I do not own any of the Fate series.

Fill...

Sunlight streamed through a window to wash over a small bed. It crept from the foot of the bed up to the head, where a groan from the young boy beneath the covers tried to defend himself with a pillow. The groan turned into grumbling as the pillow proved too late in defending the boy's sleep against the sun, bleary eyes blinking to fight off the sunlight's attack like window shutters.

Kishinami Hisei slowly lifted himself up and tossed the covers away with a childish huff. He sat in his bed, glaring at his window for a minute with a dazed scowl before pulling himself out and onto his feet. More grumbling continued to sound throughout the quiet morning as the boy walked out of his room towards the bathroom to wash his face.

After splashing cold water on his face and rubbing his eyes to get the sleep out, Hisei started to gradually shift from his sleepy scowl to a more excited grin. It was going to be a great day because Haruka-nee had promised that she would take him to the park if he didn't bother her all week. It'd been hard, especially when she'd totally tuned out everything around her to focus on her book, but he'd behaved and stopped himself from interrupting her the whole time, which meant...

"The park, the park!" Hisei sang to himself as he smiled at his reflection in the mirror. His own brown eyes looked just as excited as he felt and he could see just how wide his grin really was. He quickly brushed his teeth and rushed back to his room to get dressed, shucking his pajamas away for a pair of jeans and a blue hoodie, then darted out and down the stairs to the kitchen.

Fill...

"Morning!" Hisei called out as he slid into his seat next to his sister's. A grunt from the half-asleep Haruka by his side and a nod from behind the newspaper across the table greeted him back.

"Good morning, Hisei." His mother smiled at him as she placed a plate of breakfast down in front of him. "Are you excited to spend today with your sister?"

"Yep!" Hisei grinned and jabbed at Haruka's side, earning him a swat to the back of the head and a scowl from his sister. "Ow!"

"Don't push it, brat. Don't make me regret agreeing to take you out, either."

"Kaa-san!" Hisei whined, only to receive another swat to the head, courtesy of his mother. Haruka's equal grunt from his side made it clear that she'd gotten one, too.

"Both of you settle down and eat your breakfast." The kind smile had turned just slightly higher at the ends, a sure sign there'd be another smack if they didn't listen and eat up. "Don't call your brother a brat, Haruka."

Hisei started to grin into his food at his sister's resigned look, only to have his mother's eyes turn their steel towards him as well. "As for you, Hisei; don't pester your sister so early if you still want her to take you to the park."

He gulped and turned back to his food, quickly shoving rice and vegetables in his mouth to escape his mother's glare. Kaa-san could be really scary when she wanted to, and from how the newspaper across the table hadn't moved even once yet, Tou-san clearly wasn't going to get himself involved.

Besides, Hisei grinned again, already forgetting about bothering Haruka-nee due to his excitement for going to the park taking over. The faster we finish our breakfast, the sooner we can leave and go out!

"Thanks for the food!"

With that in mind, Hisei tore into his breakfast faster than before, scarfing it down like his last meal, while Haruka rolled her eyes and ate at her own pace. Across the table, his mother and father settled in for their own breakfast as well, making small talk and pointedly ignoring their son's terrible eating habits.

"Done!"

His bowl abandoned on the table, Hisei swung in his chair to impatiently stare at Haruka's bowl, which was stubbornly still half-full. He glowered at it. If it wouldn't finish itself fast enough, he'd just have to make it want to get eaten faster on his own.

Be eaten...Be eaten...Be eaten!

Instead of food disappearing, however, there came a sigh from his sister. "What are you trying to do, Hisei?"

"Your food isn't going away fast enough!" Hisei declared with a serious frown. "I'm helping by making it to want to be eaten faster. That way we can go to the park faster, too!"

Haruka-nee frowned at him, which wasn't fair at all. She was the one who wasn't eating her breakfast, even when he tried to help her go faster! "...Fine, let's just get going."

Hisei blinked, but quickly started smiling. "Really?! Do you mean it?"

"Yeah, you won't leave me alone otherwise, and you'd probably just turn my breakfast into a stomach ache with all your staring." Haruka huffed, already getting up. She grabbed her dishes as well as Hisei's and set them by the sink. "We'll just come back for lunch."

Hisei cheered, leaping out of his seat and darting over to get his shoes. He couldn't believe that she was really being so nice, even if she kept complaining like she always did. Maybe leaving her alone when she was studying wasn't such a bad thing if it meant her being nicer all the time.

