Chapter 2, Part 2
Formation Connected
conceiving tenacity

[ [ March 15
[ [ 15:36

For fourth-years like Jikan, there wasn't much to do during the school day this week.
Everyone had already taken their university entrance exams just over a week prior, and they were expecting to get their results later today. As such, the study hall at the end of the day had just turned into playtime, but it seemed like Homurahara Academy was serious about its students continuing to attend up until graduation regardless. Perhaps it was an act of kindness, intended to keep classes together as long as possible.
But as he weaved through the corridors of his departing fellow students to track down the room he was looking for, he couldn't help but consider Matou-sensei to be a little merciless.
The school isn't hosting social clubs! Why don't you spend some time doing some actual modernology for once, you bunch of louts?! he'd barked when he saw the mess yesterday, and so it was that the final week of Yamamoto Hibiki's Culture Club would be spent on actual club activities.
It wasn't out of reluctance or anything. It seemed like a nice way to send off their two graduating members, so they would form different pairs with each of the two seniors every day until the weekend.
Today, Jikan was paired up with Sato, and they had decided to head into Shinto together to take notes on the people there until sundown.
Well, he secretly had some additional plans. He wanted to treat her to something, and hopefully make a memory while they were at it, but he planned to surprise her on the way home rather than telling her outright. She was, after all, the calmest and kindest in the club; far too good for the bunch of oddballs and UMAs that the rest of them had turned out to be. He was going to miss seeing her every day.

It didn't take too long to locate the classroom Matou was still packing up in. He tended to hang around for a few minutes after the end of his classes, and he made his way into the room with a quiet knock on the open door. A few students were still in here - he made eye contact with Shinjirou, and shot a smile her way as he stepped in.
"Jikan," Matou greeted. "Aren't you supposed to be outdoors right about now? Did you need something?"
"Nothing much. I just wanted to talk to you for a minute when you've got one."
"Ask away."
"I'd rather go somewhere quieter, if that's alright."
"Fine, fine."
He hadn't said anything to indicate it, but he knew Matou understood what this was about, and so he finished packing up and led the way.
Briefly heading in the direction of the library, they ended up heading for the roof instead at Jikan's mild protests. Those bookshelves were not where he wanted to be right now.
"Good grief," Matou shook his head as they stepped out into the open air. "Well, I'll say this much right away. If this is about you getting accepted into the Clock Tower or something, I've got no advice to give you."
"I don't really have any interest in going there anyway," Ren replied. "I don't think I'm going to become a proper Magus."
Matou's expression was complicated, but the teacher seemed to almost crack a smile at that. "Well, I suppose I can keep letting you talk my ear off about this and that, in that case."
Ren shook his head. "Thank you, by the way. For always hearing me out about this stuff."
"Yes, yes, don't waste my time with platitudes. I've got a lot left on my docket for today, so hurry it up."
Matou Shinji wasn't a Magus anymore. He apparently was once upon a time, but he'd allegedly sworn off Magecraft for good almost two decades ago. Despite that, he had always made time to talk about whatever concerns Ren had that he couldn't share with those unaware of Mystery, even if he made a show of how unreasonable he thought it was.
Given how infrequently his older sister was in town, that made this overly-fussy history teacher the first port of call whenever there was something that he was worried about like that. He genuinely did appreciate it, and it probably wasn't going to change even after graduation.
Ren shrugged. "Well, it's just a shot in the dark, but I thought I might as well ask just in case you knew anything about it," he said. "But honestly, now I'm here, I guess the answer is probably 'no'. I just wanted to be sure you'd never heard of a spirit called 'Lancer'. I mean, spirits are my whole thing, and I'd never heard of it, but…"

