King Killers, Netherworlds, & Witches

Hedonist Safir & Heretic Merlin #6

By: Aviantei

[Twelve Shots of Summer: Nine Tales 3/12]

[Parameters: "Students & Sensei" & "Blood Limit"]

^^^
lo0ol

"Is it just me, or has Kujou-sensei started acting different these past few weeks?"

It's what should be a normal day in the Student Council chambers. Luna's been in the middle of her campaign to update the school-provided lunches, and, being the treasurer, you have a lot of spreadsheets and budget proposals to funnel into that. Further, as a regular donator to Camelot International High School, you're adding up numbers to make this happen from the backside. The school can't complain with such a proposal if someone drops the cash onto them for that express purpose, now can they?

Except Luna's question drags your thoughts in other directions. Oh, you're making sure that it still looks like you're keeping busy (not that she'd scold you about it, but details), though you're paying more attention to the conversation than your work. Luna leans back in her chair, not even bothering to pretend that she's performing her role as president. "I mean, he's a pretty cool teacher already, but something about him seems…brighter, you know?"

Given how lackadaisical she acts, it can be easy to forget how observant Luna is. Now, if she'd use that ability for good, rather than her usual nonsense. Fuyuse puts a hand to her chin, deep in thought. "Hm, I think I know what you mean. Maybe something good happened to him?"

You resist the urge to snort. Yes, having his fiancée saved from her wasting-away state very much counts as "something good," now doesn't it? But mentioning that would require explaining how you know, which would require explaining your role as said healer, which would require explaining how you even got dragged into things in the first place, which would—the list goes on and on. And though you trust Luna enough to know she'd accept your whole "reincarnated into a world that was a light novel in the past" deal, you've already given her a powerful enough piece by becoming her vassal along with Rintarou. She doesn't need to know the full extent of how busted you are.

So you hum in acknowledgement so Luna knows you're not ignoring her but don't say anything else. Paperwork, yes, very essential, they'd never get anything done without you, etc., etc.…

"Why do you even care?" Rintarou asks Luna, sounding as haggard as ever. The cause is no surprise: as vice president of the student council, his duties essentially boil down to taking care of all the heavy lifting that Luna considers too boring to handle herself. Part of you can't help but wonder how the Canon student council even functioned whatsoever. "If you have time to worry about our teachers' personal lives, then you have time to do your own damn paperwork, you know!"

Luna looks appalled. "But I did do some paperwork. Look!" She sticks her hand into the pile of forms scattered on the table before her, pulling out a couple of sheets that are, in fact, filled out in her handwriting. "If we're updating the food, we gotta have a new menu, right? So I brainstormed the perfect options and came up with something super amazing. Sheesh, Rintarou, you know you gotta take care of the foundation before you can build the rest of the—"

"Oh, yes, very good! Now how about where the actual supplies and staff are going to come from to manage your ridiculous expectations?!"

"Don't be ridiculous—that's what I have you for, my vassal!"

"I don't know why I bother to expect anything out of you ever! Dumbass! King Airhead!"

A smile slips onto your lips, their usual bickering making you feel like home. And more than that, you know Rintarou started the squabble to keep Luna from prying too far into Kujou's situation. You don't even have to ask, and he's there, filling in the gaps to continue the comforting life that you've all made together.

And then Fuyuse Nayuki giggles, fitting right into the situation. That's right. You weren't here at first. The three of them—they're the ones that are part of this story, they're the ones that made a found home together in the end. You—you're just an interloper, someone who remixes the pieces but in the end is trying to protect the triumphant conclusion. Sure, you've sped up the process, but they could've made it without you. In fact, in Fuyuse Nayuki's case—

(Once Rintarou understands who she is, once the King Arthur Succession Battle begins and other high-level opponents arrive, what need will he have for you?)

