Disclaimer: I own only the idea (which I'm pretty sure has been thought of before so not even that is mine.)

xxxxxxx

October 18, 2024

Floor 48: Lindarth

Kagome opened the door to the shop Kirito had recommended to her. She looked around, studying the weapons on the wall.

"A customer! Hi! What can I help you with?" A pink haired girl strode into the room from a door behind the counter.

"Hi! Lisbeth, right?"

"Mm-hmm." The girl placed her apron on the rack next to the door and walked towards her. "How can I help you?"

"Well, I've got these crystal bone shards from a drop, and I was wondering if you could see if they'd make some sort of super-spectacular arrows?" Kagome winced as her voice lilted at the end. "I've been making my own, but it's been pointed out to me that I'm splitting my skills a bit too much. While I could grind out some levels until I could work with this material ... it's probably best I don't."

"Well, not to toot my own horn or anything, but I'm pretty fantastic with a forge."

Kagome laughed.

"I know. Kirito is in love with his sword." She looked around. "And what you've got out here looks pretty fabulous. Not quite what I'd use, but fabulous all the same."

"K-Kirito sent you?" The girl frowned. "How many girls does he know?" She murmured a bit too loudly. Kagome quirked an eyebrow as the pink-haired girl shook her head and forced a smile back to her face. "How is he doing? I haven't seen him for a while."

"He's doing really well. Clearing levels, chasing quests, running solo. Same as usual."

"Oh." Lisbeth chewed on her lip. "So, he's just been too busy to see me." She sighed. "Well, let's see these shards."

Kagome clicked through her inventory and then held out the bag of shards. Lisbeth accepted them and then frowned.

"How'd you get these? You'd need someone like me around to have these even drop." Kagome shrugged in response. Lisbeth eyed her suspiciously. "I can make some arrows out of these. They'll be super sharp. If I'm lucky, I can probably get something unique with these."

"That would be great!" Kagome enthused. "Do you know how long it take you to do the whole bag?"

"Well, I've got a couple of orders on hand. Tomorrow evening?"

"Sounds great. I'll see you then?"

"Sure thing, -" Lisbeth blinked and then blushed, flustered. "Umm, I'm sorry. What's your name?"

"I'm Saya." Kagome laughed. "I'll be back tomorrow."

Lisbeth waved her out of the store.

xxxxxxx

October 19, 2024

Floor 48: Lindarth

Kagome smiled at Kirito as he led her to Lisbeth's shopped. Between the two of them, he seemed more excited about the new arrows than she was. He tugged her forward, glancing down at their joined hands like he still didn't believe it. Like he was surprised every time to see her hand in his.

Mentally, she winced. She really was an idiot.

She stepped through the door when he held it for her. Together, they looked around the store.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Lisbeth's voice came from behind the counter. "Just give me a minute!" Kagome hummed under her breath and leaned on Kirito. He dropped her hand to wrap is arm around her waist. The door swung open.

"How can I –. Oh It's you! I've got your arrows. They're wonderful. I hope you love them." She tiled her head and focused on the other person in the shop. "Kirito?"

"Hey."

"Kirito!" She launched herself towards him and drew up short as her brain kicked in. "Kirito, where's Asuna?" She frowned at them heavily.

"I don't know?" He responded hesitantly. "I mean, she's probably out with her guild somewhere."

"Does she know about Saya?"

"Of course she does." Kirito replied, confused. Kagome took a half step away as she studied the other girl.

"What the actual fuck Kirito?" Lisbeth stated flatly. "How can you do this to her. You know she cares about you, right?"

"…what?" Kirito breathed.

"What?" Kagome barked. "The fuck does she have to do with anything?" Lisbeth looked between the two, noting Kirito's genuinely baffled face.

"Oh. OH! I thought you were with her. With Asuna! I'm so sorry!" Lisbeth hands twitched as she went to grab the pocket of her apron that she wasn't wearing. "Um… I'll go get your arrows!" She spun on her heal and disappeared into the back room.

