Chapter 5: A Clash of Wills and Weapons

"This is your room, Shira?"

"Yeah, it is," Shira answered as she watched Saber examine her bedroom closely. "It's not much, but I really only use it for sleeping, so..."

Her voice trailed off awkwardly; she had never been more aware of how bare her room was. To say that Shira never felt the need to decorate the place was an understatement. There was nothing on the walls or the floor; even the desk at the far end of the room had nothing on it.

Saber stepped over to a wall, putting his hand against it. "It's all right; simple, but well cared for." He looked over at Shira. "A person's room is normally a reflection of the owner's character. For you, this is somehow...appropriate."

"Um...thanks?" Shira didn't really understand what Saber was trying to get at, but she didn't think he meant to insult her. Instead of pursuing the topic, she walked to the left side of her room, where a door leading to the side room was located.

"Here; this is where you'll be staying." Shira slid the door open; since the side room was normally unused, it was even sparser than her bedroom. "I'll get you a futon later."

Saber walked into the room and nodded. "This will do."

Just then, a bell rang to signal that Shira had a visitor.

"Someone's here," Saber stated, already tensing as if readying for a battle.

"It's just Sakura," Shira assured him. But her eyes suddenly widened and she whipped her head in the direction of the bell's chime as something occurred to her. "Oh God, I better get the door before Tohsaka answers it!"

Obviously, Sakura would be wondering what on Earth Rin was doing at the Emiya estate if the latter answered the door. As Shira had pointed out to Rin in the dojo, a cover story—and a convincing one at that—needed to be made. If it was left up to Rin, Shira wasn't sure if the older girl would handle the situation in a smooth, neat fashion. If Shira answered the door, though, she'd be able to break the news to Sakura about Rin staying at her house as tactfully as she could.

Again, she would have to come up with a cover story, but she supposed she'd have to cross that bridge when she came to it.

At present, Shira turned back to Saber. "Look, Saber, I think it would be best if you stayed here for now."

"You want me to hide?" Saber asked.

"Well, kind of," Shira said hesitantly. "It's just that people like Sakura and Fuji-nee know nothing about magic, so—"

"So you think the best course of action would be if I stayed here until I am needed," Saber finished.

"That would be great." Shira nodded, grateful that he understood. "I'll try to sneak you some breakfast if I can," she added before she turned around to rush as fast as she could to the front door.

Unfortunately, by the time she made it to the entrance, Rin was standing in the doorway in front of Sakura, whose mouth was open in shock.

"Oh, good morning, Sakura," Rin greeted her cheerfully. "What a coincidence running into you here."

"Tohsaka-senpai?" Sakura looked over Rin's shoulder to turn her confused gaze to Shira. "Senpai, what is she doing here?"

Shira chuckled humorlessly. "Believe me, I asked the same question. Sorry to spring this onto you so suddenly, but certain...events have happened, so Tohsaka will be living here for awhile."

"You do realize what this means, right, Sakura?" Rin cut in, still using that almost falsely cheerful tone.

"Realize what?" Sakura asked, her eyes back on Rin.

"It seems you've been looking after Shira for a while now, but that'll no longer be necessary. It's best if you stay away from here; you'll just be a bother."

Shira smacked herself in the face at Rin's words. Seriously, Tohsaka, what are you playing at?

Sakura just blinked as if she couldn't believe it, either. After a pause, she pressed her lips together. "I don't understand."

Now it was Rin's turn to be confused. "...What?"

"I said," Sakura began, her voice surprisingly firm, "I don't understand what you're talking about." She calmly brushed past Rin.

"H-hey, Sakura!" Rin exclaimed.

Sakura continued walking. "I'll make breakfast. That's okay with you, right, Senpai?"

"Sure," came Shira's reply as she bemusedly watched Sakura leave. "That was...unexpected," she commented to Rin, who had shut the door. "I've never seen Sakura snap back like that."

Rin bit her lip. "The chances of this house becoming a battleground are high," she said, her voice low. "I was just trying to warn her to stay away."

