August 30th, 2026, Koharu
“Are you sure this is okay, Asuna?” Koharu eyes the numerous bags the other girl carries as she sets them down on Koharu’s bed, then glances at her friend’s whose smile makes Koharu uncomfortable. What is Asuna planning?
As planned yesterday while in SA:O, Koharu, Asuna, and the girls will attend the festival in the neighborhood park. Unbeknownst to everyone except Koharu and by now Suguha and Alice, Asuna had also invited Kazuto and Joshua. Of course, it's probably best stated that Rika, Keiko, Shino, Kotone, and Nijika know that they're coming; it just hasn't been said they're coming.
“What are you worried about, Koharu? We spent the day getting you a yukata, and now I'm going to have you look gorgeous. Remember, this is for you. You've started this, now see it through. Sit.”
Koharu follows Asuna’s instructions and sits at her desk, but not without continuing her argument. “But...don’t you think this is too soon?”
“Ko, listen. Love is a limited-time quest. Do you know what happens if you let time pass without progressing? You fail. In your case, you're two and a half years behind after a long series of progress.”
Koharu internally sighs as Asuna begins to apply makeup to her face. “It’s uncomfortable to hear you talk about love and make it analogous to games. What did Kazuto do to you?”
Asuna smiles. “It's not like you to be unsure of what you want to be with Joshua. No matter what, you held on to one certainty; you two are partners. Nothing and no one, not even Kazuto and I, could get between that. Don't falter now.”
“In that case, why invite the competition? I don't see how you've endured these years with the girls and Kazuto.”
“What competition? A girl with pigtails and the body of an eleven-year-old, an AI who gets offended if you breathe in her direction, and a cousin whose only asset--and lack thereof--is her chest?”
Koharu gulps as Asuna’s trademark scary face makes an appearance. So she is aware of other girls liking Kazuto. “...I wouldn't say I like the look in your eyes.”
“Worry about yourself. I have Kazuto without fear of anyone else...though Blondie is pushing it sometimes. That's Joshua’s fault, in this case. You just need him to look your way, not anyone else's. Not at Liz. Not at Phil or Shinonon. You, and you alone, as he did in SAO. After all, you do have a promise between the two of you, right?”
Koharu nods and looks at the white yukata hanging in her closet. “I hope he remembers it… Okay, do your best, Asuna.”
“You got it.”
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That evening
When the two girls arrived at Yoyogi Park, Koharu was expecting them to come after the boys. That was the plan. But as Koharu knows well by now, any idea made by Kazuto, Joshua, Asuna, and herself is doomed to have a few impediments. The other girls were not supposed to be here yet. Asuna deliberately gave them a slightly different time to meet up so that Joshua’s attention would be on Koharu first.
Oh well. She can’t fault them for being early.
However, it is Joshua who notices the pair first. Unlike Kazuto, who’s actively engaging in conversation with the girls and another boy who Suguha is attached to… Oh right, the younger Kirigaya has a boyfriend. Anyway, Joshua stands off to the side alone, dressed like everyone else in a yukata in a black and red yukata, and even wears a pair of geta. He looks so uncomfortable that it makes her want to step up to him and laugh, but what keeps her docile is her nervousness. It has only been two nights since they came here together, and that’s still fresh on her mind.
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.”
“What was it?”
“Yui asked me what it means to like someone, and I answered that it’s a desire to be with them all the time, being excited about being around them, something like that. She responded, “‘So like Uncle and Auntie?’ At the time, I didn’t understand who ‘Auntie’ was. Later on, when he started dating Liz, Yui never called her that, so I finally realized she was talking about you. It made sense at the time why he’d be sad. He was helping my brother save the girl he loved, while at the same time, he still felt bad about being unable to save you.”
Koharu turns to the boys, seeing Joshua take his turn. “Oh.”
“He even said I resemble you a bit, so much he was uncomfortable around me initially. I see it now... To this day, I find him to be cool, even more so than my brother at times. He’s a second big brother in that case. Because of him, I confronted and told Kazuto my feelings, and Nagata found the confidence to ask me out. I owe him a little in that regard.”
“You really like your boyfriend, Sugu? I bet all the boys are jealous of him.”
Suguha chuckles and rubs her head. Indeed she is Kazuto’s sister. “Yeah, well… I try not to be too doting on him at school, but yes, I really do. I know he doesn’t look like much, but when it counts, he’s always been there for me, even when I didn’t realize it. I didn’t understand what I told Yui back then, but today I do. Being with Nagata is exciting, and I find it hard to separate myself from him, both in the real world and the virtual. I try inviting him to come with me to other games, but he always declines, saying that he’s not cut out for the insanity we get into. I don’t blame him… I believe Joshua will come around to you soon.”
“We have a winner! Choose your prize!” Josh scans the prizes, then points away from the grand prize. Koharu watches as the gamemaster hands him two smaller prizes, and Joshua hands one to Nagata as they turn away from the stand and walk towards the girls. Nagata arrives first, the glasses-wearing boy nervously giving a medium-sized brown bear.
“I-I didn’t win this, but… Here, Suguha.”
