Work Text:
Wixoss World: Kai's Rented Apartment
It was evening by the time Aichi and Hitoe decided to put off their search for Kai, Ruko and the others until the following day when they came back from the library when they decided to stop by the apartment blocks before the Selector would return home. At first, it seemed the pair had decided to part ways and meet up again in the morning to resume their search, but upon arriving and finding that no one was currently present inside even with one of the spare keys Kai had managed to grab for him, they decided to spend some more time together before it would get late into the coming night.
At first, they decided to have a practice battle to help Aichi adjust more to playing with Umr in the realm of WIXOSS, if the need were to arise where he would need her powers to assist him in the Selector Battles. After coming out short from having little experience with utilizing the black LRIG outside of a previous practice battle with Leon coupled with Hitoe's growth in confidence following her battle to save Midoriko and Sakuya from the clutches of Reverse, he was quick to congratulate her along with the green LRIG herself, whose card was stood up against the Selector's bag alongside Yuzuki's and Umr's.
"Nice one Hitoe!" the red LRIG cheered "You really managed to fire back against those Legacy SIGNI resurrection tactics and their power drains!"
"I still can't believe it myself," the green LRIG interjected "I know Hitoe had potential, but she let her shyness get the better of her and could be scared easily. I'm moreso impressed with her ability to decide on defensive ARTS when they're needed."
Hitoe meekly scratched the back of her head, uncertain of how to take in all of this sudden praise from her two LRIGs over a simple practice game, but even she knew that overcoming any of the group of cardfighters regardless of their kind of deck at all was not an easy task of itself. She knew she only triumphed today over Aichi's lack of experience in completely mastering the strategies of Umr, even if he had once defeated Leon in a previous battle with that LRIG. The Royal Paladin user looked to her and smiled warmly to congratulate her.
"Well done," he said "I'm glad to see you're still proving yourself as a Selector and a person. Someone whose gentle heart can remind people that even when things can feel bleak, that it is possible to pull themselves out of there and grow as a person from where they were."
"Y... You really think so Aichi-kun?" the Selector asked whilst her cheeks became lightly tinted "That I've somehow become this... er, symbol of hope you describe? ... Or something else..."
"Yes," the Royal Paladin user replied "I've seen your confidence increase, keep the promise to a childhood friend and even saving her from a fate she'd never truly want to be trapped in. You overcame Kai's Dragonic Overlord when it was stolen not just to prove a point to Akira, but because you saw Kai as a friend in need during that battle. And... you were there for me when Akira and Urith tried to go after me for their own ends."
Thinking back to the afternoon earlier at the library when Urith had hijacked his PSY Qualia to display a frightening image of a possible future created by his own hands for the second time, one only he had seen yet others had seen the effects of what it meant for him, his beliefs and morals. Shuddering a little at recalling the thought of that, Hitoe suddenly got up from the chair she was seated at and came over to him. Aichi seeing how worried she had become at the thought of that time earlier in the day smiled lightly to reassure her that he had made a full recovery from the experience despite how harrowing it was to unwillingly see that sight again. Once the Selector was convinced, before she could say anymore, that was when Umr decided to speak out.
"Hitoe... why does your face turn red in master Aichi's presence?" the black LRIG asked.
"Er...! That's..." Hitoe stuttered in a flustered manner, with her face going beet red at her spoken observation "Aichi-kun is someone I very much admire and... consider a really close friend Umr...!"
"Are you not ill then?" Umr continued, having not been familiar with this kind of human behaviour "You did also behave similarly with this 'hug' when Aichi was spared from harm before."
"Anyway," Midoriko interrupted with a cough "It'll be getting dark soon, so we should head back in a couple of minutes Hitoe. If we get an early night's rest, we can search for Ruko and the others by daybreak without tiring ourselves out."
Hitoe, now having some breathing room from Umr's understandable yet overly curious questions, nodded in agreement as she felt her cheeks cool down, but only ever so slightly as she looked back to Aichi, who seemingly had been more confused that oblivious to the sudden behaviour of his friend. The Selector wanting to move on from the awkward topic decided to get something off of her mind she had been meaning to tell him for a while.
"Kai told me before you came to our world that he saw a little bit of you in me," she explained, recalling how he compared her still maturing determination to help out those she considered closest to her to the Royal Paladin user "To be honest, even with how far I've come since that day... I don't know what he sees in me that's comparable to you, who's saved two worlds from annihilation twice before and put his own life on the line to endure the evil of Link Joker other than how kind we come across to our friends."
