Ryoubai

Ryou stared as Kat got onto her hands and knees, acting like one of the boars. Her brows furrowed in confusion. She couldn't keep a straight face for long, breaking into a giggle fit. She wondered if Kat acting like a boar would actually help, but then she came up with nothing. It wasn't like her luck the first time around, finding a mushroom where a boar had been sniffing around. She went up to Kat after she was done, looking at the dirt all over her and cracked a smile. "Now you're all messy... here." She began to wipe Kat's face with her sleeve, concentrating. 

"That's alright. You tried at least." She stopped wiping her face and then looked down in the dirt with her. Her eyes widened. She spotted a clover and gently plucked it. "It's not a four-leaf clover, but it'll do. I think that's all I have to gather. Would you like to go back now?" She asked, standing and holding out her hand for Kat to grab onto.

Ryou sat up with wide eyes once Kat ran off, there were more baby boars. Ryou frowned. One of their parents could be around and be very angry at Kat for scaring them away. Hopefully they would be able to find their way back. Then she remembered, they would have to. It was part of the game, right? If she was understanding it correctly. 

She got up and went over to Kat just in case she needed her there and stood next to her. She didn't like leaving Kat alone, even if she didn't want to admit it to her. Ryou was perfectly content with gathering flowers all day. It was the most peace she had felt in a while despite the distressing situation and their previous breakdown. She smiled at Kat and looked at the mushroom. "Well, then we can stop after I get mine. I'm sorry I haven't been gathering as much. It's been nice to just... relax with you. I know it doesn't seem like I am but I really am trying!"

Ryou looked at Kat, surprised by the fact that she didn't make her nervous. She seemed to make everyone else around her nervous. It was probably the angry or bored look on her face at all times. It didn't help Ryou wasn't prone to letting her guard down, and here she was, treating Kat much differently than she did in real life. Though, she supposed it was warranted given the fight they had and how much of Ryou's stubbornness Kat had to endure throughout their friendship. "I... really didn't?" She asked, her brows raising. "I guess I'm not used to that either. You know me, always scaring all of the men at the bar." She let out a wry chuckle. It wasn't particularly funny now, given that a man from the bar was now hunting them down with a group of what she assumed to be his friends, and if not friends, some perverted acquaintances.

Ryou let out a sigh and laid in the grass. She looked at the sky and let the calm wash over her. She didn't need to worry about that now. The both of them were okay so far. She didn't want it to change. She wanted them to always be safe and healthy with each other. She wanted to apologize, but figured she had done enough of that already. She couldn't say sorry enough for being a stick in the mud all the time. In the same vein, she wanted to apologize to the people she had left behind by being trapped here. Surely her family would be worried sick and if not worried than in a bad spot financially. She shut her eyes tight, trying to push the thoughts from her mind. She was just trying to have a nice time with Kat. Why wouldn't her brain let her have just this one moment?

Her face grew redder with each compliment. She covered her mouth. "Y-You... really think that of me? Kat, you're too nice to me..." She said, smiling. Though it was a bit of a sheepish smile. Ryou hugged her a little tighter. Kat had paused to hug her back and Ryou wondered if she had made Kat uncomfortable with the gesture. Perhaps it wasn't the proper way to show her appreciation for the bouquet. She wasn't sure. She was stuttering as she talked, was she making her too uncomfortable. Ryou gently let go of her, looking into her eyes. 

"Did I make you feel too nervous? I'm sorry! I'm not... great with showing how I feel. You already know that though." She chuckled wryly. She looked away and spotted another flower patch. "Here. Why don't I get you another flower to keep for yourself?" There were what looked to be white lilies growing near a drier patch of grass. She picked two of them, one for herself and other for Kat. She held one out to her and smiled.

Ryou's eyes twinkled and she smiled as well, looking into Kat's eyes. She then looked at the bouquet, it looked good even though they were just gathering random plants. The cool breeze blew past them. Ryou felt breathless. The sun shined on Kat's hair just right. She had never noticed it before. She felt like an idiot for not noticing sooner. Her eyes widened and her cheeks went flush when Kat asked her if she wanted the bouquet. "W-Well... if you feel okay with giving it to me, yes. I'll take it. I hope it won't wilt in my inventory." She gently took it from Kat and looked at it, examining the petals as to not stare at Kat so much. She then looked up at her noticing the blush growing quickly on her face. She couldn't help but smile. 

