Chapter 14 – One Big Happy Guild Family

Aincrad 27th Floor, December 25, 2023

Was this a dream? Kirito wasn't sure if this was reality, or a dream. Then again, the entire world of Aincrad was basically a dream. This would classify as a dream within a dream; at least, that was how Kirito was feeling right now. Before him stood Sachi, the person whom he thought was dead. All this time, he had been living in agony and self hatred, only to see her stand here and take all that away from his heart.

"S-achi…" Kirito gagged on his own tears getting closer to her with each step. His hands were trembling.

"Kirito…" Sachi stared at Kirito's tear stricken face with blank surprise

"Is…is it….really you?" He asked extending his shaking hand forward to touch her cheek with the back of his hand. It felt so warm compared to Kiritos cold hands. He then turned his hand around and caressed Sachi's cheek softly wiping a tear that rolled down with his thumb.

"It is" Sachi nodded placing her own hand on his.

"It's you…. It's really you!" Kirito cried out as he wrapped his arms around Sachi bringing her head close to his chest. He hugged tightly, not wanting to let go of Sachi again. It was like a father finally seeing his long lost daughter. "Sachi….Sachi.." he called her name. He dug his face in her blue hair and pressed his lips softly on her head. It was the weirdest thing that Kirito had ever done in his life, but he didn't know how else to express his happiness. "You're alive….Sachi….you're alive…."

"I am, it's okay Kirito…. I'm here now" Sachi said as her tears dried themselves against Kirito's shirt. She wrapped her own arms around him. Endless streams of tears were flowing out of Kirito's eyes, but he didn't bother to wipe them. Overcome with such emotion, he couldn't do anything but stand there with Sachi in his arms.

It felt like hours of crying and sobbing maybe, who knows how much time had passed. Sachi and Kirito were just standing there embracing each other. Eventually, they found themselves sitting down on the porch of the guild house next to each other.

Sachi took this time to explain the events thus far that have happened to her. She explained the reason why she hid the fact that she was still alive and how she wanted to wait until she was stronger to confront Kirito. She told him the stories of her soloing days. She told him her plans of recreating the Black Cats. It was a lot to take in, but Kirito managed to absorb it all with a mutter of agreement. After a couple of moments of silence, Sachi added one more thing.

"Keita appeared to me in a dream. He told me to tell you that he's sorry"

Kirito smiled and shook his head. "I'm sorry Keita" He looked at Sachi. "It was my fault though" The snow was falling lightly as it collected on the streets.

"But you didn't do anything wrong" Sachi said with a warm smile.

Kirito said nothing only rubbing his face with one hand. "They still died" He said after looking up at the snowy sky.

Sachi said nothing. Even thought she was still alive, the rest of her guild wasn't. No matter how much Sachi would try to reassure him that it wasn't his fault, the blame would still be partially Kirito's. You couldn't change that fact. It was still a heavy burden to deal with for Sachi, but she had to endure.

He looked at Sachi and managed to say, "Do you want to take that walk?" He got up and held his hand out.

Sachi smiled gently taking his hand.

It was indeed a nice warm feeling on the cold winter day. Sachi truly felt as if she were in a winter wonderland. Remembering that Kirito's hands were as cold as ice when he touched her cheek and without thinking, Sachi gripped his hand with her own.

"Uh, Sachi.." Kirito said with an unsettled look on his face. The old Sachi would squeal at the mere thought of holding his hand; at least that's what Kirito would deduce.

"Your hands are cold" Sachi said smiling lightly, "I'll help you keep them warm."

Kirito simply smiled and pressed onward. His heart was as cold as ice since the day Sachi "died", but now, now it seems as if the mere presence of her had melted the frost of pain and emptiness.

After walking a bit through the empty white street with their footsteps making a light and gentle thud, Sachi and Kirito had stumbled upon a small café. The sweet aroma of pastries and hot chocolate filled their nostrils. Sachi looked at the baked goods on display with delight pressing her nose on the glass like a child. Kirito noticed this, "Do you want to go in?" he asked her.

"Yes," This little cafe looked just like the one she used to go to when she was younger. It was a very nostalgic sight to her.

"Do you want to go in Sachiyo?" A man asked placing a hand on the shoulder of a four year-old girl known as Sachi. Her nose was pressed up against the glass and she was staring at the delectable treats with much glamour.

