Chapter 3 – Getting acquainted (published: 05.18.2012 – Beta: none)

Shirou clutched his head in pain as he writhed on the floor of his room. He was seriously reconsidering his choice to take up that job. Not even twenty-four hours from his arrival and he had already been beaten twice.

Seriously, how was that supposed to be his fault? He had just finished checking the building for eventual repairs that needed to be done when he noticed an hole in the ceiling of his room. Of course he had to check it out to assess the damage, but when he moved the surprisingly light cover that separated his room from the one above he found himself staring into a panty clad Narusegawa Naru.

Granted, he might have been staring for a moment too long, but he was seriously surprised. She didn't have to stomp on his head (and give him an even better look of her body in the process).

Being nearly immortal was all good and fine but Excalibur's scabbard didn't take away one ounce of pain. He honestly felt like a fool. Give him any sort of near death situation and he could react with the speed of light and with the strength of steel. Put him in front of a woman showing too much skin and he would freeze on the spot.

No amount of experience with the fairer sex seemed to get him used to those kind of situation.

What was wrong with that woman anyway? She treated him like he was just waiting for the chance to jump on her, but she didn't tell him there was a hole in his ceiling that connected their rooms when he clearly stated that he was going to inspect the building?

Groaning he pulled himself up, shaking his head to get rid of the cobwebs. The entire situation didn't make any sense, from his finding his family to the current living arrangements. It was entirely too fishy for his liking but he had no idea of what was the purpose behind the whole charade.

Any ties to the Association had been ruled out and outside of that circle very few knew about him being a Magus. The DNA test was sound and had been check by different independent labs. Even though he still found it hard to believe he really was an Urashima.

What didn't convince him was how he found out. Running into his grandmother at the airport was already an incredible coincidence and being recognized on the spot even more so. Sure, from the pictures she showed him later he looked a lot like his mother but the stubbornness of the old woman was out of the world. A casual resemblance made much more sense, but Granny Hina didn't want to hear a thing about it.

She was certain Shirou was her grandson. Too certain if you'd asked him. In fact he was fairly sure the entire encounter had been a set up and that could only mean that the old woman knew before hand who he was and where to find him. How much else did she know?

There was obviously something going on and he was a part of it and not knowing what it was didn't sit well with him.

t might have been a trap of some sort, but if someone was plotting against him he preferred to face it head on instead of waiting to be stabbed in the back, therefore he accepted Granny Hina's invitation to find out exactly what was going on and move the target of a potential threat away from his family back in Fuyuki.

The girls weren't happy about it, but ultimately agreed to let him go even though they forced him to bring some back up . She would stay at another place in Hinata city and keep an eye on things from afar until Shirou deemed it safe for her to move closer or return to Fuyuki. She could pass unobserved when she wanted to. Or catch everyone's attention when she didn't.

Well if everything went according to plans he could visit her tonight and let her know the situation. It was also a chance to see if somebody form the inn would follow him.

His musing where interrupted when he heard heavy footsteps coming in his direction and, if he had to bet on it, he was about to face an enraged swordswoman.

"Emiya! Show yourself, you treacherous pervert," she demanded loudly. Sighing Shirou shook his head.

"Right, let's get this mess sorted out," he said to himself.

He stepped out of the room just in time to see Motoko appearing from the stairs with Naru a few steps behind her. The look in her eyes told volumes of their intentions.

"There you are, you vile man. How dare you lay your eyes on Naru-senpai? You will pay for your transgression," she declared as she approached, lifting her wooden sword over her head for a downward strike. However, when her hands swung down, there was no trace of her weapon in her grasp.

A fraction of second before her strike Shirou stepped forward, snatching the bokuto form her hand and moving past her. Motoko realized what happened in half a second and spun around to give a piece of her mind to the perverted thief. Behind her, Shirou made the same motion in her direction, rapidly spinning the wooden sword with his fingers so that he was holding it by the hilt once his body completed the half-turn.

When both were facing each other again, Motoko found herself staring from very close to the tip of her own weapon, so close that she had to nearly cross her eyes to look at it.

"That's quite enough," Shirou declared in a no nonsense tone. "We will discuss what happened like civilized persons. Is that feasible Aoyama-san?"