"Thank you for the bouquet. I'll always have it with me if I can help it. I'll have to figure out how to keep it alive." She put the bouquet away and scooted over to Kat, hugging her tightly. She couldn't let Kat's gift go without something in return and she thought a hug would do. No one had ever been as nice to her as Kat had in their couple years of friendship.

Ryou was starting to feel more content in this strange new world. She didn't want them to have to stop doing things like picking flowers in a meadow or doing whatever non-dangerous odd job would come their way. This was the nicest she had ever felt. She felt as excited as when she had won Kat a prize at the festival they went to. She remembered trying to aim true with the cork gun. The game was primarily meant for children and Ryou felt self conscious playing the game. Kat was whining about how she wasn't winning anything so she wanted to make her feel happy by winning her a prize. She tended to take better care of things when Ryou gave them to her. She won quite an impressive prize for what it was worth, something on one of the top shelves. It was a small cat figurine. The way Kat smiled reminded Ryou of that time.

Her eyes widened as she looked around. "Oh-- I'll get something." She had seen some long grass that looked flexible and strong. She went over to another bush and gently picked it before going back to her. She wrapped the grass around the bouquet and tied it up tightly. "I hope that holds."

Ryou looked down, brows furrowing. She felt a pang of guilt. No wonder Kat was trying so hard, she was just trying to help Ryou to be happy. She watched as Kat tried to meticulously pick small flowers from the patch they were by. She thought as she stared blankly at Kat. No one, not even her parents, tried as hard as Kat did to make Ryou happy. She stared for a few moments more, blush slightly growing on her face. She blinked a bit and looked away. "I'm sorry I haven't ever really known how I'm supposed to act. I've never really known who I'm supposed to be. I'm at least glad I get to discover who I am with you." She smiled at her, her own eyes watering. She liked Kat's tiny bouquet.

She looked around for another patch of big flowers for Kat. In the distance she saw a large bush of them. They were taller than the rest, having a mix of light pink and purple flowers at the stems. She stood up and went over, picking a few off of the bush and coming back over to Kat. She put one in her inventory and held the others out to Kat. "There. For your bouquet."

Ryou kept repeating in her head that she had to focus on gathering. She could already feel herself starting to slip back into a cycle of doubt and panic. She held the flower close and backed up before sitting in the grass. She looked at the wind blowing through the grass. She sighed as she looked up at the sky then back at the meadows. "I'm really happy that you're here, you know that? It's keeping me together. I'm sorry I'm having a hard time. Picking flowers with you is making me feel a lot calmer." She smiled weakly. "I thought I should tell you. I don't really... want to bottle things up anymore. I hope you understand." She nodded to herself as if to agree with what she had told Kat. Ryou desperately hoped that Kat wasn't going to be mad at her.

She ran her hands through the grass and felt each blade run against her hands and fingers. "It feels so real, doesn't it? It's so odd to me. Maybe we can stay here a bit longer? So we can pick a bouquet and we can keep it? That way we'd have extra flowers to keep."

"I'm trying, I really am, Kat. I promise you." Ryou sighed once again and rubbed her face with the other hand. "This is the most fun I've had in a long time besides that festival you brought me to. Can you believe I've never been in a field like this? Or that... I've never picked flowers like this? It's so nice to be able to do this, and with someone who actually cares about me." She let a gentle smile grow on her face. "Thank you for at least being here for me for this. I'm going to keep trying my best to have fun. Oh, let's see... Maybe I can find a flower that matches you again! Maybe blue like your eyes? Or the sky?" She chuckled and looked around. Her eyes widened as she saw another patch of flowers.

She stood, gently leading Kat to them. The leaves and stem were a paler green. There was fuzz all over them and at the top were several smaller pale blue flowers that were about to bloom. She took one that looked like it was fully opened, not wanting to take the others too early. "These sort of fit. They look a bit more purple though... what do you think?" She said, holding the flower out to Kat.

