Within moments, Yuriko was standing back in Matsuda's house, everyone else having followed – including Vinhatri. She grabbed Matsuda and dragged him outside, heading straight for the car. Everyone else followed, having convinced her to let them come in her rush to get her mother out of that apartment building. Everyone piling inside, Yuriko up front while the other three were in the back with Matsuda driving, she pulled out her phone. Dialling her mother's number, she brought the device to her ear. It rang for a while before she answered.
"Hello?" Jun Lei said on the other line.
"Mother," Yuriko said. "It's me."
"Oh, Yuriko," She said in surprise. "A package came for you. Did you order something?"
"What?" She paused. "Mother, you didn't open it, did you?"
"No, why?" Jun Lei seemed confused. "What's in it?"
"Mother, get out of there, now!" Yuriko yelled. "Don't grab anything, just go!"
"What?" Her voice was worried. "Why?"
"Don't panic, but I think it's a bomb," She said slowly. "Just get out of there. Now! I'll call the police."
With that, Yuriko hung up, dialling 110 before taking it to her ear. Then, she paused, hanging up and putting in a different number. Tanaka had given her his phone for desperate emergencies, so that was exactly what she was doing. Bringing it back to her ear, she spoke as soon as the device picked up.
"Tanaka, this is Yuriko," She said. "I have reason to believe a bomb was sent to my mother's apartment."
"What?" He breathed. "I'll send bomb experts over immediately and evacuators. Are you there right now?"
"No, but my mother is," Yuriko explained. "I called her and told her to leave immediately."
"Alright," Tanaka sighed. "We will be there as soon as we can."
"Thank you," She answered, before hanging up.
The drive went on silently, Matsuda going as fast as he dared and sometimes even running early red lights. She wanted to tell him to go faster, but knew he was doing his best to simply not get the cops on his tail and not crash the car. Both agitated and impatient, she was about ready to jump out of the car before it stopped once they reached the apartment building.
Alas, she didn't see her mother anywhere. It only took them five minutes, so she should have been outside by then. Yuriko exited the car, along with everyone else. She could hear the sirens close by. She picked up her phone, calling her mother again – but there was no answer. Panting, she looked back, locking eyes with Jayce. He shook his head.
"Yuriko, don't-" He started.
"I won't lose her again," She hissed.
Turning to face the building, Yuriko ran inside. She heard all them calling after her, and as she turned to run up the stairs, she saw Matsuda holding back Jayce from chasing her. Her mind open and searching, she took the steps by two, hearing her mother's thoughts from above the stairwell. Continuing to bolt, she could feel herself getting closer.
Then, she saw her.
They stopped right in front of each other, her mother panting as she stood next to a fire extinguisher, holding two wakizashi blades in one hand. Yuriko felt a sense of relief, realising she had gone to get one thing and one thing only – the swords that marked who she was. Smiling, she came forward slightly.
"Mama-" She started.
"Yuriko, look out!" Jun Lei screamed.
She turned just as the thoughts entered her mind, seeing the flash of long white hair before she felt the smack of a sword handle against her cheek. Crisp and sudden, she tipped over the railing, falling down through the gap in the stairs. She heard her mother scream her name, and a sight of a person jumping over the side after her. A panic was in Yuriko's chest as she realised she was falling to her death, and her mother had followed after her.
She felt her mother's arms wrap around her for one last embrace, but then something strange happened. In the mere moments that they had, Jun Lei had managed to turn herself around so that she was underneath Yuriko. In a matter of a few seconds, she saw the ground closing distance, and shut her eyes.
Crack!
The tremendous sound echoed through her ears, and she expected it all to end instantly. Except, it didn't, and she simply laid there in silence. Slowly, she opened her eyes, realising she wasn't dead. Looking around, she saw she was still on the floor, but her mother was beneath her. She looked at her face – still. Silent. Climbing off, everything was hurting, but nothing was broken.
"Mama?" She said quietly, shaking her shoulder. Her eyes were closed, and she simply laid there.
"Mama, wake up," Yuriko said, fear in her chest. She laid her hand on her forehead, trying to pull her into the waking world, but there was nothing to connect to.
"No, no, no… Why isn't it working?" She felt tears in her voice, her heart shattered. Then, she saw it – the blood pooling out from behind her head. "Mama, mama, mama…" She kept calling, pulling her into her lap as she started crying.
"Mama!"
(¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸¸.-> 🖋 <-.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯)
Yuriko stood outside as the bomb experts disarmed the explosive, staring at the emergency vehicle as they hauled away a stretcher with a white blanket over a body. Her body. They never found Flower, or Vin. She had stifled her tears, staring out into nothing. Jayce came up beside her, watching in silence as they closed the doors and drove down the road. Yuriko gripped the two swords in her hand.
"You don't have to hold it in," He said.
"What would you rather I do?" She asked.
"Whatever it is you need to do to let it out," Jayce said slowly.
Yuriko watched the car for a moment longer. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes, accepting that he was right. There was no way she could defeat them holding in all the emotions – they would simply come out in their fight, and ruin what she had to do.
Opening her mouth, she held her stomach before bending over and letting out a piercing scream of pain and agony that lasted a few seconds. Then, she fell to her knees, shaking as she felt eyes of pity on her. Except Jayce. He simply sat down next to her, bare hand on her shoulder, with an empathetic understanding of how she truly felt.