"Did I miss something?" Kirito mumbled. "Asuna's a friend."

Kagome snorted. She finally had her answer on why the other girl had been avoiding her. Ignoring messages and invites and everything really that would end with them in the same space. She had the guilty thought that maybe she really should have punched the other girl in the throat. If she got treated with high-level disdain when she was still running after Agil when she mentioned Kirito's name, she could only imagine the levels to which that disdain would climb now.

The back door slammed open and Lisbeth stomped through it. Her cheeks were red and she seemed to be doing everything in her power to not look at the couple in her shop.

"So, these arrows are superb. They've got some extra stats in penetration, and wind maneuverability and sharpness. A couple of them have the bleed effect. I'm not sure if you want those or not, but they were there."

"Sounds great." Lisbeth laughed nervously and clicked though her screen. Kagome looked down at the pop-up that appeared in front of her and bought them.

"Good, good. Um, you were the last person I expected today. I've got like, a thing to go to. So, um, I hope everything goes great with those arrows."

"Alright? Thanks." Kagome frowned and then shrugged. She tipped her head at Lisbeth and then made her way out of the shop. Kirito sighed and placed his hands in the pockets of jacket.

"So, just to clear things up. You and Asuna?"

"She's a friend, like you are." Lisbeth winced.

"And Saya?"

"Not just a friend. We've not really put a label on it, but I'm happy."

"Oh." Lisbeth went quiet. "I' m really sorry."

"It's fine." Kirito shrugged. "I've got to go catch up. We were on our way out to a roaming boss."

"Oh, okay. I'll uh, I'll see you later?"

"Of course. Who else is going to keep my swords in perfect condition?"

She chuckled nervously as he left the store.

Kagome looked up from the wall se was sitting on as the door closed.

"Are you ready to go?" She called.

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry about whatever that was."

"S'cool."

xxxxxxx

October 22, 2024

Floor 50: Algade

Kagome hummed to herself as she looked around the bakery Asuna had invited her to. She stirred her cup of tea and looked around. It was weird, she'd been on this floor for a while, and she didn't think she'd ever been to this bakery. It was tiny, but homey. The smell of baked bread and cookies weighed heavy in the air. She looked down at her cup. It tasted like genmai cha. She swirled the cup and crossed her ankles. She'd swapped her pants to something more Seshoumaru-ish, the poofy hakama tucked into her boots. She'd kept the white duster over layer and had swapped her shirt for a tight fitting long-sleeved shirt. She'd also kept the sash. Bored, she picked at her nails.

Pluto had a moment of snark the first time he'd seen her in her new outfit. After she'd thoroughly disabused him of the notion that she was covering up for Kirito's mild prudishness, he'd murmured that La-La would have loved it. There was moment where they'd stared at each other and then burst into giggles. La-La would have been driven straight up the wall by it.

She broke away from her musings when the door opened. She looked up to see that Asuna had been joined by Kirito. Kirito beamed when he saw her, slipping into the chair next to her and dropping a kiss on her cheek. She waved him away and took a sip of her tea.

Asuna.

Asuna looked furious.

The girl dragged her chair out and threw herself into it, glaring daggers all the while. Kagome tipped her head to the side as she watched the girl glare between the two of them.

"What are you drinking?" Kirito murmured, face placid.

"Genmai cha. And no, you can get your own."

"Selfish." He joked as he tapped the table, calling up the menu. He made his selections and waved the window away.

"Well, that's nothing new." Asuna snapped from across the table. Kagome blinked at her, refusing to rise to the bait. "Saya's been selfish for a while. I honestly don't understand how your guild is even one of the top five, much less the third largest."

"My guild has been good to me." Kagome answered gracefully.

"You mean La-La did all the work while you lazed away." Asuna bit out, tapping her own menu. "It's not going to work now with her gone." Kagome's hand clenched around her tea cup as she forced a smile onto her lips.