I guess I'll stop hiding her books. Hisei laced his shoes and stood up, grabbing his bag and slipping both arms through the straps. Bouncing on his heels, he peered back into the kitchen with an impatient grin. Well, if she ever hurries up!

"Yeah, yeah, alright, you little brat." His sister strode past him to the door, flashing him a small grin as she passed. "Let's just get going already before I change my mind. Fuyuki Park, right?"

"Right!" Hisei cheered, rushing past Haruka to open the door. "Hurry up! Let's go, let's go!"

"Be careful and have a good time." Their mother called out, waving from beside the living, breathing newspaper that was her husband. "Come back safely."

"Later," Haruka waved, only for Hisei to drag her by the hand out the door.

"Come on!"

Fill 'em up~

Lunch, lunch, lunch! Hisei chanted in his head, holding onto the hand of the nice Nii-san walking him home.

Today had been as awesome as he'd hoped for, even if Haruka-nee had ditched him after getting upset over a little game. He'd run ahead of Haruka-nee once they arrived, getting her to chase him for a little bit before she realized he was making a game out of it. She'd howled and called him a brat again before storming off. Hisei would've been more worried, but he knew she'd come back eventually, so he played tag and hide and seek with some of the other kids instead. It was his park day, after all, and he wasn't going to let Haruka-nee being a grump ruin his championship hiding!

Only, Haruka-nee hadn't come looking for him. Sure, he was a great hider, but Haruka-nee was his big sister! There'd been no sign of her, even after he looked all over the park. He knew she'd gotten all grumpy over the chase he'd lead her on earlier, but how could she just ditch him over a game?

Hmph, who cares about Haruka-nee! Hisei huffed, doing his best to ignore the ache in his chest. His hand tightened its grip on Ryu-nii's as he sped up, starting to pull his guide along the sidewalk. Just wait until Kaa-san finds out what she did. Then she'll be sorry!

At least somebody had been nice enough to help him out at the park. Hisei looked back and smiled at Ryu-nii, who returned the smile easily. Ryu-nii was really nice. He'd walked up to Hisei just as he'd been about to give up and had offered him some candy and a person to talk to. Even better, once he'd heard Hisei's story, Ryu-nii had showed him a cool magic trick and offered to help him get home and, best of all, promised to side with him when he told his parents how Haruka-nee had just left him alone! Even if Ryu-nii did dress a little weird, Hisei liked how cool the older boy was.

"Here we are, Ryu-nii!" Hisei darted up to the door, beaming with relief and satisfaction at having gotten home. Once he introduced his helper to his parents, Haruka-nee was going to be in so much trouble! "I bet they'll let you stay for lunch. Will you?"

"Sure thing, Hisei-kun." Even Ryu-nii's smile was cool, Hisei decided. "Though, I hope they don't get too worked up, you know?"

"Um, don't worry! I'm sure they'll be fine." Hisei knocked on the door, mentally grumbling at his sister again. Stupid Haruka-nee had the key, too. "Kaa-san! Tou-san!"

"Hisei-kun?" The door opened and Hakuno grinned up at his dad, running up to hug the middle-aged man's leg in greeting. His father nodded to him, but gave Ryu-nii a strange look. "Welcome home...where is your sister?"

"Hmph! Who knows...She ditched me at the park." Hisei muttered. He pulled away from his father's leg and smiled up, choosing to ignore Haruka in favor of something way more important. "But Ryu-nii found me and walked me home, Tou-san! Can he stay for lunch, please? He's really cool! You gotta see his magic trick!"

"Ah..." Hisei's father signed and rubbed the top of Hisei's head, ruffling his son's hair despite the boy's complaints. "I suppose it's the least we can do to thank you...ah?" He pulled Hisei inside and stood to the side, gesturing towards the young man outside the door. "I'm sorry, I didn't get your name?"

"Oh, sorry about that." Ryu-nii flashed Hisei and his father a cool grin, holding out his hand to shake the older man's. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Kishinami-san."

"The name's Uryuu Ryuunosuke. I'll be in your care."

Fill!

"Um...repeat four times? Wait, was it five?"

Uryuu Ryuunosuke paused and lifted his blood-stained toe from the ornate circle he had drawn on the floor. Fill, fill, fill and fill was four times, but four wasn't the coolest number when it came to gambling. Then again, summoning a demon wasn't a normal gamble, either, so maybe it was four? But five sounded right, too...

