Caster looked down at his handiwork, the results brought a gratifying feeling followed by a sense of euphoria. The man had reclined himself onto a nearby chair in the corner of the room, just a couple miles out from the Einzbern manor and in some nondescript hotel near the river of Fuyuki.

"Ber… serker…" came the voice of his… ally. What a bland word to use, but it was the closest that came to mind, given the circumstances.

Kariya Matou was an absolute mess, huddled into the shade as the worms underneath his skin slithered ever more. He looked more like a corpse bloated with maggots just about ready to pop at any sudden moment.

The Servant frowned, such a thing seemed quite painful. Nevertheless, he turned back to his work without a moment's notice, eyes scanning through the collection of works he prepared since the beginning of the War along with the new additions that had been graciously donated to him.

Information was power, and power was necessary to win any war.

Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, Tokiomi Tohsaka, Kirei Kotomine, Waver Velvet, Kariya Matou, and…

Of course, Kiritsugu Emiya wouldn't have any information on himself. Nevertheless...

"You only have two more Command Seals, Kariya dear," he flipped through the next page, "I would ask you not to abuse them for the time being. You'd be useless to me without your Servant."

Caster stared out the window to his left, his master was probably having the night of his life right now, "And also keep yourself out of sight, you're already in an unstable condition as is."

A splash hit him on the back of the neck, a dab of the finger and bringing it to the light confirmed that it was indeed blood, "And what about you, Caster? Y-your master hasn't shown himself either."

"He's preoccupying himself with more important matters for the time being. He's able to move about at night without giving off a powerful mana presence." Caster readjusted his glasses, looking through the lenses and frowning at a fleck of lint on the glass. Grabbing a nearby handkerchief, he cleaned it and returned the now immaculate instrument to his face, balanced perfectly on his ears, "Do not put yourself in harm's way again, understood?"

There was a… well, not a bond. More of a mutual understanding between a Master and someone he could easily snap his neck like a turkey's wishbone before having the chance to call out his mad knight.

"You'll have your revenge," Caster chuckled silently to himself.

Kariya nodded, pulling himself to his feet and making his way to the window, "I will, and then I'll kill that piece of shit who took Sakura."

Now that got his attention, "Oh? And who took Sakura?"

He didn't care who this "Sakura" person was, but the emotion was so… raw! Unfiltered! It simply made his skin crawl in ecstasy at the emotion.

"Tell me more about this man," coaxed the Servant, "He sounds well involved with your personal affairs, perhaps maybe even the reason why you joined this War?"

There it was. That flash of the eyes, that tightening of the skin around frustrated lips! Oh… it was almost breathtaking. Kariya Matou loved somebody, and this man took that dear dear someone from him.

It was a shot in the dark, but the Servant was a smart enough man to make his guesses accurately.

Perhaps he had dove in a bit too deep, Kariya's eyes flickered thither and hither through the room before laying back, relaxing himself in some vain attempt as to not anger the blood worms writhing beneath his skin, "Why do you care?"

"I have my reasons. Please take a seat, Kariya, I don't bite," Caster patted a nearby seat, waiting for the man to shift over and do so, "See, you helped me in such a wonderful way this night. Your Berserker had assisted in putting a nearby Master out of commission, someone who would've been a detriment to your own Servant."

Before the broken Master could open his mouth, a finger was placed to his lips with a quiet shush.

"Forgive me, but it's no one you really care about. Just the Master of Lancer, that's all," Caster picked up the recently acquired folder and passed it off to Kariya.

That dear Magus Killer had such a delectable amount of information. He probably had copies of these files anyway, so it's not like the man was stealing them during Emiya's fight with the Magus, right?

"What does this have to do with me?"

"You," Caster pointed at the man with the folder before setting it back down on Kariya's lap, "Are needed for one more favor of mine before I grant that wish of your own, and maybe I'll take care of this other villain who has your dear Sakura."

He watched as Kariya began to contemplate this. He could almost hear the clicking of gears turning in his head as the worm-ridden man looked back at Caster, "What do I need to do?"

"Compared to the rest of the Masters, you're weak, broken, using a deranged Servant to even compensate for your weaknesses in this war," Caster watched as Kariya glared at him from the verbal beatdown being given.

