[PP-F1] Nostalgia [Kiluia Seiko]

[Kana Misouko 0]

Where it all began...

Kana was not quite sure why she was here, she didn't particular like Starting City. After everything she had experienced here, the mere sight of everything left a hole in her chest. Despite the beautiful scenery and the safety of her surroundings, she did not feel at peace.

It hurt to be here.

And yet here she was, sat on a local bench, staring at the incredible blue sky. She closed her eyes for a moment and sighed deeply, inhaling what felt like crisp fresh air. But she knew it wasn't. Was the real sky this blue at home? She wondered, trying to imagine what her father and brother would be doing right now.

Were they snoozing comfortably in their beds at home? They weren't early risers like Kana, Kyoko especially had been known to smash his alarm clock to pieces upcoming awakening. Kana smiled at the memory, it was of course her who had set it so early for him. She opened her eyes once more to the sky, "Why am I here?" she muttered more to herself than anyone.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

Kiluia found himself wandering the streets alone in the beginning city. He had met various people thought his time here and it was softening the blow of reality setting in. All of the were trapped in a deranged game of cat and mouse. That didn't hit too far from home but his abilities were completely limited here.

As he walked along the side of buildings, he had extended his right hand to touch the surface. It was so real to him. He remembered doing this in school before, walking down empty halls, touching the walls. People found him completely odd which added to the isolation. Pain and suffering. Here it was different. People didn't judge him as they were all suffering.

He rounded the corner of the building to an open area. It was a circular area with benches. His azure eyes scanned the proximity of the people watching them interact. A light smile crossed his face. These people didn't know each other. They found comfort in that and he should as well. That was until he saw her sitting alone on a bench.

Was it a dream? He gazed at her walking slightly faster now. Their avatars were deleted to show their real faces. " Kana?" He stood 10 feet away from her. His hand brushed away his platinum hair from his eye's view.

[Kana Misouko 0]

Kana was still lost in thought when Kiluia entered the area, she was still lost in her train of thought. She knew why she was here, because she had believed that here she may have been able to win Hikaru's heart. Of course, that had not been the case. It was moments like these Kana contemplated whether she actually ever stood a chance with him. It was a dark thought, one she had more often than she liked.

"Kana,"

She barely heard it, it took her a moment to register that someone had even called her name. She blinked a few times,then looked down from the sky. She scanned around until her eyes landed on the one approaching her. She stared at him, he was looking at directly at her, Kiluia.

It was a few seconds before Kana reacted,

"Oh my god!" She almost screeched, jumping up from her seat with such force she nearly knocked it over, she ran to him. Leaping forward, she threw her arms out the hug him. Dragged out of her dark train of thought, she could feel the happiness filling her already.

Finally, a friend.

"Oh, Kiluia, I can't believe it, you're here! In SAO! I can't believe it, I mean I know I should, but... I'm just so happy to see you," She was talking so fast, she could barely get the words out.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

Right hand wrapped around her as they met on impact. He braced the force by firmly placing his right foot into the ground and held onto her. If he didn't, they probably would of went flying. " No way."

Left hand slipped also behind her back bringing her into a full hug. He couldn't believe what was happening at that moment. It was almost like several years ago when they first met. He remained completely stunned as he listened to her every word as if it were a dream.

He squeezed her tightly against his body. Then he quickly let go." You're really here!?" His raised voice caused some on lookers to glimpse over but he felt like they were the only ones. " God I'm glad you're here... " Tears would of flowed out but he wasn't ready to do that just yet.

[Kana Misouko 0]

Kana's happiness bloomed as her hugged her back, she hadn't met a single other person she knew other than Hikaru. Since then she had been very much alone really. She didn't want to join any guilds because she didn't want to have the responsibility of another person life in her hands.

You. Will. Not. Cry!! She ordered herself as she felt an onslaught of tears attempting to pour out. She fought them back down, she pulled back so she could look at his face. Yep, it was definitely him.

Kiluia had experienced the same family influence as Kana had growing up, both were being pushed to enter their families businesses. Although Kana hadn't minded hers so much, she was well aware of Kiluia feelings on his. That was how they had bonded, Fashion events need security, what with all the celebrities that attended. Like fate, they had so happy to be at the same one, and became friends.

She smiled at his words, "I know, me too." She was glad he was here, at least to have found him. She already felt a little less alone in this wacky made up world.

