Sea Turtles & Stars: Akari Ito & Kimiko Nagasawa

[Misfit_Alien]

Akari began to notice the woman stirring and speaking, albeit not entirely coherently. Still, it relieved the Sea Turtle somewhat to see that 'Star' was doing alright, at least on a surface level. "Hey hey...don't move so quickly, you might pass out again." She said, carefully instructing her. "You fell unconscious after succumbing to my Bearhug, so I let you go and set you down until you woke up. I didn't want to move your body around and cause any more problems." She said. "How do you feel?" She asked, gently holding one of Kim's hands.

[TriggerBunny]

"I feel.. I feel..." Kimiko began to mutter. "good..." she continued with a small content smile on her face. "mmm... D-did I... win?" she mumbled. Kimiko was obviously not completely here, but there was an innocence to her tone that would be hard to mock. Kimiko moaned again. Kimiko felt like there was something different to the feeling on her face, so he moved her hand that was caressing Akari's leg to her closed eyes. She felt so tired but she patted around her eyes anyway. "Where's my... mmmask?" she whispered, beginning to fall back asleep in Akari's warm comforting embrace.

Kimiko widened her eyes, as if realizing what she had just said. She immediately shot up. "MY MASK?!" she almost screamed, frantically trying to look where it was. But her sudden burst of movement and consciousness made her lightheaded and she immediately fell back down to Akari's lap, barely conscious once more. "W-w... where?" she muttered.

It took a moment for Kimiko to regain her strength and her mind in Akari's hands. Kimiko looked up into Akari's eyes. "I guess you won. You got to see me... The real me." she began to talk to Akari.

[Misfit_Alien]

Akari watched as the frantic, almost helpless, rookie rested gently. She seemed so soft and innocent, she had clearly been working hard in order in the last few months to have a successful start in her career at LAW, but she still had a long way to go. Still, she had the heart and dedication that was befitting of someone who could go very far in this business. It reminded Akari of her younger self to an extent, though Kim might be able to exceed where she was with a bit more training. She had the potential, it was just a matter of fine-tuning her performance and turning the star-themed coal into a brilliant diamond.

"Yeah, I won...but don't feel bad about it. You did REALLY well for one of your first times sparring. I'm excited to see what you can do in the ring in a few months' time. I have no doubt that you'll be a real star." She said, chuckling at her joke. "Pun FULLY intended, by the way." She said, before hearing Kim talk about something a little strange-sounding. "The real you? That's funny...I mean, the mask didn't hide TOO much of your face, but it is nice to have the full picture, Kim." She said, still using the 'fake' name that the now unmasked woman had given her earlier.

[TriggerBunny]

"Haha, yeah. I guess you're right" Kimiko lightly laughed. She then looked away bashfully. "You know, Akari..." she paused. "You can call me Kimiko. That's my name. My real name. I think you at least earned that much from me."
"I know I practically just met you, but it feels like I've known you for so much longer." Kimiko blushed a little, realizing how unintentionally romantically suggestive that might've came off. "I mean-!... I mean you've been good to me." Kimiko tried to correct herself. Kimiko shyly brought up her hand to scratch her head, trying to relieve the awkwardness. "And... that means a lot. It means a lot to me. Truly."

[Misfit_Alien]

"Kimik-...oh...Ohhh~...real clever tell me your name was 'Kim'." She said, chuckling after the fact and giving the woman a playful punch on the shoulder. "Listen, Kimiko...I'm glad I could give you your first positive experience here at LAW. I really am happy that I met you. To hear those words from you is heartwarming, really. You remind me a lot of my kid sister, Miya. You've got a wonderful personality and a great spirit about you. Something tells me that you're gonna do some great stuff in the coming future. Just keep your head up, your eyes open, and always be yourself." She then stands up and offers her hand to help Kimiko stand up when she was ready. "Now...you ready to pay for lunch, 'Star'~?" She said playfully with a smirk.

[TriggerBunny]

"Well, I suppose that's what we agreed to, and you won fair and square. I'd be a jerk to refuse!" Kimiko laughed. Kimiko got helped up and they walked over to the locker rooms.

After changing, Kimiko met Akari at a local lunch place Akari had recommended and chatted for a great while. They talked about a great number of things. Kimiko enjoyed it when Akari talked passionately about what she was interested in. It was much better than Kimiko awkwardly attempting to make conversation, but she still gave it her best attempt. But she enjoyed everything nonetheless. But eventually it was time for Kimiko to leave her new friend. Although she didn't have class, she still needed to catch up on everything. And she needed to leave Akari to her training. They waved each other goodbye and went their separate ways.

As Kimiko started the long walk to her dorm, she realized it felt good to have someone who knew about her identity. Having a person who she could come to with her struggles. Someone who actually understood. Although it felt nice, she knew she had to keep her true identity a tightly-held secret. What would her father think if he found out? What would happen at school? Her job? Her friends? It brought a tinge of shame and worry to Kimiko. She didn't want to think of it too deeply. Besides, she knew of at least one friend that would be there for her. She stopped to turn around, glancing one last time at Akari walking away.

Kimiko smiled and continued on.