Sorry for the wait. I had writer's block so I spent it by planning how the rest of the story would play out, specifically the Servants' deaths.

For those that don't know, OST means "Original Soundtrack". It is the background music for scenes and battles in anime and games. The melody you hear during certain parts of a scene is one. You can usually hear these on Youtube. As for the words in between the title of the OST and "end OST" are where the OST plays. "End OST" just means to stop playing that one at that point.

[Gentle Everyday]

The next morning when Akiko got up, she found Lancer on the couch in her room. He had slept there last night. He was already awake. He turned his head to his Master.

"Ya going to school today?"

"Of course I am. Is there a reason I shouldn't?"

Lancer rested his chin in both hands, elbows sitting on his legs. He continued to gaze at her with those deep red eyes. "After the fight last night, I wouldn't think ya'd wanna go. After all, two people who go to yer school are Master. An' who knows how many others are as well?"

Akiko slid out of her bed. Her blue nightgown fluttered around her ankles. "By not going, I could be at a greater risk for attack."

"Even at school, yer at risk of an attack."

"Not as great of one."

"Didja forget last night?"

"That was different. First: we started that fight. Second: it didn't happen until even all the clubs were let out. It does look like Shinji had stuck Emiya with cleaning the dojo last night. I hadn't even considered that so much would be left that Emiya would be there until night. It was my mistake about that which led him to seeing us."

"Even so, they know fer sure that yer their enemy. Ya still sure it's a good idea to go?"

Akiko got the uniform out of one drawer. "Of course. Not going will show that I feel guilty about what happened. And I don't. After all, I was only doing what to expect of the War. If Tohsaka and Emiya can't accept that, they should have the Overseer find some way to make them drop out of it." She looked at Lancer. "Anyway, I'll have you near the school to protect me. If I need you in that instant, I'll use a Command Seal."

Lancer sighed. "Fine. Ya can go to school."

"Thanks. I hate having to make up homework I missed." Akiko faced her clothes resting on the bed. "Please leave. I'm gonna get changed."

Lancer got up and materialized his modern clothes on his body in a whirlwind of white mana swirling around it. "Sure thing. I'll make breakfast in the meantime. Want anythin' specific?"

"Just some eggs and bacon," the mage replied.

"'K. I won't have any trouble makin' things that simple." He went out the door and closed it. Akiko pulled her nightgown up over her head to remove it. She put the discarded article of clothing on the ground next to her. Then she put on a pair of underwear and turned around, sitting on the edge of the bed. She began putting on her school uniform, having to stand up to get the skirt up all the way. She went into her room's bathroom and began brushing her hair.

Meanwhile, Lancer was cooking some eggs and bacon. He was whistling softly as they sizzled in each pan. Akiko came out of her room and put her nightgown in the washing machine. Then she sat down at the kitchen table. A few moments later, Lancer finished cooking and got the eggs and bacon on two plates, half of each on each plate. He rinsed off the used pans and placed both and the spatula in the sink. He carried both plates to the table. He sat one on the spot in front of Akiko and the other to the spot to her left, right next to her. He sat down there.

"If you're looking for a job, I can set you up with an interview with my boss when I go to work after school."

Lancer glanced at her, but began cutting up and eating one egg at the same time. "Yeah, I do need somethin' to keep me from gettin' bored when I'm not fightin'. What's the job?"

Akiko took a bite from a strip of bacon. "I work as a waitress in a cafe, Ahnenerbe. They're currently hiring for another waiter. I could recommend you." She cut up an egg. "You interested?"

"Sure. Is it hard?"

"Not really. Though you do have to take orders from customers, you don't need to memorize what they order." She finished off that egg and another. Only one egg was left. "You get a notepad so you can write down their orders."

"Got it. Well, talk to yer boss about me then."

"A word of warning: I don't know how they would do it for men, but the waitress uniform is very degrading to me."

"How?"

Akiko shuddered. "They make me wear a...maid uniform."

Lancer blinked at her. "...That's all? I don't know how long you've been workin' at Ahnenerbe, but I would've though ya'd be used to it by now."

