Sorry that this is a little bit late; Thanks for waiting! I hope you enjoy and pleas leave a review!

Caring For A Rat: Book 2, Part 11

It wasn't even ten seconds after I hung up that the elevator doors dinged open, and a brown-haired girl all but ran out, moving as fast as her cane would allow. "Rika?" The girl's eyes shot to me, and she came to a stop, breathing heavily. "Shoot, Rika, did you run all the way from the train stop?"

Rika nodded, still breathing heavily. "Wanted... to… see..." She said in between heaving breaths. Rika had been one of Asuna's closest friends in SAO, and one of the few she had outside of the KoB. Apparently the two had met when Asuna was seeking out a new smith after her old one had died, and the two had hit it off.

Of course, Rika, like many other blacksmiths, had sequestered herself soon after Argo's release of new blacksmithing techniques, and tried to get the techniques perfected. One of the few times we had met up she had grumbled over not being able to finish that.

She didn't visit Asuna often when her friend was asleep, and left quickly each time she did. She'd told me that she couldn't stand the sight of Asuna lying there like a corpse.

Still, she had been a shoulder for Asuna to lean on while I was wrapped up in my own misery, and I would forever be grateful to her for that.

"Well," I said, helping Rika towards the door. "Asuna's having a conversation with a doctor right now, so it might be a bit." My sentence was punctuated by the opening of the hospital door, revealing Dr. Tetsutora.

"My," The doctor said. "It's good to see you again, miss Shinozaki. I take it you're here to visit miss Yuuki?"

Rika nodded, still regaining control over her breath.

"Well, she might be a bit tired, so don't be surprised if she falls asleep, but I don't see why she can't have one more visitor." Dr. Tetsutora stepped aside. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have another meeting to get to." The physical therapist turned and started walking down the hall, his clipboard held under his arm tightly.

Rika shrugged my arm off, took a deep breath, and walked confidently through the doorway, her cane tucked under her elbow. "Hey Asuna."

"Liz!" Asuna cried, struggling herself back into a sitting position as Tomo cautiously supported her with one arm. "It's so nice to see you!"

"It's really nice to see you too," Rika chuckled tearfully, wrapping her arms gently around Asuna in a hug. "Sorry it took me so long to get here."

"Oh, no, I'm certain you came as fast as you could." Asuna reassured her friend. "You certainly came faster than my mom did." she waved off her mother's lack of appearance like a joke, but I could see the bite there.

Had her mother and her been close?

Rika drew back from the hug to grip Asuna's shoulders. "Are you okay?" She peered in at my wife, trying to see if there was anything wrong with her. "He, he didn't touch you or- or anything, right?"

Asuna shook her head. Rika, apparently not satisfied by that, pressed on. "They're treating you alright here? Respecting your privacy, getting you set up and everything?"

This time Asuna nodded, and Rika let out a sigh of relief. She drew Asuna back into another hug, breathing in her presence. "Thank god you made it out."

They stayed like that long enough for me to go to the bathroom and come back. Eventually Rika drew away from the hug, although she took what had been my seat, next to the head of the bed.

"So, how have you been?" Asuna's friend asked, sitting ready to listen. "You and Kazuto are getting on alright?"

"I'd say I'm doing pretty well," my wife said, her eyes meeting mine. I felt my cheeks heat up. "I'm going to be making a quick recovery, and Kazuto came to see me almost as soon as I was out, and he's been with me ever since." Rika made a half-amused, half-exasperated noise.

"Of course you two are as sickeningly sweet as always." She leaned forward in her chair, and poked me with her cane. "The only way it would be more romantic is if you were here when she woke up." She then leaned over and grabbed my wrist.

"Thank you for being there for her."

"Eh, Tomo got here before I did," I said, scratching the back of my head.

"Speaking of which," Rika interrupted, casting a glare at the blonde across the room. "Why didn't you contact me to say that Asuna was up? I had to learn that my best friend was out of her coma from the local news network."

"Eh he he," Tomo laughed nervously, shrinking in on herself.

"I mean, I get Kazuto not contacting anyone, he's so stupidly devoted to Asuna that he'd forget the rest of us if she was in trouble." I felt a pang of hurt well up in my chest. She didn't think that poorly of me, did she? "But I asked you to contact me if Asuna woke up, Tomo."

The statement fell down on the info broker's head like a stack of bricks. I was surprised she kept her head up. "I was with Aa-chan when she broke out." Rika made a little gasp of realization. "I'm sorry for not contactin' ya, but it slipped my mind."

"Well, you should have," Rika said, crossing her arms. "Asuna's my friend too." then she sighed, and clapped a hand down on Tomo's shoulder. "Thanks for getting her out, both of you." she shot over to me, and I nodded in acknowledgement.

