Halkegenia Online - Beach Episode - Chapter 1
"Oh wow! This is beautiful, isn't it Kirito-kun . . . What? Is something wrong? Kirito-kun?" Asuna's elation turned to concern as she set down her travel bag with one hand and took Yui's hand with the other.
"Papa?" His daughter tilted her head in that innocent way that she reserved for when she was genuinely confused and unable to resolve conflicting «Inputs».
"Nii-chan?" Suguha gave him her own brand of worried look as she came up behind him. "Is something wrong?"
"Not wrong exactly." Kirito answered, shrugging off the canvas duffel bags he'd been put in charge of retrieving from the nearby post office. For a Faerie, they weren't anything heavy, but while flying with this much stuff might have been possible, it definitely wouldn't have been very convenient, comfortable, or safe. "This just seems like a bit much is all." An old and familiar unease took hold as he gazed up at the lookout inspired tower that rose before them.
The tower was three floors high with a fourth floor consisting of a semi enclosed wooden platform, constructed like most minor Salamander buildings from tough desert bricks and a protective façade of sand plaster that had begun to crack and separate around its solid stone foundations with a certain deliberate artistic flair. Vibrant canvas awnings were rigged from the top floor of the tower, sloping down in graceful, wing-like sweeps to the surrounding walls and buildings to form a shaded pavilion around fountains and outdoor sitting areas lush with plant life.
In fact, it was hard to believe that less than two months ago this place had been an abandoned front line outpost in the shadow of the Fortress City of Gaddan, now transformed into a beach side refuge from the summer heat upon the shores of Ragdorian Lake and fast becoming the foremost destination for Faeries seeking something almost like a vacation.
"I think you should just enjoy it Nii-chan." Suguha said, trading looks with Asuna. "Besides, where else are we going to stay?"
"Sugu's right you know." Asuna said. "It was really generous of Argo-san to tell us about this place."
"She was just passing on what she learned from Agil." Kirito pointed out. In fact, she'd almost pushed the info onto them.
The Gnome storekeeper was certainly doing well for himself since Kirito had last visited the Dicey Cafe. The Gnome couple Agil and Eda, Andrew and Kathy Mills, had hired another employee so that Agil could free up time to travel and meet with prospective investors.
While that did mean his old fence usually wasn't the one serving him from behind the counter these days, Kirito actually thought it was awesome that he was holding his own with the established Tristanian merchants. The fact that the Kirigaya Family owned a ten percent interest in the «Honey Halo Confectionery and Creamery» project that Agil was getting off the ground and another five percent in «Goubniu Light Mechanics» just gave the Spriggan another reason to root for him.
From mats and weapons to spices and sweets. It sure was a change in clientele Kirito mused. At least Kathy seemed to like her husband's new business ambition. In fact, she thought he was maybe working a little toomuch recently, leaving her alone to mind the businesses in Arrun while he ventured out to provide them both with a better life.
"So shall we get our things settled and take a look around?" Asuna smiled as she pressed her hands together so that her fingers touched lightly at their tips. "Then we can go get changed. Silica and Liz should have arrived already."
Kirito grabbed the bags once more and set out after his Maeve wife towards a small kiosk situated beneath the pavilion and manned by two young women, human women, who cheerfully greeted the Faerie couple. The fact that there were Tristanians living in and around Gaddan wasn't all that surprising. Unlike Arrun with its Faerie population of nearly twenty thousand, the faction cities were more sparsely populated and required extra labor both to maintain the cities and to free the native Salamanders for other tasks. More importantly, Gaddan and its «Desert Zone» had displaced a large amount of marginal land, and many people had been left in search of work, eventually being lured to the Salamander City by rumors of its growing prosperity and the level hand of its bureaucratic Lord, Mortimer. So seeing humans working at a 'resort', even a Faerie resort, shouldn't have been at all unusual.
What might have been a little surprising was what they were wearing, or maybe what they weren't. Colorful halter tops, sheer skirts, and big smiles didn't leave very much to the imagination. "Welcome to the Charming Siren's Lagoon! I'm Jessica." A black haired girl on the left in matching tea green top and skirt said, more importantly, the way she clasped her hands together in front of her did interesting things with her generous figure, especially when she bowed. "How can we be of service today?"
Charming Siren's Lagoon?
The former outpost was located beside what had been a desert oasis, and thanks to the Transition, the large pool of crystal clear water ringed and bottomed by powder soft sand was now technically a freshwater lagoon of Ragdorian lake. Kirito guessed that made the girls the 'Sirens'. Either that or there were some nasty «Avian» type mobs around the lake shore that nobody had taken care of yet.
Kirito squinted hard at the sign board hanging behind the two girls. It seemed to be proclaiming the establishment's name in both Tristanian and Japanese along with a list of nightly prices for the various rooms and services. From a brief study of the line items, the Spriggan could only conclude one thing. 'Seems expensive.'
"Hello." Asuna began conversationally. "We're the Kirigaya party. A friend made reservations for us a week ago." The Maeve girl reached into her purse, fishing around for a small slip of paper which she handed to the girl at the kiosk. "She said we just needed to give you this."
The girl accepted the note, reading its contents with a practiced precision and then handing it to the slight, blonde haired girl in pink beside her. "Certainly. Your reservation is for the third floor great room and roof garden. Gimi here will help you get settled."
'Third Flood Great Room'. Kirito read the description and then the price . . . And then read the price again because he was sure there was an extra zero.
"Asuna . . ." He began.
"Hmm?" His wife looked to him as if she didn't have a care in the world.
"Doesn't that look a little pricey to you?" Kirito whispered under his breath. He didn't exactly have a problem with splurging on a nice room or on good food, especially when they had so little time off to enjoy it. But even being generous that seemed way too expensive. Their family finances might have been secure, but they weren't rich enough to throw around their money frivolously either.
The change from confusion to worry was almost instantaneous on Asuna's face and she was about to say something when the black haired girl placed a receipt into her hand and worry changed almost as quickly back to confusion. "Here you go. Two nights on the third floor reserved and paid in advance."
"Excuse me?" Asuna examined the receipt, carefully reading the Japanese text, the product of a small wooden stamp sitting innocently on the desk.
"Our copy of the receipt says your room was already paid for in full." The black haired girl said, never failing to smile or remain anything but perfectly polite. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"
Kirito and Asuna exchanged looks. Together, their eyes drooped and they shared a sigh. Argo might be a good friend, but she wasn't exactly wealthy either. This was getting suspicious. But experience said the mystery would unravel itself when it was ready, so there was no point in worrying for now. "No, that will be all, thank you." Asuna returned the receipt to her purse.
The serving girl, Gimi, had been happy to show them up to their room on the third level, eagerly leading the way up an external flight of stairs and producing the room key from a small pouch worn around her waist. The girls were the first through the door, and from the noises that wafted back out as Kirito followed, he could guess they were pleased with what they'd found inside. When he saw it for himself, he couldn't really disagree.
The 'Great Room' that Argo had reserved for them turned out to be pretty aptly named. The entire third level of the tower was taken up by a single open space. An elevated hardwood floor followed the curve of the circular wall with its many windows around the perimeter of the chamber and surrounded a sunken sitting area filled with luxurious pillows and low sitting tables. A small fireplace was located at the center of the room, its chimney rising up through the ceiling and its hearth cold but already filled with dried logs just waiting for kindling.
"Pardon me." The servant girl slipped through the door past Kirito and gingerly laid the folded mattress against the wall before going to get another.
Kirito found a place for the bags before going to stand beside Asuna looking out from a south facing window that gave a view over the edge of the outpost walls to the crystal clear oasis turned lagoon and the wide blue expanse of Ragdorian lake which stretched off like the sea in either direction.
