The schoolyard remains as desolate as it'd been hours earlier when I lost my life. I take my time making my way around the yard and to the other side of the building to retrieve my belongings, continuously checking my surroundings. Can't be too safe anymore; those freaks are showing up everywhere I turn.
Once I arrive to the corner I dropped my bag at, I begin to look around and see where it's at. Soon the looking evolves to walking around and searching, then to frantically running back and forth along the corner and looking at every inch of the surrounding area. No, no, no, no, no! "Where is it?!" I shout out, as if asking an invisible presence to give me its location. It should be here, could someone have taken it? I decide to retrace my steps, feeling as though I may have simply left it back in the archery range.
After jogging up to the large doors leading into the range, I anxiously open the door. Lo and behold, in the middle of the glossy, wooden flooring, is my bag. I exhale the biggest sigh of relief I've had throughout this entire, bat-shit crazy night. As I stroll towards the bag, I think of how weird it is of me that reclaiming the old arrow made me feel more at ease than coming back to life. Strange though, I could've sworn I dropped my bag outside when I ran from Lancer… After picking up the bag, I notice the latches on it are undone. I nervously open up and look inside… to see the arrow isn't there.
Phone, wallet, notebooks, pencil case, but no arrow. Seconds before I begin flipping shit, I hear a little chuckle to my right on the other end of the room, in a familiar, annoying tone. I snap my head towards the childish giggling to see Archer sitting on the overturned bucket of dirty floor water that was now formed into a puddle atop the floor beneath him. In the roof goblin's right hand rested my arrow, held between two of his fingers as if it was a cigar.
"Looking for this?" He holds the arrow out towards me and I drop the bag I'm holding before blitzing over to him, sole intention to bludgeon him upside the head. I cock my arm back to swing at him, but before I can, he effortlessly jumps up and over my head like a kangaroo. "Woah calm down fella."
"Give it back!" I shout out while turning to face him, feeling embarrassed at how whiny and childish my command sounded. He once again giggles while maintaining his smug expression before raising the arrow up to his face and inspecting the tip of it.
"What a weird little piece of junk. The shaft looks like a scraggly twig, the feather is frayed and almost withered away, and- is the arrowhead… just an old knife messily tied to the end?" I quickly swipe at the arrow with my casted right arm, but he pulls the hand it's in back before I can nab it. I then come at him with my opposite hand to punch his annoying mug, but he carelessly backsteps and twirls away.
"What it's made of is none of your concern, now stop prancing around so I can get it back and crack your skull open!" He continues laughing at my vain attempts to reclaim it.
"Simply take it from me if you want it that badly." While I begin considering my options on how I can get it back from the irritating man, I notice his playful expression melt away and he begins staring at the arrow much more intently. Without saying anything, he reaches up with his other hand and wraps it around the opposite end of the arrow. I feel my restraint shatter when I witness his hands tense and tighten like a vice as he bends them down to try and snap the arrow.
"Cut the shit!" I lunge at him and swat my hand down to knock the arrow out of his hands. Surprisingly, he makes no move to dodge and instead remains still as it's slapped out of his hands. I waste no time clambering onto the floor and reclaiming my belonging. I protectively shield it beneath my arm and rise to my feet to face him.
"Strange…" He states, breaking the silence. "It's pretty resistant for a piece of junk. I'm surprised I couldn't break it." Normally I'd fight the jerk tooth and nail after dealing with all his shenanigans tonight, but after all the tiresome events and after finally having my little treasure back safe and sound, I couldn't care less about him.
"Yeah, might be strange to you, but it figures to me that a little pansy such as yourself couldn't snap a 'twig' in two." My spiteful response doesn't seem to affect him as he stares at his hands for a moment longer before scoffing and walking past me. I eagerly watch him walk towards and out the door to the range, smiling when he finally leaves. Good riddance… Turning back to where he sat moments ago, I once again see the puddle he left from dumping the bucket and turning it into a seat. Now I have to clean up the mess he made… I hate him, so much.