"We didn't really do anything. Asuna broke herself out," I said, reaching over to grab one of my wife's hands, and rubbing my thumb along the back. Asuna shook her head in denial.

"I would still be stuck in there without you guys. You figured out how I could actually log out, Tomo," My wife said, before squeezing my hand and smiling warmly at me. "And you caught me when I was falling. I might have died if not for you."

I almost responded that Tomo would have caught her. My presence was really unnecessary. I had been the first one taken out by Sugou, and all I had managed to do in the space before was reach Asuna half a second before Argo did. Argo would have been able to catch her and lower her safely to the ground. She had the stats for it.

Still, it was nice to know that my wife thought so highly of me.

"And Liz, don't be too harsh on them." Asuna admonished. "You didn't respond to me asking you for advice about what to do for a date with Kirito for almost a full week because you were trying to figure out a new form of enhancement."

Rika flinched guiltily. "Alright," she grumbled. "You got me there." She rubbed the back of her neck with one hand. "Anyway… Do you want me to bring you anything? I remember my time at the hospital being really boring, but I might be able to bring you a book or two to pass the time." The brunette changed the subject quickly, trying to find a less sensitive topic.

Asuna shook her head. "I wouldn't want to impose on you too much, I'm certain that you're quite busy outside of this, and you should focus on getting your own life back together."

"Eh, there's really not that much to do." Rika shrugged, "I'm mostly just studying these days, and I can only do that for so long before my eyes feel like they want to fall out." Asuna's eyes lit up in interest.

"Studying for what?"

"For the entrance exams to the survivor's school," Rika said simply. "The test's aren't that hard, but I want to get a good grade."

"The survivor's school?" A little nugget of information had grabbed Asuna's attention, and she was hungry for more.

"Something the government set up," I said, "They decided that it'd be easier to have all the survivors in one place, and there were enough survivors in our age bracket that they decided to "

"I wonder what sort of classes they're going to have for us?" Asuna wondered aloud. "I mean, accelerated classes are a given, assuming they want us to reintegrate back into society as soon as possible."

Argo nodded. "Math, Modern Japanese, Science, and History are all gettin' semi-accelerated classes. Art and Phys Ed are gettin' normal classes, but the first year of school is going to be really difficult."

"Well," Asuna said, a fire burning in her eyes. "Looks like I have something to grind for." I smiled despite myself. God, I loved her.

She always knew how to hit the ground running.

"I know the classes are going to be a doozy," Rika said, leaning forward in her chair, her eyes alight with emotion. "But they're letting us form clubs! I want to see if I can get a metalworking club going!"

"Not a blacksmithing club?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"Nah, too much specialized equipment." Rika threw aside my question without a care. "That, and the smithing system in SAO was heavily simplified from what it is IRL. I'd need to unlearn a lot of bad habits if I wanted to do anything more complicated than stamping a coin."

I shrunk back in on myself. Why had I asked that stupid question? Of course Rika wasn't going to be creating a blacksmithing club. She had told me two weeks ago about how her one attempt to work in a smithy had failed when she didn't account for proper heat distribution and screwed up a fence post.

"Hey, Kii-bou," Tomo draped an arm over me, leaning over the back of my chair. "I bet you can't wait ta get into the new tech lab they're building." She stretched her other arm out in front of the two of us. "New, top-o'-the-line computers ready for ya ta work your magic on them… that's really somethin' ta look forward to, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is." It was really intriguing. My personal computer had reached the limits of what I could push it too before SAO had started, and I was looking forward to seeing what limits had been pushed over the two years that I had been trapped.

"I mean, since my mom isn't getting me any new hardware anymore, the computers there are probably going to be better than what I've got at home."

"I shudder at what ya could accomplish with modern technology in your hands," Tomo said dramatically, "Who knows what ya could do, given what ya were capable of before?"

"Yeah, yeah," I hummed. "I'm the greatest hacker of this generation, we all know that." I probably wasn't, but Tomo had a point, given that I'd hacked what was supposed to be the most secure government database in the nation at the tender age of ten.

"I am probably going to be in the computer lab a lot, though," I mused, "I've got a few projects in mind that I want to work on." Even though I'd been deliriously happy about everything happening last night and now today, to reunite with Asuna; I couldn't help but feel that someone was missing.

Yui was still all but trapped in the virtual world.

She was a native of that place, but that was no reason that she couldn't experience as much of the physical world as I could let her, but I'd need access to a good computer to do that, and until I either got enough money to buy my own computer, or mom started buying parts for me again, the only computer's I could get regular access to would be at the school.

"Anythin' ya'd like ta share with little old me?" Tomo casually turned my head towards her and fluttered her eyelashes exaggeratedly. "Ya know I love hearin' all about ya."

