Heya folks, just wanted to mention that a group of like-minded SAO Fanfiction Enthusiasts (Authors and Readers alike) have banded together in a Discord Community to keep each other motivated, provide feedback - and generally just hang out!
Feel free to stop by if you feel the same :) = Ht tps / discord . gg / z9Pz3Jzc7y
Author's Note: Hiya folks! First off, let me apologize for the long period of inactivity. I've recently started going through some of my old fanfictions and I just kept getting pulled back into this one. Reading it through once more, however, I cringed at quite a few points and honestly wanted to make numerous small (and not so small) changes to it. The biggest issue, in my opinion, with the stalled progress of 'Alicization in Perpetuity' was that I had never really intended it to become a full story. It was more meant to stay a short of two or three chapters, but due to the positive reception I had decided to keep on writing it.
Considering that I did so without any actual outline for the story, and thus not really having a solid red thread to follow, I eventually ran out of steam and ideas that could work with what was already published at around 68k words? I'm glad to present the newly refurbished 'Alicization in Perpetuity', which has large parts altered and added, or simply reshuffled and touched up for the first 90k words now, ending at roughly the same point where the previously stalled story came to a halt.
This refurbished version will be a lot more... I´d like to say emotional? I have gone deeper into Kirito and the other characters their psyches and tried my best to clarify the hows and whys of what they do and want. I also put a lot more attention in describing parts of what Kirito remembers from his time in Underworld, as that will play a big part in later chapters, with a good cast of (to me at least) wonderful characters that deserve some more attention actually getting it!
The outline will carry me onwards to 200-250k words without running out of ideas, so I hope that it'll be to your liking! I will post the first two chapters today, quickly following each other, and from there on out post a chapter a day until we are caught up again. After that they will come as I finish them!
Overview: This story is set after the Alicization arc ends and makes a few changes to how much Kirito remembers from his time in Underworld, causing him to have issues dealing with stepping back into his old life after having matured and grown and essentially having lived an entirely separate life next to his real world one. Asuna is still the same old Asuna from before Underworld, and the two really just don't fit together anymore, something Kirito realizes soon you like KiritoxAlice? Then stick around :) !
CHAPTER 1 START
It was the first time he set foot in this room in over two months. His room, or so he had to keep telling himself. It felt alien and cold to him. After making nearly five years worth of memories in Underworld, his dreary bedroom in the real world didn't feel like his anymore.
He had simply been away for too long. He lovingly thought back to the apartment in the North Centoria Sword Mastery Academy that he had shared with Eugeo. Even if they hadn't lived there for long, the memory of the rustic wood paneling and ever present fresh flowers, unceasingly placed in their room by their valets, Ronye and Tiese...
That memory felt so much more like home. Even his apartment with Asuna in the Central Cathedral felt more like home than where he currently was, despite how little time he had ended up spending there.
He was glad to be back in the real world, but it was difficult to process the fact he also missed so much from his other life. The kind villagers of Rulid. The young Selka who tried so hard to live up to the memory of her big sister by learning all she could of the Sacred Arts after having come to Centoria.
Sadore, the craftsman who chiseled his Night Sky Sword, and who after the war, became the first mechanist of the Central Cathedral.
Ronye and Tiese... The sweet and innocent valets of himself and Eugeo that were nearly put through such horrific trauma because of them, and still continued to fight their way up to becoming full-fledged Integrity Knights after the war.
Eugeo...
Almost immediately he felt a sharp stab in his chest. He had had a difficult few days. Sure, he had had three years in Underworld after the War to try and get past his brother's death, but it had left a mark that he'd likely never fully get rid of.
And his flaxen-haired brother wasn't the only one who he would never see again. Almost all of his Underworld friends, his family, apart from Selka who had been put in Deep Sleep (as he had apparently told Alice before his and Asuna's minds were wiped clean of most of the 200 additional years they spent in Underworld) would be long gone by now.
Immediately after Asuna's own recovery period was done, she had started paying him daily visits in his hospital room, helping him with his physical exercises - as he had done much the same for her once, after he had freed her from ALO and Sugou...
But that had already been five years ago. No, that was early last year... The extra memories he had made kept confusing him. He felt... Older, wearier, yet trapped in his too young body. It didn't help that Asuna's memory wipe removed all but bits and pieces of the first two months she spent with him in Underworld.
While he on the other hand, kept nearly three full, uninterrupted years worth of memories from after the War. For a total of five years spent in Underworld during his second Dive growing from a teenager into an adult. Not to mention the memories of growing up in Rulid side by side with Eugeo and Alice, that he had recovered thanks to his brother's memory fragment left behind inside the Blue Rose Sword...
At first, Asuna's visits had helped him fight back the anger, sadness and… and helplessness he still so dearly felt about Eugeo's and his other friends' passing. But as the days of his recovery ticked by, he became more and more irritated by her constant presence.
He had told her about his brother and all she had forgotten from the time they had shared together, and he had been a little surprised to hear that she had already heard about Eugeo in great detail from Ronye, one night in Underworld and thus knew a little of him already.
The thought of Asuna logging in to the Underworld and spending a night curled up in bed around him with his former apprentice, as well as his former master Sortiliena and the Knight Alice, discussing their experiences of him, made him nervous already. He could only be genuinely relieved he had been comatose for that talk...
Still, even though he told her everything he could about Eugeo, it still didn't seem enough to help him deal with his grief. When waking up after SAO/ALO they had had each other and their shared experiences. But, Eugeo had been a brother to Kirito. And that loss was just something you had to experience for yourself to understand properly. She had no real way to empathize, to understand.
The closest she could come was Yuuki, and while the lovable, bubbly girl had quickly taken up a place in Asuna's - and everyone else's - heart, Yuuki's death had been a long time coming. And while it would always hurt, the peaceful nature of her passing and the girl's own attitude helped ease that burden considerably. Eugeo's… Eugeo had been killed, right in front of his eyes. Cut in half. A wholly cruel and unnecessary death.
While he would always feel regret and guilt over some of the friends he had had in SAO who didn't make it till the end of the game - such as the Black Cats - with Eugeo and to an only slightly lesser degree the others he remembered from Underworld that were gone, it was as if a literal part of him had been ripped out.
By the end of the fifth day, when Asuna said goodbye to him with a hug and a kiss, he caught himself feeling genuinely relieved that she was leaving. He wasn't really sure why he felt so uneasy with her presence in the first place, she just … grated on his nerves.
She didn't seem to fully understand the significance Eugeo and the others held to him, but she tried her best to comfort him and kept being supportive whenever he got frustrated and inconsiderately shrugged off her concern...
While he felt a tinge of regret at seeing her slightly faltering smile at those times, he couldn't bring himself to keep up the usual joyful mask he often managed to put up for her before Underworld. He wasn't quite that socially repressed boy anymore.
As Kazuto had absentmindedly taken place on his bed for the first time in five years- no. A month and a half, he had to once more remind himself - he was pulled from his thoughts by the barely registering ringing sound of his cellphone. Immediately his worries seemed to melt away. He had been looking forward to this call for the entire day, after all.
