Disclaimer: I do not own Fate/Zero or Puella Magi Madoka Magica—they belong to TYPE-MOON and SHAFT, respectively. Anything else mentioned also belongs to their respective owners.

A/N: Contrary to popular belief, I am not dead.

…Nor am I giving up this fic, which is what most of you are probably more concerned about. xD So rest easy, my readers! I'm just your typical lazy writer. :B That, and plot bunnies have been running rampant in my head so I've been typing up other fics—most of which have yet to be posted—with the full list up on my profile, if you care to look. There are several Saber/Iri fics there, I can tell you that. It's my OTP, after all.

[ I also got around to watching/reading SAO (curiosity over the hype got to me) and after perusing the Fate/ and SAO crossover section, I was disappointed to find that nobody thought of a connection between Extra/CCC and SAO, since…y'know—virtual world, some genius guy lurking at the end (*cough*TwicePiercemanasKayabaAkihito*cough*), people's avatars not really looking like themselves, life and death stakes…Therefore—people who have put me on your watch list—Moon Cell Online has been conceived but has yet to be written or properly planned out! Expect Extra/CCC, Apocrypha, and Zero characters cuz I like aligning with the people that others don't write too much about in the Fate/ fandom. Like Zero (Suit) Saber. Oh, how I missed thee…

And Nero. There will never be enough Nero. ]

Also, the new term has started…Damn it. Bad timing, all around. I have to write a paper on poverty. :/ And I'm getting too ahead of myself.

Back to The Bullets of My Gun…I intended for this to be finished earlier—so the timing would be perfect—but alas! This thing called Life got horribly in the way and my plan has been continuously pushed back to ridiculous lengths of time. :/ That…and perhaps briefly borrowing a friend's PS3 and copy of Skyrim for the spring break (late March, back when I first began writing this), as well as for much of the summer, might have also been a factor.

I couldn't stop playing. There are just…So. Many. Things. To. STEAL.

Seriously. This game is making me a klepto…and I'm freakin' loving it! :D I slacked off in my quests, though…but I joined the Thieves Guild, so it's all good. Fences are my favorite people now.

…So yeah.

No April Fool's joke for the readers by making them think that this somewhat of a crack omake/"What if?" alternate storyline is the long-awaited second chapter for The Bullets of My Gun.

Kowai sou ni. :'(

Ahem…I've noticed that the number of Follows for this fic has tripled (Holy Godoka, that's a huge number…!) since the last actual story update, so I thought it would be nice to at least post something. Y'know…to break the monotony while waiting for me to post Chapter 2: Connect already. I'm terrible at computers—but not Rin-tier, mind you—so…I just decided I'll completely rewrite Chapter 2. :B It's been too long, so I can't even remember much of what I wrote anyway. Also, that frees me up to do some changes from the original draft, and get some input from the readers on the ideas I'm planning.

Really, guys. The divergence from canon-ish events in Fuyuki won't happen until Homura and Lancer start their fight in the very beginning of Chapter 3…which still has yet to be named. (Incidentally, in the original draft of Chapter 2: Connect, I actually did not use lines from "Connect", but from "To the Beginning" instead. xD )

Anyway, think of this as a sort of "Distant Memories" and "Where Justice is Found" AU chapter of The Bullets of My Gun. I swear I could hear "Manten" playing while I was typing this up…Oh. Wait. Sorry, that was just YouTube. I had a tab open, you see. xD

…And I still have to rewrite the Saber and Waver scene from Chapter 1: Point Zero. :/ Talos' blood and bones, I'll have my hands full…

111 Follows and 75 Favourites from just a prologue and a chapter, where nothing really major/actiony-ish happened and most of the latter comprised of a rant. There is something wrong here—those numbers should not be approaching triple digits with what little I have. O.e

Therefore, I conclude that the expectations for this fic are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too high. Like, Throat of the World high.

I apologize in advance for the references you will undoubtedly find, but I just can't seem to help myself, especially after learning an hour ago that Mercer Frey is actually a traitor and Karliah is a good guy…erm, girl. Also…how in the 9 Circles of Hell did no one notice a crazy alchemist/mage living not too far away from the big, frikkin' hole in the Honningbrew Meadery's wall?!

But I digress.

If you do not wish to read through this—admittedly—long AU of an AU (actually 31 pages, but 53 total with all of the goofing off and A/N's involved) and all that will follow (as the Author, I've read it hundreds of times and am already thoroughly sick of it, not to mention that I know somewhere along the line everything just sorta fell apart and I lost steam…), SIMPLY SKIP TO SOMEWHERE NEAR THE VERY BOTTOM FOR AN IMPORTANT QUESTION OR TWO IN THE A/N, AND THE CHAPTER PREVIEW, however meager of a preview it may be. (Do note that not all of the dialogue will be used.)

Responses to reviews are located at the very end of the omake because this Author's Note is kind of getting long already. I can't recall at the top of my head at this point in typing, but to whoever said that even Gilgamesh doesn't have the heart to yell at Madoka and would likely rather kidnap her instead…

All I can say, good sir/madam…is that you are rather astute and would have been amused at the plans for A Glimpse of Heaven. Imagine two obsessed individuals (one having been at it for far, far longer than the other) fighting each other across the multiverse's different Grail Wars, keeping score with each victory and defeat in an attempt to decide who would be the one to win Her hand.

Crazy, right?

And without further ado…Enjoy.


Somehow, somewhere…

-x-x-x-x-x-

"If a coin comes down heads, that means that the possibility of it coming down tails has collapsed. Until that moment, the two possibilities were equal.

But on another world, it does come down tails. And when that happens, two worlds split apart."

—Philip Pullman, The Golden Compass

-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hey, Quill! Are you trying to use a 'deep' quote to fit in with the story? Ha-ha! Better luck next time, pal! It doesn't quite fit but—Oh, wait a sec…On second thought, perhaps it does. If you look at it a certain way and maybe squint your eyes a little, it makes sense…

To a point, of course. You really shouldn't try to find quotes concerning parallel/multiple universes or worlds on Bing or Google—you'll just get results on 'parallel quotes' instead. You should just try to ask the readers for help next time or watch/read more anime/movies/manga/books that deal with this, and since I really have nothing else to say for now…Well, I'm off to see how Moemura is doing at the Ahnenerbe a couple Planes over! See ya!

Oh, and I finished the last ice cream sandwich you had in the fridge.

Do NOT freak out."

—Zelretch of the Kaleidoscope

-x-x-x-x-x-

"…I hate you."

—Quill


Sometimes, they say clean air is as good a medicine as any for people with a frail constitution.

Emiya Kiritsugu wouldn't know. Ever since he could remember, he had always been in top form and had somewhat of a healthy diet. Snacks and sweets, after all, are hard to resist for a growing boy his age. That, and his father was also bent on their little family of two having a healthy lifestyle—they needed to live as long as they possibly could to continue pursuing the Emiya legacy. Sure, you could always just use magecraft to heal yourself and fix most internal problems, but…apparently, living forever is more important.

'Emiya mages can't spend their precious time getting sick and gaining weight', his father often solemnly stated, usually in the midst of adjusting his glasses in a curt manner. 'Doing so could set our research back at least 10 years. It breeds laziness and a weak will, both of which are detrimental to the larger goal at hand.'

As much as Kiritsugu respected his father…he had to disagree with the 'laziness' and 'weak will' part. After all, there were those who simply didn't have a choice, right? They were born with these illnesses or defects—if anything, those who strived to overcome their limitations often had a far stronger will than other, healthier people.

And although Akemi Homura was still a bit 'weak'—what with her extreme shyness, hesitancy and frail physique—she was not lazy by any means, no. If anything, she was…

"Ah, um…are you sure about this…Shirley-san?"

"Yeah, it'll be fun! Besides, it's better than staying cooped up in the house all day, isn't it? I know for a fact that Kerry absolutely hates it when his dad doesn't let him play outside."

Kiritsugu sighed heavily at the nickname the older girl affectionately called him by, attempting to scowl at her but utterly failing with the radiant smile she instantly cast in his direction. His voice came out whinier than he would have liked, having lost its assertiveness, and he wished—not for the first time, mind you—that puberty would be over and done with so his voice could lose its boyish tone. "How many times do I have to tell you? It's Ki-ri-tsu-gu. Four easy syllables, and that's it!"

"Kiri…tsugu-san?"

"See? Even Akemi-san can pronounce it fine enough!" he exclaimed in exasperation after their newest companion—of that, there would be no doubt, knowing Shirley—tested his name out hesitantly, twisting at her braids as she did so. The older of their soon-to-be trio stuck her tongue out playfully, feigning annoyance.

"It's because she's Japanese, too! That's not fair—she's already used to your weird syllables. Give me some credit here, Kerry!" Shirley complained, crossing her arms with a brief wink in his direction before turning back to the bespectacled girl standing in the doorway. "So, Akemi—Actually, can I just call you by your first name? The whole last name thing is a bit weird for me; I feel like I'm addressing your parents, or something."

"I, uh…N—Not too many people…call me by my first name, but—"

"So it's alright, then?"

Kiritsugu fought the urge to facepalm right then and there; the dark-haired girl looked so nervous, as if she was under an interrogation…which, knowing Shirley, wouldn't be too outlandish of a simile.

"I—I suppose so…?"

"Great! So are you going to join us or not, Ho…mu…Hame…ru…Hom…Home…run…?" Shirley couldn't help but giggle at this revelation, placing a hand over her mouth as her brown eyes twinkled playfully. "'Homerun'! That would be a great nickname for you! Isn't that right, Kerry? Now you won't be alone anymore!"

He sighed heavily…and facepalmed.

From the corner of his eye, he caught Homura's flustered expression as Shirley began to test out her new nickname, casting a sympathetic look in his direction from behind her red-framed glasses. Her pale cheeks were flushed with pink in obvious embarrassment…but he could tell that she wasn't offended by it or strongly opposed to the new name. His lips twitched into a slight grin and he rolled his eyes, earning a small smile from the frail girl.

Akemi Homura.

She and her father recently decided to vacation in Arimago Island a few days ago, hoping that maybe the cleaner air here would help to improve her weak health, as opposed to the air in the city back in Japan. Father Simon had helped them settle in and the house they were temporarily staying at wasn't too far from the Church. It turns out they were Catholic, unlike the Emiyas who had no affiliation. Emiya Norikata, after all, had no time to waste on religious ceremonies and rituals when there was still much research to be done.

Homura's father kept up with his job through video conferences and phone calls, so he spent a lot of time at the town hall, where the internet and telephone connections were the best in the whole island. Kiritsugu had seen him a few times through the window as he passed by to head for Shirley's house. Even though the rest of the world outside was subject to the unrelenting warmth of the sun, he kept indoors with his dress shirt and pants, preferring the artificial cold of the air conditioner. In that way, Akemi Masaru was like Emiya Norikata—devoted to his profession and mostly keeping to himself…which included leaving his own child to their devices.

But unlike Kiritsugu's father, Akemi Masaru was no magus. Norikata had even remarked to Kiritsugu on the day of their arrival that neither of them possessed any magical circuits. They would have no fear of competition or threat to the Emiya research, he had said. The Akemis were a normal family, unbound by the social/cultural expectations placed upon magi and the never-ending search for the Root. He almost…envied them, knowing that they would live such normal lives.

Almost.

The first time he had seen Homura struggle for breath, Kiritsugu could have sworn his heart almost stopped with fright. (It was a wholly inappropriate metaphor, given the situation at the time, but it was truly what he had felt.) A compassionate boy despite his attempts to create a tougher exterior, he had panicked and instantly tried to help her in the only way currently available to him.

…Afterwards, however, he realized that maybe dumping a bucket full of cold water over her was not the best idea.

Seriously.

Where the hell had that idea come from?!

One of the townspeople had been working on a mural then and had asked him to fetch some water for the sponges and paint. Kiritsugu had been on his way when he first spotted Homura outside, standing near the town library with a hand on a palm tree planted in the yard, as if to steady herself. Her hand was clasped over her chest as she bent over, her mouth open as if to inhale as much air as she could, her body giving a sudden jerk—

He had reacted without thinking.

Apologizing profusely as he carried the frail girl in his arms—bridal style—Kiritsugu had ran toward her house, his young brain finally grabbing a hold of itself and realizing that she must have some sort of medication at home. If she had a bottle in her pocket, he didn't know then—he did now—nor was she in the state to tell him, what with her shivering from the cold and her breaths labored as her heart worked its trouble.

Then he had run into Shirley on the way.

She was about to tease him for carrying Homura in such a manner, but had quickly grown serious when the gravity of the situation hit her a second later. Their party of three hurried to the Akemi residence and after hastily swallowing some medication, a quick change of clothes—with Shirley ordering him to wait in the living room—and words of admonishment swiftly delivered by the older girl…they had sat around for a bit of afternoon tea, served by a now stable but deeply embarrassed Akemi Homura.

