Original Archive of Our Own Posting Date: September 20th, 2020

So, I was thinking of maybe creating a discord group for this story. If I do, who would be interested? Either comment below or PM me. Anyways, enjoy

We had been walking for about a half hour before Amadeus came to a sudden stop, bringing the rest of us to pausing as well. "Amadeus?" I asked in concern, my hand creeping towards the hilt of my newly sharpened sword. Did he sense any enemies? Seeing my reaction, the Caster shook his head, and we relaxed slightly.

"What I spoke about earlier with Marie was out of line. I wish to apologize for that," he explained, referring to the whole scene about Marie telling us about his proposal to her int heir youth and his reaction to it. Next to me, Ritsuka cocked his head quizzically.

"Do you still love Marie?" He asked tentatively, having been more involved with the conversation than I had been. The composer shook his head slightly.

"Certainly not," Amadeus admitted a bit blithely. "I have no more passion for her. She was just a special divergence in my fate. If I'd led a decent life, the divergence would've been that proposal. Like what you'd call the cornerstone of human history." Amadeus waved his hands in the air for added effect as he continued speaking. "What choices would this man, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, have made to end up this way?"

I grunted in agreement. "Not a day goes by where hundreds of people ask themselves similar questions as to yours." Amadeus nodded at me.

"I would offer my life to music, no matter what, and became a scum that abandons all human virtue," he said, almost despairingly. "I will admit, though, that if there was anyone who could have changed that fate of mine, I think it would have been Marie," he finished with a nostalgic smile. Now Mash had a question expression on her face, and she spoke up quietly.

"Amadeus, wouldn't that mean that you love Marie?"

"Oh, sure, I do love her. But I am not in love with her anymore. Why, is that a problem?" The Caster asked with a grin. Mash hesitated as I started to bounce on the back of my heels, eager to get back on the move, but unwilling to sound rude and interrupt what seems to be a potentially enlightening conversation for the unbelievably innocent Demi-Servant. If I was reading Mordred's body language and posture correctly as she stood next to me, she was having similar feelings as I.

"I don't know," Mash finally admitted. "Before, you said that we humans are filthy. Based on what you said, that means you think Marie is also filthy without exception." Amadeus just shrugged.

"So what? I love anything filthy. Music is beautiful. We humans are filthy." He paused and stared down at Mash, rubbing his chin with one clawed hand. "You weren't aware of such differences? It's just a matter of category, isn't it?" Poor Mash's confusion was only furthered by this.

"What?" She asked, blinking. "You said that humans only love beautiful things." Ah, so you are taking things as they are said at face value, and not reading between the lines, Mash. Might wanna talk with Rits about fixing that little issue when we return to Chaldea. My musing caused me to miss out on Amadeus's response, however, as Mash spoke up once more.

"Well, to me, that difference is too abstract," Mash said in a nervous and apologetic tone. The German Caster hummed in brief thought.

"I guess I can't make you understand it with words. You'll understand someday," he said as Mash looked down at her feet in disappointment. "After all, you're going to continue your journey with Ritsuka, right? Then you'll figure it out. When it comes to the topic of humanity, he is an ideal Senpai, as some might say!" He said in a jovial tone, and Mash perked back up, looking at her Master. Gee, glad to know that I've been left out. Or does everyone see me becoming the mother of our 'band of misfits'?

"Y-Yes! I can completely understand the 'ideal Senpai' part!" On the bright side, Mash's honest and energetic response did give me a form of amusement as my fellow Master spluttered in shock, cheeks flushing red.

"M-Mash!" He exclaimed, causing Mordred and I, along with Medea, to laugh at his reaction. Unfortunately, I wouldn't get a chance to find out my friend's response as I looked over my shoulder.

"We've got company!" I warned, and the relaxed atmosphere that had been present dissipates as weapons are drawn as I point at a group of a dozen of the werewolf-like beasts we had encountered in the forest near La Charité.

"Finally!" Mordred crowed excitedly. Yeah, she is definitely feeling better. A day she shows a distaste for battle is a day that I will be spending worrying about the Knight of Rebellion.

