Ayano lowered herself against Mumen Rider's back, her left hand gripping tightly to his shoulder as the bike sped toward the monster. This would be the killing blow. After this last strike, it would be defeated and their patrol would be done for the day.
The monster had ceased its rampaging in order to fight the two heroes; allowing civilians ample time to flee the area. Unfortunately, most stayed to watch the fight. This was an area with a lot of bars and restaurants so there were even a few drunk civilians that had tried to fight the monster themselves at first.
Between Ayano and Mumen Rider, they had managed to weaken it significantly. It was bleeding from multiple cuts, bruised from a few well-placed punches. At this very moment, it lowered its horned head and came charging forward with it arms out at its sides, hands curled into fists.
Mumen Rider picked up as much speed as possible and turned the bike sharply as Ayano released his shoulder, sending her flying into the air. She twisted to avoid a horn and planted a boot on the top of its head. Leaning forward, she used the sword in her right hand to pierce through its hunched back. Monster blood splattered the ground in front of it before its knees buckled and it collapsed onto its face.
The female hero braced herself and drew her sword free from it, wiping the blood onto the monster's torn sweatpants. She pushed up her glasses when she was done and looked around. No more monsters, right? It was alone?
Her concentration was shattered by loud cheering for Mumen Rider. Turning her head in his direction, she saw members of the gathering crowd rush to the man to pat him on the back and thank him for coming up with the plan to defeat the monster. Ayano frowned slightly, but sheathed her blade and turned away.
It's fine…right? I'm not upset. He's a popular hero. More people know about him than me. She heard someone offer to buy him a drink and it was met with more people making offers to pay his whole bar tab for the night. Ayano had to smile because she knew he definitely deserved this gratitude; he worked harder than any other class C hero.
Mumen Rider politely thanked everyone and excused himself to jog over to where Ayano was standing. "Sword Girl, you did great today! I really appreciate your help-"
"Don't worry about me," she assured him, still smiling a little. "I need to go home soon. Are you…?" She nodded toward the crowd.
He rubbed the back of his neck, a guilty sort of frown taking form on his face. "Are you sure that you don't want to come with me? You worked just as hard as I did to defeat that monster."
"I'm fine." Despite this, she did feel a pang of jealousy. This was not the first time he had received recognition while she was overlooked. Half the time, the civilians had no idea who she even was. They only learned her name after the fight and it was because Mumen Rider had called her "Sword Girl". This was nothing new to her, but it still hurt a little all the same.
I'm not doing this for recognition, she reminded herself as she turned away. Mumen Rider asked if she wanted to patrol the next day and she paused in her steps to give him a slight nod. I'm doing this to get stronger and so I can get closer to Amai Mask. After I get my revenge, none of this will matter.
Behind her, he was returning to the crowd. She bowed her head and removed her ponytail, shaking out her hair into loose, chocolate-colored locks. Blades she had thrown earlier were retrieved and she was sheathing the last one when she felt like she was being watched.
Ayano lifted her gaze and her honey-colored eyes met a pair of dark grey ones from across the street. She paused with her fingers wrapped around the handle of her dagger, nervously tightening and loosening her grip. This stranger simply watched her and finally offered a bashful sort of smile before bowing their head. She let the blade slide into place in its sheath on her wrist and secured it in place.
The person glanced up and down the sidewalk. Most civilians were now either going about their day as usual or had joined the crowd around Mumen Rider. The stranger's lips parted, a soft exhale of a relieved sigh escaped, and they started toward Ayano with hesitation.
She studied them curiously. A slouched sort of posture, as if they were extremely shy. Hands tucked into the front pocket of their dark grey hooded sweatshirt. The hood was pulled up, casting the pale face within into a bit of shadow. Strands of pale grey hair fell around their face like smoky tendrils.
When they were finally in front of her, they lifted their head a bit and then turned it to the side. There was a warm flush to their previously pallid cheeks, turning them a pink shade. "C-could I…take a picture…with you? Please?"
It took a moment for the question to sink in and when it did, she felt her own face turning red. "You…want a picture…with me?" she asked, pointing at herself. She was used to people asking to have a picture taken with Mumen Rider. She had even snapped pictures for people when they asked her to. No one had ever asked to have a picture taken with her. Well, other than her own parents.
They nodded and bit their lip, glancing over at Ayano. "It's…embarrassing…" The person drew a hand from their sweatshirt pocket and their blush grew brighter. There was a sword sticker on the back of their phone, which they were now showing her. The word "Sword" was above it and "Girl" was under it.
"You have a sticker? But the Hero Association…doesn't make Sword Girl-"
"N-no, I…I made this myself. I'm a big fan and since I couldn't find merchandise, I just…designed stickers and printed them. I hope you don't mind." They turned to face her fully now and took a step closer, clutching their phone tightly over their heart. "I just…I think you're…fantastic…"
Ayano's pulse skipped a beat at the sheer sweetness of the stranger's words and she subconsciously took a step back. She was a little embarrassed by the flattery, but also a little happy. At the same time, she was now curious about this person.
Their voice was at just the right pitch that it could be a higher pitched male voice or a lower pitched female voice; the perfect middle point. They looked both male and female at the same time, too. She was starting to feel a little strange about her heart skipping a beat.
