Sorry for the wait. I had writer's block on Akiko's backstory.

[A Beautiful Melody]

Some time later, forever to Akiko but probably only some hours in reality, Lancer opened his eyes and stood up. It was almost midnight. He looked down at his Master, who had been sitting right beside him the whole time after the mana transfer. Her eyelids drooped, closing all the way for less than a second before she snapped them open again.

"I'm good to go now," he said.

Akiko yawned, fighting to keep her eyes open. "Let's get back so that I can finally collapse in our futon."

Lancer chuckled. "Tired, huh?"

Akiko glanced up at him. "With what we did, of course I'm tired."

Lancer chuckled again. "Well, I'm not."

"That's because you're a Servant that isn't low on mana anymore."

"At least you aren't anymore either."

"But I'm still human. Getting tired sucks when for when I'm trying to keep watch."

Lancer squatted so that his eyes were even with Akiko's. "Well, ya can sleep on our way back." He scooped up his Master, holding her in both arms bridal-style.

[End OST]

[Heart's Chime]

As Lancer stood back up to his full height, Akiko wrapped both of her arms around to the back of Lancer's neck. Her hands grabbed onto her opposite forearm, keeping herself from falling off. "With the wind whipping at my face, I don't know how easily I'll be able to doze off on the journey back."

"Sorry, but I can't help ya with that," Lancer said, getting himself ready to take off. He took a massive leap, landing over 50 meters away from his original location. He kept doing this, until he reached the top of the stairway to Ryuudou Temple. "Hold onto me tight, Master. Gravity'll start to work 'gainst you now."

"Don't worry. I trust you to keep me from falling out of your arms," Akiko replied. But she tightened her hold on the back of the man's neck slightly. Lancer took a massive leap down the stairs. Working with gravity pulling him down made him go down the stairs further than on flat earth. He covered almost 60 meters with that jump.

Once he got to the bottom of the stairs, he jumped on top of a street lamp. Then, without pausing as his legs bent under him as his feet hit the surface, forcing him into a squatting position, he sprang forward again, landing atop yet another street lamp about 50 meters away.

He kept doing this, until he reached the buildings near the bridge. Instead of jumping forward, he jumped up diagonally, landing on the roof of the outer most building. He ran to the opposite edge of the roof and jumped over the road, to the next roof ahead. But soon the buildings got taller, and Lancer had to jump almost straight up sometimes to get to the higher surfaces.

As Lancer went higher, Akiko got colder. While one half of her body was still warm from it being pressed against Lancer, the other felt like it had icecubes pressed against it, and this made her shiver. Lancer felt this and used his hands, which were already pressing on that side of Akiko to hold her, to rub her body and warm her a little.

When Lancer jumped on top of the massive red bridge over the Mion River, Akiko's shivering got worse. Lancer did what he could, his arms pulling Akiko ever so slightly closer to his body. But this didn't solve the problem. He instead was running as fast as he could over the top of the bridge. While this did make cold air blow into Akiko's face even harder, this was a way to cross the bridge quickly and get this over with soon for her.

"Don't worry," Lancer said to her. "We're almost back to the lad's house."

"Good, because I am freezing!" Akiko growled. But this growl wasn't directed at her Servant. It was directed at the fact she's freezing her ass off!

Before long, Lancer ran up to the Emiya residence, in the front yard. Akiko spoke up.

"About time I can get inside where it's warm!"

Lancer didn't say anything, just chuckled. He opened the door and set his Master down. Lancer shut the door behind him and took off his shoes and hung up his jacket with his Master. All of the lights in the hallways were off, showing that the other four living here were asleep. Luckily, the moon was still left uncovered by the clouds, so Akiko and Lancer were able to use the light from it passing through the windows to find their way to their own room.

While Lancer only had to dematerialize his modern clothes, leaving him in just his boxers, before settling under the covers of the futon, Akiko actually had to change out of the clothes she was wearing to put on her nightgown. Once she had it on, she set the alarm on her phone before joining Lancer in the futon.

"It feels so good to fall asleep in a warm place!" the mage exclaimed and then yawned loudly.

Lancer chuckled and wrapped one arm around his Master. "Ya should get some sleep fer tomorrow."

"That's what I'm planning to do."

