The Black Blades
Chapter 6–Sheathing the Black Blades
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The bright noontime sun shone on the town below, reflecting off the crystalline architecture present in its makeup. Under this sun, people were going about their lives like they weren't trapped in a death game—a fact especially true for one shop owner: a young man with extravagant teal hair styled into a faux hawk, a color that clashed with his otherwise normal black shirt and white pants. He was busy cleaning up his shop, placing his tools in their appropriate locations and making sure the mannequins he had in behind the window of his shop were dressed as immaculately as he felt. Upon fixing the last mannequin, the sound of movement—rapid movement, at that—towards his direction caught his attention. He straightened up and gave his clothes a good pat down; even if your body is virtual, it's still important to give a good impression.
After giving one final once-over to his shop and himself, the shopkeeper smiled in satisfaction and stepped outside his shop. He turned left—where he heard the movement—and his face immediately lit up when he saw a familiar face. He raised his arm and placed one hand near his mouth as a pseudo-megaphone: "YOO-HOO, ALPHAAAA!" he shouted, his tone more extravagant than his hairstyle. The girl he shouted to picked up her pace when she saw who had called her. Behind her were two boys—the blue-colored one stood considerably taller than the red lad, and clearly had more confidence given how he was carrying himself, while the red boy was somewhat hiding in his friend's shadow (the poor thing!). Both of them kept their pace as Alpha got closer to the shopkeeper.
"Ty!" she shouted as she hugged him tightly, a hug that the shopkeeper—whose name was evidently Ty—happily returned. She broke the hug as the two boys caught up to them. The blue one kept his arms crossed behind his back and smiled, while the red one looked at Ty and sheepishly bowed.
"Nice to meet you," he said almost imperceptibly. "I'm—we're—friends of Alpha."
"What he said," the blue one spoke, removing his right hand from behind his head and extending it to Ty. "Name's Aoki—good to meet ya. And that's Sora," he said as Ty shook his hand, nodding over to the red kid—named Sora.
"Pleasure's all mine," Ty spoke with a friendly smile before turning to Alpha. "Look at you, with your little entourage, stardust!" he joked, crossing his arm under his chest and waving a hand at her while resting his elbow on his folded arm. "How'd you meet these two lovely gentlemen?" he inquired as he leaned forward slightly.
"We met at Taikokawa, at the inn there. We were all going after the same hunt, so I partied with them," Alpha explained.
"And they haven't had a problem with you?" Ty asked, examining both Aoki and Sora a bit closer–Sora was about to step further back into Aoki's shadow before being nudged by the player in question.
"Surprisingly enough, they asked me to stay in their party. I was going to ask if I could join, so it worked out."
"Well I, for one, am happy to see you make some friends," Ty teased. Alpha blushed and opened her mouth as if to respond before promptly shutting it, conceding the point to Ty. He glanced over to see Sora still hadn't said a word. "Oh, I'm sorry honey, is it my appearance? I wish my fiance had logged on to the game with me, he's way better with kids than I–"
"T-That's not it," Sora interrupted, surprising Ty as he stepped out from behind Aoki. "I can tell we'll be in good hands with you, since you're clearly passionate about what you do. I'm just bad at talking to people for the first time."
"A habit," Aoki said as he put his arm around his friend's shoulder, "that I hope he can break sooner rather than later."
"W-Wow," Ty stammered for a bit before composing himself. "Thank you for saying that, honey, truly." He spread his arms out as if to present his store to the party, saying, "Take your time and see what you want. Custom outfits and dyes, I have them all! Or," he held his right hand to his chest, "you can trust me to coordinate your outfit for you."
"I think I'll take you up on that offer," Aoki said cheerily.
"Me too," Sora said, now feeling more comfortable around Ty. "I know we'll be in good hands."
"Oh you two are just precious," Ty gushed. "Do I have a volunteer or do I get to choose?" Ty extended his hand towards the two boys.