The battle was quick and without mercy. The animal-human hybrids were tough, but nowhere near the threat level of a Servant or a wyvern. Though, if one thinks about it, the main reasons wyverns are threats is only because of their numbers and abilities to fly. A badly injured foe managed to push past the line of Servants towards the end of the skirmish, but I dealt with it easily, calling out for Ritsuka to take some notes. All it took was a quick sidestep, then a cut to the Achilles's tendon, and then a simple thrust into the back of the neck, and so ended the last of our 'ambushers'.

I grunted as I pulled my sword out of the final beast-man, as I suppose would be better to refer to them. Can't calm them werewolves anymore even if they look like them if they can run around in broad daylight.

"I think that's the last of them," I said as I started to sheath my sword.

"We're done here," Mash said in response, before looking over at the weakest member of our group. "Siegfried, are you alright?" She asked the frowning Saber. I suspected that it wasn't a frown caused by pain, but rather one from being unable to fight.

"I've recovered enough to walk," he reminded her. "I just can't engage in combat. I'm going to be making trouble for you a little longer, no doubt. I'm sorry," he said. Mordred scoffed, but I didn't detect any real ire in her response. Nor did her fellow Saber react to it. My commlink went off and I activated it, displaying Roman once more.

"Find anything good?" I asked, and the acting director nodded excitedly.

"It looks like you won't be encountering any more enemies. I'll be keeping an eye on my readings and will let you guys know whenever a Servant signature appears," He said. Well, that seemed to be rather fortuitous. Hopefully it wasn't a trap, but I trusted Doctor Roman to have already taken that possibility into account.

"Okay, that sounds good to me. Thanks for the heads-up," I said, before deactivating my link as we prepared to resume our trek to Thiers.

Hopefully Marie and Jeanne are having fun with their little 'outing'.

Marie glanced over her shoulder, taking note of the admittedly scary expression (at least, if you asked her!) present on her new-found friend's face. It had been present for the past hour or two since Jeanne and her had left the others.

"Jeanne, Jeanne," she finally asked, unable to hide her concern. "You have a scary look on your face!" Jeanne was startled by the sudden addressal, her turquoise eyes wide and blinking in surprise.

"W-what?" Jeanne stammered, before an embarrassed blush that Marie felt was adorable appeared once more. "D-Do I look scary?" She added in concern. Marie slowed her mount to a trot, and then a pause, dismounting for a short break and gesturing at Jeanne to do the same. The Rider waited for her fellow Servant to steady herself after her own dismounted before she addressed Jeanne's question.

"Not so much scary as…stern?" The Rider explained with a giggle as the saint's blush refused to go away as Jeanne looked away a bit sheepishly.

"Well, I guess so," Jeanne admitted. "I was doing some thinking." Marie let out a soft sound of exclamation.

"You mean about the Dragon Witch?"

"Yes, among a few other things." Oh? "From the day I was born I've received God's revelations, and I just ran off without ever looking back. I became a Heroic Spirit after I died, and then was summoned as a Ruler. I accept this fact as part of the natural order of things." Jeanne's face scrunched up in confusion before she continued speaking. "I don't understand anything the Dragon Witch Says, not a single word. I wonder…who that 'me' is," Jeanne finally admitted. Marie gave the Ruler a brief hug, unable to suppress her soft giggle before taking a step back, smiling at her friend.

"Ah, you really are beautiful. Very, very, very beautiful," she said in all earnestly. Jeanne looked away, looking adorable once again!

"D-don't tease me," Jeanne said in denial, causing the Rider to shake her head slightly, still beaming at her fellow Servant.

"Well, it's the truth," Marie said firmly, refusing to allow the modest saint to disagree. "If I were you…I would probably accept the things the 'Dragon Witch' says," she added, causing her friend to look back at her with concern.

"…Marie?" Jeanne asked.

"Please hear me out. I don't hate the people who executed me. It's a fact I am 90% positive about. But that remaining 10%, or possibly even much smaller than that," Marie said sadly, as a collection of young faces flashed through her mind that belonged to some of the most precious people in her life. "I hated those that killed my children. At least, just for a little bit," she finally said with a sigh. Jeanne gasped softly, gazing at her with sympathy.