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Today's adventure is diving down in the depths of the ocean that no other human has ever laid eyes on before. Thanks to magic, there's no need to wear special equipment or worry about the water pressure, and enhancing your vision means that you don't even need to deploy a light to ruin the natural beauty of the place. There are creatures and coral formations that you don't even have the words to describe, and that's part of what makes the space so special. No matter how much knowledge you've had in your past lives, no matter how much of a prodigy you grew up as, there's still something new to be had, deep under the water and away from the rest of the world.

It's the perfect place to think.

Fuck holding back. That was the vow you made to yourself upon being reborn. What you're doing right now? It feels a lot like holding back. Dancing around other people's feelings, acting like you don't have a place in their lives—what bullshit! You decided to get involved because you wanted to, and no one's told you you're unnecessary. You're making up thoughts and feelings, projecting them onto others, and why? Because you can see some parallels between your reality and the Canon you've already derailed? How foolish can you get?

You want to be there, want to be a piece of their lives. Hell, you already are. So you're staying, and if someone has a problem with that, you'll resolve it when it comes up. Besides, your being here has let you prevent tragedies, like Emma, like Tachibana Kotone, and that's wonderful. So with that in mind, you should get yourself to fucking work and at long last deal with the issue of Tsukuyomi Reika.

Mordred.

The exact level of detail that the light novels provided was minimal to say the least. Oh, sure, it spent a lot of time on the results, on the fighting after and Mordred coming to accept how Luna and Rintarou reflect the ideals she once fought to preserve. And while that's all great, there's still plenty of open spaces left over. You remember some sort of senseless violence at the beginning of that arc that seemed to indicate the chance that Mordred had gone ahead and just…murdered the Tsukuyomi family? Or some family at any rate. In either event, there was a child involved.

Hitsuji Taro, what the fuck?

Well, regardless of the choices of the original author, you've been dumped into this world, and you've already proven that its premise can be changed. So, yeah, time to use all your overpowered abilities to stop whatever kind of nonsense the plot has tossed at you.

But if you're dealing with someone else from the Legendary Era, there's no sense in going at it alone.

"Sheesh, I never change, huh?"

The bubbles containing those words slip up through the water, racing towards the surface, and you're gone long before they ever manage to reach the surface.

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"Mordred, huh…?"

As expected, Rintarou looks conflicted at the news. Just like he's listened to you talk about all the things you've endured in your past lives, you've listened to him discuss his end as Merlin just as much. Not just his own defeat—but that he had to watch the end, had to watch Arthur fall. And while so many other factors tied into it, the fact of the matter is that Mordred is the one who delivered that final blow.

The king who killed Arthur.

(Snow Maiden and the King Who Killed Arthur—

Quiet.)

"It's possible to win her over," you say, leaning back on the couch you installed into one of the extra rooms at Logres Manor. What's the point of having such a large house if you don't take advantage of it? So, of course you made a parlor, one that looks like you reached back in time to the Victorian Era and pulled it out. Looking delightfully out of place in his hoodie-augmented uniform on the couch beside you, Rintarou quirks a brow. "I mean, I'm not calling it a guarantee or anything. But Canon you brawled it out with her, and things worked out in the end, so?"

"I know I have no room to talk, but what kind of shōnen manga nonsense is that?!" You let him have his freak out. That's half of how he deals with feeling things, and he'll come to you if he needs help with the rest. "What? I beat Mordred up and it's all okay? Someone else beating me up wouldn't solve shit!" This time, it's your turn to raise an eyebrow, and Rintarou scoffs, mussing your hair. "You know what I mean!"

You do know what he means. After all, what you helped him with was showing him there was a point to continue on—he was not alone in his strength, and you are someone who will never fear him because you are the same. When it comes to the matter of everything that happened to him as Merlin, however, that's still some things he needs to work out over time. Of course he's skeptical that kicking Mordred around will solve anything.

