Salutations, my lovely readers! The reviews...they're dwindling...(sad emoji face).

Originally, I thought to dedicate chapter 5 to Q&As, but I decided against it. I feel like I've already done enough wiki navigation/interpretation in this fic, so I think I'll answer a few questions in the author notes like this...if the question has a reference in it.

This is my reply to the previous Q&A section. Feel free to skip.

1.
Question from: Logic's a Product of Insanity

"The Origin should be unchangeable."

Ans. From Fate/complete material III World material.

It is said that everything in the world flows from and is derived from the whirlpool of the origins (ROOT), and maintains its current form. The direction of things that was born from the 'cause' of the beginning, the absolute command that is the core of what makes an existence called 'α' an 'α', is called the origin. In addition, the origin may be changed by certain factors.

And one other thing: Please STOP sending me one-word 'reviews' such as 'good', 'awesome' or 'Pls update'. No offense, but it really means nothing other than spam mail to me. Thank you very much for your understanding.

On to the story!

Contract with the Clocktower

The sound of a clock ticking filled the almost-destroyed living room.

Akiha Tohno could barely suppress a furious scowl from scrunching up her refined features. She tapped her finger against her arm. The big hand of the clock inched forward. The kimono-clad Thot yawned. Next to her, there sat an elegant-looking woman of blonde hair and piercing crimson eyes. The woman was trying her best to stifle a laugh...only to fail miserably.

Akiha felt a vein pop in her forehead.

Akiha Tohno was born as the second child of Makihisa Tohno, former head of the demon-blooded Tohno clan. From a young age, Akiha was always scared of her older brother, SHIKI Tohno. SHIKI had very strong demonic blood in his veins, so strong in fact, he showed small signs of succumbing to his primal urges, and sometimes, symptoms related to violent behavior would sprout out.

She feared him so much, in fact, she was actually unhappy when a boy named Shiki was added as a new family member, simply because he shared the same name as her brother. That all changed when on one sunny day, the boy pulled her hand and took her out into the enormous gardens.

Born into the prestigious Tohno family, Akiha lived a sheltered childhood under the strict supervision of her father. She almost never left her mansion, much less the balcony, and she was overwhelmed by all the new sceneries she never knew the Tohno owned.

Shiki lead her to the playgrounds where the other children of the mansion awaited. There, she experienced for the first time what it was like to play with other children. Thanks to Shiki, Akiha was able to experience at least some of the innocent joys of a normal childhood.

Unfortunately, not soon afterward Shiki was fatally wounded by a blood-crazed SHIKI and was sent by Makihisa to live with the Arimas, relatives from another branch of the Tohno family. Even before Roa took over, SHIKI was already dancing on the edge of insanity. Now that Roa has awakened, it was only a matter of time before he started killing.

Despite that, Makihisa couldn't bring himself to 'execute' his only son. Thus, he made Akiha into his heir and locked SHIKI in an underground cellar.

Akiha tried to visit Shiki at the Arima house several times early on, but pressure from her father and other relatives, in addition to Shiki's constant visits to the hospital, prevented their meeting. Contact was made all but impossible when Akiha was placed in a boarding school and she was forced to live on the campus. Akiha also sent Shiki many letters, but because he was ordered by Makihisa to never speak to Akiha again, he never replied.

Then, Makihisa died. Akiha became the head of the Tohno household and, ignoring protests from the remaining relatives, called Shiki back to live at the family mansion with her.

That was more than six years ago. She spent three years of continuous turmoil with her dearest brother, years filled with more death than a soldier would see for several lifetimes. Even so, it was three years that she treasured more than the life she had spent alone.

Three years ago, when she felt her life force return to her, Akiha felt her world crashing down. The young woman fell down on the spot, shell shocked. For the past three years, she has shut herself within the mansion, forcing her demonic blood to the very limit in a self-punishing manner, molding her flesh into that of a wrathful goddess of Ancient Japan, all to slay the spider who killed her love.

To her, Shiki was, and still is the most important person in the world. Not her 'true' brother who has awakened as Roa, not her deceased father who raped Kohaku, Hisui's twin and her personal maid, to contain his blood.

For Akiha, there was only one Shiki Tohno, and he was standing in front of her in the form of a young boy clad in priest clothes. Even in a different body, there was no denying he was the Shiki she loved so much.

She deserved a lifetime of love with him...yet the filthy sluts still kept their dirty fingers around him, even after death. Ciel was one of them. Yes, there were more. She was positive that at least one of them was already aware of Shiki's 'return', due to the 'contract' Shiki made with her...that odious, self-conceited woman...

Akiha shook her head. Right now, she needed to focus on the...nuisances on hand. Namely, the seventh of the Burial Agency and the kimono-clad delusional woman who called herself Musashi Miyamoto of all people. It was absurd to the point it was laughable.

