"This is bullshit." Artorian scoffed as he sat in the back of a limousine, his arms crossed as Matthew sat on the couch across from him.

"You have said that once, or ten times." Matthew responded, rolling his eyes as he continued to look out the window.

"I'm not supposed to be on the clock until noon, why the hell do I have to pick up Princess Cotton Candy from the fucking airport?"

"Because Claire and Erica are in the middle of a meeting with the governor's staff on security and Kirishima arrived an hour earlier than expected."

"Pushing her shit on me, I bet Claire had this planned to get back at me." Artorian growled as he tightened his fingers on his arms, imagining the smug grin on the blonde's face right now. "Trying to get back at me for the bribery no doubt."

"Claire isn't one for revenge, you're just petty."

"And then there's the company I'm stuck with for this damn ride." He added on, motioning to the Slayer in front of him. "Why the hell were you chosen to come along for this stupid thing anyways?"

"I have business in the area we're picking Kirishima up at, and Liddy's still asleep." Matthew then turned his gaze to Artorian, his eyes narrowing as he did. "I heard she's been having a lot of bad nightmares recently, and now she's sleeping soundly to the extent we couldn't even wake her up. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

"Don't bother being a smartass." Artorian sighed. "I don't know for certain, but I have a good feeling on it. We'll have to wait until she wakes up and Charlotte can get the proper evaluation on her."

"I swear on Gwyn's name, if you cost us a Slayer-"

"The gestation period is two months, it hasn't been long enough for it to fully settle in." He interrupted, returning the narrow stare. "Even if it is the Abyss, she has time left. Not to mention she's human, she would just have to go through the procedure and it's gone. So keep your murder boner down until Charlotte can give us an exact answer."

"I don't have a murder boner."

"Dude, it's a pretty murderous boner."

"It can barely be trusted with a chosen bearer, risking the Abyss spreading through your Vessels is something I cannot and will not accept. Why do you even care for Liddy's condition, you two have no prior history outside of the past twelve days."

"Well, you know what they say "Birds of a feather"…" Artorian muttered as he looked out the window.

"So then, do you have your equipment all sorted out?" Matthew spoke on, the two having finished the subject of Liddy and moving on to the mission. A very down to the point conversation that the two have had repeatedly through their interactions.

"Tranquilizer is in front pocket." Artorian said, unbuttoning the pocket on his uniform's chest to show the gun. It wasn't anything special; just an N-Tranquilizer that was made to disrupt the motor functions of both civilians and Slayers by messing with their energy system. "And the scanner thing is in my back pocket." He added on, patting on his waist to signal he had the Sonar module.

After that, Artorian's PDA rang, confusing the two as he reached into his pocket to pull the device out.

"Crossfode?"

"Nope, Karen." He sighed, reading the message to himself.

Please remember to get me an autograph of Sakura. I had also taken the liberty this morning to read your fortune for the day and it warned to be "Cautious with Women and Water" so please be careful ~Karen

"Leave it to her to bring up something like that." He shook his head as he put his PDA back into his pocket, shelving the fortune away in his mind while kicking himself in having to remember to get the autograph.

The two remained seated in silence for the remainder of the drive before arriving at the landing zone, exiting the limo in order to walk up to where Sakura would land on Little Garden. The two stood at the ready, Artorian although moving his shoulders in discomfort, his sword in the trunk of the limo due to the regulations on his weapon for escort missions. It left him uncomfortable, not often going anywhere without it on him outside of the two duels he's had now.

After a few minutes of waiting, Matthew would place a hand to his ear, nodding as conformation on Sakura's imminent approach was relayed to him. A few seconds later the sound of propellers cutting through the air were heard, and in time the two felt the pressure of the helicopter as it flew overhead, turning to face the sides to them as it hovered over the landing pad.

Once the helicopter landed, it'd be a few seconds before the propellers came to a stop, and shortly after the ramp would extend out and the hatch opened. The sound of heels clicking on metal was heard before out came the girl Artorian was hired to protect: Sakura Kirishima.

To his pain, her hair and eyes was the same bright shade of pink as they were in her concerts, braided back by two barrettes to be tied in the shape of a cherry blossom, annoying him more due to the reference to her name. She had bright teal dress that had her shoulders exposed and hot pants. Overall, she wasn't as much pain for his eyes as she was in her concert getup, but it certainly didn't make Artorian feel any better about the situation.

'It's shame she can't at least get that stuff out of her hair and eyes, she'd be a catch if she did.' He mentally joked to himself, admitting that while she was quite the prize for eyes, the bright colors and painful signing had it solidified she wasn't someone of his tastes; which luckily would make things easier.

Next to Sakura though was a woman in a suit, her appearance much more simplistic with her only defining wear being the shaded glasses on her, likely designed to change in order to adapt to brightness. Artorian knew she was some kind of agent for the idol, but he didn't have to know much more on her to work with than her name: Souffle Clearrail.

"Welcome to Little Garden Ms. Kirishima and Dr. Clearrail." Matthew bowed, getting a sideways glance from Artorian as he did. "I assume that the travel was to your comfort?"