There was no disrespect in his voice, but no room for arguments either. The sheer surprise of being disarmed by a man and then held at sword point was enough to startle Motoko out of her rage and nod dumbly at his request.

Naru on the other hand was still on the path of war. Her fist was balled and ready to strike when Shirou turned his head in her direction. His golden eyes locked on hers and she froze on the spot with her fist cocked back.

There was no hostility in his gaze but she could that if she ended her motion there would have been consequences she wouldn't like.

"Narusegawa-san," he spoke in a deadly serious tone that made Naru nearly jump away. "My apologies," he said bowing down surprising both women. "It wasn't my intention to peek on you. I was simply checking the building when I noticed the hole in the roof of my room. I wasn't aware it was connected to your room nor I knew you were changing."

"Ah… Uhm," she stuttered at loss for words. The man that held Motoko as sword point with her own weapon was now sincerely apologizing to her. Thinking about it, she was so used to the hole being there that she forgot to mention it to him. In all honesty she couldn't say it was entirely his fault if something like that happened. She clutched her still balled fist to her chest and looked away in shame. She had obviously overreacted.

"No, it's my fault for not telling you about it, Emiya-san. I'm sorry for hitting you," she said bowing in return.

"Naru-senpaI?" Motoko asked, dumfounded by the older girl reaction. She didn't expect Naru to apologize to the pervert. Had she misread the situation?

"It's all right," he answered back. "There's no real harm done. Now , is there any other potentially embarrassing hole I should know about?"

"N-no. Not that I know about anyway."

"Well, that's good," he said with a smile that held no hint of his previous cold composure. "Do me a favor and pass the word to the other tenants to let me know of such things before deciding to undress. I would rather avoid any other incidents if I can."

"Yes. That would be better. Well.. .Then... I should go."

"Naru-senpai, wait a moment," she said watching the brunette leave for her room. Seeing that she wasn't about to stop she turned to Shirou. "May I have my bokuto back now, Emiya-san?"

Shirou handed back the wooden sword without so much as a words. The raven haired woman retrieved it and then followed after Naru without so much as a by your leave.

"Well, that went well," he said to himself when Motoko disappeared upstairs.

"It actually did," a female voice said from behind him. Shirou turned around and found Haruka looking at him. "That was impressive Shirou. I was expecting you to go flying through the wall or something. I've never seen anyone dealing with those two like you did and by the look of their faces neither did they. How did you manage to disarm Motoko like that?"

"You are giving me too much credit," he answered. "It was just a combination of speed, self-confidence and Aoyama-san underestimating me. If something like that happens again I don't think I can pull the same trick."

"You say that like it was easy," Haruka said with a cocked eyebrow. "Motoko's a very skilled swordswoman from a school in Kyoto. She has been holding a sword before she knew how to walk."

It was Shirou's turn to shrug. "Time doesn't necessarily equals to experience and even the most skilled warrior can be brought down easily if taken by surprise."

"Spoken out of experience?"

"You could say that," he answered with a smirk, thinking about a certain arrogant King defeated by a lowly Faker.

"You aren't going to elaborate on that, are you? You are a strange man, Shirou."

"Strange? How am I strange?"

"You've been very vague about yourself when we spoke last night. You didn't tell me anything about your foster family, nor much of what you did abroad."

"Forgive the bluntness Haruka-san, but despite being related I know nothing of you. You seem a nice person for what I can tell so far, but I'm not comfortable in sharing my life with someone I've just met. Besides you didn't ask any specific question. There's just so much I can tell in a single evening. Does that makes me strange?"

Haruka looked at him with an appraising gaze. "No. By itself it probably wouldn't."

" I sense a but coming," he said ironically.

"But there something that makes me believe there's more about you than meets the eye. Believe it or not I've met all sort of folks when I was younger, strange people and dangerous people too. You remind me of them."

"Which ones? The strange ones or the dangerous ones?"

"Both, Shirou-kun," she replied in a flat tone.

Shirou had to give the woman credit were it was due. She was clearly happy to find his lost nephew but she was fully aware that the man in front of her was a stranger despite the bond of blood. She wasn't about to cut him any slack. In all honesty that was the first thing that made sense in the entire situation.