Yui threw her arms over the windowsill, eyes big and bright. "Pretty." She whispered quietly. His daughter was right of course, it was a beautiful sight, the biggest freshwater lake in all of Halkegenia and also the deepest. Ragdorian lake was renowned for its beauty, the kind of place that would probably have been protected as a «National Treasure» back in Japan.
Even here in Halkegenia where the people had never had to contend with the worst aspects of industrial pollution the Lake received respect for another very important reason.
"I remember Captain Gramont telling me that Ragdorian lake is the home of Water Spirits." Asuna noted as she swept her eyes across the distant expanse of deep blue. "The Lake is kept pristine thanks to their care. Apparently the water is clear enough to see for hundreds of meters."
"The Undines must love it." Kirito thought out loud. It was sort of a shame that the city of Orlein hadn't been the settlement to appear at the lakeside. Instead, the squat walls of Gaddan rose along the stretch of desert coast, the imposing stone keep of Gaddan Tower visible for kilometers.
"So they're like kami?" Suguha pondered out loud. "I wonder if we'll have a chance to see one. What would a water spirit even look like?"
Asuna shook her head, a wistful look on the Maeve girl's features. "I don't think so. They live in the deepest parts of the lake, and apparently they only communicate with a few chosen intermediaries. I think General Gramont's youngest son is engaged to one of them."
"Montmorency." Kirito supplied helpfully. "I guess everyone calls her Monmon." Guiche did anyway. Montmorency mon Montmorency, it was enough to make the Spriggan wonder if her name wasn't maybe a little unfortunate. There was no way her family hadn't known the sort of nicknames she'd collect.
Kirito went to help Gimi with the remaining futons, where he discovered another oddity to ask his wife about. "Asuna, how many people are we expecting?" Because this was way too many mattresses.
"Hmm . . . Well there's you, me, Yui-chan, and Leafa-chan. So that's four. Liz said she's bringing a friend along so that's another two." A friend? Kirito frowned, uh oh. "And then Silica and her friend from Arrun home, and one other that she knows. Then there's Klein, Kino, and Caramella. So that's twelve staying at least one night."
Kirito looked around, suddenly the room didn't seem so big anymore. Man, this was supposed to just be a small get together. Sometimes he forgot that Asuna was used to thinking about gatherings in much bigger numbers. Their senses of what made a «Crowd» were on completely different levels.
"Anyone else?" Kirito was almost afraid to ask.
"Carmond-san mentioned he would be visiting Gaddan with his little niece and nephew, he said he'd bring them down for the day. I made an offer to Morgiana-san and Gene-san too, they're resting in Gaddan after the wedding, so they might come down for a little while but they might not. Oh, and Eda says she's bringing Agil for a day off."
"Huh?" Kirito's head came up. "Agil?"
"You sound surprised." Asuna's brow rose. "You didn't think Eda-chan could pull him away from his work for that long?"
"Actually I was thinking that if he isn't working, he isn't making us any money." Kirito frowned deeply, those investments weren't going to grow themselves after all. "But now that you mention it, that is pretty surprising . . . What?" The Spriggan looked up to be confronted by three faces with varying expressions of distaste.
"Nii-chan." Suguha fixed him with flat, disapproving look. "I knew you were greedy, but I didn't think you were that sort of person."
"Erm . . ."
"Papa is pretty stingy." Yui crossed her arms as she passed harsh judgement.
"Uhm . . ."
"Kirito-kun." Asuna pursed her lips in a way that said she was profoundly annoyed with him.
Ah, he could see how what he'd said could be taken kind of badly. "Well . . ." Kirito began. "It's just a lot of money is all and . . ." He flinched as Asuna stepped away from the window and approached with a dangerous look in her eyes. His wife reached out, planting both hands on his shoulders, and began to gently but firmlypush him towards the door.
"Asuna?"
"Girls get changed in the room, Kirito-kun, you need to leave for a little bit."
"But . . ."
"Why don't you go down to the beach and have a nice swim." The Maeve pushed him out onto the balcony and shut the door in his face.
Kirito was left standing alone, expression decidedly nonplussed as he sighed. Go down to the beach for a swim? Sure. But his sunscreen and swim trunks were still in the room. The door promptly swung open again. Kirito looked up to meet the eyes of his sister Suguha. The Sylph gave an apologetic little bow and pressed his bag into his chest. "Nii-chan."
"Thanks." Kirito sighed as the door was shut again. He decided to take the fast route down, climbing over the balcony rail and lightly dropping the three floors to the ground on a feathered burst of flight power. He thought he'd seen changing tents down on the beach. Besides, he thought he could smell barbecue coming from nearer to the lagoon, he might just find a few «Rare Treasures» if he did a little exploring.
A hot summer day, maybe the hottest so far, and also a Day of Void. It seemed that plenty of people had used that excuse to take a day of rest and escape to someplace cool.
The impression of a resort only grew as Kirito made his way towards the beach. There were even more of the serving staff in their revealing beach outfits entertaining and bringing food and drinks from a kitchen in a building near the outpost wall. Guests were relaxing in the shade, drinking, eating, and talking. A pair of Undines were in the middle of readying spears for a fishing expedition while a Puca girl thoroughly lathered every inch of her golden brown skin with a bottle of mineral laced sunscreen.
Nearer to the lagoon, the source of the cooking smells came from an open pit bonfire where a group of Salamanders were busying themselves with the formidable task of preparing and roasting a whole «Sand Shark» freshly caught from the «Desert Zone».
Leading the effort was a tall and athletic looking Salamander woman who, Kirito was careful not to stare, was dressed more in her rich fiery red hair than the pair of shorts and halter top revealing taut and tawny skin that glistened all over with sweat as she hacked away with a blade like a machete in the combined heat of the sun and the open fire.
-Whack- Another sharp blow driven by limbs and back that rippled with trained muscle. A swordswoman, Kirito noted, approving of her technique and follow through. Each strike landed exactly where she wanted it to, cracking and peeling back the remaining fragments of shell so that she could hack off the fins, probably for «Sand Shark Fin Soup», it looked like they planned to roast the rest of the Mob in its shell to preserve the succulent meat.
The swordswoman wiped the sweat from her brow and waved for two burly young Salamander men to move the de-finned mob over the fire. A half dozen more Salamanders were working at benches in the shade nearby, the air sweet with the smells of sauce being prepared. For a race of fire aligned Fae, the Salamanders definitely knew how to enjoy themselves by the water.
So close to Gaddan, the fact that the majority of the Faerie guests were Salamanders came as no surprise. They stood out with their fiery hair and sometimes even more eye catching clothing, or near lack of it, as they lay along the beach or swam in the crystal clear water of the lagoon. The second most common guests were, also unsurprisingly, cool haired Undines lounging in the shade or adventuring out into the wider waters of Ragdorian lake itself.
Further back from the water there were changing tents for the guests to put on their swimwear along with food kiosks lining the outside of the outpost wall and serving everything from cold cut sandwiches to sweets and cold drinks. All the promises of food set Kirito's stomach to growling. So after getting himself changed into his beach clothes, black trunks and a sleeveless black shirt, and rubbing in the contents of the glass sunscreen bottle until the mixture of perfume and mineral scents felt like it had permeated his skin, the Spriggan emerged back onto the beach.
Kirito was about to peruse the stalls when a call at his back drew his attention. "Hey . . . Hey Kirito!"
The sword smith Lizbeth didn't so much pat Kirito on the back as slam her arm across his shoulders with the full strength of her work trained biceps, nearly knocking the Spriggan Swordsman over before he caught his balance and twisted around to meet the Leprechaun's smug grin.
