"Tuka? Lelei? Are you two alright?"

Shirou made his way as quickly as he could back into their tent. The entire fiasco with the Yaga was enough to make him worried for their safety as a whole. No matter how good their disguises were, it only took one slip up for things to go south.

WIth how scared those two must be, the chance of that mistake ever happening increased substantially.

"Lord Emiya, you're back!" With a speed that Shirou didn't expect, the elf rushed out of her hiding spot, dragging Lelei with her, "I should be asking you that! What were you thinking, going out there when the Gods are as angry as they are?!"

"We're not starting this again." With a firm stare, he gently led the two to a couple of seats, trying to ignore the shivering blue-haired girl. The stoic girl was scared beyond her wits, and Shirou had to grimace. Still, Lelei was smart enough to learn about natural disasters sooner or later, and unlike what he could see from just about anyone else, she would at least be more open to the entire thing not being divine intervention.

At least, he hoped so.

"Right, I'm sending you two back to Italica. No-" Before he could even finish his sentence, Tuka had whipped around and interrupted him.

"I will have to respectfully decline, Lord Emiya." Her nervousness was still there, and yet she was making remarkably good effort to still her voice, "Lady Adrianne has entrusted me with joining you - I will not betray her trust like that!"

"Whether or not you betray her trust is not the issue here." Sighing, Shirou continued as he massaged his temple, "You both are in danger by being here, and that danger only increases the longer you're here."

"I understand that. Trust me, I really do." Tuka started, her voice getting louder. Not enough to pierce through the Bounded Field, but noticeably louder than she usually was, "I've grown up my entire life hearing about the Empire. I know the danger I'm in, and I'm more than willing to brave that if it means keeping my word to the Grand Elder!"

"And Lelei?" Shirou stared at her as he raised an eyebrow. Crossing his arms as Tuka seemed taken aback at his matter-of-fact tone, he continued, "You say that you're willing to risk your own life, and I can respect that. However, you're also bringing Lelei into this. Don't you think it's unfair that you're deciding for her?"

It was an old trick that Rin had made use of when he saw her arguing with some upstarts in the Clock Tower. At no point did Tuka ever mention Lelei, but the suddenness of it would catch her off guard. Plant it and make it seem like it was her idea that the blue-haired girl was here.

He disliked doing it, especially since she would likely realize what he'd done once the tension was done and over with. Right now though, Shirou's priority was making sure both of them were safe.

"T-That's not what I-"

"No."

It was the quietly forceful voice of Lelei that cut in. Feeling a headache coming to the forefront, he shifted his tired gaze towards Lelei's determined one.

"Lelei, I don't think you understand the situation we're all in." He started, "And I pray that you never figure it out. To that end, I will be sending you back to Italica." The logistics of how could wait. If need be, he'd hire a carriage to take them back, or even just drag them back himself.

The issue was making them stay there. He couldn't exactly lock them up, and sending them back to Alnus would be difficult without escorting them himself. Quite literally, too far. He couldn't - didn't want to - go that far. Doing so would mean abandoning the people here who needed help, regardless of how much he hated how they acted.

"No." She said again, and this time, Tuka nodded with her enthusiastically. Internally, Shirou groaned. He knew there was no real way to secure their acceptance now. With the both of them in agreement, any attempts to make them stay in Italica would be moot.

Teenagers. He had been one in the past, and even now, he wondered if he was ever this bad. Then, after remembering the stunts he pulled during the Grail War, he had to apologize to Rin and Saber. He really was that bad.

"Fine. Fine." Shirou didn't bother asking the reasons why Lelei didn't want to leave. He knew better that people her age weren't exactly forthcoming with the whys. The magus would just have to make sure that they didn't find trouble while they were here, "But from now on, you stick with me, alright?"

"Understood."

"Of course, Lord Emiya."

The fact that they accepted readily was both a blessing and an annoyance. It was as if this was a foregone conclusion, and one that would give him a migraine soon enough.

Well, at least he managed to keep their minds off of the earthshaking.

…

The next few hours were filled with equal parts helping and intel gathering. It wasn't far from his usual stints as an Enforcer, the ones where he needed more info before tackling his target. Except this time, instead of pompous magi from the Clock Tower, he was dealing with increasingly racist individuals.

So far, the only conclusion he's gotten to was that each and every person here absolutely loathed demi-humans. WIth special emphasis on the Yaga, it seemed.

There was not a single individual that had anything good to say about the demi-humans, and anytime he had asked, they seemed more than glad to badmouth them at every opportunity. Shirou didn't let it show on his face, but he himself was ready to leave after one of the townsfolk implied torturing an elf for fun.

Tuka hid her discomfort fairly well, all things considered.

It wasn't until he was helping an older man that he finally got some answers.

The house he was standing by was relatively intact. There were just some issues with the supports that held it all up, which he quickly replaced. It seemed that his time with handyman work had paid off, as he didn't have any problems with it. Coupled with Tuka's help and Lelei's use of her own brand of magecraft, it was simple enough.

During his work though, he had managed to sneak a peek into the home. Normally, he would have chastised himself from the impoliteness of it. If it were him whose privacy was intruded upon, he would have likely frowned in response.

The old man did none of that. Instead, he laughed goodheartedly.

Remembering what he saw, Shirou could see that it was just par for the man's personality.

"Ha! I guess that you must've some questions, son?"

"A few, I suppose." Shirou lied through his teeth. Thankfully, it was so small that even he managed to do so with a straight face. The truth was, he already knew what the man was going to say.

