Silver eyes blinked open, staring dirt in the face. Without a word, palms were positioned as muscles tensed and Emiya pushed himself onto his feet. His eyes wandered around the circular flat clearing, then shifted beyond to the endless trees stretching to and beyond the mountain.

"Suddenly on a mountain. Just my luck," spoke the grumbling Lupo. An index and thumb clipped the edge of Nian's apron, extending it to the forefront for a better look. Emiya sighed, and a frown marred his face at the sight of brown on the white cloth. Releasing his grip, the Lupo's head shifted towards the left, where a ball of light hung loose six degrees below the mountain range. It was a perfectly captured dawn.

"I assume you'll allow me to explain?" Emiya then spoke, his frown thinning into a neutral line. His head reverted and aligned with the body, facing forward, chin tilting slightly upward as steel-like silver eyes met churning amber ones.

"Do it now, child."

Emiya nodded. "Truth be told," he confessed with a pause, "I don't know." The Lupo's shoulders rolled, as he made V's with his arms. "She ate, then slept, as one does when on a full, satisfied stomach."

"Spare me your jests," replied Emiya's third and consecutive dragon encounter. First was Ling, the second, Nian, and now his third: Dusk. Dusk stood at a fair height. The length of her black hair flowed past her hips. She wore some kind of collared shirt that reached her thigh with a red tie that reached the belly.

The familiar sound of steel echoed, a sword unsheathed with wrapped, delicate fingers. Dusk's loosely worn jacket fluttered as she pulled out a ruby blade more than half her height. Her right arm that appeared as if coated in jade extended in a straight line, the giant blade little more than air to her slender arm.

"Speak," Dusk demanded.

Emiya's eyes narrowed in response, breaking their gaze and glancing at the pointed blade. Immediately, his left eye shut, a wince on his face as his focus gradually returned to Dusk. There wasn't an immediate response. The Lupo sucked in a breath, slowly exhaling through the mouth. Once done, his mouth opened slightly. Still, no words came out. The boy's mouth closed, and momentarily opened afterwards.

"I–"

"Grr."

Before any words were uttered, there came a sudden, loud, and disruptive growl. Silver eyes widened in surprise before immediately narrowing to the source. Emiya's gaze shifted downwards, landing on the area just below where Dusk's vibrant, red tie ended: her stomach. He saw a twitch and then a visible shake. His eyes made their way to Dusk's face, which remained stoic, as if nothing had happened.

"..."

Silence.

"..."

The seconds drew out awkwardly.

"So…"

"Shut up! We're done here!" Dusk huffed, sheathing the sword in one fluid motion. The smell of ink soon invaded Emiya's senses, and after a blink he was gone.

Emiya found himself back in the living room, his eyes wandering over to Nian's sleeping form. A satisfied smile was on the dragon's face, perhaps having a nice dream.

"You," Dusk addressed from the doorway, her sword and sheath nowhere in sight. "Cook something for me, now!" she demanded with a pout. Her stomach grumbled once more and Dusk let out a few noises of frustration.

"Fine, take a seat. I'll be back as soon as possible." Emiya swiftly left for the kitchen with an amused sigh.

"I heard that!" Dusk yelled from behind him, which entered in one ear and out the other, eliciting a larger grin.

Reaching the entrance of the kitchen, Emiya inspected the apron he was still wearing, twisting and turning the gear for any signs of deformity. The dirt from earlier had disappeared, as if it never existed. He then used Structural Analysis, finding no abnormalities.

One step took the boy out from the kitchen entrance, and a few more led him to the sink. His left hand turned the faucet, running warm water. Emiya's hands then gathered, letting water wet the skin before he reverted the faucet handle. A few drops of soap afterwards, he began scrubbing and lathering in earnest.

"Was that… a Reality Marble?" Emiya thought aloud in a quiet, shaky whisper, hands quick in motion. The Lupo shook his head, and pursed his lips closed. Twenty seconds passed, he ran the sink, and let the water wash off the soap. Turning off the faucet, he gestured his hands to fling the remaining droplets of water into the sink.

