(A/N) See? It was shorter, just like I promised!
...Anybody? Nothing?
Lol. Seriously, though, times have been tough. This chapter was never gonna be a full-length chapter (because it really isn't one to begin with) but I had told myself that it would be fine as long as the new update followed the previous chapter within a couple of days. Unfortunately, I have been bullied by deadlines. As a belated birthday gift to myself, I took the day off today and spat this chapter out.
On a more serious note (like, the most serious of notes that you'll ever get from me), I'd like to clarify the situation with Emiya calling Sakura "emotionally retarded". In no way was that him calling her autistic in a derogatory fashion. The difference between "emotionally retarded" and simply "retarded" is a grave one.
Again, this matter is very important to me, so regardless of how many readers have already understood this distinction, I feel the need to draw attention to it anyway. Sakura is called "emotionally retarded" because she is "emotionally held back". I could not use the latter term because it would not be the correct term to use here.
When writing fiction, some characters may bring improper topics into play that are in no way reflective of the author's personal opinions, be it discrimination, politics, or otherwise. This was not supposed to be one of those moments. A moment in this story that is actually completely fucking reprehensible is when Gil goes about discussing child grooming with Emiya. It's fucked up, but it's kind of a Gil thing to say, in context.
On another note, opsie woopsie UwU. Kiritsugu-san ga shinda. I'll be totally honest: I expected more flames over that part. There are no words to describe how glad I am that readers appreciated why he died (if not necessarily the actual fact that he did). Please take solace in the fact that I am a weak-willed individual who is unable to kill off characters unless I absolutely must for the sake of this story's narrative integrity. This won't turn into attack on titan or game of thrones (or fear the superhero *cough cough*).
Despite the fact that this chapter exists only to give you more questions without answering any in return, I hope that you're able to find some enjoyment in it anyway. I'll do my best to update quicker next time.
On a related note, much of what was skimmed over (or hinted at) here will be properly developed as the story progresses.
As always, thanks for reading! Idk if PMs are working super well yet, but if you hit me up, I'll try to answer any questions that you may have to the full extent of my ability. (If not, post a topic in my forum and I should be able to get back to ya no problemo).
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Prelude op. 1 n. 1
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Emiya-kun was sad.
He was trying to hide it –and he was really good at hiding it– but still, I could tell.
When he came back from his family vacation, he didn't act any differently at all. He showed up to the first day of school and acted like a jerk, the same as always.
But then again, just because someone acts the same as they always do doesn't mean that they aren't sad. I knew that very well.
Obviously, I tried talking to him about it.
"My old man passed away, is all. He was sick, so he was going to kick the bucket sooner or later."
What a complete dummy. How can anyone say something so gloomy with a straight face!?
Sad or not, he made me angry. It was because I knew what he was really going through that I walked away, not in spite of it. I avoided him for the rest of class.
The first day of school finished early. I went home and tried my best to forget about it.
When the second day came, Emiya-kun didn't show up at all.
It probably wasn't that big of a deal. This sort of thing happened all the time with kids our age. Missing a day of school was completely normal. Again, I tried to push it out of my mind.
I wasn't able to. Instead, I found myself in front of his house.
Stupid Emiya. My conscience made me come here, didn't it? My evenings should be spent practicing, but here I am anyway. Are you happy!?
Seriously, this guy was the worst.
I knocked. It took a moment for anyone to come to the door.
"Tohsaka. What are you doing here?" Emiya-kun asked me.
I huffed. As if I'd be able to answer that, idiot!
Instead, I walked past the entrance without a peep.
..Of course, it wasn't rude! He did it to me first, so this much was fine.
"Can I get you a cup of tea?" he offered.
"Yes," I answered without thinking. Well, it was too late to go back on my word now.
He led me to a different room, so I took a moment to –reluctantly!– admire his house. It was pretty big, but everything looked pretty clean. Was he going to be looking after this place all on his own, now?
We found the dining room, and so I was able to correct myself. He wasn't alone.
A pretty white-haired woman walked out from behind the kitchen counter with a teakettle. Was this his mother? She looked a little too young. Maybe an older sister? A cousin?
"Ah. Sella. I could have done that."
The woman scoffed. "You're supposed to be head of the household now, aren't you? Worry about keeping your guests entertained."
I couldn't help but feel a little put off. Was Emiya-kun not on good terms with his family?
…On second thought, that wasn't too surprising at all. A jerk was a jerk was a jerk.
She poured both of us a cup and left the room.
"…"
"…"
We stared at each other awkwardly from across his dining room table.
Oh. I was the one who was supposed to say something, wasn't I? It wasn't like he invited me over or anything.