Regardless, he continued.

"But therein lies an opportunity, Mages are pompous men and women that seek to compensate for their arrogance by subjugating the lesser under their heel, and there just so happens to be a man of such nature, broken as he may be as well but no less stubborn."

"What're you getting at?"

"You need bait to catch a fish," Caster explained as though he was saying it to a child, "And you have enough worms in you to catch two."

Kariya Matou looked down at the folder on his lap, opening it up to find the sneering face of Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, the one he assumed Tohsaka would have before he'd have Berserker crush it into paste. Another flip of the page revealed… what was her name? How do you even pronounce that?

Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri.

"What was the name of this other man that's been troubling your burdened mind?" Caster asked, a quizzical tilt of his head spoke of his curiosity.

"Zouken," Kariya spat the name like it was poison, closing the folder and getting up from his seat, "Matou Zouken."

Caster's grin only grew wider, "Did he happen to go by the name of Makiri at some point?"

Kariya Matou recognized that expression: Familiarity.

-oOo-

Assassin was in far less than a stellar mood, Kirei could tell as soon as he headed down to the church basement. He found the black-suited Servant leaning against a nearby wall, arms crossed and staring at the Executor behind his mask.

No... not at him. Kirei looked down at his hand, tracing it back to Assassin.

"Yeah," the Servant seemed to have read his mind on the matter, his voice parsing every word with an almost irritable manner, "That."

"Is there an issue?"

The Servant stared at his Master for a moment before sighing, "What's your deal with Saber's Master?"

Kirei stopped what he was doing, glancing to Assassin out of the corner of his eye as he awaited his answer, the Servant pressed further, "Was the reason so important that it was worth a command seal?"

"It's… complicated," the priest said, looking up to see that Assassin didn't look particularly satisfied with his answer, "There are questions that I need to have answered, perhaps a reason as to why I was even chosen by the Grail to become a Master in the first place."

"And you believe the so-called Magus Killer has these answers?" Assassin queried, "As for your reasons to have me spy on his allies as well, is that part of your search too?"

"I… don't know," Kirei shook his head, looking particularly troubled by his Servant's passive interrogation, "I suggested that plan to Tokiomi. It was a purely logical step to have you get close to one of the strongest Servants in the War, so it would make sense for him to agree to it."

That seemed to satisfy Assassin, but the Servant had a few more questions, "What about your involvement at the Einzbern Castle? I sensed your presence after Berserker and Archer's slugging match."

"Simply an attempt to get answers directly," Kirei waved off the question, almost sounding disappointed, "It was in vain nevertheless."

"Putting yourself in harm's way wasn't a particularly smart idea, Master," Assassin shook his head, "I know you don't particularly care about my wish, but even then, I'm still an integral part of Tohsaka's plan. Neither of us would be of any use with you killed and myself without a Master when a Servant hasn't even been removed from the battle yet."

"Then I'll simply take better precautions."

"That doesn't make me feel any better," Assassin shook his head, straightening back up and turning away, "I'm going to find Tokiomi and let him know what I found."

"Oh? And what did you find?"

"More information about Caster, it's not much of your concern," the Servant shrugged his shoulders, "And one last note… I'd prefer if your Command Seal didn't extend to killing Saber and her Master's allies as well, be more specific next time."

Kirei blinked, "I never specified no harm would come to them. You must be mistaken."

For a moment, Kotomine watched as Assassin seemed to freeze in place, pondering the revelation for what seemed like an eternity. Rather than respond, the Servant merely took to spirit form and disappeared.

Gears began to turn in Kirei's head as he began to wonder about his own Servant's motives, perhaps even the trivializing thoughts of why he had even spared Saber in the first place.

It was… fascinating.

The Priest's lips tilted into a grin without him even noticing, almost unable to hear the quiet footsteps approaching him from behind.

Quickly turning around, the Executor's eyes narrowed at the sight, body tensed as the intruder continued to draw closer. The man's command seals began to glow as Kirei grimaced, "You-"

"Oh do be calm, Master of Assassin," the stranger only said, "I only wish to talk…"

Kirei flickered to the intruder, eyeing him up and down to see that he was disarmed nor did he appear strong enough to even fight in a direct battle, even against the Executor.

