Fate Red/String

Chapter 1: Forbidden Fruit

Taiga knelt by the grave, depositing a fresh bouquet of flowers, and lighting a stick of incense. Next to her was a broom that she'd used to sweep away the last of autumn's leaves. She didn't bother to stand before she started talking.

"I don't know how you did it," she said, a sad smile on her face. "Raising a boy is hard, isn't it? Every day I feel like Shirou is getting further away from me, from the rest of society, but I just can't seem to do anything." She laughed. "I even offered that he joins the Defense Force, you know to let him live his dreams but with a structure that maybe I could control. It was a dumb plan, wasn't it?"

She wasn't expecting an answer, Kiritsugu never answered her. He couldn't answer her. She hadn't sought his advice when alive, only after he was gone had she realized what she was missing. The presence she, and Shirou, had relied on.

So, when there was a shout, Taiga was startled. It was stupid, but her first response was to look at the grave. Had he… There was another shout, to her left. Taiga looked over and saw a woman running between the gravestones. It took her a moment to figure out why she was so panicked. Appearing behind her almost like magic was a masked person. Armed and armored like a mercenary out of an American action movie. A tattered red cape fluttered behind them as they landed on a gravestone and swiped at the woman with a knife. It was pure luck that the woman tripped at that moment, falling away from the knife. That luck ran out as the masked assassin pulled out a gun and calmly aimed it towards the prone woman. The execution was swift and merciless.

With a sharp crack, the gun went flying from the singly focused assassin's hand. "Leave her alone!" The assassin turned to look at Taiga, broom in her hand. She held it like she had her shinai all those years ago. Her weapon came around to the side to strike the assassin solidly in the side. "Do!"

Taiga's broom snapped in half as the assassin toppled off the gravestone they'd been precariously perched on. No cries of pain or surprise, just silent resignation as they fell. Taiga caught a glimpse of cracked body armor but ignored it as she flung away her broken weapon, scooped up the woman in her arms and ran as fast as she could.

The woman let out a cry of surprise, glanced to Taiga and then wrapped her arms around her without saying anything else. This made it easier to carry her, but Taiga suddenly became aware of the woman's surprisingly large chest. She fought down the strange urges and just focused on running. No looking back, just running as fast as she could. Soon enough she was panting heavily, her entire body aching from the burden, but still she kept running. She'd never been so happy that she'd kept going to the gym after leaving the Kendo club.

"Fuji-Nee?" Taiga finally came back to her senses when a familiar voice called out to her. She stopped running, her breath ragged and her body covered in sweat even in the cool winter air. She turned and saw Shirou, broom in hand as he swept outside of the Copenhagen pub. "What are you doing?"

"Just going for a jog," she said, forcing a smile through breaths.

"With a woman in your arms?" Shirou's expression narrowed. "Is something wrong?"

Taiga was unsure how to respond. She didn't want to worry Shirou; he was just a kid after all. A student. She'd be an irresponsible adult to bring him in to this mess, whatever it was. Luckily, the woman spoke up first. "There is nothing to worry about," she said, her voice calm and soothing. Taiga became aware that she was still holding her, pressed tightly against her… "We met when I tripped. I think my ankle is sprained and this kind woman carried me to get help. She might have been a little overzealous though…"

A laugh. "That's Fuji-nee alright." Shirou turned and gestured into the pub. "Why don't you come in and we can get you patched up?"

"That would be wonderful," replied the woman. She smiled at Taiga, and she felt her face burn. "Would you mind carrying me the last of the way, my dear knight?"

"Of course," said Taiga, almost choking on the words. This woman was too much. Was it a good or bad thing that they would probably never meet again?

"Everyone please welcome our new faculty member, School Therapist Sessyoin Kiara." As the Principal finished his speech the faculty clapped. Taiga was delayed half a second as her brain tried to process the woman standing before her with a radiant smile.

