Hello, my lovely readers! It certainly has been a while. I'm sorry for the extended period of wait. Thank you guys for sticking around, and thank you to my new readers as well. This story isn't quite over yet.

I hope you enjoy this chapter! As always, you are more than encouraged to share whatever thoughts you may have at the end of it.

Theme Song of the Chapter:

youtube com/watch?v=fhyTw-1aieQ

A Captive Heart's Identity

Chapter 9

The Aftermath

"Good morning." Kirito said, smiling softly as the girl in his arms let out a small yawn. Asuna stretched out her slender body before snuggling closer into the comfort of his arms, burying her head into the crook of his neck and wrapping her arms around him gently. "Sleep well?"

"Mhm." Asuna replied, biting back the grin that was beginning to spread on her face. The previous night had been unquestionably the most intimate night of her life.

Kirito flipped his body so that he was hovering on top of her with a confident smirk on his face. "Are you blushing?"

"No!" Asuna laughed, trying to hide her face. Kirito laughed and nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck, tickling her gently with the tip of his nose. "Stop it!" She giggled. Kirito chuckled and pulled back, stroking her face and brushing a stray hair from her eyes.

Laying back down, he pulled the girl into his arms and kissed the top of her head.

"This all happened so fast…" she trailed. Kirito agreed.

"And yet I still find it hard to believe… that all this happened, at all. That I lost my memory…" The solemn thought sobered the elated feelings in his chest, lingering from the night prior.

"Hey," she said, propping herself up and climbing on top of Kirito. Asuna's soft hair fell from her shoulders as she maneuvered herself around his waist. "It's going to be okay now. We can figure this out." She looked down at him with reassuring smile. "We've beat the odds so far, right?"

Kirito smiled, nodding. "Right." Asuna laughed and hearing the sound of her happiness made his heart feel light.

"So…" she said, lifting a suggestive eyebrow.

Amused, Kirito grinned. "So?"

The first day flew by in blur.

Kirito and Asuna shared countless moments of playful laughter and smiles. Asuna whipped up delicious meals and Kirito took her to places she had never been before due to her constant duties as Vice Commander of the Knights of Blood.

But never leaving the back of Kirito's mind was the impending decision he'd be forced to make at the Banquet… and the complicated conversation he'd need to have with his… adoptive 'father' after the fishing trip was over. Not to mention… Sachi. Was she still out there? There were still some blanks in his memory from after the concussion he'd incurred.

While Kirito decided to ignore these thoughts for whatever peaceful time he could spend with the girl beside him, he realized now, more than ever before, to cherish each moment he had with the ones he cared about.

When their first day of bliss came to an end, however, one topic could no longer be unspoken.

"Have you thought about it?" Asuna asked quietly. She slipped on a translucent silk kimono over her red lace night dress and crawled under the duvet cover, finding her way closer to Kirito's body and warmth.

He didn't need to ask to know what she was referring to. Kirito sighed, biting his lip.

"Mhm."

The room fell quiet and she waited patiently for him to offer more.

"I'm going to join the guild."

"What?" Surprise was evident in Asuna's voice.

"What did you think I was going to do?" He chuckled softly, turning to face her and propping his head up on one hand. Asuna mirrored his position on the bed and stared thoughtfully into Kirito's eyes. She paused and thought about it for a moment.

"Well, I'd just thought you'd come up with something. Or find a loophole." She shrugged, smiling sheepishly. "It seems like you always do." He couldn't help but smile at that.

"You think quite highly of me, don't you?"

Asuna rolled her eyes, but couldn't resist smiling.

"You know, I would have thought your arrogance would have diminished at least a little bit after getting your memory back."

Kirito shrugged lightheartedly.

"But anyway…" she said, serious again. "Are you sure about this?"

"I don't really have a choice."

She frowned at that.

"But." He interjected. "Even if I did… maybe Heathcliff's right. I am reaching the limits of what a solo player can do at this point…" Kirito mulled this over for a few moments.

