Disclaimer: I do not own Fate/ Stay Night or any of its characters...
Fate/ Stay Night: Alternate Routes
Scenario Three: LUVIAGELITA
By Traingham
Author's Note: 'Normal Ends' will get 'True Ends' in proper VN fashion.
Who do you look up to? It's probably one of the easiest questions to answer for a child growing up with loving parents to support them, however, in the case of an orphan or one treated unfairly throughout their young life, the question becomes quite complex. I fall into the latter category. It's hard for me to remember the two people whom I once called mother and father. I lost them at a young age in the midst of a fire that consumed the place I had considered to be my home. That is where my story began, meeting the man that I would come to love deeply as a father, Kiritsugi Emiya. To be honest, it was probably an infatuation in my case. He took me into his home as his child, but I rarely got to see him. He was always traveling the world on his own, trying his hardest to become something that would forever stay out of his reach and I suppose you can say that in the end it wasn't the man that I began to chase after, but the ideals that he left to the world in his passing.
What does it mean to be the hero? Is there really such a thing when the world is always divided in two? How can one tell apart that which is good or evil when the line between both sides is constantly blurred by selfish hopes and ambitions? It took a while for me to see the reality for what it was. It was a dream and nothing more. To save one person is to sacrifice the life of another and when that finally comes to light, you see yourself become the villain.
Perhaps that is why I could not accept that man.
He was the person I was destined to become, staring right back at me with hateful eyes. To think that I would hate myself for the ideals of a man that I believed myself to look up to as a child. It made me realize how much of a flawed individual I had truly become despite my efforts to better myself and become a man that others could look up to and be proud of. Maybe that might have been the reason that I found myself drawn to Rin Tohsaka, the young woman who inevitably held my present and future within her hands. In the end she became the person that I had come to admire, charging on throughout her life with no regrets, proud of her own accomplishments and brave enough to face her problems head on.
...
...
But admiration was something that supposedly got stronger over time, right?
Wait. Something here is off.
"You're amazing, sempai!" Sakura Matou gushed over Shirou Emiya after his arrow hit the mark in the distance. The young man lowered the bow in his hand and grinned at her timidly, almost as if her praise overwhelmed him...which it did. The rest of the archery team could not help but turn their heads in his direction every time he hit a bulls-eye, mostly because Sakura was so ardent in her admiration for him that she felt the need to sing songs of greatness for the entire field to hear. Of course, that was an exaggeration; the part about her singing, anyway.
Handing the plum-haired beauty her bow back, Shirou patted her on the shoulder, "I guess that's enough for me." The tinge of rosiness that had painted the kohai's cheeks from the feeling of his hand on her shoulder had vanished like two fireflies in the darkness.
"You're leaving?" Sakura stepped into his personal space before he could put a distance between them. "Aren't you going to stay a little while longer, sempai?"
"I can't. Rin stopped me in the hall around lunch break to warn me about being late for our study." Shirou massaged the back of his neck nervously when Sakura's expression darkened slightly at the mention of her older sister. "I, uh, stood her up yesterday because Neko-san needed me to take care of a few things at her store and I seriously don't want to have a repeat of that lecture she gave me." The one about how I don't know how to manage my responsibilities and all of that other stuff she talked about...its a bit foggy now...
"...Alright. If its that important, I won't stop you." Her head bowed, overshadowing her lovely feature ominously.
"Thanks, Sakura-san." He told her gratefully, getting a quiet nod out of her in return, which was probably enough for him to know hat she didn't want to say anything else on the matter. With the message clear he turned and jogged across the field to get around the side of the building, sure that going through the porch would only result in having him run into Mitsuzuri; something he honestly could not handle at the moment since he was already just about running late for his engagement with Tohsaka. For those unaware, the aforementioned young woman was the archery captain of the club and his former colleague back when he had been a functioning member. The reason behind his departure from the club was due to a disunion between Shinji Matou and himself, though ever since the former had disappeared for "unknown" reasons, Mitsuzuri had been determined to get him back. It scared him sometimes.
"Sakura-kun, where did Emiya-kun head off to?" Hearing the voice of the archer captain come from behind him, Shirou decided that it was best to hasten his jog into a full out sprint. He came around the other side of the club house and continued his run across the campus grounds until he reached the safety of the front entrance to the school.
"Phew..." He let out a breath, relieved that the biggest obstacle was now behind him, though fate was a curious mistress, indeed. Removing his hands from his knees, Shirou straightened out from his hunched form to spot an unusual individual standing in front of the entrance. It was a young woman with sandy-blonde hair, styled in thick curls with drill ends that fell over her shoulders elegantly. Looking at the outfit she wore, Shirou could immediately tell that she was not from around the area, much less a student of the school. Her clothes were of the western variety; a fancy, blue cardigan with puff shoulders worn unbuttoned over a white dress shirt. Accompanying the cardigan was a matching, pleated skirt that fell above her ankles, just enough to give Shirou the impression that the white boots she was wearing were knee highs. She was of moderate stature, boasting a nice figure and a sizable bust. Personal preferences aside, where the hell did she come from, anyway?
Wait...I've been through this before. Shirou thought, looking away from the young woman so as not to draw her attention to him. Every time I come across a weirdo something bad happens to me, so... He shoved his hands into his pockets with his head bowed low in an attempt to give off a shady impression and strolled forward in the direction of the entrance. ...if I don't appear interested in her, then maybe she won't bother me. And his ploy seemed to get him past her, Scott free, but just as he was about to praise himself for his own ingenuity-
"You there!" A robust voice called out from the girl's direction, stopping the young Emiya in his tracks with the effectiveness of a command spell. Inwardly cursing himself for halting in his own escape, Shirou straightened out his posture and turned at the waist to regard her, albeit, dejectedly. Many people in the world hated the boring normalcy of their lives. Most of them waited their entire lives to get swept up in something extraordinary so that they could find meaning or justification within their own existence, but Shirou Emiya was not one of them...at least, not any more. He loved the idea of being a normal young man, with normal issues and normal friends, but alas, it was an idea and nothing more. What was taking place now was another step in his extraordinary life. Yay...
"Yes?" Shirou responded to her call.
"I like you!" She came right out with it, walking up to him with an inquisitive gaze. "You have the look for what I need in a man." She leaned over to him, inspecting his legs and arms before taking his bicep in one hand and squeezing it. Needless to say, Shirou went stiff without a clue of how to react. "Not excessively muscular, but just right." She plucked at the collar of his uniform and checked for any smudges around the area that surrounded the neck. "You take care in your appearance," She sniffed him, "...and hygiene, too."
"Excuse m-"
"Hold it!" She cried out before he could continue speaking, stopping him dead in his sentence. Shirou blinked a few times as there was nothing, but silence shared between them in the short moment that followed and opened his mouth to speak again, but she cut him off a second time, placing her hands on her hips in a manner that would have been considered an act of seduction in any common man's book, though with this girl it appeared to be nothing more than a casual gesture. "Perfect!" She purred delightedly at the immediateness of his response, "You act on command, too!"
"Back up, would you?" Shirou held out a hand expecting her to step away from him, but she remained right beside him even as his hand came in contact with her chest. "Gah!" Upon feeling the firmness of her left breast cupped in his hand, he flinched it away from her with a furious blush and clutched it with his other hand. "Wh-What's the deal with you?"
"Calm down." The woman crossed her arms, not bothering to address the indecency of his error. "You're behaving like a fool."
Responding to the harshness of her words, he did as she told lowering his hands at his sides. "Well...you're invading my personal space. How do you expect me to react with a stranger like yourself?" His retort got a scoff out of her that seemed to belittle his reason as if there had been no plausible need for his outburst.
"What are you, a child?" She mocked him with a smirk before turning her head to laugh at his 'immaturity'. "I was judging whether you'd actually be fit for the position."
Shirou raised an eyebrow, "Fit for the position?" He echoed her curiously. "What are you talking about? What position?"
"The honorable position of being my butler, of course!" The blonde woman answered royally as if it had been the most obvious thing in the world, and shame on him for not knowing as much. "What did you think I was doing all of this for?"
"...Er..." He stood there silently, unable to think of a response and it cost him dearly.
"Wait..." Her expression became quite amused as she brought a hand to her mouth to stifle another laugh. "Did you..." She took a moment to point at him rudely. "Were you, perhaps, under the impression that I was interested in you?" Her implied accusation caused the hapless young man to burn a shade of crimson.
"N-No!" Shirou cried out in embarrassment, finding his thoughts jumbled by her words so much that the only thing he could think of saying in his defense was another, "N-No!"
"Very well," She laughed, sounding unconvinced by his denial, "If you say so."
"Um, Sempai?" A soft call brought both of their attention to Sakura Matou, who judging by the disturbed look on her lovely face, must have been standing a short distance from them long enough to hear the accusal.
"Sakura-san!" For the first time since she had moved in with him, Shirou was genuinely grateful for her bad timing.
"Why are you still here, sempai? I thought you were hurrying back to meet with onesan." She turned her attention to the woman that had been harassing him. "And who is this?"
"I don't kno-"
"I am, Luviagelita Edelfelt!" The woman spoke over Shirou in a proud voice. "And I was merely offering this boy a position."
Edelfelt? Sakura said the name in her mind, but was unable to make sense of it. One thing was for sure though; it bothered her. "Unfortunately, Sempai might not be able to accept any positions from anybody hiring right now." The junior said with an edge in her voice that she was unable to suppress for reasons only known to herself. "S-So," Her cheeks gradually took a shade of red as her voice got higher with each word, "You'll have to look for someone else to take the position!" She walked over to her sempai and took his arm in one hand to pull him away, "Let's go Shirou-sempai."
"Alright." Shirou gave no protests to her aggression, allowing himself to get pulled away from the strange woman, but before he could get far enough she reached out and clutched him by the other arm, much to his horror.
"Shirou, was it?" Luvia said his name with a grin before offering him a card with her other hand. "My address is on this card, so, "She slipped the card into the breast pocket of his jacket and let go of his arm, "If you ever consider my offer, then come see me!"
"Unlikely!" He cried out as Sakura pulled him away, but even as they went farther down the street, Luvia's confident smirk never fell from her face.
[Later at the Emiya Estate]
"Emiya-kun," Rin pinched the bridge of her nose at the dinner table as she did her best to suppress her righteous anger, "I can't help, but get the feeling that you're not taking this seriously anymore." Her steely glare swiveled over to him, twisting his stomach into knots. "You stood me up yesterday, but I let it slide." She held her hands up, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. "People make mistakes," For some reason her eyes darted to his heart as she went on, "I know I have."
"Um..." Shirou sub-consciously placed his hand on his chest, almost protectively.
"But," She crossed her arms and raised a finger, "I only give the benefit of the doubt once. Now, I'm going to have to come up with some sort of suitable punishment for your disobedience, and since you're not bound to me by any command spells, that means I'll have to get real creative about it."
"I should have never given myself to you." Shirou muttered under his breath.
"I think I heard something."
Shirou shook his head with a smile, "I didn't say anything."
The magus quirked a brow at his response suspiciously, but decided to drop it, looking to the blonde knight that was standing beside her. "So, what do you think Saber? How should we go about Emiya-kun's punishment?" Rin's expression gave Shirou the impression that she was getting some kind of guilty pleasure out of the current situation. Saber, on the other hand, was in her usual mode of seriousness, which was something he was relieved for. If there was anyone who could put an end to whatever twisted scheme the magus had in mind, it was her. Tohsaka just seemed to have a natural weakness for the blonde servant. He figured it was just because of her fascination for Saber as a heroic spirit, but there had been instances in the past that hinted at something slightly more intense, such as the few times he had woken up in the arms of his beloved servant...with Rin Tohsaka somehow sandwiched between them. She never bothered with any attempts at explaining herself, regarding those accounts.
"The natural approach to take in this situation would be to extend the time of your sessions." Saber's judgment was naturally sensible, but the pig-tailed magus didn't seem very satisfied with it.
"That's boring." Rin complained. "Can't you think of anything a little bit creative?"
"Guys..." Saber and Rin both turned their attention to Shirou at the same time when he spoke, making him flinch. Those two were a formidable team, even if they themselves weren't aware of it. "I didn't come late on purpose. I was forcibly held back by someone." He gestured to Sakura as the junior seasoned the soup she was cooking, "You can ask Sakura-san. She was there to pull me away when she got back from archery practice."
"...It's true." Sakura said with a nod, although it was done strangely. It almost felt as though she had something to hide from them, but Rin was far too disappointed to tell. The only thing she was concerned about was the fact that Shirou had managed to slip out of her hands yet again. That Illya decided to make her appearance within the dining room at that very moment made things worse on her. Seriously, that little homunculus was just here to antagonize her, wasn't she?
"You're home, onii-chan!" The snow fairy danced to the sitting young man and draped her arms over his shoulders from behind, resting her chin atop his head. "You wanna come over to my room? You can do your homework there so Tohsaka and Saber won't bother you!"
"Maybe later, Illya." Shirou answered her with a nervous chuckle. Her sisterly affection for him bordered on suffocating sometimes. "I'll think about it after dinner."
"I don't think so!" Rin was quick to intervene, bringing her knuckles down on the table to get Shirou' attention back on her. "You have time to make up for, Emiya-kun. I don't care if you got held back by someone, these lessons are invaluable to a progressing magus like yourself. Besides," A light blush tinged her cheeks as her voice became firmer, "It won't allow my familiar to remain weak."
"I can give you lessons in magic arts if you want, onii-chan." Illya told the young Emiya, nuzzling her nose against his ear for a creepy effect. Shirou had to crush the urge to shake her off of him from the light brush of contact. "I can do a better job than a second rate magus like Tohsaka-san."
"Watch the things you say, little girl." Rin hissed in response to her blunt insult. "There are no giants for you to hide behind anymore."
"That's okay." The snow fairy smiled confidently, "Onii-chan will protect me." The way she clung against him made Rin and Saber's expressions tighten. There were advantages to playing the part of a sweet little sister and they weren't liking how Illya knowingly abused such privileges on a daily basis, especially when they happened to be around to see it. Perhaps if her motives were genuinely well intentioned it would not have been so hard to bear, however, Illya's attempts to claim Shirou as her own in the past were undoubtedly sinister in nature, and the most horrifying part of it all was that she honestly found nothing wrong about her own schemes in the end.
Saber's protective instincts kicked in, "Einsbern, refrain from laying against him. You are bothering him." She made her way around the table and grabbed the pale girl from beneath her shoulders in an effort to pull her away, but she clung tightly, yanking Shirou back by the neck in the process.
"Ungh..." Shirou placed his hands around Illya's to try and loosen her grip to no avail. "...I should have...predicted this..." He swiveled his gaze over to Rin, hoping that she could find it within her heart to assist him before he could die of asphyxiation, but unfortunately she had vanished from her sitting spot in front of him and had gone to attend to other matter like-
"Is the food almost ready, Sakura?" Shirou heard his master's voice ring sweetly from behind him almost as if to spite him.
The junior replied in a soft voice, unfazed by the life and death struggle taking place behind her , "Just a few more minutes, onesan."
...And the world suddenly seemed so cold at that moment...
{FATE---STAY---NIGHT}
"What was it with today?" Shirou muttered as he slid the door of his room open slowly. Dinner was hectic this evening as Illya had a ball provoking Saber and Tohsaka with her words. The verbal sparring between the three gave way to a silent exchange of looks between Shirou and Sakura as they dined on without a word. The plum haired kohai had been behaving oddly ever since they had gotten back from the school and Shirou could not help, but feel as though that young woman that had been harassing him earlier had something to do with it. The look in Sakura's eyes every time he caught her looking at him from across the table was like a sort of silent pleading. He wasn't given the time to investigate the matter since Rin had immediately dragged him away to her room after everyone had finished, though it didn't seem like he would have been able get a word out of the junior about it if he had confronted her. She had been doing all she could to remain inconspicuous.
"It's probably nothing too serious...I hope." He walked in, closing the door behind him and reached under his shirt to peel it off. After folding the second skin, he dropped it to the floor and proceeded over to his futon with a light stretch of his arms before kneeling over it to lay down, but something unusual caught his eye. Particularly the person curled up in the corner of his room, casually reading a book as though it were the most natural place in the world for her to engage in such an activity. Even kneeling there a few feet away, shirtless, she did not appear to be disturbed by his presence in the least. Although, technically, she would have been considered the cause of the disturbance in this situation to begin with.