"Yes!" Sachi replied with much enthusiasm turning and raising her arms up to her beloved father so he can take her in his arms and carry her.

Sachi stared at her "daddy" with much admiration as she happily munched on the strawberry of her cake. "Daddy? Where does snow go when it's Spring?" Sachi asked pointing out the window to the falling snow.

"I don't know" he simply said glaring out the same window. Something was off about him. He wasn't his usual talkative self. Usually, her father would say much more than just "I don't know". He sighed and took a sip of his coffee still staring through the frosty glass.

ooo

"Daddy? Daddy!?" Sachi called out roaming her house for her father. She saw him at the front door after she got down the stairs, he looked as if he was going someplace. "Daddy, can we go to the bakery?" she asked innocently tugging at the sleeve of his coat.

He bent down and smiled. "Sorry Sachiyo. I'm going away for a long time, so I won't have the time to take you."

"Away? Where are you going?" Sachi asked tilting her head in confusion.

"Some place far away"

"When will you be back?"

"I don't know yet" He replied kissing the top of her head before caressing her cheek. "But while I'm gone, take care of mommy okay?"

"Okay!" Sachi said with a smile, "I'll wait every day until daddy comes home"
"That's my girl. Goodbye" Her father said patting her head. He then stood up straight and picked his briefcase up and waved before closing the door behind him. "You'll be waiting forever then…" he muttered sadly to himself as he walked down the street in the drenching rain.

ooo

"Mommy!" Sachi said hugging her mother. "Do you know when daddy's coming home?"

"Daddy?" Her mother replied in a low tone. "Daddy's never coming back…"

"Huh?"

"Nothing. I don't know when daddy will come back Sachiyo" Her mother said kneeling down to placing both her hands on the sides of Sachi's head. "But I need to tell you something dear. There's a chance that daddy might not come home. So if mommy comes home with another man, you need to treat him like you would daddy okay?"

"But what if he's not nice?"

"Don't worry" Her mother said giving a sentimental smile. "He will always be nice"

"Sachi…Sachi?" Kirito asked. Sachi immediately broke away from her thoughts. "Are you listening?"

"Ah yes, I was just day dreaming away for a moment" Sachi said picking up the strawberry of her cake with her fork.

"How has life as a solo been for you?" Kirito asked with a grin after taking a sip of his coffee.

"Ho-how did you know?" Sachi asked widening her eyes.

"I heard in your message that you were sleeping alone for the past few weeks."

"A-ah…. Well…" From looking down at the strawberry on her fork and putting it in her mouth "It was harder than I thought. But if Kirito-kun could do it, then I could find the courage to do the same"

"Erm… really?" Kirito was a little flattered; Sachi really did look up to him. Was this the feeling a father felt when his daughter look up to him? Kirito never had anyone to look up to. Four years prior to SAO, he had learned that his real parents died when he was born. Even though his foster parents took care of him, he never really connected with anyone except his "sister" Suguha.

"Mhm. I wanted to start on a clean slate and show to you that I don't need protecting anymore. I'm sorry Kirito, for keeping myself a secret for these past months. It must have been hard for you"

"Ah, it's okay. What matters now is that you're here" Kirito said staring into her aqua blue eyes. He remembered back six months before her eyes would usually be filled with terror, or tears of some sort. But when he looked into her eyes now, there was such a different aura in them. It was hard for Kirito to put it into words, but that feeling of terror emanating from her eyes was gone. "I assume by soloing you've gained a lot of levels right?"

Sachi nodded and opened her menu. She then slid her fingers from side to side showing Kirito her status menu. It said "Level 55"

Kirito gasped lightly with surprise. He himself was level 70 at this time, and there were certain others that he knew who were around her level also. To see someone like Sachi get to a level that high was beyond his understanding, even without his presence. There must have been such a driving force in Sachi's mind to enable her to leave her fears and fight. This was what amazed Kirito. Maybe it does take a near death experience to completely change a person.

"Amazing…" he said putting his coffee cup down, he grinned brightly.

"I want to fight alongside you Kirito." Sachi proposed suddenly.

Kirito was a little surprised at her sudden burst of enthusiasm. He was still a bit unused to this "new" Sachi. "We've fought together before, don't you remember?"

Sachi puffed her cheeks a bit in thought, "But back then, I was your student. Now, I want to fight by your side as a fellow clearer. "

"But the floors are getting more dangerous now. It's going to get pretty scary" Kirito advised. He sounded like a father not letting his daughter go out.

