[PP - F4/11] The Search Goes on (Telrenya)

[Jomei 0]

Without thinking too much on it, Telrenya took Jomei’s assistance in standing up. Flashing a quick smile to the girl, he lead her to the opposite side of the cavern where light lacked. He felt along the walls as it got darker and darker, as he expected, the wall curved into a deeper cave. “This way.” Jomei said softly to Tel, walking with her down the dark hallway. Despite being in a part of the cavern where light would not reach, some of the large crystal formations they passed still glistened, giving off the tiniest bit if light to lead them in the right direction. Jomei kept cautious during the walk, who knew what the darkness hid from them. He kept one of his hands close to the handle of his rapier in case anything decided to attack them, leaving his other dangling at his side. 

He felt the gentle brush of Telrenya’s knuckles against his own, followed by the warmth of her palm as it pressed against his own. Her fingers slid against Jomei’s, finding the spaces in between his own. The ginger looked to his side, the large crystal they walked past glistening, bringing just enough light to Telrenya’s face to see her eyes and smile.

The farther they walked, the lighter it seemed to get. Jomei felt a wave of relief as they turned a corner and saw the snow covered land through a person sized exit in the cave. Jomei helped Telrenya through the hole before he followed her trough. Unlike most of the rest of the floor he found, it was not snowing heavy here, just as there were no monsters to be found. With Telrenya’s hand in his own, they continued through the sea of snow covered trees, until they came to a clearing. Jomei’s gaze moved upward, catching a perfect image if the night sky through the canopy of leaves. 

[Telrenya 0]

Had it not been for Jomei's presence beside her and the feeling of their hands intertwined, Telrenya would have found the growing darkness unsettling. Her eyes ran along the side of their path, unable to see much farther past the occasional crystal's glow. She somehow doubted that any secrets lay beyond the walkway and in the field of crystal formations jutting out from the ground and across the cave walls, but even if there had been it would have been impossible for them to find among the darkness.

Just as she was wishing she had some kind of item that would provide them with more light to travel by, she blinked a few times to make sure she was properly registering the growing light in the distance. It seemed to spill out from somewhere, and as they tread closer to the source the couple discovered the path may very well lead them outside of the cavern. Although her heart was no longer sunken, she felt it lift at the possibility of their freedom.

Telrenya and Jomei emerged at the edge of a still forest covered in a pristine blanket of snow. With a light crunching that sounded with every step beneath them, Telrenya almost felt as if the breath in her lungs was stolen from her when she followed Jomei to look up to the night sky. Her eyes almost seemed to sparkle as the beauty of a starry night sky lay spread out above them, free from the pollution of city lights or smog to inhibit their view. "Wow..." She breathed out, frozen in place as her gaze drifted between twinkling constellations. "I wonder, if this is the place that girl had mentioned?" She thought aloud, giving Jomei's hand a tiny squeeze.

[Jomei 0]

His eyes were focused on the night sky above them, the stars shining in the night sky. A small tinge of sadness crossed his mind, knowing that they were not real stars. However none of that mattered to him right now in this moment. He felt a small sqeueeze on his hand, which brought his attention back to the blonde haired woman who stood next to him. She asked if this was the place the waitress mentioned before, the Starglades. Jomei smirked and shook his head, “I don’t know.. but despite its.. still a beautiful sight.” He realized that as he called it a ‘beautiful sight’ that he had actually been looking at Telrenya, looking at the stars that reflected on her brown eyes as her gaze was aimed towards the stars. His cheeks taking on a pink hue, he took a sidestep towards Telrenya, placing an arm around her shoulders and looking up at the stars with her. He chuckled, “so.. i don’t think i have to tell you at this point that, I really care about you.” He laughed at his own statement as he admitted the already known truth to her. 

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya felt the weight of Jomei's arm as his hand wrapped around her shoulder. She leaned into him slightly, allowing her head to rest gently against the man's chest as another tinge of blush decorated her cheeks. Their bashful natures mixed together as Jomei offered her a more straight-forward confession, and she brought her hands in front of her stomach for her fingers to lightly fidget between themselves. His words had only widened her warm smile, and she tore her gaze away from the starlit sky and it dropped to the floor of the empty glade before them.

"I, uhm..." She fumbled with her words before letting out a small chuckle at her own shyness. "Well, I feel the same way."

The clearing was free from snowfall and strong winds, filled with a sense of seclusion and serenity as if they were the only two players in all of Aincrad. "So..." Telrenya started softly to break the silence. "Technically, our date isn't over yet, right?" A small smile persisted, though she couldn't bring herself to raise her eyes from the snowy floor. "Would you...like to continue it here?" She offered, taking a liking to the thought of spending time under the starlight alone with the man.