"No. No, it won't."

"Which is why I wanted to meet today. I've an offer from Heathcliffe."

"Oh?" Kagome spun her tea cup and then dragged up the menu to order another with a muffin on the side. She waited in silence as Asuna's jaw clenched.

"We'd like for you to merge your guild into ours."

"Nope." Kagome chortled. "The Hunt flies free, in the face of every conventional guild because we aren't conventional at all."

"Look we need to finish clearing these levels. I don't want another year to come by while we're still trapped."

"That doesn't explain why my guild would need to be subsumed. Everyone else gets to run with their guild of choice. I mean, are the Dragons joining up with this merger?"

"We don't need them." Asuna tore at her croissant.

"You don't need me." Kagome riposted.

"I don't care either way, but Heathcliffe asked me to take the lead on this."

"Then you can tell him I said no." Kagome turned to Kirito. "Are you joining up?" Kagome prodded.

"Asuna told me you were having lunch together, so I tagged along. You've been busy and I wanted to see you."

Kagome smiled at him and touched his arm.

"Pluto's been running me ragged on some drills with the dagger troop. He thinks they need a bit of a Hunt to get them ready for the next Floor Boss."

"Actually, Healthcliffe has extended the invitation to you as well." Asuna interrupted.

"I'd rather not." Kirito responded.

"Fine." She rolled her eyes. "Your generals are dead Saya, you've only got two of them now."

"Your information is a bit out of date. We've had some promotions in the guild." Asuna rolled her shoulders. Kagome looked past her as the door opened. Heathcliffe stepped in, ducking a bit to cross the threshold. "An ambush? How droll." The grey-haired man strode over to them and paused for a moment, staring at Kirito. He clenched his jaw and then sat next to Asuna.

"What is it that we could offer you that would get you to join me?" He asked, hands folded together.

"There's nothing you have that I want." Kagome replied. "I'm actually a bit baffled by this sudden recruitment drive."

Heathcliffe smiled at her winningly.

"You're a hard person to find Saya. And your efforts have been noticed in every battle you attend. If we cannot have your guild, I would like you."

"I am my guild."

"Come now, you've everything in place to leave them and join me. Together, we could accomplish so much more."

"There's literally nothing you have that I want." Kagome reiterated.

"Truly?" Heathcliffe murmured. "Not even a revive drop?"

"Those have a ten-second life span. Why the fuck do I care?" She sipped the last of her tea and shoved her muffin into her inventory.

"Three months actually."

Kagome froze.

"What?" The question was echoed. Even Asuna looked dumb-struck.

"This one will call back anyone within a three-month period."

"How the fuck?" She closed her eyes. "I'd just need to join your guild?"

"As my partner, naturally."

Kagome opened her eyes.

"Where do I sign up?"

xxxxxxx

"La-La?" Pluto stumbled forward, a naked terrible hope on his face. "La-La?" He touched the blond woman sitting on his GuildMaster's bed. She smiled at him tremulously. "La-La!" He threw himself at her, sobbing into her shoulder as the woman wrapped her arms around him. There was a strangled sound by the door and then Toki joined the huddle.

Kagome sat at her desk and watched as they cried together. La-La had come back, pulled together by some miracle, her crystals shards reforming in that terrible, awful place she had died. Kagome had caught her when she'd stumbled forward and then brought her home. Kagome flicked her fingers through her inventory, dragging a knick-knack or two into storage.

"How?" Came Toki's garbled voice. "How the hell did you even manage this?"

"A trade." She murmured. She stood up and looked around. "One that I have to complete." She unwound the sash from her waist and approached the bed. Pluto was still wrapped around La-La, sobbing into her chest now as he apologized over and over. Kagome draped her sash around La-La's shoulders. The woman blinked at her confused. Kagome bit the inside of her cheek. La-La had been dead for weeks, and so much had changed. And yet, for La-La, it was the same day, the same month. Time hadn't moved forward for her. One moment, she died and in the next she'd opened her eyes to see Saya waiting.

