Nagoya, Japan

Sunday, August 28th, 2050

First, however, I had to build her up. This was doing my devilish duty, of making sure that the inevitable fall would be all the more painful. I wasn’t simply giving myself a last good memory with her. Perish the thought.

“It’s been forever since we went shooting, Magpie!” I couldn’t decide which was brighter: Kiyo’s smile, or the August sun beating down from overhead. “This was an awesome idea.”

“We’ve been so damned busy lately,” I said. “I don’t see that improving any time soon.” We had gone deeper into the woods than the last time, when Paul and Mariko had stumbled across us. By the Dark Lord, that felt like an eternity ago, even though it wasn’t much more than a month. I’d informed Maggie that I was completely unavailable as well, and shut off my phone for good measure.

We might have also borrowed some communication fabricata from Mrs. Perera’s closet without telling her. There are benefits to having a girlfriend who could turn invisible, and had a flexible view of property law. Mrs. Perera wouldn’t miss one set of point-to-point earpieces, and they made it so we could still chat while protecting our ears from Lucile’s report.

Kiyo gripped Lucile’s stock tighter. “Pull!”

“Svalinn’s Mercy!” An orange-tinged shield (colored to stand out better among the sea of green around us) popped into existence in the distance, meeting its end as a bullet smashed it to so much dust.

Kiyo reset the safety on her rifle and hopped up. “Well, how was that one?”

I stroked my chin, pretending to be thoughtful. “Hm, I felt it collide with the top right corner. Seven points.”

Kiyo jabbed at my chest with her finger. “What? No way, dude, that was a headshot!”

“It’s a circular energy disc. It doesn’t have a head!”

She defiantly shook her own head. I was distracted at the way her short curls bobbed with the movement, but I don’t think I missed much. She finished off her plea with a, “and they’re always telling us that we’re here to learn how to fight for real, right? If that was an orc, it wouldn’t be an orc anymore.”

A folded my arms across my chest, doing my best impression of Brother Ratte’s lack of humor. “Arguing with the referee, are we? Six points. Keep arguing if you want to go for five.”

I might have ruined the effect a bit with my grin. It wasn’t fair, the way her angry pout made her eyes flash. “Well, Mr. Ref, since there’s nobody else here, maybe we could reach some sort of an… understanding?”

“My dear, are you trying to bribe me?” My best imperious gaze didn’t make her so much as flinch. I’d have to work on that.

She couldn’t suppress her own giggle. “I don’t have any money or anything. Is there anything else I could do to get some more points?”

I made a show of glancing this way and that. “It’s most irregular, but you are the cutest thing in this forest. Perhaps a-”

For once, it was she who cut me off with a keep kiss. “How many points was that one?”

“Ten. Definitely a ten.”

She smirked at me. “And the shot?”

“I can see my way to an eight, though if the Olympic committee got word, I could lose my-”

Kiyo was right, this was a much better use for our mouths. I squeezed my eyes shut, willing myself to absorb every detail of her touch. Her wonderfully soft lips. Her lithe body pressed against mine. The scent of vanilla crowding out the myriad odors of a live forest.

Vanilla?

When I opened my eyes, I was blessed by the sight of Kiyo’s crystalline form, leaving only her clothes and hair scrunchie clearly visible.

“Hey, why’d you stop?” Kiyo looked down and let out a surprised yelp. The color returned to her, especially her cheeks. “Sorry, I was enjoying myself. Lost control.”

“I already told you I think it’s beautiful.”

“Yeah, but it’s like being naked. No, more like being turbo-naked.”

“But you’re fully clothed,” I said. “And I’ve seen you unclothed often enough.”

“Yeah, but… it’s different”

I shrugged. “If you say so. Do you want to go back to shooting?”

She nodded. “Yeah, this was a great idea. Do you want a turn?”

“Only if you’re done,” I said.

She bit her lip. “Well, it’s more fun shooting than spotting, but I like teaching it to you, but I should practice for the War Games…”

I let out an annoyed sigh. She just had to bring those up, didn’t she? “Well, I think that settles it. You need to be ready for what comes next.”

“Great! Hey, make the next one further out. Over by that birch.”

We carried on like that for a while, until her store of practice ammunition began to run low. Back home, I had hated being on spotter duty for the goblin artillery. It goes to show that good company can make up for dull work.

It seemed like it was over in an instant, even with another break when she disagreed with my score. She might have disagreed me into a hickey; I’d have to cast some healing magic there, or I knew Rose or Mariko would give me grief about it.

She sat up to stretch, letting out a long yawn. “Geeze, it’s nearly dinner time.”

“Yes, we should get going.” I got onto my knees to stand, but she grabbed ahold of my hand.

“No, wait. I hogged all the fun, I saved you a couple of bullets.”

“If you’re sure,” I replied.

“I am,” she said. “Remember when Rose bitched me out before? When I did a gaming marathon and you couldn’t get to me?”

“Yes, vaguely,” I replied.

