Mirari Moon Wars Chapter 3 – The Summoning of the Sabers.
A/N: Sorry for the long delay, I've been suffering from intense writer's block.
Special thanks go to Ergast and Iucif3r, for leaving me a review for the last chapter. I hope that I will continue to please.
Meanwhile, in a large mansion located in the nearby town of Misaki…
"Hisui-chan, have you found anything that we should keep for Akiha-sama?" A bubbly red haired girl called as her amber eyes darted left and right in the hopes of finding something worthwhile while sifting through the piles. She was dressed in a black kimono and wore a white apron covering the front of her kimono. Her short red hair was held back by a large blue ribbon that was tied in a bow.
"No I have not, nee-san." Another red-haired girl dressed in a European maid uniform with cold steel colored eyes responded from the other side of the room. In her delicate hands a large black trash bag was seen as she chucked anything that was broken into slowly filling bag.
"Hmm…what have we here?" The kimono-wearing girl said as she picked up a long wooden box from its home beneath a pile of old leather bound books.
"I probably shouldn't open it, but curiosity is getting the better of me." The girl said cheerfully before carefully opening the lid of the box, revealing an ornate golden sword hilt with several shards of metal of its shattered blade and an elegant silver ring lying on the purple velvet that lined the case.
"Hisui-chan, come quickly I've found something." The girl called to her twin across the room as she closed the lid of the box.
The girl in the maid uniform let out an exasperated sigh before walking over to her kimono-wearing twin.
"I do hope that you truly found something worthwhile this time, nee-san." Hisui stated plainly, her voice devoid of all emotion. "As opposed to the last thing that you found…"
The kimono wearing girl frowned at her sister's reaction.
"What I've found is sooo much better than Makihisa-sama's bug collection, Hisui-chan." She replied cheerfully as she held up the wooden box. "What I've found is…" she paused for dramatic effect before opening the box in front of her sister, "…a sword with a shattered blade and a silver ring."
Hisui seemed to be unimpressed by her sister's find. She looked towards her sister and said emotionlessly, "That is a much better find, nee-san. You should take them to Akiha-sama."
"Tee-hee. I plan to Hisui-chan." The kimono wearing maid replied as she reclosed the box and headed out towards the sitting room.
Sitting in a chair in the sitting room was a young woman with long raven hair sipping tea. She was wearing a neatly-pressed white collared long-sleeved shirt that buttoned down the front, a long red skirt that went clear down to her ankles, and around the collar of her shirt she wore a red ribbon.
"I wonder where nii-san could be since he isn't here…with me…" The girl said to herself sadly as she took another sip of her tea, when her left sleeve started to turn a deep red. "What in the world?" She cried out in surprise as she noticed her sleeve's change.
"Akiha-sama, I've brought something to show you." The kimono-wearing girl called out as she walked into the room carrying the long wooden box that she had found.
"Kohaku, bring me some bandages." The raven-hair girl exclaimed worriedly, "What if something bad is happening to nii-san!"
The kimono wearing girl set the wooden box on the table and hurriedly pulled out some gauze and medical tape out from beneath her apron.
"Akiha-sama, please calm down so that I can take a look at your injury." Kohaku, the kimono wearing maid said calmly as she unbuttoned her employer's left sleeve to examine the wound, only to look at the girl with a disappointed look on her face after bandaging it. "Akiha-sama, what you do with your body is your business, but getting a tattoo is not something the head of the Tohno family should be doing."
Akiha gave her servant a look of sheer confusion before she noticed a trickle of blood dripping down the girl's hand.
"Kohaku, your hand." Akiha cried out in surprise.
"Eh?" Kohaku said surprised as she looked down at the blood trickling down her hand, "Ah, that's true."
"But you're bleeding." Akiha said with concern.
"How embarrassing." She said flatly as she stared at it without doing anything. "I am supposed to be good at medicine." She said with a laugh.
"Kohaku, you shouldn't be laughing." Akiha replied as she reached for Kohaku's hand, "We must take care of that quickly. We don't know what it could be."
"It's fine. It's not like it is life-threatening or anything." Kohaku explained cheerfully as she reached for the wooden box on the table.
"But Kohaku, does it hurt?" Akiha asked worriedly.
"No, not at all. If I think that it doesn't hurt then it doesn't hurt." Kohaku stated before telling her master something outrageous with a smile on her face, "If I think that this isn't my hand, that it's the hand of some doll, then I won't feel any pain, right?"
Akiha looked towards the floor sadly before changing the subject.
"So what did you want to show me?" Akiha asked her servant.
Kohaku smiled as she opened up the box for her master.
"I found a broken sword and a really old ring." Kohaku explained cheerfully.
Akiha reached her left hand into the box and pulled out the silver ring from its velvet resting place.
"It's beautiful." Akiha said as she stared at the ring before putting it her slender ring finger of her left hand.
Reaching into the wooden box, Kohaku pulled out the golden hilt of the broken sword.
I wonder if nii-san will ever give me a ring like this, Akiha wondered as she brought her left hand up to see what the ring would look like on her hand.
While Akiha looked at the ring on her hand, Kohaku had brought the broken sword hilt up into a pose like something from an RPG.
If I was stronger like the person who wielded this sword could I have saved myself? Kohaku wondered as she stared at the cross-guard.
Suddenly both women felt a sharp pain in their arms immediately before a bright flash of light suddenly erupted in the room.
Once the flash of light had faded, both Akiha's and Kohaku's eyes grew wide as they stared at the room's newest occupants.