"Sorry," you say, sipping at the tea you've prepared, "that's about all I remember." If you didn't know better, you'd say that your memory keeps withholding information from you until the most dramatic points possible. Then again, for that theory to be true, it would involve you still being clueless until the King Arthur Succession Battle started, which isn't the case. "That said, I doubt it's anything as simple as you two fight it out and Mordred backs down. And I'd just say let it go if she didn't go around offing people who have nothing to do with her grudge in the process."

You understand seeking vengeance with every fiber of your being. That's part of what's drawing you to hunt down Morgan le Fey in the first place—even if she didn't wrong you, she wronged Rintarou, and that's as good as the same thing in your book, maybe even worse. All of that's to say nothing of all the lives that have come before this.

(Round two might have set it off, but it was just the start. Seeking to reform the world, unleashing your rage on those that experimented upon you, hunting the beast that destroyed your life, chasing the brother that killed your parents, building power to eliminate the anomaly that stole who was most precious to you, taking every last person who defiled you and sending them to their graves—

You are no stranger to the feeling of blood on your hands, but, in most of those cases, the retaliation was deserved.

Can Tsukuyomi Reika say the same?)

"Still, I'm sure she hasn't done anything just yet," you say. Yes, the memories are incomplete, but what you do remember is clear. Mordred didn't awaken until getting her Excalibur—or, at least, she hadn't snapped enough to commit senseless murder until she'd summoned her Jack. The Dame du Lac hasn't contacted Luna yet, occupied with their preparations for the upcoming battle, so you're still safe. "I checked, and Tsukuyomi Reika is just living an ordinary life without any anomalies. This gives us the advantage in triggering her awakening ourselves in a controlled environment."

"So we make a Netherworld, see if we can wake Mordred up the same way you did to me, have our stupid battle or whatever, and hope it all works out?" Rintarou's plan is about the same as yours, so you nod. If Mordred doesn't wake up, you can just let Tsukuyomi herself go. "If we have to, we can monitor her until she does remember, and then we can respond right away, I guess. Ugh, what a pain. Guess we should get this out of the way now if we can." You can't help but smile at his performed reluctance. "I have some things I'd like to say to Mordred anyways. So, what, are we going now, or—?"

"Please wait a moment!"

It's not easy to startle you or Rintarou, and yet that simple sentence has done both. None of your wards have gone off, so it's not as if someone's broken into the manor, so neither of you has gone into an offensive state. Well, at least if you did, the person who's interrupted your conversation would be more than capable of defending herself.

You've trained Emma yourself, after all.

While the sight of her is enough to eliminate the possibility of a threat, you can't ease the sparks pricking through your skin. While you saved Emma from her own circumstances, you didn't tell her the full truth as to how you found her, instead passing it off as a whim. While Luna would go wild with your status, Emma wouldn't care—but that's just it. To her, it just matters that she was taken away from the Religious Order of Saint Joan, not the specific reasons. There was no need to explain. But now?

You comb over your conversation in your head, replaying it word by word at light speed. Did you say anything that could be a clue? If you did, was Emma listening long enough to hear any of it?

Rintarou looks at you, his expression making it clear that he's at a loss for that to do. Too bad for him that you're at a loss, too.

Emma marches into the room, even managing to make that movement look elegant. "I, um… Sorry for eavesdropping, Master. I didn't mean to but, I heard some, and…" She fidgets, looking nervous, and you mold your face into something a bit more relaxed and understanding. "I don't understand it all, but you're going off to help someone like you helped me, right?"

Your mouth opens, but no words come out. Goodness, today just seems to show off all your ability to look like a total fool. Is that what you're doing? You don't know. You've just been doing what you want, and it seems that happens to involve throwing all of Canon's concepts to the fucking wind. Are you stopping Mordred because you want to help her? Help the people she's killed? Or are you just acting out of your own selfish desires?

Fuck holding back, you promised yourself, but why does it feel much more complicated than that?

