Disclaimer: Don't own SAO (I or II), or any of the characters.
Rating: T
Continuing from previous events
Home
February 25th, 2031
Must not scratch... must not scratch...
Making a sound, Yui tried to roll herself in the snow to distract herself- the heavy fabric of her coat and the cold sensation numbing things, they should help. Sure, most of the actual disease was gone, but a few stubbornly-determined chicken pox were still on her skin, with their constant urge to make her scratch... and worse, thanks to her perception, only seemed to make time go slower!
It's not really bad or anything, but it made several minutes seem like one sometimes...
"It'll be fine though" she whispered to herself, over the crunch of the snow. "Once it's gone, I'll never have to deal with it again... and if it's like this now, it'd be even worse when I've grown bigger. Having experienced this now, I definitely don't want to have faced the worse version."
Laying on her back now, Yui made a sound, trying to think of that... after all, mosquito bites itched enough, but this full-body type was nearly impossible to ignore! Only an effort of willpower otherwise made her able to 'tell herself' not to do something, which was a little weird, and made her wonder if that's part of muscle memory... the virtual world had something like that, but not more instinctive reactions like this.
Anyway though, she wondered how long she'd been out here- hard to tell time without a clock, internal or otherwise. Still, lifting her head, Yui looked out at the beautiful sight of the frozen lake - she smiled, thinking that soon the seasons would change again, going to spring and warming up the ice, making it go back to how it'd normally be. Once that happened, daddy would probably come out here again, sitting on the makeshift dock he'd constructed and start fishing again... he always said that out here in the real world, he rarely caught anything, but the act brought him a simple peace. The only reason he didn't do so in winter, was because he didn't want to disrupt the ice for their occasional figure-skating. Even still, Yui could understand that appeal and quite liked it- maybe one of those next times, she'll come out and join him, just talking or maybe even leaning against his side.
Feeling his warm, fatherly love.
Yui let out a content sight at the thought, quite happy and unable to wait for it! Already she could imagine dipping her feet into the water, letting it cooly wash over her skin, and perhaps even have those little fish - minnows? - nibble at her toes... though she hoped they don't have big grips or anything.
It'd still be awhile though, and not just the changing seasons; it's still before-noon today, which meant awhile before mommy and daddy got home.
Just like in ALO; time passed while they're away, leaving her alone with her processes - she didn't truly mind and handled herself well, yet still. Sometimes she's a little lonely, and it would be nice to have someone else to talk to, even play with, beyond the occasional visits from their other friends.
"I wonder" Yui breathed to herself, tracing patterns in the snow. "If/when they have another child, will they be home more often?"
The thought gave her mixed feelings: embarrassment for the thought of mommy and daddy giving her a sibling, because she knew that process is 'special', but thankfully knew little more (and hoped to keep it that way); worry that she's being kinda selfish, because mommy and daddy working was also important; and a little unsure, because she wasn't certain of all the nuances, regarding taking care of a baby. Based upon what little she'd been told, they didn't know how to do anything at the start, which meant mommy and daddy would need to do everything for them... at home, this wasn't an issue, but since they both work during the day, where would that leave the child? She herself didn't know how to take care of a baby, and a few nuances sounded quite gross- not that she wouldn't try her best, because it'd be important, but still.
So... if they did have a baby, would that change the job situation?
"Daddy works largely by beta-testing, occasionally going to meetings for various projects he oversees, working together with other researchers who've agreed to work on such things" Yui thought, remembering overseeing his work computer tabs sometimes. "Maybe he could do all that from home, at the same time? And perhaps while he did that, mommy would continue working at the hospital, and then take her turn once home?"
Maybe- it seemed doable give-or-take some adjustments, from what little she knew.
Yui made a sound, worried... if she knew little about it though, the real deal must be a lot harder than she thought it was...
"But for now anyway, it hasn't happened yet" Yui said to herself, nodding. "It's okay, really. I'll continue enjoying these days with mommy and daddy, and if it does happen, I'll help out of course."
Hehe.
At the same time though, she noticed that the air was almost... thick or something, and made it feel warmer than it actually was, noticeable even during this colder weather. In fact, moving through this kind of air was almost like wading through very-thin water- why was it like this though?
Yui made a sound, but couldn't arrive at an answer; more study would be needed, and perhaps she could ask at dinner.
Later, during her making-lunch her mind wandered, sometimes over the thought of having a sibling... she made a sound, no longer embarrassed and instead pondering what they'd be like. They'd be completely random, from hair/eye color, how they acted, who they resembled more, and a lot of other things... it's even possible to have a brother who was like mommy, or a sister who's like daddy...
"In that latter case, she'd probably be a handful" Yui admitted to herself, slowly giggling. "Even if this is just speculative."
...
Later
Yui made a sound, continuing to read through her book, having long since eaten lunch- it's all really something. Having experienced the world of SAO, she knew things didn't always work out to a happy ending, but this mythology was almost too much.