"Yes, thank you for being so gracious." Sakura responded, approaching the Slayer from the ramp. When she had reached the bottom, he had offered his hand to assist with the last step, which she accepted before stepping down. "May I ask your name?"

"My name is Matthew Ornisium, a member of Little Garden's Selections." He introduced as Artorian helped Clearrail down, even taking her bag as she stepped down.

"Selections?"

"A group of students that are of high caliber in comparison to our classmates." The Slayer would explain. "We're chosen to accept missions and offer assistance for Warslran in case of a shortage of active Slayers."

"I thank you for taking the time out of your day to see my arrival." Sakura would once again thank as Artorian walked by, picking up her bag for her. "And would I be correct to assume you're Artorian Abyssal?"

"…" Artorian would remain silent for a second, knowing full well he would rather just stay quite for the duration of the day. However a quick stare from Matthew would get him to roll his eyes, knowing that wouldn't be possible for the mission. "Yes, although just Artorian is fine. Not a fan of my last name."

"A pleasure to meet you. From this day onwards, you are my bodyguard. I will be in your care."

"Yeah, great…" Artorian said, although none too enthusiastically as he did.

"Would you then be willing to show me Little Garden please?" Sakura would ask, getting a head tilt from Artorian.

"Pardon?"

"You're my guardian today, correct? Aren't you obliged to escort me?"

'This little…!'

"I'm afraid that will have to wait Ms. Kirishima." Matthew interrupted, Artorian appearing to have a poker face however it was clear to him that his views on the girl would harbor ill intent for a simple request such as that. "We still need to get you to Central before anything else, and we'll have to get through the busiest section of Little Garden to get there. If you would please follow us, we will escort you to the limo."

"Of course!" Sakura smiled, appearing upbeat while following Matthew, Artorian trailing behind to allow as little time close to the pinkette before getting stuck in a car with her.

"I apologize for Sakura's sudden request, it was impolite for her to ask so soon into meeting you." Souffle would say, walking next to Artorian.

"Yeah well, keep a tighter leash on her." He said, sure to avoid being loud enough for the idol to hear him.

"I take it you're not very much of a fan of this job?"

"I'll be sure to avoid being rude to the precious idol and act on my best, but don't be surprised if I'm not going to do it with a smile." He stated, although being respectful to the idol's manager as he did. "Not to mention I signed on to fight Savage, not escort spoiled idols for their next gig."

That last comment had Souffle remain silent, simply walking forward and giving Artorian the impression that he might've hit a nerve. It wasn't anything big he cared about, as the two's interactions would be limited even less than his with the idol. Although it was something that made him wonder why she felt so stern on his words.

When they had packed into the limo, Matthew and Souffle would be sitting on the opposite side of the seats from Artorian and Sakura, the boy grateful there was more than enough space to avoid being in contact with Sakura. He was sure to look out the window as they drove, not wanting to spark a conversation with her but was certain one would start.

Of course at the same time, Sakura was taking in the scenery of Little Garden herself. The idol would be humming a song while she did, a smile on her face as she was enjoying seeing the advanced warship and ocean view across the way from them.

"Hey Artorian, have you heard my songs?" Sakura would ask, turning and scooting a bit closer to the boy to look more closely at him.

'Oh here we go…' Matthew sighed as he closed his eyes, figuring this would be the downward spiral to a long drive.

"…Only a little, not a huge fan of music if I'm being honest." Artorian would say coolly, being sure to avoid making any serious remarks despite what he would want to say. It wasn't a lie though, as he listened to the few songs Karen tried to get him to hear in preparation for being Sakura's bodyguard.

"That's mean, you haven't listened to many of them." Sakura would pout as she turned back around to her window, a look of childish disappointment on her face. "That's too bad…"

'Oh you are SO lucky I cannot speak my free mind you pompous brat!' He would scream internally, although he completely kept his composure to look back outside. 'Maybe you're just not a fucking perfect sensation, you ear splitting tuff of bubblegum! Ever think of it like that!?'

'I'm glad I won't be here for this whole thing.' Matthew would think, already telling from the small conversation itself that this would likely be a hellhole to try and keep calm.

"That didn't even seem remotely busy." Sakura would half whine as she got out of the limo. It had only taken them five minutes to make it to their destination, although the painful silence had made it feel like an hour for the Slayers.

"It's early, we expect there'll be a lot more people coming from the islands to tour public sections of the ship in a few hours." Matthew explained, having opened the door for Sakura so that they could tour Central for a few minutes.

"You know, being a revolutionary advancement for Warslran I was almost expecting this ship to be a little more… futuristic." She would comment, looking around while Artorian was trailing behind, his hands in his pocket as he kept a close eye on anyone around them.

"I'm not the most informed here, but I believe they went for a more common city appearance for the sake of new arrivals. That way they aren't completely overwhelmed and have a sense of familiarity."

"Plenty of different food joints though, so that's nice." Artorian would comment, trying to appear somewhat active in his job without saying too much.

They would be walking for a while before a sudden ringing hit Artorian's ear, and while he had winced before placing a hand over his ear Sakura would turn in excitement as a one of the many giant screens were playing a video of her.

