Yeeeaaaah, I know this took forever, but I somehow ended up getting a writer's block and got got like...the craziest idea for Prince of Aincrad. The next one isn't going to be pretty. Anyway! I got a little stumped while writing this and decided to hold off on giving you guys a chapter on Agil, but it will come soon!

Thank you too Faliara, , Shizuku Tsukishima749, DemonFoxBK201, Invisable Target, Riku Uzumaki, Anomonist, AW27, Sn0wk1tty, SuperSammy64, and pikaace for reviewing last chapter! :D

Chapter 15: The Little Beast Tamer

February 23, 2024

Klein rummaged through the bushes as he searched for a thin needle. He paused and looked up with a sigh.

"Are you sure you threw it here?" Klein asked as he scratched the back of his head. Kirito, who was sitting on a tree branch right above Klein, swung upside down with his legs keeping him in place. His hair fell away from his face and made him look a bit funny as he crossed his arms with a frown (well, smiled in Klein's view).

"I was sure I did." he replied. Kirito hung his arms over head and sighed. "Darn, that was my last one too..."

Klein made a straight face. "Kirito, your sword will slip out. Besides, we could always buy more throwing needles, Kirito."

"But, Klein! It's durability is really high and it doesn't wear out after a single use. It's a rare drop, too!" Kirito whined and ignored his warning. Klein scowled.

"Okay, I get it!" he grumbled as he gave in. "Geez, what are you? A kid?"

Kirito held his pointer finger next to his face and had a matter-of-fact tone as he spoke. "Well, technically, I'm an adolescent since I'm fifteen, but yeah, I'm still a kid...ish."

Klein stared at him. "That was a rhetorical question."

Kirito smiled. "I know. You're just as bad as Rinko-nee-chan when she pulls an all-nighter."

The older man furrowed his brows in confusion. "Rinko? Now where have I heard that name before...?"

The upside down teen raised an eyebrow. "Ah, two months ago?" His eyes suddenly widened when he saw a flash of silver below him. The thin needle was attached to a thick branch in the bush Klein searched. He reached down and pulled it out. "Found ya!"

Kirito quickly pocketed the small needle. Klein was about to say something but a high-pitched scream of anguish stopped him. Kirito's balance on the tree branch loosened and he only had a moment to realize what's going on.

"Klein! We should help that play-YAH!?" Kirito fell off the tree and crashed into Klein. Klein huffed in surprise when his back became a cushion for Kirito, who was sitting upright and a bit dazed.

"Oi! Kirito! Get off me!" he demanded. Kirito shook his head to clear his jumbled thoughts and looked in the direction of the scream.

"I've got to help her!" Kirito declared as he suddenly dashed off.

"Kirito!" Klein yelled as he scrambled to get up and chase after him. "Damn it! How many times have I told you?! Don't go running off on your own!"

Kirito looked over his shoulder with a wide grin, "About seventy-two times since January first!"

._._._._._.

Kirito didn't dare to slow down as he spotted a group of ≪Drunken Apes≫ surround something. He quickly unsheathed his sword and slashed the closest one. The ape shattered as he moved on to the next one. A small girl with brown hair tied in two watched with wide reddish-brown eyes as Kirito easily dispatched the crazy apes. She was amazed yet terrified of how his blade glinted in the sunlight as he smoothly ran another through.

Klein caught up just in time to see Kirito slash the back of the last remaining ≪Drunken Ape≫. He watched in dismay.

"You didn't leave any for me?" he sullenly asked. Kirito twirled his blade before sheathing it with ease as he shrugged.

"You were too slow." he replied. He looked at the girl staring up at him with wide teary eyes. He was surprised how young she looked. Kirito held out a hand to her. "Hey, it's okay. Everything's going to be fine."

Instead of taking his hand, the girl sprang up and wrapped her small arms around his thin waist. Kirito stumbled in surprise.

"O-Oi!" he stammered as the girl began to cry.

"P-pina! Pina is gone!" she cried. Kirito got over his shock and gently patted the girl's brown hair. Vaguely, he remembered doing the same thing to another person, and couldn't stop himself from her name slipping out.

