[PP-F1] (Complete) A New Star In the Starlight Cafe (Kotori)

[Oikawa 1]

The nighttime breeze seemed to be a little cooler as Oikawa strolled through the town. He had a destination and it involved his favorite spot in all of current Aincrad. This place was the Starlight Cafe. He hadn't been in quite some time and was craving some Strawberry Creme Pie. I swear that pie is to die for. But given that there are no re-spawns and the nature of this game, that's not a valid idea.. Oh well. The cafe is up ahead. Food here I come!

[Kotori 0]

Kotori had been looking for a place to stay in for a while now. It wasn't right for her to live on the streets as if she was a bum, so at the very least, she needed a tavern to spend the night in. Finally, she had found a small looking one in the middle of town bearing the name "Starlight Cafe." Upon entering it, she found it was not very full as there were only a few players sitting in tables and on top of the stools near the counter. Sitting down at one of the tables situated near the windows, Kotori laid her head again the window and watched the outside streets as the night continued on. If the game hadn't already made her life miserable, it sure was now. Maybe if she fell asleep, she could dream away her troubles.

[Oikawa 1]

The street lights seemed like small flames floating amongst the night sky as Oikawa rounded the last corner that led tot the Cafe. The breeze seemed to become even cooler as the in-game windchill dropped even more. Sadly it's still warmer than on the fourth floor. Ahh but it's now in sight. A wooden door slowly creaked open, as the blonde player entered the cafe. He saw the usual gathers and a few unfamiliar faces. One in particular caught his eye. It was the face of a girl he was ninety percent sure he had never seen in Aincrad before. Judging from her gear, it was obvious she was a new player.

 

Oikawa pondered for a moment before deciding to act against his better judgement. He casually walked up to the booth the girl was sitting in and gestured to the seat across from her. "Mind if I take a seat?"

[Kotori 0]

Kotori glanced to the side to find a boy of around the same age as her. A bit startled, she was able to reply back with a stammer."S-sure.." She stopped leaning against the window and sat up correctly, although a red splotch remained where her cheek had touched the clear glass. Looking around, Kotori found that the cafe had remained the same, save a few new faces and some people not where they previously were. Seeing as she had nothing better to do, she found herself actually wanting to talk to the player. This started with introducing herself. "My name is Kotori, your's is?"

[Oikawa 1]

Oikawa had brief expression of surprise on his face when the girl allowed him to sit with her. No backing out now. Slowly, he sat down. If he had to guess, the girl was probably no older than himself. I wonder how she got stuck in here? By choice? A mistake? The silence that floated between them was suddenly broken when the girl introduced herself. Kotori...A pretty name for a pretty girl.. "My name is Oikawa. Nice to meet you Kotori." 

 

The blonde glanced at the girl, then past her to connect eyes with a waiter. Gesturing for the server to come over, he returned his attention back to Kotori. "So what brought you to the Starlight Cafe? Especially here at night?"

[Kotori 0]

Kotori saw the expression of surprise on Oikawa's face, most likely he was expecting a no. If anything, she was was interested in why he decided to sit down in front of her, although she suspected it had something to do with the fact she looked lonely. It didn't matter, Oikawa had asked her a question and she need to answer. "Um.. I don't really have.." Kotori stopped mid-sentence. She didn't want to seem weak and in need of help as the lack of the currency used in this game suggest. "Staying in a inn all the time isn't very really appealing to me, so I thought I try this out." she instead answered. "Honestly, I had no intentions in actually purchasing food, so what was I thinking." Kotori mumbled in a low voice, now thinking about her actions.

[Oikawa 1]

The girl allowed him to sit with her. As he took his seat, she began to reply to his question. She stopped briefly as if to change the course of her answer. Although odd I can't see a reason for her stopping mid-sentence. "Ahh so just looking for a change of pace then?"

 

Just then, the waiter Oikawa had motioned for, appeared. "Hey there. If you'd be so kind, I would like one slice of strawberry creme pie please." Looking across the table, he locked eyes with Kotori and gestured for her to order. "Order whatever suits your fancy, it's on me."