While Alice had been able to visit him at the hospital once after he and Asuna had woken up, she had been too busy working with dr. Kojirou to stop by again. Alice had been dragged from meeting, to press Q&A, to talk show... She had very little spare time and they had only been able to meet twice more since - both times in ALO.
Even there, his friends hadn't given them any opportunity to be alone for a little bit. They still hadn't really had the time to properly talk about... Well, everything that happened.
As he with a wide smile on his face that surprised himself answered with a too high-pitched "Heeyy Alice!" - he belatedly realized how nervous he was and clearly sounded.
But when a normally always sweet and strong voice only dully and quietly replied "Kirito-kun..." - his breath hitched for a moment.
While he hadn't actually made that many memories with Alice that she could remember, her own childhood memories having been taken away from her, he knew she had spent a long time taking care of his comatose self, secluded in a little cabin in the woods.
He… He couldn't help the warmth in his heart that sprung up whenever he saw her or spoke with her. She might not remember it, but he could easily recognize small cues and mannerisms that the younger Alice Zuberg had had as well.
It didn't truly correspond to the memories he had, but he had immediately felt that even now, they were close friends. Something inside him just knew they had gone through more than anyone should in a lifetime, for each other.
Now, on hearing the defeated coldness and monotony in her voice, he was immediately worried. While Alice had always been confident and almost inexplicably happy whenever they had met since waking up, dr. Koujiro had shared her concerns with him that Alice was unreasonably pushing herself.
Apparently not even willing to accept the spare few rest days she kept trying to force on the girl. Kirito had, at the time, attributed it to her chivalrous dedication and work ethic. Later he couldn't help but start to doubt that.
Her worldview had been shattered and now she found herself in a strange new world, far different from her own, needing to fight for the right to even be recognized as a Human being - with the added fate of her entire world resting on her shoulders...
It must be extremely taxing and confirming his fears, she took his silence as a sign to speak up in a quiet voice "I-..I'm tired, Kirito-kun... It just.. Whatever I do and try, nothing feels like it's enough."
"Today, again. Different people, but they asked me the same trick questions. 'Subtly' testing whether my responses were 'life-like' enough… Sure, Koujiro-san berated them for it afterwards, but…"
A deep and frustrated sigh followed.
"No one in this world will ever see me as... as real. Here I-I'm not even Human anymore Kirito-kun..."
For a moment he remembered eerily familiar flashes of memories. Something buried deep in his mind beneath a layer of impenetrable fog. A log cabin. But not the one he had spent so much time in, his home with Asuna and Yui on Floor 22 of Aincrad. An unfamiliar cabin.
A blonde haired, blue eyed girl in a blue summer dress. Giving him a hopeful smile betraying profound sadness, as she moved a spoon with some kind of food near his face.
'Alice... Was that when she took care of me?' It only lasted a moment, but that little sliver of a memory was instantly burned into his mind. That sorrowful, dull look in her normally so very vibrant blue eyes. Exactly how he pictured they looked now.
Steeling himself he cleared his throat and as confidently and resolutely as possible replied "That's not true. It may take some time, but I know we will get there."
The girl on the other side of the call let out an annoyed sigh and startled him a little with the sudden intensity to her voice "But Kirito-kun I've been working for weeks now to-" then she suddenly paused.
A few moments passed before with a confused and quiet voice she finally asked "'We?'... Do you mean you're... you're going to help me...?"
He collected his thoughts and carefully considered what he was going to say for a moment, before softly continuing "Of course I am, Alice. We... I... Owe it to all the friends I lost. All the friends and family I made in Underworld."
He paused and swallowed "They may... They may be long gone by now... But they would want their world to live on. Even if two hundred years have passed and we have no idea really how much has changed, I... We owe it to them to protect it."
Not hearing a reply from Alice, he said with a genuinely warm smile on his face that leaked through his voice "And besides... You're important to me too, Alice. If I can help you in... any way, I will." It took a little while, up to the point where Kazuto started to wonder whether he should have said that...
He heard in an almost too soft voice to register "...Thanks... Thank you, Kirito-kun.. I needed to hear that.."
He chuckled, hoping to comfort her a bit and said as joyfully as he could "I've been talking to Koujiro-san and she told me you had some, or rather, a bunch of saved up off-days already. Why aren't you using them to take a well earned break?"
He again felt a bit worried, not hearing an immediate response, but then Alice quietly replied "Well... They won't really let me go outside anyway, and I get it, I do. They invaded Underworld just to get me, it wouldn't be a stretch of the imagination to say there are plenty of people out there who would snag me up at the first opportunity. So if I can really only just sit in... In the cafeteria here, or use the internet a bit... What's... What's really the point of taking days off?"
It took him a moment to reply, as he racked his brain as to how to help her, before the simplest solution stared him in the face.
"Well, maybe Koujiro-san will... will let you visit me here? I just got back home from the hospital today and I have nothing to do really..."
As he said that he realized Asuna was supposed to come over the next day, but almost instantly decided that Alice could really need a friend more right now.
"So... why not tomorrow?"
It had again stayed silent for a bit, but then she had startled him with her sudden happy exclamation. After discussing it for a bit in a much lightened mood, she confessed to feeling a bit nervous about requesting anything at all, even if Koujiro-san had suggested she take some time off.
He got the feeling she wanted to stay resolute in front of the only people she could really rely on to fight for her. Without realizing it, he had already insisted on calling Koujiro-san himself to arrange it. That way, the request wouldn't come from her.
After saying their goodbyes he happily concluded Alice had sounded a lot more like herself near the end of their call. With no trace of that cold monotony in her voice remaining.
He was genuinely surprised when, after carefully and nervously proposing his plan to help Alice relax a little bit to dr. Koujiro, she had replied enthusiastically, adding she had been silently hoping for it.
Alice would be brought to his house at 10AM the next day. 'After Sugu goes to school…' Kazuto noted absentmindedly, but rather relieved that he and Alice would finally have some time to catch up.
Dr. Koujiro had of course insisted on sending armed protection along with her, but eventually agreed to his argument that they really did not need to come inside the house and promised that they would stay in their car outside - all in that somehow overly respectful way she usually addressed him.
He had always found that rather strange, considering he was several years younger than the acclaimed scientist, but could only attribute it to her feeling grateful to him for having ended her old lover's madness when he killed Kayaba in SAO.
Shrugging off that train of thought, as it really did not matter all too much, he thought ahead to the next day. He felt slightly guilty about cancelling on his girlfriend and did his best to come up with a proper excuse. In the end he just gave up and sent a quick text to get it over with.
'Hey Asuna, sorry but I'm going to be busy tomorrow. I'll make it up to you! -K'
Quickly locking his phone afterwards - too guilty and confused about the fact that he couldn't tell her that he was going to spend the day with Alice - he avoided having to answer any replies and fall into an argument by sheer forced ignorance of any follow-up messages.
Not long after he had put it out of his mind and fallen into a nervous but happy sleep with a smile on his face, thinking of how to entertain Alice the next day. He had to come up with something fun to do cooped up at his home all day, after all.