Shira raised an eyebrow. "That was what you were trying to do? Quite frankly, Tohsaka, I thought you were just being mean."

"Hey!" Rin scowled.

"I'm just saying," Shira said, raising her hand in defense.

It wasn't long before Taiga arrived. As Shira expected, the older woman was incredibly befuddled to find Rin there, but Rin managed to come up with a story about staying at the Emiya estate while her own house was being renovated. During breakfast, Shira made sure to get double the amount of food she normally ate, as well as hide an extra pair of chopsticks in her shirt. She managed to sneak out of the dining room with her plate as the meal was drawing to a close.

"Here," she said once she opened the door to Saber's room, handing him the plate and chopsticks. "I hope this is fine."

"It will do nicely, Shira, thank you," Saber answered, accepting the food.

"I better get going pretty soon." Shira turned to leave.

"Shira," Saber's voice stopped her and she glanced back at him, "before you go, I want you to promise me something."

"What is it?" Shira questioned.

"I wish this were not the case," Saber continued, "but my link to you is tenuous at best. If you are in danger, I might not be able to sense it until it's too late. If you find yourself in a situation that can potentially be dangerous, I want you to summon me by using a Command Seal."

"All right," Shira agreed. "Now let me get that futon for you before I get ready for school."

"We can't do much at the moment," Rin was saying as she and Shira walked to school. "Aside from Ilyasviel, we don't know who the other Masters are, so we'll have to wait for one of them to take the initiative. Right now, you'll have to go through life as if you're not a Master. Hide your Command Seals, be home before dark, and avoid places where you could get ambushed."

"Got it." Shira nodded.

Rin frowned. "You also really ought to have Saber with you as much as possible."

"Well, he can't take spirit form," Shira pointed out as the girls reached the school building, "so that puts a damper on that front. And I can't take him to school; he wouldn't be allowed in. Besides, would a Master really be stupid enough to start a fight in broad daylight with a bunch of witnesses around?"

"Emiya!"

Shira and Rin turned their heads to see Issei hurrying toward them.

"What are you doing with Tohsaka?!" His horrified gaze darted between the two girls.

"Hello to you, too," Rin said sarcastically.

Issei ignored her, grabbing Shira by the shoulder and pulling her behind him as if she were a damsel in need of protecting. "Stay away from her! She'll corrupt you!"

Shira almost laughed despite herself at how dramatic he was being. "Issei, you're making Tohsaka sound like she's some kind of cosmic horror. Believe it or not, we've kind of become friends."

This did not placate Issei. "Emiya, I implore you to get better female friends!"

"See you later, Shira," Rin said nonchalantly as she entered the school building.

The day passed as normally as it ever did. Nothing odd or unusual happened; even so, as Shira sat through her classes, she paid only half attention to the teachers. She found herself playing and replaying the brief conversation she'd had with Saber right after Sakura had rang the doorbell. What was the last thing she'd said to him before rushing to the door?

"I'll try to sneak you some breakfast if I can."

Shira mentally cringed. Spiritual entity or not, Saber looked just as human as anyone, and here she was, treating him like some kind of pet she was hiding in the house.

I really hope I didn't offend him, she thought.

At last, classes were over. Shira did not wait to see if Rin wanted to walk home with her, but went straight back to the Emiya estate, eager for a chance to talk to Saber.

"I'm home," she called after she'd entered the house. "Saber?"

She went to his room, where she found him beneath the covers of his futon, apparently asleep. She gently slid the door closed behind her and slowly walked towards the futon, taking care not to wake him.

Shira knelt beside Saber, the latter wearing a peaceful expression on his face.

The redhead smiled slightly as she watched him. "And here I was thinking I needed to hurry home so we could talk," she muttered to herself.

Saber's eyes opened. "What do you want to talk about?"

Shira jumped a little, startled. "I thought you were asleep."

"I sensed your presence when you crossed the threshold," Saber explained, sitting up.

"How are your wounds doing?" Shira asked.

"The wound I got from Lancer is still not fully healed," Saber admitted. "Nonetheless, I have recovered most of my strength. I was able to sleep for most of the day."