"I'm not scared!" Sachi said bringing her lip up and puffing her cheeks even more. Just like a father who is trying to protect his daughter, a daughter must always rebel if she wanted something that badly. "I told myself that I will become stronger, and I want to prove it"

Kirito sighed; he guessed that Sachi was going to insist no matter what. There was no point in fighting against her stubborn side, but at the same time, he was still concerned about her. What if she died again? Kirito would go through all that suffering again and he didn't want to go through it one more time. It was as if this mere thought was a foreshadowing of a future event. No one with the right mind set would want to go through something like that twice. "Fine, I'll see you in the Labyrinth" he said giving a slight grin and sipping his coffee.

Sachi smiled brightly with happiness, "I won't let you down!"

"You never have…" Kirito said to himself staring dreamily at her. He placed his hand on his heart; his chest was warm. He couldn't help but smile at his joy. It was such a ticklish feeling and he was filled with such a feeling that was absent for the past six months: Self-love. He chuckled raising his cup to his mouth before a voice called out:

"There you are Kirito!"

Kirito looked behind his shoulder. Sachi looked to see also. It was a girl with chestnut brown hair, a hint of concern was seen in her amber eyes. Her white blouse extended gracefully behind her. Her red skirt was complimented by the lines of red along her stockings and red sheath. The girl was so graceful, even more so than any other girl that Sachi had ever seen in SAO. It was hard to believe she looked like this in real life.

"Ah…..Asuna" Kirito said with a halfhearted smile and wave.

"Don't be so casual!" Asuna replied walking towards him eventually stopping to look him down with her hands on her hips. "You haven't been answering your messages, so I was worried and tracked you down. You could have at least responded"

"Ha… Sorry Asuna" Kirito rubbed the back of his head.

"Who's this?" Asuna asked looking at Sachi. "I'm Asuna"

"My name is Sachi" Sachi introduced herself with a courteous nod and smile as she raised her mug up to her lips sipping lightly. "Pleased to meet you"

"The pleasure is mine" Asuna said motioning for Kirito to scoot over. The waiter came over and took her order. Since it was rather cold, Asuna ordered tea.

"So what are you doing down on a low floor like this Kirito? It's not like there's any good farming spots around"

Kirito and Sachi exchanged glances rather suspiciously. Asuna gagged a little bit at a thought that sprang into her mind. She looked at Kirito, then at Sachi, then back at Kirito. Her face was a little red, "Ar-are you two…." She pointed at both of them. Asuna had interpreted it wrong and thought the two were going out.

Kirito looked at Asuna rather blankly as to express his shallowness. "Hmm?"

"Are you two… going out?" she whispered the last portion.

Kirito's mouth gaped open; "No no no!" he said flailing his arms around, "You got it all wrong. Sachi is an old friend of mine…" he stopped waving his arms around and glared into his mug.

"Eh?!" Sachi yelped a bit to herself almost spilled her drink. "D-date?"

"Kirito?" Asuna was wondering why he paused.

"Ah never mind, Sachi's an old friend of mine and I haven't seen her in a long time"

"I see" Asuna turned to Sachi, "I hope he's not giving you a hard time"

"Oh of course not" Sachi commented managing to recuperate. Sachi was taking sips from her drink while keeping a constant glance at the way Asuna looked at Kirito. She was smiling and her eyes were dreamily staring at him. Sachi knew what was up and smiled to herself. Trying to change the subject, she said, "Do you guys know when the next floor battle will be?" It seemed like a rather out of place question, but Sachi wanted to do anything to change the topic manner. Besides that, she also wanted to know when the boss battle is so she can participate. It would be the first boss battle she ever took part in SAO.

Asuna was silent for a moment at the abrupt question, "Well, the labyrinth on the 49th floor is about seventy percent explored, and we found the boss room too. We just need to find out the battle patterns for the boss so we can prepare ourselves. The plans are set for the third of January"

Sachi shook her head in acknowledgement. "I see…"

"Are you interested in helping us? All you need to do is show us that you can fight the mobs on the 49th floor Labyrinth to prove that you can survive."

"Yes" Sachi said nodding her head. As soon as Sachi said yes, Kirito almost choked on his coffee.

"Are you okay?" Sachi and Asuna asked expressing their concern.