'Crap! Sugu will be home from school early tomorrow!' He sighed as he drifted off to sleep, with a last thought shooting through his mind. Oh well... Cross that bridge when we get to it...
Kazuto had woken up unusually early, at 6AM. He wasn't sure why he was so nervous to spend the day with Alice. He thought for a few minutes about what he could do with her all day, but then recalled her saying a while ago that she really wanted to learn to understand all the pop-culture references her co-workers always used.
With a wide grin, he went over to his computer to sign up for one of the popular movie and television show streaming services. He had never felt the need to use one before, as he always preferred the participatory part of video games over television or movies. Making sure it contained some of the bigger Hollywood productions, he happily concluded that would fill a lot of time.
After somewhat nervously having breakfast with Sugu (his aunt and adoptive mother Midori wouldn't return from a business trip for another three days) and avoiding questions about what he would be doing that day, he watched some television to calm his nerves.
The moment Sugu left for school, his mind went into overdrive. He quickly showered, brushed his teeth and got dressed, before rushing out the door to get snacks and drinks for their movie marathon.
It took him his walk to the stores in his neighborhood to notice how tired he was from the relatively short jog. He somewhat shockingly realized that he still had to build up his strength again and shouldn't overexert himself... And then to his further and greater shock, he realized Alice in her android body would not be able to eat or drink at all...
Looking around in the store for what to buy now, he decided on a few simple snacks for himself, as he did need to eat and drink. Then he noticed the wide variety of flowers they had in stock.
A remark Alice had made about the dreary and dull grey offices of RATH, where the Marine Resource Assessment Survey (the group led by dr. Koujiro that was handling the situation around Alice and the Underworld) was housed - and her frustration at not yet being able to see the outside world properly for what it had to offer - he immediately decided to brighten up his own home a little bit...
With a smile and full bags he made his way back home, at a slightly more careful pace.
Even after Alice realized that the six months she spent growing attached to Kirito and caring for him were only in her memory, not his... She still felt a connection to the black haired boy who had saved her and her entire world. While Koujiro-san was supportive, she wasn't really an equal. Alice depended on her to help her be recognized as a Human being after all...
She could never truly relax and be herself around the older woman, however kind she always was to Alice. In a sense, Kirito was the only one she felt she could really be herself with. Even if that was most likely a one-sided connection...
When she realized how close Kirito and Asuna were, and after dr. Koujiro had explained their history in SAO, ALO and real life to her, she had felt an unmistakable dagger in her heart.
She hadn't even really realized how she had grown to feel about him... But when she got word the two were waking up she instantly decided to at least earn his friendship. He was her best chance at making an actual friend. Somehow who would at least know what she went through in Underworld and lived through some of those things himself...
In a way, he was the only person who truly knew who she was, even more than she could remember herself. After seeing Asuna and him interact for herself, seeing the obvious love and connection they shared, she had grown more reserved. Realizing she would never be able to get to such a point with him had still hurt, despite it only having been a faint hope to begin with.
She had thrown herself into her work at RATH instead. Using it as an excuse not to have to face them too much. She was happily surprised when he had started reaching out to her himself. Eventually convincing her to at least talk over the long distance communication devices they called 'cell phones' every few nights.
When he happily suggested that she come over to his house... She had been too shocked to even speak for a while. But then she realized she had been an idiot, like he had told her multiple times in short concession, hanging on the outside of the Central Cathedral. To her slight shame she sounded far too excited at the prospect when she finally managed to stutter out a reply.
And that was how she now found herself nervously sitting in her seat in the 'minivan', accompanied by a total of five armed guards. She had immediately objected to their presence, but was calmed a bit when Koujiro-san had hastily added 'Kazuto-san' had already insisted they stay in the car.
A slight blush had crept over her face when she realized he had gone through the trouble for her, which she hastily shook off. Sadly, dr. Koujiro seemed to have noticed her awkward moment, as she gave her a teasing grin - but thankfully refrained from any comments. For now...
She sighed to get rid of her nerves as they pulled up to the Kirigaya residence. She could tell it was neither an overly large or small house for the residents of this city, but it seemed to give off a sense of welcoming. It wasn't as gloomy as some of the houses she had seen during the ride over.
She was escorted to the front door by one of the guards and almost immediately after knocking, a nervously smiling Kirito opened the door and awkwardly greeted her and bowed to the guard, after leading her inside. The guard had insisted to do a check around the house first, to which she noticed Kirito clearly only reluctantly, agreed.
After the door slammed shut again, they suddenly found themselves alone. He was stunned for a moment, looking at that blue sundress. He could swear he had seen it before... Even Alice wearing it? Many times... But that was impossible, he shook his head and buried it.
An awkward silence fell for a moment when they found themselves alone in his house. He did feel a... connection to Alice. Having shared in some of the most heartbreaking moments of his time in Underworld, he couldn't help but feel he knew her better than even some of his friends from SAO. But he realized they hadn't actually spent that much time together in her memories.
At least not while he was conscious. Eventually he couldn't help but sigh and chuckle when he realized how stupid they were being. She seemed to realize the same thing and soon joined him.
A little more relaxed he led her into the living room. Immediately noticing her eyes widening at the sight of the four vases of modest flower bouquets spread around the room and adjoining kitchen. She looked at him with some delighted surprise and carefully asked "Do.. Do you always have so many flowers in your home, Kirito-kun?"
He felt his cheeks start to redden a little while he nervously said "Well.. Eh, no.. But I was in the store a-and I remembered you saying how grey and dreary the RATH offices are and so, I-I thought I could put some more colour in here.. for your vis-" He was startled when the blond haired girl cut him off by giving him a big hug and burying her face in his chest.
As she quietly whispered "Thank you.. Kirito-kun, that.. that was really nice of you" he had recovered enough from his initial shock to hug her back. He felt her ease up a bit as well, after he returned the gesture without issue. It would seem neither was really sure how to act around the other just quite yet.
Alice had acted instinctively as Kirito confirmed her hope that he cared about her... At least she really had a friend in this strange world! She had felt a little less alone when he told her the silly thing he had done for her visit, buying five whole bouquets of flowers...
Then she started to realize what she was doing. He had frozen up, probably in shock, while she firmly hugged him, pressing her face into his chest... What was wrong with her!? She wasn't normally this impulsive…
She froze up too now, at the silence and managed to whisper a thank you. But then he hugged her back, with those warm, comforting arms, just seeming to tell her that everything was alright... When she felt her face redden considerably and they broke up their sudden bout of intimacy, she noticed in relief that she wasn't the only one, as he too had furiously started blushing while he just awkwardly chuckled.
She had marveled at his family's house as he gave her a tour. It was so much more lively and welcoming than the bland, if spacious, living quarters and cafeteria at RATH. She had been outside of it to do press conferences, or go to meetings and conventions, but those had always been public places. And if she was honest, they had been very intimidating.
Bright, mechanical lights, flashes from recording devices, more people than she considered to be possible living in one city. It had been dazzling, to say the least.