"Maybe later," I said, gently pushing her head back with my forehead. "I'm a little more interested in what you're planning on doing, Tomo."

"Oh, are you going to be starting up your info network again?" Asuna asked, leaning forward, "Like that website that Kirito helped you set up for people to find each other?"

Tomo shook her head. "I'm more interested in goin' into the other side o' the business I set up in Aincrad."

"You're starting up another newspaper?" Rika gave me a side eye, her gaze moving back and forth between me and Tomo. We hadn't done anything suspicious, had we?. "Could we advertise stuff in it, like if we were doing a craft exhibition?"

"It'll cost ya," Tomo said, "I'm still workin' out the pricing', but I'll let ya know when I get everythin' set up."

"How much would it cost for me to get a monthly subscription?" I asked, mentally reviewing my options. I still had over 325,000 yen in the bank, so I could probably afford it.

"Meh, probably not much," Tomo said dismissively, letting one hand flop back and forth as if to discard the idea of payment. "Maybe about 500 yen a month." Alright then, nothing too expensive.

"I'll pay you in advance for it," I said, already reviewing how much I could pay her. Maybe about 10,000 yen? That would probably be enough to get her started.

"I don't need that much start-up capital, Kii-bou," Tomo smirked. "The school's already agreed to fund the first printin'."

The discussion after that turned towards speculation about what the exams were going to focus on. We all disagreed about what would be best to prepare for. I maintained that it was social studies, because we had spent two years immersed in another world, and needed to reground ourselves in this one.

Rika thought that math was more important, because, in her own words, "So many of the people in Aincrad couldn't count for shit."

Asuna and Tomo however, were in agreement that it would be better to focus on the modern japanese portion of the exam, as "Most of the history will probably be stuff we already know, but the literature? The curriculum there can change rapidly."

Soon enough, the day came to a close, and a tired nurse shooed Me, Tomo, and Liz out of the room. I clung to the doorframe as Ms. Fujita stood helplessly in front of me.

"I'll see you tomorrow Asuna, please try to get some sleep!"

My wife waved back at me from where she lay on the bed, having run out of energy to keep sitting up. "See you tomorrow." Her voice was hoarse, but I could feel the affection in it.

I left without a further word. I would have stayed longer, maybe even overnight again if I could, but Asuna was exhausted, and had almost fallen asleep twice in the last hour. That, and Sugu would skin me alive if I spent another day sleeping in a chair at the hospital. Hell, Asuna might help her.

I parted ways with Tomo and Rika at the train station, as all three of us lived in separate areas. Ten minutes later, I was walking into my house, just in time for a timer to start beeping in the kitchen.

After shucking my shoes and my coat, I started towards the noise. Sugu would probably appreciate any help I could give.

As I walked into the kitchen, Sugu finally shut off the timer, turning off one of the burners on the stove, and removing the lid from the pot on top of it. She dipped a small spoon into the pot, and brought a spoonful of soup up to her lips, seeming to savor the taste.

"How is it?' I asked, stepping over to where another apron hung on a hook and putting it on.

"It's pretty good," Sugu said, placing the spoon down far away from the pot and picking up a different, much bigger spoon, before giving the pot a stir. "I think I'll need to let it sit a bit longer for the stock to blend in, but other than that it should be done."

"That's great, anything else I can help with?" It looked like dinner tonight was almost finished, but I needed something to keep me occupied. Something to keep me focused.

"Sure," my sister said, setting her spoon down and turning around. "You can help me roll up some Makizushi."

We worked in silence for the most part. Each of us was making our own roll, with a similar, yet distinct set of ingredients. In the time I had been trapped, Sugu had acquired a taste for eel. I still couldn't stand the stuff, and kept far away from it while she started piling it on.

It was probably the most plentiful ingredient on her roll, matched only by the rice.

As for myself, I kept mine relatively simple: some salmon, cucumber, and a bit of radish, with a small dusting of fish flakes to finish off the roll.

As we sat down to eat, I contemplated how best to bring up the topic that I knew I needed to talk about.

I had already talked with my mom about it, and she'd given the ok, but, selfishly, I had avoided talking about it with Sugu.

Tomo was probably going to be moving in shortly, unless her parents had a change of heart and sent her more money, which probably wasn't going to happen. And I still hadn't told Sugu about it.

Well, no time like the present.

I took a deep breath. "Hey, Sugu?"

"Yes Kazuto?"

So, My friend Tomo, you know, the one you thought I was dating, is probably going to be moving in soon and… "How's prep for the tournament going?"

"Pretty well," Sugu gave me a sideways glance, as if she could tell I had meant to say something else. "Coach thinks that I have an actual shot at the podium this time, and I know how to counter the move that my opponent used that tripped me up last time, so I'm as good as I've ever been!" She flexed one arm, "Plus I've got a new workout routine, and I don't think I've ever felt as strong!"