A smile grew across Ryou's face as she looked at how careful Kat was being with the dandelion puff. The wind gently blew past them. She reached out to her and brushed some of the long blonde hair from being in Kat's face. "He never specified what he needed, only that it needed to be out here so he's getting what we manage to grab." She said, almost offended that Zackariah would be upset at them for following instructions. "He'll probably tell us what it does. That or we can ask people like him, can't we?" She didn't know if they would have the option to, but given that alchemy was his specialty, he would be the one to know.

Ryou watched the boar lazily trudge by them, less scared now. She heard the worry in Kat's voice as she spoke and looked at her, brows furrowed with worry as well. She gingerly grabbed her hand and nodded. She smiled to try and reassure her. She must have noticed that Ryou was worried. "I... I am! I just..." She let out a sigh. "I'm just overthinking things again. I'm really doing my best to have fun. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you."

Ryou watched Kat for a moment. She looked a bit confused as blush grew on Kat's face. She wondered what was wrong as Kat rolled away. She was doing her best not to blow it out of proportion. It wasn't that serious, she hoped. She didn't seem hurt or sick. Ryou looked back up at the sky. She wondered why she had never done this back home. She supposed it was because she was always too busy. She was sick of being too busy for anything. She worked so hard all the time and had practically nothing to show for it. The relationship with her family was close only in the regard that Ryou was the one sending them money. She had only made one friend in Tokyo and that was Kat, and even her relationship with Kat was distant and strained. Kat felt like she had to force Ryou to do anything fun.

With an increasingly worried expression she gasped as if she was going to speak then nervously smiled as Kat looked back at her. "Oh, what did you pick?" She asked, trying to get her mind off of the serious topic. Her face flushed with embarrassment. She hoped Kat didn't hear her gasp. She didn't want to explain what she was thinking. She kept a nervous smile. She was more focused on dodging Kat's questions if she needed to, again forgetting about the quest they were on.

Ryou's eyes widened as she watched Kat dramatically fall to the ground. She walked over to her and loomed over her, staring down at her. She chuckled and sat down in the grass with her. She looked up at the clear blue sky and took a deep breath. She was never able to see clearly without her glasses but she could see everything around her quite clearly. She looked at Kat and smiled. She hoped she was having a good time with her. She oddly enough hadn't felt this relaxed before. She didn't think she had ever felt like this in her life. There was always some level of stress and urgency in her life.

She looked at Kat, raising an eyebrow. She didn't think she had ever rolled around in the grass either. She did the same thing, following Kat's lead. It felt odd to have the grass brush up against her skin. She giggled with her. This was definitely something a little kid would do. Ryou had forgotten about the main objective of the quest and was more focused on having fun. While not a bad thing, she would have to get back to work sometime. For now, she would do what her heart desired.

Ryou gasped and covered her mouth. That boar was definitely bigger than the others that were scared off before. She was scared that the boars might become angry and charge her but they seemed more stubborn than anything else. Ryou remembered her father chasing away a boar that had gotten too close to her when she was small. She remembered crying because the boar was being very forceful about taking the snack from her hands. The memory sent a pang of sadness from her. Kat acted like such a little kid sometimes. She gently flicked Kat's forehead. "I saw that it didn't. The boars didn't care this time." She smirked and chuckled, teasing her lightly.

Ryou did some searching herself. She spotted a patch of bright yellow flowers and decided to pick one. The rest looked like they were just starting to grow. She didn't want to pluck them all. It was odd to feel the fibrous stem between her fingers. She shook off the thought, thinking too much about the existentialism of the game was sure to send her into another spiral. Instead she would take it one step at a time. She took a deep breath and looked at the flower, then back up at Kat. She smiled. "This looks like you." She said, holding it up for her to see. She was still a bit monotone, but she was being more expressive without the alcohol. She got up and dusted herself off with one hand. She hoped she could find other interesting plants, she wanted to find a variety. Not for Zackariah but for herself, to see what other kinds of plants there were in this world.