"They killed my son Charles, to hurt me. You should truly feel pity for him. So, if my version of the 'Dragon Witch' ever appears, I would probably think 'oh, that's the other me', and accept the things she says. But that's not the case for you, is it Jeanne? It's something really great and beautiful. It's not because you don't want to get dirty, or don't want to believe you are. Nor does that mean you lack something." She smiled softly, titling her head slightly. "You like people, don't you? People who try to move forward by groveling around. The unreasonable ones, the accusers." Her blush finally faded away, Jeanne nodded slowly, causing Marie to feel her smile brighten once more.

"Yes. I do love them," her friend admitted, before a look of understanding came to her. "Oh, I see, there's no way I could hold a grudge against them…because I love them.

"Oui! That's why France was saved by you. It's okay, tell the Dragon Witch when you see her," she urged, causing Jeanne to look at her in confusion once more. Agh, she didn't explain her idea about that yet!

"Tell her?" Jeanne repeated. "Well, tell her what?"

"Say what you want to say out loud. Say, 'You're not me', or maybe, 'I don't know you'," she said, trying to sound like her friend when she was serious. TO her satisfaction, her actions caused the saint to smile, shaking her head in slight amusement at the impressions.

"Well, you're right. Absolutely right," Jeanne admitted. "I certainly…Oh, huh...Know you, maybe?" Jeanne trailed off, rubbing her chin with one hand as she mumbled to herself softly. Marie tried not to frown. Drat, she's looking stern again.

"You're starting to look serious again," Marie sighed. "I'm sorry, it wasn't of any help?" Jeanne shook her head rapidly, and the sadness vanished as her spirits rose once more.

"Y-Yes. It was very helpful," Jeanne said with an honest and thankful smile. "When I confront her next time, I'm sure I can tell her what I want to say," the Maid of Orléans said determinedly. Marie nodded happily, pleased to see that her efforts had succeeded.

"Yes, you should be fine," she said, as her eyes flickered over to the device strapped to Jeanne's wrist. "Oh, I think it's time to make our regular contact!"

"Right, let's do that now."

"Glad to hear that you haven't run into any trouble yet. We ran into a small group of those werewolf wannabes earlier, but aside from that we've had little difficulties. Good luck, and we'll be eagerly awaiting your next report," I said to Jeanne over the commlink before turning it off. The others looked at me expectantly.

"Jeanne reports that she has encountered no hostile Servants or any other form of enemies," I said, noting the relieved expressions on Ritsuka and Amadeus in particular at the news. "So, this is Thiers," I said, looking ahead to the town before us.

The past hour or so was nice and quiet, especially after we dealt with those beast-men earlier. Ritsuka and I had had a quick break to eat, but aside from that nothing noteworthy had happened, and before we knew it, we had arrived at our destination. Amadeus nodded at me.

"Thiers…if I recall, it's famous for its knives. So far it looks like it hasn't been destroyed," he observed cheerfully. Considering that two out of the three towns we had been to or near previously had been destroyed, it was extremely pleasant to see one intact.

"Doctor, any signs of Servants?" Ritsuka said, having contacted the Command Room in the meantime. I turned around and crossed my arms, eager to hear the results.

"Finishing up checking… All right, there are two Servants in Thiers. They don't appear to be any you've encountered before, so that should be a good sign," Doctor Roman reported in a cautious tone. "We should make contact immedia-"

We all looked towards the front of the town as a fiery column appeared. No one said anything, staring at it in disbelief.

I felt my eye twitch slightly as the column of fire faded away.

"…that was unexpected," Mash said wearily. I took a deep breath as I looked around. While we weren't close enough yet to hear anything, but it didn't seem like the town was truly under attack. No wyverns circling overhead like reptilian vultures, no armies of the undead. Furthermore, the fire didn't appear to spread, nor was there other patches of flame visible elsewhere in the city. Then I noticed Amadeus pressing his hands to his ears, eyes screwed shut as an expression of disgust appeared.

"This noise…I hate it!" The Caster groaned. "An unprecedented noise, the premonition of an unprecedented demon! Oh, Muses! Please show mercy! My body can't stop trembling from fear." Well, that's certainly something.

