Today had to be the day, Rin had finally decided. Saber would be gone at work all day, giving her plenty of time to mentally prepare. It had been nearly a month since the trio had worked out their relationship issues and begun their unusual situation. So far things had been going suspiciously well. Saber got along with Rin who got along with Shirou who got along with Saber, and everyone was satisfied. After the six months spent agonizing over the situation, she felt as though things would fall down around her head, or as though she might wake up from the dream.
There was just one final hurdle. That damned ring. Rin had to get it to Saber sooner rather than later, after all people were bound to eventually catch on to the fact that Saber never aged a day. Unfortunately she had no other gems durable enough or with a crystalline structure suitable enough for the spell. It had to be the diamond, and resetting it in another piece of jewelry would undo all the work she had put into it. She just had to grin and bear it for better or for worse.
Rin sat in the living room, staring out the window looking for a flash of gold. With nothing to do all day as Saber was off working, Rin was left to stew in her thoughts, and with a gift like that waiting to be given there were a lot of thoughts to get lost in. Thoughts about the future were chief among them. "What am I going to do after this?" Part of her wanted to reveal the true nature of her relationship with Saber to her closest friends, but as much as it pained her she knew it was probably not a good idea. Ayako might understand, but others like Taiga might paint the trio's situation as something perverse. Granted, it might be easier than she would have liked to see it that way.
After deciding to keep it quiet, Rin wondered about where to take things after graduation. Before the Grail War, she never doubted that she'd one day attend the Clock Tower and begin her career as a magus in earnest, but with such a powerful familiar (though she hesitated to use the term now) her capacity was somewhat limited. She had no doubts that she'd still be able to accomplish quite a bit with her level of talent. "Besides," She said aloud to no one in particular, as if making a declaration. "If that's the price I have to pay for Saber, then I pay it gladly."
It was long after the sun had gone down that out of the corner of her eye, Rin saw that familiar yellow hair, and she sprung to her feet. Hand resting on the box in her pocket as she walked to the front entrance. "Now or never." She kept telling herself, knowing well enough that there would be other opportunities and that it could likely wait another year at most. However, the urge to give the gift and see Saber smile as a result was far more important to her. As soon as she heard the front door open she sprung into action. "Welcome back Saber!" She pushed the precious box in front of her with both hands, bowing her head low. Stunned silence was all she heard for what felt like a particularly long minute. Just when Rin was about to look up and see what was the matter, she heard Saber begin to laugh.
"It seems we were thinking similarly, Rin." Raising her eyes, Rin saw that Saber was carrying along a beautifully arranged bouquet of red roses. Somehow her brilliant smile shone brighter than the flowers. "I got paid today," She explained. "And I decided it would be best to spend some of it on a present for you." Her face turned red. "You're my lover, after all." Rin smiled, stiffing a laugh at Saber's choice of language. "What is this, by the way?" Saber quickly changed the subject, carefully placing the bouquet on the accent table by the door and taking the ring's box in her hand. She turned it over once before asking, "May I open it?"
Rin nodded quietly as she tried not to let the rising nervousness in her chest show. Saber slowly opened the box. As her eyes widened as they caught a glimpse of the diamond's brightness. "Don't get the wrong idea!" Rin stammered out. "It's a magical charm I made, and I needed the diamond to get it to work in the long term. It'll make it look like you're aging." She explained. "Over the next few months, if you keep wearing this, it'll make it look like you've aged two years. Then it will slow to a normal rate." Her speech became a bit quicker, as she excitedly imagined what an older Saber would look like. "It should be perfectly in accordance with the age listed on your documents."
"You made this?" Saber said with wonder in her voice, apparently having ignored all the magical theory talk. She carefully examined the ring, staring at every detail with admiration.
"Well yes..." Rin replied, trying to hide the mild disappointment in having her magical lecture ignored. "Crafting magic charms is an important part in magus training."
"It's incredible." Saber slipped the gold band over her finger. Rin breathed a sigh of relief to see that it was a perfect fit. "And you are saying that I will appear older soon?" She smiled faintly. "I must say that I had always given up hope of seeing myself grow any further... but I have always been somewhat curious as to how I would appear."
Rin nodded with a grin, she was glad that Saber was looking forward to it. "By Christmas, you'll look about two years older."