Emiya's pale form moved about like a ghost, the movement of his body a dance of blurs. An empty, wiped spot of the kitchen was soon piled with various ingredients. One by one, those same ingredients would empty until nothing remained. An hour had passed, and Emiya glanced at the fruit of his labor. A crisp, brown and decently sized patty laid at the center, with white grains of rice on the side. Not far from the rice were an assortment of steamed carrots and broccoli. Alongside the plate was a bundle of utensils wrapped in a few napkins.

"Sufficient," Emiya huffed, setting the bundle on a clean spot on the plate and proceeding to carry it out with both of his hands to the living room. As he stepped in, hungry amber eyes instantly settled upon his form, locking in on the goods. A small sigh escaped the boy's lips, amused, if anything else.

"Here you are. Apologies for the wait," Emiya first stated before placing the plate down on the coffee table, right in front of Dusk.

"Hmph. Excusable," the dragon stated as she made eye contact. "The results will decide," Dusk lamely stated from her seat. She was backed against the armrest of the couch, in her hands a brush and paper. One of her knees were bent, her other leg laying atop Nian's thigh. Dusk soon shifted her legs off the couch, the paper and ink fading to nothingness as she stood and walked over to the table.

"Passable," Dusk first commented offhandedly, belying the drool slipping down the corner of her mouth. She wiped the corner of her mouth and sat down on her knees, facing the dish in front of her. There was shine to her eyes, and only more drool seemed to escape her lips as she towered over the plate.

"Dig in. I've a… feeling of sorts," Emiya stated as if it were a bad omen and quickly left for the kitchen.

Dusk quietly watched the silver Lupo go, her eyes then gradually interesting themselves with the seemingly simple dish. Jaded fingers unwrapped the bundle of utensils, her left hand cupping the handle of a dinner knife, while her right gripped the handle of a fork. Maneuvering the knife atop of the hamburg steak, she pressed downward, the knife very easily moving through the meat. Juices from the meat leaked through as two cuts were made. After cutting out a piece, Dusk brought it to her mouth with the fork.

"Ahm." Dusk lowered her fork as the bite was made. Up and down, she chewed slowly, the movement of her mouth barely registered. A minute passes, and she finally swallows. No immediate reaction is given and her expression remains neutral. Then, she sets down the knife and fork in her hands onto the plate. Dusk closes her eyes, and a single tear drop runs down her left cheek.

Click. The sound of a door opens. Footsteps make their way into the living room, a woosh following behind, the door automatically closing behind the newcomer.

"...Dear Dusk, are you alright there?" asks a familiar voice. With a curious smile adorning Ling's features, she kneels down near Dusk and puts a hand on her shoulder. "What ails you, little Dusk? Big sister minds not lending an ear," she soothes, a gentle squeeze accompanying the offer. Not a chirp was made in response. Dusk is silent and motionless as a statue.

"Hmm." A hum passes through Ling's lips. She takes her hand off Dusk's shoulder, and glances over to the dish. "Oh? What's this?" Ling reaches over with a hand, and right before she could cup the plate for a closer inspection, the dish seemingly vanishes.

"That's mine!" Dusk uncharacteristically hissed, her arms half-stretching the plate she held above her head.

"Come now, Dusk," placates Ling. "Sharing is caring, no?" Before Dusk can give an answer, a shadow appears behind her, snatches the hamburg steak, and chomps it down in one bite.

"She's right, sis," Nian mouths while chewing.

"Wh– My food!" Dusk lowers the plate to the forefront, confirming the missing steak. "You–!" The youngest sibling whipped around, glaring at the older sibling, Nian, who was still chewing.

"Hahahaha…Ha?" Nian then drops onto the ground, half-way through her laughter. She lands with a loud thud, her back against the floor.

