In The Core of the Jewel
Chapter 29: D—A—T—E!
Author's Note: Based on the Unlimited Blade Works Route
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Original Game: Fate/Stay Night
Original Concept: Type-moon
Written by: wrathie
Author's Notes: A remarkably easy chapter to update =P
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"Oi, Lancer!"
Slapping Lancer on the shoulder as he tried to hit on a few girls on the bus, Rin scowled as the girls giggled and waved back at the grinning Lancer.
It seems that for once, Lancer had succeeded in hitting on a few of them and it somehow made Rin a little upset as they started chatting with him, obviously mistaking him for a foreign traveler of some sorts.
Saber on the other hand was seated behind the two of them and was with Shirou, who was staring out the window with a glazed expression on her face.
"Shirou?"
Poking her, she was unconscious of the many looks and stares that were directed in her direction. She was striking in the crowd and if Rin was a ruby in the crowd, Saber was like a pearl as she each move she made was refined and pure, like a maiden.
It made Rin smile wryly at the thought of a King described like a fair maiden and if Saber was to ever get wind of that, she would likely hunt down the person who originated that saying relentlessly.
Saber was a foreign beauty but Rin herself was the target of many stares and envious whispers as well and that made her feel a lot better, she had her own self-esteem after all!
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"Oi, Ojou-chan, where are we going?"
Asking her as the bus slowly rolled on it's way, Rin told him that they were probably going to hang around Shinto and he nodded.
"Hope there are lotsa fish, I got a date with those two ladies over there, so I might disappear for a while."
He grinned while rubbing his nose and Rin shook his head in exasperation. Honestly, this perverted Servant is really a handful. But if he was not perverted, it wouldn't really be Lancer would it?
"Oh, if you get dumped by them or is stood up, you'll be sleeping outside for a week."
Rin smiled deviously as she teased Lancer relentlessly, even joining in the conversation with the two girls who seemed happy that Lancer was not 'taken'.
"Did you know, Lancer he…"
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The only person that was not having fun was Shirou, he never had any fun. In fact, now that he could recall in quiet, he discovered that yes, he really did not have 'fun'. He would feel happy but he was not having 'fun', if he felt happy it would be a byproduct of helping someone or an unexpected good result out of the blue.
He was never having 'fun'… and that thought was disturbing him for the first time like a thorn at his side.
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He did not deserve to have 'fun'… for the sake of all the people who died in the fire, he has to atone for them before he could truly 'live'. Was that why he was always pushing himself to the limit, to help others with no thought for himself?
Perhaps that was alright then, this way of living.
But does that give him the right to refuse the concern of Rin, Saber and Lancer?
All those thoughts made him not pay attention to Saber, who was patiently staying by his side while looking at the scenery.
It was not her first outing since her arrival in this world but the context in which she was looking at the scenery was totally different from other occasions.
This time, she was here to spend time in an enjoyable fashion and she was looking forward to it, if not for herself than to help heal the wounds of Shirou and Rin and to bring the strained ties between them back to normal.
She has already decided to help Rin in her plan, the plan to make Emiya Shirou enjoy himself for the first time!
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"Woah, this is quite a place!"
Flipping open a cell phone that he had apparently bought a long time ago, Lancer took down the two girl's number while Rin just scowled. She has always been bad with technology and she never carried one.
The same goes to Shirou, he has never seen how useful a phone would be when he rarely, if ever gets calls. He was an orphan after all and Taiga and Sakura knew his schedule by heart.
Thus they were silently impressed by Lancer's thoughtfulness when he tossed the three of them a small cell each.
"Here, in case one of get lost… and I think that it's about time the three of you get in touch with technology don't you think? Even if you are Magus who despises technology, sending of messages by magical constructs is so old-school!"
He laughed and endured a punch by Rin who just scowled and kept it in her pocket.
"Need me to teach you how to use that?"
"O-of course I know how to use something as simple as that!"
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So Rin said but Lancer taught the three of them anyway. It seems that he was quite bored during his term under Kotomine and had gone around town incognito.
The cellphone; as a final finishing touch was all paid for, courtesy of the pockets of Kotomine Kirei, a fact that was greatly appreciated by Rin as she laughed her hats off while trying out the phone.
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"Alright, if that's the case I'll accept this with pleasure."
The look of malice on her face was worth a thousand words to Lancer who just grinned and nodded his head.
"Aye, I knew you'll appreciate that. Nothing better than ripping of that Fake Priest eh?"