"Hmm..." Ryuunosuke shrugged and turned around. "Hey, Hisei-kun! Does it say fill four times or fill five? Look for where it mentions destroying each filled part!"

"...your book says five times, Ryu-nii."

"Hah!" Ryuunosuke's foot darted out and swiped another red line across a smaller part of the circle. "I knew it wasn't four times."

Taking in the sight of his latest masterpiece with both hands raised to frame, Ryuunosuke stepped away from the circle and leaned over the back of the nearby two-seater. "Ah, Hisei-kun!" He reached out and wrapped both arms around the shoulders of the child sitting between the unmoving adults on the couch. "Isn't it cool!? We're so close to summoning a real demon, you know?"

"Ah." Hisei blinked, leaning his head back to look up at Ryuunosuke. Really, Hisei-kun was his best work yet, a true masterpiece to celebrate the end of his mundane and normal methods of having fun and making art. Once they finished summoning the demon, there'd be so many new ways to explore people's colorful insides! Maybe there'd even be more colors, more vibrant and heart-pounding than the typical human ones!

"...A cool demon, Ryu-nii?"

"Yep!" Ryuunosuke grinned and set his chin on top of Hisei's head. Together, they watched the television as it reported on his most recent works of art. It was kinda sad, really, that he had so many failed attempts before lucky Hisei-kun's family volunteered themselves, but such was the process of a real entertainer and artist! "That's why your parents got to go first, Hisei-kun~ I needed their blood to draw the super cool summoning circle! How can we summon a demon without the right kind of blood for the summoning circle?!"

"Though..." Ryuunosuke shook as his excitement started taking over again. He lifted Hisei up from the couch and swung him around, ignoring as Hisei's legs knocked the bodies of his parents aside. "I have to admit, you're pretty lucky yourself, you know?"

He brought Hisei up and pressed their cheeks together, rubbing his clean skin against the soaked red of Hisei's. "You just looked so cool once I spilled your nee-san's guts over you! Those shining eyes flickering dim like a shooting star! That smooth skin transforming blood-crimson just like an oni!"

And best of all, Hisei-kun turned so helpful after taking his little bloodbath. Just a flick of the scalpel, a beautiful, crimson deluge of intestines and guts, and scared, hyperventilating Hisei-kun transformed like a magical boy into the super cool, super compliant Neo-Hisei-kun!

"It's too bad you're probably going to be eaten by the demon, Hisei-kun..." Ryuunosuke sighed and nuzzled Hisei's cheek. "I know it's silly, but I think I'd have liked having you along for the ride. I'd get to show you so many cool things, like how to slice skin and muscles right from the bone, and the intense redness of guts, and how amazingly shiny fear is in the eyes of little kids~"

"But~ That's just how it is!" Ryuunosuke whirled around a few times, then set Hisei down on the bloody floor to stroll back to his summoning circle. "Sorry, but once the demon arrives, you're going to be a super cool demon snack, Hisei-kun! You don't mind, right?"

"I-"

"Great!" It was too exciting, too amazing! Ryuunosuke could barely contain himself, not when he was about to summon a real demon! Sure, the other families might've been duds, but he had a good feeling about Hisei-kun's family. There was something just magical about them! "I wonder what it's like, being killed by a demon! Not many people get to experience that-What!"

The demon-summoning circle burst to life, and for a moment, Ryuunosuke was blinded.

-Break-

He felt numb.

Hisei knew he should also feel other things, like being scared and wanting to get away and cry. The voice, really really quiet, but trying to scream in the back of his head, told him so. It almost sounded like Haruka-nee, but it couldn't be Haruka-nee because Haruka-nee tried to stop Ryu-nii and got cut up by his knife because of it. Ryu-nii's knife went in her throat, and out, and then down to her tummy, making a horrible red line down Haruka-nee that spit blood and Haruka-nee's insides all over him.

That was when Hisei couldn't find a reason to cry anymore, or to feel anything, really.

"Damn, almost forgot about your Haruka-nee, Hisei-kun! That could've..." Ryu-nii paused in pulling his knife out of Haruka-nee's tummy. "Hisei-kun, aren't you gonna try to run, too?"

"...Why, Ryu-nii?" There was no reason to run. Ryu-nii would catch him, and worse, or just the same, really, since he didn't feel horrible and like something terrifying was gnawing at his chest anymore, running wouldn't bring his family back. Crying, running, fighting back; it didn't matter because Ryu-nii would figure something out anyway. "You wanted me to sit put, right?"