"You weren't at school today."
He gave me that look again. That smirk that made me feel like he was making fun of me, somehow.
"Worried?"
"As if"
I was just here to make sure that he wasn't doing anything irresponsible. He was supposed to be my rival, so if he was doing something that he shouldn't, then I might look bad too.
"We took the day off to pack our suitcases," he explained out of nowhere.
"You just came back, didn't you?"
Emiya-kun nodded. "It's not really a vacation this time. My little sister has an operation scheduled in another city."
I couldn't help but feel bad for her, even though I never met her.
"Is she all right?" I asked. I couldn't look him in the eye for some reason.
"Mhm. She has the same condition as my father. We caught it early, luckily, so she should make a full recovery."
That was good, then.
"…"
I didn't know what to say. I really didn't want to be here anymore.
"Are your sisters… away right now?"
He shook his head. "Everyone's in their rooms getting things ready. Sorry, they would have come to greet you normally, but I don't think they're in a very good mood."
And what about you?
"Never mind that," I mumbled. "I don't have anything else to say, so good night to you, Emiya-kun. I hope your sister's operation goes well for her."
As I got up to leave, I noticed what could have been a smile on his face.
"Yeah. Do you want me to walk you home?"
"I'm just fine on my own!"
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Prelude op. 1 n. 2
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"T-Tohsaka-senpai!"
I did my best to flip my utterly exhausted frown into a smile. Giving the school gate one last longing glance, I spun around to face the underclassman that addressed me.
…Oh? It was a girl. I was expecting a boy, honestly. I'd been getting a lot of these sorts of confessions ever since the first day of middle school.
"Yes?" I answered as sweetly as possible. Today was the last class of the semester and I was tired from the long day, but I didn't want to sound impatient.
The girl held a pink, heart-covered letter in front of my face.
Hm? Maybe it was a confession. I wasn't used to other girls doing these sorts of things, however. How novel.
She stuttered a little more before managing to squeak out, "Could you give this to Emiya-senpai, please?"
Eh?
Eh?
"Why are you asking me to give that to him?" I blurted out before I could stop myself. No matter which way you spun it, this was weird, wasn't it?
My underclassman blushed furiously. "Well… you see… you talk to him a lot, don't you?"
In a sense– if only to make sure that he knew when he was underperforming. Such mediocrity from the one whom everyone accepted as my scholastic counterpart could not be tolerated. He wasn't my equal, of course, but I hadn't much control over the propagation of the public's malformed opinions.
I sighed.
"That's a love letter, isn't it?"
She hesitated but nodded shyly in the end.
"If so," I continued, "then shouldn't you be giving this to him yourself?"
Her head flicked back and forth at brain-scrambling speeds. "I can't! He's way too scary! There's no way that someone like me could muster the courage to confess face-to-face. He's got this aura about him– like he's always looking down on you, or something?"
I tried my best not to sound condescending. "How terrible of him."
"Are you kidding!?" she shouted with a completely unexpected fervour. "That's the best part!"
"…"
The words that I wished to utter could not come out under any circumstance. I had an image to maintain, after all.
I clicked my tongue. Regardless, there was nothing that I could do.
"Emiya-kun probably isn't around right now. If you want to get in touch with him, it'll have to wait until next semester."
The teary-eyed look that she gave me almost made me feel a little bad.
"Eh? Why is that?"
"He doesn't stick around during school breaks. He has relatives in Europe, so his family spends the time off overseas, usually."
"But– but… he wouldn't have left right away, right? The day just ended!"
No, he was totally the type to have a flight booked within the hour. It's been like that for him for over half a decade already.
Honestly, I should have just turned the girl down and saved us both the trouble.
Unfortunately, I had an image to maintain. I couldn't be going around refusing the requests of my cute little juniors, now could I?
I crushed whatever annoyance threatened to bubble up.
"Look. I can't promise anything, but I'll stop by his house and see if he's still there. If nothing else, I'll drop it in the mailbox. Is that okay?"
She lit right up.
"Yes! Absolutely! Thank you so much!"
Hah… seriously. I have stuff that I want to do today as well, don't you know?
"It's nothing," I chirped.
I took the letter and left her with a polite wave. Unfortunately, I now found myself obliged to take a detour before going home.
The sun was starting to set, much to my chagrin. As I passed through the neighbourhoods between Homurahara Junior High and my destination, I couldn't help but mourn the loss of the time that I should have spent going through Father's remaining texts.
Eventually, the suburban housing made way for larger, traditional estates.
Emiya-kun's house was just down the street from here. In fact, he was standing in front of his house along with–
Was that Matou-kun? I didn't know they knew each other. That old man at his side… that was his grandfather, wasn't it?
