This here is proof that I can write anything depressing and make it look goooooddd.

Ahem. Anyway, enjoy this depressing story, with a not so stellar ending, but enjoyment should be felt nonetheless.

I don't own SAO, because if I did, I would totally make this canon. Imagine the possibilities...

(^^^^^^)

"The marks humans leave are too often scars."

-John Green-

(^^^^^^)

Lightning.

It streaked across the sky, slashing grey clouds in two, momentarily lighting up the abysmal area surrounding the inn in which the girl stood, staring at the object in her hands.

Thunderous sounds clapped in tune with the lightning just seconds after, but she could care less; she just witnessed something horrifying. She just witnessed something that would remain with her, even after she got out of this death game called Sword Art Online. Even after the therapy sessions and countless, torturous questions from her distant cousin- she knew that they were not sisters when she snooped around when she was ten, and knowing...cut her insides up like a woodcarver. So she grew cold to all that knew her, found her escape in SAO, and now...now she had nowhere to escape to from this tragedy.

Sachi is dead. She saw it happen; Sachi was not a coward, contrary to what the other members of her guild- the Moonlit Black Cats- thought. No, Sachi was a brave person, constantly teaching Kimiko that survival of the fittest meant nothing if you were not fit. It meant nothing if you had no help and nothing if you had nothing to survive for in the first place. Nothing if you lied about your level, as Kimiko did and nothing if you don't have anything to fight, to live, to die for.

Her death was poison, flooding Kimiko's entire world, burning her heart- both virtual and real- with a sharp numbing pain that made her stop. Stop fighting for the release of the players, stop fighting at all. No, now she was simply locked in her single roomed rented place in the local inn. Floor 22 was her new home now; a place she'd loath to live in yet went there anyway. No towns nearby, nor players for that matter; not a memorable name to the place she lived. She was alone, her fire gone, lost in the burning pits of seclusion.

Kimiko, also known as Kimaka Kazuto in the real world, had finally learned what loneliness felt like. It was like a thousand stabbing rapiers digging into her fingertips, ripping out her nails one by one, peeling the skin from her chest with a rusted carpenter's knife and digging out her heart with raw, uncovered fingers. It was like her favourite colour; black, abysmal, never-endingly depressing, yet always promised that light at the end of the pitch black tunnel. She had found her light in Sachi, and now that it had died to her darkness, she stopped looking.

She stared at the little three-dimensional diamond-like cube in her hands, noticing it was a recording. What caught her interest though was who, exactly, it was from.

Sachi.

She pressed the button, her eyes widening with each word spoken. They shook from left to right, her eyes widening with every single syllable, every sentence, and every heart-felt letter repeated through the recording.

Then they closed towards the end when she heard those fated words. Ones she had said to her only once before, and ones that she wished could be eradicated from her mind forever. Words that had such an impact, she could no longer coherently think, no longer see anything except for the tears blurring her grey eyes. She could no longer do anything but sob into her hands, the cube clutched against her cheek as she released her pent up sadness.

"You will survive."

She sobbed well through Christmas Eve, right into Christmas Day and well past that as well. She didn't stop until there were no more tears to shed, until she had come to terms with her only virtual friend's death.

Then she laughed, softly, never rising in tone but never falling either. Her friend was dead, her entire guild was dead, yet she was still alive; the irony of her life. This must be the punishment for hiding her skills from them, for lying, for not telling the truth- For simply existing. If Klein could see her now, he'd make some stupid comment on how pretty girls shouldn't cry, and then try to make a move or something, ending with her elbow reuniting with his groin.

And then she stopped, wiping the tears from her face. Klein...Klein was someone she hadn't seen since she abandoned him to his friends all that time ago when the game started. Somehow that didn't seem to bother her as much. She had expected him to show up when she defeated Nicholas on Christmas Eve before the message from the deceased Sachi, but alas, he never showed.

It still didn't bother her. Everyone she knew abandoned her or died after she was confirmed by the gaming community to be a Beater- a beta tester that was often called a cheater due to their unnaturally high stats and levels. In retrospect, she realised that she kind of expected it. Everyone in the real world hated her for being a genius; her abnormally high IQ, her beauty, her skill in every video game she's ever come across. It all came down to the hatred radiated from her peers. Even her cousin, Suguha, gave off some hatred for her.