This seemed almost as a calming haven of tranquility out in a pasture somewhere in comparison to her previous experiences of 'Tokyo'.
When he awkwardly finished his tour for Alice in his bedroom, he realized that it may be a bit forward to bring her to his bedroom. But when she seemed to be happily looking around at the various computer components and games scattered around the various shelves and cabinets without a care in the world - he realized Underworld and Japan, while similar, also had many differing views on social conventions and formalities. He sighed quietly.
He hadn't realized he spaced out for as long as he had when he blinked at Alice's calm voice asking him "So, what's next, Kirito-kun?"
He found the blond haired girl staring up at him with her impossibly beautiful, cybernetic eyes. For a moment he was admiring the artistic detail put into those deep blue eyes that seemed almost more real than actual eyes... When he realized he had been staring straight into them, ignoring her question, for probably as much as twenty seconds already...
Quick, think, say something! "Ehh.. Well, I remembered you wanted t-to learn about those p-pop culture references and famous movies... right?" When he saw her blink in surprise and then nod with a smile he continued a bit relieved that his idea was accepted. "Well I figured we could watch a few of them?"
When he asked her whether she wanted to watch them in his room or downstairs in the living room she innocently replied that his room would be fine, seeing how they were already there. He had agreed. After taking out his laptop and opening the streaming service, he froze up.
His mind was finally starting to catch up with the consequences of that decision. He had only one chair, and his desk was not built to be seated in front of with two people... She could sit on his bed.. And he would just slide up next to the bed in his desk chair. Yes. That would be appropriate, he hoped.
When she had insisted that that was idiotic, as then one of them would be at the wrong height to properly view the device, he had hesitantly taken place on the other side of his (luckily) two person bed.
Leaving a respectful distance between them, he put up the first of his cultural classics list. The first movie in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. During the largest part of the movie he noticed Alice was very into the plot. Of course the fantasy creatures of the Underworld had been largely inspired by the races of Tolkien's epic.
She remarked a few times how eerily similar some of the creatures were to Dark Territory creatures and inhabitants. During the fellowship's subsequent fight in the Goblin infested Mines of Moria she was looking a little scared and Kazuto was starting to worry about her... This didn't seem like she was really still enjoying the movie...
When the large fiery demon known as a Balrog appeared, her face had turned pale and she had slid up close to him. While he was shocked and carefully started trying to comfort her by calmly stroking her hair as he carefully embraced her, she looked up at him with wide eyes "D-Do you truly have such creatures in... in the real world? It looked more terrifying than anything from the Underworld..."
It took a few moments for Kazuto to realize what the problem was, so he hurriedly explained that this wasn't real, it wasn't an accurate historical representation or anything, it was all fiction. It took a bit more time to explain the concept of watching such horrors for entertainment, but eventually she did recognize the thrill of facing off against intimidating creatures during her time as an Integrity Knight - when kazuto likened it to that.
As they silently watched the remainder of the movie, they eventually realized how close they were sitting to each other. Alice was still in his gentle embrace as she leaned back against his chest while they both watched the screen of his laptop placed in front of them on his bed.
Both seemed to notice this at roughly the same time and froze up. Both of them equally unsure of whether to awkwardly scoot apart and try to reclaim some respectable distance, or chicken out and desperately ignore their situation.
They eventually, silently agreed to the latter by not moving and instead nervously following the remainder of the movie. And the next, and finally the last of the trilogy. After Alice had gotten used to the idea of seeing it all as entertainment, it had taken surprisingly little time for her to start enjoying the experience.
Almost at the end of the third movie the both of them had gotten so enthralled by the plot that the nerves of their position had all but faded out of their minds. As such they almost jumped up to the ceiling (but managed to freeze up entirely, with wide, startled eyes) when his bedroom door slammed open and Suguha stuck her head in, shouting "OOOONNIII-CHAAAN I'M HOOO-"
As he watched his cousin/sister's shocked face and wide eyes at seeing an unfamiliar blonde girl lying in his arms, on his bed, undoubtedly staring at her with eyes resembling those of a shocked deer staring down a car's headlights - the gears in his mind slowly caught up to him once again realizing Sugu would be home early today...
Before he could find it in himself to say something, Alice shot up and nervously got up off the bed before giving a nervous, formal bow and trying to calmly say "Eh.. Eh my apologies but you must be... ah, Leafa? No, Suguha-san, nice to meet you in real life!"
Seeing Sugu's shocked expression and wary look she quickly continued "Oh! I realize that I look differently from my ALO body, but I'm Alice... from Underworld."
Suguha seemed to relax a bit and then calmly said with a smile "Welcome Alice-san, I hope Onii-chan." She said his name with a frown and a dangerous stare directed at him that made him wince, as she continued "has been respectful enough around you?"
Kazuto started to blush and stutter incoherently as actual words struggled and failed to take shape.
Alice spaced out for a moment, but then quickly and nervously replied he had been a perfect gentleman. Suguha seemed a little bit relieved, but still continued shooting him death glares before she coldly asked, while still looking his way "Has onii-chan shown you our dojo?"
He froze up and swallowed at what that question meant. All his embarrassment instantly made way for apprehension. She always had that same look in her eyes whenever he had done something to offend her - and she would take it out on him in a 'friendly spar'.
As Kazuto nervously followed Sugu and Alice outside to their modest, but lovingly maintained dojo, he somewhat happily noted Alice seemed to cheer up considerably when he explained that the two of them performed a swordsmanship sport and he showed her the shinai - of which they had several, considering how Suguha seemed to regularly break them… gulp.
When his sister had suggested that they would spar a bit to show how Kendo looked in practice, Kazuto realized his fear was coming true. Dressing up in the protective gear sets they had, they took their places. Suguha was considerably calmer now, he noticed, almost as if fueled by a cold fury...
He sighed and cracked his neck, pulling himself together. He had a name to uphold after all... The Black Swordsman of SAO for one, and the one that probably meant more to him; Delegate Swordsman of the Human Empire Unity Council. It dawned on him that Alice had seen him fight and defeat first the Pontifex Administrator and much later, the Dark God Vector.
He couldn't disappoint her now, could he? Not after having her witness him literally turn day into night and launching a barrage of what were essentially meteors at the dark god Vector in their final battle! She was lost and nearly all alone in the real world and he was one of the few beacons of familiarity she could still cling to...
He realized his fear and nerves were still traces of who he used to be. Before… Before so much happened to change him into who he was slowly coming to grips with having become. He had attended a Sword Mastery Academy, faced off against Elite Swordsmen-in-Training and fully fledged Integrity Knights.
He would not, could not let her belief in him down! And, well… He did not want to get beaten up by his sister...
Sugu confidently stepped up to her position and stared menacingly at her onii-chan through their masks. She knew her eyes were not visible to him, but from his nervous posture, she also knew he got the disapproving vibes she was trying to shoot him for being all cozy with the hot, blonde android girl...
She belatedly realized he had managed to calm himself, when he confidently asked her "You mind if I use two shinai?"
