Welcome back!
So, here's another chapter, and it's a particularly interesting one. I mean, Siege is literally Arturia, except just without being a Saber and has bigger mountains on her chest. No, whether Siege is Arturia's reincarnation...well, that's for you to decide really.
Anyways, enough dilly-dallying! Enjoy!
The first time Seige truly met the new operator was in an accident, one occurring on a lazy, sunday afternoon. She'd just woken up then, walked out of her dorm room with her head filled with mostly air and her favored lollipop lazily placed in her mouth.
She followed her usual path towards the cafeteria, and as she turned a corner, she bumped into a wall, or so she thought. "Agh…" She'd said, cursing her for being so sleepy, but then a voice suddenly spoke.
"Saber…?" She snapped out of her reverie and looked up to the wall she'd bumped into, only to see that it wasn't a wall but a person, a lupo to be exact. She recognised him instantly, remembering the display he'd shown yesterday. She actually had some questions for him, especially about that arts of his, but who was this 'Saber'?
"Saber? Who's that?"
Emiya stared at her for a few more seconds, before he sighed, running a hand through his hair. "...It's nothing. You just sounded like someone I knew." He then looked down again and coughed softly, extending his hand for her. "I'm sorry for bumping into you. I should've been more careful."
Siege blinked, "...Ah, no, I'm at fault as well." She took his hand and stood up. "I'm sorry as well."
Emiya looked away, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Ah, no, really, it's fine."
Ah, he looks uncomfortable now.
Strangely, she couldn't help but feel bad for him. He'd been cordial so far, and his first exposure to her was bumping to her in the morning. What could his impression of her be now she wondered?
After a moment of silence, Emiya finally spoke again. "Have you eaten breakfast yet, Ms…"
"Siege. Call me Siege." And at the prospect of breakfast, she smiled. "And no, I haven't eaten just yet."
The lupo's ears perked up, and his eyes gained a light of confidence within them. "Then, do you mind waiting? I can cook up some food for you." At her uncertain stare, he smiled. "Don't worry, I don't claim to be a master chef, but I do pride myself on my cooking."
"Hn. Alright then."
Somehow, she knew that his food would be amazing.
She was oh, so right.
"Mm…" How could someone make something like this, in less than 15 minutes no less!? It tasted more like the food from one of those fancy restaurants back at Victoria, except she didn't need to pay absorbent amounts of money and wait roughly an hour for her meal.
She moved to take another bite, but her spoon met nothing, and she looked down to see that her bowl had completely gone empty. She looked around hastily, afraid that someone had caught whiff of this godly food and decided to steal it for themselves, until she heard Emiya chuckle and place another bowl down before her.
"Don't worry. I made more."
...Ah.
Had she eaten her food that quickly?
Nevertheless, with her cheeks slightly red from shame, she began to dig into her second bowl of food. Which soon continued to her third bowl. Then her fourth. And then her fifth.
Why can't I stop eating!?
She truly lamented her love for food at that moment. She felt like she was slowly losing herself to this wonderful taste, and she both hoped and feared that the line of food would soon come to an end.
Thankfully, she managed to stop herself after some time, but it came at the cost of evelen empty bowls, and all she could do was shamefully apologize for how much work she'd caused for the new operator.
Emiya simply laughed.
"It's fine. I knew you'd eat a lot, so I cooked accordingly." He said, and she couldn't help but ask, "But why did you think I'd eat so much?" Is he calling me fat…? She wondered rather grimly.
But then he looked away, his eyes turning rather distant. "...I suppose it was a feeling."
Siege frowned.
She'd seen those eyes, recognized it in some of the operators she met on a daily basis. The eyes of a veteran, of someone who'd seen too much and lost a part of themselves, no matter how young or old, how experienced or not. Occasionally she'd wake up and saw those eyes in the mirror, staring back at her.
She'd seen them many times before, and yet, she felt...worry? Pity? She wasn't quite sure herself, but somehow, she felt as if she'd once known him, known of who he was and what he would become.
A man who stood atop a hill of swords.
What-? A strange flicker passed by in her mind, a vision of a desolate wasteland littered with swords, and of the two that stood above them all. One a symbol of conviction, and the other of determination.
Before she could ponder on it however, Kalt'sit appeared from the door and approached them both. "Siege, I need you at the hangar as soon as possible. An urgent mission has cropped up."
Casting the strange thoughts for later, she nodded and stood up, but then Emiya stepped forward as well. "Ms. Kalt'sit, may I join as well?"
She stared at him for a moment before nodding. "That's acceptable."
The two followed the lead doctor out.
Emiya fidgeted slightly as he looked down from the helicarrier, seeing the series of buildings he needed to infiltrate from above. It was a search-and-destroy mission, with their target being a particularly nasty explosive that Reunion had somehow managed to steal. When broken, it would let out a burst of originium-infused smoke, one that would react violently when touched by arts.
A powerful and dangerous weapon, especially against something like Rhodes Island that had hundreds of recruits capable of using arts.
"Worried?" Siege asked from behind him, her favored lollipop back in her mouth and her hammer lazily slung over her shoulders. The moment he saw it, he'd used his structural analysis and saw the details of its usage.
As a weapon alone it was impressive, but it wasn't just a mere weapon. It was a staff, one that Siege famously used to amplify her impacts when she swung it down, casting an almost shattering-effect onto whatever she hit.
It was quite amazing.
"No, just thinking why they'd steal weapons so dangerous to themselves."
"...They're desperate. I guess."
"Suppose so." He looked to her, and he couldn't help but feel a sting in his heart. It almost reminded him of those young days, when he'd only been a naive, bumbling buffoon trying to fight in a war that was far beyond what he could handle.
He resented it, but he made peace with it. He knew he'd been young and far too broken to understand.
He remembered her, and her promise.
To wait for him within the gardens of Avalon, forever.
He closed his eyes, pushing the wayward thoughts away, and opened them once more. He honed his focus, readied his magecraft, and looked back to his partner.
"Ready?" He asked, and in response she stepped forward.
Emiya smiled.
Together, they leapt down.
Several hours later, they'd come back successfully, and he decided to cook lunch for the ex-victorian. Sadly, the doctor and other operators were there as well, and the moment they caught whiff of his food.
War broke out.