Thanks all for reading this. This chapter's a little on the shorter side, but there's a longer chapter coming out next as we come to the climax of the Aincrad arc. Fairy Dance will be further from canon as by now the ripples have had time to build into waves. Please let me know what you think.

Caring For A Rat: Part 18

It was five days after we returned to the 55th floor that Heathcliff contacted us. Those days had been stressful; I was a wreck more often than not, unable to go more than two hours at a time without seeing Asuna to convince myself that I hadn't imagined Yui resurrecting her.

My wife seemed to be absent from her own mind frequently, often delving into her crafting skills for hours at a time. Argo had taken to observing us more frequently and intensely than ever, although that had gone down over the course of the week as she steadily approached pre-confession levels of comfort.

Just about the only thing that kept the three of us sane was regular visits to the various parks and bakeries around the city. Asuna challenged herself to try and recreate the foods we would try by taste alone, and her creations usually tasted nice, although where she got the idea to use powdered dragon scales as a spice I have no idea.

The weirdest part was that it had somehow worked. She had managed to find instructions somewhere on which types of dragon scales could be made into a food item, and furthermore, which ones could be powdered as opposed to being cooked as a slab.

But then again, if Dragon feces could be one of the top twenty ore drops in the current game, I suppose having dragon scales for dinner wasn't too much of a stretch.

Argo had certainly enjoyed the blend of flavors it had created.

More recently, I had been trying to catch fish in the ponds outside the city. Our Col stocks, as deep as they were, would not support us indefinitely, and someday we would have to take up quests again.

Fishing let me save Col, and Asuna had fun trying to figure out how to cook some of the stranger fish drops I returned with.

It also gave me something to do while Yui was asleep.

It was as I was coming back from one of these trips that Argo ambushed me in the doorway.

I almost lost my balance as she tackled me from behind, only staying upright by grabbing the doorframe.

"Hey, Kii-bou," Argo all but purred into my ear. She wrapped her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist, making herself into an improvised backpack.

"Hey Argo, You mind moving? I have 126 seconds left to put this fish in storage before it spoils." I started walking forward, and Argo shifted herself so that I could move my arms easily, but otherwise stayed put.

"Bu' you're comfy~" the info broker whined, "Aa-chan isn' nearly as easy ta ride as you are." She rubbed her head against my neck, and I did my best to keep from flushing, although judging from Argo's giggle, I had failed.

"Welcome back, Kirito," Asuna said, sending me a warm smile from her spot in front of the kitchen "I see you've acquired a backpack."

"She's a rather noisy one too," I said, opening the exchange window and tapping the button. "She was talking my ear off on the way in."

"It's been a quiet week," Argo grumbled, resting her chin on my shoulder. "I had ta write an article abou' a sex scandal, o' all thin's. Made me feel dirty."

"The KOB's scouting party found the floor boss room about an hour ago," Asuna said, turning back to the stove.

"Well that's news," I said to myself, sitting down heavily in one of the dining room chairs, making sure to sit far forward enough that Argo wasn't squished. "Didn't expect them to find it for another couple of days, at least."

"Blacksmiths being able to provide better gear means that the scouting parties are able to go on longer expeditions and return safely," Asuna said, not looking up from her soup. "So really, like most things, we can credit this to Argo's info."

"Aw, you're gonna make me blush, Aa-chan," The Info Broker said, her voice rumbling through my body.

"Still, given the past performances of the scouting teams, I would have expected them to take two more days before they found it."

"You're not accounting for the weapon durability Kirito," Asuna said, scraping a board of various diced herbs into the stew pot without turning around. "People aren't having to retreat to repair their weapons as much, which was the big time limit on expeditions."

"And they're able to afford better gear as a result of not needing to repair their weapons as much." I finished Asuna's unspoken statement.

"Speakin' o' bosses, Aa-chan, ya have any idea why Heathcliff is refusing ta buy my full info package on the [Skull Reaper]?"

