EmeraldHeart maintained a successful defense of their territory, and actually came out of the war with improved relationships and discounted contracts with many of the smaller guilds in the game.
The third demo game was completed in less time than either of the first two, and the demo team was back on schedule, to Danika's relief. Her father and Haru had made sure that their wedding plans accommodated her project schedule, which made her feel more loved and cared for than any amount of deposits from her father had over the years.
She was a little reluctant to admit to anyone aside from Shinichi that she was investing most of the money she had left into something as silly as clothing, until her father asked uncomfortably during their now almost traditional Sunday morning brunch, "Would you mind if I buy you an outfit for Shinichi's premiere? You'll probably be on world wide broadcasts right?"
Haru looked both excited and nervous as she volunteered, "It would be so much fun if you would let me help you find something!"
Danika froze with a spoonful of berries and cream halfway to her mouth, and they both reacted as though she was going to refuse, as their words overlapped each other. She set the spoon back into her dish in a fashion her grandmother would have considered to be very rude, and interrupted, "Papa stop, you already have. Thank you Haru, but your offer is too late for this event. I guess that there will be more in the future, if you'd like to help me out next time."
Dimitri was the first to recover, and he asked, "What do you mean I already have? You closed all of the credit cards I got for you."
Danika arched an eyebrow at him and replied, "I had been putting all the money you sent into savings, but I have used most of it now."
She could only roll her eyes when he protested, "What have you been living on!?"
When Haru saw the virtual images of the gold design, she started talking excitedly about her wedding dress and what kinds of designs might compliment it. It was only then that Danika realized that she wasn't going to be able to wear her usual "nice" dress to the wedding either.
--
When Danika got home Ryuske immediately popped out of the studio and met her in the kitchen. "Are you hungry?" she asked a little tiredly.
He grinned at her and replied, "Now that you mention it, yeah." He scooped up a decorative box from the back of the counter and held it out to her.
Danika couldn't help giving him a wary look as she accepted it.
Ryuske said almost conversationally as she opened the lid, "I didn't know if I should save it for a wedding present."
She gazed at the familiar cup for a long time before she lifted it out of the box. The little dragon's curves felt familiar against her fingers, while the seams of gold that now welded the stoneware together gleamed brightly. She set it carefully on the counter before starting the kettle heating water.
Expensive. To Danika it was the kind of repair that rich old people used for their treasures. Or maybe the kind of repair a loving family might pay for if an elders memory was failing and they wanted to keep what was comfortable and familiar to them.
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Her mind puzzled at Ryuske's words and finally she responded questioningly, "A wedding present? Do you think that we're going to break?"
He blinked and glanced back and forth between her and the cup. "That's not what I meant, but it's possible?" Danika shook her head and he raised an eyebrow and questioned, "What if Shinichi tells you that he's been cheating?"
"He wouldn't do that," she insisted stubbornly. "Naoki might do that kind of thing, but Shinichi won't."
Ryuske's amused expression annoyed her, but his words were shocking, "Oh? Aren't you being a little harsh? As far as I know Nao is still a virgin."
Danika started the tea steeping and began assembling a quick light meal for Ryuske before asking doubtfully, "Is that what you thought about Shinichi before we started dating?"
His dark eyes flashed with amusement, as he replied succinctly, "No."
--
Mei came over to watch Underneath's press release with Danika, before she played Jade's demo.
Danika had finally admitted to Lin Hao that her cousin's application to the demo team had been rejected. He had pulled up Mei's testing results with his usual disregard for privacy laws and laughed.
"Because she only has one field of interest, that's why. You really just want her to play Jade's though, right? Just tell him to make her an account, you've already got the authority for that," he instructed.
Danika sat beside her cousin and recalled Ryuske's question with a shiver as she hugged the little dragon cup in her hands, while the beautiful actress on the screen smiled and stepped closer to Shinichi. She took his arm in a very familiar fashion while saying, "Of course, we've even started dating you know."
Mei froze, and so did Shinichi. Visibly. Only his eyes moved as his focus shifted to the hand on his arm. Danika breathed easier even before the actress laughed and said lightly, "If I said that, I'd be setting myself up for public humiliation. This guy is completely devoted to his wife!"
Shinichi's gaze slid to the camera, but Danika didn't think that he seemed relieved even though he smiled with his warm professional smile, while a reporter exclaimed, "Seriously!? Aichi Shinichi are you already married? Who is she?"
Naoki stepped forward suddenly and corrected, "Engaged, those two have been engaged for ages now. But there's already another wedding scheduled in her family for the end of this year, so they have to wait until next year at least."
Shinichi nodded and Danika breathed a sigh of relief, just in time for the next reporter to say dourly, "What a boring old story, pretty young star marries into old wealth and status, while both gain more money over publicizing it."
"She's going to be older than him then I bet," another whispered loud enough to hear.
Shinichi smiled suddenly and agreed firmly, "She is older than I am, but you've got the wrong script. This is the one where we met in a game, and started to like each other long before either of us knew anything about the other's real identity."
"Oh really? Then why do you have to get married on her family's schedule?" snipped the one who'd summarized the fame for fortune exchange.
"We don't have to," Danika blurted, and then clapped her hands over her mouth. Mei glanced at her and giggled.
Shinichi's smile widened as he said conversationally, "You wouldn't believe how shocked I was when I started learning just how extensive her family is after we started dating in real life. Tons of cousins and aunts and stuff to keep track of, it's pretty overwhelming but they're cool, the ones I've met so far. I get to meet her grandparents in person finally when we attend the next wedding, and I'm really looking forward to that. I was afraid the filming schedule was going to be extended again!"
The reporters looked almost as confused as Danika felt, while Akito pulled Naoki back and took his place beside Shinichi. "You don't really have to wait two more years though. I was just teasing when I insisted that you guys have to let us get married first, because we've been engaged longer."
Shinichi actually rolled his eyes, crossed his arms, and asked, "Who's waiting on you?"
"Hey," protested the pretty actress standing next to Shinichi's co-star. "So what if these guys are getting themselves married off finally, this is our filming press conference, or whatever it's called for virtual reality."
"Ah, right, what do you think of the new phrase that the studio is using," began one of the reporters.
"So… when is your wedding?" Mei asked curiously.
"Later," Danika replied vaguely. She was really starting to think that if they weren't just doing a simple registration, she and Shinichi wouldn't be able to afford to get married until his investments were released in another five years. Maybe even longer if they acted wisely and reinvested most of it.
--
Underneath's manager, Priyadarshi called her again. This time he was offering to buy her an appropriate dress for the premiere.
Danika didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She explained that she'd already purchased one, and sent him the virtual images from the designer. He sounded more approving than she'd ever heard from him as he instructed her to send him the receipt for reimbursement from Underneath's business account. He didn't even lift an eyebrow at the amount she quoted.
She couldn't help grinning as she ended the call. A weight that she hadn't quite acknowledged had just been lifted from her shoulders. She'd been wondering just how she and Shinichi were actually going to afford the vacation he wanted to take when he was back and the demos were finished. Now it wasn't going to be a problem.