SURPRISE-

Bonus chapter b/c I thought it was needed.

Basically later that Halloween night...

Rin frowned at the height of the glasses. Huffing she went back into the cafeteria to drag a chair over. She had woken up abruptly in the night. The edges of her dream still whispering to her. She could hear Merlin's voice echoing in her thoughts. Not that she understood what he meant. She had sat there in the darkness for a little bit before pushing her covers back and making her way to the kitchen. No one was in the apartment as Atalanta and Berserker had told her that they were going to be out at a party when they tucked her in. Obviously, she had hoped to sleep through the night or long enough till one of them came but. But alas, this was not the case. So now Rin was hoping, she'd get her drink and be back before anyone noticed.

Success!

She grinned as she grasped the tall glass but soon yelped as the glass slid out from her under small fingers crashing to the floor. Cursing, she scrambled down from the chair. Staring at the broken glass, she sighed heavily.

Great ..

Looking around for a towel, Rin walked right into a pair of leather clad legs. Rin grunted as she fell back onto her butt. Immediately she started apologizing.

" I'm so sorry! I had a weird dream and woke up feeling thirsty.." Rin would have kept babbling about the unfairness of short people and tall shelves but wide grey eyes made her trail off. Tilting her head, she looked up at a hero she hadn't encountered before. Tall with white hair dressed in red and black. He was staring at her in utter disbelief.

"...Again, I'm really sorry if I startled you…" Rin said pulling nervously on her hair. His mouth was open and closing as if he didn't know what to say. "...Ah..I'm Rin.." she offered hesitantly. Maybe she should just go. She took a hesitant step towards the doorway. Suddenly, his jaw snapped closed.

"...Hello Rin..." his deep voice made her blink twice. "...I'm…" he said slowly. "….a Nameless Archer".

Rin tilted her head at this. "Nameless Archer? What does that mean? "

Rin went to move but she had forgotten that she had dropped her glass which littered the floor. With a cry, the nameless Archer scooped her up in his arms. In this moment, Rin heard Merlin's voice echo again in her mind. Instinctively, she curled her arms around his neck. Pulling back slightly Rin felt overwhelmed as she saw tears in his eyes. How very strange she thought to herself as she wiped them away.

"You should be careful." his voice whispered in her ear.

"Ne, Archer I can help you clean up. After all, I made mess." she said looked down at the floor. When she looked back he was shaking his head furiously. Then they were moving. Archer shifted Rin to one arm as he stepped over the broken glass. With his free hand, he filled a glass of water and carried them both outside to a table outside in the cafeteria. He gently set her down as if movement would hurt her.

"You said you had a weird dream?" He asked as she finished gulping down her glass.

"Mnn..sorta? Merlin was there..but I don't think we were in Avalon? I could hear loud chimes. Like bells? All I remember was him saying something about today..." Rin shrugged as she looked up. "..about walls? Or veils...being thin? But I haven't seen anything weird..."

Archer was looking at her with a kind smile. To be honest, he looked as if he might cry. Though she had no idea why. Maybe he had bad experiences with kids and didn't know how to act? Maybe he was secretly upset about the mess in the kitchen. Maybe he was just unsure about her. Straightening herself, Rin smiled widely and folded her hands primly in front of her. She may be just a kid but was a Tohsaka. Elegance was their specialty. Determined to make a better impression, Rin turned on the charm.

In the end, Rin didn't realize how long they sat and talked until her eyes started to droop lower and lower. It was always nice to meet a new hero and Archer seemed really interested in her but she was also a kid. Who was up way past her set bedtime. She didn't even realize how tired she was until her head was practically touching the table. Rin didn't even object when he said he was going to carry her back to her room. Nor did she even a peep when he gathered her up in his arms. The last thing she thought to herself as snuggled into his warmth was why he kept saying he was sorry.

...Aww...