Ryou laughed along with her. She wondered if this is what her childhood was supposed to be like. She was having fun skipping with Kat. She felt the wind going through her hair. It was nice and it felt like she was finally letting loose. It was nice to feel this free. Her eyes glistened in the sunlight. She looked out at the street ahead of them. The weight seemed to be lifting off her shoulders. She hoped Kat was feeling happy too. She looked less uncomfortable as well. She felt calmer once Kat was being her usual self again.

She looked out at the wide plains and her eyes widened as she was dragged out. She scared, seeing at the boars. Boars were usually ornery if people weren't careful. The boars seemed more scared of them. Ryou yelped when they squealed and ran off. "I-It's alright, Kat. They'll come back once we're gone." She felt more relieved now that they were gone. She wasn't sure if the players would be much better. She spotted a mushroom and her eyes widened. She reached out but Kat had already reached down to grab it. She smiled. At least Kat got it. "Good! Just four more to go." 

Ryou thought about leaving the city herself. She didn't even want to know what it was like out there given how much of a hard time they had while they were within the city's walls. She took a few deep breaths and then nodded and smiled lightly at Kat. "Yes, lets go. I'm sure there will be things growing right outside so we won't even have to travel far." The reasurrance was good for both Kat and Ryou, they needed it badly. Ryou hoped that they really wouldn't have to travel far at all. She watched Kat dance around with a chuckle, seeing her happy always did make her feel better. She got off the ground with Kat's help and followed along with her.

Her eyes widened as Kat suddenly stopped. She was confused but then saw her facial expression. Ryou frowned as well and grabbed her hand. She didn't deserve to feel scared or sad. "If people are smart, they'll move out of the way before they get hit by us." She smiled at her and began to skip with her. Blush lightly grew on her cheeks as she tried it. She wasn't sure if she had ever skipped, but it was a bit embarrassing. She wasn't one to do something so childish but if it was for Kat, it was worth it. She had already made up her mind. If those men ever saw them again, she'd make sure they'd regret ever hassling them again.

Ryou gently smiled at her. Her tears had finally dried and she was relieved that Kat was starting to feel better despite their shaky start to the day. She thought about what Zackariah had said, he didn't mention having to kill anything, only gathering. She checked the details of the quest just to be sure, and she was correct. "No, it doesn't say anything about killing things. We just have to gather stuff, it doesn't say what though. Just five things outside of the city walls." She shrugged. She didn't like how open ended it was. It could be worse, she thought. It could be something highly specific and harder to get. Zackariah really didn't care what they gathered? She shook off the thought, she had to remember that he wasn't real. She assumed that if they wanted to craft something specific, they would need specific ingredients.

She put a hand on Kat's shoulder. "It will be easy. Only five things, then we can go back into the city. Nothing more, nothing less." She tried to reassure her. She didn't want it to be anything more. She also decided against making the spreadsheet for Dorian. He wouldn't be needing it after all. He would continue to be scatterbrained for as long as the game needed him to be. It was a weird thought and it made her feel uneasy.

Ryou hated how guarded she continued to be after Kat had been so good to her. She wanted to open up more about everything she had asked her about. She was friends with Ryou for long enough to ask about her past and her family, after all. Ryou always thought there was wasn’t much to say. If she was being honest, she wasn’t sure if she had her own personality or if she ever did. She had always been working herself to the bone, too busy, and too quiet. She didn’t allow herself to have fun. She had to keep moving like a shark or else she felt she would get too comfortable and too lazy. She was just starting to feel comfortable enough to go to the bar to see Kat and get drunk. That wasn’t really her personality either. There would have to be a lot of self-discovery while they were both in here. She couldn’t take making Kat so sad, especially while they were trapped. Her being like this didn’t help anything. The disappointment and shame in herself was overflowing. She wanted to show how deeply, horribly sorry she was for a number of things. How she was while they were out of the game and how she was acting while they were here.