But even then…

The Command seals dimmed, Kirei's grimace was still held, but he made no attempt to retaliate, "Talk."

That night, Assassin sat upon a rooftop.

Of course, he wasn't a liar, he had entered the Tohsaka manor and reported his findings to Tokiomi, even managing to provide a detailed sketch of what he was able to gleam from Caster's appearance.

Despite his stone-cold visage, the Spartan let out a slight chuckle to himself, ironic that keeping a consistent watch on Saber and her Master had paid off with Caster getting cocky, only for him to get away and place himself on the defensive once more. Assassin failed spectacularly in that regard, but left with even more information than before.

From what he was able to see, Caster's appearance bore fashion similarly to middle-class European apparel during the late-1800s to early-1900s, either German or British. Young with silvery white hair and stormy grey eyes. Were it not for the eyes, Tokiomi would've deemed Caster to have been some offshoot Einzbern homunculus that managed to ascend to the Throne, but even then the theory seemed too absurd with the evidence given.

A homunculus becoming a Servant? How absurd! The magus exclaimed.

And the fact that the Servant had summoned several types of lackeys to fight on his behalf was even more of a troubling matter. He was a man who empowered and sent others to do his battles for him.

A Servant couldn't bring carry anything with them as soon as they turned to spirit form, so the papers Caster had decided to look through were left behind, implying a possible photographic memory, either as a Servant skill or as merely part of their own Saint Graph.

Assassin tapped the flat of his dagger against his chin in thought. He looked down, seeing that he was now dressed in his civilian clothes, and withdrew a lighter and box from his own pocket. Of course, a Servant couldn't bring much when in Spirit form, but exceptions could be made.

Using a Noble Phantasm for something as mundane as this? How juvenile.

The Servant withdrew a cigarette from the box, holding it up to eye level and wondering what was so tempting about these little cancer sticks that history seemed to hold so dearly.

Eh, he was a Servant, a Heroic spirit, they didn't have to eat nor did they need to sleep, but the option was available. Nevertheless, a Servant had a stomach to eat but not gain weight, so it made sense to the Spartan for him to have lungs and not suffer from the effects of smoking, right?

Assassin burned the tip of the stick with a lighter, a simple steel case with gold leaf where the hinges met, and inhaled. Smoke filled his lungs and a taste that could only be described as "tar-like" left his lips, coughing slightly as he did so. He removed the cigarette from his lips and extinguished it on the concrete roof.

"Not your taste, huh?" a familiar voice spoke behind him. Assassin turned around to see someone he didn't think he'd expect to meet in person.

"Archer," the Spartan nodded.

"Assassin," the giant nodded back, "I followed you over here, so I decided to pay a visit. I heard you spoke with my Master as well."

The Servant of the Dagger nodded, "Reported my findings to him, Caster's starting to become a real pain in the ass lately."

"And so you decided to indulge in this modern world's pleasures I see. How very progressive of you, Assassin," Archer grinned, still decided to stand, towering over the Spartan by several heads, "I'm catching up to you as well with all the identity searching, Assassin. Found out Berserker's True Name in the process."

Noble Six sighed, "Good for you, but what're you here for, Archer? If I recall now, I think this is the first time we've actually met in person. Aside from..."

Experiencing an arrow through the skull and living to remember it was definitely not a good feeling.

"We're allies, are we not?" the Servant of the Bow grimaced at the word, "I've worked alongside men just like you, though you're more uptight than most I've met, so it's a surprise to see you relax."

Huh, now that he thought about it, Assassin did seem a tad more unedged, but he pressed on further, "And we'll be enemies soon after the rest of the Servants are taken care of."

"I look forward to it," Archer chuckled, "Though I don't expect you'll be able to scratch me with what I've seen from you so far, or lack thereof."

The Spartan shrugged his shoulders, "Who knows? I may surprise you."

Archer hummed to himself in thought, "Interesting… you've changed, haven't you?"

That got Assassin's attention, "Changed?"