"I should have known you would be here, you did like games, much more than I did. I didn't think to look for you, If I had known, I would've tried to track you down."

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

He laughed a bit at her reaction on her face. Like he could fool her about crying. " Don't stuff it. Let it out." It wasn't like they didn't share tears or anything. They were just like that. His right hand reached up and touched her face. " If this is a dream.. I'm going to be mad. "

His face turned beat red as he was extremely close to her. His pale completion only made it worse. Her words echoed in his mind. She had come here for a reason and before she had met someone which limited their contact. " It's okay. I never would of thought you'd come to SAO. You opening your horizons?" He left it as an open ended question.

They had met at a fashion show and at the after party he danced with her a few times getting to know her. It wasn't long after the plotted their escape from their stuffy outfits. She was his best friend. His only one really.

[Kana Misouko 0]

She shook her head gently, she didn't want to cry, not when she was so happy. Still beaming at him, she laughed when he blushed, he was so adorable. She wanted to pinch his cheeks, but knew that would only embarrass him further, so she resisted.

Her golden eyes widened a fraction at his question, how could she answer that? Of course it didn't make sense her being heer, the only videogames she had ever played before this was nintendogs and candycrush. Hardly anything with the intense programming of SAO.

She was a cheerleader who had a prospective career in fashion ahead of her. What would lure her to play a SAO? Did she want to tell him the truth? OR would he think her stupid?

No, This was Kiluia, he was good and kind, he wouldn't judge her. She sighed, no longer smiling, taking a step back.

"Come, I'll explain it to you" She turned and lead him to the empty bench they had been sat on, placing herself down to the left of the bench, she patted the spot next to her. She wanted Kiluia back in her life, knowing someone on the game would make her feel less lonely. But the other guild members that had thrown her out were still around as far as she knew, and she didn't want him hearing this from anyone else. She wanted him to trust her, and she couldn't do that if she didn't let him know about the dark shadow that clouded her mind these days.

She wasn't the same girl, he had met years ago. She knew death now, she knew what it was like to lose someone you loved, and that had aged her somewhat.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

The sudden change in mood was so obvious, a blind deaf man could feel it. It wasn't long before he was beside her staring into the deep blue skies and clouds awaiting her answer. His body leaned back into the wooden bench and the anticipation mounted.

What did she want to say to him? Did that boy break her heart? Did Kiluia have to go break that boys leg? Inside his head ran various scenarios of what happened. " Ok. " He took a deep breath. " What's goin on with you?" He nudged her a bit with his shoulder. A gleaming smile formed on his face but the news would fade it away.

[Kana Misouko 0]

"There was this guy, Hikaru, I don't know if I ever told you about him," She started, looking down into her hands as she spoke. "I liked him, I liked him alot. But I was too shy to tell him, I mean, I tried but everytime I did I would just become this babbling idiot. It was uncomfortable for everyone to watch, anyway one of my friends Akiko, her brother is his friend and she heard that they were going to get SAO." She could feel her cheeks redden a little, this was getting embarrassing bringing it up.

This was the first time she had told anyone since being here, she had met people and just told them she wanted to try it out. Kiluia would be the first to know the true story. "So I got it too, I don't know why I thought it would help me. Maybe I had some romantic notion that we would fight together and he would fall for me. I'm such an idiot sometimes." She let out a chuckle, and shook her head at herself.

"Well, anyway I did meet him, a while after everything started and we got trapped in here. I was so happy when he recognised me, but then I met Sakie. His wife, she's actually very nice, pretty too." She leaned forward, pushing her hands against her forehead. "I should have left them to it, they had a nice guild, they would've been okay without me. But I asked if I could join and now..."

There it was, the sadness washing over her in waves. She began to shake, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "I c-couldn't protect them, Kiluia. I tried, b-but I was too slow. I was too slow!" She burst into tears, crying into her palms.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

He looked over to her and watched her cry . Those t ears were not the ones he wanted to see But based off of her words, one could only hold back so much. His hand placed on top of her shoulder and he pulled her to his chest pushing her head gently there into a slight hug.

His eyes disappeared behind his hair as he spoke." It's okay..." He whispered. " I knew about him. Not his name but I knew there was someone." He knew they were from different worlds. He knew how girls acted when they were smitten. But he couldn't understand the feeling of having lost someone that close.