"Getting a little slow there, Kirito." The smith teased as they fist bumped in greeting. "Good to see you made it. Then I'm guessing Asuna and Yui-chan are around here?"
"Getting changed back at the room." The Spriggan agreed as he rubbed at his back, that had kind of hurt. "And I'm getting a little slow nothing, maybe you shouldn't drop in on a guy when he's distracted." That would learnhim for letting his guard down when he was hungry.
Liz laughed again, giving him a gentler pat on the back to apologize. "All that good smelling food huh? Yeah, this place is pretty awesome and the lagoon water is really clear and cool too. The Cat made a good find on this one."
"Wh-what do you m-mean, g-good find!" Liz's grin faded into a look of displeasure and then of outright disgust as a pair of arms reached over her shoulders and a second Leprechaun with hair like golden wire leaned their weight against her. "Apprentice. H-Hey A-Apprentice wh-wh-what is this hellscape y-you've dragged me to? A-Are you t-trying to murder your master after a-all the k-kind things I've d-done for you?!"
The sword smith Kofu squinted from beneath her bangs, clearly distressed to be anyplace brighter or more open than the dingy walls of her shop. Now that Kirito thought about it, he couldn't remember a single time dealing with the Leprechaun master smith that he had seen her anyplace but at her shop. The realities of life after the Transition were pretty tough on a shut in it seemed. They couldn't even hide behind a monitor anymore.
"While I'm surprised you didn't shrivel up in the sunlight," Liz bucked her burden from her shoulders, "If I were going to kill you I'd use a hammer and stake. You need fresh air and a normal sleep cycle you weird Hikikimori!"
Watching silently, from Kirito's vantage, it seemed a lot like a parent dealing with a small child, a complete reversal of the bullying that Kofu usually delivered to her 'Apprentice'. The blonde Leprechaun cast her eyes aside sullenly. "T-The hearth gods w-won't like it. Y-you better appease t-them A-Apprentice!"
"Whatever." Liz sighed as she took the other girl by the shoulders and started to clean her up, adjusting her posture so that she stood straight and brushing the hair out of her eyes. "Come on, you can sleep all you want, just as long as you're getting fresh air. Hey, Kirito I think I saw Silica down by the water just before I caught sight of you."
"Right." Kirito came up beside Kofu and took the smith's left arm while Liz took her right, guiding her back towards the water as she whimpered and groaned under her breath. Even if it wasn't polite, Kirito had to know, "How did you even get her to Gaddan?"
"Business with one of her suppliers. He wouldn't deal with me directly." Liz scowled. "We had to catch a ship so Kofu could stay below decks. Actually," Liz looked nervous, "I didn't think she'd take it this badly."
Badly was an understatement. Hopefully being away from the source of her 'Power' wouldn't cause Liz's 'Master' to crumble to dust.
At least the people waiting for them by the shore looked happier to be out in the sun. "Kirito!" A small, bubbly Cait girl, her ears hidden beneath a broad straw hat waved to him with great sweeps of her arm, a blue feathered dragon rising beside her on strong wing beats.
"Kyaa!"
"Looks like you two beat us to the water." Kirito greeted, letting Liz handle Kofu into the shade of an umbrella to have a sit down.
"Is something wrong with that person?" Silica asked out loud, her tone changing immediately to one of concern.
Kirito just scratched the back of his head. "It's . . . complicated . . . don't mind her too much, Liz has it handled." Probably, Kirito hoped.
He must have sounded more confident than he felt since Silica seemed more than willing to take his words at face value, giving her 'munchkin' smile and nodding. "Well, maybe once she's had a lay down. This sure is a scorcher today, but Yuuki-chan and I saw a stand selling shaved ice . . ."
"Blueberry shaved ice!" A beautifully and equally straw hatted Imp girl with long violet hair added as she came up beside Silica and put an arm around the Cait girl's shoulder. Like Silica, she was dressed for the summer heat in a thin strapped top and cotton shorts that concealed a ready bathing suit for later. "That's the perfect thing for this weather, dontcha think? So this is one of your friends, Silica-chan?"
"Un." The Cait girl stood between them and gave introductions. "Yuuki-chan, this is Kirito-kun, a good friend of mine. You'd know him better as Yui-chan's father. Kirito-kun, this is my partner Yuuki, we fly the courier routes together."
"Eh?" The girl who had been introduced as Yuuki gave Kirito a second look, fixing him with cherry-blossom-pink eyes. "You're Yui-chan's Papa? I guess you're one of the 'lucky' out of timers then, huh?" She grinned and stuck out her hand. "The name's Konno Yuuki, Licensed Courier Second Class. Nice to meetcha!"
"Same here." Kirito shook back. Any friend of Silica's was a friend of his, he was just glad to see that she was practicing better judgment with the sort of people she hung around with.
"So how about we go see about that shaved ice?" Yuuki asked Silica.
"Un, then we can go for a swim in the lagoon." Silica agreed. "It'll be fun."
The Imp girl's smile faltered ever so slightly as the brakes were put on her exuberance. "Erm . . . swimming? Uh . . . Actually Silica-chan . . ."
"Whatever you girls decide to do, remember to put on the sunblock that Nori-chan sent for you first." A soft spoken Undine in a sheer summer gown said as she placed her hands gently on the shoulders of both girls. "You have to protect your skin in this weather." The water Faerie looked up at Kirito, smiling softly, her long, drooping lashes giving the impression that she might have been a little wilted in the summer heat. "And you must be Kirito-san. Silica-chan has told Yuuki-chan and I a little about you. I am Shiune, it is a pleasure to meet you."
"Shiune works at the Arrun Central Hospital." Silica explained helpfully. "She's one of the nurses learning how to take care of people from the doctor's that work there. Oh, and she's also one of the members of Yuuki-chan's guild. Some of them split off after the Transition but they all keep in touch, like a family."
The Undine bowed very slightly with her hands clasped in front of her. "I'd like to thank you and your wife for inviting Yuuki and I."
"Don't mention it." Kirito bowed back, feeling like his manners were a little outclassed by this beautiful Undine woman. "This is just a beach trip, it's really not something that you need to make a big deal out of."
"Thank you nevertheless, on both our behalf." Shiune insisted as she brushed aside a long, graceful strand of hair. Yuuki took the Undine by the hand, pulling her off towards the stands and asking what flavor she'd like to get, apparently the Imp was paying.
Silica stopped long enough to turn back. "And do you want anything, Kirito-san?"
"I think I'm good." It wasn't that he wasn't feeling a bit thirsty, but the introductions had been a little bit much on such short notice and it was probably just a taste of what was going to come later today. A nice, secluded little get together was going to end up being a big gathering, and those sorts of things always ended up being a little exhausting.
'We have too many friends.' Kirito decided, but he was grateful for every single one of them. "You go on ahead, I'm going to see if I can find a good spot for us to set up. There's going to be a lot of people."
"Un."
They'd parted ways, Silica going with Shiune and Yuuki while Liz stayed to keep an eye on Kofu under the shade of the umbrellas. Kirito made his way along the parasol shaded beach in search of a spot with enough room for everyone, and preferably a little secluded from the rest of the beach goers. He found that spot about halfway around the lagoon, where the sheltered waters were separated from Ragdorian lake by nothing more than a wide sandbar and the lush oasis plants screening off the nearest parts of the beach.
A cluster of Parasols and beach chairs were arranged near to a few hardy looking desert trees, with only a trio of people around, a pair of guests reclining in chairs in the shade, and a Cait girl crouched down over a sandcastle that seemed to be well on its way to becoming an impressive replica of Freelia.
It occurred to Kirito that maybe the other guests had come here for the same reason, to get away from the noise and find a nice quiet spot, so it only seemed right to warn them and ask permission.