"I'm fine, I'm fine" Kirito said. He was startled. Rumor says that the boss leading into the 50th floor of Aincrad would be much harder than the rest, just like the 25th floor. This would foreshadow that the losses would be heavy. The thought of Sachi fighting with such a high risk of death made him very nervous.

ooo

"Well, there's Heathcliff's message" Asuna said closing her inbox. "Kirito, let's go. He wants to see both of us" she finished the rest of her tea in one chug.

"Ah" Kirito said leaving a tip for the waiter getting up.

"I'll see you off then" Sachi said getting up the same time everyone else did. Walking through the now slightly busy streets of town, they made their way to the transfer gate. As she stepped through the snow alongside Kirito, Sachi was about to take his right hand with her own before she saw something. In her line of sight, she saw Kirito's and Asuna's hands intertwined on his left side. After seeing this, her suspicion was true and she giggled slightly to herself.

Right in front of the transfer gate, "Well I guess this is where I take my leave." Kirito said turning to Sachi placing a hand on each of her shoulders.

"I understand" Sachi said, "I'll be seeing you"

"Sachi…" Kirito said bringing her head close to his chest. He rested his chin on her head. "I'm glad that you're still here." They separated a bit as they stared into each other's eyes. Kirito pushed forward to kiss Sachi's forehead. "Please….survive" he said before hugging her one more time.

Asuna's face flared with red as she saw Kirito kiss Sachi on the head. She squealed a bit under her breath as she fidgeted with her toes and fingers.

"I will." Sachi replied as they separated. She went to see them off.

"Stay strong Sachi. I'll be seeing you around" Kirito said waving with a bright smile.

Asuna managed to calm down within the seconds after. "It was nice meeting you Sachi" she said despite the rather awkward scene she had witnessed.

Sachi shook her head yes and smiled, "I hope we can be good friends later"

"I hope so too" Asuna replied smiling back at Sachi. She then accompanied Kirito to the transfer gate and waved.

Sachi waved back. "Thank you. Goodbye" she replied waving back. Soon, they were engulfed in a blue light and disappeared.

Sachi turned around and started to make her way back to the New Black Cats of the Full Moon guild house. Pulling the key out of her inventory, she stuck it inside the lock and turned. There was a click and she turned the knob. The familiar sight of unused furniture and the smell of the musty room had given Sachi a sense of actually being home. Running her hand along the surface of a table, her fingers became grey as dust collected on them. She decided to explore the rest of the house. There were about 6 bedrooms, each of them was supposed to be for each member of the Black Cats of the Full Moon, but of course, that day would never come.

"Alright!" Sachi said to herself opening her inventory. She then equipped some work clothes that consisted of white pants. She wore a simple blue and light blue blouse and wore light teal slippers. "Time to get cleaning!"

Aincrad 49th Floor

"Umm… Kirito? About Sachi….." Asuna started to say as they walked through the streets of Myugen.

"Hmm?" Kirito asked munching on a hot dog that he bought earlier from a stand.

"Are you sure you two aren't dating?"

"I told you, we're not. We're just good friends"

"Then why did you kiss her?" Asuna asked patting her head to indicate where Kirito had kissed Sachi.

"She's kind of special" Kirito felt like he was being cornered, but not by monsters this time. By Asuna, which Kirito found to be quite scary indeed.

"Special as in how?" Asuna asked digging her nose close to Kirito's face with her hands on her hip. Her finger was jabbing into Kirito's chest.

"Special as in…. well… you see…. She's…..umm…" Kirito couldn't find the right words nor was he able to think of any excuse. He had no choice but to come clean. He sighed deeply, "You see… I actually joined a guild six months ago."

"Guild?" Asuna was a little surprised as she curved an eyebrow up in keen interest. Kirito never joined a guild, no matter who invited him, he rejected them for some strange reason.

"Well, I joined them, but lied to them about my level. And one day, they all died because of my arrogance, including Sachi. I felt so terrible because of that, and I was scared that the same thing might happen if I joined another guild. That's why I play solo. I was living six months in agony and self hatred. But this morning, it was as if it was a miracle, but Sachi showed to me she was still alive. After all this time thinking she was dead." Kirito explained.

"How was she still alive?" Asuna asked a bit confused still.