"This is the first official time we're meeting," the gargantuan Servant pointed it out, "But the way my Master described you, you sounded methodical, precise, and quite cold."

Assassin raised an eyebrow, "Are you saying I'm not?"

"Of course not, but it seems like you're starting to divide yourself… if that's the best way to describe it"

"Like how Berserker did to you?"

Archer seemed to huff at that comment, almost a pout if it didn't belong on that giant's face, "Very funny, Assassin. I guess you'll figure out soon. Until next time."

With that, Tokiomi's Servant disappeared, leaving Assassin alone once more with his thoughts.

"Divide myself, huh?" Six shook his head at that before looking back down at the box of cigarettes beside him. He thought back to his old memories, before he was a Servant, when he was simply just a Spartan.

Memories of Noble Team flashed through his mind. Things were so much more simple. He was on one side while enemy was on the other, none of this whole battle royale bullshit. Put a gun in his hands and the mission was clear, rather than just being tied to a Master to even properly function. Hell, one of his more… reputable Noble Phantasms could only ever even appear with enough mana pumping through his system. It was once a solid piece of machinery assigned to him… and now it was part of his legend.

"Maybe I'm just overthinking things…" Noble Six sighed to himself.

The Servant of Kotomine glanced down at the city lights below. Despite being an Assassin, looking into his own skillset had informed him of an unnaturally high aptitude for Independence. He didn't know exactly why, but he still had it anyway.

From what he was able to perceive, he had enough in him to persist for two days. He'd continue to keep an eye out for any signs of Caster, but…

Assassin disappeared, dematerializing into Spirit form as he descended into the city of Fuyuki.

It wouldn't kill him to explore, would it? Besides, this was the first time he's ever been to Earth, and he knew just the way to spend it.

Never let it be said that a Spartan didn't know how to mix work with play.

-oOo-

Zouken Matou was a patient man, willing to wait for centuries for a plan to even culminate towards his goals. Every step carefully planned and every pawn tuned towards that objective. Even in the body he was in now, if it could even be called one at all, was enough to be sustained for another extended length of time so long as he can feed off of a few outside sources.

The faint yet constant buzzing and slithering of worms and winged familiars were a constant reminder of the plans he had set in motion.

Tokiomi Tohsaka was a fool to give his daughter to the old man, but the Matou was nevertheless grateful for his development. His plan for eternal life would be ever closer to him than originally intended.

The aged man looked out the window, seated on a nearby sofa. Zouken wondered what Kariya was up to right now, or perhaps he was dead and his Servant long gone and returned to the Throne.

It made no difference anyway, that boy would at least provide some modicum of entertainment if he came back. Whether he won the Grail or not, it was a decisive victory for the old man and he'd have no need for Sakura at that point.

She'd be damaged goods for Kariya, but she'd be alive regardless.

Knock knock knock

Three taps to his door caught his ears, catching the old magus by surprise for the first time in a while. Who broke into his house and managed to deactivate his Bounded field?

"Who's there?" Zouken demanded, playing up the frail old man act, "I should warn you that even though I'm an old man, I'm still capable of defending myself."

The fact that they broke into his house and had the audacity to introduce their presence to the man either meant they were overconfident, extremely idiotic, or they meant no harm to him at all.

He was met with silence, but there were no sounds of footsteps walking away. Zouken grimaced, preparing an attack just in case as he learned the meaning of the action, or lack of such, given, "Enter."

The door slowly opened and a tall figure stepped forth, their silhouette telling the magus that this supposed burglar was a man, "What do you want from me? I have nothing for you to steal."

"Oh don't be like that. It's not a matter of what you can offer me," the man hidden in darkness finally spoke, his voice a low baritone voice, his arm trailed over and flicked on a light switch, revealing himself before Zouken, "But rather what I can offer you."

Zouken blinked once… twice, his eyes grew wide before rubbing them with his hands, surprised once more, "You're…"

"Caster now, a so-called Heroic Spirit to partake in the Holy Grail War," the man nodded, running a hand through his silvery hair before flashing a grin to the magus, "It's so good to see you again, Makiri."

The two sat down in the dining room, Magus and Servant seated across from the table with a fresh cup of tea in either of their hands.