"That's really cool," I said, taking a small bite of the makizushi. "So, what was it that you had trouble with last time?"

"It was a really peculiar feint," Sugu said, her brows furrowing in thought. "What Taimai, my opponent, would do is come in with an overhand strike, but follow through in a step that put her inside my guard and strike from a low underhand when I stepped back." She took a swig of water, "Honestly, it's a really tricky technique, and it took advantage of the natural instinct to keep your distance that most kendo practitioners have."

"It sure sounds like it would be difficult for anyone to deal with," I offered my thoughts. My natural response if someone got inside my guard in VR was the same as Sugu's was in her Kendo matches: create distance. Someone inside your guard would be able to take advantage of any number of openings, but with Kendo rules…

"Wait, you said that she struck as you stepped back?"

My sister nodded. "With the way that you deflect in Kendo, it would put her sword in a position where she couldn't swing it properly, but I couldn't either, so when I tried to create distance, my sword was out of place to intercept hers for the follow-up strike."

Sugu scratched her cheek angrily. "The real problem is that I fell for it twice. I should be better than that."

"Well, now you know how to counter that technique." I washed the last bits of Makizushi down with a bit of water. "Just remember that-"

"-My opponents are coming up with new strategies too, I know." Sugu groaned, picking up her plate to bring into the kitchen.

"Just checking," I said, following her to the sink. We didn't have enough dirty dishes to justify using the dishwasher, so we'd split the duty of handwashing.

"I hear that enough from my coach," Sugu grumbled. "But anyway, what was it that you wanted to talk about earlier?"

I really had been that obvious, hadn't I?

I hesitated, my hand still holding the faucet, warm water spraying into the sink. How was Suguha going to react? I had, to some extent, been intentionally keeping this from her. I was worried that she was going to flip out on me, sort of like she had while we had been rescuing Asuna.

At least I thought I knew where to start. "I don't know if mom's told you yet, but-"

"Is this about your friend moving in with us?" Sugu asked, and I felt a weight drop off of my shoulders. I felt so much lighter now, that I almost looked around for a thud.

"Yes," I said, sliding the faucet back into place and grabbing my plate.

Suguha grabbed a towel, ready to dry the dishes that I handed to her. "Well, I can't say that i was expecting this," my sister grumbled, "But if your friend's truly in as dire financial straits as you and mom think they are, then I don't mind taking on a renter." She quickly wiped down the plate I handed to her and set it in the rack to dry next to the rollers that we had used for the makizushi.

"Just make sure they stay out of my room."

"I thought you'd be more concerned about making sure she stays out of my room," I said before I could stop myself.

"I was," Sugu turned towards me, slinging the towel over her shoulder. "But then I realized that you're probably able to keep people out of your room better than I can."

I stared at her. "What gave you that impression?"

"Anyone who's smart enough to get a salamander war party of over fifty members back off on his lonesome by talking is probably smart enough to keep people out of his room," Suguha said, grabbing the dripping plate out of my hand and starting to dry it.

"That wasn't really my plan," I said, picking up the chopsticks and starting to rub them down with a sponge. "It was Argo's, and she told me that she got it from the leader of the Spriggans."

"Even so," Sugu said, putting the plate she had been drying next to the other one. "You still flew up there by your lonesome and got them to back down. I'm not certain that I could have done the same."

"You probably would have, if you'd known what I did." I handed her the now clean chopsticks. "You always were braver than I was." A complicated set of emotions played out over Suguha's face as she dried off the chopsticks. She shook her head as she put the chopsticks away, trying to clear her head.

"Well, in any case," my sister said, "Your friend's going to be sleeping in the guest room, right?"

"For the foreseeable future," I nodded. "Although Tomo might put up her own pictures, I think that she'll be pretty happy with it."

The guest bedroom was actually one of the nicest rooms in the house, even though we didn't clean it regularly. We'd have to go in and tackle the fine layer of dust that coated the windowsills and tables before Tomo got here.

"Well, after dinner we can go in and take stock of what needs to be done," my sister said, putting our glasses in the drainer to dry and wiping her hands clean on her apron.

"Probably not that much," I said, taking Suguha's apron and hanging it up with mine on the hook next to the door of the kitchen. "I mean, there can't be that much dust in there, right?"

"Eh, it should mostly be touch-ups," my sister said, grabbing a dustpan and broom.

"Then let me do it," I said, holding out my hand for the cleaning implements. "I'm the one inviting Tomo to live with us, I should be the one getting the room ready for her."

Sugu handed me the broom and dustpan immediately, grateful for the chance to get out of cleaning duty. With a nod to my sister, who presumably was going to go get an early start on her kendo routine, I headed off for the guest room, to get it somewhat ready for Tomo to move in later this week.