"You are pretty insightful. I like that."

"You like that I think you're dangerous?"

"Yes. Doesn't that make sense? We are strangers Haruka-san, and despite being related by blood we don't really know each other. If you were to trust me blindly I would seriously be worried about your sanity. So far your mistrust is the only thing that makes any sense. Look at it from my point of view. For fifteen years I believed that I had no living relatives and the suddenly my family pops out of nowhere after a one-in-million casual encounter. Then I'm suddenly invited to stay at the family's inn only to find out it's a all-girls dormitory and I'm more or less forced to be the new manager. You're being careful? I say great. Finally someone with common sense. "

Haruka had to chuckle at his explanation. Finding out that Keitaro was alive was a surreal experience for her. She could only imagine how he could feel about it. The old bat devious plot to make him the manager certainly didn't help to put him at ease. All considered he was handling things incredibly well.

"Yes, I suppose I can't deny that. You seem a decent guy Shirou, but like you just said we don't really know each other. The girls here on the other hand are like family to me. If you were to purposely harm them I'd have to kick your ass, niece or not."

"Make sure you that you do, Haruka-san. I'm a bit thick headed when it comes to women and some things won't sink into my brain until they're bashed right in."

"Spoken out of experience?" She asked again.

"You could say that," he answered like before but with a lot less amusement in his voice. In fact he seemed to be recalling many of such painful experiences.

"Don't sound so depressed. Most men don't even notice their own thickness. You are already one step above the rest. Pleasantries aside, I came to help with your inspection of the rooms. I thought that having me with you would put both sides at ease."

"That's really thoughtful, Haruka-san. I appreciate it."

"Well then, shall we get started?"

While Haruka and Shirou were talking, Motoko followed Naru to her room. The sudden change of behavior worried the younger girl.

"Naru-senpai. What happened? Why did you apologize to that man? He looked at you while you were changing. Surely you cannot let that slide."

"Motoko-san, calm down. I'm partly responsible for that."

"Certainly you don't believe it was an accident?"

"It probably was," Naru admitted. "Honestly, it was my fault not telling him about the hole. Besides even if it was his intention to peek on me I've already hit him for that. He apologized and I couldn't do any less. What about you though? He disarmed you easily."

"I… He took me by surprise. I did not expect him to react like that. I underestimated him a little. It won't happen twice."

"So we both misjudged him a little. Let's leave it at that."

"… Fine. I concede that my initial evaluation of him was slightly off the mark, but that doesn't mean I'm going to trust him."

"Of course not. Men can never be trusted," Naru said with a tone of rage mixed to sadness. Motoko nodded as if that statement was the most obvious thing in the world.

Shinobu was the first tenant whose room was inspected. It was the first time a man entered her room and she was seriously embarrassed by it. Not that she had any reason to. Her room was tidy and well kept. A few minor repairs were needed since the building was very old but nothing that could be blamed on the girl.

"It says here that you pay part of your rent by working for the inn. What do you do exactly?" Shirou asked.

"Ano… I'm in charge of the laundry… and the cooking and the cleaning."

"Which is basically every chore around here short of doing repairs. Was all of this in your original contract?"

"N-No, I don't think so," she admitted.

"So, how comes you are doing all the work? The other tenants don't help you at all?"

"Ano… I don't mind doing it. I-I'm good at house chores so…"

Shirou looked at her with a cocked eyebrow. "If you say so, Maehara-san I'm not going to press the issue, but from now on I'm going to do part of the work around here. Is that alright with you?"

"Sure, Emiya-san."

"Good. Is there any repair there's need to be done that you know about?"

"Uhm. The only thing I can think about is the heater. It's rather old and it often stops working in the winter so it gets really cold."

"Very well. I'll look into it. Thank you for your time."

"I'd have expected you to tell her she shouldn't do the other girls share of the work," Haruka commented when the door to Shinobu's room was closed behind her.

"It's not my place to tell her what she should or shouldn't do. Besides, it would be hypocritical for someone dubbed 'Fake Janitor' throughout high school to tell someone else to stick to their share of work."