"He's been making speeches about self-reliance and 'The hostility of other guilds'," Asuna put a little more force than necessary into one of her stirs, making the soup splash over the lip of the pot; her face twisted into a frown. "Normally I wouldn't be worried, but he's been recruiting more crafters into the guild lately."

"Heathcliff always has been rather insistent on the KOB being able to stand alone," I mused, "Argo, you got any info?" I went to swipe open my inventory screen only for Argo to wave me off.

"Aa-chan's probably got more info than I do; Heathcliff's been cullin' my sources in the guild." The Info Broker said it like it was nothing, but I could hear the frank admission of defeat in her voice.

"Now I'm even more concerned," Asuna said, setting her ladle down and turning the stove's heat down low. "No other guild is cutting off your sources?"

Argo shook her head, her chin brushing the hair above my head. "Some o' the guild masters even sell me info."

"Asuna, you should think about getting out of the KOB before it's too late," I said, catching my wife's gaze on my own. "I've seen this happen before with guilds, hell, we just saw something like it with Kibaou and the Army."

"I'm in the best position to fight whatever Heathcliff is trying to do, and most of the members have been around since well before he started this new round of recruiting." Asuna turned the stove up a bit hotter than it needed to be. "If all else fails, I made him sign an agreement after that spectacle he put on with you that if you ever wanted to leave the guild, I could go with you."

"And I'm free to leave at any time?"

"Of course, you just have to sign over most of your money, your guild equipment, and half your healing potions!" Asuna slammed the pot down on the counter. "Soup's ready, let's just stop talking about it for now, okay?"

Argo and I exchanged a look. She slid out from behind me and into her own place at the table while I grabbed some bowls from mine and Asuna's shared inventory.

Within thirty seconds we were all seated at the table, bowls of soup in front of us. My wife had blended rabbit meat with several kinds of herb, including one found only on the 34th floor, pearl barley, and diced turnips. It seemed like a combination that shouldn't work, and yet it did.

"Thanks for cookin' again Aa-chan," Argo said as she polished off the last of the soup, pulling the bowl to her lips to take a long drink of the stock. I had done the same five seconds ago. "Ya must'a gotten your cookin' skills from Kōjin." The Info Broker smacked her lips, looking towards the pot on the counter; there was still some left.

"Go ahead and take some." Asuna waved Argo on, and I picked up my bowl for a second serving as well. "This soup has a short expiry timer, so we might as well enjoy it while it lasts."

"Don't mind if I do," As I reached for the ladle, The ding of a message sounded through the room. My wife scowled, and swiped open her inbox. Her face paled rapidly, and her spoon clattered to the table.

"Asuna?" I set my bowl down and jolted up as Asuna manifested a knife, then drove it into the table, starting to rant.

"I told him! I fucking told him! And did he listen? No!" My wife ranted, materializing a fork from her inventory and stabbing it into the table beside the knife. "I told him this was coming, that we needed to be more careful, and what does he do? Fucking goes and does the exact opposite of what I told him we should do!"

"Asuna!" I said as firmly as I could, standing from my seat and catching her hand before she could ram another utensil into the table. "Asuna, I like this table. I paid quite a bit of Col for it."

Asuna took in a deep breath, and set the knife she had manifested down beside the other utensils. "Sorry." She sounded like a barely restrained storm, fury almost rippling from her body with how strong it was, but there was an undercurrent of grief too.

"Wha' happened?" Argo leaned over Asuna's shoulder, offering a comforting weight.

"Heathcliff sent a ten-man scouting party to scope out the boss room," Asuna said, her anger fading, leaving only her sorrow and grief behind. "Against my recommendation. We've been encountering more and more field and dungeon bosses in Trap Zones." I knew what was coming before Asuna finished her statement. Trap Zones were areas that prevented a player from leaving until whatever conditions the Zone wanted were fulfilled. Teleport crystals didn't work, and any entrances were sealed off.

"It was only a matter of time before it happened with a floor boss."