Shira frowned. "You've been in here since this morning?"

"Yes," the blond replied, turning to face her. "When one is not in combat and sleep can be had, it is best to take full advantage of it. In any case, since I am not getting any mana from you, I need to conserve as much of my magical energy as possible."

There was nothing accusatory in Saber's voice, but Shira still had to resist a wince at the fact that she wasn't even powerful enough to properly support her Servant. An unfortunate side effect of being an amateur magus, and the accidental summoning probably didn't help.

"So," she began, "does sleeping help in replenishing your mana?"

"I'm not entirely certain," Saber answered, "but I at least know that I do not use up any mana while I sleep."

Before Shira could think of anything else to say, Saber's eyes went to the door. "Someone's approaching."

Shira spared a glance at the door. "It's probably just Sakura or Tohsaka."

"If that is all, then I will remain here until needed."

"Saber..." Shira's voice trailed off as she looked back at him. The feeling that she was treating him like a caged, exotic pet had suddenly increased.

"Is something wrong, Shira?" Saber questioned.

Shira smiled ruefully. "Not really. I guess I'm just feeling a little bad about hiding you, is all."

"Don't be." A simple, reassuring smile appeared on Saber's face. "I am perfectly fine here."

But you haven't set foot out of this room all day, Shira wanted to protest. You shouldn't be isolated like this. However, at the sight of Saber's smile—was this the first time she'd seen him truly smile?—all ability to argue left her.

Instead, she gave another smile, and it felt forced because it was. "Okay."

After leaving Saber's room, Shira went to the kitchen to see that Rin and Sakura had arrived from a trip to the grocery store. Shira spent the next hour or so preparing dinner, and Taiga burst into the house just as the table was being set.

Soon enough, dinner was served. Shira was silent as she put some meatballs on her plate, hardly listening as Taiga gushed over the food and Sakura and Rin made small talk. She found herself glancing to her left, where an empty cushion rested. In her mind's eye, she saw Saber sitting on the cushion and quietly eating a bowl of rice; the mental image was gone as soon as it had appeared.

Shira cast her gaze to the floor. Saber might be okay with not eating with everyone—with being cut off from the rest of the world—but I'm not.

Her mind made up, Shira abruptly got to her feet.

"What's wrong, Shira?" Taiga asked. "Do you need to use the bathroom?"

"No, but could you guys wait a sec? There's something I need to do." Without waiting for anyone to reply, Shira left the dining room and headed down the hall. She went to her room.

"Saber? Come on, we gotta go," Shira said as she opened the door to his room.

"Why?" Saber wanted to know as he let Shira help him up. "Is there an emergency?"

"Nope; I just want to introduce you to everyone," Shira replied.

Saber frowned, obviously displeased. "What are you thinking? Have you lost your mind?"

Shira wouldn't be deterred. "It's not right for me to hide you."

"But this morning, you said—"

"I know what I said," Shira interrupted. "Listen to what I'm saying now. Let's just go out there and wing it, all right?"

Saber had little choice but to follow as Shira took his hand again and practically dragged him out of his room. When they made it to the dining room, Shira dropped Saber's hand.

"I should've done this earlier," Shira said to Taiga, Sakura, and Rin, "but I'd like to introduce you to Saber. He'll be living here for a while, too."

Rin initially looked quite blank as Shira began to speak, but presently settled into an expression that was politely puzzled, and both Sakura and Taiga were looking baffled, the latter more so than the former.

"Shira—" Saber tried to say.

Shira cut him off before he could get any further. "Saber, you can sit next to me. If you're going to be living here, then you're going to be eating with us, too."

"Are you sure about this?" Saber asked doubtfully.

"Absolutely," Shira declared. She sat herself down and picked up her chopsticks, suddenly very hungry.

But before Shira could even bite into a meatball, Taiga chose that moment to spring up, her bafflement replaced by outrage.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, YOUNG LADY?!"

The chopsticks fell from Shira's grip as she covered her ears to block Taiga's roar.