Suguha graciously accepts the animal and holds it close. “It’s fine. You gave it to me anyway. Thanks, Nagata.” Koharu smiles at the younger couple as they link arms and head to a nearby stall when she turns to Joshua, his eyes on the couple as well.
“Why did you choose to do that?”
“I knew he wouldn’t win from the beginning, not even a small prize, so why not? It made him look good in her eyes, and he made her happy. Kazuto might not be so kind.” He looks down to his occupied hand and thrusts the bear towards Koharu. “Here you go.”
Koharu doesn’t accept it with the same vigor as Suguha, but she can’t contain the excitement on her face regardless. “Thanks.”
Joshua nods and lets Koharu link her arm with his before walking off. “Yeah. What were you and Sugu talking about?”
“Girl talk.”
“About Kazuto, huh? Boring.”
“No. Her other, much cooler big brother.”
“...She didn’t tell you about the comments I obstinately deny ever saying.”
Koharu smiles and decides to keep everything Suguha previously said to herself. “No, but maybe we should talk about that instead.”
“...Liz started it last summer…”
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About an hour later, ten of the twelve friends met up at the designated meeting spot to watch the fireworks. With five minutes to go before the fireworks start, the nine determine it's better to wait in place instead of searching for the missing two as everyone was told where to meet. The missing two: the unlikely pair of Koharu and Rika.
Here’s what transpired.
About half an hour ago, Koharu, Joshua, Suguha, and Nagata arrived at the designated spot with Keiko, Kotone, Shino, Nijika, and Rika. At the time, almost everyone was present except for Kazuto, Asuna, and Alice. For a while, they engaged in small conversations until Rika announced she’d be back; she just needed to head to the restroom. Fifteen minutes before the present time, Kazuto’s group arrived, but Rika had not returned. A couple of minutes later, with worry for Rika on everyone’s mind, Koharu volunteered to seek out Rika herself.
She found the blacksmith player relatively quickly, right by the nearest restroom, seated on a bench alone in her cute red and white yukata. Sending a text to Joshua that she found their missing friend, she walks over to Rika and stands over her. What she couldn’t see from a distance, she now considers the reason Rika most likely excused herself, her face stained with tears. “Rika?”
Rika looks up then hides her face. “Why are you here?”
“I was looking for you, that’s all. We were concerned since you didn’t come back after a while, so I decided to come out to find you.” Koharu takes a seat and hands Rika a tissue from her bag. Rika looks at it questionably before taking it and wiping her face.
“Thank you.” Koharu sits back and waits for Rika to compose herself. She has many theories about why Rika separated herself to cry, yet she fears only one is the truth. Rika must have been why the other girls arrived earlier than the boys (though that’s not wrong in itself), but Koharu’s sure Rika had no idea that Asuna was scheming behind the scenes. Then when the group got separated, Koharu was stuck with the one person Rika wanted to be with. Koharu is no idiot; if any girl suffers from seeing Joshua and Koharu together, it is Rika.
Not wanting to make pointless bickering, especially with a subject as fragile as that, Koharu turns to Rika. “Ready to go back?”
“No, I’m staying here.”
“Why?”
“It’s better than witnessing you two together.” Rika frowns and squeezes her fists together. “And the longer you stay here, the longer you’re going to frustrate me.”
“But--”
“I know you must’ve done something. He was acting weird about you for a while. I don’t care about it anymore. It’s not your fault things are like this right now, nor is it his. Who he was before this summer, he’s different from who he was. Whatever changed him… It is why he’s holding himself back from you entirely… Even now, he’s doing it. But you wouldn’t understand it because you’ve never seen him in this type of pain. You probably don’t even know...his father returned to the hospital yesterday afternoon in critical condition.”
Koharu jaw drops. Is that why, before the boss fight… “But… But I thought his father was okay.”
“Turns out it was a lie to keep Joshua from worrying too much. I don’t know more than what I heard, but it isn’t good. Very bad. But despite receiving that news, he came to the Vulcanus Citadel and rescued you and the others. He fought the boss because he wanted to fight alongside you. He’s here tonight, hiding his real pain from everyone and having fun because of you. If I hadn’t seen him like this before, I’d never known he was masking everything.”
Koharu looks to her lap and grips her yukata. She knew something was wrong but didn’t see it. How can she call herself his partner when she couldn’t see him behind the mask like Rika could? “I… I wish I knew what to do like you do. But… I don’t want to lose you as a friend either.”
“Dummy. I owe you my life and my virtual livelihood as well. I was so happy to see you alive almost two months ago. You might be my rival, but I’m not so petty that I’ll completely drop our friendship over that dumbass. Besides… He told me something yesterday that means more to me than anything. That’s why… That’s why I’m willing to relent.” Rika sighs and stands, wipes her face again, then looks at Koharu, retaining her glare. “I’m going to tell you something Philia once told me, and I want you to tell him. Stop waiting.”
“Stop waiting?”
“Yes. He’ll understand it.”
xxxxxxxx
“Took you two a while. More girls talk?”
