I do not own Fate/Stay Night nor any other Servants depicted here.
Sunday
The boy looked down. The sword had impaled through, pinning him against something. It felt cold; he could feel the cold air filling in the empty space that was opened up to it. Then, it was pulled out, the jagged edge tearing him a bit more before exiting.
"SHIROU!" shouted Saber as he collapsed against her. She lowered herself down, carefully cradling him in her arms, unable to believe what he had just done.
The others stared, unmoving, paralyzed in shocked silence. All except Berserker, whose gaze looked down unfeelingly at the unconscious boy.
"Enough... Berserker," said Illya, finally breaking the silence. She hopped down the lower ridge and walked past everyone; the Mad Servant returned the blades to his back, the chains magically detaching, his aura of rage slowly dying down as the seconds ticked by. She stopped for a moment to glance behind her. "Why are all of you so boring? Please do better when I kill you next time," she mock scolded them, her voice playful, as if undisturbed by what she had just witnessed. "Bye bye," she said as she turned around and walked off, her Servant walking behind her for a moment before fading out of sight, presumably shifting to spirit form.
Slowly, the other two Masters stepped slowly towards the downed boy, as if hoping that it wasn't true. Hoping that the wound was not that terrible, even though in reality the knew it was. And yet, much to their surprise, they found the horrendous wound was slowly closing up. Saber mirrored their amazement as she looked up to them. Their silence continued as Rider and Archer gingerly walked up to them, Assassin coming up behind them.
"Well, that's a first," Rider said, breaking the silence as the wound finally sealed itself up, "Who would've known he could do that?"
"I know one thing. I'm quite relieved he is out of harms way... for now at least," said Luvia, that feeling of distress fading away from her face.
"If you would have secured him in the first place, none of this would have happened," Rin verbally jabbed her, inwardly also feeling relief.
"Oh shut up, you idiot Tohsaka. I already told you he ran off before I could!" the blonde retorted, half shouting at her rival.
"If you two are quite done, we should transport him to his house for the sake of his recovery," said Assassin, immediately drawing everyone to the main point.
"Fine. I don't suppose you can help me carry him, Edelfelt?" asked the black haired magus as she knelt down next to the boy.
"... Of course I can help. What do you take me for, Rin?" the blonde said a little reluctantly, following suit. She didn't really want to help her... but then again, this is Shirou they are helping. Saber then turned him over to them and got to her feet.
"You know, I'm surprised you decided to show up, Assassin," Rider said as the Servant's watched as the two girls picked up the boy and putting his arms over their shoulders. Saber turned to look at the Servant with the black skull mask.
"Like I said earlier, my Master has some interest in the boy... it is on my Master's orders to make sure he stays alive," he explained, if only just to put Saber at ease, "I will not harm the boy, Saber. That is all I can tell you." His words placated her somewhat, but she did not let down her guard.
"We should go. They are already leaving," informed Archer, inwardly feeling somewhat uncomfortable with the new development. All he could do now is just to wait for a more opportune time and hopefully able to take the advantage and strike quickly, however slim it may be.
Of course, the fact that they had to transport this guy back to his house did not stop the two girls from hissing out jabs to each other.
"Welcome back, Tamin."
The small weasel squealed in reply as it scampered over to Caster, grabbing at her fingers. She smiled and dropped a small strip of raw meat, at which it caught and gulped it down in a flash. It then scampered over to stare at the stern looking man seated opposite her.
"What have you discovered?" Kuzuki asked as he watched the familiar scamper between both of them a few times before grabbing at her fingers again.
"That the War may not be as easy as I had thought," she said with a slight tinge of boredom she let the little weasel amuse itself, scampering around the table. It calmed her down, seeing it behave that way. "Still, it could be worse," she then said after a moment of watching, "To the very least, I am better able to prepare a suitable welcome should I ever need to face them."
"Hmm, if you do not require my presence any longer, then I shall take my leave," he said as he stood up and bowed before leaving the room, closing the sliding doors.
She pause a moment before saying, "Alright, Tamin, you had your fun. Time to go." The weasel looked at her and squealed again before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
"Well, that took a lot out of them," commented Rider, looking over the two girls. After having carried the boy all the way back to the house... after having cleaned and bandaged the wound... after having put him to bed... they sat in the living room, their heads on the table, both fast asleep.
Archer said nothing; he merely sat on the roof, keeping lookout.
"I, for one, am grateful for the help," said Saber. She had dismissed her armor, revealing an ordinary blue dress. However, Rin had told her that it would stand out too much as such a style was out of place and said that she would produce a more suitable substitute for her to wear when morning comes.