[Jomei 0]

The man could not help but laugh when the shy girl leaned into his chest, confirming that she felt the same way about Jomei. “Good” the man replied with a bright smile,   “It would have made that kiss a lot more awkward if you didn’t.” He laughed a bit again before he turned his head, pressing his lips into Telrenya’s temple.

After a moment of enjoyable silence standing there together, Telrenya asked if they could continue their date here together. Jomei looked down at her and smiled, “Yeah.. I’d like that.” He looked around, finding a spot under one of the trees where the snow was not as thick and easy to clear off. Separating himself from the woman, he brushed off the spot and sat down, inviting Tel to join him. Together they sat, enjoying each others company. Even if they sat in silence together, it would still bring warmth to his heart. For once, in a long long time, he was happy again, and his smile was genuine.

[Telrenya 0]

She giggled, feeling a flutter in her heart at his banter before he had placed a kiss upon her head. She followed after him as they designated a place to sit underneath a large oak tree that preserved the impressive view of the night sky above them. The woman tucked her legs beside her, leaning into Jomei again as if she were drawn to his frame. It felt comforting to even exist beside him, but so much moreso when she could rest her head against his shoulder like this.

For a few minutes they just sat in silence, enjoying each other's presence in the tranquil setting. The woman began to think, and her mind started to wander. Although she cared for him deeply, and she had taken a peek into the darker side of his life in Aincrad, she knew very little about the Irishman. But there had been something in particular that had intrigued her since their first meeting.

"Have you always been a musician?" She asked simply with a small smile. Thinking back to when Jomei had first demonstrated his Performer ability with his lute, it had left her with a bittersweet feeling. Her own memories of a musical background left her with a bit of homesickness.

A minute or two passed after the topic had died down between them, and another curiosity surfaced itself. "Did you play a lot of other games before SAO came out?" Something that always seemed to present itself as a difference between herself and other players was her severe lack of a gaming background. Only drawing slight interest in them from her brother's obsessions, it seemed as though he intended the gift of the game to be a catalyst to get her really involved.

[Jomei 0]

The two found comfort beneath the large tree, their bodies leaning into eachother, and taking in each others warmth. Telrenya eventually broke the silence, asking Jomei about his past as a musician. “Actually, I was a musician before SAO, well.. I did a lot more while I was in school. When I was in college in Ireland, I would sometimes play at some of the pubs during their open mic night. After I graduated, though, I started to put more focus on finding work..” he chuckled “Didnt have too much luck there, guess it doesnt matter since we’re stuck here now.... Anyway, I was happy to be able to pick it up again in SAO. Even though the system does much of the work, its still fun for me.. What about you? Were you any sort of musician in real life? Or have any other hobbies?”

After their talk about Jomei’s musical past, Telrenya continued on with asking if Jomei had any experience playing games before this. “Yeah, from time to time.. nothing on this scale though. I played a lot of regular MMOs and RPGs. So I was somewhat familiar with the gameplay and mechanics here.. though the virtual reality thins is on a whole new level.”

[Telrenya 0]

"Ahh, yeah actually. I took violin lessons for a few years." She spoke in the past tense, but truthfully she would still be practicing if she had the chance. She gave a small chuckle at the thought. "I can't wait to play again." She breathed out with a wistful tone. Still, she was happy to find some more common ground between them.

"Mmm..." Her gaze dropped a bit and she let out a small sigh that resulted in a puff of fog appearing in front of her face. "I always thought I was no good at games." She chuckled. "My brother actually got two copies of the game. He's way into them and always tried to get me to play." She lifted her chin again to look back up at the twinkling stars projected above them.

"Ah! What's Ireland like?" She perked up and asked the man eagerly, turning her face towards him as she did so. She had a bit of experience with moving countries herself, but her knowledge of the world outside of the places she'd lived was regrettably limited.

[Jomei 0]

Jomei’s eyes lit up when Telrenya told him that she used to play the violin, and that she could not wait to start playing again. Gently, he picked his head up from atop of her blonde and looked down at her. “You play the violin?” Jomei asked, his voice emanating with excitement. He smirked and leaned his head back, “Lucky for you, I have an array of instruments in my workshop.. I would love to hear you play, if you’d like to come by.” He knew that the skills given to one by the Performer profession allowed one to play any instrument the game had, as well as record songs on crystals. However, he found out that one did not need those skills to play those instruments, so thinking of seeing Telrenya play the violin warmed his heart.