Tears began to stream down more readily when Kat put her hand on Ryou’s head. She sat up a bit and looked back into Ryou’s eyes. She sniffled. “I’ll do my best to understand from now on, okay?” She said, trying to smile for Kat. “You don’t need to apologize.” She gently pet Kat’s head. “We’ll be alright and we’ll have fun…” She assured her. She wasn’t sure how they would have fun after both of their breakdowns but she was sure they would try their best. She stood up with Kat. “We have to go outside of the city’s walls. Are you ready?”

Ryou wanted to reach out but moved her hand back as she looked at Kat. Her lips were tightened into a frown as she tried to keep it together herself. She hated seeing Kat cry. She made her cry too much already. The worst case scenarios already started playing in her head. Kat wouldn't want to play this with her anymore and they would go off on their separate ways and never see each other again. They would be injured or worse while she was angry at her. She didn't know what to think anymore. She wanted so badly to loosen up. She didn't want to be the serious type anymore. She stared back into Kat's eyes. Tears were already starting to well up. "I'm sorry... I just-- I just... I've never really played any video games before. I'll keep in mind that they're not... real..." She stuttered out. The concept was hard to grasp for Ryou, they acted so real, but it made sense that they weren't real given that they were there before all of the players and the fact that they didn't yell or scream when their things were destroyed...

Kat just kept going on with her grievances towards Ryou. She hated it when people screamed at her, especially Kat. She never meant to make her so upset. She couldn't get anything right, not even being stuck in this stupid game. She didn't have any obligations and she acted like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders despite leaving them all behind. She felt like an idiot. Ryou did the only thing left she could think of. She got on her hands and knees and bowed, her head touching the floor. "I'm sorry, Kat. Please forgive me... I'll do my best to have fun from now on!" Her voice broke as tears streamed down and onto the stone street. 

Ryou could already feel Kat beginning to ice her. She didn’t like making Kat upset, but to Ryou, this was so much more than a game now. It was their life and she wanted to make sure they didn’t get into any trouble. She wanted them to be okay, so in her mind, they had to be careful. This was only the beginning, so they should make a good first impression to the other players. All except for the man Kat had promised them to. She hadn’t seen him around and hoped it would stay that way. Ryou rushed to follow Kat outside. “Kat— wait!” She called out. The door was slammed in front of her face. She sighed and opened the door, walking out.  

She didn’t think she was taking the leadership roll too far, but then again Kat seemed so upset. It was time she swallowed her pride. “I’m sorry… I know I’m not the best at this. I’ll try harder, okay? I didn’t mean to make you upset. I just got scared. I don’t want you to get in trouble.” Ryou said as she looked down sheepishly. Kat was so ready and willing to let this world take them on a brand new adventure. She wished she could be as spontaneous as she was. Ryou had always been a stick in the mud. She hoped she could change on this first quest. 

Ryou watched Kat carefully, an eyebrow raised. Ryou's stare bore into Kat, Kat knew that stare well, she usually saw it when she was doing something bad. Ryou knew that she was up to something, probably debating on what to break and unfortunately she was right. She shook her head at her mouthing "don't do it". Ryou listened to the man repeat what he was trying to say. So they really would have to do his quest before they could ask if he had Dorian's money. Then Kat pushed a potion off of the table. She screamed out of surprise. If that was the effect that happened when something was destroyed, would it be the same if someone died? She felt sick to her stomach. She wondered what the warning said for Kat and went over to her. 

"Kat, stop! Now he's going to call the guards! We're going to be in so much trouble..." Despite everything he finished what he had to say, and they were still welcome to complete the quest for him despite her breaking his things. Her brows were furrowed with worry and she waited with bated breath for the guards to show up. They never did. "Yes, we would be happy to accept your quest if you would allow us." She said, hoping she could salvage this. She wasn't sure why he didn't seem annoyed at Kat's interruption, or at her breaking his property. Perhaps he was just patient. He must have known a majority of the people in the town were new and trying to get their bearings. She yelped and looked at Kat again, glaring at her. "That's enough. Stop messing with him. Let's do the quest, okay?"

