Chapter 1

Fateful Encounter

"My name is Nimr Taia," I introduced myself using my last name first as it was custom in this country to the many surprised faces in front of me as I took a bow, "It's a pleasure to meet you all. I hope we can all get along." I stood back up straight as I looked at the students around me as they murmured around me. I wasn't exactly shocked that they were whispering to their peers at my sudden appearance at their school when the year had already started a few months ago. It was strange to get a foreign exchange student so late in the year but that was the cover given to me. I couldn't exactly say no to the figures involved in my current predicament. I, myself, couldn't believe my life had taken such a bizarre turn of events. To think it all happened because I had walked held long against fate.

I could clearly hear the whispered words of 'exotic beauty' as the students chatted amongst themselves. I couldn't blame them for saying that. I didn't particularly believe that I was exactly beautiful but I was a little on the strange side when it came to appearances. As my name would suggest, my ancestry dates back to Ancient Egypt. And as such my name is of Arabic origin. The name Taia was given to me by my mother after a Great Royal Wife of a Pharaoh.

I have deeply tanned skin but my white hair cascading down to the lower of my back was an odd addition which I always tied back, leaving my long bangs out to frame my face that was parted on the left side. To add to my strange look were two deep, clear blue eyes and a beauty mark just below my left eye. I was an oddity and I got strange looks all the time. I often would get bullied because of it. I was used to it all.

"Very good, Ms. Nimr. You may take a seat and the empty desk in the back of the room so that I may begin my lesson," the teacher told to me as he shifted his glasses back up his nose.

"Right," I said, not wasting any more time to go place myself in my seat. I quickly took out my materials in front of me before I placed my chin in the palm of my hand. I was fortunate enough to have the seat closest to the window and looked out of my surroundings.

I can't believe I'm in Japan of all places. Somewhere I have always wanted to come ever since I was a child. Unfortunately, this wasn't going to be a fun visit. Before I woke up today, I was an ordinary girl living in North America and minding my own business. But something had changed suddenly and I was thrust into an impending 'war' that was not my own. It's not like I really had a choice. I had broken my fate in my old life and my punishment was to be here instead. They had assured me that this wasn't a punishment but I couldn't help but see it that way. I was no longer allowed to go back to my old life.

Why am even posing as a high school student of all things? I inwardly groaned in frustration. I graduated two years ago but because they needed me to pose as a student they had changed my age from 20 to 17. I didn't quite understand why that needed to be done but I couldn't exactly argue. It did make some sense. It's not like I could just not do anything with my days. That would be too suspicious. Still, I felt like a spy.

The day was finally over as a boy with blue hair came waltzing up to me with a smug grin on his face. He brushed back his hair and spoke to me, "Would you like to watch me in archery?"

I quirked a brow at him, "Why would I waste my time doing that?"

His smug smirk fell from his face, "I just thought it would be kind of me to ask the new student if she would like to experience archery club."

My phone vibrated from my bag and I quickly looked at it, 'Mission: Stay in school until pass dark'. My eyes twitched as I gripped on my phone, trying to calm myself down before I got tempted to throw it across the room. I let out a sigh of irritation before I collected my belongings. I stared up at the waiting boy before I nodded my head, "Fine. Not like I got anything better to do." I felt sour for having to spend the whole evening at school. Of course, they wouldn't tell me exactly what I needed to do. They couldn't involve themselves too much and it was up to me to figure it out. Why did fate have to hate me so much? It was my own fault.

"My name is Shinji. Matou Shinji," he introduced himself as his smug look came back to his face as he escorted me towards the dojo.

"You already know my name," I said, boredly.

"So, it is alright for me to call you by your first name?"

I shrugged, "Doesn't matter to me."

"Taia it is," he said with pride as if he were boasting the fact he was able to address me by my first name. Something about it made me feel sick inside. It was as if he were attempting to claim me by calling me by my proper name. It didn't sit well with me but I decided to shrug it off. Though I felt like I should know who this person is and it nagged at me.