"Rider?" Shirou cocked his head to the side as he called her name, not conscious of the way his left hand sought out his shirt as he kept his eyes on the plum haired siren.
"Good evening, Emiya." The dark servant greeted him, her eyes remaining on the pages of her book. "It took you a while to return."
"You've been waiting here for me?" Shirou asked timidly, which was natural considering who he was speaking to. Rider did not just lie in wait for people to come to her unless she was plotting something seriously life changing for them; usually of the fatal variety. Not that he expected Rider to just set down her book and come at him with iron nail in hand to end his pitiful life, but he wasn't exactly expecting her to inform him that she had been harboring intense feelings of passionate love for him and was intending to act on them either. Oh, but he did dream.
"Since you arrived, yes." Rider replied, setting her book down on the floor beside her.
"Why didn't you just come out and approach me?"
Rider frowned at his question as though the answer should have been so obvious to him, "Because Sakura-sama does not like it when we meet, and it is likely that she would have been somewhere nearby if I had come to seek you out."
"It isn't like we're always together." A rather amusing reply when one considered that Sakura Matou was so capable of remedying those circumstances. Don't think too hard about that one, by the way. It would just give you nightmares.
"Of course," Rider's lips twitched upward into a subtle smirk, "Which is why I had opted for awaiting your arrival within your bedroom." The way she emphasized her final word made the hair on the back of Shirou's neck tingle for some reason. She had a talent for that. "Here is a domain where we can meet privately without any obstruction."
Shirou had once again become self conscious of the fact that he was kneeling over his futon, half naked. Perhaps it had a lot to do with the fact that Rider's eyes were no longer on her book, but rather on his masculine form. "Erm..." He massaged the back of his neck nervously, his body temperature rising in his gradually increasing state of embarrassment. "...Fine...I guess. So, uh, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"
"You met with an interesting character this afternoon, didn't you?" Her inquiry made the young Emiya's eyes widen slightly in surprise. He had completely put that 'Luvia' girl out of his mind after his long session with Tohsaka, so having her come up in a conversation was in the least of his expectations. Hey, wait a second.
"How did you know about that?"
"I happened to be observing from afar." The dark servant answered. The way she casually went about answering him just gave off the impression that it was nothing more than a mere past time for her to watch him from distant places while he was totally unaware of it, and that sent off all sorts of messages that Shirou was definitely not comfortable with. He thought his issues with privacy could go no further when Saber decided to relieve his shadow of its duties, but that was a story for another day.
"What do you do all day?" He narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously.
"It depends on my mood." Rider dismissed his curiosity quickly before clearing her throat. "Getting back to what is important, why did she approach you?"
Shirou's throat tightened at her question, thinking back on the absurd request that was made to him by the mysterious, blonde woman. He wasn't exactly sure why Rider happened to be so interested in his own private business, it was hard enough to have anything private as it was, but she certainly was not to type to have these sort of meetings on whim so it brought a lingering anxiety in the back of his mind that his peaceful days were nearing to a close. Whatever the reason, he just prayed it wasn't related to anything life threatening. He was presented with enough of those problems simply using the shower.
"It wasn't really anything important. Just a...stupid request." Not willing to release anymore information, Shirou kept his mouth clamped shut as he stared down Rider, awaiting a response from her. It was a tense few seconds being stared back at by those fearsomely, intense orbs. Unaware of Rider's true identity, Shirou had absolutely no idea how incredibly badass he was for even considering such a feat. Luckily for him, Rider decided to break the silence between them before he started to feel faint under her gaze.
"A request?" She mused, stroking her chin inquiringly in a silent request for more information.
"Why do you ask?" Shirou pressed on his own inquiry, beating her to the punch. "Are you keeping something from me?"
"Nothing fatal."
Shirou felt a bead of sweat form at her cryptic reply, "So then, you are keeping something from me. Tell me what's going on."
A smirk crossed Rider's features, much like that of a fisherman feeling a promising tug on their rod. "Allow me personal possession over your sport bike and I'll tell you." At her sudden proposition Shirou's tense expression immediately went blank.
"..."
"..."
"Rider...leave my room." Shirou spoke dully to her behind a steely glare. His response to Rider's offer left her with disappointment as her frown implied. "I should have known that this was another one of your schemes." He laid on his futon and brought the covers over him with a humph, rolling on to his side with his back to her, grumbling, "Get your own bike if you want one so bad."
"But, Emiya, are you not curious?" He became aware of how close she had become as her lips brushed along the tip of his earlobe. Apparently she had gone from sitting in the corner to hovering over him within the short space of time that he had turned his back on her. Taking notice of how her plum haired draped over him like a silk sheet, the young man felt his libido reacting far too naturally for his own liking. Damn his hormones, they were a curse to him and every one of his kind!
"What is there to be curious about?" He inwardly patted himself on the back for keeping control over his voice.
"Why would that girl be so interested in your school? You've never seen her there before, and she stands out far too much for an ordinary individual...doesn't she?"
"How am I supposed to know?" He closed his eyes with a scowl. "It's not like I care. My business with her is over."
"We'll see." The shivers left him when she pulled back from his ear and he heard her steps lead away from him before the door to his room opened, but it did not close. "You in particular should understand that rare meetings are not made possible through chance, but with a scheme at work."
"Are you telling me to be cautious?"
"No." Rider's words carried a smirk. "I'm telling you not to accept things at face value." With that advice imparted on him, she slid the door shut behind her.
The Following Morning
"...In all seriousness..." Shirou's words died in the back of his throat as he came face to face with her at the front gate of the school courtyard. Somehow, he felt that Rider was smiling at him from someplace in the distance and now that he knew that she kept tabs on him during the day he was tempted to turn his head and try to spot her among the background scenery. Paranoia was a wonderful feeling, was it not? Of course, being the stubborn young man that Emiya was, he was not about to let things go as Rider predicted. He would not allow her the satisfaction.
"You," Luvia jabbed an accusing finger at him as she spoke, "didn't show up yesterday!"
"Yeah...so?" Shirou responded dully. Perhaps if he was nonchalant about it she would pass him off as a jerk and stop bothering with him.
"I gave you the address. Why didn't you come to confirm with me?" She narrowed her eye in annoyance as if though she were speaking to a defiant child. Shirou didn't think about it before since their initial meeting was so unexpected, but this girl really reminded him of a certain magus he knew. It was almost as if they had been cut from the same cloth.
"You told me to come if I considered it." He pulled the card she shoved into his pocket the day before and held it out to her to return it. "I didn't bother. If you need a butler, then you'll have to scout someone else for the position. I'm already busy with so many other things." He realized that the card was still in his hand he held it out a little closer so she could take notice, but she openly ignored it, fixing him with a glare of displeasure. It didn't look like she was taking his answer too well, which was understandable. No one liked rejection after all, but why was she so focused on him?
"Um..." He poked her shoulder with the card hoping that would get some sort of reaction out of her.
...No response...
"Anyway, I've got classes to attend so..." He carefully placed the card on her shoulder and walked around her. "Take care." He left her behind and proceeded to enter the courtyard, but before he could set foot on the school grounds he was jerked backwards by a sudden yank from the back of his collar.
"What kind of man are you?" Luvia's voice questioned him from behind. "Where is your chivalry?"
"I think you're getting two different concepts conf—URK!" Shirou had no time to react as he was fluidly pulled into a headlock, courtesy of Luvia's handy work and quite professional at that. He gripped at her arms to pry them off to no avail, finding the back of his head pressed into the cushion of her chest tighter and tighter as the seconds went on.
"Here I am, asking you for your assistance out of the humbleness of my heart," Her voice was surprisingly calm despite the fact that she was handling a squirming young male in her arms, "And all you do is reject me. My impression of you has certainly gone down a notch, Mr. Shirou!"
"Wait!" Shirou choked out. "H-Hold on!"
"Yes?" She purred.
"Tell you what..." The young Emiya looked around for any onlookers before going on, "Tell me why you need me and I'll consider it...okay?" Yes, it was certainly against his best judgment, but the situation wasn't offering him anymore choices. Besides, oxygen was becoming a very precious resource to him at the moment.
"Wonderful!" The moment she accepted his terms he felt himself drop to the concreted sidewalk as she loosened her grip around his neck. The floor was, as always, unforgiving in its harsh ways, but right now he was grateful being anywhere aside from the lethal grip of Luvia's arms. What Shirou didn't expect, however, was Luvia's body dropping on him a moment later. The conclusions his mind drew as to why were not very comforting.
"R-Rider?" He raised his head and looked around to find the sultry servant nowhere to be seen. ...I guess Rider isn't at fault after all. He turned his head to get a look at the unconscious girl's face to find her eyes closed peacefully...and a sliver of drool hanging from her lower lip. "Um...fatigue?"
"..."
"Well, this got weird really fast..."
{FATE---STAY---NIGHT}
Luviagelita Edelfelt brought the bowl to her lips and tilted her head back, gulping down the rest of its contents audibly before letting it clatter on the polished, wooden surface of the circular cafe table. Shirou Emiya stared at her from across the table with a slight frown on his lips as he shifted his weight to the back of his chair, tilting back and forth, with his patience gradually wearing thin. For someone who was just lying on him an hour ago, she was looking particularly healthy. Getting her to the restaurant they were now dining at was no simple feat, mind you. She was unconscious the entire trip so he was forced to carry her on his back the entire way, which was an awkward chore for him since everyone that he happened to pass on the way felt so obliged to openly comment on his situation as though he was deaf to take note of what they were saying about him, and some of those observations were not exactly within the category of 'tasteful'.
"Excuse me." Shirou spoke up, having watched her enjoy herself long enough at the expense of his life. "I don't think I can spare anymore of my time with this, so could you just hurry it up a bit?" I can already see a private lecture with Rin in the near future when she realizes I won't be around to meet her on the roof during lunch recess. For sensible reasons that all could not argue with, an image came to Shirou's mind that involved Rin holding him over the ledge of her favorite skyscraper with a devilish smirk on her face. Words were simply not enough.
Luviagelita swallowed what was left in her mouth and shot him with a cool look. "I'm sure you have a little more respect than that, Shirou. It's only natural that a gentleman waits on the woman." She dabbed her lips with her handkerchief before going on, "Besides, you told me that you would listen to my proposition."
"That was close to an hour ago." Shirou pointed out quickly, feeling the anxiety rise within him as he imagined the mess that awaited him when he returned home. When Rin found out he was missing, then Saber would undoubtedly be informed about it and when that happened... "Late night training at the dojo with an angry Saber..." The young Emiya muttered to himself, his gaze falling to the table.
"Did you just mutter something?" He heard Luvia question him curiously.
Shirou shook his head, "Nothing important."
"If you say so." The sandy blonde allowed his answer to slide by without any further concern, pushing her plate to the side and folding her hands on the table as she slightly leaned forward, "Thank you for the food, Shirou."
"Yeah," He nodded, ignoring the weightless feeling within his pocket, "You're welcome."
"Now that we have that out of the way," Her lips curled into the smug grin that he had come to identify her by, "I have selected you to be my personal butler. Do you accept?"
"..." Shirou blinked.
"What?" Luvia cocked her head to the side, confused by his silence. "Won't you say something? What's the matter with you?"
"Your tone is no different from yesterday!" Shirou cried out in disbelief. "If I knew you were just going to come at me like this again I wouldn't have accepted to this." And I might have saved a bit of money on the side, too.
Letting out a exasperated sigh, Shirou stood up from his seat. Getting back now would make him late, but it was better than being absent for the day and if he was lucky he could just slip in through the window as one of the first floor classes were being dismissed just as he had seen school delinquents do in the past. With that plan in mind he turned to leave, but the firm grip of a slender hand around his arm held him back before he could get far enough from the table.
"Why are you turning your back on me?" The voice that came from behind him did not register with him properly. It did not sound like it had come from the haughty young lady that he had been sitting with a few seconds prior, and yet as he turned around to face the person that was keeping him from departing from the restaurant he found himself faced with Luvia Edelfelt. She looked to him with eyes that accused him of betrayal.
For a moment he felt flustered, "D-Don't look at me that way!" He hissed at her, suddenly becoming aware of the dark looks that were being directed at him from the other customers. It was very likely that they were all getting the wrong impression about his character and Luvia's refusal to unhand him was only tossing more coal into that fire. "S-Stop it. You're causing a scene." He made another attempt to tug his arm away and failed.
"Ignore them." Luvia pulled him toward her. "This matter only concerns you and me and I intend to have it remain that way for as long as I can help it."
"Huh?" Shirou's throat closed up at her words, unsure of what to make of them. "...Why are you so..."
"I did not make this decision on whim, Shirou. There is no one else I would come to for this position, because I trust no one else." Her glare intensified, "I trust you."
"We've only met." He argued in an attempt to discourage her. She was so sincere in the claim that she made and it flattered him, but it also brought him extreme discomfort to know that a woman he had never met before thought so highly of him. "I'm sorry, but...you can't just expect me to accept such a bizarre offer. I mean, there are schools for this sort of thing, responsibilities... and quite frankly I'm not interested in serving someone for the rest of my life."
"Is that all that is holding you back?" Luvia's tone had become much more hopeful at his response, a development that he had not foreseen with the way he practically just turned her down. At this point he was beginning to get the suspicion that the word 'No' was a term that was non-existent within her vocabulary. Was there a reason why his mind kept drawing comparisons between Tohsaka and this Luvia girl? It was beginning to irk him somewhat.
Seeing the confident smirk return to the lovely Edelfelt's face, Shirou felt as though he had been brought into a twisted match of ping pong with the way her emotions kept on bouncing back, "Luvia, somehow I think you're misunderstanding my position-"
"Not at all!" She told him, gripping his hand to bring him closer, "I'm not asking you to make a permanent career out of this. I simply need you to remain by my side until I've finished handling my business here."
"Hmm?" He quirked a brow, "Remain by your side?"
"Not in the literal sense." Luvia told him, rolling her eyes at his misunderstanding. "You see, I came to this country alone. My sisters think that I've decided to spend my vacation at the academy, but I've actually come here to settle a personal score with a long time rival of mine."
Shirou felt himself deflate at her words, "So you basically rushed into this situation without bothering to prepare yourself and you need someone to hold your hand while you go about your business in this foreign country."
A furious blush crept up on Luvia's cheeks at his spot on assumption. This guy was much sharper than she originally believed him to be, "W-Well, putting it extremely; y-yes. That is my situation." She turned up her nose with a humph.
While this was not all too hard to digest, there was something about her explanation that was bothering him. In fact, it had been nagging at him since he picked up the bill for her breakfast. It was not that he was worried about her well being, gods no, but- "Um...so how are you supporting yourself?" His question caused her lips to curl into another confident smirk. He could swear that she had done that enough times to burn the image in his mind without any hope of ever getting it out.
"No need to worry about that, Shirou..." She let go of his hand to cross her arms proudly, once again bringing to his attention just how well endowed she was, "I've purchased myself a home within the area." Her reply got another blink out of him.
"...You did?"
"Of course." She told him as though it were the most obvious course of action to take in her situation. "I need a place to live while I conduct my business, don't I?"
"Why not stay at a hotel then?"
"That would just bring me trouble I don't need."
Shirou felt his left eye twitch at her response, "And buying a house is just so much more convenient, right?"
"You appear to get it, Shirou." Luvia nodded cheerfully.
He threw his arms up, irritated by her attitude. "I was being sarcastic!"
"Huh?" The blonde woman leaned back at his sudden outburst before narrowing her eyes at him angrily, "And what is your issue?"
"How could you possibly waste money like that? How could you be so inconsiderate toward your family's finances?"
"A waste of money you say?" She brought her face right up to his with a scowl, "All of this money has come from my own personal funds, and for you to accuse me of being careless with my money when I am investing it in an important goal is an insult. Besides, such a measly purchase is of no expense to a noble like myself." She drew back to turn her head snobbishly.
"Then what do you need me for?" Shirou asked, feeling a little less significant in the scale of things. "Go hire yourself a professional if you have so much money to blow!"
She snapped her head back to glare at him, "But I want you!"
"I'm not for sale!" He made his turn to leave, but for the second time he felt a hand clutch at his wrist, preventing him from leaving the restaurant. This girl was a fierce one, that much was clear to him. "...If I managed to escape from you now...you would just wait for me in front of my school tomorrow, wouldn't you?"