"Forgive me if I didn't have any Earl Grey, old friend, but I do hope it's to your liking anyway," Zouken Matou apologized to the man.

The Servant nodded and sipped his tea, scrunching his face up as he peered into the cup, "Blegh, it's not too bad, but it's a shame this country has no taste."

Both men enjoyed their silence for the next few minutes, quietly taking a rare opportunity to enjoy the moment while it still lasted. Caster often preferred a more… chaotic environment, but a man like him still had to be patient with these kinds of things.

Zouken, on the other hand, was still wary. If there was anyone on this planet that he had known over the centuries of living (if he could even call it such), this man now summoned as a Heroic Spirit into the Caster class for this particular war was someone that always had a trick under his sleeve.

Especially if he was seeking the old worm now of all times.

"So," Caster set aside his teacup, pushing it off to the side with a single finger, "You probably have a few questions for me, yes?"

"Maybe a few," the old man shrugged his shoulders, "What bewilders me is that you're able to be summoned as a Servant at all, much more even earn a title on the Throne of Heroes."

It was the Servant's turn to shrug, "It's to my belief that a Heroic Spirit has to be remembered for their deeds and the mystery that surrounded their life for them to even sit upon the Throne. Considering your age, you've heard the stories haven't you?"

"I've read the book," the Matou patriarch shifted his head, looking at the bookshelf on the other end of the hallway, looking at the title of the book sitting on the middle shelf, "I found it well-structured, if rather misconstrued. The tales told none of your more... macabre depictions."

"Oh pah!" the man waved off, "I consider it a double edged sword. Without the mystery, I wouldn't even be here, even if my more accurate depictions would've made me stronger as a Servant."

A snap of his fingers and a book appeared in his hand, a large tome bound in leather with a spine colored in red velvet.

"Your Noble Phantasm, I presume?" Zouken raised an eyebrow.

Caster shook his head, "Nay, Makiri- I can call you Makiri, right?"

"I go by Zouken nowadays," the magus waved it off, "It doesn't matter to me, old friend."

"Don't be like that, Mak- Zouken," the Servant corrected himself, "It's better to 'keep up with the times' as it's so put. But to answer your question… yes and no."

"Explain."

"I shan't divulge in the name, but its power relies on… forbiddence, or stagnation, it depends on the interpretation," Caster explained, "My Class skills allow me to create a territory or fashion items to my liking, preferably to objects that benefited me in life."

He set the book on the table, "My Noble Phantasm brings forth old and forgotten techniques of magecraft. Be they long past or recently dead. Unfortunately, it can't come close to anything to the so-called Age of Gods, but it has its uses, " Caster then tapped a finger on the untitled tome, "This book is a rather recent addition to my library."

"Oh?" Zouken leaned forward, inspecting the first book from a better angle, "The texture seems familiar. How far back does it date?"

"Merely a century or two, its age eludes me," Caster pushed the book next to his empty teacup, "The technique of Doll-crafting was exemplary work from the Ainsworth family, I'm fortunate for their demise. Lest I'd have to rely on… traditional familiars."

Caster shuddered at the word. He wasn't particularly fond of Magecraft, seeing it as rather a means to an end, ironically enough, but it did have its purposes.

The Servant picked up the book and waved it away to his collected with a simple gesture of his hand, "I merely wanted to show you what I was capable of."

"Well, there's no need to gloat, Caster," Zouken shook his head in amusement, "You've already beaten me in immortality now with that newfound youth of yours."

Caster laughed, "I'd probably be a much older man as an Archer, but alas, my foes seem to deprive me of my boons."

"Indeed," the magus nodded before realizing something, "How did you find me anyway? For once I doubted that boy was still alive and kicking."

"Your descendent, Kariya if I recall correctly, surprises me too with that bloody constitution of his," Caster noted with a tinge of amusement in his voice, "He's off doing some of my dirty work with that mad Servant of his for me. If I'm right, my Master would be able to pick two unfortunate souls off while their Servant is busy with Berserker."

"Your Master?"

"Ah yes, I haven't told you about Ryuunosuke yet, dear me," the man chuckled darkly to himself, "The boy has a lot of potential, maybe not as a magus but most definitely under my tutelage. Soon he'll grow from a serial killer to a full-blown master of the arts!"