"At first, just wearing it bothered me. But then I did get used to it. But I still get...comments from customers."

Lancer cocked his head slightly to the right. "Comments? What do ya mean?"

Akiko leaned back in her chair slightly. She had just finished eating. She shut her eyes and groaned. "Every now and then I get men asking me innuendos like 'How about I tear down your bed?' and 'You're dirty. I'll help clean you up.'"

Lancer started to laugh and Akiko glared at him. "It's not funny when you're the person being sexually harassed!"

Lancer quieted his laughter quickly. "Sorry. But why not ask yer boss if you can wear a different uniform?"

"You think I haven't already?! I've submitted that request to him a dozen times. And each time he tells me that the cafe isn't changing the uniform because it's helping business!" She growled lightly. "But I also think it may be because seeing me wear that uniform is eye candy for him too. I've considered quitting countless times, but I can't just rely on the money I inherited from my parents to pay for food and other things I need. Plus, no other place is hiring. Or none that I'm aware of."

Lancer set his fork and knife down on the table. He was done too. "Well, maybe if I get the job, seeing me near you will stop those comments from bein' made to you."

Akiko smiled. "Thanks, Cu Chulainn." She got up, taking the plates and the silverware to the sink. If she wasn't ready to fall into bed at the end of her job, she would clean them. She opened the closet near the front door and pulled out her jacket. Even though it was February, it was a warm winter. So she didn't need to wear anything heavy. She tossed Lancer a black jacket that used to belong to her father.

[End OST]

[Tender Scenery]

One they both put them on, they headed out the door and towards Homurahara Academy. The plan was for her not to mention last night to anyone. She went straight home after school yesterday. When the two got near the school building, Lancer broke off from Akiko and went to hide in the trees.

Akiko stepped onto the campus and a cold, dark feeling went down her spine. This wasn't from her being tired. Someone was setting up a bounded field at the school. She would ignore it for now and investigate it later with Lancer. But she had work after school! Oh well. The two could investigate the bounded field tomorrow, when Akiko had more time to tell her boss why she's skipping work. He doesn't know Akiko's parents are dead. So she'll tell him they have plans tomorrow.

She went straight to the room she had class in. Near her classroom, Ayako went up to Akiko.

"Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"About the murder yesterday."

Akiko felt the blood drain from her face. Did Shirou tell everyone what happened last night? Or Rin? No. She wouldn't be that stupid.

"Hashimoto?" Ayako asked. Her face was close to Akiko's. "Are you okay? You're looking pale."

Akiko snapped her mind back into reality. She shook her head. "No, I'm fine, Mitsuzuri. I just started to think about something else."

"About the other murder two days ago?"

"Huh?"

The two went into the classroom so they wouldn't be counted as tardy if the second bell went off while they were talking.

"Yeah. It was near the school again."

Akiko mentally breathed a sigh of relief. So then this wasn't about the fight last night.

"No, I didn't hear. What happened?"

The two were walking to Ayako's desk. Ayako sat down.

"This one was weird."

"Weird how?"

[End OST]

[All Evil of the World]

Ayako shook her head. "Last night, a couple in a house went missing."

Akiko cocked her head. "If they went missing, why are they calling it a murder?"

"Blood was found at the house. When the cops took the DNA test for it, they found that it belonged to the couple."

"Well, maybe they're just injured and not dead?"

"If they were just wounded, they would have at least gone to the local hospital. But the police found no records of them having checked in. Same with other nearby hospitals. And with the amount of blood found, the couple would be too injured to go to one of the further hospitals. But that's not all."

"There's more?!"

Ayako nodded. "Yeah. Neither body of the couple has been found. It's like they vanished into thin air, leaving only their blood behind. The search is still going on. But the trail's pretty much cold. After all, the cops and detectives have no leads. They're asking the public to let the investigators know of any possible clues to the couple's disappearance. And the principal and some of the teacher's are freaking out that our school could be next. So we have a half day."

[End OST]

[Tender Scenery]

"Great," Akiko grumbled. "Now the schedule's gonna be all fucked up..."