Taiga lowered her voice to a more or less acceptable volume. "Shira Emiya, when I told you to get a boyfriend, I did not mean you should get a boyfriend and have him live with you!"

Shira uncovered her ears. What the hell?

"Fuji-nee, just what are you talking about?" Shira demanded incredulously. "Saber's not my boyfriend. He's a boy, he's a friend, and yes, he'll be staying here, but that does not make him my boyfriend!"

"Could've fooled me," Rin muttered.

Shira whipped her head in Rin's direction. "What was that?!"

"What else do you call it when a young man and woman are living in the same house?" Taiga snapped.

"It's not like that!" Shira protested. "Saber's just—"

Taiga interrupted her. "Where did you find this foreigner anyway?"

"I didn't find him; he's..." Shira scrambled for the next couple of seconds for anything to say, "he's an old family friend."

"An old family friend?" Clearly, Taiga wasn't buying it.

"That seems hard to believe." And neither was Sakura.

"It's true!" Shira insisted. "I don't know all the details, but he somehow used Dad's old connections to get here."

"Do you honestly expect us to believe that silly fairytale? There's no way Kiritsugu had connections to anyone outside of—" Taiga suddenly stopped, looking thoughtful. "Well, actually..."

Shira smiled triumphantly. "See?"

Taiga went back to being angry. "Doesn't matter; it's highly inappropriate for an unmarried man and woman to live together!" She lifted her furious gaze up to Saber, who was still standing. "Hey, you! Fess up; what are you here for? And if you even think about taking advantage of Shira, I'll—"

"Enough," Saber interrupted; in contrast to Taiga's fiery tone, his voice was like ice. He leveled a frosty stare at the brown-haired woman. "The only reason I am here is because Kiritsugu wished it. It was his request that I protect Shira from any and all enemies."

Well, the best lies are often based on the truth, Shira thought as Taiga began to deflate. But before she could truly relax, Taiga straightened up.

"Fine, then. If you're here to protect her, then I say we find out just how good you are," she declared.

Shira stifled a groan.

All too soon, everyone had gone to the dojo. Shira, Sakura, and Rin were sitting off to the side, while Saber and Taiga, the latter of whom having a shinai in hand, were standing about a few feet away from each other.

"The only way I'll allow you to stay is by the slim chance you beat me," Taiga said. "But if you lose, I'm sending your sorry butt packing."

"I will oblige," Saber said calmly, "though I fail to see the point in this exercise."

"'Fail to see the point'?!" Taiga repeated, scowling. "Haven't you heard of a lion tossing their cubs in a ditch just to ferret out the weak?"

Shira shook her head. "This is ridiculous."

"Pipe down, Shira!" Taiga snapped. "I'm only doing this for your own safety!"

"Well, then," Saber said, "if I only need to prove I can protect Shira, this will not be a problem."

Taiga bristled. "You're walking on confidence, aren't ya?" She lifted up her shinai. "All right, pretty boy, let's see how long that lasts!" She charged forward.

"Sensei!" Sakura gasped.

Shira couldn't quite blame her. Taiga liked to brag that she was a fifth degree kendo, but Saber's skill in swordplay was on a whole different level. So it came as no surprise to Shira when Saber merely stood there as Taiga ran towards him, then quickly grabbed the shinai out of her hands before she could so much as touch him.

Taiga spent the next few seconds staring at her empty hands, as if not believing what had just happened.

"Is it safe to assume you are convinced now?" Saber asked, lowering his hand on the shinai so that he now grasped the hilt.

But Taiga only chuckled darkly, whipping out another shinai from behind her back. "Oh, this is just getting started!"

She charged forward again as Saber held out his shinai in front of him. Suddenly, a burst of smoke appeared from Saber's shinai; the smoke cleared to reveal colorful bits of paper, revealing the "shinai" as a fake.

"Say your prayers!" Taiga cried. She was now in striking distance—but in the next couple of seconds, Saber had let go of the fake shinai and disarmed Taiga again.

The woman stared at her "opponent," completely flabbergasted.