She didn't care. People hated her, yet it never did bother her. Some found her quiet, cold demeanour to be either off-putting or hot- she shuddered at the mere memory of countless people, both boys and men, coming to her, attempting to court her or befriend her due to the amount of attraction her coldness gave off. Eventually she upped that coldness, closing everybody out, never once showing fear or weakness. Even in SAO she was courted, asked for marriage. She eventually got the nickname 'The Black Swordswoman' not only for her favouritism in black clothing and her likewise coloured sword, but also for her heart. Pitch black, no feelings in there other than carnal rage, fury and sadness beyond imagining.

And yet, some brave souls had still tried to thaw out her heart of ice. She let them get close, only to realise much too late what is was they were really after. They didn't like her; they liked her skill, her level, her beauty, her body, her mere presence. No one liked her; some even only wanted her so they could flaunt around how they had, and to quote this from someone she'd overheard it from, 'Tamed the Black Swordswoman's wild heart'.

There was another reason she was shunned in the virtual and real world as well; she was gay. Lesbian relationships weren't exactly frowned upon by the government or society, but it was those within said society that held the judgement over those unfortunate enough to come out public. Kimiko didn't come out, per se, but she did get caught when she was eleven kissing a girl. That girl was inexperienced, only curious, and after she explained it to her friends, she got away easy with only one or two shying away in disgust. Kimiko, however, got the full on hate treatment; everyone loathed her very existence from then on. She completely accepted her sexuality when she was nine and the fact that people made snide remarks and slandered her very being in front of her never bothered in her in the slightest. In fact, she'd welcome their snide comments and harsh remarks- they were a change of pace from the silent glares she'd get from Suguha.

She was alone in the real world, and it only served to hurt her, and now, when she tried to rectify that in the virtual one, she hurt others around her, becoming a danger to the very society that loathed her.

No, she vowed she'd remain solo for the rest of her existence, whether in real life or in SAO. Soloing was her only way of ensured survival, and the survival of all others around her.

She stood up from her chair, took the cube message, pocketed it and silently left the inn.

From this day forward, she'd remain alone.

(^^^^^^)

Slicing the digital head off of a plant-like monster- she forgot the name, but cared little- she sighed, lowering her weapon. Her Elucidator was her prized weapon, the only thing she'd show affection to in this world. She admitted to herself long ago that she'd become attached to the sword, but she didn't care. She'd never trade it for anything; it might as well have become her best friend.

There were rumours, though, of a blacksmith near here that could forge a sword equal to or more powerful than her Elucidator, and so with a quick glance down to her sword, then to her map, she made haste, steps steady and measured, down the cobble pathway to the town said blacksmith was.

She got there sooner than expected, but sighed as she saw the sun set; she'd have to get the soon if she wanted to buy said sword today.

But just as she took a step into the town, a curious sight caught her eye; the sign for a blacksmith's forgery, named 'Lisbeth's', caught her attention: So this must be the blacksmith everyone was talking about?

Sighing in resignation that she'd have to interact with someone, she slowly walked, as if on death row, to the front door of the shop.

Meanwhile, Lisbeth was slamming her hammer down on some newly forged metal, hoping that the system wouldn't randomly generate a hunk of metal. She figured it was a simple glitch with certain metals that she used, because it had only happened once. But once can be too much, right?

Then, just as she lifted the newly forged sword to her eye level, she eyed its stats, wrinkling her nose in disgust. She hadn't forged it properly so it turned out to be a weapon that not even a level ten player would use without it being a last resort.

Before she could even attempt to throw it away or scrounge it for spare materials, the bell that signalled someone entering her shop caused her to drop it, remove her apron and walk hurriedly up the stairs leading out of her forge and into the main shop area.

At about this time, Kimiko was allowing her eyes to wander the entire shop, her standing at the centre with a dagger that looked forged with silver piquing her curiosity. She always did like the silent, subtle approach to things; daggers helped provide the sneakiness that she so craved. She was always so silent in the real world, her footsteps never heard and she was never seen unless she wanted to be- which, I might add, was never.

But the only thing wrong with the dagger was the stats were too low, and it looked light, frail, and fragile to the touch. She liked heavy weapons, something that she could feel as she swung them, be them swords, daggers or even, to some extent, greatswords.