"I—"

"If we're being technical, we're going to help someone like they helped me," Rintarou says, and your head snaps in his direction. Rintarou's too busy looking Emma head on to glance your way, but you can see the sincerity in those golden eyes of his. "But that's just getting nitpicky for no real reason. Either way, you're going to say the same thing, aren't you?"

"Of course I am, Magami-san!" Emma almost pouts, but her hands are clenched into determined fists. "Master, let me come with you. I…I decided that I don't just want to stand by and be saved. I want to help people the same way you've helped me, so whatever you're about to do, let me come along!"

(I think I know what I want to do next. Let me help you with your—)

Damn, there's no way you can say no to that. Not whenever she's so much like you've been in the past. The thought should make you sigh, but instead it gives you a little tinge of pride in your apprentice, along with just the faintest hints of a headache before your OP af body washes that all away. Besides, it's not like Emma can't handle herself. Between her previous training, the instruction you've given her, and her natural ability, she'll be fine, and all the more so with you and Rintarou with her. Taking Emma along is more unfair to Tsukuyomi Reika than it is to anyone else in this situation.

Well, it's not like it wasn't unfair already. You and Rintarou are unstoppable—hell, you're willing to bet you'd overwhelm her on your own.

But this isn't about overwhelming her, not at all. It's about cleaning up a mess before it becomes a mess. If you're bringing Rintarou along, what harm is there in bringing Emma, too? "Alright," you say, and Emma's face lights up. "But you had to have heard some of that, right? I'm not going to waste my time explaining who Mordred is to you." As a descendant of King Arthur, Emma has to know the myth better than you can ever recount to her. "In short, her soul's been reincarnated into this era. I'm sure you can understand that that has the potential to get messy, so we're gonna try to make it less of a hassle before the King Arthur Succession Battle starts. Still want to come along?"

"Yes, that's fine." Emma's resolve doesn't waver in the slightest, so you can't fight with her on that count. She puts a hand to her chest, looking all the world like she's pleading with you, though she doesn't have to go that far. "Even if all I do is stand on the sidelines, I want to come along. Master, you and Magami-san are always running off on your own. I know he's stronger than me for now, but that doesn't mean I can't help carry the burden!"

Well, it wasn't like you were hiding how much you go off galivanting around the globe, but you didn't think it was that obvious. Rintarou seems to have other concerns, muttering, "'For now'?"

You stand up, stepping up to Emma and patting her on the head. She raises no objections to the touch, instead nuzzling into it like an excited puppy. "Emma," you say, earning her whole attention just like that, "please know that I think you're more than capable. I just didn't want to force this sort of responsibility onto you." She opens her mouth, but you're already responding to her unspoken protest. "If it's your choice, I won't argue at all. After all, I promised to help you achieve whatever you want, didn't I?"

Emma beams, looking even more brilliant by the second. "Thank you, Master! I'll do my best!"

And with that settled, there isn't too much to do but get to it.

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lo0ol

When you were looking up Kataoka Hitoshi's information, you also procured Tsukuyomi Reika's address as well. Unlike when you visited Rintarou, though, there's no teleporting right into her room and awakening Mordred. For one, you don't know if that will be enough. For two, half the point of dealing with this now is to keep her family from meeting some unnecessarily gruesome fate, so no blowing things up. Does this count as a violation of fuck holding back? Not quite, because you don't have any desire to destroy things at the moment.

So it's more teleporting to the mainland again, though it's not some sleepy town in the suburbs. No, you're in a city, and the Tsukuyomi family lives in an apartment complex that reaches high up into the sky. It's all painfully normal, and the three of you just look like normal teenagers, too, no super powerful mages here, don't be silly. All you have to do is hope that you can find Reika without arousing anyone's suspicions.

The good news is that, as a descendant of King Arthur, Tsukuyomi Reika is easy to track down—and even more so because of Mordred's presence nestled in her soul. You pause outside the doorway, and Emma's eyes go wide as she senses the same thing. Rintarou looks conflicted again, lost in his thoughts.