"F-fake janitor?" Haruka sputtered clearly trying not to laugh.

"Laugh it up if you want. I never disliked the title even if someone mocked me for it. There's nothing wrong with wanting to help out."

"True," she admitted. "But people are bound to take advantage of you and take you for granted if you do it too much."

"And that's why we are going to let the other tenants know how displeased we are with the current state of things. Who's next by the way."

"Suu Kaolla, the foreign girl. Shirou, let me give you a word of warning about her. Don't be surprised about what you are going to find in her room. It's all in her contract."

"Hm? What is she keeping in her room that can surprise me?"

"Oh, you'll see."

"What the hell?" Shirou asked as he looked inside Kaolla's room. "What's a jungle doing in here? How does she fit all of this stuff in this small space?"

"Don't ask me," Haruka said. "I never understood the kid but she's some kind of crazy genius for what I know . Her room décor is the least of her quirks. Oi, Kaolla! Are you in here?"

"Over here!" A voice shouted from a point that seemed too far away to be still inside the room. The duo made their way through the foliage, doing their best to ignore the sounds that they sincerely hoped were just recordings and not actual living beasts.

They found the dark skinned girl laying lazily on a hammock with a tablet in her hands. She was wearing just a sleeveless shirt which showed a good amount of her cleavage and a pair of really short shorts.

"Hellos," she greeted in her strange way of speaking. "Have you come to play with Kaolla?"

"Erm…," Shirou stuttered caught between being embarrassed by her attire and being surprised by the state of her room. "Maybe some other time. We are here to check the room today, though at this point it would be more an exploration than an inspection. Say, doesn't this room look bigger from the inside than from the outside? How did you do it?"

"I-eh," she giggled. "That's Kaolla's secret. If you really want to know you have to play with her."

"I'll think about it," he finally settled on after considering her proposal for a moment. Somehow his instinct screamed at him not to get involved in whatever game she had in mind.

"Aw. You are no fun."

"Sorry about that. Give me a few days to get settled and I'll reconsider you offer. Now, is there any repairs in need to be done?"

"No-no," she sing-sang ."Kaolla took care of everything when she moved in. Can't afford any leaks from the lab."

"Lab?" Shirou asked warily. "What lab?"

"Like I said, Kaolla here is a genius. She has her own laboratory… somewhere in here," Haruka explained while looking around the place.

"I see," Shirou answered, but without really understanding anything. The sheer impossibility of the situation would normally make him believe he had waltzed in the workshop of a crazy Magus. Only the lack of any Bounded Field convinced him that he hadn't. If the girl was using some sort of space-distortion it had to be completely technologic based, which was all the more mind boggling for the red haired Magus. What kind of futuristic technology and energy source was required to pull that out?

"Well, if any problem comes to mind make sure to let me know Suu-san," he conclude.

"Okie-dokie," she agreed cheerfully.

"You took that rather well," Haruka commented after leaving the impossibly large room. "The first time I've been in there I thought I was hallucinating."

"I've seen stranger things," Shirou admitted. "Though that still ranks pretty high on my list."

"Stranger than that? I'm not sure I'd want to know about them."

"No. No you definitely wouldn't," Shirou agreed. "Who's next on the list?"

"Konno Mitsune, the local fox-lady."

"Fox-lady?" Shirou echoed. "Is that about her vulpine expression?"

"Partly," Haruka confirmed. "But they call her Kitsune mostly because of her behavior. She's a sly woman that likes to seduce men and blackmail or embarrass them for fun. She's usually late with the rent because she burns all of her money on sake and horse races. As you are now the manager you can be sure she will try to exploit you at any given chance."

"Say, Haruka-san," Shirou began. "Is it just me or every tenants we visit is more issues than the previous one?"

"Erm…. As a matter of fact…," Haruka sweat dropped.

"Nevermind. Let's just get it done and out of the way."

Haruka's description of Mitsune was accurate. Her room looked hastily cleaned and the doors of the wall closets were suspiciously bulging outwards.

Kitsune was wearing a shirt more revealing than Kaolla's, partly thanks to her more generous bust. She looked disappointed by Haruka's presence while Shirou was all the more glad for it. Haruka had just thrown a wrench in her plans by simply being there.