She sighed in disappointment before she heard the soft click of the backroom door being opened, but was completely unprepared for what she saw. She expected an elderly woman, wrinkles on the edges of her eyes, the creases folding in her skin, greyed, papery hands and fingernails that didn't suit her outstretched fingers.

She didn't expect to see a beautiful pink haired girl in a maid-esque outfit, a smile on her face and a light in her eyes. She estimated her to be no more than seventeen, maybe eighteen- no older than Kimiko herself.

She threw these thoughts into the prison that her emotions lay imprisoned, never to be released, and looked up from the dagger. "Hi! Name's Lisbeth, obviously if you couldn't tell from the name of this place." She walked over, behind the counter that held various weapons from small daggers to large Claymores. "What can I do for you?"

Kimiko ignored the staring her eyes begged her to do, to take in the entire form of this beautiful girl in front of her, and simply approached the counter. "I need a strong weapon." She stated simply, ignoring the small blush that obviously coated Lisbeth's cheeks.

She shook her head out of her stupor, staring at Kimiko. "...Of course! Do you have something special in mind or...?" she coughed. "Sorry, but if you do, then a custom weapon will cost a lot of money." 'And you don't look like you have a lot', Lisbeth added silently in her mind.

Kimiko simply nodded. "I'm fine for money."

"Okay then!" She clapped her hands together, causing Kimiko to be reminded of her cousin-slash-sister; that girl used to clap her hands in excitement whenever she made a joke or whenever she surprised Suguha with a present or treat. She never did that anymore.

After Lisbeth began searching the back of her shop, Kimiko eyed a blue, crystalline weapon that was hanging against the wall in the back, just behind the counter Lisbeth was searching.

"How about that one?" she pointed to the weapon, to which the blacksmith simply nodded in agreement.

"Sure. This is a masterpiece, one of a kind, so be careful." She handed her the sword, to which Kimiko could see she was struggling to even lift; weren't blacksmiths supposed to have a high strength stat? Once the weapon was handed over to Kimiko, she could hardly see why Lisbeth was having such trouble lifting the sword. It felt as light as a feather to her, though that may be because Kimiko had maxed out her strength stat.

She took a few test swings, before shaking her head and handing the weapon back to Lisbeth, who was looking at her curiously. "Sorry, but it's too light. Do you have anything a bit heavier? And with a higher damage output?"

Lisbeth looked at her in shock, before shaking her head and glaring in anger. "Too light...? Not enough damage!? That is my masterpiece! You dare come in here and offend my greatest weapon like that!?" Her voice rose with each sentence she shouted until she was damn near screaming, and Kimiko could only watch silently with slight hints of apology. She didn't mean for the owner to become offended, but it was just her nature to be critical about everything. It was simply how she learned to survive, and it was simply second nature.

Lisbeth simply glared, her chest heaving as she waited for a reply. Kimiko simply bowed her head. "I apologise, I didn't mean to offend you." She peaked upwards to see the scowl on Lisbeth's face, and sighed, raising herself back up to a standing position. "I suppose I'll waste no more of your time; goodbye."

Lisbeth was about to apologise at how she'd behaved, but the damage was done. She saw the apology, heard it even, and watched as a sad look came over the stranger- she forgot to ask for a name, but she looked familiar- before she sighed as the woman garbed in black simply left the shop.

(^^^^^^)

It wasn't until a year later did she see the Black Swordswoman, the same person to have visited her shop all that time ago. Asuna, a good friend, had asked her to come to the front lines to help forge some weapons for the Clearers to help then defeat the boss of the seventy second floor.

Whilst talking to her, she heard of the rumour of a level ninety player that was so terrifying even the Laughing Coffins avoided her, and they were feared by even the highest level players.

"...Really? Impossible." She seriously doubted the truth behind it, but with each word coming from her friend's lips, she saw the truth becoming less fiction and more solid facts.

"It's true! I take it you've heard of the Black Swordswoman?" after Lisbeth nodded, Asuna continued. "Well, that's who it is." Her voice then became solemn, sad. "I met her twice, and in the second time I met her I saw the very look in her eyes and it was as if the entire world was already gone. As if this was some nightmare that she'd rather live in than survive and live in the real world."