"Oy, excuse me . . ." Kirito waved to the young man reclined in the first beach chair, presently occupied with intently reading a thin, leather bound book. The fringes of blond hair sticking out from beneath a boonie hat, the deep blue cotton jacket over patterned t-shirt and khaki cargo shorts, and the lightweight loafers that lay kicked off and filled with sand at his feet practically made him look like a laid back American surfer. Probably a Sylph come down from Freelia, except . . . except . . . Kirito frowned as he got a good look at him, and then grimaced as suspicion returned. "Oy oy . . . This isn't funny you know . . . Did Asuna put you up to this too?" Because that was the only way he could see it happening. It did however explain who had paid for their room.
The man looked up from his book, closing it carefully with a wooden bookmark. Kirito's written Tristanian wasn't the best, but he understood enough of the alphabet to know that it was definitely Tristanian and that the title read something like The King. Well, at least it wasn't The Princess and the Princess. If it had been, the Spriggan would have been taking the opportunity to defect across the border into Gallia.
"I was wondering when you and your family would arrive." The youth sat up in his chair. "Sir Kirito."
"Prince Wales." The Black Swordsman greeted the exile Prince of Albion, not exactly how or where he'd ever have expected to find him. The fact that the 'Surf Bum' happened to be him just made it seem all the more insane. Kirito could only think of one thing to say. "Nice hat."
"Ah yes, so simple it isn't even a disguise. Where better to sit unnoticed then in plain sight?" Wales put his book down beside his chair and climbed to his feet. "And who would expect a human to be hiding his ears on a Faerie beach? Quite effective, wouldn't you say? Of course, some of my men are here as well, no sense in taking chances . . . "
Some of his men . . . Kirito hadn't been amused to begin with, but this was starting to seem like a bad joke that was taking too long to get to the punchline. "I'm going to guess this isn't when you're going to tell me what you're doing here."
The Prince stopped in his explanation of his 'disguise strategy' and took a turn for looking decidedly embarrassed. "Ah yes well . . ."
"He was terrorizing the Generals at the Champ de Mars so his Girlfriend the Queen gave him a time out and sent him all the way to scenic Ragdorian Lake. Tis a timeless lovers quarrel sa!" A nasal lisp came from the Cait girl on the beach, standing up, her hands tugged her golden yellow bathing suit bottom back down as she turned to flash a whiskered grin, a Pixie in an elaborate two piece bathing suit constructed from flowing scraps of yellow silk flying up from the sandcastle to settle on her shoulder. "But I wouldn't worry too much sa, he twas given some duties to attend to while down this way."
"Duties?" Kirito knew he wasn't going to like where this was going.
"Other than a few days rest," Wales answered, "Prescribed by my self-appointed physician of a cousin, I'm also extending my aid to this lovely young woman and her family." He gestured to the girl seated next to him.
Kirito looked to the human girl in modest swimsuit and shorts as she lowered her tinted glasses from her eyes. The human corkscrew looked back.
"Monmon?" Kirito let slip without even thinking about what he'd said.
"Pardon?" Montmorency mon Montmorency frowned. "I don't think we've . . . met . . ."
The Beach. Hot sun, cool winds, and the sound of the surf. The smell of good barbecue, the taste of good beer, and company of good friends. Stretches of pure, idyllic sand going on for what looked like forever, blue all the way to the horizon, and most importantly, lots of beautiful women.
Yeah, Klein, Sir Tsuboi Ryotaro Klein, Faerie Swordsman of the Salamanders and Knight to Queen Henrietta of Tristain thought he had his priorities pretty much in order as he suckled on a dark brown bottle of something that tasted very satisfactorily like a lager.
He had his friends, he had his beer, and he had a view of all the scenic natural beauty that the combined worlds of Halkegenia and ALfheim had to offer stretching down the beach.
"Hey, Kirito." Klein said as kicked back in a beach chair beside the 'Black Knight' of the Order of Yggdrasil.
Reclined back in the shade in his own swim trunks and shirt, the Spriggan replied without opening his eyes, like nothing in the world could possibly bother him. "Yeah?"
"Life is good." Klein reached an arm behind his neck to prop up his head.
Kirito was a long time in answering, then, without any change in tone, or even a crack of his eyes, he replied. "If you're undressing Asuna or Sugu with your eyes, remember that getting kicked in the crotch will really hurt now."
Klein nearly choked on his next swig of beer before rocketing up in his chair, coughing heavily to clear his throat. "Hey now Kirito!" The Red Samurai actually felt a little hurt at what his friend was insinuating. "Come on man, you know I'd be the first guy to back up Asuna or your sister if someone looked at them funny!" 'Backing them up' because either of the two Faeries would probably be able to handle almost anything that came their way before anyone else could lift a finger.
Make no mistake about it, the hell they'd all been through, SAO, the Transition, and the opening shots of a war, had taken both of those human girls and transformed them into incredibly strong and competent Faeriewomen, plenty able to look out for themselves.
Which was probably why Suguha really did look all grown up these days, ever since she'd joined the Watch and started to cut her own path, not trying to follow after Kirito but not losing sight of him either. Klein's eyes wandered across the beach to where the girls were gathered on the shore. Sort of without any fanfare at all, Kirito's little sister had gone through another transformation, almost bigger than being turned into a Sylph in the first place. Her body might not have changed at all, but the way she wore it sure had, and that was making all the difference.
Like the way she was rocking that white and green bikini without even thinking about it, out in the sun chatting with Asuna and the classy Undine that Silica had brought along. Chest thrust high, back arched, and hips out without a bit of the self-consciousness that usually made her look like a kid wearing hand-me-downs, proudly displaying taut skin and a generous figure that would have made a good number of grown women, grown Faerie women, more than a little bit envious.
The tough talk and commanding presence of a Kendo practitioner confident in her skills had mellowed out, worn off its edges, sort of melted and recast, from a diamond hard shield that Suguha had sheltered behind to face this crazy world, into a much more complete suit of armor that covered most of her weak spots. And hereally couldn't say it didn't look good on her.
Which was why he was probably going to hell Klein realized.
'His Sister.' He reminded himself, as fun as she might be to hang around with. 'His Sister.' The Salamander repeated, emphasis on the 'His'. As cool as she could be in a fight. 'His kid Sister.' Which really should have killed it for him. 'Remember your rule Klein!' Except if he hadn't known any better and Leafa had come up to him at a bar carrying herself like that, he couldn't say his first thought would have been to card her. In fact, it probably would have been a distant fifth.
It didn't help that Kirito chose that moment to nod. "Knowing I don't have anything to worry about is the only reason I'd say something like that." The Spriggan said. "Don't sweat it so much Klein."
"Yeah, right." The Salamander muttered. 'Bad Klein. Bad! You do not betray a bro's trust!' The Salamander turned his attention away from the aesthetic beach scene playing itself out before his eyes. 'Remember, there are plenty of other fish in the sea!'
In fact, speaking of fish, his eyes found safe harbor on the bluenette in a white one piece that Leafa had been talking to. Not only pretty but downright beautiful in that sort of refined and nurturing way. And judging by the glass of wine she'd been lightly sipping earlier, safely over «The Line».
She'd introduced herself as Shiune when Klein had made it to the beach late and carrying a heavy wooden cask filled with ice and cold alcohol for those who were old enough to enjoy it. She was a guildmate or a friend of Silica's cute little partner. Seemed pretty alright from the little bit of conversation they'd managed to share. A healer, a nurse actually, or studying to be one now that she was settling into her new life.
Klein watched as the lovely Undine woman turned at the small tug at her sarong, meeting the smile of Silica's Imp partner who was dressed in a similar violet swimsuit and matching leg wrap. They exchanged a few words, Shiune tilting her head as she raised a hand to hide the smallest of smiles and then nodded and sent Yuuki off with her sarong so that she stood along the shore baring some really gorgeous long legs.