The old magus watched as Caster's chuckles turned into full laughter, mostly in joy, "I'm glad to see you're enjoying yourself, but what does this have to do with me?"

Zouken watched as Caster's grin shifted into a grimace, rarely was the man ever truly upset over certain affairs, but the old magus knew that this was a troubling matter that concerned him.

"There's an issue over a certain Servant that tries to dampen my progress in the grand scheme of things, and having gone over several… trivialities concerning the Holy Grail, I need your help," Caster made his way across the table, kneeling over until he was at eye level with the magus.

"It won't happen now, but sometime in the future, I will need you in a… significant part of my plans. After Lancer and his masters are taken care of, I'll rid myself of Kariya and his mad dog. Afterwards, I just need to convince one more to tip the scales in my favor. All he needs is a little... push."

Zouken contemplated the situation he was placed into. Despite his nature, Caster was someone he knew he could trust, even knowing that the Servant would spare him if he refused.

Still though…

"What would you have me do?"

Caster sighed, seemingly relieved by the old man's answer, "Well, it's quite simple..."

-oOo-

The following day.

*RING RING RING RING!*

"I-wha?"

*RING RING RING RING!*

"Oh no! Where is it, where is it? I knew I left it here somewhere-"

*RING RING RING RING!*

"It's in here, Iri."

"Oh! Thanks Saber… um..."

*Beep*

"H-h- Ahem!" the white-haired woman coughed, "Hello?"

"Hey… Irisviel right?" the voice spoke on the phone, "It's me, remember?"

The woman's eyes widened, the familiar voice finally sinking in, "Oh! Thom, it's you."

"Of course it's me, I'm the one that called obviously," Saber, not hearing the call, gave the woman beside her a look as she began to flush red, "Is your girlfriend there too? Put her on speaker."

"We're not-" Irisviel blushed even further, pouting angrily at the man laughing loud enough for even Saber to hear, "Which button is it again?"

"It should be the one that looks vaguely like a microphone," Irisviel clicked the button, "I heard a click. Testing, this thing on? Y'all lovely ladies read me loud and clear?"

"I… copy?"

"We can hear you clearly, Thom," Saber answered bluntly.

"Ha! That's what I like to hear," the man on the other end of the phone sounded eager, "Anyway, how've you been? I know it's been a couple days now, but I'm just wanting to check up on the two of you since that whole car debacle."

"We've been doing fine, our stay in Japan's been great so far. What about you?"

"I'm glad you asked. It's been a while, but I thought that it'd be nice to hang around with some new people, especially you two," his slightly muffled voice continued to speak through the phone, the sound of crinkling caught the pair's attention, "There's lots of stuff to do in Fuyuki to do in one day, obviously. So… I thought it'd be nice if you two came over to Fuyuki for some time, it's not really much but I brought some stuff to pass the time. Are you free?"

"I…" Irisviel turned to Saber, who in turn gave her a concerned look. The young woman then turned back to the phone, "I'm not really sure…"

Silence was all that came from the phone for the next few seconds before a shuffling sound rang through, "Alright, I understand."

"You do?" Saber raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," the man on the other line answered, his voice rather lax, "It's totally fine, you're probably busy or up with something right now, so no need to worry. If you change your mind, I'll still be here at the park for the next couple hours."

"Alright, thanks for calling, Thom."

"No prob Iri, talk to you later."

Beep.

The Einzbern woman frowned as she pocketed her phone, turning back to Saber with a frown, who merely looked back in response, "Did I say anything rude?"

Arturia shook her head, "I don't think so, he seemed to understand that we were busy."

"I guess, but…" Irisviel looked around the manor, the walls and floors utterly destroyed by the battle hours prior, "Kiritsugu said he'd be looking for a new place for us to stay in the meantime."

The Servant of the sword nodded in response, looking down in thought, "With the manor in ruins, it'd be utterly defenseless and we would be open to even easier attacks in this state. And especially this far away from the city, even an enemy Servant wouldn't be opposed to attack in broad daylight."

