Hey everyone! I'm not dead! Though I feel like I could be…

Seriously, it's hot as hell here right now, which has affected my writing a lot. I'm sorry for the wait but, the next chapter is finally here.

Also, two things before I start the chapter, I fixed the little girl's hair-color from light-blue to purple in the previous chapter, sorry for any confusion.

And lastly, I found that I haven't really replied to any of my reviews….

Whoops.

I'll do that at the end of this chapter.

Now, with that out of the way, third chapter here we GO!

Chapter 3: Friends

"Okay, so, how do we want to handle this?"-Ritsuka asked as he finished buttoning the light-blue casual shirt he'd gotten during their little shopping run, "Because the only thing I can think of, is stealing one. And I'm not exactly down for that"-He said with a troubled expression.

Alaya giggled slightly at her Servant as she finished combing her hair and turned to address him.

"Well, good thing we won't need to then. Here"-She said handing him a piece of white metal. Her Servant raised an eyebrow at the object.

"Erm, what?"-He questioned. Alaya leaned in and whispered something in his ear… Which made his eyes go wide.

"You sure that's a good idea? I mean… That's going to get a LOT of attention"-He replied, eyeing his master uncertainly.

"Not if we keep it a secret"

"*Sigh* You're the boss"-Ritsuka gave in with a sigh as he slumped down onto his bed.

"Hehehe, indeed I am… Now, to publicize you as the world's second ever male pilot!"-She exclaimed excitedly. Her Servant regarded her oddly as he tilted his head slightly.

"And, uh, how do we even know I can pilot one to begin with?"-He asked. Alaya grinned in response.

"Your saint graph"

"What about it?"

"It registers you as not just a male… But both male and female… Besides, i think she won't have too much of a problem with it"-She explained with a smile.

….

….

….

Ritsuka's face scrunched up in confusion as he tried to process what he'd just been told.

"Both, male, and female? Why? How does that even make any sense?"

"Hmm? I dunno. Maybe it has to do with another version of you being female or, something. I've got nothing"-Alaya replied with her chin couped in one of her hands, before she grabbed his hand, "Come on, I want to show you the plans!"-She exclaimed dragging him into the livingroom were a board was set up.

"This… Seems a bit excessive"-Ritsuka commented as he looked at the board his Master had set up, "I, didn't think we'd be doing a heist"-He deadpanned.

"Hmm, well we need to get you into the public eye somehow right? This is the perfect plan. I sneak in, put a fake name on the register and make everyone believe i'm supposed to be there for testing as a student. Then, you as my caring older brother comes by to pick me up but gets lost in the process, ends up in the IS storage room and activates it"-Alaya explained with a small smirk.

"You're going to mess with people's minds again"-Her Servant more stated than asked, again in a deadpan.

"W-well, it's not my fault that it's so much fun!"-She retorted with a blush of embarrassment and a small huff, "Besides, do you have any better ideas?"

Ritsuka replied by simply sighing and shaking his head. He knew when to give up.

"Exactly"-Alaya puffed her chest out in pride, "Now, the testing isn't due until 3 days from now, which is a bummer. But changing that would be a headache I'd rather not think about"-She said with a small disappointed sigh.

Before she snapped her fingers.

"I know! Let's go exploring!"-She shouted and didn't even wait for her Servants response before she was out in the hall complaining about him needing to hurry up.

Ritsuka sighed for the umpetenth time… But a smile grew on his face afterwards. Really, normal life was refreshing, and seeing someone so genuinely happy? It never got old.

Walking through the streets of the unnamed city/town they were in, Ritsuka had to admit, he'd been in Chaldea for so long that he'd almost completely forgotten how modern cities and towns looked like! And it was a nice experience to see.

In front of him, Alaya skipped with her usual enthusiasm gaining a few odd looks and smiles alike from people catching sight of the two.

They stopped at a few shops here and there, both gaining interest in different things but neither actually bought very much (Alaya didn't buy anything, she just messed with the cashiers minds) and soon it was getting dark.

They'd decided to buy a cone of ice-cream each and sit down at a bench overlooking the open ocean and a small island in the distance.

"So, that's the ISA huh?"-Ritsuka asked, looking at the tall spiral like building towering over everything else on the island and was clearly visible from where they sat. Alaya followed his gaze and gained a small smirk.

"Yup, that's it. What, you getting excited already?"-She asked with a predatory smile. Ritsuka gave her an odd look.

"Excited? Hardly. *Sigh* just a little nervous I guess"-He admitted. His Master's smile was replaced by a solemn look.

"You miss them… Don't you?"-She asked.