"Ah, about that. You know Norie right?" Kirito asked. Asuna nodded. "Well, by chance, Norie had a Divine Stone of the Returning Soul and managed to save Sachi. Coincidence wasn't it?" he chuckled. "But despite these six months, I'm glad that she's still alive."

Asuna nodded and smiled in reply. It made her happy to see Kirito elated and in a good mood again. She had noticed for a long time now that Kirito had been sulking to himself occasionally. All that time, she wondered why Kirito did this. Now she had her answer.

"But it's true, Sachi is very special to me" Kirito said focusing his eyes on the now plain stick that once held a hot dog.

"Do you like her?"

"Ah, I do like her"

Asuna's heart sunk into disappointment upon hearing this. It was like a sword pierced her heart.

"But it's weird. It doesn't seem romantic to me. We kind of…. Rely on each other for comfort. It's kind of as if… Sachi was my daughter. I don't quite understand it fully but…it's like I'm her father or something. " Kirito didn't know how much cheesier this speech would get, so he cut himself off before he went any further.

Shouting words of happiness in her mind, Asuna almost leapt for joy. Kirito wasn't romantically interested in Sachi. Sighing and not saying anything trying to keep her composure, she nodded her head to what Kirito said. Giving a glance at him, she saw him staring at the sky with a gentle smile on his face.

Aincrad 48th Floor

"Ahhh that Christmas special dessert was delicious!" Ellen said circling Norie's head midair.

"Expensive indeed" Norie said scratching her head as she checked how much money she had left. "Might have to go hunting later on today"

Norie and Ellen were enjoying their Christmas together walking down the streets of Lindearth.

"Why? It's Christmas. Take some time off once in a while!" Ellen said folding her hands and sparkling with delight. "We have more shopping to do too!"

Norie gave a sigh of exasperation as she noticed a little envelope was flashing at the top of her sight. She pressed it and checked an unread message. It was from Kirito.

"Kirito? Well now, I wonder what he's messaging me for…." Opening to see what it contained, she read aloud the short phrase:

Thank you Norie, thank you for everything

"Thank….you?" Norie asked. The phrase puzzled her for a moment. "Thank me….for what? For saving him a couple of times? No, he's already thanked me for that."

"Anything else you might've done for him?" Ellen asked sitting down at a nearby bench. "How about the Nicholas incident?"

"No, I don't think he would thank me for something like that…." Norie tapped her chin lightly. "He was really depressed during that…. And he's saying thank you now. What does that mean? He's depressed about not being able to save Sachi, and he's telling me thank you as if it where his final…..words…."

"Norie?" Ellen asked. Norie had instantly started sprinting it startled her.

"Ellen! We have to find Kirito now!" Norie said as she raced to the transfer gate.

"Wa-wait up! What's wrong? What's going on?" Ellen asked floating right behind Norie.

"Kirito's depressed that he can't save Sachi, so I think he's going to jump. That's why he sent the message to me. It's a goodbye message!" Norie ran as fast as her AGI could allow her to. "Crap crap crap! This is all my fault, if only I told him Sachi was still alive sooner!" Norie arrived at the transfer gate and hastily said, "Teleport! Myugen!"

Within seconds, Norie found herself in the large city of Myugen with Ellen floating right by her side. Flicking her wrist with her index and thumb pressed together, she opened up her map in the blink of an eye. Expanding her map out and out, she managed to spot a blue dot on the map on the other side of the city. "Good, I'm not too late" she muttered before taking flight and running again.

Turning the corners and almost bumping into people, Norie had finally reached the terrace where Kirito flashing blue dot was. He was standing near the railing that protected people from falling into the abyss to their deaths . Still running to the limits of her AGI, Norie yelled "Kirito! Don't do it!"

Kirito looked back to see who called at him, it was Norie running towards him. "Do what?" he asked.

"Eh?" Norie looked up to see Kirito with a hot dog in hand and Asuna standing next to him. Their bodies were bathed with the orange glow of the setting winter sun. Then, she felt her foot kick a loose tile or rock of some sort and she was sent hitting the snow face first. "Ooff!"

"Teaches you to watch your step next time" Ellen giggled poking Norie, who was lying face first on the soft layer of snow.

"Norie? What are you doing here?" Kirito asked.

"Norie, are you okay?" Asuna asked speed walking to aid Norie.