"Konno-san," Shirou began, " it says here that you are usually late with your rent. While I don't mind postponing the payment from time to time you must also keep in mind that your rent goes directly in the funds to keep this place running," Shirou explained. "Please try to be on time from now on."

"Ah. I'll try my best," she conceded. She had no intention of changing her habits and seducing the new manager was her foolproof plan to avoid doing that. Haruka intervention merely postponed wouldn't be around every minute of every day, after all.

"I'm counting on that," Shirou said firmly. "Furthermore, while it's not my place to judge other people hobbies please keep the sake within your room. There's a couple of underage girls living here."

"Erm… It was never a problem before," she objected weakly. The new manager was proving himself to be too much of an upstanding guy for her liking.

"It's a problem now, Konno-san," Shirou replied mercilessly. He didn't like being particularly harsh with her but he preferred to be considered a little strict rather than present himself as a potential prey for the stunning woman that made a living out of seducing men.

"Understood, Shirou-kun," she replied with a coy smile and amicable voice in an attempt to salvage her image in the eyes of the man in front of her. "I'll keep the sake in here."

"Thank you. With that out of the way, is there anything that needs repairs in here?"

"Actually there is," she beamed, glad for the change of topic. "The window doesn't close all that well and it's really a pain in the winter."

"Understood. I'll make sure to have it fixed in a few days. Anything else?"

"No. Everything just fine."

"Good. Then our business here is finished. Thank you for your time Konno-san."

"Please, Shirou-kun. Call me Kitsune like everybody else."

"I'll think about it, Konno-san."

"Could she be any more obvious?" Shirou asked to more to himself than to Haruka beside him.

"You noticed that?"

"Please, Haruka-san. I may be a little on the thick side I'm not stupid."

"Indeed. And keep in mind that you aren't out of the woods with her yet. Mitsune might be a lazy bum, but she's persistent and takes great pride in her seduction skills. The more you avoid her the more she will come after you."

"Joy. Just what I needed to spice up my absolutely boring and uneventful life."

"Eh, you might have pissed off somebody important up there and this is payback."

'Thinking about it, that's exactly the kind of thing that bastard of a Counter Guardian would do if given the chance,' Shirou thought to himself without an inkling of doubt. After all, who beside Emiya could know what EMIYA would do?

"Let's just forget about it for now. Who's next?"

"Aoyama Motoko, heir to the Shinmei-Ryu school of kendo, whose skill with a blade you already experienced firsthand. Remember?"

"Yeah. Who could forget something like that?"

"It's more like who'd get the chance to live to forget. I was honestly surprised to know you've been on the receiving end of one of her techniques and got away without a scratch. You've been very lucky."

'My concept of luck doesn't involve being hit by a blast of concentrated ki,' Shirou retorted silently in his mind. "I suppose you're right," he preferred to say, not being one to whine about past incidents and misfortunes.

"I'm sure you noticed it already, but she has a very low opinion of men in general. I advise you remain on your best behavior at all time in her presence."

"Haven't I been on my best behavior the whole time, Haruka-san?"

"Can't argue with that," she nodded. "Well then, let's get this over with."

"…"

"…"

"…"

After greeting each other when they entered Motoko's room the trio sat in uncomfortable silence around the small table. Motoko's room was decorated like a samurai's in times of war and just as welcoming. All manners of swords and armors were set against the walls. There wasn't a single trace of a modern item in sight. It was like they'd travelled back in time a couple of centuries.

"So," Shirou began breaking the silence. "Is there anything I should know about?"

"No. The condition of my room is satisfactory."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Anything beside that?"

"If you have done your inspection as you were supposed to there is no need for me to point out anything."

"Right," Shirou agreed sourly. "Then I might as well point a few things out myself. I understand that Maehara-san has been taking care of every single chore inside the dorm by herself, is this correct, Motoko-san?"

"It is correct. Maehara-san graciously took that duty upon herself."

"Has anyone ever offered to help her in any way?"

"I…," Motoko paused for a moment trying to recall such an event. "Not that I can think about," she admitted with a tinge of shame in her voice.