"Thank you so much for the warm welcome," said Sessyoin-sensei. "I am truly thrilled to be here and working with such wonderful educators to nurture the minds and souls of our students." That was too much. Taiga needed to look away. Was this woman the Buddha or something? She forced her gaze back and saw golden eyes staring right at her. For half a second, she thought the Boddhisattva smile gave way to something more sinister, hungry…but that must have been her imagination as she blinked, and the woman was once again the picture of a saint. Modest white turtleneck sweater that came halfway down her pantyhose covered legs. Her glasses covered face was the picture of sincerity. Taiga was going to need to discipline the boys in her class if they even dared to throw a lecherous gaze this woman's way. Especially Shinji or Shirou.

"Thank you again for the other day," said Sessyoin-sensei, snapping Taiga out of her thoughts.

"Oh, it's no problem," said Taiga with a laugh. "I'm glad to help. How is your ankle?"

"It's doing much better," said Sessyoin-sensei, twisting her leg slightly to show off the bandage underneath her stockings. Her skirt rose slightly as she did, and Taiga needed to take a deep breath. This woman was dangerous. "I am very surprised to discover that you're a teacher here as well. What a coincidence!"

"Yeah, said Taiga, "but a very nice one. I didn't mark you as the teaching sort."

"Oh? What did you think I was?" asked Sessyoin-sensei with a mischievous smile.

Taiga gulped. "Maybe a mob boss's daughter or granddaughter or something."

"You suspect me of being into crime? Do I really seem that shameless?"

"Not at all," said Taiga quickly. Their gazes met, and it was too much, so she looked down, but the ample chest was also too much, so she looked down further. Nope, the legs were not better. And in heels. "But you'd better be careful. We've got some perverts in these halls."

"Would you be referring to the young man you didn't let bandage up my ankle to other day?"

Taiga met Sessyoin-sensei's gaze, glaring at her. "Of course not! Shirou is an upstanding young man. I'd know, I raised him myself."

A light laugh that made Taiga's skin tingle. "Then he must be upstanding." A devilish smile. "Unless of course the person raising him was a pervert herself. Can you swear to your own morals, Fujimura-sensei?"

"No one is more upstanding than me!" replied Taiga, standing as straight and proud as she could manage.

"With a strike like the other day, I imagine that must be true," said Sessyoin-sensei. "Thank you again for your assistance. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't stepped in."

"You're welcome," said Taiga. She glanced around to find that they were alone in the office, everyone else having left to start their class. A quick glance at the clock showed she was already late for homeroom. Oh well. "Are you sure you'll be okay? It's not like I killed that guy or something. They're probably still coming after you."

Sessyoin-sensei waved her hand dismissively. "I'm sure it will be fine. Just a misunderstanding that has time to be cleared up. Thanks to you. If you ever wish for me to return the favor, you can find me in my office. I'll be glad to reward you."

And with that, Ssessyoin-sensei walked away, her hips swaying as she did. Taiga took another deep breath. What the hell had she gotten involved in?

Taiga was surprised as she was closing the archery range to see Shirou walking in with a mop and bucket. She frowned at him. "What are you doing here? Did you decide to rejoin without telling me?"

He shook his head. "Nope. Shinji just asked me to clean up, and I decided to do it."

Ah. Shinji. Everything clicked in Taiga's mind. That boy had really fallen down a dark path in the last year, so it wasn't a surprise that he was skipping out on his duties as vice president of the Archery club and taking advantage of Shirou's selfless nature. That boy was due one hell of a lecture. But first, educating Shirou was the priority.

"No, you don't," she said, grabbing the cleaning supplies from his hands before he could react. "You're to go home, study and do something fun. Like a student should do."

"But what about the dojo?"

"I'll clean it," said Taiga. "And then tomorrow, I'll talk to Shinji. If he wants that position, he needs to take on the responsibility." She saw Shirou about to respond but cut him off. "And no, you can't take over for him. You do enough. Go home and play video games or something."

"Fuji-nee, I don't play video games. That's you."

"Right…" she thought for a moment. "Any books you're reading?"

His face lit up. "Yeah, there's an interesting manual on combustion engines that I was pouring through the other night."

"Then finish that!" Not ideal, but it would do.

Shirou hesitated. "Are you sure that's okay?"

"I'm your teacher and your big sister. If I say it's okay, got it?"

The boy nodded. "Thanks."