After mentioning her lack of experience with video games, and me telling Jomei it was more of her brother who games, she switched the topic to Jomei’s home country of Ireland. Jomei was relieved that she changed the topic, as to avoid upsetting her by speaking of her brother. 

Jomei laughed, “Everything is not as green as they make it seem... I went to school in Dublin, but I grew up just outside of the city on the shore town of Bray. It was a wonderful place to live.. some parts are just.. breath takingly beautiful... but, I actually spent most of my life living in Japan. Family reasons. Living there back now to be with my mother who.. got .. sick.” His voice lowered, worrying about his mother’s condition. “W-well how about you? Where did you grow up? If you dont mind me asking.”

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya's eyes went wide with wonder at Jomei's offer. "What? I always thought...you had to have the skill to do that..." She quickly averted her gaze and her voice dropped in volume halfway through the sentence while she mumbled out the rest, thoroughly embarrassed by her assumption after being in the game for so long. She tried not to dwell on the feeling, however, and another small, warm smile surfaced on her expression at the thought of playing for Jomei. She gave a tiny nod, giving one last thought on the topic. "I'd love to, though."

She listened to him talk about his original home, her heart lifting a bit at his descriptions while she wished for a moment that perhaps she might be able to see it someday. Before the embarrassment from her own thoughts caught hold of her, Jomei's voice faded and she faced him again. He had turned the question back to her, and she quickly decided it best not to press any more painful memories.

"I grew up in the US," She smiled lightly at the recollection, tilting her head so that it rested against Jomei's chest again. "In a busy town. When I was about...twelve? Maybe thirteen. My parents got a job offer and we uprooted and moved to Japan, too." She smiled at another thing they had in common and a small giggle escaped her. "My brother didn't like it, but I was so excited. We lived in Kyoto ever since then. My brother worked to help pay the bills, and I went to an arts college."

[Jomei 0]

As the thought of Telrenya living in the same country as Jomei currently made the butterfly-like feeling in his chest start up again. The possibility of being able to see her in the real world, and not just an avatar that matched her beautiful self, gave him hope, as well as determination. The man was determined as ever to survive until they saw floor 100, to survive to return to the real world, where he could possibly have the chance to continue this relationship with her for real. He laughed, “It was similar for me, I suppose.. my mother was desperate for a job. So desparate that she started looking abroad. An office in Japan hired her almost immediately, so we moved out there.” She went on mentioning her brother yet again, a small frown formed on his lips. Jomei wrapped both of his arms around the girl about chest level and held her close to him, placing his head on hers yet again. “You two sounded like you were close.. I never har a real brother like that. We will find him, Tel. Even if it kills me to get you two back together.” He held the girl as tight and close to his body as he could, knowing his comment would most likely upset the girl. “I will always be here for you.” He said, his voice soft as he whispered his vow to Tel.

[Telrenya 0]

The feeling of Jomei's embrace was unexpected, but comforting and welcomed. Her smile stretched wider, and her hands traveled up to to curl her fingers around his arm. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of safety that his hold provided.

'Don't say that!' The words immediately sounded in her mind. Her eyes opened at his statement of risking his own life. She wanted to turn her head and scold the man for such a comment. She stopped herself before doing so, feeling his arms pull her tighter as if he had anticipated such a reaction from her. His close, hushed voice reached her again, and her grip subconsciously tightened, giving his arm a light squeeze. "Jomei..." She whispered his name with adoration, lost for words for a moment. She let out a breathy half-chuckle while she gave a small shake of her head, as if to cuddle up against his embrace.

Despite the cold that surrounded them, Telrenya felt as though she could comfortably fall asleep in Jomei's arms. She closed her eyes again, wishing that even though they were trapped in a virtual reality, even though they still had a long and treacherous road ahead of them before they would be allowed their freedom, she wished for just a moment that they could stay like this forever.

A minute or two later and she almost felt herself nodding off. "So, uhm..." She spoke up in a small voice. "When would you...like to have another date?" She asked shyly.

[Jomei 0]

By the random silences and gentle head jerks from the girl every few moments, Jomei was able to judge that Telrenya must be tired, and was falling asleep in his arms. While she was still awake, she asked Jomei in a shy voice when their next date would be. The ginger grinned, happy the girl was just as excited to see Jomei again as he was to see her. “Soon” he told her, “Very soon.”