Lisbeth looked taken aback. "That was pretty deep, Asuna."

Asuna simply turned her way and explained, her voice sounding full of pity for the woman she was speaking of. "Well, you see, you've heard the rumours about her, haven't you? That she's got a heart of ice and no emotions? That she constantly turns down everyone who wants to be around her, and never joins with parties, guilds, and has no friends at all?" Lisbeth nodded. "They aren't rumours, Liz, they're real."

Liz didn't have any time to retort, because Asuna continued. "She's never been in a guild, never had a single person to call a friend, and it's rumoured that she is even like this in real life."

Lisbeth looked horrified. "How could someone live like that in real life, let alone here?"

"It gets worse, Liz." Asuna took a deep breath, as if handing her best friend classified information. In a way, it was. "Her name is Kimiko, and she's not only the loneliest player in SAO and possibly real life, but she's also a solo player. She doesn't kill other players, if that's what you're wondering." Seeing the relief come to Lisbeth, she continued. "No, she hunts down Player Killers with a vengeance. The Laughing Coffin fears her to the point of making it a priority to explicitly avoid anywhere she's rumoured to be."

"Wow." That was all Liz's mind could come up with to express the awe and sadness this woman could radiate. "How do you know her anyway? You know her name."

Asuna almost smiled at the memory of her first time in SAO, when she was nothing but a rookie and lost in the world. Kimiko had approached her, seeing the lost look on her face during one of the Clearer's first meetings. She sighed as she still remembered the look of sadness that was hidden behind her stoic look. "She taught me everything I know; or, well, the basics, anyway."

Liz asked for her appearance, and strangely, Asuna simply replied with "She's over there, you know. Go and ask her."

Five minutes and a lot of curious glances towards the Swordswoman later, Lisbeth decided to chance it and talk to her. So she stood up, fire in her eyes and a purpose in each step as she marched over the stood up girl, a small light of curiosity in her eyes as she saw the woman's eyes were closed as she leaned against the marble wall.

Was she asleep?

Lisbeth got her answer when she tapped the girl on her shoulder, jumping backwards slightly when the Swordswoman's eyes shot open, narrowing into slits and focusing on her while her hand held her sword, already pointed at Lisbeth's throat. The Swordswoman blinked before shaking her head slightly, lowering the blade and dematerialising it back into her inventory.

After another couple of tense seconds, Lisbeth's brain clicked. A year ago she saw this girl, in her very own shop, searching for a strong weapon. She remembered shouting at her, and comparing the rumours to the actual meeting of said person, it was...odd.

She was said to strike down those that had annoyed her, yet Lisbeth was still here, and she was pretty sure her tirade struck a lot of open nerves. Again, this woman was said to become annoyed very quickly, but she only displayed calmness eerily similar to that of a broken man, come back from war and reliving everything within his head over and over again. Was that why her eyes were glassy? Was that why she was seemingly often staring at nothing?

"Why are you staring at me?"

Lisbeth shook her head clear of those thoughts at the eerie voice, and looked up to meet grey eyes. "I...came to apologise." The Black Swordswoman simply tilted her head sideways, curious as to what she was talking about. "Well...I kinda did shout at you over something as stupid as a sword... about a year ago..." Liz rubbed the back of her neck gently with her left hand, and as she was about to do the same with her right, a smooth, fingerless glove covered hand stopped her.

"I...don't need an apology." Came the Swordswoman's reply, and before Liz could attest that she was in fact in the wrong, the voice spoke again, silencing her. "My name is Kimiko." Then her right hand was raised to Kimiko's lips, and a gentle kiss was placed upon the back of her hand.

"L-Lisbeth." She coughed; rubbing the blush away with her free hand as Kimiko stared at her expectantly, releasing her hand after a while. "But you can C-Call me Liz."

Kimiko bowed her head, nodding.

It was then that the silence around the floor reached her ears; deafening, yet alarming and calming. It provided three things to her senses; none of them good save for the calming aspect- which only seemed to be around the presence of Kimiko. Liz looked around, curious as to why the area was so quiet, and she found her answer in the surprised and shocked looks on each of the Clearer's faces. Asuna the most, for she had a look of sheer astonishment, as if being told fish could fly.