Once the floor had been made spotless, again, I quickly grab my bag and double check to make sure the arrow is tucked safely inside. After ascertaining its safety, I quickly make my way out of the range. I need to hurry home; I may still be able to make it back before Irisviel and the others do, which will make things go over so much easier than having to explain why I was gone. Once outside, my mouth instinctually downturns into a frown when I see Archer leaning against the outer wall of the building, patiently waiting for me.
"Oh, you're still here? Greeaaaat." After closing the door, I walk away from the building, and the asshole leaning against it. It doesn't take long for me to hear his footsteps treading dutifully behind me. I sigh. "Why are you still lingering around here? In fact, why were you even here to begin with? Weren't you supposed to go with your master and the others?"
"I received no such command from Rin, so I assumed I was free to do as please. I figured seeing what you were up to would be more interesting than following them, especially since they already had a servant accompanying them. As for why I stuck around after exiting the range, I had some more questions for you… and I knew if I stayed inside you'd make me help you clean up the mess." This bastard…
"Oh yeah, I wouldn't want to make the poor little heroic spirit have to use a mop." After walking out of the schoolyard and onto the street, I notice the faulty street lamp was out again. Stupid lamp. Once I walk past the spot the little girl stood when she made an attempt on my life earlier, I glance at the giant gash the monster caused in the street with his sword and a realization dawns upon me. "Archer?"
"Yes?"
"You said you 'followed' me here, correct?"
"Correct."
"Which means you watched me almost get killed by the brolic caveman and his Irisviel plushie, right?" I hear a muffled giggle behind me.
"From a safe distance, yes."
"Why the hell didn't you do anything?!" I turn on my heel to face him and angrily prod for an explanation.
"Well, last time I checked, you aren't my master. Besides, it looked like you had everything under control."
"Mhm, well what if he had cleaved me in two when he swung at me?" He ponders the question for a moment.
"Who's to say I wouldn't have swooped in and swept you off your feet a nanosecond before the blade permanently divided you?" I groan in annoyance and turn back to quickly walking home, with an even faster pace than before, not appreciating the sarcasm of the heroic spirit.
As the distance from home grew shorter and shorter, so did the distance from the man behind me. It felt like a horror movie as the footsteps drew closer and closer as I walked on. No matter how much I picked up the pace, I couldn't lengthen the space between us. Once I had unknowingly began jogging to try and ditch the guy, I decide enough is enough. "Archer, is there any reason you have to stalk me so closely? I can practically feel you breathing down my neck."
"Oh? I hadn't noticed I was too close for your liking. I'm simply trying to get a read on you." A read on me? What the hell does that mean…
"Well, can you please 'get a read' on me from about thirty more paces back? You're seriously invading my personal space." He doesn't say anything but does heed and lag behind a few more steps. As we walk past one of the last few blocks before the house, I hear him speak up.
"So, are you gonna tell me what the deal with the 'arrow' is?" I frown again, not really wanting to engage in any chatter more than necessary with the guy.
"Why? What makes you so interested in it?" I stop for a moment to talk, mostly because my sore feet are a little tired and could use a break.
"It's just intriguing to me. Despite looking like a rod of garbage, it's surprisingly sturdy. And I-… I can't get a good sense for it." His description of my humble, makeshift arrow confused me.
"I don't know what to tell you, but I suppose it is pretty sturdy. I haven't really thought about it, but despite crudely being assembled together, it's held together for all these years." He looks a little surprised when I indicate the span of time I've had it for.
"Really? 'Years' is it?" I nod.
"I've had it basically as long as I've been with Irisviel. It may not look like much, but don't underestimate it; it's never let me down. But even more than its usefulness, its sentiment is what makes it so important to me." I place my hand on the side of my bag and fondly rub the spot the arrow lied beneath.
"Its sentiment? And what sentiment exactly does it hold?" I turn back towards the direction of the house and answer him as vaguely as possible, not wanting to crack open the tale of my treasure to someone, especially someone like him, just yet.