"You appear to get it, Shirou." Luvia answered him, and to this response Shirou closed his eyes tightly as an inner struggle began. Perhaps it was because he felt a little sorry for her. Despite the fact that he already made his impression of her as an arrogant young woman, fully capable of handling herself, there was something about knowing that she was out here all alone that made him feel uncomfortable. It brought him discomfort, because to abandon her now would mean that he was deliberately turning his back on a person that was practically crying out for help, even if she would probably never admit to as much.
On the other hand, he still wasn't entirely sure what he would be getting himself into if he actually did accept her proposition. Where was the sense in doing a good deed for someone when it meant returning to a home filled with angry females? Actually, scratch that last sentence because it wasn't quite doing him any justice. Where was the sense in doing a good deed for Luviagelita Edelfelt when it possibly meant returning to a home taken over by a mob of angry women who...well...somehow going along with the rest of that sentence feels highly unadvised.
Well, you could not help but admire Shirou Emiya's knack for heroism-or was stupidity the proper word for it?
[Returning to the Emiya Estate later that night...]
Shirou crept in through the front door of the house, peering around the corner of the hall before closing the door behind him as softly as he possibly could without alerting any of the girls of his late arrival. It was just about time for dinner so the girls must have been eating in the dining room. He should have had more than enough time to run over to his room and drop off his uniform without being spotted by the-
"Back already, Shirou?"
"WUH!" Shirou jumped back into the door, dropping the bag in his hand and clutching his pounding heart when Rider decided to materialize beside him without warning. The way her glasses glinted in the light as a smirk came upon her lovely face brought a bit of nausea to the young man. Somehow he was beginning to miss the point in time when the foundation of their relationship was keeping a distance from each other. Where had those wonderful days gone?
"You met with her again." Rider's words came out more as a statement than an inquiry. "And your friendly nature got the best of you."
Shirou frowned at her tone, "You sound as if you knew this would happen."
"I was counting on it." The dark servant replied, playing with a lock from her inhumanely, long mane of lavender hair. "I've developed a strong fondness for that part of you, Emiya, even overlooking the occasional stupidity that comes of it."
"Was that supposed to be a compliment?"
"Whatever you make of it." Rider answered him with another smirk. "I should tell you now; Sakura-sama is making her way down here to investigate why I've left the table. You should make yourself scarce."
"Now you tell me." Shirou narrowed his eyes at her slightly for a moment before taking her advice and vanishing from the scene just as the aforementioned kohai walked in from the hall. Sakura saw her servant standing at the entrance alone and asked, "What seems to be the matter, Rider?"
"I thought I saw a mouse scampering through here." Rider answered her casually. Her excuse got the hairs on the back of Sakura's neck standing up on end.
"A-A mouse?" She brought her hands to her chest, eyes wide in fright. "N-No way!"
A warm smile crossed the dark servant's lips at her master's reaction in a fashion fit for an older sister, "Though it might have just been my imagination now that I think about it."
Sakura relaxed, "I sure hope so." She let out a sigh of relief, plucking at the sides of her skirt nervously. "Actually, for a moment I thought you might have heard sempai come in." Her eyes swiveled to meet those of Rider's subtly, "You wouldn't know where he is, would you, Rider?"
"Emiya?" Rider feigned ignorance, allowing her head to tilt to the side slightly as she stroked her chin. "He's probably out working. I see no other reason why he would be late for dinner." Sakura's expression darkened somewhat at her assumption, though it softened a bit as she nodded with Rider's logic.
"You're right..." Sakura nodded her head again, more to herself than anyone else and her servant caught the odd gesture, "That must be why sempai is late for dinner." She rested her hands on her lap and giggled, "I-I guess there really was no reason for me to worry after all!"
Rider only stared at the young woman and turned her head away with a sigh. Many of the residents of the household did not realize it because the young Matou concealed it so well with her clumsy nature, but there was truly more to Sakura's cleverness than she let up. She was perhaps even a step above Rin in the department of wit and Rider knew it all too well. Perhaps that was why the dark servant felt a chill run up her neck as she and Sakura engaged in a quiet staring match. The general impression that everyone had of her relationship with Shirou was that there was no relationship. Because of this Rider found it easy to meet with the young Emiya whenever she desired, without having to deal with the other women and their open possessiveness for him.
For Sakura to inquire of her about Shirou's whereabouts would mean that the young woman was somehow aware of something existing between them, and considering how jealous she could become when it came to that idiot's affections Rider had the sinking feeling that there might have been trouble awaiting her in the near future.
"Is something the matter, Sakura?" The tall servant asked of her master, resisting the sudden urge to place her hand on the side of her neck. It was a nervous tick that her sisters cursed her with, thanks to the cruel and unusual methods they loved to employ whenever they punished her in the past. There was probably no need to note that this was a story better saved for another time...ahem...
Sakura shook her head innocently, "No. Why do you ask, Rider?"
"Ah..." Rider shook her head quickly, a sweat drop hanging from the side of her head as she replied, "No particular reason." She inwardly prayed that Sakura would have mercy on her and let that unguarded moment slide, but those prayers were unanswered as her master stepped up to her and opened her mouth to spea-
"Looks like I was a little later coming back than I thought I'd be!" Rider let out a sigh of relief once Sakura's attention was drawn to the direction of the dining room by the sound of Shirou Emiya's care free announcement. Resembling a child having lost interest in an old toy, she completely forgot about what she was going to say to Rider and simply walked away to go greet her sempai. The way she was so easily drawn off by the thought of him being near was slightly disturbing as it was charming in its own twisted way.
"A hero to the end, eh?" The dark servant crossed her arms and contemplated whether to follow after her master. It might draw suspicion if I back out now...
Meanwhile, as Rider concerned herself with her next move in the hall a heavy air settled within the dining quarters as Shirou took his seat at the table with his dysfunctional family. Saber was seated at his right, looking to him rather intently with Tohsaka at his left, popping rice into her mouth with her chopsticks as she fixed him with a look of suspicious interest. Illya smiled at him from across the table, in all likelihood thinking of ways to take advantage of the situation after Saber and Rin were done with their interrogation of him, and the Taiga was nowhere to be seen.
"Nice of you to finally join us, Emiya-kun." Rin commented casually, her eyes crinkling in cheer, though the nature of that cheerfulness felt somewhat artificial. Not that he was going to comment on it. The waters felt lukewarm right now, but there was no telling what sort of reaction he would get if he picked away at the illusion. His main focus now was to try and keep his eyes from meeting with Saber's for the remainder of their dinner, which was already proving to be difficult with the unease she was giving him. The lovely knight was clearly attempting to draw his attention to her so she could read through his facade and get the facts for his sudden change in routine. Rin was trying to lull him into a false sense of security so that he would let his guard down and allow himself to be open for whatever sort of interrogation she had in mind.
The last person I need now is- "S-Sakura!" Shirou tried not to sound intimidated by the presence of his kohai as she made her entrance in the tense scene. If there was anyone who could jeopardize his safety right now, it was her. She was with him when he was approached by Luviagelita the day before and if she happened to bring up that particular instance out of suspicion there was no telling what conclusions Saber and Rin might jump to in order to muscle him around.
"You finally made it back, sempai." The plum haired kohai greeted him with a sweet smile that calmed him of his fears, "It's a good thing that Fuji-sensei decided not to show up for dinner, or your share of the food might have already been gone."
Glad to have an unknowing ally on his side, Shirou scratched the back of his head with a relieved grin, "I suppose luck is on my side today. Heh, heh." The irony of his own words stung so much that he felt his stomach clench up like a tight fist. "Well then, thank you for the foo-"
"Shirou." Saber spoke up before he could commence eating, "Neko-san must be working you harder now for you to come two hours later than usual."
"Um..." Shirou stiffened, resisting the urge to flinch as he kept his head from turning to regard this servant, "Actually that wasn't the case." He told her truthfully, reaching down to pick up his chopsticks from the table with a surprisingly steady hand. "Mitsuzuri called me sometime during work to ask me if I could help her with something, so I went out to meet her after I was done."
"Hm, Ayako?" Rin perked up with new found interest at the mention of her rival/ friend. "What did she need from you?"
Looks like she took the bait... The young Emiya inwardly smirked at his own genius. Drawing the magus's attention to the archery captain would naturally dissolve their suspicion of him and spark interest in Mitsuzuri's motives instead. He may have been dense, but he knew how to cover his ass when his life depended on it, "She was feeling a little under the weather so she needed some help carrying groceries back to her house."
"And why couldn't her brother do it for her?" Rin cracked like a whip, leaning over to him with one eyebrow raised in suspicion.
How am I going to- "He went out with someone!" Shirou blurted out whatever came to mind.
Bum-Bum-Bummm...
Rin and Sakura exchanged a long look of disbelief.
{FATE---STAY---NIGHT}
"Shirou-kun?" Mitsuzuri's voice came from the other side of the line hinting at a mixture of surprise and pleasure to know that he had finally found a reason to make use of her cell number, "Well, ain't this something? I never would have guessed that it was you calling me." A bit of resentment crept into her voice in those last words and it was not lost on Shirou Emiya.
"I'm sorry about that..." Shirou said sheepishly, unable to hide his embarrassment. "How are you?"
"I'm fine. You just caught me as I got out from the shower."
"Oh...great." He paused, shoving the enticing image that took form to the back of his mind before it could distract him from the dire matter at hand, "Um, I'm sorry to put you on the spot like this, but would you mind doing me an important favor?"
"A favor?" The archery captain echoed him with mild fascination, "What kind of favor?"
"Well..." The young man took a moment to massage the back of his neck, "Chances are you might be receiving a call from Rin or Sakura sometime tonight."
"A call? What for?"
"They're going to ask if I met with you in the afternoon."
"But why would they ask me something like that?"
"Because I told them that I went with you to the store today after I finished work and I really need you to cover for me and tell that it's true."
"Hmm...sounds a bit shady, Shirou." Ayako purred mischievously.
"It's complicated..." Shirou sighed, inwardly praying that she would go along with the farce.
"...Mmmyeah, I wouldn't mind helping you out." She responded to his plea after thinking it over. "But you're gonna make this up to me later."
"Oh, of course." Shirou replied before hearing something come from the other side of the line that sounded like an evil feline meowing in victory. It startled him, really.
"Myahaha! Look forward to it, Emiya!"-Click...
Shirou held the phone away and looked at it after getting back that cryptic message...
…...
…...
…...
"Digging yourself a hole, Shirou?"
Dropping the phone to the floor, Shirou twisted around at the waist in fright, "WHA!" He saw Rider sitting in the corner of his room with a book in her hand and deflated like an unsealed air balloon. "R-Rider? You need to stop sneaking into my room like this!"
"Quiet. You'll attract unwanted attention." The dark servant told him with a finger against her lip, "So that was the archery captain, eh?" Rider licked her lips once she spoke of Mitsuzuri, bringing up unfortunate implications within Shirou's mind, "How was she?"
"Fine...she was alright..." Shirou answered her, albeit, reluctantly. " Er, why?"
"I might pay her a visit tonight." Rider answered him without restraint, "I'm feeling particularly thirsty and I think she'd satisfy me just well."
Shirou stood up and approached Rider's corner after hearing her reply, kneeling in front of her with a menacing, "Don't think of hurting her..."
A subtle smirk came across the dark servant's lips as she looked up at Shirou's threatening expression. If he lowered himself any further it would have almost seemed as though he was pinning her against the wall from the view point of anyone who happened to enter the room at that very moment. It amused her to think as much. "Even if I did plan to harm her, you wouldn't be able to stop me." Her words were cold yet hinting at playfulness. The only other person that could accomplish that was Kotomine, rest his soul.
"I've come a long way since we last fought, Rider." Shirou leaned over her with a scowl, "I don't need Saber's power to handle you anymore."
"I'm tempted to test that theory," Rider pushed her palms against the floorboards and rose up, forcing Shirou to back off and rise up with her. His muscles tightened as they engaged in a stare down, but after what seemed like a lifetime, Rider chuckled and closed her book. "Unfortunately I must put temptation aside if I want Sakura-sama to remain happy, although..." The lascivious shift in her expression made the young Emiya question just what she meant by testing his theory, "...it probably would make it easier for me to claim your bike if I did."
"Y-Yeah?" Shirou stammered, his cheeks tingling with heat for reasons he could not explain, "Well its not happening. If you want a bike so bad use the shopping bike with the basket, but my sports bike is off limits!" Especially to you...speed maniac.
"You say that now, Shirou, but you'll find yourself changing your tone soon."
"Um-" Shirou raised a finger in confusion, but the servant to her leave of him, walking straight into the door of his room and passing through it like a ghost. "...Why does she keep on doing that to me?"
Contrary to what many believed, Rin Tohsaka did have someone that she held deep admiration for despite the smug front that she maintained for the sake of her 'Honor Student' image on a daily basis, and it might have been somewhat startling information to discover that it was none other than the very individual that she relentlessly teased every instance that the moment demanded that it be done. Yes, Shirou Emiya was an unlikely prominent figure in the lovely magus's life embodying qualities in his character that she secretly desired for herself. He was reckless and impulsive, characteristics that he could only look good with. Anybody else would be called a suicidal fool attempting to achieve the feats that he lived to walk away from, but he simply made it heroic. He made the impossible only appear to be difficult whenever he was present...but he was far from perfect, and she certainly made that clear to him whenever she felt it was truly necessary.
Coincidentally, checking her wrist watch on the roof of the high school, Rin felt that particular time coming up. It had already been six minutes and counting that she had been kept waiting for that dumb-
"Aha!" Rin exclaimed when the door to the stairwell finally swung open to reveal her tardy lunch partner, "Emiya-kun, you unscrupulous jer-" She felt the wit that she was normally blessed with abandon her when she found an unexpected addition holding hands with the red-haired student, one that she was all too familiar with and the sight of her did not sit well in her stomach.
"What...what a surprise!" An expression of unconcealed bewilderment betrayed her inner feelings and the other young woman smiled because of it, "Ayako." She nearly hissed the name of her self proclaimed rival, "What..." Rin changed her expression into a convincing grin as she held up her hands questioningly in an attempt to stall while her mind devised he proper way to go about the situation, "What are you doing up here?"
The magus's eyes swiveled discreetly to zero in on the unwelcoming sight of Mitsuzuri's hand gripping one of Shirou's a little too casually. The fact that the young man was allowing it in front of her of all people only made the sour feeling in Rin's stomach a little more irritating. ...Up here with Shirou...holding hands with him...
Shirou massaged the back of his neck nervously with his free hand-his other still held in the archery captain's firm grip-and went on to explain, "I ran into her as I was getting out..." Tohsaka blinked when the young Emiya suddenly flinched, correcting himself, "I-I asked her to accompany us for lunch."
Mitsuzuri nodded her head with the usual smirk that she was known by, "Yeah. Emiya is so generous! I was going to skip since I had nothing to eat, but he offered to share his bento with me so I couldn't turn him down."
Rin nodded her head, feigning understanding, "Oh, did he?" A chill passed through Shirou when his master swiveled her eyes to him sharply. He had gotten that look from her before, usually when she did not take well to a particular development. Luckily for him the archery captain decided to take the heat off of him by drawing the attention of the pigtailed magus back to her.
"So this is where you've been hiding, huh?" Mitsuzuri finally loosened her grip on Shirou's hand to come between him and Rin's glaring. She placed her hands on her hips as a breeze blew through them and did a quick cursory of the area as though the roof was all new to her. "Hm. Gotta say that I never saw this coming."
"What?" Both Rin and Shirou inquired at the same time before glancing at each other.
"You and Emiya." The archery captain responded to Rin, tossing her chin over in the young man's direction when she did. Her choice of words naturally gave the two the wrong impression about where she was going with this. With the exception of Fujimaru and Issei, no one was aware of the lovely magus's living arrangements with Shirou, which could only mean that she was implying something inconvenient for their school images like a relationship.
Rin was quick to suspect as much, "Me and Emiya-kun?" She echoed the smirking Mitsuzuri, stepping closer to her with a barely noticeable tint of pink coloring her cheeks. Not that she was particularly against the idea of the two of them being an item, but she would be the last to admit to such feelings in front of another person and someone spreading rumors about the two of them being lovey-dovey would ruin her reputation of being the untouchable idol of the school, which she secretly took pride in. "What is that supposed to mean, Ayako?" Damn...does it seem that obvious?