"I'm good," Norie wiped snow off her clothes. Norie was in her usual shorts, but she was wearing black stockings that covered her entire leg accompanied by a purple scarf. "Ahaha, I got your message and…. I kind of thought you were jumping"

"Jumping? Why would I do that for?" Kirito asked biting his hot dog.

"Well, you were kind of depressed about the Nicholas incident and I thought the message you sent me was your last goodbye"

Kirito laughed when he heard this. "It wasn't a last goodbye! I was just saying thanks for saving Sachi"

"Oh….well in that case, I guess I should say you're welco aaaaa!?" Norie cut herself off with an "Ahhhh!?" of surprise. "Y-You saw Sachi?" she asked pointing at Kirito with a trembling hand.

Kirito nodded, "Ah, it's all thanks to you Norie. I can't express how grateful I am for you"

"Anytime eh? How is she doing?"

"She's doing good, she brought back the Black Cats"

"That's good to hear" Ellen was tugging lightly at Norie's sleeve pointing to a flier about a bakery special not saying a word. "I guess I should get going then, it seems I shouldn't be interrupting a date any longer. Jya" she said raising a hand up goodbye.

"D-date?!" A slight blush was seen in Asuna's cheeks followed by a light squeal.

After looking at Asuna's sudden reaction to the word date, Kirito gave a rather nervous smile. "Thanks again Norie, see you at the boss battle"

"Sure thing" Norie replied giving a thumbs up while walking away from the two. There was a grin on her face as Ellen was grasping onto her own hand.

After Norie had left, it was just Kirito and Asuna again.

"Date…." Asuna thought to herself. She hadn't really given it much thought but, she did notice she was spending much more time with Kirito than any other person in SAO, even more so than some of her closest friends. Her heart was pacing a little faster now and her face was warm, what was this feeling? She asked herself glancing at Kirito's face. He was always so carefree, but yet, so gentle with those he cared about. Maybe that was what Asuna liked about him, yes, that was it. This feeling she was experiencing was a crush.

ooo

"Do they like each other?" Ellen asked nosing her way into other people's business as she and Norie dredged their way through the thick snow.

"Judging by Asuna's reaction to date, I can say that Asuna likes him" Norie replied chuckling softly to herself. "Then again, that Kirito is something. I'm sure a lot of girls would fall for him. Bad news for Sachi though, Asuna would be pretty hard competition."

"Now now, I don't think so" Ellen remarked giving a sly scoff, "There might be someone else she's looking at"

"Someone else?" Norie asked, "Who else would there be?"

"Oh, I dunno…." Ellen said sarcastically indicating that it was a rhetorical question. Norie should know the answer.

"Someone Sachi would have a crush on…." Norie muttered as she opened the door to the bakery that Ellen wanted to check out. The little bell rang when a customer entered. After sitting down with a bag of pastries in the bakery, Ellen gave a hint.

"He's going to leap to Sachi" Ellen emphasized the "Leap" portion.

"Oohhhh! Keshiga!" Norie said smashing her fist into her palm. Norie was such an idiot to not notice it before.

ooo

"Achoo!" It was rather unusual for Keshiga to sneeze in SAO, he had only done it about a couple times during the past year. "What the hell?" he asked himself rubbing his nose.

"Keshiga, hurry up!" Futaro said swooping his arms in an upward fashion.

"Commin' I'm commin'" Keshiga said getting into the Transfer Gate with the rest of Futaro's Mercenaries.

"Teleport, Aincrad Floor 27!"

ooo

"Whew!" Sachi said sitting down on a light colored wood chair. Aside from the main living room, there was a kitchen, a dining room, and a couple bedrooms. She was sitting in the dining room close to the window. The recently added beige colored complimented to the similar colored dining table. She looked around at how her refurbishing progressed; it was going slowly. Dusting and moving furniture was one thing, but having to go to the local NPC to buy some decorations ate up a lot of Sachi's time. There was no preview as to how it would look in the house, so she had to decide whether to buy it or to not. There was no room for middle ground. So far, she's only got the living room half decorated. A couple of paintings were hanging up, about 3 vases with flowers were allocated, and a table cloth for the coffee table. It still looked rather plain to her, so she was going to go shopping for some more aesthetics.