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"But, I am surprised that there are so many people here on a Sunday…"
Saber commented while Rin and Shirou just nodded, it was just like Shinto to be crowded, it was the nearest thing to a shopping district, dating site and city after all.
"If there are no complaints and no plans from anyone else, all of you will follow my lead! No complaints and no whining, I'm in charge of the itinerary today! Those who resist will be-"
She cracked her knuckles while Lancer just laughed awkwardly and Saber nodded, leaving… just Shirou to go against that smiling Rin.
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But it was a dangerous statement and something Shirou would not allow to go unchallenged. Turning on Rin in a flash, Shirou asked her in an instant not giving her that opportunity to go wild.
"Wait a minute, what do you mean? I don't have a say in this?"
But it was useless as Lancer, Saber and Rin all shook their heads in unison.
"Nope."
"I never agreed to go on any date! I'm just here to carry the bags!"
"Too bad, Shirou. In society, we call this a date. If you're too stubborn, girls won't like you though. Oh right, care to repeat after me, Saber~ D—a—t—e!"
Teasing her, Rin made Saber repeat the word to Shirou a few times while Lancer just grinned and poked him in the ribs.
"It isn't that bad eh, kid? You get to have a date with Ojou-chan and Saber, not a bad deal eh?"
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It seems that they really had forgotten that they are Masters today…
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The day's journey was free and easy and the four of them first went to have a cup of tea in Verde, a new departmental store that just opened a few months back.
It was there that Shirou finally noticed how everyone was staring at the two girls that were seated in front of them.
Rin stood out obviously with her crimson red clothes and black skirt and Saber… was just Saber and he finally got conscious to them being girls.
It's not that he was dumb or slow witted, it's that he had treated them as family and partners for so long that the word 'date' had not really struck him till now.
Yes, he was nervous around Saber or Rin whenever they got too close for comfort, but they were Masters then, such contact was necessary and part of the 'job'.
Facing them in such normal circumstances was perhaps a first and his nervousness finally showed.
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So is this the feeling of going out on a date?
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But it seems that Lancer was not affected and kept on goading him about how short the waitress's skirts were and whether girls wear that everywhere till he was kicked under the table by Rin.
"Stupid pervert!"
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But the day was just starting and they spent the next hour in a glasses shop, trying on glasses on a whim. Rin appeared to have a great time having Saber try on glasses and even Lancer got in the action by picking out a pair of sunglasses for himself.
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"Oh, that's great! Now you really look like those idiots from the 80's!"
And Rin was subsequently forced to wear a thick pair of glasses that made her look like a geek, especially when Lancer pulled at her hair to fake a pair of pigtails.
"Hah! So is this how Ojou-chan looked like when she was young?"
"Ohhh! I'll get you for that, Lancer!"
But the two of them were indeed having lots of fun while Shirou just sighed, browsing and picking up a few glasses and putting them back. This was boring and pointless… he can hardly wait to go back.
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"Shirou."
"Yes, Saber?"
Turning, he was stunned at how well Saber looked in a pair of blue glasses that she had just placed on.
"Do I look presentable?"
"P-presentable? You look great, Saber."
He managed to say when all of a sudden he was forced to wear the same thick pair of glasses by Lancer and he pulled the two of them to the mirror while Rin just laughed at how Shirou looked.
"Oh dear, oh dear! You really look like a geek too! And with Saber, you too… oh gods, this is too good!"
The both of them couldn't stop Lancer and only stopped when Saber asked Rin whether she did look unpleasant in those glasses.
"Ah no, Saber. You look great, is that you two are too incompatible with each other in that look~ Ehhee~ No offense, Shirou~"
She giggled but then grinned deviously when Saber stated that whether or not they were compatible, she would still stay by his side.
"IIna~ Isn't that good for you, Shirou~ To have Saber pledge her loyalty to you in that way!"
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"O-of course, just as a guard."
She added in a hurry as Shirou scratched his head in embarrassment.
"I'm sure, King of Knights~"
Lancer joined in the teasing and the two chased them out of the shop in a hurry after that!
But Shirou did buy a pair of lion-themed glasses for Saber in compensation and Lancer bought that pair of sunglasses that he wanted… Rin however, came out with a pair of glasses for her sister.
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Next stop was the local Batting Cage, something which was simply two people going against each other to see who can hit the most number of baseballs in a set of thirty.