You know…Japanese customs and all that.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

…Which brings us back to the day after that little incident.

"Kerry? Keeerrrrryyyy~ Oi, Kerry!"

Kiritsugu blinked, suddenly pulled out of his reminiscing and back into the present. He turned to his companions and saw that Homura and Shirley were staring at him, with the former looking a little concerned and the latter merely arching a dark eyebrow questioningly, trying to fight back the telltale hint of a grin.

"S—Sorry, I was just spacing out a bit. What were you saying?"

The grin won, creeping back onto Shirley's face, and he couldn't help but feel the tips of his ears growing hot again. She knew he spaced out sometimes and often teased him for it. 'A dreamer's gotta dream, right?' she often laughed.

"Well, while your head was in the clouds and high off of Skooma, I was saying that maybe we could head down to the beach for some fun! Homerun was telling me it would be her first time at the beach, too, so we definitely can't miss out on this opportunity!"

Kiritsugu blinked. Then he blinked again.

Homura…had never gone to a beach before? There…There existed people who had never been to beaches before?! This is…This is—

"—unacceptable! Completely unacceptable!" he exclaimed, grabbing her delicate wrist and pulling her along after him in the direction of the bay. "You must be reconditioned immediately! You haven't lived until you've spent a day at Arimago's beaches!"

"I, uh…haven't done much 'living', you know." Homura pointed out timidly as the three of them left the town and the land slowly gave way to sandy dunes.

…You have a point there.

Kiritsugu felt his cheeks redden at that, but he didn't let go of her wrist, fearing that she would chicken out and make a break for it. Improbable, given her weak condition and the fact that both of them knew fully well that he could easily overtake her in moments. But aside from that, he also had to maintain what little dignity he had left in front of Shirley.

It was pointless, he knew.

"…Shut up. I knowing you're smirking back there."


Kiritsugu groggily opened his eyes, returning to the waking world and blinking several times as his vision slowly refocused. He just had the strangest dream—he had been traveling back in Time for what probably equated to hundreds of years, reliving the same month over, and over again in a desperate attempt to save a girl with snow-white hair and crimson eyes from the wiles of a deceptively adorable alien, and a giant clockwork creature in a blue dress.

…And he had been wearing tights, heels…and a skirt.

"Ah! Kerry, welcome back! Ready for Round 2?"

Holy shit, don't tell me that was real!?

Quickly panicking at the thought—and screaming, "Damn you, Brazilian Nut!"—Kiritsugu tried to flail around…but soon found that to be…difficult.

He was buried up to his chin in sand, after all.

"Wha—? Shirley! How could you?!" Kiritsugu exclaimed as the older girl laughed at his futile attempts to free himself. "It'll take me forever to get all this sand outta my shorts!"

"You better get started, then!" Shirley laughed, lightly tapping his nose with the affection of a mischievous older sister. "Maybe next time, you shouldn't try to take a nap at the beach, eh?"

He considered biting her finger in retaliation. Then, as an afterthought:

"Homura! Homura, help me!"

She may have the strength of a kitten, but she's the only one I got! Kiritsugu craned his neck around, trying to locate the dark-haired girl…only to find that she was standing a few feet away, blindfolded and trying to hit a watermelon with a baseball bat. Due to a history of generally poor health, her arms were too weak to land a decent blow, and the watermelon kept rolling away a little with every failed attempt to split it.

…Which meant she was slowly—but surely—moving away from him.

"Eh? Is Kiritsugu-san awake now?" Homura asked, stopping to take a breather and reaching for her blindfold—

"What? No! No, he's not!" Shirley said quickly as she darted over—which sent a spray of sand into his face—and adjusted the girl's blindfold so it would be harder to take off. "Still out like a light! Did you know that he drools in his sleep?"

"Don't…lie to her…Shirley!" Kiritsugu spluttered, trying to spit out the sand. "Homu…Homura! Homura, help me! Follow the sound of my voice!"

"Kiritsugu-san?"

"Hey, Homerun! You were really close to splitting the watermelon last time! Why don't you try again and…ha-ha…hit it out of the park?"

It was funny cuz she was holding a baseball bat.

"Sh—Shirley-san…" Homura whimpered, somehow managing to loosen her blindfold enough to peek a single, teary violet eye at the older girl. "Are you…making fun of me?"

Good, Homura! That's it! Use your moe powers to immobilize Shirley and help dig me out! Growing hopeful at the thought, Kiritsugu doubled his efforts in attempting to wiggle his way out of the sand, trying to make as much of a commotion as possible to catch her attention.

As expected, Shirley was immediately taken by Homura's irresistible moe charm. She hugged the poor girl close, squealing like a fangirl as she shook her head furiously in denial. "Nononononono, my adorable little Homerun! Big Sis Shirley was just—"

"But Sh—Shirley-san…It always seems like my n—name…is just a big j—joke to you." Homura sniffled, on the verge of tears.

Backing away, Shirley stiffened—as if dealt a fatal, physical blow—and sank to her knees, her jaw open in horror and her eyes growing ridiculously wide. Her face grew pale as she fell forward on all fours, her head bowing in despair. "No, no…Big Sis Shirley was just…But the pun…! It's too brilliant…to ignore…! No, no, no…It had to be done…! It…it wasn't a joke…Not at all…!" she muttered rapidly to herself as Homura calmly walked past her, tossing aside the blindfold and bat.

Stooping down briefly to pick up her glasses from atop a nearby rock, she put them on and managed a shaky smile in Kiritsugu's direction. "So, um…how do I get you out of there, Kiritsugu-san?"

It was all just a front?!

Kiritsugu made a mental note to be more wary of her moe appearance in the future—there was more to the girl than he originally thought, it seemed…

Homura knelt beside him, looking a bit awed at what probably looked like a human head growing like a plant out of the sand. "Shirley-san's…pretty amazing at this. You're…buried really deep, Kiritsugu-san!" Her shoulders drooped, and even her braids seemed to wilt with her. "Although…I feel like Shirley-san can be scary sometimes."

…or Shirley's antics simply pushed her.

"Yeah, she can be," Kiritsugu agreed with a heavy sigh at the older girl's tricks (incidentally, she was still despairing a few feet away). "You could start by digging—I think I could get my shoulder free with your help."

"O—Okay."

It took some doing, but eventually, Kiritsugu was able to wiggle the rest of himself out of the sand. He had taken his shirt off earlier, so at least the only problem he had to face now was how to clean out his shorts later. "Damn it…this is my favorite pair, too!" he grumbled as he tried to brush off as much of the sand from his skin as he could. "Now, where was I…? Oh. Right…SHIIIIIIRRRRRRLLLLLLLEEEEYYYYY!"

He angrily whipped his head around in her direction, only to find that the older girl was already standing, brushing off the sand from her knees and smirking playfully at them.

…The whole 'despairing' thing had been a front, as well.

He'd have to be careful around these girls.

"You'll never catch me, Kerry!"

"Graaaaaaahh! Come back here! Shirley!" Kiritsugu yelled as he chased after her, a grin forming on his face as the anger vanished at the sight of the brunette's sunny smile, always enough to make his heart leap. "I'll bury you in sand this time!"

"W—Wait! Kiritsugu-san! Shirley-san!"

"C'mon, Homura! With the two of us, we can corner her!"

Glancing back over his shoulder, Kiritsugu saw Homura running after them, her twin braids flying after her and her face set in grim determination to keep up with them. He slowed down his pace a bit, noting belatedly that Shirley wasn't running as fast as she usually would. The older girl looked back every now and then, flashing a toothy grin and just…being Shirley. He couldn't help but laugh, realizing the point to all this.

Slowing down even further, Kiritsugu grabbed Homura's hand, helping her along after him as Shirley laughed in delight at the chase. The bespectacled girl smiled at him gratefully and he grinned back at her, a surge of protection welling up inside of him. Together, shouting empty threats at one another, the three of them circled all around the beach, leaving chaos and many a sand-covered snowcone in their wake.


"Well, that sure was fun!" Shirley said as she stretched her arms over her head, giving a small yawn. The sun was already setting, painting the island's tropical landscape a soothing orange color and turning the air cooler. The nightly chorus of insects began to start up, and a few fireflies were already darting about as they walked down the street. People were returning to their homes for dinner and distantly, they heard the sounds of a basketball game nearing its conclusion.

"Yeah…it sure was. I'm glad that Homura was able to have some fun, too." Kiritsugu said as he shifted the sleeping, bespectacled girl in question on his back into a more comfortable position—it felt like she was going to slip off at any moment.

Homura could only run for so long, what with her frail health, but she had lasted a lot longer than he had expected. They had stopped for some ice cream and chatted for a while, but afterwards, the poor girl was so exhausted from all the physical activity and excitement of making new friends that she had decided to take a quick nap to recuperate, leaning against the trunk of the tree they had decided to sit under. She seemed so peaceful in her sleep, that neither Kiritsugu nor Shirley had the heart to wake her when the hour dragged by and it came time for them to go home.

"Hey…do you think this is her first time spending a whole afternoon outside?" Shirley wondered aloud as they rounded a corner and spotted the Akemi residence a few houses down.

"I dunno…She probably played outside a bit when she was younger. Y'know, before her health started messing things up for her," Kiritsugu mused, managing a shrug even as he carried the sleeping girl on his back—she was way lighter than a girl like her should be. "I hope Akemi-san is right and the cleaner air here will help. Homura deserves to have fun before…"

…before the possibility that her condition takes her life.

A heavy silence settled over them as they walked, with Homura mumbling a bit in her sleep. She buried her face into his shirt, her glasses jabbing into his shoulder…but Kiritsugu didn't care. He couldn't fight the sadness and fear that crept into his heart at the thought of her condition, nor his newfound anger at the unfairness in the world. His newest friend was likely going to die, simply because she had been dealt a bad hand when she was born.

I want…to save her.

"Ne, Kerry…?"

"Yeah?"

Shirley exhaled deeply, a bounce returning to her step as they approached Homura's house. "I think…if I could have a single wish granted…I'd use it to help Homerun."

…Huh. It would seem that the both of them were on the same wavelength. Kiritsugu furrowed his brow as the hazy details of his strange dream from earlier came back to him. "Would you…sell your soul for such a wish?"

"Yup!" she affirmed, sounding much too cheerful for the hidden weight behind the question. "Everyone deserves to live, and she's no different. This sort of stuff happens all over the world, but if I could heal Homura…it would make a huge difference in her life." The older girl chuckled as they slowed to a stop. "Even if she's just one person, I think I'd be happy that she can finally smile, have friends, and enjoy herself without fear that tomorrow will be her last."

Kiritsugu shifted on his feet, uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was turning. He was still a young boy, at the end of the day. The depth and complexity behind her words was threatening to make his brain hurt…and he didn't want to think too much about a dying Homura. That in itself was a scary thought.

"Mmmm…Huh…? Kiri…tsugu-san?" Homura mumbled sleepily from his back as she returned to the waking world, rubbing at her eyes and knocking her glasses askew. "Where…What's going on…?"

"Welcome back, Homerun!" Shirley greeted cheerfully as Kiritsugu helped set her back on her feet. "You were out for…3 days, I think? We had to reset Time and try again to save Termina."

"WHAT?!" the frail girl shrieked, trying to right her glasses as she glanced around frantically in alarm.

"Shirley…" Kiritsugu sighed, shaking his head in dismay as he chuckled a bit at her joke. "She's just kidding, Homura. You only slept for an hour or so."

"Oh…" Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment as she began to fiddle with her braids. "And you had to carry me, too…Again. I'm sorry, Kiritsugu-san. I'm always such a burden on everyone..."

Grinning reassuringly, he gave her head a pat, messing up her hair a bit. "You're no burden, Homura! And besides, I volunteered for it. Think of it as a 'thanks' for digging me out earlier."

The bespectacled girl managed a small, timid smile at that. Turning to face Shirley as well, she bowed deeply to both of them. "I…I—I want to thank you both…for today! This was…the most fun I've had in a while," Homura said as she straightened back up, her face slightly flushed as she tried to find the words. "And…if it's okay with you…I'd like to…be friends?"

Shirley snorted at that, earning a brief look of alarm from them, before her lips curled into a warm smile. "You didn't need to ask us that, Homerun. We're already friends! Bonded through trauma."

Gee, not how I'd describe it as…And remind me again exactly when this so-called 'trauma' took place? Shaking his head at the older girl's teasing, Kiritsugu grinned, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Yeah. We'll be here for you, Homura. That's what friends are for, isn't it?"

The grateful look Homura gave him was one he would never forget.


"Just a little farther, Homerun!"

"C'mon, Homura! You can do it!"

Kiritsugu watched as the frail girl managed to pull herself up onto the branch of the tree. Granted, it was the lowest branch there and a mere four feet off the ground, but still

Feet on the branch and legs shaking from the effort, Homura hugged the trunk to support herself, wheezing as she tried to catch her breath. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small container of her medication and opened it with a practiced hand, popping a pill into her mouth and dry-swallowing it. After a few moments, her breaths became less labored and her face less flushed.