"Of course"-He replied, "They were practically my life. But, I know I'll see them again, so it's alright"-He assured her.

"Yeah…"

….

….

….

"!?"

"Huh? What is it?"-She questioned, looking at her shocked Servant as his eyes darted around behind them.

"Hmm, just thought I, felt someone's presence there for a moment… It felt, strange, though somewhat familiar"-He replied tensely. Alaya regarded him with a worried look, finishing her ice-cream, she stood up.

"Well, I guess we should go then, before we get into any kind of trouble"-She suggested.

"Yeah, you're right"-Ritsuka agreed, standing up as well and following his Master.

Walking through the vacant streets of the place, neither could deny the tense atmosphere hanging heavily in the air.

"Hey, Ritsuka, you getting the same bad feeling about this as I am?"-She asked quietly. Her Servant nodded slightly.

"Yeah, someone's definitely following us"-He replied in an equally quiet tone. He tensed, and quickly turned around, summoning a set of Verdant Black Keys as he did, throwing them in the direction behind them.

Three almost inaudible pinging sounds were made as they hit whatever he threw them at… Followed by, clicking sound?

"Why, is that anyway to greet a friend?"-The voice made Ritsuka's eyes widen in shock.

'That voice… It can't be!'

Out of the shadows came a relatively short, white haired woman with eyes in amber-like color.

"I thought I recognized a familiar face… It has been a while, Ritsuka"

"O-Olga Marie?"

"SURPRISE!"-Alaya suddenly shouted making Rituska yelp uncharacteristically as he fell to the ground.

"So, made any progress?"-Alaya asked hopefully, as the three were back in the hotel room. The Ex-Director of Chaldea sighed in slight frustration as she shook her head.

"I'm afraid not. Even as a Magi, I have to admit, the Infinite Stratos does boast a formidable security system"-Olga Marie replied, "But, I did stop by to get your name on the board, so it looks like you'll be going to testing in three days"-She said.

"Yay! You're the best Marol!"

Olga felt one of her eyebrows twitch in annoyance at the nickname.

"What have I told you about calling me that?"-She asked with a small frown.

"Hehehe"-Alaya only replied with a cheeky snicker, before she turned to her stil dumbstruck Servant, "Hey, Earth to Rituska! If you're done playing a fish out of water, say something!"-She shouted playfully. Ritsuka stopped opening and closing his mouth, but didn't get anything inteligible out anyhow.

"I, uh… uhm"

Both girls snickered at his dumbstruck behaviour.

"Still an idiot, you haven't changed in that department"-Olga jabbed jokingly. Light pink dusted her cheeks slightly as she approached him, and broke him out of his stupor by embracing him in a hug.

Ritsuka tensed at the unexpected contact and looked at Alaya in shock. The girl gave him a smile and a thumbs up as she quickly but quietly left the room by dematerializing.

"Alaya showed me everything"-The white-haired woman said softly, "Thank you, for taking care of the singularities… And, for never forgetting about me"-She pushed her face into his chest to hide her embarrassment, which only served to make her even more flustered. Ritsuka soon returned the embrace and replied,

"How could I forget about one of the people who had me going until the very end? I swore I'd avenge your death… Erm, speaking of which, what happened?"-He asked.

They broke off from the embrace and Olga Marie cleared her throat to recompose herself before she answered,

"Well, Alaya got ahold of me before I... Erm"

"It's alright, you don't have to say it"-He assured her. The woman took a deep breath, smiling slightly.

"Thank you. Anyways, after that, she showed me what you and the rest in Chaldea had been doing, since, her realm is timeless I didn't have to wait long. Afterwards, I was summoned here and became a student at the ISA"-She explained.

"The ISA huh? Say, do you have a personal IS? Just curious"-Olga Marie straightened herself and puffed her chest out in pride.

"Who do you think you're talking to? Of course I have a personal IS. In fact, I currently find myself as the British Representative"-She boasted haughtily.

"British Representative huh? I thought that was Cecilia Alcott, at least, according to what Alaya told me"-Ritsuka replied, tilting his head slightly.

"Alcott?"-Olga seemed almost insulted, "That girl is a candidate. Hmph, the first year doesn't even know the first thing about real combat. Honestly, it's a wonder she's even a candidate!"

"Erm, I'm guessing you two don't get along"-The Servant guessed.

"Oh, no no no. It's not that. We have never actually spoken with each other. But I have heard her speak and it reminds me too much of a certain hyena from the clock-tower"-The Ex-Director corrected.

"Riiight. I have never actually been to the clock-tower, so I have no idea what you're talking about"-Ritsuka replied sheepishly.

