Two months later.

"So we've got to go."

Kirito leaned on the Dicey Café's bar, warm cider in front of him and Asuna's warmer presence beside him. And tried not to breathe too obvious a sigh of relief when Agil just nodded. They'd all talked about this one on one; survivors, family members, ALO players and their interested significant others. But this was the first time those who'd won or been shanghaied into the position of major leaders had gotten together in one place to meet and brainstorm what they wanted from the rest of their lives.

Because that's what we have to plan for, Kirito admitted; nudging up closer, feeling Asuna's chuckle vibrate through bones. Tensed at a movement from the table behind them - and relaxed again, catching Argo's enthusiastic gesticulations about portal magic. Recon and Matteo were doing their best to poke holes in her wilder theories, while another dark-haired young survivor traded rueful looks with Suguha. Lightfall might be a good sorcerer, but he didn't have the same geeky glee about taking magic apart that his sister did. If you can open a portal one way, we can probably find out how to open one back... but it'll take time. And we'll probably never be able to send a lot of people through. Not if we want to keep the infernal planes from catching on.

"Kathy's good with going," Agil said plainly. "We loved the café, but once it started getting out that SAO wasn't a total kill... well, there are some creepy bastards out there."

Asuna shivered. "I've read some of the emails sent to RECT Progress by relatives. They're... I don't know which are worse. The ones that are just grieving, the angry ones, or the Mishima-style crazies who think this is some massive plan to destroy Japanese culture by - how did one of them put it - robbing the acceptance of the inevitable of its inherent nobility."

Kirito winced. The Taskforce had eventually coughed up some details on deaths and magic, after Asuna's parents and his own had... worked on them a bit. Yuuki Kyouko had never once screamed. She'd never even raised her voice.

She was terrifying, and he could see exactly where Asuna got it.

"RECTO emails are bad, yeah. But you don't know the half of it."

The room's gaze went to Argo as the wizardess shoved back her chair. Kirito had to blink, missing the whiskers on her face even more than the snakes that had lived in the brunette's hair for months.

Argo took in everyone's concerned looks, and breathed out. Waved, with a game version of her usual Rat smile. "Everybody here's been planning what we should do now, which is good. But I've been poking through chat rooms and the online rumor mills to keep track of the reactions to us waking up, which are... not good."

If she hadn't had the whole café's attention before, Kirito knew, she had it now. "What have you found?" He leaned back a little. "And how much gold does it cost?"

That got a ripple of snickers from the room. Argo gave him a quick grin, then sobered. "This hits all of us, so it's on the house." She scanned the café. "It's not just random kooks writing hate mail, and it's not just clearers and RECTO getting stalked. If everybody who'd died just died... that'd be horrible, but the families could blame Kayaba. But not all of us died."

Beside Suguha, Lightfall twitched. Matteo put a comforting hand on her brother's shoulder. "Easy, little bro. Breathe."

Not all of us. Kirito hid a wince, running the numbers in his head. Dying in SAO had been about a fifty-fifty shot. So long as a player had fought to the bitter end... they still didn't know what criteria Beniryuu had used, but half those players had been very surprised to wake up alive.

Everyone who'd suicided, was dead.

"The Taskforce tried to sit on that," Argo forged on, "but with everybody awake now... don't ask who, don't ask how, we had hospitals all over Japan mixed up in this, someone was bound to talk. And they did. Word got out that some of us survived when we should have died. And that's made some folks angry." Her gaze fell on Kirito. "You know how that goes. People get mad, they start looking for someone to blame. And face it, people. On Earth, we're the weird ones. We're easy to blame."

Kirito tried not to flinch. "So it's not just whether we want to go or not. It may not be safe for our families if we stay."

Asuna gripped the bar, then breathed out. "My family will be fine. They have security. Everyone else - Argo's right, it's a risk. I don't think it's a huge risk, the police will be able to detain people who make obvious threats, but if even one person makes a crazy plan and doesn't talk before they act... well. Laughing Coffin."

"That could explain a few things that came up recently," Matteo mused.

Oh no. Kirito felt his stomach sink. "What things?"

"Ooooh boy." Matteo pushed her hands through her hair, dark strands catching on one finger before she disentangled it. "You have to kind of read between the lines of what the Taskforce is admitting to, but... bottom line, Kikuoka and his guys may want to keep a good grip on magical research, but they still think we're citizens, with a right to say no and walk around like anyone else. Only it looks like higher-ups in the government want to disappear - ahem, firmly encourage anyone with sorcery to do their civic duty and join their black ops studies."