Grinning at his friend, Kiritsugu nimbly dropped down to a lower branch that was closer to hers. The tree shook a bit at the sudden shift in weight, and his newest friend gave a small 'eep!' of alarm as a few leaves fell. "Good job! You finally climbed your first tree!"

Below them, standing on solid ground, Shirley clapped her hands together with a pleased laugh, applauding Homura's efforts. "How does it feel being up there?" she called up to them, smiling.

"S—Scary…"

"It's only four feet, Homerun! If you fall, I'll catch you!"

As if on cue, Homura's foot suddenly slipped.


"Ah. Kiritsugu, is this your new friend?" Emiya Norikata asked, appraising the frail girl standing tentatively off to the side on their porch.

"Yup!" Kiritsugu grinned at Homura, encouraging her to come closer with a wave of his hand. "Go on. My dad won't bite."

Well, his father definitely wouldn't bite, but the coldness that suddenly darted across his dark eyes for the briefest of moments would be enough to rapidly break down what little confidence she possessed.

"Um…m—my name is Akemi H—Homura. It's n—nice to meet you, Emiya Norikata-san!" the bespectacled girl stammered, giving a hasty bow.

Norikata briefly glanced at the plants on the shelves before turning his gaze back to their guest, his face carefully polite. He wasn't much of a 'people person', after all. He'd much rather be doing his research or reading a good book in his favorite armchair. "Nice to meet you, Akemi-san. I trust Kiritsugu hasn't been too much of a trouble to you?"

"N—Not at all, sir! He's…very helpful and nice." Homura mumbled, fiddling with her braids nervously.

His father sighed, adjusting his glasses. "You shouldn't stammer so much, child. It's unbecoming."

Ouch. That was harsh.

"I'm sorry, Emiya-san." the dark-haired girl muttered, adjusting her red-rimmed glasses as she averted her gaze in shame.

"Hey, she's just really shy and nervous, dad," Kiritsugu said, feeling the need to come to his friend's defense. "You shouldn't be too hard on her—she didn't have a lot of people to talk to in the hospital."

He couldn't help but feel his gut constrict at the thought. It must have been awfully lonely there, with hardly anyone your age to talk to, and your parent always too busy working to come see you often enough.

"Hmm…I suppose you're right, Kiritsugu," Norikata agreed with a nod of his head, stepping aside in the doorway to make room. "Take this as a word of advice then, Akemi-san. Now would you like to have something to eat? I believe Shirley's almost done making lunch."

"Th—Thank you, Emiya-san." Homura mumbled, her face slightly flushed in embarrassment by the offer as she bowed politely.

"Hm?"

"I mean…Thank you for the offer, Emiya-san!"

"Atta girl. You're improving already."

Shaking his head at his father's quirks, Kiritsugu ruffled his friend's hair, earning a small 'eep!' of surprise from the frail girl. "C'mon, Homura! I'll race you to the table!" he called over his shoulder, grinning widely as he darted into the house.

"No fair! You…You had a head start!"

"Kiritsugu! What did I say about running in the house?!"


Homura's grip around his neck was surprisingly strong—he would never have expected that from her. Then again…she was deathly afraid of drowning right now. Fluidly moving his arms through the water and kicking his feet, Kiritsugu easily swam over to where Shirley was waiting for them with an amused smile on her face. The older girl giggled at the terrified passenger on his back, whose face must have been pale—well, paler than usual—from fear.

"Ready to learn how to swim?"

"N—No way! K—Kiritsugu-san! T—Take me back to shore!"

"Erm…it's only like, 15 feet away, Homura. You could get down and wade back there." Kiritsugu pointed out, pretty sure that on a different world, there would be an anime sweatdrop on his head. Shirley was wearing her new swimsuit, and he had to admit…it was kinda hard to admire it when someone nearly has your neck in a chokehold.

With trembling hands, Homura reluctantly released her death grip, tentatively trying to find some sort of footing as the waves gently rolled by. She stumbled a bit and both he and Shirley immediately reached for her, but luckily, she managed to find her balance and began to slowly wade back to shore…one inch at a time.

Unfortunately, being the klutz she was, Homura tripped on a seashell or rock of some sort—really, it was hard to tell in the water—and fell down face-first with a moderate-sized splash.

"ACH! Homerun!"

"Oh, man…! Akemi-san's gonna kill us!"


"Whoa! These are from America?!" Kiritsugu exclaimed as he pored over the comics scattered on the table. Shirley was cooking some lunch in the Akemis' kitchen, and the scent of meat and vegetables frying on the pan filled his nose, taunting him with the delicious scent. They had decided to spend today indoors, fearing the possibility that they might be aggravating Homura's condition with all of their antics the past few days.

Like teaching her how to play baseball, for one.

So today, it was just the three of them at the house—Akemi Masaru was down at the town hall…as usual.

"Yeah. Uncle Okarin sent these to me when I was still in the hospital back in Tokyo. He…has some weird tastes," Homura said with a sigh as she sipped at her glass of juice. "But…I did like the Dr. Pepper he sent…"

"I take it comics aren't your thing, Homerun?" Shirley asked, peeking her head through the doorway in the living room with a wide grin on her face. How she still managed to cook without looking was beyond him.

"Um…not really. I liked the Batman ones, though. It's…better than the encyclopedias Aunt Kurisu sent me…"

"Yeah, Batman's the best."

"No argument there!" Shirley agreed as she walked into the living room, balancing the plates with their lunch in her arms.

Leaving her and Homura to set things up, Kiritsugu hurriedly turned the page, his fingers trembling in excitement as he raced to find out what diabolical plot Batman uncovered next, or who the caped crusader would save this time. It was…amazing how much he could do—and he didn't even have any superpowers! Just imagine if he had magic circuits, Kiritsugu thought distantly as he turned another page, his eyes greedily soaking up the colorful images. I bet he could protect and save a lot more people if he knew magic…

"So, Kerry…who do you think would win in a fight? Batman…or Superman?"

Kiritsugu rolled his eyes.

Really, Shirley. It's kinda obvious.


Shirley had to help his father today—Emiya Norikata had apparently made a respectable leap of progress in his research and would need the older girl's assistance a lot more often now. Everyone else was afraid of his experiments in magic, particularly Father Simon, but Shirley knew better. Really, the older Emiya couldn't ask for anyone on the island more suited—or rather, willing—to help.

Kiritsugu sighed heavily as he picked up a pebble and tossed it across the pond, where it skipped a few times on the water's surface, leaving ripples in its path.

Unfortunately, it means she'll hang out with me less often…

"Kiritsugu-san? What are you doing out here?" a familiar voice asked as his hand closed around another pebble.

He turned his head to see Homura standing there, clutching a small bag of groceries. They had agreed to hang out after she was done shopping—he hadn't expected to run into each other beforehand. But then again…the town wasn't that big to begin with.

Still in a sulking mood, Kiritsugu merely gave a shrug of his shoulders and turned back to the pond, throwing the pebble. "Just…y'know. Stuff."

"'Stuff?'" he heard his friend clarify, her voice still timid yet somehow showing that she wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily. "By 'stuff', you mean…moping because Shirley's busy?"

Her correct assumption pierced like an arrow. Kiritsugu could feel the tips of his ears growing hot in embarrassment as he hastily tossed a rock into the pond, trying to maintain a casual front and utterly failing. "S—So what if I am?" he asked—a little too loudly—as Homura walked over to sit next to him.

Oh god, I'm stuttering now.

"Don't worry, Kiritsugu-san. I'll keep your secret safe." the bespectacled girl said reassuringly with the innocence of a child, trying to smile for him. He appreciated the thought, but it was still embarrassing that she figured it out.

"I don't have a secret." the young Emiya mumbled in denial as he drew his legs close and rested his chin atop his calloused knees. Homura didn't say anything to that—she didn't need to. His ears burned even more as he turned his head to the side, trying to hide his face from her view. "…But thanks anyway."

"Shirley-san's…still really amazing, though," Homura mused in that quiet voice of hers. "She's so full of energy and kindness. She…inspires confidence in even someone like me. I…I sort of look up to her. To…both of you, actually. To me, you both are like…the siblings I never had."

Kiritsugu felt the embarrassment seeping away as the frail girl revealed her own personal thoughts—it was a fair enough exchange.

"Yeah…Shirley's amazing. You don't meet people like her all the time," he said, sighing heavily as he returned his gaze back to the pond. "But…thanks, Homura. We haven't known each other long, but you're like a younger sister that I take care of."

Her face fell at that, and only then did he realize how his words could have been interpreted. "Oh…I'm sorry you feel like you have to take care of me. I'm such a burd—"

"No, no! That's…That's not what I meant!" Kiritsugu exclaimed, feeling panicky at how crestfallen his friend looked. "It's just…I feel like the protective older brother, okay? You're not a burden, Homura. I just…want to look out for you, and stuff. I don't want you to get hurt."

He wasn't good at trying to explain his feelings. He wouldn't be surprised if she was confused now.

Much to his relief, Homura merely nodded in understanding, gazing at the pond as she hugged the bag of groceries closer to her with a small smile on her face. "Thank you…Kiritsugu-san."


It was kinda funny how big Homura's eyes got when Shirley managed to convince him to tell their friend about the Emiya research. The whole island knew about it, so…what the hell, right?

"Really?! Magic?"

"Yup! Kerry's dad has loads of books with spells in them, and all sorts of cool vials with stuff! I think he even has a giant's toe somewhere!"

"Huh?! Really?!"

"Yup~"

"Why do you keep corrupting her…?"

"So…do you use wands like wizards in the books do?" Homura continued peppering the brunette with questions, ignoring Kiritsugu's muttered remark.

"Well, not really. The professor just sorta mutters something and there's a glow that comes from his hands." At this point, Shirley started chanting in a deep and scary voice, wiggling her fingers and frightening the poor girl senseless. Homura squeaked in fear and darted to hide behind Kiritsugu, using him as a shield while the older girl slowly advanced, chanting darkly all the while.

He sighed heavily at her antics, running a hand through his messy hair as he fought to keep a grin from creeping onto his face. "Shirley…Stop giving Homura the wrong idea about our family's stuff! You're making it seem like the Emiyas are a bunch of demon-worshippers!"

"Ooh, Father Simon would not like that."

"No, he wouldn't."

"S—So…what kind of magic does Emiya-san do, then?" Homura asked curiously, peeking her head out from behind him.

"His specialty is manipulating Time to a certain extent," Shirley explained, smiling to show that she wasn't going to scare her anymore. "Yup! That's what Kerry's family has been dedicated towards for generations! Right now, he's trying to see if he could stop aging by experimenting on plants. Or in other words…stopping their internal time so they never wilt!"

"He's been successful with some, but most of 'em result in minor explosions or fires," Kiritsugu added in, coaxing their friend out from her hiding place behind him. "He's getting there."

"Yup! 26th success so far! Although, that last one looked a bit wilted to me…"

"Huh? That's incredible!"

Shirley laughed, ruffling his hair fondly despite his protests. "Why are you acting so surprised, Kerry? We were talking about it just yesterday over dinner! Head in the clouds again?"

Maybe.

Homura tapped her chin thoughtfully, gazing at the floor as she furrowed her brow. "Stopping Time…huh?" She smiled up at him, adjusting her glasses. "The Akemis don't have anything like that, but…I think that's pretty cool for you both."

Kiritsugu grinned, feeling a bit of pride welling up in his chest for his father's work and the Emiyas' advancements so far.

"Yeah…It is, isn't it?"


It seemed cruelly fitting that after days of somewhat stability, a problem would rear its ugly head. Homura's condition was worsening again, slowly going back to how she was before their vacation to Arimago Island. As a result, she stayed inside her house all the time now and had to take several medications a day while Akemi Masaru made the preparations to return home. The town didn't have a hospital—only a clinic—and they didn't have the necessary equipment in case she took a turn for the worse.

All in all, Kiritsugu was deathly worried for his friend.

"Kiritsugu…You're not off to see that girl again, are you? That's all you've been doing for the past few days." Emiya Norikata remarked as he flipped through some pages in his research notes and motioned for Shirley to carefully plant the next seed in a new can filled with soil.

"I…I was." His hand was on the doorknob.

"I would advise against it. She is a sickly child and will die soon, anyway. It's best for your mental health not to get involved any more than you already are." his father stated clinically, adjusting his glasses.

Kiritsugu clenched his fists, feeling a surge of anger even as a small part of his mind agreed with the facts. "Dad, how can you say that?! Homura's my friend—I can't just leave her alone like that!"

"Professor…" Shirley set down the can of soil she was holding, furrowing her brow as she turned to look at the older Emiya. "The Akemis leave tomorrow, first thing in the morning. Can't you at least allow Kerry to spend a little more time with Homura?"