"Then I must inform you that I must depart when the sun rises," informed Assassin, looking at the other two, "I will have to inform my Master of the night's developments."
"That's fine. I'm sure we can handle it without you around," assured the Servant of the Mount with a grin.
"I have no doubt about that," the skull faced Servant stated as he turned to look outside, "With four Servants under the same roof, for now at least, the other Servants will find it very hard to attack this place."
And everything fell back to silence.
Power...
He tossed to the left.
... requires...
He tossed to the right.
... sacrifice...
He bolted upright, drawing in a sharp breath. His breathing became hurried and rapid, and then became slower the calmer he became. He had been hearing voices in his dreams, whisperings of greatness and promises of power. At first, he thought it was just that. Dreams. But continuously getting the same dreams over the span of two weeks? It cannot be a coincidence. It also made him think quite a bit. Should he listen to the voices? Should he say yes? Such things could greatly benefit his family... and he need not rely on his sister's help. He can make it on his own. He could show the secret side of the world that his family's name can once more... no, not that far. Perhaps once he refined this new power to his own needs, he would. If he chose to seek the one that promises such thing. With this thought in mind, he rose from his bed and prepared for the morning.
Downstairs, he met his sister who was just about to leave.
"Ah, good morning, nii-san," greeted Sakura before opening the door, "I will be getting Fujimura-sensei before going to school with her. I will see you there.
Shinji watched her close the door. He closed his eyes and frowned. He disliked this. His sister was to be the Matou Head. She was willing to give that to him after winning the War. But he was a man; a young one, but still a man. He should be the Head. He did not need her help. He will strike out on his own and restore the family name. Opening his eyes, he made his decision.
"Well, it definitely suits you, Saber," said Rin as the Servant stepped into the living room, now dressed in a white shirt, blue skirt and a blue ribbon round her collar. The girl herself was seated at the table, slowly sipping on tea she had prepared for herself.
"You have my thanks, Rin," she thanked the twin tailed magus, looking satisfied with the clothes, "With this, I can at least stay near Shirou without arousing suspicion." Yet, noticing that she seemed a little distracted, the Servant asked, "What troubles you, Rin?"
"... it's Noel. She never said when and where she wants to meet everyone," she said after a thoughtful pause.
"Noel? You mean... the previous Archer?" asked Saber.
"Yes," she affirmed without hesitation. Focusing on Saber, she then queried, "What could she know that may put the War into question?"
Saber was silent, inwardly mulling over what she knew from that time. "Maybe it was Caster," she suggested. When asked about it, she explained, "It was something Caster said before he met his demise. Something about change requiring his death... I know not what he speaks off, but everyone assumed that with his death, whatever he was trying to accomplish died with him. Perhaps... Noel... discovered something. Something important enough that requires our utmost attention."
"... Maybe. Still, we may never find out unless she shows up," Rin said after some thought.
"Do not worry yourself, Rin," the Servant told her, "Eventually, she will come." After a pause, she continued, "If you do not mind, I shall acquaint myself with the house."
The girl nodded absentmindedly as the Servant took her leave, still pondering over her words. The Caster of the Fourth War, huh... Eventually, she concluded, "Too many questions and far too few answers. I do hope she shows up soon."
"Eh, what are you doing here?"
She looked up and much to her surprise, though her face didn't show too much of it, Shirou was standing in the doorway.
"Oh, good morning, Emiya-kun," she greeted calmly, "I hope you don't mind. I let myself in without your permission."
Wordlessly, he came in and took a seat at the table, still having that puzzled look on his face.
"Why are you here?" he asked after a moment.
"Before I answer that, I would like an apology... well, you owe me and Edelfelt this, but I would like mine first," she told him with a straight face.
His puzzlement intensified; he stared at her for a moment before lifting his shirt a bit, revealing his bandaged torso. Letting it go, he then scratched his head a moment before his eyes went wide. "... how... how did I survive that?"
"Oh, so you do remember," she said with a huff, "Please think back on that stupid thing you did last night."
"What? But I couldn't think of anything else to do," he quickly protested, "I mean, if you look at the results, yes it was stupid. But I was going to pull her out of the way, not get in the way. So, no, I didn't do anything wrong."
She sighed and moved to rub her forehead a bit. "Have you forgotten what we told you? That Saber will disappear if you die?" she asked, truly wondering if he had already forgotten that fact.
"Good morning... eh, Shirou, you're awake?" asked Luvia as she suddenly came in, shocking the young man once more. She quickly sat down at the table and asked him with a polite smile, "Well, how are you today?"
