Urgh…
His head hurt, his body was aching all over, and he didn't have enough strength to even open his eyes, or tilt his head.
Someone was talking somewhere near, very close by.
Despite his inability to move, he struggled to focus on the sound.
"-So fast?"
"… saw the monster…Hengeyoukai…"
Changing Phantom?
"… Werewolf…"
For some reason one of the voices seemed awfully familiar from somewhere.
As he was about to start checking his memory, he found himself overwhelmed by his exhaustion.
Nothingness consumed his thoughts.
The next time Kirito regained consciousness was not accompanied by a headache and without the soreness and exhaustion it was so much easier to actually open his eyes. He found himself observing the interior of a bedroom clearly belonging to someone very rich, or a fancy five star hotel.
From the king-sized bed.
Wait wha-
"Hello there." A high, feminine voice of discernible age called to his right.
A surprised look revealed a woman in the bed with him.
She was pale skinned to the point of looking almost white painted and raven haired, with long locks covering her bare looking neck and back.
Her face was youthful and innocent, right until reaching her eyes- which somehow seemed to be ageless. She was the picture perfect beautiful highborn noble lady of the imperial court, centuries ago, with an archaic dialect to match.
Still, something kept nagging at his subconscious, something strange about it all…
Wait… bed?
He felt blood drain from his face that that last thought.
"Is my lord husband feeling well?"
"L-lord husband?" Kazuto stuttered at the question, utterly scared at his current predicament, and his lack of memory to give ANY clue as to how he got into it.
"Thou have visited mine person at night thrice, consecutively. We may as well be married. Thou would not dare dishonor a highborn Princess with yon lechery and leave, as a criminal and coward, wouldst thou? Oh what would mine Imperial father would think of such dishonor to him through myself, and through his august position to the entire nation."
Kirito swallowed, as his mind processed these words, and reached a shocking, scary conclusion, one that painted the situation in a much worse light.
He felt trepidation, as he gulped, and with shaking hands, peaked at himself under the covers.
Just my underwear… what a reli-WAIT WHAT.
A melodious laugh interrupted the train wreck of his thoughts.
"You should have seen your face…" the woman remarked, laughing, as she seemed to roll to the side, hand on her belly, and another to steady and anchor her giggling self, to keep from falling sideways.
There was something strange about her voice.
Now Kirito felt annoyed, and he had no doubt about his facial expression reflecting those feelings.
"How did I get here? Where is here? Who are you? What happened?" he started frantically asking.
"Calm down, Ki-bou", the woman said, in a familiar, nasal tone and modern jargon, different from the archaic phrasing she used moments before. "Now, why won't you look at me, and tell me what happened?"
As much as Kazuto was confused and worried and wanted to press on-insisting that she explain the current situation- how did he even get to share a bed with her, there was something in that voice...something commanding... some PRESENCE that he just couldn't ignore.
And so, the boy found himself telling her about his situation at home, about his sister, and her confession, even though he just wanted to crawl somewhere and pretend that the awkward revelation of Sugu never happened. Didn't know how to handle it, how he should even react to it.
the word kept pouring out of his mouth, despite his desire to never talk of it, to anybody. Like water through hands, they escaped him, revealing to the girl about the meeting with Yuma-san, describing her further after prompting. And even about the attack by armed men, that SHOT AT THEM.
about Yumas orders to run away, and despite his best attempts to not even think about it -of the monstrosity of claws and teeth, that tore through the gunmen.
As he ended his story, Argo looked at him with strange emotions behind her eyes, and told him to forget about waking up in bed with her, about telling her all that, and even about the monster and the armed men it killed. to forget about even meeting them. after a long walk in the alleys with Yuma, it got late and they got lost and he called Klein to pick them up.
Kirito felt a strange itch at the back of his head, as the eyes he was staring so intently into seemed strange and special, for a moment.
Strangely, Kazuto found himself agreeing with it. With Her. After all, that really was what happened...
Urgh...
His neck uncomfortable, and his left arm feeling strangely numb, he opened his eyes.
Unfamiliar do i get the feeling that this should be a hospital?
A look around revealed that the reason for the numbness in his arm was that he was sleeping on it, blocking blood circulation to it.
His neck protested at the awkward angle his head was at while he slept...
In what appeared to be a couch in a bachelor living room. The empty Takeout boxes on the table were a clear sign of it.
Oh, right... after i and Yuma got lost, i ended up near the dinar Klein took me to , and called him to pick us up, he dropped her near her place, and for some reason i agreed to accompany him to his 'CASA TSUBOI'.
"Finally up, princess sleepyhead?" The familiar teasing voice of his friend called, as Klein came, a cup of tea in hand.
"Klein? I don't remember falling asleep..."
"You must have been exhausted, you aren't fully back to the physical condition you were at two years ago, you should have taken it easy. NOT get yourself so tired that you collapse and fall asleep as soon as you sit down. Your sister was worried, you know!"
At the mention of his sister, the fearless Black Swordsman, the Clearer of Aincrad, felt his blood drain of his face, and hurriedly looked for his phone in any of his pockets.
The failure to find it only agitated him more.
Right, I must've lost it during the wondering with Yuma-that was why i called Klein from the dinar phone.
His Best friend Klein was truly a bro-as he gave a phone and mouthed 'call her' just as Kirito glanced at him pleadingly.
With shaking breath, Kazuto dialed his home number, and as it was picked up, started his grove... err, explanation.
"Hi, Sugu."
He actually had to distance the device from his poor ear, abused by displeased yelling.
After a moment he resumed talking.
"Sigh, sorry Sugu, i was about to return home with your tea, but i met a friend from SAO, who insisted on catching up, and by the time we finished it was late, and we were far from my home, so i crashed at a friend's place.
Y-yes, Ryotaro-san...
Of course i got your tea, and i will keep buying it all month. And the next too!"
How is everything at home?"
"Dad isn't back yet?"
"Thanks Sugu, I will get home by then."
With his sister momentarily appeased, Kirito looked at his fellow Clearer with speculative eyes.
"You wouldn't happen to have certain still closed boxes of tea, would you?"
When the self Styled Samurai departed, and shortly returned, a box of green tea in hand, winking, kirito had only one reply.
"You are a good friend, and your donation of Tea for the sake of helping a friend in need is appreciated."
Author Notes: And so, here is the next chapter, a bit more lighthearted then the previous one, and my attempt at a slice of life scene in its second half.
Due to certain Technical, computer related issues, my updates will be delayed, for now.
Please Review.