That got the Salamander's attention as he sat up to get a slightly better view of the slim woman stepping out into the crystal water. Her wings slowly crept out from her back, four azure sweeps that first took on their rigid flight forms, but then, as soon as their tips brushed water, began to turn limp and translucent. Once the Undine judged she was far enough out, the water about midway up slim thighs, she'd stretched out her arms and bent forward, fabric stretching in interesting ways, before springing off in a sleek dive, vanishing with barely a splash.
Klein hadn't even realized that he'd whistled until Argo's nasally chuckle had drawn his attention. The Cait girl had found herself a spot in the sand between Klein's chair and a bundled up cocoon of blankets that was the temporary 'nest' of Liz's insufferable Leprechaun boss. Legs crossed like a little kid, a large, leather bound notebook sat in her lap, the pages filled with 'the Cat's' absurdly fine scrawl laid out as neat as the text of a word processor.
"Tis obvious you're enjoying yourself." The Cait Girl grinned widely, a big Cheshire smile. "Maybe a little too much, sa."
"Oy, you're saying it like it's a bad thing." Klein scratched at the back of his head. Leering at girls on the streets while they were going about their business was one thing, but taking a lay back and enjoying the view at a beach where it was all being shown off willingly was nothing like that. Especially when so many of the men and women were so obviously enjoying the chance to shamelessly flaunt their new selves.
"Far be it for me to judge, sa." Argo snickered again. "Just an observation that I thought should be made nyah. Tis an interesting phenomenon, one we didn't get to experience in Aincrad."
That was the truth, Klein thought. Sometimes it could be a little easy to forget, but Kayaba Akihiko had enforced a certain form of honesty among the trapped players of SAO, maybe as a reminder of his power, or maybe just to make the death game that much more real. If nothing else, when he'd crossed swords with another «Front Liner», or god forbid a «Player Killer», Klein had known he'd been seeing their 'real' face.
Logging into ALO had turned that seemingly unshakable truth on its head, all those people with fantastic looking faces and bodies, a throwback to that first day in the «Town of Beginnings». Players could choose to look however they wanted, for a price, and even the randomly generated avatars had leaned towards attractive on average to suit the idealized fantasy setting.
Caught up in that, Klein had, like many of the SAO survivors before him, felt a lot more at ease wearing his own face, or the best approximation he could manage using the character editor. He liked to think he'd done a good job.
But then there were the people, most of the players in fact, who had been playing ALO for the sense of escapism. It was definitely natural to want a good looking avatar, and Klein had thought about making some improvements himself, but nobody could have predicted before the Transition just how real and permanent their Faerie looks were going to turn out to be.
"So by all means, Klein, enjoy the eye candy courtesy of our species' collective insecurity nyah."
"Insecurity huh? That's an interesting way to put it." Kirito, who had been listening the entire time, leaned over and propped himself up in his chair.
"Tis the truth, Kii-bou." Argo grinned mischievously. "You've seen it too sa!"
"Hmmm . . ." Kirito frowned, assuming a meditative pose, cross legged atop his chair. "But you put a lot of work into recreating your SAO looks, just like Liz and Klein."
"Tis a look I've grown attached to, I can't deny." Argo admitted. "Your point?"
"So then," the Spriggan said out loud, "it was just my imagination that you'd gotten, maybe, a little bigger since SAO . . ."
Dead silence passed between the two Faeries, and a tension so thick it could have been cut with a butter knife. And there was Klein sitting right in the middle of it. 'Oh Shit!'
Argo smiled, although not with her eyes, golden cat slits boring into a point just above the bridge of Kirito's nose. "It was two years, Kii-bou. I filled out."
'Yeah right'. Klein thought, and then gave himself the mental gag. There was no way to tell for sure that 'the Cat' couldn't pick up on his mental waves, and he wasn't exactly looking to get clawed today.
"And besides, you're one to talk with a cheating body like that." Argo waved vaguely to brush over the Spriggan's entire slim frame, but in particular at the small, wiry, and well defined muscles of his arms, shoulders, and chest, the last two adding just a little bit of rounded bulk to the otherwise distressingly thin swordsman.
"She's gotcha there, Kirito." Klein decided to side with Argo for the sake of his health. It was kind of a cheap shot when Kirito had lucked out with the transfer of his game stats and wound up seriously toned for his trouble. As if he needed to be a bigger magnet for girls. 'Leave some for the rest of us damn it!'
Kirito wasn't the sort of guy to let a jab like that get under his skin but he still scowled. "Oy, it's not like I asked for this you know. I was just in a hurry when I created my account, anything was fine."
Argo grinned slyly as she stroked her chin. "Not judging at all, Kii-bou. Stupid hair aside, I bet Aa-chan likes it."
Kirito sighed, glancing over his shoulder in the direction of Asuna who had ended up with Yui, Liz, and Silica along the lagoon's edge. The beautiful Maeve girl really was one of a kind, even with all the other good looking Faerie women, like a princess in her own right. Her swimsuit consisting of a red trimmed white two piece and a long, graceful sarong that wrapped lightly around her hips.
Asuna stood at the shore side, cheering for Yui, dressed in her cute pink one piece with long frilly outer layer hanging off of an inner leotard like a short gown, and Silica in a playful two piece, as the two smaller girls kept up a barrage of splashes in the knee high water against Liz in a halter and hotpants ensemble and Yuuki in her own back baring one piece.
"Come on Yui-chan! We've gotta show'm who's boss!" Silica cried as she was doused with another splash from her traitor partner.
"You're going to have to do better than that Silica-chan!"
"You think?! Pina!" The Cait girl cried to her hovering familiar, the little feathered dragon diving towards the surface of the lagoon, and quickly beginning to guzzle up water until her stomach swelled with startling speed. Struggling back into the air on furious wing beats, Silica singled out the startled Imp girl with a point of her finger. "Let her have it Pina!"
"Krrrrruuuuuyyyyaaaaa" The warbled cry of the little dragon came out distorted on the heels of a jet of surprisingly forcefully ejected water that propelled Pina a good two or three meters back in the air and managed to knock the Imp girl off her feet.
"Quick, this is our chance Silica-san, concentrate on Liz while Yuuki's down!" Yui cried.
"H-hey . . . -ptthht!- . . . No fair . . . !"
"So then." Kirito said slowly. "Argo, when are you going to tell me why Prince Wales and Monmon are here?"
The Prince and the Corkscrew were currently a ways off, apparently having the rules of volleyball explained to them by Kino and a beach ready Caramella, who Klein thought once again, was completely wasted on the fairer sex as she showed off well developed arms, and legs, and back . . . and that part where her legs metwith her back, and those prominent girl-abs all packaged up in a tight little black and gray sport two piece. Okay so he took it back all back, she was the exact opposite of fat.
The info broker stood up, brushing the sand from her backside with both hands and a flick of her tail. "I can tell you right now if you like, sa." Argo supplied gently. "But hopefully I won't have to, nyah. You might not believe it, but tis really just coincidence that the Prince has business at Ragdorian Lake. It'll probably turn out to be nothing. But I guess Queen Henrietta wanted somebody she could trust to help nearby."
"So our room tab was picked up by the Kingdom." Kirito muttered out loud.
"Neh?" Argo tilted her head.
"The luxury room you booked for us. Someone paid upfront," Kirito explained, "I'm guessing that was you."
"If it twas, tis news to me sa." Argo gave a shake of her head like she was trying to get something out of her hair. "I reserved one of the bungalow rooms. Someone must have changed the arrangements. Maybe the Queen tis apologizing in advance . . . Kii-bou?"