Mitsuzuri blinked before jabbing her thumb at Shirou, replying, "Aren't you two friends?" Her innocent response caused the two to deflate. "Emiya usually kept Issei company in the student council office, back before you two started coming in contact."
"What's this about?" Rin crossed her arms, one eyebrow raised in mild suspicion. She was not liking how Mitsuzuri was digging around. The archery captain was patiently poking holes in an attempt to provide herself with some sort of opening. Whatever it was she was pursuing, Rin got the feeling that she did not want her to reach it. "Ryudo's been complaining to you about losing his lunch buddy?" The magus humored her with a jab at the shrine heir.
Mitsuzuri shook her head, "Nah." She answered Rin with a dismissive wave of her hand, "It's got nothing to do with him."
Shirou, sensing that an opportunity to escape had presented itself, took a step toward the stairway door behind him. This was a carefully devised infiltration attempt and he was well aware of it. Tohsaka seemed to figure as much and was trying her best to repel Mitsuzuri's advances, unaware that he was a trump card in the plan. If he could just slip away somehow-
"Now that you mention it," Shirou took another step to the door, one that hadn't gone unnoticed by the magus, "I haven't seen Issei in a whi-"
"You!" Rin pointed at him, stopping him on the spot with the effectiveness of a-wait, why did this feel a lot like deja vu? "Where do you think you're going?"
"It slipped my mind." He lied, returning to his original spot. This definitely won't end well...
The archery captain saw her chance. "I've decided it then," Mitsuzuri suddenly announced out of the blue, drawing Rin's attention back to her with a quizzical expression, "I'm going to spend my lunch periods up here with you guys from now on."
The magus blinked... "Th...This is a bit sudden, don't you think?"
"How so?" The other girl asked, intrigued by the question.
"What about Kaede and Yukika?" Rin asked, sure that she had somehow missed someone's name. "Don't you usually spend lunch with them? How are they going to feel if you just suddenly ditch them without telling them?"
Mitsuzuri flashed a smile, "Change is good, yeah?" She placed her hands on her hips and leaned over toward Rin slightly, "What's the matter? Are you against having an extra person keeping you two company?" The question was so loaded that even Shirou was able to pick up the implications without an instruction manual in hand.
Rin hesitated, feeling a bit put on the spot by her question. "Well...er..." She bought her left hand to one of her pigtails, fiddling with it as she thought quickly of a way to get herself out of the hot spot. Her eyes eventually darted toward Shirou, "What do you think, Emiya-kun?" She knew she could depend on him to diffuse the situation.
Ayako Mitsuzuri inwardly cackled at her triumph as she whipped around to smirk at her accomplice, "Alright then! Whaddya say, Emiya? Any objections to the movement?"
Shirou tensed up, having all eyes directed at him expectantly, and swallowed hard before opening his mouth to possibly doom his relationship with Rin Tohsaka forever...not that Mitsuzuri had much of a problem with that.
It was a quiet walk back home in the rain between Rin and Shirou, under the umbrella that they were sharing as it was arguably the only reason why they were even brushing shoulder. Under different circumstances Rin might have surely went ahead of him to cool off and he would not have blamed her. What happened up on the roof at lunch time could have been considered treason on his part, but a deal was a deal and he had to keep his end of it if Mitsuzuri was going to keep her mouth shut about their conversation the night before.
"I'm sorry..." He apologized to her, getting her to at least spare him a glance She was probably focusing most of her willpower on crushing her anger before it got the best of her and caused her to do something she might feel sour about later.
"Shirou," She addressed him by his first name, setting the tone of their conversation from the get go, "What is going on between you and Ayako?" Cold fury was a frightening sight in a woman and the magus employed it with a masterful elegance.
"N-Nothing. Why?" Shirou asked, feeling a cold pit build within his stomach that made him nauseous.
Rin clutched his arm between her elbow to bring him closer, "You two are getting awfully close." She looked into his eyes with a stony frown, "First the groceries and now you're letting her crush our private lunch periods. It's pissing me off."
"She's a friend, Rin." He shot back at her before adding, "Yours, too, last time I checked."
"You're missing the entire point, idiot." She stopped him in his tracks and whipped around, pressing his back against the gated fence they were walking beside. She leaned in close, making sure that the umbrella was still positioned over their head, "I know all of that, but I don't necessarily want that to change."
"...Erm..."
Rin narrowed her eyes imperceptibly, "Do you?"
"No...definitely not." Shirou answered her.
"Then stop allowing her to take advantage of you." Rin told him before finally backing off from him. They resumed their walk back home, her feeling satisfied that things were settling back into their normal perspective and Shirou gradually coming to the realization that Rider's words were beginning to haunt him every time his situation got worse. The dark servant was likely keeping score from a distance as things progressed.
Where are you? The young Emiya thought, squinting out into the scenery. She did a damn good job of hiding herself, that was for sure. She could have just been lying to make me uneasy. She'd like that...
Rin caught him squinting out into the distance and attempted to follow his line of sight to whatever he was looking at. When that failed she shrugged her shoulders and decided it best not to bother asking. There were some things that only idio- ahem - Shirou could see, and she did not want to start becoming a part of that club.
Shirou's thoughts on the matter? Geez, where the hell is that woman?
{FATE---STAY---NIGHT}
[ To The Answer of that Question ]
Shirou entered his room with a sigh, relieved to have gotten through another day of classes with his life intact, somewhat. He just wanted to drop his bag on the floor, slip off his jacket and take a moment to lie in bed and mentally prepare himself for his first day of service to Luviagelita Edelfelt. He lulled his head to the right to stare at the package containing his butler tuxedo, courtesy of the generous young woman, and felt a tinge of excitement stir within him. True, at first he wasn't very excited about the whole thing when she first presented him with the proposition. Having another so called mistress to answer to aside from Tohsaka was about as much of an improvement to his current lifestyle as Saber discovering how the benefits of male enhancement drugs might trigger a substantial increase in their mana replenishing sessions, but it would be for a good cause...sort of, and the uniform was admittedly a nice touch.
"As long as I can keep this from Rin and the others, it shouldn't be too difficult to pull off." He mumbled looking to the ceiling, "Still...Rider is plotting something."
"What?"
"That's what I'm trying to figure out."
"Clever girl."
"She's a real fox."
"Likable though."
"Guess you could say that." Shirou scratched off an itch on the tip of his nose. "I'm not really sure how I...feel...abou..." And it suddenly dawned on him that he was having a conversation with someone. He glanced at his left-
-Rider stared back at him-
He was having a conversation with Rider...traumatizing would have been a severe understatement right now. The proper word for what Shirou felt, coming to the realization that, Rider, his former nemesis, had been laying beside him on his futon without his knowledge long enough to have heard him mumbling to himself and discuss his feelings with him-it could not be pronounced with the human tongue. So he fainted, almost. Rider pinched his cheek before he could completely slip away into the safety net of unconsciousness.
"G-God..." Shirou mumbled in a faint voice, sure to have lost a few years of his life. "You were right next to me. H-How long?"
"Since you laid down." Rider answered in her usual unaffected tone. "I just made myself visible a moment ago."
"Oh. That makes sense." The pale young man chuckled uneasily. "You were invisible. Are you...usually?"
"Yes." Rider nodded, crossing one of her long legs over the other. "I expend less mana that way, and it makes it easier on Sakura-sama." At the mention of his kohai, Shirou perked up and propped himself on his elbows as he looked to the dark servant. Other men would have fought over the chance to have her beside them, but right now Shirou just wanted Rider out of his room before one of the other girls walked in uninvited, Saber being at the top of the watch list.
"So is there a reason why you're becoming a common sight in my room?"
"Is there something wrong with me being here?" She asked with a slight frown, her voice going cold. The young man took that as a warning to switch gears before he earned himself a bit of misery in his future. Much like Saber, Rider had subtle ways of showing her anger and if there was one thing Shirou had noticed about the lavender haired servant, it was that she had issues with rejection...particularly when he had a hand in the rejecting.
"Well, sort of..." He swallowed when Rider's frown became slightly more noticeable, "If Sakura or Saber suddenly walked in I'm sure there would be a problem."
The frown vanished, "That is reasonable." However she made no attempt to leave.
"...So could you leave?"
"Shirou," Rider suddenly spoke in a grim tone, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to shoot up, "Contrary to popular belief, a woman is far from gentle when she comes to love something...or someone. Even the object of her affections has much to fear."
Shirou blinked, sensing another brick wall heading his way. "What do you mean?" He hate asking that question, but hopefully-
Rider smirked, "Just a parting thought." And she vanished, fading away like the ever elusive Cheshire cat, but for some reason Shirou Emiya felt none the wiser than he did a moment ago.
"I wonder if Archer ever had this much trouble with women..." Of course, there was no answer coming his way concerning that matter, though given the nature of such a thought it was hard not to give it some consideration. The young man shook away the idea and sat up.
"No use in wasting my time making sense of it. I'd better head out before Rin tries to pin me down with lessons again."
...
...
The door opened to reveal Luviagelita Edelfelt in all of her haughty glory, "Punctual as well!" She exclaimed to the sharply dressed Shirou Emiya as though his appearance somehow coincided with a list she had been making prior to his arrival. "I certainly do know how to pick them." Her declaration was followed by a conceited laugh that got the young man staring at her, convinced that this woman was toeing the line of being off-center. He just wasn't sure what to make of her.
"So this is where you live, huh?" Shirou mused as he looked left and right at the neighboring houses on the hill. The lovely young woman's property was situated in the much ritzier area of the neighborhood and it certainly reflected well. "Somehow I expected this." He sighed to himself, perking the young woman's ears.
"That sounded unpleasant, Emiya." Luvia said with a slight frown, leaning against the frame of the doorway. "Is there something about my living arrangements that don't agree with you. I may not be able to do much at this point, but minor suggestions are fine." The hint in her voice was hard to place. The young man could not be too sure whether that was sarcasm or if she really intended to hear him out. He opted for the safest route at this stage in the game.
Shirou held both hands out, shaking his head, "No, it's nothing like that. It's just..." He trailed off, setting his gaze toward a familiar mansion higher up the hill. Not that she ever really came through the area anymore since she took it upon herself to take up permanent residence in his home, but knowing Tohsaka's mansion was just a short walk away gave him such an ominous feeling. Thinking back to Luvia he just could not help but inquire, "Any particular reason why this place caught your eye?"
"It just happens to be a convenient location to settle in." She answered him, crossing her arms beneath her generous bust with a somewhat flirtatious smirk. It seemed that this particular quirk in her charm came with her personality so naturally that she thought nothing of the effects it had on those around her. Shirou tried not to make the shift in his attention obvious when she went on, "The person that I'm searching for lives somewhere nearby from what my sources tell me. Oddly she hasn't appeared anywhere yet so I'm a little concerned about how reliable that intel might be."
"Have you been on the lookout all day?"
"Why, yes." She blinked, the smirk never leaving her lips, though for some reason it felt as though it was hanging on her face by a mere thread. "How did you figure?" Her question was asked with a measure of reluctance as though a part of her personally did not want to know the answer.
"Well...your body language for one." He answered her, a gesture to her posture. "You're slightly hunched over even though you probably don't realize it and you've been blinking a little more than normal..." Shirou narrowed his eyes in suspicion as if he recalled something that disturbed him with a frown forming on his lips. "...Kind of like yesterday."
"...Ah..." The young woman caught on to what he was getting at, averting her eyes for a brief moment from embarrassment. "You see..." She searched for an explanation to placate his suspicions, but-
"Luvia...when was the last time you ate?" With the way she simply stared at him with her lips unmoving, Shirou got the impression that he was interrogating a little girl as opposed to the grown woman standing before him. He still had to admit that this childish response was cuter than her usual haughty attitude. "...Luvia?"
Her face lit up with acknowledgment as if she had just realized that he was speaking with her. "Yes, Emiya?" Her voice was melodic.
"Do you mind if I come in?"
"No, of course not." She responded, stepping aside for him with an exalted wave of her hand for him to step in. She closed the door when he passed her and took a moment to admire the tuxedo that hung from his surprisingly lean frame. She did not take account of it before since the last time she had seen him he was dressed in the issued school uniform, which did little to make him stand out as was its purpose. "Is there something the matter?" She asked when he halted in his inspection of the entry hall to face her with a rather serious expression.
"Could you lead me to your kitchen, please?" Shirou requested, receiving his answer in the form of a nod before she beckoned him with a hand to follow her. She lead him through a large living room with polished, cherry wood floor boards that appeared to let off a soft red glow in the orange rays of the setting sun that penetrated through the windows in the west wall. Upon entering he saw a large painting hanging on the opposing wall, looming over a cream colored leather couch that depicted three elegantly dressed, young women standing side by side in front of a lake with decidedly mischievous smirks gracing their lips. The girl standing in the middle, the youngest of the three judging by appearance, struck an uncanny resemblance to Luviagelita. In the left corner of the room sat a grand piano with a cushioned stool sitting in front of it. Unless the noblewoman forgot to mention that she had been living with someone, Shirou assumed that she had a measure of skill with the instrument for her to keep such a space consuming monstrosity within the room. It must have been hell for the moving men to get it through the front door.
Leaving the living room through the other entryway, they entered the dining quarters of the house. A long table made of reflecting glass was situated at the center of the sensibly sized room with a vase set on top holding an arrangement of white flowers that blessed the room with a subtle perfume. A black chine deck was set against the wall opposite of the entryway from the living room with plates, tea sets and wine glasses neatly arranged in an elegant display that captured the eyes, and a medium sized chandelier hung from the ceiling above the table like an illuminated white jewel. Luvia lead Shirou through the other entryway to the left side of the room to finally reach the kitchen.
Shirou's excitement faltered at what he was met with. "I guess I was expecting too much." The young man mumbled dully upon entering the plain looking kitchen. Yes, it was technically larger than the one back at home with more modern appliances, but when compared to the other rooms he had just walked through it just seemed to lack the acceptable amount of elegance that he envisioned for it.
Luvia crossed her arms, catching his response and asked, "Are you disappointed with my choice of decor?" Her voice was calm if not a hint playful.
"Disa-n-no way!" He assured her with a forced grin, waving his hands back and forth. "I just expected it to be a little more-well...er..."
She furrowed her brows, teasing him, "A little more what?"
"It's just that the living room and the dining room were so nice so-"
"You expected it to reflect in their lavishness?"
"...I guess."
"Tell me, Shirou, you cook, don't you?" She smiled to him as if she had come across a wonderful discovery and it made Shirou feel a little uneasy being around her. Her reaction just didn't seem very noble for some reason.
"How did you figure that?"
"Oh, I don't know..." She sang playfully. "...It could have been that child-like look of excitement that you barely kept hidden as we got closer to the kitchen. Besides, a young man normally wants to be lead to a kitchen for two things: food or cooking. From your reaction to the appearance of my kitchen I'd have to assume that your reasons for wanting to be led here pertain to the latter"
Shirou grinned sheepishly at her logic. "I suppose you're right about that. I do cook. I guess you could even say that its a hobby of mine." He response must have pleased her immensely. She smiled at him as if he had become a valued friend, however, it faltered a bit as a seemingly negative thought ruined her initial expectancy of his abilities.
"I see..." She spoke, but for a moment she almost appeared reluctant to continue with her thoughts. "...But do you cook well?" Shirou's reaction to her uneasy inquiry was near instant, recoiling as if her doubt in his culinary skills had dealt him a critical blow to his spirit. For reasons only he understood an image of Rin in chef attire materialized in his head, laughing down on his pathetic, cowering form as she crossed her arms haughtily in victory.
He perked up immediately after fighting off the vision, "O-Of course, I cook well!" A raging flame ignited in his eyes as he strode over to the refrigerator, declaring, "I'll show you just how legendary my culinary skills are!" He grabbed a hold of one of the handles in preparation to wrench it open and Luvia panicked, her eyes widening in genuine horror.
"W-Wait-er-Emiya!" She reached out a hand to stop him before he could go through with it, but to no avail, she was a moment too late. Shirou opened the refrigerator door and stared blankly for a good while before closing it with a trembling hand and snatching at the handle for the freezer, which offered a similar, startling view upon opening it.