He turned and left. Taiga let out a long sigh. She would need to check to make sure he wasn't passed out in the tool shed again. His work ethic was too much. But first, she had a dojo to clean. She put the bucket down and jammed the mop into it, splashing water everywhere. The action was nostalgic, and she couldn't help but smile. She'd hated cleaning when she was Shirou's age but doing it as an adult reminded her of all the good times she'd had. The memories she'd made. She hoped that eventually Shirou could have the same experience.

It took Taiga longer to clean than it should have. She wasn't a perfectionist trying to get every nook and cranny, but she couldn't resist swinging the mop around like a shinai. The same behavior had gotten her excused from cleaning duty back in high school. The best punishment she'd ever faced. It was dark outside by the time she was done. Every other light on campus was out as she turned off the lights and exited the dojo. Her stomach rumbled and she wondered if Shirou had dinner prepped for her. Or if not she could steal some of his anyways. He tended to make more than he could eat, just in case she showed up, but she wasn't above stealing from him. He might be a growing boy, but she was still growing in all the places it mattered to a woman. At least, she hoped she was…Sessyoin-sensei's assets came to mind once again. What did a woman need to eat to grow like that?

A deafening boom, a flash of light. Taiga turned expecting lightning and thunder, but instead saw a clash straight out of an anime. A red figure and a blue figure fighting each other, each blow illuminating the darkened field. She stared, transfixed. She'd seen professional kendo matches before, and even been on track to compete herself, but the amount of force these two warriors put behind their blows was superhuman. How much would someone need to train to be able to make the ground shake?

Taiga was only snapped out of her stupor when the mop bucket slipped from her loosening grip and tumbled to the ground, soaking her shoes. The fighters stopped, and both turned to face her. The hair on the back of her neck stood up and she realized she'd seen something she shouldn't. She turned and ran as fast as she could. It was as she entered the school building to look for a place to hide that she heard the crack of thunder.

There was a gust of wind and Taiga found herself in the hallway with a tall man in blue body armor. In his hand was a long red spear. "Sorry about this," said the man. Taiga had no time to react as she felt something pierce her chest. "It's dirty work, but I do as I'm told. It's just your poor luck that you saw and that my bastard of a Master is such a hard ass. No hard feelings."

Taiga couldn't respond to that matter-of-fact apology as she felt to the ground. Sensation left her body first, so she didn't even feel the fall. Then her eyesight slowly narrowed, much like the time she'd had heatstroke. Unfortunately, she didn't think that drinking lots of cool water would cure this. As her mind slipped away, Taiga her a voice.

"I did not think that I would so soon have a chance to repay my debt." The last thing Taiga saw was golden eyes. A predator looking down at prey. As everything went dark, she still heard the honied words. "You are a surprisingly suitable vessel for my needs. It's only now as you die that I can see the threads of fate wrapped around you tightly. Destined for great things in many timelines, sharing in the blood of warriors so thickly that the strings are forever stained red and caked so thickly as to have crusted over many times. That means the only question left is, do you still desire to live?"

Of course I do, thought Taiga. I still haven't set Shinji straight. I still have so much about the world I need to teach Shirou. I haven't found love yet either. A mutual love that will help me to forget my first heartbreak. Until I find those things, I can't die.

A laugh that made Taiga's skin tingle. "Then if that is how it is, may my blood fill your body once more." She felt something wet and warm entering her chest. And may my breath draw out yours." She felt something sweet on her lips. She tried to move to taste it, but still could not. "Oh, hero of a time that has long been pruned, legend that has failed to come to fruition, answer now my call. May you rise back up through the River Lethe to serve me faithfully. Our lives will become bound for eternity in an embrace deeper than lovers. What say you?"

That sounds nice, thought Taiga. Another chance. A chance to complete the things she hadn't. A chance to swing her sword in the service of another. A chance to serve instead of being the boss. A chance to once again be in the embrace of a beautiful woman… wait, these memories, are they mine?

"I can feel your desires. Taste them on my lips like a kiss. Accept the memories you never had and rise again to be my sword!"

