chap. 1 himiko/chiaki
chiaki finishes playing her game and helps himiko to bed
Soft colors project on the walls. Blurs of green and blue and pink lighting up the dark room as much as a TV screen can.
Himiko's brown eyes sting. She is constantly sleepy, that's true, but the little cute characters on screen were calming, and she wanted to watch Chiaki play some more. She didn't understand the plot, or if there even was one, but she wanted to watch nonetheless.
Problem is, though, that she underestimated how much Chiaki plays. It was shortly after dinner when the mage sat down on the bean bag next to her fellow spaced out friend in the gamer's bedroom.
But it's been hours already, and Himiko can't recognize any progress in the video game the other's playing. She knows she's quickly leveling up and plowing through the stages, but they all merge together, a pointless effort. All the while the two girls have been completely silent, a comfortable quiet looming over the dark room except for the cute grunts from the characters on screen.
Her head's resting on Chiaki's shoulder now, and as much as she wants to watch what happens in the end, opening her eyes back up only becomes a more difficult task with every time she blinks.
It's when her head nearly slips off of the other's shoulder when the screen freezes, the pause menu popping up. It shocks Himiko so much that she sits upright, almost slumping in the other direction in her haziness. Chiaki turns to her, and the mage doesn't appreciate the way the gamer smiles softly at her sleepiness, though her mana levels are too low to tell her off.
"I think it's time you go to bed."
"But you haven't finished your quest." Himiko lazily points at the TV screen.
"We can do that tomorrow." The way the pink haired girl stands up with minimal use of her surroundings betrays the fact that she must be endlessly tired as well, and she gently picks up the mage.
While of course Himiko could levitate herself anywhere she wants, she doesn't mind clinging around Chiaki like a koala until she's gently placed down on the gamer's bed. "You must rest so you'll be ready for tomorrow's adventure," Chiaki tells her with an amused but adoring smile when the redhead sends her a halfhearted glare the moment their bodies detach.
"You too," Himiko reminds her, "You must let your all-seeing orbs rest so you can conquer this endless game another day."
Chiaki hums in acknowledgement. "I guess you're right. Let me turn off the TV first, okay?"
Himiko nods but the moment the other girl turns around, she already has her eyes closed and her mind elsewhere.
Moments later the room dims further into complete blackness behind her eyelids, and something pries the comforter from under Himiko. She doesn't so much as groan when she's gently pushed closer to the edge of the resting bunk, and certainly not when a warm body nestles beside her.
Sleep comes easily, and Himiko dreams of useless, addicting adventures between a mage and her dedicated warrior companion.