Author's Notes:

What's up guys! I know I already released a chapter today, but I decided that it would be best to get through this "preparation arc" quickly. I'd also like to celebrate getting my first followers! Thanks a lot guys, it means a lot to me. So, without further ado, enjoy Chapter 3!

Preparations Part Two

Saito was talking to an old woman for several hours. Explaining his adventures in Halkeginia. She listened intently, without interrupting. He spoke of the Void Mage, Gandalfr, and the Ancient Dragon. As he finished his story, he decided to introduce his friend.

"Mrs. Aiko, this is Derf. The legendary sword of Gandalfr." The rune glowed as Derf made himself known to her. "Hello, Madame. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Mrs. Aiko was silent. Saito couldn't tell if it was from shock or not. Eventually she cleared her throat and looked directly into Saito's eyes, making him uncomfortable.

"So that's why you need a sword?" Saito nodded. "I have to go back. There is someone there waiting for me, even if they don't know it yet." Saito didn't tell her that he loved Louise while he was telling his story, to spare himself any embarrassment. She smiled at him, nearly laughing.

"And this person, what are they to you?" Saito was embarrassed. He wondered why he had to answer to Mrs. Aiko's cryptic questions.

"They're someone precious to me." He said, trying his best to sound cool without being explicit in what he meant. Mrs. Aiko caught on, but didn't push any further. She simply grabbed the white-bladed sword and sheathed it. She handed it to Saito, smiling.

"Take good care of this sword, Saito. It is the most valuable item I have. Priceless to me." Saito nodded, his eyes filled with determination. He wrapped the sword in a sheet and then helped Mrs. Aiko clean the shop before leaving. As he walked out of the door, Mrs. Aiko called his name. He turned around, confused.

"What is it Mrs. Aiko?"

She smiled at him mischievously and warmly at the same time.

"Take care of that girl. Love her more than you love yourself." Saito blushed, his face turning bright red.

"H-How did you know?" She spoke as she walked away into her warehouse.

"I'm an old woman, Saito. I know the look in a man's eyes when he is in love." With that, she disappeared. It was nearly dark outside and the street was silent. However, this silence was broken by Derf's laughter.

"Hahahaha! She got you, Partner! These old types really are something else!" Saito blushed and began riding his bike back home, the laughter of Derflinger ringing in his ears. When he got to his front door, Saito realized he couldn't just walk through the front door with a sword wrapped in a sheet. Instead, he decided to unsheathe the sword and hold it. His rune activated, increasing his strength, speed, and agility. He went to his back yard and jumped onto the gutters of his house, a jump which no normal human could achieve as his gutters were more than 20 feet off of the ground. He climbed through his window and hid the sword under his bed. He then climbed back out of the window and entered the house through the front door as if nothing happened. His parents had already gone to bed. There was a note for him on the table telling him his food was in the microwave. He got the food, curried beef and rice, and went to his room.

He took the sword from under his bed and examined it more closely. It was then that he noticed something strange. On one side of the blade, something was carved in Japanese.

"神の左手 (Kami no Hidarite)" Saito spoke to himself. "Impossible. This has to be a coincidence."

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Saito, I heard the door opening. Was that you?" It was Saito's Father. Saito quickly hid the sword under his bed and answered the door.

"Yeah, sorry I came back so late." Saito gave his most sincere smile, hoping to dispel any suspicions his Father may have. Saito's Father smiled.

"Don't worry about it, son. Good night." He gave his son a kiss on his forehead, something that still embarrassed Saito, and went to bed. Saito sat on the bed, back in his serious tone. He looked on the other side of the blade and was even more shocked at what he found. Even with the little Halkeginian he knew, he could read what was written there in what was undeniably Halkeginian. The Left Hand of God. Saito began to breathe heavily. Derf, who had fallen into a slumber by the time Saito had arrived home, woke up. He had felt Saito's distress.

"What's wrong, Partner?" Saito looked at his rune and held the sword over it so that Derf could read it.

Derf was surprised, but did not take it as a bad omen. He simply started to laugh.

"Don't worry, Partner. This must mean we're doing something right." Saito began to relax. Derf was extremely excited, as the rune on Saito's hand glowed brightly.