Then again, apparently it'd been said that the Greek civilization had 'invented' tragedy (literature)... and that was long ago, long before modern technology, which semi-fascinated her...
"Definitely not my favorite type, but if nothing else, it's helping me grow with cultural references" she thought then, smiling a little, even as she continued repressing the urge to scratch. "Plus the love is really cute, even if it's expressed differently, hehe."
Knock knock
Surprised, Yui glanced over, before she quickly bookmarked her reading material and went through the house- before she opened the door, she saw that it was Suguha (all right!), and quickly opened the door. "Hi there" she greeted, excited.
"Hey, Yui" her aunt greeted back, stepping inside. "I come with small gifts from our friends."
"Really?"
"Yup. They're not truly special or anything, but they thought you might like them."
Yui smiled, giggling. "Well, I always appreciate the thought" she said easily, even as Suguha dug into her purse. "Still, if they keep giving me gifts, I'm gonna have too many before long- hehe."
Her aunt gave her a small eyebrow raise, as if thinking she isn't serious yet smiling. "Well like you said, it's the thought that counts" Suguha agreed, handing her two small gift-wrapped presents, which she was curious about. "Still, if you wouldn't mind Yui, I'd like to take a picture of us together."
"What for?" she wondered, head tilted.
Her aunt's smile soon turned warm. "For my mother."
Oh- oh, she must be talking about Midori, daddy's adopted mother and her now great-aunt! "I'm sure she'll love it" Yui cheered, putting down the presents for now; she'll get to them later. "I only wish I could meet her in person."
"Well, she's often busy, and not always available in our country" Suguha continued, but easily as she pulled out her camera. "Often when I see her, it's out of her wanting to visit, because she has the chance. Still, next time that happens, I'll tell her to skip me next time and come visit you, Yui."
"I'd like that very much."
Within seconds, Suguha had come over to her side, holding the camera facing them with one hand. "Say cheese".
Yui held out both her hands, both forming 'Victory' signs, even as she grinned happily.
"Cheese!"
Click
Thankfully, Suguha's camera didn't have the sorta-blinding flash of light, which still took some getting used to. In fact, she remembered back to before, when Klein had first taken a picture of her/mommy/daddy, to help prove to everyone she was really in the real world... and still remembered the 'blind spots' in her eyes when that happened.
Even as she thought, her aunt checked over the picture itself for a moment, then chuckled. "And one more for good measure" she said easily.
Yui giggled-
/
Hours later; near dinnertime
"Hehe! Yah!"
Suguha dodged her lunge, mock-feinted her, then let loose with a few blows. "I swear you're getting better and better, Yui" she said easily, only slightly straining, as they'd been at this for awhile.
"I should hope so" Yui answered, giggling; mommy and daddy were good teachers, hehe. She doubted she'd use these moves exactly as taught in real life, but as they'd said, the reflexes themselves and her ability to see the underlying patterns to fights themselves were the important part... plus, she wanted to make sure she could take care of herself, just in case!
Her aunt got a smug little smile. "Just don't get overconfident" she said, a little playful during their pause. "Your 'dad' was the same way, after he got out of SAO. He challenged me a match of kendo, kept up very well due to his skills carrying over, but he tried a Sword Skill in real life and it earned him a knock on the head."
"But didn't that hurt?"
"We were wearing protective gear."
"Oh" Yui breathed, before laughing. "Sounds like something daddy would do; he's always so silly" she continued, cheerful before she noted the sound of a familiar car. "Speaking of which, that's probably him and mommy right now!"
Suguha seemed surprised, glancing at the time. "Woah, time sure got away from us" she said, a little sheepish as she lowered her foam weapon, rubbing at her cheek with a finger. "Do you think they'll let me stay for dinner?"
"I'll make sure that they do!"
Not five minutes later...
"You have a knack for suddenly coming over and losing track of time, did you know that, Suguha?" daddy asked, arms crossed- still, his look failed to hide an amused gleam in his eyes. "What's with that?"
His cousin smirked a little, arms crossed in return... though it didn't fully hide her own sheepish demeanor. "You do realize I could return fire, right Kazuto?" she said, a little teasingly smug. "There's a lot of things you've done too."
Even as daddy's expression turned into something more grumbling, Yui had to contain her laughter in the kitchen, but then again so did mommy. "Everyone really likes to tease daddy" she whispered, carefully helping stir the boiling water. "Always that little ritual; why not switch up it every once in awhile?"
Mommy just smiled. "Well, they claim it's fun messing with them" she whispered back, glancing back at daddy. "I can see why myself, but I think it's mostly a part of their friendship, or in this case, family."
Feeling an urge to giggle again, Yui looked at daddy, who was slightly irritated at something else Suguha said- however, even with his irritation it wasn't too serious. Feeling happy at the sight, Yui soon returned to stirring as needed, liking it when mommy gently rubbed at her hair - hehe, mommy always did it right while daddy's was playful, affectionate, yet always made it messy.