Asuna rushed over quickly, pulling Lisbeth over to a shaded area, whispering to her as the crowd of people all spoke in hushed tones, directing their gazes towards Kimiko, who simply stood and leaned against the wall.

Asuna got right up in Liz's face. "How?"

The curious and bewildered expression on Liz's face said it all; she had no idea what Asuna was talking about. "How did you get her to talk, let alone to you?"

"Uh..."

"She hasn't talked since she got here, almost a year ago." Asuna explained, causing some gears to turn in Liz's head. "We gave her a private room, but she refuses to sleep in a place she doesn't know." she leaned in, as if to share some secret. "She hasn't slept or spoken in nearly a year."

"I...just...wait; she hasn't slept in nearly a year!?"Asuna just nodded, causing Liz to almost faint at the absurdity. "Have you tried forcing her? Threatening her?"

"We have," Asuna said, sadly. "She refuses our polite suggestions, shakes off our attempts at force and...Well, none of the guys are stupid enough to threaten her." then she looked down. "Except maybe that Klein guy, but he's...well, he looks like a..."

"...Freaky paedophile?" Liz finished, and she knew all too well what he was like; the guy was clearly alone. She met him once when he came to her shop not long after Kimiko left, and he wouldn't stop hitting on her. He looked like a freaky college student virgin.

Asuna sweat-dropped. "I see you've had the unpleasantness of meeting him before?"

Liz grew a disgusted look on her face, almost shuddering as she relived meeting the clearly desperate guy. "Yeah...Unfortunately."

They both shuddered together, but Liz couldn't help but turn her head towards Kimiko...Only to see the mysterious woman vanished from sight, as if never there in the first place.

For some inexplicable reason her heart ached, and she sighed as she looked towards Asuna once more, who seemed oblivious to the fact that the Swordswoman had disappeared, or she simply didn't care.

She sighed, taking note of the time- night-time, midnight to be precise.

Shaking her head, she looked over at the place Kimiko was last seen.

"Sweet dreams, Swordswoman."

(^^^^^^)

Kimiko had cleared the game. It was all over the news on how the brave solo player risked her life, eventually getting trapped within SAO, just to allow the other remaining thousands of players release from the violent death game. Soldiers, the fathers of the people within the game and the war veterans that were trapped in there all came to show appreciation to the hero that had saved thousands by killing one and sacrificing herself. She received medals, special summons by higher ups for when she awoke, and top-of-the-line medical care and engineers, working non-stop to release the trapped hero.

They found out eventually where Kimiko's hospital room was- everyone that she had saved; sometimes strangers, sometimes people she met in SAO, but everyone she had saved from death, from the brutal tragedy that is SAO- Sword Art Online.

She was stuck in there, trapped, and yet her body didn't seem fazed at all, as if it was finally calm, peaceful in a life of constant warring; they could only wonder why. They could only dream of the facts behind her unconscious yet blissful state as opposed to her conscious, angered, temperamental state. They got their answer when they visited her school to pay there condolences to the people she knew.

"That Kimiko freak's finally gone!"

"Dude, she was so creepy. Always sneakin' around..."

"...So quiet as well. No one could get near her without being given the 'death glare of doom'."

Liz- she had adopted the name from her online profile on SAO- couldn't believe her ears. These people truly hated Kimiko outside the game as well? It was sickening, and clearly by the expression on everyone else's faces, they agreed with that sentimentality. Kimiko was truly hated everywhere she went, and now her cold behaviour and sudden disappearances seemed...justified, almost required. She had to survive here for her entire life being shunned, but what hit her and Asuna's ears, as well as Andrew's and Keika's, truly shocked them to the point of Asuna tearing up at the mere thought of it.

"Dude, I hear even her own sister's glad she's gone."

No one could say anything, and without a word the group retreated back to Andrew's little cafe-pub, where they went freely using their SAO login names as identifiers for each other.

Liz sat hunched over, staring at her bowl of rice, when Agil walked over to her, placing a heavy hand upon her left shoulder and looking down at her silently.

The act said words and spoke volumes to her- "I'm sorry that you can't believe everything you just heard is true." That's what his hands said to her, and she agreed; denial was something she was used to.

After a minute, he wordlessly reached over his counted and pulled out a game- Gun Gale Online, to be exact.