Kiyo scratched the back of her head awkwardly, considering her words. “She wasn’t, uh, totally wrong. I can, uh, kinda take you for granted. I’m working on that. You’re an awesome boyfriend, and I want to make sure I measure up.”

She handed me Lucile. It took a couple of tries to grab the rifle, since I couldn’t stand to look her in the eyes. “You already do, Angel.”

“Nah, I know I don’t. But when we’re in class together again, it’ll all be different. Second year’s going to be awesome.” She puffed out her chest proudly. “Mariko taught me how to make an apple cobbler, and I’m pretty badass at ‘em. I’ll make you one to celebrate us kicking butt in the War Games! Then once we know which classes we’re in, we can figure out a spot to slip off to during lunch, so it can just be the two of us. And I made you some mittens for the winter…” Her hands flew to her mouth. “Dang. Uh, act surprised when I give you those, okay? Those are half your Christmas present.”

I nodded silently, looking down Lucile’s scope. She cast her own Svailinn’s Mercy, though hers wasn’t as well practiced as mine. She didn’t have my magical reserves, and it was a costly spell for most wizards.

My first shot when wide, smashing a hole in an innocent pine.

She leaned down, frowning deeply at me. “Magpie, you didn’t breathe out when you fired. Remember? That keeps your shot straight.”

“Ah, yes, you did teach me that before,” I said as she assisted me to cycle Lucile’s bolt. “I was a bit distracted. You certainly planned things out, didn’t you?”

“Well, one of us had to,” she replied. “It’s like pulling teeth getting you to come up with date stuff sometimes, when it’s your job. So, I’m helping you out.”

“Like you always do,” I said. My aim was true the second time. She had built her target more thinly than mine, so that same pine had a hole blasted in it.

My next few shots had much the same result. I flinched as her hand lovingly patted my head. “Good job, Magpie! That’s the last bullet, though. I guess we’re done.” She helped me to her feet, and she cradled Lucile as gently as she would a baby.

We were halfway back through the woods when she stopped. “Magpie, is something wrong? You’re being quiet.”

“I’m just thinking about the week ahead. It’s going to be… trying.” Where had the hours gone? It felt like they had just vanished, slipped through my fingers. My last time alone with Kiyo was almost over.

She waved me off. “Nah, the hard part’s done. Those exams were murder. The War Games are going to be a cakewalk. They teamed me up with this guy Richard who’s won all of them in their class, and you’re with Hiro. That’s like an unbeatable combo. Have you been practicing with him and Yamaguchi?”

“Yes, I have a plan for the War Games,” I said. It was lying with the truth, and for once, I took no joy in it.

“See? You’re going to steamroll them, and then we’ll all be in the regular class together. No more remedial courses for us! We’ll be in the big leagues!” She rolled her eyes. “Those snobs in Mrs. Perera’s homeroom really look down on us. I changed their tune after I whupped their butts in training. Can’t hit what you can’t see.”

“Kiyo, you are… You know I…”

I felt like I had something vitally important to say, but I didn’t dare say it directly. I had to say goodbye without saying goodbye. “If things don’t go the way you’re planning, you would be okay, right?”

“Hm?”

“It’s just that… you know that you’re… I…” I was babbling. I told myself to stop trying. I could only expose myself, putting the whole plan at risk.

But, no. I couldn’t. While she could still stand to look at me, she deserved to know what she was to me. She came to a stop on the path, looking at me expectantly.

“I’ve never talked much about my life before I came here.”

She nodded. “Yeah? Do you want to?”

I shook my head. “No, I’m not ready. I just… what happened in England, and after. Sometimes I think about what my life would have been without the invasion, and I’m almost glad that all of that horror happened, because it brought me here. Here to Class 3-B, with all of my friends, but most of all to you.”

Kiyo’s grip on Lucile slipped dangerously, though the practiced sharpshooter quickly caught it. “Magpie, cut that out, you’re going to make me cry.”

I grinned slyly at her. “It’s all true, though. I was always ready to fight, but I never had much to fight for.”

“Well, you were a cutiemuffin, so you were fighting for the wrong side. I think you had to know that.”

“Oh, did I?”

“Uh huh. I mean, somebody like you, working for the Horde, or other cutiemuffins? I can’t see you being comfortable there. I’m glad you came here, too. You’re my reason I get out of bed some mornings.”

The stupid girl didn’t know me at all. Did she have an inkling of what was to come? It was almost like she was twisting the dagger on purpose.

“Well, I like to hear that, but you need to live for yourself, too.”

She rolled her eyes at me. “That’s what Mariko says. Like, every time I talk about doing something for you. She’s such a nag.”

I rolled my eyes. “Tell me about it.”

“Anyway,” she said, turning away from me. “I love you too. Now, stop being a downer! We should go play some War of the Arcane and bone up on strategy for Saturday. Oh, let’s get Rose and Hiro and everyone else! It’ll be like studying without studying.”

“That sounds lovely,” I said.

Well, so much for sparing my feelings. I felt lower than ever, after that.