"Luvia..." Shirou regarded her, looking over his shoulder chillingly. "...This refrigerator is empty. Have you noticed that?"
"Yes." She nodded in acknowledgment to his astute observation, a hint of pink coloring her cheeks from the mortification of his discovery. "I'm well aware of that, Emiya."
"Did you eat anything last night?" He voice bordered on menacing. "I'm just curious."
"No. The food you treated me to yesterday morning was the last of what I consumed."
Shirou whipped around and stared at her incredulously. He simply could not believe what he was hearing. For a young woman that seemed to boast such an air superiority she sure was irresponsible. Was she attempting to starve herself until she collapsed, helpless and alone? "You mean to tell me that you didn't have breakfast or lunch yet?" His exclamation made her lean back grimacing.
"Naturally." She attempted to answer in her usual, smooth manner, but her new butler did not appear to be having it.
"Are you experiencing financial difficulties or something?" He really didn't want to risk it since he was already tip toeing on thin ice with most of them, but if that was the case he could convince the girls back at home to accept Luviagelita into the house until she was finished with her personal objective. The estate had so many extra rooms to spare that he often found himself wondering how Kiritsugi lived in such a large place all alone before he had come to adopt him. Then again the man hardly spent time in one place so it was probably all for looks.
Luviagelita blushed furiously at his implication, glaring at him agitatedly. "O-Of course not! Have you already forgotten who I am?"
"Even more of a reason for me to be angry at you!" He snapped back at her, forcing her to back off a bit. "What have you been doing all this time? It's really no wonder that you collapsed on me before, you've got no nutrients running through your body and all you've been doing is searching the town."
"I am too preoccupied hunting for my rival to worry about such trivial things as hunger." She turned up her nose stubbornly.
"Trivial?" Shirou scoffed, crossing his arms, "I'd really like to give you a lecture right now, but I'm more worried about how you're holding up at the moment and believe me, you're doing a bad job with that high and mighty act to hide the fact that you're human. We're going to the market to fill this refrigerator."
"E-Excuse me?" She blinked, unfamiliar to being spoken to in such a manner. "I already told you that I am not concerned with-"
"But I am, so lets get going." He cut her off, not willing to take another refusal from her and leaving the kitchen so that she had no other choice but to follow him if she intended to continue scolding him for his disobedience. "You're so irresponsible."
"Fine then." Luvia submitted with a humph, following him out of the house. "If it's that important to you!" She yelled after him childishly, and yet for some unexplainable reason she could not help but give into to the grin that kept tugging at the sides of her scowl. There was something about arguing with this young man that invigorated her.
Luvia's head turned left and right as she walked the streets of the central shopping center with her butler. Unlike the other areas of the rural town this place was much livelier, aloud with the voices of gossiping housewives and the laughter of mischievous children skipping about. Highschool students whizzed past them with groceries filling their shopping baskets and couples walked shoulder to shoulder with plastic bags gripped carefully in their intertwined hands.
"This is my first time coming through here." The young woman informed Shirou with a bit of fascination, taking in the unfamiliar sights like an untouched treasure trove. "The way people gather here...I should have come across this place much sooner. My search will go much smoother now that I know where to find it."
"Yeah, but right now we're here to shop so don't get any weird ideas." The young Emiya went ahead of her before she could suggest that they do anything else. I shouldn't run into Sakura here unless she came to visit Rider at her part-time job in the antique shop.
"Don't forget your place in this relationship, Shirou. You should be assisting me in reaching my goals, not the other way around."
"I am assisting." He countered, "You're just being stubborn."
Luvia grinned to his response. "I think I have misjudged your character. You certainly aren't the passive individual I initially took you for."
"Does that put a dent in your plans?"
"Oh my, no." She purred. "A little conflict every now and then is good amusement for the mind, and it certainly makes for a productive relationship."
"Meaning?" Shirou asked, holding the door for Luvia to enter the store.
"I'm simply adoring you a little more every time you voice your personal feelings. You may actually make my days here entertaining after all."
Shirou blinked as she walked past him, entering the store and knit his brow. This girl...why does she remind me so much of her? He smiled to himself, "Nah. There's only room for one Tohsaka on this planet."
"Huh?" Shirou turned his head to regard Luvia when she made a noise. She stared at him with her eyebrows raised as if something he said alerted her. "What was that?" She leaned towards him curiously.
"Nothing really." He told her casually. "Just a private though. Anyway, is there anything in particular that you want for dinner?" It is your money we're spending, after all...
Apparently she was more cooperative regarding the idea than she initially let on because her answer came quicker than he expected, "A soup would be nice." She stepped closer to him, taking his arm to prompt him further into the store with her. The name that perked her ears a moment ago seemed to have slipped from her mind as she went on, "Are you familiar with any western soups by any chance?"
Western dishes? Shirou furrowed his brows as he thought back on the dishes he was familiar with. Of the few dishes that Rin bothered teaching him to cook (so that he would eventually start cooking foods that she favored) soup had never been included. "No, not exactly to be honest with you." He answered her, expecting to be met with disappointment, but her reaction was far from it.
"That doesn't matter." She said, sounding somewhat pleased with herself, though Shirou wasn't exactly sure why that would have been the case. "Dinner won't be boring this way so I'm looking forward to what you'll cook." The gleam in her eyes as she said it made the young Emiya chuckle to himself, piquing her curiosity again.
She smiled, "Did something I say amuse you?" Her inquiry got an apologetic grin out of Shirou.
"I didn't mean to be rude." He assured her. "You just reminded me of someone I know. She treats dinner like an adventure to the senses, always looking forward to every evening meal that I cook." Following his reply it had become Luvia's turn to laugh.
"Um, what?" He asked, curious to the cause of her laughter.
She pressed a hand to her mouth to stifle her giggles before she answered him with a simple, "You." Though with the way she said it, it meant volumes to the young man that she was referring to. There was something affectionate about her tone, a complete change from her attitude from before.
Shirou raised his eyebrow, intrigued. "What do you mean?"
"You're interesting, Shirou. I can now understand why I was instantly drawn to you." She smiled to him kindly, interrupting the flow of his thoughts with a cork in a manner of speaking. "You're more than I expected. By any chance might you have siblings?"
"Why do you ask?"
"There are many aspects about your personality that point to it, I suppose. Your immediate confidence around me was one point that brought up that suspicion. Most boys are intimidated by my womanly presence and yet you aren't hesitant in the slightest to drag me around as though you've known me longer than three days. I was under the impression that you had one or two sisters, or in the most extreme case, a girlfriend."
Girlfriend, huh? Rin came to mind, but Shirou knew that she would never consider labeling the two of them together as a couple. What they shared together was too complex to label as something so simplistic despite the outward appearances of their relationship. That, and the magus had come to see him more as her personal heroic spirit than a fellow high school student these days. I blame you Archer. It still chills me to know that one day we'll be the same person...sort of.
"Shirou?" Luvia's voice pulled him away from his thoughts. "Is something the matter?"
He flinched, "Oh, um, girlfriend?" His mind seemed to be stuck on that subject for some reason. "I don't have...er, I suppose you could say that I'm single."
...
...
"Waah!" Taiga flinched back from her bowl of rice when the chopsticks gripped in Saber's hand snapped loudly, flying across the dining room in separate directions like broken twigs.
...
...
"Auuugh!" One of the female archers on the field cried out, dropping to the ground when the aim of Sakura's bow and arrow suddenly veered to the side without warning.
...
...
"Gwuuh!" The elderly antique shop woman cried out in shock when Rider's grip on the old vase she was holding became so strong that it crumbled to dust.
...
...
"Naaugh!" Illya cried out in horror when Rin unexpectedly sneezed her card castle to shambles.
...
...
"Ohmygauu-" Minori screamed as Mitsuzuri swung the Wii remote into the flat screen by mistake.
...
...
Luviagelita giggled at Shirou's awkward response, "No. I suppose you really wouldn't have a girlfriend, otherwise she would simply be furious knowing that you're spending your time helping me instead of keeping her company."
Shirou was still recovering from the chills that had suddenly come upon him without warning after he answered her question. He wasn't sure why, but something was telling him that he should have answered that differently. "Y-Yeah." He laughed nervously, crushing the urge to look over his shoulder. "You're right about that..." He blinked when his reply elicited an unexpected response from the sandy blonde. She gripped his arm and brought him closer to her side.
"Then would it be selfish of me to keep you all to myself?" It was unclear to him if she was serious, or if she was simply taking this opportunity to tease him.
"Very." Shirou's surprise response caught her off guard, but she did well to mask it. Instead she took that moment to frown in disappointment at how calmly he replied. "I may not have any siblings, but I do have a few friends living with me...um, all girls, in fact." His cheeks began to burn as the expression on Luvia's face gradually shifted to interest. "We're all very close so they would take notice if someone were ever to—how can I say this—monopolize my time."
"This information certainly sets things into perspective." The noble girl remarked, a smirk returning to her lovely face once again. "You're a ladies man." She feigned distress at her self proclaimed discovery. "You've been leading me on this entire time, haven't you?"
Shirou suddenly felt uncomfortable, "Y-You're joking..."
Luvia dropped the act quickly, "Of course I am." She unhanded his arm to step away from him and place her hand on her hips. "What I've drawn from our little banter is that you're an honest young man, and I certainly respect that, however, no man is without his naughty side."
"Eh?"
"Let's get what it is we've come for, hmm?" She grinned mischievously. "It's almost late and I would appreciate it if you stayed along at the house and had dinner with me. Don't worry, Shirou, I'll send you back on your way home before you get into trouble with your friends."
{FATE---STAY---NIGHT}
[Returning late that night ]
Shirou approached the front entrance of the Emiya estate with an apprehensive walk, appropriately dressed in his usual casual clothes to avoid suspicion from his lovely house mates. A little persuasion allowed him to convince Luvia that keeping his tuxedo at her house would have been best. It would keep him clear of any unwanted questioning if Rin or Saber happened to find it in his room, which, for whatever reason, had become less private and more public over the passing months that they had been living in the house. Not to say that Sakura or Illya were exempt from any implications that were made by that last sentence, but at least they went out of their way to make it seem as though they were.
"She dismissed me late on purpose, didn't she?" He muttered to no on in particular, passing through the front gate, into the court yard.
He froze...
"Shirou." A feminine figure standing at the front door addressed him in a proud voice, saying his name in a manner fit for a knight preparing to cross swords with him. It should have been of no surprise that the figure was Saber, standing there with her arms crossed over her chest, blue skirt swaying with the evening wind. "You've finally arrived."
He waved at her timidly, "Hey, Saber..." Somewhere in the back of his mind he was thankful that she did not have her armor equipped.
"Did you forget that it was your day to cook?" She asked him in a deathly cold voice. Shirou cast his relief away, half expecting her to materialize into her armor right there and Excalibur him into orbit.
"Oh..." He massaged the back of his neck nervously, completing the rest of the sentence in his head. ...Shit.
...
...
From the lions den and into the snake pit, Shirou mentally noted to himself, resting his head in the lap of the lovely Rin Tohsaka, though he would later correct himself, the snake pit was a thought more attuned to the lascivious Rider as opposed to the magus that was now tending to the smarting bruises all over his aching body. As it was mentioned somewhere down the line of this tale, Saber had a very telling way of dealing with her anger, and he'd just been on the receiving end of it; that is, sword training. After being hurried back into the house by the golden haired beauty, she chided him for returning late on his assigned cooking day and took that moment to remind him that he was falling behind in their training. What followed when he entered that dojo was exactly what he had expected from the miffed heroic spirit, a sound beating under the guise of honest training. Sure, she said that she was only pushing him harder because she was confident in his ability to handle it, but the condition in which he dragged himself from her lesson was far more fit for a man ready for the grave instead of a steadily progressing pupil.
All in all, Rin was taking all of this rather well for a mentor he stood up for the second time, especially odd considering her suspicions that he and Mitsuzuri were secretly developing an intimate friendship behind her back, which should have been kindled further by his late arrival tonight. This must have been the third day in a row now that Shirou thought about it. How was he going to keep on making excuses for his clandestine services to the noble and beautiful Luvia? It was only a matter of time before Rin or Saber; perhaps even Illya, decided to get far more aggressive about their nagging suspicions and began to keep tabs of his movements after classes let out in the afternoon. The idea of Sella and Leysritt tailing him in disguise from afar was amusing for him to think about, but he wouldn't have put it past the conniving Illya to give them such a ridiculous task. Sella would have taken the task gladly, he was sure. That maid harbored ill feelings toward him; her reasons being, that he was unsure of, but he knew that nothing would please Sella more than to catch him doing something that she could torment him with on their every meeting.
"Yeesh!" Shirou hissed at the stinging sensation in his shoulder when Rin moved the ice bag in her hand against it. She decided not to employ her healing magic in treating his injuries this time, which would have surely saved her the time and him the discomfort, but he wasn't about to inquire on her reasons for deciding against it. Better for him to allow her to vent whatever feelings she was personally dealing with, or they might jump out and hurt him. Still- "Could you be a little rougher on me?" The young man asked his nurse, doing very little to conceal his sarcasm. "I don't think I'm crying just yet."
"Quit whining, Emiya-kun." Rin told him with a strangely content smirk. "You're a man, aren't you? Try impressing me by keeping that chin up."
"Who wants to impress you?" Shirou shot at her irritably before wincing again when she shifted the bag of ice against his shoulder. "Ow, ow, ow!"
"I'm sorry, couldn't hear a thing you just said. You must have been grumbling."
"Man, I hadn't expected Saber to be so rough on me."
Rin's hand stopped putting pressure on his shoulder, relieving him. "You should have seen the look on her face when I told her that we were going to have to go with takeout tonight." The magus frowned slightly as she recalled the knight's expression upon hearing that Shirou would not be greeting her at the table with another one of his handmade feasts, but it lightened up into a grin as she twisted the knife. "Absolutely devastated, that poor girl. It made me really jealous, you know? I could go missing for a few days on one of my business trips and Saber won't even make a fuss on my return, but you just have to come home late and she'll bounce off the walls until she sees you again."
"You always know how to make me feel guilty, don't you?" Shirou grumbled, averting his eyes from her face.
"It's not that hard, Emiya-kun." Rin replied with a hint of warmth. "You're a very considerate guy, even if that doesn't always work for everyone."
"It seems like I keep hearing that line." Shirou muttered to no one in particular, getting the young woman's ears to perk up.
"From who?" She inquired, eye narrowing ever so slightly.
"Er, just me thinking out loud." He forced a chuckle. "Don't mind me." His quick response brought a frown to Rin's lovely countenance, one that seemed quite genuine and heartfelt.
"Hey, Shirou." She used his first name, snapping his undivided attention to her. "You're usually a really open person, you know? Why are you suddenly being such a closed book to everyone?"
Shirou couldn't help the nervous grin that came upon his face as he could only respond with a- "H-huh? What do you mean?"
"What're you hiding, huh?"
"I've got nothing to hide." He assured her quickly.
"Then why have you been so late coming home the past few days?"
"I told you, Neko-san has been keeping me a little longer these days."
"What for?"
"Just stuff...you know?" Shirou answered her awkwardly, following quickly. "It's really nothing to get worried about! It's not like I'm getting into any trouble or anything."
Rin studied his face silently, her left eyebrow rising ever so slowly. "...Well, it's not like I'm suspecting you of any foul play."
"Foul play?"
"D-don't let it bother you." Rin stammered quickly. "...So...you and Ayako..."
"Yeah? What about her?" Shirou questioned casually, his mind doing nothing to connect what happened on the roof earlier today to Rin's sudden mention of the archery captain.
"You two have a bit of a history together, don't you?" She asked carefully, doing her best not to seem too interested in their past. "Weren't you both in the archery club together at one point?"
"Yeah." He answered, sitting up from the comfort of her lap to face her side by side. He worked out a kink in his right arm with a crack and relaxed it at his side, flexing the muscles in his forearm. "Mitsuzuri, Shinji and me."
"I didn't ask about Shinji, silly." Rin told him with a dark expression, perhaps from thinking about said young man. "I'm talking about you and Ayako. Why does she want you to come back to the archery club so bad? There's been rumors since the day I enrolled that you two were once a couple, and now she wants you back."