She chuckled a little, grinning.
"You know that dual-wielding thing is just something you do in-game, right?" But when he shrugged she just decided to indulge him. "alright then... But it's your own fault if you get hurt!"
Her brother ignored the dig, and just calmly picked up a second Shinai and confidently took a stance she had never seen him take in real life sparring before - but she knew all too well from watching him fight in ALO.
'He can't be serious…' She incredulously thought to herself. But while eyeing him over, she realized it was almost the exact same, confident stance she had seen countless times in ALO. Yet, something about it was off...And then it hit her. It was far more… disciplined, not leaving any openings. As if having gone through years of perfection.
She swallowed as she steeled her nerves and got ready in her own, traditional starting pose, not fully realizing yet how she had started to take him a lot more seriously all of a sudden...
She was shocked when, as she swung forward as fast as she could, her brother dexterously used his main hand to parry her shinai while sidestepping and finishing it off with a soft tap from his off-hand shinai on the back of her neck.
"Point" he stated in a voice so calm and at ease, she'd almost call it serene - leaving her baffled.
He knew he wasn't too sure of his one-handed skills against his competitive duelist kendo prodigy sister. Then he realized he might as well try... Maybe with two...
When he scored his first point almost instantly, hell, he himself was shocked by the near instinctive reaction to her rather straight-forward, yet certainly fast strike - which honestly, he had never quite managed in the real world.
He somehow found it in himself to sound confident and composed as he declared his point. It took a few moments, but then his sister regained her composure and once again took her starting position, a different one this time, however. A clearly more aggressive stance she usually only took during one of the tournaments she often participated in.
They went on for another full, five minutes. Kazuto had scored his second point in rapid succession, but then took two points in return, his still recovering body and the lack of muscle memory working against him.
Although the two against him were significantly harder won than they had ever been before. Eventually, they reached the beforehand agreed upon five wins total... By Kazuto. His sister hadn't been able to score a point after those initial two... He somewhat incredulously stared at his sister after they both removed their masks.
She returned much the same gaze, when Alice broke them out of their thoughts by clapping.
"That was incredible swordsmanship, Suguha-san, Kirito-kun!" Alice happily shouted as she gave him specifically a warm smile.
He noticed from the corner of his eye as he awkwardly smiled back and rubbed the back of his neck, that Suguha frowned a little and sent him another quick death stare over the affectionate -kun, much the same as Asuna always did. Then she became rather contemplative, if still somewhat dazed, and thanked Alice herself.
She took a few moments to awkwardly stare at him, but then carefully said "I've never seen you fight with two shinai before in the real world, onii-chan..."
His sister eyed his response carefully as he stumbled over what to say "E-eeh... Well, I.. I knew of course that I couldn't beat you one-handed! So I uh... I thought I'd give it a try...?" He finished with a hopeful, nervous smile.
His sister looked at him incredulously and shook her head while muttering softly and giving him a judging stare "Always trying to impress the pretty girls, onii-chan... seriously."
Alice noticeably started blushing. It took a moment, but then she calmed herself and plainly stated "Alright, my turn."
Upon their incredulous, shocked looks, she giggled and looked at him with an almost scarily excited expression.
"After all, I did say we would continue our duel once the Administrator was dealt with. Seeing how we were blown out of the Central Cathedral and you went on to make me care for you for six months, we haven't had the time quite yet."
When they both took their places, after she had put on a set of protective gear and he had taken the time to drink some water, Alice confidently held one Shinai and he, again two... He was nervous. He couldn't help himself. What if he broke a component of her body? That would surely be expensive...
He barely had time to cross his swords when she came down with what almost instantly in his mind was recognized as something akin to a High Norkian opening strike. He somewhat clumsily sidestepped a little, but he was too nervous and out of it at that point to register her foot tripping him up until he had already hit the mat.
As he looked up after his three second daze, Alice her shinai was pointing straight at his masked face. She chuckled and teasingly asked "Does this mean I scored the first point?"
Suguha started laughing at this point. "Wow, maybe I just had a bad day!"
After just over another ten minutes, her brother and Alice were once again standing in their respective starting positions opposite each other, both heavily panting from the exertion. Suguha had been staring with wide eyes and an open mouth for the past eight of them. She had to admit, Alice was skilled. She had long since given up on the idea that she could beat the girl herself…
The blonde haired Knight used a style very reminiscent of some two-handed sword skills from ALO, but far more fluently and trained than she had thought possible. She once again had to remind herself Alice had essentially been indoctrinated for years to become a warrior priestess... A Holy Knight.
And looking over at her brother... He was fighting at what looked to be his best, giving it his all. And crazily enough, matching his opponent strike for strike.
The scary, focused stare in his eyes and the grin of pure excitement at such a duel that both were just visible through his mask, as well as his razor sharp techniques and his surprising dexterity - all reminded her of Kirito, the Black Swordsman, as he fought when his life was on the line. Not at all like her brother Kazuto's mostly lackluster efforts at Kendo…
She had been told a little bit about who Alice was, and she knew she had cared for her brother while he was comatose... But he should have no memories of that, and they only knew each other for one day before that... Right? What happened during that day? And what weren't they telling the rest of them? Who exactly is this girl that she draws out everything he has, pushing him to his limits in just a simple spar?
As she was thinking about her brother and Alice, she almost missed it when they both shot forward, straight for each other and as she blinked a few times at the fast movement, she found them both standing motionlessly again. They were both practically frozen in place, surprised expressions on their faces.
With wide eyes she started muttering "A-a... A tie!? What is this, an anime…?"
Kazuto wasn't sure what happened. The entire match had taken place in a haze. Seeing Alice's resolve and her obvious enjoyment at the duels, he had quickly regained his own spirit. He felt more himself now than he had ever since waking up from Underworld.
At that moment, he wasn't Kirigaya Kazuto - he was Kirito. Brother to Eugeo. Student to Sortiliena-senpai. Mentor to Ronye Arabel. Slayer of the Administrator and Vector. Delegate Swordsman of the Human Empire. He didn't really stop to think at all until he realized they had just finished their last duel. Their ninth duel.
It took him a few more moments before he realized his sidestep had successfully allowed him to place his shinai against Alice her neck. Right when he was about to shout out victoriously, he felt a soft prod against his chest.
From how close they were standing, their masked faces less than a hand's width apart, he could just make out the surprised glimmer in those impossibly beautiful blue eyes. Her shinai was pointed straight at his wildly beating heart.
Then he heard his sister muttering incredulously that they had reached a tie and something about an anime? Eh, it didn't really matter.
After a few moments of staying frozen in their end position, them having settled themselves as equals, they slowly stepped apart and took off their masks. He stared into Alice her blue eyes for a little too long, and as he felt his face redden, he noticed her unmistakable blush as well.
She looked down at the ground a little nervously now. "T-that was a good fight... Thanks.. I think I needed that.. To know that I was still... Myself, in this new world and this constructed body."
Kazuto looked at her a bit dumbfounded, unsure of what to say after that confession. She looked up into his eyes now and he saw a resolve there he hadn't seen since they left Underworld.