"I'll go first," Sora offered. He took Ty's hand and let the older player lead him towards the back.
"Don't worry, I'll give you your privacy while you change–just tell me any preferences for color or style you have," Ty assured as the two were walking.
"He's nice," Aoki said to Alpha as he began to walk around, examining the outfits Ty had on display. "And he has a solid eye for fashion too, I can see myself wearing any of these outfits."
"Even the dresses?" Alpha asked jokingly.
"If you paid me enough, sure," Aoki responded in kind. "How did you come to know him anyway?"
"We're friends in the real world," Alpha explained. "Our families were always close, and he was like an older brother to me."
"Oh, like me and Sora?"
"Sort of, but it didn't really go that far."
"Ah, it's marvelous!" Aoki and Alpha jumped a bit when they heard Ty yell out of nowhere. They turned over to the counter, and watched as Ty stepped out from the back with a huge grin on his face. He then stepped to the side and motioned for Sora to come forward.
Sora stepped out as he was adjusting his new black fingerless gloves. He had retained his red jacket but it had been shortened considerably, now reaching down to his waist as opposed to down to his legs–now it was sporting white accents as a secondary color, and it went well with his new black shirt, armor and pants. The biggest change, however, was his hair—Ty had dyed it from all-red to black with bright red highlights. "What do you guys think?" Sora asked as he spread his arms and slowly spun around, giving his teammates a look at the whole outfit.
"I liked the shortened jacket," Aoki said as he nodded approvingly. "Suits you better than I thought it would. Same thing with the hair."
"But what's with the white?" Alpha asked.
"Ty suggested that it would be a good contrast from the black on the rest of the outfit. I decided to try it out." Sora brought his arms down to his sides.
"It looks good," Alpha said assuringly. "Alright Ty, me next."
"Of course, of course! Just follow me, sweetie," Ty said excitedly. The two went to the back, leaving Sora and Aoki in the shop.
Aoki brought his hand up to his chin in an inquisitive manner, pacing around Sora and examining his outfit closer. "I can't get over how good this looks," Aoki said after a bit. "Now I'm getting excited for my wardrobe change."
"I think you'll like it," Sora assured his friend. "Ty knows his stuff when it comes to fashion."
"I'm sure he does. Only way I'll know is when it's my turn." Aoki crossed his arms and walked over to the window, eyeing a mannequin dressed in blue. "Wait, did Ty also dye your armor? Or does he moonlight as a blacksmith?" he asked, turning to Sora.
"Oh, he dyed it. I don't know if he does work as a blacksmith, though." Sora noticed his friend's gaze return to the mannequin garbed in blue. "That has your attention?" Aoki half-nodded in response.
"Only the shade. I'd love to have that royal blue."
"I'm sure we can work something out," Ty's voice captured the duo's attention, who turned to see the tailor walking out of the back with his hands clasped together. "Before we get started on you, Aoki dearest, allow me to introduce the new and improved Alphaaaaaaa!" Ty, with a flourish, stepped to the side and allowed Alpha to step through. Her outfit had changed significantly: she now sported a black cropped leather jacket and a pink shirt under it, her black hair now had pink highlights, and was let down as opposed to being in a ponytail, and she wore black shorts and tights combined with silver boots. She had been readjusting her black gloves when she stepped out.
"So, what do you think?" she asked with a smile, slowly spinning to show her friends her new look.
"Personally, I'm really digging the highlights," Aoki commented as he raised a contemplative hand to his chin. "It comes together better than I thought. What say you, Sora?" Aoki turned to his friend, who was staring at Alpha, awestruck. He immediately snapped out of it when he heard his name, and looked away blushing.
"I…really like it," he said after a few tense seconds. "But personally, I think your hair looked better in a ponytail," he added, looking back to Alpha.
Alpha turned away, her ears a bright red. "...Noted," was all she had to say.