"I..." Saber's voice faltered. "I do not know how to express my gratitude, this gift is marvelous." Reaching out, to grasp Rin's hand in her own, she said. "Please come with me." After a few moments it became clear that Saber was leading her to their bathroom. Rin, of course wondered what exactly her girlfriend was planning. "It's late, and I am somewhat tired from a hard day's work. I was hoping I could take a bath." The young magus nodded, quickly working out what it was that Saber wanted. "I am told that often women of this country bathe together as a sort of bonding exercise... and I was thinking we should give it a try." She asked, anxiously.
Rin smiled wryly, she had known Saber was up to something. Frankly she would have went along with it if she had asked directly, but she decided to play along. "That sounds like fun." She nodded in agreement. "Would you like to go shower first or should I?" Of course, Rin knew what the answer was going to be, she just decided to play dumb; knowing it would be more satisfying to hear Saber say it directly.
"Well..." Saber took a deep breath, and then another, and finally said, "The shower is spacious enough, I was hoping we could both go together." There were times when Rin was thankful that her family's mansion had a singularly roomy, western-styled bathroom, and this was definitely one of them. If they wanted to, they could easily stand side by side, comfortably in the shower or sit next to each other in the bath.
"After you then." Rin opened the door and ushered Saber inside. For a moment they both stood in the dressing room, neither one willing to be the first one to undress. A silent look passed between them, and silently they both agreed to start simultaneously. Turning their backs to one another they both slowly shed their clothing, throwing each piece into the laundry hamper.
"Are you finished?" Saber unsteadily asked. "Shall we turn around on the count of three then?" Rin quietly agreed. It occurred to her that this would be the first time that Saber would see her naked, the thought both embarrassed and excited her. Saber slowly counted up to the appointed number, and at the signal, each party stiffly turned around as though they were duelists.
Rin was about to cover herself with her hands but she was stopped in her tracks by the sight of the girl in front of her. All the embarrassment and anxiousness was wiped from her mind as she stood astonished, staring at Saber. Now that she thought about it, this was the first time she saw this in proper lighting. Something told her, however that this feeling would never fade, no matter how many times she saw it. The golden-haired girl had a thin, athletic body with no excess fat; skin as smooth as porcelain, and just the faintest wisps of hair that betrayed her body's true age. What really surprised her was the fact that Saber was giving her the same look of wonder in return. "You are beautiful, Rin." Were the only words she said and needed to say.
Rin stepped forward, forgetting her previous shyness, and put her arms around Saber's shoulders; pulling her into a hug. "Let's go shower shall we?"
At first it was more than a little awkward for the two of them, just standing in the glass-encased shower side by side. Both of them kept their eyes straight forward, neither daring to peek at their partner. "Say..." Rin started, trying to break the tension. "How about I wash your back?" Saber reflexively turned to face Rin, but quickly averted her eyes with a blush. After taking a second to recompose herself, she nodded in agreement. Saber probably recognized the suggestion as mere pretense, but thankfully she went along with it anyway; apparently just as eager to break the ice.
Rin took the loofah from its place on the rack and applied her favorite body soap to it. "I love this stuff you know." Rin explained clumsily. "It makes your skin nice and, also..." She trailed off, suddenly realizing that not only was Saber's complexion naturally perfect, she wasn't sure whether or not that sort of cosmetic would even have an effect on a Servant. Swallowing the momentary envy she felt towards the perfect girl, she said. "You know what, why don't you just use it on me instead?" She shoved the tool into the Servant's hand.
"May I?" Saber still looked unsure, as though she were scared to touch Rin. The magus just nodded with a smile, turning to show her back to Saber. Awkwardly, the golden haired girl began to scrub Rin's back with the sponge, each little movement being second-guessed along the way. The further along she went the more confidence she built up. The quiet intimacy began to make Rin's face redden, and not just from the hot water. At some point, though Rin could not be sure when, Saber had put the loofah down and began rubbing Rin's back with her bare hands. Rin smiled, knowing that whatever plan Saber had hatched was about to be executed.
Saber wrapped a hand around Rin's waist, rubbing her abdomen gently. The young magus stood for a long time enjoying the marble-smooth sensation of Saber's skin pressing against her back, as the rush of the water around them seemed to grow to a deafening volume. "I..." Saber finally broke the stalemate. "I love you, Rin." Rin placed her own hand upon Saber's, encouraging her to continue. "When I saw you make love to Shirou a few days ago," She paused for a moment, trying to think of how to phrase her thoughts correctly. "I wanted to make you feel the same way, but I am afraid that I do not know how."
