Sophie Twilight, in a private meeting with me, turned in her resignation from being a retainer. She told me that the countless weeks of working in the sun despite the spells was taking their toll and she would like to retire quietly. It was an amicable exit and I granted her release. Naturally, I needed to find a replacement as a ninja retainer but it did not take me long for me to find a new one.
Over at the Drowning Wench, Bonga and I were feasting on some mashed popotoes and aldgoat steak with frozen spirits and Papashan's Pizza fresh on delivery via Ul'dahEats. A couple of new faces entered via a portal. One was a man with short orange spiky hair, the other was his wife, a woman of my height as a Hyur to go with long brown hair and a professional demeanor. "Well, well, well, if it isn't our new mates," Bonga said. "Have a seat, and have some pizza from Papashan's. Welcome to Eorzea. I am Bongaboi, this is my wife Kahori. We're Lalafells. Actually, her real form is a Hyur just like you but she sometimes shows up as a small like me. Come on, have a seat."
"Hello," said the lady. "My name is Chizuru Ichinose and this is my husband Kazuya Kinoshita. We didn't know what to expect when we walked right in here, but here we are. Thank you for having us."
"I told Chizuru we wanted to start our lives over because we went through a lot just to get here," Kaz said. "So this is Eorzea, huh? I heard about this place in the past, but to actually be in this place for real...amazing..." He didn't take too long to enjoy the aldgoat. "Mmm, is this steak? This is delicious?"
"Aldgoat. Basically our realm's version of Kobe beef. Really good marbling and aged to perfection by our resident culinarians, or chefs," said Bonga. "Since you are new here, let's hear about you. Chizuru, you have been picked to be under my wife's wing as a retainer, but let's talk about you. What do you do for a living? Tell us about you."
"Interesting you should ask," Chizuru said. "I work as an actress. Kazuya and I just graduated from college. He works in the trades but I work as an actress and voice actress. In the past, I worked as a rental girlfriend for a company called Diamond. Until I met Kazuya, I had great reviews for my work. I did not think he would give me a bad rating, but I realized there was more to it. Kazuya, would you like to expand on this, dear?"
"Well, I had a rough last few years before I met the woman who I would propose to. I was dumped by my ex-girlfriend Mami Nanami and it affected me. So I wanted to rent Chizuru under her alias Chizuru Mizuhara to have someone to be with. But as it turns out, my grandmother was in the hospital and it was my meeting with her and Chizuru that things started to accelerated.
"To make matters even more damning, she was my next door neighbor and a Nerima student like me and she also had her grandparents in the same hospital as mine's. It came to a point where Chizuru could not keep up this facade of being a rental girlfriend and me keeping up with this lie. We told everyone we knew the truth, and we had some personal trials go on to test us. Chizuru?" asked Kazuya, asking her to finish.
"As it turns out, we eventually passed all those ordeals and I decided to leave the agency because I found out that I am closer to Kazuya than I first thought. I was a deliquent when I was younger. I got into fights with boys and put myself in a bad situation. When I saw my grandfather's DVD collection, I decided that I wanted to become an actress and learn how to role-play and express myself. I would use the rental girlfriend service to prepare for this. At least, I thought this was going to be sufficient. I was wrong."
"One day," said Kazuya, "I proposed to Chizuru, and I asked her if we could commit to starting a new life with nothing to hide and nothing to lose. There were a few other people, her co-workers, that thought they had a chance to steal a march on Chizuru but it didn't work out. Kahori, Bonga, I love Chizuru. She is no girlfriend to be rented out to anybody. She is my wife and she taught me how to become a man, to face the truth and to be brave no matter what. I was able to move from my ex-girlfriend, and she was able to come to terms with the passing of her grandparents and my grandmother. When I proposed to her, she was crying, but she accepted, and we kissed. Then the portal opened. I asked her, 'shall we go through' and she nodded. And here we are."
"Awww, what a nice story," Kahori said, clapping and even brushing a tear. "Finally you realize that the truth will set you free, even though it will hurt many people. Even if people don't forgive you, you can't feel sorry for yourself. Chizuru."
"Yes?" she asked.
"You don't need to be a rental girlfriend to learn how to role play. You can do it here, right here in Eorzea, while you prepare for your adventures in the waking world. So I have an offer for you."
"What is it?" asked Chizuru and Kazuya.
"How would you like to be an Eorzean Ninja Warrior retainer, fully skilled and ready to do hunting?"
"What? But, Kahori, I have heard of ninja films but I do not know how to fight!"
"You'll be able to learn the ropes easily as a retainer for my wife," said Bonga.
"Retainer? Is that similar to my work at Diamond?"
"Not necessarily. Your first job is to sell items that my wife will provide you with. You are to turn that money to her. Secondly, you will get to do hunting as a fully trained ninja. And since you will be at the highest level of 80, you will get to adventure to another world, called Norvrandt."
"Norvrandt?" Kazuya said. "You mean to tell me there is another world out there in addition to this?"
"To keep a long story short, yes, and my wife has paved the way for you to get work done. As a ninja, you will be battling a variety of ferocious beasts using your speed, dexterity, reflexes and grace. We will pay you venture scrips for your work, and my wife's apartment room in Shirogane, a housing district in the Far East, will be your dormitory, so you have a place to rest and relax."
"Wow, the full package. But what about me?" Bonga snapped his fingers. "Whoa, what are these orbs around me doing!?"
"Sneak. A spell used primarily by gatherers, I am casting this on you permanently. It is a barrier that will allow you to observe Chizuru's actions without getting attacked, so long as you let them lay and not provoke there."
"Don't do anything stupid, Kazuya and you will be fine, you're just my tagalong mate, you hear me?" said Chizuru to him.
"Yes, ma'am!" he said, saluting.
"I also noticed that you like to tie your hair back and wear red glasses," Bonga said. "Intentional or not, this is paying hommage to my true spiritual father Homura Akemi."
"Wait...HOMURA? THE HOMURA AKEMI?" exclaimed Kazuya. "No way...that is awesome!"
"Yes. Madoka Kaname and Homura Akemi may be lesbians but they are my spiritual parents and they guide me and Bae in doing the right things and making an effort to be better. So already, Chizuru and Kazuya, you qualify to be a part of our team. Bae, I leave this to you."
"Thanks, Boi. So before we formally enter you into our retainers ranks," I said, "here is a tome that we give to our new retainers. When you open this book, you will see all the moments I went through to get her. My story will be your story and you will know all the abilities as a ninja. So go ahead, open it and unlock the power of adventuring!"
"No other option, Chizuru, go ahead!" said Kazuya.
Chizuru nodded. "Here goes!" She opened the tome and to the sounds of "Torn From The Heavens," she saw all the moments from my adventures. The high and low points, the heartache and triumph, the redemption and closure, and the many people that were a part of my journey. When she finished, she was crying. "What...a beautiful story," she said, sobbing. "I now know everything, and I am ready to help you."
"Excellent. I have your gear and arm ready for use," I said, providing Chizuru with glamoured gear, arms and accessories. "From this day forward, you are Chizuru Ichinose, the Red Vision, the Eorzean Ninja Warrior retainer for me, Kahori Harukawa, the White Witch. And may you ever walk in the Light and Darkness of the Crystal. Congratulations."
The crowd around gave a standing ovation and cheers as Kazuya and Chizuru shared a hug and a kiss. "This time, love, let's make it count," he said to her.
"We will, Kazuya, we will," she said, their embrace, sweet and soft, lasting all the while as they two of them began a new chapter in their life journey.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL1Eov8R_tY