"Well then, Ty!" Aoki's chipper tone cut through the building awkwardness. "About that blue…" he began, walking towards the back as the shopkeep stripped the mannequin the blue-colored player was looking at before following his third client into the back.
"Oh, I'm sure we'll figure something out, dear!" Ty's tone betrayed how excited the man was to dress up his third client.
Once the two older players were gone, only silence remained in the shop. Sora awkwardly cleared his throat and opened his menu to keep himself busy. "What time did we come here?" he asked Alpha, who walked towards one of the shelves and began inspecting the items on display.
She pulled her attention away from the display and turned to face Sora. "Around 9-ish. Why?"
"Just curious. It's not even 11, so I was surprised at how fast this whole process is taking."
"Yeah, Ty works pretty fast," Alpha said, one hand on her hip while she rubbed the underside of her nose with a boastful expression. Sora smiled, seeing her boasting about her friend as cute. Silence befell the two as a little more time passed, both of them sitting on chairs in what appeared to be a waiting area. "...Aoki's pretty awesome, huh?" Sora's attention was piqued when he heard Aoki's name escape Alpha's lips.
"What brought that up?" Sora asked, folding his arms and tilting his head in curiosity.
Alpha folded her hands together and rested them on her lap, keeping her gaze down. "Yesterday, when he helped that little girl," she began. "He didn't even hesitate to use his knowledge as a bet–" A shush from Sora alerted her, and she turned to see that the red-colored player had held a finger up to his lips, warning her of using the term she was about to utter.
Understanding what he was implying yet confused as to why, Alpha quickly rerouted her words. "...as an experienced player to help Yuna-chan. That, combined with how much he's been looking after us and how everyone he meets ends up liking him, makes me respect him a lot." Sora could only smile at hearing praise for his best friend.
"He's always been like that, even from when we first met. Have we ever told you about that?" Alpha shook her head. "Are you curious?" She nodded. "Well, this happened way back—Aoki was a first-year in middle school and I was a 2nd year in elementary. I wanted to use my allowance to buy a limited-edition ice cream flavor but I couldn't muster enough courage. And right when I resolved myself and was going to buy it…someone walks past me and buys it." Sora turned to look at Alpha, who was trying (and failing) to stifle her laughter.
"Oh my god," she finally said. "That's so messed up yet so funny." Once she finished, Sora continued speaking.
"I'm not gonna lie, I was about ready to sulk away and cry to myself. But right as I turned, I heard that kid say 'It's for him!' And when I turned around, he practically shoved the ice cream into my hands. He ran away before I could say anything, but I saw his blue eyes when he looked back and smiled at me.
"About a week later, I was walking home from school when I heard a bunch of noise in front of me. I look up and see a bunch of middle schoolers in front of me. And in the center was the blue-eyed kid. When our eyes met, he broke out into a wide smile and said—"
"You're that kid from the other day!" Aoki's chipper voice caught the pair off guard. "We're about to go play tag, wanna join us?" Aoki finished as he came into view. As he walked out of the back, Sora and Alpha got a good look at his new look.
Aoki was wearing a white coat that stopped just above his ankles, with the white shifting into a light blue near the end. His black pants and boots remained untouched, but he was now wearing a thin belt with pouches around his waist over the coat, keeping its shape close to his body. The inside of the coat, as well as his shirt, was now the same royal blue that had been on the mannequin earlier. The right sleeve of his coat had been rolled up, with an iron bracer encompassing his bare arm, while his left sleeve was fully rolled down. As Aoki was walking to Sora and Alpha, he was adjusting his black glove on his left hand with his right hand, which had a fingerless glove covering it. He held his arms out after adjusting his glove and spun around slowly, giving his teammates a full view of his new outfit.
"Thoughts?" Aoki said as he faced them again.
"You look great, man!" Sora exclaimed.
"Tye works his magic yet again," Alpha said approvingly.