"Well..." Rin couldn't help but grin, she had a feeling that she knew where this was going, and she was especially glad to have been right. "Do you ever touch yourself?"
The answer was stunned silence that made Rin wish she could have seen the look on Saber's face. Finally the Servant choked out, "There have been times, yes."
With a response like that, Rin couldn't help herself. "Oh, really?" Her tone shifted to a playfully teasing one. "You struck me as the type of girl who would never even think about doing something like that."
"It wasn't often!" Saber fired back, defensively. "And beyond that, I had to live my life without any sort of... companionship in that regard."
"Well, now you have me... and Shirou if you want." With that she decided that she had toyed with Saber enough, and fired the final shot. "I'll teach you how to do it if you want." Slowly, she guided her hand, along with Saber's down her stomach and between her legs. "Just do with me what you do to yourself sometimes." Her lover silently obliged, moving her fingers clumsily, though Rin was not sure whether the clunky movements were a result of her nerves or her inexperience. All the while, Rin offered quiet encouragement and pointers. "Move more like this," or "Be more gentle here," she said, leading by example.
In the end, they were unable to reach a completely satisfying conclusion, but the experience of teaching Saber left Rin with a smile on her face. "You did well for your first try, Saber." Rin patted the golden-haired girl on the shoulder as she shut the water off. Rin tried not to think about what their extended shower would do to the water bill. "There is one more thing I would like to try, Rin." Saber spoke up. "However," She stepped out of the shower, and stared at the floor. "Though I may find it too difficult to look you in the face when I attempt it. May I?" With Rin's consent, she carefully got on her knees in front of Rin. It didn't take someone as sharp as Rin to realize what Saber intended to do. After all, Shirou had done the same to her plenty of times before, but for some reason the thought of Saber trying it for the first time was all the more exciting.
Saber began by giving Rin a kiss imbued with such tenderness that it made the black-haired magus cry out, unintentionally. Her whole body was in a state of heightened alertness from the attention it received in the shower. In truth, Saber's actions were just as clumsy and inexperienced as her previous attempt, but still the excitement of the scene was going to Rin's head. "Saber that's..." She placed her hand on her partner's head, spurring her onward as her rising arousal robbed her of the ability to form coherent sentences.
Saber on the other hand seemed to be watching Rin's reactions carefully. Whenever Rin squirmed or made a pleasured moan Saber would keep going, pushing her partner further over the edge. "Keep... Keep going." Rin urged. She had realized that she was reaching her limit, and Saber happily obeyed. Her tongue found a particularly sensitive area (that Rin had pointed out to her in the shower) and attacked it relentlessly; rubbing and stimulating it until Rin's mind went white.
When Rin's thoughts returned to her she was sitting on the cold bathroom tile, arms wrapped around Saber's shoulders. "That was fantastic." She said in a breathy voice, still in a bit of a daze. "Where'd you learn about that sort of thing?"
Saber kept her eyes averted, head still burning red so brightly that Rin thought she saw steam coming from her ears. "Well I... I have overheard various things from my soldiers, at times. Did I overstep my boundaries?" She asked, her voice sounding vaguely guilty.
"Not at all." Rin squeezed the Servant tighter. "You don't have to feel like you have any boundaries with me." She gave Saber a reassuring smile. "Say..." She stood up, offering Saber her hand. "It's late, why don't we go to bed?" Neither of them got much sleep that night, spending most of it together on that soft mattress touching, hugging, caressing; learning about and acclimating to one another's touch and form.
When Saber finally did get to sleep she was met with a surprise. She saw a dream. Not a memory of tragedy like she was used to, but a proper dream. It was something that should have been impossible for a Servant. When she awoke she had, sadly, forgotten the details, but she was certain that it had happened. It was a happy dream of the future. Rin and Shirou, and herself all going about a simple, everyday life. She slowly roused herself from bed and put on a simple blouse to cover herself before walking to window. The sun was rising, and for the first time in what felt like ages, she found that she was actually looking forward to an uncertain future.
The End
Special Note: Well that's the end of my first fanfic. Looking back it really was a stressful experience. Thank you to everyone who put up with my lousy writing to the end, and a special thanks to all my reviewers. If it weren't for you guys I would have quit a long time ago.