Saber began walking towards her. "If you wish to continue this, I would be happy to oblige. However, I would like to assume that you are skilled enough to realize when you are outmatched."

Taiga flinched back as Saber got closer. Her face crumpled, her thunderstruck expression replaced by abject misery.

"Some weirdo's stealing Shira away!" she wailed.

Shira could only blink as Taiga proceeded to sob. Just who does she think is the weirdo here?

It took the better part of two hours, but Shira and Saber were able to finally convince Taiga to not only let Saber stay, but that there would be "absolutely no funny business" between the two of them (Not that I'd want to, anyway, Shira told herself). Afterward, Taiga left to take Sakura home, leaving Shira, Saber, and Rin standing out in one of the estate's hallways.

"You know, you didn't have to go to so much trouble," Rin informed Shira.

The redhead frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Servants are Servants," Rin said, as if that explained everything. "There's no need to treat them like they're human beings." She sighed. "But I guess there's no use telling you that."

Shira, who didn't feel much like arguing right now, remained silent as Rin walked off, presumably to the guest room she was staying in.

"I have to agree with Rin," Saber spoke, causing Shira to look at him. "Shira, why did you feel so compelled to introduce me to everyone? Having them know I exist puts us at a disadvantage. The better strategy would be for me to remain in my room."

"Not for me, it wouldn't," Shira said. "I felt like you were caged inside that room—you were in the house, but still alone. Servant or not, that's no way to treat someone. Besides, there's more to life than just strategy."

And with that, she turned around to walk to her room, not waiting for Saber's response.

Even though it meant skipping out on her usual magic training, Shira decided to go to bed earlier than she normally did; the drama that Taiga caused over Saber living at the estate, however temporarily, had left her exhausted. She quickly changed into her pajamas, crawled underneath her futon's blankets, and was asleep before her head had hit the pillow.

The next morning, Shira woke up feeling refreshed. After getting dressed and grooming herself, she went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

A few minutes later, heavy footfalls could be heard along the floor. Shira looked up to see Rin stumbling groggily into the room.

"Good morning, Tohsaka," she greeted uneasily as she took in the state the other girl was in. Rin was slumped forward as though hung-over, her eyes were bleary with sleep, her hair was mussed, and there were several wrinkles in her yellow nightgown. Yet another strike against Rin's school idol image.

"Sheesh, you sure get up early," Rin croaked. "Ugh...where's the bathroom?"

"Down that hallway," Shira said, gesturing with one hand. She looked back to focus on her cooking as Rin mumbled a thanks and left the kitchen, yawning all the while.

More than half an hour later, Rin was fully awake, Saber had gotten up, Sakura and Taiga made their arrival, and the morning meal was ready. Compared to how dinner had gone last night, breakfast was a peaceful, even lighthearted affair. Taiga made no mention about Saber's current living arrangements, for which Shira was thankful. Instead, Taiga was content to wolf down as much food as she could, despite Shira's warnings that the woman could choke.

"You worry too much, Shira," Taiga said airily, dismissing her ward with a wave of her hand. "I have to eat this much or I won't make it until lunchtime. Otherwise, I'd end up like Sakura, munching on onigiri after her morning archery practice."

Sakura flushed in embarrassment. "You know about that?"

"Well, yeah," Shira said. "You've been making an extra serving of rice for a while now."

"Sakura," Saber spoke for the first time since breakfast started, "do you ever think of anything besides food?"

Sakura seemed to blush even more furiously as Saber addressed her. "O-of course I do!" She quickly grabbed the nearby remote and turned on the TV.

"Over fifty victims were discovered before dawn today and taken to the hospital," the news reporter said, the screen showing a tall building in the background, as well as a headline that read, Another Gas Leak in New Town! "Authorities have been unable to determine why the gas detectors did not activate when the leak occurred."

"A gas leak, huh?" Rin commented. Her tone was casual, even careless, but a quick, sideways glance at her told Shira that Rin was giving the news report her full attention.