Ayako smiled. "I wouldn't use that kinda language around the teachers if I were you."

"I know. That's why I don't swear around them. Not even Ms. Fujimura."

The bell went off and Akiko sat in her desk. She glanced to her left and saw Rin by the windows as usual. Rin only acknowledged Akiko with a swift glance before gazing at the front of the classroom again. After what happened last night, Akiko didn't blame Rin for being so unfriendly towards her.

[End OST]

The days went by quickly. When Akiko was far away from the school, walking home, Lancer joined her.

"You were done early today."

"We had a half day today because of the murder last night," she replied. She glanced at Lancer. "Not about what happened to Emiya. Something unrelated to the War."

Lancer breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. So then no one else knows."

"I knew that Tohsaka wouldn't be stupid enough to tell everyone what happened. It was Emiya that I was worried about. I was afraid that he would tell someone like Ryuudou what you tried to do to him and Ryuudou would tell someone else and so on."

[Blue Sky]

The two entered the house. Lancer sat down on the couch in the living room and flipped on the T.V.

"We have a few hours before I have to go to work," Akiko told him. "I'm gonna make a call."

"Okay," Lancer replied without looking away from the T.V.

Akiko found her cell phone in her bedroom and picked it up, opening it. She opened her contacts list on it and searched for 'Bazett'. Once she found it, she hit call on it and put the receiver near her ear. She heard it ring on the other side of the line. After two more rings, someone picked up on the other side.

"Akiko! You said two days ago you'd call me yesterday. Did something happen?"

Akiko and Bazett were close enough friends to not refer to each other by their last names. Ayako was almost to that point with Akiko. During Akiko's stay in Ireland to meet others from the Mage's Association stationed there. The two talked and became instant friends. She called Shinji by his first name like most others. But it was to show she doesn't respect him. At. All.

"Yeah, something did. To make a long story short, I suspected a classmate of mine to be a Master. I had Cu Chulainn lay a trap for her. She fell for it and we ended up having to fight her Servant. Then something happened. The night I summoned Cu Chulainn, I had a vision."

Bazett knew about Akiko's mystic eyes, the Mystic Eyes of Future Prediction, as the Mage's Association called them.

"I take it that 'something' was related to what you saw?"

"Yeah. In it, I saw Cu Chulainn kill a student. During that fight, we heard a witness gasp. The person ran into the school building and Cu Chulainn chased after him, killing him, of course."

"Yikes, so that was why you didn't call?"

"Yes and no. The story isn't over."

"More happened?!"

Akiko nodded but then remembered Bazett couldn't see her. "Yes. After Cu Chulainn took me back here, he sensed the witness was still alive. So he left to finish it. Now I wasn't there, so I don't know the details. But Cu Chulainn came back a little over an hour later saying that the witness summoned a Servant and he ended up having to fight it. After that, we ate and went straight to sleep."

Bazett was silent for a moment and then spoke. "Ooh. Talk about bad luck. Fighting two Servants in one night!"

"Putting that aside, we haven't had any other confrontations before that. Did you get the picture I sent to you over my phone of Cu Chulainn two days ago?"

"Yeah. I have to admit, he looks different than I imagined him to be."

"How so?"

"Well, the eyes weren't a surprise. And since he's a Celtic warrior, I did expect him to wear something like blue tights, though I did expect him to be wearing less..." Bazett paused and Akiko imagined that she was blushing. "But I imagined his hair to be hazel. Not blue."

Akiko sighed. "I imagine the next thing you wanna ask is whether or not you can talk to him. Did I nail it?"

"Guilty as charged. But can I?"

"Yes. Just wait a second and I'll put him on."

Akiko took the phone away from her ear and covered the speaker with one hand. She went to the living room to find Lancer. He was still watching T.V. Akiko grabbed the remote and hit mute. Then she turned to Lancer.

"Bazett wants to talk to you. She's waiting on the other line. Just hold the phone up to your ear and talk into it." She handed him the cell phone.