"That would be a lie." Shirou told her flatly with a frown. "Mitsuzuri was really competitive back when I was in the club. I think she still is."
"So you think that maybe she feels like you two have a score to settle?"
"That might be it."
"You guys seem kind of close though." The lovely magus argued. "She's always all over you whenever you meet, and...you two were holding hands when you came up to the roof today."
"U-Oh, um, that." For some reason Shirou turned slightly red when she mentioned that last part, and it made Rin's lips curl into a slight scowl. "Well, you know, Mitsuzuri is just really friendly in general. That sort of thing means nothing to her, seriously!"
"Funny," Rin said with a hint of sarcasm, "Ayako doesn't do that with Ryudo, or any of the other boys she knows. Hell, she was never that close to Shinji and he remained with her in the club for a while after you supposedly left."
"That's because Shinji was a playboy, you know that." Shirou countered her argument. "There was no way she was going to be friendly with him. He might have taken it the wrong way."
"I don't know, Shirou." Rin told the tracer, resting her chin in her hand as she leaned over to him. "No matter how you look at it, she's awfully attached to you."
"I don't know why you worry so much." Shirou brushed her words off. "I mean...I have you, right?"
Rin's face flushed instantaneously. "...What was that?"
"C'mon, Tohsaka." Shirou leaned over to her, having her lean back. "What's really going on between us? We're a couple, aren't we?" He leaned forward until Rin was forced to prop herself up on her elbows. Her eyes glanced at her bed quickly before returning to her friend, and her lips quivered nervously as she attempted to form words.
"What are you trying to get me to say?" She exclaimed, her cheeks burning hotly. She could feel the heat building in her neck as she stared back into his eyes, and she brought her legs up to her chest, moving her hands over her lingerie so they wouldn't be exposed in her position. "You're so blunt sometimes."
"Why are you getting so embarrassed?" He asked her gently. "It's not like we're doing anything we haven't done before. I've held you before." He brought his lips to her neck slowly and kissed her hot skin, eliciting a shrill giggle that gradually grew quieter as he brought his lips to her again and again. In time he was hovering over her with his hands at her sides as she squirmed beneath almost sensually as soft giggles left her pink lips. She brought her arms to rest at the sides of her head as he trailed lower with each kiss and brought a hand to the back of his head, intertwining her fingers with his hair. Shirou took that as a sign of approval and slowly brought a hand to her thigh, lifting it steadily to hook his thumb beneath her red shirt to lift it over her stomach, but-
"Wait, wait!" She breathed out quickly.
"W-what?" Shirou lifted his head, quirking a brow in surprise. "Something wrong?"
"Lock the door before we do anything else!" She told him in a low voice. "I don't want Sakura coming in on us!"
Strange how you made no mention of Saber in your concerns... The young Emiya thought suspiciously, but he reluctantly backed off of her and got to his feet to walk to the door and do as she asked him. He paused for a moment, leaving his hand on the knob and unlocked it again, opening the door to look at both ends of the hall just in case. Sakura was at the right end, frozen in place, staring at him like she'd been caught doing something she shouldn't have.
"Sempai?" She squeaked, an awkward smile forming on her lovely lips. "Are you two holding lessons tonight?"
Shirou nodded, hoping that the sweat forming on his face wasn't noticeable to her from the distance shared between them. "Y-Yeah, we are." He answered her, adding quickly, "Tohsaka wants privacy tonight though, so tell Saber and Rider if you run into them."
"...O-ok!" Sakura nodded hard, her hair bouncing with each nod. "I'll tell them."
"Thanks!" He offered her a smile that got her blushing before he closed the door, but he didn't face away from it after turning the lock. At least not without a low mutter of, "You better not be eavesdropping, Rider." When he was satisfied with the silence that followed, feeling that the room was secure, he turned around to face Rin who had somehow moved from the floor to the bed, while his back had been turned, without a sound. Her skirt had been removed by her already, lying on the floor where he'd been sitting just a moment ago, but her shirt and black knee socks remained. Shirou tried not to sigh audibly as she stared at him from the bed, legs pressed together with a serious expression on her face.
She needs to lighten up. He thought to himself with a barely noticeable smile as he made his way to the bed to sit beside her. "Why are you so tense?"
Rin glared at him. "Am not." She told him, keeping her voice from rising when she did. She relaxed when Shirou leaned in and pecked her on the corner of her mouth before staring into her eyes. When she nodded he moved to her mouth, kissing her gently, prompting her to part her lips and slither her tongue out into his mouth. Her initiative momentarily took him by surprise, but he rewarded her boldness, moving his tongue against her's and suckling on it, hearing her giggle into his mouth. He eased her onto her back as they proceeded to deepen the kiss, closing the gaps between their mouths, and hooked his thumb under her shirt again, hoping to continue what he started earlier before she interrupted him, but-
Rin drew back, blushing like mad. "Um..." She looked to him unsurely.
"What's wrong?" Shirou cocked his head to the side, trying not to seem annoyed. "Are you uncomfortable?"
She glanced down at her chest, "...It's nothing like that."
"Then just relax." He slowly lifted her shirt over her belly button and moved his mouth to her neck, marking her hot skin with kisses until he could cup her right breast in his hand. He felt a mild shudder from her at the contact and paused for a moment, looking to her eyes before moving away from her neck and focusing on the pink crown standing slightly hard on her left breast. He kissed it tenderly before flicking at it with his tongue, up and down, drawing a tight circle around it, and sucking on it lightly, all the while kneading her breast with slow motions. He felt Rin shudder again, a little more strongly, and alternated to her right breast, taking the hard nub in his mouth while he moved his hand over her right, taking it between two fingers and teasing it. Halfway through his ministrations he lowered his hand away from her left mound of flesh until he felt the waistband of her panties. He felt the rhythm of her chest quicken as he pulled it down, stopping when he had access to the glistening, pinks folds that were hidden beneath it. He could feel the heat coming off of her as his middle finger slid between her nether lips, stimulating the moist tunnel inside before slipping upwards to fondle her clit. Rin tried to hold back the moan that forced its way out of her throat, failing miserably, and bringing a smirk to Shirou's face.
"Let me just..." Shirou trailed off, moving off of her to position himself between her legs. "Move down here."
Rin nodded, shifting herself along the bed to get comfortable. When she was ready, Shirou brought his hands to her thighs and lifted them so he could draw his lips to the folds of her sex. He saw her twitching, fluids dripping faster than before, and drove his tongue inside, burying his face between her legs. Rin tensed at the gentle contact of his tongue against her pulsing flesh as he moved upwards so slowly that she could feel tears building in her eyes. He stimulated her slit with a few darts of his tongue, dropped further toward her anal dip, drawing a near wail of ecstasy from her lips, and worked his way back up. He came close to her hard nub on the fourth way through and broke contact before his tongue could touch it, driving her nearly mad.
"Quit teasing me!" She growled out in a near purr.
"Sorry, sorry." Shirou apologized, amused by her reaction, and proceeded to lick her thoroughly, holding her carefully as her hips squirmed in a gyrating motion, trying to bury his face further until finally her legs clamped down on him, imprisoning his head with her muscles while his mouth was still planted over her sopping sex. Her taste filled his mouth as he continued to lick her, feeling her grind against his face, and he finished her off, pressing his tongue against her clit hard. She tightened her hold around his head, slapping both of her hands over her mouth and cried out long and unrestrained. Her legs went lax immediately afterward, releasing him, and Shirou carefully rested her soft butt on his knees.
"Hwooh...haah...oh god..." Rin panted out, looking for all the world like she would collapse right there and bid farewell to the waking world.
"It's not over yet." Shirou told her mischievously, and she managed a smile in return, but what followed next surprised him. She placed her hand against his navel and pushed lightly.
"Hold on, cowboy." She told him, pacing her breaths. "I'll be taking over now."
"Are you sure?"
"Y-Yes, I'm sure!" She snapped. "Just lay back, alright?" She ordered him, sliding back off of his knees to get into a kneeling position. Shirou nodded obediently and sat up before straightening himself out on her bed in a laid back position. Rin leaned over and tugged at his belt, loosening it and slipping it off his waist to drop it on the floor. She then undid the button on his jeans, and pulled down the zipper, tugging down on his pants until she was able to slip it off his legs. Shirou followed her example and reached down to pull his shirt off as she removed his underwear.
"All of that training does you some good after all." Rin complimented him with a libidinous gaze as she straddled him. She sat down just above his cock and leaned over to stroke her hand against his toned body, seemingly ignoring the way his member stood upright as if trying to bury itself between the luscious cheeks of her behind. "I guess a beating isn't the only thing you get out of your sessions with Saber, after all."
"You just noticed?" Shirou retorted, a bead of sweat hanging at the side of his forehead as her hand reached behind to grab him. She smirked at him like a demoness from his wildest fantasies as she stroked up and down slowly.
"And this guy must get good exercise too, huh?" She moaned questioningly, gradually increasing the intensity of her strokes. "When was the last time you replenished Saber's mana reserve?"
Shirou burned beet red at her strange inquiry, "W-Why the hell are you asking that now?"
"Oh...no reason." Rin said melodically, massaging the base of his cock. "I just keep remembering the first time you and Saber were forced to have sex. You just kept thrusting your hips like a confused boy until you couldn't move any longer."
"Y-Yeah?" Shirou stammered, embarrassment written all over his face. "W-Whatever!"
"Have you two been trying anything new since then?" She moved her hand further down to play with his balls. "I mean, I'm sure even Saber would get bored if you guys just kept doing the same thing." She brought her hand back to the base and stroked all the way up to the tip, holding it carefully as she lifted hips. "Ever thought about a threesome?"
"Hu..." Shirou's lower body tensed when she lowered herself onto him. "H-huh?" His voice went up an octave as he felt her tighten around him. She flashed him a smirk and began to move on top of him, grinding her hips back and forth in a smooth fluid motion that gave him the impression that she was belly dancing. Each motion sent tingles through his shaft as the soft walls of her vagina twisted and gripped him, drawing him in every time she pulled her hips back. Rin adored the look on Shirou's face as she continued to work him, and she arched her back, letting her hands rest on the bed mattress so she could start moving her hips up and down. The shift in gears caught Shirou by surprise and he almost released himself, but he held back; kept his eyes focused on her small breast as they bounced, and not on the wild expression on her face. He knew that if he did he probably wouldn't be able to keep control much longer.
"What's...the...matter?" Rin teased him in short breaths, coming down on him harder with each rise. "Are...you...almost...there?"
Shirou sat up and wrapped his arms around her back, bringing her to him so he could suck on her breasts and she sighed out contently, placing a hand at the back of his head to press his mouth against her harder. She felt him slide his right hand down the arch of her back, to rest on her butt and she bit her lip as the shivers of another orgasm shook her body. She felt her legs wobble as Shirou laid back on the bed, bringing her body forward as he did so she could lay against his chest. His other hand came to rest on her other butt cheek, fingers sinking into her flesh, and he began to thrust his hips upward, drawing a startled gasp from her as her eyes widened. There was a slap, slap, slap of their bodies as he drove his cock into her with each thrust, bouncing her butt up and down with each draw back and it only got more intense as she dug her nails into his shoulders. They were both breathing so hard that the magus could swear there was a mist building between them, and their bodies were so hot and moist that she thought they would melt and become one. Both of their minds were scrambling about to regain focus until that final thrust that sent an electric current through the both of them.
"GAH!" Shirou's instincts kicked in and he pulled away from her completely before it was too late, shooting out his seed upward in short spurts.
Rin looked at him with a lazy smile and leaned over to kiss him on the forehead. "Well...that was nice."
Shirou chuckled, a smile breaking out on his face. "You weren't...so bad yourself..." His eyes drifted off focus before closing slowly. "...Rin."
The lovely young woman licked her chops and bared her teeth as he laid there oblivious. "And now..." She trailed off, her words getting Shirou to open his eyes halfway.
"And now...what?" He asked, and-
CHOMP!
"Ouch!"
...
...
"What the hell was that for?" Shirou groaned, rubbing his shoulder as he walked down the hall from Rin's room, fully dressed, of course. He pulled his shirt down his shoulder to look at the pronounced bite mark that Rin left him with and touched it, drawing back quickly when it stung like hell. "That's going to leave a mark in the morning." And I better take a shower. I smell like...Rin...I think. For some reason a smile crept across his face, but he slapped himself aware. "Well, after that, there's no denying it. Rin loves me...right?" Sadly he didn't seem too confident about that, but he didn't let any of the minor details get him down. He stopped in front of his room and slid the door open, walking in with a long stretch of his arms, yawning. He pulled his shirt over his head, folding it after turning it inside out, and dropped it to the ground before walking over to his closet to retrieve a fresh towel for his bath.
"I hope Saber cooled down already." He said to no one in particular, grabbing a towel from the top of the stack. "...I'll prepare her a hearty breakfast tomorrow to make up for it." He nodded to himself, making up his mind. "Yeah, I'm sure she'll enjoy that."
"Perhaps not as much as Rin enjoyed eating you." An all to familiar voice came from behind Shirou, making all of the hairs on his body rise up in fright.
Shirou turned at the waist to see Rider sliding his door shut behind her. "R-Rider!" He cried out in a low voice so no one else would hear him. "Stop sneaking up on me in my room!"
"Evening, good samaritan." She greeted him coyly, her glasses glinting in the light. "A student by day, a butler in the afternoon, and a lover by night." One of the dark servant's rare smiles snaked across her lovely lips. "I'd read that story, maybe."
"What words of wisdom do you have to offer me tonight?"
"I have no idea what you're alluding to, Shirou." The bespectacled woman told him with a shrug of her shoulders. "I just wanted to see how you were holding up. You and Luvia are getting awfully friendly with each other, aren't you?"
"What do you mean?" The redhead inquired, genuinely curious as to what she meant. "I'm just helping her out as her butler."
"So you've wholeheartedly accepted the position." Rider observed, causing the young man to flinch at the slip of tongue.
"W-Well, it's not like I'm going to be making it a permanent career position."
"Is that what you think?" Her question perked him up with its mysterious tone, almost as if she was implying the opposite. "Shirou, contrary to what others believe, I don't think you're as naive as you portray yourself around the others."
And despite that, Shirou could only respond with, "And what does that mean?"
"Doesn't it strike you as odd that she wouldn't let go of you?" The lavender haired servant asked, staring at him in disbelief. "She's wealthy, she's beautiful, she has connections with more people than you could possibly imagine, and yet she decides that she wants Shirou Emiya, an ordinary student with no experience in the service field. Suspicious, is it not?"
"...You think she's been targeting me all along?"
"Maybe." Rider answered him with a slow nod that practically said 'Duh'. "Can you guess why?"
"...Hmm..."
"Yes?" Rider leaned forward in anticipation.
"Hmm..."
"Please tell me those noises mean you're thinking."
"...I've got nothin'." Shirou answered her honestly, his expression blank.
Rider caught her glasses before they slipped off the bridge of her nose, her left eyebrow twitching in annoyance. "Well, people like you only learn from experience, I guess." The dark servant said with a shrug of her shoulders before smirking subtly. "I'll enjoy watching you get out of this one. After all, what's a good story without a stunning climax, right?"
"You mean we've gotten past rising action already?"
"Way past." Rider chuckled ominously. "By the way," Her eyes fell upon the bite mark that Rin gave him as a parting gift, "I couldn't help, but notice that Rin...marked you."
Shirou slapped his hand upon the incriminating mark, regretting it when it stung sharply. "Th-That bad, huh? I'll have to bandage that later." He said, laughing nervously, but it died in his throat when he noticed the predatory gaze that Rider was giving him. He'd seen that look before and it never meant well.
"It's like an open declaration of a challenge." She spoke in a creepy voice, drawing near him. "I must answer it with a reply."
"R-Rider?" Shirou backed away, feeling very vulnerable all of a sudden. "W-Wah!" He nearly jumped from the floor when she dropped her hands on his shoulders, firmly holding him in place so he wouldn't escape from her clutches.
"It's not wise to make a woman jealous, you know."
CHOMP...SLLLLuuuRP!
...
...
Shirou stepped into the bathroom looking very much like a shell of his former self. "Oh...oh god." He placed his hand upon his neck, feeling for the punctures of Rider's fangs. "I almost thought she was going to suck me dry."
"Shirou?" The call of his name made him go rigid with fright.
