Fairy Dance

Taking A Break

“My, my, you’re such a cold woman,” Suguo says as he drops back on the bed after making Asuna uncomfortable with his touches. “It’s just a fake body. It won’t hurt anything. Don’t you want to enjoy yourself a little?”

“You wouldn’t understand,” Asuna softly retorts. Suguo wasn’t in SAO, he wouldn’t understand the real-world implications the virtual body has. For one, death was as real as life, a matter that everyone in the world knew but only those 10,000 experienced. Therefore, since death was as real as life, everything about life held in the same regard as the real world. That included, for the women, their bodies. Asuna couldn’t count how many times Kirito and Jaymes didn’t realize how important an opportunity to bathe was to Asuna and Koharu, how important it was for them to have some input on their appearances, and of course, there were times privacy mattered. To the girls, they were still teenagers and acted as teenagers. She cannot speak for Jaymes and his former partner or him and Lisbeth, but even allowing Kirito to lay a hand on her the way Suguo is meant a lot..“It doesn’t matter whether your body is real or virtual. Not to me, anyway.”

“You’re trying to say it damages your mind? Hehe. I think it'd be a good idea to learn to enjoy yourself while you can.”

“I won’t be here forever. He’ll come to save me. They both will.”

“Who will? Your boyfriend and his buddy, maybe? The heroes, Kirito and Jaymes.” Asuna gasps as Suguo rises with a knowing smile. He knows them already? “Wasn’t his real name Kirigaya? And there’s the Hardin heir. I met them yesterday on the other side. Now while the heir impressed me, I couldn’t believe that weak little boy could be the hero who beat SAO. Where do you think I met them? Your hospital room. While you lay there, I told them I’d be marrying you next week and the look on their faces… It was splendid. And the pitiful threat Hardin made... I could barely stop myself from bursting into laughter. Hahahaha! I bet those boys won’t have the guts to put on a NerveGear again. That’s right… I invited the Hardin boy to the wedding and told him to bring Kirigaya. I’m sure he’ll come to see you wearing your wedding dress. I have to make sure the hero gets to enjoy that much. Hahahaha!”

Suguo rises from the nearby table. “Then, I’ll see you soon, Titania. I’m sure you’ll be lonely, but you have to endure it.” As Suguo departs, Asuna has two thoughts in her mind. One, the two boys she loves and cares for the most in the world are alive and together, and that Suguo is wrong about them. If Jaymes after Koharu’s death is any indicator, he’ll come for her and drag Kirito with him at least. The second thing on her mind is that the reflection of the panel on the mirror circling her bed is not pixelated like her direct view of the keypad. She now knows the sequence is 8-11-3-2-9. Now all she has to do is escape...and potentially rendezvous with Kirito and Jaymes...

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Leafa stretches as she, Strea, and the boys land back in the Ancient Forest in Neutral Territory, just finishing some combat with flying monsters. The trio has fought well so far, especially Strea. Leafa didn’t know Private Pixies could be equipped with weapons and fight alongside their owners, but as weird Yui’s position as an AI, Strea’s even more confusing. In Leafa’s eyes, she acts like another player. She has a race, can use weapons and magic, and is exceptionally familiar with the boys, especially Jaymes.

Nevermind all that. “Are you guys tired?”

“Not yet,” Kirito says.

“You’re pretty tough. But our journey in the sky is at an end for a while.”

“Why is that,” Jaymes asks.

Leafa points ahead above the treeline. “You see that mountain, right? It’s above the altitude limit, so to pass it, you have to go through the caves. It’s the toughest part of the trip between Slyph territory and Arun, or so I’ve heard. I’ve never been past this point, either.”