Lancer took it. "I know. The Grail implanted knowledge of how to use a phone into me." He put the phone to his ear. "Hey! I hear that yer a big fan of mine!"

Akiko sat down on the couch next to Lancer. Because she had good hearing, she could hear Bazett clearly as she talked to Lancer.

"Oh my God! I can't believe I'm talking to the actual Cu Chulainn! *squee*!"

Akiko sweatdropped. Bazett sounded like she was about to burst from excitement. Sad.

Lancer chuckled. Oh my God. Akiko could practically sense his ego rising by the second. "The one an' only! So! What didja wanna talk about?"

Bazett shrieked again and Akiko facepalmed. A Q and A with Cu Chulainn has gotta be a dream come true for her! "There is SO MUCH I wanna ask you!"

"Sure. Fire away."

"Okay. How old are you? Your legend doesn't give an exact age."

"Yer lucky I'm a man. If I was a woman, I would've called ya somethin' insultin' an' hung up on ya. But, physically, I'm 30."

"Some versions of your legend say you knocked up Aife, and some don't. Which is true? Did you?"

If Akiko was drinking something, she would've spit it out like a hose. She's never heard Bazett use the words "knocked up" in that context!

Lancer gave a nervous laugh. "That's pretty personal...but...yes..." He growled. "At the time, I didn't think much of it. But now I loathe that moment fer Aife findin' a way to use it against me."

"How old were you when you 'did it' with her?"

"Umm...16..." He began sweating heavily. "Look, are ya gonna keep askin' me uncomfortable questions?"

"Sorry. I got carried away. I'm just excited about talking to someone I look up to. But the rest of the questions I have for you would make you uncomfortable. I'll call you back later when I come up with more appropriate ones. Can you put Akiko back on?"

"Sure." He took the phone away from his ear and handed it to Akiko. "Bazett wants to talk to you again."

"I know. I heard her." She took the phone from his hand and put it to her ear. "Hey. So I wanted to say - What the hell do you think your doing?!"

[End OST]

[Troublemakers]

"You wanted to ask me what the hell I think I'm doing?"

Akiko growled softly. "Not you. Cu Chulainn." He had just lifted his Master onto his lap. "He just put me onto his lap!"

Bazett giggled. "I didn't know you two are that close."

"No we aren't!"

"Whatever. I'll leave you guys alone for now."

"Bazett, don't hang - !" A click and then a long beep went through the receiver. "Dammit!" Akiko hit end and shut the phone, placing it on the coffee table. She sat up, not even turning to face the man behind her. "I'll ask again: what do you think you are doing?!"

He pulled her close to his chest and rested his chin on top of Akiko's head. She could feel him grinning. "Nothin' much."

"Let me rephrase it: why are you doing this to me?!" Even though she tried to sound angry, her cheeks were hot and she was afraid Lancer could hear her heart hammering in her chest.

Lancer snickered. He heard it. "What's the big deal? Ya have a thing fer me, don'tcha?"

Her entire face was red. "O-Of course not! I-I-Idiot!"

"No use tryin' to deny it."

"YOU'VE GOT IT ALL WRONG!" Akiko wrenched herself out of Lancer's arms and stood up. She turned around, facing him. "Look, we've only known each other for four days. I know a relationship between a Master and Servant can go much faster than a normal one, what with us pretty much relying on each other to survive and living together, but I do think we need to take our time. Look, I do like you, but I'm not ready to take that big of a step just yet."

"I'm fine with that," Lancer replied.

"And why did you do that while I was on the phone?"

"You were sittin' right by me. I couldn't help myself."

Akiko sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Oh boy...Why'd I get a Servant as hopeless as this one..?"

[End OST]

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

[A Beautiful Melody]

Later, it was time for Akiko to go to work. Lancer accompanied her through town. Then both of them went into Ahnenerbe. Lancer leaned back against the wall near the door with his hands in his pockets.

"Ah, Hashimoto, there you are," Akiko's boss, Kazuhiro Igarashi, said. He was at the counter. He had short brown hair and was wearing glasses over green eyes. "We missed you yesterday. I had to have Eguchi take over your job."