"Ah, my promotional video is playing here, how exciting!" She smiled as she did, her singing coming out fluently and perfectly for everyone watching and enjoying themselves.

'I seriously don't get how this garbage is good.' For the boy on the other hand, he was hearing a constant ring as her voice came out of the screen, a sensation familiar to some of the other times he's heard her music but not a direct constant. It did however play into his distaste in her music though, as it was painful to keep hearing.

"So Artorian, what do you think of my song?" Sakura would ask, turning back to the boy with hopeful eyes.

'Fuck!'

"It's… a great song." He would force himself to say, not smiling but forcing a smirk without making it too obvious. "Certainly one of the better ones I've heard."

"Thank you, I worked hard to make it!" She giggled, her smile brightening as she turned back to face where she was walking.

'Yeah, and my arms are the picture of health.'

"I'm sorry if you're enjoying yourself Ms. Kirishima, but we should be heading for the hotel now." Matthew informed, looking to his PDA for the time. "If we don't get you signed in soon, we may encounter a few delays, which would push back your schedule back further."

"Yes, it's been nice to see the area for awhile." Sakura said, stretching a bit to loosen herself. "It would be nice to finally be in a room, I've been in a plane for most of the day yesterday and haven't been able to take a bath or change."

"You likely won't have time for that bath unfortunately." Matthew spoke, putting his PDA into his pocket as he did. "If we're to get you to your meeting with the governor you won't have much more time than to get unpacked and change clothes."

"Wait, but the meeting isn't meant to be done until just before noon. I haven't been informed that the time of the meeting has been changed. I would like to meet with the President who had set up to meet us at the airport beforehand."

At Sakura's demand, both Matthew and Artorian cringed, although the former had the luxury of being ahead of her therefore his expression was hidden by his back, while the latter was behind to keep his expression secret as well. But a quick correction of their expressions allowed them to look back to Souffle, who nodded her head in confirmation that they were not informed of the change in time for the security meeting.

"I see, I'm sorry that we were unable to inform you of the change of schedule." Matthew apologized, recovering from his momentary lapse and go back to his usual level of professionalism. "However I'm afraid that the time can't be changed now as Claire and the governor are already waiting for your arrival. I only ask that you be patient and settle with changing your clothes for now."

"But if this meeting's entirely about greetings and security, then surly Souffle alone is enough to go. I'll be there in time for my meeting with the governor for luncheon so it shouldn't be that much of a problem, or would that not work?"

"I don't mind, but is that okay with you Matthew?" Souffle would ask, the Slayer nodding in response.

"Since you're her manager, I see no problem with you handling the affairs of security alone. We'll settle the meeting with Claire after so that Ms. Kirishima can freshen up."

"Hooray!" Sakura cheered with a happy voice, moving next to Artorian and take ahold of Artorian's arm. "Okay then Artorian. Let's go to the hotel, just the two of us."

"Remember that her safety is the top of your concerns." Matthew reminded at the sight of the two. "Any of her requests must be met, and above else you are to spare no expense to guarantee that she makes it to the meeting on time. Understood."

"Yeah, yeah, make sure Sakura gets her check list completed and all that." He said off handedly before putting on a fake smile, looking down to the pinkette who stood significantly shorter to him, possibly around if not just a little taller than Emilia. "You don't need to worry, I'll be sure everything is handled."

"Remember, you have thirty minutes before you need to head out." Souffle said to Sakura, the girl standing on the curb next to the hotel next to her luggage while Artorian walked around to the trunk.

"Don't worry, we'll be there on time." She promised, waving her worries away before looking to Artorian. "So then Artorian, shall we… go… to…" Sakura's words slowly died down as the boy mentioned reached into the trunk and pulled out his greatsword, resting it on his shoulder as he closed the back.

"Alright, we're good. Head on out." He said, smacking the back of the limo to signal them to drive off. As they were going, Artorian would walk up to Sakura, who was captivated by the sheer size of the weapon he was holding. "Everything alright? We won't want to keep the staff waiting." He smirked as he walked past her, enjoyment on him as he caught the idol off guard.

She quickly shook the shock off of her and turned to follow as he picked up her bag. The staff had an initial protest to his weapon, however as he had strict permission from Little Garden to wield his weapon outside of important pickup spots they couldn't say much before copying the key data onto the pair's PDAs.

As the important idol Sakura was, she was given the VIP suite at the top of the hotel. Artorian was keeping down over a dozen potential insults as he made sure to remain as professional as possible, although it was straining with Sakura's happy humming causing a ringing in his ears.

"Well, let's get you settled in." Artorian said, scanning his PDA over the room's sensor when they reached the top floor. The door unlocked at opened at his motion, and as he placed his PDA back into his pocket he waited for Sakura to enter to follow in.

.

.

.

'Oh what now?' He thought in annoyance as she refused to move, looking at Artorian with a raised eyebrow.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you supposed to check the room for anything before I enter?" Sakura asked, almost sounding like she was reminding a child to do their chores, which made Artorian mentally grind his teeth.

'That attitude makes it worse that she's right.' He thought before he stepped into the room, pulling out his Sonar sensor as he did.

