Sorry for publishing the same chapter again, but the story wasn't showing up for me, acted like it's been deleted and other strange things... Hope it will work just fine now.

Chapter 10: Scars

In which the answers are given.

Gilgamesh traced his fingers over lines of cicatrices that covered Rider's entire forearms. They screamed 'a master bowman' from miles away - a cost of using the celestial weapon at full power. The king wondered, why he hadn't noticed the scars before.

"This is why you normally wear those white gloves?"

"Partially," Arjuna replied in a sleepy voice. "I don't like the feeling of getting my hands dirty."

Gilgamesh laughed at loud at this explanation. What a funny thing to say right after dirtying those hands, mouth and pretty much any other body part few times over. Rider absorbed so much of his Master's magical energy, that his entire form reeked of it, screaming 'Gilgamesh's property' to every spiritual beeing in range.

"Are you satisfied now, my king? With the way your punishment has been executed?" Although Rider was very polite, his Master could still feel snarkiness or even a challenge in his questions - a clear sign that the toy was far from breaking. "Will you now accept me as your Servant?"

"I'll think about it," Gilgamesh teased, getting up to a sitting position on the edge of the bed. The results of his magical experiment were rather disappointing. Rider's Noble Phantasm stopped working after the connection between them, the so-called bond of a Master and Servant, reached its maximum capacity. Arjuna probably benefited from it more than his king, although borrowing the sharp eyes and focus of 'the foremost bowman' could be useful sometimes. Gilgamesh also suspected that, if he only pushed the strings of magic a bit harder, he could grasp something more, but wasn't yet ready for it. "Once tamed, even the mightiest of beasts lose what makes them interesting."

"Like your favorite lion?"

"That beast is not really tamed. It can go away, whenever it wants."

"Yet chooses to stay."

Gilgamesh threw at Arjuna an angry gaze over his shoulder, not liking this kind of insinuations. Hadn't this thing learned its place yet?

But the king found no provocation in his Servant's eyes this time. There was some kind of softness and silent acceptance in Arjuna's silhouette, with already dry hair scattered freely on the pillows and body still wrapped in their shared warmth in the sheets. If Rider was a 'real' mortal woman, Gilgamesh would probably take a while to admire the view. It served as a testament of conquest, to boost his already gigantic ego even further.

"You seemed disappointed just a moment ago, my king. May I ask, why?"

His Master huffed, wondering why he even bothered to answer.

"That Noble Phantasm of yours seems useful for a harlot, not a warrior."

"It's just a symbol." To Gilgamesh's surprise, Arjuna laughed. "A shortcut of sorts. Or something like a key to your treasury, my king. Some weapons have restrictions, special conditions that must be fulfilled to unleash their full power. I am an old, strong spirit, much stronger than most Servants. But only when my lord is with me and the battle is righteous, I become undefeated."

"It's not a real strength then. Truly powerful do not depend on anyone but themselves."

Even if Arjuna had a different opinion on this matter, he remained silent. He was not in a suicidal mood at the moment, so he kept everything to himself. And there was a lot of secrets to hide, because he saw it all.

He saw the golden-haired boy, who was always polite to his elders and worshipped the gods. Until he learned about his destiny, about the real reasons behind his making, about plans for him the gods had made without caring for nonsense like consent or free will.

Rider did not support or tried to justify Gilgamesh's wrongdoings and the harm he caused to others in his frustration, but he understood it pretty well. If Arjuna hadn't been blessed by a big and loving family, just left alone with a task too great for anyone else to bear, wouldn't he have become the same? Wouldn't his 'darker side' took him over with all its might in such circumstances?

He saw more, even things he could not understand yet. The White Titan amidst the destruction. The blade, that could end all creation. The horned, winged primordial mother, singing for her children in the flood of black mud. New gods and unstoppable beasts. Was it past, future or just some of the countless unlimited possibilities, from this and other worlds?

More importantly, was Gilgamesh tormented by such visions on a daily basis?

Trying hard to not show anything, let alone pity, which would most likely mean instant death, to the king, Arjuna wondered, what was his role in this grotesque spectacle. He was a hero from the past, so his story should inspire the next generations...

But, if the connection and shared knowledge between a Servant and his Master worked both ways, wasn't too late for that? If Gilgamesh had already seen Arjuna's true face... What was inspiring in a story of a person, who hesitated to perform his duty in the most important moment, and ended up broken by his own, too perfect image?

Filled with unexpected anxiety - what exactly had Gilgamesh seen about him? - Rider asked a seemingly casual question:

"Do you have any tasks for me, my king? There must be something I can help with."

Despite Rider's efforts, Gilgamesh could feel the nervousness of his Servant and had a lot of fun guessing, what disturbed him this much. And the king had seen many interesting things from the past as well.

There was so much love, Gilgamesh wanted to vomit. Love for family and friends. For his gods, teachers and elders. For women and children in general. For humans, wildlife and all the things that grow.

What kind of idiocy was that? Did this fool try to become a new beast of humanity?

During his first battle, after realizing how effortlessly he could vanquish common soldiers, this jerk refused to fight anyone weaker than him (Gilgamesh could actually respect that, if it was a display of pride, not pity!). Then he got banished, just because he helped an old man. He even submitted to a woman, so she wouldn't kill herself. And every time he followed 'a selfish desire', he got instantly punished, if not by the divine, then by himself.

Just how stupid one person could be? And how such utter idiot became this strong?

Now that endless stream of foolishness was pulsing in Gilgamesh's veins as well. Luckily, there was no way he, the greatest of kings, a perfect entity from the very beginning, could be changed or corrupted by something like this.

Still, it was... annoying.

Gilgamesh smirked, thinking of a new way to tease Rider. If he really needed someone to order him around...

"I haven't released you from your duties, you will serve during my meals, whenever I'm in the palace. As for the rest - he made a dramatic pause, for better effect - do what the hell you want!"

Arjuna blinked, staring like an idiot at the back of his Master, walking away towards the exit. It was a command, no doubt about it. The king did not ignore or dismiss him, the way he said it seemed enough for a proof, that it WAS an order.

Rider sighed painfully, wishing he could just melt into the pillows. How he hated this man for embarrassing him this much, for leading him into temptation! On the other hand...

Such command could be interpreted as a sign of trust, couldn't it? Arjuna would be grateful, he really wanted to be... if he only knew, what to do with this unexpected freedom.