After taking in just another moment of holding the girl in his arms, enjoying the serenity of the snowfall and stars in the night sky above them, Jomei broke the silence. “Its getting late. We should get you home.” The two stood up, brushing the snow off of his clothes, and helping Telrenya brush some of the snow off of her sweater as well. The man figured out which way was south of ther position before leading the woman back towards the town of Snowfrost. “I can walk you back to your shop..if you’d like... unless you’re staying somewhere else?”

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya couldn't suppress a small yawn after they stood up, stretching her arms above her head after they had separated. They started walking, and Jomei offered to walk her to her shop. The woman's mouth opened as she was about to shyly explain that she would most likely just be staying at an inn, but a look of realization crossed her and she stopped in her tracks for a moment.

"We forgot about the stolen items!" She exclaimed, quickly urging herself to move again before she fell behind. "Aahh, I don't even know how long it's been since we first ran off." She mumbled, hoping they would be able to find the child in Snowfrost to return their belongings.

As they made their way back to the snowy settlement, Telrenya thought again about Jomei's offer, deciding to continue with what she had meant to say minutes earlier. "Actually... I'll probably just stay at an inn." She had tried to let the words leave her casually, but she still felt a bit of embarrassment. "Usually it's in Delilah, but I'm not really picky. I can just stop at the one here if it'll be easier!" She forced a smile through the admittance. Her words were truthful, but she couldn't help feeling awkward as they came out.

[Jomei 0]

Telrenya told Jomei that she would be staying at an inn, rather than her shop. It was a costlier choice of the two, though more comfortable. Jomei did not miss his tiny bed roll on the small attic space used normally for storage. Another thought crossed Jomei’s mind, causing his face to turn red, breaking eye contact with the woman. Bringing his right hand up, he scratched at the hair on the back of his head, “Well.. if you want..” Before Jomei could finish speaking his thought, Telrenya interrupted him with a more serious situation; they had ran out this far to stop a thief and return the stolen goods to the young player back in town. Those items were still in Telrenya’s bag. 

Jomei’s eyes went wide for a moment before he laughed. “We better find that kid before he thinks we ran off with his items.” The two made their run back to Snowfrost, heading South and avoiding all of the monsters aggro zones, making it back safely. Now back in the safety of Snowfrost’s sade zone, Jomei spotted the solemn looking player sitting inside of the inn where the two first started their date. Jomei led Telrenya inside and up to the player, his eyes widened when he recognized the two from before. “I think we have some things that belong to you.” Jomei said with a smile, gesturing to Telrenya who held the items in her inventory.

Once the transaction had finished, and they returned to the snowy streets, Jomei turned to Telrenya. “Well.. hell of a first date, if I do say so myself.” He smiled at the woman warmly, before the blush came back to his cheeks. “A-anyway.. I was going to ask if.. well.. if you wanted to save money on staying at an inn.. you could... well..” he took a quick breath, looking the girl in her brown eyes, “you.. could always stay the night at my house... I mean, if you want.. I understand if you don’t I just... just thought I’d offer.” 

[Telrenya 0]

A bit of weight lifted from her shoulders when she saw the bright smile that lit up the child's face after his items were returned. Before departing, the woman gave him a friendly reminder that as long as he stayed in the safe zones, nobody could bully or hurt him.

The couple returned to the snowy streets outside. She smiled back, though a small squeeze in her chest signaled her reluctance as the feeling that they might soon part ways hung in the atmosphere. The pink hue that touched on his cheeks left the woman a bit confused, listening curiously as he stammered out the invitation. The oblivious girl blinked, unable to register what had made the man so nervous for a moment before it finally her hit. Realization shone in her eyes, and a blush of her own decorated her cheeks.

"O-oh, well..." She stammered back, her hands hovering in front of her sweater as her fingers began to fidget with themselves. She dropped her gaze, unable to maintain eye contact as a flurry of thoughts bombarded her. 'Does he just mean for me to use a room at his house? Or...' The blonde shook her head lightly. 'No no, stop it.' She urged herself. She felt bad for doubting the man, however briefly. Realizing her internal arguments had slightly manifested when she had shaken her head, Telrenya smiled shyly and looked back up to the man. "That... That would actually be really nice!" She hurried out while a light blush continued to touch on her skin.

[Jomei 0]

Telrenya’s answer was one that Jomei was not expecting. With her usual shy smile on her face, Telrenya accepted Jomei’s invitation to spend the night at his house. Jomei’s own face lit up, still pink from blushing. “Great! Alright, uhm, let’s head to Taft then.” Jomei said with a smile as he allowed the woman to step up onto the platform where the teleporter was located. “Warp: Floor Eleven!” Jomei said, sendning his digital body up to the European themed floor.