It wasn't that bad, but she always had to smooth out her hair afterward... ah, yet that's daddy's way of showing affection, and she did still kinda-like it too; just preferred mommy's hehe.
...
"Alright, everyone say thank you" mommy said, handing out their plates.
"Thank you!" Yui said right away, followed immediately by daddy and Suguha - she and daddy always look forward to this each day! Even the persistent low-level urge to scratch couldn't curb her excitement for mommy's cooking, and she doubted anything short of high-level could possibly do that! Of course she still wondered though, as starting recently, mommy had started adding common store food to breakfast/lunch/dinner, to make sure she expanded her knowledge. Today's meal looked to be something mommy had personally cooked, which made her think today's surprise would be saved for dessert, possibly.
Mommy softened at the praise, but quickly sat down for her own meal.
"Mmh-hmm, delicious" daddy said, mouth half-full already.
Suguha had a little smirk. "Let me guess: you say that every time, bro?" she asked knowingly.
"Not every time, but pretty close to it" mommy answered, a little teasing. "Least he tries to be different about it."
Daddy swallowed a bite, raising an eyebrow. "That's a bit of an exaggeration" he said mildly, having a little grin. "Besides, what can I say? Asuna's cooking is always top-notch; you gotta taste it before you can put it into words."
Her aunt raised her eyes to the ceiling. "You're way too into this" she said, but half-shaking from suppressed laughter. "Of course you're great, Asuna, but he goes overboard with excitement every time it's brought up. Which is every single time, by the way."
Yui almost giggled, but the food muffled it thankfully; daddy just gave his cousin a little 'stink-eye'.
Mommy blushed a little. "Well, I kinda like it; Kazuto's sincere, so what more can I ask for?" she asked.
"Exactly right!" Yui cheered (having swallowed), grinning a little before quickly wiping at her chin; food stains. "Except you forgot to mention me, mommy!"
Even as mommy laughed, this response got smiles from daddy and Suguha- they looked at each other, before chuckling a little themselves. "Sorry about that, Yui" mommy 'apologized', smiling big. "It kinda slipped by."
She stuck her tongue out briefly, but nodded, accepting this 'apology' hehe- mommy gently ruffled her hair again, making her happy, even as they all returned to their food. "Even still, mommy, I have a question" Yui admitted, drawing their looks for a bit. "Today, I noticed the air was almost thicker, as if like I was walking through water, or airborne snow... that wasn't really there. But I don't know what that condition's called."
"Humidity?"
"Yeah, that's it!"
Daddy made a sound. "Well, there's not much you can do about that" he said, gentle. "Yet be glad it's happening during winter; humidity combined with heat is the worst."
"Tell me about it" Suguha breathed in agreement.
Yui wondered about that, but also knew that she hadn't experienced a real-world summer season yet - the closest thing to such was in ALO, specifically hot dungeon spaces that always felt uncomfortable. Yet at the same time, she knew these levels were also unrealistic, seeing as things like molten lava and such typically were much, much hotter than programmed... no doubt summer heat could also reach levels, and conditions, that ALO didn't typically produce.
Well, hopefully it wouldn't do so in combination with 'humidity'!
"Normally, humidity is an indicator that a major rainstorm is coming, because there's so much water in the air" mommy continued, drawing her attention back. "In winter, well it works kinda different- probably indicating a lot more snowfall is coming, but the weather can be confusing sometimes."
"Really?" Yui wondered.
Suguha laughed then. "That's kinda the quirk; even when you think you've got the weather figured out, it does strange things" she teased. "Even the experts admit that much."
"You might've been spoiled in ALO that way, Yui" daddy answered, grinning. "Always so programmed and predictable."
"Hey! I'll adjust!" she pouted, vocally and physically; daddy and his teases again!
Daddy and Suguha just started laughing at her small indignation, whereas mommy at least tried to contain her giggles- Yui let out a breath, knowing this tended to happen a bunch; honestly. Still, being used to all manner of daddy's teases, her indignation soon started to fade - within seconds she was starting to giggle along with them, knowing just like them the playful tease it'd been.
An occupational hazard whenever daddy's involved, but still one she'd grown to like hehe.
A little shorter this time, but Yui's still quite the cutie
Also, sorry this update took twice as long; had a bit of a block, and sudden lack of interest as well. I'm not too surprised, seeing as I've updating this fic (and 'Learning') on a slightly-more-than-monthly basis for a long time, almost two full years on this one in particular - focusing for that long can do that. Sadly, at this moment I'm still "suffering" from the above issues for 'Snowy' + 'Learning'... so I'm thinking for now, I'll be taking a break from updating these two stories, so I can rest and re-get my interest. Depending on things, it might take a few or several months, potentially even taking a little time into the new year
Don't worry though; I will finish these stories. 'Snowy' in particular has only two more chapters to go - as stated in 'Learning', it'd end once it caught up to the beginning of the latter - and though it sucks I've lost interest this close, it's happened, and I'll do my best no matter what
Even with this, still hope you enjoy