He knew that silently, she was adding, "That's what I'm going to do once I'm done here."

Norikata sighed heavily, snapping his book shut as he turned to look at his son, his lips pursed into a thin line and his brow furrowed. "I suppose Shirley has a point. Go meet with her, then. When you return home, there is…something I need to discuss with you." At the wince the younger Emiya gave him, he hastily added, "Don't worry, Kiritsugu—you're not in trouble or anything."

Kiritsugu grinned widely, relieved as he opened the door. "Thanks, dad!"

He ran down the hill where their 'mansion' sat, and blew through the village's streets like a hurricane before skidding to a stop at the Akemis' front door. Still trying to catch his breath from the sprint, Kiritsugu knocked twice. Akemi Masaru opened the door a moment later, his cellular phone pressed against his ear as he motioned for the young boy to enter.

"Yes, yes…Tell Hitoshi-san that should be fine," Homura's father continued on with his conversation, closing the door as Kiritsugu immediately headed for his friend's room. "The hospital staff has been thoroughly briefed on her condition, correct? Good…Yes, yes, I know that is the fifth time I've asked today—I just want to be sure! Now, if you could tell Kobayashi-san that—"

Masaru's voice faded away as Kiritsugu arrived at his destination and knocked on Homura's door. A weak voice called for him to enter, which he did, trying to brace himself for the sight that would meet him every time. Lying on her bed, bundled in a thin blanket, with an oxygen mask on her face and an alarming number of medications on her bedside table, Homura tried to smile for him.

"Kiritsugu…you're early."

Her voice was raspy and weak, so very weak…

Kiritsugu managed a grin, chuckling as he walked over and pulled up a chair to sit beside her. "I finished my chores early today. You should have seen how fast I washed those dishes! Ha-ha, I'm pretty sure I broke a world record somewhere."

She smiled a bit at his enthusiasm. "I'm sure you'll…go places, Kiritsugu-san."

"I'm sure you will too, Homura," he said, his hands curling into determined fists. "Just you wait—someday you'll get to see lots of cool, interesting new things! And…And me and Shirley will come visit you in Japan, and you can show us around!"

"It'll be…my turn, huh?"

"Yeah! So…"

So you can't go dying on me just yet.

"Kiritsugu-san?"

He felt a weak touch on his cheek, feathery and light. Only when Homura wiped away that tear with her thumb did Kiritsugu realize that he was crying. The hem of his shorts was already dotted with wet drops, and his fists were so tightly clenched, the knuckles had turned white. He rubbed at his eyes, feeling ashamed for showing such a weak side of him.

Homura's hand had fallen back to her side as she tried to smile for him again. "Kiritsugu-san…I'll be alright…Father is busy preparing…the best medical care for me…So please, don't cry." She managed a weak laugh. "What would Shirley-san think?"

Kiritsugu swallowed the hard lump that had formed in his throat, gazing down at his hands, where his nails threatened to cut into his palms. "I…I want to save you, Homura."

"Like the hero…in the comics?" he heard her ask, curiosity seeping into her voice.

"Yeah."

"But…how?"

Kiritsugu bit his lip, looking up at his friend as he fought to stifle the panic that threatened to overwhelm his very being. He almost felt sick—like he was the one wearing the oxygen mask and lying on the bed, not her. "I dunno; I'll think of something! I'll help my dad with his research! I'll stop your Time so you won't have to die! I'll find some magical flower that'll heal you! I'll make a contract with…with a genie, or something!"

His hands trembled in his lap. "I'll save you…somehow. I'll find some way so you won't have to suffer anymore."

Homura smiled from behind the oxygen mask, violet eyes shining with gratitude. "You're a really nice guy, Kiritsugu-san…I hope Shirley-san realizes that."

His cheeks blossomed in record time, and he halfheartedly gave her shoulder a playful shove. "Don't say it out loud…She's heading here soon, y'know." he mumbled, embarrassed.

"I didn't say anything."

Kiritsugu gave his friend a pointed stare, his lips quirking back into a grin that mirrored hers.

Homura indicated towards the bedside table with a tilt of her head, slowly pushing herself to sit in an upright position. "Do you think you could help me…with the medication? I have to take…three different ones at this time."

"Sure." Kiritsugu reached a hand towards the medications occupying the table's surface, freezing as he suddenly realized a problem.

"Uh…which ones do you need again?"

"It's color-coded…I need the blue ones."

Unfortunately, Shirley took the opportunity to throw open the door with a loud 'bang!' right at the moment Kiritsugu's fingers brushed against the bottles.

Needless to say…a good half of them went tumbling to the floor and rolling around every which way.

"Homerun! Now we can start the par—Eh?"

"K—Kiritsugu-san!"

"—! Where did they go? Where did they go?!"

"Your foot!"

"Wha—OOMF!"


Emiya Norikata idly stroked his chin, brow furrowed in thought as he stared at the evening sky out the window. Kiritsugu sat on his bed, fidgeting as he waited for the spiel on how Homura was not worth spending so much time visiting.

At last, his father gave a sigh, turning his gaze from the window to look at his son. "Kiritsugu…I will be frank with you—that girl makes me nervous."

"Why? Just because she's all sick and stuff?! That you're afraid something like that will happen to you?" Kiritsugu grumbled, crossing his arms as he scowled at the floorboards. "You have magic, so you can heal yourself. She can't."

Another sigh. When he was being serious, Norikata was good with that.

"It is true that a skilled magus can take care of a problem like that easily enough, but—"

"Then why don't you try to help her?!" Kiritsugu exclaimed, unable to keep his voice from rising at the thought that his father had the means to help Homura, but refused to. "How can you keep something like that from them?! It's not fair!"

His father's voice was stern. "Kiritsugu, I had hoped to have this conversation with you when you are a bit older, but…you have to understand that life isn't fair. People will die—be it of age or sickness—whether you like it or not. Our family's research focuses around overcoming that certain aspect of life so that we can reach the Root, and until that is achieved, we have no need to concern ourselves with the rabble."

"Homura's not the 'rabble', she's my friend."

"Friends come and go," Norikata stated clinically, taking a seat in the chair at his desk. "That is what I wanted to warn you about, Kiritsugu. You have to be prepared to lose people. I know that you're still young and all, but…it's a hard fact of life. Even Shirley won't be around forever."

Down in the village, a certain brunette felt a shiver creep down her spine.

"But Shirley's way healthier than Homura is, dad," Kiritsugu countered, trying to burn a hole into the floorboards with his gaze. "It's not fair! Why won't you help her? Like, stop her time, or something? You did that with the plants."

"Kiritsugu, you know that my experiment isn't finished yet. There are still things I need to work on." The older Emiya's voice grew quiet. "And even so…there is something about that girl that makes what little control I have over Time a tad unstable. She has no magic circuits, but I cannot deny that there is something else within her."

Kiritsugu furrowed his brow worriedly. "Like what, dad?"

His father sighed again, standing up from his chair and dusting the nonexistent dust off his slacks. "The world is too big for any one rule to apply, Kiritsugu. Although I hate to admit it—and my colleagues, as well—we are not alone, in respect to the grand scheme of things. Possibilities are infinite; anything is possible. The Kaleidoscope understands this well."

"The…who?" His father was being awfully heavy on things today.

Norikata gave a tired smile, walking over to place a large hand on his son's shoulder. "Perhaps you'll understand when you're older, and you begin your studies as an Emiya mage."

"But…what does this have to do with Homura?"

The older Emiya pursed his lips into a thin frown. "I suppose what I'm trying to say is that if the Akemis were a family of magi, their talents would be similar to ours. That is the feeling I get whenever your friend is nearby, and in terms of our clan's legacy…it is an unsettling thought. I cannot imagine what sort of vicious rivalry would occur."

If only they were mages, then Homura wouldn't have to go through this... "Why won't you help her, dad?" His voice trembled a bit. "I want to save her. Why won't you let me?"

"Kiritsugu, I don't know what effects there will be in using our family's magic on her, even if it is a healing type spell. I already told you she makes me uneasy," his father stressed, giving his shoulder a squeeze. "It would be much safer for her to go to Tokyo for treatment. There's nothing we can do."

The younger Emiya bit his lip, fixing his gaze back on the hands curled tightly in his lap. Emiya Norikata sighed one last time, patting his son's shoulder reassuringly as he turned to leave his room.

"You should get some sleep, Kiritsugu. Their boat is scheduled to depart very early, is what I hear."


Kiritsugu didn't like goodbyes. He never had, and probably never will.

"Do you think you'll get seasick on the way back?" he asked, trying to stall the inevitable as he eyed the morning waters critically. The waves were calm enough and the sun hadn't peeked over the horizon yet, although its rays were painting the sky in nice, soft hues. The air was crisp and also smelled a lot fresher than usual—that was good.

"Most likely," Homura said with a sigh, clearly not looking forward to the boat ride bound for the nearest island, where they'd have to take a plane back to Japan. "At least…I don't get airsick."

The frail girl was currently sitting on a bench by the docks, her suitcase at her feet while Akemi Masaru stood a little ways off, scanning the waters for any sign of the boat as he spoke rapidly into his cellular phone. She looked a little sleepy; probably due to the many different kinds of medicine she had to take to help tide her over until they reached the airport. Her father had to return the oxygen mask to the clinic, but although her breathing was still a bit labored, at least she hadn't passed out yet or had one of her nastier fits where she couldn't breathe at all.

"Is flying on an airplane scary?" Shirley asked from her spot beside her, face unusually serious even as her warm brown eyes shone with curiosity. "I haven't ridden on one before."

"It gets…bumpy sometimes," Homura answered, kicking her feet to and fro as she fiddled with her braids. "Your ears pop…at the beginning…It was scary…the first time."

The older girl's eyes grew impossibly wide with genuine fear. "They pop?!"

Kiritsugu laughed, and even Homura managed a weak smile at her expense. "Your ears don't explode, Shirley! They just sorta hurt for a bit and everything sounds muffled until it wears off."

"And businessmen do this all the time?!"

"I'm sure they get used to it," the young Emiya said as he stretched, trying to blink back the sleep from his eyes—he had been too anxious to fall asleep right away last night. "So, Homura…you have everything you need?"

He had caught a glint coming from the dark blob in the horizon. The boat from the mainland would be here in probably 10 minutes…There wasn't much time left.

The dark-haired girl nodded, pushing up her red-framed glasses from where they had slipped down her nose. At that, Kiritsugu grinned broadly…much to her confusion. He shared a look with Shirley, who was smirking like the (evil) mastermind she was.

"Am I…missing something?" Homura asked, eyes narrowing in suspicion at their weird behavior. She was familiar enough with them by now to know that something was up. A strange pride rose up in his chest at that.

"You definitely are, Homerun," Shirley said matter-of-factly as Kiritsugu produced a small wrapped package from his pocket. "Did you really think we'd let you go without giving you something to remember us by?"

Kiritsugu stepped closer, handing over the present as his grin quickly turned sheepish, the tips of his ears growing hot in embarrassment. "Shirley picked it out for you…but I helped wrap it!"

Granted, it was pretty badly wrapped, but still…it's the thought that counts, right?

…Right?

Her fingers trembling with excitement, Homura nonetheless opened the package tentatively, revealing a simple black headband. Her mouth parted in a small 'oh' as her violet eyes grew wide in surprise. Shirley slung an arm around their friend's petite shoulders, smiling warmly as she gestured for her to try it on. "We know how your hair sometimes gets in your face, even with your braids, so…Here you go! Headband!"

Instead of trying it on, Homura merely threw her arms around Shirley, hugging her as tightly as her strength would allow while they both stared in open-mouthed shock at her boldness. "Thank you, thank you!" she managed to laugh, tears brimming her eyes. "Both of you!"

Delighted, the older girl hugged her back, grinning over the top of her head and pulling Kiritsugu down to join them. He wasn't much of the hugging-type, but he awkwardly put his arms around them, face aflame with embarrassment and trying to subtly pull away all the while.

Shirley always managed to catch him, though. Damn, was she insistent…

"Homura," Akemi Masaru's voice eventually drifted over to them, full of sympathy. "The boat is approaching; it's time to say your goodbyes."

Already? Kiritsugu couldn't help but think to himself as their laughter and reminiscing subsided, even though he knew that they hadn't much time. "You better take care of yourself, y'hear?" he said as he pulled away, ruffling her hair as wildly as he could to make up for the fact that he wouldn't be able to do it again for a long time…if at all. "I'm not gonna be there to catch you if you fall into the water again!"

"Okay, okay…! Stop it…Kiritsugu-san!" Homura laughed, trying to swat his hand away from her hair before he could mess it up even further than it already was.

"Kiritsugu," he said, smiling fondly at her. "Next time we meet…you can just call me 'Kiritsugu'. Same goes for Shirley."

"I think I'd like that," the brunette in question piped up, leaning over to plant a quick kiss on their friend's head as she smoothed over her hair with the care and efficiency of a mother hen. "And maybe I'll call you 'Homura', eh?"