"If I can still fight, if I can still hold my own with a sword, I am still a Knight."
Before Alice realized what she was doing she had walked over to Kirito and given him a tight hug. She felt him freeze up and she felt Suguha-san's gaze burning on her back, but then to her surprise, he (if somewhat awkwardly) hugged her back.
After they let go he stuttered out "Wow... You're really.. warm, Alice.. I didn't know the gears would heat up like that."
Alice blushed furiously now stuttering that that must indeed be why. She wasn't sure though... Maybe it was just because she had gotten so nervous hugging him under his sister's clearly judgemental stare... She shrugged away that thought as Suguha-san cleared her throat and said "Well... That was... weird, but very cool."
After a less awkward and more technical discussion about their duel, which Kirito confessed he kind of fought in a daze, not clearly remembering every part ever since the adrenaline had worn off, Alice noticed Suguha-san sigh and say "You're so weird sometimes, onii-chan."
She couldn't help but interject calmly with a soft smile "Well, Suguha-san, surely you can understand the thrill of a good duel."
She glanced over at Kirito and sighed contently.
"I suppose that fight at the Cloudtop Garden was in my mind more often than I realized, Kirito-kun... I had never failed to finish off an actual opponent before."
She didn't notice Suguha-san's curious stare at that remark.
While Kirito took a shower, she absentmindedly discussed the benefits of not being able to sweat with Suguha-san, but her mind was elsewhere. How would things have gone had she managed to kill the two of them in that first fight? She shuddered and forced those depressing thoughts away.
Eventually a question Alice had feared would come up for a while now was asked.
"What exactly happened in the Central Cathedral anyway, Alice-san?"
Upon seeing her undoubtedly slight frown and pensive look, the girl continued carefully "All onii-chan really said was that you fought very briefly, were blown out of the cathedral and climbed your way back up... And that you talked and he convinced you that the Administrator was evil?"
It took her a while to gather her thoughts, before she sighed deeply and looked up at the curious girl.
"Very well then, I'll tell you the story."
The next fifteen minutes were spent with Alice first describing how she had fully intended to kill Kirito and Eugeo in their duel after they resisted arrest. Hell, even if they hadn't she would have executed them without hesitation, as was her duty. She had gotten both frustrated and confused however, when they seemed to be holding back right from the start.
She shared that it hadn't taken her too long to realize they wanted to capture her alive for some reason, something she at first assumed had been for rather nefarious reasons, but which was contested by the looks of concern and sorrow in their eyes.
She confessed that them trying to capture her instead of just killing her, nearly led to both of them almost being killed by her on several occasions - and did lead to Kirito and herself being blown out of the Cathedral.
She went on to describe how she had been ready to give up, not seeing a way out but falling to her death and felt ashamed about hanging on to a criminal for dear life. But how Kirito had irritatedly called her an idiot - and multiple times at that!
With some giggling she explained how outraged she had been at that, the nerves the commoner had shown in addressing an Integrity Knight sent down from the heavens themselves, or so she believed at the time, in such a manner!
She went on to tell her how he had essentially pulled her up the side of the Cathedral as he went on to climb it, while she used the Sacred Arts to generate spikes for him to jam inside the gaps between stone blocks.
"I... I couldn't comprehend that a criminal would... go so far to save me, an Integrity Knight, essentially his worst enemy!"
After seeing Suguha's confused stare, she realized the girl knew very little of the situation in Underworld. So she gave a brief history of the Administrators and she eventually got to the point where Kirito convinced her of the truth. Which had led to her conviction in joining his fight - and subsequently her eyeball exploding…
Suguha gasped at that last part and asked carefully "But... didn't t-that hurt terribly? And you still had to climb a long way, right?"
Alice could only chuckle nervously. "Well... To be honest I think that's when I... fainted. I only woke up hours later on the 95th floor."
Suguha gave her a confused stare "But... How did you get... up there?"
Alice shrugged and blushed a little, thinking about it again "Well... Kirito-kun bandaged my eye, as he wasn't skilled enough at the Sacred Arts yet to fully heal it... And then he... eh, he carried me over his shoulder as he... climbed the last twelve floors..."
She left out how she woke up in his arms, him looking down at her with that worried expression of his... When she realized how Suguha was giving her weird looks and how all that sounded... She immediately continued to their later fights.
Which ended with Eugeo tragically dying... Kirito breaking down because of it, before she tried to sacrifice herself. She blushed and almost involuntarily felt her lips curl into a soft smile.
"He just... He just got up again, and parried the Administrator's strike, which would have cut me clean in half... And he told me I should rest, tha-that he would finish it. And he did."
She finished with a slight but warm smile on her face.
She continued on to describe how he subsequently defeated the great Administrator... How he lost an arm in the process.
"But then... Something went w-wrong.. Very wrong. There was a bright white light over Kirito-kun and then... then he collapsed."
She explained to her briefly what she had later been told was Kirito's soul essentially destroying itself due to… due to simply having suffered too much. At that point Suguha had been watching her with wide eyes and a look of both shock and horror on her face.
That turned to sadness when she told her the story of those long and challenging six months. Caring for a comatose, nearly completely unresponsive Kirito, how he only gave any real sign of life if she tried to take away Eugeo's shattered sword.
How they had been alone in the woods for most all that time as she wasn't welcome in her father's village, save for her little sister Selka, who came by to help out as often as she could to teach her the most basic skills, like cooking simple meals, which had all been part of the memories of her life that had been stolen away and lost forever. How she had to to help Kirito with everything, from eating, to bathing.
And she, somewhat hesitant, explained how that... How that had given her a new sense of purpose after Alice Zuberg's memories had been lost for good and she had grown disillusioned with the Order, after more than a few of their number wanted to execute what was left of Kirito.
Even after learning what the Administrator had done to them all, many still nearly worshipped her. How they merely considered it a formality, at best, as he had still broken the law.
Suguha had been stunned by the heart wrenching tale the girl shared with her. Sure, she knew Alice came from a very different, more brutal world, but for the first time it really sank in how she wasn't just another teenage girl.
Even if chronologically she was only eighteen years old, not that much older than herself really, she had gone through things she couldn't even fully comprehend or place within the framework of her cozy, twenty-first century life.
By the end she also realized Alice had good reasons to feel a strong connection to her brother. 'Even... love him?' She asked herself quietly. And while that was very unfair towards Asuna, who had been through her own share of traumatic experiences with her brother, he wasn't really at fault either…
Being comatose seems to help with being absolved from any responsibilities... She sighed and smiled softly, resolved to treat Alice a bit less… less like an intruder, she supposed.
"Well I'm just glad the three of you all made it out alive and well in the end."
Alice seemed to perk up a little at that and smiled back at her, nodding gratefully at the sentiment. When her brother came back, she shot him a few mild and altogether admittedly weak glares, but decided to let things be for time being.
After Suguha (who she was glad to have seemingly connected a bit with, her being Kirito's sister and all) and Kirito had their dinner while she sat there, doing her best to let her inability to join in not bother her - she really hated the limitations of her mechanical body.