It was a simple question, but the answer was complex, starting with a few seconds of silence.
Matou's face blanched completely. His features wavered, as though his face itself was trembling. Sweat started to bead on his brow, and he raised a shaking finger almost accusatorily.
"O-oi. You're not funny, Jikan."
The man's voice came out like a whimper.
Ren could only tilt his head. This was… obviously severe, but he had no idea how to even broach the question.
"Yeah… I'm not joking around," he agreed.
"Yeah! There are some things you don't joke about, alright?! This is one of them!" Matou cried, voice suddenly cracking through whatever facades it had been hiding behind. "So don't do it again!"
Ren had never seen him like this. It was as if he had somehow… regressed. It was making him nervous just watching it.
"Matou-sensei. It was a serious question. If this is a big deal, shouldn't I know about it too?" he asked lightly. "I mean, if you're not a Mag–"
"I know! I know I'm not a real Magus, so shut up! I don't want to hear it!" he shot back. "This… Why are you asking this?"
"I just met a spirit in town yesterday. Apparently, she goes by Lancer, but she stood out a lot, so I thought I should ask you…"
"You're lying! Tohsaka already took it apart ten years ago!" he cried.
There was… desperation in those words. Real desperation.
Ren felt his breath becoming short. He had never heard a man beg for his life before.
"Matou-sensei! Please calm down for a second!" he pleaded. "What are you talking about?"
Snapping back to Earth like a rubber band, something that had disappeared suddenly returned to Matou's countenance.
"Jikan. Whatever you do, just leave it," he said. "I'm serious. Don't get involved with this."
He'd come back somewhat, but he still wasn't making sense.
"With what?"
"That spirit. Other spirits like it. I'm serious about this. If you've ever listened to anything I've ever told you, listen to me now," he insisted. "I don't know how this is happening again, but don't touch it. Nobody who gets tangled up in that ritual can stay human. And that's if they're lucky enough to survive at all."
The way he said it sounded so completely sincere that Ren almost felt bad for doubting him.
"Aren't you still alive?"
"I got lucky! And the fact I can even call what happened lucky just proves how twisted Magi really are!" Matou snapped. "You know I quit Magecraft, right? Do you ever wonder why? What pushed me over that line? My… my sister, my grandfather, my best friend, my teacher, me… It turns you into a monster, and then guts you like a fish. We're talking about a body count in the hundreds, maybe thousands. Nobody comes out of it in one piece. Even if they didn't take part directly. Nobody. So stop. Asking. About it. Ignore it. Stay away. Understand?"
The words were ringing like a bell in Ren's head. He had never once seen Matou get so agitated, so insistent, about anything. The look in his teacher's eyes was a spark of genuine terror like nobody had ever shown him before.
A thousand thoughts were whirling in his brain. Without realising it, he'd balled his fists, and he could feel the sweat building between his fingers.
"Okay. Sorry, Matou-sensei."
He loosened his grip.