"Are you really Artorian Abyssal?" Sakura asked, getting him to pause in his next step as she did. "The genius Slayer who saved the Zwei Islands from the Savage?" Her eyes were suspicious of Artorian, almost as if she was beginning to doubt the boy was of any caliber to fight a Savage.

That however was a more delicate line to deal with, as he showed an obviously forced smile while closing his eyes, preventing any real level of intimidation. "I am Artorian, and I was here to help the Zwei Islands when Savage attacked. I never claimed to be a genius, and you'd do well then to make a guess that I'm anyone but me."

Although he was mostly quite before turning back to investigate the room, Sakura was taken aback by the tone of his voice, noticing the repressed and contained anger in it while keeping up composure. Although it certainly wasn't a heroic attitude, it at least gave her confirmation that he was who he claimed to be.

'Perhaps that was a little mean.' She thought as the Slayer searched for any potential spyware. It was highly unlikely for anyone to mistaken her identity, but the idol could easily imagine how annoying it would be to be doubted of her capabilities. Much less if any feat she had done was in the face of multi-meter tall aliens capable of leveling cities.

After several minutes of checking on the room, nothing had come up on the Sonar. Which gave Artorian the clear to walk back to the door and motion Sakura in. "Nothing appears to be in the room, it's clear for you to enter now."

"Thank you." Sakura responded as she stepped into the room, clearing him to close the door and locking it.

"Now, finally…" Taking a relaxed breath, Sakura would turn to look at Artorian while smiling with a puff. "We are finally alone, Artorian."

'That either sounded rape-y or murder-y, I don't know which is better or worse in this situation.' The Slayer would think, his expression remaining neutral in the face of a beautiful girl.

"The truth is, I was interested when I watched the video of your battle against the big Savage." Sakura explained as she pulled her PDA out and showed the video of Artorian's fight with the Trenta.

"How did that even…?" Artorian muttered to himself, wondering how that footage was possibly taken through all that destruction.

"It was taken down from the Cybernet almost immediately, but I managed to copy the film before it was." She continued, not answering the question. "After seeing it, I formed an interest in you. I even asked Souffle to do a little investigating on you. And seeing as Little Garden was in the area, it was my plan to hold my charity live. That way, I could personally choose you to be my bodyguard."

'Okay… that's a bit to process.' Artorian admitted to himself, partially disturbed by the girl's level of interest in him from simply his feat against the Trenta.

Putting her PDA away, Sakura would smile in mischief before reaching up to hold Artorian's cheeks with both hands. "What do you think of me Artorian? Do you think I'm cute?"

'I want to answer as venomously as fucking possible you pink-dyed fake.' He thought in annoyance, but kept it down as he answered simply.

"Sure." True, he couldn't say that she wasn't cute by any standards. But the level of pink was more than an annoyance for him, adding in her status as an idol and one that he saw as nothing more than a lip-synch.

"Then, why don't you go out with me?" She'd continue to ask, releasing his cheeks and stepping away. "I'd like to go out with you with the premise of marriage."

"Okay, that's a little far." Artorian responded, giving her a half lidded stare. "We have known each other for roughly thirty minutes. Besides, I don't even think you're even old enough to legally marry."

"You're from Yamato, you know that in our home country that when we turn sixteen that we're officially legal to marry. And with the constant risk of population due to the Savage attacks, it's recommended in every country to have a lot of children with an early marriage for the future of mankind."

"Okay you aren't inaccurate with your point, but there's other things to be taking into consideration." True to her word, Artorian was more than aware of the fact that humanity has a constant need for families to form, with as many kids as possible to provide a steady population for the future. That however wasn't much of a point to go off of considering his unique condition and situation. Not to mention he still had Karen to worry about, a family was the last thing he needed to worry about right now.

"The worldwide popular diva Oriental Wizard: Sakura Kirishima and the young up and coming Artorian who challenged and defeated a Trenta Savage single-handedly. I'd say that it can be interpreted that we are a good match."

'Oh, a PR sounding stunt, or she's trying to be a tease.' Artorian concluded, not figuring the likes of a star idol like Sakura would ever desire to sacrifice her career for a family. It made more sense than a genuine relation, which brought a smirk to his face.

"You don't have to be humble. You are very attractive." Sakura stated, taking his silence as a sign of hesitation.

"Oh I by no means think differently." Artorian would respond, surprising her as he leaned down to have them face-to-face. Gently gripping her chin between his fingers, he'd keep her attention on him as his smirk remained. "I was just taking a second to imagine you on the bed, and the faces you'd make."

At the sound of his not-so-subtle comments, the idol's face would fluster, her cheeks turning bright as his face was only inches away from hers. And with his hold on her chin she wouldn't be able to turn away, something that was obviously making him smirk more.

"I can also certainly see from your side of things, a young and maturing princess wanting her noble knight to sweep her off her feet into a life of passion and thrill seeking." He'd continue on, seeing just how far he could go with this as her blushing grew more. "It's taxing, isn't it?"

"W-W-What is?" Sakura asked, unable to think of what else to do as she saw his smirk turn subtler. The short time they spent before had not prepared her for this, the basic and confined attitude he had shown for their trip here was a complete 180 from what he was now, and she couldn't understand how he could suddenly act this way in response to her teasing.

