It was all wrong.
A simple task to eliminate his enemies, mages without servants who would pose absolutely no threat; Hector found both of them, almost killed Tohsaka, and still failed to do the job. Sakura's words, her kindness and compassion…He hated the fact that it was so effective that it was enough to stall him and make him reconsider his allegiance. Once again, Hector was returning to Angela empty-handed, bearing the mark of pathetic shame. He was not capable of fighting their enemies despite having all the power at his disposal. He was useless in this war…
As Hector stood in front of the castle gates, he hesitated to enter. He did not want to take a step and stand before his beloved 'mother'…The thought was absolutely terrifying.
"What are you waiting for, boy?" Iskandar nudged him. "You said we need to tell Angela about the wards."
"I know…" Hector took a deep breath. Suddenly, he felt his heartbeat increase and his knees shaking. "No, no…We can't return like this! We need to kill them, we…This is all wrong, I had the chance, I couldn't have wasted it, I…"
"Take a deep breath, boy," Iskandar said quietly. "What's done is done, and you should not regret it. You still have a difficult path to walk, and you can't give into despair just yet."
"But how can I not…After all that I…That I…I made a mistake, I…"
"You made the right choice, Hector," Alexander reassured him with his usual stern and confident words. "If you killed at least one of them, it would have been far harder for you to come back from it."
"How…How do you know?"
"Because I see how Saber's Master's death weighed upon you, even when all other participants have moved on. You are not a senseless killer, Hector, and I can say that with absolute certainty."
"Rider, I…" He had no words, only shame. Even as Iskandar told Hector not to feel any regret and reassured him that his decision was unambiguously the right one, the truth was still incredibly difficult to stomach. He was not a senseless killer, even if Angela wanted him to be one. Hector felt tears rolling down his eyes. "I don't know what to do anymore…I won't be able to continue with this. I want to help Angela, but everything she does is…It's destructive and doesn't benefit anyone, not even herself. Let's just…We'll have to see. But waiting won't do us any good, will it?"
"Exactly right."
"Let's go to her, then."
The due entered the castle hall only to be met with a horrifying sight.
"What the…" Hector recoiled in horror as he saw purple flame incinerating a charred body. Hector could recognize human remains, though they were gruesomely tarnished. Angela stood above the body, though she changed, too. The magus was covered in violet tattoos, and her entire body radiated dark energy. She scorched the body before her with unrepentant fury, gradually reducing it to ashes. All he could do was stand and watch. Suddenly, a harrowing thought overtook Hector.
Whose body was this?
"A-Angela?"
"Oh, you're back!" She said in a chipper and slightly unhinged tone. "Come here, Hector, I have something to show you."
"Whose…Whose body is that?" Hector asked cautiously. "Did someone attack?"
"No, nothing of the sort, it's just…"
"Be careful, boy," Iskandar said. "I recognize those robes, as burnt as they are. It is Lancer's master."
"W-what?" Hector's hands shook as his worst fear was outright confirmed. "Is that…Marianne?"
"I'm sorry, Hector, but she challenged me, it had to be done." Angela said, pretending to be sombre, but Hector could see her cruel smile. She was proud of what she did, it was hard to hide that. "It was mot easy resisting her, but I could not endanger Angra Mainyu, you understand…"
"I don't."
"Pardon?" Angela raised an eyebrow.
"She was our ally, a very powerful and influential one! She…She was the Association's representative! Do you know what they'll do to us if they find out what you did?"
"Enough!" Angela shouted and raised her hand. Powerful chains of darkness emerged, taking over Hector and binding him to the floor. No matter how much he struggled, they were too powerful to break.
"Master!" Iskandar drew his sword, ready to attack.
"No, wait!" Hector commanded.
"Don't worry, I just need to pacify him a little," Angela said with pride. "Now, listen to me, my dear…If you still concern yourself with what the Association will think, don't. They are mere gnats that we will annihilate with the power of Angra Mainyu. I already have a small fraction, and it was enough to crush Marianne and Lancer. When the Grail is summoned, I will do much, much more! We won't need Marianne or anyone else to aid us…I might not even need you. But you won't let my opinion of you go that low, will you? Tell me, what is my order? Did you kill at least one of those degenerate mages?"
"I…I saw them putting wards around Fuyuki, but Gilgamesh guarded them. Attacking would have been suicide!"
"I see…" Angela responded in a surprisingly calm manner. "I see. Well, once I absorb more of Angra Mainyu's power and finish preparing our newest 'recruit'…I believe it's finally time for the King of Heroes to meet his match. And you, Hector…" She looked him directly in the eyes, showing her sadistic, remorseless gaze. "I can kill you and your servant at any moment, and it will barely cost me anything. I don't want to do it, not after how much you helped me, but if you continue to question my plan and begin to backtrack on our goal…I will not hesitate."
This was the moment Hector realized that everything they said about Angela was true.
She was a monster.
…
When Sakura and her allies returned to base, all she could think of was helping Rin. Shirou, Assassin, and Caster were there to receive them, seeing Rin's wounds and immediately rushing to help. The mages combined their power, slowing Rin's bleeding to the point that she could feel a measure of relief and maintain her conscience. After everything had been done, all that was left was rest.