"Hahahaha! Cool, Hisei-kun!" Ryu-nii's smile was still cool, even when he was tearing a knife out of Haruka-nee. Shouldn't that feel wrong? "That's a cool decision, Hisei-kun. Just for that, you get to help me with the summoning ritual! Lucky!"

Ryu-nii went to arrange the couch and Tou-san's recliner, then, leaving Haruka-nee to lay on top of him. Afterwards, Hisei got a piggy-back ride while Ryu-nii rearranged the bodies. Haruka-nee deserved the single seat because her blood and guts transformed him into a super helpful Hisei-kun, Ryu-nii informed him, while he got to sit in between his parents like a good boy while Ryu-nii worked on finishing his masterpiece.

As Ryu-nii came back and forth between the circle and the couches, stabbing to get more blood gushing out for his art, Hisei dutifully sat in his place and read Ryu-nii's magic book for him. He sat in silence, save for Ryu-nii's muttered chanting and the sound of his knife tearing through the meat that used to be his family, one hand locked in place to keep his page in Ryu-nii's book.

As Ryu-nii set him down on the floor, Hisei crawled to his feet and stared at Ryu-nii's back with a blank stare. He had to blink once, when some of the blood Ryu-nii had covered him in tried to roll into his eye. The voice, fuzzy and quiet in the back of his head, but screaming, started to get louder, but he still couldn't hear it.

He wished it would go away. It was nice and quiet when he didn't have to hear it.

But Ryu-nii's words kept coming back, too, and each time he said them in his head, they made Haruka-nee's voice scream even louder.

A demon snack? Hisei glanced down at Ryu-nii's book, trying to find out what that meant. Did Ryu-nii want him to make something for the demon to eat? He hadn't ever used the stove before, but Kaa-san always made it look easy before Ryu-nii cut off her hands, so as long as he had his, it shouldn't be too hard, right?

"I-" guess so.

"Great!" Ryu-nii must've been really excited to meet a demon if he didn't care whether or not he could make anything a demon would like. Maybe demons weren't picky eaters? "I wonder what it's like, being killed by a demon! Not many-"

What?

Hisei's eyes widened, then scrunched shut as the Haruka-nee voice in his head screamed and wailed until he had to listen to it. Killed? Killed like Tou-san and Kaa-san and Haruka-nee? But that meant that he would die! And he couldn't die! Not when...

"Well, Hisei-kun, since you're going to be so helpful, I'm going to trust you!" Ryu-nii always sounded so happy. Maybe he just had to get used to blood to be that happy? "You and your Haruka-nee say your goodbyes while I prepare a bit, alright? Don't be a naughty kid, now, or Ryu-nii will catch you, haha!"

With that, Ryu-nii let go of Haruka-nee, dragging his knife out the side of her tummy and spilling more of her insides. Hisei grunted and fell back a bit when Haruka-nee fell forward onto him, but otherwise sat still. Ryu-nii wanted him to behave, and not try to run away, so he would be a good boy. Maybe then, he wouldn't be...

"...ei."

Hisei looked down at his chest, where Haruka-nee bled out of her throat and front over him. Her lips were moving, but her eyes were all shiny like windows when the sun came out after rain. It had to hurt, Ryu-nii's knife, because she was crying, but he'd been crying before she bled over him, and Ryu-nii never used his knife on him.

"...sei." He couldn't hear her. Hisei glanced over at Ryu-nii. He was whistling and kicked Tou-san's head out of his way as he shifted the two-seater into place. Hisei leaned closer to Haruka-nee's face. "Hisei?"

Hisei didn't talk. Ryu-nii looked busy, and he didn't look scary anymore, and he didn't want to make Ryu-nii change back. He wanted to cry, but he didn't need to anymore, and he liked that more than being scared.

"Don't..." Haruka-nee choked, and Hisei felt more of her warm blood soak through his shirt and down his sides. She pushed something hard and cold into his sleeve, and gripped his shoulders hard. "...sei! Don...die. Hisei. Hi..."

"Don't...die...His-"

"Whoops! Time's up!" Ryu-nii yanked hard on Haruka-nee and threw her back on the floor. Her head made a horrible cracking noise on the floor, but Hisei found himself riding on Ryu-nii's shoulders. He looked down, and Ryu-nii looked up with a wide smile. "Ready for the big finish, Hisei-kun? Actually, red's a good look on you, you know? Let's get your folks set up and we can get the show back on the road!"