"I've got to go. You're GuildMaster now La-La. You can lead everyone in the best game of La-La Lurks since that one level with the creepy fern-cult people."

"I don't understand." La-La replied. "You are the Guild."

"Not anymore." Kagome clambered onto the bed, wrapping her arms around the trio there. Toki was watching her, face stoic. "Heathcliffe offered me a trade. One I couldn't say no to. In return for a revive item that would bring back someone within a three-month period, I join his guild."

"That doesn't seem like an even trade." Toki pointed out.

"It's not. I think we all know he got the short end of the stick here."

"Did he really?" Toki replied. "There's an angle here we're missing."

"La-La is here. You are here. Pluto is here. It was the only thing I could do." There was a faint sound. "I've got to go. A deal is a deal." She pressed her lips to La-La's forehead, dropped a kiss to Pluto's ear and squeezed Toki as if she'd never see him again. "Be well. Stay alive. Look after each other. Make sure The Hunt lives." She slipped off the bed and left the room. She walked down the main stairs, fingers trailing over the dark wood of the banister. In the entry way, Kirito stood. By the door, a man in red and white waited patiently.

"I'll go with you."

"That wasn't part of the deal. I need you here, to watch over my – La-La's guild."

"This isn't fair."

"Life rarely is."

"This isn't fair!"

"It wasn't ever fair."

"Fuck!" Kirito barked. "She was dead. She was dead and you didn't need to do this." Kagome crossed the space between them. She lifted her hand to touch him and noted the man by the door shifting. She let her hand drop. She bit her lip.

"Good bye Kirito." She smiled at him. "We'll see each other soon, yeah? In real life though."

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS. YOU'RE A PERSON NOT A THING TO TRADE. YOU'RE NOT AN ITEM, YOU'RE A PERSON."

Kagome threw caution to the wind and hugged him.

"I'm Kagome Higurashi." She whispered into his ear. "You find me when this is over." She stumbled backwards as the man dragged her away. She heard the door opening and forced a smile.

"Be good my precious babies! I love you all! I love –." The door closed. "You." The man continued to drag her towards the portal. "So, who the fuck are you?"

"Kuradeel."

"Mmm. Let me go, or as soon as I'm able, I'll chop off your hand for daring to reach above it's station." She said pleasantly, as if talking about the weather, or a particularly lovely pot of tea. Kuradeel released her jacket as quickly as he could manage. Kagome rolled her shoulders and sauntered her way over to the port station. Asuna waited there, a haughty expression on her face. Kagome promised herself that she'd deck her as soon as she could. Maybe break a jaw. Shatter some teeth.

It was too bad it would heal over with a potion.

"Well, let's get this shindig on the road." Asuna rolled her eyes and ported off.

Kagome followed.

xxxxxxx

October 24, 2024

Floor 55: Knight's of the Blood Oath

Kagome brushed her hair in the mirror. Heathcliffe sat on the bed, like a giant creeper.

"Kirito has challenged me to a duel." She continued to brush her hair. "It was for you to either leave or for him to become one of us." She continued to brush her hair. "When he does join, he'll be stationed on another floor I think. I can't have you be distracted from our end goals." She brushed her hair.

Healthcliffe pushed himself to his feet and she placed the brush on the vanity. He made his way towards her and stopped, placing his hand on the top of her head.

"Of all the things I thought I could find here, you were never something I even dared to dream of." He ran his fingers though her hair. "Imagine my surprise. A woman who treats this world with the respect it deserves, who understands the beauty in savagery." Kagome met his eyes in the mirror and titled her head to the side. Her hair pooled over her shoulder and she reached up, running her fingers through the silky mass. She closed her eyes. "You'll need to speak to me eventually." When she heard the door open and close, she opened her eyes. She moved to the closet and picked out one of the red and white dresses hanging there. She slipped it on and grabbed a pair of chunky heeled white boots. She equipped a pair of white gloves from her inventory and then reclaimed her seat at the vanity.