Kirito cast his gaze to the side unhappily, muttering low under his breath something that sounded to Klein like, "That woman . . . You know what, you're right, I'd rather just wait until Wales has something to tell us. Until then, Asuna and I are here to enjoy ourselves." Kirito rested his arms in his lap. "And what about you?"
"What about me nyah? Tis a working vacation." Argo held up her notebook, slapping a cover which proudly proclaimed the 'ALfheim Bestiary: Don't Worry It's Argo's Zoological Companion!'
"Is that for real?" Kirito squinted at the cover, rubbing his eyes and then reading it again.
"Info gathered from the top authorities across Tristain, double and triple checked, and cited to the last source. Tis a masterpiece in the making sa." The Cait girl grinned proudly as she flipped through the first few pages of dense handwriting, complete with beautiful illustrations drawn on card and held in place by paperclips.
Argo's silent little shadow drifted up onto her master's shoulder. "We're honoring the 'Don't Worry' brand Ba!"
"I've already got tons of info on all the most common mob species sa. I've had to start going out of my way to hunt down details on the uncommon ones."
"Oy, this is pretty amazing." The Salamander accepted the book into his lap, flipping across pages describing the varied and very dangerous beasts of ALfheim, more than a few of which Klein recognized from his own time in the patrols. The pages fell open to the article on Pixies, complete with anatomical sketches of the little sprites and a small note that 'No Pixies were harmed in the creation of this Book! - Argo'. "It's like a total remake of the Game Bestiary."
Argo snorted as if Klein had just delivered a mortal insult. "Excuse me? Tis way more than just some fan wiki. The mobs are way more now than they ever were in that other world." Argo retrieved the book from Klein's hands. "And it's not just their combat behavior either. They're living creatures and we need to know more about them. Some of them a lot more and a lot sooner than others."
"Argo?" Kirito reached into the ice box, now more a mix of ice and ice cold water and retrieved a clear glass bottle of grape juice, offering it to the Cait girl.
"Have you ever thought hard about why it is that the town NPCs didn't get ported over with us, but the Mobs did?" Argo asked. She accepted the bottle from the Spriggan and popped off the cap, pouring some into the lid and giving it to Suisen who drank greedily. "What governed that the mobs would be spawned but not the NPCs?" The info broker took a big swig from her bottle and then wiped her lips with her bare arm. "Tis a question without any good answers."
"Everyone's got an opinion." Klein agreed. "But no one's got any proof."
"So why not ask the mobs?" Argo said.
"Oh yeah!" Klein brightened up. "I mean they're doing pretty . . . Wait what?" Klein did a double take and then slammed a palm against his head as he spied Suisen looking up at him with big brown eyes. "Oy, Pixies!" The little twerps seemed to be choked full of ALfheim lore. Who knew, some of it might even be useful.
"Not just the Pixies." Argo supplied. "Pixies are good, but there are lots of things they didn't have any reason to know about ALfheim. That's why we're trying to talk to the others now."
"You're talking about the Sidhe and other humanoid type mobs, right?" Kirito said. "That can't be easy going."
Argo nodded with her ears, a small dip of the two fluffy puffs of warm fur. "Tis a growing problem sa. The normal town NPCs didn't survive the Transition, but we've been finding plenty of ALfheim's humanoid mobs lately thanks to the patrols and our Pixie friends showing us where to look. Or maybe it's more like they've been finding us. They're getting tired of hiding and curious about the outside world, and are deciding tis high time they started giving us grief again. The humanoid type mobs aren't like beasts, they're smart, and most of them aren't nearly as trusting as the Pixies. Even the ones that don't attack us on sight. They've got their own ideas of what us Faeries are like."
She raised a hand, beginning to tick off fingers. "There have been sightings of Sionnach Sidhe in the forests of Sylvain, the bushy tails have been thieving and pickpocketing and generally taking advantage of their looks to give us Caits a bad name, but we haven't been able to pin them down yet." Another finger. "The Coinen Sidhe are based inland from Freelia where the mob patrols found their warrens. The bunny ears have at least been willing to talk, so long as they get to bring the most guards to meetings. There are Cu Sidhe packs all over the North on the surface, mostly killing Orc bands and re-stealing their stuff." Argo grimaced. "The meeting with them went south real fast a couple of days ago. Nobody killed, none of us anyway, but they took a couple of prisoners back to Muisca to try and figure out what happened."
Klein winced. He'd heard about some of the confrontations up North. Maybe he shouldn't have been so eager to take a station in the Knights when people were still needed on patrol. Training could wait, couldn't it? Except he knew it couldn't.
"Those aren't even the worst. The Cu can at least talk, mostly, if you keep it to small words." Argo muttered something under her breath that didn't sound too flattering. "It gets worse underground. There's a double helping of Dark Dwarves and Rune Iron Knights infesting the corridors and abandoned mines all the way down to the «Jotunheim Gate Fortress». But they're fighting each other. There hasn't been a single report of peaceful contact with the Dark Dwarves, and people are afraid to even go near the Rune Iron Knights' lair. Tis quite the tall order, but tis a golden opportunity too."
"How better to learn anything we don't already know about ALfheim than to ask the natives." Kirito reasoned out loud. "Sort of like hitting up the NPCs in Aincrad."
"Except the Sidhe might be able to give us more than info. Tis what Sakuya and Henrietta-sama think. The ones that don't want to take a bite out of us anyway." Argo said seriously.
"Oy, you're saying we should make an alliance with the mobs?" Klein glanced again to Suisen, the little navigation Pixie turned floaty little mouse girl tilted her head curiously. And why not? It had worked out pretty good with the Pixies. The little gals were still pretty apprehensive about things, but there wasn't any reason not get along, right?
"Some of them. Some of the Sidhe anyways." Argo said dryly. "The Dark Dwarves have already spelled it out that they just want to eat our succulent Faerie Flesh and drink our precious bodily fluids. So screw them." Klein winced, okay, so maybe they couldn't get along with all of them.
"Still, between all the Sidhe, that could be almost five thousand more Demi-Fae on our side. The Coinen Sidhe are great trackers and hunters and can fly almost as well as a Faerie. The Sionnach Sidhe are ground bound but they have really strong magic. Even the Cu Sidhe are tough customers with their raw strength, they're taking apart the Halkegenian and ALfheim Orcs pretty fast judging by the corpses the patrols have been finding."
Argo just sort of sat there, letting the number sink in. Five thousand more Faerie Warriors with powerful abilities and born into this world with not just the skills but the mindset to fight in bloody battle. Maybe they'd be willing to fight beside the Faerie and Tristanians if it was for their home. Reconquista wasn't going to care if they were Sidhe mobs or Faerie players, their necks were all on the chopping block.
"But if we're going to win them over, we need to know more about them to start with. Izaya of the Kurotaka is gathering info on the Cu problem up in Muisca, maybe he'll get something out of his Cu prisoner once she stops trying to bite her minders. Alicia and Zolf lent Mortimer some of their best trackers to hunt for the Sionnach hidden camps, and Thinker, Sakuya, and Zia are going to be meeting with the Coinen Elders about bringing them under the Treaty of Arrun . . . And I got Ragdorian Lake."
"Eh? What mobs live all the way out here?" Klein wanted to know. Other than a desert full of Sand Sharks and some other pretty hardy and nasty wildlife.
"Well, there's the Djinn." Argo answered cheerfully. "They're little astral-elemental type mobs that can combine their magic for powerful attacks. They're supposed to be the rival mob to the Salamanders the way that the other races have their Sidhe and Dwarf adversaries, but they're even more reclusive than the Sionnach Sidhe, and the local Pixie Garden is already on good terms with them anyway." The Cat grinned at Klein, "I'm here for the Nyriads."