"Sugu...?" he muttered in surprise. The girl took no notice of his slip up and buried her face into his chest. He looked over to Klein who picked up a bluish white feather. Kirito quickly pieced everything together in his head. He gestured Klein to give him the feather. The guild leader gave it to him with a questioning look, but Kirito smiled.

He placed a hand on the girl's shoulder and pushed her back a little. She stepped back as Kirito knelt down to her height with a small sad frown. The girl gasped at the sight of the feather in his pale hands.

"Is this Pina?" he asked gently. The girl nodded slowly and began to tear up again. Klein's jaw dropped as he watched Kirito handle the situation. He never actually seen him this mellow since...when again...?

"Yes, she was a Feathery Dragon, and I lost her." the girl replied in a restrained sob.

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to make it on time." Kirito apologized to the girl as he handed it to her. She took the feather back and held it close to her heart. He placed his left hand on the top of her head and patted her. "But there is a way to get Pina back, and it has to be done in three days. Think you can do it?"

The girl looked up at him in surprise. "I can bring Pina back?"

Kirito nodded with a smile. "Yup. It's around the fiftieth floors, though. Are you strong enough?"

The girl's eyes widened in dismay. "The fiftieth floors…? I d-don't think I can make it! I'm not at that level yet."

Klein stepped up, making his presence known. "We could go with you!"

Both Kirito and the girl blinked, but with different reasons. Kirito tilted his head.

"We could? What about your guild?" he asked. Klein shrugged.

"Eh, they can handle themselves without us around." he answered. Kirito gave him a look.

"You mean, you?" he asked. Klein frowned, but held off his reply as the girl jumped to her feet.

"You guys will?! Please, anything to bring Pina back!" she begged. Kirito shrugged at the girl with a smile.

"Well, if Klein said that the guild can handle themselves, then I don't see why not." he said as he got up. Klein grinned and gave the two a thumbs up.

"Now that that's settled! It's time to go and find a way to restore Fina!" he encouraged. The girl's face flushed slightly in annoyance.

"It's Pina!" she corrected. Kirito shook his head in slight worry. He wasn't very sure that Klein coming along with them was a good idea, since Klein probably found the girl too cute to not help. He mentally faced palmed and patted the girl on the head again.

"Since you're going to be with us for a little, I'm Kirito and that old man over there is Klein." Kirito said with a comforting smile. Klein gritted his teeth.

"I am not old! I'm twenty-three! I'm young!" he snapped. Kirito placed his hands at his hip with a smirk.

"You don't act like one." he said, causing Klein to pout and the girl to giggle softly. He turned his attention to the small girl as she shook her head in amusement. She looked up at Kirito and smiled.

"You two are funny." she said, "I'm Silica!"

Klein held out a hand for her to shake. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Sillica! I'll let you know right now, that you're in good hands! After all, you got the one and only Black Swordsman at your side."

Sillica blinked. She stood there for a couple of seconds before turning to Kirito who was already walking away. "You're the Black Swordsman?!"

Kirito turned around and forced a smile. "Are we just gonna stand here all day or are we going to find an inn to stay at for the night…?"

._._._._._.

"I'm really tired." Kirito stated as he sat down on the edge of a bed. Klein smiled in sympathy as he closed the door to their shared room in the inn. Of course, the room had two beds, not one. Kirito never dared to share a bed and he was never gonna start now.

"I don't doubt it." he said. By the time the threesome reached the closest town, they were suddenly bombarded with Silica's old guild she left a couple of hours earlier. Kirito and Klein didn't like that fact that they wanted her back because of her title, "Beast Tamer". Especially the woman called Rosalia. Kirito didn't like her at all. His head was practically screaming at him not to trust her. Nearly everything that left her lips were utter lies.

Kirito had to step in and just shut her up. Klein had to give him a warning look more than once, but Kirito was too irritated to back down. In the end, he ended up herding Silica away into the closest shop.

Klein watched as Kirito un-equipped his boots and curled up on the bed. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "You know what? Just go ahead and get some sleep. I'll go and discuss things with Silica. Sound good?"

The teen gave Klein a half-hearted smile. "Yeah, that sounds good. Sorry, I didn't mean to drag you along. I acted on impulse again."

Klein scoffed and waved a dismissive hand at him. "Why are you even apologizing? Seriously, ever since that day, I don't care. You do what you think is right. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Kirito smirked. "So, does that mean I don't have to listen to you when you tell me to stay in one place?"

