*/*/*
Hakuno was about eighty percent morning zombie as she dragged her feet to the stairs the next morning. She could hear Lancer snickering at her. Master, my Shishou would have a field day with how you handle mornings. Hakuno just mentally projected the image of a rude gesture back at him, causing the man to cackle in response.
The lighthearted slow start to the day shattered as Hakuno stepped onto the first-floor hallway and felt terror jolt her awake faster than any sort of sugar or caffeine could dream of doing.
Master. Do not move. You're being stalked. Lancer's words were short and clipped. None of his usual mischief. When I give the word, you need to run to somewhere more open. Hakuno didn't even nod, not wanting the slightest movement to set off this trap. The Arena would do. The current floor had a big central room. Now! Hakuno flew down the hallway, a deer before an unseen hunt.
Lancer appeared the moment she burst into the Arena, pushing her behind him as he readied against anyone following them through the doors.
Nothing.
But the feeling of imminent death did not change.
"Stay close, Master." Lancer kept his spear ready. Hakuno kept close to his back as they ventured toward the large central room. With so much empty space, it would be easier to spot their enemy. At least, that was the hope.
They stepped into the center room. The Lancer moved, the red spear spinning and there was the briefest clang of metal. He'd used the polearm to swat an arrow out of the sky. What happened next Hakuno considered her own fault. Lancer had shifted the barest hint in one direction to block the first attack. And she'd automatically flinched in the opposite direction. Such a small difference in position would not have been something a human could take advantage of. But this was a Servant who had been laying a trap. There was pain in her arm, a red line of blood appearing. A second arrow fired just a breath after the first.
The wound itself was small, a graze that would normally heal easily. But Hakuno's stomach roiled. The sheer force of her nausea caused her to stagger.
"Master!" Lancer snagged her before she could hit the ground. The arm that caught Hakuno grabbed around her waist to keep her up. Even at an obvious disadvantage, Lancer's eyes scanned the horizon, his spear flaring with unfamiliar red light. The weapon looked almost ablaze with power. "Come out you bastard!"
"No thanks! I'll leave your pretty mistress to die a slow death. Have fun fading away!" Then the presence vanished. The other Servant was gone.
Lancer snarled; his fangs bared at the empty air. The ominous red blaze around his spear vanished the instant he looked back over at Hakuno. "Lass, you still with me?"
"I can still walk, Lancer," Hakuno attempted to reassure even as she gasped for breath.
"Fuck no you're not walking!" Lancer moved, making his spear vanish. Hakuno found herself hauled up onto his back.
You can't fight like this! It hurt too much to talk but Hakuno could still project her protests into his head. Lancer completely ignored her and launched forwards. Hakuno had never gone anywhere at Servant speed. She couldn't enjoy the new sensation with her head spinning. She could only close her eyes against the blurred scenery. Then a new thought hit her. Lancer! You can't carry me through the school! You'll be seen! There was a jolt as Lancer skidded to a stop just a step out of the exit portal. He looked at it then looked at her. Put me down. Lancer opened his mouth to argue. Please don't make me force you. She could feel his eyes go to the seals on her hands.
"You're a damned fool, Master." Still, he put Hakuno down. "At least being inside the school will pause the poison." The nurse's office would be closed. Hakuno would have to suffer in poisoned stasis for the night. "First thing in the morning, you go get healed or command seal or not I will forcibly carry you to someone that can help." Lancer grit his teeth, lashing out against his inability to help and abide by her wishes. Finally, he vanished.
Hakuno somehow managed to make her way to room 2-B. Lancer reappeared in an instant, helping her to her bed. "I can't cure this poison, but this might help a bit. Hope you don't mind a bit of blood." He bit into his thumb to draw blood then traced a strange pattern on her poisoned arm. Lancer kept contact with the unknown design for a moment, his magic flowing slowly. Explained why he'd needed a safe place to do this and hadn't applied this treatment in the Arena. Hakuno felt relief flood through her after a long silence. Her body still registered the poison was there. She certainly wasn't better, but this took the edge off.
