Akatsu

Kat giggled as Ryou tried to explain that she was just having a good time. Kat understood, but it was still nice to hear Ryou say it for once. She didn't mind this adventure, as slow paced and leisurely as it had been. Surely they would have more adventures that were more high action and full of adrenaline. But this was fine for now. Kat figured she shouldn't just sit on her laurels though. She figured she could help Ryou find some materials herself rather than leaving it all to her friend. And so, Kat got on her hands and knees and began rooting around in the grass like she hat watched t

Kat watched as Ryou laid in the grass. “Yeah, I meant it. I’m not all the men at the bar. I was the first person who wanted to be your friend, despite how much of a sourpuss you were.” Kat giggled, and jumped up to her feet, before running off after another set of small boars. These ones were definitely babies, and squealed in fright and scattered every which way from the girl charging at them. Kat wanted to break up the monotony. Her and Ryou had been out in this field for what felt like ages, with nothing to do but pick flowers and talk to each other. And while Kat enjoyed both of those

Kat giggled as Ryou went to grab some more flowers. Ryou really did worry too much, but Kat was honestly used to that. She took the flower from Ryou with a light blush still on her cheeks. She was happy that she had gotten the hug. She was happy that they were finally able to spend this kind of uninterrupted time together. It was almost magical. If not for the fact that they were trapped in a video game and basically being hunted by an evil stalker. But Kat tried her best to put that out of her mind for now. “You didn’t make me nervous, okay?” Kat managed to finally explain, breaking away

Kat squeaked from the unexpected hug. She immediately panicked for a moment, She thought something was wrong with Ryou, usually Ryou only hugged her if she was drunk and needed support. But Ryou definitely wasn’t drunk, so she worried that something else was wrong. Was she hurt? Tired? Once Kat gave herself a chance to think about it though, she realized that this was warmer, gentler. Ryou was just hugging her. Kat’s blush grew even redder as she realized this, and she tried her best not to panic for an entirely different reason. “I-I’m glad you like it! We’ll find a way to keep it alive,

Kat's eyes lit up as Ryou found a solution to her problem. That was her Ryou, all Kat ever had to do was ask, and Ryou would usually find a way. She looked at the bouquet that she had made, and couldn't help the childish grin that drew across her face. She giggled and thought that all the colorful flowers worked incredibly well together, and was so very impressed with all that Ryou had managed to find in just the short time they had been wandering around these fields. But Ryou had always been resourceful, and that was one of the things Kat adored about her. She just wished that Ryou could acce

Kat heard Ryou say the words that she had wanted to hear for so long. That she was glad to be discovering who she was. Kat had seen this Ryou in glimpses, and once at that festival. It was overwhelmingly positive for the both of them for Ryou to be coming out of her shell like this, and Kat would drive that point home as much as she could. She had run out of flowers nearby where she was sitting, and would have normally needed to move to grab more, but then Ryou came over with more flowers. Ryou held them out to her, and Kat's smile grew wider as her eyes sparkled at her friend. "They're s

Kat's eyes watered a bit, but she blinked away the tears. She had never really felt that much gratitude from Ryou before. Ryou was always protecting her and waving off her help like she was trying to be strong and independent. Which she was, and Kat respected that about her. But at the end of the day, she wanted her friend to be her friend. Kat was always so selfish, and that probably wouldn't change anytime soon. But she wanted Ryou to be more than a bodyguard, if nobody else in Kat's life was ever going to get close to her. She felt like nobody else could ever really stand her, except the me

Kat was trying her best to believe that Ryou was having a good time. This certainly wasn’t as fun as the festival they went to, but Kat was still having a good time. Ryou wanted Kat to trust her, but after years of watching Ryou be so high strung, it was difficult for her to be so sure. Ryou led her away to another field of flowers, and Kat’s eyes basically lit up as she watched Ryou find a flower from the field. Kat was being extremely careful to not crush any of the flowers underfoot. In fact, she wanted to be extra careful. She opened her menu and her equipment and removed her booties.

When Ryou brushed the hair from her face Kat naturally tilted her head causing the hair to fall back into her face. She liked her hair covering her face, even if it seemed to annoy Ryou sometimes. She giggled at the gesture. It wasn’t the first time they had it he little back and forth. A lot of men told Kat she had the prettiest blue eyes and that it was a shame she always hid one or the other. But Kat always thought it made her look cuter. When Ryou took her hand her heart skipped a beat, but then Ryou admitted that she had been overthinking again and Kat’s frown deepened. She squeezed

Kat turned back around to Ryou, trying to use the hair that normally covered her face to hide the blush that still lightly traced across it. She smiled and pulled out the dandelion, careful not to lose any of the little wispy seeds that barely clung to the flower's center. "A dandelion!" she told Ryou, before putting it back in her inventory so she didn't mess up the flower. A breeze blew through the plains surrounding them, and that was also another worry, as she saw a couple of other dandelions lose their seeds nearby. "I know it's simple," she admitted, "but they're cute flowers. Dunno if t

Kat stared up at the sky, and smiled. She was seeing Ryou, her Ryou again, and it was wonderful. She wasn't sure that she ever would see that side of her again. Her mind flashed back to the festival that she had gotten a begrudging Ryou to go to on a weekend night. Ryou had even worn a kimono for Kat, and she looked absolutely beautiful to Kat. Kat looked over at Ryou, in her armor and sighed, wondering what it would take to get her back in that kimono again. The blush ran across her cheeks, and she tried her best to get the thoughts from her mind as she rolled back over in the grass and prete

Kat was surprised when she was “punished” by Ryou with a flick on the forehead. Gentle as it was, and despite the fact that it wouldn’t have hurt anyway due to the game’s systems, Kat reacted like she had just been shot in the head. She groaned and wobbled and spun around dramatically, before leaning backwards and plopping into the grass. She stared up at the sky, hoping her drama wasn’t taken too seriously. She was very much enjoying this different side of Ryou. Kat sat up from the grass, some of it falling away from her kimono after she had shaken it loose from the ground with her fall

Kat smiled brightly at Ryou and was so excited that they were finally on the adventure she wanted, even if it was a simple fetch quest. But after finding the mushroom, Kat wondered what else there was to find. She didn’t want to disturb the boars too much, but she wondered if maybe following them would yield more mushrooms. She had read in a book somewhere, probably grade school, that pigs were experts at finding food, and food meant things to give to Zackariah! So she walked up to some boars, and as she walked waited to see if they got spooked. They didn’t this time. They just grazed and

Kat was more than a little surprised when Ryou grabbed her hand, and gave a slight yelp when Ryou jump started the skipping again by skipping herself. She looked at her friend in confusion, and while Ryou looked a little uncomfortable, she wasn’t upset. She actually looked happy, and was even blushing a little. This made Kat blush as well, as she skipped along with her friend, hand in hand, like they were both little girls. Before she knew it, Kat was giggling like usual and humming along as they skipped. It didn’t take too long before they reached the city gates, and Kat gasped at the hu

Kat’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat when she thought of going outside again. Not that she exactly felt safe in the city after being accosted by that terrible man, but she certainly felt safer than she would outside the city walls, without thousands of other players milling about. With a light sigh, she steeled herself and her thoughts, before putting on her customary smile for Ryou. “Okay! Let’s go pick some flowers or something then! If we’re lucky, there’s some stuff just outside the gate!” Kat jumped to her feet and threw her arms up into the air, before dancing around. “It’s fin