"Keeping an appearance for a crowd." He said. "To keep yourself appearing so honest, so pure for everyone that you push things down to keep hidden. You're at least sixteen, if your idea of marriage is to signal anything. Which means you're around that age where urges start to come up." He would then lean forward more, allowing him to whisper into her ear. "You don't need to worry, I'm sure I can do my part to situate those urges."

He then leaned back a bit, keeping their faces close enough so that their lips were nearly hovering over the other. "But… I'm nothing if not a gentleman. I couldn't imagine solidifying a marriage with a young woman before allowing her to experience her first kiss. If that's what you truly wish that is."

"Wa-Wait a moment!" Sakura eventually managed to gain some level of control, stepping back from him and freeing herself from his gentle grip on her, her face tinted pink from the embarrassment of having him so close to kissing her, not to mention everything he said! "That… that sort of thing, I still need to prepare my heart!"

"I... it seems I have teased you for long enough, I have to go and freshen up before the meeting!" She'd say, attempting some level of control as she stepped past him. "I'm going to take a bath!"

"Want me to join you?" The Slayer would chuckle as she stopped, her whole body shaking in further embarrassment before stepping into the bathroom, her composure breaking as she moved to slam the door shut, pressing her back against it as she looked down in utter embarrassment.

'Wh-What was that!?'

"Don't play with fire if you can't handle getting burned." Artorian grinned as he turned away, walking over to one of the massive suite's couches and sitting down, resting his sword against the sofa to rest. "I figure that should scare her into taking a nice long bath, so I should have the rest of the time here to myself."

At the moment of his comment, Artorian's PDA beeped as he received a message. Sighing, he reached into his pocket and pulled it out, shifting to lie on the couch as he saw that the message was from Charlotte.

Liddy has woken up; I had Mei-Mei watching over her after you called last night to keep an eye on her. Apparently her limbs were extremely weak, as she collapsed the moment she attempted to get out of bed. Followed by signs of serious sensitivity to light. You gave her the medicine I think you did, correct? ~Charlotte

Sighing in disappointment, Artorian's grin turned to a somber frown as he typed on the screen, sending a message to the doctor as he put together what was happening. And what he would have to deal with when he got back.

Yeah, the exact stuff you gave me on the off chance something like this happened. Please tell me that you have the equipment to treat her. ~Artorian

Of course I do, I'll just have to go over procedures and run a few blood tests before I begin. Plus, I feel you and Matthew should be here beforehand, give her the options your father gave the others back then. She'll likely be assigned back with Claire since I won't be able to keep her here for long. So you'll need to get her when you're able to. ~Charlotte

"Well, that's a mood killer." Artorian groaned, placing his PDA on the table as he looked up to the ceiling. "It had to be from then, there's no other time it could've leaked out enough to infect someone." He spoke to himself, recalling his episode after waking up from the duel against Claire. He knew Liddy was there, and put together that had to be when it happened. And while he was forced to remain by Sakura's side, he could do nothing but think to himself, looking up to the ceiling as the idol prepared to take her bath.

"Hmhmhmmhhmmmmm…" A few minutes go by before Artorian was looking over his shoulder, grumbling as he heard Sakura's humming, signaling she was in the bath and once again enjoying the sound of her own hums. It made him wince once more as the ringing in his ear returned, starting to now become a hindrance with the amount of times she does this.

'If she keeps doing this, my head is going to split open.' He grunted, hating have to endure several headaches in the past hour. 'I get you don't write or sing your own music, but you should at least try to be capable of singing!'

"Artorian, are you able to grab my PDA?" Sakura would ask, getting his attention as she stopped her humming. "I hit up a good melody and phrase so I want to record them. It should be on the shelf by the entrance, I think." By the sound of it, her fluster was gone, and the girl was back to the way she normally acted.

'She thinks…' He rolled his eyes, standing up as he walked over to the door, finding the PDA right where she said it was. Thanking internally that she had some level of memory, the Slayer would then move to the bathroom, opening the door to see the washroom.

Not wasting time on taking in the room he's already checked, he opened the next door to open where the bath and shower were, the pinkette relaxing in the hot water of her bath as a good amount of steam was in the room.

'You've got to be fucking me.' He would think as he saw her hair in the water was still the same obnoxious color it's been. 'How strong is that stuff she's got on her? This is getting ridiculous for her to keep up this damn pink-ageddon look of hers.'

"Here." He said as he placed the PDA on the small table next to the bathtub, Sakura opening a single eye to give him an appreciative smile.

"Thank you Artorian." She got little more than a nod in response, the boy simply wishing to get out before he was roped into another unwanted conversation.

As he stepped out though, he took a second to have a subtle look at the idol's body, giving a single approved hum as he stepped out, confusing her as she turned at the last second of his exit.

'Damn, I might have given her a bad rep on her before hand.' He thought to himself, closing the door to give them separation. 'Not quite as mature as Claire, but probably around the same overall development as Emilia. Without all that pink you'd probably be a 8.7/10.'

Chuckling at his own thoughts, he would take a single step before feeling his foot slid a bit. He was perfectly capable of keeping his balance, but looking down to see the shift had made his sigh in a mix of annoyance and nostalgia.