[End OST]

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[Whirlpool of Fate 2]

A messenger was running as fast as he could to a hut. The king had sent him to get Cu Chulainn. Reaching the thick animal fur over the entrance, the messenger lifted the fabric and ducked under it.

Clothes were strewn all over the floor. Clearly someone got to sleep with Cu Chulainn. All he saw was a head of blue hair turned away from him and a fur blanket over a body.

"Cu Chulainn!" the messenger shouted. There was a groan and the furs shifted. Cu Chulainn turned around and blinked sleepily at him.

A head of long brown hair rose up over Cu Chulainn's shoulder. It was Emer. She had sex with him last night. And she also looked tired. "Ugh, what is it?"

The messenger looked shocked. "Princess! I did not know ya were also here!"

"Forget it!" Cu Chulainn snapped. "Why didja wake us up?!"

"There is a lad near the castle!"

Cu Chulainn looked more awake. "A lad?"

"Yes, one that has defeated some of our best fighters! The king has called on ya ta challenge him next!"

"Fine. What's his name?"

"We don't know. He has refused ta reveal it, even ta the king!"

"Mighty ballsy of him. Just give me a moment ta get ready."

"Very well. I'll wait fer ya just outside." The man went through the doorway and closed the door behind him.

When he did, Cu Chulainn pulled the covers off him and started putting on his battle attire. Emer gazed at him with green eyes filled with concern. "Please don't go! If he has taken down the best fighters, chances are good that he will take ya down too!"

Cu Chulainn pulled his long hair into his golden clasp. He spoke without facing Emer. "It's the king's order, so I hafta go." He took a break from putting on his pants to kiss Emer quickly on the forehead. "But I promise I won't fall ta him either."

[End OST]

After getting himself ready, Cu Chulainn headed for the castle. The Red Branch Knights and the king were already gathered at the castle entrance. Across from them was a boy with bright orange hair and red eyes.

Cu Chulainn was still in disbelief. "Yer kiddin' me right? He took out some of our best fighters?" Then Cu Chulainn sighed. "Such a waste. If the lad's this strong now, imagine how strong he'll be when he's older." The man pulled out a sword. "So I won't try ta take him down too badly." The kid unsheathed his own sword. Cu Chulainn wore a cocky grin. "Lad, ya picked the wrong day ta do this."

The two sprinted at each other without warning, ending up clashing their swords. Moments later, they lifted away their weapons. Then the stranger swung it sideways over at Cu Chulainn's legs. The man jumped up high enough for the incoming blade to pass under his feet. While still in the air, the knight brought his own sword over his head with the handle gripped tightly in both hands and swung it down on the kid's own head. But he jumped back and the sword only ended up slicing through empty air and smashed the ground hard enough to crack it.

'This lad's pretty good.' Cu Chulainn thought. The lad took off at Cu Chulainn again, swinging his sword down to cut the man's throat open. Cu Chulainn only had enough time to bring his own sword up to block. But his hasty defense was weak. The knight's sword was forced down a moment later and he had to jump back to avoid getting cut. Then the two ran at each other, exchanging strikes. It surprised Cu Chulainn that the lad was matching his own blows easily, like he fought in the same style as Cu Chulainn himself.

Cu Chulainn grit his teeth and the two broke apart, jumping back so that there was a gap spanning several meters in between the two fighters. This wasn't looking good for the knight. If this keeps up, the lad might actually beat him. Cu Chulainn wasn't going to let that happen! Screw going easy! He looked over his shoulder, at the Red Branch Knights watching the fight from the sideline. Good. Laeg was also there.

"Laeg! Gimme Gae Bolg!" This will end the fight here and now. Laeg threw him the demonic spear and Cu Chulainn caught it out of the air effortlessly, dropping the sword he had been using in the process. When the kid ran at Cu Chulainn again, the spearman swung his spear at the opposing sword coming for his head. But the power in the swing was enough to send the lad skidding back several meters.

Cu Chulainn shifted his stance, the tip of the crimson spear pointing to the ground. Red energy swirled around the whole length of the weapon. "Gae...Bolg!" The fight was over now. Cu Chulainn thrusted the spear forward, but didn't let go of the weapon. A line of red energy came from the tip and hit the boy through the chest, through the heart.