"A new VRMMORPG," he explained. "It's basically Sword Art, but with guns." Seeing her risen eyebrow, he hastily added. "Don't worry, completely safe. The new NerveGear you get with them- Amuspheres- are one hundred percent guaranteed that you can't die."

"So...dying in this doesn't kill you?" she was quite sceptical of the new VR video games released after SAO's bust. It seemed legit as she read through the blurb of the game; Agil was right down to a 'T'. This was basically SAO with guns.

He saw her look, and decided that he'd help her. "You see, when I first started playing-"

"You've been playing this?" she interjected, causing him to nod.

"-I came across this in-game thing that seemed...odd. Scary even."

She rolled her hands in a motion for him to continue. "You see...the game's based off a post apocalyptic Earth- you know, dust everywhere, futuristic guns, all that jazz- and you basically get rewarded for killing other players." She gasped, but he continued. "I came across a player, civilian one, too, who was rambling to his friends about 'a girl in black who killed the Player Killers'."

She didn't need to be told twice. "Kimiko!?" she shot up, only to find two massive hands clamp down on her shoulders and herself being eased back down into her chair.

"Hold it there, Liz; there's something else you should know, too." He took a deep breath. "She's basically the most hated person in GGO. Since you can set a bounty on someone if they've done something to wrong you, or sometimes it's set automatically, she's killed a lot of people, so a lot of people want her dead."

She widened her eyes in shock as the situation dawned on her. "And..."

He continued. "And, with the state she's in right now in the real world, we don't know what happens if she dies in the game."

(^^^^^^)

Looking above her, shielding her grey eyes from the glaring sun, she thought back, recapping her life here so far.

She had been here a year, was now the most hated person in the game- no surprise there-, had killed over fifty Player Killers- she remembered because she briefly looked at the tallied notches on her FN Five-SeveN- and had briefly been in a relationship. No, supposedly, according to her, they still were, considering she'd already told Sinon of her predicament with her disallowance of leaving GGO, and the fact that her blue haired virtual girlfriend wanted something they could never share- a full time, real life relationship.

She sighed, thinking on how she'd had to repeat herself to Sinon on how she could never leave, even if she wanted to- she didn't. The fact that people died and came back to life after a set time period eased her fears of death, though she knew something wasn't exactly right with her set life as it is right now. She knew that death for her could go both ways- a fifty-fifty chance- and she did not want to take said chance for anything.

She heard a clatter of feet, approaching from her left flank, and sighed; another set of bounty hunters? How great. Because, you know, the eighteen bounty hunters she'd had to send home with their tails between their legs in the last week alone wasn't enough warning? Shaking her head in irritation, she back-flipped, landing behind a large boulder that was elevated to provide just the right angle.

"...Kimiko? Are you okay?" her earpiece flared to life, causing her to wince at the unexpected static afterwards- Sinon's voice flooded her ears, and as much as she'd loath to admit it, it calmed her rapidly beating heart just enough for her to take out her pistol and fire three shots into the approaching, unaware faces of the bounty hunters.

She sighed, raising her two fingers to her left ear and tapping once, activating it. "Yes, I'm fine." Her voice held an edge, as sharp as her Photon Sword. She could practically hear the wince Sinon made, and it made her frown more; she and her temper were really at odds lately. She sighed, "Sorry...just more bounty hunters."

"Need help?" her voice was hurt, but she knew Sinon would get over it; she always did, and to be frank, that's what Kimiko found attractive about her- not her level, her strength, but her sheer will. Something they both shared. Another thing they shared was pasts; while Kimiko's was more scarring, Sinon's was...disturbing, nevertheless- not as much as Kimiko's own, but still enough to bring any normal person to their knees, weeping and begging.

"No. How about we talk some more though? I know you like to talk." Her tone held a softness when she spoke next, and a hint of affection; she'd be lying if she said that Sinon wasn't too good for her, and she'd also be a liar if she said she didn't feel the same way as Sinon did- just not as much affection as the mentioned blue haired sniper, but just enough to be called 'Like-liking'.

Her answer got the reaction she hoped for as she casually lined up a scared hunter's head- balding, but clearly only twenty; what were they making as avatars these days? "HEY! Well...maybe I won't talk, how about that?" came the childish reply through her earpiece, and she smiled a small smile, shaking her head slightly as she brought out her glowing purple sword, slicing an approaching hunter's head off before switching back to her Five-SeveN.