"What is that?" Hakuno was only grateful, not caring about the means or repulsed.
"A rune for healing" Lancer answered easily "I'm really good at healing myself… usually. Haven't gotten that Skill back yet. But Skill or not, I was never much good at healing others. So, this is the best I can do."
"Thank you."
"You can thank me by getting your sorry ass treated in the morning, Master."
*/*/*
Hakuno made it to the Nurse's Office where Sakura greeted her. On finding that Hakuno had sustained such an injury outside of the coliseum, the AI began to help. One antidote later, she was feeling more like a person again. "This is taxine, a toxin from the yew tree. It's a terrifying natural poison" Sakura shared her findings.
An Archer with Yew arrows. There can't be too many of those. Lancer was still sour about the incident.
MATRIX LEVEL 2 UNLOCKED beeped Hakuno's terminal helpfully. A look revealed it had now changed the Class to a firm 'Archer' and the Key Word section now sported the words 'Yew Tree'. "They've helped us unintentionally" she closed the screen. "And they'll have suffered a stat penalty for the attack."
I'm going to make that green bastard regret being summoned. The projected thoughts were in a feral snarl. Lancer wanted blood. Unable to think of any words, Hakuno gently touched her mind to his, picturing sitting beside him. Offering silent comfort. The growling from her Servant quieted, followed by a rough exhale. Then Hakuno's mental image changed to one of Lancer ruffling her hair before drawing her in to lean against his side. The mental connection faded, a moment of stolen peace. Hakuno renewed her determination to find something besides violence for Lancer to thank him later. She'd have to find a way to hack into the Commissary and also ensure that Lancer didn't notice. Easy.
Hakuno got up and brushed off her skirt. Acting as casual as possible, she headed towards the Commissary. Something to distract Lancer. Hmm. She spotted Taiga. Maybe if Hakuno was vague enough… Lancer, can you give me about five minutes? I need to talk to Taiga about… personal things.
Personal things? Lancer's raised eyebrow was palpable. But he relented, deciding not to ask further. Alright Master. 5 Minutes. If I come back and you're stabbed or something, I will be very disappointed in you. His presence faded away. Ok Hakuno. 5 minutes. Hack the Commissary. Purchase gifts. Go!
Hacking the Commissary was… surprisingly easy. Even for a subpar Magus like her. Was… was the Moon Cell allowing people to hack these places? Rewarding those who skirted the rules without breaking them? Hakuno couldn't think too hard on this, she had a mission and limited time to do it in. She didn't press her E rank luck too far. One item would have to be enough. Into the Commissary's inventory it went. Then Hakuno practically jumped down the stairwell, uncaring of possible repercussions for such physical activity after only recently being healed, and darted to the Commissary counter. A purchase later, she scrambled back up the stairs to where Lancer would be expecting to find her. Hakuno even managed to squeak in giving Taiga the requested persimmon and got tasked with finding some lost glasses for the effort.
All good Master? Lancer's voice and presence returned not long after. The talk that bad huh? You looked flushed. Please tell me it at least wasn't you asking about the birds and the bees.
I am old enough to drink you asshole! … I think. The response had been automatic. Something Hakuno had not known about herself.
So you've been cosplaying as a high school student this whole time? You've got weird taste Master.
It's not my fault! This is what the Moon Cell gave me as clothes!
Hey, relax! I don't kink shame!
*/*/*
Ever diligent, even when recovering from poison, Hakuno took them through a round of training in the arena. Lancer hovered closer than he normally would the entire time. At least this round went without incident. They would need to go to the Chapel again soon to see what sort of progress could be made. For now, Hakuno was just glad to be able to rest in the room without issue. Besides, she was anxious to see Lancer's reaction. "I have a confession, Lancer."