XX

Two other girls had joined us as we made our appearance in the archery field. I was feeling awfully bored of watching the club as they shot arrows to an unmoving target. It seemed that my lack of interest was becoming quite the habit even in this strange situation I found myself in. I wondered why it was that everything about this just made me feel so apathetic. It was like I was not meant to enjoy my stay here and waited for the activities to unfold. Or maybe it was just the complete fool of a boy that obviously lacked in areas and needed to constant attention of pretty girls. Whatever the case, I wanted out. But what else would I do in this school until it became dark out?

I had been so lost in thought I that I hadn't noticed that they were leaving. The boy had turned to tell me to follow them but I declined, much to his annoyance. I decided to go lay down on a bench with my eyes closed and arms behind my back in a courtyard to waste time before whatever it was that I was waiting for was going to happen. I had been laying there for quite some time like in a state of meditation of sorts. Just letting my mind wander from one thought to the next. I wasn't conscious of the fact that I was humming or singing some words out loud. I felt completely at ease as I let the time pass me by.

"Ya shouldn't be lying here on yer own, little lady. Could get dangerous. Ya should leave while you can," I heard a voice warn me. My eyes snapped opened and I rushed to a sitting position to look around me but could find no one around me. I shifted to place my feet on the ground as I analyzed my surroundings before standing up.

I was positive that I had heard someone but did not hear footsteps. I frowned before a took out my phone from my bag. I pressed a few buttons before my eyes widened in shock. My breath caught in my throat at the GSP map. There was a red pin right where my location is. That could only mean one thing: I was in the company of a Servant in their spirit form. But I could not tell which one it was. At least they gave me this little perk, I thought to myself. I wasn't able to detect Masters or Servants as I wasn't a Mage. It was just lucky that I had been given a device with a perk like that to help me in the missions I would need to carry out. But even this thing had its limits. The Servants and Masters had to be close enough for it to detect them.

I tried to get myself to calm down but my heart was speeding up. A Servant could easily kill me if they wanted to in my current state. Why was this once just standing in front of me? It was impossible for any of them to know my purpose here. Wait. He had warned me to go home. I checked my phone to see another red pin as well as a blue pin. Ah, so there's another Servant and a Master here. That could only mean that they were going to fight and this Servant was warning me to leave before it came to that. Because if a were to witness them then they would be forced to kill me as it was a rule to not leave any witnesses alive. Something inside of me relaxed a bit at the thought. This Servant was concerned for me and had risked being discovered to tell me to go home. Why would he even risk warning me? Servants weren't supposed to interact with outsiders. Was he truly that worried about my life? But he didn't know me.

My phone rang in my hand, startling me. I still felt eyes on me as I pressed the phone to my ear. "Yeah?" I spoke to the phone as I still looked around me, pretending I didn't know he was in front of me.

"How is everything going?" I heard an all too familiar voice and my suppressed a groan of impatience.

"Exactly the same since the last time you called me," I spoke back as I placed my free arm to hold my body.

"But you just finished your very first day of school! How was that?!"

I sighed, "I'm a little busy at the moment." I didn't want this conversation to drag on. I could still feel eyes on me. I didn't want any details to be discovered.

"Oh, I know exactly what is happening right this moment, Taia. Who do you think you are speaking to?" she giggled on the other line. Right. I forgot. Why did she even bother asking me how I was doing then?

"If you know that why did you call me right this second?" Did she not understand that my cover could be blown and I could die by an unknown Servant? That would defeat the very purpose of me being there.

"Oh, well. You see," she paused, dramatically. "I think you should sit back down on that bench of yours. Or at the very least stay put. Do not leave the school premises." As if my body needed to comply, I sat back down on the stupid ass bench. "Good girl."

I scolded, "How the hell do you know this anyway? It freaks me out." I pulled the phone off my ear to glare at it. I could still hear her reply on the other end. I mean, I knew how she knew but still. It creeped me the fuck out.

