Chapter Twenty-Six
Seeking Knowledge
Somehow everything seemed easier, as if someone had lifted a giant weight off of Saber's shoulders. Her smile wasn't forced when she waited her tables, and she found herself grinning at the oddest moments. She passed a round of food to a group of customers and headed back to the wait station to get a round of refills. Asuka was standing there, both of her eyebrows raised as she watched her co-worker.
"Someone's in a good mood," the taller woman said with a grin.
Heat filled Saber's cheeks as she replied, "You are correct, I am."
"Is this the sort of good mood that's brought on by a guy or the fact you put in your Two Weeks?" the other waitress asked as she mixed some melon syrup and green tea concentrate together.
Saber smiled and answered, "I will not deny that I have someone special."
"Oh? Well, they're damned lucky and if they hurt you let me know and I'll break their legs," Asuka said before blowing a stray curl from her face.
Saber studied the other girl and said, "May I seek your council on a personal matter?"
"Sure, especially if it's about romance," the brown eyed girl said with a wink as she filled the rest of the glass with water.
Saber refilled glasses with soda from the machine and looked around. She then leaned forward and asked, "What does one need to do to prepare oneself for a date?"
Asuka's eyes doubled in size as her hands went completely still before she turned to face Saber. Saber frowned as the other girl just stared at her. The petite blond shifted slightly as she awaited the other woman's sage advice. Instead the response was, "You've never been on a date, Saber-chan?"
"Of course not. My previous path did not allow me the freedom to do so, and I see it as a frivolous pursuit, but he is being quite insistent on it," Saber said with a sigh and a shake of her head.
Asuka slowly blinked and asked, "Wait, you just wanna be friends with benefits with this guy or what?"
"My relationship with Archer is . . . unique," Saber said as more heat filled her cheeks as Asuka's statement brought other implications to mind.
The other girl's eyes narrowed and she said, "Oh. The Mr. Fix-It."
"Well, who else do you think I was discussing?" Saber asked with a frown.
Asuka tilted her head and answered, "Well, Gil King was very interested in you, I figured you may have gone out with him or something."
"That cur is not fit to lick the filth from my boots. If I had my way he would be tasting the steel from my blade," Saber said as she clinched her tray in her fingers. Heat rushed through her in a way that had
nothing to do with the pleasant warmth that Archer had instilled. No, this rush made her crave the sight of Gilgamesh's blood staining her blade and his fallen body at her feet.
Brown eyes blinked twice before Auska quickly looked away. "Okay, Saber-chan, didn't mean to touch a nerve there," she replied before taking a step back.
Saber's eyes widened and she said, "He has grievously wronged me several times. Do not let his pleasant appearance or wealth fool you. He is not a good man."
"And this Archer is?" Asuka asked as she studied Saber.
There was no hesitation when Saber nodded. She answered, "Yes, perhaps too good for his own good even."
"Well, if he's doing the right thing by asking you on a date, then maybe he's not as hard as I thought," the other woman said before sighing and shaking her head.
Saber smiled and asked, "So, will you aid me in this?"
"I'll see what I can do," Asuka answered with a grin.
"So, let me get this straight. This Servant, Gilgamesh, attacked you and then kissed you?"
Archer nodded as he adjusted his phone. He answered, "Yes. I stopped him from raping Saber and apparently he now finds me fascinating."
"This guy sounds like a real piece of work, Archer," Rin said with a long sigh.
Archer chuckled and said, "You have no idea."
"So he proposed to Saber in the last War, she turned him down with her sword, he finds her again when she's in the middle of her Great Depression, tries to get his rape on, you show up, sling a Broken Phantasm, and then you say something meant to piss him off. Except instead of pissing him off he develops a crush on you and now wants to rape you," Rin said, "And he knows you're Rider's one and only mechanic. So he goes after Rider, Rider of course goes to you for protection because she knows you'll have her back and will keep Sakura out of this. Then he goes for the attack, you fight, and then he plants a kiss before slinging Noble Phantasms all over your apartment."
Archer nodded and said, "Gilgamesh is pretty much bat shit crazy, but insanely powerful to back it up."
"And after you get hurt Saber comes after you, because you two have been getting so close, and then you spend the night together," Rin said.
Archer winched and replied, "We didn't have sex." Not technically. There was no oral and no penetration. Just manual stimulation and masturbation. No, we did not have sex.
"I know you didn't," Rin said in an oddly soft voice and he could see the tiny smile she was probably wearing over the other line.
He replied, "Saber's not ready yet."
"But she wants to," Rin said in a firm voice.
Archer sighed and answered, "Yeah."
"Of course she does. From what you've told me about her she's been repressed for only God knows how long. Now she's forced to live in a world she has no idea how to go about things, but she has a lot of freedom where she didn't before. And since Avalon wasn't active she's got hormones going everywhere and then here comes my Archer," Rin said with a laugh.
Archer scowled and asked, "And what's that suppose to mean?"
"You're attractive. I mean, you're not like that Gilgamesh guy or anything, but you're handsome without being pretty, you're tall and muscular, and despite the sarcasm you're quite the softie. And here's the big reason why Saber's fallen for you: you understand her," Rin said brightly.
He felt heat rise in his cheeks as he rubbed the back of his neck. He cleared his throat and replied, "Thanks Rin."
"Now, how do you feel about her?" Rin asked in a low voice.
Archer sighed and leaned against the wall he had been in the middle of repairing. He answered, "I want to make her happy. Saber being happy makes me happy."
"Archer, I don't want some selfless bull shit answer. You might not be the idiot my sister's going to eventually marry, but you still have that selflessness. I know this is going to be hard for you, but what do you want?" Rin asked.