A moment's silence held the café. Then - Klein wasn't the only one who growled.

"You know, what scares me is this is probably what they think is being nice," Matteo grumped. "Work for the government, rather than be thrown into some inescapable pit for being too creepy to live." She held up her hands at Lightfall's wounded look. "Hey, I think magic is beyond cool, bro, and I'm going. Most people... special effects in the movies, cool. Realizing someone can actually turn you into a newt? Kind of terrifying."

"Just goes to show they don't get how magic works. Any spell can be broken. Hell, we proved that inside SAO." Agil stopped polishing a glass, grim. "Argo? Make sure everybody got the news that a mercy kill wasn't permanent. I had some bad nights until Lightfall dropped that email."

"So did I," Kirito muttered. Though most of mine were in Aincrad, not here.

He wondered how many nightmares Matteo had had, after finding out her brother had survived a fate worse than death. And how brave the wizardess had to be, after seeing the message Kirito had gotten out, to keep working in ALO knowing it was the gateway to Beniryuu's curse.

You'd do it, if it'd been Suguha who was trapped and had to decide what world to claim. Kirito breathed out. And Matteo's trying to help all the survivors. If she has the courage to come, we'd be fools not to take her.

"Every Moonsword had bad nights," Asuna said quietly. "And all of us who... couldn't help any other way."

There was something oddly comforting about Agil's nod. Maybe it was just remembering what a were-terror bird could do to an enemy, with or without an ax. "That's one of the reasons you're going, huh? Besides the whole idiot politicians mess. Keep other people from going through that."

A quiet footfall was Kirito's only warning, before a grinning redhead's arm dropped over his free shoulder. "'Course it is. Heck, that's one of the reasons I'm going." Silver gleamed at Klein's throat. "The Church of the Flame's probably going to throw a fit, but I'm going to get some of their paladins onto 'just smite the evil youkai' path if I have to drag them kicking and screaming. I owe the big ball of fire that much. Plus somebody's got to bring along the healing spells for you two. You get into waaaaay too much trouble for battle healing to handle."

He was not going to blush, Kirito told himself. Even if he didn't get into that much trouble.

...Usually.

"You're right," Kirito said instead. "In Aincrad... no one's lucky enough to wake up from a mercy kill. They need help. I want to." He took a breath. "But that's not the only reason I'm going."

Asuna nodded at his glance. "Beniryuu read the Prophecies, and one of them made him target Earth. We know he's old, respected, and powerful. So if one ancient dragon interpreted the Prophecies that way - why not others?"

Klein whistled. "That? Is a scary thought."

"Amen to that." White-knuckled, Agil put the glass down before he broke it. "Still. Can't be that many ancient dragons willing to pull off coming to a whole other world and playing human."

"They don't have to," Kirito said grimly. "Beniryuu knows Earth exists. If he found it, other creatures can. One demon almost got to Earth through us. What if someone gave another demon a planar map? Or the daelkyr? Or the quori? Earth barely has anything to defend against magic. What happens if one of those psionic dream-monsters plants a mind seed in some world leader and starts World War III?"

"And I didn't have enough nightmares," Agil muttered.

"Urk," Klein agreed.

Asuna nudged Kirito, and gathered both warriors in with her glance. "It could happen. It probably won't... but we have to make plans for the worst-case scenario. That's part of why we're going - to try and make sure nothing like it ever happens." Her voice softened. "But there are so many good reasons to go. Happy ones."

"Grandma Tiger." Klein disentangled himself, accepting the drink Agil poured without asking. "And that cute little thing you two are going to adopt as soon as you get there, I just bet." He waggled red brows. "How are your parents taking being grandparents this young?"

Kirito couldn't help it. He groaned, dropping his head to the bar.

Asuna giggled. "For him, it gets worse."

"Worse?" Klein's words were slightly muffled by Kirito's determined meeting of forehead and polished wood. "Wait, don't tell me you told them about Yui and they don't like her!"

"Oh no." Another giggle from his girlfriend. "They like the idea a lot. They never had time for it here in Japan, but Mrs. Kirigaya wants a whole house full of children."

"Um, okay...?" Klein ventured.

Kirito sighed, and lifted his head. Better to get it over with. "Mom and Dad both like the idea. So they plan to take in orphans like Recon... and they made younger avatars. We'll see if they translate on the other side. If they don't alter much else - Argo thinks there's enough magical similarity that it could work."

Klein blinked at him. "How much younger?"

