I peek around the corner to see a vacant hallway. A bit of magic also confirms that no obvious movement can be heard which would indicate that anyone is here. Good. Ousai's deserted. Far from routine for a Friday evening, but it's a public holiday, so no one should've been on campus in the first place. Although, despite the lack of movement, my heightened hearing does pick up hushed chanting. Somebody's casting a spell. I can't pinpoint its exact location, but I assume it's coming from the second floor. That's where I originally sensed an unknown source of magic yesterday, after all. I couldn't investigate it then due to being with the others. I'm regretting it now, as the magic feels much stronger today.
Rather than waste time going for any of the corner stairwells, I head directly for the nearest staircase. The chanting stops before I'm halfway up. After a pause, rapid footsteps tap and squeak upon the marble floor above. They suddenly disappear mid-run with a noise I can only describe as an unearthly shimmer. Grand. Invisibility magic.
Now on the second floor, I continue with caution. Every hallway squares around the whole building, so I figure I'll complete a lap to see if there's anything of note before deciding what to do next. It isn't long, however, before I sense prana. Not the prana from whoever was chanting, either. This one is separate, belonging to a fellow Heroic Spirit. As always, I can't discern which one it is, or even how many there may be. Either they're in on this disturbance, or they're here to investigate it like I am. Hopefully, it's for the latter reason. If so, who would be the most likely of the other seven?
Gilgamesh wouldn't care. Rider's grown into a sweetheart, but she's no vigilante. Assassin can't even leave that temple's gate area, and Caster . . . hell. If anything, I'd bet she's the source of this disturbance to begin with. Archer, though? I suppose he's possible. But he never really struck me as the vigilante type. Then again, I'd be outright lying if I said he's never surprised me. Add to that the fact that Rin Tohsaka somehow convinced him to join her in the Mages Association, and that genuinely makes him a prime candidate, should she be around. Now, as for Berserker? Well, he's a loner by necessity, yet follows that little Einzbern girl's every word. Still, though. Even if he were here by her command, I'd definitely know it. This entire neighborhood would, actually. Dude's about as subtle as a Teletubby in a police lineup. And speaking of Teletubbies . . .
"You're breaking my heart, kid," Lancer says, materializing out of his spirit form. "Haven't seen each other in weeks, and the first thing you do is sigh in disgust once you realize I'm here?" He's dressed casually with no spear to be seen.
"Have you found anything out about this magic?"
"Not one for pleasantries, as always."
"I save the pleasantries for pleasant company. If you see any of them around, let me know."
"Whoa-ho! Since when did you get so good with the comebacks?"
Huh. Guess Takatoshi really is rubbing off on me, after all. And Shino, too, because I swear I just heard her voice in my head making a joke about Takatoshi also rubbing off on my — Please stop, brain. "Forget I said anything, Lancer. Let's start over. Any idea about what's happening?"
He shrugs. "Then again, I kind of just got here, so I haven't done much searching yet. There is a rune circle here, though."
"Show me." As we walk, I take this as an opportunity to address the obvious issue. "Why are you here, Lancer?"
"Me? I was in the neighborhood. Got some time to kill, so I figured, what the hell? Let's check out where this weird magic's coming from." Once we round the next corner, I see the rune. Kind of hard to miss, since it's a glowing purple circle on the floor. Upon nearing, it seems to have been placed directly in front of some freshman's locker. Lancer stands casually within part of it, but I'm keeping my distance. "Relax," he says. "It qualifies as support magic. It won't bite."
I step beside him and get down on one knee. "Curious."
"Take a good look at it, Saber. Notice anything strange? Aside from the obvious fact that it shouldn't be here to begin with."
My examination is rudimentary, yet scrutinizing. "Is it just me, or do the lines look . . ."
"Crooked?"
"Yeah."
"Exactly."
"Does this look like something Caster would make?"
"The hell? Oh, come on. Don't start with this bullshit again."
"I'm serious, Lancer."
"Saber, you have got to cut her some slack. I've been listening to you accuse Caster of the dumbest things since the Wish, and you've been wrong every time."
"Don't take her side."