"Oh you're far too kind, stardust," Ty said teasingly but appreciatively. "It was such a treat being able to dress all of you up."
"So how much do we owe you?" Sora asked as he opened his menu to withdraw a bag of Cole.
"You're Alpha's friends, darling, I could never charge you!"
"And we're not having any of that," Aoki said as he crossed his arms after making his way back to his team's side.
"Then how about you advertise my store, then? If our front-liners are going to fight, they may as well look good while doing it!"
As Sora and Aoki were pondering his offer, Alpha interjected, saying "You may as well agree. He'll find some way to give you the money back."
"It doesn't sit right with me, but fine." Sora agreed begrudgingly.
"Hey! Are you the party leader?" Aoki asked half-jokingly.
"Okay then, what's the call?"
"It doesn't sit right with me, but fine."
"Uh huh."
"Oh you two are just adorable," Ty said as he smiled at the party. "If you have anything you'd want to change about your outfit or just want to hang out, feel free to stop by anytime!"
"Thanks, Ty!" all three of them said as they returned Ty's smile.
As the party of three turned around to leave, Sora stopped and opened his menu. A few seconds later, Ty received a notification–he had gotten a friend request from Sora, followed very shortly by one from Aoki. Smiling again, this time to himself, he wordlessly accepted both friend requests.
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Aoki and co. walked out of Ty's store, decked out in their new threads. After walking about 30 feet away from the store, Aoki stopped and turned back to the store, opening his menu and taking a photo of the storefront. Alpha and Sora looked at him, then repeated his actions. The three had just collapsed their menus when they heard Landa behind them ask, "You guys heading out?"
Turning around to face her, Aoki smiled and nodded. "That's the plan. We spent enough time here, so we gotta catch up with the front liners. And I gotta promote the tailor's store, so you can expect more business," he finished with a wink while motioning back to the store with his thumb. Sora and Alpha did the same as Aoki, sans wink.
Landa laughed and placed a hand on her chest. "You three are just adorable. And you're all looking sharp too! Tell you what, I'll take a photo of the three of you and you can use that for promotional material."
"Sounds good!" Alpha cut in before the party's spokesperson could respond. "With Ty's store behind us, it'll make the perfect photo!"
"…How should we pose?" Sora asked, grabbing his chin in ponderance.
"Just be your cute li'l selves. That's the best photo we can take," Landa replied as she opened her menu. "You guys ready? I'll take it in three…two…" As Landa counted down, Aoki immediately slung his arms around Sora and Alpha's shoulders and pulled them close, bringing his head down to their level right as Landa pressed the shutter. "Perfect! Come see how it turned out." The trio came up to Landa and looked at the photo, which she turned around to show them.
Aoki had his arms around the other two players' shoulders, his eyes closed as he gave an ear-to-ear grin. Sora was on Aoki's right side, his left eye closed as he appeared to be laughing in the photo. Alpha, who was on Aoki's left side, had her right eye closed as she gave a wide smile. Their new clothes, as well as the store they acquired them from, were in full view, making the photo a great way to promote the store.
The trio smiled when they saw the photo, saving it once Landa shared it with them. "Yeah, that's a keeper," Aoki said, looking back at the group's friend and bowing. "Thank you for your hospitality. I hope we can come back here in the future." Sora and Alpha followed suit, expressing similar wishes.
Landa smiled and put her hand on the oldest player's shoulder. "You guys are always welcome. Just make sure you order the top shelf stuff next time, okay?" she said with a playful wink. Aoki smiled and nodded, turning towards the town's exit path.
"Ms. Landa," Sora said, catching the player's attention. "You should check out that area over there," he continued, pointing at the forest that was close to the town. "I think Yuna might have been playing around there."
"We'll look into it," Landa replied. "Where're you lot headed now?"
Aoki replied, without looking back, "The front-liners cleared up to Floor 10. We'll just keep helping the little guys." With those parting words to summarize the ethos of the Black Blades, the party left the town.
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