"What?! No! You still have to listen to me! You're too reckless on your own!" Klein scolded as he placed his hands at his hips. Kirito laughed softly and waved a "shooing" hand.

"Didn't you have something to discuss with Silica?" he asked with a mocking smile on his face.

"Didn't you say you were going to sleep?" Klein countered as he turned around to leave. He heard Kirito laugh again.

"No, I didn't. You were the one who told me to." came the teen's tired reply. Klein scowled as he opened the door.

"Good night, Kirito!" he emphasized. He waited for another smart remark from the teen, but when he looked back, Kirito was already out like a light, dreaming of a memory that reminded him of someone. Klein huffed a small smile, before closing the door softly behind him. As he walked to Silica's room he realized something.

"Is it just me or did I actually sound smart earlier...?"

._._._._._.

Kazuto leaned back in his wheelchair as someone pushed him down the hall and looked to his side in a daze. Clutched in his small hands was a little red book. It was a faerie tale about a boy who learned how to fly. He kinda wanted to be like the main character. He wished that he could be brave like him, but he wasn't. He dead scared. Being stuck in a white place with barely any color choked Kazuto. He couldn't stand it. Not anymore.

"Kazuto-kun?" asked a gentle voice above him. He looked up to see a young eighteen-year-old Rinko standing behind his wheelchair. Two years ago, she was here as a volunteer at the hospital. She was there when he first woke up and found ways to give him company during his year in recovery. She had a concerned frown on her face.

"Are you okay?" she asked gently. Kazuto stared at her for a second before silently nodding. He didn't answer verbally. Actually, he couldn't. He tried so hard earlier to talk normally, but all that came out were random stammers of a variety of syllables. He didn't get it. Why? Why couldn't he talk normally? Was there something wrong with him again?

Rinko smiled and patted his shoulder and continued to push him down the hall. When he reached his room, Rinko helped him back up on the plain white bed. She pulled up a chair next to him and placed a comforting hand on Kazuto's shoulder. The small boy didn't look up as placed his hand over hers.

"Kazuto-kun," Rinko began as she looked at his downcast eyes. "I know that things are going to be different, but there's no need to be sad. You still have us. You may not have the words to say anything, but Suguha-chan is still here. Your mother is here, even your father…and me and Kayaba-san are here, too. You're not going to lose us anytime soon."

Kazuto looked up to see Rinko giving him an encouraging smile. Hesitantly, he returned her smile with his own. His door suddenly slide open, slamming into the other side. Rinko was quick to move out of the way as a little girl ran up to the bed. She didn't dare to stop her as the girl crawled up on the bed and hugged the small boy.

"Onii-chan!" cried a little Suguha. Her arms were tightly wrapped around Kazuto's waist as she cried in his arms. "I'm so sorry! If only I had just listened to you, you wouldn't be here! You wouldn't have been hit! Onii-chan, I'm sorry! I'm sorryI'msorryI'msorry…"

Her brother wordlessly ran a hand through her short hair in attempt to comfort her as she continued to apologize over and over and over. He bit the back of his lip to keep himself from crying. He could feel his little sister's shoulders shake and the weight on his shoulders grew heavy. Kazuto wrapped his arms around Suguha and hugged her close.

He suddenly realized the true meaning behind Rinko's words. He may have lost his "voice", he still had his sister. The sister he strove to willingly protect, no matter how much he had to give up. He had to be strong. For her and the rest of his small little circle of people he knew.

So, tell me what you guys thought! Again, excuse my mistakes. Didn't edit much. Okay, yeah, I shortened an area because I got lazy and I didn't want to watch it again. And, from now on, you guys will start to learn more about Kazuto's past as we continue along. And yeah, I know I'm following the canon here, but I needed something that will remind Kazuto about Suguha. So, please deal with it if you guys don't like it. Thank You! Hm... now there was something important I was supposed to tell you guys, but I forgot...

...

OH, YEAH! Someone help me come up with a prank that can stump Agil. And it only needs to involve Klein, Agil, and (of course) Kirito. So, if you're a prank master, I need your heeeeeeelp!

Okay, I'm done. I know there was one more thing, but I can't seem to remember. Oh, well.

-CloudyLightning