"So you're saying we'd be safer away from here for the moment," Irisviel quickly deduced, her concerned expression slowly shifting into a smile, "And so long as we're not out in the open at night and you're with me, I'd be safe. That sounds like something Kiritsugu would think of, right?"

Saber's expression started to match Irisviel's as they turned towards the demolished front door of the manor, the car seemed to be waiting outside for them. The Servant held out her hand towards her companion, "Shall we?"

"Of course."

Thom found himself seated at a wooden bench for the first hour or three, tugging at the scarf around his neck and looking up at the trees. It was a chilly day and the towering flora were already bare of their leaves even as the year was approaching winter. It'd probably look much better in the spring, he could only imagine a thousand leagues of cherry blossoms scattered around him.

The young man looked down at the crumpled set of bags by his feet. Lifting them up with ease, he placed a hand on the plastic containers to feel that they were still warm to the touch.

It'd been an hour since Thom prepared the food, so he was still surprised that it was even warm to begin with… maybe this was a bad idea, right?

This was probably a waste of time anyway.

Thom stood up from his seat, reaching down to pick up the bags. Before he could even turn to leave, the rapid sound of footsteps caught his ears. He reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and turned around to see… Saber and Iri?

Rather, they seemed to realize he was just about to leave and decided to give chase, "Thom!"

The young man relaxed and lowered his arms, holding the bags at his side as the two women finally caught up to him.

"So you decided to reconsider?" the young man teased, grinning to the both of them as Irisviel seemed a tad out of breath.

"We…" Irisviel inhaled, straightening herself back up after catching her breath, "We realized we weren't as busy as expected. Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Oh don't worry about it," he waved off her apology, flashing a playful grin, "I was just letting myself enjoy the sights."

The man watched as the woman opposite of him pulled the edges of her jacket closer to exposed regions, Irisviel smiled a bit sheepishly, "It's a bit chilly, isn't it?"

Thom sighed, giving the woman an equally bashful grin in return as he shrugged, "Didn't expect it to be this cold out when I got here, but I guess that's my fault since we're still here to begin with. If there's something wrong, we can go someplace else."

"No no," Irisviel shook her head, "It's... it's fine. You said there was someplace for us to sit?"

"Mm," Thom nodded, turning towards a lone wooden table hidden underneath a wreath of trees, "It's not much, but if I knew it'd be colder, I'd have just asked to come to your place with all this."

"I'd prefer you didn't," Irisviel shook her head, "It's… under renovations."

The man nodded his head once more, humming as he took in the information. Thom then turned to Saber, "How 'bout you? You holding up alright?"

"I'm fine, if that's what you're asking," Saber answered curtly, "Why do you ask?"

Their companion scrunched his face up in thought, "I dunno, really. You just seemed a bit… troubled is all."

"It's none of your concern," Saber responded, her face still neutral.

Thom opened his mouth to respond, but closed it at the last second, shaking his head to himself as the three made their way to the table. The taller of the three set the bags on the table, pulling the dishes from their bags and unwrapping the plastic seals off. Irisviel and Saber had already taken their seats as Thom set the plates and wares for the two as he continued to prepare.

"It's good today's not windy," Thom mumbled to himself, something the latter two quickly agreed with as the food was finally unveiled for them. Most of it was rice and meat dishes, it was quite a sight for Irisviel. As for Saber…

"Um… Saber, are you alright?" Irisviel asked her companion, who seemed intensely hyperfocused on the food seated before her, "Saber?"

That seemed to get her to snap to attention, blinking suddenly as she turned to the white-haired woman, "Y-yes, Iri?"

Irisviel stared at her partner, leaning in a bit closer for a moment. Saber could do nothing but stare back, a slight bit unnerved by the closer proximity before the former pulled away, giggling to herself while Saber frowned.

The flushed look on her face didn't help one bit either.

"Oi, Iri, don't tease Saber, everyone's gotta eat sometime, right?" Thom chuckled to himself as he hopped over his own seat and sat down with a quiet thump. The two on the opposite end were caught off guard by the sudden weight shift as the table jumped for a moment before settling back down, with Thom looking quite calm all the while, "Anyway, let's dig in."