"Good afternoon, senpai."
Sunny as usual, Sato greeted Jikan at the gate.
"Hey, Sato-san," he replied. "I said you didn't have to wait the whole time, right?"
"You did, but…" she trailed off. "Well, I wanted to go to the convenience store or something, but…"
He shook his head. "You don't have to say it. It's alright."
Sato was neat, polite, and sweet, all to a fault. It seemed like she felt a lot of pressure to stay that way as well. Just from how cute she was, she would easily have been a school idol despite being a first year, if only she weren't so weak to social situations. Jikan doubted that she was trying to be something that she wasn't, but just being herself didn't really help with her nerves.
"We can stop by and get something on the way past together," he said. "It's not a big deal."
"Thank you… Sorry for being like this… I should try harder."
"Not everything is about effort, Sato-san. You didn't do anything wrong. Doesn't this just mean I get to buy something for myself too?" he pointed out, starting down the hill.
"I would have gotten something for you anyway!" she insisted, hurrying to meet his pace.
Their heads lined up as they made their way along the sidewalk, bobbing up and down at almost the same height. She was one centimetre taller. They had checked.
Once upon a time, at the beginning of the year, he had thought of her as being something like a lonely puppy who didn't want to do anything by herself, but he'd gradually come to understand that she was trying her hardest to exist just like everyone else. Most people expected a nouveau riche young lady spoiled rotten by her huge family to come out the other end as a deeply unpleasant creature, but Jikan could only be thankful that she had so many people so eager and able to support her. Perhaps the Culture Club being full of so many strange people also helped her in its own way. He hoped he had been able to grant even a little bit of confidence in the short time they'd been together.
"Hey, senpai. About graduation…"
"What's up?"
"I heard there was this tradition of asking for the second button from the boy you like when he graduates."
"Aha, you want me to put in a request for you? I think there'd be some misunderstandings if I were to ask someone myself, considering how I act…"
"There would," she agreed. "You need to stop hitting on other guys, senpai. It'd be one thing if you didn't look like a girl anyway, but you do, and people will start getting the wrong idea."
"I do prefer girls, but I don't particularly mind the idea of a guy taking me seriously either…"
"That's not the point! You should only flirt with people you're serious about! Don't lead people on! As your junior, I'm worried for your future!"
"When did you become such a buzzkill?" he laughed.
She sighed, exasperated. "A-anyway, stop getting me sidetracked. I wanted your button."
He blinked once, then twice. "Come again?"
"Don't overthink it," she said. "I just thought that I was going to miss you, and you're the only guy I'm friends with, so…"
"...Right."
"Don't tell me someone already got in before me. I won't believe you."
"You're… pretty assertive today, Sato-san."
She gave a refined smile. "I have to practice if I'm not going to be able to hide behind you any longer."
He was pretty sure she would just hide behind Meichi instead, but avoided actually saying that.
"I thought you were a good place to start, since even I know you're a secret pushover. If anyone actually flirted with you for real, you'd definitely cry, or marry them, or both," she explained.
Jikan threw his hands up, a mock wounded look on his face. "I can't believe my junior wants me to marry her while crying."
"No, it's not that I…"
"Right, of course, you just want me to give you my clothes."
"Don't say it like that…!" she spluttered, anxiety growing in her eyes.
He shook his head. "I'm just messing with you. I don't mind giving it to you or anything, I was just surprised you asked."
Sato breathed a sigh of relief. "You really had me going for a moment, senpai…"
"It's called bullying," he replied. "You should try it sometime, it's fun."
"In exchange for that behaviour, maybe I will!"
"A-ahaha… I was just messing with you, I'm sorry, you don't have to do anything…"

The weather was nice again today, so the pair's trip down to Shinto felt more like a day out than a stakeout. Today, they were doing data collection on the clothing of commuters - Yamamoto and Fujou were on the other side of the river in the residential area, so Sato and Jikan were near the station front, logging their observations on their phones as they sat at a café table nearby.
Since it was pleasant, they ended up sitting outside under an open-air shelter in the middle of a wide plaza. Apparently, there had been a huge fire some thirty years ago, which meant that all of this had to be built up from scratch in less than a decade. Some people seemed to consider it ugly and artificial, too brutalist, too sterile, but Jikan actually liked it. There were a few trees here and there, perfectly fine by him, but he generally preferred big public spaces to be more like blank canvases than works of art. A place too ostentatious would end up imposing itself on the people, at least in his opinion. Granted, it'd feel a little eerie if totally devoid of people, but that was like complaining that the food on an empty plate was neither filling nor nutritious.
Speaking of which, these sandwiches weren't too bad. They had come here on the spur of the moment, since they'd only ended up getting something to drink at the convenience store, but it was a pretty good decision. It did kind of deflate his plan to surprise Sato, but she seemed to be enjoying herself to the point where he wasn't sure if she was even collecting any data at all.
Well, whatever. It's not like there's much to record right now anyway.
She noticed him looking at her and perked up.
"So what are you going to do after graduation anyway, senpai? Did you get your results back on your entrance exams yet?"
The edge of a cliff came shooting towards him like a speeding train.
"A-aha, I didn't actually take one."
"You didn't? But you're really smart. You could get into a university no problem," she frowned.
"Well, yeah, but… I don't know what I'd want to study, so I ended up a little paralysed."
"Hm. That's true. You don't really have any special talent or passion for anything in particular, do you…? I never really thought about it, but I guess you're just like that. Me neither though, so I get it."
"I guess we're both broad overachievers," he nodded, pretending that he had the fire in his belly to overachieve.
He probably could have made it if he tried, but he was content to slack off and pass with middling grades.
"But Sato-san, you're still in your first year, so you'll come up with a passion eventually," he pointed out. "Really, I'm in this position because it's my mistake for not trying any harder."
"Not everything is about effort, senpai," she pointed out.
He gave a sheepish titter. It was sort of unfair, using his own line against him, but it made him feel a little better if nothing else.
"So I guess you'll be working until you figure it out?" she said.
"Yeah. I was thinking of asking down at the library," he replied.
"Being surrounded by books suits you."
Jikan wanted to agree; reading was a common pastime of his. This had been his plan for a while, even if he hadn't gotten around to it. But recently, he was starting to get a little nervous around bookshelves, and he wasn't sure if that was going to get worse.
"Maybe I'll come down there to study more often in that case," she smiled.
"You shouldn't be studying in your room anyway. Bedrooms are for sleeping. It's bad for you to mix them up," Jikan said.
"That's the first time I've ever heard of that kind of philosophy," Sato replied. "I suppose the other option is that we change your name, dye your hair, put you in a girl's uniform, fake your age and transfer you into my class next year!"
"Stop trying to sneak that by me. I'm not going to put on your uniform even if you ask me every day until you die."
"Tch…"
"Don't give me that. You tried to make me wear a sundress too. And you put your hoodie on me when we all went to the beach for summer break," he recounted. "It's almost been a full year. Accept that I'm a guy already."
"You're already eighteen years old…" she grumbled. "This isn't what 'pretty boy' means, senpai… Either grow into a 180cm heartthrob or just become a bride already…"
"It's never going to happen. Face reality."
He quietly wondered how much of Sato's eleven notebooks that everyone pretended not to know about were dedicated to this.