"Asuna…" I opened my arms, and she grabbed on to me, her tears staining my shirt.

"They're dead. Ferdie, Jounesson, Griefer, they're-they're all dead." Argo tentatively approached from behind her, before grabbing onto Asuna with her own hug when I gave her a nod.

Asuna had always been close with the scouting teams. They had the most dangerous jobs of the clearers, and they had a lot of respect for Asuna, who would go scouting with them on occasion. If there was anyone in the KoB she was friends with, it was the Scouts.

It took a few minutes for Asuna to compose herself, but when she did, she had reverted to the cold, hard vice-commander of the KoB.

"Heathcliff is reactivating us," My wife said, flipping the message around so that I could read it. "We're going to the strategy meeting tomorrow, and fighting the boss later that day." I saw a raw determination in Asuna's eyes. She wanted revenge, of a sort, against the boss that had killed her scouts.

"What time?" I couldn't even think of not supporting her.

"Eight A.M." I nodded, and Argo finally reacted.

"Wait, I've go' somethin'," The Info Broker said, pulling up a trade window. "I, I firs' ordered these as a goin' away presen', but if you're gonna be fightin' the boss, then ya shoul' have it now."

"Argo, you…" Asuna started to say something, but The Rat cut her off before she could.

"I almos' los' you. I know I can' follow ya into the boss room, so at leas' let me make sure ya have the bes' gear I can give ya before ya go in there," Argo said, her fingers flying across her menu. Within seconds, a trade window popped up in front of me. At the top of the list was a third sword, comparable to my weapons, but not upgraded yet.

Before I could second-guess myself, I slammed a finger down on the accept button, and watched as the items appeared in my inventory.

Two pairs of boots. Three accessories. One Standard Sword. One Rapier. Two open-faced helmets.

"I know ya don' like ta wear helmets, bu'-" I cut off Argo by equipping the helmet. It fit snugly over my head, not moving when I turned it from side to side, and it didn't obstruct my vision. It was a gift from one of the women I loved, and I was going to use it.

Next to me, Asuna had equipped her own helmet. It took a slightly different form than mine, more open at the back, letting her long hair flow through. The helmets clashed slightly with the rest of our clothing, but they were good pieces of armor, and they didn't obscure our vision.

"You gave us backup weapons?" I asked, drawing out the sword that Argo had given me. It was a fairly powerful sword, with stats approximately equal to one of my swords reinforced to +32, but upgrading it would take time and resources I did not have.

Argo nodded, "You guys mentioned tha' one o' the things tha' scared you the mos' in… you know… was your weapons breaking down. I though' tha' ya migh' wan' some backups."

Behind me, Asuna tested the rapier, very carefully aiming away from anything breakable. Satisfied with its performance, she unequipped it and sat back down at the table.

"So, Argo, how much does the full info package for the 75th floor boss cost?"

The rest of the evening was spent reviewing what we knew of the 75th floor boss, or as Argo's info told us, the [Skull Reaper]. It was harrowing, and by the time we had finished going over all the info that Argo had provided, we were all exhausted.

It was as we all got ready for bed that Argo broke her question.

"Can I sleep with you tonigh'?"

The Info Broker was fidgeting, her fingers playing with the edge of her cloak as she waited for an answer. "I mean-"

I had better cut her off before she got too worked up. "Of course, Argo." The info broker nodded, still playing with her cloak.

"Alright, good. Jus' don' push me off in the middle o' the nigh', okay? I've seen how tiny your bed is." I chuckled lightly at her ribbing, and settled into my usual position on the far side of the bed, before realizing my mistake and scooching over a bit more.

Argo was right. I was dangerously close to the edge of the bed. If we were going to keep doing this, we would need to get a bigger bed.

My wife flopped down next to me, and wrapped her arms around me from behind, burying her head in my hair. Argo slipped into bed behind my Asuna, and I could feel the small Info Broker's hands around my wife.

I rested one hand over my wife's, plumped up our pillow with the other, and fell asleep.