"As you may know, I'm a sort of prophet." She explained on the phone but it wasn't what I meant. I wanted to know why she had to barge in on me like this. I already knew why I was sent there. The Universe really needed to stop checking in on me and my every move. But I guess it made sense that she would say she's only a prophet since I was in the presence of a Servant. They didn't need to know who exactly I was speaking to. "I can tell you that you will have a fateful encounter with a mysterious stranger tonight if you remain in that school of yours. But if you leave you will miss him. And that wouldn't be good. He will need you after all." I had the strangest feeling that at the end she wasn't exactly talking to me. It was like she was addressing him without really admitting that she knew that he was there, still observing me.

I blinked at the phone still away from my ear in disinterest, "Last I checked you aren't cupid. So, stop with this matchmaking stuff and be serious."

"Hmm. You fascinate me to no end, Taia," she said to me. "You are a strange girl. You act as though you have no care in the world and hide behind that tough exterior of yours, yet you would risk everything for complete strangers." I stared at the phone, my breath catching. Why was she bringing that up at a time like this? "I remember that. It caught us all by surprise." Of course, it only happened the day before. Even they had misjudged me at first. And as if to lighten the mood and tease me all at once, "Plus, what is wrong with a little romance~?"

I pinched the bridge of my nose, "There are countless things I could say to that." Mostly the fact that I am not even supposed to be here. "But fine. I will stay here and wait for this strange encounter thing. And your joke is not at all funny. So, please stop trying to ship me with anyone. It's really annoying." Before I even came to this place, she had already teased me about possible pairings. I was not at all amused by it.

She giggled, "You never know with matters of the heart! All I know is that by staying, your journey can finally begin!" There was a short pause as I stared at my phone with a glare. "Also, by tonight I won't be able to see anything else involving your future. I will be cut off. You will be on your own. An event of sorts is about to begin. And I will not be able to reach you this way." I knew she was referring to the Holy Grail Wars. And I understood why she would be blocked out. Nothing was certain this time. All I would have was some scenarios like missions pop up on my phone here and there to help navigate me. But That was all I could have. "Hopefully, I will not have to see you face to face again any time soon." Yeah. I didn't exactly want to experience that again either. I only had one shot at this or it was the end. "Bye, bye!" she hung up before I could get another word out.

"I'm the one whose strange? Seriously?" I muttered to myself, completely forgetting that I was still being watched. I placed the phone back in my bag before leaning my back against the bench. "Fateful Encounter, huh?" I let out a dry laugh, "Yeah, right." I felt a gust a wind suddenly before it stopped just as quick. I straightened myself up, remembering that I hadn't been alone. But now, I felt as though the presence was gone.

Well, that was close. I wasn't sure which Servant it was or what they were like. If I had shown that I knew they were there then maybe they would have ended my life. I still had no idea how to jump start my ability that they had given me. They said I would know when the time was right. Whatever that meant. I just hoped that I'd know before it was too late.

XX

The first thing I heard was the sound of metal clashing together. I quickly rushed over to where I heard the noise, carrying my back over my shoulder as I did. I watched as I recognized the figure of two Servants clashing together in a heated battle. To watch this from the safety of your television screen was much more different than in real life. The intensity of it almost brought me to my knees. I wasn't stupid enough to be placed somewhere I could easily be seen but a certain boy was.

I remember this part, I thought. I could recall the fight between Archer and Lancer. I remembered that this was when Shirou would be almost killed by Lancer and saved by Rin. Tonight was the night that Saber would be summoned. Was this what she meant by fateful encounter? If so, then who did she mean I was meant to save? Was I supposed to stay Lancer from trying to kill Shirou? But wouldn't that change things a little too much? If I did stop getting involved, it may change everything.

"Who's there?" Lancer spoke in a booming voice which caused the boy to start running towards the building right where I was hiding.

"Oh crap," I let out as Shirou ran passed me but caught me in his gaze. As if he were worried about me being there, he grabbed onto my wrist as pulled me along with him. I was dragged behind him as he ran up hallways and staircases before he finally let go of my arm. He doubled over to try to catch his breath. How did I get myself involved in this mess? Oh right. Because they deemed me fit enough to be here.

"What… the… hell…" he kept breathing in and out as he looked at me, "Was that back there? You don't like effected by it at all. Didn't you see that?"