Rin sighed again and said, "Great, now she's here... alright, since we are both present, please do what you have to do and get it over with." I rather not be here in the same room with her right now.
With that the smile melted away. "Oh, hmm... I see... you're right, Rin," she repeated after a moment of thought, and then she looked straight at him, "You should apologize. You made us worry the entire night."
Shirou's face was filled with surprise and understanding. "Ah... oh... erm... I'm sorry? And... thank you for helping me out," he apologized gratefully as he bowed his head to both of them.
Silence filled the room for that moment, until Rin spoke up again, "I guess I can accept that."
"I can actually agree with that," echoed Luvia, a bit begrudgingly for agreeing with her rival.
"Now that the matter has been settled, let us move on to something else," the Tohsaka announced, taking charge of the discussion.
"What else exactly?" asked the Edelfelt, "Unless you intend to bring up what you said last night... before the altercation with Berserker."
"It is," the former told her, "While I don't know fully what Ar... Noel... Mackenzie-san intends to tell us, she needs to tell as many of the Masters she could meet. So far the number is only at three, four if we can get Assassin's Master to join us. Miss Einzbern probably wouldn't join us... not after last night... so that leaves Caster and Lancer."
"Indeed, so far those two are still a mystery to us," added the latter, "As of yet, we haven't been able to glean any information about them."
"Umm, about Lancer..." started Shirou, looking a little unsure as he raised his hand. With both girls now looking at him, he said, "Ah, Lancer was the one that attacked me... and... she was a little weird..."
"Oh, right, Lancer attacked you, didn't she," stated Rin, suddenly remembering the reason she rushed over here in the first place the previous night, "Wait, she?"
"Er, yeah. She... well, the armor she wore gave off that impression," explained the boy haltingly, trying to remember the specifics of last night's encounter with that Servant, "She was fully armored, and... and her spear sounded like it was humming or something..."
"A humming spear? Fully armored? That doesn't sound like anything I know," muttered Luvia as she tapped her chin with her finger in thought, "Must be some obscure legend of sorts. But to be able to be summoned, she must have done something of significance..."
"Even so... I think we should put her down as hostile for the moment, until we at least know who her Master is," said the Tohsaka magus, giving her word for caution.
The other two nodded in agreement. It was then another voice interjected.
"Shirou?" sounded Saber as she stepped into view.
"...Oh, Saber," replied Shirou, at first surprised and awed for a moment when he laid eyes on her, but then becoming happy and relieved at her presence, "You've recovered."
"It may seem so, but..." she stopped talking after noticing the other two that were still present, not wanting to let her status be known to the other Master's. "Shirou, I must have a word with you," she finally said, "Please, come with me."
"Ah... sure," he said in surprise. Turning back to the other two, he said before bowing slightly, "Please, excuse me for a moment."
"Hn, I was going to bring up Berserker next, but I suppose it could wait," muttered Rin.
"Oh, let Shirou and Saber have their time. We could continue later," replied Luvia, in a somewhat happy mood.
"I suppose she's right... Later then..."she mulled over before deciding to go back home. She had a few things to pick up.
Lancer was perplexed. Meditation... Divining the future... she had never experienced doing such things under... relatively peaceful circumstances. The Warp here still churned, but it was not as harsh as her time was. Then again, it was most likely due to the lesser psychic imprint that these old Mon-Keigh had. Not that it bothered her much. The Warp being... less perilous... did not sway her from her caution. But it wasn't this that puzzled her so. No, her conundrum was of a different kind.
"It is most disturbing," she would mutter as she retrieved her runes and returned them to their case., "It should not be possible in these times. In this battleground, no less. And yet, here it exists."
It told her of the presence of Chaos.
When it had taken hold, she could not tell. But it is here. It may be weak now, but if it should use this so called War to its benefit, the consequence may be disastrous. So far, it seemed to be resistant to her scrying, but she has to maintain her persistence. For this world will fall if she did not and Chaos will have gained a foothold in the Materium. And as much as she disdained these Mon-Keigh, falling to corruption is something she will not wish on anyone or anything.
The sound of cooking came from the kitchen as Shirou busied himself with dinner preparations. Meanwhile, Saber and Rin were seated at the table.
"Are your plans from now on determined, Rin?" asked the Servant first, putting a stop to the silence between them.
"No... I believe all my plans have to be put on hold," the twin tailed magus admitted after a pause, "I believe we discussed such things earlier."
"That was not what I had meant," the former refuted, "I meant of our alliance. Shirou, you and Luvia."