"It's not about taking sides. It's just that Missus Medea Kuzuki seems perfectly content with living the life of a happy housewife since she got married, and nothing more."
"How could you be so sure that it's not some kind of ploy? It isn't as if you're able to keep track of what she's doing every minute of the day."
"Dude, I see her all the time around the market. She even goes to my stall once in a while."
"And what does she do?"
"Shop. That's what you tend to do in a shopping district."
"No, Lancer. I meant her demeanor. Does she not act suspicious at all? Not even in the slightest?"
"Nah. If anything, she's always marching around with the biggest, goofiest smile on her face. Like she's always singing a song in her head. Caster's cool, Saber. A little weird, but cool."
"Lancer, you've yet to give me a reason to distrust you, but I'd still have to see it to believe it. I cannot, in good conscience, rule out the possibility that this rune may have — oh, shit!" Something small and shiny clinks directly into the rune. Directly in front of our faces. It's a jewel. The kind a Mage would use to cast certain spells.
I join Lancer in leaping towards the opposite side of the hall that the jewel was thrown from just as it bursts into a whiff of smoke to dispel the rune. We both phase into our armors with weapons drawn, ready to retaliate if needed, but then freeze at the sound of a familiar-sounding laugh.
"Sorry, guys," comes a disembodied voice. "Just wanted to give you two a little jump-scare." After a tinge of new prana whisks the hall, Rin Tohsaka appears out of thin air besides Luviagelita Edelfelt; both powerful young Association agents whom I'm marginally acquainted with. "Hey, Lancer," greets Rin. She's smiling.
"If it ain't little Miss Tohsaka. How goes it?"
"It goes well, Lancer."
Wow. They're awfully friendly, aren't they? Not to be a buzzkill, but I have to state my peace here. "That stunt of yours with the jewel was highly irresponsible, Rin," I say. "We could've killed you two!"
"Not likely." That's Archer's voice. He then materializes right beside Rin. His back is towards us, his arms are crossed, and he's staring into the distance. Dude loves that stance, I swear. It always looks like he's posing for an album cover.
"Well-well," says Lancer. "The Association's newest errand boy — I mean, super-soldier. What are you doing here, Archer? Get lost on your way to the leather bar?"
Archer scoffs. "Up yours to you, too. And you speak as if it's been a while for you and me. We just saw each other two days ago in Mount Miyama."
"I know. Just wanted to use that leather bar line. It popped into my head right after you left my stall."
"I wasn't wearing my garb at the time."
"Yeah, but it's —"
My hand on Lancer's shuts him up. "Rin, Luvia, and Archer," I greet flatly. "Why are you three here?"
"This is an official investigation," says Rin. "There was a large amount of unsanctioned magic coming from this area."
Luvia nods. "We're here to confirm the source of it all and, if need be, confront it. We've already found a trail to follow that should lead us right to whoever made all these rune circles."
"What if they escaped already?" I ask.
"Our colleagues outside are maintaining a one-way barrier to prevent this from happening."
"Since it sounds like you both came here for the same reason, anyway, care to back us up?"
I look at Lancer, who shrugs at me. "All right, Rin," I say. "My intention is to ensure the safety of my friends and my school. If the Mages Association is here to put a stop to this disturbance, then our goals align."
"What she said," Lancer says dismissively.
"Appreciated. Also, you might want to phase back into your casuals, Saber. We've gathered enough evidence to confirm that our suspect is an Ousai student. It's up to you, though. Are you hiding your identity here?"
I return to my previous outfit. "I am."
"Works for us," says Luvia. "Without your garb, you could pass as a fellow agent. This would probably help keep the spellcasters around these parts in line while preserving your true identity. It's a win-win."
I nod, and then turn to Lancer. "You should change back, as well. I hate to admit it, but you've become recognizable to the girls in Ousai." He chuckles at this before phasing, too.
And we're off. As per one of the many arrangements laid during our first registration at the Clock Tower, we settle into a triangular formation which has us Heroic Spirits surrounding the Mages for their protection. Lancer's up front, Archer's by Rin, and I'm next to Luvia.
"So, what's going on?" I ask. "Is there any possibility of my school being in danger?"