Despite the cold weather, most of the food was still warm to the touch, the meals filling them with that warmth made the event a pleasing experience, however short it may have been.

While Saber practically engulfed her meal with all the speed and intensity of a singularity, Irisviel had been trying to eat her own with a pair of chopsticks to… less than favorable results, trying to mimic the man sitting on the opposite side's way of holding them.

About an hour passed as the three simply enjoyed themselves, Saber had long since devoured her meal, along with several refills before she decided to speak up first, "Thom, would you mind if I asked you a personal question?"

Thom paused in mid-chew as he looked back up at the smaller girl, holding up a hand as he then swallowed, coughing lightly and patting his chest before resuming composure, "Yeah sure, what's up?"

"I… noticed your disposition and the way you carry yourself so… methodically," Saber's words seemed to pique the man's interest.

"Oh? Perhaps an observation to pick at my brain, maybe?" Thom smirked, his grin turning into slight snickering as Saber blanched slightly at the imagery he had given her before shaking her head, "Sorry, you were saying?"

"I wish to ask you… were you ever a soldier previously?"

Thom froze, blinking in surprise and letting the words sink in for a moment before he set his chopsticks down, giving the woman a slight tilt of the head, his expression unchanging, "How'd you figure it out?"

"It was just an observation," Saber closed her eyes, "There's an odd yet practiced coordination in your steps, no matter how casual you try to make it out to be. Aside from that, your build is similar to..."

The girl silently sighed to herself, trying to pick the words carefully without exposing any general idea of her identity without confusing the poor man, "...some people I knew who fought in war."

The man inhaled sharply, heavily wanting to suddenly take interest in his food, "I… huh, even from what little to go off of, you have some damn good intuition."

Saber made no response to that, not breaking her gaze with the man.

Thom pushed his plate aside, deciding to take no more interest in it as he turned his attention to Saber, "But yeah, you're right. I was a serviceman for some time, mostly just me and a couple others I knew fought against some guys that we didn't really know much about, just that they were the bad guys and they did bad things. However, those are memories that I would like to stay… untouched."

The man closed his eyes, sighing once more as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "You can have the rest of whatever's on my plate, I'm not really hungry anymore."

Realization quickly dawned on the shorter blonde woman as she was about to open her mouth to respond before closing it, realizing she had inadvertently unearthed… unpleasant memories.

Thom opened his eyes, realizing that everyone was being uncomfortably quiet, to see Saber looking away from him and bearing a slightly flushed look on her still-stoic expression.

Yet the man knew it was a facade.

It was his turn to speak, lifting a hand in reassurance with a small smile on his face, "It's alright, Saber, you didn't cause any offense and I know you didn't mean to."

Eyes flickered in his direction before the face turned to match him. Though he didn't see it, he could almost hear the sigh of relief that she had tried to hide before her face returned to that same expression, this time with a small upturn upon her lips, her smile matching his before it too faded, "Very well then, thank you regardless for answering me and for forgiving my intruding upon your personal history."

"No need, there's nothing to forgive," he passed the plate to Saber before standing back up, taking up the empty bags and crumpling up into his hands, "I wasn't lying when I said I wasn't hungry."

Saber looked down at the plate, her eyebrows furrowing at the meal given. Normally as a king, Arturia wouldn't be one to take someone else's leftovers, but she had made her own mistake of intruding upon his past… it would be unkind to simply ignore a request given to her as a knight.

Irisviel turned to Saber, now bringing the food to her lips, smiling as the two had made peace as quickly as the issue had been formed.

Besides, it would be indecent to waste food so well-made as this.

As soon as the blonde had finished, Thom had discarded the empty disposable plates and bags into a nearby trash can. Saber and Irisviel gave their thanks to Thom, who merely smiled and thanked them for coming. Before long, the two departed, leaving the man all alone within the park.

Thom waved at the two one last time as they left, their car driving off into the distance. He looked around one last time, seeing that he was truly alone without witness.

No one, it was just him.

With that all being said, the man decided to take his leave, his own business concluded as he disappeared from sight to go about his own day.

However, a slight frown crossed his face as he began to walk away, hands in his pockets as a single word found itself embedded in his mind.

"Why?"

He… didn't know.