The boy's legs gave way and he fell to the ground. Cu Chulainn began walking over to him.

As the boy's fading eyes weakly turned to the man coming toward him, his blood-filled mouth opened. "She didn't...teach me that..." Was the last thing the stranger murmured.

It wasn't until a short time later that Cu Chulainn learned that the person he had killed was his son.

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[Midnight Interval]

For as long as she knew them, Akiko's parents had thought of their daughter as special. That was because she had the Mystic Eyes of Future Prediction. But they didn't think of her as special in the loving way. It was because she was an asset to them, to get the Hashomoto family recognized in the mage world.

They provided her with food and shelter and warmth. But this was only to keep her alive long enough for her to grow stronger and get the attention of the Mage's Association.

She was homeschooled, despite Akiko's pleas to her parents for her to meet other kids her own age. Her parents wanted to keep her in their line of sight at all times, paranoid someone might try to steal her away if they didn't. She even had surveillance cameras in her own room. She was alone in the bathroom, except one of her parents would always be standing guard outside the door. She never completely learned privacy herself.

Her schooling would consist of what would be considered basic teachings in school. Akiko's mother had once been a teacher at a high school before Akiko was born, so she covered that. That way, the Mage's Association wouldn't think of Akiko as lacking a proper education and thus wouldn't be needling her parents with questions. Her dad was the one teaching magic to his daughter. He mostly taught her elemental magic, it's purpose not as much to protect herself. It was to impress others. It was after her parents died that she did martial arts.

But, anyway, her parents had acquired the means to make mystic eyes and wanted some for themselves. But they didn't know if the magic would be entirely safe to use on humans. So they used their own daughter as a test subject. When she got her mystic eyes, she went two days upon getting them with no side-effects. And then her parents decided it was safe for them to try.

But the result they got was different. They didn't have mystic eyes for more than a minute. However, it seemed to work with Akiko. And so, she still has the same mystic eyes her parents tested her with to this day.

What Akiko got was the ability to predict the future, but the events she saw were random ones. Upon first learning of Akiko's powers, her parents had originally intended to use her to see if the Hashomotos would be famous in the mage world, but they backed off when they learned she couldn't.

And that was what became Akiko's guilt ten years ago. She had seen the disaster that would happen. But a part of her resented her parents for thinking of their own daughter as nothing more then an animate object. So she kept that vision to herself, instead waiting for hell to come down on them.

On that day, right before the disaster happened, Akiko was in New City with her parents. Akiko was taken so her parents would be able to keep an eyes on her. Her parents wanted to see how the construction of the new shopping district there was going. But the disaster destroyed the entire zone and the project was abandoned.

Anyway, when the Grail Mud flooded the streets, many people, including Akiko and her parents, fled for the bridge. Eventually, the flow of the Grail Mud halted, but most of New City was on fire now. Part of a building crumbled and Akiko's parents, acting on instinct to protect not only their tool, but their only daughter, shoved her forward.

Right as she fell onto the hot ground on her sweaty hands and knees, she heard the crash of the broken part of the building hitting the ground. Sparks rained down on the 7-year-old and she kept her head ducked to protect her face from the bits of the blistering heat. But she noticed the absence of two running footsteps. Where were her parents? And why had they not pulled her back on her feet so they could continue their journey to the bridge that was their salvation?

"Akiko!"

Akiko's head shot up at the sound of her name. Those two voices that shouted it belonged to her parents! By why did it sound like the shouts came from behind her? Shouldn't it be from ahead?

Then Akiko looked over her shoulder and saw why the shouts had come where they came from. While Akiko was fine, her parents were not. The broken piece of the building had fallen onto the two, pinning them to the ground on their stomachs. And the thing that pinned them down was on fire, too. If nothing was done soon, the fire would spread and engulf the two parents.

Akiko could use wind magic to slice up the flaming piece, or use water magic to douse the flames and wait for help to arrive. But she did neither. She just stood, frozen, unsure of what she should do. If she helped her parents, they may treat Akiko like a normal human being. But only for a few days. And only because they felt grateful to their daughter for her saving their lives.