Wait.

HOLD UP.

Did she just—

Shirley laughed at the shocked expressions they both gave her, reaching out to close their open mouths. He hadn't even noticed that his jaw had dropped…She winked at him as she helped Homura bring her suitcase to the boat pulling up nearby, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear as the morning breeze swept by. Giggling, she helped Homura put on her new headband in an attempt to combat the wind.

"There! Now you look 10 times as moe as before!"

"I—Is that a…good thing?"

"Of course! A girl's gotta look cute, right?" Shirley grinned, looking over at him with a sly look in her eyes. "I think Kerry would agree with me on that."

Holy crap, does she KNOW?!

Trying to fight down the blush threatening to color his cheeks, Kiritsugu put on a serious face as he turned to address their friend, butterflies fluttering around in his stomach as the moment of farewell descended upon them like a caterpillar monster with lethally sharpened fangs. "Listen, Homura…we'll meet again for sure. I promise. We…We had a great run, didn't we?"

The bespectacled girl smiled happily even as tears started to brim her eyes. "I'm glad…I got to meet you both…You really…made my time here fun." Her lip began to quiver as her voice shook with emotion. "I guess…I should say bye now, huh?"

"Yeah, that's what people usually do at this time," Shirley said, nodding seriously to herself even as they all broke out into a grin, the tension dissipating. "You be a good girl now, Homerun. Okay? Don't follow strangers into weird places, and make sure you eat your vegetables!"

How are those two things related?!

Homura nodded, wiping at her eyes as Akemi Masaru walked over to take her hand. He smiled tiredly at them, looking like a giant compared to his daughter standing beside him. "Thank you for taking care of my little flame this past month. My job always keeps me busy, so she rarely gets to play with the other kids. She's such a shy girl, too…"

"No problem, Akemi-san!" Shirley said, beaming. "We didn't mind. And Homura had fun, too."

THERE IT IS AGAIN.

Kiritsugu's eye twitched, but it went unnoticed by the others.

"Have you finished your goodbyes, Homura?" Masaru asked gently, looking down at her.

"G—Goodbye…Kiritsugu-san. Shirley-san." Homura managed, sniffing away the last of her tears.

"You take care now, okay?" Kiritsugu called as the Akemis boarded the boat, its engines roaring to life and nearly drowning out his voice. "Stay strong, Homura! I'll hold you to it!"

Akemi Homura waved at them, her father making sure she didn't lean over the railing too far.

Stay strong…and please, don't die on me. It's just not fair…

Kiritsugu's hands clenched into fists.

Don't you dare die, Homura.


A year passed since their parting with Homura, and things gradually settled back to before. They never forgot that frail glasses-wearing girl with braids, and they would reminisce on those days, often while wondering how she was doing right now…or if she was still even alive. Needless to say, the latter thought was one they didn't dwell upon for too long.

Norikata was making further advancements in his research, with Shirley helping him out every step of the way. He had just finished his hundredth success so far.

…And Kiritsugu still hadn't confessed to her yet—without Homura to act as a makeshift buffer/distraction, he was far too conscious of his actions around Shirley. A casual remark or word of praise would trigger a blush on his cheeks, and the offhand mention of being more like a younger brother would lower his spirits.

Shirley probably didn't mean anything by it, but even so…

Being 'brother-zoned' was worse than being 'friend-zoned,' in his opinion.

…God, Puberty was so annoying.

At any rate, today Shirley took him to a part of the island he hadn't really gotten around to exploring, for all his time spent at Arimago. She showed him a gentle brook that perfectly reflected the stars in the night sky, so it would seem like the heavens were both above and below him if he stood on a particular rock jutting into the lazily flowing waters. It had been…beyond amazing, and he wished Homura could have seen it too—something to help keep her going in the hospital.

But best of all…it had been just the two of them, with Shirley smiling that warm smile of hers.

"Say, Kerry…what do you want to be when you grow up?"

Kiritsugu's lips formed into a fond smile as he turned in his bed, the springs creaking, trying to get into a more comfortable position as the nightly chorus began to sing him a lullaby. It was slightly muffled due to the window being closed, since the night breeze was strangely chilly tonight. Goosebumps had already started to form on his skin, but inwardly, he was too warmed by the fondness in the older girl's gaze as she had laughed, twirling him around in the air.

I want to be a hero.

Perhaps, tomorrow…he should finally tell her his true feelings.


270:08:57


Saber.

Emiya Kiritsugu had been aiming to summon Saber—there should have been no doubt; Avalon could not possibly have been denied its call for its one true owner, the legendary King Arthur Pendragon: King of Knights, wielder of the holy blade Excalibur, founder of the Knights of the Round Table, defender of Britannia, and many more titles besides. The only way such a freakish anomaly could occur would be if the Holy Grail itself decided to intervene, or if some higher being obsessed with cheese and people's entrails simply wanted to screw with him and mess things up for shits and giggles.

He was leaning towards the former, thank you very much. After all, most people are inclined to ignore that we all have a sliver of madness lurking at the very edges of our minds; that piece of the unknown waiting just beyond.

"I ask of you…are you my Master?" a youthful voice asked flatly, ringing clearly throughout the Einzbern chapel as the smoke began to clear, revealing the Servant standing in the ashen remains of the summoning circle.

He simply stared for a few long moments, unable to believe what he was seeing. It was clear to anyone with eyes that this Servant was not King Arthur Pendragon at all—and Kiritsugu himself could personally vouch that she was not even remotely a Briton nor had been alive back when the isle was still called Britannia—but even so…

There was no mistaking that black hair, nor those violet eyes…

"Yes…yes, I am."

…Even if said eyes were currently blazing with sheer, unadulterated fury and murderous intent of the highest degree.

"I am Servant Rider. This contract may be completed, but I—No…it can't be…Ki…Kiritsugu…?!"

The puzzled, yet familiar voice of his Servant—combined with the utterance of his own name—was enough to have Reality quickly grab him by the front of his suit and violently yank him out of his shocked stupor. The Magus Killer absently reached up to feel the stubble on his chin, suddenly feeling the weight of the years on his shoulders as he looked at the surreal being standing before him. Irisviel was giving him a look of concern, but he paid her no heed as he took a step towards the young girl standing amidst the lingering traces of smoke.

"This certainly is a surprise…Homura."

'Surprise' was a fucking understatement, and they both knew it.

Akemi Homura hadn't aged much—maybe only looking three or four years older since he had seen her last all those years ago…It was an unsettling thought in itself to think she died so young. Though her long, dark hair was no longer in its familiar braids and she seemed to have abandoned her red glasses…he knew it was her, even with the strange magical-girl-type getup she had on.

But perhaps what upset him the most was the hollow look she had in her violet eyes at the moment, as she appraised him just as he was appraising her. Kiritsugu had seen that look before, in the eyes of soldiers back from the depths of hell and those suffering from PTSD—it was a look that conveyed a sense of witnessing such horrors that were not meant to be seen at one's age; a haunted look reserved for those who had lived beyond their years.

He himself bore that look back when he and Irisviel had first met.

But for some odd reason the Magus Killer could not explain…he felt that Homura had 'lived' much, much, much longer than he had. Compared to her…he suddenly felt like a child.

I cannot describe how weird this is.

"It is…good to see you again, Kiritsugu. I did not know what became of you after leaving the island. I…I trust Shirley is doing well?" Homura tried to smile for him, but he could see the blazing fury that she was still trying to stifle, after discovering the true identity of her summoner. A part of his mind questioned this, but for the moment, he was preoccupied with shutting away his own unwanted feelings.

"Shirley…died many years ago. A disease took her life…and the lives of many of the villagers."

Yeah. Vampirism can do that to people.

"I…I offer my sincerest apologies, Kiritsugu. I knew how much you truly loved her," Homura murmured as she bowed her head slightly, her bangs briefly shielding her eyes from view. "She was a dear friend to me, as well.

Kiritsugu's shoulders sagged wearily as he took another step towards his old friend, close enough that he could almost place a hand on her head if he so chose to do so. He recalled doing that several times in his distant childhood. "And what of you, Homura? What happened after you left the island?"

Raising her head to look up at him, he saw a profound sorrow and pain flit across her violet eyes for the briefest of moments. In that instant, in that gaze…he saw the end of the world, witnessed time and time and time again. He saw a young girl cruelly forced to grow up in an environment ripe with mistrust and deceit; a terrible loss that dwarfed his own, tearing at an open wound over and over with each worse than the last; an enduring love that burned for centuries on end, transcending Time and Space.

Homura's eyes grew hollow once more, her face carefully cold. "After the island, father checked me into a hospital, where I spent the rest of my childhood, getting pricked and operated on as the doctors tried to figure out how to save me. Eventually, one of their operations seemed to work and by then, I was transferred to Mitakihara Middle School as a second-year." Her gaze drifted to the strange purple gem on the back of her left hand, growing wistful. "After what felt like forever in that miserable, lonely, sanitized hell…I was able to make friends again, and it was there that I met my…my best friend. The peace…was nice while it lasted."

"But there is still the question of how in the world you became a Heroic Spirit." Kiritsugu couldn't help the deep frown that crept onto his face, determined now more than ever to rid the world of suffering and conflict. If the sweet, shy girl he had known was forced to become this stoic, world-weary soldier, then—!

A deep scowl formed on her youthful face, and the anger briefly returned to her eyes. She seethed quietly for a moment before her lips curled into a faint, wry smile as she chuckled darkly. "You will have to count on the dream cycles for that one, Kiritsugu. I would assume you'll have a terrible crick in your neck once it is over. There is a lot to sift through."

For some reason…he suddenly felt as if there was some sort of cosmic joke he had missed. A shiver had crept up his spine.

The Magus Killer sighed heavily, turning and gesturing for Irisviel to come join them. "I suppose that will have to do for catching up—the Holy Grail War is upon us and there is still a bit of planning to do. But…a short introduction first. Homura, this is my wife, Irisviel von Einzbern."

The Einzbern homunculus tentatively walked over to them, her delicate hands clasped together as she smiled warmly at the Servant. "Hello! Kiritsugu mentioned you a few times, but…memories of the island are still rather painful for him. I know the Japanese have a certain system for names, but you may just call me 'Irisviel'!" She grabbed hold of Homura's hands, giving them a squeeze. "Please do your best to assist Kiritsugu in winning the War!"

It was almost comical to see Homura so flustered—she almost looked like her old self again.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for me.


CUE "MANTEN/満天"FROM KALAFINA WHILE A SLIDE SHOW OF SCENES FROM
THE BULLETS OF MY GUN'S FOURTH HOLY GRAIL WAR PLAYS IN THE BACKGROUND


A/N: And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the end of my 31-page omake of an alternate world for The Bullets of My Gun, where Kiritsugu summons a Homura he once knew as a young boy. Perhaps, somehow, somewhere…this could have happened.

Gotta love the multiverse. 8D

OHMYGODOKA, writing endings is more difficult than I thought. Geez…What the hell did I just write? SOMETHING TOO LONG, that's what.

But now you may be wondering why there is still a lot of room in the scrolling-thingy to your right. That, my dear readers, is because of extra content where I basically goofed off and presented more world lines, just for the pure hell of it. (If it isn't obvious by now, I'm sort of hitting a Writer's Block for The Bullets of My Gun. Hopefully, this little "Intermission" will jumpstart something for me again.) For those of you patient enough to sit through it all, you'll be happy to know that Kerry will manage to break through the 1.0% divergence barrier.

[ On an unrelated side note, I cannot describe the sheer joy and accomplishment I felt in watching the Steins;Gate movie someone uploaded on YouTube, and understanding enough Japanese to get the general feel of what was going on. 8'D

…And then they started talking about time travel and other complex stuff, to which my brain promptly died. xD ]

But first, a few precautions/preemptive warnings/commentary:

1. "A Madwoman with a Shield"

It was inevitable that parts of the fandom would claim her as a Time Lord. I was juggling between this, or Karas, actually. Badass Homerun with badass armor and a badass sword…Of course, you'd have to make a contract with Yurine, first. :3

Unfortunately, I've only just started to get my feet wet by watching a few episodes, so…no cleverness there, I'm afraid. Then again, it's only the first level.

…Personally, I'm more of a tie person rather than bow ties.

2. "Wunduniiksetiid"

Did I mention I was usually playing Skyrim before writing most of this? I apologize in advance for any mess ups in Dovah. And I modified the Slow Time Shout a bit to suit her more—the moment I learned the Dragonborn had that power, I just knew I had to incorporate it here. :D

OHMYGODOKA, IMAGINE HOMU-HOMU IN NIGHTINGALE ARMOR.

3. "Have Repeated Countless Timelines to Change Her Fate"

She wrote herself in here, I swear. This was probably the part I was the most "WTF?" on, but it was kinda fun typing it. :P Unlike what will happen in The Bullets of My Gun, she won't be Alaya's little watchdog. At least…not if Madokami has anything to say about it. 8D (Why Trace them when you can simply pry the originals from their cold, dead hands and put them in your handy dandy time-shield?)