"Sorry, Mr. Igarashi. Something school-related came up." Well, that wasn't far from the truth.

Kazuhiro sighed. "Whatever your reason, I need you to get in uniform and charm those customers."

Akiko sighed. The uniform was one thing she wasn't looking forward to. She went to the back room to get changed into it. She came out a few minutes later when she was done. The uniform was HILARIOUS! Akiko was dressed in a black maid's outfit with white lacy edges. Lancer couldn't help but grin at the sight.

One of the men at the register, Susumu Morikawa, snickered when he saw Akiko. He had spiky red hair, blue eyes, and jewelry all over his right ear. This was always the highlight of his day.

Akiko glared at him. "Zip it, Morikawa!"

One of the other waitresses, Maiko Eguchi, came over to Akiko. She had black hair pulled up into a bun and black eyes. She was also in a maid outfit. She also helped with the register too. There was another man who was the cook, but Akiko never saw him except for brief glimpses when she's cleaning the place. She didn't even know his name. "Ugh, I know how you feel. This Is SO degrading!" Maiko said.

"It helps bring in the male customers," Kazuhiro said. "Learn to get used to it."

Maiko glared at Susumu. "Tell that creeper to stop ogling us," she grumbled. It wasn't only the innuendos that male customers made to both girls that made wearing the maid outfits unbearable, but also Susumu didn't help. He made comments at them every day, their entire shift. If he said that he was going to "tidy Hashimoto up" one more time, the teen was going to beat the shit out of him.

Akiko looked over her shoulder at her boss. "Oh, yeah. Mr. Igarashi? My friend Lancer would like to be interviewed by you to get a job as another waiter here."

"Very well. Come with me then, Lancer."

As Lancer followed Kazuhiro into another room and the door behind them was closed, Maiko leaned over and whispered into Akiko's ear. "Who's he? Your boyfriend?"

Akiko's cheeks burned. "N-No way!"

Susumu smirked. "No use trying to deny it, Hashimoto. He's pretty handsome."

Akiko spun around to face him, glaring. "For God's sake, shut up Morikawa!"

Susumu continued to smirk at her. "Why are you getting so defensive about this?"

"Because you won't drop it!"

"I'm surprised you're saying he isn't your boyfriend," Maiko added. "I would hit that in a heartbeat."

"Not you too, Eguchi! Can't I be left alone?!"

Susumu chuckled. "Sure, whatever, Hashimoto. But that won't stop our imaginations." Then he looked up at the door. "It looks like we have some customers."

Two men with black hair sat down at one table. Maiko took care of them. The third was a man with blonde hair and wearing a black vest over a white shirt. Akiko went over to the table he sat down at and forced a smile.

[End OST]

"Welcome to Ahnenerbe. What would you like to order?"

[Troublemakers]

The man only glanced at her with red eyes. "I thought this was a restaurant. Not a joke."

Okay. He had just called her a joker. Damn this uniform! At least this wasn't like everything else said to her on a daily basis. But despite her frustration, she continued to smile. "I apologize. This is a cafe. Not a restaurant." And my boss is a douche. That's what she wanted to tell him for the reason she's wearing a maid's uniform.

The man smirked and leaned back slightly in his seat, looking Akiko up and down. "Is that the restaurant's way of promoting sales?"

Well, by the male populace. Akiko's eyebrow twitched. She had a bad feeling that he was going to make a comment about her uniform. Not sexual, but still rude! "I'm sorry if this is distracting, but may I take your order?"

The man scoffed. "Just give me a plate of your finest dish. And if it is unsatisfying, I will tear this establishment down."

Great. He was one of those guys. She walked over to the counter, to Susumu. "A plate of Ahnenerbe's Special for the douchebag at table 3."

He looked back over his shoulder, to the kitchen. "Ahnenerbe's Special!" Then he faced Akiko. "So the guy you're dealing with is a douchebag?"

Akiko sighed and scratched the back of her head. "Yeah. The arrogant kind. I'm tempted to spit in his food before I give it to him."