Shira found herself wondering if all these "gas leaks" were more than just a string of unfortunate accidents. And if so, did Rin know anything about them?

It happened suddenly and without any warning.

The second Shira made to enter the school's gate, a wave of nausea overtook her as terrible pain coiled around her heart. It was as though a large, powerful hand had reached inside her chest in an attempt to squeeze every bit of life out of her.

She doubled over, though she wasn't aware she had moved at all. Her vision swam. The air was so thick she could hardly breathe.

And then, the moment was gone as quickly as it had begun. Shira's breath came out in pants as she dragged clean air into her lungs.

"What's the matter?" Rin asked from behind her.

"I...I don't know," Shira admitted as she straightened up. "I just felt queasy all of a sudden. The air seemed different...sticky, I think."

Rin frowned. "It's a barrier. Someone—a Master, no doubt—has placed a barrier around the school."

"And that's a problem?" Shira guessed.

"Of course it's a problem! This barrier doesn't seem to be complete yet, but if we don't do anything, it'll drain the mana of everyone on campus."

"What?!" Shira cried out, not bothering to hide her horrified disbelief.

"Keep your voice down," Rin scolded in a harsh whisper. "I said if we don't do anything."

"Well, we can't just sit by and let everyone get killed. But what can we do?"

"We'll have to talk about it later," Rin decided. "Meet me on the roof at lunch, Shira."

"Hey, wait..." But Shira's voice trailed off helplessly as Rin walked into the school building, leaving her alone with a mixture of panic at what this barrier was capable of doing and anger at whoever had set it up in the first place.

"Issei?" Shira poked her head into the student council room after morning classes were over to find her friend sitting at the table with his head in his arms.

The redhead took a seat. "What's wrong? Did you not get enough sleep last night?"

"It's not that," Issei answered sleepily, lifting his head just enough to peer at Shira. "But lately, no matter how much sleep I get, I still feel tired, so if I get a chance to nap, I take it."

"That's, uh, really weird."

"Mm-hmm." Issei, who took no notice of the quaver in Shira's voice, set his head back on the table, softly snoring.

Someone knocked on the open door, and a deep, calm voice broke in. "Is Ryudou available?"

Shira turned her head to see Kuzuki standing in the doorway. He drifted his gaze to Issei; Shira had to lightly nudge the boy in the arm to get him to straighten up in his seat.

"Sensei." Issei quickly adjusted his glasses.

"Regarding the student from the archery club this morning," Kuzuki began.

"Yes?" Issei prompted.

"Apparently, she failed to return home as well."

Issei let out a sharp intake of breath. "What about Matou?"

"Not here today," Kuzuki said. "At this point, we don't know if this is related to the other incidents that have been happening in town. I would appreciate it if you kept this under wraps for now; as far as anyone knows, those kids are simply out sick."

"Yes, sir," Issei agreed.

"That is all. Sorry I interrupted."

As Kuzuki left, Shira turned back to Issei. "What's he talking about? What happened with the archery club?"

"Oh, right," Issei mumbled. "I guess you wouldn't have heard. This does concern you to a certain extent, so I should probably fill you in. Ayako Mitsuzuri has been missing since yesterday, and a student came forward and said he found her talking to Shinji Matou last night. And now Matou is absent as well."

Shira looked away, pursing her lips. Was it possible that the Master who set up this barrier had taken Ayako and Shinji for whatever reason? If this particular Master was willing to sacrifice a whole school just to get mana, then he or she would have no qualms with kidnapping. Shira made a mental note to tell Rin about this. And speaking of Rin...

"Well, enjoy your nap, Issei," Shira said as she stood up and left just as Issei resumed his snoring.

Before heading to the roof, Shira went to the cafeteria to buy some lunch, as well as two coffees. With that done, she went upstairs to the rooftop, shivering in the cold air as she walked over to where Rin was standing.

"Thanks," Rin said after accepting the coffee Shira handed to her, then ruined it as she continued. "I guess if you're not good for anything else, then at least you're thoughtful."