"Well, that's one way to give me anxiety. Alright lass, I'll bite. What is it?" He looked apprehensive.
"I didn't need to talk to Taiga earlier. I wanted to get you something without you knowing. I wanted to surprise you."
Lancer's expression changed from caution to dumbfounded. "For… me?"
"Yes" Hakuno produced the item she'd managed to hack in. A small box that fit into the palm of her hand. A deck of cards. "There's plenty of card games. Just needed a deck."
"I'm flattered, lass. But why?" Lancer tilted his head at her.
"I noticed how happy you seemed in battle. And I don't want to take that away. I just thought… it might be nice to have something you enjoyed besides battle. We could use a break from training and fighting for our lives." Hakuno was folding in on herself, already doubting this idea. What if Lancer thought she was scolding him for enjoying battle just because she didn't? What if he was insulted? Hakuno needed to think of an appropriate apology right now. She had to fix this! She looked up, mouth opening to speak, and she stopped short. Lancer was giving her an honest open smile. It wasn't his usual roguish grin full of mischief but rather an expression of happiness and gratitude.
"It's… been a very long time since someone got me a gift just because they thought it might make me happy. Thank you." Lancer slipped out of his hammock, his hand running over the unfamiliar box before thumbing through a few cards. Then he grinned at her. "I'll go easy on you this time. You're still recovering after all. Come on Master. The Grail's already filling my mind with card games now that I'm holding this. Bring it."
Hakuno huffed, her worries vanishing into an answering smile of her own. She joined him on the floor. "What's the game?"
"Oh, I get to pick? Go Fish it is then." Lancer expertly shuffled, as if he'd done this thousands of times, before dealing out cards.
"Really? I thought you'd be a Poker kind of guy."
"I just said that I'm trying to take it easy on you, Master. I'll fleece you of your savings some other time. Besides, I like fishing, and this is probably as close as I'm going to get." Lancer dutifully examined his cards, and the game began. It was a casual thing, neither of them taking it too seriously.
"I did see some virtual fish around the Arena I think," Hakuno drew a card.
"Bah. Where's the fun in fishing up one of those? They probably wouldn't even struggle, assuming they had any substance to them at all. I doubt 'bite' is even a thing they can do" Lancer stole her Sevens.
"Do you have a favorite? Fish I mean." Hakuno wondered if Lancer would tell her at least a little about himself, even if it wasn't his True Name.
"Salmon. Even if it does bring to mind that thumb sucking Salmon Bastard." Here Lancer paused considering "Baked with mushrooms sounds good." He then surrendered his Threes to Hakuno.
Hakuno was pretty sure Lancer would not explain who the 'Salmon Bastard' was even if she asked. So instead, she continued the conversation. "I saw a recipe for teriyaki salmon in one of the books I read. Though I don't know if I'm any good at cooking." Was Hakuno the type to burn water? Was she good in the kitchen? That knowledge was lost to the fog of her memories.
"I like to think I am an acceptable cook. You get enough ingredients, and you can play with one fish. I could cook the rest just in case all you produce is fire. Then we'd see which of us was providing future meals." Lancer offered a lopsided grin "Bet you'd get the fish same place you got these cards. And there's no need to send me away now that I know what you're up to."
"I did still have to pay, you know" Hakuno scolded "We can't go crazy. I don't want to go broke." Or not have enough to buy necessary supplies for Arena and Coliseum survival.
"Yeah, yeah. No draining Master's piggybank outside of poker games. I got it," Lancer gave a dramatic sigh. He folded his cards. "At least you beat me in Go Fish though."
"I'm pretty sure you let me win."
"Throw a game of Go Fish? Me? Never. I take fishing very seriously Master, I just told you that." Lancer's wide grin showing his fangs betrayed him though.
Later, after the both of them were asleep, Hakuno's terminal flashed with light, but did not beep. The notice there read BOND LEVEL 1 ACHIEVED. Then the notice dismissed itself, and the terminal went dark once more.