I tilted my head to the side, feigning ignorance, "See what? Why did you suddenly drag me up here? Why are you freaking out?"

He straightened up and looked at me with panic, "You really didn't see that?"

I looked away, "I heard noises and was about to go see what it was but you kind of started dragging me by my arm before I could do anything." I looked back to his freaked out facial features, "What was it? You look like you've seen a ghost or something." I wasn't that far off. After all, he did just witness two Heroic Spirits battling it out.

His mouth opened to retort before he really looked at me as if it were the first time, "Wait. Aren't you the new Foreign Exchange Student that just started today? Uh…" He paused as if thinking, "Nimr Taia, right?" I nodded my head as a response "Listen, I think we should-." He was cut off as blood began to sprout on his jacket. His eyes widened as he looked down.

My own eyes widened as the Heroic Spirit started to materialize first starting with his red spear towards his own body. My eyes moved from the injured Shirou to Lancer that now stood right side me as he pointed his spear at the boy's chest. The man in blue was so close I could touch him. His face was tense in the jaw, a show that this was part of his job that he was not at all pleased to do.

"It's nothin' personal, Kid." He said to Shirou as he took his spear out of his chest. "Wrong place at the wrong time. Unfortunately, my Master doesn't want to leave any witnesses." His head moved to look back at me. His red eyes met my blue ones as the boy's body collided to the floor, blood pooling around him. Lancer sighed in discontent, "I warned you to leave." He shifted his body so that it was fully pointed towards me. I knew the moment he had first spoken to me that he was the Servant who had warned me to go home. I could tell by the way he was looking at me that he didn't want to kill me.

"Lancer…" the word that escaped my lips startled me. I couldn't help but want to hit me in the head for being so stupid as to say that. At least I did not say his Real Identity. But it was still stupid for me to mumble out his class name when I wasn't meant to know anything.

His facial features turned to a stunned expression, "What did ya just call me?"

I looked off the side. I had really fucked up big time by letting that slip out. "Um… You are Lancer, right?" He was holding me to the wall by my shoulder in an instant. I was lucky that his spear was pointing up to the ceiling and not my heart.

"If yer a Master, I suggest ya call yer Servant right now," he said to me.

I shook my head as I looked at him, "I'm not." I should have probably not have told him that. He stared at me for a few seconds before he let go of my shoulder. I would have sighed in relief if it weren't for the fact that he picked me up and flung me over his muscled shoulder. "Hey! Put me down!"

He sighed, "Afraid not, little lady. My master wants answers."

Without another warning, he ran off with me over his shoulder. All I could do was shut my eyes and hold on for dear life. He was extremely fast and my heart was pounding so loud. I couldn't even think about the embarrassing thought that I was still in my school uniform, which meant I was still in a skirt. I should have worn leggings or something underneath.

XX

I stood in front of the gates of a creepy ass church. I was still doing my best to calm my beating heart and put my uniform back in order. "Did you seriously have to manhandle me?" I questioned him with a glare.

He grinned at me cheekily, "Only way ya would come without causing' a fuss." I stuck out my tongue at him childishly causing him to chuckle at me. He turned and pointed towards the church. "My Master wants me to bring ya here. Talk to the overseer." He turned around, his back to me but he looked over his shoulder to speak, "Be careful."

I opened my mouth to retort as he dematerialized, "..." I pouted before I looked at the church. I already knew who waited for me inside. "Well, shit." I took in a deep breath before exhaling it, mustering up all my will to just run and instead of walking towards the entrance of the church. This was not what I had planned for tonight.

The doors opened with a screech and closed behind me as I walked down the aisle towards the man that stood at the altar with a bible in his hand. A chill went up and down my spine as the man turned to face me with his dark eyes. I stood in the aisle but did not move any closer than in the middle of the church. I wasn't sure if I'd have to run off.

"I was told that you knew of the existence of Servants. But you do not seem like a mage to me," the 'priest' spoke to me. "How did you come to acquire this knowledge?" I had a distinct feeling that he wasn't going to hesitate to kill me once he got his answers. The only thing was that I couldn't tell him the truth of how I knew about the Holy Grail War and everything involving that. It's not like I could say, 'I watched it all on tv!'