"I thought so. I know that Maehara-san is willing to take care of all of the chores around here, but I'm afraid that with her reserved character she wouldn't be able to refrain from doing them even if she didn't feel like it."

"Have you discussed this with the other girls as well?"

"You are the first one," Shirou admitted. "I would have raised the topic with Konno-san as well ,but I would rather wait until she takes responsibility for herself before expecting more. That leaves you and Narusegawa-san as the eldest tenants and I can tell that Maehara-san looks up to you both. As her Senpai and fellow tenants, please give her some support."

"I will discuss it with Maehara-san herself," Motoko agreed.

"It's all I ask. Thank you for your time, Aoyama-san."

"That went well," Haruka said as they left Motoko's room.

"Certainly better than our first encounter," Shirou agreed. "Though I would have been hard-pressed in doing worse."

"Don't be so sure about that. I don't mean this as an insult, but Motoko's sword is faster than her brain sometimes. If she takes offense for something she will more likely come looking for blood rather than an apology. Still, you seem to handle things pretty well. I suppose that living with many women before has given you some experience."

"You could say that," Shirou confirmed. "Here we are Narusegawa-san's room."

For a moment Shirou thought Naru had a guest in her room. The girl in front of him didn't look anything like the girl who first met upon his arrival at the dorm. Thick glasses, braided hair and clothes that would look good on the ultimate of nerds.

"N-Narusegawa-san?" He asked uncertainly.

"Who else could I be?"

"My apologies. Your appearance is so different from before that I wasn't sure it was really you."

"This is how I dress when I study. It's comfortable and the glasses help me when I read for extended periods of time. Is there something wrong with it?"

"No, no. Not at all. Just… nevermind. Let's go back to the reason of our visit. I was wondering if there was something you needed me to do beside closing the hole in the floor. I checked the entire main building and there's enough to do to keep me busy for weeks. Is there anything you think takes priority."

"The stairs to the deck look like they're going to give in next time someone steps on them. If you can repair them first we won't have to go there from the adjacent roofs anymore."

"I see," Shirou nodded and scribbled down on a notebook. " I'll put that on top of my list. Anything else?"

"Nothing comes to mind."

"Okay. On another note, I'll say to you the same thing I said to Aoyama-san earlier. Maehara-san has been taking care of all the chores until today. From now on I'll handle my own share of the work but I'm expecting that everyone takes care of their own laundry or at the very least set up proper shifts."

"We never asked Shinobu to do our things for us."

"But you never said her not to either. I honestly appreciate and share Maehara-san's disposition to help, but that's not an excuse to skim on your responsibilities and dump them on your kohai."

"…," Naru muttered.

"Excuse me?"

"I said I understand. I'll try to organize my time with Shinobu to divide the chores. Is that all right."

"Absolutely. Thank you for your time, Narusegawa-san."

When the last door slid close Shirou released a sigh he didn't know he was holding. For the entire time he was there Naru was on the defensive. He expected her to lash out at him verbally, but she kept her cool even if there was an unpleasant tension in the air.

She didn't trust him and she made it clear. It didn't look personal but was still there.

"You ok, Shirou?"

"Yeah Haruka-san. I just have a lot to think about."

"Do you think you're going to have trouble with the girls?"

"I'm certain of it. There's bound to be some attrition while we adjust to each other. Hopefully I'll be able to handle it."

"I'm sure that you will. You seem mature and responsible enough to manage the situation. Beside if you need anything you only have to ask. I'll be glad to help."

"Thank you, Haruka-san."

"Bah," she scoffed. "Drop the suffix. It's annoying. You're my nephew and this is your home."

"Should I call you aunt then?"

"Don't push your luck, Shirou. I might not look like much, but I can kick your ass any day of the week."

Shirou chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind."

That evening the girls gathered in the attic to discuss the new manager. They approached Shinobu about the chores issue and with a little push she admitted that taking care of everything by herself was a tad difficult sometimes. In the end she decided to keep cooking for everyone, a task that she would share with the new manager, while they would take turns doing the laundry. Cleaning their rooms was everyone individual task d course, while the manager would take care of all the common areas.