"Waver, how is she?" Sakura said with worry as she walked into Rin's room, where El-Melloi, whose real name she now knew, stood over the wounded woman in her bed. "If there's anything I can do, I…"
"It's alright, don't worry." Waver smiled and reassured her, before nodding towards Rin. The ashen-haired woman was breathing with her eyes open, there was no sign of bleeding or worsening situation. It was alright…Everything was alright.
"Rin, how are you?"
"I'll live…" The woman responded with faint confidence. "That wound is child's play, I was just a bit shocked back there…l
"Why are you like this?" Sakura sighed and approached closer. "Don't minimize it. I saw the wounds and how bad they were…But I'm sure you'll recover in due time."
"She will," Waver said supportively. "Sakura, I need to discuss our mutual findings with Emiya. Mind looking after Rin for a while?" He asked, but Rin spoke before Sakura could.
"Oh shut up, you oaf, I told you I can sleep without a babysitter!" She said with annoyance.
"And I told you that there is a chance of recurring bleeding or nausea. Better be safe than sorry."
"I don't mind either way." Rin sighed.
"I…" Sakura stuttered. "Sure, if you need me to."
"Thank you. I won't take long." Waver smiled and walked out of the room, leaving the sisters alone.
Sakura couldn't help but feel awkward…After all the horrible things she said about Rin, after how much she convinced herself she hated her own sister, she still rushed to save her, fearing for Rin's safety, willing to take any care that she would require. How foolish she was to think that she truly wanted to have her sister suffer…She could not stomach Rin's pain. If Hector went further…No, Sakura did not want to think about it. He would never do something like that; he was not a monster, and this night proved it. Sakura hoped that he was alright and that they would meet again soon. It hurt her to see someone going through this cycle of abuse, trying to break free yet succumbing to the same manipulations she once did.
"Hey…" Rin reached out to the purple-haired woman.
"Yes, Rin?"
"Thanks."
"F-for what?"
"For saving me, dummy." The woman chuckled. "I was defenseless back there, and if you didn't charge head-on and used your 'negotiation magic' to make him stop, I would've been dead already…"
"Don't overestimate me…I don't think Hector would do it anyway. He's just not that kind of person." Sakura said quietly.
"Maybe, but I'm glad I didn't have to find out. I owe you, Sakura. Though, it's not like I didn't before…" Rin spoke with emerging shame, involuntarily coughing from the mild yet persisting pain.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Sakura, I…I'm not sure how to talk about this without it coming off wrong, but I don't want to delay this anymore, especially not when we're in constant danger. I thought about what you said about the Matou household…Hell, that's been the only thing on my mind over the last couple of days. You deserved a response, some words of understanding and compassion right at that moment, but I couldn't even do that…"
"Let's just focus on the War; it is a more pressing matter."
"No, Sakura…I'm sorry, but I can't just move on yet." Rin shook her head. "I didn't know about your suffering at Zouken's hands, but…I know that's not at all an excuse. I knew you weren't happy, and considering how much of a bastard Shinji was, it wasn't hard to figure out why, at least to an extent. I knew you were hurt, but I still didn't do anything." Rin spoke with shame, noticing tears emerge on Sakura's face. "I tried to convince myself that it was inevitable for both of us, but it was just an excuse…"
"Why…Why didn't you come for me?"
"I just made the same choice our father had. He was deciding between the well-being and the prestige of the Tohsaka family, choosing the latter. I chose the same…Because if I didn't, that would be akin to questioning the man who taught me everything, the one to whom I always looked up during difficult times." Rin said with sorrow as Sakura realized that her sister's eyes grew teary, as well. "It took me far too long to understand that him being a good magus did not make him a good man. Even when I understood that I was still too proud and full of myself to admit it and finally seek you out, traditions be damned. I can never make up for all of my negligence, but…I owe you for all of it. When we're done with the Grail, I swear that no tradition or mage law will hold me back from helping you with everything you ever need. Maybe even becoming family again…If that's what you want, of course."
"Rin, it's…" Sakura took a deep breath. "It is hard to forgive you, I admit. I'm not sure if I still have, but…Today, I realized that I'm not angry at you, but not really. I don't want you to die or get hurt at all. And I still want to fight by your side, and I still find some honor in it. I'm sorry for saying what I did. I shouldn't have gotten so angry."
"No, no, you were completely justified," Rin reassured her. "I'm not going to accept those apologies because they are unnecessary in the first place, simple as that."
"I see…I don't know if I'll be able to move on completely. But if you want to try to fix as much as we can after the war…You're not alone in that." Sakura smiled and looked up, seeing tears rolling down Rin's cheeks. "Rin, can…Can I call you Nee-san?"
"Of course, Sakura."
"Then let's try to become family again…Nee-san."
The two sisters hugged each other, neither able to hold their tears. At this moment, both of them wanted to live on, for they knew that beyond all of the darkness, hope still lingered.