The inside of the house was barren compared to the other houses. Spartan, one could say. Except, right there in the middle, was a suit of armor, alongside a gladius and tower shield. From a glance, he knew the history right away.

Still, to keep up appearances, he listened intently to the old man talk about his glory days. Rabanus was a legionnaire for the Empire, back when the current Emperor's father was at the helm. He had served tour after tour, to the point of being offered a position of command. He had taken it, and in the following years, he served as a prefect, up until his retirement when he was nearing sixty.

Of course, he left out the more gruesome parts, the parts that Shirou knew were scarred into his very being. Being in the trenches while they were bombarded by enemy mages. Having to cut off a friend's arm to free him from being trapped beneath a rock. Only for that very same friend to die anyway from disease just weeks later.

However, it was in those memories that he could see a few noticeable moments. Moments where the legionnaires would fight alongside more than a handful of demi-humans.

This was the first time he could see any sort of positivity regarding demi-humans, bar the Princess and her entourage. And though he didn't say it, the fact that he hadn't said anything bad about demi-humans was interesting in itself.

Even in conversations that he'd had with the other townsfolk weren't as cordial as this. Any conversation, be it unrelated with demi-humans or not, would somehow result in an insult or twelve directed at them. That Rabanus was decidedly neutral was a positive mark in his book.

Though, if Shirou wanted to really make this work, he'd need to press forward. Even if the conversation needed to be shaken just a bit. And so, as Shirou put the finishing touches, he decided to just slam a hammer in the form of a question.

"So, what are your thoughts on demi-humans?"

He was never known for subtlety.

To his credit, the old man only raised an eyebrow before shrugging, "Hah. Well, normally I'd say I don't particularly care about them, but considering you're with an elf right there, I'm guessing you're looking for more than that?"

The almost casual way that Rabanus gestured to Tuka almost made Shirou miss what he'd said. It took a moment for the words to register among the three of them, and when they did, the magus quickly positioned himself between the old man and the girls.

Rabanus snorted, "Oh come off it, will you? Any veteran would be able to tell you're an elf from how you walk. And really, I doubt an old man like me could realistically do anything to hurt you, especially with you around."

Shirou relaxed a bit but kept his guard up. The old man's nonchalant attitude toward Tuka wasn't the norm around here, but it didn't mean Shirou could drop his vigilance entirely. Rabanus seemed different, but Shirou knew from experience that danger could lurk behind even the most genial smiles.

"I suppose you're right," Shirou conceded, keeping his voice even as he glanced back at Tuka and Lelei. Both girls were still on edge, though Lelei seemed more curious now than scared. Tuka's relief, though subtle, was visible, but Shirou knew her well enough to recognize it wasn't complete.

"You were asking about demi-humans," Rabanus said, scratching his chin as if mulling over the words. "Well, I've fought alongside a few in my time. Some were worth trusting, some weren't. Same as humans, really. I don't see them as any better or worse than us, to be honest."

Ranabus turned, a look of haunted remembrance as he stared at his armor, "And well, back there, you realize that demi-humans aren't exactly the things you should be scared of."

"What do you mean?"

The old man shrugged, "Means exactly that. Back during one of the northern campaigns, myself and most of the legionnaires were up against the Yaga. Far as I'm concerned, those things aren't demi-humans. There's a damn reason even Italica doesn't have any Yaga employed.

"Hell, I ain't ashamed to say that we would retreat any time we encountered Yaga in significant numbers. Most of that campaign was a failure through and through because of that, and the only reason we survived was thanks to a coalition of demi-humans and the Imperial legions. Not that the official records will say anything about it." Rabanus scoffed in derision, "Far as I can tell, after that whole debacle, they really ramped up the propaganda for demi-human hate after that, and you can tell with how much the youngins loathe demi-humans nowadays."

"B-But that doesn't make sense!" Tuka cut in, wide eyed, "My entire life, humans have gone after us! You mean to tell me that humans used to fight alongside demi-humans?"

Rabanus sighed, his expression softening as he met Tuka's eyes. "It's complicated, lass. Over here, near the heart of the Empire, it may be a bit difficult to imagine. Back up north? You can bet that just about anyone was willing to ally themselves together if it meant not being alone against the damn Yaga."

Gently coaxing Tuka away from Rabanus and letting the confused Lelei take the elf, Shirou asked, "You say that the Yaga aren't demi-humans. What makes you say that?"

In truth, the term 'demi-humans' had been used to refer to anyone that had human features, but were distinctly not human. Just about every other species that wasn't obviously an animal was referred to as such, even by the elves themselves.

So what made the Yaga different? What made the old man in front of him snort as if some joke had just been told?

"According to them, they're not. Managed to capture one in the past, and I'll tell you, it was difficult to make them talk. Higher ups decided that it would be in their best interests not to spread things around, but never got us to swear on it. Their problem, not mine." Rabanus shrugged, while Shirou, Lelei and the quiet Tuka looked on.

"Turns out, the Yaga aren't demi-humans cause they're former humans. Some bit of magic made them turn out like that. And frankly, I should've known." One last rueful chuckle, mirthless and humorless.

"Heh, we all should've known. After all, humans are the only species I know that could inflict so much cruelty."

…

A/N: If you like what I do and want to support me, check out my P-atreon at P-atreon•com(slash)Almistyor.

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And a special thanks to: FireRogueWolf25, brutalcrab and Tassimo.