Misaka Mikoto felt herself falling. Her breath was labored due to the high altitude; they had just flown Ekaterina II about as high as they could without completely leaving a semi-breathable atmosphere. She smiled, enjoying the thoughts that she had managed to save her friends again. But she was finding it so hard, the worry, the pain of forever wondering if the next step she took might somehow bring disaster rather than victory. Maybe she'll never get out of this alive; would she be OK with that? "Yes", she decided, "if these are my last moments, at least I've gone out trying to make a difference in the world". She relaxed her muscles and let herself fall free.
Just then she felt arms reaching around, catching her from behind, holding her in a protective embrace. The auburn hair of Shirai Kuroko fluttered next to her face. "That's right," remembered Misaka, "she's here with me too." In that moment of self-doubt, she had completely forgotten that this had been the plan all along. Her roommate had decided to risk her life right along with Misaka, in a brave act to save the lives of everyone in Academy City. So she was going to survive. It was going to be a good day after all. Misaka closed her eyes and enjoyed the protective embrace of her friend.
"I have you, onee-sama. Let's go home" whispered Kuroko, as she executed a series of jumps to bring them safely closer to earth. She would make a few jumps, then have to pause and re-orient herself before beginning the next series of jumps.
Now Misaka wondered just what she had heard. Had Kuroko said 'I have you', or 'I love you'? No, definitely she said 'have', so why did Misaka find herself wishing it had been 'love'? She didn't 'love' Kuroko; well, not in the passionate, romantic way Kuroko would mean it. Sure, she loved her as a friend, a very close, dear and trusted friend, just as she loved Uiharu and Saten, as friends. It must just be the adrenaline running through her system, messing up her thought processes. Regardless, she certainly would be buying Kuroko the biggest ice cream sundae she wants when they got to ground.
The speed the two espers were moving was still quite fast, even with the repeated sequences of jumps Kuroko was performing. So Kongou Mitsuko made use of Aero Hand to decelerate them further, allowing Kuroko's final jump to bring them safely to a resting position on the ground; Kuroko laying on the grass, still embracing Misaka in front of her. Kuroko resisted the urge to steal a grope while her hands were conveniently below Misaka's breasts. She had begun to realize there were moments to be savored, not twisted with a moment of lust, and this was one of them. So instead she simply sat up and helped Misaka sit up as well.
The rest of the day was a whirlwind of celebrating. Not just their little foursome had won today, but the entire membership of Judgement, along with others they never expected to ally themselves with, had teamed up to win this battle. What had Misaka been thinking up there, resigning herself to defeat when they had won? Was she so insecure that she couldn't allow herself to truly feel happy?
Eventually the four friends found themselves relaxing on a blanket together, as the excitement moved on elsewhere. Kuroko had both hands loosely wrapped around Misaka's wrist as they dozed; never moving them as they had talked and basked in a sunny day. It was a simple gesture on Kuroko's part, but Misaka was glad to have her near, the second time that day Kuroko's touch gave her a sense of peace. But again, Misaka wasn't able to realize why she felt so much at ease.