She missed eating regular meals... The siblings seemed to have noticed as they each gave her sorry looks. She quickly said it was alright. Not getting hungry was a bonus too after all, in a sense.
But then Kirito suddenly perked up and shot her a smile.
"I could... take you out for dinner in ALO instead?" He blushed immediately after, realizing what he had said. But Alice quickly jumped on the opportunity and replied, before he could change his mind.
"Yes! I-I mean that would be… nice?"
While Suguha said that she couldn't come as she still had schoolwork to complete, she gave Kirito a last, strange glare and walked off to her room. She wondered for a moment what she had meant by that one, but shrugged it off when Kirito awkwardly waved her over to follow him to his room.
As they entered, he seemed to realize something and began grinning from ear to ear, turning to her with an excited glimmer in his eyes.
"Say Alice... You haven't logged into ALO this last week, right?"
She blinked in confusion a few moments, but then realized she had indeed been avoiding them. Alright, mostly him... But as she nodded he just became more excited?
"Whyyy...?" She warily asked.
But he just chuckled and said "Oh I just have a surprise for you, is all."
As he put on his head device and sat back in his chair, he told her that she could use the bed.
As Kirito said "Link start!", in a far too excited volume, Alice just sighed and uploaded her mind to the ALO server, as she had been taught to do by Higa-san at RATH. As she opened her eyes a few moments later, she was standing outside the Log Cabin that Kirito and Asuna owned.
"Oh right, I was here last time, wasn't I..." As she thought about her last visit two weeks ago, she let out an involuntary yelp as the door suddenly opened with a bang and a widely grinning Kirito came walking up to where she was standing in the clearing in front of the cabin.
"Well? What do you think?" He asked her teasingly.
She muttered for a moment in confusion "About wh- what... WHAT?"
As her eyes passed to her armour, she noticed not the starter equipment she had been given when first joining ALO. To her sadness, all her equipment from Underworld had been removed, although Kirito soon pointed out that her 'stats', or her abilities, had at least been brought over from Underworld as closely as was feasible.
She had noticed she had had a 1000/1000 in one-handed Swords and a 750/1000 in two-handed Swords - something she had admittedly felt rather proud of. As well as points in several other, to her nondescript 'Skills'.
Kirito had even teasingly pointed out at the time she had points in the Woodcutting skill, to which she had blushed profusely, remembering their time together.
This time, however, she was wearing something all too familiar. She was in her full, golden Integrity Knight outfit. Complete with her masterwork blue cape, billowing white skirt, boots... and... a very familiar, ornate sheath hanging from her side.
Incredulously she slowly pulled out her... her Fragrant Olive Sword. As she was still in shock, she let Kirito guide her into her menu and equipment screen. There he showed her:
[Armour of Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty] - [Unique]
[Sacred Treasure: Fragrant Olive Longsword] - [Unique]
She was a little irritated that, even though it had very good points according to Kirito, it couldn't split up into deadly flower leaves. But when he guided her to her item list she gasped and brought her hand up to cover her mouth.
Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes as she read two item names below each other:
[UNDAC001-Amayori]
[UNDAC002-Takiguri]
She remembered how Kirito had changed her and Knight Eldrie's dying dragons into eggs, to save their lives and allowing her the chance to bring them back if she ever - when she was to return to Underworld... She jumped through her screen, not being able to contain herself and wrapped him in a tight hug.
When he started groaning she quickly let go, afraid of what happened and felt a little embarrassed when he started coughing. "Your... Your Strength stat was also brought over it seems..."
They both laughed for a bit and marveled about how she had all her equipment and how powerful they were. Then he showed her how to do what she had been dying to ask about.
With shaking hands she slowly materialized the two familiar items... She shielded her eyes at the suddenly appearing bright lights above her. But as she started peeking through her fingers, she noticed two small shapes forming...
After half a minute, but what felt like an eternity as she gazed in amazement and admittedly nervousness, two small, really only cat-sized, dragons came flying down. One silver with blue fur patches below the neck... Amayori.. and one a metallic blue, with lighter silverish patches, her brother Takiguri... They looked around confused but then settled on her, standing below them.
Her nerves reached new heights at that point. Would they recognize her with her Caith Sith appearance? Would they even remember her or anything else after having been reduced to eggs?
They only took a second or two before they immediately dove down towards her, full of enthusiasm. At that point, Alice was just glad they were small and not at their full sizes... Ouch! She looked up at Kirito with teary eyes and a grateful smile while she said "Thank you... Thank you really, so much.."
He just smiled and nervously rubbed the back of his neck, saying it was nothing, while she happily giggled as Amayori and Takiguri did her best to lick her face all over. SHe managed to catch the tail end of his explanation through her excited dragons and their loving ministrations.
"..just asked Koujiro-san and Higa-san to negotiate for it with the company that runs ALO. They apparently were quite happy about the promotional value of the first true AI to play their game..."
She thought for a split second about how that might cause problems down the line, but almost immediately returned to being happy as her Dragons kept licking her face, despite her sputtering, admittedly half-hearted protests.
As they lost themselves to playing with the two excited dragons for a bit, with Takiguri taking a real liking to him, much to his currently blue-haired friend's happiness, they were both startled out of their aweing and cooing when a young girl's voice rang out through the clearing in front of his and Asuna's log cabin.
"DAADDDYYYY!"
Soon followed by his adopted AI daughter Yui slamming into him in her Human form. He was a little dazed, but soon picked her up and swung her around, equally excitedly shouting "YUUUUIIIII!"
She giggled and beamed at him and then stopped and curiously stared at Alice and the two small dragons with a tilted head, the latter adorably mimicking her almost perfectly.
"Alice-san? You're here with daddy?" she asked in her trademark, puppy eyed, innocent girl voice. Before she fully registered the two adorable little dragons who were very clearly not Pina. She squealed and with a poof turned into her pixie form, before flying around them with the now excited and somewhat baffled dragons, playing little games of tag.
He and Alice could only watch the spectacle occur with warm, happy smiles.
However, he couldn't help but freeze when two very familiar voices shouted "Kirito?" "Kirito-kun?"
He turned around slowly and smiled awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck. Staring at the pink haired Lisbeth and his Undine girlfriend, Asuna, looking at him with raised eyebrows upon seeing Alice standing there. Although they couldn't help but at least briefly smile warmly at Yui and her new playmates.
It was silent for a moment, before Liz shot towards Alice. The Caith Sith had to visibly steel herself at the speed at which the flying blacksmith neared her, but was stunned by the following barrage of compliments and questions regarding her equipment.
While Kirito saw Liz relieve some of the tension and barraging a helpless Alice with gear-related questions, he chuckled as she did her best to echo back at Liz what he just told her. Not fully understanding what it all meant herself.
Then he was pulled from his revelry as Asuna cleared her throat quietly, so only he could hear it and asked with an annoyed voice "So... Kazuto."