"Your age," Kirito admitted.

"You mean-" Klein cut himself off, eyes wide. "They want kids. Oh my god, a whole clan of baby Kirigayas?"

"Aincrad will never know what hit it," Agil agreed, grinning.

"It's not funny," Kirito muttered. "Sugu's terrified." So am I. It was one thing to want to take care of Yui, she was old enough not to break when they hugged her. Babies were so tiny.

"Kirito. Buddy," Klein said solemnly. "If you two are serious, and I know you are, you're going to have to deal with bitty humanoids one of these days. Got to learn sometime, right?"

The sound that escaped Kirito might have been something like gurk. Despite Asuna nudging up warm against his side. Or maybe because.

"They're not as scary as they look," Klein persisted. "Honest."

"Neither is a Caller in Darkness," Kirito said dryly.

"Eh, he knows what he's talking about," Issin put in from where Fuurinkazan - minus one - had claimed a table. "He keeps sneaking into the kids' ward to lay on cures. Softy."

"Am not!" Klein protested. "It's just, well, kids, and the world didn't cut 'em a break..."

"Just as long as someone watches the doors," Asuna warned. "The last thing you need is to get caught before we can set up portals to trade medicines and healing knowledge between the worlds."

"Yeah, yeah, we know what we're doing- wait, what?" Klein's attention snapped to her, Issin's right behind. That drew the rest of Fuurinkazan, even Dynamm, still moping over Tae.

"Are you serious?" Issin fixed her with a level look. "Even if we can get portals working, most herbs I know about are just good for Aincrad ailments."

"That's what we know they work for," Asuna agreed. "Who knows what else they might cure over here? Or if they can be made to work better, as standardized medicines? New medicines, new dyes, new ways to patch someone up after surgery... Kirito and Argo can hack Draconic as a programming language. It might open up whole new avenues for computing! Why do you think my mother's letting me go? This is an opportunity that comes along once in a lifetime, and she wants RECTO in from the start." She turned that same sober gaze on Kirito. "And it goes both ways. Healing magic is good, but sometimes things don't heal just right. What if - oh, say, we could bring in trained surgeons to make sure all the bits of shattered bone went back together before we heal someone's leg? It'd give better results than either healing or surgery could do on their own..." She trailed off, reddening.

Kirito said nothing. Just kept smiling. Asuna in planning mode was awesomely terrifying.

"A-Anyway," she rallied, "my family's not happy... but they think we can make this work. On both sides."

"Let's hope so."

Asuna stirred. "Lady - Sayuri?"

The university student turned her drink around in her hands. "I've spent the past year trying to catch up on... well, everything. Politics. Tactics. Strategy. Everything a noble leader should know. Trying to learn it myself, trying to find people who can learn the things I'm no good at, trying to make sure the other faction leaders are doing the same..." She gulped down amber liquid. "I'm scared to death."

"Good," Asuna stated.

Beside her, Kirito nodded. That was the Vice-Commander, gauging if a clearer was up for the fight. And Asuna thought Sakuya was.

Sakuya started. "Good?"

"If you weren't scared, I wouldn't want to follow you. And I know I do." Asuna leaned back, smiling. "After all... you made sure we're going to have chocolate."

It's today. Standing in the sunlight in the floating castle's main courtyard, Stheno hugged Yui close. In the center of the open ground, mithril and platinum chains glittered in the sun, binding dragonshards, vials of uncanny blood, a bone from every youkai race, and all the myriad artifacts the lords of Aincrad had gathered to link to the smoke-gray box of Beniryuu's unearthly creation; what she now knew was called a desktop computer. If they're coming, they're coming soon.

If. Her visions - her hopes - said yes. Common sense, though...

The embodiment of common sense huffed a breath behind her; Queen Euryale, regal and glittering in her snake-laced crown and fighting armor. "We should be on the battlefield."

"Which one?" Stheno said dryly. "The air war near Swiftwater Pass? Much as I might wish to deal a lesson to Breland and Thrane at once, airship sailors are hard to target with gaze weapons, and too far above for my magic to easily strike at the elemental bindings that keep them aloft. The shifter raiders out of the Eldeen Reaches? We should capture some of them alive, if we can; their assaults are coordinated too well with the airship attacks to split our forces. They must be communicating with at least the Brelish airships, somehow. If we could block that we might give our forces breathing room. Or did you wish me to haunt the purified lands in Aincrad? Where Karrnath swears their priests would never venture... yet somehow, we see more and more undead arising, despite all our efforts to cleanse earth of all taint."