Ryou still didn't understand the concept of what an NPC was. She wasn't sure what an older man was doing playing a game like this. She just assumed they wouldn't have the time or interest. She wondered about Dorian's life outside of the game. Was he that scatter-brained in person or just here? Was he a mayor in real life like he was in the game? She set it in her mind that she would create a spreadsheet for him, just like she had done at work for all of his outstanding loans once she had collected enough information and give it to him. She hoped it would help. With the weird mashup of technological advancement in this world, there weren't any computers besides their menus if they were counting them. She got lost in her thoughts again as she almost passed Zackariah's shop before Kat tugged on her cloak.

Her eyes widened and she yelped, stumbling back a bit. She looked up around and sure enough, she was just about to miss his shop. "Oh, sorry. I'm just thinking. I need to pay more attention." She mumbled before holding the door open for Kat. The shop's bell jingled as they were greeted by the smell of herbal concoctions. She went inside after Kat. There was an older man behind the counter, bustling around with his alchemy equipment. He glanced up from his work and smiled at the pair. "Hello, welcome in. I'll be just a moment." He said as he grabbed a couple of jars from the shelves with different herbs and what looked to be bug wings. "If you're here to order something, I'm afraid I'm beginning to run out of supplies. There will be a wait until I can get some more." He said, still focusing mainly on his work.

Ryou watched him work. "No we're... not here--" She was cut off by Zackariah as his eyes sparkled and he looked up at them with a smile on his face, he must have had an idea. Ryou looked at him a bit nervously. "Would you be willing to collect some more supplies for me? I have quite the backlog of orders to complete today and I can't complete them without more flowers, rare woods, what you would find outside of the city walls. I promise I'll help you fill your order once you return. I'll even teach you how to make your own potions. Does that sound good?" Ryou looked a bit annoyed. She would have to complete this before asking him her question, wouldn't she? She nodded, then looked to Kat. She hoped she wouldn't start breaking his things for answers.

 

She turned around and gave a nod, smiling slightly. She completely forgot to get the name of the person who Dorian had given his money to. She turned around and walked away with Kat. She looked around and then tried to open the menus to look at her map. After a few minutes of trying to get it open, finally the map was open. She looked like she was concentrating hard on not getting lost. She wasn't even sure how they had gotten around without it in the first place. Maybe that kid was looking at his map as well, but she didn't see it, as far as she knew. She occasionally glanced over to Kat to make sure she was keeping up alright. Ryou walked with purpose towards their destination, making sure to look tough so people didn't think about messing with them.

Ryou raised an eyebrow as she heard Kat. "No, you didn't make me mad. I just don't think Dorian understood why you were upset. Then again, he does seem a bit scatter-brained, doesn't he?" She explained as she kept walking down the street. "The map is the only way I'm managing to get there without us being lost." Ryou rolled her eyes a bit and sighed. "I don't think we have to do any of that. Dorian seemed forgetful, not angry that Zackariah hadn't paid him back yet. I'd rather us not have to beat him up for money. I hope Zackariah just forgot too." She shook her head, almost pouting herself. "Let's not break anything. We wouldn't want to make a bad first impression, would we? Let's at least try and be polite first." She said, hoping to persuade her. Ryou was doing her best to rationalize what they would have to do if it came down to violence. She didn't doubt that the creator of the game would make the first quest something horrible like threaten a person to collect a debt. She wanted to actually learn how to use things in this game so that Kat and her would have a better chance at survival.

Ryou listened intently and nodded. Her eyes widened and she jumped a bit when the quest notification popped up in front of her. He must have really been in character. She pressed the accept button after Kat said that they would. She may have been the party leader, but she didn't want to make big decisions like that without her companion's input first. She looked at Kat with a raised eyebrow with her sudden exclamation about the weirdness of the game. He responded like someone deeply in character would, saying it wasn't. It felt wrong. Why did they have to act like this? Did it help with coping with the situation? It certainly didn't feel like a game to Ryou, or to Kat. 