Fanboys (and fangirls), this is not an invitation for you to cast Flame. I'll poison your Magicka if you do…Then I shall use Haterrend.

On a lighter note…there is a small possibility you will never see canon Caster's summoning and subsequent killing of that poor little boy in the same way again. I apologize for this, but when you have a 'Eureka!' moment, it must not be denied. If it doesn't actually bother you, if it all, please disregard this apology.

4. "The Witch Killer"

What if Moemura was young Kiritsugu, and Kiritsugu was Natalia? Good oneshot content for the future Down to Zero We Go collection of oneshot/twoshot fics, that's what! And maybe one where Madoka shoots at an airliner that Mami is piloting…

And perhaps another, where Sokka learns that there are worse things your girlfriend can turn into aside from the moon.

Like an omnipotent wish-granter called the Holy Grail.

Or the Goddess of Hope.

And without further ado…brace yourself, readers! The greater part of the crack begins now!


Omake Within an Omake


"I ask of you…are you my Master?" a voice called out from the smoke, youthful and clear, yet layered with a touch of weariness.

Kiritsugu stiffened as the smoke dispersed enough for him to get a good look at his Servant—that voice was achingly familiar, singing of a time long past. There was no mistaking the raven-black hair and violet eyes, but even so…

…Since when did Akemi Homura wear a bowtie and scruffy suit-jacket?

And what the hell is up with that British accent?!

Irisviel tentatively took her place by his side as these alarmed thoughts tumbled through his mind, peering curiously at the young girl calmly adjusting her tie while humming pleasantly and waving around a strange silver screwdriver with a green light at the tip. "Well, dear…at least we know she is a Briton, even if she isn't King Arthur. That's got to count for something, yes?"

"Iri, I love you to death, but Homura is NOT British at all."

The Servant, satisfied that everything was in order, looked up at the two with a sly smile, casually placing a hand in her pants' pocket as she pointed the strange screwdriver at them. "What? Bow ties are cool. Definitely better than a fez."


Omake Within an Omake Within an Omake


Before the smoke could even begin to clear, a Shout—yes, he could literally feel the capital letter—rang throughout the Einzbern's ornate chapel, vibrating with an intensity that would not, and could not be denied.

"FUS—"

That voice…it can't be…!

"Homu—"

"—RO DAH!"

Emiya Kiritsugu suddenly felt himself being thrown backwards by some invisible and unrelenting force, sending him tumbling halfway down the chapel's carpeted aisle. Before he could fully recover, however, a weight landed heavily upon his chest, causing him to raise his eyes at the violent buckling of his body, and finally take a look at the Servant he had summoned, crouching over him with violet eyes blazing furiously and burning with an unspeakable hatred from behind the horned helmet. In one gauntleted hand, a sword was grasped tightly, its lethally sharpened edge resting dangerously close to his Adam's apple.

"Kos hio faal in? Ful kos nii. Zu'u Aar Keykroniid…ahrk hio fent dir fah hin phalok. Hio gahrot zu nol Madoka!"

With each Word—yes, he could almost feel the capital letter in that one, too—uttered by the Heroic Spirit, Kiritsugu could feel his skin crawl and his hackles attempting to rise, despite currently being pinned down by this person he ought to know…even if she was speaking in some strange language. "Homura, do you not remember me?" he said as the warrior reached behind to draw a second sword, this one looking like a katana. "Emiya Kiritsugu—the name must sound familiar!"

The Servant paused, inclining a helmeted head, which allowed several strands of long black hair to fall over her—yes, her—armored shoulder. "Los daar vahzah? Aan wuth fahdon lingrah vodahmin?" she murmured, more to herself than to him…which wouldn't matter either way, as he still could not understand a single word of hers. Blazing violet eyes pierced into his and when next she spoke, he understood perfectly clear. "If you are indeed the Kiritsugu I knew from that distant life…prove it in combat. He should possess a specialized skill set unique to his family."

Way to be vague, Homerun, Kiritsugu thought sarcastically—something that was wholly unlike him as he was now, with the mantle of 'the Magus Killer' on his belt. And, almost as an afterthought…

It must be that madness again. I have the sudden urge to blame the Kaleidoscope.

Homura released him, her armor betraying only a slightly muffled 'clank' as she stood up and backed away, both swords at the ready. Her battle stance spoke of deadly experience forged through countless battles, leaving him to wonder what the hell happened to her and—Is that…Is that a warhammer on her back?!

Kiritsugu had been looking past her as he cautiously rose to his feet to see if Irisviel had picked herself off the floor yet from where the Shout had thrown her, when he noticed the weapon on his old friend's back. Come to think of it, she had all sorts of weapons on her, like an axe, daggers, a bow, and…Eh…? Is that a sweet ro—

"No lolly-gagging." the Servant snapped, narrowing her violet eyes through the slits in her horned helmet.

Damn it…Avalon's regenerative abilities would be useless without King Arthur around. I'll probably be only able to use Time Alter: Double Accel twice before I run the risk of dying, Kiritsugu thought to himself, his mind trying to formulate a plan against the Heroic Spirit. …Huh. I don't think I can get used to thinking of her as heroic. "What class are you?" he asked, subtly shifting his arm in such a way that she could see his Command Seals, if she was looking.

She pursed her lips into a thin frown. "I already told you, did I not? I am Servant Rider. But…it matters not in our duel."

Rider? The hell…? Saber, Archer or Assassin, I can understand with her being armed to the teeth, but Rider?

"My steed is called Odahviing, if you care to know." A mischievous light danced in those violet pools. "I would love to unleash his terrible might upon my foes."

'My'. Note that she said 'my', not 'ours'.

"Not in this duel."

"Of course."

Kiritsugu calmly reached into his pocket to retrieve his Calico, his eyes never leaving hers. "So…what happened to you, Homura? After you left the island?"

A scowl worked its way onto her face, and he could almost hear the strain of the leather as she gripped her swords tighter. "Father was killed by the Thalmor as we were traveling back to Cyrodiil, and I got caught up in an Imperial ambush on the Stormcloaks when I was making my escape. They took me to Helgen for my execution, simply for being at the wrong place at the wrong time…The rest is on a need-to-know basis."

Okay. I've never heard of any of those names.

He said as much out loud.

…It must be the sudden scent of cheese in the air that's loosening his control over his own self.

Yeah…That must be it.

Homura's eyes narrowed dangerously. "So it seems that you are not the Kiritsugu that I knew, though you bear the same face and experiences as he. You tread dangerous ground—make sure to watch the skies, summoner." Her scowl shifted to that of a sneer. "Who knows when Odahviing might hunger for a snack?"

Alarm bells were ringing in his head as he raised his gun to aim, taking on a stance that would allow him to move quickly if she dodged or repelled his bullet. He would humor her for now—see how long he could last against his own Servant…his old friend. If worse came to worst, he could always use a Command Seal to force her obedience…but that would put him at a disadvantage against the other Masters.

How troublesome, he thought irritably as he pulled the trigger.

"Tch." Homura easily deflected his bullet with the katana in her hand, leaping towards him with a terrifying speed that only a Servant could possess. "You'll have to do better than that."

A flash of steel. One second. Gritting his teeth in expectation of the pain, Kiritsugu chanted in his head.

Time Alter: Double Accel!

He moved, dodging the lethal blow with mere millimeters to spare, and bringing his gun up to her side as she passed—

"TIID KLO UL."

What?

His hand would not obey; his finger would not pull the trigger. It was as if he was frozen on the spot. But…that's impossible, there's no sign of ice anywhere, unless…she's controlling my body? How, then, would you explain the grayish tint the world had taken on?

It…can't be…!

All the while, the Servant had calmly righted herself from her failed lunge, looking at his gun with an amused expression on her face as she sheathed the katana, keeping the other sword casually aloft on her shoulder. "So…you're moving at twice your speed? Altered your internal flow of Time?" The ghost of a smile danced across her lips at that revelation, seeing the surprise in his eyes—the only thing he could control at the moment.

"Long time no see, Kiritsugu." Homura said as the world gradually regained its color and he could move his limbs again.

Took you long enough.

Maybe…it wouldn't be so bad having Homura on his side, despite her strange…get-up. Honestly, the way she was dressed kind of reminded him of a Viking. And with this time-stopping ability and her weapons—

"Wha—What is going on here?!"

…Oh. Right. Irisviel.

"Hm? I've been meaning to ask, but who is she?"

"My wife."

"EEEEEEEHHHHH?! What about Shirley?!"

Several days later…

Fuyuki City shook with the power of the Thu'um.

…No one could have guessed what would happen when Saber managed to kill Odahviing, using Excalibur.

No one.

No one…except for maybe a Fish who Deviates and ought to update by now.


Omake Within an Omake Within an Omake Within an Omake


"I ask of you…are you my Master?"

Wait a second…

The wisps of smoke danced this way and that as the Servant waved her hand to clear them away.

Yes…her.

She looked like a young girl, someone he ought to know, but…something was off. Her aura seemed too…demonic, to be the one he was associating her with. Her long hair cascaded down her back, pure and white as snow, with a black headband as the only blemish amidst that arctic tundra. Those violet eyes beheld a sort of deranged light within them, despite seeming so achingly hollow, and a blood-red scarf was loosely wrapped around her neck, disturbed slightly by some nonexistent breeze that was assuredly for dramatic effect. Her outfit was monochromatic, though black and gun-metal gray were the dominant hues, with a coal-black shield adorning her left forearm, an hourglass fixed to its surface and blood-red sands slowly trickling into the bottom half.

Her lips quirked into a crooked grin as she caught sight of him standing there with his mouth agape.

"Ah…so it has come to this, has it? How disappointing."

Kiritsugu abruptly closed his mouth and swallowed, narrowing his eyes as he tried to grasp what was going on. For some reason, he had a strange sense of déjà vu… "Are you disappointed in the Master that has summoned you? Believe me, the feeling is mutual."

The Servant laughed, broken and deranged. "You mistaken me, Emiya Kiritsugu! I was not talking about you!" she exclaimed, pausing in her laughter to wipe an imaginary tear from her eye. "I was referring to the Author, who thinks this is funny. Honestly, you're running out of steam here, you know! It was doomed from the start!"

…Shut up.

"Denial is the first stage of grief."

No, it's a river in Egypt.

The (probably not so) Heroic Spirit grimaced suddenly. "Your jokes are terrible. What are you trying to accomplish with this train wreck of omakes? Boring all your readers to death?"

Well, I was going to make a joke about Witches and despair, but I decided I wasn't witty enough for it. And lastly…parallel worlds. I'm trying to practice on writing crack but the more I write in new versions, the more I kinda want to make side stories of them.

"You've barely started the main story, you bastard. Get off your ass and just rewrite the damn thing!"

It wouldn't do you justice, though. Like that opening description I just had—the original was much better.

"The readers wouldn't know," the Servant said with a smirk, ignoring the confusion steadily building up on her Master's face. "And besides, you needed to cut down on the conversation between Homura and Irisviel on the plane, anyway. I felt it was too long. The Gilgamesh scene in the Throne was a nice touch, though, and the reference between the ocean and Oktavia von Seckendorff was witty."

Compliments from you…I must be doing something horribly wrong.

"Incidentally, what plans do you have for me in this third-ish level? Or do we still need to go wider? I'm itching to pilot a failure of a mecha and to have secret meetings in rose gardens."

Just a little more. The dream will be wholly unstable by then, but I don't give a damn…And I'm actually throwing that idea out the window.

"Why? She took out 5 of the Orochi singlehandedly with nothing but a bow at her disposal."

Some readers will get mad—it's a controversial anime, after all, what with the unneeded mecha, confusing/awkward transitions, and the infamous episode 8. I was personally neutral for the show, but the fanfics others have written about C/H made me fall in love with the pair. That, and after I found out who her voice actor was…

The snowy-haired girl nodded in understanding, a cryptic smile on her face. "Ah, gotcha…Explains the thing with Irisviel, doesn't it?"

Twisted head-canon. Gotta love it. I've already got a title, too: Dissociative Personality. I might have some trouble using Alice as Berserker, since I haven't caught up with the manga yet. Finding a suitable Lancer was a pain in the ass, though.

"I don't know much about Gwendolyn, either…And what did I say about starting new stories in the midst of old ones? This is just blatant self-advertising now!"

Well, you're as mad as Sheogorath—I'm not gonna take your advice that easily. How long was it again…120,000-something years?

"Shut. Up."

Denial.

"You pitiful, lazy fool…It's a shame you won't even know what will hit you. I acquired a Daedric Sword—ranked up to Legendary, no less!—on my last errand and—"

Why don't you go kill a chicken this time instead of nuking Japan?

"It was a viable option! Do you know that she's almost god-tier by now?! I was desperate to keep her from manifesting!"