"H-huh?" He slowly looked to the large tub to find Saber lounging inside with a rubber duck floating along the surface of the water. "Saber? Oh, sorry." He was far too tired to be any more surprised by the unexpected occupant. Admittedly, he should have paid attention to the steam in the air when he entered. Sometimes he wondered why he always managed to get himself into this awkward situation. You'd swear he was the main star of an eroge. "I'll come back when you've finished up. I'm in no rush."
The sound of sudden movement in water. "W-Wait, Shirou." Saber reached out to him before he could turn away. "Why don't you join me?"
Shirou blinked. "I don't want to be a bother."
"But I'd really appreciate your company, Shirou." Saber insisted, worry present in her eyes. "I don't...want us to end our evening the way we did in the dojo. I'd hate for us to part ways for the night on that note."
"Um..." Shirou hesitated, wondering if it was really wise to take a dip in the tub with the blonde knight, but the expression on her face was so...irresistible. He just couldn't say no to Saber, not when she put on such a pleading look on her lovely face. Besides, she was his best friend, and an irreplaceable one at that. If she wanted to smooth the wrinkles between them, then he would be a total ass to turn her down, not to mention he felt no resentment toward her to begin with. I'm such a damn softy. The young man cursed himself as he undid the towel around his waist. "Why not?" He told her warmly, stepping over to the tub to join her. When he had completely settled down in the warm bath Saber drew near him, leaning against him with her head on his shoulder.
"I...apologize for how I behaved earlier." She apologized to him in her usual dignified voice. "My rough treatment of you during our training session was uncalled for. It shames me that I reacted so terribly to your late arrival."
"It's fine, Saber." He told her with a light chuckle. "It was my fault anyway. I know how much you love my cooking." The water temperature must have risen after he said that, and a look at Saber informed him as to why. The girl was blushing up to her ears in embarrassment, shrinking against him as if she intended to vanish.
"This is...true." Saber responded honestly. "I hold your cooking in the highest regard, so...to be deprived of it was like undue punishment."
"I'm sorry." He placed his hand on her head as she cuddled against him. "I'll cook you a big breakfast tomorrow to make up for dinner. Anything you want!"
"Anything?" Saber's eyes lit up like a desert traveller that had been offered a jug of water.
"Anything." Shirou nodded with a knowing grin. "You just name it and I'll cook it."
"You've put me in a difficult position, Shirou." She replied, a very serious expression washing over her face. "I will have to think hard over this tonight."
"Just sleep on it. I'm sure you'll figure out what you want."
"Perhaps you are right..." The knight nodded, however, she stopped in mid nod for some reason, eyes directed at something on his neck. "...You've been bitten?" She was placed on alert mode, grabbing him by the shoulder and pulling him over so she could inspect the bite wound closely. The next word that left her mouth sounded very much like a curse. "Rider..." She hissed, eyes narrowing to near slits.
"Settle down, Saber!" Shirou wrapped his arms around her stomach before she could attempt to get out and deliver the dark servant's punishment. "It's nothing to freak out about."
Saber glared at him. "You're too nice to her."
"Look, she was just really hungry, you know?" Shirou lied with an admittedly weak excuse, but that's all he had at the moment and he was going to use it dammit. "It was nothing major."
"And what of that other bite?" Saber inquired suspiciously. "That doesn't appear to be Rider's doing."
"Oh, um, that..." He'd forgotten about that one. "...Rin did that."
"Rin?" Her eyes widened with surprise. "Why would she do that?"
"Thats a good question." Shirou mused, letting go of her. "I'm not sure." Then just as if a lightbulb went click over her head, Saber's eyes widened slightly, her chest rising with a sharp intake of air.
"It's a mark of claim!" She exclaimed confidently, looking at him with an expression that cried out 'I hit it on the head, didn't I'. "It is, isn't it?" She asked, staring him in the eyes with a look of pride.
"You think so?" Shirou asked, not sure what to think anymore. "Now that you mention it, it kind of seems that way."
"Then I will answer her!" Saber declared with fierce determination, and with that she submerged herself in the water.
Shirou blinked when she didn't come back up for a while. "What is she going to-"
CHOMP!
"OH MY GOD, SABER! WHY WOULD YOU EVEN?"
[ And so, we move on to the next day at Luviagelita's Home... ]
"Welcome back, Emiya!" Luviagelita greeted the young Emiya after opening the door to him, looking as haughty and confident as she ever did. Shirou wanted to appreciate the sight of her radiance, but his body ached for reasons that didn't need stating, and in particular areas that were better left to the imagination. "What seems to be the matter, Emiya?" The noble inquired in a gentle voice. "Did you have a restless night? The temperature is rising rather high..." She noted as an afterthought, looking up to the sun in the sky as though it would report the weather forecast to her.
"Restless?" Shirou echoed her, doing his best not to cringe at the events of last night. "Maybe just a little, but first thing's first."
Luvia regarded him curiously, "And that would be?"
"Have you eaten anything yet?" He asked a question that was starting to become a regular exchange between them, and the noble Luvia fought the urge to giggle at that moment. She found that there was something of a friendship developing between them in such short time, which was something she would not be adverse to in the slightest.
"...No." She answered him after a long silence, perhaps because she was unable to think up a convincing lie.
"I like your honesty." Shirou offered her a friendly smile that made the dejected frown on her face twitch upwards. "I'll prepare something for you then. I am your butler after all." That last part was said with a hint of pride, and Luvia caught it with delight.
"Your tuxedo is in the spare guest room upstairs, pressed and ready for the day." She informed him as she stepped aside to let him enter. "Feel free to change in there, Emiya."
"Thank you."
"No. I must thank you, Emiya." The noble girl told him, watching as he ascended the staircase. Oh, Shirou, how I enjoy your company. The smile on her face faded when Shirou stopped at the top of the staircase and looked down at her with a question of, "Which room is the guest room? Sorry, I should have asked before I went up." Embarrassment momentarily flashed upon his handsome face, his left hand scratching at the back of his head from habit.
"The first door to your immediate right." Luvia answered him after bringing a gloved hand to her mouth to stifle a giggle.
"Oh." His eyes widened briefly when he saw the door she was referring, and he grinned at her before he walked in. "Thanks again!" He told her with a poke of his head before closing the door behind him. The first thing he noted upon turning away from the door to investigate the room was the large western bed situated against the left wall, already dressed with a champagne colored bed set. A polished wooden night table was set closely to the left side of the bed, and a dresser of similar craftwork was set against the adjacent wall at the opposite side of the bed, complete with a mirror for the owner of the room to admire themselves with. At the opposite side of the room there was a large, stylish wardrobe with mirrors on each of its four doors. The two doors toward the middle appeared to open to one complete section while the doors to the ends opened to separate ones.
"Really nice." Shirou remarked to himself in a somewhat annoyed tone of voice. "She doesn't hold back even for this room." His eyelids drooped. "Barely any love for that kitchen though. I wonder why..." He pulled away from his thoughts, looking back to the wardrobe. "I'm going to take an educated guess and say that the tuxedo is in that monstrosity." With that hunch he approached the wardrobe and grabbed at the handles for the center doors to pull them open. What he was met with slightly shocked him. To answer the question as to what it was; a full suit closet of tuxedo jackets, vests, designer cross ties and bow ties, and polished dress shoes of his size.
"Ahem." Shirou closed both doors very slowly, and looked to the door at the left end.
He opened it; an entire sections of pressed slacks.
"...I see." He looked to the door at the right end.
He opened it; an entire section of designer dress shirts.
"Oooooh boy." Shirou said, suddenly feeling slightly uncomfortable standing in the guest room, because after his startling discovery it didn't seem very much like a guest room anymore. It felt like this was...his room.
~"She's wealthy, she's beautiful, she has connections with more people than you could possibly imagine, and yet she decides that she wants Shirou Emiya, an ordinary student with no experience in the service field. Suspicious, is it not?"~ Rider's words invaded his head as he turned away from the wardrobe, falling back to lean against it with a very blank expression. How was he expected to react to something like this, he wondered. Luviagelita told him this wasn't permanent, but he never really stopped to think about just how long it would take for her to finish her business around here, and when she was done, what happened next. She purchased a house around here, she moved in her furniture. The more he thought about it, it began to disturb him. How long had she been staying around here before she approached him at the school?
"Ah, what the hell am I doing listening to Rider anyway?" Shirou told himself, ignoring the voice of the dark servant. "This isn't some kind of movie or something. Whatever Luvia is doing, it's very unlikely that I have any remote significance in it." And yet the young Emiya couldn't get the image of Rider smiling at him with an 'I told you so' kind of laugh out of his head. "...Dammit." He sighed out flatly.
...
...
"Mmmph!" Luvia's lips pressed together tightly as she let out a guttural notification of pleasure to Shirou's fine cooking. She swallowed on the small chunk of meat that she cut from the steak on her plate and wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. "Simply exquisite, Emiya!" She complimented him with genuine appreciation. "Your cooking comes close to surpassing the cuisine at some of the high ranking restaurants that I've dined at within the area!"
Shirou caught that and regarded her suspiciously. "I thought you said you weren't familiar with the area..."
Luvia caught herself when he said that. "I did, didn't I?" The sandy haired noble mused, keeping a composed smile. "Well, I meant that, of course. I just kind of ran into them while I explored the area, I guess. Anyway!" She exclaimed extending a hand out to him while her mind quickly devised a different subject of banter that would direct the roused young man away from his brewing suspicions, and to much safer ground. "Have you ever considered culinary school, Emiya? With your talent you should be seeking out ways to refine them, or you'll let them go to waste. I mean it, take interest now and I'm sure without a doubt that you'll be able to pursue a rewarding career path."
Shirou blushed at her unabashed praise. "You think so?"
"My inner entrepreneur speaks to me when I look at you, Shirou!" Luvia told him with excitement in her voice, emotion that he couldn't brush off as a mere act. "It tells me not to look away, it tells me the take this young man under my wing and nurture his potential." She saw Shirou trying to hide the blush creeping past his ears and cried out, "Don't look away, Emiya! Yes, look at me. I would take any risk with you, I would, because you're rare, you're precious, you're one of a kind. Don't think of yourself as common practice, fate clearly had plans when it brought us together."
"Okay, seriously, I'm flattered, but-"
"No, don't be flattered." The noble girl told him, gesturing to him with an open hand. "Accept it as a fact." She brought her hand in with a fist. "The world bends to you when you do." Seeing that she had completely steered his thoughts away from her slip earlier, she relaxed and went back to savoring her meal while Shirou simply stared to the side, still soaking her words in. "By the way, Emiya, what inspired you to experiment with different food choices to begin with? From the dishes you prepared last night I had assumed that you were mainly accustomed to Okinawa and Yoshoku cuisine."
"Oh..." Shirou blinked, surprised that she noticed that. "I wasn't really that flexible in my cooking at first. It really wasn't until one of the girls, back where I live, moved in that I started experimenting with other types of cuisine. She favored mostly western dishes so I basically caught on and followed whenever she cooked them. I guess you could say she inspired me." He laughed with a grin. "Yeah...inspired me."
"It sounds like you two are...close." Luvia observed, her voice a curious tone. "Or am I assuming too much?"
"Close?" Shirou repeated her, looking back at her for a while as he considered the use of the word. "...I guess you might say that. We get along pretty well, and I suppose you might say that we're friendly towards each other."
The young woman smiled, setting down her fork with a cheshire grin. "Ah, was that uncertainty, or am I just imagining things?"
"Sure sounds that way, huh?" He responded dejectedly. "Yeah, I could see how you might think that."
"Yes, yes." Luvia said to herself softly before speaking up. "Boys and girls tend to be ambiguous about these things, er, relationships that is."
Shirou shrugged his shoulder with a slight frown. "Sure seems that way."
"Don't hurt yourself thinking about it, Emiya." She consoled him, waving her fork back and forth. "Sometimes, you might find, the answer is looking you in the face." And she made a purposeful pause, holding eye contact with him for a long few seconds before slipping another chunk of meat into her mouth. "Mmph." She moaned in delight, casting a surreptitious glance at the young Emiya while his mind went to work for her. Her tongue passed over her lips when she did. "Scrumptious!"
...
...
Luviagelita walked through the city streets with her butler Shirou following closely like a personal bodyguard. Some of the people that passed them on the sidewalk allowed their eyes to linger far longer than the young Emiya was comfortable with. Who knew what they were thinking, looking at him follow this girl around in such eye catching attire (Those threads were definitely expensive), especially some of the students that went to his school. Some of the guys that saw the two of them together raised eyebrows, their thoughts likely leaning more towards Luvia and her exoitic features than Shirou, thankfully, but the women, blossoming and ripe, alternated between smiling slyly at the hapless butler and shooting envious glares at the noblewoman that walked in front of him.
Shirou wanted to believe that they were really on a mission to locate Luvia's rival, as she labeled this individual, but his faith in her goals began to falter little by little every time she stopped to admire a landmark, or dragged him to a specialty shop to check out the wares being sold. At one point Luvia stopped in front of a poster advertising a pro wrestling event that was going to be live on television and she didn't budge for so long that Shirou suspected she might have been a closet, narcolepsy patient. There was definitely something about her and wrestling, though. He harbored a suspicion about it when she first pulled him into that ridiculously effective headlock on their second meeting before everything really kicked off between them, but evidence was gradually beginning to accumulate the longer he kept this girl company.
"Hey, Luvia?" Shirou addressed his mistress casually. Despite his subservient position in their business relationship, she didn't seem to mind that he addressed informally on the job.
"Yes, Emiya?" She responded to him, never halting in her walk. Were they heading somewhere, or were they just walking aimlessly?
"No disrespect Luvia, but what exactly are we...doing?"
"Scouting the area, of course." She answered him, confident in her answer.
"Alright." Shirou nodded unconvinced by her reply, but he decided to play along anyway. "So we only entered those shops because you didn't want to risk the chance of this person getting away?"
Luvia stopped and turned to face him, a grin on her face. "Ah, I sense some doubt in you, Emiya." She observed, placing her hands on her hips in the usual haughty manner that he had come to identify her with. "What appears to be gnawing at you?"
"Weeeell," Shirou began, averting his eyes uncomfortably, "it's not that the idea of serving as your butler bothers me personally."
"Yes?"
"And I really do enjoy your company, so think nothing on that account." He quickly threw in although her expression didn't appear to shift in the slightest as he spoke.
"And I enjoy yours." Luvia politely interjected.
"But I'd be lying if I said this responsibility did not exactly...clash with my daily, er, schedule."
"How so?"
Shirou squared eyes with her, stroking his chin as he thought of how to approach this. "Do you remember what I told you yesterday." He asked her, getting a questioning look in response. "The girls that live with me, I mean."
"Oh yes. I do, now that you mention it." She replied. "What's wrong? Did you get into trouble with them last night?" Her voice indicated that she knew just as much.
"You know exactly what I mean." Shirou exclaimed, narrowing his eyes with annoyance. "They're starting to ask questions."
"Are they?" The noble girl smirked deviously. "And why haven't you answered them?"
"Well, I have, obviously, but not with the truth!"
"And why not? I took you for the honest type."
"Are you messing with me?" Shirou asked rhetorically. "Oh, yeah, sorry about getting back late guys. I just had to take care of a few things with my new employer. Oh, right, I'm a butler. Sorry I didn't run that down with you guys earlier."
Luvia giggled melodically, hand to her mouth again. "Sounds a lot like a scene out of a sitcom."
"Exactly." He concurred. "So I think it's about time I came clean with them."
"Oh..." Hesitation wrote itself in clear ink on the young woman's face. "And how do you intend to do that?"
"You're going to join me for dinner tonight." He told her, crossing his arms before he added, "At my house."
"Ahahahaha." Luvia maintained a calm and confident facade as she digested those words. This came in a little sooner than she expected. "Very well. I mean, it was only a matter of time before this happened."
"You sound like you foresaw this."
"Indeed, I did." The noble girl purred, her composure returning to her as she boasted her chest out. "Time to storm the gates, as they say."
"W-What?" Shirou blinked, confused by her finishing line. "W-Why...why do they say that?"