"Nah, don't worry," says Rin. "It's pretty routine these days. Just another one of the spellcasters in town getting a little too bold with their thaumaturgy."
"But the magic I've been sensing feels so negative."
Luvia places a hand on my shoulder. "There's a perfectly benign reason for that, Saber, I assure you. We've destroyed several rune circles on the second floor of this building. True, they may have given off some black magic vibes, but it's only because of the intent behind them."
"They're surveillance runes used for the recording and playback of small-scale scenes in the environment," says Rin. "The pattern of the runes suggest that one student was trying to spy on another."
"Telltale signs of an underage spellcaster, Saber, so there's no need to freak out. Your school's safe."
Lancer scratches his head. "What does the Association mean by spellcasters, again?"
"Casters of spells, of course."
"Ha-ha. You know what I mean, Tohsaka. Something about tools, or whatever, right?"
Rin chuckles. "You're talking about the renegades and heretics. The ones who choose to use thaumaturgy as a tool rather than a respected pursuit. We used to call them spellcasters, too, but nowadays, we save the term for alleged human magic users who weren't formally trained at the Clock Tower. Not yet, at least."
"Tonight's case is a spellcaster," says Luvia. "We have dossiers of possible suspects from Ousai's student body. They're all kids we believe have learned some minor spells on their own, or from other spellcasters. In the case of the latter of which, we've started calling them —"
"You Mages and your million-and-a-half designations for everything," interrupts Lancer. "Just call apples apples, and oranges oranges. The way you guys do it is so unnecessary. Hell, what's next? Going to tell me you got separate names for each of us depending on the day of the week?" he adds, gesturing to Archer, himself, and then me.
"Not officially, aside from your former Servant titles, of course," says Luvia. "Internally, though? There may be a nickname or two floating around."
"One of them mine?"
"Of course."
"What is it?"
"Douchebag," says Archer.
I join the others in laughing at Lancer's expense. Lancer spins a hand to sarcastically request to keep the yucks coming. "You walked right into that one," I tell him.
"Yeah, yeah."
The trail we follow ultimately leads us to the highest floor, which is for the third-year students. Before long, Luvia and Rin move ahead of us. We follow the Mages' lead as they both stop at the curved, doorless entrance of the girls restroom for this floor.
"The prana's inside there," whispers Luvia. "It feels like they're using an invisibility spell."
"So, it's the spellcaster who knows both runes and alteration magic," adds Rin. She then gives a nod to Archer.
Archer materializes a blade into his hand and then takes a step inside. "Let's play it safe. Lancer?" Together, the two gigantic men enter first. "Mages Association! Whoever is in this restroom, make yourself known." There's no response.
"We know you're in here," we hear Lancer say. "Why don't you make it easy for yourself, and come on out?"
After a few more seconds, the three of us follow in after them. "Stay behind me," I whisper to Rin and Luvia.
Archer begins to warily poke the toilet stalls open one by one. "Stop trying to hide from us. By the authority of the Association, you are hereby ordered to show yourself."
Lancer is at the middle of the restroom. He's scanning left, right, high, and low. "Consider this your final warning."
"Wait! Wait, I'm coming out." A girl's voice. It's from the furthest stall. The door to it opens, and the vaguely humanoid figure which emerges is . . . interesting, to say the least.
Rin is the first to approach the girl. "Your invisibility is as terrible as your rune-weaving. Ugh, it's like a chameleon with a skin infection. Turn that off. Right now!"
After a moment of difficulty, the girl fully shows herself. "I know it looked bad," she says embarrassedly. "That's why I was trying to hide, too."
"First things first," says Archer. "Please state your full name."
The girl sulks, then takes a shaky breath. "Wakamatsu. Nori Wakamatsu."
Luvia mumbles the name a few times as she flips through some notes on her cell phone. "Here you are," she says. "A third-year at this school. Believed to have demonstrated higher-than-average, informal knowledge of general thaumaturgy. Potential adeptness in alteration magic."
Rin laughs mockingly. "Judging by that nightmare-inducing display of yours just now, we may have to update that last part."
The girl blushes. "Sorry."
"Now hold your arms up like this," says Luvia, demonstrating. "Don't step away from this spot. We're going to read a few of your magic circuits for our records. It should only take a couple of minutes."