As Jikan shook his head, something caught his eye.
Or rather, nothing did.
Something was absent where he could see a presence. There was clearly something there. A huge amount of magical energy was present, but it was like it had no form or substance to it.
A spirit. And not just any kind of spirit. Its mass was tremendous, a far cry from the likes of mere ghosts. When did this plaza suddenly become a shrine?
Lancer had been enormous in scale, hundreds of times an ordinary spirit, but this was even larger. It was the difference between a jet engine and a rocket engine.
We're talking about a body count in the hundreds, maybe thousands.
Matou's words rang in his mind.
Like I can leave it alone when you tell me that.
Before he knew it, his body was already moving. He stood up from his seat, looking for…
There.
A black-haired punkish looking girl was walking with the presence in tow. She must have been its user. She was wearing a Western High uniform, but he doubted she actually went there. She was gleaming with magical energy, burning so strongly with it that he almost started to worry that ordinary people would realise it.
At the very least, there was no doubt. She was the person that Ren was going to have to talk to.
"Senpai?"
"Sorry, Sato-san. I'll be back. I don't know how long I'll be, but it probably won't be more than twenty minutes, so can you keep an eye on my bag?"
Sato looked confused, a little worried, but nodded. He didn't know what kind of expression he was wearing right now, but he doubted it was anything good from that alone.
He steeled himself, and made a brisk pace towards the girl.

One step. Two steps.

The spirit made eye contact with him.
It did not have eyes, of course.
It was a formless mass of magical energy, nothing more.
And yet, in that moment, there was a distinct sense of connecting.
I'm impressed you'd approach us so brazenly. There was no real communication, but that idea was conveyed through gazeless gaze alone.
Ren did not slow down. If he faltered even slightly, it was going to lose its patience.

The girl stopped walking, apparently catching him in her peripheral vision. Her mouth moved slightly, she paused, and then turned to face Ren directly.
"Hey there, missy. Something wrong?" she asked. "I'm a little busy right now, so can it wait?"
He lowered his voice, skipping any semblance of preamble. "I want to talk about that thing that's been following you."
The muscles in the girl's face seemed to turn to steel for a second, a flash of apprehensive hostility.
"It's connected to you, isn't it?" he said. "I can see it."
She turned her head to look at thin air. The thin air looked back, but didn't give any obvious response.
"Show me your hands," she instructed.
"What? Why?"
She paused. "Never mind. The fact you had to ask is enough for me. Saber, stay on guard."
No response, yet again. At least, not that Ren could tell.
"Come on," she said, beginning to walk again, filled with purpose beyond her lax strides from a moment ago.
He followed along, feeling lost in his own hometown.