I heard an irritated sigh, "Why do you waste your time with a meaningless mongrel like her? Just kill her and be done with it." The voice of a second man caught me off guard as I moved my head to look at a blond man sitting on one of the church benches. He lodged about with his eyes closed. My lips thinned as I looked at him. The arrogant Gilgamesh was present at our little meeting.

"Oh bite me, you jerk," I snapped, rolling my eyes at him. I couldn't believe I had just said that to the King of Heroes but there was no going back now. His head turned towards me as his red eyes looked at me with a sharp glare. Instead of cowering away from his hard gaze, I sent a heated one myself. I wasn't going to back down now. Oh, hell with it.

He held my gaze for a few seconds before a humorless laugh escaped him. Once he was done he looked at me with an amused smirk, "You dare speak to me that way, mongrel?"

I crossed my arms over my chest to show my defiance, "I do. I'm not afraid of you." Okay, I might have lied a bit about that. Gilgamesh could easily kill me if he wanted to. I wasn't exactly sure why I was egging him on to do it.

Much to my surprise, my words seemed to jerk him to his feet. He took one of his arms out of his pockets as he walked towards me with danger in every step he took. He took my chin in his hand to make me look up at him. My eyes narrowed at him as he spoke to me with an arrogant smirk, "You should be, woman."

I slapped his arm away and took a step away from him. I turned my head to the other man and did my best to pretend that the demi-god was arm's length away from me. "Sorry. You were saying?"

The man smirked in amusement, "I must say, I find your character quite amusing to watch." I blinked at the off-handed compliment. He turned back to serious, "How did you know about Servants?"

"I just do," I said with a shrug, "I know about Masters, Servants and the Holy Grail War."

"But you are not a mage?" he said it more o himself then directed a question to me.

"Nope," I replied. "At least, not that I know of."

"Hmm," he hummed before staring at me, "Where are you from, miss…?"

"Taia."

"Miss Taia, yes. Where are you from?" Before I could answer he added, "Ancestry wise. I take it that your ethnicity plays a bigger part of how you appear."

I felt strange answering this to this man, "Uh. It dates back to Ancient Egypt."

He smirked, "Yes. I can see that. You must be named after the Ancient Great Royal Wife named Tiye." I did not understand where he was going with all of this. What did any of this have to do with anything?

"Uh. Yeah," I said, "I'm surprised you know that."

He walked towards me from the altar, "It was said that she was a great beauty. That her beauty remained even as a decayed mummy." He stopped a few feet from me. He looked at Gilgamesh for a second before looking at me. "I find it hard to believe that you would be here just as the Holy Grail War is about to commence."

"What exactly are you implying?"

He stared at me for some time before speaking again, "You are hiding something." I guess someone like him could tell when someone else was hiding something.

I decided to brush it off with a joke, "Oh. You got me. I'm actually an immortal Egyptian Princess from thousands of years ago." Well, I mean, it wasn't that unbelievable in this world. Gilgamesh was proof of that in a way.

"Oh?" I heard the man say. He stepped forward so fast that I was caught off guard. I felt a sharp pain at my side as blood came up my throat, dripping down my chin. The bastard had stabbed me. How stupid had I been to let him do that? I knew what this man was capable of. I shouldn't have let myself get so close. "Let's test that, shall we?"

"B-bastard," I coughed out. He stepped back, bringing out the knife from my wound. It caused me to feel the blood pooling down my body. I felt myself becoming heavy, kneeling to my knees.

"How amusing. Serves you right, mongrel," I heard Gilgamesh say from somewhere beside me.

Really? Was this how my second chance at life going to end? I hadn't even had a full day yet! I quickly took the bag from back to lessen the weight and then put pressure on my wound. This was all so stupid. I had been so stupid. What was the point of all of this? I should have just gone back to the apartment. I shook as my eyes begun to cloud over. Last time, I hadn't fought so hard to stay awake. I just had the strangest urge to not let go.

Am I really going to die...again?