"Whoa," Lancer says. "Maybe you guys should get a room for that."
Archer shakes his head. "This girl used a lot of prana recently, so her circuits can show up on a special kind of sensor that Interpol helped us develop. That's what that device there is for."
"Doesn't sound as fun as the traditional way, but I'll allow it."
"Welcome to the modern day, Lancer. Took you long enough to get here."
"That's funny coming from the guy who always buys kelp tea and fried seaweed crackers. I only keep those stocked for the Boomers, you know."
Archer coughs into his fist with no retort. To think, Archer has an old-fashioned side, deep down.
Luvia is slowly scanning the girl's limbs and body with what looks like a rod with a screen on it. Reminds me of those handheld metal detectors they use at airports. Luvia looks like she's done this a hundred times; patient and professional, if a little bored. Rin, on the other hand, is restless. Out of nowhere, she points a finger at the Ousai girl's face, startling her. "You've got some explaining to do," she demands. "What was up with all those rune circles?"
"I'm sorry! I did it to keep an eye on my boyfriend, especially since I'll be graduating soon. He's been acting so strange lately. Distant. Cagey . . . I don't know what his schedule is going to be next semester yet, so I just kind of made my runes wherever his current routine is."
"Another textbook 'jealous lover' case. You crazy kids. When will you learn?" Rin seems to be preparing to go into full-on lecture mode, so she doesn't notice the unimpressed glance from Luvia. "I hope you realize how sloppy those runes were," Rin continues. "Why would you even lay those down in public if you didn't know what you were doing in the first place?"
"I practice all the time. Honest! Then when I got the idea of using runes to keep track of my boyfriend, I figured they'd serve as further practice, if nothing else."
"Do you have any idea how easy it could've been for you to accidentally create some curse, or even a fire trap? One wrong slip in your concentration, and then poof! Ousai à la mode, medium rare. Would've been messy, I tell you."
A look of horror crosses the girl's face. "I never thought about that."
"Of course you didn't! You also probably never thought in a million years that the Association would ever come a-knockin', did ya? We're not the boogie men, girl. We're the law."
"It's true," the girl says. She's smartly pandering to Rin now. "I've heard about the Association's detection runes, but I didn't think I'd ever trip one."
"Are you kidding me? We have those set up at every corner of this city. If you even sneeze the wrong way, half the Mages in Fuyuki will know and come looking for you."
"We convinced our superiors that we should investigate this disturbance on our own," Luvia adds. "You know, as fellow high school students. Consider yourself lucky that we were able to call off the whole manhunt they originally set up for you."
"That's right. Let's just say that the old-timers who tried barging in earlier are nowhere near as sympathetic as we are."
I don't know how much of that is actually accurate, but at this point, Rin and Luvia are just trying to scare some sense into this girl. Once the room falls into silence, Wakamatsu starts studying each of us. Even though I'd been purposely standing away for a reason, she's about to look my way. Now, what are the odds she wouldn't directly recognize me? Let's do some math here. Okay, I was on the stage with the student council at the last school assembly, which unfortunately wasn't too long ago. But my hair's down, so it's different than usual. Then again, I'm one of only, what, three students in Ousai who aren't native Japanese? Aww, great. Here it comes.
"Miss Pendragon?" Yup. "I had no idea. So, you work for the Mages Association, too?"
"Hold on," I say quickly. "You said you were keeping an eye on your boyfriend. My colleague there mentioned that you're a third-year. All the runes were on the second floor, which is where the first-year classrooms and lockers are. Wait a minute. So, you're a third-year dating a freshman? Forget the Association. I might have to report you to the Disciplinary Committee!"
The girl goes pale and petrified. Good. Now I don't have to answer her question.
"Not the time for this," Luvia says to me in singsong. She then steps back and holsters the sensor into her belt. "Right, then. All finished."
Rin pokes the girl in the chest to snap her back to the moment. "Okay, Wakamatsu," she says. "Since no one was hurt, and your first offense was so minor, we're going to let you off with a warning. But we'll be keeping a very close eye on you. Everything about you is in our database now, so don't get too crazy with the magic, or we'll be back. And if you have to keep practicing, keep it private, and don't do it anywhere that someone could get hurt."