"Well, we're not going to find out what the hell just happened standing up here," Mordred piped in, Clarent resting against her shoulder. Without waiting for a reply, she started sprinting towards the open gates, where the fire appeared to have come from. I followed close behind, the others at my heel.

It turns out my assumption of the town not being besieged was mostly accurate. As we passed through the tall wooden doors, I saw a small half-circle of the townsfolk staring in our direction with nervous expressions. Their gazes were aimed at us, thankfully. Instead, it was aimed at two small, young-looking girls who were glaring at one another. Considering how outlandish their outfits and appearances were for the local time period, it seemed like a good assumption that they were both the Servants Roman had detected, and the source of the fiery disturbance earlier. We came to a halt, and I focused on the conversation between the two girls.

"You!" The girl on the left shrieked at the other. She wore an outfit that made me think of a mixture of a maid and a popstar's dress, complete with frills and left her upper arms and shoulders bare. She had dark blue eyes filled with anger, and bright pink hair. I blinked my eyes to make sure I wasn't seeing things when I noticed the more…unique characteristics of her body. She had long, pink nails, a pair of curled horns, and a dark, scale-coated tail trailing from her skirt.

"Ok, definitely a Servant," I mumbled in shock to Mordred, who simply released a soft bark of laughter, no doubt amused at the expression of shock on my face as the girl continued screeching.

"You, you, you! You cheeky squirrel from the East!" She said, her voice reaching a pitch that was making me grit my teeth in discomfort as the other girl scoffed dismissively at the insult. She had long, light green hair, and wore a kimono. In one hand she clutched a Japanese-style folding fan that looked to be lacquered in gold. She had a set of white horn-like projections just above either side of the temple.

"Who's the actual; cheeky one?" Girl Number Two said, laughing mockingly at the other. "Do you really think a failure like you can beat a true dragon like myself, Elisabeth?" Elisabeth? Wasn't that the name Carmilla had said back at La Charité? But the two look nothing alike! 'Elisabeth's scowl deepened as she twirled a spear in her hands as she crouched down. The crowd opposite of us began to back away as the tension thickened in the air.

"Ughhhhhh! I'm so upset! I'll deal with Carmilla later, you die first, you creepy stalker!" She said hatefully. The other girl shot this 'Elisabeth' girl an utterly offended look.

"I'm not a stalker," she protested. "I'm a 'devoted bodyguard who acts like a spy'." So, an aggressive stalker. Please, don't let it be that she's the saint, I thought with a soft groan. "I, Kiyohime, am a woman who lives for love."

"Your 'love' violates human rights!" Elisabeth shot back in disbelief, causing the self-proclaimed Kiyohime to narrow her eyes.

"I don't want to hear it from a pervert with a fetish for blood torture. I imagine that you were doing…" she paused, apparently at a loss of words before she flicked her wrist at the demonic-looking girl. "as doing THAT. Weren't you?" She said accusingly.

Weeeell….well, well, well. Took us less than three minutes of listening to this argument before we went to an eleven. At least someone was enjoying themselves, if Mordred's poorly hidden laughter was anything.

For a brief moment, Elisabeth's stance loosened slightly, as she blinked her eyes in confusion at Kiyohime's accusation. "What's 'doing it'? What's 'doing that'? Don't talk nonsense!" Now Kiyohime was the surprised looking one.

"What? Elisabeth, I didn't know that you were-" At that moment the green girl's words had apparently clicked in Elisabeth's mind, for her face turned a deep crimson as she shrieked in a mixture of dismay and disgust, shaking her head rapidly.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" She half-pleaded, half-demanded. "I'm going to KILL YOU!"

"You can't kill me because I'll kill you!"

"Enough! Stop right there!" Amadeus roared like I had never seen him do so before. Our other Servants backed away slightly from the scowling Caster as everyone paused what they were doing. "I can't let the two of you go any further. What your doing is sacrilege against all voice and sound!"

"They're not saints, are they?" Ritsuka asked nervously, eyeing the two girls. To his relief, and that of myself and Mash, Amadeus shook his head emphatically to the negative.