She continued to nod along to Dorian's thoughts about debt collection, then shot a sharp glance at Kat when she yelled at the poor man. "Kat, please... he's calling you miss out of respect. He's not doing it to be mean..." She said, her brows then furrowing with worry. She looked at Dorian nervously. "She will do this quest with the utmost care, sir. Please excuse us. We've had a very stressful morning." She said trying to match the way he spoke. Generally she spoke more casually than that but she thought of it like talking to her bosses. She did her best to placate him for the time being. He must have thought they weren't up to the task now. Not that it was Kat's fault, they really were stressed and with that kid calling her miss as well, it didn't help. "We'll get started right away. Thank you for entrusting us with this." She said, giving a slight bow before leading Kat away.

Ryou looked at Kat, tilting her head a bit at her frustration. "I'm not sure why they don't just call it a group. Is it like that in all the games like this? Was your group called a party in Dragon Quest?" She asked, looking confused herself. She still didn't get it, but the wording didn't quite matter to her. Hopefully when Kat accepted the invitation, they would be able to keep better track of each other. She desperately didn't want to relive having to sift through people to find her, for both of their sakes. She watched as Kat struggled with the menus, Ryou was still having a bit of trouble herself but was slowly getting the hang of it. Pressing at the air felt so weird, she thought, but actually touching the menus felt like something. It was mind-boggling.

Ryou jumped slightly at Kat's sudden squeak. She glanced up and saw Kat's username pop up under hers with a green bar. The green bar must have been health, she thought. The crushing weight of what that meant hit her. Health was quantified, and if it was empty, Kat would die in front of her. Being able to see how much life someone had left was terrifying. In any case, at least she would be able to help protect her and heal her if push came to shove. She didn't want Kat's health to be anything but full, but that was wishful thinking in this world. They were just about to take a quest, after all. She looked at Kat once she began talking again and nodded. 

She yelped a bit with the sudden noise behind them. She spun around and got in front of Kat. It was the man with the monocle. Ryou let out a slight sigh of relief. "I-It's nice to meet you, Dorian. I'm Ryou, and this is Kat. What quest do you have for us?" 

Ryou still seemed very groggy after their nap in the alleyway. Her back didn't hurt which surprised her as they were resting on a bumpy, uneven cobblestone road. Ryou explained to the boy that she had never played a video game like this before. She had played Tetris or Snake, but that was it. She frowned as he seemed surprised. She also wondered how they found each other after they had wandered for most of the day. Ryou spent a lot of her time before they had all been teleported to the square trying to open her menu and log out. She hoped that the starter quest wouldn't be too dangerous. She didn't exactly trust that the game's system or rules would be fair.

She rubbed her eyes a bit as she was dragged along by Kat. She was sure to hold on tightly to Kat's hand as well. After what happened, she was scared about her being lost or worse. She was surprised that the boy knew where to go. He must have been good at video games before being trapped in here. She wondered when he found the time. When she was his age, she didn't find the time at all. That and she didn't have access to games all that often. It made her wonder if she squandered her childhood, always studying and never doing anything fun. 

Ryou looked nervously at the man with the monocle. He kept on trying to talk to anyone that passed him by. In the real world, people like that made her nervous anyway. She did her best to avoid him but she actually had to talk to this person. She listened to Aki and the boy talk. She smiled gently at Aki's pouting. She had never liked it when people tried to talk to her like that. When they had first met, Ryou addressed her as "miss" as well, but Aki instructed her to call her by her name. She wondered what nickname she would come up with for this world. People generally just addressed people by their usernames, she thought. It wasn't as if Aki's username was particularly long or needed shortening. She probably just thought a nickname would be cute. She smiled once again once "Kat" was suggested. It was very fitting for her. 

Ryou let out a chuckle as Kat pouted more. At least the kid still called her Kat. Once the boy had explained what they had to do and bounded off, Ryou waved goodbye to him, then looked down. "Aren't all of these people doing his quest anyway? He won't mind if we do it again too?" She shook her head. "It's a game. I have to remember that it's a game. Of course he wouldn't mind." Ryou rationalized to herself out loud. She snapped out of it when Kat began to speak. "I think he meant like a group. I know we can make one but let me look up how." She said, opening up her menu. She had gotten the hang of that at least. She read the instructions and opened up the menu to add Kat as a friend, then invited her to a party. "There. Now all you have to do is accept the invitation."