In a flash of white light, the couple appeared in the city of Taft. The streets were simly lit by the street lamps, some of the lights in houses turned on. Jomei turned to Telrenya with another smile before leading her down the street. It did not take the two long to arrive to another row of houses that looked rather similar. One brown house, in particular, had a wooden sign with a lute carved onto it. Jomei unlocked the door and led the woman inside. “I could give you a tour of the whole house in the morning, for now I’ll just show you where my bedroom is.” The door led to a hallways, a door on the left and another on the right, a staircase at the end of the hall. Jomei led the girl up the stairs to a larger single room, a desk sat underneath the window next to a full sized bed with a blue blanket on top. Alone the wall at the foot of the bed was a bookshelf with recording crystals and books filling the shelves. 

Jomei rubbed the nape of his neck, “Well.. heres my room. Its not too much.” He chuckled. “I-if it makes you feel any better.. I don’t mind sleeping on my couch downstairs..” He turned his back on Tel and walked to a chest on the opposite end of the room, where extra sheets and pillows would be found. 

[Telrenya 0]

Taft was a new, beautiful city to the blonde woman. Her eyes scanned the area as they walked by, her gaze especially drawn to the large clocktower the settlement featured. Her smile returned when they had arrived before Jomei's house, and she continued to curiously survey the interior. Having never set foot inside of a player home before, Telrenya was intrigued, wondering if the building was much different from the inns, shops, and other structures she'd been in before.

She followed the man up the stairs to a single bedroom. Something about Jomei showing her his room had brought a small warmth to her heart, as if she was getting to take another peek into the man's personal life. His speech as he presented the room grew more nervous as he offered to sleep on the couch, and Telrenya's face quickly went red in response. "N-n-no, you don't have to do that!" She spoke hurriedly and brought her hands up in front of her to sternly deny his sacrifice. "I can, really, I'm the one who showed up unexpectedly!" Although it was neither of their intensions, Telrenya was quickly filled with the feeling of intruding.

[Jomei 0]

As expected from Telrenya's kind nature, she quickly shot down Jomei's request for her to sleep in the comfort of his bed while Jomei moved down to his couch on the first floor of his house. Jomei raised one hand out in front of him and shook his head, "No, please. I insist. I'd rather you be more comfortable." he chuckled. "I slept on a nothing but a bed roll when I was living out of my shop on Floor Two.. so I've slept on worse.. Not that the couch isn't too bad." Turning back to the footlocker he was retrieving items from, Jomei scrolled through the short list, looking for an extra blanket and pillow. He let out an inaudible sigh, realizing that he had forgotten to pack it into his inventory from his old shop before shutting it down. He pretended to place the items into his inventory before turning back to Telrenya, "Well.. Make yourself comfortable." He pointed to the lightly colored door on the opposite wall of the bedroom, "The bathroom is right here if you need to use it or freshen up." The man stepped up to the door and opened it, stepping inside himself to be able to change into his sleeping attire. Standing in front of the mirror, Jomei swiped his hand up to open his menu, the soft chimes of bells ringing out as he did so. The man's cloak and other attire disappeared in a flash of white light, the man standing in the enclosed bathroom in just his underwear for a moment, before a sleeveless grey shirt and black pants materialized onto his being. With a grabbing motion at the small menu box in front of him, Jomei dismissed his HUD, placing his hands on the counter next to the porcelain sink. He looked at himself in the mirror for a moment before grinning, thinking about how the night turned out in the end. After a quick rinse of his face, he stepped out of the bathroom, and back into the bedroom where Telrenya was.

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya's hand traveled to the back of her neck and she looked aside sheepishly. She wanted to deny him further, but her mouth closed soon after it had opened. If she kept going, it would start to feel something like a fight. 'Gaah, why do you worry so much?' She scolded herself.

She felt a bit awkward standing in his bedroom after he had stepped out to change. She rubbed at the nape of her neck before looking around again, her eyes falling to the nearby bookcase against the wall. Her gaze traveled along the various books, wondering if they had anything written in them or if they were merely for decoration, as well as the recording crystals that lay on the shelves' edge. Her head tilted curiously as she inspected the items, leaning in closer as she considered what could be contained in them.

As the bathroom door opened once again, the girl felt her heart stop a moment and she quickly turned back around to face him, feeling as if she had been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to. 'Why am I so jumpy...?' She thought with an inward sigh as her shoulders began to relax. Seeing Jomei in such a casual outfit as he stepped back out into the bedroom cause another blush to show on her cheeks.