He had known this from the start. When he decided to take on the title of Beater, he had known he'd probably never be accepted in this universe by any guild. And he knew there were limits to what he could do alone.

Yet they were already more than halfway there. Each day, they were getting closer to Floor 100. If nothing else, joining the guild—such a powerful guild with so many resources—would definitely speed up the process. That way, Kirito would be able to help bring Asuna back to the real world… he would be able to go back himself, as well. And being in the same guild as her would definitely make protecting her an easier task to do. Kirito wasn't about to let anyone so dangerous and vile get close to her again. It wasn't only about him anymore.

I need to protect her.

"Alright then." Asuna murmured, still gazing intently into his eyes as though she were trying to read his thoughts. In the next instant, she broke the stare and smiled apologetically at the bed. "I'm really, really sorry…"

"No, don't be." He reassured her, stroking Asuna's hair. "If nothing else, I'll be able protect you better this way."

She blushed lightly before swatting his hand away.

"I can protect myself just fine."

Kirito smiled.

He knew she could fend for herself; she'd been doing it successfully for so long without him. But Kirito wasn't about to let that stop him from trying his best to protect her as well. Not after almost losing her—for good. He wasn't about to make the same mistake twice.

Asuna rolled on to her back.

"So what are you going to wear?"

"I haven't really thought about that." He smiled, admittedly very ready to welcome a more lighthearted topic. "What are you going to wear?"

"I can't tell you." She sing-songed teasingly.

"And why is that?"

"Well, for one thing, I don't know yet. I need to go dress shopping tomorrow." She explained. "Second, it's more fun if I surprise you."

Kirito laughed.

"Alright, fair enough."

"After we have lunch, I'm going to go back to my friend Liz's so I can fill her in on what happened and we can go look for something to wear. But what about you? Do you know where to get formal clothes?"

Kirito didn't. But maybe… this would be a good time to reach out to Klein.

"I'll figure something out. Don't worry about me." Kirito pressed his lips to her forehead and closed his eyes.

"Okay…" she sighed contently.

"Are you going to tell your friend everything?" Kirito asked, suddenly feeling awkward.

Liz sounds familiar... Kirito shook off the notion.

"She's my best friend."

"Eh…" he still wasn't at all convinced that telling an outsider would be a good idea. Asuna laughed, enjoying the upper hand.

"Scared?"

Kirito felt his face heat up.

"Don't worry, ok? I'll leave out the more... incriminating details." Asuna chimed teasingly. "I just need to explain to her what happened, and that you're still alive."

"Well… alright." Kirito replied in defeat. There really wasn't much he could do about it, anyway. Though he was mildly surprised that Asuna's friend knew about him at all.

Asuna put a hand to his face and gently turned it down to face her. She gave him a warm smile. "Don't worry, Kirito. It's going to be fine."

Looking into her warm hazel orbs, Kirito relented. Discarding his prior thoughts, he leaned down to taste her lips. Sliding her smooth arms around his neck, Asuna pressed her body up against him, fulfilling an innate need to close the distance between them. Her body sought to be close to him. When she was this close to him, she was this close to safety and love.

Kirito wrapped his arms around Asuna and pulled her chest closer into his, feeling her body fitting against his like a matching puzzle piece. Wetting her lips with his tongue, she parted eagerly for him.

Asuna gasped briefly after pulling back for air.

"I love you." She muttered softly, between her shallow, airy breaths. Kirito rolled on top of her small frame and ample chest, supporting his weight on his hands. Hovering over her with dominance, a flame of desire lit up in the lower regions of his body. Kirito leaned down and kissed the soft, delicate skin of her neck.

"I love you, too."

"Liz!" Asuna chimed, pushing the wooden door of the blacksmith shop open and skipping down the steps.

"Asuna!" Lisbeth turned around and dropped her multi-coloured feather duster to go greet her best friend.