"It's a symbol of something to me." With that, I walk away from the conversation. As I walk home, I notice his footsteps no longer sounded off from behind me, indicating he ceased to follow. Must've finally sated all his questions.
Once inside the house, I surmise I must've beat the others home indicated by the light in the kitchen still being off. Feeling relieved about this, I maneuver around the house to drop my bag off in my room, hang my coat back up, and return to the kitchen to put a pot of tea on. Just as I lower myself down to sit at the table and finally relax a little, I hear the front door open. I sigh. No rest for the weary…
I lie down on my back atop the dining room floor and wait while listening to the chatter between the women and the rustling as they remove their coats and shoes in the hallway. Not long after, I hear rapid footsteps and glance at the doorway in time to see Irisviel pounce in and survey the room until her eyes finally lock onto me. "Shirou!" I recoil instinctively at her cheerily exclaiming my name and jumping onto me. The wind gets knocked out of me from her dead-falling onto me and my face gets smothered by her chest.
"MM! Irisviel get- get off!" I gently push up on her to try and overturn her, but she retaliates by wrapping my head in a bear hug, shoving my face deeper into her rack. As I lay suffocating, my right eye catches a glimpse of our three guests over Irisviel's shoulder, standing in the doorway and looking at me judgingly. Before their opinion on our relationship could get anymore twisted, I wiggle and slither out of Irisviel's grip with all my strength and quickly crawl away and beneath the table to escape her.
"Shirouuu! Come out from under there, I just want to cuddle a little!" I don't budge from my cover. I hear Tohsaka groan in annoyance.
"Miss Irisviel, I don't think now is the right time to be playing around. We still need to decide our move from here." I poke my head out from under the table and crawl out completely before retaking my seat after seeing Irisviel looking much more serious now.
"You're right, Rin" she agrees "let's wrap this troublesome night up once and for all so that we may move forward."
I look at the other three sitting with me at the table in slight disappointment as they contently sip on the tea I had put on right before they got back. I'm currently waiting for my cup from the new pot I just put on. They didn't even ask if I wanted a cup; Tohsaka just nonchalantly picked it up and poured each of them one, excluding me. I look at the doorway to the dining room to see Archer casually leaning against the frame with his eyes closed. Not that I care if he gets some or not, but she didn't even offer her own servant any… Irisviel is the first to break the steady ambience of the three sipping away.
"Shirou, did anything happen while we were away? No one else came here or attacked the house, right?" I wonder about how to answer her, seeing as how I didn't even stick around to see if someone did or not. I glance at Archer who's now looking at me expectantly.
"No, I don't believe so. And if someone did come here, they didn't come inside or bother me." She smiles pleasantly at my comforting lie, most likely being relieved that the three of them leaving me alone didn't result in a travesty. I can share that relief. I hear Archer scoff in annoyance and turn to see him walking away and into the hallway. Rin looks into the hallway with irritation and confusion apparent on her face.
"Archer, where do you think you're going?"
"I'm going to go play lookout some more; you don't care, right?" He shouts back. I swear I hear her lightly growl before turning her attention back to her tea.
"Do whatever you want, I don't care!" He doesn't say anything more, and soon his footsteps cease as he exits the house. "Why did I have to summon a servant as temperamental and hard-headed as him? If only I'd summoned Saber, this war would've been as good as done." I ignore the girl's whining and stare up at the ceiling. I bet he's back up on the roof right now… I recall my run-in with that little girl and her servant and wonder if Irisviel encountered a similar problem on her trek.
"Did you guys run into any trouble while you were out?" I casually ask after Tohsaka's griping and complaining died down. Irisviel shakes her head.
"Not at all. Unless you count having to see someone you hate as 'trouble'." My thoughts immediately jump to the guy who tried to assault Irisviel back then, but I suppress my anger after realizing she must be talking about the church guy.
"That's good." I reply simply.