So of course you pivot on your heel and pinch his cheeks, stretching them out.

"What—" He shoves you off. "What the fuck is your damage?!"

"You're brooding is my damage! Come on, you're not going into this alone, Rintarou-chan!" You give him a long look, refusing to blink until he relents, breathing out a chuckle. "Much better. Now, let's go put your fellow cranky old soul to rest."

"Who the hell are you calling cranky?!"

You don't even bother to deign that with a response, your goal of calming him down accomplished. Even Emma looks far more at ease after seeing you and Rintarou act like nothing's wrong, which is a nice bonus. That done, you ring the doorbell like a normal person. All things considered, this'll be a whole lot easier if you can start with a normal conversation like with Kataoka Hitoshi and go from there.

Except no one comes to answer the door. The intercom doesn't spark to life, even asking for an introduction. There isn't even any movement from the other side. You probe inside with your magic, but it's certain there are people there. Perhaps Tsukuyomi Reika has been told not to answer the door for strangers? Still, she's close to your group's age; she should at least check to see who it is first.

"Master," Emma whispers, "something doesn't feel right."

She's correct. You go to run analysis magic, but Rintarou's already done it. "They're unconscious," he says, and your instincts are going wild, though you're not sure what this all means. "Not asleep, but unconscious. Some kind of magic is active, but it's behind a hazing effect, so I can't tell what kind it is."

Is that a sign that Mordred's already awakened? Maybe. But whatever it is, you can't just stand there. Rintarou and Emma were already in your magic protection, but you enhance that with the next round of teleportation magic. "We're going in."

Neither of them argue, both nodding their agreement—and then you're inside. The apartment looks normal, but you can feel the magic crawling against your skin like insects swarming. Whoever cast this didn't have good intentions whatsoever, and that the curtains are closed just adds to the ominous atmosphere by draping the whole room in shadow. You don't bother paying attention to the mundane details, instead leading your group at a powerwalk towards the people you sense further back. You find them, two children collapsed on the ground of a bedroom, the older figure of Tsukuyomi Reika slumped over a much smaller shape that you guess is her younger sibling. Both of them are, as sensed, unconscious, but a quick bout of diagnostic magic reveals that they've both sustained a number of bruises that can't be accidental.

Emma makes a strangled choking noise, but she forces herself to composure. "Master, this is—"

And then, at the worst possible moment, the memory hits you, the casual words of Mordred amongst her canonical fight with Rintarou: I stole the body of a sinner.

Sir Mordred wasn't reincarnated into Tsukuyomi Reika—no, she was summoned as her Jack, then used her own magic to steal Tsukuyomi's position as a member of the King Arthur Succession Battle for her own means. But if that's the case, then what was the sensation of that soul from the Legendary Era that you sensed—?

"Fooouuund you~."

The Netherworld surges up, dragging you down into it. You're caught off guard, yes, but not enough that you can't leave a tether to the outside world. Creating a Neverwhere is always most fragile at the beginning, and you could shatter the whole thing to pieces if you wanted. But that might scare whoever set the spell off away, and you're not one to back down from a challenge.

You think you can get away with setting a trap for me? Bring it on.

With your tether to the real world still active, you manifest near the sky of the Netherworld. Whoever set this off is powerful, because they've dragged you down deep, right on the cusp of the Illusory World. You let your tether manifest as a thread, allowing you to swing over the dark, ruin-like landscape as if you had a grappling hook. And, yes, you can fly, but come on!

Grappling hook.

Finding a flat enough place to land, you do just that, letting your connection to reality stay as just a thread. You were swallowed up, but you don't sense Rintarou and Emma on the same plane as you. A quick ping of your magic indicates that they, too, are in the Netherworld, just on different levels. Is this an attempt at divide and conquer? Whatever, your friends aren't helpless. They can take care of themselves.