But your waifu—

Kiritsugu pinched the bridge of his nose, desperately trying to ward off his headache. He had long since given up trying to make sense of the conversation, and only Irisviel's presence beside him anchored his sanity as his Servant continued to shout at the heavens, conversing with a nonexistent figure.

"Berserker, perhaps?" she inquired softly, laying a hand on his arm to calm him as he shook violently with annoyance, counting under his breath in an attempt to rein in his self-control.

"Not King Arthur, that's for certain. How are we going to make use of Avalon now if he is not here to activate its effects? How…How can I prolong your demise, Iri?"

His wife smiled gently, a smile he didn't feel worthy of having bestowed upon him as she reached up to touch his cheek. "We'll find a way. Trust in your Servant, Kiritsugu—there must be a reason behind her summoning."

Suddenly, he felt an arm sling itself around his shoulders and upon stiffening in surprise, saw that there was a similar arm on Irisviel's as well. Sometime during their conversation, the Heroic Spirit had somehow snuck up on them and was now regarding them like old drinking buddies, grinning crookedly. "There actually is, Kerry. Unfortunately, it's a very stupid reason."

So it was her.

Her violet eyes suddenly hardened dangerously as he opened his mouth to speak, and he could feel the temperature in the chapel abruptly drop several degrees as the hairs on the back of his neck rose. He quickly shut his mouth.

"Don't say it. Not until that lazy bum gets to typing and Chapter 2: Connect finally comes out. Till then, you can refer to me as…huh. I don't know, actually."

How about 'Tamamo'?

"…Shut up, you," he heard the Servant mutter under her breath, noting that at least the cold aura from 3 sentences or so ago was dissipating.

"Your class would suffice." Kiritsugu grunted irritably, trying to break away from her hold. It was useless, however, as she had his suit in a death grip. He settled for sighing heavily and wondering if Shirley could see what she had done to—

The grip tightened, and he looked to see the same murderous gaze from 4 paragraphs or so return. Right…I'm not allowed to say her name. But what's the use? It's so blatantly obvious and—did she just read my thoughts?

She smiled once more, cryptically. "Servant Caster, at your service. Saber went to the future Sir Waver and Gilles wasn't chosen for this War."

'Caster'? That's certainly not helping your cause. Shall I go fetch Jinako while I'm at it?

"I will skin you alive and feed you to the skeevers, so help me…"

"S—Saber? As in, King Arthur?" Irisviel clarified, her crimson eyes widening.

"No, I was talking about Miki Sayaka."

"Eh?"

"Yes, Irisviel, King Arthur has been summoned as a Saber in this war and is currently with her soon-to-be squire," Caster said with a sigh. "Don't worry, though—you'll be reunited with your lover soon enough in the main plot. Well, you'll sort of be dying at that moment but still…"

"What nonsense are you spouting now?" Kiritsugu interjected, having had enough of his Servant, yet also feeling concerned as to how she came across this knowledge.

"Says the cheat," the Heroic Spirit mumbled under her breath in disdain before continuing on with a crooked grin, ignoring her Master's look of alarm. "That aside…I have orders from above to finish this war as quickly as I can, so…do you know if Uryuu Ryuunosuke will be participating in this one? He'll be getting a Rider, that much I can tell."

"I only have knowledge of Tohsaka Tokiomi, Kotomine Kirei, Matou Kariya, and Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi. But according to you, there is also a…Sir Waver, and this Uryuu Ryuunosuke fellow."

"He's a serial killer." Caster said matter-of-factly, as if this would clear everything up. He would have facepalmed, if not for the fearful look on Irisviel's face.

"Oh, dear…Why would the Holy Grail choose someone like him?"

"Why, indeed….?" the Servant mused, grinning secretively again as she peered intently at the Einzbern homunculus.

He's not a Master for this Holy Grail War.

"Say what now?!" the snowy-haired girl exclaimed, her surprise strong enough to let go of both Kiritsugu and Irisviel. Her grin had vanished, to be replaced by a deep scowl as those violet eyes narrowed dangerously. "Explain."

He. Is not. A Master…At least for this War in particular.

"If it's not Uryuu Ryuunosuke who will be participating, then who?"

Kaname Tatsuya.

The Servant suddenly blanched. "You're joking."

Remember that young boy you shot into Swiss cheese in Chapter 2: Connect? Yeah. Chew on that for a bit.

"Oh, Godoka, you can't be serious…"

The revelation came to me in the shower an hour ago, actually. Think about it: a family of four, with a mother, a father, an older sister and a younger brother. The poor kid looked a lot like Tatsuya, didn't he? Well, except for looking a little older, but you get the point.

"You're sick."

Says the one who's fallen in and out of insanity for 1,000,001 repetitions. You seem to be going through your personality swings this time around, though. I do believe I've just ruined a few readers' image of you, but at least you're a different version than the one I have in mind for the fic.

"Does it matter? My existence has become the worst kept secret in the world."

What can I say? People got impatient.

"It was only two people against 29 others! You shouldn't cave into others' sentiments so easily!"

DON'TTELLMEWHATTODOICAN'THELPITWHENIFEELLIKEIHAVET ODEFENDMYSELFANDYOUKNOWIHAVESELFESTEEMISSUESABOUTM YWRITINGANDPLOT

"…This omake is going on for far too long."

I agree. 5 pages at the moment, in fact. You have my permission to be as ruthless as you need to be. This is crack, after all.

Kiritsugu suddenly felt a chill creep down his spine as Caster finally turned around to face them. Gone was the deranged smile, although her eyes continued to have that manic frenzy within them. For some reason…he felt as if she was more dangerous than before. That was not good, depending on how you look at it.

"Shall we go to Fuyuki now, Master?"

Several days later…

For a few seconds, there was a great and terrible sound of thunderous chaos, arriving in the form of countless firearms and artillery the likes of which he had never seen before from a single person's doing.

He watched, utterly dumbfounded as Lancer suddenly exploded in a bloody burst of flesh, bone, armor, and shrapnel from the many C4 explosives attached to his person from who-knows-when. At roughly the same time, the body of Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi fell down from the roof of one of the warehouses, riddled with dozens of holes and stab wounds, and his head a near-indistinguishable bloody mess, as if someone had placed an RPG-7 flesh against his head and fired. A similar fate to Lancer's and Kayneth's was shared by the rest of the Servants and Masters who had the misfortune to have gathered here at the wharf, but the Author was too lazy to provide any more descriptions.

Curiously, there were also massive explosions coming from the direction of the Tohsaka estate. The size of the mushroom cloud he had briefly taken note of was disturbing—how many innocents were caught in that hellfire? Possibly a good quarter of Fuyuki City…

Saber's death, at least, was relatively clean, having been beheaded in a stopped Time with what Caster had called a Daedric Sword at…Legendary rank? There was no use pondering over what that meant. Waver Velvet—who would never be knighted now since…you know—suffered a similar fate. The Author was fond of Saber, it seemed.

Rider turned out to be a young woman in samurai armor riding atop a ghostly purple skeleton-horse.

She wasn't riding it anymore. You kind of can't if the upper half of your body is missing, having been blasted to pieces by an explosive—or several—slipped into your miko robes.

However, her young—and he meant young—Master was spared. Caster was standing over him right now, holding the aforementioned Daedric sword in her hand, its blade gleaming crimson with the blood of their enemies. In the other was a Type-89 Howa assault rifle. Her body language revealed that she didn't intend to hurt him, but after the ruthlessness with which she had eliminated her other opponents, Kiritsugu was highly skeptical.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry for scaring you back there."

"I…I want Torahime! She said she wouldn't leave me!" the child sobbed, desperately trying to wipe his tears away with the sleeve of his hoodie as the red Command Seals on the back of his small hand faded away.

"Torahime's not coming back, Tatsuya-kun. She attacked me first and as such, paid the consequences."

A bold-faced lie. It was clear who made the first move.

"I don't care! I don't…hic…want to be alone again! She saved me when…no one else did!"

…Well this is depressing as hell.

"Isn't it? It's good content for another omake or parallel/side story. Unfortunately, you have quite enough of those running around in your head," Kiritsugu heard Irisviel mutter from beside him—Maiya was also taking refuge behind the air duct, as well. "I won't forgive you for killing off my Saber, but…weren't you supposed to wrap up this omake a long while ago?"

I got carried away. Sorry.

"Angry reviews will flood, you know."

This is crack. It's not supposed to follow the laws of canon and I've made several disclaimers prior to this little event. Besides, in a weird way, it's therapeutic for me.

Irisviel glared up at the heavens, her mouth set into a dissatisfied pout that Kiritsugu, for all of his battle-hardened ways, found adorable. "You still killed Saber."

Forbidden teacher-student affair in Off Balance. Enjoy.

"But at the rate you're going with that story, it'll be years before we get to that part!"

I've started working on Your Princess is in Another Castle and As You Wish, but would you rather have A Knight to Remember or Damsel in Distress uploaded?

Irisviel bit her lip, looking torn. Kiritsugu furrowed his brow worriedly, fearing that she had caught whatever madness it was that Caster possessed, as she too appeared to be talking to no one in particular. I knew it! I knew I shouldn't have let them arrive in Fuyuki together!

"Um…how far are you with Well, That Was Unexpected?"

Still having Diarmuid ruining your 'alone time' with Arturia…That's about it. Iskandar's side of the prologue hasn't even shown up yet.

"Darn."

You guys will be somewhat of a sub-plot in The Bullets of My Gun, though.

"Done!"

"I'm done, too!" Caster exclaimed happily as she walked away from where Tatsuya was currently being comforted by Mado—sorry, Archer. It turns out the pink-haired Servant had also been spared the massacre, leaving Kiritsugu to wonder if turning her back on the Heroic Spirit was a wise move. After witnessing the brutal deaths of the others, Archer might be more likely to use underhanded methods to take down Caster. Although, without Tohsaka Tokiomi providing mana, she would be weaker than—

That's it, I'm ending this one.

Well, if that's the case…

"Homura."

"—! Damn it, Kerry! I told you to wait!"


Omake Within an Omake Within an Omake Within an Omake Within an Omake


This…was strange, to say the least.

"I will ask you again…are you my Master?" the girl inquired, narrowing her eyes.

"I…yes, I am. But…is that really you…Homura?"

Surely…this couldn't be his old friend from Arimago Island? The Akemi Homura that Kiritsugu knew had braided hair, glasses, and was adorably shy and awkward. But this…this Servant before him had her hair free of its restrictive braids, and the distinctive red glasses had been long discarded. Her once warm, violet eyes were now hollow and resigned—a look he had seen often in the mirror. These things wouldn't have been that surprising given the time since they had last seen each other, but aside from the fact that she hadn't aged much…she was also wearing a black suit and an equally black trench coat, with the butt of a revolver sticking out of her pocket.

In short…the Heroic Spirit was dressed exactly like him.

"My name is Akemi Homura, certainly…and you look like the Emiya Kiritsugu I once knew," she confirmed pointedly, taking out a pack of cigarettes from her coat pocket and lighting one. "But enough talk. We need to strategize and expand our weapons caches. If you attempt to cross me, you'll be dead before you can even say 'Wabbajack'."

With that said, she brushed past him with the cigarette hanging loosely from her mouth and her hands in her pockets, heading for the doors leaving the Einzbern chapel.

"And in case you're wondering, my class is Archer."

…Yeah. Because there's absolutely nothing wrong with a 14-year-old and smoking.

Heaving a sigh and feeling as if he has gone through this particular scenario far more than he should have, Kiritsugu turned to look at his wife…only to find her glaring at him, with her arms crossed and a disapproving frown on her face. He blinked, taken aback. "What? We may not have gotten King Arthur, but this Servant appears competent."

Her crimson eyes narrowed.

"I admit that it is startling to see her dressed similarly to me, but—"

"Kiritsugu, that's not the point!"

"Then what—"

"You didn't even stop her from smoking! She's a young girl—she shouldn't be doing those things! Granted, you shouldn't be doing those things either, but I know I've whipped you into shape, at least!"

About that…

"She's a Heroic Spirit—smoking won't hinder her in any way during battle, as her body is no longer mortal—"

"It's not a question of whether or not one's body will be affected—it's a question of ethics! Is this how you're going to treat Ilya once she's older? Are you not going to say a word if she starts to experiment with smoking?"

"Iri, this isn't about Ilya—"

"Everything is about Ilya! I won't be around once you win the Holy Grail, so I can't know for sure how you'll raise her. I'm hoping you'll raise her well and not encourage bad habits…"

Oh, boy. Here we go again…

Later, as he slept and witnessed the events that shaped his Servant's life in the form of the dream cycles…he couldn't help but feel as if he heard the title 'Magus Killer' bef—Oh. Right.

Great…now there were two of them.


1.048596


Emiya Kiritsugu awoke with an uncharacteristic scream, as if he had just been violently hurtled through 4-5 dream levels.

