lately, and maybe I pushed you a little too hard from time to time. But make no mistake; everything I did, I did them with our family's best interest at heart.

Also, when you brought me to the virtual world for the first time, you told me that you wanted to live a life where seeing other's happiness also made you happy. Listening to your story with Yuuki, and seeing you move on from the death game and everything else that happened to you, I think I'm starting to understand… You're stronger than I thought you were. And… I don't know… I think you were already living the life that you wanted to live by. To see someone you care for smiling and being happy. I thought that without a promising career, you'd never be able to be happy, but… looking at how happy you were during the last few months, because of Yuuki and your other friends no doubt… I would never have imagined that things would turn out the way they did, but I suppose it helped you become stronger nonetheless; and I can't help but feel some pride in that…

But even if you're strong, there are times that you need to stop and take a rest and I think that now is that time. So, if you need someone to talk to, talk to us… we'll try and listen and help all we can… Good night… Asuna." After getting what was on her mind out of her system, she gave her daughter an assuring pat on the head before heading out and closing the door silently.

When her mother was 'talking' to her, it was getting harder and harder for her to continue pretending to be asleep. And when she told her that she felt some pride for her, she barely managed to stop herself from gasping in surprise. Thankfully, Asuna managed to listen through her mother's words without giving away that she was still awake. When she left, Asuna started sniffling, more out of gratitude than sorrow this time.

"Kaa-san…" Asuna moaned. Reflecting on what she had just heard as a single tear dropped down from her eyes. However, within minutes after her mother left, the much needed sleep finally claimed Asuna's consciousness. She drifted off to sleep, still feeling sad, yet feeling slightly content.


Kawagoe, Kirigaya residence.

After Kazuto hung up the phone after talking with Asuna's father, he went to Sugu's room, knowing that she may need some consolation as well. Sure enough, when he arrived, he found his adoptive sister crying.

"Come on, Sugu… it's okay… we'll miss her… we all will." Kazuto told her.

"Mm… Nagata-kun said something similar earlier… but… after everything she went through… it's just so sad to see her go like that…" Suguha sniffed.

"I know… but the Sleeping Knights and Asuna… they must be taking this harder than us…" Kazuto said.

"Mm… I wonder how Asuna-san is holding up… Out of all of us, she was closest to Yuuki-san…" Suguha wondered.

"I called her just now… but her dad answered instead. He said that she was taking it badly." Kazuto answered.

"Can't blame her on that though, can we?" Suguha asked.

"No, we can't… that's why we have to do our best to cheer her up with everyone else at the Dicey Café tomorrow. And, I think I have just what we need for that…" Kazuto said. Suguha raised her brows curiously.

"Oh? And what do you have in mind?" She asked.

"You'll see, Sugu. You'll see." Kazuto responded.

When they saw that it was 8 o'clock, the siblings then proceeded to head downstairs to make some supper, even though they didn't really feel like eating.

And while they were at it, Midori arrived home.

"Evening you two. Getting something to eat?" She asked cheerfully, oblivious to their sorrow. But when they gave no response, with distraught looks on their faces, she knew something was wrong.

"Etto (Um)… what's the matter you two? Did something happen?" She asked in concern.

"Kaa-san… Do you remember Yuuki-san?" Suguha asked.

During the adventure with Yuuki the last few months, one of the chapters of their adventure was when Yuuki came over to the Kirigaya's using the VR Probe. There, Asuna had introduced Yuuki to their real life counterparts. They had also introduced her to Midori, who greeted her pleasantly and had already heard about her condition from her children.

"Yes, I do. What about her…?" Midori trailed off when she saw their sad expressions (and tears in Suguha's case) and deduced what had happened. She gasped and covered her mouth when she did.

"Oh no… please don't tell me…" Midori started. Kazuto only nodded his head in confirmation.

"She passed on earlier today… we were there… all of us…" Kazuto replied sadly.

"I'm so sorry, you two… and for Yuuki-chan too." Midori said, pulling a sniffling Suguha into a hug.

"Mm… The entire ALO community is mourning her… thousands came for her, just to see her off…" Suguha told her.

"I see… that's good, I guess… How's Asuna-chan, by the way? Wasn't she close to Yuuki-chan?" Midori asked Kazuto.

"I called her not too long ago, but her dad answered. He said that he'd never seen her cry like this." Kazuto responded.

"I see… Well then, I guess you know what you should do next, Kazuto. Hm?" Midori implied to her son.

"Yeah, I know… be there for her and give her a shoulder to cry on if she needs it… I'm sure every one of us will be doing that anyway…" Kazuto answered.

"Good… Ah, I see you're still making something… You two can go upstairs… I'll handle dinner." Midori said.

"Mm… Arigatou, Kaa-san." Suguha said.

With that, Kazuto and Suguha went upstairs to their respective rooms.


A/N: That's it for the 7th chapter. Like I said, with my busy schedule, the next one will most likely take months to upload. But readers, please stay with me, as I have no intention of abandoning this story. Stay tuned until next time!

Yours truly, KiritoIRL.