On the floor were all of the idol's clothes, recklessly thrown aside as she had prepared herself to take her bath. It was something that all kids did, but his memories went back to his and Karen's early days after the Second Attack that gave him a bittersweet smile.

Working more on instinct than obligation, Artorian started to pick up each individual piece of clothes and fold it, placing them on the shelf in the washroom to prevent any potential mishaps. Although as he put her hot pants away, he saw that the only article on the floor were a pair of panties, and upon inspection of them he closed his eyes in disappointment.

'She is a fucking child.' He thought, the bear design printed on the underwear making him just feel embarrassed for the idol before setting it up with the rest of her clothes.

He would remain out on the couch for the minutes after until he heard Sakura using her hairdryer, finishing up her time before walking out. Looking back to her, Artorian saw that the idol had changed into a frilly dress, a bit more modest than her prior attire and giving her much of a fair lady… excluding the giant stuffed bear in her arms, which caused the boy to cringe inward.

She would set it on the couch across from him, turning to face Hayato with a smile. "Say Artorian, what do you think about this outfit?" She'd ask, lifting the hem of her skirt while taking a pose.

"I mean, it's a good dress I guess?" He humored her, although quite honestly he wasn't the ideal choice for a fashion opinion. Excluding the fact he wasn't a big fan of the idol, he just didn't have a sense of fashion based on his casual clothes.

"Hmm… that answer's worth 50 points. No, I think 30's a better number."

'I ain't looking for your approval anyways!'

"And that's only because you said the dress looked good. You lost points for taking a peak on me while walking out."

"Huh, you saw that." Artorian chuckled, tipping his head a bit while smirking. "I'll give ya credit, you're more observant then I thought. Good on you."

"That gives you 5 points."

'I really don't care.'

"Well, we've spent up our time here, we should get you to the meeting with the governor soon." Artorian would say, picking up his greatsword and standing up.

"Yes I suppose, and afterwards we'll go to the venue to check on how the construction is going." Sakura responded, smiling as she walked past Artorian. "But, we will have to talk about you're peeping on the way there. It's very rude to do that to a young woman."

'I can't wait…'

"Well, I'm impressed." Artorian commented as he stood outside the venue dress room.

The luncheon meeting had gone as expected, not much of anything happening other than the Slayer acting like a butler once the idol was able to actually sit down and eat. He wasn't one for giving credit to standing around, but he had to admit that to stand for over an hour talking to people who were complete strangers or random benefactors would be a challenge for him. So he was willing to at least give her a somewhat easier time during, keeping his mental back sass down as he worked.

And after that was done, the pair was driven to the venue where Sakura's live performance would be taking place. For the most part it was simply to meet up with Souffle and check on the progress of the construction. But according to the idol, there was something that she wished to show him, leading him to remain guard outside of her changing room.

"About what?" Sakura asked, being able to hear him while she changed, the sound of her throwing her clothes around being picked up by his enhanced hearing.

"The progress done here already. I'm not a big nut on construction, but this was surprisingly fast, built in under a week." He shrugged. "Seems a lot of people are eager to please the Oriental Wizard Sakura Kirishima, huh?"

"Maybe, but I'm just grateful that the work they've done means the show can go on schedule. I can sing my songs to everyone, as a thanks for having me and to ease the pain from the Savage attack they suffered through."

Although he didn't respond, the Slayer did roll his eyes at the implication that she was doing this solely for the fans and survivors. Although he's seen a few differences on the idol than what he was expecting, it wasn't quite far off on his overall vision of her.

It wasn't until a few minutes passed that the idol eventually walked out, getting the boy to sigh as he looked to her. "So you're finally done changing? What took you so long to-!" His eyes would widen in realization as he saw her attire, a skintight pink variable suit that covered her entire body. It was obviously customized, as the only other versions he's seen were combat based to offer full maneuverability.

"Thank you for waiting." Sakura would say, looking up to the Slayer before noticing his stare. "Is there something wrong?"

"N-Nothing." He'd shake his head, wondering where the pause came from before recollecting himself. "I'm just a little surprised is all. I was expecting that usual getup you wear for your videos, not a variable suit."

'Gods the color's still annoying, but this is a much better look.' He'd think as he looked the girl up and down, getting an unobstructed view of her figure in comparison to when she was in the bath. Once more he could say that while she may not have acted like it, her body certainly showed that she was matured to an extent. 'Thank you variable suits for complementing bodies so well.'

"Ah, so you noticed." She'd say before giving a small twirl, winking to him with a playful smile. "So what about this outfit, any thoughts?"

"Too pink, but certainly a good look." He responded, smirking as the two began to walk to the stage.

"60 points."

'Whatever.'

When they finally reached the stage, Sakura would run out to the center while Souffle approached the Slayer from the side, standing next to him as the idol smiled bright.

"Watch closely Artorian. I'll show you that this stage is my battlefield!" She declared, raising her fist into the air. In her hand was a green ore surrounded by a reddish-brown bracket, his eyes widening in realization.

'A Hundred… that would explain the variable suit.'