"No way! Religions would tumble if they're saints!" Declared the composer. Mash stepped forward, clearing her throat as the two responsible for Amadeus's ire appeared to be starting back up their shouting match.

"Hey, you two!" Cried out the Demi-Servant, valiantly trying to diffuse the situation. If nothing else, her actions did cause the two feuding Servants to look away from one another.

"Huh? What?" Elisabeth asked.

"I'm busy right mow. Come back the day before yesterday," Kiyohime responded at the same time, rolling her eyes at a now awkward-looking Mash. The demonic Servant crossed her arms as best she could considering the spear she bore.

"Hmmph," she huffed at Kiyohime. "You'll no longer be busy soon. At least, until the next Holy Grail War that is!"

"Frilled-neck lizard," Kiyohime seethed. Did she just fell back to the age-old tradition of name calling?

"Japanese rat snake!" Yes, apparently, they are.

"Mexican bearded lizard!"

"Sharp-nosed viper!" Elisabeth said, as the two had grown louder with each name-calling. Mash tried to shout over the two as they resumed their childish bickering.

"Okay, stop!" Mash shouted vainly. Amadeus was clutching his ears tightly once again in the meanwhile. "Ahhhh..." he gasped in pain. For his supernatural hearing he had mentioned possessing, this must have been hell incarnate for him, especially at this close a proximity. "My ear will rot…You scum…Oh, no, I'm forbidden to say that word. I promised Marie," he grumbled before stiffening, gaze focused on Mash. "By the way, Mash…"

The Demi-Servant looked at the Caster with a mixture of dismay and irritation. The latter I cannot blame. If it wasn't for the fact that Mordred would have to hold the two back to prevent them from eviscerating me, I would have slammed their skulls together by now. "What now?" She asked.

"To our great joy, enemies are coming," Amadeus said, gesturing behind us. Sure enough, a small cloud of dust had appeared. "For the sake of my ears, let's deal with them," Amadeus said eagerly.

"Should we try to see if that would get those two to help?" Ritsuka asked as the two Servants continued their name-calling game.

"Black mamba!" Elizabeth shrieked.

"Japanese grass lizard!" Kiyohime roared in response.

"Forget them," I growled, resisting the urge to throw my hands in the air at frustration. The world might be in danger of being destroyed, and yet not even that could prevent supposed 'heroes' from being petty. At least the ones accompanying Ritsuka and I were professional, so to speak.

I stepped back outside, Mordred right behind me as she bore her typical smirk. At least my Servant's love for battle wouldn't change, it seems. I gripped my sword as the cloud drew closer, and I could see tall, humanoid shapes. Looks like they might be more beast-men. At least it's something kinda new, I suppose.

"Medea, Amadeus, you will assist Sasaki in guarding the gate. Mash, Mordred, Chulainn, you will be out front line. Siegfried, Ritsuka, keep an eye on the sky for any wyverns. Knowing our luck, they're probably not too far away," I barked, eyes narrowed, sword drawn.

"Time for another workout," Mordred said to the right of me as she moved up with our sole Lancer and Demi-Servant of the group, while the other Servants made sounds of acknowledgement.

"We hold the line. We don't let a single one of those bastards into the town. Let's kick some ass!" I said, drawing my sword and pointing the tip towards the rapidly approaching enemy host.

Original A/N: And done! What did you guys and gals think? So I decided this time to include the scene between Marie and Jeanne from the game were they talked about stuff, because honestly it felt important. I was originally going to write it from Jeanne's perspective, but then decided it might be more fun to use Marie's. Totally has nothing to do with what happens to our lovely French duo soon. Honestly, while I found Elisabeth and Kiyohime to have been a bit excessive in terms of including in the story, but honestly, I love their whole verbal catfighting. Plus, I think a certain dragon in our group won't take kindly to the upcoming actions of these two new dragons, lol. Now for one of my favorite things, Question(s) of the Day! Here's the first one: What's your favorite Servant Class? This is including Alter Ego, Foreigner, and Moon Cancer as well as Ruler and Avenger. As always, still taking story request ideas, and please feel free to drop a comment or leave feedback! Thank you for reading another chapter of this story, and I shall see y'all in the next chapter!