Rin was the one who wanted to go but with one stray sentence:
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"Ah, it's like a sort of training… one can say it's an integration of all one's physique. You can win some prizes too!"
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That riled Saber up and she was all game for it, showing excitement and enthusiasm like a child while Lancer just looked on with a tired smile.
"What's wrong, Lancer?"
"… Ojou-chan hates losing… do you think Saber will go easy on her?"
Seems like Lancer knows Rin well but in that case, it does not bode well for us as… Saber hates losing as well.
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Watching Shirou drag their feet to a neighboring bench and Lancer grimacing while rubbing his eyes, I smiled awkwardly along with Saber… we had dragged the boys on a hellish 10 set round of the Batting Cage and in the process, broke records, won most of the prizes and left them in this state.
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I was the one responsible for leading Saber here but I did not expect Saber to be as stubborn as me when it came to winning. She had the physical strength but perhaps not as much judgment as I did and I won the first 2 rounds with her…
Then Shirou took over and he went head to head for five straight rounds before Saber finally allowed to let him stop.
Shirou was inconsiderate of her feelings and won by a large margin and then by a small margin, both mocking Saber and it took a while before Saber dialed in and finally won.
The look of triumph and accomplishment was instantly replaced with awkwardness as Shirou was literally all tired out.
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But I… was guilty of the same crime as I had taken a challenge from Lancer, who had a remarkably good eye and was as good as me on the most part, winning by a small margin.
I guess… my competitive side got the better of me… Lancer is just a spearman after all, he could hit the ball okay but not with much force.
Asking him to go toe to toe with me for 10 straight rounds in the highest speed was like asking him to block a speeding arrow with the tip of his spear 150 times…
Not exactly good for the eyes I'm afraid.
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What was surprising was that Saber, without using Magical energy, was having difficulty hitting the balls. I mean, those balls aren't travelling very quickly, were they?
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"Of course they were, Ojou-chan! They are as fast as speeding arrows! If you got hit by that, I think it'll leave more than a welt!" Gah, the sulking dog!
"Tohsaka… I can't believe you can hit those balls back like they were nothing… look, even Saber was having difficulty."
Despite herself, Saber nodded and I defended myself.
"That's rude! Batting doesn't always equal strength! It's all about the angle and speed of the swing!"
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Well, I think it is the 50 pushups I do every night that makes a difference… It's not my fault that they don't train everyday!
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After which it was time for lunch, who knew Ojou-chan would be as detailed as to bring some canned coffee for me while we sat down on the picnic mat.
Man, she just ordered Shirou like a dog to help set up the space when he commented on her being able to eat one whole loaf of bread by herself.
Note to self, never say such careless things in front of her unless you wish to be killed.
The way she barked out orders was so intimidating that even I was compelled to help out when Rin pulled me back and insisted that Shirou did that by himself.
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The emphasis was there and she was obviously picking on the poor boy… but better him than me in any rate.
Lunch was good, probably because Ojou-chan made it herself in the dead of dawn, I saw her working hard on it and was glad that the boy and Saber agreed with me.
Of course, she is still teasing him and I guess she will never stop. Heh, that's more like the ojou-chan that I know.
"Look, there is a tomato slice stuck on your lip, let me help you get it off!"
But it was Saber who got the first say by taking it out for him instead and popping it in her mouth. The way she made it look so natural while Shirou and Rin just gaped at her in surprise and embarrassment was priceless for me and I grinned in contentment.
"Heh~ you two are a matching pair of tomatoes~"
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I grinned and continued eating while Shirou and Rin started arguing and 'flirting' with themselves as I and Saber watched on.
We are both Servants and we know it is impossible for us to stay in this place forever, at least I hope Saber remember that. She seems so attached to the boy that I am concerned about how she views him.
Either way, it will be interesting nonetheless to see how this day turns out.
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"I'm sorry, I just can't help but tease you, your reactions are exactly what I want~ and Saber, Shirou can never hide anything from you, desho? We can read you like a book!~"
Giggling mischievously, the red devil and the white angel continued to tease the poor boy when he suddenly got up and ran towards the side.
"Eh Shirou?"
"Hey! Watch out!"
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He had seen something gone wrong and the three of them watched in confusion at why Shirou would run towards an unfamiliar woman when Saber cried out a warning as well.
"Shirou! Stop!"
A sign had suddenly buckled under it's own weight and was on it's way to crush a golden haired woman who just happened to be in the path of the object and Shirou was dashing to push her out of the way!
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Author's Notes: R&R~