"Eh?" The Salamander hadn't heard that one before, and after Argo's explanation he was starting to wonder how he hadn't.
"You know, Nyriads? Cute legged mermaid girls with strong swimming tails and not a lot of clothes?" 'The Cat' seemed to relish twisting the knife. "They've been showing up along the shores of Ragdorian Lake for the last couple months. I think they're migrating along the river ways from where they spawned near Orlein . . ."
Klein wasn't exactly listening anymore, his mind was still digesting the fact that ALO had scantily cladmermaids and nobody had thought to tell him. 'Kirito, you've been a bad friend.'
"Of course there's the ones who happen to be mermen and they used to try to drown anyone who wasn't an Undine, but reports say they've been pretty benign. Since Aa-chan and Kii-bou were taking a breather down this way I'd planned to gather some info and invite myself to the party. It just so happens that what I'm working on might overlap with the reason that Charming-kun and Corkscrew-chan are here. That enough for you Kii-bou?"
"More than enough." Kirito sighed again, a young man who sighed like an old man. "A work vacation huh? Man, you sure don't take a break."
"It's part of Nee-chan's good work ethic." The Pixie Suisen announced proudly.
Well Klein's work ethic was to work hard and then to relax hard while drinking hard. Which led him back to his lager and the view of the beach.
The Salamander's eyes fell on a pair of tall, downright amazonian women, both of them unmistakable at a glance. The first, her ash skin and loosely worn black hair practically shinning in the light was the Kurotaka's 'Big Sis' Morgiana who was managing to look surprisingly more cute than curvy in black one piece swimsuit, all but its bottom obscured under the white cotton drawstring jacket she was wearing over it.
Then again, she didn't have any reason to try winning anyone over with her sex appeal given the man built like a bronze painted Greek statue beside her. General Eugene was a big man in armor, he was an equally big man in a swimsuit, and also built like an Olympian.
The second woman was as dark skinned as Morgiana was light, and maybe just a centimeter shorter with rich brown hair pulled back in a braid that hung over her right shoulder. Wearing a flattering sun yellow swimsuit that emphasized her figure. Well, the default for Gnome girls seemed to be big, curvy, and cute, which made her a good match for her own big guy.
"What are Eda and Morgiana doing?" Klein squinted at the two women as they had Eugene and Agil line up side by side and seemed to become lost in some sort of deeply technical discussion involving a lot of gesticulating and awkward shifting from side to side of their men.
"Looks like they're comparing husbands." Argo snickered. And neither guy seemed to like it. Well of course not, a man had a right to be sized up on his own merits.
Another new arrival was making his way down the beach, a third Salamander with a wide build and arms and shoulders thick with muscles, his bronze chest shining as he hefted a wooden crate on one shoulder and an adorable little blonde girl in sandals and green swimsuit on the other, a tough looking boy following close behind him in dark green swim trunks.
"Sergeant Carmond, you made it." Asuna waved the approaching Salamander down.
"Sorry we're late Ma'am, had a little trouble getting everything you were looking for in Gaddan's markets. And my little niece here needed to pick out the most perfect bathing suit in the world."
"Uncle!" The little girl flushed as she was put down on her own two feet and a straw hat was placed protectively on her head.
"I'm just glad you could find the time." Asuna smiled as her eyes moved from one child's face to the other. "So these are your Niece and Nephew? Yui's friends? It's a pleasure to meet you both, I'm Asuna, Yui-chan's mama. Yui-chan has told Kirito and I all about you two. Thank you for being her good friends."
The boy scowled and started to say something like, "We're not really . . ."
"Un! We're taking real good care of Yui-chan at school!" The little girl said brightly. "She's super smart, but I help her with everything she doesn't know! Oh, uhm . . . I'm Ba-Balandene by the way. And i-it's also n-nice to meet you and stuff . . ." The girl's blush only deepened. "Yui-chan told us about you too, but I didn't think her mama would look so young and pretty. Ah Sorry!"
Asuna had to cover her mouth to hide a giggle. "There's nothing to be sorry about Ban-chan. I'll take that as a compliment! Why don't you go down to play with Yui-chan and the others?" She gestured down to the shore where another round of splashing had picked up. The little girl, Balandene hurried off, shouting for Yui's attention while her brother stalked after her at a more subdued pace. "Carmond-san, Klein brought cold drinks, feel free to take one and grab a seat in the shade."
"Thank you, Ma'am." The big man nodded. "But I think I should keep an eye on Kazu. She's not the strongest swimmer yet, and besides, I don't get to see her smile often enough . . ."
"Hey, Nii-chan, that's looking pretty comfy." Leafa waves as she made her way up the beach and into the shade beside them. At some point she'd retrieved a lime green jacket she'd left warming in the sun and proceeded to lay the cotton garment out to make a seat in the soft sand beside her brother and the drink box. Another bottle of grape juice disappeared from the cooler with another -snap- of a cap.
"The beach is beautiful." The Sylph said after taking a breath. "I though the desert would make it all scrub and rocks, but it's nothing but soft sand. If it's alright, maybe I can take Yui-chan shell hunting along the beach later."
"Are there even sea shells?" Kirito asked as he leaned over and accepted a second bottle from his sister. "It's a lake after all."
"Maybe, there should be, from the transition anyways. This used to be part of desert zone's coast too. So?" The Sylph girl left the question hanging in the air.
"I think it sounds like a fine idea." Asuna said as she stepped into the shade. Kirito scooted over in his chair, leaving enough room for his Maeve wife to seat herself at his side. "But there's something else we have to do first, right Kirito-kun?"
"Un." The Spriggan Faerie nodded seriously. "It's fine for Yui-chan to play around on the shore of the lagoon. But we really should take the chance to teach her to swim."
"Huh?" Suguha's smile suddenly looked a whole lot less confident.
"Yeah." Kirito nodded seriously. "Yui-chan doesn't really know how to swim." The Spriggan gazed in the direction of the small Maeve girl jumping and skipping in the shallows, laughing as she squelched sand between her toes.
"Shiune and Silica-chan are going to be teaching Yuuki-chan with us. Apparently she doesn't quite know how to swim either." Asuna smiled kindly. "It's a bit of a surprise to hear such a good flyer would have trouble inwater. Why don't you join us Sugu, you're so good with Yui- . . . Suguha?"
The Sylph's smile was all but gone now, along with most of her confidence, she stood up, eyes closed. "T-that's alright . . . I think maybe I should uhm . . . I think I'll go see if Caramella-san needs another player for her game . . ."
"Ah, but Suguha, I'm sure Yui . . ."
"S-She'd probably want to be taught by you two." Suguha laughed as she started putting distance between them. "You guys are gone so much, that would probably be for the best."
Asuna tried to call to her one more time, but the Sylph was already out of reach hurrying down the beach, pretending to already be out of earshot. Asuna touched a hand to her husband's shoulder, giving him that worried 'I know something's wrong' expression that she seemed to have mastered around the same time as her 'I'm in charge and we're doing it my way' expression that had been seen in so many Boss Raids.
Kirito closed his eyes. It was a weird thing to do with Asuna worried like that, but Kirito could say a lot of things by closing his eyes, and right now he seemed to be saying he totally agreed. "Just let her go for right now. We can talk later."
"Is it maybe that Suguha . . ." Asuna's eyes widened. "Kirito, does Suguha not know how to swim?"
"It's not that simple." Kirito supplied. "Actually, she was a really strong swimmer when we were kids. It's just . . . I would have thought she'd have gotten over it by now . . . She had an accident when we were kids and nearly ended up drowning . . . Maybe this wasn't the best place for a trip." Maybe not, if it was going to leave his kid sister distraught like that.