" You did what you could. Don't dwell on it. Do you think they would of wanted to see you crying and moping around? " He pulled back exposing a smile on his face.

[Kana Misouko 0]

She had cried many times since the day Hikaru and Sakie died, so many times she had lost count. For a while the tears had stopped coming and she felt as though she had run out of tears to share. She could see clearly now that this was not the ase, that she had simply blocked it out to cope, and now she had told someone what happened. It was all coming out again, only different this time. This wasn't like one of the those times, where she had crawled into a ball and cried herself to sleep.

This was a confession.

And now she had confessed, she was crying because of the guilt was free. Her words had given birth to it, she would be better after this, now she had got it off her chest. It already felt better. She took a few deep breaths as her spoke, trying to calm herself, slowly to regain control, she wiped her eyes and leaned into his hug.

"Thank you," she said honestly, she was so happy to have seen him, to be able to tell him what had happened and reveal the truth. It was enlightening. Now she had someone here she could trust, and things wouldn't be so difficult. "Sorry, I didn't mean to cry on you, I just wanted you to know. I understand if you don't want to hang with me because of this, I'm not reliable" She said sadly, she didn't want him to feel obliged to protect her.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

He placed hand on hers while the other hand brushed some stray tears away from her face. A light frown formed on his face at hearing her statement." You kidding me? It's gonna take a lot more than that to keep me away. " He then smiled.

Hand moved away from hers as it had stayed too long on hers . He felt the rays of the sun beat down on their faces. " I don't have to protect you. You can do that yourself...but I want to protect you. So deal with it. No charge." He laughed a bit not wanting to look at her directly.

It was several years ago that he had written a note to her about his feelings. But he never signed it or stated who he was. It was too embarrassing to admit especially since he was taught love was a fleeting moment and that in their profession...dangerous.

[Kana Misouko 0]

She laughed at his words, the sadness fading, she felt stable now. She would be able to cope now that she wasn't on her own, maybe she could even one day forgive herself for what happened. No just yet though? She had only just confessed. She pulled out of his hug, and held out her hand for a handshake.

"How about this? From now on, we protect eachother, like you said no charge. Deal?" She offered, she didn't want to feel as though he was her bodyguard, even though that was ironically what he was trained for.

They were equals, and she wanted to make sure he knew that.

She wasn't quite sure about a joining a guild, but if it was just Kiluia, then sure she could party with him. Just for a while to see how it goes, who knew they could be together all the way up to the top. If they ever got there, who knew how it would go. She would be happy just to have some company whilst in their crazy world, there was still lots to be discovered and she was glad she wasn't going to have to do it only. She selected her menu, and sent Kiluia a friend request. Hoping that he would accept.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

He smiled and gazed back at her after blinking away a faded memory tear. He shook her hand and nodded firmly." I accept." As he was shaking her hand he opened up the menu and accepted her friend request. Soon after he sent her a party invite to her.

" Hey... do you remember a few years ago, everyone thought a crazed psycho had broken into your room and left you a letter and a rose? Did we ever identify him?" He asked nonchalantly. He would tell her sometime. Maybe now or not. Since confessions were the thing at the moment.

[Kana Misouko 0]

She accepted his party invite, and scooted away to make some room between them. Now she was okay, she didn't need to be coddled, and she didn't want to make Kiluia uncomfortable either. She titled her head at his question, trying to remember that time. It was so long ago, and memories of the home world were becoming harder and harder to recall.

"Oh yeah! Gosh, I remember. Yeah, I know who it was," She sat back and laughed, "It was Kyoko playing a prank on me cause I'd put salt in his coffee the week before, which he totally deserved. I told him if he didn't stop calling me a brat he would get it, and he did. You should have seen his face when he drank it, priceless! It wasn't a little bit either, I'd basically poured the entire salt pot in there!" She giggled at the memory.

Kana was completely unaware that Kyoko had lied, pretending that he had done it. When Kana had thought someone had broken into her room, she had got scared and been unable to sleep. Although the letter was sweet, if a little cheesy, it was how it had got there that had worried her. The fact that someone was so easily able to break into her room, terrified her. So to calm her down, Kyoko had told her it was a revenge prank. She had been able to finally sleep easily after that, and it was forgotten as far as Kana knew. She wasn't aware that up until the present they had still been trying to figure out who did it, they had left no traces whatsoever.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

If he ever got out of here, he was gonna kill Kyoko. But it was his fault for not admitting to it even after being questioned. He was the one on duty when it supposedly happened. But he was caught by his father who gave him advice. Never fall for a client. You jeopardize the mission and yourself. But on the better side his father said if that did happen, quit and protect her with your life.

