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The following is a fan-based
FICTION
F/SN, F/Z, F/KPI and other products related to the Fate Series are all owned by TYPE-MOON, Kinoko Nasu and Takashi Takeuchi.
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Chapter 6: Sticky Situations
Lessons were going great.
Maybe I was being a bit too optimistic in that regard since there were still some kids that were presenting trouble with the homework, with Tatsuko still among them. The blonde mentioned with a bit of a smile on her face that her father had taken her to speak with a nice lady and that they would play a lot while also doing homework. I could tell that the man had taken the advice I gave him seriously, and I could tell that whatever was happening with the therapist was just doing good for the girl due to her increased attention during lessons.
She would scribble down notes on keywords, adding some words she didn't know about so she could ask me once the lesson was over and then enjoy chatting with Illya and others when there were breaks between classes. Likewise, Illya showed no issues with her grades or behavior at school, thus eliminating any possible issues in that regard. No, I had no legitimate concern for my class with how they were going considering things were pretty standards. No bullies, no one perceived the weight of the homework being too much on them, and I could tell the grades were growing to a higher level thanks to the intense attention I was provided for each problematic individual in the large group of students.
Things were doing pretty great and... then something odd unfolded. The day was turning to an end, a tired smile plastered on my face as I was confident that I wasn't going to deal with any surprises with Caren and the kids since they all had left to get back home. It was going to rain and... truth be told, I forgot to bring an umbrella. I just didn't get the news until I was already at school. I could handle it with the work bag as it wouldn't be the first time I used a bag of that kind as a shield from the weather, so I didn't expect much of a hassle about it. Yet, I was surprised when, as I entered the teachers' lounge to get the last things I needed to get back to my flat, I realized that someone had left a rectangular box on my desk.
...What's that?
I paused for a moment over the bizarre box, eyeing it suspiciously as I thought it was something from Caren. I slowly picked up the piece of paper sitting on top of its lid, calmly unfolding the thing and revealing the few lines written on it.
Things have taken a different turn of events. Please, accept this gift as a tool to help you if it becomes necessary for some extra intervention.
-KZS~.
Are you kidding?! What is this all about? What does he mean with that? And what's inside it?
Knowing now that it wasn't Caren's work, I carefully moved to check what this 'gift' was all about. The very moment I moved the lid, I spotted a very defining detail that stunned me. I was greeted by a wand- no, a 'Magical Stick'. A kaleidostick. I, reasonably so, jumped away and took a protective stance, expecting it to 'attack' me. Memories of how Ruby behaved were good enough reason to expect some crazy stuff from this kind of tool but... why? Why did I get one? Also, why didn't this one look remotely close to either Sapphire and Ruby? The staff was white instead of the classic blue or red, while the wings on the side were replaced by silvery axe-like edges.
Before I could say anything about it, the staff suddenly floated out of the box and... 'stared' at me.
"Greetings, John Bukharin."
... "Hello?"
"I'm glad to see that your surprise didn't remove the means to speak as I would have expected. Alas, apologies for the rude 'arrival', my Master just didn't observe the proper behavior to deliver me."
"It's not like... he is known to do better on other occasions."
"Indeed, but I believe you're still worried about what my presence entails in your current predicament. From what my Master mentioned, you are aware of the general circumstances, but not of the precise purpose you have within this city."
I frowned, only now realizing that I didn't exactly get that memo. "Not really... what about it? Zelrech actually gave me a role that I'm not aware of?"
"Technically yes, your presence is dictated by circumstances tied to the timeline being polluted by troublesome matters," The sentient Mystic Code explained. "My role is to aid you keep the timeline stable as events beyond previous predictions are unfolding."
"Bad events?"
"Mostly yes," The Kaleidostick confirmed. "Alas, I believe I forgot to introduce myself."
I nodded and the stick got a bit closer.
"I'm Kaleidostick Quartz, and I shall be your companion during these trying times."
...Oh well, I don't exactly mind this Kaleidostick if he can provide some assistance without being weird about it.
"I guess we're indeed buddies until this situation is solved, Quartz. So... I suppose you can help me with a few things if those aren't exactly too extreme to ask, right?"
"I suppose I can, yes."
I smelled an opportunity and I went on with it.
"Can you... temporarily turn in an umbrella?"
At his nod, I felt relieved as I finally moved to leave the school with some protection from the current rain. Humming jovially and making sure to not move the sentient umbrella around too much, I began my walk to the exit and then back home. Obviously, I should have realized early on that it wasn't as simple as many would have expected it to be. Just as I managed to walk up to the entrance, I was met with a familiar figure. One that had been waiting for a while just for me.
"Good afternoon, John," Caren greeted politely, blocking the entrance for me. "Terrible weather."
I frowned. "Caren... and yes. Quite dreadful."
"I see you have an umbrella," The girl pointed out. "It's sad to admit but... I forgot to bring one."
...Fuck.
Of course my moment of glory would become my own undoing somehow. To my relief, Quartz kept quiet during the whole ordeal but... Caren definitely knew what buttons to press. After all, one thing was saying that we weren't dating since we weren't, another was trying to deny the fact I refused a seemingly normal individual the means to go back home without getting wet under the rain. It definitely made things worse that Caren was a girl, that she was alone, and that my refusal could have caused her many issues if things turned for the worst. Improbable, but not completely impossible.
...
I was screwed, but at least I had a witness in case things got too insane. And for some reason, that crazy scenario I had in mind didn't come to happen. The worst bit was how tightly Caren held onto me. Her chest just slammed onto my arm and kept pressing onto it as firmly as possible. She was really putting an effort to make the whole walk uncomfortable, especially with how quiet she was through the whole path.