Taiga reached out and felt her hand grab something soft. She pulled it into focus. A peach. The smell was too much, intoxicatingly ripe, and about to burst. She brought her mouth close and bit into the juicy flesh. As she did, she felt warm breath tickle her nose. Mere centimeters away was a woman with golden eyes, biting into the same peach, juice dripping down her chin. After a moment of hesitation, Taiga continued to eat, drinking in the juices as she got closer and closer to the woman. They got to the core of the fruit and they…

As eternity ended, Taiga awoke in a flash of light. She came to consciousness, kneeling on a cold tile floor. The nurses' office. Her body felt weird, lighter than ever before, but weighed down on strange places. As she came to awareness, memories flooded into her mind. Memories of an English teacher lecturing a class. Memories of a nameless girl wielding a lance to usher the spirits of fallen warriors to their rest. Memories of standing atop the world of Kendo. Memories of representing Japan in archery. Memories of a Yakuza boss ordering a traitor be executed and doing it with her own sword. Memories of an assassin breaking into a winter locked castle. Memories of a lonely woman giving herself to the embrace of a Bodhisattva. Memories of a tourist lost in a South American jungle and coming across a totem shaped like a Jaguar that tore her soul to pieces to then fill with its own…

"How do you feel?" asked a voice that sounded like sweet peaches. A hand touched Taiga's cheek and her sight refocused from memories to realty. Standing before her was Sessyoin-sensei, a broad smile on her face. A predator looking down at prey.

"Strange," said Taiga. Her head throbbed, her sight and sensations fading in and out.

"That is to be expected. Do you know who you are?"

"I am-," Fujimura Taiga, "Saber."

"Do you know what that means?"

No. "That I am a Heroic Spirit summoned to fight in the Holy Grail War."

"A Servant."

"Yes." What?

"To a Master."

"Yes." Who?

"Do you know who you serve?"

You. "You, Master."

"Rise then, my knight." Taiga did. She saw before her Sessyoin Kiara, school therapist and her new Master. She had the sinister smile of the Buddha on her face. She gestured behind Taiga. "Turn and look at yourself in the mirror. Come to the final truth of who you are."

"As you wish," said Taiga, turning. A full-length mirror for examinations. She'd spent plenty of time as a student and teacher watching herself in it. Admiring her growth and her wounds won in battle. Now she saw a woman who was both familiar and alien.

Short dark brown hair with streaks of bleach bright orange in it like stripes. Her eyes, red and dilated like a cat's. Her ears pierced unevenly with two rings on one side, and three on the other. The nape of her neck showed the edges of a tattoo, the claws of a tiger. She was in black pin striped suit pants and with a matching collared dress shirt. The top two buttons were undone, revealing her chest and the golden necklace she wore. The outfit of a Yazuka boss who had never existed.

At her right hip she wore a sword, a tiger keychain hanging from the hilt. A familiar weapon she'd seen on her grandfather's wall as she grew up. On her left hip was a pistol, a weapon she'd never thought to touch but felt like she'd known it intimately for years until she'd died with it in hand. Peaking over her shoulder was a bow and quiver like those in the archery dojo. Five gold medals had been affixed to the quiver, signs of an Olympian who had wowed a nation.

As she took in this sight, she felt more and more sure who she was. Golden eyes met hers in the mirror as a slender arm draped over her shoulder and another wrapped around her hip. "Do you know who you are now?" The Buddha's face rested next to her own as she whispered the question into her ear.

"I do. I am Fujimura Taiga, the Fierce Tiger of Fuyuki." She caught her owns gaze in the mirror. "Everything and everyone I could see belonged to me." Her hand fell onto her sword. "No one could keep up with my blade. If I desired money or company, I took them by force."

"As you should," said her Master. The hand around her shoulder slipped under her open shirt, and the one around her waist found its way into the top of her pants. "You have been summoned to serve me, Sessyoin Kiara, in this Holy Grail War. If you win, you get your wish granted. What is it you desire?"

To return to my old life. "To serve you with my heart, soul and body as your knight and Saber Servant," said Saber. She allowed herself to melt into the lover's embrace. "There is nothing else I live for now."

"Then allow me to reward your loyalty."

Saber's Master leaned in for the kiss, and she reciprocated. It tasted like peaches.