Koharu says nothing, only nodding as she takes a seat on the grass beside Joshua. He has his Augma on and positioned his forehead, so Strea and Rei are likely present to watch the show. Once she’s comfortable, she looks up at him with a slight frown. “You shouldn’t be here, you know.”
“I...shouldn’t?”
“Rika told me.”
“...Oh. Then yes, you’re right, I shouldn’t be here. I should be in Kyoto, I should be at my father’s bedside… But I can’t bring myself to do it.”
“Why?” As the first firework shoots up and bursts in the dark sky, Koharu watches as Joshua’s face contorts. Fearing she may have gone too far, she has an apology on her tongue, but Joshua beats her to the punch.
“Because…if there’s one lesson my rebellious younger self took to heart from my father, it’s always to do good on your promises. It’s stupid to believe that’s important now, I know, but because it always made perfect sense in my life, it’s hard for me to let it go so easily. To you alone, I made five promises. One, on the day we met, we made a promise to play SAO together. We did that.”
Koharu agrees that that promise was fulfilled almost every day for a year and a few months, but she doesn’t see where this conversation is going. “Yes, but--”
“The second one came after Kayaba told us everything. That you and you alone are my partner, and you’re the only person I trust wholeheartedly. That, of course, has long evolved as unnecessary for the present. The third was that I’d protect you at all costs and bring you back to the real world...and that one I failed to accomplish in SAO directly, but indirectly accomplished with Kikuoka and RATH. I still count it as my greatest failure, though, but it led to my fourth promise, to protect our friends. The last one, we tacked on many things to it, but summed up, we would reunite and know each other in the real world. One of those tacked-on promises was to go to a festival together after we threw the one Yuna headlined.”
Koharu turns away and glances at the illuminating sky. She remembers each of the five promises, though they promised that to each other, not just him to her. Yet, it feels more like an excuse not to go. “But that’s your father… I understood before, but now… It would be best if you went to him. You repaired your relationship with him, right? You’re going to succeed him and your grandfather at the company, but that doesn’t matter. Right now, I bet he needs his son.”
“...But if he...”
“I know your greatest fear. I thought it was losing someone close to you or failing to save or be of any help to someone dying. But it isn’t, right? What you fear more than any of them is being alone. You were alone as a kid before meeting Momiji and after she left. You were alone when you moved to Japan. You were alone when I left SAO for a while. But now, I’m here, and we’re all here. I won't leave you ever again.” Koharu reaches out, grabs Joshua’s hand, and looks out to the fireworks. “And… Rika says to stop waiting. I don’t know what it means, but she said Philia told her that once, so I assume you know. So whatever it means… I don’t want you to regret anything. Not anymore.”
Joshua doesn’t respond as he turns to the show in the sky, and for the next few minutes, nothing more is said between the former heroes of Sword Art Online and the Underworld. When the last one shoots up, and the crowd begins to disperse, Koharu rises and straightens her yukata and glances down at Joshua. He doesn’t move for what feels like forever until one of their friends calls their name. He turns towards the others, his eyes on Kazuto. “Kazuto, do it.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah.”
“All right. Girls, don’t be shocked by what I’m going to do. We agreed on this.” Kazuto walks up to Joshua, shaking his right wrist the entire time. Koharu watches the whole encounter in confusion until Kazuto raises his right arm and punches Joshua in the face.
“OW! What the hell? You said you’d slap me!”
Kazuto chuckles and walks away to Asuna and the other girls, leading them away. “Yeah, yeah, but I saw an opportunity. Now hurry up.”
“Son of a…” As the group leaves them behind, Joshua sighs and turns to Koharu, straightening his body while taking a deep breath. “When Kotone told Rika to ‘stop waiting,’ it was the last day of SAO, though we didn’t know it. What she meant is…”
“Is…”
Joshua stops fidgeting and takes another deep breath. “Koharu.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll go to Kyoto and do what I have to do there. You and the others continue without me, okay? Helping Premiere reunite with Tia is our goal, so I’m putting my faith in you, got it? Not just as Jaymes’ partner, but…as mine in the real world too.”
“...What do you mean?”
“You know what I mean.”
“Say it plainly, then.”
Joshua groans and holds Koharu’s shoulders. “Fine.” In one fluid motion, Joshua pulls Koharu toward him and kisses her. Koharu feels the world pause around her like Joshua stopped time around them, and she’s barely able to move within it. Almost three years ago (to the date, not just in general) was when he initially confessed to her with a bundle of blue flowers from a unique quest. He doesn’t have said flowers now or any other object to represent his feelings. He chose the one word that mattered most to her long ago, the action they parted with years ago, and she knows exactly what he’s trying to convey.
So after what feels like ten silent, frozen seconds, she breaks the kiss but keeps the closeness, putting her hands around his waist, burying her head in his chest. “That’s not saying it.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Of course. And this time, I’ll never leave you alone again. So take your time there, and we’ll do our best with Premiere and Tia.”
For the following five days, Joshua did not appear at school or online. And after a long, dull week at school, Koharu, Asuna, Kirito, and their friends regroup with Premiere as the next floor of Aincrad is revealed...