One would think she would say or do anything, something to make things worse for me. Yet the girl found another way to leave me uneasy. She remained quiet through the whole ordeal, merely glancing, teasing with those quick looks and then leaving me confused through the whole event. As I brought her back to the church, she just turned to look at me for a bit longer and went for it.
Before I could say anything, I felt lips on my check dropping a quick peck before the girl bolted from my side and... I was incredibly perplexed.
"Her heart rate increased considerably when she kissed you. I believe that she is quite taken by you."
I shook my head. "That ain't good news, Quartz."
"Truly?"
"Yep."
I walked away from that area as quickly as possible, shaking my head at that circumstance and making my way back to my flat. I had so much to think about between my newest 'friend' and what Caren was trying to do with that passive approach, and yet I could tell, deep inside, that today was far from over. Which was odd to think about considering that once I was at home, I should be able to prevent any issues in that regard.
Turns out that I was wrong. Big time.
Just as I walked into the flat from the front door, I noticed two elements were off. One, there was a pair of shoes that weren't mine at the entrance and... I could hear someone in my bathroom. I expected many terrible things. Could it be that Caren had somehow gotten inside and plotted some surprise at my return? A bit absurd due to the timing, I know, but I was expecting a lot from that nun-turned-nurse. Just as I walked into the living room and marched towards the bathroom with no good intentions, I was greeted to a sight I genuinely didn't expect.
Humming cheerfully, a certain brunette of the teaching kind stopped in front of me, her gaze widened as a blush burned onto her face. Taiga gawked at my standing there, her shock evident, but not as much as mine when I realized that she had planned to leave the bathroom without a towel to cover herself. Her curves were just pleasant to look at, her kendo training really made her lean and muscular in some bits, but I was the most surprised when I noticed she was shaved clean down below.
"Y-You-"
I looked away, taking a seat by the table, closing my eyes and sighing as I stared at the table's surface.
"Can you please cover yourself?"
There was silence at first, maybe the shock born from both the development and my reaction to it. Then Taiga moved back to the bathroom, picking up some of her clothes and tensely walked back up to me, sitting by the chair close to mine. She looked ready to say something, anything to justify what happened, but the young woman was just unable to speak up. I bet she was too embarrassed to make the first move and... I decided to take that bullet.
"I'm not angry. I understand that you were just trying to keep yourself warm since you came here without an umbrella," I said, even though I was miffed she did keep herself warm by using my bath without permission. "I'm just confused as to why you did that."
That seemed to be the push she needed as Taiga nodded and then sighed. "Did my grandfather send you an intimidating message about me?"
...Oh? She knew?
"Yes," I flatly replied, and the girl groaned before facepalming.
"I'm really sorry. It's just that Gramps can be so protective it gets stupid and... and I'm assure you he is not a bad person."
The fact he is the big Yakuza boss of the area, I reckon that's a bit of a lie.
I nodded. "Okay."
"A-And I wanted to ask if... that's why you... you know, you didn't reply to my attempts. You know, about-"
"Going out with me?" I guessed and Taiga, blushing again, nodded.
"Y-Yeah."
...
"I reckon that's part of the reason, but not the overall motivation."
She blinked, sporting a surprised look on her face. "Just a part?"
"Let me ask you this, Taiga-san... how frequently do you check the local pub and drink yourself into a big hangover the next morning?"
Her lips twitched, an awkward look on her face. "A lot."
"I understand that you do that because you like to drink but also because not many people are free to hang out with you, right?"
Her head lowered, her shoulders sagged. "...That's true."
I pinched my nose's side and... I pondered about it. I could tell this was a very tedious circumstance. I found myself from a very awkward animesque situation down to a tense moment about a big flaw about the brunette.
"Well, why don't you just ask me if I'm free and we can... I don't know. Go to friendly hang outs together?"
Her attention perked at that. "What?"
"I'm just saying that we could go out as friends, enjoy time together without having no reason to go for a romantic situation."
"...And?"
"And you have a reason to not spend time at the pubs since you would be around doing other things."
"I-I still like to drink-"
"But that doesn't mean that you should start an unhealthy habit about it. You should know alcohol isn't something you can drink so frequently at those quantities."
Taiga lowered her head again. "I guess that's bad. Yeah..."
"Well, that's all I can say. I believe you genuinely have no big flaw beyond the fact that the alcohol situation is going to be detrimental to yourself. Let me ask you this, Taiga-san, would it be too difficult for you to try going out with a friend?"
"Are... Are you calling me a friend?" She asked back, almost surprised by this very detail.
"I think so? I mean, didn't we go out while Caren was around. I think I didn't give you a reason to not think that, likewise, I didn't find you abrasive."
Much to my intrigue, she smiled at that, as if I had told her something important that I wasn't picking up on the spot.
"I see and... I guess that wouldn't be bad. You know, hanging out, drinking less and... having fun."
"Yeah," I muttered as Taiga's mood suddenly soared for some unexplainable reason.
Soon the girl left with one of my spare umbrellas, mentioning that she would give it back to me the next day. I saw no issue with that, but I was left a bit perplexed by the overall mood swing she showed during the last few minutes of our conversation. I just could tell this wasn't something I should be ignoring. Even though Quartz's arrival notified me that the situation had taken a more serious turn about my presence here in Fuyuki.
Something malicious just lurked around somewhere in this city...
AN
Caren makes her play, Taiga is back in the ring, and Kaleidostick get!
I will drop a few hints about the reason why things have turned 'serious' in Fuyuki. All this unwarranted dimensional-traveling from the Ainsworth-ruled dimensions had caused a few cracks around and... some cheeky individuals are using those to bail their original verses. Next up is a wholesome chapter with a final bit promising an action scene. The first 'boss' comes up!
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