When Fuwa finally woke up, she felt hungry, that was her first thought, she had a familiar dream, in her dreamscape she was at school, it was her last year, and her family was expecting her to get into college that year, she felt a little happy, she was able to see many familiar faces, her friends, her teachers, grandpa, and so many others, even the grumpy lady who sold vegetables in her little stall, she giggled, but her dream felt gray, like a dark day of winter... it was missing something, it was missing her.
Fuwa's gaze trailed until she saw Raven deep in thought sitting in her bed, she stretched, yawning as the remnants of her dream slowly faded away. Her stomach growled loudly, snapping her back to the present "Ugh, I'm starving..." she muttered to herself, but her gaze naturally drifted toward Raven once again "Hey" Fuwa called softly, her voice gentle as she swung her legs out of bed and stood. "You okay?"
Raven didn't look up to her immediately, she was going to say something but hesitated, and when she looked back at her, Fuwa could easily say that her eyes avoided hers.
"Yeah, I'm fine" She said flatly.
Fuwa frowned, stepping closer to Raven's bed "That's the worst lie ever" she said, trying to keep things light "Looks like you are losing your flame, come on Raven brighten up!" Then she poked her forehead with a finger "Or you want a hug?" She said smiling teasingly, she knew Raven didn't liked to be hugged, or at least not by her. Fuwa sat near her and poked her with the elbow.
"No, you brute are too strong to hug me!" Said Raven her fire coming back at her, her tail twitched in irritation, but she didn't push Fuwa away like she normally would. Instead, she sighed, running a hand through her short black hair, the gray highlights catching the morning light.
"There's... stuff I haven't told you. About me, my class, and some other... things. And I'm not sure how to say it all without making things worse" She said so suddenly that caught Fuwa with her guard low, she was surprised, usually Raven was all about secrets, or trade secrets, or not wanting to tell her just because she didn't want. She wasn't expecting Raven to open up like this, but hearing her voice tremble just a little was enough to make her heart ache. She scooted closer to Raven, her usual goofy smile softening into something more sincere "It's... not that simple," Raven murmured, her voice low. "I'm not like you. I'm... complicated"
Fuwa felt a little confused, happy, and offended at the same time, she felt as she grew closer and closer to the cat girl, she had been opening slowly to her, but now she felt like she was letting go and finally dropping her defense around her, or at least a great deal of that spiky emotional aura that protected her.
"Hey, you can tell me anything" Said Fuwa with a bright smile.
Raven's lips twitched into the faintest of smiles, and for a second, she felt that strange warmth again. The kind of warmth that only seemed to appear when Fuwa was around.
"You're such an idiot" Raven muttered, shaking her head.
"Hey we can be idiots together" Fuwa said raising both her hands to the sky as she stretched once again "Being smart alone ain't fun"
Both shared a goofy and sincere smile, Raven's heart pounded, and then sighted, it was a now or never kind of situation, for anyone on this world, the personal stats were a treasure to protect, something that revealed information so valuable that it could be a matter of life and dead, but Fuwa has proven herself to be trustworthy and loyal... and it seemed that for her was starting to be something more...
Then she spoke, she told her how ashamed she was when at 16 years old she received her oracle and learned that she was a clown, a rare class that focused on tricks and illusions, she showed her the stat window and talked about her skills, Fuwa remained silent as she analyzed the information that was being shared by Raven.
"Heee... looks lick you really triggered the hard mode of this world Raven" Fuwa said, back home she used to be an otaku and liked RPG games, so she understood a little how the classes and stuff worked when she got here, Raven's build was a strange mix of a rogue without critical hit abilities and without sneaky skills, it was mixed with a mage or illusionist, she was surprised that she had come this far just relying on her training, Raven explained how she had to train in the mercenary camp until she snapped her bones to acquire skills like daggers and footwork "You are amazing Raven... but what is that about the spirit thing?"
Raven felt unsure how to start, but she told her about how she recklessly went to the dungeon alone and how she almost kicked the bucket, Fuwa looked at her with horror, facing the hydra alone, being level one, it could only be described as incredibly stupid or incredibly crazy, Raven told her how she almost drown in the water and about her first encounter with Undine, she commented how she got dragged back in the river and her recently meeting with her.
"Wait... a ring?" Said Fuwa, Raven took of one of her gloves revealing the silver ring with a gemstone in it "Ooooh it's pretty! So the spirit helped you... she sounds scary but yet... for some reason, she cares about you or want something about you... that's how you got your healing powers..."
"Yeah, she is pretty scary, she could crush me like an insect if she wanted to..." Then Fuwa did something really unexpected, she took Raven's hand which surprised the cat her tail standing still and her face a little flushed "What are you doing you fool!"
"Thank you Undine for saving this idiot cat" She said with a bright smile.
Raven's heart skipped a beat as she stared at Fuwa, still holding her hand. Her tail, usually twitching with irritation or nervous energy, was frozen in place, her ears flattening slightly in embarrassment. The unexpected warmth of Fuwa's hand in hers made her chest feel tight like she couldn't catch her breath.
"Y-You're such a weirdo" Raven muttered, trying to regain her composure, but her voice cracked just enough to betray her. She attempted to pull her hand away, but Fuwa held on, her grip gentle yet firm.
"I mean it" Fuwa said, her voice soft and sincere "You're still here because of her, and... I'm glad. I don't care how scary she is... Undine's got good taste, saving someone like you, she may be scary but compassionate enough" Under Fuwa's words the ring shimmered just a little, as if the spirit could hear her words.
Fuwa holds her held on Raven's hand and then noticed what she was doing, she blushed too and let her go, and for a moment both of them stayed there in silence, it was a precious moment for both of them, even if Raven didn't want to admit it, she felt vulnerable, but safe at the same time.
"And that you got achievements, what the hell I want more too... I only have one" She said to break the ice, then Fuwa extended her arm and said the words...
"『Status Open』"
Name: Fuwa -
Race: Human (Summoned)
Level: 2
Class: Hero / Martial Artist
Strength: 16
Endurance: 15
Agility: 10
Dexterity: 10
Intellect: 7
Luck: 8
Skills
*Martial Arts [Wing Chun] lvl 4
*Martial Arts [Kung Fu] lvl 4
*Mountain Stance lvl 2
*Path to Illumination (Passive) lvl 1
*Shamanism (Passive) lvl 1
Achievements
Called to Arms
"I got my achievement the moment I got summoned to this word..." Then she exploded with laughter "I was scared beyond any other moment in my life!" Fuwa proceeded to tell how she was going back from school with her friends back home when a mysterious light engulfed her, she still remembers how her friends screamed for her, the next moment she was standing in front of the king on some fantasy land.
Fuwa then looked at the roof of the room and she felt her eyes watery. She realized now how she missed her old life, but it was a conflict she also wanted to be with Raven, she was feeling greedy, and suddenly the arm of Raven was put around her shoulders, both of them gained a little comprehension about each other as they shared their stats and told small anecdotes about their lives.