"Oh, I'm starting to run low on money too" Sachi checked her inventory. Yesterday, she had about 100k Col saved up, now, she only had about 7k. She might have to go hunting later too. Most of the expenses came from buying new furniture. There was the standard furniture that came with the property, but Sachi wanted to add some more chairs as this will be her guild HQ from now on. She bought the entire dining table set which included a long table and 10 chairs. She bought four additional couches, two for a single person, and two others that could fit about three people. The coffee table she bought also; the old one didn't really match. Sachi had already contacted the property owner and asked if it were possible to expand the house. He said yes, but it would be extremely pricey to add rooms.

Sachi sighed. Finishing off her tea, she got up. She was going to see if she could go to player markets and haggle; really, that was the only thing she could do right now. Opening the door, she saw a group of familiar faces standing right outside the door.

"Yo Sachi!" Someone called out.

"K-Keshga!?" Sachi was extremely surprised as Keshiga came up to hug her. "Wh-what are you doing here? How did you know I was here anyway?"

"It's Christmas! Well, when I woke up this morning, I saw a notification that you were online and that you became a guild leader. So we decided to give you a visit and see how you were doing"

"Well don't stand out there in the cold! Come in guys!" Sachi motioned for Futaro's Mercenaries to come in.

"How nice" Sakai said examining the paintings and flowers.

"Seems like a nice and cozy place" Voleke remarked exploring around.

"So how'd you get a place like this Sachi?" Futaro asked sitting down on the couch.

"Well, I kind of inherited it from my old guild." Sachi twiddled with her thumbs. She was a little uncomfortable about talking about her old guild for now.

"Her old guild members all died" Keshiga whispered in Futaros ear sitting down next to him. He nodded his head in understanding.

"Do you have any other guild members?" Hana asked bringing out a tray of tea and placing it on the coffee table for everyone to drink.

"No, it's just me for now" Sachi said going to the fireplace. The opened up a menu and pressed a button, then the fireplace lit up and the flames were crackling lightly.

"Eh? Do you have any friends to invite?" Moto asked leaning forward and taking a cup.

"Well, Keshiga's already with you guys, and I doubt Norie would join." Sachi said tapping her chin. "Other than that… I guess I don't have any friends to- Ah! Irina!" She had completely forgotten about Irina and she wondered if she had joined a guild yet. "Have you joined a guild yet?" Sachi muttered as she sent a message to Irina. "Other than Irina, I don't think I have any other friends that would join"

Keshiga was thinking, "Hey! How about we join your guild Sachi?" He blurted out.

"What?" Sachi asked. "Oh, no, you don't have to leave your guild to join mine!"

"Hey, who said only Keshiga was going to join?" Futaro grinned. He then turned to the rest of his guild. "Are you guys okay with migrating guilds?" he asked them.

"Ah, fine by me" Hana replied sipping her tea while sitting in her usual relaxed fasion.

"Sounds like a good idea" Sakai replied.

"I'll just tag along" Voleke shrugged.

"Sounds exciting doesn't it Jayson?" Helen asked

"Yea sure. .."

"That's not fine by me!" Moto pouted crossing his arms.

"Then it's decided. Futaro's Mercenaries will be disbanded and migrate to the New Black Cats of the Full Moon." Futaro said.

"Hey! Why do you completely ignore me?" Moto whined. He sighed, "Alright alright, if you can't beat them, join them."

"You hear that Sachi?" Keshiga asked giving a toothy smile.

Sachi was a little speechless for a moment. For a guild to so readily leave theirs and join another was beyond her. At least they are all still together. "You guys…" she said smiling. She cleared her throat to show that she was about to speak and everyone became quiet. "Erm…." She didn't know what to say since she wasn't expecting this many members to join so fast. Then it hit her, the dream of becoming as strong as the KoB that was the original goal of the Old Black Cats of the Full Moon. The goal of Futaro's Mercenaries was also to become as strong as the KoB.

"Someday we'll go up to the ranks of the Knights of Blood and the Holy Dragon Alliance!" Testuo's voice rang in her head. Sachi smiled. "We're going to be as strong as the KoB one day right?" she said with enthusiasm, and she hoped the rest of the guild followed.

"Right!" Everyone hollered. This enthusiasm was half expected by Sachi. "Well then…" she said leaning forward to grab a tea cup.

"To the New Black Cats of the Full Moon!" She said raising her cup.

"To the New Black Cats!" Everyone cheered raising their cups in unison with Sachi.

ooo

"So what are you going to do about your old guild house Futaro?" Sachi asked sitting on the opposite couch from him.