He immediately swallowed, noticing she used his real name instead of the affectionate Kirito-kun... Before she started barraging him in a whispered voice "How come you just tell me you have plans and then ignore me all night and day and then I find you here in ALO with Alice of all people?!"
He needed a few moments, but then cleared his throat a bit and told her the first thing that came to mind, which wasn't quite a lie.
"Uhm.. Well, Koujiro-san said she was concerned about A-Alice... That she was pushing herself too hard and.. eh.. well she asked if I could convince her to take a day off and relax.. So yeah I... I'm just being there for a friend."
He followed it up with his best confident smile. She stared at him for a few moments, but then had seemed to deem it believable enough, before now too with a smile greeting Alice. After explaining Alice had felt left out at dinner they agreed they should go eat something.
Alice felt a slight tinge in her chest when she realized Asuna, Yui and Lisbeth, or Liz would probably join on her date... eh Dinner! Dinner with Kirito-kun... She sighed quietly but kept smiling her best friendly smile.
She had been happily surprised when the girls admitted they had actually come back to log out, as they still had to eat dinner in the real world - but did her best not to show it - as the entire time Asuna was shooting warning glances towards Kirito...
Eventually they said their awkward goodbyes and the two of them silently made their way to a restaurant in the nearby town of Corral. Each with a dragon excitedly chirping on their shoulder.
After maybe fifteen minutes of sitting at their table with a large variety of local delicacies - all picked out by Kirito who told her pretty much everything was amazing - they were happily laughing like old friends again and sharing all their various dishes, with the two dragons eating their fair share of bites from most of the dishes.
Kirito had cautiously watched her try a few of his less spicy dishes, but after being happily surprised that she really liked the heat, they eventually ordered a string of dishes with increasing spiciness... Which funnily enough were very much appreciated by the dragons as well.
Fifteen minutes later, they had each eaten five spicy dishes. When they started Kirito had, despite her enthusiasm, felt pretty confident in his ability to win. By the fourth dish, however, he was starting to get nervous - seeing how they both only coughed up a little bit of smoke...
He had expected his newcomer friend to cop out after the third, but now they were both staring at each other. Keeping in their inevitable explosions after that final pepper for as long as they both could...
Alice was the first to literally spew fire, being only a second later followed up by Kirito's own spout of flames. A few moments passed, as they stared at each other, gasping for air. But then Kirito raised his arms and while coughing loudly he managed to shout "VICTORYYYYY!"
Alice then joined him through her coughs with an annoyed "GAAAH I WAS SO CLOSE!"
Then the two of them froze and looked around. Staring at them, like deer looking up into a car's headlight, were around a dozen other pairs of players. The NPC innkeep meanwhile just shouted a pre-programmed "Keep it down or take it outside!"
When they later arrived back at the Log Cabin, where they could log out safely, they gave each other a last smile and hugged the two little dragons. Alice had insisted that Bercouli's old dragon, the brother to her own long-time partner, would officially become Kirito's in ALO.
Seeing how you could only really have one active pet at the same time in this game, and this would mean they could take both of them with them on any adventures they might go on, it only felt right to her.
They played a little with them and Yui, before saying goodnight to the three of them and each other with a last smile as they logged out.
When the both of them looked at each other back in Kazuto's bedroom, they were a little embarrassed. They had both forgotten they were actually together in real life as well. And to his shock, Kazuto realized it was already 1AM! Carefully mentioning this to Alice, her eyes opened wide in shock and she immediately got up.
"I... I eh I should go... Oh by Solus, the guards outside must have been waiting all this time..."
Kazuto agreed and they quickly made their way down. To his relief he noted that Sugu must have already gone to bed. As Alice put her shoes and coat back on and they stared at each other awkwardly for a moment, he stuttered awkwardly "I... I'll walk you to the car."
She nodded at him with a blush and a smile and led him outside. As they approached the awaiting car, a window rolled down and an unfamiliar face stared at them.
He was clearly wearing the same uniform, but it was a different guard... "Is there a problem, Alice-san, Kirigaya-san?" he asked with a curious look.
The both of them were a bit stunned but then Alice stuttered "Eh.. No, not at all we just thought that it was getting late.. A-and I should probably get back to RATH."
The middle-aged man gave them a confused expression and then went on to carefully ask "We... We were informed by Koujiro-san that you would be spending the night at the Kirigaya-residence? That's why we relieved our colleagues for the night shift..."
He strengthened his words by carefully waving at the different car and men around him. Alice almost immediately asked "I.. I am?"
The guard just sheepishly shrugged and said "Well... I suppose that is up to you and Kirigaya-san."
At the embarrassed, but somehow hopeful look he got from the blonde girl, he too had started blushing as he eventually stuttered "Ehh.. Eh, if-if you like? I suppose we have a g-guest bedroom?"
Suffice to say they made their way back indoors in short order.
As Alice had no sleepwear with her and neither of them really felt like waking Sugu to ask her for a spare set of pajamas... Kazuto nervously gave her one of his oversized shirts, which she gratefully, if with a deep blush, accepted. They said their awkward goodnights and both retreated to their respective bedrooms.
As Kazuto fell back on his bed he smiled and absentmindedly stared at the ceiling. Reliving his day with Alice in his mind. He felt a bit odd, realizing he hadn't truly felt this happy since waking up from the Underworld...
Then his smile faltered as his mind went to Asuna. He immediately felt guilty. He had been pushing her away since after the first week...
She had clearly been trying her best to stay supportive of him, but he could see her frustration shine through more and more often. And he realized it wasn't undeserved.
He just... didn't know what to do anymore. He was still happy when he saw her, but it just felt like... Like that was so long ago. He had lived an extra three years. Growing up, forging friendships. And even in his memories the two of them had grown distant while in Underworld.
With her remaining in Centoria to help the fledgling government get started with what little she knew of modern forms of government to aid her. Meanwhile he took mission after mission in the Dark Territory with Ronye, as too much of the capital reminded him of his brother.
Eventually he fell into a restless, fitful sleep.
Asuna had always been the more mature and serious of the two of them. Now she was lying in her bed. Eyes red from the tears she had shed after having logged out from ALO... He ignored her all day and night, and then she had found him with Alice... And apparently they had been spending the whole day together!
She had checked her friend list every so often with Liz and Yui, checking to see if he had come online yet. So she knew they only logged in shortly before Liz,Yui and herself arrived back at their cabin. So then... Had she been at his house all day...?
She had realized Kirito-kun had been distant lately... And he seemed a lot less carefree than he had been. While he still smiled widely and made jokes, he was less... Cheerful.
And yet it didn't seem like he was really sad or distracted... He just seemed more... mature? Older. She had to often remind herself that he had spent nearly five years in total in that game. In what for her had been several days... Maybe they had.. grown apart, without her even getting a chance to realize it?
Heya folks, just wanted to mention that a group of like-minded SAO Fanfiction Enthusiasts (Authors and Readers alike) have banded together in a Discord Community to keep each other motivated, provide feedback - and generally just hang out!
Feel free to stop by if you feel the same :) = Ht tps / discord . gg / z9Pz3Jzc7y