Seventeen-hours. That's how long it took for Ritsuka Fujimaru to review. Her head uncontrollably swayed back and forth like a pendulum, eyes and head burning, both for different reasons. If she had closed her eyelids at this moment, she could have very well fallen asleep on the floor, right then, and right there.
However, her finals were steadily approaching, and she needed as much comfort as possible. Shakily walking towards her bed, she immediately collapsed onto the soft surface. The light snores that left her mouth bouncing from one corner of the room to the next, her mind in a state of serenity.
Which lasted for all but five minutes… before she showed up, accompanied by a booming return. A long, bellowing groan echoed from her throat, her voice raspy due to having not drank a single drop of water in the last hour. 'Why was she up this late!?' Ritsuka thought to herself, her body forcibly flipping over as the door to her room creeked, a familiar figure standing in the hall.
"Heey~! Did ya miss me?" A feminine voice called out, a veil of darkness obscuring her face. "Been gone for a while, haven't I? Had to go on a study trip with my teach'. He's very particular and razer focused on his learning material and topics. I swear, had he not thrown me into a pit filled with space piranha, I would have arrived back a month earlier. Tops!" The mad woman proclaimed, raising her hand into the air high. "Anyways, what've you been up to lately, Rits? Besides sniffing my bedsheets, that is."
The snide comment was enough to get a rise out of the orange-haired girl, energy returning to her body as she tried to defend herself. "That was one time!" Shaking her head, the person entered into the limelight, her blonde hair shining under the light of the half-moon.
"Just because your bedsheets keep coming out smelling like steak and diesel, doesn't mean I like your lingering smell. Damn thing didn't stop until after the sixth cycle. Speaking of, you need to stop smoking on your bed, at least do it in the balcony." The former's eyes rolled at Ritsuka, her hands balling up for a second.
"Whatever, you're not my dad. Either way, that's besides the point. I didn't come all the way here to ask how you were." The tired woman's eyebrows rose to attention upon hearing her words, her body easing. "Look, I'm going to be honest with you and say you're the bestest friend I have ever come across in all of my travels." Awwww- "Which is why I'm taking you out for a little vacation."
Her eyes sparkled for the briefest of moments, a tinge of greed permeating through her gaze. "After the finals, right? Give me a time and date, and I'll be sure to pack all of my stuff with me." Her voice brimmed with anticipation, stars practically beaming in her eyes. All until the ramifications of the action hit her all at once. "Wait, seriously? This is free, right? No hidden fees or whatever."
Her roommate's hand went over her chest, pulling in shorter girl closer to her. "Maybe, maybe not." Chills ran down the young Fujimaru's spine as Abby went dangerously close to her ear, the blonde's breath stroking the hairs on her back. "However, what I will say is that we need to go, right now. Whatever event you had planned for tomorrow? That can wait, for now, it's just you, and me. You got that?"
Slowly nodding her head, a coat of sweat layered on her body. A gentle giggle leaving Abigail's lips, pulling backwards. "Bring three sets of clothes, sleepwear, and nothing else. Yes, that includes your phone, or any electronic device." Ritsuka tried to open her mouth, but a finger was quick to stop her, sealing both of them shut. "I don't want to hear it. Just trust in me, and everything will be alright. Here, you can even have my coffee."
Her eyes widened in shock as the woman before her produced an ice-cold frappe out of thin air. She could've sworn Abby didn't have anything on her person when she went in, but how-? "Don't question it, Rits. Just go with the flow, and fate shall guide everything else along the way."
Another one of her weird sayings. If she were none the wiser, then the orange hair-girl would've guessed she took it straight from a Light Novel in an attempt to sound cool or whatever. Shaking her head at the thought, Fujimaru got off the bed, taking the cup right out of her roommate's hands, moving over to the comfort room, the ball of disaster falling close by.
"So, what have you been up to while I was gone?"
Shrugging her shoulders, a yawn wormed out of her lips, unhinging her jaw as it let loose, a hand coving it immediately. "Nothing much, really. Mostly reviewing for exams that have yet to come. Finishing projects and group works with next day deadlines. You know, usual college stuff. But, I guess you wouldn't know what it's like, seeing as you rarely even attend your classes."
A chorus of giggles left Abigail's mouth, the blonde resting her chin on the former's shoulder. "You're such a bore. No partying? No dating? No nothing? Damn, you really needed this trip then… don't worry about it, I'll take any and all of your stress away, Guaranteed!" She loudly proclaimed, right next to Ritsuka's ears no less.
Her ears were left ringing, the sensory organs defenseless to the attack. "At this rate, you're only going to double it. Either way, I'm only entertaining your jokes. The aforementioned exams are in three hours, and I can't miss it. Or else all my efforts would have been for nothing. Now, let me enjoy the little time I have to relax, and sit in the back like a good girl, can you do that?"
Fujimaru's arms drooped, grabbing her tooth brush and moving them robotically, a cycle repeating itself as she had done over a thousand times. Left, right. Left, right. Abby watched her actions with a hypnotic fervor, her eyes never once straying. She tried raising a brow, but was too tired to do so, opting to instead continue with her routine, with the blonde shooting the occasional question every now and then to switch up the mood.
"You know what? Since you like talking so much, why don't I ask you a question, huh?" Pausing for a moment, she splashed water on her face, wiping away any left-over moisturizer. "What did you do whilst you were away?" 'Bet that'll shut her up for a little while.'
