Holy Grail War (#2)
Ritsuka felt restless as he lay on the bed of his borrowed bedroom. It had only been a few days since he tumbled into this secret war raging in the city and his new schedule consisted of staying up all night from either worry of being attacked and suffering the consequences in the morning.
Despite his Servant telling him that she'd be protecting his relative's home the best she could, he couldn't shake off the feeling of unease in his chest. So he did what he had been doing for the past week when he couldn't sleep; wonder how the hell he got into this mess in the first place.
(-)
Recalling his uncle's words earlier, Ritsuka checked the fridge for a late-night snack. He wasn't very hungry or anything like that; he had a hard time falling asleep and thought filling his stomach would help. Unfortunately, nothing caught his interest and he shut the fridge with a sigh.
He glanced at the wall clock and noted the time; it was a quarter to midnight and he wasn't feeling a hint of drowsiness.
"Maybe I could go for a walk around the neighbourhood," he thought to himself. While wandering around in a city he hasn't visited since he was a kid was a terrible idea, staying in a house he hasn't visited since he was a kid made him uneasy too. Might as well take in the sights while he's here, right?
Taking a quick detour to take his coat, he went outside into the cold winter air to clear his mind.
It was not long before he came to a nearby park, making sure to stay underneath the lamp posts and sticking to the path. While he doubted that he'd run into a serial killer or kidnapper in this city, it never hurts to be careful. Of course, he should've just stayed home in that case but it was nearly midnight, he wasn't thinking straight.
A short time later, Ritsuka found himself in what was likely the middle of the park; why else would such a big fountain be here? Wanting to rest his feet, he sat on it and drew a long breath.
He didn't really know what was the cause of his insomnia but pinned it on the fact he was anxious about spending two weeks staying with relatives while his parents were out of the country. At least his uncle and aunt were nice enough to let him stay with them for the winter break.
"—aaaaaaa—"
"Hmm?" Ritsuka looked up in confusion and concern as he thought he heard a distant scream. "What was…"
His instincts told him to run in the opposite direction; his curiosity and worry told him to investigate further. While the screaming had stopped, he knew the general direction it came from and went towards it.
That was how he ended up stumbling onto the gruesome scene that changed his life as he knew it. His eyes widened and his body froze as he saw the bloodied corpse of the recently deceased man. His neck had been slit open and blood was still pouring out from the deep cut.
It was obvious that the man was already dead but Ritsuka couldn't bring himself to walk or even look away.
What snapped him out of his daze— "Oh, how unlucky of you." —was a smooth voice coming from behind him. Before Ritsuka could so much as move, something swept him off his feet and he was sent flying.
He let out a loud pained yell upon hitting the ground. He didn't think he broke anything but it sure felt like it.
"Such a shame too," he heard as he painfully tried to get up. "You look pretty young. The future you could've helped create might have been a beautiful one. But alas… Assassin."
Ritsuka was only vaguely aware of the shadow that was towering over him. His entire world was spinning and he couldn't think straight. Chances were he had a concussion from hitting his head.
"I apologise, boy. You were at the wrong place at the wrong time," Ritsuka heard another, darker, voice say. He couldn't do anything but fall on his chest as a foot pushed him down.
"Get up! You can't die here!" His inner voice called out but what could he do? Whatever was stepping on his back was way stronger than he was. It would take a miracle for him to escape now.
(-)
In a distant realm, a sleepy voice whispered…
"Save… him…"
(-)
As the knife was raised above him, Ritsuka felt something burning on the back of his right hand. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw red marks appear on it before a blinding bright light flashed a few feet in front of him.
"What?! Assassin, wat—?!" Whatever that man was about to say was cut short by the figure over Ritsuka being blasted back with a loud bang. As the light disappeared, Ritsuka saw the silhouette of a person standing over him. He couldn't glean much but he noticed the large staff they held as well as the spear-like constructs floating around them. "A Servant?! Then that brat is—"
"That's correct, he is my Master," a calm yet feminine voice declared with full confidence in their voice. She raised her hand, causing the spears to float up and aimed them straight at the opposing man and his… Assassin. Before Ritsuka could even get a word out, she dropped her hand and sent her spears shooting towards Ritsuka's attackers. Whether the spears hit their target was a mystery as the Assassin threw down smoke bombs and disappeared along with the shadowy man, leaving Ritsuka and his… Servant alone.
Still at a loss for words, Ritsuka stayed on the ground in shock for a bit longer— until he realised his saviour was approaching him. "Are you okay, Master?"
"…Huh? Mas…ter?"
"Oh… so it's like that…" The disappointment in her voice was unmistakable but a moment later, she let out a relieved sigh. "But if you're fine, then there's nothing to worry about."
"Wha…?" Ritsuka's confusion was not from what she said; rather, he finally saw her face. The blonde girl with a small happy smile made Ritsuka blush.
"Don't worry about it," she smiled wider, making Ritsuka's heart skip a beat. "Trust in me, Master, I'll protect you throughout this War."
(-)
In the days since then, Ritsuka found himself caught in the middle of battle after battle and mystery after mystery. Throughout it all, his Servant— the Caster, Artoria —held fast to her promise and protected him whenever he got into trouble. It was both nice and embarrassing to have his own guardian angel over his shoulder.
Well… until she tried following him into the bathroom— then it was just embarrassing.
Caught in the Act
There weren't really many private places in Chaldea; Ritsuka's room despite supposedly being one, always had Servants coming and going whenever they felt like it. Sure he could lock the door but there were a couple who… didn't get the message. That meant if Ritsuka wanted to get some privacy, it had to be somewhere else and it couldn't be for long lest everyone starts looking for him.
Normally, he'd use his private spot— one of the holding cells Chaldea had but never uses —as play to rewind and recharge when he was feeling too stressed. Sometimes he'd invite a couple of the Servants he knew wouldn't tell like Mandricardo and Sieg to hang out (and Merlin who invited himself in from time to time) but for the most part, it was a place he went to be by himself.
"Ehhh… So this is where you hide, Master." This time, though, he invited someone else to join him. "So what do you usually do here?" Castoria asked, looking around the few appliances he kept in the cell.
"You know, watch some shows I saved, play games, read whatever Murasaki recommends," Ritsuka answered as he sat on the bed he occasionally used for naps. "Although now…" Ritsuka felt his face flushing as he spoke, "I was hoping we do something… new."
"Oh… oh… I… don't mind that…" Castoria's face was as red as his, having easily picked up his meaning…
(-)
Oberon grumbled and muttered darkly under his breath as he made his way across Chaldea. He had been looking for his Master for the last hour and was told by Percival who had been told by Gawain who had been told by Artoria (the original one) who had been told by a certain Magus of Flowers where he was. Why he was hanging around in the holding cells without inviting him was anyone's guess but he supposed he could question Ritsuka when he got there. He opened the door and stepped in without thinking, "Yahoo, Master~ I was looking for— MY EYES!"
"OBERON?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"
"WE WERE JUST CUDDLING! JUST CUDDLING!"
I really am dusting off all my thought-to-be-abandoned fics recently, aren't I? Anyway, here's finally the next chapter of GudaCas shorts cause I felt inspired and in now way procrastinating on my other fics whatsoever...
...ENJOY!