However, judging from the way she singlehandedly cut down Ciel's barrier without breaking a single sweat, she definitely had the skills to back her prestigious 'name' as the most famous swordmaster in Japan.

No, more than anything else...why is there another blonde red-eyed inhuman sitting next to her Shiki like she belonged there in the first place!? She reminded her of a certain infuriating royalty of the Moon. The way Ciel glared daggers at the woman suggested that they were on the same page.

"So...", Akiha began. She didn't know what to say. She and the others had just received a full explanation of what transpired from Shiki, though he made the women present in the not-so-closed room promise that they would make up a story to tell Kirei, something along the lines about his left eye connecting with the ROOT.

He also adamantly refused to be called by his old name, insisting that this body was named Shirou Kotomine, and he's nothing more than a second personality to keep Shirou alive, going so far as to ask them to treat him that way.

Akiha almost giggled at her beloved brother's antics. He always had a line he kept to keep his morals in check. She adored him for that. Although, now is not the time for such formalities.

"Brother. Did you keep in mind the contract you made with Barthomeloi Lorelei?"

Judging from the way Shiki -Shirou's face lost color, he most certainly did not. Ciel made a face like she sucked a particularly sour lemon. Akiha was certain that her face mirrored Ciel's.

The blonde woman looked amused in a way a cat toys with her food, while the kimono- she'll just call her Musashi- simply looked curious.

Akiha sighed.

A man entered the rather 'open' living room. He had a huge package of crimson red Mabo-tofu with him. The man raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't know the Burial Agency participated in...Church renovations. I have to admit, I kind of like this new look. It's very...natural."

Shirou and Shiki both groaned.

"Can I have that spicy delicacy?", a certain curry-addicted executioner asked.

Barthomeloi Lorelei.

As the current head of the Barthomeloi magus family, acting Vice Director of the Clock Tower and Lord of the Department of Policies, Barthmeloi was a very busy woman.

In spite of the way her name was written in official documents, Lorelei was actually her first name, though she considered it her last. She shared her family's great sense of aristocracy and pride in their heritage, viewing her first name to be nothing more but an insignificant 'label' stuck on to her glorious 'Barthomeloi' name. This was not without reason.

House Barthomeloi was one of the most noted lines of magi within the mage association, considered as one of the Three Great Noble Families of the Clocktower, including House Tranbelio and House Valualeta.

The Barthomeloi was...to put it simply, a family of rulers and lords that were the embodiments of perfectionism and aristocracy.

Their lineage goes back to the construction of the Clock Tower, and the early Barthomelois quickly became Lords with their powerful Blue Blood: Noble Magic Circuits, a set of circuits that even surpasses the number possessed by the Headmaster of the Clocktower, a mage who has lived for nearly three thousand years, a mage who was also the disciple of the omnipotent King Solomon.

Not only this, but the Barthomeloi also had the attribute of Almighty, meaning that they have attributes for all the basic elements of magecraft.

All in all, the Barthomeloi was not a family to be trifled with in the slightest manner.

Lorelei was the current head of this House Barthomeloi. Despite her young age, she was feared as the Supreme Mage of the Present Era and the Queen of the Clocktower. And the Queen was in a surprisingly good mood.

Her signature weapon- a riding crop- tapped the parchment in front of her with a steady rhythm. In front of her, there was a contract. On it, it held more than a dozen geasses, capable of binding a sacred oath to the contractor with soul magic.

A certain somebody's name was written on the Geass scroll with dried brown ink. The ink looked suspiciously like dried blood. Considering the nature of the contract, it was most likely just that.

"Mors...it certainly has been too long..."

The whisper was almost seductive. Her gloved fingers gently trailed over the signature. With a short sigh, Lorelei remembered the first time she heard his name.

The Barthomelois hated Dead Apostles with a bloody passion, and Lorelei was no exception.

As a matter of fact, while the Barthomeloi did always have a completely irrational hatred towards vampires, Lorelei's own hatred was on another entirely different level. Even she herself couldn't understand why it was so strong.

This trait lead her down the path of vampire hunting. To be more specific, Dead Apostle Ancestor hunting. Not slaying, not killing, but hunting. And hunt she did.

The young girl hunted the vile race with utmost grace, erasing entire bloodlines from the face of the earth in a matter of months. She hunted with elegance, even referring to vampire hunting as a 'pilgrimage to show her dignity'.

She went so far as to refuse to use followers on anything below the level of an Ancestor, considering high-ranking Dead Apostles to be nothing more than, quote; 'pitiful bugs that require nothing more than my own hands to eradicate'.

On one night, however, she learned the bitter taste of defeat. For the very first time in her entirely successful life, she had failed. Her, the head of House Barthomeloi, had lost to a single boy.