Tilting her head, Abby stared for a second. Looking up towards the ceiling as though something was there, letting go of a sigh. "Well, I went on another one of my fantastical adventures."
'Here we go again, another one of these made-up stories… doesn't make them less interesting though, she was a wonderful story teller.'
The blonde's face suddenly curved; her expression smug as she whipped out her cell. Placing it in front of Ritsuka's face, the latter shooting an expectant look. "Here, I was even able to get pictures this time." Swiping through each of the photos, the next always seemed to escalate in some way. Both in quality via the angles and lighting, but also from the level of excitement they elicited from her, eyes widening ever so slightly in a mix of amusement and intrigue.
"Woah… You went to a film studio for this, right? This is some marvel levels of quality in the CGI department… Damn, that's actually pretty impressive. Wonder how you were able to get this particular shot? How expensive was the set you used? Hell, how much did you spend to hire the camera guy?"
Abigail waved her hand, the sleeves of her jacket motioning. "Chill, relax. You don't have to ask that many in such a short amount of time, we aren't children after all. Though, I will tell you this. It's one hundred percent real! Nobody tampered with any of these… At least, not that I know of anyway."
It was hard not to heavily doubt her roommate's words. And with the number of time she had had already heard her stories, she was also starting to doubt what she had said in the past. Merely a sneaking suspicion of hers, but that had managed to creep its way into her mind.
Shaking her head, Ritsuka returned to the present conversation, putting in the final article of clothing she needed into her backpack. For an instant, she entertained the idea of abandoning this whole mess of charades in favor of gaining a few more hours of sleep (internet browsing), but decided to opt out of it in the last minute, her curiosity getting the better of her.
Deciding to ignore some of Abby's requests, she packed in more than a few extra items, tucking them into her bag without the blonde's knowing. It was tough to pull the trick over her, seeing as stuck to Ritsuka like glue. Only after she excused herself for a bathroom break was she able to slide them in without her notice, all the while, beads of sweat trailed down her back as she did so.
Her phone, and her wallet. Two of the essentials she needed, but were prohibited to bring. It was better safe than sorry, and trusting the words of a mad woman sounded exactly like what an equally insane person would say. Shaking her head, Fujimaru slung the bag over her shoulder and exited her room, entering their living room.
Lazily sitting in the corner, on a bean bag, Abigail sipped on a coffee cup that was completely different from the one currently in her hands, one of her eyes widening in confusion. "Oh, looking good. Didn't expect you to be done so soon though… Whatever, it just means we have more time to have fun."
There was an emphasis, that much she could gather. The word boomed in her ears, echoing through out her entire being as the floor beneath Ritsuka shook violently, panic settling in as her legs quaked from the shock. "Wh-wha- wh?" She stuttered, falling onto her face. "What the hell is happening Abby!"
She received no response in return, instead, being met with dead silence. The world split apart, and the two-halves of her former apartment separated the orange-haired girl from the blonde, her body tensing up as it reached out for her without a second thought, almost falling into the… abyss below.
Fear instantly settled, her heartbeat rising by several magnitudes, and her feet scampering to get back. 'What the fuck is going on!? Mom and dad never prepared me for this kind of thing, then again, who could have possibly thought of this!?' Ritsuka's breathing hastened, strands of her newly combed hair becoming messy, a hand over her own chest. 'What… what do I do now?'
Expelling all of the air in her lungs without so much as a second thought, she steeled herself to what was to happen next, remembering the words Abby had whispered to her. "'Go with the flow.' Just relax, everything's going to be fine." It wasn't, not one bit. A storm raged in her heart, drifting in the never-ending void that surrounded her. She had to do something, anything. Or else things would escalate even further. And she certainly didn't want any part in that.
Seconds passed, with Ritsuka pacing around the former remains of her apartment's living room, dilly-dallying for a solution. Seconds turned into minutes, and little more beyond that. Time and space melted into one, as a well of regret dug deeper in her heart. Had she not doubted her roommate more than she had, then this wouldn't be as surprising… Who was she kidding? This was head and shoulders above anything humanity has ever encountered.
Aliens, magic, and the secret realms in between. All of them revealed themselves to her in an instant, the darkness replaced by a flash of infinite light, its colors diverse like that of a rainbow.
Soon enough, a familiar voice reached Ritsuka's ears, very much so cheery in its tone. "Oh, you finally made it!" Though she could barely see, a crooked smile curved her lips. "Welcome, to the site of the Fifth Holy Grail War, the place where we will be spending the next week or two. Come, let's have some fun while we're here." It lasted about as long as she expected.
[A/N: Yo, what's up. I did a thing, and I don't know if I did it good. It's been a while since I've last wrote in 3rd person for this long, so I don't know how well it turned out. Still trying to incorporate my 1st person style into this. Anyways, this fic will be mostly about having fun, with some stuff in between. Also, this isn't the same Gudako from regular fgo, but an alternate version which still goes to school and has zero knowledge of the moonlit world. We're going to have fun with this one. Copy and paste stuff below.
Anyways, if you find anything wrong in the fic, let me know. I would love to hear your thoughts, opinions, and what I could have done in place of what is present.
Also, join discord server. I have one.: discord . gg / eTb2kPab4z
I also have a pa- tr eon at pa- t reon / balls1124 I'm not telling you to join it, but it would be nice.
With that being said, enjoy!]