"Hmm… I guess we can bring all our furniture over here. I can sell the guild house for some cash so we can expand this one" Futaro said rubbing his chin. "I like this floor. It's nice and cozy. There aren't a lot of people either"

"Waaahh, I don't know how much I can thank you for helping me out" Sachi said showing her appreciation.

"Haha, don't sweat it. The only thing that matters is that we have a chance of becoming as strong as the KoB" Futaro looked around a bit. "This house is special to you isn't it?"

Sachi nodded. "This is the first time I've actually used it though. It's been sitting here collecting dust, so I figured it's a shame to let all this good space go to waste"

"Well you're lucky" Sakai said, "When we first got our guild house, I had to scourge the market searching for some good deals."

"Oh.." Sachi felt a little guilty.

"Don't worry!" Sakai said going to Sachi. "I'm glad that we're all one big happy guild now. Think of it as a house warming gift, a big one. And a Christmas gift too!"

"Happy guild…" Those words echoed in Sachi's head. She hadn't given it much thought, but a guild was like a family. They lived under the same roof, they shared each other's problems and accomplishments, they ate together, and they had fun together. It was like the family she's never had. Just thinking that gave Sachi the assurance that Futaro's guild certainly didn't mind migrating. She gave a sigh of relief knowing that.

"So, what are we doing tomorrow guild leader?" Keshiga asked with intent listening. Keshiga always asked what they were going to do tomorrow. Ever since the beginning of this game, he's asked what they were going to do the next day.

"We're training" Sachi said poking Keshiga on the forehead. "Have you hit level 55 yet?" she asked him.

"Erm…" Keshiga gave a nervous smile and scratched the back of his head, "Nooooo…" he elongated.

"Then let's get to work first thing tomorrow." Sachi planted her hands on her hips. "Remember, the deadline is the first o f January" she waved a finger reminding Keshiga about Norie's level deadline.

"That's right…" Keshiga remembered. Norie would notify them when it was the first of January so they could party again. But under the circumstances now, Keshiga was pretty sure Norie would join their guild instead.

"Is everyone okay with training tomorrow?" Sachi asked. Everyone seemed to be fine with it. "Then it's settled. Sakai, are you guys going back to your guild house to get the furniture?"

"Mhm" Sakai replied putting her glasses back on, "Moto, Futaro, can you guys come and help me? I need two strong guys like you to help carry the stuff"

"Sure thing Sakai" Moto said readily getting up as Futaro and he followed Sakai out the door. To compensate for carrying heavier weapons and stuff, Moto and Futaro had to have higher strength and they also had higher ranks of Max Inventory Weight. As a person levels their strength, their max inventory weight goes up along with it enabling them to carry more and heavier items. But this is a rather moot point since Sakai's strength was rather high, and her max inventory weight was even higher than both Moto's and Futaro's for obvious reasons. So she didn't really need help, but having a friend nearby while working makes it fun.

"I need to sell the property anyway"

"Right, I'll make a quick stop at the market" Sachi said starting out the door. "Hana and the rest of you, please dust out the rest of the rooms and air out the sheets in the bedrooms."

"I'll go with you!" Keshiga replied catching up to her.

ooo

Was this the greatest Christmas gift Kirito has gotten in his life? To know that Sachi was alive and well, it was more of a Christmas Miracle to Kirito. Lying on his bed with his hands behind his head, he smiled. He still was shocked as it is. Six months of agony, only to be lifted on this very special day. "Sachi…" He muttered as his smile turned into laughter. He didn't know how else to react. His laugh slowly turned into crying, but happy crying. "Thank you…" he whispered digging his face into his pillow. "Thank you so much…" He didn't know who he was thanking. He was just thanking someone. He had already thanked Norie, but there was something higher than that, something that was pulling the strings of this world. Fate some might call it. Was he thanking fate? Who knows? Kirito didn't know himself. All he knew was that there was someone out there that had to be thanked.

Author's Notes: I REALLY do not know how this chapter turned out. To be completely honest with you guys, I thought this chapter was rather lack luster compared to previously. This is because even though I LOVE reunions, I'm really bad with reunion scenes especially when it comes to writing. So sometimes it might be awkward with the sudden change of pace that I think is in this chapter. But then again, I could be wrong. All I can rely upon is the readers input. Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and insert your nit picking review down below :P