She stared at her for a moment before muttering, "Of course she would do this behind my back..." Focusing back on Saber, she continued, "I suppose Luvia said something of the sort this afternoon?"
"Indeed. It was just before she left the house," Saber informed her.
"... And alliance is not out of the question, considering that Berserker and Illyasviel are after us," she said after a pause, "I was going to propose it myself after having settled my house beforehand. We will have to discuss the terms before finalizing it... when all parties are present, of course."
"Of course," agreed Saber.
She then tilted her head and tapped her chin with her finger in thought. "Still... no matter what the outcome, we have to prepare for when Berserker and Illyasviel seek us out," she stated, "I could have Archer keep watch on the roof. And this house has a Boundary Field that detects intruders, so our defenses are perfect. Although... I have no idea how Rider could contribute." Then, she frowned, "Looks like I will be asking Edelfelt... ugh..."
"Erm, Tohsaka, I didn't know how much to prepare as I only had enough for three, so..." Shirou informed them as he set down a large tray filled with food that he had prepared.
Rin blinked in puzzlement for a moment and then said, "Are you worried about her? Don't. She probably has a fleet of servants and chefs and what not at her beck and call, so I shouldn't be too concerned about her dinner if I were you."
"Uh, sure..." he muttered while looking at her strangely, returning to the kitchen for the rest of the dishes.
Shinji walked through the streets at a slow pace. He had just finished dinner and so was wandering aimlessly... or so it would seem to anyone who spared a glance at him. He was seeking something, yet he didn't know what it was. The voices from his dreams were vague at some times and spouted off unintelligible nonsense at other times.
"Stupid voices," he grumbled under his breath, "What is the point of searching when I have no idea where or what to look for... perhaps, this is just something futile and dreams are just dreams." And then he stopped.
He did not know how far he had walked, but it seemed like he had veered way off the more frequented streets for this one. To his left... was the central park. The center of the conflagration ten years ago. People steered away from this area, leaving it empty and unused. The houses nearest to this place were also abandoned, the former complaining of odd sounds and haunting lights. There were many local rumors of ghosts and spirits that led to gaining the reputation of a haunted park. The more rational ones talked about a small group of homeless taking up residence in the park. Police tried to follow up on that but to no avail, as there never seemed to be any indication of people living there, homeless or otherwise.
"I never noticed where I was going until now... Was I directed here?" he wondered, unable to decided whether to go in or not. The choice was made for him.
A rather untidy and dirty man suddenly brushed past him. He started to shout and raise his hand against that idiotic beggar when that person turned around. Shinji froze in his tracks when he fell under the glassy gaze. His eyes... they had a tint of purple or red in them. The man sluggishly motioned him to follow and then continued to trudge forward into the dark woods. He could only stare for a moment more before breaking out of his stupor and following suit.
Dinner was a rather subdued affair. Shirou seemed a little uncomfortable with the presence of the other two, Rin a lot more than Saber. With the latter making sounds of approval every time she took a bite, the former seemed to be smirking to herself as she ate. And when they were almost done...
"My... you seem quite slow, Rin," chided Luvia as she threw open the door to the living room, the sliding door clicking to the side as it stopped. Her entrance pretty much startled the young man, coming very close to choking.
"Ugh... -gulp- will you stop that? We're still eating here, Edelfelt," the Tohsaka retorted after hastily swallowing her morsel. She glared at the enemy magus, now dressed in a long blue dress that looked beautifully made. White gloves and socks completed her outfit.
"Ah... my apologies," the newcomer haltingly said, only looking sorry after noticing the redheaded young man nearby.
"Rin, since she is now present, we should finish dinner," stated Saber, looking over to her as she paused eating, "We can then discuss the terms of our alliance."
Bazett ran through the deserted streets. "Damn it, Lancer, why wont you tell me anything?" she grumbled inwardly. It happened again. Her Servant suddenly leaving the house without warning or notice. She had grabbed her things and ran out of the manor, only pausing to lock up. She could still sense her Servant, but she was quick, moving out of range of her senses. It was only nearing the brightly lit part of town that she seemed to slow down. The Enforcer slowed down as well, in order not to attract attention to herself. Once again, that perplexing feeling arose within her.
"Why do I have this feeling that things are getting out of my control?" she wondered as she traced her Servants steps to a mysteriously dark, wooded park, "It shouldn't be like this, I'm the Master here. Why doesn't she listen?"
She quickly made her way inside, in search of Lancer.
