Abyss of the Shrine Maiden

Festival And Confession

That feeling somewhat resides as he notices them and peels himself off the wall. “On time, Asuna.”

“Same for you and Kazuto…though some people are early,” Asuna says that part so only her and her former party members can hear while side-eyeing the other girls. Sighing, she looks up to Joshua, nods, and steps off to the side, glancing back at Koharu. “Well, I’ll go make my presence known. You two have fun.”

“Wait, Asuna…” Asuna is gone before Koharu can stop her, leaving Koharu alone with Joshua for a limited time. Joshua’s attention is on the advance of Asuna to Kazuto, possibly confused by her weird actions a moment ago. Mentally slapping herself (which unintentionally translated into her physically smacking both sides of her face), Koharu slaps her nerves aside and takes a step closer to Joshua. “Um… Hey.”

“Hm? Oh, hey… Are you okay?”

“Um… H-H-How do I look?”

“You look great, I guess.” Koharu finds his response somewhat dry, but then again, there are seven other girls already present. The novelty of a girl in a yukata has worn off by now. Sighing, she looks up to him, shocked to see his smile. “Why are you so nervous? I’ve seen you like this before.”

“Not the real me.”

“Good point. Though, I must say, whatever you two tried planning with Kazuto rushing me here failed spectacularly. Everyone besides Suguha and Nagata was already here when we arrived.” Joshua chuckles to himself and faces Koharu again, seeing her annoyed face. “Oh, I see. So that was the plan.”

“It was Asuna’s.”

“Even worse.” Josh turns back to Koharu and holds his hand out to her. “Okay, come on. Let’s go. It’s quite dense with people in the park, so it’s best if we stick close.” Koharu looks at the hand and back at the boy. He nods, inviting her to take his hand again. She averts her eyes to Asuna and Kazuto, both looking in their direction as the rest of the troupe enter the park and then back to Joshua’s hand. It’s just to stay together, Koharu, nothing more. Slowly she raises and interlocks her hand with his, then follows him and the rest.

xxxxxxx

Somehow, by the will of a god or some entity, the packed crowd separates the twelve into groups of two to four. For Koharu, this leads to her ending up with Joshua, Suguha, and Nagata. The gang had already pre-planned a spot to watch the fireworks show so everyone could enjoy the festival at their pace. For Koharu and her impromptu group, that pace currently is the boys trying to shoot a target for a grand prize of a giant teddy bear while the girls stand and watch. As far as Koharu can recall, this is the first time she’s alone with the younger Kirigaya.

When Koharu met Suguha moments after they were forcibly logged out of the Underworld at the Roppongi branch of Rath, it surprised her that Kazuto had a younger sister. Yet, at the same time, it made so much sense based on his actions in SAO, especially towards girls (the protective attitude, that is). Her first impression of Suguha probably was the same as any other teenage girl, but as time went on, Koharu came to see Suguha as a sweet, fun girl curious more so about the past, undetailed life of her brother and his three closest allies from a new perspective.

“You think either of them are gonna win the prize?”

“Shino said she beat Joshua in a similar game, though I heard she ‘cheated.’ But Nagata doesn’t have any experience holding a gun, real or virtual, so… Maybe Joshua will win.” Suguha smiles and looks at Koharu. “Wouldn’t that be nice?”

“I-I guess…”

“Hmm… You know, when I first met Joshua, it was in ALO. At the time, I didn’t know my brother was Kirito, so I found it strange that a Salamander and Spriggan were traveling together in neutral territory and that Salamander fought off others of his kind to save a Sylph. He was so cool, a different kind of cool than Kirito, but at times, he would be melancholy. One time, we were alone, and Yui made a comment that hurt him. But you know how the boys are; they keep their burdens to themselves and each other.”