Chapter 23

A week had pasted since Kira's eventful visit to Twilight Town. And to her welcomed surprise, it had be pretty quiet. No Heartless running around trying to steal hearts. No baddies trying to kill her on a daily basis. Not even her always depressed companion Cloud Strife was there to share her bedroom with. The silence and peace was nice.

But, it had it's disadvantages. She was beginning to get used to Cloud. Even if he was a silent, glooming shadow of sadness. His presence was slightly comforting. Despite them hardly speaking, the idea of him always hiding in her closet made her feel somewhat better. A sense of calm.

He told her on Wednesday that he had to go back to the other universe to help an old friend with something. He didn't know when he would be back either. There wasn't a lot of details given. But, that was Cloud for you. Give you enough information to not worry you, but not enough for you to know what really is going on.

She sighed. She needed to do something. Leave this house for a while and forget her life. She lifted herself from her desk chair to her closet. She half expected for Cloud to be sitting there when she opened the door, complaining about her choices in clothing. But, no blonde sat on her pile of dirty laundry. How disheartening. She grabbed her black skinny jeans and white t-shirt decorated in rainbow bows and threw them on quickly. She slipped on her black Converse and walked out her bedroom door. For once, she didn't care about straightening her hair. She just wanted to escape.

Making her way down the stairs, a figure sat at the table staring at her with turqouise eyes. His ebony hair touched the tips of his ears. His facial structure was much like a girl's, elegant angles and perfect ivory skin. This was her thirteen year old brother Brendan. "Good morning, Brendan," she said in a monotone voice.

He just nodded. He didn't talk much after their dad passed. It really took a toll on the young boy. He was his role model. But, he was taken out of this world so quickly. A wildflower plucked from the moist earth.

Their mother was cooking french toast. Kira could tell from the scent of cinnamon in the air. Leanne turned to her daughter, "Going somewhere today?"

"Yeah. It's a nice day to get out of the house."

Her mother smiled. "Where you headed?"

It took her a minute to answer that. Where was she going? She hadn't given it much thought. There wasn't many places for her to run to. But, there was one place she knew she could go that no one would disturb her in. "The graveyard. I want to go visit Dad today."

The vibe in the room changed. No one was over his death. Not even close. Her mother faintly smiled. "Don't forget flowers. And Kira, I got you something." She pointed to a set of nine novels on the counter. She went over and picked up the top one. No. 6 was the title. "I thought you might like them."

Kira smiled. "Thanks Mom. And, I won't forget the flowers." And then she left without another word. The energy in the room was just too much for her to handle.

The flower shop was a few minutes walk from her house. She loved it here. The rainbow of flower petals of every variety was always an alluring image to her. She knew exactly what she wanted. She picked two bouquets. One of sunflowers, in memory of her parents's first date in a sunflower patch, and one of white lillies. She was lucky she got her flowers for free thanks to her father's passing. Lillies were expensive.

She broke into a run. The graveyard wasn't too far off. Just off a beaten path behind the shop. Fog was surrounding her. God, how early was it? The sun hadn't rose yet either. She couldn't see that well. She soon found herself tripping over a small grave. The ground was wet with dew. A faint laughter was heard through the howling wind. She picked herself off the ground. A tall, dark figure stood there, red piercing eyes staring right at her.