Dinner was finished quickly. The discussion was even more brief. Luvia did agree on having Archer taking post on the roof. And then she added, "Still, I doubt we could do anything if Berserker should show up." Getting nods from all round, she then suggested, "So, if he does, Rider can help to distract him while we flee to safety."
"Eh? Is he alright with this?" asked Shirou with concern.
"He has no problem with it," assured the Edelfelt heiress.
"You should not worry about him, Emiya. The Rider class are known to have powerful mounts that become their Noble Phantasms," added the Tohsaka heiress.
"Right, let us move on to the next issue," proposed Luvia, "Where will we be living for the days ahead?" Gesturing to herself, "I, have already picked out a room. After this you had better pick one for your own." She smirked, much to the annoyance of the latter.
The twin tailed magus would have snapped a retort had it not been for the doorbell. Everyone turned to the direction of the front door.
"Uhm... I guess I'll go answer it," said the redhead as he got to his feet, "I wonder who would be here..."
"Maybe it's Mackenzie-san," suggested Rin, who was feeling curious, a feeling mirrored by Luvia.
The young man quickly made his way to the front door, the other two following after him to sate their curiosity.
"Eh! Sakura?" exclaimed Shirou.
"Good evening, Senpai," the violet haired girl greeted as she closed the door. Taking off her shoes and placing them in the rack, she stopped when she noticed the other two standing around the corner. "Ah... Tohsaka-senpai, Edelfelt-senpai... wh-what are you doing here?" she asked, acting confused.
Before he could reply, Rin said, "Luvia and I are staying here for the time being." With the other two looking surprised and shocked, she informed, "It was decided today, after Assassin left. I don't suppose you have any problems with it, Sakura?" The girl in question just gaped at her while slowly shaking her head.
Silence.
"What!?" growled the blonde as she glared at her rival, "You... knew... all this time?"
"Sakura...?" muttered Shirou in disbelief.
"S-s-senpai... y-you don't hate me... do you?" the Matou nervously stammered, suddenly remembering who was standing right in front of her. She brought her arms close to her chest, her hands inching nearer to her lips.
"No!" replied the young man, holding on to her shoulders and staring straight at her, "Sakura, I may not fully understand what I got myself into, but I won't hate you just because you are a magus. You are still you, Sakura."
Rin was surprised by this turn of events, while Luvia felt a tinge of jealousy. Shirou and Sakura finally realized the position they were in and quickly separated, both parties blushing lightly.
"Ah..."
The Tohsaka heiress smirked as she sounded a little. She then faux whispered to Luvia, "Edelfelt, I think we should also introduce ourselves to the 'Second Owner' of this house."
"Have you taken leave of your senses, Rin?" asked the blonde rival in puzzlement and annoyance.
"... oh, you mean Sakura?" spoke up the redhead as the meaning suddenly dawned on him.
"Senpai?" squeaked Sakura at his words, suddenly feeling a sense of dread coming from her former sister's smile. Her blushing increased to cover her face.
"No, it does make sense," continued the young man, unaware of the violet haired girl's reaction, "You have been coming over so often to help me that you are like family. Therefore... you could also share ownership of the house with me... ah, I guess I really should have asked you first before letting them stay..."
"That's right," agreed Rin. Turning to the Matou heiress, she said as she bowed slightly, "Our apologies for not announcing ourselves to you. Please take care of us." Luvia copied her, mumbling her words in reluctance, her glare still sent at the Tohsaka. Sakura just stood there blushing, unsure of how to react to her teasing.
"Now that we have done away with the pleasantries, let us continue our discussion," the twin tailed magus announced before heading back to the living room. The Edelfelt heiress followed soon after, leaving the other two behind. The violet haired Master sneaked a glance at the redhead before going after the girls.
Shirou just stood there, wondering what just happened to make his friend blush so much before trailing them. It wasn't him, was it? Suddenly, he could hear Sakura cry out, "NII-SAN!" His walk became a run.
Commentary:-
Welcome back and Happy New Year to you, dear readers! Here is the first chapter of the new year. I hope you find it satisfactory. Now, as we see, its Sunday. A day of rest for most. Yet, these few people have been quite busy. Not in the normal sense either. Chaotic plans are in motion. Shirou has somewhat recovered from his ordeal. All Servant's involved in last night's debacle are recovering as well. A new alliance in the works. More teasing to be conducted as well. My apologies Sakura, but if Rin is the Second Owner of Fuyuki, you are the second owner of Shirou's house.
On a different note... Guilty Gear Xrd. I'll be listening to Heavy Day for writing fight scenes. Dam nice...
Aaaaand... please read and review, would you kindly?