"Good indeed." Tohsaka adds. "If we'd known there'd be no servants encountered on the trip, we would've had no problem bringing you along. However, better to be safe than sorry. You'd just be hurting yourself and us if we ran into one with you in tow." As she talks all high and mighty, the daunting scene of what happened just a little while ago replays in my head.
"Oh yeah?" I don't argue, knowing from experience that she's just spouting out a bunch of nonsense. Instead I just humor her while Irisviel meekly tries to defend me.
When I finally filled my own hands with a cup of hot tea, the serious conversation had already begun. The three gave me a general explanation of what exactly was going on; 7 servants/masters, fighting to win the Holy Grail that grants a wish, the different classes of servants, mages and magecraft, etc. They didn't explain any of the confusing terms, just skimmed over what we were basically involved in now.
"So, what makes me worthy of understanding the situation all of a sudden?" My question held a bit of contempt as I'd been feeling pretty left out and neglected up till this point.
"I was planning on telling you eventually no matter what, it's just now is the only opportune moment I've had so far." Irisviel quickly reassures me she didn't intend to keep me ignorant.
"You're actually taking all of this pretty well, Emiya. People usually have a hard time accepting all of this when it's dropped on them out of nowhere." Tohsaka's praise did little to elate my mood.
"I'm not necessarily taking it well; it's more of just me playing by ear." She didn't seem too happy that I deflected her compliment.
"Whatever then. Anyways, Irisviel and Saber, I propose we form an alliance for this war." Saber dons a pleased grin and nods, indicating she agreed with the proposal and Irisviel tilts her head as though she's confused by the premise.
"I'm not against it, Rin, but are you sure you'd want to team up with us? We're kind of late to the party and we're by no means prepared." Tohsaka looks shocked by her question.
"Are you kidding me? Unless I'm mistaken, you yourself have no wish for the Grail, right Irisviel? You simply want to win to prevent Kirei from pulling any stunts. Any master would be crazy to not lunge at the prospect of teaming up with you. I'd basically have two servants and a mage under my control!" As her eyes glimmer with excitement I frown at her in disgust for using the term "control" in regard to Irisviel. Saber's pleased grin didn't look all too pleased anymore either.
"Hold up, Rin. Irisviel may have no wish for the Grail, but I'd implore you to remember that I myself do however." Despite having a wrench thrown into her operations, Tohsaka still looked as though she is brimming with excitement.
"Yeah, yeah, we'll hammer out all the fine details for later. For now, just know that teaming up is in both of our best interests. Your chances of extinguishing any plans Kirei may or may not have and my chances of attaining the Grail are both drastically increased this way. Deal?" Tohsaka reaches her hand across the table towards Irisviel, prodding her to shake on it. That's the second time she's said "Kirei", I suppose that's the name of the man from the church. Irisviel looks warily at the hand and then looks to me with an expression that said, "now what?".
"It's your choice, Irisviel. Whatever you choose I'll agree to. Personally though, I don't think we really need the redcoats on our side to win this thing." Tohsaka glares at me.
"Stay out of this Emiya!" Irisviel laughs at our bickering and reaches forward to gently wrap her hands around Tohsaka's.
"May our victory be a swift and effortless one!" Irisviel beams with joy at the new team that's been established and Tohsaka returns just as much excitement. Though I have a hunch it's her taking into account her bolstered chances of winning as opposed to Irisviel, who's just giddy she has a new friend.
"Now then," Tohsaka starts while removing her hand from Irisviel's "we need to make a rough idea of what our next move will be. I suggest getting intel on who Caster is will be of the upmost-"
"Hey, hey, hey, hey. No." I interject. Tohsaka looks at me coldly, her eyes practically having painted the words "what do you want now" across them. "You must be stupid if you think we're going to start forming our strategy right now. We've all been up all night. Daylight is going to break in just a couple of hours. It's waaaay past Irisviel's bedtime." I wait patiently for Irisviel to pout and protest like a little kid while Tohsaka stammers in disbelief at me calling her stupid. After Irisviel's whining never comes, I look at her to see she was already passed out on the table. It hasn't even been a minute since she formed an alliance! I look knowingly at Tohsaka. "You see?" She looks like she wants to protest but holds her tongue.