It was fairly reasonable and they agreed that it was how it should have been in the first place.

"So? What do you think about him?"

It was Mitsune to ask the question first.

"H-He's nice," Shinobu said. "He's really helpful and well mannered."

"He didn't play with Kaolla," said girl pouted.

"He managed to steal my sword mid-swing," Motoko admitted begrudgingly. "He has an eye for sword and he's confident and fast enough. He might have some martial training so he can be at least a little dangerous if he want to be. What do you think, Naru-senpai."

"I'll refrain from passing any judgment for now. I don't trust him, but he seems to take his job seriously. If he doesn't screw up and keeps his hands and eyes to himself he can stay."

Mitsune didn't voice her intention of seducing him. After all, if she wanted to blackmail Shirou it was better if nobody knew.

They retuned down and went to their rooms just in time to catch Shirou leaving the building,.

"I have to take care of some things in town," he said while he put on his shoes. "I'll be back later tonight."

Kitsune watched him leave until he was out of earshot. "What could he have to do this late? All the shops are closed except the Seven-Eleven. He didn't sound like he was going to shop for groceries."

"I do not know," Motoko said. "Maybe he knows someone that lives here."

"Maybe," Mitsune conceded, the gears in her head were already forming a plan. "I'm going out for a walk."

"You are you going to follow him," Motoko observed quietly.

"Yep. Wanna come too?"

"I have no interest in what he does outside of the dorm, but in the off chance that you will follow him in some dangerous place I will come with you."

"Great. Let's go!"

They followed him at a relatively safe distance. The air was warm enough already and many people were taking strolls or simply hanging out. It helped the two girl go unnoticed to Shirou even thought they had to fend off a few suitors.

At one point they saw Shirou duck into a small alley and out of their sight. They promptly went after him only to find the narrow street completely empty. They rushed to the end and into the wider road on the other side but found no trace of Shirou in the small crowd.

"Aw," Kitsune pouted. "We lost him."

"So it seems. Let us go back to the dorm. There is no use to remain here any longer."

"All right," she conceded. "But this is not over. I'll be waiting for him when he'll get back."

"Mitsune-senpai" Motoko sighed, "don't you have anything better to do with your time?"

"Nope!"

"That is what I thought."

They turned back and returned from whence they came. In the middle of the alley Motoko stopped and looked around, one hand on the blade that she always kept at her side.

"What's wrong Motoko?"

"I… It's nothing. For a moment I had the impression of being watched."

"Ah! You're just too tense. You have to relax. Relax."

"Maybe you are right. I think I will be taking a nice long bath once we are back."

"I'll come too," Kitsune chided. "And I'll bring sake."

"Were you not forbidden to take your liquor out of your room?"

"Yeas, but I don't expect Emiya-kun to come and scold me in the spring."

"I certainly hope for his health that he will not even consider such a thing."

They finally reached the main road again, but Motoko couldn't shake the feeling of being watched until they turned the corner.

Several floors above, Shirou looked down at his stalkers through narrowed eyes. Didn't those people know the meaning of privacy? What right did they have to follow him? It was extremely annoying. Those girls seemed to believe they were entitled to watch over him and judge his actions.

Sighing, he quelled his annoyance and jumped down the roof, landing in a crouch without a noise. Sending one last glance to where the girls disappeared he turned around and continued on his way.

He had a friend to meet.

Author Notes:

So I'm back to this story after a long pause. Regular updates is still something I wouldn't hold my breath for but feel free to suffocate at your leisure.

I was extremely surprised by the reception this story had. Over one hundred reviews for a couple of chapters isn't half bad. There was also a lot of discussions going on in the comments that would be better to move to an appropriate location. I'm starting up a forum for my fics so feel free to ask your questions there.

Also, this story doesn't involve Negima for the simple reason that in that series Magic had either reached monstrous level or was treated as a ridiculous plot device. I like neither so I won't use them. I might borrow some character name from time to time but they will have no relation to the original story. Consider it a tribute to the author (and a way for me to have names without having to come up with them).

If anyone is willing to take up the job of Beta just PM me, but don't expect it to make updates any faster.

Well that's it for now.

Bye.