"He really said that?" he asked curiously, having not heard this mention since arriving in this world and meeting her for the first time.
"Yeah... something like that," Hitoe answered, still uncertain if those words from Kai still rang true in their entirety "... What do you think Aichi-kun?"
"Well, when I think about it... when we first met back at the library, where you asked me if you were useless, I could see a lot of my old self in you then," said Aichi "Nervous, scared, unsure of whether I should even exist in a world that seemingly didn't want me... If anything, seeing how much those were taking a toll on you only motivated me to accept Yuzuki's offer to help you out. If anything, aside from hearing that Akira insulted you to get a cheap victory during your first run as a Selector, I'm just glad you were never heavily bullied for being yourself."
Hitoe was about to open her mouth in response to that last statement when the thought of Kai's mention of how heavily bullied Aichi used to be as a young boy up until the first time he challenged the Kagero user to a cardfight was when she realized that despite feeling similar thoughts and only getting shocked by electrical discharges from anything that connected her to friendship during her tainted wish, in some aspects was only lucky that it never escalated to a similar point in the Royal Paladin user's life. At that point, he remembered something at the back of his mind and got up from the chair, walking away from the table and stopping for a brief moment.
"Give me a moment Hitoe-san, I just need to find something first," he said as he ran into Kai's room.
All outside were uncertain about what it was Aichi needed to get from the Kagero user's bedroom, pondering what its importance could be, all except for Umr who glanced at the Selector with noted thoughts on what significance this had for her in particular. They could hear the rustling of a bag from the other side of the door leading to that room as it sounded like he was trying to get something of significant importance for her. Eventually, after nearly a minute had passed, the Royal Paladin user slowly returned through the doorway carrying a small medium sized box in his hands, getting everyone curious about what he had brought to the table. He gently pushed the box to Hitoe who was unsure if he intended for it to be for her, but a nod from Aichi was all it took to confirm any thoughts on that.
"I heard about how much you and the others were wanting to visit the beach during summer when the Selector Battles are dealt with once and for all," he explained, unable to stop a small tint from appearing on his cheeks "I know this wasn't exactly what you would think of in mind, but... I hope you find it nice."
Hitoe gently opened the box lid for all to see and her eyes widened in surprise along with silent gasps of similar expression from her two LRIGs. Inside was a necklace that was adorned with seven brown pointed teeth, fossils that were sometimes common to find on the shores amongst the sand and stones that were salvaged for collection purposes, to use as an ornament or in the case of the gift Aichi had given to the Selector, a portion of custom-made jewellery. Sensing that she hadn't come up with an immediate answer following the initial shock of her surprise, the Royal Paladin user initially became worried.
"Is it alright?" he asked nervously "I asked the shopowners to sand down the teeth I found on the beach so they wouldn't be blunt or sharp when requesting for the construction of the necklace."
"I..."
Tears began streaming down Hitoe's face as an appreciative and thankful smile graced her lips, relieving him as she gently picked up the necklace and hung it around her neck, the sanded down and softened fossil teeth brushing gently across her dark brownish shirt.
"I love it Aichi-kun!" she exclaimed in joy "I've always found small fossils on sandy beaches fascinating... it's a really nice gift."
Seeing her warm smile with complete appreciation for his thoughtful gift, her two LRIGs were happy for their Selector and even more appreciative that Aichi had gone out of his way in his own time to get a necklace like that constructed for Hitoe. Aichi himself was happy that his reasoning behind the choice of gift had not been in vain and that the girl in front of him was thankful of his efforts to make that choice for her. He suddenly felt something in his heart flutter when she closed her eyes as something dormant in the back of his head suddenly sounded out. It sounded like voices from a time long ago, one of which seemed familiar to him and yet the other was masked by all that noise, making him feel surprised and uncertain at what he had just heard, catching the attention of the LRIGs on the table.
"Master Aichi!" Umr called out.
"What's up?" asked Yuzuki.
"I..." Aichi stuttered as the voices in his head disappeared "I'm sorry... I must be hearing things."
At that moment, Hitoe who had been too happy in her own thoughts to notice what had just happened opened her eyes to see Aichi who had discreetly regained his composure. Suddenly, his eyelids became heavy as he felt himself unable to supress a small yawn before suddenly shaking his head to force himself to stop dozing off, much to the concern of the Selector in front of him.
"Aichi-kun? Is something wrong?" she asked worriedly.