"Hey, Partner. Stop keeping me waiting. Let me try it out!" Saito laughed. He picked up the sword in his left hand. His rune glowed brightly for several seconds until it suddenly became dim. From the sword came a voice.

"This feels AMAZING, Partner! It's so much better than that heap of junk I was stuck in before! I feel so powerful!" Saito smiled, happy that his friend was so happy. He laid in bed, leaving Derf to enjoy his new body. After a moment, Derf spoke to him after calming down.

"So what do we do next, Saito? What else do we need to prepare?" Saito thought for a few seconds.

"I can't do much more. I guess I'll get some kind of body armor. That shouldn't be too hard to find. I'll do that tomorrow. For now, let's get some rest." Derf agreed. "Good night, Partner. Sweet dreams." With that, he sheathed himself and slept. Saito, however, had a much harder time sleeping. He couldn't sleep comfortably without Louise at his side. After several hours, he finally fell asleep. However his sleep was not restful.

He woke up in a familiar room. It was the same yellow, dimly lit room from before. Only now, he woke up in front of the massive gate from before. This time, Saito decided to sit in front of the gate, waiting for a response. After a while he heard the same voice from before.

"What do you want, boy?" It was just as deep and ominous as before. Saito remained sitting down. He looked directly into the darkness in front of him. He could feel the heat in the air emanating from the creature.

"I want to know who, or what, you want. I don't want us to be enemies." The creature started laughing. It was a deep, sinister, frightening laugh. He saw it's eyes open, glowing orange in the dark. As frightening as they were, Saito couldn't help but think they were beautiful. When it stopped laughing it moved slightly closer to the gate.

"You intrigue me, young man. What's your name?" the beast said with curiosity. Saito was relieved to make a little bit of progress with the being.

"My name is Saito. Saito Hiraga. What is yours?" Saito said with confidence. The beast was quiet for a few seconds.

"I suppose it is inconsequential to tell you now. My name is Gandalfr. I cannot say I am pleased to make your acquaintance, however, at the very least, you'll make my life more interesting for now." Saito was shocked. He couldn't bring himself to speak properly.

"G-G-Gandalfr? I-I don't understand…" The being chuckled. It moved back into the darkness and closed it's eyes.

"It is time for you to wake up, Hiraga Saito. You have a lot to do." Saito suddenly woke up. He looked at his clock. 9:00 AM. He stood and picked up Derf, shaking him a little until he was sure he was awake.

"Derf, we have to go now."

"Eh? Oh it's you, Saito. Going to get armor now?"

Saito nodded. "Yeah. Getting modern armor from my world would take too long. I know where I can get some metal armor though."

This was one day Saito was extremely excited about. He was going to go to Akihabara. A hub for cosplayers. He knew that he could get metal cosplay armor that would be sufficient in Halkeginia. Not only that, but he could finally have an excuse to dress like the badass he always imagined himself to be.

He picked up Derf and went downstairs. His parents had just finished setting the table for breakfast.

He walked up to both of them and gave them hugs, much to their surprise.

"Good morning, Mother! Good morning, Father!" They were pleasantly surprised to see how happy he was. His mother patted his head.

"You're awfully energetic today." She looked down at him. Her face turned blank when she saw the sheathed sword in his hand. "Saito, what is that?" Saito wasn't worried.

"Oh, this is just something for cosplay. I'm going to Akihabara." Saito's Father snickered, but said nothing. His Mother kissed his cheek.

"Well, my little warrior isn't winning any battles without eating breakfast." Saito smiled and sat in his chair where breakfast was waiting for him. After eating extremely quickly, (he had developed a voracious appetite during his time in Halkeginia) he bowed and ran out of the house. He rode his bike to Akihabara, cosplayer's heaven. He found a shop specializing in high end, metal cosplay costumes. He had a great time picking several outfits to take with him. He spent the entire day there, even forgetting to eat lunch. By the time he finished, it was already evening. He rode back home, tired and exauhsted. He didn't even bother getting his food from the microwave. He simply went up to his room, collapsed on his bed, and fell asleep.

He woke up once more in front of Gandalfr. The beast woke up again.

"How many times are you going to come here, Hiraga Saito?"