The door opened. Asuna stepped through.

"Oh, you're ready to go." Kagome stood. Asuna looked around the room uncomfortably. "Saya, you have to know I would never have led him to you if I knew this would be the outcome." Kagome stared at her blankly. The girl cleared her throat. "Why don't you just boot the filter on? He can't do much if you've got your filter in place." Kagome blinked.

"If you think I'd let anyone takes privileges with me, you obviously never knew me. Regardless, whatever you think is happening isn't." Kagome smiled at the other girl prettily, fluttering her lashes. "Now, I have places to be and things to be doing."

"Heathcliffe wishes for you to accompany him on a mapping expedition."

"How lovely. He was just here, why didn't he just ask me himself?" Kagome rolled her eyes. "Lead on." Kagome fell into step with Asuna as she led her through the building. Soon, they were standing in a large glass room. Heathcliffe stood there, braced heroically against his shield as he spoke with the gathered party. When Asuna slipped into her space next to him, he broke off and turned to find her. A genuinely happy smile crossed his face as his eyes met her own.

"Saya, join us." He gestured her over. Kagome bypassed him and sat at the desk behind the group. She kicked her legs up on top of the desk. Heathcliffe sighed. "Well then, we need to finish mapping this dungeon. If all goes well, we'll find the floor boss. If not, we're still looking in the wrong place."

xxxxxxx

October 26, 2024

Floor 75: Collinia: Colosseum

Kagome stared down in the Colosseum. Heathcliffe was speaking to Kirito, more than likely confirming the details of their duel.

Kirito hadn't taken his eyes off her since he'd entered the Colosseum and had spotted her sitting in a vaguely throne like chair. She smiled at him demurely, grimacing when Kuradeel stepped into her line of sight. She bit her lip and looked around the Colosseum. There were a lot of people present, mainly wanting to see a solo player battling the GuildMaster of the Knights of the Blood Oath. Kuradeel stepped out of the way once the duel started. She had a clear view of Kirito fighting.

She had a clear view of Kirito losing.

She sighed when Asuna joined Kirito on the field, placing her hand on his arm. Kirito shrugged her hand off and strode out of the arena. Heathcliffe sheathed his sword and walked towards her. She leapt over the low wall and fell into step next to him and walked into the tunnel below.

"Are you really willing to station someone with that much skill to some dump?"

"No. No I can't say I am." Heathcliffe sighed. "He fought extraordinarily well for you."

"Was it everything you hoped for?" Heathcliffe's next step faltered. "Can I go see him now? I've played your bait long enough, don't you think?" Heathcliffe chuckled.

"Do what you'd like. We're finished here." Kagome nodded and wandered down another tunnel. She could hear Asuna's voice and the soft sound of someone crying. She entered the room. Kirito was curled into a corner. She pushed past Asuna and crouched.

"Well then, this is not the welcome I was expecting."

"Saya?" He dropped his hands and looked over at her. "Saya!" He flung himself at her and they toppled to the ground. "He said-." She shifted, rolling so that they were facing each other on the ground.

"He lied." Kagome ran her fingers through his hair. "I don't think I've seen any other player besides the two of you with a unique skill. I think he wanted to see who had the better hand."

"And all of this?"

"Would you have ever had a reason to duel him otherwise?" She tapped his nose. "If he'd told me any of this up front, apparently I wouldn't have reacted properly. I truly thought that our bargain was what it was. Me for La-La. Instead, it was La-La for you."

Kirito chuckled and threw his arm over his face.

"I thought I'd lost you."

"I did too." Kagome murmured. She sat up. "Well, now it's time to do what I couldn't do."

"What?"

"Get you out of those clothes." Kirito spluttered. "And into Guild wear." The spluttering died off. He sighed.

"Do I have to?" Kagome quirked an eyebrow and looked down at her own clothes. "Damnit."