"Whatever then, go sleep. However, I'm going to be staying here tonight, because as soon as she wakes up, I want to immediately get down to business." Who does she think she is?
"Ok fine, you can stay. I have a nice towel and pile of dirty laundry in the washing room that'd be perfect for you." I turn my attention away from the fuming girl and begin to pick Irisviel up bridal style to go help her to bed. Saber catches my attention as I lift Irisviel up. She'd been sitting a bit further away from the table than us, and other than conversing about our involvement in the war, remained silent throughout our talks. Her eyes are closed almost as if she's meditating. The peculiar servant occupies my thoughts as I walk out of the room while Tohsaka barks at me to not ignore her when she's talking to me.
You're really passed out, huh? Despite not being careful or graceful picking her up and carrying her to the bathroom, Irisviel hadn't so much as stirred from her slumber. Then again, she's always slept a lot, ever since I've known her. And she almost never stays up so late. I gently set the lid down on the toilet and seat her on top of it, keeping my left arm wrapped around her for support. "Hey, Irisviel, c'mon. I need you to brush your teeth before I bring you to bed."
"Mmm…" Other than a soft hum, she doesn't give any indication of waking up. I shake her softly. She scrunches her face up in discontent before scooching closer to me. I sigh.
"I swear, you're so spoiled." After seeing she wasn't going to comply, I stretch my arm to reach up to the cabinet hanging over the sink and grab her toothbrush and toothpaste. After much struggling from only being able to use one hand, my splinted hand at that, I finally have it readied with toothpaste for use. I then turn my attention back to sleeping beauty and frown. "Uhh… open sesame?" Almost immediately, she unhinges her mouth.
"Ahhhh…" You… You're not even asleep. I felt profusely embarrassed but decided to play along and begin gently scrubbing her upper and lower teeth awkwardly with the brush. The ordeal was more humiliating and took much longer than necessary, but I finally finished after scrubbing every nook and cranny. I fill up the little cup on the sink with water and hold it up to her lips. She sips it into her mouth and swishes it around for a bit before holding it in her cheeks, puffed up like a balloon. I wait for a moment, but she takes no move to spit it out. I frown at her.
"Irisviel, spit it out." She pretends not to hear me. I groan and resume the bridal style carrying, lifting her up and over the sink while carefully keeping her hair held together and back in my left hand so it wouldn't be in the way. Once over the sink she quickly spits the water back into the sink before snuggling up into my arms. "Why do you always have to be such a handful…" I turn the faucet on and wash the foamy residue down the drain before turning to finally exit the bathroom. I'm greeted with the faces of the other two women, peeking into the bathroom from the left of the doorway, who had apparently followed me and watched who knows how much of what I just did.
"Don't mind us, Emiya." Tohsaka calmly states. She holds a devilish grin while Saber just looks amazed and in wonder at the lengths I just took to get Irisviel ready for bed. I don't say anything and instead blush profusely while walking past them and quickly down the hallway to Irisviel's room.
Once in the room, I make sure to close the door this time to prevent any unwanted peeking. I walk to her bed and pull the covers down before sliding her underneath and pulling the covers back up over her. I quickly tuck her in and notice afterwards that her lips are puckered as though she was waiting for a kiss. "Goodnight, Irisviel." I sternly state in slight irritation. She opens her right eyelid slightly to glance at me and then quickly closes it, puckering her lips up even harder.
"Shirou zzz give zz goodnight *yawn* kiss." I couldn't decide if I found the fake snoring and yawn adorable or if it just annoyed me even more. I walk up to her nightstand and open it to dig around and find her night mask. After retrieving it, I place it on top of her mouth, earning an instant eyebrow furrow from her.
"You've been pampered enough tonight, Irisviel. Get some sleep, tomorrow doesn't seem like it's going to be any fun; don't need you trudging around like an exhausted zombie on top of that." She promptly shoots a quick puff of air from her mouth to blow the night mask off her face, revealing her pouty frown.