She bows low. "I'll be more careful in the future. And, whenever I do practice, I'll be sure to do it as far away from other people as possible. I promise."
"That's what I like to hear." Rin then eyes the bowing girl, smirking. There's a very suspicious look on her face. "Tell you what, Wakamatsu. It'd be a waste to have you running around with untrained prana as, uh, powerful as yours. So, after you graduate from this dump, why don't you give me a call? I can pull some strings and get you considered for enrollment at the Clock Tower." She hands the girl what looks like a business card. Oh, so that's where all this was leading.
The girl's eyes actually light up as she accepts the card. Guess she really wants to get better at spying. "Of course, Miss Tohsaka," she says, reading the name off the card. "I'll be keeping in touch!"
"Now get out of here," Rin says in a playful accent. We watch the girl bow yet again before finally jogging off and out of sight.
"As to be expected of a member of the great House Tohsaka," says Luvia. She then leans towards Lancer and I and very conspicuously whispers, "She only brought that up because they've recently instituted a recruiting fee."
"Laugh it up, Princess Money Bags. Some of us have to earn our yen for a living."
"Spoken like a true pauper."
"Just text the others that we're done here, already, will you? It's going to take an hour just to file our report, and all next week is finals. I'd like as much time as possible to review."
"I studied plenty," Luvia gloats, pulling out her phone. She's awfully confident in being quite the sass mouth to Rin, considering that Archer is around. Then again, I think Archer's holding back a smile.
Lancer hums. "Recruiting fee, huh? So what, you guys running low on manpower these days?"
Rin stops her glaring at both Luvia and Archer. "Well, the UN and various federal agencies sort of have a tendency to poach our Mages. Peacekeeping, crime-fighting, spying. That kind of crap."
"It wouldn't be so bad if they would just stick to recruiting directly from the Clock Tower." Luvia then pockets her phone. "You know, like a corporation would do with any college. Yet, they're continuously trying to lure our veterans away with promises of fancy badges and public recognition."
"Isn't that basically the opposite of what the Association was founded upon?" I ask.
"Precisely!"
"Oh," Lancer drawls. "Renegades and heretics, huh? Using magic as a tool for power."
"Sounds like they're using it more for law enforcement in this case," I suggest. "Probably with the occasional bit of espionage."
"Still need power for both of those." Lancer then looks at Rin and Luvia. "Guess that also explains why the Association's using so much technology now."
"I'll have you know, Lancer, that we're obligated to use these." Rin pats her belt of several gadgets. "Unfortunately," she then grumbles, grimacing.
Luvia rests her hands on her own belt. "Not only to keep up with the times, but also so we can contribute to global databases accessible to non-magic users. I mean, I'll admit that part makes sense, but still — Mages relying on machinery? It's absurd."
"Worst thing is, none of the organizations who poach our Mages even help with any magic-related disturbances. They still delegate it all to us. Can you believe it? We're at the bottom of a bureaucratic totem pole now."
"I'd liken it more to a separation of powers," Archer offers, shrugging. "You might even say that it's a necessary step for the anti-monopolization of thaumaturgical supremacy on a geopolitical scale. Less chance of corruption, as well, since everybody has the capacity to watch everybody on more balanced terms."
"You're sounding more and more like an old wise man these days, Archer. I think I'm going to buy you a walker this Christmas. You want one with or without tennis balls?"
Archer merely clears his throat. Again, he has no retort. Hell, even I knew a decent comeback for that one: 'Better than reminiscing about the old days like a bunch of grandmas in a sewing circle.' Archer's got quite a mouth on him, but I've noticed he understandably falls a bit short when it comes to Rin. Poor guy. Kind of wish I could get Takatoshi to teach him a thing or two about snarking back at pushy women.
"It's about time to wrap this up, don't you think?" With that, Luvia turns to me and flicks one of her curls. "So, Saber, I suppose we'll be seeing you at Homurahara this April."
Ah. The cross-council meet-up to apologize for the outsiders to each other's schools. "Guess so," I say. "Are either of you on your student council?" They both shake their heads.