Whatever it was that they were discussing, it wasn't a pleasant matter. Or at the very least, Emiya-kun and Matou-kun didn't seem too impressed with it. As I approached, I noted that Matou's grandfather seemed awfully pleased about something.
My arrival had been noticed. Emiya-kun, of whom I expected nothing better, offered a noncommittal grunt. His attention was entirely captivated by his other guests. Matou-kun gave me a sideward glance, but for once he decided to keep his mouth shut.
The older man was the only one who seemed willing to be anything close to civil.
"Good evening, Tohsaka. Don't worry, we're just about finished here. Let's go, boy."
The pair walked by me, leaving Emiya-kun and I alone at his doorstep. I didn't think that either of us had the time or desire to discuss the nature of their company.
I clicked my tongue. Might as well get this over with.
"This is for you."
He took the letter silently. Instead of offering his thanks, his eyebrow quirked noticeably.
What is it, you–
"Is this a love letter?"
Ah.
I tried to hide my embarrassment with a cough.
"Of course not! I mean, not exactly–"
"You shouldn't have, really, but it's nice to know that you care. How sweet."
"Shut up, you half-wit!"
He laughed. Whether it was at his own god-awful humour or at me I didn't really know. The letter was stuffed into the pocket of his school uniform.
He had no intention of reading it. That was never in doubt. Regardless, my foreknowledge of the fact didn't make him any less of a scumbag.
"Sorry. I'd offer you a refreshment, but we're about to head out the door."
I crossed my arms. "Don't be. I haven't the time, nor the intention to come inside in the first place."
He imitated my posture. "You never do."
"Because I'm always busy."
I had never met any other member of his family, save for that one instance where that aggressive older sister of his brewed us tea when we were younger. If those two set a truthful norm for the rest of the Emiya family, maybe it was for the best.
"It's fine, it's fine," he waved exaggeratedly. "Next time I prepare something, I'll just drop by."
I gnashed my teeth. I was getting irritated by that lackadaisical attitude of his. Didn't he know that people couldn't just work their schedule around his whims?
"I said, I'm busy!"
He stared at me as if I were the idiot.
"Evidently. That's why I'm coming over and not the way around."
I didn't deign to humour his droll quips any longer. I about-faced so as not to let him see my flustered complexion.
"Good evening, Emiya-kun."
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Prelude op. 1 n. 3
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I stifled a yawn with the back of my hand, the other one occupied holding my schoolbag. The orange glow of the setting sun shone through the hallway windows.
It was hard to believe that the last day of middle school was already over.
I heard a muted thump from outside. An idle curiosity had me walking closer to the window to get a glimpse of what that sound might have been.
A high jump stand was set up in the middle of the track field. At its feet was a toppled crossbar being picked up by–
Emiya-kun, as it would seem.
How odd. He wasn't in any clubs, if I recalled correctly. Honestly, it was a bit of a shame. He was remarkably fit. I doubted with near certainty that there was anyone else our age in the prefecture that was anywhere close to being as much of a muscle-head as he was.
So that was the sound of him whiffing the high jump. How surprising. If he was still at school after regular hours for once, then he must have really been going at it for a while, right? This wasn't the sort of thing that I expected him to need too long to get right. Maybe a few tries at the most.
He set the bar in place, and his inability to pass the self-imposed hurdle made a little more sense. The height of the bar was half again as tall as he was! Forget prefectural competitions, was he training for the Olympics or something? There was no way that someone our age could make that jump.
He tried again, and as I expected, it went just as poorly. It was kind of impressive that his body was able to hit the bar at all, actually.
Unperturbed, he positioned the crossbar once more.
"Oh?"
I felt a grin cross my lips. Despite myself, I couldn't help but relish the sight of Emiya-kun failing something miserably for once.
Again, and again, and again, he kept jumping and fell back on his ass each time. Seriously, this was the best!
I yawned.
As fun as it was, maybe it was time to call it a day. It was getting a little dark–
Hold on, how long had I been standing here? How many times had he tried to make that jump until now?
I shook my head. Never mind.
I picked my bag back up off the ground and turned to leave. As I did so, my eyes just barely caught sight of Emiya-kun clearing the bar.
I forgot how to blink. I felt a lump in my throat that I desperately wanted to push down.
…Did that seriously just happen? He must have been tired by now, right? His jumps should be worse by now, not better, right?
What was the record for the middle school high jump, exactly?
To my dismay, my thoughts were once again interrupted.
Again, the crossbar found itself in his hands. My guess that he was about to put the equipment back into storage was quickly proved wrong as he instead set the bar even higher.