"I... I don't know," he replied drowsily "I... I must have been tired out sooner when Urith hijacked my PSYQualia earlier. I can't stop myself from falling asleep."
"It's alright," the Selector replied as she gently clasped his right arm and began helping him over to the couch "I'll need to be setting off soon anyway. Get some rest now and if you feel better later, we can chat over a call or text tonight."
"Thanks..." Aichi replied as he couldn't supress another yawn before he began to fall asleep "Have a safe journey... H... Hitoe-chan."
Hitoe suddenly blinked in surprise at the use of the honorific, having always known the Royal Paladin user to have respectfully call her 'Hitoe-san' as he had always done since they first met, even though she had started referring to him as 'Aichi-kun' following the battle with Akira to win back Kai's deck. Then again, despite feeling herself blush a little from the sudden usage, she was able to calm herself knowing that it may have been in a moment of tiredness. Guiding him to the couch, she gently helped him into a sitting like position and moved one of the cushions to help him rest his head against it, satisfied that it would be enough to help him rest for a while.
"Shall we go Hitoe?" Midoriko asked from her card.
"Just about a few minutes or so," Hitoe quietly replied, not wanting to abruptly wake Aichi back up by mistake.
The silence she got back from her two LRIGs helped her to confirm that they too were respectful of not wanting to be too loud around the Royal Paladin user as he currently was. Looking at Aichi's sleeping face, recalling the similar state he had been in at her house following his first encounter with Urith, Hitoe decided to help him be at ease a little more before setting off for home with Yuzuki and Midoriko. Quietly humming a song from the pages of a foreign novel she once imported to expand her learning of written English and her curiosity for fictional literature, she stayed with Aichi as he fully settled down for a quiet rest, almost unaware of anything but the soothing melody that was from the girl beside him.
Seeing that he wouldn't wake up until he had slept for long enough unless someone would abruptly come through the front door of the apartment, a tight feeling swelling up in her chest as she looked at the kind expression that was even now still present in this peaceful state. Thinking about her bond with Aichi and how much she had wished to treasure it for the longest time even with a certain thought looming on the horizon, Hitoe made a decision. She quickly took her chance whilst all LRIGs were facing away on the table behind the couch... and pecked him on the cheek with her lips. At first, her heart began thumping as she pulled away from his face with her's being red, but upon seeing that her kiss wasn't forceful enough to stir the Royal Paladin user from his slumber, she inwardly breathed in relief and regained her composure, getting up to pick up her two LRIGs and leave for home.
"See you tomorrow..." she whispered softly, though part of it was to herself "Pleasant dreams, Aichi-kun."
Picking up Yuzuki and Midoriko's cards and keeping them safe and secure in her pockets, Hitoe exited the apartment as quietly as possible and then set off out of the building to be on her way.
All the while as she came out of the park, Hitoe kept quiet to herself and only talked to either of her LRIGs when she wanted to say something or they did in return Her thoughts now centred on one object or person that had a warm presence that had captured her interest when they first met and now, after several days of getting to know one another personally, she mentally could admit one thing to herself following her decision and as of this moment or any moment prior, only to herself for the time being. She hadn't been entirely subtle about it, having known Yuzuki to carry suspicion about it on her own and Umr's curiosity alone to see through it without even entirely being aware of such, but it was something she still kept to herself.
Aichi-kun... I love you.
Suddenly, the sound of static sounded throughout the back of her head as she came to a stop briefly, looking around to see if it was coming from somewhere nearby. At first, she initially assumed it was from nearby audio equipment in the open, but upon taking a minute to register the sound, she could hear voices muffled in the mix of static and noise and yet, one of them was all too familiar to her. But why would that be the case, remained a mystery to even her.
"Hitoe, is something wrong?" asked Midoriko.
"It's nothing... I thought I heard an LRIG," Hitoe hastily replied "I think it may have just been something else, but I'll stay careful."
"Watch yourself then," Yuzuki said warily "If Reversed Selectors popped up yesterday and the day before alone, we'll need to keep our eyes peeled."
Hitoe nodded in agreement and continued down the city streets for home under the moonlit sky, with much on her mind to contemplate and many feelings that were unresolved or muddled to deal with in due course. All the same, she prayed that wherever it was that Ruko, Kai, Kamui and Kiyoi had vanished to following the Kagero user's last battle with Miyako, that they were safe from any immediate danger and could find a way to reunite with them as the search for the group of friends and allies continued onwards.
To be expanded upon in Arc 4: Side Wixoss of Stand Up, the LRIG...