Her sister indulged in a rare roll of eyes; Euryale knew as well as she did petrification couldn't touch the undead. "Our spies have at least uncovered that Aundair's promised the shifters trade benefits. And more importantly, less border raids."

For some stupidity, only a player's facepalm sufficed. Stheno dragged a breath past her splayed fingers, then deliberately lifted her hand away. "And the shifters fell for it."

"According to our swanmay agents, Aundair is holding to their word. For now." Euryale's silvery cobras hissed and snapped. "Of course, as soon as we're weakened enough for those of Eldeen to start advancing their warriors in force... there's a very suspicious buildup of Aundair troops and mages, about twenty miles in on the Aundair side of the Eldeen border."

"Weaken us, weaken the independents of Eldeen so they can take it over again and finally have enough territory to threaten Breland again..." Stheno sighed. "Any or all, the magelords would favor."

"I am strongly considering," Euryale stated in measured tones, "detaching a party of those with mass destructive magics from the battle lines onto a deep-strike mission into deliver a shattering quake to the isle of Thronehold."

One of the paths I saw, Stheno swallowed hard, as Yui shivered against her, and made herself calm so the little psionic wouldn't breathe in her fear. One of the worse ones. "Restarting the Last War won't help."

Euryale glanced down at the hatchling, and softened her next words. "Sister. We're... running out of time for less extreme measures. Damn Beniryuu."

"Sister!" Stheno hissed.

But Yui smiled, if it was a little shy. "Klein said a lot worse than that about Beniryuu. And Kirito thought it." She blinked up at the queen. "You think he told the Five Nations we were going to get help?" A tiny swallow. "He doesn't want the Nations to win, he doesn't want to leave us alone - he just wants us to fight each other. And keep fighting, and never solve anything! How can anyone want everyone to hurt each other like that?"

Euryale reached down to ruffle black hair and snakes. "He's a dragon-"

Yui bristled. "Caerulus is a dragon and he's not like that!"

"Caerulus is a very strange dragon," Euryale said solemnly. "Besides. He likes his lair right where it is, on the border between here and the Shadow Marches, so no one ever tries to burn his books again. And you know the first rule of dragon lairs, right, little one?"

Yui nodded emphatically. "Never mess with a dragon's stuff!" She winked. "Unless you want them really mad."

Euryale stifled most of a laugh. But her deadly eyes were dancing. "Your strange friends would think so, little Yui."

"A pity we can't mess with Beniryuu's," Stheno murmured.

Euryale gave her a quick glance. "Valentine still hasn't tracked down his new lair?"

"Not yet," Stheno sighed. Vincent had invaded every last one of Beniryuu's old lairs as soon as they knew the players had logged out. Not alone; even the strongest elan ranger couldn't face a red dragon alone and hope to tell the tale. He'd taken Zack's pack with him as well. Which had taken more time. Not much, but - apparently, more than enough for a prepared red dragon to utterly vanish.

We'll find him. Somewhere. Somehow. I am Stheno of the True Sight; I will find him. For what he did... and what he tried to do.

She hugged Yui close, trying not to second-guess every decision she'd made this past decade one more agonizing time. She'd taken Beniryuu's bargain, knowing it was dark, hoping to find some last flicker of light for her people. She had no right to wail at the gods now, if the red dragon had truly shattered their last hope.

Not for myself, no. But the children. I will save our children.

If all else failed... she knew enough of magic and the planes. She'd see Yui safe, in the arms of those who would care for her.

Though what Japan will make of a medusa...

Snakes shifted against an intricate crown. "They're not coming."

Stheno rubbed Yui's shoulder, breathing deep. "Be patient."

"Patient?" Euryale's growl was subdued for the hatchling, but all too clear. "They'd be fools to come, knowing what they know. Even if they have no idea we're under assault right now, they learned enough of our lore to realize the Five Nations have their own ways of scrying the future. And they won't let this pass unchallenged. They've seen it coming-"

Stheno straightened, a tingle of the Planes passing through her bones. "They won't see this coming."

It started with a flicker of sun off the chains; a spark, no larger than a firefly...

The spark bloomed, shimmering into a light the size and shape of a man. Power gathered, more sparks flying; a dozen, no a myriad of lights, blazing into life in Aincrad's main courtyard, more and more-

Two dozen. No, fifty. No, more than that, far more; gods, there were only a few hundred clearers, how many chose this-?