Hisei bit his lip and looked over to the two-seater holding his parents. The quiet Haruka-nee voice in his head cried because Tou-san and Kaa-san were dead. Ryu-nii's knife went through Tou-san's neck first, at the kitchen table. When Kaa-san tried to help, Ryu-nii threw her into the family room and stabbed her in the chest. Then when Haruka-nee came home, hours after Ryu-nii had already started using Tou-san and Kaa-san for his masterpiece, Ryu-nii's knife tore through her as well.

Ryu-nii's knife killed them. Hisei looked down and slid up his sleeve. The knife Haruka-nee had pressed under his shirt didn't look as powerful as Ryu-nii's. It just looked like one of the kitchen knives Kaa-san used.

He felt numb, like he was only halfway in his body. Like his body and voice acted and his thoughts only caught up seconds later. He couldn't cry anymore for his family, even though he knew he should. It just ached, but not enough to make him cry, and knowing that made him want to cry even more. But even if he couldn't cry, and all that thinking about his family did was make his chest ache...

"I wonder what it's like, being killed by a demon!"

"Don't...die, Hisei."

He didn't want to die.

Hisei gripped the knife hard with both hands, eyes tearing as he looked from his family to Ryu-nii. He wanted to be good and he wanted to listen, but he didn't want to die! Tou-san and Kaa-san and Haruka-nee couldn't have wanted to die, either, but Ryu-nii and his knife killed them, and Ryu-nii wanted to let a demon kill him, too! Even if he wanted to be good, he wanted to live, and that horrible, scream in his head and the numbness from before were both deafened by that roaring noise.

I want to live! I don't want to die! I don't want to die...

Hisei's head pounded with those words, both Haruka-nee's and his own. He lifted the knife and faced Ryu-nii, ignoring the pain in his head and his chest and his hand, as the room filled with a blinding light.

I don't want to die!

-An Existence of its own Existence-

The Holy Grail's existence was both omniscient and helpless.

It existed with a will; To grant a wish.

Within it was another will, that of Angra Mainyu, Embodiment of All Man's Evils.

Yet, even with these two wills, with its earnest desire to grant a wish in order to fulfill its purpose, and the malicious agony of Angra Mainyu's influence, the Holy Grail could not act on its own. It required a winner of the Holy Grail War, a triumphant whose sacrifices and struggles resulted in the amassed power of seven Servants to empower a miracle.

To facilitate this, the Holy Grail sought to understand those whose wishes it would eventually grant, through the Servant Summoning RItual. Even those who gathered their own catalysts, seeking a specific hero from the Throne of Heroes, was not absolutely guaranteed their choice. The Grail beheld and understood, in its own way, the summoners in a single instant that existed between ritual and summoning. From there it chose, using catalyst and understanding and desires all, to best fit a hero to the summoners who would fight for the Grail to grant their wish.

For Uryuu Ryuunosuke, serial killer and artist, enthusiast for life and death in both hands, the Holy Grail had considered how best to match Servant to Master. Watching the bloody ritual, done time and time again amidst bloodied corpses with the amateur style of an artist who cared more for passion than precision, the Holy Grail believed it understood a proper choice. A murderer for a murderer, a fanatic for a fanatic. Though their passions differed, the enthusiasm and furor that beat in the hearts of both Uryuu Ryuunosuke and the Grail's Servant of choice would clearly match best.

Only...Uryuu Ryuunosuke was not a Master for the Fourth Holy Grail War.

The Holy Grail did not pause, for it understood and chose in an instant who would participate in its war. Uryuu Ryuunosuke was a valid choice, however, the Grail existed to grant a wish, and within an endless moment in its own realm, it heard such a wish.

There was no catalyst. The ritual was poorly done, only made admirable through sheer effort made. The Master barely had any qualifications to tie a Servant to.

However, the Holy Grail would not be daunted, especially when the setting itself beckoned strongly to a hero gathered around the Throne.

A Servant that cut down all in the path of their liege was not needed!

A Servant that twisted the powers that existed for glory was not needed!

A Servant to overwhelm the world was not needed!

A Servant was chosen by the Holy Grail, one that would record a most intriguing war.

And so, as the Holy Grail chose the final Master of the Fourth Holy Grail War, a Servant was summoned.