"It's more a matter of whether we bump into each other in the halls," says Rin. "Just say hi if you want to. We'll play along either way, King of Knights."
"We'll take our leave, then." Luvia gives us a brief, fancy-looking curtsy. It's actually really funny to me, considering she's dressed in jeans and a tactical belt, but I find her consideration sweet enough to return a solemn nod. Lancer does the same. Afterwards, we both share a quick wave goodbye with Archer and Rin. Or at least with Rin.
"Let's go, Archer." All three then vanish from eyesight by their own methods.
You know, I'm grateful that I was here to witness all this. Now I'm certain to make sure that none of the girls chasing after Takatoshi ever learn any magic.
I turn to Lancer and motion my head to take our leave. Instead, he walks to the restroom sinks. He materializes a pouch that he tosses next to one of the faucet handles, and then pulls out a comb to start working on his hair in the mirror. Now that the danger is done, I'm able to truly discern what he's been wearing all this time. His clothing is not just casual; Lancer's dressed like he's ready for a night out on the town.
I approach, staring at his reflection. "What are you doing?"
"Told you earlier, didn't I? I was in your neck of the woods because I got me a date tonight."
"You didn't mention the 'date' part."
"Yeah, I know. I had a feeling that Tohsaka chick was around, and I was right."
I lean back into the sink beside his and cross my arms. "The date's with her, then?"
"No-no-no."
"So, why hide it? Does she like you?"
"I don't think so. Archer said that her and Edelfelt are absolutely ga-ga over some boy at their school, but Tohsaka likes to get a bit chummy with me on occasion. Even though we're both just kind of joking around, I'd rather not set her off, if I can avoid it."
"Probably the safest option."
"For real."
"Be honest with me, Lancer. Your date tonight. She doesn't go to my school, does she?"
"Not as a student."
"You're dating one of my teachers? Lancer, if you mess things up with her, and we start getting ten times the homework because of you —"
"Whoa, whoa. Hold up there, Saber." He's brushing his teeth now, but I can understand him just fine since the dialect matches 'talking with your mouth full', which I'm pretty fluent in myself. "Let's get this straight," he continues. "First of all, it's just our first date. Nothing's cemented in stone. Second of all, how am I supposed to know if she's specifically one of your teachers?" He spits and rinses. "Your school's got, like, twenty of them, doesn't it?"
I shrug. Hesitantly, I then ask, "Is it Miss Yokoshima?"
His eyes bulge. "Naruko? Oh, hell no." I'm not proud to admit that Lancer made me chuckle.
"Naruko, huh? So you do know her."
"More like, know of her. From my circle of friends. The younger guys, in particular."
"Say no more. I know exactly what you mean." I drone out a heavy sigh. "You know what? Maybe it's best if I don't know who it is."
"Just keep an eye out for a teacher with a mile-long smile." His pouch disappears as he pats me on the shoulder. "That's how you'll know, right then and there, that she's the lucky lady who's caught the Cu Chulainn Fever." I chuckle once more. Damn it.
"Plague is probably more accurate."
"Only if my credit card gets denied again. See you around, kid." With that, he goes into his spirit form, and I sense him take his leave with no hurry.
"Sure. Mister Chulainn." Holy hell. What a night.
I turn to check my own hair in the mirror. I almost never go out in public with it down, but I left the house in such a rush. Maybe I should once in a while, since it saves so much time not having to worry about bunning it up, and maneuvering my braids into place. Speaking of time, I check my watch. It's nearly 7:00 pm. I could probably make it home before anybody else returns from their various nights out. That way, I can avoid thinking up an excuse about where I've been for the past few hours. Or screw it. I'll just stop by somewhere on the way back for some grub. Full belly, and I won't have to lie. As Luvia said, it's a win-win.
"By the way!" comes Lancer's disembodied voice from out in the hall. "My date tonight? Her name's Rika!"
I freeze. Rika? That's Miss Koyama's first name. She teaches my chemistry class, for God's sake. I run to the entrance and poke my head out, but I don't see or sense a thing.
"Lancer!"
In response, a maniacal cackle echoes through the building, and nothing more.