"Or maybe this is a good time for her to face that fear." Asuna suggested easily. "If you don't mind, I can talk to her tonight about it. It might be fun to get her into the water with everyone. But for now, let's worry about Yui-chan's lessons."
"Right. Klein, mind watching our stuff?"
The Salamander just raised his bottle, and then he was left on his own again, well, mostly on his own, Argo was still busily reviewing her notes and Liz was coming over to dry off and pull on a t-shirt.
"Mmmmaaaannn I'm hungry!" The Leprechaun groaned. "Winning a fight is hard work, but losing one isn't easy either. Hey, Klein, did you bring anything but cold drinks and booze?"
"Oy, I'll have you know young lady, I brought ingredients for my world class shishkebab." Klein announced proudly, only to have the wind taken out of his sails rather suddenly by a loss of interest from Liz.
"I was thinking something that could be eaten right now. But I guess I can always hit up the stalls. Any 'young girl' what are you Klein? Like fifty?"
Klein scowled as he cracked a look at the Leprechaun girl. "Old enough to know hunger is nature's best spice!"
Argo snickered. "So what you're saying is that your cooking would be 'World Class' if we were famine victims?"
Man, why did he even bother with these kids? Klein wondered. Kids these days just didn't have any manners. Why, when he was a young lad, he hadn't even had a smart phone until he was in highschool! And he'd had to walk all the way to the train station, no renting a public bike from a kiosk, no siree! Then again, they were good kids, deep down, mostly.
"Just remember to save me one of these 'World Class' shishkebabs so I can decide for myself, alright Klein?" Liz laughed as she slapped him on the back.
"Will you people please shut up?" The pile of blankets beside Argo began to heave and then slowly rise, the bleary and cynical features of a second Leprechaun, this one gold haired and pigtailed, well, half pigtailed, one of the ribbons had come undone, letting down wiry golden hair that fell all the way to her shoulder blades. After fumbling with the undone hairpiece for a minute, Kofu decided symmetry was more important and simply undid the other one, shaking her head blearily. "What are you people even doing up at this evil hour?"
"Yeah, it's not even noon yet." Liz informed her difficult master. The apprentice Leprechaun came over and squatted down, placing a hand firmly on the other girl's head. "Come on, you've been free running so long you don't even remember what daylight's supposed to look like. Look, see? Beach, fresh air, not too many people, you can handle that, right?"
Kofu rubbed blearily at an eye as if she was adjusting the focus on an old camera. When she finished, she snorted, crawling out the rest of the way from her blanket nest and tugging at the collar of her blouse. "N-Not dressed for this . . . huh . . . Not dressed for it at all." She mumbled in distaste. "Look too damn out of place."
"You look out of place everyplace." Liz muttered under her breath but said much nicer and more soothing things to her master's face. "There, there, come on, how about you have something to drink, you're all sweaty."
"Y-yeah right . . . right."
Kofu had gotten a bottle into her hand and taken a sit down while Liz stretched and put on sandals. "Just try doing normal beach things for a little while, huh? I mean, you know what those are right? You've been to the beach before, right? Or at least you've read about it."
Liz looked out over the beach along with Klein. Kirito and Asuna where in the water now, along with Yui. The trio had ventured out to waist depth where Kirito had taken to holding onto Yui while his daughter laid herself out horizontally and experimented with kicking her arms and legs. From what Klein could remember, most of being able to swim was confidence and not panicking. Knowing Yui, she'd probably have it down in no time.
Nearby a second swimming lesson was taking place between Silica, Shiune, and the exuberant Imp girl Yuuki, this one helped along by an Undine swimming instructor giving pointers while the Imp girl struggled and laughed.
And the crazy thing about it, Klein thought. Take away the Faerie ears, and this could have been anyplace else. A nice, scenic resort on some secluded beach. Someplace where the wild life couldn't eat you whole, and a crazy bastard wasn't trying to kill them all because they didn't fit in his religion. But here and now, yeah, life was pretty good.
Klein reached into his cooler and frowned as his hand came back empty. "Oy, hey that bottle!" Klein grunted as he saw just what Kofu was drinking down like water. Those had been expensive!
"I needed a drink." Growled Kofu under her breath. "Sometimes you just need a little liquid courage, w-when you're surrounded by so many hunks in t-tight pants." She started to snicker nervously, and it occurred to Klein that he wasn't the only one presently enjoying the view. "Out of place . . . too d-damn out of place . . ."
"Tis the truth that good looks cut both ways sa." Argo gave another little Cheshire smile. But not even 'the Cat' was smiling at what happened next.
"Not dressed for this at all." The Leprechaun was still muttering under her breath as she began to loosen her belt and un-tuck her shirt.
"Hey, Kofu!" Liz tried to intervene. "What the heck are you doing you weird hikikimori?"
"S-Sticking out like a sore thumb. Need s-some camouflage b-before the hot guys notice!"
Her pants went down and her shirt went up . . . and Klein was glad he'd finished his lager. It would have been a waste of a good beer to do a spit take at what had to be the most unexpectedly curvy derriere to ever grace his proximity, presently modeling a pair of extremely tight cotton shorts. 'Klein . . . come on Klein . . . think straight . . . what is happening?!'
"W-What's that look over apprentice?" Kofu asked as she kicked her pants off of her feet. "A bra and panties are basically a bikini, right?" Argo and Liz shared a leer, because honestly, how couldn't they, and then proceeded to shake their heads vigorously.
As it turned out, there was a world of difference between «Vaguely Aggressive Masculine Smith» Kofu and «Full Figured Underwear Model» Kofu and most of that difference was in what she wasn't wearing. How to put it . . . Klein tried hard to be poetic when describing a woman's body but really . . . It was like all of the curves of a grown woman were trying to pack themselves onto someone slightly shorter than Liz, with enough muscle to keep it all from sagging, and the effect stacked up, and . . . 'Stacked . . . Bad Klein!'
The Leprechaun paused long enough to adjust the straps of her bra and pinched at her flat belly. "Heh, looks like v2.0 upgrade is still in effect, all the fat is finally going to the right places." Kofu reached for the bottle she'd left on the ground and then started to laugh in that rasping stutter stop snicker. "H-hey . . . A-Apprentice . . . giving me that look . . . L-Like you're disgusted I'm drinking."
"Because the last thing I need from you is for you to become an alcoholic minor." Liz said flatly.
"Heh . . . heh! H-how old do you th-think yo-your master really is huh?"
"Eh?"
"J-Just because I wanted to relive my b-best b-best years . . . my parents called me a parasite daughter . . . huh?"
"Eh!"
Liz wasn't given an opportunity for a comeback as Kofu finished Klein's bottle with a satisfied gasp and cast a leer in his direction that made him distinctly uncomfortable. "Erm . . ." He started as she reached over, as in bent over and reached over and pinched appraisingly at his bicep. "E-Excuse me?"
"I said you're no hunk, but I guess you'll do . . ."
"Uhm . . ."
"Just get some of that sunscreen . . ."
Sunscreen . . . Hot girl in a 'bikini' . . . Sunscreen. Hot girl in a Bikini. Sunscreen hot girl in a bikini. Sunscreenhotgirlinabikini . . . This wasn't how he'd expected this to happen!
"Come on, I'll let you get my back, that's what you do at a beach, right?"
Klein took one step back then another, and then was stopped by a hand from behind as he tried to crawl out of his chair. Liz stood over him, looking on with a blank and listless stare. "Klein?"
"Err . . . Liz"
"Just enjoy yourself Klein." He felt a cold glass bottle being put firmly into his hand as Liz pushed him forward out of his seat. "You deal with her insanity for a while!"