Normally, Theresa would head back home and do her nightly duties— mainly reading reports from Schicksal agents. Despite Kiana's efforts, her workload not only did not decrease, but it continued to pile up as the days passed. She found herself getting less and less sleep as of late. Today, however, Theresa had an excuse to postpone her work for later; she had guests she needed to entertain.
"It's been a while since we last got the chance to speak like this, hasn't it?" Theresa smiled as she poured tea for herself, Welt, Tesla and Mei in her lounge. "I wish it'd be under better circumstances but I'll take what we can get." Admittedly, helping a lost boy find his way home isn't that terrible of a situation— even if said home was in another universe.
Welt hummed in agreement as he took a cautious sip of his hot cup. "It's unfortunate that we're still busy even after everything; you especially."
Theresa refrained from pointing out it was partially due to him leaving most of AE's work to her and only gave a strained smile with a nod in agreement.
"Now that you two got to spend some time with him, what are your impressions of our new friend?" Welt then asked, glancing between the headmistress and instructor.
"He's… odd, but in a good way," Theresa shared first. "I find it a little strange how he's taking everything with a smile." She expected at least some unrest from Ritsuka but for the most part, he seemed pretty well adjusted. That meant either he was used to being stuck in situations like this, or he was a pro at masking his emotions; these weren't mutually exclusive options necessarily, but it had to be at least one of them.
"If even half of the adventures I've heard from him are true, then it is to be expected," Welt replied with a small amused grin while Tesla just sighed.
"He's been completely entranced by Fujimaru's tales; he even started taking notes," the researcher revealed with a roll of her eyes.
"As a scientist, you should understand that this learning opportunity isn't one that I could let pass by," he quickly tried to defend himself to which Tesla retorted by pointing out his notes were not on the technology or other potentially unique aspects of Ritsuka's universe… aside from the transforming phone. "They're still notable, Tesla."
A small giggle escaped Theresa watching the altercation before her. However, she noticed the contemplative look on Mei's face; she had been rather silent this whole time and that had Theresa intrigued. "Is something on your mind, Mei?"
"…Is there something special about him?" The instructor finally spoke up.
"He did have a special role back where he is from but—"
"No, that's not what I meant," Mei shook her head as she interrupted Tesla. "I… He and Fu Hua have a connection with each other." Her observation reminded Theresa that they hadn't told Mei of the existence of Ritsuka in the Previous Era. However, before any of them could reply to her, Mei added, "I've heard his name before— from the Flamechasers when I was in the Elysian Realm."
Now that was a surprise to hear… at first anyway. Given a bit of thought, it made sense; the Elysian Realm contained the sims made from the Flamechaser's memories, including Fu Hua. Theresa knew how much Mei disliked talking about her time with World Serpent, so for her to mention something she did back then was saying something. "The Flamechasers mentioned him?" Tesla asked her, making sure she heard right, to which Mei nodded.
"Some of them did. But never Fu Hua herself." That was yet another surprise but they let Mei continue.
The first instance was of visiting the Flamechaser with a love for painting in her studio; it had been some time since she last spoke to the young girl. As always, the ninth Flamechaser was on guard when she walked in and gave her a subtle glare that showed his protectiveness over Griseo.
The painter, also as expected, was naturally colouring another canvas. She was so engrossed in her own world and didn't notice Mei's presence even as she stood right next to her. "Griseo?"
"Huh? Oh hello, Miss Herrscher. When did you come in?" The young Flamechaser innocently asked while still continuing to paint.
"Less than a minute ago," replied Mei with a small giggle. As much as she disliked the nickname, she couldn't help but smile when it came to the little artist. "What are you painting?" Mei took a closer look at the picture and quickly corrected herself. "rather, who are you painting?"
Griseo had been painting what Mei assumed was a memory from her past— herself playing with someone. It was only half completed with no facial features, but Mei figured from the way they dressed, the person was a Fire Moth member. "That is Ritsuka. We used to play together a long time ago," Griseo answered with a smile. "Whenever I was feeling lonely, he would always try to make me laugh."
That sounded nice of this Ritsuka person. However, Mei quickly realised an unfortunate truth. As Ritsuka was not a Flamechaser, that could only mean… "Was he a good friend?"
"Yes, one of the best. Even Kosma liked him," giggled Griseo as Mei glanced at the mentioned sim.
"…I wouldn't say we were friends," Kosma finally said after a few seconds of silence. "Ritsuka knew everyone; he was the nice guy who tried befriending everyone. We just said hello to each other from time to time." Mei could understand that; it made more sense when worded like tha— "If you want to know more about him, you'd be better off asking Hua… or not."
"Huh? What do you mean?" And she was confused again.
Fortunately, Griseo cleared things up. "He was Hua's best friend. They were never too far apart from each other. Even when he played with me, Hua would always be watching us."
"Best… friend?" That was strange to hear considering how distant Hua tended to be, both her sim and real version. A small part of her wondered if that was the whole story, but figured it was a moot point either way… only for Kosma to add a bit more.
"Hua and him were close, no doubt, but you'll never hear a word about him from her. Elysia once tried asking her about him and Hua only told her never to mention him ever again."