You? You're here to have a conversation with the figure that's deigned to show up before you.

Fitting in with the ominous atmosphere of their Netherworld, the person several meters away stands in a dark cloak, billowing in the wind. Their presence is hazy, hidden behind a masking magic that doesn't allow anyone to perceive the true form of who's before them—but you're not a dumbass. Sure, you're a bit of a cheater, but you recognize that trick well enough.

You found me? Sure, but this means I also got to find you, you damn witch.

Morgan le Fey steps closer to you, and you let her, though already the rage and adrenaline is pumping through you. You want to wipe her off the face of the earth, but you resist that urge. Rintarou asked that if you were to do it, you'd do it together, and you intend to uphold that promise, just like every other promise you've made to him.

But that doesn't mean you can't make your own declaration of war before then.

"I was wondering who could even be capable of sticking their nose into my business," Morgan le Fey says, almost right before you. Unlike her, you don't bother putting up any identity-masking magic. Let her know who you are, let her come after you. That's pretty much what you've wanted this whole time. "Back with the Religious Order of Saint Joan, someone had already ransacked the place by the time I got there…and with Hitoshi I thought he'd be the perfect fool to manipulate, but he refused to even talk to me." Even behind her magic, it's obvious that Morgan is a seductress, through and through, maintaining that demeanor in a situation such as this. "So I decided to wait here, since Tsukuyomi Reika was the most vulnerable candidate left, and it paid off."

Oh, so that's what this is. Clever of her, all things considered. But sure, she managed to notice you, but you let yourself get caught here. So what?

"And who do I find?" Morgan continues, close enough that one small motion is all it would take for your noses to touch. "The cute little genius who disappeared from the public eye a couple of months ago. Seems you're quite the mage, too, now aren't you? Keeping yourself together this close to the Illusory World. My, my, no wonder you're so skilled with a soul like that tucked inside. But you're not from our era, now are you? I'm afraid I can't quite figure out your game."

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Your answer is in the same playful and unconcerned tones as hers. Morgan le Fey may be a temptation, but you've had the same title in the past. "At least, that's what I'd say if I had any sort of grand design. But I'm not concerned with such things, oh no." You reach out, using a single finger to tilt Morgan's chin so that you can look at her dead on. "All I'm doing…is whatever I damn well please in the moment. So there's something I've been meaning to tell you in person."

Your free hand punches forward, straight into Morgan's gut. It's a satisfying enough sensation, though there's a limit to that—the Morgan before you is just a projection, a substitute vessel. But even if that's the case, she's still connected to her true body by the same sort of thin thread of magic that you've used to anchor yourself to reality. So you grab onto that and yank, dragging the real Morgan out of her projection, her face behind the veil twisted in both pain and shock as her identity masking magic shatters.

You grin. "Hello there, Morgan. You can play whatever game you like in this era. Because no matter what you do, my king's going to be victorious anyways. But there's one thing I can promise you even more than that—

"If you do anything to hurt Merlin again, I swear I'll grind every last trace of your soul down to dust."

You accentuate the words with a full burst of your mana, one pulse at full power. Morgan doesn't even need to experience the entirety of the wave of it to yank herself away, erasing all traces of her and her substitute from the Netherworld in a spell of self-destruction. You don't even bother to let it scrape you. Let her know who she's messing with, let her understand the wrath that will be brought down upon her if she even dares to try anything against Rintarou.

That is the one thing you won't allow to happen, no matter what.

All traces of Morgan herself disappear, but her Netherworld remains. It's so close to the Curtain of Consciousness that you could slip into the Illusory World without even trying. But you don't feel like doing that. No, you want to reunite with Rintarou and give him the news, regroup with Emma as well, and see what you can do to help Tsukuyomi Reika. So you begin your spell, twisting Morgan's Netherworld so it becomes your own. Rather than dissipate it just yet, you instead collapse all the planes into one, drawing them all closer to the middle level where Rintarou is fighting, pulling Emma towards you all as well.

