Duo (A Sword Art Online Fanfic) ✔

Chapter One

"Harumi!"

I turned around, shouldering my bag. Katsu was racing down the sidewalk, making his way towards me. He apologized to a girl he accidentally raced into, before continuing on his way.

Finally, he fell into place next to me, panting slightly. He bumped my shoulder with his.

"On your way to see Rikimaru?" He asked.

I nodded, biting my lip.

Two month have passed since SAO was cleared. Within the first week, 300 players had been counted as still sleeping. Including Rikimaru and Asuna.

We weren't quite sure how Asuna and Kirito had been able to survive, but nobody was complaining. I had been ecstatic to see my "dead" friend.

Since then we all had been trying our best to acclimate back to our lives before SAO, but it was really easier said than done.

We had seen people die. We, ourselves, have killed. We weren't just going to forget any of it, no matter how many times we are told to.

Everyday since I have found him, I've gone to the hospital where Rikimaru sleeps to check up on him.

"He isn't going to wake up anytime soon, Harumi."

I looked at Katsu out of the corner of my eye. He was watching me, his brow furrowed. He seemed confused as to why I spent so much of my time beside an unresponsive body.

"I love him."

Katsu sighed, looking away. Still, he followed me.

When we arrived at the hospital, I went up to the front desk, signing in.

"Hey, Harumi! How are you today?" A passing nurse called.

"Great! How are the kids?" I replied, handing the sign in sheet back to the receptionist.

"Hyperactive!"

I laughed and we split into different ways. I turned to head upstairs, towards Rikimaru's room. Katsu followed behind me, his footsteps slow. I wondered what was up with him today.

Finally, I reached Rikimaru's room. I moved to walk in as normal, but hesitated when I saw figures in the room. As long as I'd been coming here, I've never seen anyone else visit him. I wondered if this was a first, or we've just never crossed paths.

"I'm going to go get us some coffee." Katsu told me, walking away. I could only nod absently.

I shoved my way through the door, bringing everyone's eyes to me. There were two men and an older lady. The lady was sitting in a chair, grasping Rikimaru's hand in hers, her gray hair pulled up into a tight bun. The men, however, looked as if they had been in the middle of an argument before I had arrived.

"Who are you?" The lady asked, her voice surprisingly sturdy for someone who looked so pale.

"Kiya Harumi." I replied, bowing my head slightly in respect.

"And what are you doing here?" One of the men asked roughly.

I narrowed my eyes, not so happy with his tone. However, I kept my attitude in check.

"Rikimaru is my...friend."

They watched me skeptically. They didn't seem to trust me at all, but I wasn't going to let that stop me. I moved forward, pulling up a chair to the side of Rikimaru's bed. I set my bag on the floor next to me, before taking his hand into mine.

I looked up at my audience in defiance, daring them to make me leave.

"How do you know Rikimaru?" The lady finally asked, her eyes flicking down to my grasp on his hand.

"I'm a survivor."

That word alone put pity in their eyes. The dreaded s-word. Survivor. Everybody knew that meant the players of SAO who made it.

"That didn't answer my question." The lady said, not unkindly.

I looked at her again. She was different. She didn't hold pity in her eyes, it was almost as if she...admired me. Like she was proud I had made it this far.

I decided I liked her.

"Long story short, I married him."

They froze, all heads whipping around to look at me. Not many people outside of the game knew the extent of the world of SAO, so it always took people by surprise when they realized a couple of us got married.

We were all aware marriage in the game was far from actually being married in real life, but it was our way of saying "This human is mine."

"Who are you?" I finally asked after a couple of minutes of silence.

"Rikimaru is my grandson." The lady said, "You can call me Amaya. These two are my sons: Keiji and Hisoka."

"I'm sorry, but where have you been the last two months?" I asked, frowning at them.

"My dear child, do you come everyday?"

I nodded, squeezing Rikimaru's hand tightly.

"He's not going to wake up anytime soon." She told me sadly, "There's no need to wait around for him everyday."

I told her the same thing I told Katsu: "I love him."

She sighed, seeming to realize I wasn't going to stop. She stood up, brushing her hands down her skirt.

"We best be going." She announced, "Nice to meet you, Kiya Harumi."

I nodded, and they left. It seemed oddly silent after they left, but it was quickly replaced by Katsu as he walked in, both hands holding a cup of coffee.

He took a seat in the chair across the bed and handed me a coffee. I took it gratefully, relieved to warm my hands. We sat there quietly for a couple of minutes, sipping our coffee.

"Harumi, I think you need to take a break from visiting Rikimaru." He finally said, breaking the silence.

I jerked my head up to look at him, a frown forming on my face. I don't think he understood why I came here everyday.

"He's not going to wake up anytime soon, and I know you love him, but he loved you too. He wouldn't want you spending all your time here."

"He's not dead."

Katsu sighed, looking down as he said, "Of course not, but it doesn't change the fact that this is unhealthy."

"I refuse to abandon him."

"I'm not asking you to. I'm just saying you don't need to be here everyday. Maybe when we get news about him, but it's been two months."

I opened my mouth to protest, but my phone started vibrating in my pocket, cutting me off. I shot Katsu a look that clearly said we aren't done here, before opening up the text.

My body reeled in shock when I saw it.

"What?" Katsu asked, seeing my reaction.

I wordlessly handed the phone over to him, allowing him to see the picture. He froze in shock.

"How is this possible?!"

I couldn't form an answer, because it shouldn't have been possible. He handed back the phone and I looked down at it again.

The picture was of a cage and inside it was a figure that closely resembled Asuna. Guarding the cage, however, was what really shocked me.

It was 100%, without a doubt, Rikimaru.