Susumu chuckled. "I wouldn't blame you, but I also don't think our boss will like you pissing off another customer."

Akiko was fuming. "'Another'?! I haven't done it before!"

Susumu smirked at her. "Yeah, whatever." Several minutes later, Susumu was handed a plate. It had a steak drizzled in sauce and had some basil on the side. He gave it to Akiko. She brought it over to the blonde man.

"About time! I was getting tired of waiting!" Akiko resisted the urge to just slam the food into his face. She set the plate down.

"Here you go. Ahnenerbe's Special!"

The man looked at the food in disdain. He sniffed it a couple of times before wrinkling his nose in utter disgust. "What is this garbage you have dared to present me with? I recall ordering your finest food."

Akiko sighed. I took everything she had to keep herself from punching him in the face. "This is the best meal we have here."

"You cannot be serious!"

"Like I said, this is a cafe. Not a restaurant. The food we serve is not as fancy so that it can be prepared faster."

"I refuse to even put this excuse for food in my mouth!" Just then, Lancer came out of the boss' room and went over to Akiko.

[End OST]

[Premonition of a Storm]

"What's goin' on?" Then he and the man stared at each other. "...Akiko, we should go now."

"Eh?! But if I tell my boss that I'm leaving now, he'll make me work longer tomorrow to make up for it!"

"Akiko. We really should go now."

Lancer actually sounded serious for once. Maybe leaving was the right choice after all.

"...Fine." Akiko looked over her shoulder to Susumu. "Morikawa! Tell Mr. Igarashi I'm leaving now."

Susumu waved dismissively. "Sure, sure. But I bet he won't be happy."

Akiko grumbled something in response before going to the back room to get changed. When she came out, Lancer was right outside the door. He grabbed her wrist.

"Let's go."

[End OST]

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

[Time Together]

Back at the house, both the Master and Servant sat down on the living room couch.

Akiko spoke first to Lancer. "So why did you have me leave?"

"That guy was a Servant."

"What?! A Servant?! I could tell there was something off with the air around him, but I thought it was just because he's a foreigner!"

"Yeah. I really didn't want to get in a fight with one just yet. An' I have a feelin' he didn't either."

"Well, just dealing with him was a fight," Akiko said as she got up. She went to the sink in the kitchen and began washing the dishes. "The maid outfit is already bad enough. But dealing with that guy makes me hate my job even more! Mr. Igarashi doesn't pay me enough to put up with that kinda shit!"

Lancer chuckled as he also went into the kitchen to help Akiko wash the dishes. "What kinda shit were ya havin' to deal with?"

"He was saying that he requires our best food. And when I gave it to him, he gave me grief about it looking too awful to eat! God! I wanted to kick that arrogant piece of shit so badly!"

"It's a good thing ya didn't. If you piss off a Servant enough, chances are good that you'll be the one gettin' yer ass kicked."

"I know, I know. But his type totally rubs me the wrong way!"

"If we end up fightin' him fer the Grail, you'll get yer shot at revenge."

"That arrogance of his...he's probably royalty."

"Nah. Even royalty would watch what they say to others. After all, the person they're badmouthin' may have a higher social status than them. No, for him to say that to just anyone, he would most likely be at the highest level of social status. He's most likely a king."

"If he is, he sure isn't the type of king I'd like to serve under."

Lancer grinned. "Me neither. I like the kind of king who takes the front lines more. Whether it's fightin' or politics. It seems like he had his subjects do all the work fer him."

Akiko put a bunch of cleaned plates on the dish rack. "Ugh, politics. When I think of that, all I can think of is corruption in any type of government, including a monarchy."

"Well, things were different in my time. Fer example, most of the time I liked Conchobar."

"Except that time when you wanted to take up arms," Akiko put in. "Bazett told me that part of your story, too. Apparently, she said you threw a fit and smashed all of his weapons and his chariot." She smiled when Lancer went silent.

"W-Well, I was young, and, uh, he pissed me off..." Yeah. If he was still like he was back then, Akiko would have already kicked him out of her life forever. Even so...

"Uh-huh. Whatever, brat."

[End OST]