[Kotori 0]

"Uh sure.. Yep." Kotori responded, as Oikawa confirmed what she said, more or less. She hadn't been adamant on revealing the truth since it wasn't a big deal that she was without any Col. However, it had blocked her from getting any weapons or armor to protect herself. Maybe another day she would start fighting and actually gain some Col, but not today. Oikawa then motioned for a waiter to come over and the waiter did so. After giving his order, he said for Kotori to do the same, saying that the food was on him. "Um, may I have some miso soup please?" she muttered. The NPC wrote down what they wanted and went on his merry way. Kotori turned to the boy. "Why?" she asked, confused on why he would offer to pay for her meal, something she wasn't going to get in the first place.

[Oikawa 1]

Kotori ordered miso soup. Though he never ordered any actual food here, Oikawa was inclined to think that the meals had to be just as good as the desserts. The waiter quickly jotted down the order and scurried off to the back. "Why? Well to be honest. You seem pretty new judging by your lack of gear and I don't think it's that far of a stretch to say you don't have much col. I could be wrong but I figure being nice can go a long way anyhow regardless of your financial situation." Oikawa grinned at the girl and brushed his bangs aside. 

 

"Also regarding your armor, I have plenty of overstock on weapons and armor, so if you need anything don't hesitate to stop by." 

[Kotori 0]

"Low-leveled you mean. We all got trapped at the same time, just because I'm weak doesn't mean I'm new at this." Kotori sighed and wore a light frown as she thought about her situation. She was basically helpless as she barely inflicted any damage at all and her level was very low in comparison with others. She didn't want to die, so her fear stopped her from fighting. Possibly from other things to. Oikawa's talked about stopping by his shop for any needs, and Kotori thought about it a little bit. Maybe when she had enough Col, she would get a special dagger of her own.

[Oikawa 1]

"Ahh my apologies.  I didn't mean to sound rude. If you don't mind me asking. What's kept you in hiding all this time. As you mentioned we've all been trapped here for quite a while. What's keeping you from becoming stronger?"

 

No sooner than the question left his mouth, the waiter arrived with Kotori's soup and Oikawa's pie. Smiling and thanking the waiter, Oikawa returned his attention to the girl as he took a bite of his dessert and waited for her to answer.

[Kotori 0]

"Um.. I d-don't really know." Kotori muttered. She didn't know why all these months she just hid on floor 1, but she had made a resolve to actually try to fight. It didn't work so well, so she continued to mope around floor 1, sometimes rarely on the fourth floor. Just then, the waiter brought the both of them food, miso soup for Kotori. Quietly, she took a sip of her soup, not wanting to bother with any utensils. "What about you?" She asked, curious about Oikawa herself. Maybe he had some story behind his level

[Oikawa 1]

The girl decided to sip her soup, not bothering to eat it with a spoon like most. Maybe she just doesn't like utensils??? Her answer and follow question, reeled him back to their conversation. "I was afraid at first, as you could imagine. The very thought of dying in here meant death for real, was a rather un-welcomed one. This led me to gain a will to survive. And once I got the hang of things, it changed from not only surviving but to protecting. Especially what few close friends I have made here." He cut another part of his pie using the edge of his fork. After indulging in a couple more bites, he looked to Kotori and just smiled.

[Kotori 0]

"Friends...." Kotori mumbled as she listened to Oikawa's story. She didn't really have any friends to help her out, nor make her more brave as it had happened with Oikawa. And speaking of him, At first he was just like her in the fact that he was afraid of death, but then as time went on, he became more and more brave. Kotori, deep inside wanted to believe that indeed she was also brave like him, but she knew the truth. She was terrified of death, almost to the point that she didn't want to leave the safe zone. In fact, she hadn't fought a single thing in all the time she had spent trapped in SAO. Nothing she had experience in the real world had prepared her with this. 

[Oikawa 1]

Oikawa could see the look of worried troubled thoughts brewing on the her face. He wanted to comfort her in someway. Another bite of pie sailed past his teeth as he continued to eat. "Don't fret. There's no reason to be completely terrified. I can't guarantee you or even myself will make it out of this death game alive. But I'm not going down without a fight. We are all bound to die eventually. At least in this setting we can control it. Sure you can sit and wait for someone else to clear the floors for you, but if they go down, you have no one but yourself to rely on. In no way am I here to judge, but I think you are more than capable of handling yourself given the proper training."