Stheno squinted against one particularly bright fire. Far too big to be a person, more the size of a small dragon. Yet nothing alive, not unless gelatinous cubes were native to Earth; a massive rectangle with lacings of darkfire everywhere, radiating from four corners-

That light died, solidifying into a massive box of steel wreathed about with enchanted ropes, even as more sparks flew and bloomed into breathing bodies. Stheno only had eyes for the small group clustering at one rope-tied corner. One medusa, one blue-winged draconic, the green-haired swanmay who was one of Euryale's agents... and four humans, all of whom looked alike enough to be family even if one had feathers and the younger girl was blonde.

Stheno knew those feathers, even before Kirito blinked off the shock of transit, and looked up at her. And smiled.

He came.

The ice in Stheno's soul thawed, and she could breathe again.

"I told you it would work!"

Stheno hid a smile as Argo bounced in glee. So the wizardess had pulled off yet another impossible magic. "They should never have doubted you," she agreed, walking over as swiftly as Yui's legs could match. "But what, exactly, worked?"

"Lady Stheno!" Argo's eyes were bright behind obsidian glasses. "I don't think it would have worked if we didn't have a whole family tied together by shadow magic..." She waved at red-painted, corrugated metal, half-covered in sacred ropes of talismans and inked sigils. "We brought stuff! And books! And information." Another, more subdued bounce. "And there's Lady Sakuya, and Lord Mortimer, and General Eugene, the other faction leaders ought to be here real quick... I'm going to take them to Queen Euryale, milady, if you guys are as backed to the wall as Recon thinks the leaders need to start plotting right now." She waved at Yui, who blinked and waved back. "You catch up with your family, Yui. Your Aunt and Uncle have been just dying to meet you."

"My...?" Yui blinked, and shook her head, finally letting go of Stheno's skirt to run to Asuna, thumping into outstretched arms with tears of relief. "You came back! You all came back!"

"We weren't going to leave you alone." Asuna hugged her tight. "Not ever."

"We came as soon as we could." Kirito moved in to rest a hand on dark hair and stroke the two nearest snakes, shoulders easing. "And look over there. See? Klein came back, too, and I bet he's going to try and take us down with snowballs again just as soon as winter gets here."

From the way Fuurinkazan had gathered around Tae and Dynamm, cheering as black wings wrapped around white, Stheno imagined snowball fights were the last thing on their minds. But there would be time for that. Later.

We'll have a later. Stheno surreptitiously wiped away a tear. Dust. Of course. Aincrad will survive.

And right now she thanked all the gods that formalities were Euryale's job, as the leaders of the players plus Argo had started pulling out maps and discussing exactly what shape Aincrad's borders were in and where to best start shoring up the lines. Her part in the planning would come later, after those who commanded had decided what was possible. For now... she could meet those who had chosen to do the impossible.

Or try to. Her feet couldn't quite cross the gap.

I hurt them so much.

But Kirito turned toward her, dark eyes warm. "Mom, Dad, Sugu; this is Lady Stheno, the Seer of Aincrad. Lady Stheno, this is my family. My father, Kirigaya Minetaka; my mother Midori, and my sister Suguha."

His parents. His sister. Stheno breathed out, and dared to move again. He knows they are his, and he is theirs. How could I have ever wanted to take away that joy-?

Wait. Something was not quite right, as she studied the young mother and father before her. Granted, she'd spent most of her life around youkai, but centuries had taught her something about humans. "Forgive me, I didn't think human parents would be so young."

Midori grinned at her; an echo of her son's most mischievous plotting. "Kirito and the others said the magic would alter us to match our avatar. We thought we'd take advantage of it."

Still giving the medusa a considering look, Minetaka nodded. "If I'm going to take up actual kenjutsu again, it'll be a lot easier at twenty than-" He cleared his throat. "A little closer to fifty than I'd like."

Stheno hid a sudden giggle behind her hand. Because it was outrageous and world-breaking and made so much sense.

They know exactly how to come up to the edge of the rules without breaking them, in ways no one ever thought of before. Another giggle. They have to be Kirito's parents.

And they'd chosen to come with him, rather than bind their son in their own world. It gave her the oddest flutter of hope.

Minetaka glanced at the dark hilt above his son's shoulder. "European longswords. This could get interesting."

Kirito ducked his head. "Klein could show you this world's kenjutsu. And Grandma Tiger is wicked with a naginata."

"Now that I'd like to see." Minetaka straightened. "Sugu?"

Kirito's sister had a death-grip on Recon's wrist, despite the young swanmay's best efforts to twist out of it. "Is Recon in trouble?"