This, of course, alerted the rest of the inhabitants in the Einzbern mansion, and sent them running to the room he had decided to take a quick nap in. He certainly would not be indulging in that particular luxury any time soon after this…Irisviel was through the door first, her crimson eyes wide in terror, with Maiya fast on her heels, and his Servant—

Oh god, please tell me that she's—!

"Kiritsugu! What's wrong—an enemy Master?! I did not sense the presence of the other Servants, but…Kiritsugu…?"

He was walking towards her, ignoring the others and dragging his feet like a dazed man not yet able to tell the difference between dreams and the waking world. His dark eyes wild, he placed his hands on his Servant's shoulders, disregarding her shocked flinch at the direct—and close—contact after days of blatant avoidance, and stared at her intently for several long moments, as if to make sure she was well and truly there.

Emerald eyes.

Blond hair pulled back into a practical ponytail.

Obvious European descent.

An invisible Excalibur sheathed in wind at her side, having been summoned just in case.

"Um…Kiritsugu? You've been staring at Saber for a really long time. Is something the matter?" Irisviel queried as she tried to see what may be wrong with the Servant of the Sword. Maiya remained where she was at Kiritsugu's other side, calmly waiting for an explanation for his strange behavior.

"Master?" Saber—King Arthur Pendragon, King of Knights, ruler of Camelot, defender of Britannia, sole wielder of the holy sword Excalibur, founder of the Knights of the Round Table—called hesitantly, betraying her uneasiness at this sudden turn of events.

Kiritsugu had never been so glad to see her in his life. For all their conflicting methods, ideals, personal codes…he would never take her for granted again.

"Saber…You're well and truly here?"

She furrowed her noble brow, a troubled frown working its way onto her youthful face at the fact that they were actually having a real conversation…however strange of a conversation it was. "Of course. What sort of question is that, Master? You can feel me, can you not? You can hear the sound of my voice and your eyes can see for themselves that I am real."

"You…You'll be here in the morning, then? When next I awake, you won't be one Akemi Homura? No matter which crazy, ridiculous version?"

Confusion settled heavily on the features of the three other inhabitants in the room, breaking even the stoic Maiya's calm façade. Saber was dumbfounded for a moment at his questions, opening and closing her mouth as she tried to decide on what words to say. The Servant glanced over at Irisviel for guidance, but his wife could only shrug helplessly, just as puzzled as she was over the strange situation.

Yes…he reaffirmed inwardly, allowing his shoulders to relax just a hair. I will never, ever take her for granted again.

At last, the knight nodded her head in firm reassurance. "I will be here, Kiritsugu, ready to act as your loyal sword for the duration of this war. I will not abandon you, nor will I willingly betray you. If it shall be of comfort…I will remain by your side, watching over you as you sleep, so that in the morning you shall know that I am still…real?"

She was clearly still confused as to why he had questioned her very existence, as evidenced by her uncertainty at the end, but at the moment, Kiritsugu was simply relieved that she was King Arthur and not Akemi Homura…whoever she was. He had dealt with enough versions of that girl to last him a lifetime.


"INTERMISSION" — END

YES! IT'S FINALLY OVER!

AFTER 7 MONTHS OR WORKING ON AND OFF AND REREADING IT A THOUSAND TIMES,
THIS HORRIBLE APRIL FOOL'S CREATION IS FINALLY DONE!

:D

Now it's time to work on Chapter 2.


Author's Note: IT WAS ALL JUST A DREAM.

If you managed to read through all that text, you must be one hell of a Bullets of My Gun fan/follower.

Either that…or you're just a patient reader. You had to sit through 48 pages, after all. xD

…Or you might be pissed at me right now for giving you a crapload of omakes instead, with no relevance to the plot save for demonstrating Caster's ruthlessness in an off-hand way. D:

Or you might be pissed at the glaring lack of Kyouko. Whatever floats your boat.

So, uh…rumor has it that in a recent interview, someone mentioned that Homura repeated only 100 times? That's like, 12 years if my math is correct—assuming 'month and a half' instead of the easier to manage 'month'. If it was by month, that'd be…8 years and 4 months?

Regardless…I can't help but feel a bit upset/disappointed at this. I guess I'm a part of the fandom that leans more towards the higher numbers—it makes things that much sadder and tragic, but also a testament to her determination. 24 years would be good from a Faust angle, but 1,000 times would be good enough—it's only 86-ish years compared to the millennia I have for her, let alone the 120,000+ years I have for A****'s 1,000,001 repetitions.

I won't give a time estimate as to when you can expect Chapter 2: Connect to finally arrive since the term is already upon me, but I will once again reiterate that I am NOT giving up on this fic. Plus…I like writing long chapters, if you couldn't already tell. It makes me antsy if a chapter isn't at least 12 pages or so in Word. So…long waits, but long chapters! 8D I have an hour and a half commute every morning via train, so if the workload isn't that bad, I should have time to type.

Unless…you guys prefer shorter chapters? Don't worry; this 53-page document is the only exception to my usual 17-25. I tend to ramble if you haven't noticed already, and I had a lot of stuff to get out of my head. October 26 is not too far away, after all.

And also, a question for the readers who have gone this far: would you like to see Homura's Time Stops as a Personal Skill (since, you know, it seemed kinda effortless-ish to her in the anime), or as a Noble Phantasm? Except for a few key/random scenes and the ending, I'm just sorta writing this whole thing as I go along, so for now just think of it as "anything goes". Although…it's somewhat of a crackfic, so I suppose that's already a given. xD

Why? Because a certain plot bunny has been whispering into my ear about a possible Noble Phantasm called Wheel of Samsara/For You, a Thousand Years

Depending on your responses to this idea, it will be capped at 24 hours and can only be used once, since it consumes a great deal of mana…if it interests you to know that little tidbit. Not quite sure what I'll do with it (assuming I'll even end up using it…), but I think 3 days would be too much of an edge, especially in F/Z's Grail War. 72 hours would be a nice nod to good ol' Termina, but still…y'know. Stuff.

Unfortunately, with The Rebellion Story coming out in Japan this month, my plans might have to be reworked anyway, depending on what happens in the movie. From what we've seen so far, the time-shield is back…and there was also the alarming scene where Sayaka's blade jammed itself into the inner workings of said shield.

Geez, Homura…keep the thing closed unless absolutely necessary, will ya? That's like carelessly waving around the Ocarina of Time right in front of Sakon or Ganondork's face and NOT expecting them to make a grab for it.

…But I commend Akiyuki Shinbo and Gen Urobuchi for revealing literally almost nothing—even vaguely, damn it!—regarding the true direction of the plot in the third movie…Speculah BINGO is fun, isn't it? 8'D

Moving on! Reviews/ideas/answers to my questions would be appreciated, and remember: you could always have left at any time. Unfortunately, you won't be getting those minutes back. :P Oh, and I still kinda need a beta. My personal theory is that if you volunteer for it, you'd be more inclined to making it the best that it can be rather than someone who may or may not really want to.

So…beta? :3

Unless you guys think I don't really need one, in which case…beta anyway? :3

OH MY GODOKA, SOMEONE NEEDS TO SLAP ME SILLY FOR RANTING/TALKING SO MUCH IN THIS CHAPTER.
I SWEAR, MY NOTES HAVE TAKEN UP LIKE, 15 OR SO PAGES.

To StrangePointOfView: Ha-ha! Believe it or not, your review actually inspired me to pick this back up again after weeks of doing absolutely nothing, fanfiction-wise! Thanks, man!

To Fimbu1vetr: I'll only use bold for short A/N's (as if that will ever happen, lol), but otherwise, I've decided that longer A/N's will just be normal. The reason I bolded was to differentiate between what's part of the story and what's not—there are speed-readers among us, after all. :P And I'm glad you like the bloopers—that was the point!

The Legend of Homerun will be featured in Down to Zero We Go, by the way (dunno if you liked that one). Unless I decide to make it a mini-series, in which case…it will be a separate fic.

To theunhappytwins: I wouldn't call it a thing of beauty. More like a horrible creation that's bound to go wrong. xD Also…are you actually a twin? *suspicious squinty-eyes*

To FreeWeirdGal: So that was you who said the thing about Gilgamesh! Well…you would've been amused. Homuhomu, on the other hand…wouldn't.

To Torroshi: No, you are not insulting my intelligence, I'm just terrible with computers in general. xD Unfortunately, I'm too chicken/paranoid to try it in case my laptop freaks out or something. It's done that 3 times this week. Thanks for the advice, though! And to everyone else who suggested something! I recently purchased 2 extra flash drives, and this AU alone has like, 8 backup documents.

…Make that 9.

To Guest: 10 years. It likes to troll. Since you were lucky to read the spoiler, you know who Saber and Lancer are. :D Will Kirei be expecting you as part of his congregation in the Church of Madoka?

[ Quick question to all who are reading at this point: Fuyuki or elsewhere? (lol, Elsweyr—ok, I'll shut up now…) Because a change of pace is a nice relief sometimes. Like our Britons waltzing through England, fighting Death Eaters and turning Parliament upside down. And on a side note…I'm getting waaaaaaaaaaaaay too ahead of myself. ]

To Cegorach: For a moment there, I thought your username was "Sheogorath". xD Well, let me just say that your pic amuses me, with its Kirei/Kyubey mash-up.

To Inanis: Yes…poor Fuyuki. The chant I've got to release it is pretty awesome, in my opinion. It's…kinda obvious what it is, anyway. Assuming you've seen the page on the PMMM wiki, of course. Good Godoka, is that site fun…

To Sergio Turbo: Holy shit, you reviewed and put me on your list. O.o adjkflda;fbaejiahivoijafajdkf;wdsg

A thousand thank you's to the genius behind Irregulars! :D I was going to demand that you update, but you already did by then, so…update again, damn it! I need to know how Nanoha, Fate, and Homura will respond to the twist! And thanks for the calculations—I'll be sure to keep that in mind/incorporate it somewhere. 126,027 years, 6 months, and 20-25 days…Geez, that's gotta be torture. Then again, if you don't torture The Butcher's characters, you obviously don't care about them enough, am I right? xD

And I care plenty.

Disclaimer: Not all of the dialogue mentioned in this "preview" will be used in the next chapter. Some are simply used to enhance the drama. Have a good day.

(insert "For the Next Episode" music from the Puella Magi Madoka Magica movie OST)

"I shall—"

"Excuse me! Coming through!"

"Wha—?"

"Ne, Rider…have you been on an airplane before?"

"Hmm…once, before. I attempted to crash a fighter jet into an enemy of mine, but I did not relish the act of falling several hundred feet…"

"Assassin would not fall for such an obvious trick."

"Is it safe to assume that Tohsaka Tokiomi possesses an Archer, then?"

"This may surprise you to know this…but I was what you would call a Magical Girl in my lifetime."

"I am a Master who has lost his Servant. Following the Heaven's Feel agreement…I, Kotomine Kirei, request the protection of the Holy Church."

"Kyouko!"

How would she have answered that question, I wonder?

"A…Magical Girl?"

"Why are we heading off to see the Prime Minister?!"

"Fill, fill, fill, fill…Or was it 'shut'? With each repetition, four times…wait, five times? Erm, break the, uh…thingy."

"Where are you going?!"

"To be honest…I shouldn't have qualified, even with the gas tanker. Something else is at work."

"I would never have thought the hero behind the Epic to be a little girl."

"I'LL WHUP ALL YOUR ASSES SO DAMN HARD, GODOKA HERSELF WILL NEED TO BRING YOU BACK!"

"Two Masters did not witness the events at the manor?"

"D—damn it! They must be wizards from the Ministry!"

What could possibly have driven her to such a drastic change?

"In all my years, I've never seen such flagrant disrespect!"

"Perhaps these old bones of mine may yet live to see a miracle, eh?"

"Well, I sort of just…hijacked my way in? I'm not actually him."

"Holy shit, Mulan's over there."

"Figurehead she may be, but the country remains under my watch."

"Irisviel…if you could have a single wish granted in exchange for your soul, would you take it?"

"Now you're just copying what Akemi-san did."

"So kid…if a demon shows up, would you mind letting it eat you?"

"In the end…She saved everyone."

"You were the perfect knight today."

"This is all on you, you idiot! Have fun dying—again!"

"You honor me with your words, 'princess'…though I don't deserve them."

"I'm unemployed."

"Is something the matter? Your, um…Your Majesty?"

"Oh my god, you're so hopeless…! I'm sure the Afterlife Battlefront would just loooooove to have a suicidal idiot like you!"

"Damn right, you don't!"

"Why don't you come in and introduce yourself to the class?"

"That…was so…COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!"

"You may call me…A—"

FIND OUT NEXT TIME (for real! I kid you not!), IN…

Chapter 2: Connect

-x-x-x-x-x-

HOPE IS OVER
THE WAIT IS ETERNAL

/人◕ ‿‿ ◕人\