"*Sigh* You're better off that way, that girl was a pain. In any case, speaking of the first years, you are most likely going to be attending class 1-1 after your little reveal, since that is where the other male pilot attends"-She said, "A fair warning, the girls at the ISA might be persistent, but those girls... "-She trailed off.

"I uh, think I understand what you mean. Thanks. So, anyways, how long have you been a pilot for?"

"Almost 2 years now, of course it doesn't mean any of the 3rd or 4th years have any chance against me…"

And the two continued to converse, catch up and after a while decided to go to sleep.

After a rather… Interesting conversation between the three inhabitants of the "room" Ritsuka decided to take the couch and allow the two girls to sleep in the beds.

And there we go.

Now, before anyone yells out bloody murder over Olga Marie's introduction into the story, my reason for bringing her into the story is because I think they killed her off way too early in the game. I really don't like it, since she's a very well set up character and the way they killed her just put me off quite a bit…

Anyways, now it's time for reviews! That I haven't replied to… Until like, 3 - 2 months late…

Midnight49: I hope I can live up to your expectations with the buildup then, because version 1 it is.

Stratos263: Yes, it's a mystery. Though, I do apologize for the muck up of her hair-color.

Pepebomb: We'll see, we'll see.

Prismatic Glaive: Again, you'll just have to wait and see.

Guest: Well, because I didn't think of it at the moment. And I wanted to go with Ruler because… I think there are way too little Ruler Class Servants.

Rionline: Yeah, I'm trying to get a schedule together, but it's still a bit messy. I'll get back on that though.

SentinelPrimeKnightOfCybertron: Jesus your name is a mouthful, no offense. Anyways, yes he dealt with a lot a weird people in Chaldea… That wouldn't stop him from being nervous about having to deal with more though.

hollowichigo12: Yeah when I think about it, I do like the more natural approach in version 1 a lot better myself. Though, version 2 only got 2 votes while version 1 got… *Scrolls though the reviews and counts* 16 votes! A couple of people weren't sure but, that's also fine.

3dots: Definitely going to keep that in mind. Thanks for the suggestion!

JeanneShinn: I never realized the fluff I wrote into the chapter. I'm really bad with writing anything romantic, but i'll try it with pairings if it doesn't break the story.

WPatton9210: Thank you! And again with pairing, if it doesn't break the story then I'll have a go at it, though you should probably expect a LOT of edits in those chapters… Glad you're interested though. And uh, yeah version 2 only got 2 votes so… Sorry.

oreghost8: Because, as one of the reviewers stated, if Ritsuka was able to pull out any Noble Phantasm he ever wanted at any time, it would kinda break the point of any kind of conflict because Ritsuka would just curb stomp the poor sod that tried to do anything. And yeah, I'm planning on introducing a second Noble Phantasm for him in the future, though that's not going to be until a while into the story.

Prismatic Glaive: Mhm, I completely agree, and so does most of the voters. Version 1 it is my friend.

Ruberforumfree: Most other voters, and myself would agree with you.

Saberfang Orcalodon: Hope this is enough to satisfy you for now. Thanks for supporting me!

The indominator: Thanks for the criticism. I fixed that (I think?) with Alaya now being just a fragment of the counter-force as she goes along with Ritsuka. Thanks for the support!

Ultimate Kuuga: I'm glad you like it mate!

zeferoz: A simple review, but it says what you want clearly! I hope I can satisfy you with this and the coming chapters milord/milady.

Gashadokuro Amanojaku: Thanks for the criticism. I've already applied it and changed his Noble Phantasm because I completely agree with you. Curb stomps are fun, but after a while they just get boring and bland. And on the topic of Archer… He's not really fitting for this type of mission since he still has his own views and opinions. Ritsuka also has this, but is more easily ready to accept others views and opinions that might differ from his own. And yeah, I changed it so that it is explained why Ritsuka is being summoned as a Servant instead of a full on Counter-Guardian.

Honestly, I'm surprised someone took the time to write an as lengthy and detailed review as you did. Makes me feel special, thank you.

Stratos263: I'll keep on going, thanks for the support!

Pepebomb: I know you said it in the first chapter, but I hope you like the third chapter as well. Thanks for the support!

Guest: Yes, every. Single. One. Of those summonable in Fate GO… Plus a few others. Though it has been nerfed so he can't just pull it out anytime he wants but it's more akin to the gacha roll in the game. Thanks for the criticism though.

Thank you all for the continued support of the story… Also…

4000 views milestone! WOHO!

And with that, I bid you good day, or good night, whichever works for you.

Bye bye!