Stheno eyed her, then Recon. Deliberately lifted her gaze, taking in all the lights still blooming into lives even as the players now filling the courtyard passed a thousand. "If it should chance that he is, I will deal with it."

Though she rather doubted Euryale would have the time to chastise her young agent, even if the queen had wanted to. Not with the scattered exclamations and downright snickers she could overhear from Argo's group of leaders as they explained how they'd brought as much as they could of what player crowdsourcing considered "absolute necessities for a Mass Transport event". Including cacao seedlings, certain bits of technology, information on putting together several centuries' worth of Earth's technology from the ground up, and whatever they needed to produce... hmm. Apparently that specific word was difficult to translate, but it seemed to be compounded drugs for healing. A Nurse Aki - the Taskforce representative, from Argo's words - was particularly insistent that they'd brought medicines specifically to treat-

All her snakes coiled, alert and ready to strike. Because one of the very annoying downsides of immortality was that regular, seasonal pain. Forever. "Lady Kirigaya. Is she serious? Your world has medicines to treat... that ailment of women?"

A faint color brushed her cheeks, but Midori nodded. "Believe me, you wouldn't have gotten half the number of female players without it. There's only so much willow bark and hot water bottles can do."

Asuna winced, but that determined rustle of feathers implied she was entirely too pleased with herself. "That's one we want to get off the ground in a hurry. We'll have to test how it affects demi-humans and youkai - it would be wonderful if it helped night hags! - but for humans, we know it works. And it's going to be one of your new trade items."

"One of our-" Stheno's mouth dropped open; it took her a moment to shake it off. "But we don't have anything the Five Nations would rather bargain for than send out adventurers to plunder. No liftwood, no great veins of mithril or adamantium, no source of exceptional dragonshards..."

"You didn't have anything," Asuna said firmly. "Now you will." She stood straight and determined. "You said it yourself; every path you foresaw where Aincrad fought the Five Nations ended horribly. So we need to make it so they don't want to fight us." She fingered her rapier. "We're still going to have to kick them all off the borders, first. But after that... no matter what the nobles say, how many soldiers are going to want to mess up trade relations if their wives want painkillers and chocolate?"

"War with merchants instead of swords." Half-closing her eyes, Stheno reached out to that sense-of-future-paths...

Light. Not a bright light, not yet; but more warmth than she'd seen in Aincrad's future in decades.

This could work.

She blinked in time to see Fuurinkazan heading their way en masse, Klein crouching to ruffle Yui's hair. "And I've got plans to have some words with the order of the Silver Flame anyway. The time it takes 'em to scrape their jaws off the floor ought to get them to back off for a while." He stood. "Besides. Between SAO and Earth, looks like the Flame might be right behind its paladins giving us a hand with a certain son-of-a-daelkyr-spawn red dragon." He scratched red hair. "I mean, if you haven't found him yet...?"

"Not yet," Stheno all but growled. "There are places we can't easily infiltrate. If he's even on the same continent."

"I'd bet he is." Asuna's eyes narrowed. "I worked with Heathcliff. He's somewhere he can watch the chaos. Count on it."

"Thrane," Kirito said firmly.

Stheno gave him a look askance. "Thrane? With all its clerics, and paladins, and hatred of youkai and any shapeshifters?"

"Exactly." For a moment, Kirito's eyes were shadowed. "Heathcliff fooled us all for years."

"And we want to head over there anyway," Klein stepped in, grinning. "We need to rattle the whole top level of the Church if we want 'em to stop hunting good youkai and help 'em hunt evil 'thropes... and lore says the Keeper of the Flame's a kid, right? A little girl who's probably never had cookies, or chocolate, or even a snowball fight. That's just not right."

For a moment, Stheno almost facepalmed again. A weretiger wanted to feed the Keeper of the Flame cookies.

A paladin. He just might do it. "You'll have to cross no less than two hostile nations to get there," Stheno warned. "And keep your true natures concealed all the way."

Kirito and Asuna traded a look. "It's going to be complicated," Kirito agreed. "So... let's start planning."

A/N: Yukio Mishima is the pen name of Kimitake Hiraoka. Long story very short (Wikipedia has more details), while he's considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century he was more than a little obsessed with death. As in composed his own suicide poems, tried a coup to put the emperor back in power, then committed seppuku obsessed. He's apparently one of the reasons modern Japan now considers suicide in very bad taste. (They still refer to that mess as the "Mishima Incident", so.)