Mistaking her backwards step for her being put off by them, the stranger frowned and lowered their head again. "I…must apologize. I'm not great with…expressing how I feel…so I sometimes come across as a little…"
"N-no, it's not that," she quickly assured them. Their expression had become so sad that she had to do something to make them feel better. "I can't stay in the area for long. I finished patrolling for the day and I have some…things to do at home. So…you want a picture together? D-did you want Mumen Rider, too, or-?"
"No…I just want you." Lifting their head, they smiled shyly and held their phone up a little. "Is it okay…if I just take one picture on my phone? I can send it to you, if you'd like…when we're finished."
"No, that's alright. How do you…want to do this?" Ayano tried not to seem too nervous, but this was her first picture with her first fan so it was awkward. She felt an arm settle around her shoulders and she leaned in close beside them, smiling her best for the phone camera now pointed at her.
Beside her, the person's cheeks were still flushed a faint pink and they still wore that timid smile. They checked the picture on their phone screen and their smile grew. It was proudly showed to Ayano, who gave a sheepish half-grin in response.
"Thank you…I'll treasure this. I still…can't believe I was able to meet you. You're even more magnificent…I mean…you are very cool. Much cooler in person…than on television. Television is so impersonal and here…I was able to see you fight…the expressions you make and the…way you wield your blades so easily…I greatly admire your form…if you were to change…even a little…it would ruin everything. This perfection…" They had begun their words at a normal speaking volume, but it slowly sank into them mumbling to themselves.
"I'm sorry, but I have to go now. Thank you…for your support." Ayano offered a hand to shake and saw them blink down at her outstretched appendage in wonder. They slowly took her hand in theirs and they grew a bigger smile than she had seen them make before.
"No…thank you…for being so fantastic…Sword Girl."
Normally, time seemed to pass quickly during her walk home from patrolling. Today, it felt like it took hours for her to reach the abandoned apartment building that she and Sonic called their base. The whole time, she was reflecting on what had happened.
The monster kill. The crowd around Mumen Rider. The solitary Sword Girl fan. It did make her feel good to be recognized, even if it was just by one person. She had to wonder if this was how Saitama felt, but then she had to question if he could even feel things on the same level. Sometimes, he seemed almost emotionally dead and he was usually hard to read because he had that deadpan look on his face.
"You were gone for a long time." The voice came from above her, making Ayano jolt. Sonic grinned down at her from the stairway landing to their floor.
She had failed to even notice that she was in the stairway. Pushing up her glasses, the girl frowned. "I was…busy fighting a monster."
"You can tell me about it during dinner." He was suddenly behind her, his lips brushing over the side of her ear. "You look distracted."
"N-no, I just…it's hard to explain."
The ninja took her hand and led her down the dimly-lit hallway to their door. Inside, dinner was waiting for them already. Ayano removed all of her weapons and the long coat she had been wearing over her skirt, leggings, and t-shirt. As she turned from shedding the coat, she found a hand planting against the wall to the left of her head.
Sonic leaned down so his face was closer to hers and he raised an eyebrow. "Your little hero friend didn't keep you busy, did he? Do I need to teach him a lesson-?"
"Do you…feel appreciated when you do your job?" she blurted out.
His left eyebrow raised a little higher, head tilting slightly. "What do you mean by that?"
"When you do your job…do you feel like appreciated?" The attempt at rewording the question was weak, but it was clear that the meaning was starting to sink in.
"I feel appreciated when I get money for my kills," Sonic replied bluntly. "My employers are eager for me to leave the scene when I'm done. My appreciation is through the money they give me. Why are you asking?" A mischievous grin spread across his face as his free hand gripped her lower jaw. "Does the little hero not feel appreciated by the innocent people she works so hard to protect?"
She felt that pang of jealousy from earlier return. Remembering the cheers for Mumen Rider and the way people patted him on the back. It had never really bothered her until today, but now it was all she could focus on. "I usually don't…feel appreciated," she admitted.
A short explanation was given, describing the scene in the bar area that afternoon and how grateful everyone was to Mumen Rider. When she mentioned that one person had approached her wanting a picture, it seemed to catch his interest.
"You have a fan? Was it a man or a woman? Or a boy or a girl?"
Blinking in surprise, she frowned again. "I think…a girl." It was just a guess, but she really was unsure of what gender they were.
"Hm." For an instant, Sonic seemed almost disappointed. Soon his grin was returning and he leaned down to nip at her lower lip. "Just don't let them get too close. Imagine how your fan would react if they knew that their hero was involved with someone like me. What do you think they'd say, Ayano? Do you think they would still look up to you?"
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. He tensed at first, a little confused, but then ran his fingers through her hair. "It doesn't matter what they think…if I'm just going to ruin my own reputation. After I get revenge, unless I can make it look like an accident, no one will ever see me as a hero again."
His grin fell as he felt her hold tighten for a second before she released him. "The only way you can get out of it clean, is if you don't take your revenge. You do realize that if you stay a hero, it's going to make it that much harder for you to completely join me, right?"
"I…I know that." Ayano looked up at him and met the man's eyes directly. "I need my revenge. Having one fan isn't going to change that."
"Good." He left to retrieve their plates from the kitchen and sat across from her to eat. She began eating as he simply stared at her for a moment. Finally, he smirked. "Their appreciation shouldn't matter. I'll always appreciate you."
