Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate franchise it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon.
Ayame/Zero…NOT
Part VI
"I'm sure you all have a very good reason for doing this."
The fairies danced and rapidly flashed, given the impression of silent laughter. "Yes, I can see you're all enjoying yourselves." Kuchinashi said with a sigh. "Oh fine…I'll play along. I imagine this also has something to do with my little sisters and wherever they went?"
In response, the fairies flashed and then flew off, all the while spinning and whirling invitingly for Kuchinashi to follow. "I'll take that as a yes," she said while hurrying through the trees. "And I'll just follow your lead here."
The fairies flashed their acknowledgement, and flew in a great, golden swarm through the trees and the fog. Kuchinashi followed, rubber shoes crunching on dry leaves and thin snow as she nimbly ran between tree trunks and bushes and over uneven and rocky ground. "Huh," she thought to herself. "For a seven-year old, Kuchinashi…well, this body, I guess, is very athletic. Wonder why…"
Brushing the thought off, Kuchinashi focused on the fairies leading her in the dark and the fog, and despite how athletic her body was, it was still that of a child. And the fairies were fast. Kuchinashi could barely keep up as it was, and not being sure if she could call on her magic if she got lost, it was probably best not to get lost.
As they moved through the forest, a clearing seemed to appear in the distance, steadily growing as they approached. "Is that where we're headed?" Kuchinashi thought as she continued to follow the fairies.
The clearing continued to grow as the distance closed, Kuchinashi picking up the pace…
…and then stepping into the 'clearing' fell straight off a sheer drop as the land gave way to a deep cliff. Kuchinashi gave a sharp, childish scream as she fell…
…a scream that was quickly cut off as the fairies dove after her, and then in a swirl of golden light, carried her up and across the chasm. "Thanks, guys." Kuchinashi said as the fairies gently dropped her onto the ground.
The fairies flashed a welcome, and briefly swirling around her restored her health from running through a forest and nearly falling down a cliff. That done, the fairies flew off again, and beckoned for Kuchinashi to follow.
Again, fairies and a little Human girl ran through the forest, and then up a woody hill, looked down a cleared slope to a village in the distance. "A village…" Kuchinashi said disbelievingly. "Was there ever a village…around…here…"
Trailing off, Kuchinashi looked up and around, and sniffed at the air. She took a deep breath, and felt the magic, no, not magic…the weight, of everything in this place. It was as though everything here, from the ground she was standing on, the very air she breathed, even the stars in the sky above, was there. That there was purpose behind their presence, their very existence, beyond an ultimately random and organic expression of the mathematical laws that governed reality.
It was like someone or…something, had decided that there would be trees there, that grass would be here, that stars would shine above in that exact and specific spot.
Kuchinashi stared up at the impossibly-clear skies, and considered the sense of purpose, of perfect…harmony, behind where she was. She tasted the richness of the mana in the air, and with a sigh palmed her face.
"The Reverse Side of the World?" she asked, and the fairies laughed silently. Kuchinashi sighed, and looked down at the village below. "First time for everything I guess…and I guess my sisters are down there, too."
The fairies flashed an affirmative, and with another sigh, Kuchinashi began to descend down the slope. "I don't think Humans normally live in this place." She thought. "Or maybe they do…well, I guess we'll find out soon enough. Right then, let's do this."
It had snowed earlier, and pure white covered the sides of the paths where villagers had swept it out of the way, as well as the trees that stood on the slopes of Rurichiyo's hill, and across the village square. Bright but gentle starlight shone down from a clear sky, perfectly and seamlessly merging with the golden light of paper lanterns that lit the streets and the square, and the stalls the villagers had set up.
Mouthwatering smells filled the air: pork buns, miso soup, okonomiyaki, takoyaki, and other foods that might be found in a festival. Cheerful conversation and laughter mingled with the rich scent of good food, as villagers thronged through the square, from the elderly to the young, all in simple but elegant yukatas or vibrant kimonos, all sporting some form of clan markings on their faces.