The Neverwhere snaps into place, Rintarou and Emma letting out twin sounds of surprise. Each of them take a moment before they halt their respective weapons, the polearm and twin swords no longer having anything to swing at. When they both see you, it's clear they understand, and they relax, though they don't put their arms away, and Rintarou maintains his Fomorian Transformation, his now long and white hair swaying before settling into place. You smile, raising a hand in a wave. "Yo."

"Yo," Rintarou says, mirroring your action.

"Y-yo," Emma says, sounding way less confident but still caught up in the moment. "No, wait, that's not it! I'm glad to see you, Master, but Reika-san—the girl we came to see. Since I was in the Assiah level of the Netherworld, I think it merged with parts of her consciousness, and I saw it. She's…it's not as severe as the Religious Order of Saint Joan, but she's still…"

Pieces click into place, and you hate everything. Oh, Canon didn't say anything about this as far as you remember, but that doesn't matter. That was a story—this is reality. And if Emma says she saw such abuse, then you believe it. "Emma," you say, keeping your voice soft and offering your hand, "if that's the way it is, then of course we'll take care of her. I'm sorry you had to endure seeing something like that on your own."

Emma trembles, and then she takes not just your hand, but your entire arm. Her embrace is tight, but her form is trembling. You go to hug her in return, but she's already taken a deep breath and steadied herself. "I…I'll be alright long enough to tend to her. But I think it'll be better if I talk to her alone. Master, could I have some teleportation charms to bring them both back to Logres Manor?"

"Done." Embedding one of your spells into a physical form for Emma to manifest with a pulse of her own mana is simple, and you add a few extra ones for good measure. "If you need me, trigger the one on top, and I'll be there." You give her a smile. "I'm proud of you, Emma. You're growing even faster than I expected of you."

"Thank you! I won't let you down!"

And just like that, she's taken one of the charms and used it to pull herself from the Netherworld. Goodness, kids grow up way too fast sometimes. But this works out, because you have some things to share with Rintarou, and it'll be easier to talk about them without having to explain to Emma. You crack the cramp out of your neck with a satisfying pop. "Good news, Rintarou-cha—"

A pair of arms wraps around you from behind before you can turn to him. You and Rintarou have shared hugs before, so it's not an unfamiliar or unwanted sensation. Perhaps, like Emma saw something to trigger her, Rintarou saw something connected to his past as well? If he needs support, then you're more than willing to give it. But, no, this embrace isn't one seeking comfort. It's something else, pulling you a bit closer than usual, your bodies flush to one another, Rintarou's palms pressed against your sides.

"Ah…Safir, was it?" he asks, and you realize what this is as the shift in mana reaches you, as dark and churning as the currents at the deepest deaths of the ocean. "It's about time. I've been dying to meet you in person, you know."

You don't even bother to sigh. This was bound to happen sooner or later. "Looks like you've gone ahead and woken yourself up early…Id."

[Author's Notes]

It's about time I wrote the Reika parts. Though they ended up going in a different direction than I expected. This is still fun, though, so I'm fine with it.

This specific chapter happened thanks to the [Twelve Shots of Summer: Nine Tales] challenge, and you can view the prompts above! It's been a while since I've had a year of full-out winging it, so I'm having fun with that. Though whether I can call this specific entry a one shot when it's kind of just become a full-out story...yeah...

But it's about damn time we had some Morgan le Fey interaction. Also Rintarou's Fomorian nonsense was gonna come into play, too. I'm pretty confident in what I wanna do for the next part, and I think it'll fit right in with some later [T-Sauce] prompts, so I hope to put it out later this summer!

If you have the time, also check out the [Twelve Shots of Summer] community! We don't chat a super lot, but we love seeing new people hop in with the writing and reading. My fellow writers all put out great stuff, too, so go support them if you're interested!

-Avi

[06.19.2022]