"You're no fun Shirou." With that, she pulls the covers up and over her head and burrows down into her blanket den. I turn and walk to the door, laughing a little at her antics. Despite all this crazy shit… Irisviel's still Irisviel. I'd say tonight turned out alright. I simultaneously flick the light off and open the door to surprisingly see the two nosy women weren't eavesdropping. After closing the bedroom door, I glance down the hall to see the kitchen doorway, the light still on within. I guess they went back there. I then look to the branching hall that connects to the section with the shattered windows and door that leads to the backyard. Hmm… Do I go talk some more with the two moody girls or do I go immerse myself in solitude with my bows. As I ponder my options, I find that I'd already begun walking towards the backyard.
I walk to the corner where my woolen blanket along with my precious woods lay clumped up in a mess. I pull it back near the center of the shed where it was before, near the new demonic circle. After unraveling it I feel sorrow well up in me at what I discover. It seems Irisviel unintentionally snapped one of the rough limbs I'd sanded out from the yew wood when she came in here and shoved everything to the sides. I can't let myself be upset with her, knowing how hectic that situation was; it's not like she knew it was important compared to all the other pieces in here. More than anything, I'm more disappointed in myself than before, now seeing no feasible way I could turn the parts into a bow. My hopes are effectively shattered.
"So, I hear we're allies now." I couldn't even bring myself to become annoyed at the appearance of Archer behind me. I'm far too tired and depressed to care right now. "Or at least, for the time being." He continues on while walking closer until he stands next to me.
I murmur out a hum in response while looking over the wood pieces on the blanket. He crouches down onto his knees to match me and also copies me in looking at the wood. "Normally you'd have a sharp remark to hit me with. You must've warmed up to me." I frown.
"Yeah, must've." I respond sarcastically. We sit in silence for a moment longer before Archer decides to continue.
"Why didn't you tell her?" I look at him in confusion, not knowing what he's referring to. "Irisviel. Why didn't you tell her about your run-in with the girl?" Oh that… I think about my reason, not quite sure why I didn't myself.
"I guess I just didn't want them to know I left the house after they'd told me not to." He reaches down to pick up the chunk of oak wood and inspects it while I respond. I don't bother telling him to not touch anything.
"Don't you think her knowing about it is more important? I mean, did you not get a clear enough view of the girl? She's practically a photo copy of Irisviel; they're obviously related. Probably her daughter, or younger sister." I groan in annoyance, not really wanting to talk but instead be left alone.
"Look, Archer, it's clear to me they're related in some way, but there's also not a doubt in my mind that Irisviel must know about her and know even more about her involvement than I do. For whatever reason, she's not telling me about this girl's existence. So, until she decides to tell me about the existence of her and their history together, I'm just going to continue on playing ignorant and assuming there's no relationship between them." Yes, she'd tell me if I needed to know. She wouldn't bury that history without a reason.
"I see then… If that's the way you want to look at it." My mind becomes possessed with thoughts of the girl and her servant while Archer continues to alternate between the pieces of wood on the blanket. "Speaking of that little girl, I'd like to ask you how you managed to evade her servant's attack." Unlike his previous question, this one didn't bother me. Because I'd love to know that answer myself.
"I don't know I just… did. My mind told my body to move a certain way and it carried out the command. Simple as that." He laughs.
"Yeah, when you say it like that it does sound simple. But if you saw it from my perspective, it'd be a bit more complicated than that. You rode his sword like a surfboard." It did seem a bit more bizarre when he stated it like that, but I dismissed the thought.
"If you say so." After inspecting all the wood pieces, he stood up to his feet.
"And? What's the story with the decrepit wood?"
"Oh, you know. I stole it from a bunch of historical tree landmarks to make the perfect bow and wasn't smart enough to think it'd be too old and brittle. Now, on top of that, half of it is broken so it can't even become a bow for aesthetics instead of firing." I watch him walk away from me and the wood pieces and to the rack of bows on the wall across the shed.