While the policy of the Barthomeloi family was that a battle should be won even while it is proceeding, she felt that annihilating vampires was neither a trial nor a battle, but rather a simple yet pleasurable game of hunting. This was her arrogance.

That was exactly why, when she was beaten to Louvre's castle by an unknown boy, feared under the name of 'DEATH', she was dumbstruck. To put it simply, her pride was crushed.

To make matters worse, not only was the pride of the Barthomeloi, a pride that she treasured most deeply, was trampled under the heels of a stranger...not only did he beat her to the punch, but she also didn't even manage to so much as glimpse his shadow.

She just stood there, speechless. She couldn't admit the simple fact that her prey was no more. The embarrassing truth that the Ancestor was already taken. The unwavering proof that she was inferior at her own game.

Lorelei felt like a headless chicken running around in circles instead of a Queen on a prideful hunt. She almost passed out from the sheer humiliation.

Then, the rage hit her. Not wanting to shame herself further by fainting, she bit her finger, hard. She bit her flesh to the point of smearing blood through her thick gloves to stop her teeth from grinding.

On that night, the girl swore an oath. A promise to make 'DEATH' pay.

At the same time, Lorelei couldn't deny her rising interest in this man. A man who managed to kill her prey, damage her pride...without himself knowing.

'From the bottom of my heart, I shall grant you my highest praise. Then...I shall reclaim my pride, and make you taste my bloody pain.'

At first, Lorelei's sole objective was to track this mysterious 'DEATH' down. The burning curiosity soon turned into something more. Something more fanatic, something more...zealous.

Shiki the Killer, the fifth member of the Burial Agency called him in awe. Shiki Tohno, an ordinary college student from Japan. A boy without a drop of demon blood. This was the true identity of 'DEATH'.

Lorelei couldn't believe her ears when she learned that Shiki was not even a mage nor a member of the Church. She blanked out, her brain refusing to understand what this horrifying truth indicated.

She, Barthomeloi Lorelei, had lost to a self-taught boy.

That day, Lorelei laughed. A Barthomeloi never laughed out loud, yet she laughed hysterically as if she had just heard the funniest joke in history.

In a way, she did. The joke was herself.

That day, a girl named Lorelei learned obsession. Barthomeloi Lorelei swore to make Shiki Tohno pay, more than anything else in this world.

How could she accomplish this? How could she recover her tainted honor?

'But of course...I shall make you...mine.'

It was an easy solution all along. There was no shame if 'DEATH' was under her command. There will be no honor tarnished by the fact a Barthomeloi slew an ancestor. More so, if it was in his elder sister's stead.

Lorelei giggled.

That day, she became a woman.

'Shiki Tohno, I have a most generous proposition for you.'

'Oh, playing dumb, are we, Shiki Tohno? Or should I call you 'DEATH'?'

'You are the one who slew Louvre, the tenth of The Twenty-seven Ancestors, am I correct? ...Good. I heard that...you have a certain someone you may want to save...'

'What was her name...ahh, Arcueid, was it? A True Ancestor, born as the defensive mechanism of our planet, yet tainted by the same vile desire of any other apostle...it makes me sick.'

'Ah...you do not want to antagonize me. Trust me. You will regret it.'

'Now, where was I? Yes, I can help you. You see...I have a 'passage' with the Headmaster of the Clocktower...and one foul-blooded Wizard of the Kaleidoscope. I am your best hope.'

'What do I want, you ask? Oh, it is more of what you are about to ask me, the head of Barthomeloi. A family that despises Apostles from the depth of our souls.'

'All I ask of you is...minuscule compared to what you ask of me. All you have to do is sign this paper. All you have to do is change your name. A name, you needn't use in public. That, is what I ask of you. A simple task.'

'We have reached an agreement, Barthomeloi Mors.'

'After all...mors vincit omnia...Death Conquers All.'

That was four years ago. A year before his 'death'.

Lorelei chuckled in her leather seat, her riding crop now tapping against her palm.

"My foolish, young brother... Truly, you couldn't have been so naive as to believe changing your name had no consequences?"

The Queen smiled. A bloody, sadistic smile.

"As I named you...even Death shall not tear us apart."

With a casual flick of her hand, the signature on the scroll glowed an ominous crimson.

"After all...a Barthomeloi always pays her debts."

Aaaaand, cut. Lorelei is one hell of a woman.

I sincerely hope that those who don't know much about Tsukihime lore or TYPE-MOON lore in general managed to enjoy these chapters. I do realize that I'm explaining a lot of stuff, but that's because not explaining would make zero sense.

Reviews, ideas, and opinions are most welcome! They keep this story going!

X-kalibuuuur, tired beyond belief.