However, there was one other option available to Akiko. She could leave her parents to die as she ran away, continuing to the bridge. Thinking fast, she chose that option. Later, she would come to regret that decision. Sure, Akiko's parents may not have seen her as their daughter. But that doesn't change the fact they are still her parents, her only biological ones she will ever have.

But the choice had been made, to sacrifice the two that were close to her. Now they were gone forever.

The day after, Akiko had been taken to an orphanage until it had been discovered that Akiko's deceased parents had made a will just in case the worst happened. It explained that if a time came that they were no longer in this world, that ownership of everything they had would go to their daughter. Deep in their hearts, they really did care for Akiko.

However, this made Akiko's guilt at what she did grow worse. But now there was a problem. Akiko was still too young to get a job to pay bills on the house. But that's when the Mage's Association stepped in and helped.

They had begun to take notice of Akiko's skills, which were now on an adult's level. She was even working on high-class spells that would be difficult for even an expert magus. Truly, this girl seemed to be a genius, a prodigy mage.

So they struck a deal with the girl. They would help with living expenses until Akiko reaches age 16, when she can get a part-time job. In return, Akiko would send the Association notes on her research, so that they can expand on their knowledge of the mage world themselves.

With all of that settled, Akiko returned home for the first time after being an orphan. It was weird. Now she could do whatever she wanted in the house, go wherever she wanted, all without one or both of her parents keeping an eye on her.

She used some of the money she inherited from her parents to go to school. There, she met Ayako Mitsuzuri and became friends with her almost right away. Two years ago, the Mage's Association sent her to Ireland to help that branch with their magical investigation.

That's how she met Bazett Fraga McRemitz. Bazett had a thing for Irish mythology, specifically the ones focusing on the hero, Cu Chulainn. It was clear that she looks up to him. And she also mentioned the Holy Grail War. The winner of the seven-way fight to the death would be able to have a wish granted by the Grail.

While most mages would use the Grail to get them to the Root, the source of all magic, Akiko figured that if she won, she could use the Grail to bring back her parents, as an apology for letting them die eight years ago.

Then, after Akiko came back from Ireland, she and Bazett stayed in contact. Then, a couple weeks ago, when her Command Seals appeared, Akiko called Bazett to tell her friend that she had been chosen as a Master by the Grail.

Bazett, however, had not been chosen and it was unlikely she would if she hadn't already. So she gave Akiko the earring of Cu Chulainn. She still wished for her hero to have a second chance at life. And so Cu Chulainn became Akiko's Servant, her partner, in this Grail War.

[End OST]

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When Lancer opened his eyes, it was still night out. He looked over at his Master. Akiko was already awake and gazing at her Servant with a mixture of pity and sorrow. Her eyes were puffy and red, like she had been crying. And she was still sniffling.

"Akiko..." he murmured softly, stroking her left cheek gently with his right hand. He could feel wet spots on her cheek, where her tears had fallen. "Ya saw more of my past, didn'tja?"

"Yeah..." she whispered, nodding. "It was when you killed Connla, your son."

"Dammit..." he growled under his breath. "Sorry ya had to see that."

Akiko quickly shook her head. "It isn't your fault that it just happened to be what I saw."

"No, it is. If I had never done that, that wouldn't even be an option fer ya to see." Then he bit his lower lip. "Akiko...'"

Akiko looked at the man with concern. "What's wrong?"

"I saw yer past..."

Akiko didn't show any emotion in her face. "How much?"

"All of it, but I saw it like a slide show."

"So now you know my own story..."

"It feels like an invasion of yer privacy..."

"Eh, no big deal for me. After all, I've seen your past too, so we're even."

[Blue Sky]

"You know, when I saw yer past, I felt how strongly ya believe in yer wish. But recently, when ya told me yer reason, I didn't feel that much passion from you. Is yer wish changin'?"

"I don't know..." Akiko mumbled, burying her face into her Servant's chest to hide her uncertainty. "Hey, Cu Chulainn?"

"Yeah?"

"How would you feel...about staying in this world?"

"What do ya mean?"

Akiko's cheeks burned. "Y'know...after the War is over. Would you be fine with keeping your physical form?"

Lancer chuckled. "Why do ya wanna know?"

Akiko's entire face burned now. "Ugh, just forget I said anything!"

[End OST]