Standing by the door, were two figures.
The first was a blond haired woman of approximately five feet in height dressed in a fancy blue gown with white trim. A steel breastplate that shone brighter than polished silver, a pair of steel legging that hung down over her dress, gauntlets and greaves. All of which seemed out of place on this petite girl who was appeared to be no older than sixteen.
Towering beside the woman was a giant of a man, easily exceeding six feet in height. He was clad in an ornate black plate mail armor covering him completely from head to toe and made him look like a man-shaped dragon. A long blue tassel hung down his back from his helmet.
"Are you my master?" The two knights said at the same time before looking at each other, before saying in surprise, "Why are you here?"
"That's what I want to know!" Akiha said as she stood up from her chair, her hair flashing crimson as her anger grew.
The two knights looked over at Akiha and coughed out of embarrassment.
The female knight was the first speak up.
"I am a servant of the Saber class. I have come in response to your summons." She said as she looked at the two women before her. "Which one of you is my master?"
Akiha looked at Kohaku and sighed before asking her maid, "What have you done this time Kohaku?"
Kohaku looked at her master and replied cheerfully as she reenacted the scene, "All I did was hold up the broken sword hilt like the heroes do in the movies and video games."
The two knights looked at the broken sword in the maid's hands as they gasped in surprise.
"Is that…" The Black Knight said shocked at the sight before him.
"…my sword." Saber exclaimed, her eyes wide as she stared at the remains of her original sword, Caliburn. "It appears that you are my master, you may call me Saber."
"Eh, Master?" Kohaku said as she looked towards Saber, all the while thinking, I like the sound of that. "Okay Saber-chan, I'm Kohaku."
"Okay Kohaku, I will be your sword and shield from this point forward." Saber stated.
The helmet of the black knight vanished revealing the handsome face of man in his mid-twenties with shoulder length violet hair.
"Which means that you are my master." The Black Knight stated as he knelt down before Akiha. "I am also of the Saber class, however since there is already another Saber servant…I will answer to 'Knight' until my true identity is discovered, if that is acceptable, of course."
Akiha looked at the black knight and replied coldly, "For what reason are you here to serve me and my maid?"
The two knights looked at each other in confusion.
"You summoned us we simply answered the call." Saber explained, "We are here to fight and defend you during the Holy Grail War."
Akiha's eyebrow arched at the mention of the 'Holy Grail.'
"Do you honestly expect me to believe that?" Akiha asked as she crossed her arms in defiance.
The Black Knight sighed before turning away from the two women.
"What a shame to be summoned by such inept masters." He said as he started into the hall, "And to believe that I was summoned because of the ring I gave my mistress, 'tis a shame, my liege."
Saber looked at her master and the raven-haired girl and stated, "The Holy Grail is said to grant its owners any wish that they desire."
Both Kohaku's and Akiha's eyes grew wide at the mention of wishes.
"Any wish!" They exclaimed at the same time before remembering their manners.
Akiha looked down at the ring on her hand and then at the Black Knight's back.
"Kohaku, find out everything that you can about this Holy Grail War." Akiha ordered.
Kohaku nodded before walking out of the room, Saber following quickly after her.
The sound of the large wooden doors at the front of the mansion opening followed by a voice:
"Akiha, I'm home." A male's voice called from the hallway.
Akiha looked over at the Black Knight as a dark haired boy with glasses entered the room.
"I'm sorry that I'm late Akiha." The boy said as he looked at the girl, before noticing the bloodstained sleeve. "Akiha, you're arm." he said as he walked over to girl to take a look at her arm.
"It's fine nii-san." Akiha said blushing as the boy's hand touched her skin.
The Black Knight stood in the corner attempting to hold back a chuckle as he watched his master's embarrassment.
"Nii-san, Kohaku already took care of it." Akiha said bashfully, causing the Black Knight to chuckle from the doorway.
Hearing the sound of someone chuckling, Shiki pulled out a small fruit knife from his pocket and extended the blade.
"Show yourself, intruder." Shiki said as he brought his knife up in front of him as he turned towards the corner where the Black Knight had stood.
"With pleasure my lord." The Black Knight said as he stepped forward and knelt before Shiki and Akiha.
"Lord!" Shiki said as he lowered his knife, before turning towards his sister. "Akiha, what is going on? Why is there a man dressed in armor in the sitting room?"
"Nii-san…" Akiha said shyly as she averted her eyes before steeling her heart and turning to face Shiki, "I'm going to be leaving the house in your care for a few days."
Shiki stepped back a couple of feet as he took in what Akiha had just said.
"Where are you going to be going Akiha?" Shiki asked just as Hisui entered the room.
"Akiha-sama, the task of cleaning out Makihisa-sama's storage room has been completed." Hisui stated flatly before noticing Shiki in the room, "Forgive me Shiki-sama for not being at the gate when you arrived but I was under the impression that you would be home at eight."
Shiki sweatdropped at Hisui's statement.
"As the head of the Tohno household, Kohaku and I are going to be meeting with some of the members of the Tohno family." Akiha stated before walking out of the room, leaving Shiki and Hisui alone with the Black Knight.
"Since my master has retired for the night I will make my departure." The Black Knight said before walking out of the room and disappearing.
Shiki scratched the back of his head before looking at Hisui and stating, "That was weird…"
"Indeed, Shiki-sama." Hisui replied emotionlessly.
"Oh, Hisui did you know who that guy was?" Shiki asked, earning a head shake from his maid.