"I see. Yes, I agree. You aren't very smart." Instead of getting angry, I just laugh and subconsciously agree with him. "Which of these bows would you consider your favorite?" He peers at each individual bow carefully, tracing his finger atop them in a manner similar to how I always do, while asking. I watch his movements in confusion while debating which I'd have to choose. I point to the recurve I always shoot when I practice at home.
"It'd have to be that one, I guess." As soon as I give him my answer, he removes it from the rack and rejoins me on the floor next to the pieces of wood. He straightens out the woolen blanket and spreads the wood pieces to the corners before placing the bow in the middle between them.
"Well then, pardon me." He spreads his hands open above the objects, palms facing down, and slowly lowers them till they rest on top of them. "Trace, on." Once he utters the weird phrase, a jagged, winding pattern branches out across the bow and various pieces of wood. I watch in surprise, not knowing what to make of it, as the pattern envelops all of the objects and remains printed onto them for a while. Eventually, the pattern emits a bright, almost blinding glow, and the objects become iridescent, malleable blobs before converging together in the center of the blanket. I squint at the light and look up at Archer's face to see it filled with concentration. Once the masses converge, it retakes the shape of the bow and the light finally subsides.
"What did you… do?" What I'd first thought was the bow returned to its original shape, was actually a new recurve bow that looked entirely different. The limbs are thicker, more curved, and rounder on the edges than before, as well as having a spiral, swirl pattern winding from the tips all the way to the center. The riser in the middle is now a design unlike one I've seen before and is a shade darker, matching the heartwood of the Major Oak.
"It's a gift, in honor of our new alliance. Rin told me you're really obsessed with archery. And, if you're going to go around shooting that piece of junk at people, you should at least use a half-decent bow when you do it. And don't worry, it has all your precious stolen wood chunks incorporated into it." I tentatively wrap my hand around the grip and lift it up, surprised by the heft it had compared to my older version. Yeah… this feels right. Unknowingly, the glum expression I had became replaced with an ecstatic grin.
"Well who would've guessed… An archer who can make bows. Aren't you cool." He returns the smile after my remark and stands to his feet.
"There's the smartass comment I came for. I'm sure you'll like it; the design I based it off of is top-of-the-line, trust me." As he walks out the door, his figure fades away until he vanishes completely. I bet he thought he looked so cool walking out like that after pulling this stunt… I can hardly hold myself back from grabbing a quiver and running outside to give it a whirl, but I stop myself when an interesting idea crosses my mind. I stand to my feet and reach into my pocket to pull out what I had stuffed in there. I then walk towards my workbench with my bow in one hand and the clump of Berserker's long locks in the other.
It only took me a few minutes to knot the wiry hair that felt as tough as steel into a short braid. After doing so, I wrap the strands around the part where the lower limb of the bow meets the riser and do a cross tie before cementing it on with some wood glue, so it wouldn't fall off. I tug the cord of the overhead light above the workbench to illuminate the new adornment. The trophy really fit the look of the bow and just seemed natural. I feel pleased with the final product and begin imagining what a kick it'll be if I run into those two again and they see what I've done with his hair. After the glue finishes setting and dries up, I waste no time grabbing a quiver off the rack and exiting into the yard to try my new toy out. It'll be a bit awkward with this splint on, but I'll work around it.
Once outside, I feel both pleased and disappointed to see the sky beginning to lighten and streaks of sunlight pouring up from the horizon in the distance, indicating morning had arrived. The natural light would be better for shooting, but it also signified I'd lost another night and didn't get any sleep. Doesn't matter, I'll sleep when I'm dead. I turn towards the target and begin walking towards it. With the bow of my dreams in my hand and the light of a new day warming my back, the danger and knowledge of the approaching conflict didn't scare me, and the safety of Irisviel didn't concern me. So long as I have arrows to spare, a bow to shoot them, and a body to do so with, nothing can obstruct me. So, come, Holy Grail War. Hit me with everything you have.