"Hundred On!" Shouting with enthusiasm, Sakura threw the variable stone high into the air, green light erupting from it before moving down to surround the idol. As the Hundred began to take shape in the form of four fairy-like wings, her variable was reacting to the device as well. By the time the light died down, the idol was standing with the energy wings coming out of her back, now dressed in a white and pink shrine maiden getup.

"This is my Hundred, Fairy-Fairy Tale." Sakura announced, turning to the boy to show her smile before she ran to jump off the stage. As the Slayer was about to move to stop her, he stared in surprise as her wings spread and the idol took flight, leaving a trail of glittering energy as she moved in the sky.

Artorian was actually taken aback by the action of flying, only ever seeing it done by the likes of Claire and Emilia with the assistance of thrusters attached to their Hundreds. But for Sakura's, it was completely calm, controlled and regulated. He was only picking up the basics of sensing energy, but he could feel the miniscule amount she was using to keep herself in the air.

"Whoa…" Despite his attitude towards the idol, even he couldn't help but state his amazement, only imagining the possibility of flying in such a way. The peaceful form of the Hundred felt completely foreign to him, the new sight being a once in a lifetime discovery to him.

"Well, that's certainly a look I never expected to see on you." Hearing the new voice, Artorian's attention was turned to Charlotte as she walked towards the pair alongside Mei Mei.

"Charlotte? Mei Mei? What are you doing out here?" The Slayer asked, confused at the two's appearance.

"Hi Artorian, it's been awhile!" Mei Mei would cheer, smiling bright as she waved to the boy.

"Yeah, I guess." He waved back, although focusing more on Charlotte. "So, what's your reason for being here?"

"Well, I suppose there's a few reasons." Charlotte would say, removing her lollipop from her mouth to give a smile to Souffle. "I wanted to see the variable stone in use. But I also wanted to see an old friend and see how Sakura was developing."

"It's been a few years now, hasn't it Charlotte." Souffle would respond, giving her own smile as the two shook hands.

"I see that Sakura's appearing healthy. I'm glad she's been able to grow safely since the last time I saw her."

"Whoa, whoa, hold up." Artorian spoke up. "You two know each other? How?"

"We used to work together in the early development stages of both generations of Slayers." Charlotte explained. "Souffle was by both your father's and my sides when the first generation was made. And she helped with research on the Hundred for a few years before retiring from the science field."

"Retire? If you and Charlotte are around the same age, you should have had plenty of time after the Hundred was made. Why retire that young?"

"…Sakura was involved in an incident a few years ago." Souffle would say, although hesitantly. Looking to Charlotte though, the shorter of the two gave a confirming nod to let her know it was clear for him to know, encouraging her to speak more. "She was on the verge of death, it was Charlotte that managed to save her in the final hours of operation."

"The experiments that happened to her, they made her into something similar as you discovered recently." Charlotte added in.

'She's a Variant?'

"So she's…" Artorian slowly spoke, looking up to the idol to watch her fly.

"She isn't quite like you. Aside from being an artificial variation, she has zero combat capabilities." The doctor detailed. "Her Hundred is a field type, not meant for combat but to support others with surveillance and even illusions if she's close. Her whole ability of flight comes from her expert control of energy, using barriers and fields to produce an atmosphere where she can maneuver in any way she wants.

"So she became an idol because she can use this? With a unique ability like flight?"

"No, Sakura loved to sing long before she could use a Hundred." Souffle stated, confusing Artorian at the subtle hostile tone. "During the Second Attack, Sakura lost her mother to the Savage. She sings her songs in memory of her deceased family for everyone that still lives. She wants to give them that momentary happiness in a painful world filled with death and destruction. But above all else, she wants to heal the children who have suffered and lost because of the Savage just like her."

'She lost her… damn it…' Artorian thought as he looked to the idol in a new light, his eyes somber while she continued to smile and laugh in enjoyment. She was from Yamato just like him, which meant that she must've lost her mother on the same day the Kisaragis died, when he saw Hayato die, and when he lost his own father.

It was certainly a reason to rethink some of his notions on her, perhaps her personality is shaped entirely to avoid thinking back on the pain she suffered as child. Or maybe she does it to keep others smiling and prevent them from feeling how she felt when she lost everything. It wasn't enough to completely change his views on her, but perhaps there were a few cracks in how he perceived the idol as a person. It was far from the full story, he could tell the two were holding back a lot; but it was enough to have him better understand Sakura, if even by a little bit.

"So, what do you think of my flying?" Sakura would ask as she landed, moving to wrap her arms around his free arm while smiling brightly.

"Honestly… it was completely unexpected." He spoke, returning the smile with a genuine smile. "I never expected to see such a Hundred, and in the hands of an idol like you… it was a sight to behold."

Sakura's smile brightened more as she released him, stepping back while placing her hands on her hips. "And that gets you 90 points."

'Still a little annoying, but I can handle that.' He chuckled, letting the smile remain while regarding her.

"We're thankful for your services here today, as of now you're relieved of your duty for the day." Souffle would say, stepping up to the two as her PDA was receiving data.

"Wait, already?" Artorian would ask, looking at his own device to see that it was only around three in the afternoon.