"I like hearing your voice; calms me down."

The reply was stuttered, and at first she thought it to be the earpiece, but then thought otherwise- Sinon was known for being nervous when complimented. "R-R-Really?"

Kimiko shot two more, before replying. "Yep. So, how was school?" she smiled as she heard the soft outtake of air through the piece, and looked around to find no more bounty hunters.

"It was...fine." Kimiko heard the hesitation, and frowned- hesitation like that could only mean two things.

She found a nearby flattened boulder, hiding her form beneath an array of shade before pitching a camouflage tent she used to evade wildlife and players whilst she slept safely. "Okay, what happened?"

She heard silence, then a loud shot from Sinon's Hecate MK II. "I uh...it was...nothing?"

Kimiko narrowed her eyes into slits, glaring at a nearby rock and putting a warning tone in her voice as she spoke next. She hated liars, but with Sinon, she knew better. Whenever Sinon lied, it was either for her benefit, or someone else's, never for her own selfish gain.

That didn't mean she liked it though.

"Sinon..."

"Okay fine! They got me again today."

She knew who 'they' were; bullies, preying on the weakened state of Sinon's mind, exploiting the incident that happened when she was a child over and over again, forcing her to become a living nightmare-attracter. It made Kimiko's blood boil that she could do nothing to protect her girlfriend. She could in this game, but that was it; nothing to help her outside of it, and no way of contact. It was just so...infuriating. in SAO she had longed for someone to fight for, and she thought Lisbeth was that someone, but then she was transported into the game of GGO, and had realised that her suffering must have been just so she could meet Sinon; she still hated that she could do nothing in the real world, though.

Sinon could tell her girlfriend was stewing in rage, and her earlier statement came into mind. If her voice could clam her down, then why was she letting Kimiko stew when she could help the pot calm the boiling waters? "Say...Kimiko?"

Kimiko's sigh could be heard through the earpiece, and Sinon smiled. She knew physical contact helped in little ways, but it never had such an effect as her own voice did. She could use this in the future for missions such as this- well, it was hardly a mission. Kimiko, since she couldn't get back to the real world, had to survive off of in-game foods- and since they couldn't just walk into the nearest town for fear of bounty hunters catching wind, they'd made do from scavenging from dead players, wasteland animals and mini-bosses.

"Yeah?"

"How was your day?"

She chuckled, catching Sinon off guard; she had never heard her chuckle before. But Kimiko obliged nonetheless, regaling her lover on how she'd managed to survive another day of this hell. How she'd managed to recall her time in SAO and why she was who she was today. She managed to tell her all about the tears she'd shed that morning, just being away from Sinon- that earned a few sniffles from Sinon herself- and how she feared Sinon had been killed or had died in the real world.

"Sinon...?" her voice was soft now, something she had never used for anyone else other than Sinon; all for her, only for her.

"Yeah?"

"I..." she wanted to say it, but she'd been burned enough times for her natural instincts to kick in, to protect herself from the pain that was sure to come. She wanted to say them, the tree words that could make her smile for the rest of her life- in or out of the game. "...I..."

You could practically hear the smile in Sinon's voice, but Kimiko was stressed. "Hey, it's okay; you don't have to say it yet, okay? When you're ready..." a pause, then, "...I love you Kimiko."

Kimiko sniffled and wiped her grey eyes, sighing as she heard silence from the other side of the earpiece, before she heard something odd- heavy breathing. It was as if...Sinon fell asleep? Of course she did, why wouldn't she?

She looked up, seeing that their talk had taken them well into the night. It finally dawned on her how much Kimiko just released from her shoulders, and she sighed, a small weary smile working its way onto her face.

The sun was setting, and while nowhere near as captivating as the sunsets in SAO or even real life, it still served to catch her attention and ease her mind.

Turning herself over onto her back, she lowered her stomach to the ground, curling up beneath a sandy-coloured camouflage tent.

She knew Sinon would never hear it- when a player went to sleep in the game, she got the choice to sleep in-game or wake up in the real world; and whenever this option came up, she knew Sinon would always leave the world, her avatar in a state of sleep in the same place until she returned.

"Goodnight Sinon, pleasant dreams."