 

The last bit of pie was inhaled, as Oikawa sat his fork down. Satisfied with his meal. He waited to see how his words would affect Kotori.  Positive or negative I will make it my goal to ensure she survives.

[Kotori 0]

"You sound so optimistic, its cute. We can't control, safe zone or not. Sleep PKers are present, so it isn't even really a safe zone. Who's to say the creator of this game can't just kill us all in a second, or make it so that its a free for all wherever you go, or just make it so that monsters are stronger and more present in the floors. Its the complete opposite, we can't control it. At least back in reality you had a government system scaring people off, but anyone can kill here. Sure, its not really preferable and you might be targeted, but basically you're scotfree. And if the front liners die, who'll be left to take their place? A lot of people have died already and we've only reached floor 10.  Its been 6 months at least."

 

Kotori quieted down after she gave her own little monologue. She was ok with trying to level up, but there was no reason to be optimistic or hope when there was really no chance of anybody getting out of SAO alive. "Still, I'd like to be able to fight.." she mumbled, giving her final answer to Oikawa. She didn't want to be a weak person forever. Now was a better time to start fighting than ever.

[Oikawa 1]

"Thanks I think. Regarding sleep PKers, PKers aren't even allowed in town and the game mechanics won't allow you to die in a safe zone. So for all intents and purposes, a safe zone is literally the safest place to be. As far as the creator killing us all in one go. You're right. There is nothing saying Kayaba can't kill us all right now if he wanted to. But if that was the goal why didn't he just do it when he locked everyone in? In real life you are in just as much danger as you are here. Sure there is a government irl, but that hasn't stopped murders, robberies, and other crimes. Neither world is safe. I think that that example is a fairly weak one." 

 

Oikawa took a deep breath before continuing. "I don't mean to burst your bubble or anger you in anyway. But I am glad that your willing to listen and talk it out. With some people here, you can't even get that far. For that I commend you. You're right. We have no one to replace the current front liners. All the more reason we need everyone to come together to get us out of here. Unfortunately, a lot of people have died. A lot of them from being on the front lines, some for being ruthless PKers with no morals, some for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, some even killed themselves. What I'm getting at, is that this is a death game. People will die. But if we become strong and band together, we can certainly limit the death toll."

 

Oikawa eyed the girl and took another breath before concluding. "Sure I have some family and a career waiting for me back in the real world, but if I die here, I'd rather it be on the front-lines paving a way for everyone else to get out."

[Kotori 0]

Funny. Kotori found it amusing that even though he had something to live for when he got out of the game, he still was going to put everything on the line. On the other hand, Kotori had no reason to get out of the game and didn't really want to fight deep inside. She was the complete opposite of the boy in front of her and she found it funny. She had to agree with Oikawa, the game and the real world were almost the same, a thin fragile line seperated the two worlds. You were susceptible to death in both Aincrad and Earth. So with that, Kotori wanted to set a goal. To be able to fight her way out of this damn castle.

 

Kotori looked at Oikawa and began to speak. "You're right. So.. would it be too much if you could help me out with the fighting since I'm not skilled at all in that. The only thing I have his my dagger, so I'd like to be able to use properly."

[Oikawa 1]

"I'd be honored to show you the ropes." The blonde grinned. She's ready to come out of her shell. I think with enough training she can become strong. maybe even more lethal than the current most feared in SAO, Mari. And Ironically enough she is also a dagger wielder. Oikawa shuddered as the thought float through his mind. Having finished his pie, he waited for Kotori to finish her soup before making any plans. We could probably take on on the Secret Medicine of the Forest Quest if she hasn't already. That's a good one to learn the basics. 

 

"So what made you choose the dagger as your default?"

[Kotori 0]

"I don't really know why I chose it, I just preferred it out off all of them. I think it does more damage too.. Not sure, though.." Kotori answered as she quietly looked at the heavy knife. Its teeth were almost saw-like, serrated in a sense. It was a somewhat good weapon from her experience with it although she never truly was able to kill any mobs with it. Still, Oikawa was most likely going to help her out with the fighting skills of this game, something she had been wanting to understand and do ever since Kayaba Akihiko appeared in his vastness with his crimson robe and stated that if anyone dies in the game, they die in real life. If she was going to learn to fight, she was going to learn it now.