"We'll have security comprised of Slayers from Warslran protecting us back at the hotel, along with that you were brought out far earlier than needed. You've done more than you're part in safeguarding Sakura and I'm thankful for that."

"Aw, but I wanted to spend more time with Artorian." Sakura pouted, puffing a bit at the early send off. "Well, I suppose I can show you where I wanted to go tomorrow."

"Actually Sakura, you'll be busy working on your latest album for next month." Souffle reported, getting a surprised squeak from the idol. "You're a week behind and the publishers would like it within the next two days. So I'm expecting you to work on it until you're done. If the progress you gave me is right, you'll be done by noon."

"B-But I… awwhhh…" Sakura would whine, her shoulders slumping as her wings folded down as well.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye for now Sakura." Artorian would say, stepping forward to offer the idol a handshake to which she returned. "It's been an… experience. If there's time and I'm free, maybe I'd be willing to check the place out that you wanted to."

Sakura's smile returned, looking up to the Slayer with a gleam in her eyes as she did. "That'll be great! Also, 60 points." She added with a mischievous smile.

"Don't push it." He stated, the two giving their own smiles at the small joke. As Sakura and Souffle were about to head out, Artorian's eyes widened in realization and he started to search his pockets. "Wait! Hold on a second!"

"Hmm?"

"I forgot to ask the entire day and, I had a favor I needed to ask before I-FUCK where is it!?" Artorian would try to explain, only confusing the idol as he desperately searched his pockets. "I swear it was in here when I left this morning, where the hell did I put it!?"

"Looking for this?" Charlotte would ask, surprising him as she held up an unopened packet of tarot cards. "Karen's nurse came by asking if you were still available, apparently you forgot these after you visited Karen this morning."

"Yes, thank you Charlotte!" Artorian spoke as he held the cards with both hands. "I can't believe out of everything I forgot these, I owe you dinner for this!"

"Just a coffee will be good for me, no need to waste your money like that." Charlotte laughed at the amount of relief that was present on the boy's face.

"Sakura, I'm sorry this came up so late and that it's sudden but please-!" Bowing down, Artorian swallowed up whatever pride he had as he held the packet of cards out to the idol. "Would you please sign this? I told you I'm not a big fan of music, but my friend Karen loves your songs. It would mean the world to her if she got your autograph."

Sakura was initially surprised at the sudden bow of the boy, borderline begging as he held a single packet of cards. She's only known the boy for a few hours, but in that little time he was obviously the kind of person who wanted to let people in a room know he was there, and that he was nothing to look down on. From the way he handled himself in their car ride, to the sudden flirt display he gave in response to her attempt at teasing. It was also an impossible sight to imagine, seeing someone with such an imposing stature and even a massive sword near his same size bow for something as simple as an autograph, and making it sound like a problem no less.

But that only caused her to laugh, getting him to peek up while she gently grabbed the cards. "It'd be my pleasure to sign them, I'm sure Karen's a great friend to you if you'd be willing to ask for an autograph."

"The best one I've had." He spoke as he stood back up, watching as Souffle handed the pink idol a pen to sign the packet.

"There we go, to a true fan with a good friend." Sakura said, handing the cards back to Artorian, keeping his hand held around them as if afraid he'd lose them again.

"Thank you, I'm sorry that it was just completely out of nowhere and-"

"Don't be." She interrupted. "You were focusing on your job and I may… occasionally be a handful, so it's fine that you asked now. Besides, I'm always happy to do something nice for a fan."

'It wasn't that…' he thought, looking down in shame as the idol and her manager started to head for the limo, Sakura giving one last smiling wave to the boy before getting in, the two driving off shortly after.

"So, feel like an ass yet?" Charlotte asked, giving a knowing smirk up to the boy as he looked down to the packet of cards.

"You knew, didn't you?"

"I think I'd know Artorias' kid well enough to know how he thinks on popular icons." She answered, elbowing his hip as she looked up to him. "Maybe you should try having a more open mind."

"Maybe… we'll see." He responded, putting the cards into his pocket and buttoning it to make sure they stayed in there. A minute would go by and his PDA vibrated, getting him to pull it out to see that it was a message from Claire.

Your report came in. Would you mind coming to my house on Little Garden for the briefing? ~Claire

"That was fast." He muttered, putting his PDA back into his pocket.

"Liddy's with her, so when your business with Claire's done please bring her to my lab." Charlotte would say, not needing to see whom it was to know who left the message. "I'll have Mei Mei get Matthew and we can proceed with everything."

"Right, I'll get on that." He said, knowing the day still had a ways to go before he could consider it done.

(A/N): You know I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting to get this one out as quickly as I did. I swore this chapter would be one of the force myself to write ones that end up killing the vibe for a bit. But after completing the last chapter I couldn't stop myself and wrote a good chunk of this over the weekend. There was a hiccup here and there, but I feel this chapter did well. My only problem is that there was too much in this by the time I got to the end that my original plan for the ending is pushed back.

Oh well, at least I'll know how to start the next chapter now. Which I'll be glad to get to as I have more planned for the arcs to come, as well as changes and additions for the characters involved. But I'll save that for when I get to it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you at the next one. Peace!