His eyes remained distant as she rambled on about it for a moment. " It was me. " He muttered. After 5 years, it was time to admit defeat. This wasn't going to change anything. Her feelings for the one that died, his feelings of insecurity, and his memories. He stood up and bowed his head to her." I'm sorry!"

[Kana Misouko 0]

Now Kana wasn't exactly a dim person, however as Kiluia confessed that it was him who had written the letter. Kana's mind formulated a conclusion that wasn't quite the message he was trying to get across. Rather than understand that he had written a confession for her, she actually saw the possibility of Kyoko bullying Kiluia into putting the letter in Kana's room for a joke. It definately explained why there was no evidence left behind, It was definately the kind of length her brother would go to, in order to annoy her. She laughed, waving her hand through the air as though she was brushing it off.

"Don't worry, that's okay. It makes sense, Kyoko's not sneaky enough to hide a letter in a room, of course he got you to do it. It's fine, honestly, no biggie. Good one though, I even thought it was Hikaru 's writing for a moment." She stated casually, "Come on, Let's go to the market, I finally have someone to shop with," And with that she stood up and began to walk in the direction of the market, checking her Cor as a she did so. She didn't have a great deal, but she had enough to get by. She would probably have to do a quest or something soon to get some more money. Maybe, she would ask Kiluia to come with her.

"Hey, Kiluia, have you fought a lot of beasts yet? They're so weird, I feel almost guilty having to cut them but if it gives me money or food, then I guess it's no different from what we do at home. It was hard at first, I'm not used to games like this so it took me a little longer to adjust than most. But I think I'm okay now, what about you?"

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

That was the most unexpected answer he could of received. He was in shock that she didn't get it. Then again it was Kana we were talking about. A sigh left his lips as they started walking. He'd fix that after he answered her question. " Like old times. " he nodded."I'm used to it . And boars don't put up much of a challenge anymore." He shrugged.

He looked at her and coughed a bit. " Kana. " He caught her hand mid stride." Kyoko... He didn't write the letter" He looked down hiding his face. His words were clear as day as he bit his lip. She had confessed.. it was brave and heartspoken. She had trusted him with her inner feelings. He was going to return the favor." It was me. I wrote everything. " He started to well up. " I wrote about how beautiful you are even when your crying. I wrote about how you are amazing. I wrote it. It's because I've been in love with you for years!" He shouted.

He relinquished her hand and took a few steps back. That was amazing. The rush. The moment. That tear dropped from his eyes and then everything came crashing down. He wanted to run.

[Kana Misouko 0]

She stared at him in shock, What... His words impaled her mind so suddenly, she took a slight step back. She had not expected that at all, after all these years she had only ever looked at Kiluia as a friend. She had never seen him in a romantic way whatsoever, she had only ever looked at Hikaru. All the times they hung out together, all of the long conversations and all the times they bumped into each other at work conventions. He had loved her then? Her expressed softened, she reached forward and hugged him once more. Finally acknowledging his feelings,

"I'm sorry..." She said softly, "I'm not ready to love anyone yet."

She admitted that she liked Kiluia a lot, more than most of the guys she knew. But her heart was still too wounded after losing Hikaru, she wasn't ready to let anyone in just yet. "Thank you for telling me though, It must have been hard for you to say,"

She stepped back, Could she ever love him back? She wasn't sure. She couldn't even remember how she felt before Hikaru had passed. She was flush at the sight of him and her heart would skip when he talked to her. Was that the only way love was supposed to feel, she didn't know. She was clueless when it came to love, she had only ever been in one relationship and she had been 10, the boy has asked her out and then moved away two weeks later. That was hardly what you call 'experience'.

[Kiluia Seiko 0]

He felt her hug and it felt nice." It doesn't matter if you love me or not. I never expected an answer. It's for you to know. I know you don't love me back but you can trust me. And I trust you. " The world was better to him. He expressed his feelings for her because it was the right thing to do.

He smiled and grabbed her hand. " Just promise you won't leave without telling me first. Ok? " He started walking with her to the market in hand to show her a few stalls. " Let me buy us something to eat." He forged a smile on his face.