"Nian?" Ling, who had started pouring a drink for herself, then asked, startled by the movement that almost tipped her cup over. Her eyes shifted up from her drink, landing onto Nian's supine form.

"It's… so good," Nian states, to no one in particular. She chews, and stops. "Tender." Chewing again, she then abruptly stops. "Juicy." Another round of chewing, stopping, and then commentary. "The flavors just melt on your tongue…" Tears begin to run down Nian's cheeks, contradicting the blissful smile on her face. "Reminds me of brother's," she thoughtlessly states with a small laugh.

Dusk, whose anger had been rising, let out a screech as she leaped, pouncing on Nian.

"AHHHH!" In one fluid motion, her large ruby blade was formed, descending full force upon Nian's laxed frame.

"Ahh! Ling, help!" Nian's eyes widened in surprise, fixed on the large blade coming for her. She clutched something in her empty hand, positioning it perpendicular to Dusk's blade. Metal met metal. Formed in Nian's hand was a rectangular prism of half white and half red, with the edges smoothed for easy grip.

"Tsk." Dusk gripped both hands on her blade, and brought it skyward before plummeting it to the ground.

"AAAAAAAAAHHH!" Nian brought her other hand to her weapon, pushing a palm against the back of the metal as she braced for impact.

Then, a sudden sigh echoed through the room.

"Enough," spoke the calm voice of Emiya's, which cut through the chaos. The three siblings turned to the boy carrying what was assumed to be plates of food, each one in his respective hands. The Lupo walked over and settled the plates down on the table, pushing one of them to Ling.

"Dusk, give your current plate to Nian, and have this one instead. I had a vague feeling something like this might've happened… I can assure you of the same quality," Emiya explained with a breath.

Dusk, who had Nian pinned with her giant sword, gave her sibling one last glare before standing up and walking back over to the table. Her sword had vanished. "Hmph."

"Phew…" Nian got up as well, and walked over.

Emiya positioned the meatless plate beside Ling, where Nian would sit, and positioned the new remaining one towards his right.

Dusk grumpily sat down, and began to dig into her new plate. Her frown quickly transformed into a smile as she indulged in peace. "Mmm." She seemed lost in her own world, and her face practically illuminated the room.

"Ahem," Emiya softly coughed, fixing a stare to Ling. "What brought you here?" He asked upfront.

"Ah. Right." Light downed a cup as she cleared her throat. "A message from sister to brother. The white one announced she'd be back not too long now. She asked if your preparations were ready, she'll be starved." The blue-haired woman then dug a fork into her steak and brought it to her lips. "Best of luck." She took a bite with an amused smile.

"...Ah. I… see. Thank you for the delivery. How soon?" the boy asked.

"A day. I reckon around nightfall," came the answer through mid-chewing.

"I see. I suppose I should surprise her," Emiya muttered with a solemn smile. His eyes shifted towards the window. Sitting around a table, seeing the enjoyment plastered on his eaters' faces. It was pleasant.

Another chapter done.

I'm sorry for being late. Did you miss me?~

(Not that I had a schedule or anything)

Hello, my wonderful readers. I'm here to drop another, hopefully, adequate chapter.

As always, major thanks to my editor, Adrien! What would I ever do without you?

Please, my people. Lend me energy so that I may smother them in praise!

Now, on a more serious note... There's no real plot. Yes, yes, you heard that right. I'm just writing fluff for the sake of providing a warm experience, which I believe is what most of you are here for. I think.

Thank you for taking the time to read this chapter, and awesome appreciation for reading this rant of mine.

Have a beautiful day!

And don't forget to review! I dunno. Drop a hello or something. Maybe predict what torturous scenario I have planned for Emiya next. Kuhahahahaha!

Oh, oh! One last thing. How'd you like the chapter title? Am I a punny guy? Kuhahahahaha!

Now, now, no need to look at me like you swallowed a cup of lime. I promise I won't make a better joke the next time.

Peace!