Saito looked confident. "I want you to teach me about the history of all of the Void Mage familiars known as Gandalfr."

The beast was silent for a while. It seemed to be seriously considering his words very carefully.

"You are not prepared. I will tell you in due time."

With that, it fell back asleep. Saito woke up in his bed, slightly disappointed. Derf was already unsheathed.

"Mornin', Partner."

Saito yawned and looked at the sword. He rubbed his eyes and got up.

"Morning, Derf."

"What do we do now, Partner?"

Saito thought for a moment. He would be leaving for Halkeginia in 5 days. He smiled at the thought of returning, but the smile disappeared shortly. He thought about his parents. About how worried they would be when he disappeared.

"I want to spend time with my family. My sister isn't in Tokyo, but at least I can spend time with my parents before I leave."

Derf agreed, admiring Saito's maturity.

"I'll stay asleep until the time comes. Live well, my friend."

Derf sheathed himself and fell into his long slumber. Saito got up and went down to his family, where he was met with a surprise. His sister, a tall, young looking girl with black hair and bright blue (nearly gray) eyes, greeted him.

"Saito! It's been too long! Well…I guess it's only been a month, but that's still too long!"

Saito smiled and gave his sister a tight hug. He hadn't realized just how much he missed her and loved her until she was right in front of him. After a while, she tried to push him off. Something strange to her since he was weaker than she was the last time they met, only 1 month ago. He was so strong, in fact, that it began to hurt her. Eventually, he realized what was happening and let go, embarrassed. She massaged her bruised ribs.

"I missed you too, Aisaka." He said as he rubbed the back of his head. Saito spent the next 5 days with his family. Attending to their every need and showing them an amount of love he had never shown before. Every night, he would have a short conversation with Gandalfr, although they were usually trivial and never answered his many questions.

On the 5th day, Saito got up at 6:00 AM. He put on the clothes he bought at Akihabara. His outfit consisted of black, slightly baggy pants tied on with a bright pink piece of cloth. He wore a long sleeved white shirt. Its collar was lined with bright blue highlights, as were the ends of its sleeves. A dark copper colored Samurai style vest covered it. The vest covered his chest, back, and stomach. Matching pieces of copper looking armor covered his shoulders and the sides of his waist. He wore black samurai shoes decorated with strips of bronze metal. He also had a bronze strap made for him that he could use to hang Derf from his back.

He looked at himself in his mirror, feeling proud. Derf popped from his sheath.

"Wow! You look fantastic, Partner! Now we both look cool, eh?"

Saito smiled. "Thanks, Derf. I got a special surprise for you too."

Saito went into his closet to fetch a new sheath. He had it made in Akihabara when he noticed that the sword's original sheath was torn and tattered. The new sheath was white with bronze lining the tip of the sheath as well as the sheath's opening.

Derf was silent for several moments. When he finally was able to speak, his voice sounded like he was about to cry.

"Saito, thank you so much! It is amazing! If I had eyes I would cry right now!"

Saito smiled and sheathed Derf. Derf was laughing happily, as it was an extremely comfortable sheath. Saito quietly left his room and closed the door behind him. He went to each of his family's room. He watched each of them sleep for a while before kissing their foreheads and leaving the house. He needed to wait until midday before the portal would open, so he went to a park to relax for a while. It would be six hours before the portal opened, so he slept there for five and a half hours. When he woke up, he ran to the location where his adventure began. People noticed him running. Of course they did, he was a young man dressed like an anime character running through the streets. He reached the location one minute before it would be time for the portal to open. He used this time to think about his family. About how he was about to leave again for another two and a half years. Just as he briefly considered not going, a bright light shone onto him, causing his eyes to close. When he opened them, there it was. The green, ovular portal that started it all. Derf unsheathed himself trying to offer Saito some comfort.

"Ready, Partner?"

Saito smiled and looked at his sword. "Ready."

He walked forward into the green light with a smile on his face. Ready for his adventure to begin again.

Author's Notes:

Sorry it was so long, but that is the end of the "daily life" arc. I hope you enjoyed it. I probably made several errors and I am sure you will point them out to me. Again, please remember that this is my first fanfiction. I will improve. Remember to leave a review, guys. It really makes my day. Thanks for reading! Catch you next time!