"I haven't seen you in a while! What's new?" The two walked over to a cream coloured sofa on the other side of the room and sat down. Business was slower at this time of the day so Lisbeth had time to chat with her friend.

"It's about Kirito!" Asuna exclaimed excitedly.

What? Kirito?

Lisbeth's smile fell off her face.

How does Asuna know about him?

"He's alive, Liz!" Asuna exclaimed, shaking Liz from her thoughts.

Since when was Kirito dead?!

"K-Kirito?"

"Yes! Sorry, I never told you his name. Kirito is the name of the guy I... you know, the one who saved me and also fought with me in my first battle?"

What?

"H-how?"

Asuna explained the entire ordeal to her best friend, who listened intently with wide eyes and a gaping jaw.

"You're kidding me, right?" Lisbeth said in disbelief.

"No way! You think I'd joke about something like this?"

Lisbeth sat back for a moment and let the whole situation sink in. It was extremely difficult to believe. The fact that her best friend already knew Kirito? And that they had... Already been together? In that way?

Did so much really happen in such a short span of time? Hadn't she just spoke with Asuna last week? Who knew that her best friend's trip to the Monument of Life would lead to all this?

And I had already accepted that Kirito was gone for good… that I'd probably never see him again.

Asuna smiled at her best friend and continued to explain the upcoming banquet and Kirito's entrance into her guild. Lisbeth couldn't pay much attention, however.

Why now? Why did he have to show up again now? When I was finally getting over him? Is this a joke? Under what twisted fate did he have to know Asuna first? Would that have even made a difference? Does it matter now? Why didn't Asuna ever tell me his name? She always made it pretty obvious that she liked that guy, even though she'd change the subject everytime I'd ask for more details. Was it because she didn't want to jinx her luck with him? Could I blame her? We were best friends but neither of us liked to divulge all of our secrets. But. I could have known. I could have kept my guard up. I could have-

"Liz?" Asuna's voice poked through Lisbeth's train of thought and the girl with magenta hair snapped out of her reverie.

"Asuna, I..." Lisbeth fidgeted with the scalloped hem of her white apron. "I never told you this... But remember, there was that guy who came to my shop many months ago? The one who broke my best sword?"

"Yeah, how could I forget?"

"His name was actually also… Kirito."

Asuna blinked.

"What?"

"Kirito... He was the one who traveled with me to get the Crystallite Ingot."

"That was him?" Asuna asked quietly, each word shrinking in sound. "Are we talking about the same guy? Black hair and all black wardrobe? The solo player?"

Lisbeth nodded. Asuna sunk into her seat.

"But Liz... you... you were crazy about that guy. You were bummed for weeks after the ordeal. And I guess ironically, in hindsight, you... also always refused tell me his name. Why?"

Lisbeth covered her face with her gloved hands.

"I don't know, Asuna, I just thought that telling you his name back then would have made the rejection feel more real. Like it actually happened. And you know it took me a while to get past it. I wasn't ready to talk about it or come to terms with it. Of course, I also didn't know that you knew him first." Liz chewed on her bottom lip, frowning at dark wooden floor.

That would have changed things.

Asuna sat back, dumbfounded. Then she remembered.

"But you said you backed off because there was another girl with him. That she was waiting in the shop by the time you both got back."

Lisbeth thought for a moment, then frowned deeper at what her best friend was implying.

"Asuna, he's clearly not with that girl anymore. He chose you. You shouldn't worry about this, it happened so long ago." Lisbeth forced a smile on her face and tried to reassure the girl beside her. She took Asuna's hands and squeezed them tightly. "You're the one he's been looking for all this time, right? Considering all that's happened, do you really think he's still interested in that girl? It's you, it's always been you."

"Lisbeth... I don't know what to say. I'm just..." Asuna struggled for the right words to say. "I'm so sorry." Asuna lifted a hand to her chest and felt water well up in her eyes.