She opened the can and took a sip, grimacing as she did so. "Get milk tea next time, though."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Shira said, rolling her eyes. She quickly sobered, however. "So, about this Master that's set up the barrier...do you have any idea on who it could be?"

"I can't pinpoint exactly who it is yet," Rin admitted, "but I've sensed his presence at school for awhile. All I really know is that this Master is a nasty piece of work. They'd have to be if they're willing to use a barrier of this magnitude just to strengthen their own Servant."

"And how would the missing students fit into this?" Shira wondered.

Rin raised an eyebrow in question. "What missing students?"

"I heard from Issei that Mitsuzuri and Shinji Matou are absent," Shira explained. "The official story is that they're sick, but it looks suspicious that they'd go missing a day or two after the barrier's set up, especially with another Master at school."

Rin nodded slowly, frowning a bit. "That is true. What are we supposed to do about it?"

Shira sipped her coffee thoughtfully. "We could ask around after classes are over. Or we could just poke around the school, see if we can't find anything."

"That's a good idea," Rin conceded. "If we're lucky, we may find a clue as to who this Master is."

It was also pretty much the only idea, but Shira refrained from commenting on that.

Shira hoped Rin had better luck than she did.

Once school was done for the day, Shira had gone to Sakura's classroom to ask about Shinji's whereabouts, but the younger girl said that neither she nor anyone else knew where he was. Shira spent some time asking students if they had seen Ayako, but she only heard the same thing: that Ayako was sick.

"Shira?"

Startled, the redhead looked up, belatedly realizing that she was standing in the hallway near a flight of stairs with Rin approaching her.

"Find anything?" Rin asked.

"Nothing." Shira frowned, frustration marring her features. "Every person I've talked to seems to think Mitsuzuri and Matou just caught the flu or something."

"Same with me," Rin confessed, "but it does give us some advantage. After all, the less they suspect, the less likely they'll believe something unnatural is going on."

Shira only shrugged; she supposed Rin was right.

"Anyway," the black-haired girl went on, "it looks like the only thing we can do now is wait for this Master to come to us. I mean, we could delay the barrier, but—"

She abruptly stopped talking as a scream pierced the air.

"Someone's here." Without waiting for Rin to respond, Shira took off running downstairs, following the sound of the scream.

"Hey, wait up!" Rin's voice called from behind; Shira didn't have to look back to see that the other girl was running as well.

They ran until they made it to the first floor. Shira rushed to open the nearby double doors to find that a female student was lying on the floor. She was unconscious, but otherwise appeared unharmed.

Shira knelt down to get a better look at the girl. "I'm guessing it's too much to hope that she just passed out?"

"You guessed right," Rin clarified. "Whoever did this tried to drain the life from her. They probably couldn't wait for the barrier to do the job for them."

A shudder went through Shira's body; that would certainly explain the apparent kidnappings, and yet...

"There's not a scratch on her," Shira said out loud.

"Believe me," Rin said grimly, "she might be fine externally, but internally, most of her has been consumed. If we leave her like this, she'll die. Step back; I can help with this." Rin got to her knees by the girl's side, brushing Shira aside.

Shira got up and stood aside as Rin held out her arm and wordlessly chanted a spell, a red jewel resting on her palm. She couldn't help noticing the look of intense focus on Rin's face.

Somehow, I feel like I've seen that expression before, Shira thought.

Rin grunted in frustration. "I can't concentrate! Shira, shut that door, will you?"

Shira was broken out of her thoughts and moved to do what Rin asked (well, more like demanded). Just as she was about to close the door, though, a nail-like dagger suddenly flew through the air—right in Rin's direction.

In a burst of instinct, Shira raised her arm—and let out a short scream as the dagger was driven straight into her arm.

Author's Note: Hee; Taiga's reaction to Saber living at the Emiya estate was fun to write. :)

In summary, Shira is sailing up the river of De Nial and in full-on He Is Not My Boyfriend mode and absolutely no one is buying it, Rin proves that she's not a morning person in any universe and has a degree in magical medical school, and the school population is in danger of becoming the ingredients for Servant Soup.