A scowl marred his face as he held the phone in his hand. Rin's question was rebounding through his brain, bringing up things he hadn't really thought of. The last selfish thing he had attempted to do, perhaps the one selfish thing in his pitiful existence, had been the retroactive suicide attempt to erase himself from the Records of the Throne. Considering that didn't happen and he'd really gone about it half-heartedly for the most part.
So, what did he really want?
"Someone to be at my side be it fighting the forces of evil or helping me fix a bunch of broken bows that the school drops off," Archer answered, "And maybe a family."
Rin's voice was soft when she said, "You'd make an excellent father."
"You think so?" Archer replied with a slight smile.
There was a shuffling sound from the other line and she answered, "Yes. I know so. So, listen to me. If you're in love with Saber go after her, but you have to do one thing first. She has to know."
"I have to tell her who I am," Archer said as he looked down at his feet and groaned.
Rin replied, "I know that's going to be hard. You think she'll be disappointed in you or even guilty if she finds out who you were, and she'll probably be a bit pissed off too. I was."
"And you got over it," Archer said.
Rin said, "And so will she. Plus Saber seems more forgiving than me anyway. I think you'll be fine."
"I just wish you were here, Rin. She needs someone to talk to. A girl anyway, and she can't turn to Sakura and Rider . . . Well, Rider's Rider," Archer said.
"Well, if she hurts you, I'll kill her. King Arthur and Excalibur or not," Rin said in a low, almost growling voice.
Archer blinked and then laughed before shaking his head. Rin's voice began to squeak when she said, "What? You're still mine. You've been hurt enough, damn it. I want to see you happy. You're more fun that way anyway."
"You know Sakura wanted us to end up together," Archer told her with a chuckle.
Rin laughed as well and said, "Of course she did."
"We'd probably fight all the time," Archer said with a grin.
The magus replied, "Well, you're the only guy who could keep up with me."
"So would I be safe to assume that maybe there are several other girls who could?" Archer asked with a smirk.
Rin snapped, "What would give you that impression? You're a deviant you know that."
"And Aozaki Aoko's legs seemed to go on forever and that white shirt of hers doesn't hide her figure as well as she thinks it does, right?" Archer replied as his smile grew.
Rin's voice faltered when she answered, "That's just . . . You just stop that. That's just playing dirty, Archer."
"Aoko is a walking sexual offense and doesn't realize it, which makes her even more insanely hot," Archer said as he felt his smile growing wider and wider.
Rin said in a low voice, "Archer, stop teasing me."
"I'm not there and you're not here. Someone has to keep you grounded," Archer said.
Rin laughed and replied, "Fine. Aozaki Aoko is insanely beautiful and I couldn't stop staring during her lecture. There, does that make you happy?"
"Maybe. And maybe you need to start thinking about what makes you happy. If dating guys isn't working, well there's always your same gender," Archer said with a shrug.
"I . . . I don't . . . Archer," Rin said with a long sigh, "T-that's just not fair. And quit deflecting!"
Archer replied, "I'm not deflecting."
"Yes you are. Listen, you need to tell Saber who you are soon before things get heavier between you two. She needs to know," Rin said.
Archer sighed and said, "I know."
Saber returned to the Emiya household to be greeted by the usual smells of food cooking. The sound of dishes clinking together and meat sizzling filled her ears as she took off her shoes. As usual, she started the process to wash her uniform before heading to her room before dinner would take place. Her mind was buzzing, Asuka hadn't gotten the chance to help her due to the fact there was a huge rush at the Glass Slipper.
I should ask her tomorrow, Saber thought as she slid open the door.
Sitting on her futon in a spill of lavender hair was Rider. Queer eyes framed by glasses met Saber's as a slow smile spread across the other woman's lips. Saber's own eyes narrowed and she asked, "What do you want?"
"I just want to give you my congratulations concerning Archer," Rider said with that same lopsided smile.
Saber stared at her and said, "You have my thanks concerning your well wishes."
"Also, I figured you could use my aid," Rider said with a shrug as she rose to her feet.
Saber's eyes narrowed and she answered, "I appreciate your efforts, but you are mistaken, Rider."
"You want to please Archer don't you? Even though some of my knowledge came unwontedly, I do know how to please a man," Rider said in a blithe tone with an absent wave.
The smaller woman blinked before staring at the statuesque beauty in the room. Green eyes narrowed as Saber asked, "Why do you want to do such a thing?"
"Because I consider Archer a friend and do not want to see him suffer due to your lack of experience," Rider said with a slow shrug.
Saber blinked and asked, "I could hurt him?" He is so concerned with hurting me, but I never thought I could harm him.
"Oh yes, men are more delicate than they like to think they are, even ones such as Archer. Besides, there's enjoyment in seeing your lover trembling before you," Rider said with another easy grin as she lowered her lashes.
Heat filled Saber's cheeks at the connotations of the other woman's words. She squared her shoulders and said, "If this is aid is being given out of ill intentions, I will force you from my sight."
"Now that's the Saber I remembered fighting against. I'm glad to see her back," Rider said as she moved towards Saber. The smaller woman held her ground as she met those strange squared pupiled eyes.
Saber replied, "If we cross blades again, I will not be merciful."
"I don't want to fight, death honestly brings me no joy," Rider said with a shake of her head.
Saber frowned and asked, "Then what do you want then?"
"To make Archer's life easier and besides if I'm not bringing him to his knees, I'd like to know that the person who is will do it right," Rider said with a smile.
More heat filled Saber's cheeks and she said, " . . . Then I will be your student in this."
"Good," Rider said as she clapped her hands together and a slow smile spread across her face and made her eyes gleam. At that moment, Saber wondered if this is what Eve felt when she took the apple from the Serpent.