"Asuna!" Lisbeth pulled the commander into a hug. "Seriously, don't worry about it. I'm completely over him. I just want to see you happy."

Asuna hugged back Lisbeth tighter.

"Thank you so much, Liz."

"Of course."

Lisbeth closed her eyes and swallowed the lump rising in her throat.

I'm happy for her. Of course I'm happy for her.

Asuna's eyebrows furrowed together and she felt a heaviness in her chest. "I'm still sorry."

"I swear, if you don't stop apologizing I won't go to this banquet with you!" Lisbeth chastised lightly, desperate to cheer up her friend and to divert the attention away from herself.

Please don't pity me, Asuna.

Even though Lisbeth's heart still yearned for the warmth of his hands, the blacksmith would never betray her best friend. She wanted Asuna to be happy- if the dark haired solo player made her best friend happy... then that's all that mattered.

They're a better match for each other, anyway.

"I'm just happy you finally found him." Lisbeth said quietly. A small sigh escaped her lips. "So, let's close up this shop and go look for some dresses! We've got a banquet to rock." In an instant, Lisbeth's cheerful voice burst through the silence and she jumped off the sofa, taking Asuna with her. "I think I'm going to get a purple dress."

Asuna felt a strong gratitude in her heart.

I hope you'll find him, too, Lisbeth.

"I'm out of words, man."

Klein sat across from Kirito in the small restaurant and stared incredulously across the table at the man in front of him. And he meant just that- man. Kirito had changed. Sure, he'd always had an air of mystery and a darkness in his eyes that aged him far beyond his years. But this Kirito seemed more confident and self-assured than before. This Kirito wasn't the same boy who showed him the ropes of SAO two years ago.

"I know, it's crazy." Kirito said, taking a sip from his cold drink. The icy liquid slid eagerly down his throat. "I didn't even realize that data corruption could happen in SAO, but it's the only explanation I can think of to explain the memory loss. And the only reason to explain why my personal files were almost completely wiped; you disappeared from my friends list, along with everyone else."

"Shit." Klein muttered. "No wonder I couldn't find you on my friends list! I tried contacting you, you know? I thought you deleted me from your list. You just didn't show up in the system. What caused the data corruption?"

"It happened after an intense solo battle, with a boss whose tactics I was much less prepared for than I had originally thought." Kirito's mind flashed back to that day. He had left Sachi to wait for him while he went to fight. "I was at a moderately high level at that point, but back then I was still nowhere near as capable as I am now. I barely made it out of that fight alive, and I physically collapsed right afterwards. I'm assuming that the collapse was what triggered the data corruption; because I was really this close to dying."

"The limits of playing solo, huh... it's a good thing that some of your files were restored. But still, what happened to you is basically unheard of in virtual reality MMORPG's." Klein shook his head in utter disbelief.

His angular face broke into an ear-to-ear grin. "But you're really going to join the almighty Knights of Blood, heh? Man, my guild would have welcomed you any day, you know that right? We'd take care of you, buddy. No data corruption under our watch." Klein joked.

Kirito briefly contemplated whether or not he should admire Klein for having it in him to make such a lighthearted comment after hearing his traumatic story.

"Well, there's going to be an entire banquet for this so it's kind of hard to back out of now." Kirito replied. "Not to mention… the other circumstances."

"And by 'other circumstances', you mean Asuna and the fact that you'll get to be closer to her 24/7." Klein deduced with a knowing smirk. The solo player rolled his eyes with a smile. "Well, then, you're going to need a tuxe for this banquet." Klein said. "Actually, we're going to need tuxes."

Kirito nodded, scratching his head awkwardly. "Right... do you know where to get those?"

Klein scoffed at Kirito's question before motioning at the waitress for the bill.

"Of course I know where to get them. Knowing how to pull off a nice tuxe is one of the first tricks to being a ladies' man. Evidently, you have a lot to learn, my friend."