8:30. Master was late. Waver had spent the last half hour coming up with more deployment strategies to discuss with him as he waited, but half an hour was far later than Master had ever been to their morning strategy meetings. It was time to drag him out of whatever rabbit hole he had fallen into.

As he absentmindedly tapped the ashes of his cigar into the ceramic ashtray he kept on his desk, Waver briefly entertained the thought that his Master had been waylaid perhaps by Kiyohime. It was certainly possible, he mused. The woman had a penchant for such things.

A closer examination of his cigar revealed it burned too low to be useable now, so with a frown and a quick sigh, he put it out in the ashtray, tossed the sad remains into the trash bin, and stood.

Master's bedroom was a fair distance from his office, but there was only one direct route. If someone had stopped master for a morning chat, he would be in those hallways. Waver stepped out of his office and followed that path. Master was nowhere to be seen amongst the morning bustle.

Approaching his Masters room, Waver came upon an unusual sight. Standing directly in front of the door was Altria Pendragon (Alter), stonefacedly blocking the path for worried looking Okita.

"Please let me in to see him, Altria. I'd like to make sure he has everything he needs!"

"That is not possible. What Master needs is his rest, and he should not be disturbed for such concerns. Leave, you are making too much noise."

Okita huffed, and ground her foot against the floor slightly. "But-"

Waver moved up to them and placed his hand on Okita's shoulder to calm her down and shut her up, then directed his attention to the other woman. "Altria, what is Master's condition?"

Without moving her gaze from Okita's face, she replied, "He appears to have a cold, and a particularly nasty one. Shielder has gone to retrieve Doctor Roman, and instructed me to allow no undue disturbances. Of which," she narrowed her eyes, "you are one, Sakura Saber."

"Hey, I would not-!" Waver's Hand tightened on Okita's shoulder, stopping her mid-retort.

"Your diligence is appreciated, Altria, but I should like to check on Master's condition myself. If he is unable to perform his duties, then it falls to me to ensure that today runs smoothly without him. If he is awake, then we need to talk about today's plans. I will not disturb him if he sleeps. Does that sound fair to you?"

Altria shifted her gaze up to meet his, holding it for several seconds before nodding. "That is acceptable. Do not take much of his time if he is awake."

He inclined his head slightly. "I will try."

"Wait, you're going to let him in just like that?" Okita flustered.

"Okita," Waver sighed. "Don't you Japanese have some sort of soup or something you like to serve people when they get sick?"

She perked up. "Ah, yes!" And then wilted again. "Though I'm not really sure how to make it…"

Waver waved his hand at her in a dismissive gesture. "I'm sure Emiya can help you with that. I doubt he'd mind."

Her face brightened at the realization. "Of course! I'll be back with some as soon as I can!" And with that, she turned and sped off in the direction of the kitchens.

Waver moved into the dark bedroom, Altria stepping aside to let him past. "Master, are you awake?" He called softly, switching on a lamp as he passed it.

There was a groan from a bundle on the bed, then, in a weak voice, "Waver? What are you doing here? Did I miss our meeting?

After grabbing a chair and pulling it over to the bed, Waver sat down. "Yes, you did. Where's your clock? Also, if you are not feeling well enough to leave your bed, why did Mashu go to fetch Roman, and not either of the Medeas?"

"Well, you see," Master chuckled a little, then started coughing. He settled, and tried again. "You see, I don't really want to bother them with something as trivial as the cold. They should save their energy for more serious injuries, right? I'm sure I'll be fine in a day or two. Don't worry too much about it."

"Hm. If that is your wish, Master. In that case, we must discuss today's business. Solomon will not wait around for us."

—

It was a few minutes later when Mashu arrived with the doctor, a few more concerned servants following them. All but her and Roman were stopped at the door by an Altria determined to do her duty. As she entered, she spoke, "Senpai, are you-Oh, sorry, I didn't see you, Waver! Why did Altria let you in? I told her no disturbances…"

"I apologize, Mashu, but the day's business had to be discussed. We can't stop the day just because one man is sick. God only knows what would happen if we actually let Roman run the place." He quirked one eyebrow at the man

Roman fidgeted, looked down and away, and mumbled, "Hey, hey, I resemble that remark…" He quickly looked back up and smiled.

The bespectacled servant shifted in place, "Still, couldn't you have waited for the doctor to get here? What if it's something worse than a cold?"

The Master pulled himself upright in his bed slowly, leaning heavily against the headboard. Mashu rushed to his bedside to push him back down, but he waved her hands off, and finally spoke. "Hey, it was just some talking. I think I can manage that much right now. Besides, it's important stuff, you know? We can't just let it sit around until tomorrow."

"I-I know, but… I don't want…"

He patted her hand and gave her his best effort at a smile. It wasn't much of one, but it was something. "Thanks for worrying, Mashu. Really. I'll be fine in a day or two." He quickly snatched his hand back. "Uh, I've been coughing into that, sorry. You should probably go wash your hands now."

She nodded slowly, and went into his bathroom to do so. Roman stepped towards the bedside, preparing to do his job. "If it's just a cold, then I think a bit of medicine should fix you right up. All you need is.." The doctor trailed off as he rummaged in his bag. "Ummm… This miiiiight be bad."

The man on the bed just looked up at Roman, waiting for him to continue. "I uhh… appear to be out of cold medicine. I guess I used up the last I had a while ago?" He chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head.

Waver heaved a heavy, heavy sigh, drawing the attention of the other two men. Noticing their gaze was now upon him, he said, "I guess I can arrange a quick supply trip. How hard could it be?"

—

Immediately upon landing in the Singularity, Heracles and Lancelot crashed off into the woods in what seemed to be a random direction, the distinct roars and cries of "Aaaaaaaaaaaaleeeeeeeeeeeeeeevvve!" fast faded into the distance. Waver palmed his face, and gave instructions to the other servants with him. "Cu and Francis, follow them and make sure they don't get into any trouble." A huge crash in the distance, followed by the squawking of displaced birds. "Any more trouble," he quickly amended. "Medusa, Jeanne, let's see if we can't find some civilization."

This could be a more trying trip than I thought it would.