It made Rin and Sakura feel somewhat out of place, but the villagers were kind and hospitable, doing their best to make their lady's guests feel at home. And in any case, tonight was a festival, so they might as well show off at their best.
With a gentle nudge, Rurichiyo pushed Rin and Sakura to go and enjoy themselves…and enjoy themselves they did.
Warming her hands with a cup of tea, Rin stared in wonder at ice sculptures crafted by villagers in their spare time, and would be judged and prizes given to the best later on by Rurichiyo. The details of the sculptures were impossibly-detailed, and no one could deny the effort and time the villagers had put into them.
Of the many pieces on display, there were three that particularly stood out. One was of a samurai warrior in full armor, sword raised to deliver the killing blow to a prostrate enemy. Another was a scaled-down replica of a vaguely familiar-looking castle, and the last was of an exquisitely-dressed woman playing a shamisen.
"I wish I could make sculptures like those." Rin murmured, and with a laugh a nearby villager who was tending his sculpture and had overheard approached.
"Who says you can't, little lady?" he said with an encouraging smile. "Course you'll need a lot of practice to hone the skill for it, but give it time…and maybe ones of yours will be here, one day."
Rin stared at the man for a moment, and then nodded. "Yeah…maybe…" she said, looking back at the sculptures. "One day…thanks mister…"
The man nodded and returned to his sculpture, while Rin continued to look at the sculptures for a few more moments before walking off. Elsewhere, Sakura's laughter mingled with those of the village children as they huddled around the goldfish scoop, taking turns trying to catch the quick little fish with a paper scoop.
They weren't having much success, though that didn't stop them from enjoying themselves. More than half the fun with the game came from trying to catch the fish with one's friends, after all.
"I got it! I got it! I got it!" a village girl said with a face-splitting smile, carefully lifting the scoop, a goldfish flopping about on the wet paper as the other children looked in with mixed awe and envy.
SPLASH!
Outraged yells and childish laughter filled the air to the adults' smiles as wet paper gave way, and the goldfish fell back into the water. The other children quickly encouraged and reassured the unhappy village girl, and in another moment, they were back to yelling encouragement and laughing good-naturedly at each other as they resumed trying to catch the goldfish.
Rurichiyo had to hold back her laughter as she watched Rin awkwardly make her way through the square. Now that the standoffish girl had finally decided to open up, she was at once looking quite at home and out of place at the same time. The girl had slid a mask to one side of her head, and juggling a pork bun and a cup of tea at the same time as a stick of dango poked out of her mouth.
Finally, she's beginning to settle in and relax.
There was a gentle tugging at Rurichiyo's sleeve, and turning her head, the lady blinked down at a golden-eyed…girl? Boy? Whatever, that was dressed in western clothes.
The…girl or boy, let go of Rurichiyo's sleeve and pointed at her. "You're a fox!" she said with a mix of accusation and matter-of-fact.
Rurichiyo's eyes briefly went flat, and then noting the golden eyes sniffed at the air. And then she grinned.
"My, my," she said teasingly. "Is this not a pleasant surprise, Traveler? Though we imagined you to be…taller?"
The Traveler scoffed, and crossed their arms while looking away. Had they been older, it would probably look impressive, but as it was, it only made them look childish. Rurichiyo actually giggled, hiding the motion if not the sound behind a raised arm and her sleeves.
"It's not funny!" the Traveler protested, and Rurichiyo couldn't help it. She laughed some more, causing the Traveler to redden and protest even further. "Stop laughing! It's not funny, really! I just…the fairies…GAH!"
Rurichiyo coughed as her laughter ran her course, and then placing a hand on the pouting Traveler's back, guided her further along. "Rin…Sakura…children…" Rurichiyo called. "Come here, we would introduce you to someone."
"YES!"
Within moments, the village children – and Sakura – were crowding before the awkward-looking Traveler, and after a few moments Rin arrived, wiping sauce off her hands. "Now then Traveler," Rurichiyo said with a grin. "Won't you introduce yourself?"
The Traveler shot her an ugly look, and then taking a deep breath glanced at the expectant-looking children. The Traveler stared for a moment, and then took another deep breath before drawing herself up.