"…So they were not just best friends?" Mei asked after a moment. It could still have been just that, but that did not seem like a normal reaction if it were nothing more.
"…No one knows. Hua won't say anything and she doesn't plan to budge on the matter," Kosma replied, shaking his head.
"Never mention him again, huh?" muttered Theresa. That was a worse reaction than she imagined from Fu Hua's digital counterpart.
"From what I've learned about him, the Previous Era's Ritsuka was a kind man who could make anyone smile when they needed it," Mei added with a hint of sorrow in her eyes. She didn't know him personally, but she could remember how fondly some of the Flamechasers spoke of him… except for Fu Hua herself. It was naturally treated as a taboo topic around her— not necessarily like the elephant in the room, but still something the Flamechasers took care to not mention regardless.
"That lines up with how Miss Senti behaved when I asked her about Ritsuka." Welt shared his brief conversation with the Herrscher earlier that day. Senti was quick to write off the Previous Era's Ritsuka's death and stubbornly insist their relationship wasn't anything beyond friendship.
Mei let out a small hum once again, the same realization the others had clicking in her mind. "I'm concerned… This feels too much of a coincidence to be just that. Are we sure Fujimaru should be allowed to walk around as he pleases?"
"While I agree, we still should not jump the gun so quickly. It is still possible there's nothing larger at play here, and treating Ritsuka with suspicion will not help anyone" Welt advised. "And it's not as though he is without any supervision. Those two are keeping a close eye on him. If you can't trust Ritsuka, then trust Miss Fu Hua on this."
"I know… but I can't help but feel uneasy about him," Mei sighed. It was no fault of Ritsuka (possibly) but she couldn't shake the feeling. She needed to learn more about him before making a final judgment…
When she woke up the next morning, Fu Hua had a feeling she had an odd dream. It was hazy… but she was confident Ritsuka was in it. "Damn you, Senti. I'm sure this is your doing," she mentally cursed her Herrscher counterpart before getting out of bed. Whether intentionally or not, Senti was responsible for her dreams.
While it was still rather early, it was right about when she usually got up. Fu Hua got ready for the day, still unsure what the plan was but expected Senti to once again try to skimp out on helping Ritsuka return home. Speaking of which— "I should check up on him…" He might not be up yet, but it wouldn't hurt to check.
She exited her dorm and went to knock on his door. It was only a few taps in case he was still sleeping; she didn't expect him to reply with a "Coming!"
The door soon opened to reveal a sweaty Ritsuka without his shirt on… again. "Morning, Fu Hua," he greeted her with a warm smile.
"G-Good morning," she stuttered, trying to avoid looking at him out of courtesy. Ritsuka, noticing this, quickly apologized and put on a shirt while letting her in. "What were you doing?" Fu Hua asked as she entered his room.
"Just doing some light exercises," he answered. "Couldn't go back to sleep so I decided to pass the time that way. I haven't stretched my muscles since I got here anyway, so why not? I like to keep fit; it's the least I could do considering my job," It made sense to Fu Hua considering his story and, even from the brief glimpses she caught, both just now and last night, she could clearly see the result.
"I see… Oh, and sorry again for last night," she apologized with a sigh. "At least that would teach Senti not to go barging into people's rooms again."
Ritsuka only laughed in amusement again. "No worries. Trust me when I say something like that is sort of the norm for me."
"That's… rather concerning. Don't you have any privacy in Chaldea?" Fu Hua frowned.
"For the most part, I do. There's just been exceptions and accidents… well, it's usually accidents," he sighed. "But I know you two didn't mean it so I've no qualms about it. Just don't make it a regular thing," he joked which made Fu Hua shake her head in amusement.
"I promise it won't happen again," she reassures him with a smile. Now that they were on the topic, however, Fu Hua recalled something else that caught her attention. She knew she shouldn't ask, but her curiosity got the better of her. "Ritsuka, if you don't mind me asking, could you tell me how you got those scars?"
"My scars?" Ritsuka parroted with brief confusion before it clicked in his head. He shouldn't be surprised she caught them. He didn't have very notable scars nor was he completely covered in them, but enough to draw some concerns. "Oh, you know, battles gone awry. The occasional stray bullet or arrow here and there. Sometimes a blade… sometimes a laser…" Ritsuka subconsciously winced at the various ways he got injured in the past. They were all recent since he had to physically go on the field during the Lostbelts but he's recovered since.
While she still looked worried, Fu Hua could understand. It was simply an unfortunate inevitability from their line of work.
To ease her concerns, Ritsuka decided to ask if she wanted to join him for a jog. "I'd probably get lost if I'm being honest," he joked which managed to elicit a small laugh from her.
"Alright, I could go for a run myself, give me a minute" Fu Hua accepted his invitation. After changing into something more appropriate, the two left to spend the rest of the early morning jogging around the campus grounds.
A/N: More shirtless scene cause my editor thought it'd be funny. I unfortunately, can't say no. Either way, a little more lore on PE Ritsuka and another minor hint towards something if you noticed it~
Until next time!