-Kishinami Residence-

The Holy Grail War, ritual and violence and contest bred into one event, all for a prize unparalleled by mankind's desires.

The prize being the Holy Grail itself, a mystery actualized by the most audacious of creators in order to grant its holder a true miracle. To transcend humanity, to defeat Death, to reach the Root. Any wish, any desire born from its holder's heart, the Holy Grail would grant just once.

The magi who fought for the Holy Grail, Masters 'blessed' with three command seals to grant absolute commands to Servants, heroes gathered throughout history and time itself into the Throne of Heroes.

These Masters and Servants, seven pairs of magi and hero, fought one another in order to remain the last ones standing, to obtain the Holy Grail and have their wish granted.

Truly, he couldn't have written a more needlessly contrived story himself, even if he'd known about the world of magi beforehand.

Fuyuki City, Japan. Caster mused, feeling his body form from the prana initially granted by the Grail. The connection to his Master was faint, but slowly growing stronger. The Fourth War, and I am...Caster. How fitting.

Caster, the class for heroic spirits that achieved their goals through means not bound by steel and blood. Those who were priestesses and magi of ancient times, those who delved into the holiest and darkest of arts, those who created with song and word and pen and peace, rather than by the end of the spear. Heroes who were not renowned for their greatness amidst fellow heroes on the battlefield, but for their mysterious and enviable greatness off it, in times of stagnant and depressive peace when the human soul remained surrounded by despair.

Others would have called him pessimistic, while others would decry his words as needlessly harsh, but it was simply the truth. As a Caster, as an author, he would tolerate nothing less than honesty. To lie to the readers would be disgusting illusion all in itself, especially if used simply to mislead away from one's own failures to properly set up the scene.

Such was the stance Caster maintained and upheld throughout his suffering, and that embodiment of his views remained unchanged simply by his existence upon the Throne of Heroes.

The light blinding his surroundings began to fade, leaving only smoke and the foul stench of blood and despair in the air. Caster frowned, but waited for his body to fully form, unwilling to act in haste and lose a proper understanding of the setting he had been summoned to.

As the light disappeared fully, Caster frowned.

A morbid scene of a gluttonous deviant's insatiable desire for satisfaction greeted him. Blood formed the circle beneath his feet, splattered without precision and as though by an overexcited child's hands rather than any artist's brush. The source of the blood was clear; the torn and flayed bodies of three people transformed the banal room to a rotten pit of garbage. Even worse, it was garbage soiled and twisted by a deviant, with more care given to the presentation than to the preparation.

And at the heart... Caster turned from the corpses to his feet, to the end of the summoning circle that had clearly been accepted more from wretched humor than propriety. From the end of his nose, he looked down at the monsters grouped together in a pile on the floor, both covered in blood and reeking of rottenness.

A fair-haired young man, dressed in fine clothing despite lacking shoes, who stared down at his own midsection with fascination. His hands reached up from the floor to press against his own torn-open torso, fingers twisting and wiggling as he played with his own blood. A disgustingly pure expression of delight mixed with longing spread across his face in the form of an ecstatic grin. A purely evil man, intolerable, yet admirable in his simplicity.

At his feet, a blood-drenched child whose hands still tightly clutched the knife buried in the young man's stomach. From hair to face, to body to feet, everything about the child was stained by blood. A shocked child, face twisted with the numbness of a monster and the impassioned intensity of a survivor, whose eyes shone brighter than a star with relief tainted by nothingness. The cursed brand on his hand, a dark, intense red with a glow that stood out even amongst the layers of red that enveloped him, made it clear which monster was to be his.

Truly, Caster sighed, hands at his hips. Must my lot be so fickle?

"I am the Servant, Caster, summoned onto this War by the purest will of a monster." Caster stood as tall as his form would allow, which amounted to only so much, when he was perhaps a few inches taller than the child monster. He stared directly at the child, waiting to catch his gaze before continuing.

"I ask of you; are you my Master?"

Banda - Chapter 1

I've had this kinda dancing around in my head for a while now, with sporadic ideas branching across Zero to S/N and even little in betweens and after. Extra CCC really brought the idea to life, though, for reasons that'll probably be pretty obvious. I'll be working on this from time to time, but I tend to be fast to brainstorm, slow to write.

Hope you enjoy it, though! I'll definitely be aiming to reach the finish line, all the way down the line.

Banda Chapter 2: Retreat and Align