"I am Kuchinashi Tachibana." She said with childish pomposity. "And I'm going to grow up to be the Black and White Magician!"
There were gasps from the children, followed by loud applause. "You go and have fun now." Rurichiyo said with a wave, as the children pulled the stunned Kuchinashi away, Rin and another girl already heading off to get food for them all.
"Be gentle!" Rurichiyo reminded them before masking another grin at the outraged protest from Kuchinashi, and the affirmative chorus from the other children.
The night passed in a blur, and by the time everyone had gathered to watch the fireworks to end the festival, Kuchinashi had largely overcome her earlier awkwardness. A teru teru bozu was tied to one of her wrists, while a necklace of jade magatama had been thrown around her neck. Sakura and Rin were nearby, the former animatedly chatting with other village girls her age, all of them clutching a doll of one sort or another. Rin for her part was lying flat on the ground, looking very disheveled but otherwise very pleased with herself.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Fireworks jetted up into the skies on lines of sparks, and exploded in showers of fiery light and color. Flame-red, emerald-green, sapphire-blue, and vibrant orange, they bloomed like flowers in the night sky, the shrieking of their climb and the thunder of their eruptions met with cries of awe and delight from the ground.
For several minutes, fire and light played in the sky, and then it was over. Fireworks took time to make even for skilled hands, and with so much to do in a small village such as this, the local chemist could only make so much between festivals and other occasions.
"That's it, then." Kuchinashi said. "That's the end of the festival. Time to go home."
Indeed, all over the hill people were getting up and gathering their belongings and refuse, and those that were done with that or had no need to do so were already making their way home, to rest in what was left of the night, before waking up to another day of toil tomorrow. Rin and Sakura's friends said their goodbyes and ran off to meet with their parents, and then Rurichiyo was there.
"Well now," the centuries-old fox spirit began. "From the look of things, it would appear you have enjoyed yourselves."
"YES!" Rin and Sakura chorused.
"…it was fun." Kuchinashi admitted after a moment, and Rurichiyo smiled.
"Yes, it was." She said. "And we would assume that you would go on your way, Traveler?"
"…yeah, I guess I should."
Rurichiyo smiled wider, but said nothing, though her eyes slid in Rin and Sakura's direction. After a moment, Kuchinashi did likewise, her eyes narrowing.
"That was so fun!" Sakura gushed.
"Yeah, I haven't had so much fun before!" Rin agreed. "I made a lot of friends too!"
"I did too!" Sakura said with a raised hand, and Rin laughed.
"Yes, I saw." She said, though she quickly looked sad. "I wish we don't have to leave them behind though."
Kuchinashi closed her eyes, and then taking a deep breath, made her decision. "Then don't." she said, and Rin and Sakura quickly looked at her.
"What?" they chorused.
"If you don't want to leave your friends behind, then don't." Kuchinashi said, pacing around with her hands behind her back. "They'll always be here, so if you want to stay friends…well…"
"But…that's…" Rin fumbled, looking very troubled. Sakura though, was quiet.
"They're your friends, aren't they?" Kuchinashi said, coming to a halt, and meeting Rin's eyes. After a moment, she turned and did the same for Sakura. "Friends don't abandon each other. And if you leave…it's the same as abandoning them. So…will you abandon them? Turn your back on your friends just like that?"
This was punctuated by a snap of a finger, and Rin and Sakura responded by reflex. "No, we won't!" they yelled.
There was a sound as of suzu being struck, and Kuchinashi and Riruchiyo closed their eyes.
The choice has been made.
A/N
There's no way to mistake Ayame for a boy, even with her hair cut short like Ayako's…as a teenager. Her rack prevents that. As a child though she was rather androgynous, and could easily have been mistaken for a boy.
How did the choice get made? Ayame/Kuchinashi used logical trickery on preschool children who've just had their resistance worn down by a night of fun and wonder. If A is leaving and equals B which is abandoning your friends, will C equal Rin and Sakura doing B? They said no, from which follows that C which is equal to B which is they will not abandon their friends, equal to A which is they will not leave.
Game set, and match.