{FATE---STAY---NIGHT}
"Illya!" Saber cried out to the snow fairy that held her precious stuffed lion out to her teasingly from an arms length. "Give him back to me!" The king of knights held out a hand expectantly, but Illya simply stuck out her tongue and ran to the other side of the dining table. Saber scowled at her defiant behavior and gave chase, following her around the table, leading the little homunculus to a corner of the room only to be shaken off when Illya feinted a run for the left, shooting past Saber on her right side when she lunged to the left to catch her. All of this was witnessed by an onlooking Rider and Sakura whom were standing by the entryway with amused smiles. That was until Illya lead the chase in their direction, ducking into Sakura's long skirt and escaping through the gap she forced between her legs, at which point Rider grabbed the kohai and pulled her out of the way before Saber could knock her over in her pursuit of the snow fairy.
"Illya!" Her scream faded away into the distance.
"That girl." Sakura groaned, embarrassed at having the girl lift her skirt. "If sempai was here I'm sure she'd calm down."
"True." Rider agreed with her master, letting her slip away from her arms. "Illya has been restless since Emiya started working longer shifts with Neko."
"Saber, too." Sakura observed, fiddling with one of her bangs. "I hope sempai doesn't make a habit of accepting these late shifts."
"So Emiya hasn't gotten back yet, huh?" A voice from behind the two women made them look over their shoulders to find Rin walking their way from the other end of the hall. She had a sack slung over her shoulder as she walked by them, likely a selection of books to further her extensive research. Her dedication to her studies of the magical arts was pretty admirable. "Whatever." The lovely magus said with a surprisingly laid back smile, flipping her hair to the side with her free hand as she passed Rider and Sakura, not bothering to look back at them. The kohai blinked at her older sister, confused by her lax response, but Rider knew well why Rin was taking Shirou's absence so well today, if last night's activities had anything to do with it. "I'll just be in my room if you guys need me." Those words hung around the corner after she turned, disappearing from view.
"Huh?" Sakura had seen far stranger things, surely, but that didn't keep Rin's attitude from unsettling her.
"Perhaps she had her recommended dosage of calcium for the day?" Rider offered to her master, giving her the false impression that she was just as confused about it as she was. Sakura didn't appear to be very accepting of that answer, not that Rider had expected it to appease her curiosity, but at least she wouldn't ask her if she knew anything about it. A clever liar Rider may be, but she was gradually coming to the realization that Sakura was beginning to get wiser in her youth.
The doorbell distracted Sakura from the suspicions that began to simmer in her mind, calming the bubbles of thought that threatened to rise to the surface. "Sempai?" The lovely Matou cut her conversation with Rider short and walked off to answer the door. Rider tried not to get chills from watching the familiar reaction. Sakura thinks 'Shirou' and everything else around her becomes nothing more than a hinderance from reaching her beloved sempai, friends included, Rider observed. True, she loved Sakura more than life itself, but she sometimes found herself worrying about Shirou Emiya and his future, because one thing was becoming apparent to her: Sakura would always find ways for herself to be a part of it, one way or another, and when she couldn't find a peaceful way...
If Shirou is behind that door, something tells me he isn't alone. The dark servant decided to follow her mistress to the door, if only to confirm that her prediction was accurate. When she caught up with Sakura the young woman had just opened the door, revealing a scene that Rider couldn't help but smirk upon; Shirou standing there in butler attire with his mistress Luviagelita Edelfelt. Well, the noble wasn't really the center of her attention to be completely honest. Rider just thought the tuxedo looked really classy on Shirou, and strangely fitting. Perhaps when this was all over he could ask the noble Luvia to let him hold on to it.
Sakura, on the other hand, wasn't so amused. "S-Sempai? Why are you wearing-" The kohai stopped, swiveling her eyes to Luvia. "Y-You're the person from before." She looked back to Shirou, her eyes expressing the shock she felt more than her face. "What's going on here, sempai?"
"Heeeey, Sakura." Shirou tried to greet her casually, but the girl's reaction to seeing him was making that a little hard. "Could we come in?"
"This is your house, sempa!" Sakura replied quickly, seemingly unnerved further by the request. "Come in!" She stepped aside, rigidly one might note, letting them walk in while keeping her eyes fixed on Luvia. The noble didn't appear to notice the glare the kohai was directing at her, with an intensity that would have made even Archer shiver. Her attention was far more concentrated on Rider for some reason.
"...Hm..." Luvia approached Rider, making the servant slightly nervous. She sized Rider up for a moment before grinning with a simple, "Interesting."
"Excuse me, Luvia." Shirou called her attention.
"Yes, Emiya?" The girl whipped around to meet his eyes, drill curls bouncing with the motion.
"Let me introduce my friends." He announced politely, gesturing to the staring Sakura. "This is my classmate and long time friend, Sakura."
"Yes, I met you before, didn't I?" Luvia told the young Matou with an amused tone as she extended a hand out to her.
"You did..." Sakura opted for taking the other girl's hand for a brief handshake despite her already growing dislike for her.
Shirou cleared his throat to get Luvia's attention again, the tension developing between her and Sakura not lost on him. "And the young woman you were staring at earlier would be Rider, Sakura's cousin."
"Her cousin" The noble girl mused, the grin returning to her face. She greeted Rider with a polite curtsy. "Charmed, Rider."
"Likewise." Rider returned the greeting with a slight bow of her head.
"That's right." Shirou nodded before gesturing to the hall with a gloved hand. "Let me lead you to the dining room. It'll be far more comfortable than standing here at the entrance, and I'm sure the other girls will be there."
"And I'm looking forward to meeting them." Luvia responded cheerfully. "Lead the way, Emiya." Her butler nodded obediently, much to the displeasure of Sakura and the amusement of Rider, and took lead, guiding her further within the house. Seeing nothing else left for them to do, Rider took Sakura's hand with a reassuring nod and persuaded the kohai to follow along. Standing and staring wasn't going to do her much good anyway.
"Here we are." Shirou stopped to the side of the entryway to the dining quarters, gesturing for her to enter with a hand and a slight bow. Luvia giggled delightedly at his act and went through, stopping with a cursory of the room and its furniture before walking over to the table and sitting down, quite naturally one might add. Shirou was surprised she didn't request a chair. Speaking of Shirou...
"Sempai." Sakura whispered to him, casting glances at the foreigner from the entryway where she stood with him, Rider standing behind her as was her respective spot. "You accepted the job, is that it?"
"Um...yeah." Shirou answered her after a short pause. "Yes, I did."
"Is this what you've been doing this entire time?" She leaned forward, bring her face closer to his much to his discomfort. "This is why you've been late all this week?"
Shirou placed a hand on her shoulder, gently moving her away. "Where is everyone else?"
"I'm right behind you, Shirou." All the hairs on said young man's neck stood straight up when Saber's voice came from behind him. He turned around to see his dear servant in her usual manner of dress, clutching her stuffed lion in one hand, and holding a staring Illya by the collar in the other. The snow fairy gave Shirou a look over, mesmerized by his butler uniform for some reason, before a devilish smile worked across her face. "It's a nice look for you, onii-chan. I really like it!"
"Th-thanks, Illya." Shirou smiled at her briefly before looking to Saber who had the strangest look on her face. "Why are you staring at me that way, Saber?"
"...I don't know." Saber answered him, blinking curiously. "Something inside of me...agrees with this look of yours."
Illya snickered, "You mean, Dark Sab-"
"Ahahaha!" Shirou interrupted the little homunculus with his forced laughter, wanting very much for her to not mention that particular individual. "Thanks, Saber. Actually, I'd like to talk to all of you about this outfit. If you could all just join my employer in the dining room"
"Employer?" Saber inquired curiously. "A new job, Master?"
"S-Something like that." He replied vaguely. "Where's Rin, by the way?"
"In her room." Sakura answered from behind him, getting him to turn back around to face her. "She's doing research."
Shirou swallowed. He originally hoped that Rin would just happen to be in the dining room when he came in with Luvia; it would have saved him a lot of trouble, but this was going to make things a little difficult. She was definitely going to want some answers when she saw him dressed like this. "Fine. I'll g-get her then. Meanwhile, why don't you girls get acquainted with miss Edelfelt." Sakura didn't immediately comply with that suggestion, staring at her sempai for a moment first before she finally decided to walk in and join Luvia. Shirou expected Rider to say something to him before she followed her mistress inside, but she said nothing, only passing him with a smirk that seemed to foretell his doom. Shirou saw something move in his peripheral and turned his head slightly to see that Saber had gotten around him.
"Why does this feel ominous, Shirou?" Saber asked, letting Illya down on her feet. "Have you gotten yourself into trouble?"
Shirou smiled at Saber, his best friend, his closest partner, and he felt his self confidence return to him. There was nothing for him to fear here. "Nah." He told her playfully, waving her worries away with a hand. "I just want to straighten things out, that's all."
"Very well." The golden haired knight nodded, mirroring his smile. "Go get Rin, then."
Shirou ignored the sinking feeling in his stomach when she said that. He wasn't sure why, but the idea of Rin and Luvia meeting did that to him. "Yeah...I will." He gave her a nod and turned to walk down the hall. Saber watched until he turned the corner and grabbed Illya's hand, walking into the dining room to join the other women at the table. She took a seat at the end of the table, across from Sakura and Rider who were seated at the other end, and Illya settled into her lap.
Luvia brought her attention to Illya and they both locked eyes.
"You remind me very much of Irisviel von Einsbern." Luvia opened the conversation. "The resemblance between you two is just uncanny."
Illya narrowed her eyes at the mention of her mother. "And you are?"
Meanwhile...
Rin straightened out in her chair slowly when there was a knock at her door. "Yes?" She called over her shoulder, leaning against the back of the chair with one arm. "The door's open, by the way. Just come in."
"Alright." Shirou's voice came from the other side of the door, bringing a mischievous smirk to the magus' face.
What a boy. Rin stifled a giggle as she slipped off her glasses. I let him have sex with me once and now he's skipping work to see me.
"Hey, Rin?" Shirou opened the door and stepped in getting a few blinks out of the girl in question as she processed the image entering her line of vision. Shirou Emiya was wearing a tuxedo, and a very expensive looking one at that. Now, Rin Tohsaka wasn't a girl that came to conclusions very quickly, she had come to learn more than once that doing that could cost a person their life; perhaps other things just a valuable. She figured he was behaving kind of weird last night, and maybe she might have contributed to that with her jealousy, but this was a bit much.
Shirou saw her blushing red and quirked a brow. "Rin...are you alright?"
"I-I don't quite know at the moment." Rin answered him, her voice quivering with each word.
"You don't sound alright." Shirou approached her worriedly, holding a hand to her forehead when he was close enough. "Are you running a fever or something?"
"N-No, it has nothing to do with that!" Rin said angrily, swatting his hand away. "What are you here for anyway?"
"I want you to come with me." Shirou told her firmly without any hesitation in his voice.
Rin felt a pounding in her chest, fear and excitement threatening to overwhelm her all at once. "What do you mean?" She swallowed. "Right now?"
Shirou nodded, holding a hand out to her. "Right now." He saw her hold up a hand hesitatingly, bringing it slowly to rest in his, but just as their fingertips made contact she pulled away as quickly as she could almost as if she had touched something scalding hot. "W-What's wrong with you, Rin?"
"I don't think I'm ready for this, Shirou!" She blurted out, drawing both of her arms toward her chest, eyes shut tightly. "It's moving too fast, don't you think?"
"What's moving too fast?" The young man asked in alarm, looking over his shoulder. He tensed up, looking around the room, but when he saw nothing that could be considered a threat to their lives he looked back to Rin with a confused expression. "Wait, wait, wait." He relaxed, his voice dull. "What exactly are you talking about?"
"Huh?" The girl's shoulders sagged at his tone. "What do you mean you idiot?"
"That's what I'd like to ask you."
Her lips trembled as she tried to form the proper words. "Weren't you going to..." She paused, staring into his eyes for the answer before she could embarrass herself by asking the question. "Um..." She cleared her throat, drawing back her composure. "You said you wanted me to come with you, right?"
"Yeah." Shirou nodded again, very slowly this time, scrutinizing her face carefully. "To the dining room. I want you to meet someone."
Fear entered Rin's mind again, this time accompanied by an irritating heat in her chest similar to rising fury. "What do you mean? Who is this...person you want me to meet?" Her hands curled to tight fists on her lap, cracking audibly.
"Just my employer." He answered her, glancing at her hands when her knuckles cracked.
Rin's expression relaxed, as did the rest of her body. "Oh! Why didn't you tell me that when you first came in?"
"Okay..." Shirou blinked, unsure of how to respond. "...Yeah."
...
...
Rin followed behind Shirou as he lead the way to the living room where this mysterious employer was waiting for them. Something bothered Rin, though. "Hey, Emiya-kun?"
"Yeah?" He responded, glancing at her over his shoulder.
"So this isn't Neko-san? This is a new employer?"
"Yeah. I got myself a new job..." He hesitated before finishing his sentence. "As a butler."
"A butler?" Rin's eyes widened with disbelief. "Wow, how did you land yourself that kind of job? Don't you need training for that sort of position?"
"I guess I got lucky!" Shirou laughed uneasily. "It's not something I qualified for today, actually."
"You mean, you interviewed for this job yesterday?" Rin inquired curiously.
"You could say the interview took place a little earlier than that."
"Ooooh, I see." Rin's voice indicated a sense of understanding on her part. "So this is why you've been late these past few days, right?"
Shirou choked on his spit, but managed a smile. "Hahaaa...can't hide anything from you, huh, Rin?"
"Whatever." She flipped her hair to the side, brushing off his attempt at buttering her up. "So is this paying more than your other job?"
"I'm not sure yet to be honest." Shirou answered her, reaching the entryway of the dining quarters. "After you." He stepped aside for her, gesturing for her to walk in.
"Comes with the territory, huh, Emiya-kun?" Rin quipped at him with a sly grin before turning away from him to enter the dining room. Of course, upon setting her sights on the individual sitting at the table so smugly, hands folded on her lap, conversing with Saber, Rin Tohsaka found that her legs would not budge any further. Her mind pushed all of the thoughts that had been occupying her mind into the trash and began the process of putting two and two together. First, Shirou comes late to the house four days ago. He tells her that the reason he was unable to come at the originally scheduled time was due to being held up by someone. This someone might have been Luviagelita Edelfelt. No, scratch that, it was Luviagelita Edelfelt. Okay, moving on. Shirou was mysteriously absent to their usual lunch period together the following day. She decided that it was nothing of consequence, that maybe Issei had kept him busy with an errand in the student council meeting room again, but that wasn't the case was it? He was with Luviagelita Edelfelt, wasn't he? The reason he came back home late that evening was not because of Neko-san keeping him in for extra hours of work, nooooo, he was having his interview with Luviagelita Edelfelt. He just told her that in the hall, didn't he? That would also mean that his trip with Mitsizuri Ayako to the gorcery store might have been a lie to cover up for his clandestine activities, which would explain the archery captain's appearance at the school roof the following afternoon to muscle in on their private lunch periods. Ayako scratches shirou's back, he scratches her back, huh? It all makes sense now. So that evening Shirou, once again, was not at Neko-san's store. He was working for someone else that evening. He was working with the enemy, and that same night he returned and lied about it to her face; lied about everything.
"Um...Rin?" Shirou called her name in a small voice when she didn't move. He thought about reaching out and tapping her, but the moment he lifted his hand to carry out the action he felt a strong force of darkness emanate from Rin. It was so chilling that the young Emiya couldn't stop his hand from trembling as he let it fall to his side. This aura, it was killing intent, wasn't it? Oh dear, was Rin going to slaughter everyone in the room? Was she going to kill him first?
"No, Rin..." The lovely magus whispered to herself, taking in a long breath before letting it out slowly. "Calm down...calm down." She shook her head and wiggled her fingers, counting back from ten. When she was done crushing the feeling of fury that had almost taken control of her she managed to bring a smile to her face, a fake one, but a smile nonetheless. At that moment Luviagelita stopped talking to Saber, somehow becoming aware that someone else had entered the room, and slowly turned her head to see Rin standing in front of the entryway.
She returned Rin's strained smile.
"Hello, Rin." Luvia greeted her rival in a cool, friendly voice. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"
"Luvia." Rin bowed her head in greeting, speaking in the same exact tone of voice that the other girl had. "Words have never been so true."
The rest of the occupants of the house all blinked at this fascinating interaction and could only find one word to describe what they were thinking at that very moment. "Huh?"
LUVIAGELITA, ROUTE ONE-NORMAL END